Ice is a very important weapon in the world of Game of Thrones. This isn’t only because it was made from a very rare material but because it was once wielded by a very honorable noble, Eddard (Ned) Stark.
In fact, Ice was the ancestral sword of House Stark. It has been passed down through many generations. Sadly, it ended with Ned.
Unlike most weapons handled by important characters in Game of Thrones, Ice is only one of the few greatswords in the story. Being forged from Valyrian steel, Ice is made even rarer. Wielding Ice, it is emphasized just how strong and capable Ned Stark was. If you would like Ice for yourself, check it out here on Amazon.
This can also mean that it takes someone with great strength to be able to use Ice effectively. Ice was huge and heavy. So huge that if reworked, two smaller swords were made from it. Valyrian steel weapons typically played a huge part in the Game of Thrones setting.
While Ice was important, some would consider its fate as grim as the last Stark that wielded it. If you are yet to watch or finish Game of Thrones, please know that there are spoilers in this article.
Events concerning Ice will be divulged. If you wish not to read on, you’re free to come back to this article after you read or watched about it. Now that we’ve gotten that cleared up, we can further discuss more about Ice.
Not a lot about the other Starks who owned the sword was known. In fact, much about the sword’s history is yet to be revealed. Most of what we know about the sword at the time of this writing comes from the TV show, Game of Thrones.
Still, though we don’t know much about the sword’s history, there’s still much to tell about it based on how it was depicted in the show. Usually, Eddard Stark would use Ice for ceremonial purposes. As for how Ice was first seen on the show, Ned Stark used it to cut off the head of a deserter from the Night’s Watch. Unfortunately, even Ned’s demise would be by his own sword as well.
What Does Ice Look Like?
Being a greatsword, Ice has immense size. No official dimensions of the sword haven’t been posted but there have been mentions of how it looked like in the books.
As Bran described it in the books, Ice was “as wide across as a man’s hand and even taller than Robb”. Ice is a huge straight double-edged greatsword that has a very simplistic design.
If not for distinct characteristics of Valyrian steel, one might mistake it as an ordinary weapon. Much like all the other Valyrian weapons, Ice being made of Valyrian steel has ripple patterns along its blade. The appearance of Ice differs in the books and the show though. On the show, Ice had a metallic silver color.
However, in the books, it was mentioned that the blade appeared dark and smokey. As a greatsword, Ice has a long enough handle for two-handed use. It has a brown grip with a semi-round pommel.
More than having a tall blade, Ice also has a long guard. Across, it is just about the same width of Eddard Stark. Also, more than having ripples, the sword also had magical attributes bound to it as well.
As a Valyrian weapon, Ice will always stay sharp. Even time can’t tarnish the sharpness of Valyrian steel weapons.
Who Made Ice, Ned’s Sword?
It was never mentioned who forged Ice. Additionally, Nothing was mentioned of how Ice ended up in the House of Stark. Although much of the weapon’s history is unknown, it was mentioned that only one race was able to forge all of the Valyrian weapons.
They were the Valyrians. Although no specific name was mentioned, we can be certain that the Valyrians were the ones who forged Ice into existence. They were the only ones with the knowledge and skills to work with the rare metal. The Valayrians also imbued magic into their weapons too.
After Valyria was destroyed, the knowledge of being able to work with Valyrian steel was lost. This meant that Valyrian steel now had become scarce, due to Valyrians being the only ones who could forge them. However, the knowledge to recast Valyrian steel weapons was not lost.
There were only very few blacksmiths that knew how to rework Valyrian steel. This emphasized how rare Valyrian steel weapons were.
It was mentioned that Valyrians made use of magic and dragon fire to create Valyrian steel. While that part of the creation process was not verified, some key characteristics of Valyrian steel weapons do exhibit magical properties.
How Valuable Was Ice?
Being made of Valyrian steel, Ice was extremely valuable. It is rare, and being the heirloom of the Starks, could make it even priceless. Valyrian steel weapons were so valuable that no one even agreed on selling their Valyrian steel weapons to Tywin Lannister, even when he offered large sums of money.
It is so rare and valuable that even Tywinn, one of the wealthiest characters in the world of Game of Thrones didn’t have any Valyrian steel weapon to use. This was why he was so eager to have Ice redone after Ned died.
What Are the Abilities of Ice?
While Ice was only seen during the earlier parts of the show, much of its abilities were still shown after it was remade into two smaller swords; Widow’s Wail and Oathkeeper. Being made of Valyrian steel, the sword is imbued with magical properties that became crucial in the later parts of the story.
While Eddard Stark had used it for cutting off the heads of traitors and criminals, it can do vastly more than just that. Here are the different abilities of Ice:
Magical and Powerful
Much of the distinct abilities of Ice and all other Valyrian weapons is largely due to the material they are made out of, Valyrian steel. Being made out of the rare metal, they are not just among the rarest but are also the most magical and the most powerful amongst all other weapons.
This is why Valyrian weapons are considered treasures and typically become heirlooms of different houses. Even during the heyday of the Valyrian Freehold, Valyrian steel weapons were still considered expensive.
Less Heavy
Valyrian steel is actually lighter than ordinary steel. So, while Ice is humungous, it is still lighter than other greatswords. This doesn’t mean though, that Ice is not heavy, it is simply lighter.
Weight plays a huge role in combat. With a lighter sword, the wielder can strike faster and can fight longer. While the weight of Ice was not divulged, we can only assume that it is less heavy than other swords of similar size.
It wasn’t mentioned just how much lighter Valyrian steel is so it’s left for our imagination for now. Hopefully, more about Ice and Valyrian steel, in general, will be explained in the upcoming books.
Extremely Durable
At one point, the ultimate nemesis of everyone in the Game of Thrones was the White Walkers. They don’t get tired, feel pain, are nearly immortal and are extremely strong.
More than that, any weapon that comes in contact to theirs easily shatter. Even the best weapons break into many pieces against the weapons of the White Walkers. The only exceptions are those that are made of Valyrian steel.
More than immunity to the weapons of the White Walkers, Ice, and all other Valyrian steel weapons are more durable than all other ordinary weapons.
Forever Sharp
Another unique ability of Ice is that its sharpness doesn’t fade. Ice has always been as sharp as how it was after being forged. No matter how many times it has been used, its sharpness has never tarnished and it never will.
This is a great advantage to anyone who has Ice, as the sword won’t ever need to be honed. All the wielder has to do is to clean the sword for maintenance.
Kills White Walkers
No ordinary weapon can kill white walkers. They are also enchanted, thus making them invulnerable against almost anything.
There are very few weapons that are capable of killing White Walkers. Ice, along with all other Valyrian steel weapons, and dragonglass weapons, are the only weapons known to actually kill White Walkers.
These are the ultimate weapons to use against White Walkers as they don’t shatter when fighting against the Ice weapons wielded by the White Walkers.
What Happened to Ned’s Sword?
Ice was the very first Valyrian steel weapon that was introduced on the Game of Thrones show. Typically, Eddard Stark would use it for ceremonial purposes. Ice was first seen being used by Ned to cut off the head of a deserter from the Night’s Watch in season 1.
Ironically, the season ended with Ned being beheaded by Ilyne Payne using Ice. After his death, Ice was kept in King’s Landing. Sometime later, Tywin Lannister had Ice melted and recast into two smaller swords; the Widow’s Wail and the Oathkeeper.
Oathkeeper was given to Jaime Lannister and Widow’s Wail was given to Joffrey Baratheon as a gift during his wedding. As the story progressed, Jaime gave Oathkeeper to Brienne of Tarth and Widow’s Wail was then wielded by Jaime after Joffrey’s death.
In the end, only the whereabouts of Oathkeeper was known, as it was still wielded by Brienne. As for Widow’s Wail, it was never seen again after it was confiscated from Jaime when he was arrested while trying to go to King’s Landing.
Summary:
While we only know little about Ice from the Game of Thrones, hopefully, we can learn more about it when the prequel of the show does come out. It has a rich backstory and its history might be tied with the White Walkers.
Still, we hope you learned a lot of new information about Ned’s signature sword and the heirloom of House Stark, the Valyrian greatsword, Ice.
Let us know what you think and share this with your friends so they may also know more about this epic weapon from the world of Game of Thrones.