Who is Quaithe in the Game of Thrones? Role and significance explained

Quaithe in Game of Thrones, also known as Quaithe of the Shadow, is a shadowbinder from the legendary city of Asshai in the far east of Essos. She appears to have clairvoyant and prophecy-related magical abilities. Quaithe is portrayed by Laura Pradelska, who made a significant impression during her brief appearance in two Game of Thrones season 2 episodes.

D. B. Weiss and David Benioff developed the American fantasy drama television series Game of Thrones for HBO. It is an adaptation of George R. R. Martin's fantasy book series A Song of Ice and Fire, the first book of which is A Game of Thrones. The series has 73 episodes that spread across eight seasons.

Quaithe speaks in riddles and predictions, and is enigmatic. Like many others from the Shadow Lands, she conceals her actual features behind a wooden mask that has been varnished.

When Quaithe first appeared in the show, it was in "The Ghost of Harrenhal" from season 2, where she cautioned Jorah Mormont that the men of Qarth might be interested in Daenerys' dragons. A few episodes later, she reappears, telling Jorah that he must be protected, as all men who cross the Doom of Valyria need it. She also raises doubts about his commitment to Daenerys.

After these two instances, the character is never seen again in the series.

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Is Quaithe a shadow assassin in Game of Thrones?

Quaithe a shadow assassin (Image via Fire and Blood)

Shadows are magical beings, also called shadow babies or assassins. Shadowbinders are those who can bring forth shadows, and are regarded as the most evil magicians. The Shadowbinders hail from Asshai, a fortified port city perpetually shrouded in darkness due to towering mountains.

Melisandre and Quaithe are the two well-known shadowbinders from Game of Thrones. Most of Quaithe's time is spent lurking around wearing a lacquered mask and giving Daenerys strange advice. She appears in shadows, demonstrating her power to transfer her awareness over distances.

Quaithe saves Daenerys (Image via Fire and Blood)

In George R.R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire books, Quaithe plays a more significant role and directly interacts with Daenerys, making even more ambiguous predictions. Among them, one of the most renowned ones is:

“To go north, you must journey south. To reach the west, you must go east. To go forward, you must go back; to touch the light, you must pass beneath the shadow.”

The prophecies made by Quaithe are often accurate in the show, but they still don’t solve the mystery of who she is.

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What is Quaithe’s role in Daenerys's life in Game of Thrones?

Quaithe in George R.R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire books (Image via GameofThrones)

When Daenerys gets to Qarth, she meets Quaithe in the course, where the shadow binder reveals that magic has unpredictably returned in the weeks following the dragons' birth.

Quaithe fulfills a comparable role in Daenerys's narrative, similar to Melisandre's for Stannis. Asshai is the home of both characters, and in the television series Game of Thrones, Quaithe's hexagon mask and Melisandre's necklace are meant to resemble each other.

Therefore, Quaithe is more than just a random person who makes forecasts. She is the Melisandre to Daenerys' Stannis: a guide who also serves as a warning of danger ahead.

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Daenerys keeps thinking about Quaithe's remarks, especially the betrayals she now anticipates. Quaithe is one of the magical, frequently enigmatic advisers that Martin likes to introduce to some of his most significant characters. Rather than being one of those bizarre forecasts, her most important advice to Daenerys is to "remember who you are."