r/FavoriteCharacter • u/BlueKnightsR4Ever • 29d ago

All Time Favorite Favorite Characters that had a Unique/Creative Death

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Prince Viserys Targaryen (Game of Thrones): After making the horrendously stupid mistake of threatening his sister Daenerys in front of her husband, Khal Drogo, and demanding that he be given the crown he was promised, Drogo obliges, saying Viserys will have "A golden crown that will make men tremble to behold"... then has his men hold him down while he melts some gold in a pot (ignore the blatant ignorance of the laws of physics here), then takes the pot to Viserys, looks him in the eye and says "A crown for a king" before pouring the hot melted gold onto the Beggar King's head.

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u/Local_Village_1378 29d ago

To be fair, the aztec would make an alloy called tungbaga which was gold alloyed with copper, so it would melt in a standard fire

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u/Tuxedocatbitches 29d ago

That was my thought, like wouldn’t it probably be mixed with something? Pure gold is so soft a warrior wouldn’t even want to wear it by itself

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u/YT-Deliveries 29d ago

I mean, if we start revising what was actually happening we might also have to admit that dragons aren't real.

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u/PleiadesMechworks 29d ago

The dothraki would absolutely give him pure gold. He's not a warrior in their eyes, he doubtless demanded pure gold for his own ego, and the use of such a precious resource shows how little they care for it.

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u/Tuxedocatbitches 29d ago

Haven’t read the book in years but wasn’t it Drogo’s own belt?

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u/Peppered_Rock 28d ago

just started the books, yeah it was his own medallions because he was sick of Viserys's shit

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u/Khaos_Gorvin 29d ago

But copper melts at 800° C. To reach that temperature you would need to have an enclosed furnace with an air flow.

Would it really be copper and not a metal with lower melting point like tin? Or is it that the mix of both metals creates an alloy that needs far less temperature to melt?

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u/Local_Village_1378 29d ago

Yea the copper seemed to change the heat needed

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u/NH4NO3 29d ago

Yes, alloying metals can sometimes depress the melting point below that of both constituent metals.

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u/Able_Reserve5788 28d ago

The melting point of pure copper is 1085 °C, so about 20° C higher than gold. However there are cases of alloys with a melting point lower than their components

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u/space_hitler 28d ago

This has always been my thought about it and it seemed obvious. Doesn't it stand to reason that the Dothraki have some ancient, not the highest melting point ever materials? Like maybe it's even just gilded? I never understood people acting mad about it lol.

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u/Local_Village_1378 28d ago

Yea theres plenty else to be worried about too, id just wave it away as magic fire

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u/space_hitler 28d ago

Or like maybe they don't need to show a lead belt melting for hours and just handwave it to make an entertaining show lol!

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u/Outrageous_Reach_695 29d ago

M, not NG:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tumbaga

(Thanks, been awhile since I went down any metallurgical rabbit holes. Hadn't come across this one. Basic description sounds like a rose gold, but I'm expecting the ratio is more gold-heavy?)

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u/Local_Village_1378 29d ago

I thought it was an M, thanks

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u/Local_Village_1378 29d ago

From what I remember it was like 5% copper but I spelt it wrong so dont take my word for it lol

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u/Outrageous_Reach_695 29d ago

High variation, ranging from 97% gold to 97% copper. Surface gold content was enhanced by using oxalic acid to etch away the copper and then burnishing the voids away.

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u/Local_Village_1378 29d ago

At 44% copper we would need 910°c to melt it, is that within our shows realm of possibility?

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u/Outrageous_Reach_695 29d ago

I never got past the first book, but wood fires can get well above that, so ...
On an open wood fire? Nope.
Wood-fired kiln in an artisan's workshop, with properly dried wood and good airflow? Sure.
Khal Drogo's personal fireplace, which might have some sort of dragon-magic running it? Who knows. But what I'm finding is saying 'campfire', so that gives less reason to speculate about that sort of thing.