Tyrion Lannister's clumsy, tongue-tied squire, who turned out to be steadier in a crisis than nearly anyone gave him credit for.
An Unlikely Squire
Podrick Payne, a distant cousin of Ser Ilyn's from a minor, impoverished branch of the family, was assigned as Tyrion Lannister's squire on the march to the Green Fork with almost no ceremony and, by Tyrion's frequent complaints, almost no talent for it either — tongue-tied around anyone he respected, prone to blushing, and famously unable to finish a sentence in his master's presence.
He proved his worth where it mattered: in the chaos of the Battle of the Blackwater, Podrick saved Tyrion's life outright, striking down Ser Mandon Moore of the Kingsguard from behind just as Mandon moved to finish off a wounded, disfigured Tyrion.
Loyalty That Outlasted the Lannisters
He stood by Tyrion through his arrest and trial for Joffrey's murder, arranging what small comforts he could and gathering intelligence on the witnesses arrayed against him, then vanished from King's Landing amid the chaos of Tyrion's escape rather than face Cersei's questioning.
Given afterward to Brienne of Tarth by Jaime Lannister as her squire on her search for Sansa Stark, Podrick proved a steadier travelling companion than his awkwardness suggested, riding with Brienne through the war-ravaged riverlands into some of the more dangerous company the text has any of its characters keep.
Key events
299 ACServes as Tyrion Lannister's squire and saves his life at the Battle of the Blackwater.
300 ACAids Tyrion through his imprisonment and trial for Joffrey's murder.
300 ACBecomes Brienne of Tarth's squire on her search for Sansa Stark.
The arc of Podrick Payne
This carries the character’s road through the published novels. Read on only if you do not fear to know.
The camp rumor that Podrick is a startling favorite among King's Landing's working girls is raised for laughs more than once and explained never — Tyrion himself never gets the full story, and neither does the reader.
These partings name deaths, endings, and roads not yet ridden in the books. Unveil them only if both roads are known to you — or if you do not fear to know.
SourcesACOKASOSAFFC
Who is Podrick Payne?
Tyrion Lannister's clumsy, tongue-tied squire, who turned out to be steadier in a crisis than nearly anyone gave him credit for.
Is Podrick Payne from the books or the show?
Book canon. This profile follows George R. R. Martin’s novels and histories, and notes where the television series diverges rather than following it.