Argentumurbem wrote:Going to spoiler everything to keep the post "short".
Just saw the "Freys are equal to Hightower" comment:Note on the status of the houses.[spoiler]This is the (Late) Targaryen era - the Hundred Years War of Westeros, if you want to look at the real world parallels. Blackwood and Bracken are rivals for second-place most powerful vassals of Tully - they are the historic faction leaders within the riverlands, see every war they participate in -, with Lothston and Darry not far behind. Blackwood and Bracken have received royal favour, a powerful thing in the failed state of the riverlands. The Tully's influence has been sapped time and time again, giving Neville and Percy greater power than their position would suggest. The Lothstons control the historic royal seat of Harrenhal, a seat which has been granted by the royals as a favour, instead of going through the Tullys. As a result they are usually more closely associated with Kingslanding than Riverrun. This is also true of Darry and Mooton. Frey only reached their most powerful state under the reign of Late Lord Walder, and that was more to do with the reduction of Blackwood (through their constant uniquely bloody conflict with their rivals), Bracken (through the Rebellions and the rivalry), Darry (through the Usurper), and Whent (Usurper again).
*Parts irrelevent to response snipped for brevet
Your comment is missing a few important qualifiers from the actual post. What I said was: The Hightowers and Freys are equal enough in status for it to be a fair partnership. Status isen't always equitable to power (Even during the main novel eras, it'd be foolish to say the two had equal strength and status), but taking into account the state of their home Kingdoms are roughly the same size fish relative to their pond. And, as Asyir, pointed out, its a third-daughter marriage: you can afford some leeway at that point (For love or power projection)
I'll admit, I'm not an expert on the deep, auxiliary lore of Westros. I could very well be the one making a mistake in estimating my House's relative standing/power. However, I will say that its not particularly fair to extend the House's reputation at the start of the main series that far back, considering how heavy and impact the behyond-the-pale dickishness (both literally and soical) of said Lord Walder and the family's knack for backing the wrong horse during the Blackfyre Rebellions and being clearly fickle/opportunistic vassals during Robert's Rebellion must have colored the family name. Just as power changes, so does reputation.