Tywin Lannister

 

"A lion doesn't concern himself with the opinion of a sheep" 

 

 The current patriarch of the Lannister family, Tywin exudes cunning and strength, especially when it comes to helping his family gain power. As a young man he had to deal with his father Tytos' incompetence and meekness making the family seem week. After the rebellion began against his father from Houses Reyne and Tarbeck, Tywin was the commander that not only crushed the rebellion but also readily killed every member of those two Houses to make a point that he was not a man to mess with.

It was said that his beloved wife was the one that controlled him and when she died from childbirth, it changed he for the worst. Prior to that he had twins, named Cersei and Jaime, and he had high hopes for both of them. His final child Tyrion was born a dwarf (monster in their words) so he never shared a kind word or encouragement to him as he blamed him for Joanna's death.

Tywin's proclivities towards ruling caught then attention of King Aerys, who then had Tywin serve as Hand of the Kind for 20 years, guiding the realm into prosperity. Paranoia and jealously on Aerys' part (he lusted after Joanna when she was alive) caused much friction and the straw that broke the camel's back ended up being when Aerys laughed at his offer to have Cersei marry the Crown Prince Rhaegar stating that Targaryen's don't marry their subject. Further angering Tywin, he raises the then 15 year old Jaime to the Kingsguard, thus denying Tywin of his chosen (and in his mind) only heir. This combined with Aerys desire to use Jaime as a hostage to keep Tywin in line caused him to resign as Hand and return to Casterly Rock with Cersei.

At the end of Robert's Rebellion, he sided with the rebels, choosing to murder the remaining Targaryen family members to seal up his loyalty. With this, he also managed to strike up a marriage alliance between the new King and his daughter, thus bringing his family into the royal fold. Tywin benefited for Robert's mismanagement of the royal money by lending the Crown millions of golden dragons.

Later on he uses the arrest of Tyrion by the Tully sisters as a way to start conflicts (which then became the War of Five Kings). Later, after King Robert's death, he was chosen as Hand. He gave this title to his son Tyrion as he left to deal with the war with the North and the Riverlands, before returning in dramatic fashion having secured an alliance with House Tyrell during the end of the Battle of the Blackwater. He uses his wit to shore up the North by having Sansa marry Tyrion and also by colluding with Walder Frey and Roose Bolton to make the Red Wedding happen. Tywin is now at the top of his game, having a strong hold on Joffrey, working on marrying off Cersei and assuring an alliance with the Tyrells with the wedding between Joffrey and Margaery.

I believe that Tywin is not only one of the strongest characters playing The Game, but also one of the best characters in the series (despite his actions). I would compare him to Frank Underwood from "House of Cards", as they both have goals and will stop at nothing to obtain and maintain their power. His prowess and battle stratagem have allowed him to become one of the best commanders in Westeros, choosing intrigue of the Red Wedding and the Sack of Kings Landing to accomplish the task without a large amount of lives lost. The most difficult thing right now for him is to make sure he keeps his children (and Joffrey) in line, which has proven difficult with the incest, Tyrion's vices and Jaime's refusal to become his heir again. Not only that but he has to also deal with the fallout of the Red Wedding and the shift of power that is to occur when the Tyrell's officially move in to Kings Landing. But for now, everything is coming up roses for Tywin and his Lannisters...