Hand to: Robert Baratheon
Best friends with Robert since childhood (though they became more estranged after Robert became king), Ned was far too moral of a man to be Hand of the King. Once he found out the shocking truth that Jon Arryn had discovered, he stuck to his guns about trying to keep Joffrey from taking the throne — perhaps too stubbornly. Without Robert, he had no real allies left in King's Landing to protect him, and things quickly went downhill. He didn't know how to play the game of thrones and was surrounded by powerful people who did know how to play — not to mention he was at the mercy of a sadistic child-king. Poor Ned.
