Os membros da Casa Dayne decidem se alguém é digno.
Como Martin falou:
- The same guy asked about the Daynes and the Sword of the Morning, asking how that title is decided. George said the Sword of the Morning is always a member of House Dayne, someone who is deemed worthy of wielding Dawn as decided within the House, that whoever it is would have to earn the right to wield it.
US Signing Tour (Albuquerque, NM), November 29, 2005 So Spake Martin - emphasis mine
Desde que Arthur Dayne morreu durante a rebelião de Robert, ninguém foi considerado digno, então Dawn permanece sem uso.
The Daynes of Starfall are one of the most ancient houses in the Seven Kingdoms, though their fame largely rests on their ancestral sword, called Dawn, and the men who wielded it. Its origins are lost to legend, but it seems likely that the Daynes have carried it for thousands of years. Those who have had the honor of examining it say it looks like no Valyrian steel they know, being pale as milkglass but in all other respects it seems to share the properties of Valyrian blades, being incredibly strong and sharp.
Though many houses have their heirloom swords, they mostly pass the blades down from lord to lord. Some, such as the Corbrays have done, may lend the blade to a son or brother for his lifetime, only to have it return to the lord. But that is not the way of House Dayne. The wielder of Dawn is always given the title of Sword of the Morning, and only a knight of House Dayne who is deemed worthy can carry it.
For this reason, the Swords of the Morning are all famous throughout the Seven Kingdoms. There are boys who secretly dream of being a son of Starfall so they might claim that storied sword and its title. Most famous of all was Ser Arthur Dayne, the deadliest of King Aerys II's Kingsguard, who defeated the Kingswood Brotherhood and won renown in every tourney and mêlée. He died nobly with his sworn brothers at the end of Robert's Rebellion, after Lord Eddard Stark was said to have killed him in single combat. Lord Stark then returned Dawn to Starfall, and to Ser Arthur's kin, as a sign of respect.
The World of Ice and Fire - Dorne: The Andals Arrive
Em uma festa para os corvos, um dos outros Daynes faz uma observação sobre Dawn:
Ser Gerold [Dayne] went to one knee. The moonlight shone in his dark eyes as he studied the child coolly.
"There was an Arthur Dayne," Myrcella said. "He was a knight of the Kingsguard in the days of Mad King Aerys."
"He was the Sword of the Morning. He is dead."
"Are you the Sword of the Morning now?"
"No. Men call me Darkstar, and I am of the night."
(...)
As she led the princess to the fire, Arianne found Ser Gerold behind her. "My House goes back ten thousand years, unto the dawn of days," he complained. "Why is it that my cousin is the only Dayne that anyone remembers?"
"He was a great knight," Ser Arys Oakheart put in.
"He had a great sword," Darkstar said.
The Queenmaker - a Feast for Crows