Who do you think is the best blade master?

[Morindin]

First off, what is the definition of a good blade master... to me it is someone perfect with the forms, a quick thinker, fast with his hands, improvise rapidely and most importantly kills quickly without fluff or showmanship (remember Valda toying with Galad)...

 

Rand is very good but his being taveren and the One Power helps him... plus he did let himself get injured more than once using questionnable tactics...

 

Galad is extremly good but I beleive when fighting, he is too rightous and fights fair, so he is not that great for that reason... he almost got killed by Valda after RJ wrote many many times about how good he is... and he got beaten by a sick sheepherder with a quaterstaff... not impressive...

 

Valda plays with him opponents... he likes to bleed them if I recall correctly...

 

We know Tam is a blade master but we have never seen him in a fight except in the first book under very bad odds... but by being as smart as he is, he might be very good with the sword... anyway I think he has many of the required qualities...

 

But ultimatly I think Lan is by far the best blade master in Randland... he fights to kill... and kills fast... whenever he trains with someone he barely breaks a sweat... as far as I remember he never got seriously injured except against overwhelming odds... and I do not think a sick Mat with a quaterstaff would have beaten him...

 

What does anyone thinks?

[Moghedian]

Lan, he seems to be amazing and he is so well known for being a blade master. That speaks volumes

[Luckers]

Apparently the best amongst the Gaidan with a sword is Jori, Morvrin's Warder.

[RobertAlexWillis]

Well ... Siuan said, or rather, thought:

 

"Supposedly he [Jori] was among the best of the Warders with a blade"

 

KoD ch 1

 

Being "among the best" is not the same as being "the best among" ... so Jori is good, but he's not necessarily the best.

 

Once people get to a certain level, however (which is something I always seem to be bringing up in these "Who could beat whom?" threads), it's almost impossible to say that "Lan is better than Tam" or "Rand with two hands could spank anyone" ... if these guys had life rewind, and could fight each other to the death multiple times, you'd probably get different results with the same people ... I doubt that any one of them would beat all the others, all the time, and so be undisputedly "the best".  And in any actual fight, environmental issues could be the deciding factor.

 

All that said, if I had to lay money on just one guy, for just one fight, and all external factors are equal, I would go with Lan ...

[Luckers]

That is very true. I'm reminded of Lan's fight with Ryne. Ryne was better yet Lan won.

 

And thanks for the quote, i looked it up on Encylopaedia WoT before i posted because i wasn't sure if it said 'best' or 'amongst the best' and it said best, but yeah.

[trakand_01]

I think Lan. He's a Warder, and through the years has fought many a battle of his own and of Moiraines, and has survived.

 

However i have to say if a fight broke out i'd head for either Rand, Mat, Lan or Gawyn and stand behind them. I find it unlikely much is going to get past them. Particularly Mat with his Ashanderei.

 

 

[Guest Dreadlord]

Why has Galad got one vote when Rand hasnt got any? I mean i voted Lan as well, nobody could beat him in a sword fight, but Rand would have smashed Galad before he lost his hand

[Dragon21]

Lan hands down. Everybody else is second tier to him. A true warrior, not just someone who recently learned how to use a sword. He has sooo much more experience.

[Thorum]

Lan or Tam.

 

Due to Tam being out of practice (for, like, 20 years), I've voted Lan.

 

Though I wouldn't underestimate Randyboy (son of Tam, could win from Lan)

[Morindin]

In regards to Jori being one of the best if not the best warder with a blade. Lan never went to warder training school like other. Moiraine chose him while in the Borderland in NS and then they went on their quest to find the Dragon Reborn.

 

Since Lan never got formal warder training, it would stand to be that he could never be compared to Jori... therefor we cannot know for sure... but my money would still be on Lan...

[elmis]

In the 20 years they searched I'm sure they at least spent some time in Tar Valon. Remember Lan said he learned a lot about the sword from Elyas, back when he was still a Gaidin. (tEotW - Chapter 38)

 

Agelmar also notes that Lan is the 'best of the warders, that meaning the best of the best' (tEotW - Chapter 47), though if he meant just surviving in the Blight or overall swordsman/strongman/guy-to-watch-your-back is up to debate. It might also be worth mentioning that Agelmar could be a bit biased.

 

I voted Lan, he seems to be a step above the rest of the swordsmen in the story. The only one better would probably be Jearom.

[Lord_Naryb]

I do think that Lan is the best, but I believe that Galad is equal to Rand in the second place spot. I know that won't be popular, but Valda was very good and Galad was able to beat him (albeit it was a close match.  As for Galad being defeated by Mat, well Mat is quite good with a quarterstaff and even the greatest swordsman ever (Jearom, I think) lost to a farmer with a staff, and I doubt anyone could match him.

[dyring]

I do think that Lan is the best, but I believe that Galad is equal to Rand in the second place spot. I know that won't be popular, but Valda was very good and Galad was able to beat him (albeit it was a close match.  As for Galad being defeated by Mat, well Mat is quite good with a quarterstaff and even the greatest swordsman ever (Jearom, I think) lost to a farmer with a staff, and I doubt anyone could match him.

 

I seem to recall someone actualy wasted a question at some convent asking jordan who would win a swordfight between Rand and.. One of the brothers Galad/Gawyn, I think it was Galad, but not sure(maybe someone else remembers/can find it)

Jordan answered something like: Heh, thats never gonna happend, well, I´d say Rand, atleast until recently.

 

(atleast until recently meaning when Rand lost his hand)

[Dunedain Fal]

Experience counts a lot but so does youth because when you are young, you tend to be more quicker and faster.  However experience can make up for it but not in a fight where your opponent has nearly the same experience but is younger and more quicker and faster and has more stamina.

 

Before Rand lost his hand, Rand is definitely better than Galad due to more experience.  Lan is very experienced but he is old however his Warder bond tend to give him the necessary stamina.  The question is which one is more quicker and faster and by how much degree.  If Rand is quicker than Lan and is more than one degree quicker than Lan, then he has the odds of coming out as the winner but if his quickness degree is less than one, odds are that Lan would come out the top.

[Vicious Circle]

I'm just going to jump right out of the box and say none of the above.

 

Lews Therin Telamon is without a doubt the best BladeMaster of them all.

Didn't he and Belal (or some other Forsaken) actually resurrect the act of swordplay as a martial art?  (page 43 BWB)

 

O.K. so he only actually exists in Rand's head, but most of the sweet moves Rand has he was exposed to by Lews Therin taking over, consciously or unconsciously, he was his best teacher.

 

So, I will vote for Rand, but only because he is also Lews Therin.

[lou]

tam althor taught rand the mental excercises, but it was lan who taught rand the forms.

 

[Majsju]

When I see people mention Perrin, I wonder if they have actually read KOD. Aram was winning when he got shot in the back, and while Aram was wicked good, I don't see him standing much of a chance against anyone of the listed guys, except perhaps Tam who should be quite rusty after having his sword in a box for nearly 20 years.

[Vicious Circle]

In The Dragon Reborn chapter 55 What Is Written in Prophecy, Rand confronts Belal. Belal taunts Rand that even though he is Lews Therin reborn he won't remember that he once was the greater swordsman and that they re-created  "Swords" together. Rand could not have defeated Belal (or "Ba' alzamon!) if he had not used his skills unconsciously remembered by Lews Therin. And I'm pretty sure Lan taught him to fight with either hand, so even one handed, Rand and LTT are going to be hard to beat.

[Majsju]

When Rand becomes Mr Stumpy in KOD, he comments that he has to learn the sword all over again, which means he does not know how to fight with one hand, except perhaps for a small number of forms.

 

In TDR, Rand did not defeat Be'lal. Be'lal toyed with him, trying to force rand to seize Callandor. He could have killed Rand anytime he wanted, if not Moiraine ahd interfered and killed be'lal.

Against Ishy, Rand channeled. That is something he gets bits and pieces unconsciously from LTT.

[bjclinton]

based on what we've seen so far, I was legitimately surprised that Lan didn't have 100% of the votes. Lan has been (almost literally) flawless and perfect in every single fight he's ever been in....unfortunately, the same cannot be said of anyone else.

 

Lan gets my vote. In fact, I almost created another screen name just to vote for him twice  ;D

[vinay87]

Hmmn Rand or Lan, undecided about it. But since Rand does have the one Power on his side, and that's not something related to swords, I'll go with Lan.

[safwd]

I saw Lan.

In the scene where Egwene finds Lan at (i dont remember her names, the Green that Moraine passed the bond to) camp. He was practicing forms and started moving so fast the the other warders just stood watching him in Awe. That says something.

[Baldar]

If Lan's at 100% I don't think any character we've met so far could match him with a sword. It's a shame we never got to see Lan and Rand square off in the later books, now it would never be fair.

 

Although, there's probably some little fella in Shara who could destroy Lan.

[elmis]

Experience counts a lot but so does youth because when you are young, you tend to be more quicker and faster.  However experience can make up for it but not in a fight where your opponent has nearly the same experience but is younger and more quicker and faster and has more stamina.

 

That's very true for the real world (just see any pro athlete), but in WoT people in their forties seem to be just as fit as a 25 year olds.

[TurboZ]

I do belive Lan would layeth the smacketh down on all the others