Fight scenes

[Guest tree-brother]

What is everyones fav fight scene in the books. I like Mat's fight in KOD. A knife in each hand running to take on 7 or 8 with swords in order for Toun to get free. Mat is a bad butt.

[42Bonzo88]

    I don't have a single fight scene that I like the most, but two of my favorites were: 1. TGH When Rand runs out of the women's apartments waving a sword in Fal Dara. 2. TDR The whole taking of the stone, including Perrin's fight and Mat's rescue.

[bRANDan]

1) Perrin's fight with the fade in The Dragon Reborn,

"Fade... Neverborn"

2) Lord of Chaos's end battle.

3) The scene where Mat is surrounded by like 6 Aiel.

4) The scene where Mat kills Couladin, we don't actually see it, but it's pretty good in my mind's eye.

5) The Rand and Toram fight.

[Jambo]

I forget which book it's in but my favourite is when Perrin is with the Boarderlanders and their camp is attacked by Trollocs ect. and he for the first time really goes Wolfman style in battle. That was pretty awsome  8)

[Majsju]

Not a real fight perhaps, but when Mat lays the smackdown on Galad and Gawyn.

[Corbett]

I loved Dumais Wells.

Rands fight with his mirror images was great.

Mat vs. Galad and Gawyn, freakin funny.

Perrin's assult on the Shiado camp loved that scene.

In fact they all are great those are just the first that some to mind.

[Guest Dreadlord]

Dumais wells is well up there. Its the first time we see the real destructive abilities of the Ashaman, and even then they arent fully developped. They define the meaning of no mercy in that battle. It annoys me when Rand fights with his sword against a non channeller when he thinks it isnt fair. The Ashaman really show what theyre made of at Dumais Wells-they make the Shaidos' flesh explode!!!

 

I also like Rands fight against Rahvin. Rahvin does some good stuff with the Power in that fight, and for a while Rand was losing.

 

I know its not a fight scene, but I love it when Rand is thinking to himself that he is a weapon beyond the imagining of any non-channeller, and he thinks to himself he could take out 1000 men "like so many moths" with the Power. I love it!!!

[aussie_ashaman123]

Dumai's Wells by far and away. A 4-way carnage bloodbath!

 

Battle of Cairhein is a big one too, just for the scale.

 

Perrin and Aram fighting in the middle of the Shaido camp.

 

And the Charge of the Queens Guards into balefire, just for pure bravery

[aevogt]

No one mentioned my favorites.

 

Rand sneaking into the DF camp to steal The Horn and then slaughtering all the Trollocs that came after him and Loial.  I forget how many he killed, I think it was between 9 and 12, including four that come at him together.  Awesome!

 

Then later on, his first real fight with Turak.  Rand is going to lose this fight right from the start.  Lose, die and fail Egwene.  Rand asumes the void and finishes off Turak with the Boar and the River.

 

The running battle through the Stone of Tear was pretty much fantastic as well.

 

 

[HoppyQ]

I thought some of the nonfights were the best ones. 

 

Mat when he takes on Galad and Gawyn.

 

At the beginning of TGH when Rand and Lan are practicing on the rooftop.

 

When Rand pays the 5 guys to spar against him.  I also like the part right after this when Bashere asks Rand why he practices with the sword when he has the OP.

[Dragon21]

My favorite, no question, is when Mat thumps Galad and Gawyn in TDR.

 

I like any fight Thom is in too. What a dangerous Gleeman.  ;D

[Guest Dreadlord]

Another bit I think is immense is when Rand is in the town where nobody can channel (i forget which it is) and he is attacked by a few renegade Ashaman. Im sure he has one against a wall and he punches him, and it says "as Rand drew back his hand to deliver the killing blow..." Rand knew the second punch would kill him. I think its great when you see that Rand knows exactly how hard he is, both with and without the Power. Which Ashaman is it? Can anyone remember? It isnt Kisman, because Kisman is there but he runs off and gets cut by Padan Fain. That whole scene was made even better by Fains appearance.

[Falcons Fall]

I forget which book it's in, but the battle where the HUGE army of trollocs attacks Logains manor and Rand uses blossoms of fire and deathgates like mad... and Dumais Well is way up there too... Gotta love the simple "Asha'man, KILL!" and they all explode.. crazy

[Guest Dreadlord]

I think Perrins encounters with Slayer were good, especially because Perrin actually used both of his brain cells and figured out Isam was Luc. I was looking forward to more of that, it seemed to be a rivalry between them to a point, but then nothing else happened.

[Generic Aelfinn #2]

the trolloc manor attack is at number one, with dumai's wells close behind.

 

after those, i especially liked the mat vs galad & gawyn.  battle of cairhieren is up there too.

[Jonn]

To me nothing is more dramatic or cinematic than the scene at the docks with Lanfear. When Kadere's skin inflates sickeningly for that brief moment...it's like you can see the whole thing go down in slow motion...er no pun intended.

You realize just how dangerous one of the Forsaken is just by themselves in this scene. Lanfear blows up Kadere's wagon after ripping his skin clean off, she puts up a shield blocking out the Aiel army, she kills dozens of them with a wave of her hand and takes on four not so negligible channelers, including Rand. She barely breaks a sweat too. Great scene and the emotion...I think it's really the turning point of the series, where the consequences of what came after have defined the story in so many ways. Pivotal scene, so it gets my vote as the best fight.

Dumai's wells gets close, but the result of the battle at the docks is that Rand propels himself on a path where he is isolated and alone without anyone to truly confide in.

 

Some technical aspects of Dumai's Wells kind of bother me also. One of them being, how did the Asha'man avoid killing the friendlies who were caught outside of the shield when it was raised? It's still an impressive scene though.

 

I also have to mention the final battle with Perrin in the Two Rivers when the women joined in to buy some minutes and the relief coming from Faile's ride to Watch Hill. It was just perfectly framed emotionally. You really cared about everyone in the battle. You felt that desperation with every moment the battle went on. A friend of mine once remarked to me after Two Towers came out in the theater. he had watched it and he was really pumped up by the Helm's Deep sequence when the forces were preparing young boys to fight. He said that this was his idea of desperate heroism, and I just smiled at him thinking about how much more beautiful it was to read the Two Rivers defense some 10 years prior.

 

So many more great fight sequences. The Stone Stands. The Cleansing. Mat's campaigns.

 

The best though has to be Lanfear at the docks. Just totally unforgettable. Elements of horror and adventure, mixed with emotional angst. Perfectly executed scene. The height of Robert Jordan's craft right there. 

[Generic Aelfinn #2]

Some technical aspects of Dumai's Wells kind of bother me also. One of them being, how did the Asha'man avoid killing the friendlies who were caught outside of the shield when it was raised?

 

um...who said they did?

 

not that most(any?) of them near the shield were still alive in any case...

 

[Jonn]

Some technical aspects of Dumai's Wells kind of bother me also. One of them being, how did the Asha'man avoid killing the friendlies who were caught outside of the shield when it was raised?

 

um...who said they did?

 

not that most(any?) of them near the shield were still alive in any case...

 

 

And that doesn't bother you?

 

In the book from Perrin's POV there's mention of Mayeners and Cairhienin still out there fighting for their lives alongside Aiel from Rand's side with bands on. Granted, Perrin has better eyesight than most, but it doesn't sound right that he and a sliver made it through to the wagons while the rest were far enough back to stay out of the ring the Asha'man blew everyone up in.

 

And if the Asha'man did blow up friendlies as well as foes, it's disturbing that it gets no mention. I know Perrin, for one, would be upset about that, that Rand's little project of "gaurdians" who are men that channel has turned out to be a bunch of indiscriminate killers.

 

Doesn't bode well for how he regards them later on when he relies on them to save Faile.

 

It's a small issue in the bigger scheme of things, but that always bothered me. It's no less of a great scene, but things like that just get me thinking about such details.

 

Another thing that bugged me is how foolishly and uncharacteristically the Shaido went about their attack, leaving no rear guard. Yeah, the Shaido are supposed to be foolish and impulsive, but there are certain consistencies that are Aiel, and solid battle tactics are among them. It was a little convenient that in this particular attack, they forgot one of the basic tactics they almost always employ.

 

Again, it's a small complaint, but nonetheless, it prevents me from ranking that particular scene, my favorite fight.

[bRANDan]

And that doesn't bother you?

 

Doesn't bother me. The friendlies would see who was in control in the dome, the flag, and when the explosions started they'd be rushing away first thing instead of pushing forward. Only a few moments head start, but enough I think to put most of the friendlies out of harms way.

 

Another thing that bugged me is how foolishly and uncharacteristically the Shaido went about their attack, leaving no rear guard.

 

Sevanna. I'm pretty sure she wanted everyone to attack at once, no rear guard , no reserve, just all out assault. Foolish describes Sevanna well.

[Jonn]

And that doesn't bother you?

 

Doesn't bother me. The friendlies would see who was in control in the dome, the flag, and when the explosions started they'd be rushing away first thing instead of pushing forward. Only a few moments head start, but enough I think to put most of the friendlies out of harms way.

 

I'm not so sure about that. I don't think that the friendlies were really well acquainted with the Asha'man at that point. That dome going up, they'd have an idea maybe, but then again they were pretty much submerged in swarming Shaido. Their primary concern would be staying alive. I know a little about trying to work my way out of a scrum of people, and it's not so easy. Multiply that by thousands and...let's say it's even less easy. So, even if they wanted to turn back, they'd still have to fight their way through a throng, and even one less dangerous that 50 thousand Aiel, would be a tall order to escape from very quickly.

 

But you might see my point. The fact that I have to think about it hypothetically exposes the hole in the scenario. It's filled in by what happens in the next book, but you know...It's one of those details that bugs me.

 

I don't think RJ messed up or anything. I actually think that the editing process probably cut down the detail somewhat, and don't get me wrong, it still works.

 

It just stops me from holding it as the BEST fight scene. I know a lot of people rank it as their favorite, or one of the best. I like the scene as a whole, but I do believe that he wrote better scenes, more complete and affecting sequences of heightened action.

 

Another thing that bugged me is how foolishly and uncharacteristically the Shaido went about their attack, leaving no rear guard.

 

Sevanna. I'm pretty sure she wanted everyone to attack at once, no rear guard , no reserve, just all out assault. Foolish describes Sevanna well.

 

I have a sort of separate complaint about the Shaido as a whole, how they are characterized. Being so foolish, I don't see how they are the most numerous and more successful of clans. I  find it hard to believe that there wasn't even one moderately sensible clan chief who could see the flaws in what was happening and wouldn't on his own as a battle leader, order a few companies to hang back in reserve just in case.

 

I don't know, I guess at the time I read it, I found it bothersome that the Shaido so accommodatingly blundered into a perfect scenario to allow the heroes to win...I guess you could put that to Ta'varen, but...I don't know, it seemed funny that no one mentioned it.

 

Maybe someone did and I forgot. That might be it.

[Generic Aelfinn #2]

well, it WAS sevanna's lack of military skill(and lack of intelligence in general)...BUT you have to realize how LITTLE damage the 'rescue party' actaully did.  you can rest assured that without the ashaman interferring, they(the rescue party) would have been absolutely slaughtered by sheer mass of numbers, with negligible casualties to the shaido.

 

 

anyhow, the ashaman had only killed about three ranks worth of shaido before they started retreating.  any group within that immediate killzone would have died within a few minutes in any case.

 

as for any other groups, they didn't need to fight their way out at all, they just needed to avoid being literally crushed under shaido feet as they retreated.  i seem to remember a description of haphazard friendlies grouped in circles all over the place once the shaido mass dispersed.

[No Funeral]

Dumai's Wells.  the image of invisible blades shredding bodies like a pair of Crissaegrim's from Castlevania: Symphony of the Night is beyond powerful

 

When Rand, Mat and co (I forget which book but its an earlier one) live and die over and over facing the DO in various alternate realities.  The one scene where if they had spent their lives in the 2 Rivers w/ al the villagers lined up facing the trolloc onslaught. 

 

The Cleansing of Saidin/Destruction of Shadar Logoth.

[aevogt]

I kind of have to agree with Jonn about Dumai's wells.  There is a specific mention of Maidens just outside the barrier pounding to get in and those Maidens are described as having red cloth on their sleeves which made them part ot the rescue party.

 

It did seem to me like the indiscriminate killing done by the Ashaman should have taken them all out as well.  There's little doubt in my mind that all those among the rescue party who made it as far as the barrier but too late to get inside would have been killed by the rolling ring of earth and fire.

 

 

[bRANDan]

It did seem to me like the indiscriminate killing done by the Ashaman should have taken them all out as well.  There's little doubt in my mind that all those among the rescue party who made it as far as the barrier but too late to get inside would have been killed by the rolling ring of earth and fire.

 

No doubt they were. But only the first few lines of friendlies would have been killed. Relatively few friendlies would have died in the Asha'man's attack. I don't think it was wrong either. If Rand had told them to use prejudice when killing, and to not kill those with the red cloth strips then the Asha'man would have been slower and the Shaido may have been able to close the gap. It was not worth it to risk the lives of all of those inside the dome to save a few friendlies caught between a rock and a hard place. Not to mention the fact that the time required to instruct the Asha'man on whom not to kill would have allowed more friendlies to be killed by the Shaido. It was an acceptable loss, but maybe that's just me. I'm more of a numbers kind of guy. As long as the numbers add up then I'm fine with the losses.

[aussie_ashaman123]

the Shaido didnt have the reinforcements and screens out because they were fighting Aes Sedai and Sevanna wanted the battle done quickly. The leaders of the societies were actually saying the should put them out.