Perrin's ability to fight.

[sfgiantsfanmike]

Going through the Shadow Rising and Perrin's fight scenes... well, I think it's a couple of things:

 

1) Dudes ferocious. Attacks head on, full of fury... many of you have already commented on this

2) Dudes tough. In the two fight scenes I've seen Perrin in so far in tSR he takes the hits and keeps on swinging. In the first fight from his POV is when they are just getting out of the Ways going into the Two Rivers Perrin does a number on the Trollocs and Fade he comes against and doesn't realize he's got a fat hole in his thigh. I believe Faile has to point it out to him before he would accept help treating it. In the other, where their ambush against the Trollocs is given away but a certain somebody he takes a Trolloc arrow to the side and still manages to hold his own against a fade. Granted, this is where his tavarenness* comes in handy: as his strength started to fail there was that Warder to lop of the fades head before it could deliver a killing blow.

3) Yes, dudes a tavaren*: You may call this duex machina (spelling) or whatever but in this case it doesn't have to affect much to be effective.

 

The main thing I see is something from my role playing days, not that their completely over with RPG video games, is the concept of HP. One explanation I like was that HP wasn't indication of how tough you were, per say, but how well you avoided damage. At level one you had minimal combat experience and had very little skill making things miss vital areas, like leaning back on a slash so it doesn't cut so deep. A rookie might take the full brunt of the slash but an experienced fighter would be able to make it only a flesh wound by subtle moving. A few examples:

 

A thrust towards your head: an inexperienced fighter might take it on the jugular but a more experienced fighter just has to duck a few inches to take it as a cut on the face if not completely duck under it.

 

A thrust/slash at your chest: an inexperienced fighter might take the full brunt of it in the chest, getting a punctured lung or worse where as a more experienced fighter might twist and take it as a gash on the ribs, still hurts like heck but not an instant death threat.

 

I could go on but I have no idea if I'm actually making sense here. I definitely feel 'woolheaded' right now with this cold so...

 

 

 

*Yes, I have no clue how to spell that without looking that up. Maybe I'll look it up later and edit.

[JohnathonOliva]

I think it has alot to do with being a wolf brother when ever it comes to perrin getting in a fight he goes into instinct mode and acts like a wolf and wolfs are VERY agile creatures i mean can u imagine a giant like perrin moving with the agility and instinct of a wolf i think thats as dangerous as a trained warder there is a reason trollocs and the other people of randland dont take wolves lightly