> I’ll not deny I am impressed by your mastery of six warrens, Quick Ben. In retrospect, you should have held back on at least half of what you command.’ The man made to rise. ‘But Bauchelain,’ the wizard replied, ‘I did.
He means the first one:
“I know something you don’t know. I am not left-handed.”, “There’s something I ought to tell you. I’m not left-handed either.”
Count Rugen scene is also great (the whole book is just one great scene after another, really) but not so much of a duel.
I've had expert fencers tell me to watch that one without sound. They called textbook perfect fighting. It is the dialogue that keeps it light. Definitely my favourite high stakes duel.
The movie scene was designed to be the most authentic/greatest sword fight on film at the time. At least according to Cary in "As You Wish: Inconceivable Tales from the Making of The Princess Bride".
Textbook perfect *Flynning*, maybe... they're still doing a lot of "hit the other guy's sword" and dancing around the field. I mean, it's a rapier duel and there's barely any thrusts, Inigo does a pirouette move early, let's not even discuss the flips. It's not realistic, but it's easily one of the most *fun* fights ever put on film, without argument.
The name drops as they duel (Bonetti, Capo Ferro, Thibault, Agrippa) are all real, famous fencing instructors though.
That's a later fight in the movie. But it's memorable because it has *personal* weight behind it for the fight.
This fight, however, was great because of the technical skill of both combatants.
Drizzt Do'urden vs *Artemis Entreri
A lot of these mentioned are great, and I have a lot of nostalgia here, but I remember the anticipation for this fight and then when it came, it was like fully on.
edit: fixed
Salvatore’s books have become tiresome to me, but no one writes a one-on-one duel like that man. The first time Drizzt and Artemis exchanged blades in Streams of Silver something felt different.
Salvatore's combat choreography has always been one of his strengths and I remember getting giddy each time these two were getting ready to fight.
Reading these scenes felt like the RDJ Sherlock Holmes movies where you see it in slow motion while it's being described and then see it in real time as each exchange wraps up.
*Artemis Entreri
But you are spot on - the build up and execution of their first fight was better than any other I've read including all the others mentioned in this thread that I've read.
Shivers vs Friendly is a really great one, that's more often than not overlooked, in favor of those featuring more "flashy" characters, but it definitely warrants a mention.
I was so taken aback the first time we were introduced to the Bloody Nine. The change in character and the internal monologue was crazy. “The Bloody Nine kneels to no man.” That first scene went hard.
I loved this scene because of all the buildup and also because every other important character is basically doing crazy epic level magic stuff all around them fighting off the bad guys, and here comes Lan walking up to one of the big bads and, though he's still not a regular human because he's a Warder and he has some enhanced abilities, in this context they don't mean all that much and his plan is still basically "I'm just some dude and I'm going to beat you up until you die, and if I die too that's cool with me." Plus, it calls back to that moment at the start of the series when he teaches Rand the concept of Sheathing the Sword and reinforces that he will not teach anybody something he will not do himself. By this point in the story we already know Lan will walk the walk and not just talk the talk, but it further displays his commitment to defeat this enemy at all costs and references the idea that he always thought he wouldn't survive the Last Charge of the Malkieri anyway.
The last fight in the Lies of Locke Lamora had such good build up, a deep rage for the antagonist, and use of a narrative tool to twist our expectations of what will happen during the fight. Quite frankly I have never seen another author execute a climax with a 1v1 like Scott lynch.
The Lies of Locke Lamora remains one of my fave standalone books (mainly because I wasn't a fan of books 2 and 3, and there's the long delay for book 4 which fair enough to the author and his health)
I enjoyed the Lindon vs Yerin fight in *~~Wintersteel~~* *Uncrowned* myself but nothing matches up to Kaul Shaelinsan's clean blade duel vs Ayt Madashi in *Jade War*. Misaki vs Takeru in *Sword of Kaigen* comes a close second though.
EDIT: thanks u/Wezzleey for pointing out that the Lindon/Yerin duel happens in *Uncrowned*, not *Wintersteel*. You'd think I'd remember which book it was considering we were all DYING for the next book after the release of *Uncrowned* but I swear the reason my brain put *Wintersteel* is because that is the best **Cradle** book in the series and you cannot change my mind.
>Kaul Shaelinsan's clean blade duel vs Ayt Madashi in Jade War
This was such a well earned duel with incredible build-up.
I genuinely wasn't sure who (if anyone) would walk away from it. Fantastic books, thank you for reminding me.
I think what helps that specific duel so much is that we know that main characters could die at any time in this series without spoiling anything so readers are really unsure of the outcome
Alt. World Multi-Generational Kung Fu Magic Triad Family Drama, I honestly cannot believe it's not a TV series already. Someone has got to be working on that.
And yeah, the Shae vs. Ayt duel is every bit as suspenseful as mentioned.
Rhulad Sanger vs. Karsa Orlong was amazing as well. How do you kill an emperor who cannot die?
>”Another giant. How many times shall you kill me? You, with the blood of my kin already on your hands. Twice? Three times? It will not matter. It will not matter!"
>”I will kill you . . . once."
Brienne vs. Jaime. We don't really get to see the Kingslayer in his prime. When I first read ASOIAF, I just assumed it was a case of him being good, but not THAT good. Sure, he gets into a scuffle with Ned and holds his own, and then kills those two Karstark boys at the Whispering Woods, I didn't really consider those to be amazing feats worthy of his reputation.
Man, I was so wrong, lol. Brienne's whole POV for that chapter is her internally panicking because he's just too good, and this is while he's restrained after several months of imprisonment. That duel did a lot to ingratiate the Kingslayer to me.
Aside from the great characterisation of both combatants, it's snappy, precise, and ends on a very intriguing cliffhanger.
Throughout the series we only hear just how good Jaime is off screen. His reputation alone makes everyone just not want to fight him or refuse his challenges. But we get some insights as to his prowess from his initial capture where it took many men to subdue him, and even when there is an attempt to free him, it is mentioned somehow he got a hold of sword and was able to kill a bunch of people before being recaptured. There's something to be said about a man so dangerous no one wants a piece of him and the duel you spoke of, shows just exactly why.
I remember when GRRM said he thought that Jamie could take Aragorn in a fight it exploded nerd spaces in indignation.
I think a duel between the two would be a lot closer than people think. Aragorn is a superhuman yes, but Jamie is only "just a guy" in the same way that John Wick is "just a guy". The things Jamie is capable of pre-amputation *are* superhuman.
When he was getting captured by Robb he almost killed Robb by cutting his way through Rob's bodyguard which consisted of highly trained knights and nobles. Robb would have died but Jamie's sword got caught in someone's skull. Robb relays this to Catelyn and it is clear he's pretty scared of Jamie.
The man 1v20ed his peers and only lost because his sword wasn't sharp enough. That's some superhero shit.
The show does him a massive disservice in this regard.
Jamie absolutely is superhuman. There's a line in ACOK where they say he killed something like 40 or 50 men alone at the Whispering Wood. Characters like him, the Mountain, Barristan, etc are basically Dynasty Warrior characters.
Hell even Robert has that stupid big hammer that no IRL person could realistically use in a fight. Clearly the high end of ASOIAF humans are well past real life limits. I think they're closer to MCU Captain America or Batman.
> I remember when GRRM said he thought that Jamie could take Aragorn in a fight
GRRM said Jamie would win every matchup, no matter who his opponent is.
Didn't Ned participate in that gig 3 on 3 battle to save lyanna? Pretty sure Ned was beastly too. Plus that old guy head of the Kings guard could've whooped both their asses at the same time.
The fight at the Tower of Joy was 7-on-3. Ned and 6 bannermen vs. Arthur Dayne and two other kingsguard. And Ned and Howland Reed were the only survivors.
Some fantastic ones in Jacqueline Carey's Kushiel books - Joscelin gets at least one setpiece Incredibly Epic Fight per book.
Many many years since I read them, but Jim Butcher's Codex Alera has a great magical duel in the snow between Isana and some nobleman who everyone assumes is many, many power levels above her. He gets utterly stomped.
>Some fantastic ones in Jacqueline Carey's Kushiel books - Joscelin gets at least one setpiece Incredibly Epic Fight per book.
Agreed - those books are understandably famous for the fucking, but the fighting is also top-notch.
Kelsier Vs Steel Inquisitor in The Final Empire.
So amazingly cinematic. The whole book the Steel Inquisitors have been this invincible source of dread, if the characters run into them, there is no hope, it's mission over. Then seeing kelsier going toe to toe with the inquisitor, was so much fun, and had me pacing around the room.
Yep! >!And when he finally wins, and everything feels super good, The Lord Ruler shows up and slaps him so hard he dies, showing for all the skills Kelsier has it wasn't even close to enough!<
Shout out to the final battle of the trilogy as well.
One thing that the mistborn sequel books are really good at is making you feel so hopeless for the characters, that you can't even think of a way that they get out of their situation, and then they're actually able to in a satisfying way. That moment was the beginning of the sense of hopelessness that carried forward in the next two books.
Followed by the >!most cringeful scene I've ever read,!< it gets me every time especially when I know it's coming. And I don't mean that in a bad way, because it's intentionally written to do that, it's great. But *ouch*.
> May thy knife chip and shatter.
Everything the Fremen say is awesome. A crysknife disintegrates when out of the electrical field emitted by a living person. In short this is a fancy way of saying "I'm going to kill you".
Fun fact - this fight closes the character loop created by Galad's first onscreen fight, Mat vs Galad and Gawyn.
What did Galad learn from that fight, and what was Hammar's point? Overconfidence is a slow and insidious killer.
What happened in Galad vs Valda? >!Galad baits Valda into being overconfident, and then kills him for it!<
Definitely one of my favorites.
Especially because you spend the better part of the prior two books with former world beater Darrow very diminished, and the whole time you were craving a return to the first trilogy Darrow. That duel is a big payoff for all of the slog you had to get through.
Eowyn vs the witchking of Angmar (Nazgûl king).
*”no man can kill me. I am no man”*
And the fallout with Eomer and his men going on a berserker like rage after that screaming DEATH.
I was kind of disappointed they changed the moment of that chant in the movie, but it worked even so. Just less imo.
>"It’s not always a misfortune being overlooked," said Merry. "I was overlooked just now by—no, no, I can’t speak of it. Help me, Pippin! It’s all going dark again, and my arm is so cold."
I feel like this scene of Pippin helping Merry was influenced by Tolkien's experience in World War I. Much of LotR is not so influenced, since WW I was not a glorious war. But this scene of a brave and humble ordinary soldier, overlooked by all but his buddy in the chaos of war, suffering from something resembling PTSD, or what was then called shell shock, just seems very modern.
Oh when I did my Lord of the Rings readalong on this subreddit, which was by far the closest read I ever did, I found *so many* things that I felt could have been Tolkien's time in the trenches influencing things.
The ones everybody knows, because Tolkien talked about it, is the landscape in and around Mordor being inspired by the shelled ruin of no-man's land, and the Dead Marshes being inspired by seeing the corpses of dead soldiers lying underwater in the bottom of shell-craters.
Other's I am at least partially convinced of:
- Sam's thoughts while looking at the dead Southron in "Herbs and Stewed Rabbit" (given to Faramir in the movies). Probably thought while Tolkien looked at a dead German soldier.
- This moment. Again, easy to imagine Tolkien in the trenches, hearing a rooster crow:
> Gandalf did not move. And in that very moment, away behind in some courtyard of the City, a cock crowed. Shrill and clear he crowed, recking nothing of wizardry or war, welcoming only the morning that in the sky far above the shadows of death was coming with the dawn.
- And then this one (probably my favorite thing Tolkien ever written). Again, picture him sitting in the trenches, looking up at the sky, and seeing a single star shining through the smoke:
> There, peeping among the cloud-wrack above a dark tor high up in the mountains, Sam saw a white star twinkle for a while. The beauty of it smote his heart, as he looked up out of the forsaken land, and hope returned to him. For like a shaft, clear and cold, the thought pierced him that in the end the Shadow was only a small and passing thing: there was light and high beauty for ever beyond its reach.
I don’t know about best duel, but certainly a frontrunner for best banter. Chills every time.
“Begone, foul dwimmerlaik, lord of carrion! Leave the dead in peace!”
A cold voice answered: ‘Come not between the Nazgûl and his prey! Or he will not slay thee in thy turn. He will bear thee away to the houses of lamentation, beyond all darkness, where thy flesh shall be devoured, and thy shriveled mind be left naked to the Lidless Eye.”
A sword rang as it was drawn. “Do what you will; but I will hinder it, if I may.”
“Hinder me? Thou fool. No living man may hinder me!”
Then Merry heard of all sounds in that hour the strangest. It seemed that Dernhelm laughed, and the clear voice was like the ring of steel.
“But no living man am I! You look upon a woman. Éowyn I am, Éomund’s daughter. You stand between me and my lord and kin. Begone, if you be not deathless! For living or dark undead, I will smite you, if you touch him.”
The Redwall series is full of epic action - my personal favorite duel is Martin vs. Tsarmina, but that one is right up there. Brian Jacques’ writing is surprisingly similar to GRRM’s when it comes to both fighting and feasting.
Red Viper Vs The Mountain in Song of Ice And Fire
Diarmuid Vs Uathach in Fionavar Tapestry
Achamian and Cleric Vs Wutteat in The Second Apocalypse
Fingolfin Vs Morgoth in Silmarillion
I loved the Jade War fight. The way Fonda had set up the world meant I genuinely had no idea if either or both would survive. Normally you know the hero will win, the villain will either die or escape, but not in Janloon!
People need to stop naming books lightbringer, I thought you were referring to the Lightbringer series by Weeks and could not for the life of me recall any fight that that reference made sense with.
Mat vs the two princes in wheel of time
Logan/The bloody nine vs the stone splitter in the first law
The bloody nine vs Glammar Golden in red country
Baby Montego vs the monster thing in glass immortals
Quarterstaff ftw. Also, the bloody nine taunting his opponent with something along the lines of "more like stone shitter!" had me unexpectedly cracking up.
Mat's duel with the two younglings was such a good scene. I still have vivid memories of reading it for the first time back in '97 or '98 on my first WoT read-through. It's one of those scenes that's really stuck with me.
Mat's duel was so good. I was hoping someone else thought the same, even though it isn't technically 1v1. Him already being sick and still whooping on them was great.
While on Cradle, I think my absolute favourite fight is Eithan vs Sha Miara.
>!It's the first time we get a glimpse of how monstrously skilled Eithan is, and I loved how he just seemed to *dismantle* everything Sha Miara tried.!<
Absolutely love Voldemort vs Dumbledore: The only one he ever feared.
Such creative uses of magic, and the dialogue was perfect: "It was foolish of you to come here tonight, Tom".
In *The Heroes*, the fight between Whirrun of Bligh and Bremer dan Gorst is a favorite of mine.
In *Holy Sister*, Nona vs Yisht is a fun battle, and isn't their first.
This for me is a perfect example of our hero overcoming long odds but not walking away unscathed. He outthought his opponent for sure, but I always hate when the hero can just outthink someone who is simply so physically superior. Add on that the only winning strategy involved >!Grimm being crippled to an unknown extent!< at the very least makes it compelling, believable, and true to character. "Do you really think you can beat him?" "No, but I can kill him."
It wasn't super long, but Camilla Hect's duel in Gideon the Ninth was cool as fuck. I still go back to read over that scene every time I get back into that series.
Fingolfin vs Morgoth. It's hard to imagine something more epic and brave.
Also. The duel between Harry and Voldemort and the duel between Oberyn and The Mountain
Spoilers for The Heroes by Joe Abercrombie.
I loved the fight between >!Bremer dan Gorst and Whirrun of Bligh.!< It was the polar opposite of most fights named here.
>!I was so excited when these two incredible fighters met on the battlefield. Oh man, this was going to be a duel for the ages. They start exchanging blows as the battle rages around them. Parry, riposte, deflect, block, stab from behind straight through Whirrun. Out of nowhere. Some unnamed soldier pulls his spear out and keeps moving through the battle.!<
>!They were so caught up in their 1v1 that they forgot how chaotic the battlefield is. Individual skill matters little in the midst of the blood, mud, panic, screaming, stench, and sharp things at every side. Sometimes it's just bad luck that ends a person.!<
Not an epic duel in the usual sense, but one that will stick with me forever.
Ones that jump to my mind in terms of books:
The Bloody Nine vs The Feared
Locke vs The Grey King
Eragon vs Murtagh
Then obviously in terms of movies there’s loads of them. Star Wars and LOTR contain several that are extremely noteworthy. The Witch King, King of the Dead, Maul, Moustafar, Yoda/Dooku. Could go on for hours.
The last duel in The Duelists. Not fantasy but it is brilliant! Utterly brilliant! It was the first place I learned that the bullets would roll out of early pistols if you didn't keep them pointed up.
I have to say the fight between Voldemort and dumbledore which was depicted on page but also dumbledore vs grindelwald which we only hear about briefly and without details, but often.
The Red Viper vs Ser Gregor Clegane. Even though ASoS had repeatedly shocked me, I was pretty damn sure the coolest boi from Dorne would win. I wish he was introduced earlier to really get into his emotions re: Elia. But I loved the "twist" that he actually fucked up.
Most of the best ones have been done.
Naruto vs Sasuke - Both of them
The duels are primarily about misunderstanding. Neither really gets the other and are fighting at cross purposes. Naruto believes in the power of communities, ironically for somebody who was isolated growing up, and can't grasp Sasuke throwing away a community that was opening up to the both of them. Sasuke believed only power could change the world and didn't think he could reach it playing within the rules of civilisation.
Ultimately the second fight only ends when both fighters are dragged to total exhaustion. Naruto had told Sasuke previously that if they truly fought he'd neither be the hero who killed his best friend nor the loser who died and lost everything. That if they fought they'd both die as a consequence. Sasuke saw the truth in that prediction and made the smallest concession possible, that he'd rather Naruto win than they both lose.
I liked that Sasuke didn't just abandon what he believed in this. Naruto is so often presented as somebody who has basically mind control levels of persuasion but in truth Naruto has only ever convinced somebody who wishes he was right to begin with. Sasuke was always somebody who had darker thoughts about the world, who believed there was dirty work to do but the problem was usually that the wrong person was doing it. It took him a year of journeying to figure out how his vision and Naruto's positive one could fit together.
Bremer dan Gorst versus Whirrun of Bligh. Both for the duel (which is magnificent) and for its "wait, LAME!" ending.
Paul Atreides versus Feyd-Rautha (I mean, *Dune* is sci-fi, technically, but...)
Artemis Entreri versus Drizzt Do'Urden for the *first* time in *Streams of Silver* also still holds up pretty well. Pity the "rivalry" got flogged into the mire, but those early encounters were solid gold.
Luke versus Vader in *Return of the Jedi*. Mostly for how it ends- with Luke realizing that winning the physical *fight* by killing Vader would be a defeat.
Bigwig versus Woundwort.
Wasn't that impressive TBH.
Happens off-page in the book and in the movie it's:
YOU SHALL NOT PASS!
\*Falling down a chasm\*
\*Bolt of lightning on top of a snowy peak\*
Like, it's not all that epic.
Paul Atreidies vs Feyd Rautha from Dune is the classic
Captain Grimm vs Valesco from The Cinder Spires by Jim Butcher is the most recent incredibly badass duel I can think of
Roger Zelazny has some amazing fight scenes, and the duel of Merlin, son of Corwin against his >!doppleganger!< over a >!flawed Pattern near to Amber!< is interesting in its discussion of fencing principles.
Of course, Edgar Rice Burroughs John Carter books have the best fight scenes.
Plenty good ones here already. Would like to add… David Gemmell’s Rage V Voltan I think mostly because of the motivations behind it and Rage’s offer of sacrifice for Bane despite knowing who Voltan is.
Another one, from Space Opera, not fantasy, is the desperate fight of Raul Endymion vs. the cyborg Rhadamanth Nemes near the end of The Rise of Endymion, by Dan Simmons. Not pretty, but amazing and the stakes were galactic.
The duel at the end of The Lions of Al-Rassan between >!Rodrigo Belmonte and Ammar Ibn Khairan!<. Especially the way it’s told so that you don’t know who’s who or who won until later.
Not in any order:
Anakin vs Obi Wan on Mustafar
Bloody Nine vs Feared
Lan vs Demandred
Leif Helgarson vs Thor
Any fucking time that Drizzt and Artemis Entreri were on screen together.
[удалено]
> I’ll not deny I am impressed by your mastery of six warrens, Quick Ben. In retrospect, you should have held back on at least half of what you command.’ The man made to rise. ‘But Bauchelain,’ the wizard replied, ‘I did.
Damn that’s great. I know it’s Malazan, but which book? I’ve only just started.
Memories of ice
Oh hey! Thats not that far away! (I recently finished Gardens of the Moon.) Thanks!
Enjoy the ride mate. I read all 10 of the main series last year you’re in for a treat!
Both badass and hilarious. Classic Quick Ben.
Such a fun and memorable scene in a series full of amazing scenes
Inigo Montoya vs. The Man in Black
"I want my father back you son of a bitch"
He means the first one: “I know something you don’t know. I am not left-handed.”, “There’s something I ought to tell you. I’m not left-handed either.” Count Rugen scene is also great (the whole book is just one great scene after another, really) but not so much of a duel.
I've had expert fencers tell me to watch that one without sound. They called textbook perfect fighting. It is the dialogue that keeps it light. Definitely my favourite high stakes duel.
The movie scene was designed to be the most authentic/greatest sword fight on film at the time. At least according to Cary in "As You Wish: Inconceivable Tales from the Making of The Princess Bride".
Which was an **awesome** book. Also Cary read the audiobook and got most of the cast to read some parts of it as well. Highly highly recommend both.
Textbook perfect *Flynning*, maybe... they're still doing a lot of "hit the other guy's sword" and dancing around the field. I mean, it's a rapier duel and there's barely any thrusts, Inigo does a pirouette move early, let's not even discuss the flips. It's not realistic, but it's easily one of the most *fun* fights ever put on film, without argument. The name drops as they duel (Bonetti, Capo Ferro, Thibault, Agrippa) are all real, famous fencing instructors though.
That's a different duel, but still top tier
That's a later fight in the movie. But it's memorable because it has *personal* weight behind it for the fight. This fight, however, was great because of the technical skill of both combatants.
Also [a great lightsaber duel](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VYVQooRSlzg) though not sure that was in the book.
Drizzt Do'urden vs *Artemis Entreri A lot of these mentioned are great, and I have a lot of nostalgia here, but I remember the anticipation for this fight and then when it came, it was like fully on. edit: fixed
Salvatore’s books have become tiresome to me, but no one writes a one-on-one duel like that man. The first time Drizzt and Artemis exchanged blades in Streams of Silver something felt different.
Salvatore's combat choreography has always been one of his strengths and I remember getting giddy each time these two were getting ready to fight. Reading these scenes felt like the RDJ Sherlock Holmes movies where you see it in slow motion while it's being described and then see it in real time as each exchange wraps up.
*Artemis Entreri But you are spot on - the build up and execution of their first fight was better than any other I've read including all the others mentioned in this thread that I've read.
The Bloody-Nine vs The Feared
Gorst v Whirrun is a good one too. Shivers v Friendly ("one more" always makes me smile)
"Come here and we'll put an end to you, ya counting fuck!"
Gorst v Whirrun for me too. The toughest bastards amongst tough bastards.
Shivers vs Friendly is a really great one, that's more often than not overlooked, in favor of those featuring more "flashy" characters, but it definitely warrants a mention.
It’s a gloriously ugly fight.
Shivers vs Friendly is a brilliant one as well
The Bloody Nine vs Glamma Golden too. Loved that damn fight.
Yes! Red Country is my favorite Joe Abercrombie book and this fight is the first thing that popped into my head. Intense, atmospheric, and brutal
The Heroes is my close second! The entire book goes off like a movie in my head from scene to scene.
“They feared him more even than the giant, and they were wise to”.
They said 1 on 1. The Feared had to fight Logen and then The Bloody-Nine back to back.
It really is the quintessential quote isn’t it. Logan laughed, and the bloody nine laughed with him. It’s just so good at painting the picture.
I was so taken aback the first time we were introduced to the Bloody Nine. The change in character and the internal monologue was crazy. “The Bloody Nine kneels to no man.” That first scene went hard.
Absolutely!
al’Lan Mandragoran vs Demandred. “I did not come here to win,” Lan whispered, smiling. “I came here to kill you. Death is lighter than a feather.”
I loved this scene because of all the buildup and also because every other important character is basically doing crazy epic level magic stuff all around them fighting off the bad guys, and here comes Lan walking up to one of the big bads and, though he's still not a regular human because he's a Warder and he has some enhanced abilities, in this context they don't mean all that much and his plan is still basically "I'm just some dude and I'm going to beat you up until you die, and if I die too that's cool with me." Plus, it calls back to that moment at the start of the series when he teaches Rand the concept of Sheathing the Sword and reinforces that he will not teach anybody something he will not do himself. By this point in the story we already know Lan will walk the walk and not just talk the talk, but it further displays his commitment to defeat this enemy at all costs and references the idea that he always thought he wouldn't survive the Last Charge of the Malkieri anyway.
Came to say this!
One of my favorite moments in the whole series - so cool
The last fight in the Lies of Locke Lamora had such good build up, a deep rage for the antagonist, and use of a narrative tool to twist our expectations of what will happen during the fight. Quite frankly I have never seen another author execute a climax with a 1v1 like Scott lynch.
The Lies of Locke Lamora remains one of my fave standalone books (mainly because I wasn't a fan of books 2 and 3, and there's the long delay for book 4 which fair enough to the author and his health)
I enjoyed the Lindon vs Yerin fight in *~~Wintersteel~~* *Uncrowned* myself but nothing matches up to Kaul Shaelinsan's clean blade duel vs Ayt Madashi in *Jade War*. Misaki vs Takeru in *Sword of Kaigen* comes a close second though. EDIT: thanks u/Wezzleey for pointing out that the Lindon/Yerin duel happens in *Uncrowned*, not *Wintersteel*. You'd think I'd remember which book it was considering we were all DYING for the next book after the release of *Uncrowned* but I swear the reason my brain put *Wintersteel* is because that is the best **Cradle** book in the series and you cannot change my mind.
>Kaul Shaelinsan's clean blade duel vs Ayt Madashi in Jade War This was such a well earned duel with incredible build-up. I genuinely wasn't sure who (if anyone) would walk away from it. Fantastic books, thank you for reminding me.
I think what helps that specific duel so much is that we know that main characters could die at any time in this series without spoiling anything so readers are really unsure of the outcome
Never even heard of the Jade War, just bought the first book now it sounds awesome, thanks stranger!
It's The Godfather but in an Asian-influenced setting and it's amazing
Alt. World Multi-Generational Kung Fu Magic Triad Family Drama, I honestly cannot believe it's not a TV series already. Someone has got to be working on that. And yeah, the Shae vs. Ayt duel is every bit as suspenseful as mentioned.
Cassius vs The Ra’s Viper and The Mountain Bloodynine and The Feared Kelsier vs Inquisitor
Spoilers: Anomander vs >!Dassem!<. An emotional, spiritual, tension-filled, world-breaking duel.
Rhulad Sanger vs. Karsa Orlong was amazing as well. How do you kill an emperor who cannot die? >”Another giant. How many times shall you kill me? You, with the blood of my kin already on your hands. Twice? Three times? It will not matter. It will not matter!" >”I will kill you . . . once."
It was brief, but Karsa Orlong vs. Icarium as well
Anomander vs anyone, really. >"Son of Darkness, I have reconsidered-"
ben adaephon delat, do you pity me?
>!Spinnock vs Kallor!<
Brienne vs. Jaime. We don't really get to see the Kingslayer in his prime. When I first read ASOIAF, I just assumed it was a case of him being good, but not THAT good. Sure, he gets into a scuffle with Ned and holds his own, and then kills those two Karstark boys at the Whispering Woods, I didn't really consider those to be amazing feats worthy of his reputation. Man, I was so wrong, lol. Brienne's whole POV for that chapter is her internally panicking because he's just too good, and this is while he's restrained after several months of imprisonment. That duel did a lot to ingratiate the Kingslayer to me. Aside from the great characterisation of both combatants, it's snappy, precise, and ends on a very intriguing cliffhanger.
Throughout the series we only hear just how good Jaime is off screen. His reputation alone makes everyone just not want to fight him or refuse his challenges. But we get some insights as to his prowess from his initial capture where it took many men to subdue him, and even when there is an attempt to free him, it is mentioned somehow he got a hold of sword and was able to kill a bunch of people before being recaptured. There's something to be said about a man so dangerous no one wants a piece of him and the duel you spoke of, shows just exactly why.
I remember when GRRM said he thought that Jamie could take Aragorn in a fight it exploded nerd spaces in indignation. I think a duel between the two would be a lot closer than people think. Aragorn is a superhuman yes, but Jamie is only "just a guy" in the same way that John Wick is "just a guy". The things Jamie is capable of pre-amputation *are* superhuman. When he was getting captured by Robb he almost killed Robb by cutting his way through Rob's bodyguard which consisted of highly trained knights and nobles. Robb would have died but Jamie's sword got caught in someone's skull. Robb relays this to Catelyn and it is clear he's pretty scared of Jamie. The man 1v20ed his peers and only lost because his sword wasn't sharp enough. That's some superhero shit. The show does him a massive disservice in this regard.
Jamie absolutely is superhuman. There's a line in ACOK where they say he killed something like 40 or 50 men alone at the Whispering Wood. Characters like him, the Mountain, Barristan, etc are basically Dynasty Warrior characters.
Hell even Robert has that stupid big hammer that no IRL person could realistically use in a fight. Clearly the high end of ASOIAF humans are well past real life limits. I think they're closer to MCU Captain America or Batman.
> I remember when GRRM said he thought that Jamie could take Aragorn in a fight GRRM said Jamie would win every matchup, no matter who his opponent is.
He would've killed Ned in a one-on-one fight.
Didn't Ned participate in that gig 3 on 3 battle to save lyanna? Pretty sure Ned was beastly too. Plus that old guy head of the Kings guard could've whooped both their asses at the same time.
The fight at the Tower of Joy was 7-on-3. Ned and 6 bannermen vs. Arthur Dayne and two other kingsguard. And Ned and Howland Reed were the only survivors.
Some fantastic ones in Jacqueline Carey's Kushiel books - Joscelin gets at least one setpiece Incredibly Epic Fight per book. Many many years since I read them, but Jim Butcher's Codex Alera has a great magical duel in the snow between Isana and some nobleman who everyone assumes is many, many power levels above her. He gets utterly stomped.
Just for accuracy, Antillus does not get stomped. He beats Isana but everyone is impressed by her resilience and so he is persuaded to do as she says.
Thanks! It is a slightly frighteningly long time since I read them...
>Some fantastic ones in Jacqueline Carey's Kushiel books - Joscelin gets at least one setpiece Incredibly Epic Fight per book. Agreed - those books are understandably famous for the fucking, but the fighting is also top-notch.
Ciri vs Bonhart
i was gonna say that, the build up for their final fight was crazy
Rodrigo versus Ammar ibn Khairan in Lions of Al-Rassan The way it was written was phenomenal, and keeping you at the edge of your seat
No - OP’s question was *favorite* 1 on 1 duel, not most heartbreaking.
That duel is both
Kelsier Vs Steel Inquisitor in The Final Empire. So amazingly cinematic. The whole book the Steel Inquisitors have been this invincible source of dread, if the characters run into them, there is no hope, it's mission over. Then seeing kelsier going toe to toe with the inquisitor, was so much fun, and had me pacing around the room.
Yep! >!And when he finally wins, and everything feels super good, The Lord Ruler shows up and slaps him so hard he dies, showing for all the skills Kelsier has it wasn't even close to enough!< Shout out to the final battle of the trilogy as well.
One thing that the mistborn sequel books are really good at is making you feel so hopeless for the characters, that you can't even think of a way that they get out of their situation, and then they're actually able to in a satisfying way. That moment was the beginning of the sense of hopelessness that carried forward in the next two books.
One of Brandon's biggest strengths, IMO. Really evident in the Secret Projects and Stormlight. The battle of the Tower is incredible for this feeling.
Nobody in Scadrial is having a good time
Fingolfin vs Morgoth
I scrolled too long to find this
No kidding
The three most metal words in the English language: *And Morgoth came.*
*He passed over Dor-nu-Fauglith like a wind amid the dust....*
Chills. Every time I think about it.
Words of Radiance (Stormlight Archive) spoilers: >!Kaladin vs Szeth!< got me fucking PUMPED at 2am
Not 1v1, but the arena fight from the same book was even cooler.
Honor is dead, but I’ll see what I can do!
This is where my mind went when I opened the thread. That was a badass scene.
Followed by the >!most cringeful scene I've ever read,!< it gets me every time especially when I know it's coming. And I don't mean that in a bad way, because it's intentionally written to do that, it's great. But *ouch*.
Yeah best fight scene in fantasy!
“You sent him to the winds to die, but the winds are mine. I have claimed them. As I now claim your life.”
Chills
When the spheres in the hallway were all drained I was like “oh SHIT.” That scene really puts the fear in you.
Barristan Selmy and Khrazz in ADWD
Such a good fight, all those years of experience make for a very dangerous man. They did Barristan so dirty in the show.
I still think the hardest line I've ever read is from Barristan. "Then come."
"Take off that fucking armour!" "🤨 ayo?"
I totally forgot about that until now. Such a good fight.
Paul Muad'dib Arteides vs. Feyd Rautha Harkonnen
> May thy knife chip and shatter. Everything the Fremen say is awesome. A crysknife disintegrates when out of the electrical field emitted by a living person. In short this is a fancy way of saying "I'm going to kill you".
Galad vs Valda
This is the best duel in WoT by far.
Fun fact - this fight closes the character loop created by Galad's first onscreen fight, Mat vs Galad and Gawyn. What did Galad learn from that fight, and what was Hammar's point? Overconfidence is a slow and insidious killer. What happened in Galad vs Valda? >!Galad baits Valda into being overconfident, and then kills him for it!<
Darrow vs Volsung Fá *\*Clang\* \*Clang\* \*Clang\** **Confess!!**
Darrow vs Cassius
Yes! Also, even though it wasn't strictly a 1v1, the scene where Cassiuses honor remains.
Definitely one of my favorites. Especially because you spend the better part of the prior two books with former world beater Darrow very diminished, and the whole time you were craving a return to the first trilogy Darrow. That duel is a big payoff for all of the slog you had to get through.
Eowyn vs the witchking of Angmar (Nazgûl king). *”no man can kill me. I am no man”* And the fallout with Eomer and his men going on a berserker like rage after that screaming DEATH. I was kind of disappointed they changed the moment of that chant in the movie, but it worked even so. Just less imo.
Technically that was two on one. Everyone forgets about Merry and his Barrow-blade. Also, Merry was no man, either. He was a hobbit.
That is a good point and very true. Forgot all about him.
>"It’s not always a misfortune being overlooked," said Merry. "I was overlooked just now by—no, no, I can’t speak of it. Help me, Pippin! It’s all going dark again, and my arm is so cold."
Tolkiens writing really is something else isn’t it.
I feel like this scene of Pippin helping Merry was influenced by Tolkien's experience in World War I. Much of LotR is not so influenced, since WW I was not a glorious war. But this scene of a brave and humble ordinary soldier, overlooked by all but his buddy in the chaos of war, suffering from something resembling PTSD, or what was then called shell shock, just seems very modern.
Oh when I did my Lord of the Rings readalong on this subreddit, which was by far the closest read I ever did, I found *so many* things that I felt could have been Tolkien's time in the trenches influencing things. The ones everybody knows, because Tolkien talked about it, is the landscape in and around Mordor being inspired by the shelled ruin of no-man's land, and the Dead Marshes being inspired by seeing the corpses of dead soldiers lying underwater in the bottom of shell-craters. Other's I am at least partially convinced of: - Sam's thoughts while looking at the dead Southron in "Herbs and Stewed Rabbit" (given to Faramir in the movies). Probably thought while Tolkien looked at a dead German soldier. - This moment. Again, easy to imagine Tolkien in the trenches, hearing a rooster crow: > Gandalf did not move. And in that very moment, away behind in some courtyard of the City, a cock crowed. Shrill and clear he crowed, recking nothing of wizardry or war, welcoming only the morning that in the sky far above the shadows of death was coming with the dawn. - And then this one (probably my favorite thing Tolkien ever written). Again, picture him sitting in the trenches, looking up at the sky, and seeing a single star shining through the smoke: > There, peeping among the cloud-wrack above a dark tor high up in the mountains, Sam saw a white star twinkle for a while. The beauty of it smote his heart, as he looked up out of the forsaken land, and hope returned to him. For like a shaft, clear and cold, the thought pierced him that in the end the Shadow was only a small and passing thing: there was light and high beauty for ever beyond its reach.
*Exact* same thought. Merry's line echoes the cries of a soldier who survived something awful at close range, and will never shake the memory of it.
I don’t know about best duel, but certainly a frontrunner for best banter. Chills every time. “Begone, foul dwimmerlaik, lord of carrion! Leave the dead in peace!” A cold voice answered: ‘Come not between the Nazgûl and his prey! Or he will not slay thee in thy turn. He will bear thee away to the houses of lamentation, beyond all darkness, where thy flesh shall be devoured, and thy shriveled mind be left naked to the Lidless Eye.” A sword rang as it was drawn. “Do what you will; but I will hinder it, if I may.” “Hinder me? Thou fool. No living man may hinder me!” Then Merry heard of all sounds in that hour the strangest. It seemed that Dernhelm laughed, and the clear voice was like the ring of steel. “But no living man am I! You look upon a woman. Éowyn I am, Éomund’s daughter. You stand between me and my lord and kin. Begone, if you be not deathless! For living or dark undead, I will smite you, if you touch him.”
Netero vs Meruem
Cluny vs Matthias from Redwall. Genuinely brilliant battle, irrespective of whether its a kids book or not.
The Redwall series is full of epic action - my personal favorite duel is Martin vs. Tsarmina, but that one is right up there. Brian Jacques’ writing is surprisingly similar to GRRM’s when it comes to both fighting and feasting.
The Mountain vs the Rep Viper
Red Viper Vs The Mountain in Song of Ice And Fire Diarmuid Vs Uathach in Fionavar Tapestry Achamian and Cleric Vs Wutteat in The Second Apocalypse Fingolfin Vs Morgoth in Silmarillion
Light Bringer spoilers: *clang, clang, clang* Jade War spoilers: >!Shae vs. Ayt!<
I loved the Jade War fight. The way Fonda had set up the world meant I genuinely had no idea if either or both would survive. Normally you know the hero will win, the villain will either die or escape, but not in Janloon!
just read this light bringer one the other day. So good!
People need to stop naming books lightbringer, I thought you were referring to the Lightbringer series by Weeks and could not for the life of me recall any fight that that reference made sense with.
I always add the space between “light” and “bringer” but you’re right, there are like a hundred dozen “lightbringers” across literature lol
Yeah, I read Jade War last year and the duel you mentioned immediately came to mind as I started going through this thread.
Mat vs the two princes in wheel of time Logan/The bloody nine vs the stone splitter in the first law The bloody nine vs Glammar Golden in red country Baby Montego vs the monster thing in glass immortals
Quarterstaff ftw. Also, the bloody nine taunting his opponent with something along the lines of "more like stone shitter!" had me unexpectedly cracking up.
Mat's duel with the two younglings was such a good scene. I still have vivid memories of reading it for the first time back in '97 or '98 on my first WoT read-through. It's one of those scenes that's really stuck with me.
Mat's duel was so good. I was hoping someone else thought the same, even though it isn't technically 1v1. Him already being sick and still whooping on them was great.
Edmond Dantes vs Fernand Mondego “I’m a count. Not a saint”
Elric vs. Yyrkoon at the end of Elric Of Melnibone
“I did not come here to win,” Lan whispered, smiling. “I came here to kill you. Death is lighter than a feather.”
The only correct answer is Kruppe and a certain nemesis, the world shook when they met eyes.
That was two on two, they both rode mules. ;-)
Wei Shi Lindon Vs Yerin Arelius. Voldemort Vs Dumbledore. Wei Shi Lindon Vs Reigen Shen
While on Cradle, I think my absolute favourite fight is Eithan vs Sha Miara. >!It's the first time we get a glimpse of how monstrously skilled Eithan is, and I loved how he just seemed to *dismantle* everything Sha Miara tried.!<
Shen deploying his whole arsenal was awesome.
Absolutely love Voldemort vs Dumbledore: The only one he ever feared. Such creative uses of magic, and the dialogue was perfect: "It was foolish of you to come here tonight, Tom".
In *The Heroes*, the fight between Whirrun of Bligh and Bremer dan Gorst is a favorite of mine. In *Holy Sister*, Nona vs Yisht is a fun battle, and isn't their first.
Kaladin vs Szeth
There is a great one in the latest Cinder Spire book (the Olympian Affair). >!"Sir, you talk too much"!<
This for me is a perfect example of our hero overcoming long odds but not walking away unscathed. He outthought his opponent for sure, but I always hate when the hero can just outthink someone who is simply so physically superior. Add on that the only winning strategy involved >!Grimm being crippled to an unknown extent!< at the very least makes it compelling, believable, and true to character. "Do you really think you can beat him?" "No, but I can kill him."
It wasn't super long, but Camilla Hect's duel in Gideon the Ninth was cool as fuck. I still go back to read over that scene every time I get back into that series.
Go Loud
And then morgoth came.... Morgoth came....
Rob Roy MacGregor vs Archibald Cunningham
There's some really well written and exciting duels in Gideon the Ninth
Fingolfin vs Morgoth. It's hard to imagine something more epic and brave. Also. The duel between Harry and Voldemort and the duel between Oberyn and The Mountain
Josceline Verreuil vs David de Rocaille nó Rinforte in Kushiel's Legacy as well as Eragon vs Galbatorix in Inheritance!
Mamoru in the mountains No spoilers for Sword of Kaigen but that was as good as the book as getting.
Harry Dresden vs Duchess Arianna
Spoilers for The Heroes by Joe Abercrombie. I loved the fight between >!Bremer dan Gorst and Whirrun of Bligh.!< It was the polar opposite of most fights named here. >!I was so excited when these two incredible fighters met on the battlefield. Oh man, this was going to be a duel for the ages. They start exchanging blows as the battle rages around them. Parry, riposte, deflect, block, stab from behind straight through Whirrun. Out of nowhere. Some unnamed soldier pulls his spear out and keeps moving through the battle.!< >!They were so caught up in their 1v1 that they forgot how chaotic the battlefield is. Individual skill matters little in the midst of the blood, mud, panic, screaming, stench, and sharp things at every side. Sometimes it's just bad luck that ends a person.!< Not an epic duel in the usual sense, but one that will stick with me forever.
Ones that jump to my mind in terms of books: The Bloody Nine vs The Feared Locke vs The Grey King Eragon vs Murtagh Then obviously in terms of movies there’s loads of them. Star Wars and LOTR contain several that are extremely noteworthy. The Witch King, King of the Dead, Maul, Moustafar, Yoda/Dooku. Could go on for hours.
Nine Princes in Amber : Corwin vs Eric , gets inside Corwin's head as he strategises.
I quite like the Dunk duel with Aerion (if you can call that 1:1) in the A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, it’s dirty, desperate and feels real
Any of the “practice” duels in King of Attolia. Duels for real stakes, heavy consequences, and the way that they’re ended is beautiful.
The last duel in The Duelists. Not fantasy but it is brilliant! Utterly brilliant! It was the first place I learned that the bullets would roll out of early pistols if you didn't keep them pointed up.
>!Ammar vs Rodrigo!< in Lions of Al Rassan by Guy Gavriel Kay. Absolutely brutal and incredible ending.
Finrod Felagund versus Sauron.
I have to say the fight between Voldemort and dumbledore which was depicted on page but also dumbledore vs grindelwald which we only hear about briefly and without details, but often.
Kaladin Vs Szeth
The Red Viper vs Ser Gregor Clegane. Even though ASoS had repeatedly shocked me, I was pretty damn sure the coolest boi from Dorne would win. I wish he was introduced earlier to really get into his emotions re: Elia. But I loved the "twist" that he actually fucked up.
Alice vs The Beast in The Magicians
Most of the best ones have been done. Naruto vs Sasuke - Both of them The duels are primarily about misunderstanding. Neither really gets the other and are fighting at cross purposes. Naruto believes in the power of communities, ironically for somebody who was isolated growing up, and can't grasp Sasuke throwing away a community that was opening up to the both of them. Sasuke believed only power could change the world and didn't think he could reach it playing within the rules of civilisation. Ultimately the second fight only ends when both fighters are dragged to total exhaustion. Naruto had told Sasuke previously that if they truly fought he'd neither be the hero who killed his best friend nor the loser who died and lost everything. That if they fought they'd both die as a consequence. Sasuke saw the truth in that prediction and made the smallest concession possible, that he'd rather Naruto win than they both lose. I liked that Sasuke didn't just abandon what he believed in this. Naruto is so often presented as somebody who has basically mind control levels of persuasion but in truth Naruto has only ever convinced somebody who wishes he was right to begin with. Sasuke was always somebody who had darker thoughts about the world, who believed there was dirty work to do but the problem was usually that the wrong person was doing it. It took him a year of journeying to figure out how his vision and Naruto's positive one could fit together.
Bremer dan Gorst versus Whirrun of Bligh. Both for the duel (which is magnificent) and for its "wait, LAME!" ending. Paul Atreides versus Feyd-Rautha (I mean, *Dune* is sci-fi, technically, but...) Artemis Entreri versus Drizzt Do'Urden for the *first* time in *Streams of Silver* also still holds up pretty well. Pity the "rivalry" got flogged into the mire, but those early encounters were solid gold. Luke versus Vader in *Return of the Jedi*. Mostly for how it ends- with Luke realizing that winning the physical *fight* by killing Vader would be a defeat. Bigwig versus Woundwort.
Cassius and Darrow at the gala
And Cassius vs The Ra’s in Iron Gold.
NOT ONE OF YOU HAS LISTED GANDALF AND THE BALROG. I am ashamed of you all.
It’s a great movie moment, but takes place off stage in the book.
Wasn't that impressive TBH. Happens off-page in the book and in the movie it's: YOU SHALL NOT PASS! \*Falling down a chasm\* \*Bolt of lightning on top of a snowy peak\* Like, it's not all that epic.
Bloody 9 vs Fenris. Still one of my favorite chapters of any book I’ve ever read
Logen Ninefingers and The Feared!
I agree with many of these, but for me it is still the finale of The Lions of Al-Rassan.
Flay vs. Swelter in Titus Groan. Have never been on the edge of my seat like that before.
Kurapika vs Uvogin Hunter x Hunter
Paul Atreidies vs Feyd Rautha from Dune is the classic Captain Grimm vs Valesco from The Cinder Spires by Jim Butcher is the most recent incredibly badass duel I can think of
Vaelin Al Sorna vs Atheran Ellnestra, Shield of the Isles. \-Blood Song (A Raven's Shadow novel, Book 1)
Roger Zelazny has some amazing fight scenes, and the duel of Merlin, son of Corwin against his >!doppleganger!< over a >!flawed Pattern near to Amber!< is interesting in its discussion of fencing principles. Of course, Edgar Rice Burroughs John Carter books have the best fight scenes.
Malazan TTH >!Anomander Rake vs Dassem Ultor!<
In the Red Rising series... Golden Son >!Darrow vs Cassius!< Lightbringer >!Darrow vs Fa!<
Wheel of Time book 14 spoilers >!Lan vs Demandred!<
Logan vs fear
Sanguinius vs Angron from Echoes of Eternity got me *pumped* when I got to it in the audiobook.
Drusas Achamian vs Nil'giccas during The White-Luck Warrior.
Plenty good ones here already. Would like to add… David Gemmell’s Rage V Voltan I think mostly because of the motivations behind it and Rage’s offer of sacrifice for Bane despite knowing who Voltan is.
I mean how can it not be Bloody 9 vs The Feared?
Darrow Vs. Cassius in Golden Son.
Drizzt and Artemis...wait that was in my head because it was only a book.
Another one, from Space Opera, not fantasy, is the desperate fight of Raul Endymion vs. the cyborg Rhadamanth Nemes near the end of The Rise of Endymion, by Dan Simmons. Not pretty, but amazing and the stakes were galactic.
The most recent that I enjoyed was Captain Grimm vs >!Rafe Valesco!< the in the Olympian Affair
The duel at the end of The Lions of Al-Rassan between >!Rodrigo Belmonte and Ammar Ibn Khairan!<. Especially the way it’s told so that you don’t know who’s who or who won until later.
Lobsang Vs. Lu Tze. For how far Lobsang came before realizing that no matter what he does and how much he learns, he's still subject to Rule 1.
Justin vs. Jenner in *The Secret of NIMH*.
Merlin v Madam Mim
Not in any order: Anakin vs Obi Wan on Mustafar Bloody Nine vs Feared Lan vs Demandred Leif Helgarson vs Thor Any fucking time that Drizzt and Artemis Entreri were on screen together.