Sandor Clegane is best all rounder fighter.

[Putin]

I am refering only to book version of Hound.He has everything to be perfect warrior :

1. Size - Roberth Baratheon is 6,6 feet tall and Hound is bigger than that as said directly by George R.R. Martin

2. Physical strength - Hound is one of 4 man Jaime consider stronger than him.He is often described as big,muscular and strong man.

3. Speed.- Many think that he is slow or has average speed ,but thats not true he is also fast with sword.

- When fighting Beric Dondarrion Arya said hound attacks were fast.

- This is what Jaime thinks : Both men were large and powerful, but Sandor Clegane was much quicker, and fought with a savagery that Lyle Crakehall could not hope to match

4. Jousting . Hound won jousting tournament in kings landing

5. Reputation : Hound is always considered to be top fighter in Westeros. Jaime always praises him. George R.R. Martin always puts Hound alongside Jaime and Barristan as best fighter in Westeros.

Hound is deadly combination of size, strength, speed and skills.I think he is best warrior in seven kingdoms.

 

 

[Lucius Lovejoy]

You make a strong argument, but I'd love to see Mance Rayder in more action - he kicked Jon's ass when glamoured as Rattleshirt being faster than him despite using a great sword.  Oberyn is intriguing as well as a fighter.  Those two, two-handed Jaime, Arthur Dayne, and Sandor Glegane definitely in the top 5.

[Tianzi]

Well, with Jaime dehanded, Barristan old, Robert obese (and dead), I think the Hound is the reasonable choice... in that short period of time before he's crippled. I agree that Oberyn is a wild card and can be formidable when he's now acting stupid. After that it's possibly between Loras and Brienne.

[Adam Yozza]

I mean, if we're talking about the beginning of the novel then I'm gonna have to say Barristan Selmy, despite his age, or Jaime before he loses his hand. Mance is also a very formidable fighter and Garlan is one of the best swords in the Reach. Oberyn, when not fixated on revenge, is a deadly fighter and in Cleganebowl I'd put my money on Gregor.

So while the Hound is a very good fighter, I wouldn't say he's the best all round fighter.

[theblackdragonI]

If you're counting all the books then we can't leave out the Halfhand, he wipes the floor with Jon and we can assume he's just as good if not better than Mance as he's called the best in the Watch.

I agree that the Hound is an overall beast but I think a quick , smart fighter like Jaime or Oberyn could use his temper against him to tire him out. 

[One-eyed Misbehavin]

It's Jamie I'm sorry. Too skilled. Only bc of Barry's age otherwise it's at least a tie with the majority leaning to Barry 

[Makk]

3 hours ago, Tianzi said:

Well, with Jaime dehanded, Barristan old, Robert obese (and dead), I think the Hound is the reasonable choice... in that short period of time before he's crippled. I agree that Oberyn is a wild card and can be formidable when he's now acting stupid. After that it's possibly between Loras and Brienne.

It's very difficult to make these comparisons in most cases because we have no reference points, but this is one case where I think you can clearly put Garlan ahead of Loras. In this case GRRM has made it pretty clear.

[zandru]

There was an "All time best fighter" thread over at the Tower of the Hand website some years back, in which the Hound lasted three rounds, defeating Brienne the Maid of Tarth, Daemon(?) Brightfyre the DragonKnight, and finally falling to a (presumably younger, in his prime) Barristan Selmy (who had also defeated Gregor Clegane in a matter of seconds). I really enjoyed the writing and the way the writer captured the essence of each character. But I can't give you the link and I never found the closing rounds as to who ultimately won. I believe the last two men standing were Barristan Selmy and Arthur Dayne, but don't hold me to that.

Silvio Forell lasted a lot longer than one might have believed with his little sword. and Bronn went down earlier than expected. The Red Viper, of course, took full advantage of poison. The Half Hand acquitted himself well, taking down Victarion and throwing him from the top of the Wall.

I hope this is helpful.

[Ralphis Baratheon]

Oberyn Martell spent 15 years preparing to fight the Mountain and still lost while using poison. He's not in the same category as a Barristan, Jamie Lannister, Loras Tyrell or either Clegane brother. On any given day I think any of the five could best each other.

Mance Rayder beating Jon Snow is no huge accomplishment as Jon is not even top 10 in the North.

 

[300 H&H Magnum]

Arthur Dayne versus Sandor Clegane

Now I would pay to see that fight!

[zandru]

17 minutes ago, Ralphis Baratheon said:

Mance Rayder beating Jon Snow is no huge accomplishment as Jon is not even top 10 in the North.

This is a good point. Jon is still young, well under 20, and with limited experience. He's really good in comparison to poor-born boys who've had no arms training, ever, and he's getting better. But he's a long way from Loras Tyrell, who is only a few years older than Jon. Many of us want to see Jon as one of the great swordsmen of Westeros, but he's not there yet. And, considering he's currently presumed dead, he may never make it.

[300 H&H Magnum]

10 minutes ago, zandru said:

This is a good point. Jon is still young, well under 20, and with limited experience. He's really good in comparison to poor-born boys who've had no arms training, ever, and he's getting better. But he's a long way from Loras Tyrell, who is only a few years older than Jon. Many of us want to see Jon as one of the great swordsmen of Westeros, but he's not there yet. And, considering he's currently presumed dead, he may never make it.

A fair fight and one that would excite the fans is Aegon Blackfyre vs. Jon Snow

 

[PrinceHenryris]

At the start of the story, Sandor is probably the most dangerous man in the Seven Kingdoms.

He's big and strong strong enough to slug it out with giants like his brother, Robert, the Strongboar, or the Umbers.

He's faster than anyone thinks he is.  He played defense against Gregor and Gregor never came close.  Jaime remarks that Sandor is fast.  So does Arya.

He's skilled with multiple weapons.  He can joust with a lance, cut people near in half with a sword and weild a warhammer effectively.

So, I'm agreeing with the OP.

 

[devilish]

The Hound and the Mountain are Tywin's dogs. They were handpicked for their size and their brutality to be class A bruisers. However, I am pretty sure, that their training is nowhere near to Jamie's, just in case the dogs decided to turn against their master. That was pretty evident during the Oberyn vs Mountain clash where the former completely outclassed the latter. 

[devilish]

6 hours ago, Ralphis Baratheon said:

Oberyn Martell spent 15 years preparing to fight the Mountain and still lost while using poison. He's not in the same category as a Barristan, Jamie Lannister, Loras Tyrell or either Clegane brother. On any given day I think any of the five could best each other.

Mance Rayder beating Jon Snow is no huge accomplishment as Jon is not even top 10 in the North.

 

I know a thing or two about martial arts and you learn two things when sparring

a- avoid fighting when you're too emotionally involved

b- never play around your enemy.

I've seen seasoned streetfighters losing their cool and end up doing stupid things because someone messed  with their girlfriend and I also seen senseis ending up on their knees while sparring/training rookies. It only takes one lapse of concentration for someone to end up in a messy situation

Oberyn did both and against a giant/seasoned killer.                  

[Ralphis Baratheon]

9 minutes ago, devilish said:

I know a thing or two about martial arts and you learn two things while training

a- avoid fighting when you're too emotionally involved

b- never play around your enemy.

Oberyn did both and against a giant/seasoned killer.                  

I do as well. I know that knowing who your opponent is and how they fight is a huge advantage especially when facing someone who knows nothing about you. Also if you prepare specially for your opponent and they didn't for you its to your advantage. Oberyn had both these things going for him and Clegane didn't. 

a- I agree it's not usually good because fighting emotional can lead to stupid mistakes early on but Oberyn was fighting intelligently through out the duel until he made the error of thinking Clegane was done and going for his great sword. I'm not sure either of those were emotional decisions.

b- Lots of great fighters have played with and taunted their opponents during their fights and used it to their advantage like Muhammad Ali, Anderson Silva, the Diaz brothers ect. While Oberyn was talking to Gregor it started to piss the Mountain off and may have even helped Oberyn. So on this we disagree.

 

[devilish]

From my experience, a person can be nailed by anybody. That’s something that is shared by anybody in martial arts who recommend a strategic retreat as opposed to fighting. Now what makes a great warrior?

Imp

-          Great training. An untrained person would struggle against someone trained

-          The right attitude. You can bring the horse to water sort of thing (think of Samwell Tarly)

-          The right mix between youth and battle hardened experience. A  15 year old would probably be too green, a 70 year old will have experience but would lack strength

-          Decent genes.

-          The right equipment

Experience is quite significant. Most Lords would have top quality training in their castle but that doesn’t help much in the battlefield. That’s because their sparring partners would be busy avoiding hurting their master/not making him look too ridiculous then actually fight. That was pretty evident during Loras vs the Mountain fight were the latter literally hammered the knight of summer despite the latter had probably been given better training.

I think that at the beginning of the GOT series the best 3 fighters were Oberyn Martell, the Greatjon and Jamie Lannister. They had the right mix between great training, experience and age.

[devilish]

20 minutes ago, Ralphis Baratheon said:

I do as well. I know that knowing who your opponent is and how they fight is a huge advantage especially when facing someone who knows nothing about you. Also if you prepare specially for your opponent and they didn't for you its to your advantage. Oberyn had both these things going for him and Clegane didn't. 

a- I agree it's not usually good because fighting emotional can lead to stupid mistakes early on but Oberyn was fighting intelligently through out the duel until he made the error of thinking Clegane was done and going for his great sword. I'm not sure either of those were emotional decisions.

b- Lots of great fighters have played with and taunted their opponents during their fights and used it to their advantage like Muhammad Ali, Anderson Silva, the Diaz brothers ect. While Oberyn was talking to Gregor it started to piss the Mountain off and may have even helped Oberyn. So on this we disagree.

 

I don't think that Oberyn knew how the Mountain fought. He might have heard rumours (although Gregor was quite versed in not letting alot of witnesses during his fights) but that was it. Sure, he knew more about the Mountain then the Mountain knew about him. However that slight advantage would vanish when compared to the Mountain's superior strength, armour protection and reach. What gave Oberyn the edge was his superior training and military experience having travelled the world and learnt so many styles which might have been foreign to the Mountain.

a- The first thing you learn in martial arts is to finish your opponent and never ever lower your guard unless he's 100% beaten. Oberyn was a cultured man. He must have read alot about numerous duels between 'giants' and more talented warriors including those of Sir Duncan the Tall. Once the more experienced fighter is involved into a brawl with something that big he's fate is sealed. What Oberyn did was a childish mistake typical of someone who allowed his feelings to get the better of him

b- There's a difference between taunting the opponent and totally underestimate him.

 

 

 

[Adam Yozza]

11 hours ago, zandru said:

Daemon(?) Brightfyre the DragonKnight

Wow this name is wrong on three different levels.

Daemon Blackfyre was a highly skilled fighter and commander during the first Blackfyre rebellion. He was the bastard son of Aegon IV and Daena the Defiant, was legitmized on his father's deathbed and granted the sword Blackfyre, and during his half brothers reign he started a rebellion to try and claim the Throne.

Aerion Brightflame was an insane Targaryen Prince; older brother to Aegon V; who decided to drink Wildfire in an attempt to become a dragon.

Aemon the Dragonknight was arguably one of the most skilled fighters to ever live and was a member of the Kingsguard for his uncle Aegon III, his cousin Daeron I (at which point he fought in the Conquest of Dorne), his cousin Baelor I, his father Viserys II and his brother Aegon IV before being killed defending his brother from an assassination attempt.

[Coolbeard the Exile]

15 hours ago, Lucius Lovejoy said:

You make a strong argument, but I'd love to see Mance Rayder in more action - he kicked Jon's ass when glamoured as Rattleshirt being faster than him despite using a great sword.  Oberyn is intriguing as well as a fighter.  Those two, two-handed Jaime, Arthur Dayne, and Sandor Glegane definitely in the top 5.

Who Mance Dayne heherm Arthur Rayder heherm that Mance Rayder seems quite good with a two handed sword.