Top 10 Game of Thrones Battles

Things are not well in King’s Landing. As the honorable Eddard Stark seeks to uncover the mystery behind Jon Arryn’s murder while also serving as Hand of the King, he finds himself surrounded by the arrogant Jaime Lannister and his men. Lannister is demanding the freedom of his younger brother Tyrion, whom Ned’s wife had imprisoned because she believed him to be responsible for crippling her son. As you can guess, a lot of suspicion and bad blood cause the two warriors to draw their swords. Both men are extremely skilled, but alas we’ll never see who the winner would’ve been, since one of Jaime’s men spears Ned in the back of the leg.

Not everyone in Meereen is happy about the Mother of Dragons taking over as the new ruling monarch, so much so that a masked group known as the Sons of the Harpy rise up to overthrow her and put the slave masters back in control. The legendary knight Barristan Selmy and Commander of the Unsullied Grey Worm find themselves surrounded at one point, but rather than cower, they fight for their Khaleesi’s honor, as well as their lives, and in an impressive display they manage to win. However, only one of them lives to tell the tale.

Bronn pretty much solidified himself as one of the best members of the supporting cast by not only saving Tyrion’s life, but by proving that he wasn’t afraid to fight dirty. Volunteering to take Tyrion’s place during a Trial by Combat, seemingly for the hell of it, Bronn’s lack of honor doesn’t mean he’s without some pretty decent sword skills, which he proves by slicing open the unlucky Ser Vardis and sending him plummeting through the Moon Door. And thus begins one of the greatest bromances in all of Westeros.

The vicious brawl against Brienne may’ve been memorable, but this one is truly the Hound’s most memorable fight. Captured by the Brotherhood Without Banners, it seemed like Sandor Clegane’s end was in sight. Judged for his crimes, it falls to the Brotherhood’s leader, Beric Dondarrion, to claim his life in Trial by Combat. What follows is a duel that not only features a flaming sword, but also gives us the first real clues that the Lord of Light may actually be real. After nearly getting chopped in half by the Hound, Beric is brought back to life via the power of the Red God. The Seven may want to watch out…

His time may have been brief, but the Red Viper made quite the impact. Not only was he a lover; he was also one hell of a fighter who wished vengeance on The Mountain for the rape and murder of his sister and her children. When he volunteered as Tyrion’s champion during his trial, it actually looked like Oberyn might just manage to bring down the seemingly invulnerable Gregor Clegane. That is until he gets a little too cocky. Demanding that the Mountain confess to his crimes, the Mountain takes the opportunity to knock him to the ground. He does end up confessing to his crimes… while also squeezing Oberyn’s head so hard it explodes.

The flashback scenes of the sixth season gave fans some much needed answers, but they also provided us with one impressive fight, as we see a much younger Ned Stark take on the Sword of the Morning. Witnessing history firsthand, Bran sees that his father wasn’t quite the warrior he’d made himself out to be, as Arthur Dayne almost duel wields his way to victory, only to be brought down after Howland Reed stabs him in the back. While Ned does deliver the final blow, it’s still clear that things weren’t truly as he’d said, making the fight a brilliant prelude for the revelation about Jon Snow’s origins.

We all knew the battle was coming, but who thought it was gonna be this intense? The Watchers on the Wall find themselves vastly outnumbered as the Free Folk make their attack on Castle Black, accompanied by thousands of warriors and even freaking giants! With cunning and determination, Jon Snow and the Watch manage to survive the night – albeit with huge casualties on both sides. The most painful of these is, of course, Jon’s former Wildling lover Ygritte, who dies in his arms as the fighting reaches its conclusion. Victory has never been so empty.

King’s Landing will never know how lucky they were to have the mind of Tyrion Lannister on their side. As Stannis and his army reach the bay of Blackwater, the Lannister forces nearly crumble when the Hound flees and Joffrey cowers back to his mother. Luckily, thanks to Tyrion’s careful planning and manufacturing of wildfire, not to mention Bronn’s deadeye aim, he manages to cripple the incoming fleet by setting them ablaze. He may have had his face cut up and no one will ever thank him for his leadership, but we all know that the true hero of the Blackwater was the so-called halfman.

Just when you think winter is never going to come, the arrival of the Night’s King certainly puts all doubts to rest. As Jon Snow tries to broker peace between the Night’s Watch and the Wildings, the White Walkers let loose their undead forces on the Free Folk’s settlement of Hardhome. Not so much a battle as a massacre, this incident shows the true power of Valyrian steel as Jon manages to strike down a White Walker. Alas, as we see the Night’s King add the Wildling corpses to his army of the dead, any sense of triumph is replaced by imminent dread.

Before we reveal our number one pick, here are a few honorable mentions.
- Khal Drogo vs. Mago
- Jaime and Bronn vs. The Sand Snakes
- Drogon vs. The Sons of the Harpy

Not only is the fight itself utterly stunning to behold, but this is one of the few times on Game of Thrones where it truly feels like the villain gets just what he deserves! In a bid to take back Winterfell, Jon Snow and his allies take on the sadistic Ramsay Bolton and his Northern army in an epic clash that stands as one of the best fantasy battles ever put to screen. Everything, from the claustrophobic atmosphere of the battlefield to Jon beating the ever-loving crap out of Ramsay, cements this as the most harrowing, yet oddly satisfying, skirmish to ever come out of Westeros. Hit him again, Jon!