Warning: Our Game of Madness articles will include content from the five currently released A Song of Ice and Fire books and seasons 1-5 of HBO’s adaptation Game of Thrones. Some material from A Feast for Crows and A Dance With Dragons has not been covered in the show yet, but may be in season 6. If you aren’t caught up with the books and/or show, read on with care.
The Spice of Life
If variety is the spice of life, the Far East has it in spades. A former member of the Westerosi Kingsguard leads a field of exiles and eunuchs, a sellsword and a water dancer, and a brutal war lord to make sure we cover all the bases. The variety of fighting styles in this region may make it the toughest to survive because it isn’t always the difference in skill that determines the outcome, how one fighter’s strengths match up against another’s weakness could turn a seemingly easy match into a slugfest.
[su_divider top=”no”]
1. Barristan Selmy vs 8. Daario Naharis
[mks_col]
[mks_one_half]
[/mks_one_half]
[mks_one_half]
[/mks_one_half]
[/mks_col]
No one is more decorated than Barristan the Bold. Even in his current state (Ser Grandfather as Daario refers to him) Barristan would still be a threat to make our finals bracket. Taking him in his prime when he was slaying rebellion leaders and single handedly rescuing kings would require a special warrior to bring him down. Daario Naharis is not a special warrior.
Leader of the Storm Crows, Daario is a huge wildcard as far as his intentions go. As a fighter, we can assume he’s skilled. You don’t rise to the top of a cut throat sellsword company with such an arrogant attitude. If he didn’t have the skills to back up his talk, he’d be long dead. We’re talking about a man who beheaded his two fellow leaders and his men still followed him without question. Our best glimpse at him in action comes from his TV showdown with Meereen’s champion, whom he easily handles, and his role in the Great Pit of Daznak where he fights off numerous Sons of the Harpy, with help from Jorah, Grey Worm, and an assortment of Unsullied, to protect Dany. Daario is probably good, a far cry from exceptional.
Since the books don’t highlight Daario’s fighting skills, we are left only to HBO’s adaptation. If we take Barristan’s show counterpart, we know that he is very highly regarded by the likes of Jaime Lannister, Ned Stark, and Robert Baratheon. We also know that he defeated quite a bit of Sons of the Harpy as well, though unlike Daario, he basically did this on his own while Grey Worm handled his own ambush. Never mind the fact that Barristan is 63 when this happens. Whether you look at the show or the books, it seems very likely the Storm Crows would be searching for a new captain if these two men ever came to blows.
Winner: Barristan Selmy
[su_divider top=”no”]
4. Syrio Forel vs 5. Jorah Mormont
[mks_col]
[mks_one_half]
[/mks_one_half]
[mks_one_half]
[/mks_one_half]
[/mks_col]
This one will hurt. Syrio’s time in the series was brief (if you believe he is actually dead) but he still managed to leave a huge impact. We are constantly reminded of him throughout Arya Stark’s travels and his wisdom has helped the girl survive some pretty insane situations. We know the Water Dancer is fast and agile, we know he took out a handful of well armored Kingsguard members with a wooden practice sword. Whether he escaped Meryn Trant is up for debate but he did get in a few good hits before we left the scene with Arya. Had Syrio been fighting with steel, he very well could have survived that ambush with ease.
Jorah is an intimidating exiled knight who earned his status when he was first through the walls at Pyke with Thoros. He lost his status when he was caught slaving, leading to an escape to Essos where he became a sell sword for a time. When fighting for love, Jorah is one of the fiercest we’ve seen. His lovers also seem to be his biggest weakness. It seems Jorah will be at a disadvantage right off the bat due to Syrio’s agility and experience, but there’s one scene in particular that confirms the already pretty obvious. In the fighting pits, Jorah faces off against a water dancer and, put simply, gets completely rocked. It’s safe to say this pit fighter is a far cry from Syrio Forel, the former First Sword of Braavos. Jorah only survives because another fighter similar in size and fighting style, kills the Braavosi sword by literal backstab. That guy knew he’d get rocked as well and took his chances with Jorah instead. Jorah is the fan favorite to fall.
Winner: Syrio Forel
