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| The Kingslayer by Amok © |
Update (July 2026): (Since the conclusion of the television series, I have gone back and reworked all of the “Top Warriors of Westeros” posts. What began as a Top 10 has now expanded to a full Top 20 in light of the additional material and perspective we gained.
With George R.R. Martin’s remaining books still unwritten, these rankings remain a mix of book canon and informed speculation. The core arguments and personal opinions are unchanged, I’ve simply improved formatting, clarity, spelling, and flow so the series reads better and holds up as a proper archive piece.)
The overall Top 20 Greatest Warriors of the Westeros can be found here.
Every good book series needs a villain, right? Well, in the first few books it looks as if Ser Jaime Lannister is just that guy to fit the bill...that is, until the end of A Storm of Swords and into A Feast for Crows. From there, the reader’s view of Jaime (likely) changes drastically.
With that said, it’s the Kingslayer himself, Jaime Lannister, that makes my list as the #3 Greatest Warrior of Westeros.
#3 -Ser Jaime Lannister, The Kingslayer
The Kingslayer is a tricky character. Like every character Martin writes, there is more than meets the eye. Certainly at first glance we see a shallow, cruel man (throwing Bran out the window, anyone?). But by A Storm of Swords we see a much more complex character.
Jaime is, in every sense, the golden boy. Just look at him! He has everything, and oh yeah, he gets the hottest woman in the kingdom. Too bad it’s his twin sister Cersei. See, that’s where he goes really wrong in the character department: to quote him "the things I do for love", namely pushing Bran out the window in Winterfell.
First off, let’s start with his nickname: The Kingslayer. He earned this moniker when he slew the Mad King Aerys II during the Sack of King’s Landing, when Aerys tried to destroy the city with wildfire. For this act, Jaime thought people would love him for saving the city, but they recoiled from him instead. He remarked on this fact, saying he wanted to be Ser Arthur Dayne, but became the Smiling Knight — referring to the previous generation’s monster, the predecessor to Ser Gregor Clegane.
Despite this, Jaime is brave. So brave that as a squire for Sumner Crakehall he saved his life when he stopped Big Belly Ben, another member of the infamous Kingswood Brotherhood along with the Smiling Knight. It was after this that he was knighted by Ser Arthur Dayne, the Sword of the Morning himself.
Further intrigues involving his sister led him to become a member of the Kingsguard as a means to stay close to Cersei as well as avoiding marrying Lysa Tully. Knighted by the Lord Commander, Gerold Hightower, Jaime took the white, much to the displeasure of his father, Lord Tywin. It’s also important to note that at 17, he became the youngest member ever to serve in the Kingsguard.
In combat, Jaime is a master with the blade; he can make his sword do whatever he wants it to. His sword abilities make him one of the deadliest warriors in the Seven Kingdoms. He is one of the younger characters to make the list and represents the generation of Ser Loras Tyrell and his brother Garlan. In the lance he is quite skilled as well, having won tourneys that he reflects upon when he becomes Lord Commander.
In battle he is fierce, as befits the words of House Lannister “Hear me roar!” He defeats Ser Edmure Tully at the Golden Tooth and then leads his host onwards towards the Riverlands. He is only bested by Robb Stark at the Battle of the Camps through superior numbers, in which he is captured. In the process of trying to get to the Young Wolf he slays several men, including the Karstarks. From there he is taken prisoner and finally only released by Catelyn Stark. So for that he gets bonus points for not only being a great warrior, but a leader of men as well.
Jaime’s only real blind spot is his devotion to his sister. Their relationship is so lopsided that he is at a handicap — until their falling out in A Feast for Crows, that is. It is also in A Feast for Crows, and after his sword hand is cut off, that Jaime becomes a different man. Vargo Hoat does this in order to drive a wedge between the Lannisters and Roose Bolton, but this ploy fails. His hand being severed is nothing more than a gambit in the Game of Thrones and achieves none of the aims it was intended to convey. Jaime’s whole life is wrapped up in how good he is at arms. It’s when he can’t swing a sword that he drops into a depression and only emerges after he saves the life of Brienne of Tarth.
Jaime’s reputation is such that he is able to get Ser Boros Blount (when Jaime can hardly swing a sword on his return to King’s Landing) to acquiesce to his commands. Such is his reputation that he is able to humble a member of the Kingsguard with words alone, knowing full well that people know of the reputation of the Kingslayer, not as he is now.
Still later in A Feast for Crows, Jaime begins the oft-painful process of sparring with Ilyn Payne in order to learn to swing a sword with his left hand.
Prior to his sword hand being cut off, the Kingslayer is one of the deadliest warriors and as such merits his inclusion on this list. It’s well earned, and only time will tell if Jaime is as good with his left hand as he was with his right.
His closest peer is Ser Barristan Selmy. The two are so close in skill to be near equivalent. If Jaime represents, natural gifted aka prodigy like talent, Ser Barristan is the opposite in decaded long excellence.
Or put another way, Jaime is a shooting star in terms of his ability.
