I'm ready to go with Kamikz. There are no facks saying that Fingolfin is a god-like fighter. I wuold say Turin. He did it all by himself. Tulkas is the best fighter, but he IS a god so.. but all of the Hour, Hurin, Tuor, Turin are gid fighters and sad storrys.
Well, it takes a lot to face Morgoth in combat alone... I do think that's something that speaks for Fingolfin :P And I think Morgoth even was afraid to face him, even though he killed him in the end...
It takes a lot of courage maby, but that is not what makes you a good fighter is it? I mean Eowyn is very courageous, facing a nazgul, but that doesn't make yuo a good fighter. Gil galad was a good fighter beacuse he slew many orcs. That's a concrete fackt.
I mean that Fingolfin fared pretty well against Morgoth, and that accounts a lot for his skill... After all Morgoth was a Vala, and one of the mightiest (if not the mightiest) and Fingolfin was 'only' an elf...
Morgoth would have stomped most within half a minute. At most.
How exactly did he stand up to him? A fly can survive against me for 5 minutes because I'm missing him but he is barley a challenge.. And if it is a bee of some kind, when I finally get him he hurts me with his tail (lol). So what exactly happened? I'm not so familliar with the story...
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Necessity is the mother of inventions.
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The most ultime fighter in the known world of Arda - Tulkas. No arguements, if so bring them forward
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"In the year of our Lord 1314, patriots of Scotland, starving and outnumbered, charged the fields at Bannockburn. They fought like warrior poets. They fought like Scotsmen. And won their freedom."
yup First Age was the stronger years, men were not as weak and everyone was full of pride and united against evil, third age got quite lazy...damn you Denethor
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"In the year of our Lord 1314, patriots of Scotland, starving and outnumbered, charged the fields at Bannockburn. They fought like warrior poets. They fought like Scotsmen. And won their freedom."
well, the evil side got a little lazy as well... considering that the amount of dragons, balrogs and the like in their lines diminished somewhat
So you can hardly blame the Third Age warriors too much
__________________ I am proud and honored to be Legolas's sister. In whose friendly embrace i shall feel conforted. And when times are ill he's always by my side.
After Tulkas, and the other Valar and Maiar, the most highly skilled is probably Fingolfin but Feanor in terms of overall power, the most powerful of the Children of Illuvatar is Feanor.
__________________ Among the tales of sorrow and of ruin that come down to us from the darkness of those days there are yet some in which amid weeping there is joy and under the shadow of death light that endures.
J.R.R. Tolkien, "Of Beren and Luthien" from the Silmarilion
Ringil is a nice sword but nothing was said that she was that powerful as you are saying. Aragorn's sword had more renown than Rigil, Turin's sword was freaking mighty and would stomp Ringil at any time even Turgon's sword had more fame so your point fail. Morgoth was weaker but he was still huge and strong to the point where he hit the ground and made craters (that finally resulted in Fingolfin's death), his speed was said to be like lightning (so he was undoubtedly fast but not that literally of course) and even with that mighty, speed and size(he towered in front of Fingolfin) Fingolfin was still faster and skilled enough to hit him without being hit, when finally he got hit by Morgoth's shield he didn't yield and kept rising even with the pounding of the dark lord's mighty(that proves how strong Fingolfin was). At the end he literally crippled Morgoth to the point where he couldn't walk straight for the rest of his life.
How can you compare that with Isildur's feat? Isildur didn't wrestled with Sauron he actually left that part for his father and Gil-Galad and one thing is to cut a finger the other is cripple someone forever especially someone more powerful than Sauron even weakened.
As others were saying the simple mention that he was mightier in arms than Feanor who was actually capable of fighting multiple Balrogs(less powerful at that time but still no one had ever killed them in battle) already puts him in the top fighters and one of the most capable physically.
Gurthang is the sword that will kill all of the mightiest within Ea. And the sword that would 'kill' Melkor in the Dagor Dagorath.
Ringil as a sword is below Turin's. But both blades are greater then Narsil.
Anyway, as for the question of this thread.
Tulkas is practically the God of War, and is the single greatest warrior in all of Arda (and Ea,) if he could be added then he'd take the spot.
Actually, Hurin took down 70 Troll's after picking up a Troll battle axe that was lying around, and took them all down with a single strike.
Not only that but he utterly destroyed Melkor/Morgoth's armies, and was only defeated because quite literally all of his foes were on top of him.
Don't forget Earendil as well. And Elendil and Gil-Galad were strong for sure, but only by Second Age standards.
Hurin was stated to be the greatest warrior in all of Arda behind Tulkas.
Hurin was a greater fighter then Fingolfin bro.
Maybe not in power, but certainly in skill.
It goes.
Hurin
Fingolfin/Feanor
Turgon
Turin/Tour
Earendil
Beren
Ecthelion
Think I forgot a few.
It either goes like that, or Fingolfin/Feanor are both on the top. But I'm pretty sure I'm right.
Melkor actually feared Hurin's bloodline enough to curse it. And he also hated Hurin quite hugely.
Didn't know where to put Fingon,
Note It's been a year or so since I read the Sil, so I am not completely correct here.
But remember Hurin withstood Melkor's will himself.
Hurin also defied Melkor to his face.