The Contestants |
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The Breakdown |
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Advantages
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Disadvantages
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Kills
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Kills
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How we think the fight will go
The tiny man-rodent drew, nocked, and loosed three arrows with blurring speed. The first lanced past Perrin’s left eye as he jerked his head aside, and the next two thumb-sized spears bit deep into the forearm he threw up to shield his face. Perrin’s extraordinary eyes and battle-honed instincts alone saved his left eye. This realization struck him as he felt the drop of blood well up and slide slowly down his left cheek like a crimson tear.
Perrin let out a low rumbling growl and stared daggers at Martin, his eyes smoldering golden slits above his bleeding arm.
Martin admirably returned Perrin’s glare and then some. He lowered his bow and grumbled “Call me shadowspawn will you! I’ve not heard the phrase before, but I know an insult when I hear one. And this after I’ve spent a lifetime fighting on the side of justice and light!”
Perrin started at the affronted passion in the words of the small warrior-mouse, and the whirlwind events of recent days flooded back into his mind. The desperate fight with the desert man, his waking up in that blighted wasteland, Rand standing over him with that frightening thousand-yard-stare. Rand’s mind-boggling explanation of this strange world to which they’d been transported by some sadistic Soo Voo Doo gods to fight to the death for the amusement of thousands of unseen rabid bloodthirsty watchers, observing and remarking from a distance with vicious delight. Apparently even Rand—Light, even Rand!—was powerless against these gods. But he’d been able to use balefire to burn the blue-eyed whirlwind of death from the pattern to restore Perrin. After his explanation, as usual Rand departed abruptly with nary a farewell, leaving Perrin confused and shaken.
Perrin emerged from his reverie with Rand’s last words echoing eerily in his mind: “Don’t take any of your opponents lightly! I saw your fight with that pointy-eared half-man and was ashamed to call you a Two Rivers man…”
Martin regarded the enormous man, who seemed to be lost in thought, and decided to invite him back to the fight with a few more arrows. Even faster than before, he shot four arrows at the giant’s bearded face and torso. But, as Martin feared, the man easily blocked them all, moving the war hammer swiftly left, right, up, down to catch the tiny missiles against the weapon’s head. He has extremely sharp eyes and cat-like reflexes. Martin dropped the bow, which would be useless now, unbuckled his quiver, and drew his shining sword, Ratdeath.
Without another word the brazen mouse dashed at Perrin, sword at the ready. The little warrior’s speed appeared more mongoose-like than mouse. But Perrin was ready, leveling a devastating kick at the oncoming mouse.
Martin danced aside just in time. As Perrin’s foot swung past him with a massive rush of wind, Martin reached out and grabbed the hem of Perrin’s pant leg. For a moment Martin thought his arm might be ripped from its socket, but he managed to hold on and ride the kick to its peak. He used his legs to swing his body forward and timed his release to catapult himself high above Perrin’s head.
As Perrin looked down, left, right–turning in a frantic circle searching for his opponent—Martin came hurtling down, sword held firmly in a two handed grip with the tip pointed at the top of Perrin’s head. Perrin perked up at the faint rustling—a sound of wind rushing through tiny clothes. He stepped aside and looked up, shielding his eyes from the sun, only to see Martin sailing down malevolently. Perrin ignored his first impulse to bash the defenseless mouse with his hammer as he fell; handling such a worthy adversary thus sickened him. So instead he dropped the hammer and reached out to grab his foe. For his trouble, he was rewarded with a deep gash in his palm when Martin brought down his sword in a slashing swing. But Perrin managed to hold the little creature fast in two hands. He ignored the blood gushing from his palm as he squeezed the fight out of the struggling, squirming Martin.
After a long minute, Martin finally stilled, and Perrin kneeled to lay the mighty mouse down, sword in hand. Fighting till the very end and beyond. As Perrin rose with a grunt, he caught the barest hint of Martin’s chest rising and falling. He turned and strode away quickly with a smirk. This fight was over.
Predicted Winner: Perrin Aybara
NOTE: THIS MATCH ENDS ON SUNDAY, MARCH 27TH, 2011, AT 5 PM, ET
Perrin Aybarra is a character from the Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson; Martin the Warrior is a character from the Redwall series by Brian Jacques
Perrin image courtesy of John Seamas Gallagher. Martin image courtesy of *oogiboogi.
Ndi Sampson contributed to this Cage Match
@Jaworski
You Sir are a Saint.
Thank you.
These contests are all about fanboyism and there’s nothing wrong with that. Think of it like GameFAQs “Game of the Year” or “Best Video Game Hero” contests. It’s all about who more people like.
Martin has had the biggest fanboy group following him thus far. Realistically, he should have lost in the first round, but hey, that’s okay. A large group of fans pushed him through and we ended up with some pretty entertaining results.
Perrin got to where he was because WoT is an insanely popular series. Sure, Dune is fantastic, but it just doesn’t have the same following in terms of numbers. Plus, you can’t honestly say that Perrin has NO chance against Paul. As much as you’d like to believe it, Paul is no god. And anyway, Cthulhu is a god and yet was taken down last year by another fan favorite (Jaime) before that fan favorite was taken down by the ultimate fan favorite (Rand).
It’s likely that Perrin will win this entire thing. WoT is popular and Perrin is a beloved and main character in the series. That’s just how internet polls go.
@Kipp
I agree with everything you said except the last part. Its possible Perrin might win, but I think it highly unlikely. He is probably one of most WoT fans least favorite characters. He redeemed himself for the most part int he last book. But that does not make up for like 6 books of whiny, emo-ness.
Loved this write-up. Martin saves face by fighting valiantly, the explanation of Rand saving Perrin from Paul tells how Perrin was able to defeat him and Rand refers to how Paul beat Tas with a sarcastic tone. We the Suvudu viewers are referenced and Perrin earns some points by letting Martin live. Well done!!!
Love it, I’m one of the few WoT fans that actually favorites Perrin out of the characters, ya he was emo as hell for 6 books as Shane said, but he’s still a huge guy, with a crazy big sword, and can call friggin wolves, I don’t know how far he’ll make it, but he’d definitely mess up the mouse from the Redwall series, no doubt.
Ya know, just seeing all this anti-fanboy rage over Perrin make me laugh. Perrin? Come on. He may be my 2nd favourite character in WoT, but it’s still Perrin. He is the least liked out of all the ta’veren.
Just wait til Mat gets here. The shit will hit the proverbial fan.
You’ll get fanboy rage anytime somebody is winning when there’s no way that they should… Nobody likes blind voters (the presidential election process in this country for the last 50 years and the subsequent results should be enough to explain why)… and then, when they’ve won because of fanboyism, they get raged against even in subsequent matches (like this one) that they SHOULD be winning out of spite… Perrin isn’t even the worst example… Perrin might be a non-favorite in the WoT series, but he’s not a Sociopath like Gregor Clegane and he’s not the biggest cock-face in the world (albeit admittedly reformed) like Jamie Lannister… And of course, the other side of this tourney, who has John Snow. John’s a good character, but he would have even less of a chance of legitimately winning this tourney than Perrin… and Perrin would need Arthur Dent’s improbability drive to calculate his chances of winning this thing legitimately.
I do believe choosing Perrin was not the best decision. Mat is a superior fighter, and we could debate whether or not the fox-head medallion would effect types of magic other than channeling. On the other hand, Mat might be the most popular character to step foot into the cage match, and would almost certainly destroy anything in his path. So maybe Mat wouldn’t be such a good idea. I just think he would have been the one to realistically have a chance against Paul.
@Josh
Yeah the thing is I think they wanted to give everyone else a chance to win. If Mat had been in instead of Perrin I think it would have been a guaranteed win for him, I think more people love Mat than like Rand.
I was just thinking Mat would win these matches, and I agree with everyone else. He is just too cool, but I think that he should be put in anyway, as his luck and underhandedness would be entertaining to read.
I honestly think Perrin should be killed when he comes up against a decent character. Having a get out of jail card for Paul Atradies is understandable, and its not so hard to see him beating a mouse or a kender, but he is honestly the weakest tavern, a good general but not the best of the age, not as good a fighter as Mat, no super luck to help him, and of course no One power like Rand.
Sorry for the double post, but funnily enough I just looked and Perrins next opponent is Quick Ben. I don’t know who that is but from reading about his other matches and the fact that he stood a real chance against Pug… Oh dear… Unless Perrin knows where he is and there is a kind of forkroot for men with twelve souls, Perrin is dead.
Or people just vote blindly, either one.
Sorry for the double post, but funnily enough I just looked and saw that Perrin was going against Quick Ben next (judging by votes so far). And apparently as Quick Ben stood a chance of beating Pug in “realistic” combat (notice the “”) Perrin is dead. Unless he knows where Ben is and there is a forkroot for people with twelve souls…
Or people just vote blindly, that works too.
*Rages at firefox*
@Comment man #1, heres what you need to know about Quick Ben: He’s like the Strategic Nuke of Malazan Books of the Fallen. He’s the biggest bang in it. But by no means the most powerful. He’s also a coward. And for the record, his weakness (with younger warrens [which are one-power like in that they are channeled sources of power]), is Otataral. But then, Quick is a wiley frak and would likely use a land mine on poor Perrin. Thats actually what makes him so powerful in the books. He’s always 5 or 6 steps ahead of the next guy, and wheels and deals. The way *I* would see Quick beating him isn’t through use of magic, or explosives, but from making a shady deal. Cause thats what Quick does.
Also note, hes not the “most powerful”. Debatably, Anomander Rake is. Or Karsa Orlong. Or worse, the biggest cheater of them all: Shadowthrone. Course, Dassem is up there, too. Or Hood. See my point?
@Bared
OR Caladran Brood… or Draconis… or, oh yeah, Icarium… The list goes on… Although I wouldn’t actually list Karsa as honestly powerful as some of the others, I do believe he’d be the best fit in a tourney like this… a real sword banger who can’t just be zapped into oblivion by a magic-user…
If Mat had been brought in his argument for winning is simple: his luck is unbeatable. He could probably roll in his sleep and in doing so dodge hundreds of attempts to kill him, and cause the assassins to end up killing on another. His luck really is that scary. Knowing Mat his opponents might just end up tripping and breaking their necks after their first step.
So I’ve been a bit confused about this for all the Martin write-ups so far. Isn’t he human-sized. It’s been a while since I read the redwall books, and I only read about four anyways, but I always understood the animals weren’t animal-sized.
@Chris
I know, its crazy. just a couple examples: winning every dice game ever (until winning one would get him accused of cheating and bashed. Then he loses), space warping around him so loaded dice show something other than what they have been loaded to show so Mat wins, then kicking said loaded dice user onto a table where he breaks his back; deciding to sleep outside on the night assassins are teleported into his tent; as long as he randomly searches he can find anything first go; loses an eye and while wondering how he will fight with 2D vision and what’s for dinner he absently throws a knife over his shoulder and hits a rabbit and he finds an old but usable kettle in a stream, and the list goes on for like ever.
I’m sure he would win the last battle itself as long as he closed his eyes and started swinging his spear randomly, as the more random something is the greater it is effected by his luck. He is also the greatest strategist and genral of an age, so he has the best of both worlds.
Although considering the source of his luck has its last remnants in one dagger carried by Padin Fain, and that he is now gathering a zombie army up in wastes with the potential to challenge both the light and shadow as a third player… Its like the gollum of WoT but on so, so many steroids.
@Barad
All this info from Malazan books makes me want to read them
Everybody should give malaz a shot. It’s a definite ’should-do’ for all fantasy fans! The sheer depth of the books, especially the first (Gardens of the Moon) and third (Memories of Ice) {I am yet t get my hands on copies of the last three} is mind blowing. So go ahead, take out the time to read a few thousand pages. You will either hate it or love it. More likely the latter!
Perrin has a chance against Quick Ben by virtue of being a Ta’veren. The fact that reality bends so that Perrin can succeed is a pretty significant power. Not saying that is enough, but it is something.
Oraymw… here you go again with your Iraqi Information Minister tactics… as was seen in this very match, Death is not a required result of these matches… therefore, being Ta’veren would do absolutely nothing for Perrin… If you’re just going to outright lie, why stop at something so vague? Just lay it down, it’s easy, watch…
Perrin has absolutely no chance to beat Quick Ben because the laws of the fantasy universe clearly state that nobody with the nickname of ‘Quick Ben’ can ever be defeated by anyone from the Wheel of Time series…
See?
@archon
See its coments like this last one that show that you are just as bad as us fanboys. your just on the other end of the spectrum. We love, you hate. So get off your high horse, fantasy and sci-fi… well really all fiction is about people over comming odds and the weak winning. Your inquisition like troll stand against WOT fanboys, is bordelining on fanaticisim. So this means your a fanboy.
So from all of us fanboys. why dont you shut up, you big fanboy.
Being Ta’veren would not make Perrin not die! you guys obviously do not understand what it is. It means things that are less likely could happen. Say for instance there is a 1% chance Perrin could beat Quick Ben then it would raise the percentage to like 50% but not make him invincible. There isn’t any exact math involved but it would make it more of a possibility making it so that you should not rule him out. and archon you have made decent arguments in the past but your reasoning has become fallacious and ignorant. Rand would more then have a chance against Quick Ben. Robert Jordan made him near invincible. He will either save the world in the end or destroy it. In all reality Pug should have rocked Quick Ben in my opinion!
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@ Chosen
Your lack of reading comprehension knows no bounds… once again… I am not railing at ANY fanboys who are simply admitting that they are fanboys voting because they are fanboys… I am simply smashing the lies being put up by fanboys to hide the fact that they are fanboys… I don’t hate fanboys, but FAKE people irritate me… and if you want to call me out for being irritated by fake people because you love them so much… knock yourself out… Once you figure out how to comprehend what you are actually reading, this will make perfect sense to you.
@Brededwit
I’ll give you a pass this time since I expected somebody to miss it… To clarify the context of what I wrote in my post to Oraymw; That statement I made about Quick not losing to anyone in the WoT series was made to show an example of how ridiculous you can get if you just feel like lying about the characters in question… we’re actually on the same page with this one in that we are both trying to show that being Ta’veren absolutley doesn’t mean that Perrin wins this competition… reread my post and you’ll get it…
Why doesn’t this page refresh to show recent posts?
archon you are a pompus fool.
Ahhh…. another hapless contender who has to resort to personal attacks since you can’t argue the points… Even if I am a pompous fool, that doesn’t change a single thing I’ve said… here’s a hint kiddies… If you direct a comeback at me for the points I make, ask yourself; “Even if he admits that what I say it completely true, does it refute any of the points that he made?” If the answer is “No” (which it almost always is with you school kids), then your comback is completely invalid to the debate, and you’re just being a hater… When you learn to make a valid argument, come see me…
And even using a different login, I’m still not getting this to update… what gives?
@archon/ugotit
I see. I agree with. I do have to admit I have given up on voting for who would win and I now vote for my favorite. To bad jon snow is probably going to lose to vin but I will get over it. I have read books I never would have because of this tournament though so I hope it keeps going
What is this, the NIT bracket? Where’s the major players in fantasy? Last year’s bracket was awesome, just about everyone except Edward Cullen and Eragon was a worthy contender.
Vin is solid, as is Jon Snow and Perrin, but everyone else wouldn’t have made the first bracket.
Anyway, Vin vs. Perrin Aybara will probably be the final, and I think Vin should win that one.
@ Jake
That is a little harsh and also you have to take into a count that there are books you don’t read that others like. Pug from the Rift War Saga should be able to beat almost any foe you throw at him. Also Quick Ben is a very powerful being. I think you need to read a little more or Wikipedia or something. You cant just say all these characters are weak when all you have read is Jordan, Sanderson, and Martin. Nothing against these guys I am reading through Song of Ice and Fire right now and love it and Sanderson and Jordan rock!
I’m a WoT fangirl, but I’m voting for Quick Ben. Just saying.
@ common.
Well, we don’t know if the Dagger is the source of his luck or if it is something about Mat himself (his luck is beyond his Ta’veren nature, we know that much). Since all three didn’t gain their powers until after they left it can be argued that Mat finding the dagger ended up being vital to his future, and thus caused by his luck, without it he wouldn’t have ended up at Falme and blown the Horn, etc.
If I remember correctly he says something in book 3 about how his luck only appeared once he got the dagger, and even though it was healed it may have left an imprint and such. I interpreted it as the authors way of telling us how the luck came about wihtout blatently putting it in brackets, but I could be wrong as I didn’t really look into it past there.
Mat’s luck is from his ta’verenness influencing chance and luck in his direction, i believe that when he discovered it, he had already gotten rid of the dagger
@Archon
The only thing i agree with is thatperrin is not invincible… but he would still bash Ben’s brains out
I remember Redwall! Martin the Warrior was the first decent sized fantasy book i red. But yea Perrin wins
sorry martin!
Quick Ben hands down, im a huge WoT fan but really Quick Ben. and Rand would stomp Quick Ben.