Race: Human (Westermen)
Sex: Male
Faction: House Lannister
Rating: 5.2
Alignment: Chaotic Evil
Arena Status: Active (S2)
Gregor Clegane, known across the Seven Kingdoms as "The Mountain That Rides," is a towering specter of brute force, bloodlust, and terror in George R. R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire. He is the head of House Clegane, a minor noble house sworn to House Lannister of Casterly Rock. As a knight, Gregor embodies none of the chivalric ideals traditionally associated with the title. Instead, his name is synonymous with savagery, and his deeds—on and off the battlefield—reverberate as nightmares in Westerosi memory.
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| The Birth of Ser Robert Strong |
What Does Gregor Clegane Look Like?
Gregor’s physical presence is the stuff of legend, feared as much for its impossible proportions as for the soul it houses. Standing well over seven feet tall and likely nearing eight, Gregor is described as having "arms thick as the trunks of small trees" and shoulders broad enough to block a doorway. He weighs over thirty stone—about 420 pounds (190 kilograms)—with nearly every ounce of that mass packed into muscle. Ser Jaime Lannister once remarked that the strength of Gregor Clegane was "like nothing human."
His armor, the thickest and heaviest in the Seven Kingdoms, is a dull, battle-scarred steel that would render any ordinary man immobile. Beneath it, he wears layers of boiled leather and chainmail. His helm bears a fist of stone striking upward—a symbol as blunt and brutal as its wearer. Even more intimidating, Gregor can wield a six-foot, two-handed greatsword in one hand with ease, often while still using a shield in the other. He rides only the largest, most ill-tempered stallions, and often breaks them through sheer aggression.
Yet Gregor's menace is not limited to the battlefield. His very demeanor exudes cruelty. He speaks rarely, his voice like stones grinding together, but his actions speak volumes: he is a known rapist, torturer, and suspected kinslayer. His lands are haunted by tales of disappearances and horrors behind closed doors, and even his retainers fear him.
What Is Gregor Clegane’s Backstory?
The first definitive sign of Gregor’s cruelty appears in childhood. At around twelve years old, he shoved his younger brother Sandor’s face into a brazier for playing with a discarded toy. Their father claimed the injuries were accidental, but the truth scarred Sandor both physically and emotionally for life. Years later, Gregor would be knighted by Prince Rhaegar Targaryen—an irony not lost on those who saw knighthood as a symbol of honor.
Whispers persist that Gregor murdered his father, his sister, and his first two wives. Though never proven, the rumors are difficult to dismiss given his temperament and the macabre aura surrounding his keep. When Gregor inherited House Clegane, Sandor fled his service and pledged himself to House Lannister.
Gregor's atrocities reached historic infamy during Robert’s Rebellion, particularly at the Sack of King’s Landing. There, he personally murdered Prince Aegon Targaryen by smashing his head against a wall before raping and killing Princess Elia Martell. Though never publicly confirmed, these acts are widely attributed to Gregor and serve as a central grievance for House Martell.
What Role Does Gregor Clegane Play in the Books?
Gregor enters the narrative as a force of destruction. In the Hand’s Tourney, he kills Ser Hugh of the Vale by targeting a weakness in the young knight’s armor. Later, when unhorsed by Ser Loras Tyrell—whose mare in heat provoked Gregor’s stallion—Gregor flies into a murderous rage, beheading his horse and nearly killing Loras before being stopped by Sandor.
After Tyrion Lannister’s capture by Catelyn Stark, Gregor is ordered to ravage the Riverlands under false pretenses, torching villages and slaughtering innocents. Lord Eddard Stark attempts to bring him to justice by sending Beric Dondarrion to apprehend him, but Gregor ambushes the group and reportedly kills Beric at the Mummer’s Ford—though Beric returns, animated by Thoros of Myr.
A Clash of Kings and A Storm of Swords
Gregor continues his campaign of terror through the Riverlands, pillaging settlements, murdering nobles, and further inflaming the region’s instability. He seizes Castle Darry and kills the child lord. At Harrenhal, Arya Stark is taken as a servant and witnesses Gregor's sadistic interrogations and executions firsthand. These horrors mark the beginning of her infamous kill list.
During the Battle of the Fords, Gregor plays a pivotal role but is ultimately repelled. He later joins Tywin Lannister’s army in pursuit of northern forces, capturing key hostages like Ser Wylis Manderly. After the Red Wedding, he retakes Harrenhal, exacting horrific revenge on Vargo Hoat, who had previously mutilated him. Gregor forces Hoat to consume his own flesh before feeding him to others.
A Storm of Swords – The Trial by Combat
When Tyrion is falsely accused of poisoning King Joffrey, Queen Cersei names Gregor as her champion. Tyrion is then championed by Prince Oberyn Martell, seeking revenge for the death of his sister Elia.
The resulting trial by combat is one of the most memorable and gruesome scenes in the series. Oberyn wounds Gregor multiple times with a poisoned spear, only to be seized and killed in a moment of overconfidence. Before crushing Oberyn’s skull, Gregor shouts his confession: “Elia of Dorne. I killed her screaming whelp. Then I raped her. Then I smashed her fucking head in. Like this.”
Despite winning, Gregor succumbs to his injuries. Pycelle’s treatments fail, and Qyburn is allowed to experiment with the dying knight.
A Feast for Crows and A Dance with Dragons – The Rise of Ser Robert Strong
Qyburn reports that Gregor has died. His head is sent to Dorne as restitution. Yet from the dungeons of the Red Keep emerges Ser Robert Strong, a towering, silent knight clad in white armor. He never eats, drinks, or speaks, and he never removes his helm. Though his identity is not officially confirmed, his size and Qyburn’s involvement leave little doubt: Gregor lives on, reanimated as a monstrous, undead creature.
Ser Robert Strong becomes Queen Cersei’s personal champion, her final weapon in a world closing in around her.
How Is Gregor Clegane Portrayed in the Show?
In HBO’s Game of Thrones, Gregor Clegane is portrayed across three actors: Conan Stevens (Season 1), Ian Whyte (Season 2), and Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson (Seasons 4–8). While the show takes some liberties with chronology and tone, Gregor’s role remains broadly consistent: an instrument of death and dread, culminating in a grotesque transformation into an undead giant under Qyburn’s care.
The show further explores his animosity with Sandor, climaxing in the fan-named “Cleganebowl,” a final confrontation between the brothers during the sack of King’s Landing in the final season.
Why Does Gregor Matter in the Story?
Gregor Clegane is not a nuanced villain; he is a bludgeon of human depravity, a symbol of how might, when untempered by justice, becomes a vehicle for atrocity. He is used by others—Tywin, Cersei, Qyburn—not because he is clever, but because he is effective. In this sense, Gregor is less a man and more a tool of systemic corruption.
His transformation into Ser Robert Strong adds a metaphysical layer to his arc: he becomes undead not out of love or vengeance but as an expression of unnatural dominion, a golem remade in service of political decay. Whether alive or reanimated, Gregor Clegane is the embodiment of unchecked violence—the Mountain That Rides, and never stops.
The Mountain's Raw Power
Measured solely by his combat capability—his physical might, martial efficiency, and any innate or enhanced qualities—Ser Gregor Clegane, known infamously as the Mountain That Rides, stands among the most brutally effective warriors in any grounded fantasy setting. Although he lacks traditional magical powers, his post-mortem transformation under Qyburn’s necromantic arts introduces supernatural resilience and force, elevating his raw destructive capacity beyond mortal limitations. Based on the strict definitions of raw power—including strength, magical ability, and combat prowess—Gregor Clegane earns a 7.5 out of 10. He is not the most versatile or reality-warping figure in the broader multiverse of fantasy, but when it comes to brute force and the battlefield presence of a deathless juggernaut, he is difficult to overlook.
Strength
Ser Gregor’s physical might is grotesque by human standards. Standing close to eight feet tall and weighing over thirty stone (420+ lbs), he is a mountain of muscle and rage. His arms are described as “thick as the trunk of small trees,” and he is able to cleave men in half with a single blow of his greatsword, a weapon so large it would normally require two hands, though Gregor wields it one-handed while carrying a shield. He has also been seen decapitating horses, smashing skulls with his gauntleted fists, and breaking armor with raw power. Even before his undeath, Jaime Lannister remarked that Gregor’s strength was something “not human.” This places his physical might at the extreme high end of what is plausible in a non-magical body, and well into the supernatural after Qyburn’s transformation. As such, his strength subscore within this category borders on maximum, even when compared with demigods or monstrous entities from other settings.
Magical Ability
Strictly speaking, Gregor has no magical ability of his own. He does not cast spells, manipulate energy, or channel divine or arcane forces through personal will or talent. However, his reanimation by Qyburn through alchemical and necromantic techniques positions him in a unique gray zone. The being now known as Ser Robert Strong may no longer be entirely alive, and evidence suggests he no longer requires food, drink, or sleep, and may be immune to pain or fatigue. Though he is not a caster, his body itself becomes a magical instrument: he is animated by means that appear to defy normal biology. That being said, magical ability in this framework requires personal agency and manipulation of magical forces, which he does not demonstrate. Therefore, Gregor scores extremely low in this subcategory, only marginally elevated due to his post-resurrection condition.
Combat Prowess
Gregor Clegane is not merely strong—he is monstrously efficient in war. He has fought and defeated elite knights, slaughtered experienced soldiers, and cut through both rank-and-file and named opponents with terrifying ease. In melee combat, he is known for overwhelming force and relentless brutality. He does not exhibit formal technique or tactical refinement, but relies on his reach, armor, and sheer lethality to overpower nearly all opposition. Even in a match against Oberyn Martell—an elite spear-fighter trained in high-speed precision—Gregor, though eventually mortally wounded, still won by brute strength and durability. As Ser Robert Strong, this trait is even more pronounced: he is an unthinking engine of destruction whose hits cannot be blocked or parried by normal men. Despite his lack of finesse, his combat success is undeniable. For this reason, his combat prowess is extremely high, offset only slightly by his lack of agility and dependence on force over skill.
The Mountain's Tactical Ability
Ser Gregor Clegane is a force of destruction, but tactical thought is not what makes him dangerous. Judged solely within the framework of tactical ability—defined by strategic planning, improvisation, and use of resources—Gregor ranks low compared to both generals and tacticians from within his own world and certainly in the context of broader fantasy universes. While effective on the battlefield, he is not the architect of maneuvers or campaigns. He does not coordinate strategy, leverage alliances, or demonstrate ingenuity when confronted with adversity. His actions are brutal and simple, often executed at the command of others, most frequently Tywin Lannister. For this reason, his rating in Tactical Ability is a 2.5 out of 10.
Strategic Mind
Ser Gregor displays little evidence of long-term planning or battlefield strategy. His function in military operations is that of a blunt instrument—he is unleashed to cause terror, break lines, and destabilize regions. When Tywin Lannister orders the raiding of the Riverlands in response to Catelyn Stark’s capture of Tyrion, it is Gregor who leads a campaign of terror. But it is important to recognize that the decision-making lies entirely with Tywin. Gregor follows commands; he does not formulate them. His input to war councils is occasionally brutal—most memorably suggesting that the Lannister outriders who failed to detect Robb Stark’s movement should be blinded, with their eyes given to the next man “so that four might see better than two.” This remark, though vivid, is illustrative of his contempt for failure, not of strategic sophistication. He wins battles through intimidation and sheer force, not cunning or foresight. Thus, in the subcategory of strategic mind, he scores extremely low.
Resourcefulness
Resourcefulness is the ability to operate under constraint, adapt to new information, and respond dynamically when plans fail. Ser Gregor does none of these things. He is placed where the Lannisters require overwhelming presence—whether leading the left flank at the Battle of the Green Fork, retaking Harrenhal, or standing as Cersei’s champion in a trial by combat—but there is no indication that he adjusts his approach or adapts mid-conflict. When his horse is unsettled during the Hand’s Tourney, Gregor reacts with blind rage, killing the animal and attempting to murder Ser Loras Tyrell outside of the joust’s rules. When struck by Oberyn Martell’s poisoned spear, he flies into a furious assault, not a calculated response. He is incapable of handling complexity, let alone leveraging it to his advantage. In this subcategory, he is virtually inert.
Resource Arsenal
While Gregor operates with considerable assets—elite armor, superior weaponry, and the logistical support of House Lannister—none of these are due to his own positioning or network-building. He has no known allies outside of those who fear or obey him. He commands a band of men colloquially called the Mountain’s Men, but their loyalty is to his violence, not his charisma or leadership. He does not deploy political capital, forge strategic alliances, or gather intelligence. When he seizes Harrenhal, it is not through siegecraft or negotiation, but because a cook opens a gate and he slaughters everyone inside. His primary “arsenal” is brute strength. As an operator of strategic assets, he is one in name only.
The Mountain's Influence
Ser Gregor Clegane occupies a unique position in the taxonomy of influence. He is not a diplomat, orator, or charismatic leader. He is not known for inspiring devotion or loyalty in any conventional sense. And yet, his presence bends the behavior of others—lords, kings, and commoners alike—through a sheer and overwhelming reputation for brutality. Within the parameters defined—persuasion, reverence, and willpower—Gregor earns a middling rating of 5.0. He commands fear more than loyalty, obedience more than respect. But influence, by definition, need not be positive to be effective. What Gregor lacks in personal magnetism he compensates for through the sheer terror he instills in allies and enemies alike.
Persuasion
Ser Gregor is not persuasive in any conventional sense. He does not use rhetoric, charm, or strategic communication to sway individuals or groups. There is no evidence that he negotiates, reasons, or even speaks at length to influence outcomes. When he gives orders, they are followed not because of the strength of his argument, but because those who hear him know what happens to those who disobey. When he acts, it is often in silence, or through grunts, threats, or acts of violence. The man is not just anti-diplomatic—he is virtually non-verbal in key scenes. During the captivity of Arya Stark at Harrenhal, he does not interrogate prisoners; that task is delegated to others. His only communicative strategy is intimidation, and it is effective only in the most blunt of circumstances. For that reason, Gregor scores near the bottom in persuasion.
Reverence
Where Gregor gains ground is in reverence, particularly as defined by fear-based respect. Ser Gregor inspires dread throughout Westeros. His nickname alone—“the Mountain That Rides”—functions as a threat. Tales of his atrocities travel far beyond his immediate reach. Smallfolk flee at the mere rumor of his approach. Nobles maneuver to avoid confronting him directly. When Prince Oberyn Martell faces Gregor in trial by combat, it is explicitly to avenge the deaths of his sister and her children—acts so heinous that they define the reputational legacy of House Clegane. Even within the Lannister court, Gregor is referred to as Tywin’s “mad dog,” a figure too dangerous to be unleashed without consequence. Tywin himself recognizes Gregor’s influence, though it is raw and toxic, when he chooses to keep him hidden during tense negotiations with Dorne. Reverence, in Gregor’s case, comes not from honor or legend, but from monstrous infamy—and in that domain, he thrives.
Willpower
Gregor’s willpower is difficult to quantify due to the absence of psychological complexity in his portrayal. He does not appear vulnerable to manipulation, yet neither is he depicted as particularly willful or autonomous. He follows orders with mechanical loyalty, especially those issued by Tywin or Cersei Lannister. He shows no signs of internal conflict, guilt, or hesitation. There is no record of Gregor resisting mind control, nor is he ever the target of such attempts. His most vivid demonstration of will might be his physical refusal to die during his protracted and horrific poisoning at the hands of Oberyn Martell—when he spends days in agony, convulsing and screaming, but clinging to life through sheer biological tenacity. However, this perseverance may be attributed more to his unnatural physiology than any conscious assertion of will. Ultimately, Gregor's willpower is present, but unremarkable in any psychological or metaphysical sense.
The Mountain's Resilience
Ser Gregor Clegane’s capacity to survive, endure, and even persist in some grotesque semblance of life after death earns him a formidable resilience score of 7.5. He is not just difficult to kill; he is monstrously difficult to end. This assessment, drawn strictly from the definition of resilience—including physical resistance, magical resistance, and longevity—places him solidly above average among characters across fantasy universes, though not at the pinnacle. His durability is not born of training, cleverness, or divine blessing—it is physiological and, later, alchemical. This makes him a unique and chilling case study in endurance.
Physical Resistance
Gregor's physical resistance is nothing short of extraordinary. Before his death and transformation, he was a massive wall of muscle encased in plate armor so thick that most men couldn’t even wear it, let alone fight in it. He could sustain wounds that would incapacitate any other knight and continue to fight effectively. At the Battle of the Green Fork, his horse was killed beneath him by a spear thrust, but Gregor simply rose, unhurt, and fought on. In the trial by combat against Prince Oberyn Martell, despite receiving multiple precision spear strikes to the limbs, joints, and chest—some of which were poisoned—Gregor endured long enough to kill his opponent by crushing his skull with bare hands. His body withstood not only trauma but also prolonged internal suffering. Qyburn observed that even as infection spread and the man convulsed in agony, Gregor's vitals clung to function in defiance of any known medical expectation. For sheer resistance to physical injury, few across any world could be said to match him.
Magical Resistance
Before his transformation into Ser Robert Strong, Gregor exhibited no known magical resistance. He was not protected by wards, charms, or innate gifts that deflected supernatural effects. However, his altered state—brought on by Qyburn’s necromantic experimentation—presents a unique ambiguity. While the details of his reanimation remain deliberately obscure, it is heavily implied that he no longer feels pain, requires no sustenance, and is unaffected by poisons or other bodily hazards. These qualities may suggest a form of magical resistance born not of defense but of post-human metamorphosis. While this does not equate to active resistance in the traditional magical sense, his current state does render him invulnerable to many standard forms of supernatural harm—simply because his body no longer functions by natural rules.
Longevity
Gregor Clegane’s longevity is one of the most disturbing facets of his character arc. In life, he was already unnaturally difficult to kill. In death—or what followed it—he seems to have become something more than mortal. After succumbing to manticore venom thickened with sorcery, Gregor's body was preserved and reengineered by Qyburn into a silent, masked figure named Ser Robert Strong. This new incarnation, though voiceless and allegedly vow-bound, appears immune to pain, hunger, sleep, and perhaps even aging. Rumors suggest he no longer eats or relieves himself, and he never removes his armor. His new body is a mockery of life, but from a durability standpoint, it is nearly flawless. Gregor has effectively transcended the normal limits of mortal endurance. This synthetic form of immortality—unnatural, silent, and terrifying—pushes his longevity rating far above average. He may not return from the grave as a soul-intact being, but what rises in his place is, for most practical purposes, indestructible.
The Mountain's Versatility
Ser Gregor Clegane, known as the Mountain That Rides, earns a 3.5 out of 10 in the category of versatility. While he is undeniably lethal in certain combat environments, his overall utility across varied scenarios is deeply limited by his rigid skill set, psychological simplicity, and overwhelming reliance on brute force. Versatility, as defined here, encompasses adaptability, luck, and the presence of a secret or unexpected advantage—none of which are strong suits for Gregor either in life or in his later, altered state. He is a singular tool, effective within a narrow domain and increasingly less so the moment circumstances deviate from that context.
Adaptability
The Mountain is not a character who adjusts to new environments, shifts in social structures, or dynamic combat situations. His fighting style is overwhelming force, and if overwhelming force does not prevail, his options are few. During the Hand’s tourney, he reacts to the trick of a mare in heat not with tactical adjustment but with blind rage, killing his own horse and nearly murdering Ser Loras Tyrell before being stopped by the king’s order. In the Riverlands, when tasked with raiding and punitive actions, he executes his orders with brutality but without nuance, indiscriminately burning, raping, and killing. These methods are effective in sowing terror but inflexible. In battle, he does not lead with inventive strategy nor respond fluidly to setbacks. He simply persists. His physical bulk and near-insensate rage make him resilient, but not responsive. His inability to adapt was exposed during his duel with Oberyn Martell—faced with speed, deception, and finesse, Gregor’s plodding aggression nearly led to his death. Even his later existence as Ser Robert Strong is one of silent obedience; there is no creativity or adjustment in his methods, only continued service as a blunt object.
Luck
There is very little evidence that luck plays a significant role in Gregor’s victories. If anything, his continued existence seems less a product of fortune and more the grim consequence of resilience and the fear he inspires. He is not spared by last-minute twists of fate, nor do improbable advantages fall into his lap. He does not win duels through clever gambits or battlefield chance. His duel with Oberyn, for instance, only ends in Gregor’s favor because his opponent was overconfident and failed to finish him quickly enough—not because luck intervened. His reanimation by Qyburn is likewise not “lucky” in the conventional sense—it is a deliberate, planned perversion of science and sorcery designed to preserve his utility to House Lannister. Luck is not on Gregor's side, because Gregor does not rely on it. He simply endures, or he breaks.
Shaved Knuckle in the Hole
This category measures whether a character has some concealed edge—a hidden skill, trait, or advantage that others overlook until it is revealed at a critical moment. Gregor Clegane, both as a living man and as Ser Robert Strong, offers very little in this regard. His reputation precedes him entirely. Everyone knows what he is: a giant, sadistic brute with enough strength to bisect a man in a single swing. There are no surprises in his arsenal. His armor is not enchanted. He does not wield secret techniques. The one development that might qualify—his resurrection into a silent undead knight—is not the result of his cunning or agency, but Qyburn’s experiment. Even then, the transformation is quickly guessed by the court. If anything, it becomes another public horror rather than a tactical shock. Gregor does not pull victories from the jaws of defeat with cunning reserves—he wins by being an unstoppable slab of flesh and iron, and when that fails, he dies.
The Mountain's Alignment
Ser Gregor Clegane is a human male of Westerosi origin, belonging to the knightly House Clegane in the Crownlands, a minor bannerhouse sworn to House Lannister of Casterly Rock. His status as a landed knight puts him among the lower nobility, but his monstrous size, legendary brutality, and absolute loyalty to the Lannisters elevate him to a feared enforcer in the service of the Iron Throne. His racial identity is unremarkable in the sense of high fantasy—Gregor is not a magical being or hybrid species—but within the framework of Westeros, his physicality is exceptional to the point of deformity. Some suspect his inhuman proportions and violent disposition stem from a form of gigantism or undiagnosed congenital disorder. Later, after his mortal death and revival under the experiments of Qyburn, he becomes something else entirely: a quasi-undead construct known publicly as Ser Robert Strong. Though his race technically remains human, post-resurrection Gregor more accurately qualifies as a reanimated corpse, or wight-like entity, animated not by ice magic but by necromantic science and sorcery.
Gregor’s factional affiliations are almost entirely subsumed under his fealty to House Lannister. While he is the head of House Clegane, his personal loyalties and actions reflect a total subordination to the will of Tywin and later Cersei Lannister. He is not ideologically aligned with royalist causes or any abstract notion of loyalty to crown or realm; rather, he functions as a weapon for the most powerful Lannister at any given time. His soldiers, dubbed the Mountain’s Men, mirror his savagery and act as an unofficial shock corps for Lannister interests. As Ser Robert Strong, Gregor is explicitly reconstituted to serve Cersei’s personal vendettas, not the realm or even House Lannister as a whole. His factional identity is therefore not bound to duty, honor, or law, but to patronage, hierarchy, and fear.
In terms of alignment, Gregor Clegane is unambiguously Chaotic Evil. He does not act according to any lawful structure, and his actions are governed by impulse, cruelty, and bloodlust. From his childhood act of nearly murdering his brother over a toy, to his battlefield atrocities, to his rape-murders during wartime, Gregor exhibits not merely moral indifference but proactive malice. He disobeys kings, kills his own men for trivial annoyances, and commits acts of genocidal cruelty on helpless civilians—not to advance policy, but for pleasure or rage. His lack of introspection and inability to comprehend suffering or restraint make him a chaos agent in every sense. There is no moral compass, no code, and no remorse. Even when raised from the dead, he is used as a silent executioner without conscience or volition.
Gregor's evil is not nuanced or conflicted. It is instinctive, sadistic, and terrifyingly consistent. His place in the fantasy canon is that of the brutal enforcer, the unchecked monster given a noble’s name. In both life and undeath, Gregor Clegane embodies the worst excesses of violence without principle. He is the chaos of war, harnessed and pointed like a battering ram—capable of collapsing everything human in his path. Pride and Prophecy keeps an updated character alignment matrix across all planes of existence.
The Mountain's Trophy Case
Arena Results
Titles & Postseason Results
Halls of Legend Records
Overall Conclusion on The Mountain and Position Across Planes of Existence
Gregor Clegane—the Mountain That Rides—receives a power rating of 5.2 across the multiverse of fantasy characters, placing him slightly above average. This score may surprise readers accustomed to his near-mythical presence within Westeros, but such a placement reflects the broader relativism of cross-universal fantasy scaling. The Mountain is a terrifying force in A Song of Ice and Fire, but the series itself occupies a low-magic, low-power setting where divine avatars, world-breaking mages, and cosmic entities are generally absent or theoretical. Within that grounded framework, Gregor is a peak-tier physical threat. Outside it, his dominance becomes far less absolute.
In terms of raw power, Gregor ranks among the strongest mortals in his world. He is able to cleave armored men in half, wield weapons far beyond the capability of ordinary knights, and wear plate so heavy it would immobilize most men. Yet his strength is entirely physical, with no access to magical disciplines, supernatural enhancement (until his necromantic resurrection), or elemental dominion. Characters from high-fantasy universes, especially those with access to magic or divine favor, often eclipse Gregor in versatility, ranged threat, and raw destructive capacity. Even among magically enhanced warriors, the Mountain's lack of speed, agility, or precision limits his effectiveness outside brute-force confrontations.
His tactical ability is rudimentary at best. Gregor is not a commander in the sense of battlefield orchestration or strategic foresight. He leads by presence and fear, not planning. His victories derive from overwhelming physical dominance, not cleverness. This places a ceiling on his influence in broader conflicts, particularly those involving magic, political subterfuge, or guerrilla tactics. While his terroristic raids in the Riverlands are devastating, they are also indiscriminate. His utility as a tool of war lies in his destructiveness, not in his ability to win wars or secure power through means other than killing.
Where Gregor gains disproportionate recognition is in influence through terror. His reputation alone alters decisions, war councils, and trial outcomes. When Queen Cersei names him as her champion, it is a weaponized use of fear, not logic. He does not command armies through charisma or persuasion, but the raw dread of facing him—alive or undead—carries strategic weight. In this regard, he occupies a unique tier: not a general, not a sorcerer, not a king, but a blunt-force symbol of death.
Following his resurrection as Ser Robert Strong, Gregor transcends human limitation in one very narrow but meaningful sense: resilience. Poisoned with manticore venom and left rotting, he still manages to live on—reanimated, re-forged, and remade into a mute juggernaut. This undead state may arguably elevate his durability and strength, but it does not increase his strategic value. It merely renders him more single-minded, more invulnerable, and arguably less human. Even in undeath, he remains a tool.
His 5.2 rating reflects this contradiction. Within Westeros, Gregor Clegane is monstrous—nearly peerless in melee—but on the cosmic scale of fantasy, he is a narrow-spectrum threat. He breaks bones, not worlds. Pride and Prophecy keeps an updated power ranking across all planes of existence. This will only be sortable on desktop viewing. The below table shows a summary within the same plane of existence of this article.
