The Hound (Sandor Clegane): A Song of Ice and Fire Character Analysis

Race: Human (Westermen)

Sex: Male

Faction: House Lannister

Rating: 5.9

Alignment: Chaotic Neutral

Arena Status: Active (S2)

Sandor Clegane, widely feared and famously known as The Hound, is one of the most complex and tragic characters in George R. R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire series. Born into House Clegane, a minor Westerosi house sworn to House Lannister, Sandor is the younger brother of Ser Gregor Clegane, also known as The Mountain That Rides. Though never knighted, Sandor's skill in combat, his unmatched ferocity, and his notoriety on and off the battlefield earn him a fearsome reputation across the Seven Kingdoms.

The Hound, Sandor Clegane

Sammael: Wheel of Time Character Analysis

Race: Forsaken

Sex: Male

Faction: Shadow

Rating: 6.9

Alignment: Lawful Evil

Arena Status: Active (S2)

Before the name Sammael struck fear across nations, he was known as Tel Janin Aellinsar—a legend of the Age of Legends. Tel Janin’s early life was marked by brilliance in both athleticism and strategy. A world champion in the sword sport sho-zar, and a master archer besides, he was physically compact but extraordinarily capable. His build was dense, powerful, reflecting a mind equally formidable in battle. Known for his lack of humor and his tightly coiled energy, Tel Janin was never the charismatic leader his peer Lews Therin Telamon was. But he was among the most gifted military tacticians of his age, and perhaps the best the Light had—until that brilliance soured into resentment.

Sammael, One of the Forsaken

Graendal: Wheel of Time Character Analysis

Race: Forsaken

Sex: Female

Faction: Shadow

Rating: 7.4

Alignment: Chaotic Evil

Arena Status: Active (S2)

Graendal, formerly known as Kamarile Maradim Nindar, is one of the thirteen Forsaken—the most powerful and dangerous servants of the Dark One—in Robert Jordan's The Wheel of Time. Known to the wolves as Heartseeker, she represents an extreme inversion of her past life: once a famed ascetic and healer of the mind, she became a decadent manipulator of bodies and wills. Her chosen name, which means "vessel of pleasure" in the Old Tongue, is fitting for a woman who surrounds herself with hollowed-out husks of formerly powerful individuals, enslaved by her formidable Compulsion. Graendal's trajectory through the series is defined by her cunning, her disdain for chaos she does not control, and her obsession with psychological domination. She is a major antagonist whose actions reverberate far beyond her physical presence.

Graendal, One of the Forsaken

Spite: Malazan Character Analysis

Race: Ascendant

Transcendent: Soletaken

Sex: Female

Faction: High House Dark

Rating: 7.2

Alignment: Chaotic Neutral

Arena Status: Active (S2)

Spite, known also as Sister Spite, is a Soletaken Eleint and powerful sorceress of the Malazan Book of the Fallen universe. Daughter of the Eleint-forging Elder God Draconus and sister to the equally formidable Envy, Spite’s lineage places her among the most dangerous and enigmatic forces within the cosmology of Steven Erikson's epic. Her appearances stretch from cryptic cameos in early novels to explosive confrontations in the later books, and her story oscillates between tragedy, absurdity, and raw arcane destruction. She is at once a figure of derision and menace, unpredictable in motive and unstable in allegiance. As described by Erikson himself, Spite and her sisters embody the dangerous result of immortal youth twisted into sociopathy: “absolutely batshit crazy” but chillingly aware of the power they wield.

Sister Spite

Faramir: Lord of the Rings Character Analysis

Race: Man (Gondor)

Sex: Male

Faction: Kingdom of Gondor / Rangers of Ithilien

Rating: 6.4

Alignment: Lawful Good

Arena Status: Active (S2)

Faramir, son of Denethor II and younger brother to Boromir, stands among the most nuanced and noble figures in The Lord of the Rings. A scholar-warrior in the true Gondorian mold, Faramir commands not only the Rangers of Ithilien but also the quiet reverence of readers and characters alike. Though often overshadowed in life by Boromir’s physicality and favored status, Faramir emerges as a man of introspection, compassion, and remarkable moral strength, qualities that ultimately define his legacy. He plays a central role in Gondor’s defense, rejects the temptation of the One Ring, and marries Éowyn of Rohan, becoming Prince of Ithilien in the Fourth Age.

Faramir, Captain of the Rangers of Ithilien