19) LORAS TYRELL (Previous Ranking: 6)
Category: Gentleman Knight
Though reputed to be one of the best tournament knights in Westeros, Ser Loras Tyrell is difficult to rank because whenever we see him fight, he seems to lose. Known as the Knight of Flowers, Loras has unseated the formidable Jaime Lannister in the joust, but that’s in the past. When we first see Loras at the King’s Landing tournament in “The Wolf and the Lion” (S1/Ep5), he unhorses the mighty Gregor Clegane in the joust, but then the infuriated giant knocks him flat; only the quick intervention of the Hound saves Loras’ life. Loras is later defeated by Brienne of Tarth in a swordplay tournament held by Renly Baratheon.
Loras is a capable fighter with a lofty pedigree and sense of style, but we never see him shine in battle on the show, although by all accounts he acquits himself well fighting alongside Tywin Lannister at the Battle of the Blackwater. Loras later falls prey to the brainwashing cult of the High Sparrow and dies in Cersei’s wildfire incineration of the Great Sept of Baelor.