The World of Game of Thrones is a world of men living and dying by the sword, where arrows cloud the sun and spears have a longer reach than the law. Kingdoms come and Kingdoms go. The puddles of blood and the pile of bones over which it is built, they will forever remain unsung. The Kingdom of Westeros is home to several powerful armies, consisting of men that have always borne the brunt of the battle for their Kings and Queens. It is time to curate who stands where. Which Kingdom has the strongest army in all of Westeros? Which Kingdom is the weakest of them all?? Presenting – 12 Strongest Armies in the Game of Thrones universe – Ranked!!
13. Army of the Reach
The Reach is the wealthiest and the most affluent of the seven kingdoms of Westeros. With a lot of wealth and a healthy population, the Reach is supposed to not be at the bottom of the list as a military power, right? Wrong!! The Reach has a huge army. But they never had to fight a war. They were always protected and with a peaceful neighborhood, their armies have gone complacent and soft. Numbers count for nothing if you do not know how to swing a sword. No matter how many the Reach may have in its armies, it will always count for naught.
12. The Dornish Forces
The Kingdom of Dorne is similar to the Kingdom of the Reach. They have huge numbers and are quite affluent as a country amongst the Seven Kingdoms. Their armies are not as huge as the Reach but they are said to be of the same size as the Vale and the North. What they do have to their advantage is their unique martial arts native to the Land of Dorne. The Dornish people make extensive use of whips and poisons and prefer weapons like the long-armed Axe or the knife-tipped whip – unconventional weapons when taken in the Westerosi context. It is probably why Jaime and Bronn, two proficient fighters, had so much trouble taking down the sand snakes and lost miserably.
11. The Brotherhood without Banners
The Brotherhood without Banners is not necessarily an army. It is a ragtag group of mercenaries and outlaws formed out of lost warriors and deserters. They were formed under the leadership of sir Berric Dondarion, the Brotherhood was created to bring Sir Gregor Clegane aka the Mountain to Justice after he was found guilty of terrorizing the River-Folk. The Brotherhood has no strength in terms of numbers. In fact, they are probably the smallest army in this list. But they more than make up their disadvantage in numbers by using superior guerrilla tactics and use of the environment. They were instrumental in the War of the Five Kings and the Battle of Winterfell, and so their expertise in battle cannot also be disregarded.
10. The Free-Folk
They are not from Westeros. They consider the North to be the South. Until and unless it is bone-chilling cold, they do not consider the place home. The Free Folk are not exactly an organized army but a group of warring tribes coming together to fight for a common cause. They do have exceptional skills though. They are adept fighters. They even used to have giants as their allies. At the peak of their strength, the Free Folk were a force to be reckoned with and almost brought down the Night’s Watch.
9. Second Sons
The Second Sons is a non-state army. It is a mercenary force that provides its services to the highest bidder. The depth of their battle prowess can be estimated from the fact that when Daenerys Targaryen heard about the Second Sons defending the City of Yunkai, she instead offered the Second Sons a higher price to change sides. Remember that by that time, Daenerys Targaryen had the Unsullied as well as the Dothraki at her disposal. The 2000 strong army is a feared force of soldiers across Westeros and Essos alike.
8. The Lannister Army
The true seat of power in Westeros, the Lannister Army has always been the backbone of King’s Landing. Whenever the Iron Throne faced any problems, it was the Lannister Army they asked for help and they always answered. They always delivered as well. After Robb Stark and his Northern forces became a burden too hot to handle, it was the Lannister Army that kept him at bay. The only army that ever came to defeat the Lannister army were Danny’s Dothraki Hordes backed by a fully grown dragon.
7. Knights of the Vale
The Knights of the Vale answer only to Sansa Stark now. When the Game of Thrones TV Show first showed us a glimpse of the Vale and its guardians, we came to know that the Knights of the vale are truly magnificent warriors who have always managed to keep their blades hot and sharp. There are more than 10,000 Knights in the Vale’s forces, all of them extremely skilled. They have been involved in the Battle of the Bastards as well as the Battle of the Five Kings. In both the battles, the side they chose went on to win the war.
6. The Northerners
The North is known to be a harsh land with an unforgiving cli8mate. Only the toughest and grittiest of people survive its winter! The North is also home to the Northern Forces, the only army that has been able to challenge the hegemony of the Iron Throne and lived to tell the tale. The North is led by House Stark, seen as a legendary family that is somehow always destined to be at odds with King’s Landing. Even after being pushed through such hardships, they are still proud and are ever ready to fight. They also have the numbers and the Banners to back their forces up.
5. The Iron Fleet
The Ironborn do not consider themselves as an army. They call themselves part of the Iron Fleet, which effectively makes them mean of the sea. The Iron Fleet is a naval superpower under the command of House Greyjoy of the Iron Islands. They are also very polished warriors and regularly go on raids on nearby shores, so we know they can fight. The Iron Fleet is also the only force in Westeros that can boast of calling a dragon in the battlefield. Laced with deadly Scorpion Crossbows, each ship in the Iron Fleet is equal to ten enemy ships.
4. The Golden Company
The Golden Company is the largest mercenary force in the world of Game of Thrones. They are fiercely loyal and have a legendary reputation of never breaking their contract, no matter how badly the odds are stacked up against them. They make use of elephants and horses in battle. Cersei Lannister chose to hire them for the Battle of King’s Landing because they were reputed to be well trained and organized in battle.
3. The Unsullied
The Unsullied are the most disciplined soldiers in the history of mankind in the Game of Thrones Universe. They are trained from childhood in the art of war and they value team-play more than anything else. They are so feared that Daenerys Targaryen personally travelled to Astapor and was willing to sell off one of her dragons in order to purchase 8000 Unsullied Soldiers. The Unsullied have proved their mettle in the battlefield when they helped defeat the Lannister armies as well as the Night King’s Army of the Dead. The Unsullied are also the only army to have earned the respect of the Dothraki Barbarian hordes, something no other army could boast off.
2. The Dothraki
With a Dothraki Khalasar, Danny was able to conquer not just one but three slave cities in Essos. She is now the ruler of all Dothraki, a group of warriors that ride horses and are known to be extremely fierce in the battlefield. The Dothraki are extremely good at horse-riding and are thus excellent cavalry, using their ‘Arakhs’ – specially made curved swords, to chop off multiple heads in one swing. In an open field, not even the powerful Lannister Army was a match for them.
1. The Undead Army
Under the Night King’s leadership, the Army of the Dead grew so powerful that the Free Folk, who hate the Wall and the lands south to that, chose to travel south rather than fight the dead. While the Army of the Dead does not have any trained warriors, it does have one major wild card – the Night King. With his powers to raise the dead and control them, the night King can instantly increase his ranks and thus, his army will never run out of numbers. The Night King was also known to control the winter, and use it as a way to catch his enemies off guard. The Army of the Dead is never affected by the harsh winter winds since they are already dead.
