re: Who would win? Robert Baratheon in his prime or the Mountain?

quote:

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That axe Robert swung

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Warhammer


Robert defeated Rhaegar in what was implicitly single combat at Ruby Ford. Rhaegar and Arthur Dayne were considered the greatest swordsmen of their day, along with Ser Barriston. At the time of the era of Game of Thrones (novel), Ser Barriston and Jaime (pre-amputation) were considered the best, with Loras gaining reputation fairly quickly. But all of that is largely based on demonstrated skill with the sword. Obviously, that is not the final analysis as combat has other factors, endurance, ability to absorb damage and continue fighting, etc. The Cleganes were highly regarded fighters as well (as their reputation in the tournaments attest).

Jon Snow and Bronn would have been interesting matchups for pre-zombie Clegane. He wouldn't have regarded them very highly and would have been more likely to make a mistake than versus Barriston, Jaime or even Loras or his brother.

It is just a tough challenge to face off against a much larger, much better protected "tank" opponent where you have to be perfect and a single mistake kills you, whereas he would likely have to either be very passive or make lots of mistakes to lose.