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* Sesshomaru in ''[[Inuyasha]]''. He masters any sword the second he gets it in his hands and sometimes even ''before'' he gets his hand on it, a level of skill that's especially notable when Inuyasha gains and struggles to master [[Energy Absorption|Dragon-Scale Tessaiga]]. Sesshoumaru hears one single comment on how Inuyasha was trying to use the power and instantly understands how the power should be used and what Inuyasha is doing wrong, offering help in the form of [[Cryptic Conversation|cryptic advice]]. He can fight equally well with any hand, useful considering he's [[Handicapped Badass|one-armed]] for much of the manga, and his [[All There in the Manual|official character profile]] states he's able to use any type of weapon to full potential, as shown in the [[Grand Finale|final battle]] when he handles Sango's [[Battle Boomerang|Hiraikotsu]] with ease. The only [[Healing Shiv|weapon]] he ever struggles to master is the one, single weapon that requires mastering a [[What Kind of Lame Power Is Heart, Anyway?|compassionate heart]] instead of physical strength or skill.
* Balgus, Allen Schezar and Van Fanel from ''[[The Vision of Escaflowne|Vision of Escaflowne]]''.
* ''[[One Piece]]''
** Dracule "Hawkeye" Mihawk is the best swordsman in universe. He could, upon introduction, effortlessly hold off the previously unstoppable [[Dual-Wielding|tri-wielding]] Zoro with ''[[Cherry Tapping|a three-inch dagger]]'', or use his main sword to chop an entire fleet of at least fifty galleons in half from a distance. His main sword is a large [[Rule of Symbolism|cross-shaped]] [[BFS|affair]] that's longer than he is tall ([[All There in the Manual|he's 6'6"]]!), that he uses on whatever he feels like. He's skilled enough to deflect bullets with it, playing into his iconic line, "A sword without subtlety is but an iron bar."
** Zoro himself also qualifies. While his main specialty is three swords, he is proficient at two swords and one sword as well, able to cut down a man made of steel, a legendary samurai, and bring down a government assassin. Despite having the second-lowest supernova bounty, even the other supernova are wary of him. His only major loss was against Mihawk, whereas even the main character has lost more times. While he was initially very power based, Zoro has honed his skills. After the time-skip, during which {{spoiler|'''Mihawk''' personally trained him}}, Zoro has taken a few pages from Mihawk's book by casually slicing a ship in half while half asleep.
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* Jintetsu of ''[[Kurogane]]'', despite being [[Just a Kid]], is an extremely capable swordsman and renowned assassin.
* ''[[Cowboy Bebop]]'': Vicious is so skilled with his katana that he can hold his own in a future setting with a whole lot of guns, and is a match for Spike's shooting ability.
* ''[[Samurai Champloo]]''
** The two heroes are master swordsmen, Jin, and Mugen. Jin is a traditional swordsman, while Murgen relies more on his incredible speed, unique and unpredictable fighting style, and killer instinct rather than any traditional martial arts. This is largely why Jin's hardest battles are usually classic sword duels, whereas Mugen is conversely pitted against unconventional foes who don't rely on swords.
** Various antagonists also qualify. Chief among them are jovial mercenary swordmaster Inuyaka, the deadly Shaolin Tsujigiri Ukon and Kariya Kagetoki - a peerless swordsman of such great talent that he is known widely as the 'Hand of God'!
** During Episode 21, Jin meets an old hermit called Matagi. Later, when the hermit is asked about his real name he quietly mutters that he is actually ''Miyamoto Mushashi'' - perhaps the most legendary japanese swordsman in history! When Jin asks him to repeat himself more loudly the old hermit dismisses the topic.
* ''[[Naruto]]'',
** [[Scary Black Man|Killer]] [[Uncle Tomfoolery|Bee]] can fight with ''[[Up to Eleven|seven]]'' swords at once by holding them in every possible place on his body, ''[[Crazy Awesome|except for his hands]]''.
** [[Samurai in Ninja Town|Mifune]] is a master [[Iaijutsu Practitioner]] capable of holding his own against high level shinobi despite [[Badass Normal|having no ninjutsu or genjutsu]].
** Anyone who becomes one of the 7 Swordsmen of the Mist is this by default as well, particularly Zabuza, who probably has the most {{spoiler|relatively}} normal sword out of the group, and was able to give Kakashi a run for his money {{spoiler|even after his resurrection by Edo Tensei}}.
* [[Yaiba]] is full of powerful swordsman, including the eponymous hero by the end, [[The Rival|Takeshi Onimaru]], [[Miyamoto Musashi]], [[Sasaki Kojiro]], [[Yagyu Jubei]], [[Nice Guy|Soshi Okita]] and [[Cool Old Guy|Kenjuro Kurogane.]]
* Early in ''[[Blood+|Blood Plus]]'', [[Mad Scientist|Van]] and other characters referred to Saya as the "Samurai-man" because of her remarkable skill with swordplay and the fact her blood [[Taken for Granite|petrifies]] Chiropterans.
* ''[[Lone Wolf and Cub]]''.
** Ogami Itto. Being the former Executioner of the Shogun, he was expected to fight for the right to get such a cushy job, presumably besting every other swordsman in Japan for the right to be "the Shogun's right hand". Consequently, when he goes rogue, no man/woman/ninja hit squad can stand against him. At one point in the series he literally fights off an entire crowd of female assassins while drugged unconscious. Despite this, the series is fantastic for trying to find new, creative ways for the bad guys to provide some challenge worthy of him. His enemies, acknowledging him as the greatest swordsman in Japan, will attempt to send, say, the greatest rifleman in Japan against him, or some such.
** Yagyu Retsudo, the series main antagonist, is also a master swordsman and [[Ninja]].
** Yamada Asaemon is the Shogun's sword-tester, and is thought to be the only swordsman in Japan who can match Ogami. {{spoiler|He goes up against Ogami, and is only defeated because Retsudo secretly tampered with his sword}}. The creators later made a spin-off starring Asaemon, ''Samurai Executioner''.
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* Nanashi and Luo-Lang from ''[[Sword of the Stranger]]''.
* ''[[Bleach]]'': According to the [[All There in the Manual|Character Book of Souls]] and the Official Bootleg, [[Informed Ability|Captain Unohana]], [[Submissive Badass|Yumichika Ayasegawa]] and [[Martial Pacifist|Shuuhei Hisagi]] have reputations as master swordsmen. Yumichika never uses even his basic release properly where anyone can see him and Shuuhei is both underpowered for his level and tends to give quarter, so they both ''need'' to be good with the essential technical 'sword' part.
* ''[[Kyo Kara Maoh!|Kyou Kara Maoh]]''.
** [[The Ace|Conrad]] is the 'best swordsman in Shin Makoku' and turns out to have an international reputation; he takes after his father, Dan Hiri, who was a widely known master in his day. ''Gunter,'' who is easily taken for a [[Squishy Wizard]], turns out to be amazing with a blade as well. (Yuuri has still never seen him fight.)
** In season three we learn Gunter ''trained'' Conrad—in his adolescence (i.e. [[Half-Human Hybrid|maybe fifty years old]]?) he was getting to be cocky and bitter due to his [[All of the Other Reindeer|social isolation]] and genius, and Gunter, who was still teaching back then, [[Curb Stomp Battle|handed him his ass]] to show how much he still had to learn. Their only battle during show-time (probably best fight in the series) was inconclusive, since Conrad had a separate agenda and ran away at the first opportunity he could make.
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** Shiki Ryougi is mainly known for being a [[Knife Nut]], but her skill with a sword was enough to {{spoiler|surprise and eventually kill an [[Big Bad|immortal Buddhist mage]] who had basically set up an alternate reality to capture her.}}
** Shiki's father is also implied to be one, since he trained her in the first place. We only see him in flashbacks and in one practice match with her that he wins handily, though.
* The ''[[Lyrical Nanoha]]'' franchise has Signum, the [[Magic Knight]] ancient leader of the Wolkenritter. She's introduced in ''[[Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha
* In ''[[Fate/stay night|Fate Stay Night]]'' and the attendant Nasuverse, all Saber class Servants are, by definition, Master Swordsmen. That does not preclude famous swordsmen such as "Sasaki Kojiro" joining the fray as another class however.
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== Film ==
* Practically every Jedi character with a real role in the ''[[Star Wars]]'' prequel trilogy. Qui-Gon Jinn displays quite a lot of skill, but even he's defeated by Darth Maul, who fights him and Obi-Wan Kenobi to a standstill at the same time. Obi-Wan later defeats General Grievous (who notably wields ''four'' lightsabers against Obi's one), as well as the newly minted Darth Vader. Yoda also reveals himself to be an incredible swordsman despite appearing to be decrepit in the original trilogy. However, Darth Sidious manages to best him in their duel. In turn, Mace Windu manages to defeat Darth Sidious, only losing after Anakin intervenes. For his part, Anakin easily bests Count Dooku, a notably powerful swordsman.
* ''[[The Princess Bride (film)|The Princess Bride]]'' features ''two'' master swordsmen in the Man in Black and Inigo Montoya. [[I Am Not Left-Handed|Neither of whom are left handed.]] The film also name-drops a number of historical fencing masters during their duel.
* The vast majority of [[Wuxia]] characters, even relatively minor ones. Even if they are masters of [[Game Breaker|arcane]] [[Bare-Fisted Monk|barehanded]] [[I Know Karate|martial arts forms]], it is rare for them not to be equally skilled with blades.
* Many characters from ''[[Kill Bill]]'', especially the Bride, Bill, and O-Ren Ishi. The Bride uses her [[Cool Sword|Hattori Hanzo sword]], and of course every swordsman uses a [[Katanas Are Just Better]].
* [[Tim Roth|Archibald Cunningham]] in ''[[Rob Roy]]'' is a master swordsman with sadistic tendencies. He spends most of the final [[Sword Fight]] toying with Rob Roy, dancing around him and bleeding him slowly until he's collapsing from fatigue.
* Kyuuzou and Kambei from ''[[Seven Samurai]]''
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** Syrio Forel is the former First Sword of Braavos, a culture that takes its fencing very seriously. He kills several armed and armored guardsmen with his wooden practice stick.
** Ser Barristan Selmy, Lord Commander of Robert Baratheon's Kingsguard, is near the [[Badass Grandpa|age of 60]] and generally held as the last representative of a bygone age of heroes. He's quick enough to kill two guardsmen without a weapon and is also no slouch with a quarterstaff.
* ''[[The Wheel of Time]]'': Blademaster is an actual title within the setting, earned either by being recognized as such by a group of pre-existing blademasters or by killing one in a duel. The Heron-mark sword is the symbol of a blademaster, and you're only supposed to carry one if you've earned it.
** [[The Chosen One|Rand]] earns his position as a blademaster after killing [[Authority Equals Asskicking|a Seanchan High Blood]] at the climax of the second book. At this point in the series, he's still not very far removed from a being a simple sheepherder, so it's quite an accomplishment.
** Lan is the stand out in the series—in the prequel to the series, seven men come to kill him. He muses to himself as he faces them that only in stories does one man face seven and come out unharmed...or alive. He doesn't do the former, but obviously manages the latter. There are many others, too, and having a 'Heron Marked' blade is the sign of a true master swordsman.
** Other significant ones include Galad, Gawyn, and a couple of the [[Quirky Miniboss Squad|Forsaken]], notably Be'lal (who helped ''invent'' swordsmanship, or at least rediscover it as a form of combat, apparently).
** Notably averted by the Aiel, who are some of the most badass people in the world, but refuse to use swords.
* ''[[Dune]]'': Duncan Idaho. Also anyone else trained on Ginaz, the most famous of these being Jool Noret, the first true Swordmaster. His skill with a blade was so great that no man or machine could kill him. Only a massive tidal wave finally ended him.
* Benedict in ''The [[Book of Amber]]''. Most of the male members of the Royal Family of Amber are expert with a sword, but Benedict is universally acknowledged as being the greatest among them.
* There is an ancient order of Mantids in ''[[Shadows of the Apt]]'' known as the [[Exactly What It Says on the Tin|Weaponsmasters]]. While many of them prefer the [[Improbable Weapon User|Claw]] (an [[Elegant Weapon for a More Civilized Age]]), there're a good number of rapier specialists - including {{spoiler|Tynisa}}, by the end of the second book.
* In the [[Tortall Universe]] we have Gareth the Elder of Naxen, who Alanna says is the best swordsman in the kingdom. Alanna herself becomes one later- the ''Protector of the Small'' series mentions that she's never lost a fight as King's Champion.
* ''[[Codex Alera]]'' has several characters noted for their sword skills. It's unusual in that much of this skill comes from [[Extra Ore Dinary|metalcrafting]], magical abilities that increase their mental focus and pain resistance, and allow them to sense metal.
** The best of them is generally held to be Araris Valerian, whose abilities are advanced enough {{spoiler|that he can transform his skin into metal}}. Since most of the [[Authority Equals Asskicking|high lords]] are excellent metalcrafters stone knives are favored for assassination attempts.
** [[Noble Demon|Aldrick ex Gladius]] and [[Dark Action Girl|Phrygiar Navaris]] are both only ''just'' below Araris in terms of skill, and are similarly famous for their abilities.
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** Luke Skywalker has become such a god with a lightsaber that one [[Villain Sue]] who thinks of himself as a [[God Mode Sue]] admits to himself that Luke is better with a lightsaber than he is. In ''[[Fate of the Jedi|Fate of the Jedi: Abyss]]'', Luke is able to pick apart a Sith teacher ''in one opening'' while facing two highly skilled attackers simultaneously, despite having been weakened for several ''weeks'' (and near death!) by performing the Jedi equivalent of astral projection. And when lightsaber sparring with his own son Ben, no slouch despite his youth, he defeats him without taking out his lightsaber for a very long time, and at the start doesn't even have to take a step.
** Mace Windu's skill with a lightsaber outdoes both Yoda and Darth Sidious. Furthermore, due to his use of the [[Game Breaker|Shatterpoint]] Force ability, Mace can see the weaknesses of nearly anything in life. Those two things are what allowed him to defeat Sidious. Only Anakin's intervention prevented him from achieving victory.
* In the ''[[Malazan Book of the Fallen]]'', [[Badass Normal|Brys Beddict]], [[Physical God|Anomander Rake]] and [[Badass Grandpa|Kallor]], [[World of Badass|amongst others]], would all qualify. The Seguleh are [[Planet of Hats|a whole race of these]]; their culture focuses on swordsmanship to the exclusion of all else, to the extent that they're ranked according to their sword skill, and as such are regarded as some of the deadliest hand-to-hand combatants in the whole [[World of Badass]].
* In ''[[The Dresden Files]]'' by [[Jim Butcher]], we have Shiro, Knight of the Cross. He is only around for a single book, but in that book we see him as being a swordsman without mortal peer. In the space of a second and a half, he kills two mooks and holds a fallen angel hostage. He is so skilled that a [[Time Abyss|two-thousand year old]] [[Nigh Invulnerable]] villain possessed by a [[Fallen Angel]], who has killed over a hundred Knights of the Cross, is scared of him. As Michael put it, "Shiro knew fencing like Mozart knew music".
* In ''[[The Princess Bride (novel)|The Princess Bride]]'', Inigo spends many years trying to become a Master Swordsman. When he's finished his training, he's actually graduated to the even higher level of "Wizard." Even still, the Man in Black defeats him.
* In RA Salvatore's ''[[The Dark Elf Trilogy]]'', the drow ranger Drizzt Do'Urden is one of the greatest swordsmen in the [[Forgotten Realms]]. His primary disadvantage is that he is small and, while in excellent shape, not as strong as, say, an orc king or an ogre warrior. He starts training at sixteen; in most of the novels, he's around seventy or eighty, but for a dark elf that's still young.
* Many characters in [[S.M. Stirling]]'s [[Emberverse]], notably Mike Havel, Norman Arminger, Pam Arnstein, Astrid Larsson, Tiphaine d'Ath, Rudi Mackenzie, and Mathilda Arminger.
* [[The Three Musketeers (novel)|The Three Musketeers]], especially D'Artagnan and [[Old Master|Athos]].
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== Tabletop Games ==
* ''[[Dungeons
** The kensai/weapons master class kit is a subclass of fighter who forfeits all armor in favor of sword mastery. He can take ''five'' skill levels in a single weapon (other fighter classes can take up to two) and do, indeed, crazy things with swords. For example, a level 16 Weapons Master [[Dual-Wielding]] [[Katanas Are Just Better]] (which he is fully proficient with) with Haste buff can land as much as 24 successful hits in one round.
** AD&D allows first-level fighters to specialize in weapons on character creation, with the aim of creating characters like this. They had a bonus to hit and damage with their chosen weapon, and could attack more often with it.
** The Duelist prestige class from 3rd Edition is a master fencer. The class focuses on combat with a light weapon (usually a rapier), with the off-hand kept free.
* ''[[Warhammer Fantasy]]''
** High Elf [[Exactly What It Says on the Tin|Swordmasters]], an order of warrior-ascetics who wield [[BFS|massive two-handed swords]] with enough speed and dexterity to deflect arrows.
** Sword wielding [[The Berserker|Champions of Khorne]] are similar, but don't fight in a particularly graceful manner. They can still easily match Swordmasters blow for blow.
* The advantage Weapon Master in ''[[GURPS]]'' is designed for this exact purpose. Not only can you do more damage with your chosen weapon, but you're also proficient with anything similar to it.
* ''[[Feng Shui]]'', with the right Schticks, can create a character like this. The Leaping Storm fu path in particular is based on Wuxia and specializes in high-flying swordplay.
* According to [[Word of God|Ed Greenwood]], the creator of ''[[Forgotten Realms]]'', the top swordsmen in the Realms are in order: the human Harmel Artru of Sembia, the half-elf and son of Alustriel Maethrammar Aerasume of Silverymoon, the human Loaros Hammarandar of Narubel, the human Ember Tsartaera from Aglarond, the human Skoalam Marlgrask from Chessenta, and the dark elf Drizzt Do'Urden. Artemis Entreri, Drizzt's nemesis, ranks around ninth. Greenwood also clarified that the rankings can change very quickly given that all of them are ''so close'' to each other in skill level.
* In all incarnations of the ''[[Legend of the Five Rings]]'', the Kakita and Mirumoto are entire families of master swordsmen.
* In ''[[The Dresden Files (game)|The Dresden Files]]'', Shiro has a level of swordmanship that is barred to [[Player Character]]s. He also has a shtick that lets him further increase it temporarily for a fate point.
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== Video Games ==
* Several from the ''[[Kingdom Hearts]]'' series, which shares many characters with ''[[Final Fantasy]]''. Though the main characters wield giant Keys, they are functionally magic swords. In that vein, [[Mickey Mouse]] and Riku are Master Swordsman, as well as Terra, Xehanort, and Eraqus from the prequel (Aqua and Ven from the prequel probably don't count as one specializes in [[Magic Knight]] while the other is just generally inexperienced). You also have [[Final Fantasy X|Auron]], [[Mulan]] eventually, [[Final Fantasy VII|Cloud]] and [[Final Fantasy VIII|Leon]], and [[Pirates of the Caribbean|Jack Sparrow and Hector Barbossa]]. However, the main character, Sora, comes to eclipse them all due to the sheer amount of experience he has whacking [[Eldritch Abomination]]s and Disney Villains with his Keyblade.
* The ''[[Final Fantasy]]'' series has plenty of them:
** ''[[Final Fantasy IV]]'': Cecil and King Baron (Who gets to show them off as the Eidolon Odin).
** ''[[Final Fantasy VI]]'': Cyan.
** ''[[Final Fantasy VII]]'': Sephiroth.
** The ''[[Final Fantasy VII]]'' prequel ''[[Crisis Core]]'': Genesis, Angeal, and Zack to a slightly lesser extent.
** ''[[Final Fantasy VIII]]'': Squall and Seifer were renowned for being the only two to master a notoriously difficult type of sword.
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* Tricolour in the second ''[[Freedom Force]]'' can take on the Nazi Army and keep up with Freedom Force's super powered heroes with just Olympic level fencing.
* Alix Lencolia in ''[[The Elder Scrolls]] [[The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion|IV Oblivion]]'' is acknowledged as the best sword fighter (with the exception of the PC if you max out the Blade skill) and the only Master Blade Trainer (who can train Blade to the highest level of 100) in the game.
* ''[[The Elder Scrolls II: Daggerfall|Daggerfall]]'', ''Redguard'', and ''[[The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind|Morrowind]]'' all had several examples in the in-game literature.
** Frandar Hunding was a Redguard hero known as an "Ansei": swordsmen that could create weapons ''with their minds.'' Says Allena Benoch, another Master Swordsman, of Hunding and swordsmanship in general: "Frandar Hunding lists thirty-eight grips, seven hundred and fifty offensive and eighteen hundred defensive positions, and nearly nine thousand moves essential to sword mastery. The average hack-and-slasher knows one grip, which he uses primarily to keep from dropping his blade. He knows one offensive position, facing his target, and one defensive position, fleeing. Of the multitudinous rhythms and inflections of combat, he knows less than one."
** An in-universe short story states that there were some Redguard masters so skilled that their blades could be used to cut atoms, causing the massive explosion that destroyed their home continent of Yokuda. Cyrus the Restless (the protagonist of the spin-off game ''Redguard'') bluffs out Vivec, an archetypal [[God Mode Sue]], with the very ''idea'' of it and forces the god to flee.
* Most characters belonging to the Myrmidon class and its ascended class Swordmaster in the ''[[Fire Emblem]]'' series are portrayed this way. Ayra and her [[In the Blood|daughter]] from the [[Fire Emblem Jugdral|fourth episode]] are the most "emblematic" example. If she falls in love and [[Battle Couple|fights alongside her mate]], Lakche, Ayra's daughter, can attack up to [[There Is No Kill Like Overkill|forty time]] per turn with a 99% chance of doing a critical hit each time.
* The old Tales character cameo [[Bonus Boss]] in the [[Tales (series)]] coliseums will invariably be billed as either a stupendously skilled foreigner or the greatest swordsman in the world. There are also these in actual canon, and often they will berate the [[Book Dumb]] main character for their crude self-taught technique instead of a "real" style. Early examples: Ras to Rid in ''[[Tales of Eternia]]'', Kratos to Lloyd in ''[[Tales of Symphonia]]''.
* Royal Guards and Elvish Champions from ''[[Battle for Wesnoth]]''.
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* [[Tyke Bomb]] Ramirez from ''[[Skies of Arcadia]]''. Coupled with his magic sword, Fina claims he is able to cut ''photons'' in half. His special ability involves him ''cutting a hole in time'' and using the moment of timelessness to beat up your entire party.
* Several of the units in ''[[Disgaea]]'' start off with swords as their most effective weapons and definitely become this by the time you've learned all their moves.
* Meta Knight from ''[[Kirby]]'', although this characteristic is developed further in the [[Kirby:
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* Master Piandao of ''[[Avatar: The Last Airbender]]''. [[Backstory]] has him retiring from the Fire Nation Army when he grew sick of war. The Firelord sent a hundred soldiers to force him to rejoin, or kill him. He sent them all back.
* Jack from ''[[Samurai Jack]]'' definitely qualifies. He's a master of just about every weapon and martial art known to man, but his primary weapon is a sword.
* The Duelist in the ''[[Thundercats 2011]]'' episode "The Duelist and the Drifter," a man who goads less experienced swordsmen into duels, and uses his skill to divest them of their swords, which he keeps as trophies.
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* [[Sasaki Kojiro]] was renowned for inventing several sword techniques, most famous of which being the Tsubame Gaeshi, or the "Swallow's Tail."
* German swordsman Johannes Liechtenauer is often described as the grandmaster of western swordsmanship. Said to have been born in Liechtenau or Liechtenstein, Germany in the 13th or 14th century, he toured Europe to study various sword techniques under a variety of masters. The puzzle poem he wrote unified all these concepts and techniques and provides us with the earliest example of such an efficient sword art in the West. Many later fencing masters would go on to directly reference Liechtenauer, and many that didn't clearly retain elements of his art.
* Hans Talhoffer was a German fencing master who was probably a student of Liechtenauer. He wrote a fencing manual that clarified many of Liechtenauer's concepts, and may have been a founding member of the Brotherhood of St. Mark, one of the most prominent and influential fencing schools in Europe.
* William Marshal is widely considered the most skilled knight in history. He earned fame and fortune fighting in tournaments, where he claimed to have defeated 500 knights, and even killed the horse from under the future King Richard the Lionheart. He prosecuted a number of wars for various lords and kings, and was still leading from the front lines at the age of 70.
* Don Jeronimo Sanchez de Carranza is often called the Father of Spanish fencing, ''Destreza''.
* Gerard Thibault d'Anvers was a Dutch fencer who wrote a highly detailed fechtbuch about his unorthodox style of swordsmanship. He was also a [[Genius Bruiser|brilliant mathematician]], and wrote that a knowledge of geometry is essential for true fencing mastery. Oh, and he wrote books on [[Hermetic Magic|ritual magic]] too.
* Salvator Fabris was a storied Italian fencer who served as the instructor of Christian IV. He also produced a very popular fencing manual.
* Luis Pacheco de Narváez was the fencing master of Philip IV of Spain, as well as one of the most prolific fencing authors in history.
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* Achille Marozzo was an Italian fencing master of the Dardi school, whose style was extremely influential in the 16th century.
* Giacomo di Grassi was an Italian fencing master whose style was particularly popular in Elizabethan times, as swordsmanship began to favor lighter rapiers.
* Francois Vivonne, a celebrated swordsman of his day, is best known for being on the receiving end of the original "coup de jarnac." He was defeated in a duel by the Baron of Jarnac, a far inferior swordsman who learned a tricky cut to the leg from an Italian dueling instructor. Today, "coup de jarnac" is a French idiom for a deceptive or underhanded action.
* During the end of the Bakumatsu era, the samurai Kawakami Gensai, Kirino Toshiyaki, Tanaka Shinbei and Okaa Izo became known as "the Four Hitokiri of the Bakumatsu", ''hitokiri'' translating into "manslayer" or "assassin." They were considered more or less impossible to defeat by normal swordsmen.
* Supporting the Tokugawa shogunate during the Bakumatsu era were Okita Soju, Nagakura Shinpachi and Saito Hajime, who were all captains of [[The Shinsengumi]] and the three best swordsmen in that group.
* Aladar Gerevich, a Hungarian fencer, is the only Olympian to win gold in the same event six times, and one of only two athletes to medal in six different Olympic Games. This is all in spite of ''missing two Olympics'' due to World War 2.
* Fencing master Nedo Nadi won five gold medals in the 1920 Olympics, which stood as the most gold medals won in a single Olympics for over 50 years.
* An unlikely example is [[Josip Broz Tito]], before he became the communist leader of former Yugoslavia. In his youth, during [[World War
* The [[Badass Family|Yagyu Clan]] produced many of these in the Japanese feudal era, and were the official katana instructors for the Tokugawa Shoguns. Their most famous member is [[Yagyu Jubei]], but his father Yagyu Munenori, grandfather Yagyu Munetoshi, and cousin Yagyu Hyogonosuke were all master swordsmen.
* Julie d'Aubigny, AKA La Maupin, is a rare example of a master swordswoman. She was trained in fencing by her father and supported herself while on the run by singing and giving demonstrations of her skills for audiences. She was a professional duelist and opera singer. On two separate occasions, she defeated three men at once.
* [[Martial Pacifist|Yamaoka Tesshu]] was a swordsman who lived at the end of the Edo era, and was briefly a supervisor to the above-mentioned Shinsengumi. After the end of the Edo period, he taught a style of swordsmanship in which purity and mastery of technique is everything, since there were no swordsmen left to fight.
* Robert Roy Mac Gregor was a well-known swordsman and fought in a number of sword duels even before he got into his famous dispute with the Marquis of Montrose. At the time, it was often claimed he was invincible with a sword. Some attributed his skill to his long arms.
* Sir William Hope was a famous Scottish fencing master who published many fencing manuals dealing with different kinds of swords.
* The Chevalier de Saint-George was a mixed-race musician and conductor in 18th century Paris as well as one of the finest swordsmen of his day. He beat a fencing master who had insulted his race while still a student.
* The Chevalier d'Eon was a famous 18th century soldier, spy and crossdresser who spent the second half of his life as a woman. He was also quite a swordsman, defeating the much younger Chevalier de Saint-George in an exhibition match while wearing a dress.
* Explorer, soldier and all-around Renaissance man Sir Richard Francis Burton studied swordfighting with the same enthusiasm he pursued his many other areas of expertise. He wrote ''A New System of Sword Exercise for Infantry'' as well as his uncompleted ''The Book of the Sword''.
* George S Patton is the Army's youngest ever Master of the Sword. In 1912, he sought out Europe's greatest swordsman of the time, the French Cavalry's Adjutant M. Clèry, and returned to America to redesign the Army's saber, giving us the Patton Saber.
* Mariel Zagunis, from Beaverton, Gold Medal winner in Sabre and a literal [[Hot Chick with a Sword]].
* Hollywood swordmaster Bob Anderson. Chances are, if there was a swordfight in a film within the past 50 years, Bob Anderson choreographed it. He recently passed away at the age of 89, while working on ''[[The Hobbit (film)|The Hobbit]]''.
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[[Category:All the Tropes Superhero Team]]
[[Category:Sword Tropes]]
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