The Lord of the Rings might have moments of happiness, like the beginning scenes in the Shire, but overall, it’s a rather heavy and dark series. The characters are facing the threat of an evil being who wants to rule the entire world, and war is breaking out across Middle-Earth. There are many battles, from small skirmishes against wargs to huge war scenes on the Pelennor Fields, so many of the main characters are great warriors.

RELATED: The 15 Most Powerful Villains From The Hobbit & Lord Of The Rings, Ranked

Some of these warriors have thousands of years of experience, while others are rather new to fighting at all. In some ways, it can be difficult to rank certain characters as their strengths in battle are quite different, but there are some ways to assess who is the best of them all.

Eowyn

Eowyn at the Battle of Pelennor Fields in Return of the King

Eowyn is a person who has a lot of potential to be a good warrior, but she doesn’t have the same kind of hands-on experience as most of the other characters in the series.

She has been trained to fight and defend herself, but because women don’t really go to battle in Rohan, she doesn’t have any real experience until the Pelennor Fields battle. And, as far as the book canon goes, she never really has much reason to continue fighting after the world enters relative peace.

Elrond

Elrond weilding a sword in The Hobbit movies

Elrond is someone who is a very capable warrior considering his long life experience and history, but these skills aren’t showcased in the Lord of the Rings trilogy. Because of this, he’s lower on the list as he hasn’t participated in fighting in hundreds of years.

However, as fans see in the beginning sequence from The Fellowship of the Ring, he was there at the War of the Last Alliance. Because he’s an elf, he does have battle prowess, but he’s more of a scholar and ruler in the Third Age.

Faramir

Faramir looking to the distance in Lord of the Rings

Faramir is a character that might not read as much of a warrior compared to his brother, Boromir, but he does have a lot of experience. In the books, it’s clear that he is a very capable ranger, and while he might not be as brawny or in your face as Boromir, he’s a leader and commander who protects Gondor.

The movies downplay his expertise in this area as well as his moral character, because in the novels he doesn’t ever take Frodo to Osgiliath.

Eomer

eomer and riders of rohan in LOTR

Eomer is another extremely skilled warrior who often gets underplayed because he’s not one of the main characters. While some of the members of the Fellowship might be better than him, he’s the leader of the Riders of Rohan, and his ability is formidable. The fact that he is trained to ride a horse onto the battlefield is a niche and difficult skill set that would be very useful in many battle situations.

RELATED: Lord of the Rings: 5 Times Aragorn Was Inspiring (& 5 Fans Felt Sorry For Him)

Just like with other leaders of men in the series, like Aragorn and Boromir, he’s strong and able to defend himself and others. However, there are a few other characters that still have him beat.

Boromir

Boromir in Osgiliath in The Lord of the Rings

Boromir has all the hallmarks of the more stereotypical warrior character. He seems rather knightly in a sense, and it’s not his physical strength that has him falter. He is a strong man who can wield a sword and shield with great skill, and he ends up giving his life to defend Merry and Pippin.

In a way, Boromir was the golden boy of Gondor, and the fact he died doesn’t mean he wasn’t extremely experienced.

Haldir

Craig Parker as Haldir in The Lord of the Rings

The book version of Haldir doesn’t play as big of a role as he does in the movies, but in both versions, it’s clear he’s a capable warrior. He was a march warden who guarded the forests of Lothlorien from orcs and any other invaders, and given his elvish advantages, he would probably best many human fighters.

While in the movies, he is killed by Uruk-Hai, this doesn’t happen at all in the books. This change does make him seem like less of the formidable warrior that he really would be.

Gandalf

Gandalf You shall not pass

Depending on how the term warrior is classified, Gandalf could be much higher up on this list. In terms of sheer power, he’s one of the most formidable characters in the series, but he might not really be a warrior, so to speak. As a wizard, he can hold his own in many battle situations, but he doesn’t usually use his sword unless he must.

RELATED: The Lord Of The Rings: 5 Reasons Gandalf Is The Stronger Wizard (& 5 Reasons Why It’s Saruman)

Other characters, like Saruman and Sauron, could also be classified as some of the strongest warriors, but their greatest strengths lie more in different kinds of power just like Gandalf's do.

Gimli

Gimli fighting with his axe in The Two Towers.

It’s difficult to say who is truly the better fighter, Gimli or Legolas. The truth is that they have vastly different strengths and weaknesses because Gimli is a dwarf and Legolas is an elf.

Gimli is sturdy and powerful, and he can easily hew down enemies with his axe. Legolas, on the other hand, has swiftness on his side and is better at long-range attacks. Gimli is sometimes underplayed as a warrior, but he’s one of the best in the Fellowship by far.

Legolas

Legolas drawing his bow in Lord of the Rings

When classifying Legolas' skill on the battlefield, there’s a big discrepancy between the character in the books and the movies. While the book version is clearly supposed to be a very good fighter, the films upped his abilities to nearly superhuman levels. He’s able to climb atop Oliphants and kill them by shooting three bows, and even for an elf, some of the feats he does seem impossible.

However, as he’s portrayed in the movies and even in the books, there’s no doubt he’s capable of taking down enemies over and over.

Aragorn

Aragorn holding up a sword in The Lord of the Rings

There are some key differences between Aragorn in the books and Aragorn in the movies, and one of them is that Aragorn in the books is shown over and over to be the best warrior around.

In the movies, it’s made clear that he’s a talented Ranger and an experienced fighter, but he sometimes seems to come up a little short next to Legolas. However, he has a well-rounded skill set even in the films that sets him apart. He is a great swordsman but also a leader with tracking and logistical skills.

NEXT: Lord Of The Rings: 10 Of The Nicest Things Aragorn Did