Serpico vs pre-eclipse Griffith

[Arc]

I know this comparison has been done to death but I thought it would be fun to speculate who would win a straight up fight between these two. I just finished rereading the fight between Serpico and Guts on the cliff face and obviously Serpico did everything he could to skew the odds in his favor and was still defeated handily.

The last time we see Griffith fight pre-eclipse is his clash with guts where they both put in their all (well, at least Griffith) and Griffith is also handily defeated. I also feel like i need to point out that Guts is obviously far more powerful when he faces Serpico post lost-children.

I don't know if all of Serpico's carefully planned advantages on the cliff really outweigh the power gain of guts between then and when he fought Griffith pre-eclipse but I think it is roughly an even match. They both use a very agile and fast form of fighting and have shown the ability to quickly analyze their opponents.

What do you guys think? If they fight with zero prep time, who wins- Griffith or Serpico? Saber or Rapier?

[Mammon]

Hi there 

I know this comparison has been done to death

Well I didn't, out of curiosity what's the general consensus?

I think a huge factor would be if they are on horseback or not.
 
Griffith fought on horses since the beginning of the Hawks, he cut down countless of cavalry with his sword, while Serpico has basically zero military experience being an officer of the HICKS, and I doubt he fought a lot of dangerous foes on horse...
Maybe he sparred with Azan, since they are the 2 competent fighters in that bunch (mention to my man Jérôme) but that's just spéculation.

Serpico is a genius swordsman, a natural who had seemingly never been pushed before his first 2 fights with Guts (at least from his flashbacks having draws after draws against noblemen, when he could have, according to Farnese, killed them easily).

Griffith, on the other hand, is a genius swordsman and strategist with a LOT of combat experience.

So with this one I'm going to have to go with
On horse:  >
On foot: Same thing, but closer duel.

Just my my 2¢, obviously we will never know...

It would be like... I don't know, Pippin vs Azan, both with their favorite weapon, who wins? No way to know...
Berserk is not Dragon Ball  (and I also love DBZ)

Long days and pleasant nights

[Pink-Dark-Boy]

I'd give the fight to Serpico, as the Guts he fought was much more stronger than the one Griffith dueled with. Even by the time Guts fought Wyald, Casca said he was several degress beyond anyone in the hawks, imagine how much further the gap would have increased by the time of the Conviction arc. So with that in mind, Serpico being able to evade Guts' sword swing and slightly scar him is pretty darn impressive.

And to be honest, I think I'd be more invested in other hypothetical fights rather than the same old ones. Musashi vs Serpico anyone?

[Arc]

I'd give the fight to Serpico, as the Guts he fought was much more stronger than the one Griffith dueled with. Even by the time Guts fought Wyald, Casca said he was several degress beyond anyone in the hawks, imagine how much further the gap would have increased by the time of the Conviction arc. So with that in mind, Serpico being able to evade Guts' sword swing and slightly scar him is pretty darn impressive.

These were kind of my thoughts too, but neither of the fights really last long. It definitely seemed like guts was surprised with Serpico's speed but I feel it really wouldn't have been a problem for him when it came down to it. I am however inclined to agree with Mammon, if they were on horseback Griffith would likely have far more experience- plus it would reduce the value of Serpico's speed.

So I guess for me: Griffith wins on horse, Serpico wins on foot.

[Skeleton]

Within the context of the story, Griffith would always win no matter how good or bad his opponent was thanks to the IoE.

Outside of the story, I think Serpico would smoke Griffith easily. It's true Griffith is a skilled warrior, but Serpico is almost designed specifically for duels. He's just as skilled with the sword, if not more so. He's insanely clever, able to think and improvise on the fly. It's highly debatable, but I'd even say he's faster as well.

Yes, Griffith is a military genius and designed to be a great general, but troop movements and battle planning don't amount to much in a surprise duel.

As far as horseback goes, if either one is limited on horseback I can't see a scenario where they'd stay on their horse.

TL;DR: Within the story's context, Griffith would never lose. Outside of it, Griffith would always lose.

[Demon Knight]

Pre-eclipse Griffith would definitely. Griffith in the Band of The Hawk days wasn't really a normal swordsman. You can see everyone was convinced when Guts and Griffith fought the first fight they thought Griffith will win, because I think they never seen Griffith loses a duel back then.
I think back then Griffith was one of the best swordsman ever in the golden age.
Serpico is pretty good and fast. I think if they ever had a duel it will be pretty closebut Griffith would still win.

[YourFavoriteSpartan]

So this is obviously only speculation, and maybe even more fitting of the category of fan fiction.

However, I really enjoyed Skeletons view on how the IoE and causality technically would not allow Griffith to lose, or at least not take any fatal harm.
This would mean, even when facing a stronger and more skilled enemy, something would happen to ensure Griffiths safety up until the eclipse.

I have honestly never thought about it that way before, but it makes sense now. Thank you for the delightful insight!

Within the context of the story, Griffith would always win no matter how good or bad his opponent was thanks to the IoE.

TL;DR: Within the story's context, Griffith would never lose. Outside of it, Griffith would always lose.