Best Vinland Saga characters

Thorfinn leads the Vinland Saga character ranking with 1596 ELO points over 160 duels, ahead of Askeladd and Thors.

The protagonist's dominance reflects his central role in the saga, but Askeladd's second place with 1473 ELO points shows the antagonist commands nearly equal respect among fans. Thors secures third with 1396 ELO points, rewarding his brief but pivotal presence in the story. The sharpest divide appears between ranks 4 and 5, where 144 ELO points separate Thorkell from Leif, suggesting the berserker warrior's ferocity resonates more deeply than the loyal explorer's quiet determination. At the bottom, Sweyn languishes at 743 ELO points with a 17% win rate, indicating that political cunning and royal manipulation earn less affection than the warriors and wanderers who drive the narrative forward. Floki sits just above him at 882 ELO points, another schemer rejected by the community.

This ranking draws from 1830 duels across 9 contenders, with 105 players weighing in as of 11 October 2026. The data captures how the community values different facets of the series: the transformation of Thorfinn from vengeful boy to principled man, the tragic complexity of Askeladd, and the stoic heroism of Thors. Cast your own vote to shape this ranking and see how your favorites measure up against the consensus.

Updated on October 11, 2026

How this ranking is computed

Every duel won lifts a contender and every loss drops them, by an amount that depends on the opponent's strength: beating the leader is worth more than beating the last. It is an ELO, the same principle as in chess. Duels are not drawn at random — an adaptive entropy sort puts the least predictable match-ups first, which settles the ranking far faster than a full round robin. A worldwide ranking is only published past 30 completed plays. Known limit: a contender who has faced few opponents keeps an approximate score, and the bottom of the table moves more than the podium.

How our rankings are made →