Quote Originally Posted by Cleretic View Post
He's the villain in a kung-fu story, there to challenge the protagonist's ideals and combat technique both.
Yeah that's an apt description, though if anything I think the final clash at Eulmore was a mistake. Ran'jit was more Thancred's foil than ours, so him showing up again in Eulmore to bar the WoL's path instead of Thancred's was a misstep. He should've died in Ahm Araeng, holding fast to his convictions in defeat.