The Q&A Compilation Part C--Metaphysics of the Wheel (Spoilers) 1/1/10

[Luckers]

So once again breeched the word limit for posts. As with the other threads all thanks and congrats go to those that actually transcribed the information--both Storm Leader and lovely fans. Special thanks to Terez for directing me to many of the non-DM Q&A reports.

 

Please keep all discussion the existing Q&A discussion thread. This is only a compilation. Thats mostly because this probably won't stay around forever.

 

All updates are under dated headings. Ok 23/11/09 update will be going up in two lots. Tamyrlin's lot, and everyone elses. Everything's up. Tamyrlin's stuff I kept together undert the Metaphysics of the Wheel, but devided into subsections on topic. It's still in its original sequence and chronology.

 

What I mean by metaphysics is--how things work in the World of the Wheel.

 

Questions and Answers on the following subjects are in this section of the Compilation.

•   General Q&A on the Metapysics of the Wheel.

•   Tamyrlin and Brandon on the Dark One and the Creator.

•   Tamyrlin and Brandon on Mordeth and Aridhol.

•   Tamyrlin and Brandon on Souls and the Nature of Channeling.

•   Tamyrlin and Brandon on Parallel Worlds and the Nature of the Finns.

 

1/1/10 updates in;

•   General Q&A on the Metapysics of the Wheel.

 

Metaphyics of the Wheel

 

General Q&A on the Metapysics of the Wheel.

 

1. Question -   Would the True Source beat the True Power?

 

1. Answer -   Okay. My gut instinct is going to say, yes. My gut instinct says yes, but that is not coming from the notes. If I was actually going to have to write it out I would have to go to Charleston and I would have to look in the notes but from what I’ve read I’d say yes. But that is not canon because I’m not remembering specifically, does that make sense? I’ll tell you if it’s canon or it isn’t, but that one is just my instinct.

 

2. Question -   Has anyone ever had the same ability as Min? And do you know how it is caused or how the ability works?

 

2. Answer -   The ability works quite explicitly from her being able to see glimmers in the Pattern. She is seeing what is being woven in the future and that is how most of the Foretelling powers work. He was actually pretty explicit in the notes about that. Though some of them of course, there are ones that are strict, meaning they see the Pattern, some of them you see how the Pattern might be. She sees the Pattern as it will be. Has anyone ever had it before? Yeah, from what I read it never said it explicitly, but it implied that this is a power that could exist again and has existed before, but there are no lists of anyone that’s had it before. It’s definitely open that somebody could have had it before, but he doesn’t actually say specificially.

 

*New 16/11/09

 

4. Question: It’s pretty clear now that Moridin and Rand are linked because of the balefire incident.  Since Rand used saidin to create the balefire, and now he gets sick when channeling saidin, does that mean Moridin gets sick when he tries to use the True Power?

 

4. Answer: You’re assuming that Rand’s channeling sickness comes from crossing the streams.

 

5. Question: After Rand has channeled the True Power, he has a dark cloud around him.  When he meets with Tuon after this, she manages to resist his ta’veren pull.  Is this because the True Power has reduced his ta’veren mojo?

 

5. Answer: The reason she manages to resist is that she has a lot of willpower.  Rand is just as ta’veren as ever.

 

6. Question: How about the food going bad in Bandar Eban?  Was that caused by Rand being nearby with his cloud of evil?

 

6. Answer: We’ve heard earlier in the books that the Dragon is one with the land, and the land is one with the Dragon.  This is an old belief – many kingdoms believed that the wellness of the King was directly tied to the wellness of the land.  In WoT, this is quite literally true.

 

7. Question: In Falme we saw Rand fighting Ishamael and the Heroes of the Horn and the Seanchan were mirroring the progress of the battle.  Does this mean that there is something inherently evil about the Seanchan Empire?

 

7. Answer: Nobody in WoT is inherently evil, except for Shadowspawn.  At the time, the Seanchan were being led by a Darkfriend.

 

8. Question: Was the Domination Band made of cuendillar?

 

8. Answer: The original one is made of cuendillar.  The one that was destroyed was a copy, but one would assume that the copies are made of cuendillar too.  The True Power works by destroying the Pattern.  Everything that is done with it involves damage to the Pattern.  For example, when we see Ishamael Travel, he does so by poking a hole in the Pattern.  Cuendillar can be destroyed using the True Power.  There is another way to destroy cuendillar, too.

 

9. Question:  Heroes of the Horn, are they corrective mechanisms by themselves, or are they corrective mechanisms by virtue of being Ta'veren?

 

9. Answer:  Heroes are not always Ta'veren. So, yes, they are corrective mechanisms by themselves.

 

10. Question: OK, number two. Have the visions and other such prophecies about Egwene and the Seanchan (such as the running one and the one with the sword) have they been fulfilled yet?

 

10. Answer: No, none of those have been fulfilled other than the attack on the White Tower. She still has more to go.

 

11. Question: Yeah, OK. 3. There have been rumors that you have said that Mr. Jordan did not have anything in his notes about the voice of Lews Therin, whether it was a construct or not. That or that you had sai--[cut off]

 

11. Sanderson Answer: I would like to clarify this, thanks for asking. I will NOT say that it was not in the notes. However, Mr. Jordan did NOT want to reveal this information, and therefore I shall not ever either. Mr. Jordan did not want to reveal it.

 

11. Harriet Answer: What Brandon said.

 

12. Question: Did the meeting between Rand and Moridin for sure happen in TAR or could it have happened in a Vacuole?

 

12. Answer: I...well. I'm going to partially RAFO this. I will not say it for sure happened in TAR, and I'm not sure whether the other instances of this were TAR either.

 

13. Question: Was the taint influential in the creation/development/existence of the voice of Lews Therin in Rand's head?

 

13. Answer: Brandon answered that the taint was influential, but not the only factor. He referenced Semirhage, that of course we can't believe the Forsaken always, but yes, that the taint was an influence in the the voice. That we have to accept that in fact, in a way, Rand is going insane (as in as the books progress).

 

14. Question: In essence, are One Power and True Power balefire the same.

 

14. Answer: He answered that the True Power is another source of power, that Aes Sedai were researching another source, like a different form of battery, to power their weaves and that in for balefire, what it does is essentially the same between both power sources, but that it has different affects on the individual using the power source (this appeared to be a reference to what True Power does to its user).

 

New 20/11/09

 

15. Question: (something regarding the bruises remaining on Min's neck, and if this was a typo)

 

15. Answer: No, that is correct.  Rand caused the bruises, so Balefiring Semirhage would not make them go away.  Balefire only removes paradoxes caused by the direct actions of the one who is balefired. And the bracelets remained after Rand balefired because they weren't really part of Semirhage or Elza.

 

16. Question: (comment regarding the thread on DM where some are arguing that by balefiring Graendal's palace, the compulsion disappeared since there'd never had been a palace in the first place, and others are arguing that it doesn't work that way, objects don't have threads).

 

16. Answer: Everything has a thread, not just souls.  Even a stone in a wall has a thread in the

Pattern.

 

17. Question:  Have any characters we’ve seen been converted to the Shadow via the 13 Myddraal/13 channelers method? Has this method been used at the BT?

 

17. Answer:  RAFO (wow the first question and I got RAFO’d). But he did go on to say that this is a ‘gun on the mantle’, which refers to an old saying that ‘when you put a gun on the mantle in the first act, it needs to be used by the third’

 

18. Question What’s up with Rand’s sword? Was it LTT’s?

 

18. Answer: There are some really good theories out there on the message boards and I don’t have anything to add on this.  [Luckers: I’m not sure if this following sentence means kfc asked a follow up question about Brandon, or whether he found this elsewhere—like on a board. I think he asked Brandon] ---I followed up on where it was found, basically ‘In water, under a statue, not near Falme’

 

19. Question: Are there any circumstances of death that could prevent the DO from resurrecting someone (other than balefire)?

 

19. Answer: Yes, but I’m not going to tell you what.

 

20. Question: Did Rand directly have the DO’s permission to channel the TP?

 

20. Answer: It’s very difficult (but not impossible) to channel the TP without the DO’s direct permission.

 

21. Question: Rand is bonded to four people. If one of them was to die, what would be the effect on him?

 

21. Answer: We know that immediate bonding to someone else helps with the ‘Warder rage’ – it doesn’t completely get rid of it. I would say that your instincts are right, that it would help. I don’t think that it would negate everything.

 

22. Question: Are the Aiel linked in some way to the Ogier, in that they both have that capability in making things grow, and that they and the Nym all worked together in the scene from the Age of Legends.

 

22. Answer: Well, everybody is connected in the Pattern, and certainly the Aiel would have threads connecting them to the Ogier. I can’t really say anything too specific about it.

 

23. Question:: Is Rand's access to the True Power via his link with Moridin, created at Shadar Logoth?

 

23. Answer: No one may channel the True Power without the Dark One's permission, and Rand doesn't have that. [Luckers comment—several posters present at the same singing have stated that this is a misquote, and answers from several other signings directly oppose it]

 

24. Question: Mr. Jordan stated that the Seanchan only know how to make one kind of ter'angreal. Then there are the Bloodknives' rings. Is this a departure from Jordan's notes, or a discrepancy in a past answer?

 

24. Answer: Neither. The Seanchan only know how to make a'dam.

 

25. Question: Is the ter'angreal which Aviendha identifies as related to holes, and requiring a song to activate, the Talisman of Growing for the Ways?

 

25. Answer: (Huge grin) RAFO.

 

New 1/1/10

 

26. Question: If someone were to use balefire as a weapon, could they redirect it through a gateway, or would it destroy the weave and keep going?

 

26. Answer: Well, I happen to know that someone asked Robert Jordan this at a signing, and he gave a kind of glib answer that didn't answer anything. So, I'm going to RAFO that, and we'll see. There will be a lot of balefire in the future of these books. *much laughter* [There was some conversation here about that answer, and someone who claimed to be at that signing, and that RJ pretty much told the person 'Go get laid.' - Terez]

 

27. Question: Can someone besides Rand be taught to see the black cords that are seen on other Forsaken?

 

27. Answer: Robert Jordan is kind of dodgy on the black cords. A lot of people tried to pin him down on those. I think that yes, others could be trained to see the black cords.

 

27. Question: Does Mat's medallion work against all types of Power, or just against saidar? Because you know he said in the book, something to be free of Aes Sedai.

 

27. a) Brandon Answer: Yes, that is what he said specifically, but you know, Aes Sedai were both male and female once, and so we don't know yet, and I will have to RAFO that.

Another person from audience: But that was in book six.

 

27. b) Audience Answer: Yeah, that's where Aran'gar gets him with a weave.

 

27. c) Brandon Answer: Oh, that's right; it did happen. You see, I know a lot of stuff....but I get in trouble if I say too much, because at one of the early signings....no, it wasn't even one of the signings; it was JordanCon. I was talking about....someone asked me a question, and I started answering, talking about, 'Do you remember that scene, where this happened, and this happened, and this happened....' and everyone started staring at me blankly. And I'm like, 'What? No...' and I argued with them that this scene existed. I promised them. No one remembered it! And about a month later, I realized as I was looking through it, 'Oh, it was a deleted scene from book seven.' Which now, in my head, is in book seven! And so I'm very careful not saying things I know, but you're right; that was proven in the books.

 

• Brandon explained that the True Power can only be used by someone that the Dark One has allowed to use it.

• The True Power is perhaps more powerful then the One Power in the way a drugged up person is more powerful then someone not drugged up. In the moment the drugged up person may be, but in the long run maybe not.

• Further explaining the True Power he said the guardian in Far Madding cannot stop it.

• New 20/11/09

• Brandon also said that the DO would have liked very much to transmigrate Sammael but didn’t. Apparently, since he died by mashadar, Sammael was either unable to be transmigrated or it would have been a very bad idea. Basically, mashadar tainted Sammael’s thread somehow.

• It was also mentioned that balefire does not mean that someone can’t be reborn into the patter. I was very surprised by this and hadn’t heard it before, but apparently Brandon has said it in previous Q&A’s. Brandon said he was also surprised but that Maria was very insistent about this – so if the DR was balefired, he could still be reborn. [Luckers comment: RJ has also stated previously that people who are balefired can be reborn]

• About swearing to the shadow – basically, it’s a very bad idea and you forfeit some very basic protections when you do. SH has special power over those that swear to the DO, and the forsaken in particular. I asked about Alvairin’s special mark, and he said SH has similar power over her. The implication is that there are lots of ramifications for swearing to the DO. Brandon mentioned that this makes Verin all the more remarkable.

• New 23/11/09

• I didn't hear the question but someone asked something about Rand and Moridin's souls being intertwined. Sanderson said that many souls threads are frequently woven together in the pattern such as Birgitte and Gaidal. He said that Rand and Moridin are also frequently woven together in the pattern.

• New 1/1/10

• Ability to Channel/Souls. I think this has all been reported, but he stated definitively that the ability to channel is tied to soul. He stated definitively that the spark was not tied to the soul but could be affected by a specific body (ie, just because you had the spark in one life, you could be reborn and just have the ability to learn.) He stated with 85% probability that strength in the power was not tied to soul, meaning that if you were an uber channel in one body, you could be weak in the power in your next body.

 

New 23/11/09

---I’m leaving this whole. What follows  is a stream of questions and answers in chronological form, attained by (surprise, surprise) Tamyrlin of Theoryland.

 

Metaphysics Subsection—Tamyrlin and Brandon on the Dark One and the Creator.

 

Matt: I’m going to ask you a lot of questions about the Dark One and the Creator

 

Brandon: You are going to get a lot of RAFO’s on this, because Robert Jordan often stayed away from, and in the notes I get the sense, the direction to stay away from questions that couldn’t be answered from someone in the world. Does that make sense? When he would like to answer the question, somebody knew that, even if they were dead, somebody in world knew the answer. When you would ask him questions nobody knows the answers to except the Dark One or the Creator themselves, he did not answer very often and that is why you don’t know very much.

 

Matt: Ok, that is absolutely fair, so you probably will RAFO, I would say, 90% of these…

 

Matt: Did the Creator or does the Creator use the One Power to create?

 

Brandon: RAFO

 

Matt: Can it be said that the Pattern was created by and infused with the One Power.

 

Brandon: RAFO

 

Matt: I know you’ll RAFO this one but I’ll ask it anyway. Does the creator for a lack of a better word, weave the One Power?

 

Brandon: RAFO

 

Matt: Ok. I’ll jump off the Creator for the moment…

 

Brandon: How about this, I do know…Robert Jordan…there are answers to these things that you are wanting to know…

 

Matt: ...do you believe they ever will be discussed, like Encyclopedia type of things or do you believe…

 

Brandon: ...he did not want to leave explicit answers about a lot of these things. There will be hints. So, they are a double RAFO because they are the sort of things Robert Jordan did not like to answer and they could spoil things […] Double RAFO.

 

[Hah - I got a DRAFO]

 

Matt: Ok, so, what is then the nature of the Dark One’s relationship with the True Power? In other words, is the power…is he the Power or it is separate like the One Power?

 

Brandon: When people bored into his prison they were searching for a new source of power, they found him. Alright? Now, that leaves a strong implication that the True Power is the essence of the Dark One. The True Power when it is used rips apart the Pattern to rebuild it as it desires. The True Power is very destructive to the Pattern. It leaves scars on the Pattern. Robert Jordan said in an interview or maybe it was actually in the books, when you make a gateway with the True Power you are actually ripping a whole in the Pattern and going somewhere else. When you are using the True Power that is what you are doing, it is contrary to the Pattern. That is not a direct answer to your question but I think there are enough implications in there that certain things can be discussed.

 

[i realize now, after listening to Brandon’s answer that I was making an assumption about the One Power too, that it is separate from the Creator because of what we have been given in the books and the BWB, but I should have asked if instead the One Power is the essence of the Creator…]

 

Matt: Ok. So, obviously a channeler uses the True Power. We’ve discussed this before they weave the True Power just as they weave the One Power...

 

Brandon: ...they do and you don’t have to learn, and so that should tell you that the weaves are similar if not identical to the One Power. There are certain things the True Power can do that are different and it goes about things in different ways, but you don’t have to relearn everything.

 

Matt: So, I’m assuming you’ll RAFO this…does the Dark One weave the True Power?

 

Brandon: I will RAFO that.

 

Matt: Is the True Power used by any other creatures or beings within Parallel or Perpendicular worlds or other dimensions?

 

Brandon: Ok, see answering that actually gets us a begging the question because let’s step back, the question that people should be asking is does the Dark One exist in all of these Parallels…

 

Matt: ...ok, so yeah this is the question I’ll ask, you make a good point. Are there worlds and dimensions that exist outside of the Pattern?

 

Brandon: Ok, see that’s the question you should be asking. I mean, you should be asking it, but it doesn’t mean I’m going to answer it. [laughter] But that’s at the core of the question. I’m going to discuss it without giving you the answer. I like to do this because I think it frames the question without giving you too much information that I have that I don’t think is appropriate to share right now. Extrapolations of this question get us to: is there one Dragon for all different Parallels or are they all different Dragons. Traveling through the Portal Stone seems to indicate that there are many different lives Rand could have led. The same thing happens with several of the Ter’angreal that people go through. The question then is, are those all separate Universes? Do we have a multi-verse sort of concept? Or are they possibilities and do these worlds all exist or could exist, what is the difference. In some of those Rand failed. So, is Rand the Dragon in all of them or is Rand not the Dragon in some of them? What happens in the ones where Rand failed? Are they real worlds? Are those different worlds where there is a different Dark One who then takes over and destroys that world or maybe not, maybe he makes it has he wishes. Or are those just possibilities, reflections of this world that don’t really exist except when we touch them? Those are all very good questions. Robert Jordan said that T’A’R is a reflection of all different worlds, which implies other worlds continue to exist. The World of the Finns is something different…

 

Matt: ...he called it a Parallel World…

 

Brandon: Yes, the Parallel World, that one and also the one Rand and Lanfear visited are persistent regardless of someone from this world visiting. Yet, many of those seem almost shadowy and reflections of the real world, some of them seem as real just strange when visiting them. What happens in these different world, that sort of thing, those were never questions that Robert Jordan answered…

 

Matt: ...the answers exist?

 

Brandon: The answers exist, but are there many parallel Patterns or is there one Pattern?

 

Matt: Yeah, that’s…are there many Wheels or just one Wheel?

 

Brandon: That’s not a question, I’m afraid, that I can answer because I don’t think it’s within the scope of the books and I don’t think that the characters…that there are people that could know. You will find Brown arguing all of these different things among themselves, and it’s not my place to step in and end the discussion.

 

Matt: Ok. This is a fun one that I don’t think I’ve heard before, can the Creator use the True Power?

 

Brandon: RAFO.

 

Matt: Can the Dark One use the One Power?

 

Brandon: RAFO

 

Matt: I figured I had to ask both. Are there any other sources of Powers either within the Pattern or outside of the Wheel? Are there any sources like…

 

Brandon: ...sources much like the One Power and True Power?

 

Matt: Right.

 

Brandon: I will have to RAFO that.

 

Metaphysics Subsection—Tamyrlin and Brandon on Mordeth and Aridhol

 

Matt: Ok. You mentioned that Mordeth was a man that had "power". You are reported as saying that his power was that "which he got by seeking out all of the evil things that weren’t related to the Shadow"…

 

Brandon: ...he was seeking things that were related to the Shadow. I think that that might be a misquote. He was looking into the power of the Shadow in order to defeat it, was his goal. He was looking into everything. He was looking into things that were not necessarily related to the Dark One as well. He was looking for everything that he could get…

 

Matt: ...previous to him arriving to Aridhol?

 

Brandon: ...Yeah...

 

Matt: ...before he went to the King and became the counselor, Mordeth was this guy that went around searching for Power?

 

Brandon: Yeah, he wanted to defeat the Dark One and he felt that he could find other ways to do it […] He originally was good. He did not…he wasn’t this terrible person to begin with but he was looking to defeat the Dark One, to find a way to defeat the Shadow. And he looked into a lot of things he shouldn’t have looked into. There are evils that are not necessarily directly related to the Dark One, though everything evil kind of has…just as there are goods that are not related necessarily to the One Power…we are talking much as Perrin runs with wolves. This is a thing older than…there are other evils things that are old in a similar way…

 

Matt: ...is the assumption then that he found one of these?

 

Brandon: He did.

 

Matt: He found one or multiple?

 

Brandon: He found many things of darkness. There is one in specific that is driving him but he knew too much. He found things he should not have gotten into and that is what turned him into…when he got there he was already corrupt. He still thought he was doing a good work. He still thought we are going to raise this Kingdom up and it is going to become this bastion against the Shadow, but he was already by then corrupted.

 

[Hah - Maybe I should have asked if Mordeth was under the influence of the Finns...or at the very least if they were one of the powers he found in his quest...  ]

 

Matt: Is this same corrupting influence what corrupts everyone through the dagger itself?

 

Brandon: Yeah. Through him. yes. And even through his presence.

 

Matt: I heard you answer a question last night, which sounded interesting. Someone asked about Padan Fain and Elaida.

 

Brandon: A lot of people don’t remember that they met.

 

Matt: So, his influence, how long for example…wasn’t Egwene exposed to Padan Fain? Are there still effects that Egwene has on people because of him?

 

Brandon: Remember the idea that people have, generally, a choice. There are ways to turn people to the Shadow against their will, but when that happens the person is no longer the person. What is happening with Padan Fain is, naturally tendencies can be exacerbated or they can be fought off...

 

Matt: ...so Elaida’s paranoia fed that? With someone like Egwene she might have fought it off, so it’s not going to be…

 

Brandon: ...right. exactly, or someone like Rand who continues to fight it off. He has become very paranoid. And the wound in his side, certainly someone could make the connection that that might have an influence. I won’t say for certain but…

 

Matt: ...so, the suggestion is not only does he have the taint, which is negatively influencing him, or influencing him in such ways that might bring on paranoia, there is this accentuation of it because of Fain…

 

Brandon: ...this corruption…I mean that wound and the dagger…

 

Matt: ...that is another source…

 

Brandon: ...Mat managed to fight it off pretty much completely, well not completely, but we don’t see Mat running around paranoid anymore…Elaida gave it something to feed upon and it was very very small and subtle with Elaida but certainly that was an influence.

 

Matt: Ok. Is Mordeth’s power, this evil power, comparable to the One Power and True Power? Is it a power that can be woven?

 

Brandon: No, it’s more something along the lines of Perrin’s wolf power, something more natural, you couldn’t weave Mordeth.

 

Matt: Ok, so it’s more of a natural…

 

Brandon: ...it’s more of a natural, though it is unnatural. It’s an unnatural natural thing…

 

Matt: ...because Jordan was really particular about…he tried to have a logic-based system as it pertained to the One Power. Is this power more supernatural in sense than it is based on physics?

 

Brandon: Let’s say more instinctual, alright?

 

Metaphysics Subsection—Tamyrlin and Brandon on Souls and the Nature of Channeling

 

Matt: Ok…which brings up the following questions about the Wheel and its relationship to souls, talents, abilities and channeling. Is the Wheel responsible for giving or weaving in Talents and Abilities to a particular life, or are they like channeling, attached to the soul?

 

Brandon: That’s an excellent question. I’m going to have to RAFO that…it’s actually more of a MAFO. What’s your asking is would someone who is reborn into the Pattern will have the same talents again?

 

Matt: Right. Or does…the Wheel, we obviously know it is very capable of affecting the Pattern, so the question is does it give and take when it comes to abilities and talents it needs?

 

Brandon: Yeah, right, I will have to MAFO that.

 

Matt: Ok, so can the Wheel give an individual life the ability to channel, if the soul does not come to that life with an inborn ability to learn or a spark? Can the Wheel give them that?

 

Brandon: Again, I will have to MAFO this whole thing. I will have to go and look. I don’t know if someone is necessarily always born with the ability to channel, if they are in every Age...

 

Matt: ...there is a quote I brought that we asked at DragonCon, Jordan said: “I dont think I have said if you are born with the spark you would have the have the spark again. I have said if you were born with the ability to channel, to learn or with the spark, you will, when your soul is born again, you will have the ability again, whether with the spark or without….” So, in essence he said it’s inherent you have the ability. Whether or not you Spark or you can learn it that depends on the life.

 

Brandon: My instinct knowing how Jim wrote and knowing the parallels in the notes would be that he would parallel the other talents along the same lines. A wolf brother then would always have the ability to become a wolf brother and other things along those lines. I’m going off of instinct so that is an asterisked answer. I can MAFO that and look it up and we can see what we can find, but he did like to parallel a lot of these things...

 

Matt: ...ok, so at the end of that answer he said this…we were asking a specific question about stilling and burning out…he said, “And neither burning out or stilling affects that except in this lifetime, your current lifetime”. In other words…

 

Brandon: ...that is consistent...

 

Matt: …it doesn’t affect your souls ability, your soul’s connection. So stilling and burning out do not affect the ability to channel, which seems to be integral to the soul as it pertains to a new life. That being said, Aran'gar and Osan'gar, they were transmigrated and we see that they can channel in their new bodies, which makes sense because the ability comes with the soul…

 

Brandon: ...and because of that if you were male before and reborn (in a female body)…you are channeling the wrong power…

 

Matt: ...exactly…he was transmigrated into a different body, but still channeling the same power the soul inherits. So considering Jordan's statement about stilling and burning out not affecting the channeling ability of the new life of a soul, is the same for the new life of a soul transmigrated?

 

Brandon: I’m going to say that transmigrated…if you were burned out and transmigrated you would still be burned out, is my guess.

 

Matt: Is that a MAFO question? Or…

 

Brandon: ...that is my guess and you can MAFO it if you want to send it to me, but that is a “I’m pretty sure” answer.

 

Matt: You saw where we were going…

 

Brandon: ...yes, I see where you are going…

 

Matt: ...I had to do the build up to it because it all comes down to that one question for a couple of things.

 

Brandon: This one question you are going to ask next?

 

Matt: I’m not going to ask it…

 

Brandon: ...oh, the one you asked…

 

Matt: ...yeah, I guess I asked a piece of it last night…

 

Brandon: ...when it comes to this certain character that you are talking about, there is a whole thing where Maria and I exchanged a bunch of emails about this. She had managed to pull some things out of the notes that I had not seen, which is interesting, because I was going off of something else. I did not think that Cyndane should be nearly as powerful as she was put in the books as being, so I had been under the belief that the Dark One was pulling shenanigans…

 

Matt: ...like a little, in essence, let’s say what the Forsaken Lanfear did to Asmodean, you thought maybe the Dark One was doing some similar…shielding…

 

Brandon: …or the other way around…here is a little extra power you can draw upon while I am pleased with you, I can take this away…

 

Matt: ...that is a question…let’s jump to that question, there have been some theories that talk about Lanfear…

 

Brandon: ...let’s back up and say I was wrong. I was interpreting the notes a certain way. Maria was able to pull something out that I had not seen that made it clear that I had misinterpreted and that that is not the case, Cyndane is not under any shenanigans. What you see is what you get.

 

Matt: Cyndane and her alter ego have never been under any shenanigans?

 

Brandon: I’m not going to say never been under any shenanigans, but when you see her creating a gateway she is legitimately powerful enough to do it, which I did not believe that she was. Does that make sense? This is all digging into my read of the notes versus and Maria’s read of the notes and Maria was right. She was able to provide information to me that I had not seen which is nice because it was stuff that was very pertinent for what I am working on right now. It would have come out eventually when I would have sent her the scenes I’m working on, but it came out earlier, which is nice. Once I found out what was going on it all made perfect sense.

 

Matt: So, we will understand then in the next book or so why there is a decrease in power but not a significant decrease?

 

Brandon: Yes.

 

Metaphysics Subsection—Tamyrlin and Brandon on Parallel Worlds and the Nature of the Finns

 

Matt: Ok, so that being said there are some theories out there that in the Age of Legends, at one point, Lanfear might have…

 

Brandon: ...let’s just say I have not said that Lanfear and Cyndane are the same person…

 

Matt: ...Oh, absolutely, I’m jumping to this other Forsaken that we are talking about…

 

Brandon: …this other completely different person…Uh huh…

 

Matt: …so Lanfear, the theory goes, that maybe she was accentuated from a beauty and/or power perspective by going to the Finnland previously…

 

Brandon: ...ok…

 

Matt: ...would the Finns have the ability to accentuate someone’s beauty and/or quantity or access to the One Power through their own capabilities and talents?

 

Brandon: Yes, but it might involve third party Ter’angreal, Angreal, this sort of thing…

 

Matt: ...so, they don’t have power to affect the soul’s capability of increasing its total channeling?

 

Brandon: Certainly not permanently, as far I understand, that is outside the realm of their ability…

 

Matt: …from a beauty perspective can they affect the outer body of some individual?

 

Brandon: I would say that, yes they can, but they may have to be using some type of Ter’angreal or…

 

Matt: …some item of power?

 

Brandon: Some item of power, something like that…of which they have great stores…

 

[what???]

 

Matt: ...Really…heh, so the obvious question, where did the Finns get great stores of Ter’angreal, Angreal, and is that part of the Pact they made.?

 

Brandon: RAFO…but if you just think about it, we don’t even have to go to the notes for this if you think about it logically, we know of them providing certain items of power to certain individuals that they were able to match very nicely with certain requests very easily. If you run the statistics on that its either a huge coincidence or they have very many to choose from.

 

Matt: So, how many Finns are there?

 

Brandon: RAFO. I’m going to RAFO a lot of Finn stuff just so you know.

 

Metaphysics Subsection—Tamyrlin and Brandon on Stuff that Happens With Rand

 

Matt: Ok, we’ll move on from there. Were male channelers across Randland able to feel Rand's use of the male CK when he destroyed it atop Dragonmount?

 

Brandon: I would certainly think they would have been able to, consistent with what has happened before.

 

Matt: But did they know that it was destroyed? Is that what they felt, or was it just the use of?

 

Brandon: I do not believe the destruction of a Sa’angreal would be the type of event that you would be able to notice. It is not consistent with what we have seen before.

 

Matt: Jordan talked about Pattern Level Events, or in other words "Effects of the Wheel". This question was asked of him at DragonCon 05. We wanted to know how Rand showed up in the sky above Falme with Ishamael. Theories… [the recording cut off here so Brandon’s answer to my question was lost. I will paraphrase it generally. I asked him if Rand’s access to the infinite lives while on Dragonmount at the end of TGS, was the Wheel getting involved directly. He replied as follows according to my memory that there was a Pattern Level Event there, but it wasn’t specifically the Wheel giving Rand access to memories his previous lives. Brandon asked for some clarification about how Jordan explained his answer at DragonCon. We were rushed and I could not give him that direct quote, so I was unable to ask more specifically if Rand was seeing the soul’s history of lives lived, or if more generically the Wheel displayed to his mind a series of previous generic lives, like it displayed Rand and Ishamael in the sky above Falme. He did speak briefly about the Wheel not physically “touching” Rand and/or Ishamael, which seemed to be suggestive of his initial response that it didn’t “touch” Rand’s mind to give him access to his own memories. Once again, a more detailed discussion of this subject is worthwhile, especially one recorded.]

 

Matt: There was some confusion about Rand and the DO’s permission, so for clarification’s sake, did Rand have the DO’s permission to use the True Power?

 

Brandon: I have not answered that. If anyone says that I have, I have not. What I have said specifically is, this is recording: generally one must have the DO’s permission to use the True Power. Semirhage believed that the DO had betrayed her by letting Rand use it. […] It is good that you have asked this so I can make sure on the record that is the answer I have given.

 

[Ged]

Moridin seems like a strange person to always be linked to Rand in reincarnations. Aside from the fact that they serve opposing forces as leaders, there seems to be little in common, and it doesn't really seem like they are likely to spend very much time with each other and influence each other's personal growth in specific ways. (Otherwise it would be like: Elan, you were my best friend, how did this happen?)

 

The RAFOs... often seem like stuff we're never going to get an answer for. (Can the Creator use the True Power? - aside from it likely being a negligible tool to have, and the Creator having finite power being kinda unGodlike)

 

 

I wonder btw, if someone dead perhaps one million turns of the wheel ago, might not have more answers to questions. If Rand heard the Creator at least once, perhaps there were messengers/prophets who talked to the Creator more, and learned more.

Which makes you wonder what knowledge Ishamael may have acquired from the DO. There must be some unusual knowledge that the DO could potentially impart... there should have been knowledge of methods of Power too (True Power style, Mordeth style, etc.) that the DO could have imparted to make his servants stronger. Although by all indications the DO hasn't bothered strengthening his servants in any significant unusual ways.

 

 

One interesting thing here is that Mordeth managed to go and find a whole bunch of evils. That was in the post-breaking world, and most people are not very knowledgeable. I wonder how Mordeth would have come upon the information that would've led him to those powers and to understanding of those powers. Like who today in Randland would know of how to find and master the various powers Mordeth has...

Which also begs the question... what other light, and gray powers potentially exist that one can acquire if so inclined? Can you go around looking for info and find an alter-Creator, side of power if you are so inclined (power that you're not born with)

 

Also, among powers that can be had, we have verification of Rand's affects on all of Randland. It might not so much be the DO screwing things up and blighting things elsewhere as Rand's lack of self mastery causing food to rot elsewhere.

One wonders what Rand would be capable of if he actually understood the power he has. The threat to Cadsuane might be a preliminary step in the direction of him gaining understanding although I wouldn't really expect that to happen.

Hmm.. maybe Rand can purify his heart and commit suicide, leaving the world in a state of purity that rejects the DO :P

[The whole universe, down to every rock will conspire to destroy you DO. You cannot win!].. Well probably not that, but still - interesting.

[Luckers]

Discussion of Q&A belongs in the Question and Answers thread.