Ask A Simple Question, Get a Simple Answer (No AMoL Spoilers)

[mb]

Are there any group of people that are immune to being a Darkfriend?

Aelfinn/Eelfinn might be immune. Possibly also any kind of construct. Probably also solid objects.

Other than those, I imagine anyone/anything (that is living) could turn to the Shadow.

 

"One woman means fun in the dance. Two women means trouble in the house. Three women means run for the hills"

I think he adds "pretty" before each "woman"/"women".

 

 

 

Questions of my own::

If Moridin turned to the light...

...what would happen to him?

...what would happen to Cyndane & Moghedien and/or to the respective mindtraps?

[yoniy0]

Are there any group of people that are immune to being a Darkfriend?

Darkfriends exist in every society and at every level of society. I think the reason we haven't seen any Ogier darkfriends is because we simply havent seen that many Ogier.

I strongly disagree. Following the Shadow is a human affair. I'd be shocked to discover an Ogier DF.

 

[Moridin] was thrown out of the prison in regular cycles and the strain of being torn between the world and endless sleep is what drove him mad.

Any evidence to support that?

 

EDIT: I meant to support that that's what drove him insane. I do know that he was sometimes released from his prison.

Edited October 6, 2010 by yoniy0

[Demiandre]

Yes, I forgot this word. Shame on me! :(

 

In my opinion, to answer your questions :

Nothing. What would happen to Moridin? Partially burned by the Light? It could happen in a swift movement or come Dark Vadorly. It won't be a painful process.

 

And nothing. Once turned to the cour'souvra, I don't think it would hurt them. I suppose no in fact.

[NetSlider]

Or as Mat puts it, "I don't know if he is the luckiest man on earth or the more insane", or

"One woman means fun in the dance. Two women means trouble in the house. Three women means run for the hills"

 

Yeah, Rand jump into a Bear Pit with that pair (or trio i guess :)).

 

Now, interesting question would be, how many women Mat was with (and I don't mean dancing). We know he says a "fair share" but that coming from a man who wins A LOT so "fair share" for him might be completely something else for others.

[Sharaman]

Are there any group of people that are immune to being a Darkfriend?

Darkfriends exist in every society and at every level of society. I think the reason we haven't seen any Ogier darkfriends is because we simply havent seen that many Ogier.

I strongly disagree. Following the Shadow is a human affair. I'd be shocked to discover an Ogier DF.

 

 

Q: Why can't Ogier channel the One Power?

RJ: Why can't fish sing? Why can't sparrows do the tango? Why can't I figure my own income tax? I'd really like to know the answer to that last one!

Q: Can they be Darkfriends?

RJ: Of course.

[Guest Dowminator]

Okay, I'm new to the forums here, and the reason for that is this question. After weeks of digging and digging in other forums, I cam to this one to ask this one thing cause its been bugging me for weeks and I have yet to receive or find any kind of answer.

 

What I am wanting to know is why are blacksmiths so valued to the Aiel, and why are they not allowed to be made gai'shain. Yeah, I know they are valued cause they make the weapons and blah blah blah. But what about the bowmakers and the fletchers. Those are weapons as well, and it seems that every warrior has a bow and each clan has their own style of arrows, so reason would say that they have a set person/people to make those weapons.

 

Basicly what I am saying is that there has to be more to the Aiel Blacksmith than I have been able to figure out, and I was just wondering if anyone could fill in the gaps that I am missing...

[Hand of the Creator]

Okay, I'm new to the forums here, and the reason for that is this question. After weeks of digging and digging in other forums, I cam to this one to ask this one thing cause its been bugging me for weeks and I have yet to receive or find any kind of answer.

 

What I am wanting to know is why are blacksmiths so valued to the Aiel, and why are they not allowed to be made gai'shain. Yeah, I know they are valued cause they make the weapons and blah blah blah. But what about the bowmakers and the fletchers. Those are weapons as well, and it seems that every warrior has a bow and each clan has their own style of arrows, so reason would say that they have a set person/people to make those weapons.

 

Basicly what I am saying is that there has to be more to the Aiel Blacksmith than I have been able to figure out, and I was just wondering if anyone could fill in the gaps that I am missing...

 

I would think that it is because they don't have a lot of wood in the waste, so many things normally made of wood are made of metal.

[Zyntras]

i dont think it has ever been mentioned in the books;

 

the only thing i can come up with is that it could be a remnant of the way of the leaf:

 

- blacksmiths are not to be hurt/attacked

- blacksmiths will not pick up a spear themselfs (stated in WH by sulin to Perrin concerning the shaido)

 

 

perhaps they are the last of the aiel who only create things with their tools (spears are *tools to hunt* AND secondly weapons etc .... the hammer symbolises a tool *only* in their view [perrin still uses it as a weapon, too, but that does not mean aiel do])

 

but thats only a shot in the dark

[Val Mickey]

The special status of blacksmiths(and silversmiths) seems to be a cult thing, but it could be that they were the most 'Jenn' among the Aiel, having served a similar function with the Jenn, and cast out when they needed 'revenge'. There seems to be a similar vein among the Tinkers, who are exceptional smiths, and the Amayar who were probably the craftsmen for the glasses and porcelain of the Sea Folk. The Da'shain themselves are Seed Singers - a form of 'smithing' if you will. A more practical point of view would be that blacksmiths are the backbone of Aiel society, so they are protected at all costs.

[grungys]

I have some questions about balefire and its effects. If the speculation about Asmodean's killer being Graendel is correct. Is it possible we might see Asmodean alive again? How much power does it take and is the timeline even feasible?

 

Also, How did Rahvin's death effect Morgase and Caemlyn or did it not erase his life long enough to matter? It seemed as if Rand gave it everything he had when he zapped him, so I figured it removed him for quite a while.

[Barid Bel Medar]

I have some questions about balefire and its effects. If the speculation about Asmodean's killer being Graendel is correct. Is it possible we might see Asmodean alive again? How much power does it take and is the timeline even feasible?

 

Also, How did Rahvin's death effect Morgase and Caemlyn or did it not erase his life long enough to matter? It seemed as if Rand gave it everything he had when he zapped him, so I figured it removed him for quite a while.

No. impossible. the longest you could BF is around 10 days.

 

 

Rand's BF against Rhavin was only 15 or so min.

[yoniy0]

@Sharaman

Shame on me *goes to sit in the corner*

[dovien]

I have some questions about balefire and its effects. If the speculation about Asmodean's killer being Graendel is correct. Is it possible we might see Asmodean alive again? How much power does it take and is the timeline even feasible?

You mean 'could Rand have balefired Graendal so strongly that she was destroyed before killing Asmodean'?

No, it has been confirmed that Asmodean is not coming back.

 

Also, How did Rahvin's death effect Morgase and Caemlyn or did it not erase his life long enough to matter? It seemed as if Rand gave it everything he had when he zapped him, so I figured it removed him for quite a while.

If Rahvin's death had effected Morgase in any noticeable way then I'm sure we would know about it.

 

I'd be shocked to discover an Ogier DF.

Don't get me wrong, I'd be shocked too.

[waffle]

why didn´t Moiraine stab Lanfear instead of pushing her through the doorway?

 

 

Only reason i could think of is that rescuing Moiraine from the tower of Ghenjei makes for a more interesting read than:

 

Moiraine cleaned her dagger on Lanfears dress and sheathed it while thinking to herself: "Moiraine two, Forsaken zero"

[Pinzarn]

I have some questions about balefire and its effects. If the speculation about Asmodean's killer being Graendel is correct. Is it possible we might see Asmodean alive again? How much power does it take and is the timeline even feasible?

 

Also, How did Rahvin's death effect Morgase and Caemlyn or did it not erase his life long enough to matter? It seemed as if Rand gave it everything he had when he zapped him, so I figured it removed him for quite a while.

 

It was mentioned somewhere that when both side used balefire as a weapon, days worth of the pattern were burned away. How long ago was Asmo killed? Months at least. The volume of balefire needed would be staggering.

 

Rahvin's influence on Camelyn was only balefired back to the beginning of the battle. Sure more balefire could have been used to erase a couple days worth of influence, but as mentioned above, eliminating months worth of influence doesn't seem possible.

 

Also remember that when a thread is burned out of the pattern, all of the connecting/related threads are impacted as well. As a result the entire pattern could unravel if you burned out months of someone's thread.

[PhoenixFlame]

This has been bugging me for months now. If I remember correctly there are five great captains in this world. I can definitely remember three: Gareth Bryne, Davram Bashere and Rodel Ituralde. The fourth I THINK is Pedron Niall, but I just cannot think who the fifth is.

Can anyone help me?

[mb]

In my opinion, to answer your questions :

Nothing. What would happen to Moridin? Partially burned by the Light? It could happen in a swift movement or come Dark Vadorly. It won't be a painful process.

And nothing. Once turned to the cour'souvra, I don't think it would hurt them. I suppose no in fact.

My questions were more about what the Dark One would order about them.

[Barid Bel Medar]

This has been bugging me for months now. If I remember correctly there are five great captains in this world. I can definitely remember three: Gareth Bryne, Davram Bashere and Rodel Ituralde. The fourth I THINK is Pedron Niall, but I just cannot think who the fifth is.

Can anyone help me?

 

Agelmar Jagad. Lord of Fal Dara.

[PhoenixFlame]

Ah ha! Thank you so much!

[dovien]

why didn´t Moiraine stab Lanfear instead of pushing her through the doorway?

I assume it has to do with what she learned through various ter'angreal. I expect that when she returns, she'll bring some vital information with her.

[grungys]

I have some questions about balefire and its effects. If the speculation about Asmodean's killer being Graendel is correct. Is it possible we might see Asmodean alive again? How much power does it take and is the timeline even feasible?

 

Also, How did Rahvin's death effect Morgase and Caemlyn or did it not erase his life long enough to matter? It seemed as if Rand gave it everything he had when he zapped him, so I figured it removed him for quite a while.

 

It was mentioned somewhere that when both side used balefire as a weapon, days worth of the pattern were burned away. How long ago was Asmo killed? Months at least. The volume of balefire needed would be staggering.

 

Rahvin's influence on Camelyn was only balefired back to the beginning of the battle. Sure more balefire could have been used to erase a couple days worth of influence, but as mentioned above, eliminating months worth of influence doesn't seem possible.

 

Also remember that when a thread is burned out of the pattern, all of the connecting/related threads are impacted as well. As a result the entire pattern could unravel if you burned out months of someone's thread.

 

Thanks for the answers, but I need a little more clarification. If only a few days can be removed from the pattern, why is balefire much worse than a simple murder (unless balefire destroys the soul)? Either way the thread ends and two days probably doesn't make a huge difference in most lives. However, if months or years can be removed I can see the exponential effect it would have.

 

If balefire destroys the soul, is that the reason that the Do can't raise the balefired? and does that mean that when the wheel rolls around to the AoL quite a few forsaken won't be reborn. and if that's the case, if Rand can heal the bore and destroy Lanfear's soul the bore will never be opened? Sorry this last part's a bit of a tangent and most of it just dawned on me, but now I need answers to it too.

[Zyntras]

their souls are not destroyed;

 

the reason DO cant ressurect them is mostlikely the timeshift:

 

he has to grab the soul at the moment of death before they go where they go to put them into another body

 

12:00: 'A' gets balefired for 5 minutes worth of power

12:00+x: DO sees 'A' has been killed at 12:00/00 and tries to grab it directly afterwards

11:55: 'A' dies

11:55+x - 12:00: DO thinks 'A' is alive

 

(all speculation though)

 

it has been said, the DO can ressurect someone who hasw been balefired with the smallest possible amount of balefire

[Sid]

Thanks for the answers, but I need a little more clarification. If only a few days can be removed from the pattern, why is balefire much worse than a simple murder (unless balefire destroys the soul)? Either way the thread ends and two days probably doesn't make a huge difference in most lives. However, if months or years can be removed I can see the exponential effect it would have.

 

If balefire destroys the soul, is that the reason that the Do can't raise the balefired? and does that mean that when the wheel rolls around to the AoL quite a few forsaken won't be reborn. and if that's the case, if Rand can heal the bore and destroy Lanfear's soul the bore will never be opened? Sorry this last part's a bit of a tangent and most of it just dawned on me, but now I need answers to it too.

Imagine Natrin's Barrow. Hundreds of people's actions of the past few days gone, but everyone that wasn't balefired that interacted with them remembers those interactions and acted accordingly. That's a few days of pretty much absolute confusion for everyone in the area. Now, back in the War of Power people on either side were using balefire to destroy entire cities. The pattern has to now make up for the thousands and millions of paradoxes that it's presented with instantaneously. There is no perfect solution to this and the pattern has to cut corners. Someone saves someone's life from some near-accident, but they get balefired the next day and they didn't actually do it. So that formerly saved person a day away is at the mercy of the pattern and may not be affected or could be dead out of nowhere. People on both sides of the War of Power quickly decided that using balefire in battle is a one way ticket to disaster. Repeated use would make existence unlivable.

 

The next spinning of the Wheel could have someone other than Lanfear opening the Bore. I don't think every repeat of the pattern happens exactly the same way, but I think a lot of the major events are similar.

 

Balefire doesn't mean the person is never coming back ever, it's just that they're at the mercy of the pattern to be re-spun out, not at the Dark One's discretion. NOT EVEN I CAN STEP OUTSIDE OF TIME. (I think RJ may have been actually given contradictory answers to this kind of question at some point though)

[MaccaD]

In tEotW chapter 45 it appears that Moiraine attempts to use balefire on the Machin Shin that is attacking. Is this correct, have I interpreted this correctly?

 

Obviously this raises a couple of questions such as where did Moiraine get the knowledge of the weave from? Also it didn't appear to get rid of the Machin Shin, and then there seems to be an acceptance that Machin Shin in someway 'bonded' with Padan Fain, imprinting on each other. If that did happen does it possibly mean that Fain is immune to balefire?

 

I could have completely got the wrong end of the stick there, Moiraine may not have used balefire, but the description suggests it.

[grungys]

So does that mean that the pattern controls fate? The paradox exists in men's minds not in the pattern. Why would it matter to the pattern which threads continue and which don't, except in the case of saving a life where two threads would end leaving a lint ball. Maybe I'm thinking too much in absolutes. If you destroyed everyone in a city, (especially without mass media) with balefire it just happens two days earlier with some paradox around the fringes where lightning just kills everyone.