How powerful is Nynaeve with that angreal of hers?

[False Dragon1991]

Its hard to really get a sense of it because she hasn't fought since getting it all those books ago apart from a few miraculous healing scenes which didn't require her to draw on it. I hope in the final book she gets to use that angreal and all the other cool jewelry stuff she was given. Cadsuane seemed to think she was bad at anything other than healing. But at other times she seems to learn weaves instantly and had no problem using balefire to kill shadowhounds. Its always been a pet hate of mine that the supergirls have almost never got to blow stuff up in this series. I mean is Nynaeve basically a walking tactical nuke with that thing if she wanted; but the situation never presents itself?

[Suttree]

She can memorize weaves on sight. Memorizing is not mastering however and we see Nynaeve lack dexterity outside of healing when it comes to things like dueling the Seafolk WF apprentice.

[False Dragon1991]

Why haven't the female characters used the OP as a weapon more often? I am honestly struggling to think of when Nynaeve or Elayne ever did during their POV. 

[EmperorAllspice]

Why haven't the female characters used the OP as a weapon more often? I am honestly struggling to think of when Nynaeve or Elayne ever did during their POV. 

Well, because using the OP as a weapon is something Aes Sedai physically aren't able to do against normal people. (and the Wonder girls generally try to act like they're under the oaths already even though they don't haven't held the Oath Rod)

 

And beyond that, whenever a character can use the power in a situation they do. Nynnaeve fighting Mogheiden several times. Elayne fighting the Black Ajah in Tanchico and helping Aviendha and Rand fight the battle against the Shaido. Egwene blowing up the ground under some whitecloaks (which Verin scolds her for)

[False Dragon1991]

 

Why haven't the female characters used the OP as a weapon more often? I am honestly struggling to think of when Nynaeve or Elayne ever did during their POV. 

Well, because using the OP as a weapon is something Aes Sedai physically aren't able to do against normal people. (and the Wonder girls generally try to act like they're under the oaths already even though they don't haven't held the Oath Rod)

 

And beyond that, whenever a character can use the power in a situation they do. Nynnaeve fighting Mogheiden several times. Elayne fighting the Black Ajah in Tanchico and helping Aviendha and Rand fight the battle against the Shaido. Egwene blowing up the ground under some whitecloaks (which Verin scolds her for)

 

 

Those are all instances in the first few books. Few and far between. Plus, Nynaeve from what I recall only used dreaming and shielding to subdue Moghedian. No violence. When did Elayne fight? If it was just shielding, well, thats not really fighting. So that leaves a single instance at Cairhein which is all about Rand anyway as its his POV. Not sure why the books consciously avoid instances of them using the OP as a weapon for half a dozen books at a time and sometimes more. This might not have been conscious because they were doing political things which RJ thought would be quickly done before the Last Battle (looking at you Egwene glares) but it ends up with Rand being the one who does all the fighting. If you said that the supergirls had a mental block preventing them from channeling killing weaves at all it wouldn't have made a huge difference to most of the plot. The author seems to have been under the impression that he needed to distinguish Rand from the supergirls but it just comes across as them doing the boring and TBH the more feminine magic.

 

One of the reasons Moiraine comes across as such a badass is because you don't just hear that she is strong in the OP or have her perform some feat which breaks an in universe boundary like healing linking; but you SEE her blow stuff up. You know she is powerful in a fight. Even long after it turns out this isn't very special it still leaves a lasting impression. The author seems to have assumed that lightning and fireballs needed to be seen as mundane and so wanted other things to distinguish the supergirls but it went too far. They just come across as weak or end up doing things that don't need the One Power anyway.

 

It especially gets annoying when for instance Elayne actually thinks in Caemlyn that she COULD blow up half the palace or scatter the armies besieging her with the OP. What is the point of telling me the character can do that and then never having them do anything like that for a full 13 books!? That is ridiculous!    

[EmperorAllspice]

 

 

Why haven't the female characters used the OP as a weapon more often? I am honestly struggling to think of when Nynaeve or Elayne ever did during their POV. 

Well, because using the OP as a weapon is something Aes Sedai physically aren't able to do against normal people. (and the Wonder girls generally try to act like they're under the oaths already even though they don't haven't held the Oath Rod)

 

And beyond that, whenever a character can use the power in a situation they do. Nynnaeve fighting Mogheiden several times. Elayne fighting the Black Ajah in Tanchico and helping Aviendha and Rand fight the battle against the Shaido. Egwene blowing up the ground under some whitecloaks (which Verin scolds her for)

 

 

Those are all instances in the first few books. Few and far between. Plus, Nynaeve from what I recall only used dreaming and shielding to subdue Moghedian. No violence. When did Elayne fight? If it was just shielding, well, thats not really fighting. So that leaves a single instance at Cairhein which is all about Rand anyway as its his POV. Not sure why the books consciously avoid instances of them using the OP as a weapon for half a dozen books at a time and sometimes more. This might not have been conscious because they were doing political things which RJ thought would be quickly done before the Last Battle (looking at you Egwene glares) but it ends up with Rand being the one who does all the fighting. If you said that the supergirls had a mental block preventing them from channeling killing weaves at all it wouldn't have made a huge difference to most of the plot. The author seems to have been under the impression that he needed to distinguish Rand from the supergirls but it just comes across as them doing the boring and TBH the more feminine magic.

 

One of the reasons Moiraine comes across as such a badass is because you don't just hear that she is strong in the OP or have her perform some feat which breaks an in universe boundary like healing linking; but you SEE her blow stuff up. You know she is powerful in a fight. Even long after it turns out this isn't very special it still leaves a lasting impression. The author seems to have assumed that lightning and fireballs needed to be seen as mundane and so wanted other things to distinguish the supergirls but it went too far. They just come across as weak or end up doing things that don't need the One Power anyway.

 

It especially gets annoying when for instance Elayne actually thinks in Caemlyn that she COULD blow up half the palace or scatter the armies besieging her with the OP. What is the point of telling me the character can do that and then never having them do anything like that for a full 13 books!? That is ridiculous!    

 

The "political stuff" is the only reason ANYONE in this series gets to be cool who isn't powerful. If Rand could solve all problems with violence then there'd be no series, he would trounce anything that wasn't a Forsaken after a point. I think the brilliant thing about this series is that it shows everything you need to put into a battle that ISN'T fighting. You need to win respect, take care of your people, play at politics. Most of the time they don't fight to kill because a captive can give them useful information, especially since they mostly end up fighting Black Ajah, who WOULD have useful intel.

 

Also, if you aren't going to count Elayne and Aviendha's battle in book 5 because it was Rand's POV then you can't really count Moiraine either, since she never blew shit up during her POV.

 

And Aviendha was hurling fire balls like a mother when running from the Seanchan. When Elayne nuked the jesus out of the area with a collapsed gateway

[False Dragon1991]

 

 

 

Why haven't the female characters used the OP as a weapon more often? I am honestly struggling to think of when Nynaeve or Elayne ever did during their POV. 

Well, because using the OP as a weapon is something Aes Sedai physically aren't able to do against normal people. (and the Wonder girls generally try to act like they're under the oaths already even though they don't haven't held the Oath Rod)

 

And beyond that, whenever a character can use the power in a situation they do. Nynnaeve fighting Mogheiden several times. Elayne fighting the Black Ajah in Tanchico and helping Aviendha and Rand fight the battle against the Shaido. Egwene blowing up the ground under some whitecloaks (which Verin scolds her for)

 

 

Those are all instances in the first few books. Few and far between. Plus, Nynaeve from what I recall only used dreaming and shielding to subdue Moghedian. No violence. When did Elayne fight? If it was just shielding, well, thats not really fighting. So that leaves a single instance at Cairhein which is all about Rand anyway as its his POV. Not sure why the books consciously avoid instances of them using the OP as a weapon for half a dozen books at a time and sometimes more. This might not have been conscious because they were doing political things which RJ thought would be quickly done before the Last Battle (looking at you Egwene glares) but it ends up with Rand being the one who does all the fighting. If you said that the supergirls had a mental block preventing them from channeling killing weaves at all it wouldn't have made a huge difference to most of the plot. The author seems to have been under the impression that he needed to distinguish Rand from the supergirls but it just comes across as them doing the boring and TBH the more feminine magic.

 

One of the reasons Moiraine comes across as such a badass is because you don't just hear that she is strong in the OP or have her perform some feat which breaks an in universe boundary like healing linking; but you SEE her blow stuff up. You know she is powerful in a fight. Even long after it turns out this isn't very special it still leaves a lasting impression. The author seems to have assumed that lightning and fireballs needed to be seen as mundane and so wanted other things to distinguish the supergirls but it went too far. They just come across as weak or end up doing things that don't need the One Power anyway.

 

It especially gets annoying when for instance Elayne actually thinks in Caemlyn that she COULD blow up half the palace or scatter the armies besieging her with the OP. What is the point of telling me the character can do that and then never having them do anything like that for a full 13 books!? That is ridiculous!    

 

The "political stuff" is the only reason ANYONE in this series gets to be cool who isn't powerful. If Rand could solve all problems with violence then there'd be no series, he would trounce anything that wasn't a Forsaken after a point. I think the brilliant thing about this series is that it shows everything you need to put into a battle that ISN'T fighting. You need to win respect, take care of your people, play at politics. Most of the time they don't fight to kill because a captive can give them useful information, especially since they mostly end up fighting Black Ajah, who WOULD have useful intel.

 

Also, if you aren't going to count Elayne and Aviendha's battle in book 5 because it was Rand's POV then you can't really count Moiraine either, since she never blew shit up during her POV.

 

And Aviendha was hurling fire balls like a mother when running from the Seanchan. When Elayne nuked the jesus out of the area with a collapsed gateway

 

 

Rand is a political character, but he gets to do cool stuff and kill things near every book and some more with the OP. What he does is consistantly epic.... 

 

I don't get why its a big expectation that a character who thinks to herself "I could blow up those armies there, but I won't" should actually get to do some fighting with the OP over the course of 13 books. There is focusing on politics and character development and then there is deliberately avoiding any situation or instance where they use the OP as a weapon. If its an established character trait then you can't just ignore it for so many novels whilst reminding us that these women can use magic to blow things up.

 

In those instances the focus is on MOiraines use of the OP. Rand does not focus on what Avi and Egwene are doing except for a brief bit in the beginning which is cryptic and vague about how effective they are. Its also underwhelming because there is no sense of danger or immenine like with Moiraine.

[EmperorAllspice]

 

 

 

 

Why haven't the female characters used the OP as a weapon more often? I am honestly struggling to think of when Nynaeve or Elayne ever did during their POV. 

Well, because using the OP as a weapon is something Aes Sedai physically aren't able to do against normal people. (and the Wonder girls generally try to act like they're under the oaths already even though they don't haven't held the Oath Rod)

 

And beyond that, whenever a character can use the power in a situation they do. Nynnaeve fighting Mogheiden several times. Elayne fighting the Black Ajah in Tanchico and helping Aviendha and Rand fight the battle against the Shaido. Egwene blowing up the ground under some whitecloaks (which Verin scolds her for)

 

 

Those are all instances in the first few books. Few and far between. Plus, Nynaeve from what I recall only used dreaming and shielding to subdue Moghedian. No violence. When did Elayne fight? If it was just shielding, well, thats not really fighting. So that leaves a single instance at Cairhein which is all about Rand anyway as its his POV. Not sure why the books consciously avoid instances of them using the OP as a weapon for half a dozen books at a time and sometimes more. This might not have been conscious because they were doing political things which RJ thought would be quickly done before the Last Battle (looking at you Egwene glares) but it ends up with Rand being the one who does all the fighting. If you said that the supergirls had a mental block preventing them from channeling killing weaves at all it wouldn't have made a huge difference to most of the plot. The author seems to have been under the impression that he needed to distinguish Rand from the supergirls but it just comes across as them doing the boring and TBH the more feminine magic.

 

One of the reasons Moiraine comes across as such a badass is because you don't just hear that she is strong in the OP or have her perform some feat which breaks an in universe boundary like healing linking; but you SEE her blow stuff up. You know she is powerful in a fight. Even long after it turns out this isn't very special it still leaves a lasting impression. The author seems to have assumed that lightning and fireballs needed to be seen as mundane and so wanted other things to distinguish the supergirls but it went too far. They just come across as weak or end up doing things that don't need the One Power anyway.

 

It especially gets annoying when for instance Elayne actually thinks in Caemlyn that she COULD blow up half the palace or scatter the armies besieging her with the OP. What is the point of telling me the character can do that and then never having them do anything like that for a full 13 books!? That is ridiculous!    

 

The "political stuff" is the only reason ANYONE in this series gets to be cool who isn't powerful. If Rand could solve all problems with violence then there'd be no series, he would trounce anything that wasn't a Forsaken after a point. I think the brilliant thing about this series is that it shows everything you need to put into a battle that ISN'T fighting. You need to win respect, take care of your people, play at politics. Most of the time they don't fight to kill because a captive can give them useful information, especially since they mostly end up fighting Black Ajah, who WOULD have useful intel.

 

Also, if you aren't going to count Elayne and Aviendha's battle in book 5 because it was Rand's POV then you can't really count Moiraine either, since she never blew shit up during her POV.

 

And Aviendha was hurling fire balls like a mother when running from the Seanchan. When Elayne nuked the jesus out of the area with a collapsed gateway

 

 

Rand is a political character, but he gets to do cool stuff and kill things near every book and some more with the OP. What he does is consistantly epic.... 

 

I don't get why its a big expectation that a character who thinks to herself "I could blow up those armies there, but I won't" should actually get to do some fighting with the OP over the course of 13 books. There is focusing on politics and character development and then there is deliberately avoiding any situation or instance where they use the OP as a weapon. If its an established character trait then you can't just ignore it for so many novels whilst reminding us that these women can use magic to blow things up.

 

In those instances the focus is on MOiraines use of the OP. Rand does not focus on what Avi and Egwene are doing except for a brief bit in the beginning which is cryptic and vague about how effective they are. Its also underwhelming because there is no sense of danger or immenine like with Moiraine.

 

YMMV on that. I don't find anything Rand does cool.

[False Dragon1991]

He defeats the most forsaken. He destroys entire armies single handed. He directly faces down the shadow. He leads armies into battle against the Seanchan and Shaido. This is decisive, direct and important action which has a huge impact on the narrative and the world. This makes him come across as a powerful character, which is cool in of itself. It is not difficult to understand why the supergirls who never use the power as a weapon and whose achievements of curing people from madness come across as weak or unimportant by comparison.The supergirls do not face down the shadow and when they do the methods they use are unimpressive. Its a problem of portrayal. They really come across as weak even if you don't compare them to Rand and if you do it becomes laughable.

 

TBH there is a bit of gender split with the female characters never using the OP as a weapon and only doing the support work. Healing, dreamworld, politics. Whilst the male characters are all about war, adventure, fighting and war as they lead people into battle.  

[EmperorAllspice]

I fo one don't think a character NEEDS to be "cool" or "badass"

 

I find Elayne to be a skilled and competent leader and she didn't once have to throw a fireball in order to come across as such.

 

I do NOT read stories to watch main characters be cool. Maybe you do that's your business but it doesn't make the characters favouring politics over "badass" action sequences wrong.

[False Dragon1991]

Then why establish that these characters are the most powerful Aes Sedai in thousand years? Why remind the reader that Elayne could blow up armies and her own palace if she wanted to? Why not have her not be a channeler at all? This is like giving Dany dragons and then her not using her dragons if she could use them in battle.

 

The fight sequences are the main climactic events of the novels. Its where the important stuff happens. Its where things are dramatic and there is a risk of dying with high stakes involved. So if a character isn't involved in those events then they are diminished as a character. This is a high fantasy novel that places great emphasis on use of the OP and where Rand using that ability has a huge impact on the plot. Why the same is never done for female characters is just beyond me? 

 

The series is 14 books long! Are you really trying to suggest that the author could not possibly fit in badass action scenes (or any action scenes at all) for characters he expressly gave superpowers to and still keep the other aspects intact? Would it not show that they have learned to be Aes Sedai and came into their own by having them just fight with the OP as you've been rooting for them to overcome their weakness after being hunted and overpowered so many times? Yes, I would have liked to have seen them best black ajah or forsaken in a real fight. Not consciously avoiding any fighting and only letting male characters use the OP as a weapon. Its annoying. There is not a single main female character who uses the OP as a weapon more than a handful of times in this series or even gets into a fight more than a handful of times in this series. 

[EmperorAllspice]

Then why establish that these characters are the most powerful Aes Sedai in thousand years? Why remind the reader that Elayne could blow up armies and her own palace if she wanted to? Why not have her not be a channeler at all? This is like giving Dany dragons and then her not using her dragons if she could use them in battle.

 

The fight sequences are the main climactic events of the novels. Its where the important stuff happens. Its where things are dramatic and there is a risk of dying with high stakes involved. So if a character isn't involved in those events then they are diminished as a character. This is a high fantasy novel that places great emphasis on use of the OP and where Rand using that ability has a huge impact on the plot. Why the same is never done for female characters is just beyond me? 

 

The series is 14 books long! Are you really trying to suggest that the author could not possibly fit in badass action scenes (or any action scenes at all) for characters he expressly gave superpowers to and still keep the other aspects intact? Would it not show that they have learned to be Aes Sedai and came into their own by having them just fight with the OP as you've been rooting for them to overcome their weakness after being hunted and overpowered so many times? Yes, I would have liked to have seen them best black ajah or forsaken in a real fight. Not consciously avoiding any fighting and only letting male characters use the OP as a weapon. Its annoying.

Again, I can't hate it personally because I'm not watching this series for badass action. And I find the neglected skills that the Forsaken have to be more egregious than Egwene and Elayne's (really, RJ. Not gonna let Aginor do ANY science stuff in the Third Age?)

[False Dragon1991]

Could he not at least have had one female character who regularly uses the OP as a weapon or gets into fights more often? Having all of them in non combat roles is really telling. Moiraine came close despite not being a POV character but only up till book 4. After that, no female character is allowed to be put in position where she is or can use the OP as a weapon despite them being under constant danger of attack by Seanchan or Black Ajah, or assasians or darkspawn in the lead up to the Apocalypse. Yet apparently during almost this entire time there is never a situation where using a fireball or lightning bolt would be useful or appropriate or they are attacked by something which prevents them using it or they run away.

 

Like seriously, WTF are the few hundred Seanchan going to do against three of the most powerful channelers in the world with angreals? They should have killed every last one of those filthy Seanchan without the aid of a plot device, but no, obviously we need to forget that these are 3 of the most powerful channelers in the world with angreal. But no, all the women ever do in this series is be weak, sniveling, pathetic and hide behind others. They do not ever stand up for themselves only rest behind authority given to them. Rand never comes across as weak by mid way in the series. Perrin never comes across as weak. Even when captured Rand comes across as dangerous and he does escape eventually at Dumanis Wells. But the women continue to be captured easily, refuse to fight, rely on trickery and authority given to them. This makes them continue to be weak.  

[clutzyninja]

If all you want is 14 books full of bloodshed and battles, you're reading the wrong series, plain and simple.  You might prefer Grunts, by Mary Gentle.

[False Dragon1991]

Um, there are plenty of fights and battles in Wheel of Time and these are far from incidental to the story. Its just you never, ever, have a situation where a woman character and especially a channeler ever participates in it. I don't see it as a huge expectation that characters in constant and continuous danger of attack never find themselves in situations where they can just use their powers. Either the threat doesn't materialize, or some plot device is used to incapacitate or capture them before they get to use it. Forkroot, the Gholams powers, being shielded, compulsion, being knocked out by everything imaginable. Moiraine is the sole exception to this during the first 3 books and I don't see it as unreasonable that the supergirls could have done a similar amount of fighting over a similar period given their circumstances. You are seriously telling me that its unreasonable to expect any fighting from the women when they are under constant threat and danger for 13 books with each one being around 900 pages? If you can only count the instances of all these female characters fighting and using the power as a weapon on two hands then something seriously wrong is up with that. 

[Suttree]

Did you like the Alivia v. Lanfear fight FD?

[clutzyninja]

But all those ways you describe of being incapacitated make perfect sense.  If you are going up against someone that can burn you to a cinder with a thought, why WOULDN'T you use known ways of taking them out of play?  If you had to fistfight Superman, you either bring kryptonite to the fight, or you're an ineffective villain.  Besides, if the channelers were never put in those situations, would it make a better story?  The whole point is to put them in peril, not to just watch them roll over every obstacle put in their path.

[Agitel]

Nynaeve fought Moghedien in person one-on-one in Tanchico. Egwene fights Seanchan at the Tower. The Aes Sedai with Perrin contribute to the battle once they feel like their lives are in danger. Aes Sedai, and that includes Nynaeve and Elayne, aren't supposed to use the OP as a weapon unless their lives are directly in danger or against shadowspawn. I think it would have been politically disastrous for Elayne to have used it against the armies outside Caemlyn, anyway. I suppose the REAL question you have is why the wonder girls aren't actively seeking out the Forsaken to do battle like Rand is.

 

And the series isn't over yet.

[EmperorAllspice]

But all those ways you describe of being incapacitated make perfect sense.  If you are going up against someone that can burn you to a cinder with a thought, why WOULDN'T you use known ways of taking them out of play?  If you had to fistfight Superman, you either bring kryptonite to the fight, or you're an ineffective villain.  Besides, if the channelers were never put in those situations, would it make a better story?  The whole point is to put them in peril, not to just watch them roll over every obstacle put in their path.

THIS! So much this. Watching the heroes win easily is BORING.

 

 

Nynaeve fought Moghedien in person one-on-one in Tanchico. Egwene fights Seanchan at the Tower. The Aes Sedai with Perrin contribute to the battle once they feel like their lives are in danger. Aes Sedai, and that includes Nynaeve and Elayne, aren't supposed to use the OP as a weapon unless their lives are directly in danger or against shadowspawn. I think it would have been politically disastrous for Elayne to have used it against the armies outside Caemlyn, anyway. I suppose the REAL question you have is why the wonder girls aren't actively seeking out the Forsaken to do battle like Rand is.

 

And the series isn't over yet.

He doesn't count those since they aren't fighting to kill.

[Suttree]

Oh it's become clear he discounts many things when it doesn't fit with his views ie. the Seamchan etc. Just interesting to see someone have such an odd take and then try and make it work despite evidence to the contrary. In addition to the explanations given, various scenes like the examples below just seem to get ignored:

 

LoC

   All he focused on was the man in front of him – he thought of them as men even when height said it might be a Maiden; he was not sure he could swing that red-dripping half-moon blade if he let himself think it was a woman he swung at – he focused, but other things drifted across his vision as he cut his way forward. A silvery lightning strike hurled cadin‘sor–clad figures into the air, some wearing the scarlet headband, some not. Another bolt threw Dobraine from his horse; the Cairhienin labored to his feet, laying about him with his sword. Fire enveloped a knot of Cairhienin and Aiel, men and horses turned to screaming torches, those who could still scream.

   These things passed before his eyes, but he did not let himself see them. There were only the men before him, the brambles, to be cleared by his axe and Loial’s, and Aram’s sword. Then he saw something that pierced his concentration. A rearing horse, a toppling rider being pulled from his saddle as Aiel spears stabbed him. A rider in a red breastplate. And there was another of the Winged Guards, and a clump of them, thrusting their lances, with Nurelle’s plume waving above his helmet. A moment later he saw Kiruna, face serenely unconcerned, striding like a queen of battles along a path carved for her by three Warders and the fires that leaped from her own hands. And there was Bera, and farther over, Faeldrin and Masuri and... What under the Light were they all doing here? What were any of them doing? They were supposed to be back with the Wise Ones!

 

or

 

KoD

   “I think,” Joline said slowly. “Yes. I feel in danger, now.” Teslyn simply drew back her hand and threw a sphere of fire larger than a horse’s head. The explosion hurled dirt and pieces of men and horses into the air. It was about bloody time!
   Facing in three directions, the Aes Sedai began hurling fireballs as fast as they could swing their arms, but the devastation they wrought did nothing to slow the attack. Those men should have been able to see there was no woman matching Tuon’s description inside the square by this time, but their blood was no doubt on fire, the scent of riches in their nostrils. A man could live the rest of his life like a noble with a hundred thousand crowns gold. The square was encircled, and they fought to close on it, fought and died as volleys from the crossbows lashed them and sling-men killed them. Another wall began to rise, made of dead and dying men and horses, a wall that some tried to ride over and joined in the attempt. More scrambled down from their saddles and tried to clamber over. Crossbow bolts hurled them back. This close, bolts penetrated breastplates like hot knives going into butter. On they came, and died.

[clutzyninja]

Oh it's become clear he discounts many things when it doesn't fit with his views ie. the Seamchan etc. Just interesting to see someone have such an odd take and then try and make it work despite evidence to the contrary.

Oh Light I want to make a comment about the sililarity to a particular real world group, but...must....not....troll.....

[Suttree]

The Aes Sedai with Perrin contribute to the battle once they feel like their lives are in danger. Aes Sedai, and that includes Nynaeve and Elayne, aren't supposed to use the OP as a weapon unless their lives are directly in danger or against shadowspawn. I think it would have been politically disastrous for Elayne to have used it against the armies outside Caemlyn, anyway.

 

Exactly. Not to mention it would have been an absolute disaster for her to use the op during her bid to win the crown. The first openly AS Queen in how long using the op as a weapon against her own subjects? I mean seriously?! Even if there was a benefit to winning the war in that manner it would have been an utterly phyrric victory on the eve of TG.

[MasterAblar]

Like others have said, the supergirls are all Aes Sedai so they can't go blasting anybody they want, and they were also novices or accepted for a fair amount of the story. Elayne is a Queen, Egwene the Amyrlin, and even Nyneave is married to Lan who is heir to the throne of Malkier. They're important people, they can't just be jumping into fights. They can't go after the Forsaken because frankly none of them have the ability to fight a Forsaken. At best Nyneave could fight Moghedien, and really that's mostly because Moghedien is a coward. Comparing any of them to Rand in that regard is senseless. Rand is supposed to go after the Forsaken. It's nearly his job description, and he's probably also the only living channeller on the Light's who can fight them on his own. He's a harbringer of destruction and chaos. It's only normal that he gets into more fights. Not to mention Rand, Mat, and Perrin are all taveren and are pretty much the three most important individuals for the Light. They're the three legs of the tripod. That's why the Shadow goes after them with greater determination than anybody else and that's why they get into more fights. The instances in which the supergirls fight are fewer, but that's due to their role in their story, and when they do get the occasion they let loose.

[EmperorAllspice]

Like others have said, the supergirls are all Aes Sedai so they can't go blasting anybody they want, and they were also novices or accepted for a fair amount of the story. Elayne is a Queen, Egwene the Amyrlin, and even Nyneave is married to Lan who is heir to the throne of Malkier. They're important people, they can't just be jumping into fights. They can't go after the Forsaken because frankly none of them have the ability to fight a Forsaken. At best Nyneave could fight Moghedien, and really that's mostly because Moghedien is a coward. Comparing any of them to Rand in that regard is senseless. Rand is supposed to go after the Forsaken. It's nearly his job description, and he's probably also the only living channeller on the Light's who can fight them on his own. He's a harbringer of destruction and chaos. It's only normal that he gets into more fights. Not to mention Rand, Mat, and Perrin are all taveren and are pretty much the three most important individuals for the Light. They're the three legs of the tripod. That's why the Shadow goes after them with greater determination than anybody else and that's why they get into more fights. The instances in which the supergirls fight are fewer, but that's due to their role in their story, and when they do get the occasion they let loose.

If I hear one more person going on about Mogheiden being a coward...

 

She fought Nynaeve to a standstill in Tanchico. Quick thinking saved Nynaeve there. That's the only time she's ever fought outside of TAR. She's not a fighter. She never was. I really can't remember her acting all that cowardly. I'm just told she is endlessly.

 

She doesn't like getting into danger. Oh what a COWARD she is! What a pitiful Forsaken she is for not wanting to blunder into fights she has a chance of losing.

[Suttree]

 I really can't remember her acting all that cowardly. I'm just told she is endlessly.

 

ACoS

She raised her hands, but as balefire launched itself, something flashed around her and she jerked. Moridin had come; he was there, and he would... She stared at the pigeons fluttering away. Pigeons! She nearly spewed the contents of her stomach across the roof. A glance at the river made her snarl.

   Because she had jerked, the balefire she meant to slice through cabin and passenger instead had sliced diagonally through the middle of the boat, about where the oarsmen had stood, and the bodyguards. Because the rowers had been burned out of the Pattern before the balefire struck, the two halves of the craft were now a good hundred paces back up the river. Then again, perhaps it was not a complete disaster. Because that slice from the boat’s center had gone at the same time the boatmen really died, the river had had minutes to rush in. The two parts of the boat sank out of sight in a great froth of bubbles even as her eyes shifted to them, carrying their passenger to the depths.

   Suddenly, what she had done struck her. She had always moved in the dim places, always kept herself hidden, always... Any woman in the city who could channel would know someone had drawn a great deal of saidar, if not for what, and any eye watching had seen that bar of liquid white fire sear across the afternoon. Fear gave her wings. Not fear. Terror.

   Gathering her skirts, she ran back down the stairs, ran through the common room Bumping into tables and careering off people trying to get out her way, ran into the street too frightened to think, battering a path through the crowd with her hands.

   "Run!" she shrieked, hurling herself into the sedan chair. Her skirts caught in the door; she ripped them free. "Run!"

 

In the AoL Mogi was a crooked financial advisor. That always makes me chuckle for some reason. Below is what the BWB says about her:

 

MOGHEDIEN

 

Moghedien, the Spider, also avoided gambling or risk taking of any kind, but not because of an innate carefulness. A sturdily handsome dark-haired woman, she was named the Spider because she preferred to lurk unseen in the shadows until her prey was safely caught in her web, rather than facing any kind of open confrontation.

 

Before going over to the Shadow, Lillen Moiral was an “advisor for investments,” a profession that no source explains. Whatever the work entailed, it is recorded that she was cautioned a number of times, and even disciplined, for violating its ethics and the laws surrounding it.

 

She went over to the Shadow long before the War of Power began, but managed to keep her alliance a secret until the war had been raging for several years. During that time she acted as a spy and agent provocateur, having secured a medium-level position in Lews Therin’s command-and-staff structure. Several major disasters in the early years of the war can be directly attributed to her machinations.

 

Moghedien as been described as a natural-born skulker and as an out-and-out coward who scoffed at those who took open risks, but at the same time envied their achievements and hated them because she was sure they despised her for hanging back. It is known that a number of the other Forsaken did, in fact, look down on her, yet those who discounted her too far usually lived to regret it. Many people did not live to regret it. While she was never known to confront an enemy openly unless she had the upper hand or was forced to, it was said she could remember a slight until the Wheel of Time stopped turning.

 

How she was revealed to be a supporter of the Shadow is not known, but it is recorded that she barely escaped capture, and that several thousand people, few in any way connected to the attempt to detain her, were killed as a diversion during that escape, a matter of sabotaging a public transport system.

 

It is known that she headed a very effective intelligence and sabotage network, one which may in fact have been under her control well before this. Some sources say that as many deaths may be laid at Moghedien’s feet as those of any general of the Shadow, but few of her victims were soldiers.

 

Her greatest asset was her ability within the World of Dreams, Tel’aran’rhiod. Within its dimensions her skills surpassed even Lanfear’s, despite the latter’s claim of sovereignty. She never dared confront or challenge Lanfear in the world of flesh, for there she could not hope to match Lanfear’s superior strength.

 

After escaping the Bore, she was seen masquerading as a servant in Tanchico and Amador. Captured by Nynaeve, she was held prisoner under the pseudonym of Marigan, then freed by the being known as Aran’gar. She is believed to be at large.