WOT Encyclopedia

[dexterryu]

  The first paragraph of each book's Chapter 1 contains this phrase:: "called the Third Age by some"

emphasis mine.

 

About Whitebridge, different characters claimed different things for the cause of the fire.

 

In regards to the "Third age by some" I think that is just a reference that the in universe people (at least during the periods covered in the books) have no way of knowing which age is the first. It's also a wheel, so technically there is no first or last since it is cyclical.

 

To me there is so much I hope the encyclopedia covers about them: What they were like, events that started and completed each, if the Power was used, etc...

[Abaddon]

I can't wait for the encyclopedia! I'm as anxious for that to come out as I have been for the progression of books, haha.

[DemandredFO]

Hopefully, it will include deleted scenes like Matt vs. Culadin or Damar healing Irgine. Some scenes of Demandred in Shara would be nice and maybe some scenes from the AOL.

[mb]

I would guess that the encyclopedia would tell about book scenes, not include the scenes themselves.

 

best chance for printing of off-screen scenes might be in a book that has stories from multiple authors.

I doubt Robert Jordan written (or left notes for) Shara scenes or other Age of Legends scenes.  The only Age of Legends scenes I take would be Eye of World Prologue and Rand's visions in the Glass Columns.

[DemandredFO]

does anyone know if the guide was made into an audiobook. I'm legally-blind and it is much easier for me to listen to a book, than go through the process of reading one?

[Sabio]

Guide, you mean the BWB, I don't think it was made into an audio book.  At least I have never seen in on audio.

 

From the sounds of it probably not a lot was written about Shara.  Unless RJ was going to write a prequel or series on Shara  he probably didn't make too many notes on it.  From my understanding the river of souls was made up almost entirely by BS and not from notes left by RJ.  Seanchean probably had a lot more notes because he was going to write a Tuon and Mat series about reuniting the empire. 

[threadnecromancer]

Jordan said in an interview that it meant that not everyone called it the Third Age. Of course, I can see how people could get confused as I don't think anyone in the entire series had a different name for it.

[Werthead]

The main thing I hope it covers is a breif description of the Seven ages... we know Age 2 was AoL, Age 3 was when the main story took place, Age 4 was post cleansing. Would love to see what the other ages are, and which one ours is supposed to be.

 

I think it's clear that our age is the age before the Age of Legends, and the end of our age (sparked by the discovery of the One Power and then the creation of the portal stones?) leads into the Age of Legends.

 

The BWB is based quite heavily around visual imagery, particularly the maps, which is why there hasn't been an audiobook of it. Also note that you can order the UK paperback edition, which is omits most of the artwork apart from the maps and is published in a more practical mmpb-sized format.

 

It's also worth noting that the Wheel of Time RPG from Wizards of the Coast, published in 2001, has a whole bunch of Robert Jordan-written, canon material for it that doesn't appear elsewhere, such as the precise circumstances under which a whole bunch of the modern nations were founded during the War of the Hundred Years.

[dexterryu]

 

The main thing I hope it covers is a breif description of the Seven ages... we know Age 2 was AoL, Age 3 was when the main story took place, Age 4 was post cleansing. Would love to see what the other ages are, and which one ours is supposed to be.

 

I think it's clear that our age is the age before the Age of Legends, and the end of our age (sparked by the discovery of the One Power and then the creation of the portal stones?) leads into the Age of Legends.

 

 

That's debatable. I wouldn't say thout if Age of Legends is Age 2, that our age is Age 1. Perhaps ours is Age 7. The wheel is cyclical, so our age is both in the past and in the future.

 

I don't think the portal stones are from our age (if there is a reference that ties them, perhaps I missed it). There is also Mordeth/Mashadar as well (supposedly a different/more ancient evil than TDO), Wolfbrothers are also implied to predate Age of Legends too.

 

That also makes me think about the finns too... where/how do they exist in reality and thier perception of time?

[Mr Ares]

 

 

The main thing I hope it covers is a breif description of the Seven ages... we know Age 2 was AoL, Age 3 was when the main story took place, Age 4 was post cleansing. Would love to see what the other ages are, and which one ours is supposed to be.

 

I think it's clear that our age is the age before the Age of Legends, and the end of our age (sparked by the discovery of the One Power and then the creation of the portal stones?) leads into the Age of Legends.

 

 

That's debatable. I wouldn't say thout if Age of Legends is Age 2, that our age is Age 1. Perhaps ours is Age 7. The wheel is cyclical, so our age is both in the past and in the future.

 

I don't think the portal stones are from our age (if there is a reference that ties them, perhaps I missed it). There is also Mordeth/Mashadar as well (supposedly a different/more ancient evil than TDO), Wolfbrothers are also implied to predate Age of Legends too.

 

That also makes me think about the finns too... where/how do they exist in reality and thier perception of time?

Thom's oldest stories are said to be from the Age before the Age of Legends, and contain references to our own Age. If our Age is the seventh, that does create the problem of there being a whole Age between our own and the AoL of which there is no record. Also, Portal Stones are from an Age before the AoL, and we don't have them our own Age - at least at the moment. So the simplest explanation would appear to be that they are created some time between the present and the end of the current Age, then we have the AoL, then the Third Age.

[dexterryu]

 

 

 

The main thing I hope it covers is a breif description of the Seven ages... we know Age 2 was AoL, Age 3 was when the main story took place, Age 4 was post cleansing. Would love to see what the other ages are, and which one ours is supposed to be.

 

I think it's clear that our age is the age before the Age of Legends, and the end of our age (sparked by the discovery of the One Power and then the creation of the portal stones?) leads into the Age of Legends.

 

 

That's debatable. I wouldn't say thout if Age of Legends is Age 2, that our age is Age 1. Perhaps ours is Age 7. The wheel is cyclical, so our age is both in the past and in the future.

 

I don't think the portal stones are from our age (if there is a reference that ties them, perhaps I missed it). There is also Mordeth/Mashadar as well (supposedly a different/more ancient evil than TDO), Wolfbrothers are also implied to predate Age of Legends too.

 

That also makes me think about the finns too... where/how do they exist in reality and thier perception of time?

Thom's oldest stories are said to be from the Age before the Age of Legends, and contain references to our own Age. If our Age is the seventh, that does create the problem of there being a whole Age between our own and the AoL of which there is no record. Also, Portal Stones are from an Age before the AoL, and we don't have them our own Age - at least at the moment. So the simplest explanation would appear to be that they are created some time between the present and the end of the current Age, then we have the AoL, then the Third Age.

 

 

None of that stuff is concrete. I'm not saying  you are wrong, just that it's an assumption from a character in the story. Thom's stories could very well be older. "Ages" in WoT seem to be about 3-4 thousand years. If you include the earliest civilazation (egypt, greece) we go back further than that. So we'd have to be at the end of ours.

[mb]

As far as I recall, there is only 1 Age that the books give the length of; the Age of the series.  And that in the particular cycle.

I seem to recall somewhere telling that Age lengths can differ in different cycles.  Do not remember exact words nor where.

 

Some scene told that Portal Stones preceded the Age of Legends.  Not sure which book; I think Great Hunt or Shadow Rising.  I think it was an Aes Sedia that told that; or maybe Loial.

[Mr Ares]

 

 

 

 

The main thing I hope it covers is a breif description of the Seven ages... we know Age 2 was AoL, Age 3 was when the main story took place, Age 4 was post cleansing. Would love to see what the other ages are, and which one ours is supposed to be.

 

I think it's clear that our age is the age before the Age of Legends, and the end of our age (sparked by the discovery of the One Power and then the creation of the portal stones?) leads into the Age of Legends.

 

 

That's debatable. I wouldn't say thout if Age of Legends is Age 2, that our age is Age 1. Perhaps ours is Age 7. The wheel is cyclical, so our age is both in the past and in the future.

 

I don't think the portal stones are from our age (if there is a reference that ties them, perhaps I missed it). There is also Mordeth/Mashadar as well (supposedly a different/more ancient evil than TDO), Wolfbrothers are also implied to predate Age of Legends too.

 

That also makes me think about the finns too... where/how do they exist in reality and thier perception of time?

Thom's oldest stories are said to be from the Age before the Age of Legends, and contain references to our own Age. If our Age is the seventh, that does create the problem of there being a whole Age between our own and the AoL of which there is no record. Also, Portal Stones are from an Age before the AoL, and we don't have them our own Age - at least at the moment. So the simplest explanation would appear to be that they are created some time between the present and the end of the current Age, then we have the AoL, then the Third Age.

 

 

None of that stuff is concrete. I'm not saying  you are wrong, just that it's an assumption from a character in the story. Thom's stories could very well be older. "Ages" in WoT seem to be about 3-4 thousand years. If you include the earliest civilazation (egypt, greece) we go back further than that. So we'd have to be at the end of ours.

Which does leave us with the problem I mentioned - if there was another Age between the AoL and our own, there is no record of it. No single story has survived and we have a huge gap in the histories. It might not be concrete, but it's still a weight of evidence. Debate does tend to require a more compelling reason to believe someone might be wrong than there being a possibility that he is. As for length of Ages in WoT, we cannot say how long they seem to be, as we have a single example. We know how long this version of the Third Age was, nothing more.

[mb]

The scene I was referring to::  Great Hunt chapter 13; Loial.