DRAGONMOUNT

So, we Wheel of Time fans might start searching for a new epic once the Wheel of Time has finally come to a conclusion. Well, we need not go very far. Our very own Brandon Sanderson has recently published a novel by the name of The Way of Kings. The good news doesn’t end there, though, since it’s not a stand-alone novel or even a trilogy. It’s planned that it will be a 10-book series. I, for one, am very excited.   From the back cover of the novel: I have found that there is nothing more disappointing than reading a book which was surrounded by great hype and excitement, then finding that you painted it to be so much more in your mind. AnyWheel of Time fan who thinks Brandon Sanderson has done a good job of finishing the last few books will agree that they expect a lot from the poor man.   Luckily, I can say that this was not the case with The Way Of Kings. I was immediately ensnared into the world that Brandon Sanderson created despite at first having a bit of a hard time imagining all the animals to be some adaptation of the crabs we commonly know. The world creation was so well-rounded and deep, and that's not all. We get to know the world through the eyes of the characters, its history, and the thoughts and beliefs that the people hold.   The leading protagonists are flawed characters. In this case, it makes it easier for us to relate to them. You howl and cry in frustration for their mistakes and rejoice in their victories.   The plot of the story could have been better, in my opinion. I found it slightly predictable at times, and then it caught me completely by surprise at other times. It was still great and a definite attention-gripping narrative.   All in all, it is a book that I recommend you definitely should read. You will come to love the world and the people in it.

<p>Nakomi, the mysterious Aiel woman Aviendha met in the Waste on her way to Rhuidean, and other oddities found is our topic for the 104th Episode of The 4th Age Podcast. Your hosts for this episode are Andrew, Virginia, Spencer, and Carrie.</p><p>(This episode, like most of our talks, is chock full of spoilers if you haven’t read Towers of Midnight yet!) <span style="color: #800000;">Warning: SPOILER ALERT!</span></p><p>Be sure to check out <a href="http://www.dragonmount.com">Dragonmount.com</a> for forums, comments and all the latest news in the Wheel of Time world.</p><p><span style="color: #ff0000;"><strong>ATTENTION! THERE ARE TOWERS OF MIDNIGHT SPOILERS in this podcast!</strong> </span><em>Also, spoilers on ALL the other books are VERY likely!</em> If you haven’t read all the way through the Wheel of Time, THERE WILL BE SPOILERS of all previous books! There may be spoilers of other book series, tv series, and movies as well, too, or anything ELSE we can think of in the known and unknown universe…. We will try to give warning. There will be no guarantees, however.</p><p>Hosts: Andrew, Virginia, Spencer, and Carrie</p><h6>Editor for this episode: Ken S. Editor-in-Chief: Spencer</p><p><strong><a href="http://www.dragonmount.com/Podcast/Media/dm-4thAge-104.mp3">Download'>http://www.dragonmount.com/Podcast/Media/dm-4thAge-104.mp3">Download this Episode now</a> </strong></h6><h5>A HUGE thanks to all our editors, past and present, from all of us here! We couldn’t make this happen without your help and technical expertise. We are usually in need of editing help – please, contact Spencer at <a href="mailto:podcast@dragonmount.com" target="_blank">podcast@dragonmount.com</a> if you are interested in volunteering.</h5><h5>Music by: Josh Needleman. His website is at <a href="http://www.joshneedleman.net/">www.joshneedleman.net</a> and he has the music available to hear on his MySpace page at <a href="http://www.myspace.com/joshneedleman">www.myspace.com/joshneedleman</a>. Its title is <em>Floodgate</em>. Thanks, Josh!</h5><div><strong><a href="http://www.dragonmount.com/Podcast/Media/dm-4thAge-104.mp3">Download this Episode now</a></strong></div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/4thAge/~4/uQRxdXXCrAE" height="1" width="1"/>

It looks like it's that time of the week already! Let's see what's been happening on the boards.   Do you think Rand will survive the Last Battle? Terez has proposed an interesting theory about this in the General Wheel of Time Discussion forum.   Are you a Minecraft fanatic? The ongoing discussion of this popular game continues in our Games Discussion forum.   If you haven't read the Aiel Social Group's latest edition of their newsletter, "The Dedicated Spear," what are you waiting for?   The suspense caused by nominating and voting is finally over. The Shayol Ghul Social Group is announcing the winners of the Ghoulie Awards here!   Summer is almost over, which means it's time for some to head back to school. Come take a trip down memory lane with the White Tower Social Group's Red Ajah as they lead their Back to School Week.   It looks like our role players may have a new Warder on their hands soon. Come see what happens here.   Were any of you at WorldCon this weekend? Some of our members were there. You can see what shenanigans they got up to by visiting our Twitter account.   Have a great Tuesday, everyone!

Willkommen, various visitors of Dragonmount! Welcome to week 3 of Dragonmount's new theory blog, which I happen to have the privilege to write. I hope everyone brought their pipe, monocle, and smoking jacket so you'll be prepared to contemplate and philosophize about what we cover today! Due to the length of today's dissertation, it wouldn't be a bad idea to get a pillow to get as comfortable as you can. Once again, before we begin, let's go ahead and get out our little disclaimer:   WARNING!!! Spoiler Alert!!! WARNING!!! This blog is based on theories that will include facts and material from the latest books in the series, so if you have not read through Towers of Midnight, continue reading at your own risk! Any views and opinions expressed in "It Works in Theory" are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of Dragonmount, any of the staff or members of Dragonmount, or of any sites affiliated with Dragonmount, Brandon Sanderson, any of Team Jordan, Herid Fel, anyone of the Fourth Age, or anyone with more than half a brain, for that matter.   This week I'll be continuing the ramifications of the theory I presented last week (Hand of Onyx) in which I theorized that there was a "Dark Callandor" which would counter the power of Callandor, and also possibly facilitate the transfer of souls between Rand and Moridin (click here for Body Swap Theory). The main focus of some of the effects that this theory will have will center on the phrase "Twice dawns the day...", which we get from prophecy. So, without further ado, let us begin!   Let's go ahead and get some of the preliminary quotes out of the way concerning this phrase and others that might relate to it:       and yet another one from The Great Hunt, out of the Prophecies of the Dragon:     There's actually some really good ideas out there for possible ways the twice-dawning day can come true. One of my favorites is the idea of an eclipse happening. This would be somewhat out of left field (in a good way) and would tie in fairly well with a lot of prophecies. The only problem I really see with it is it's harder to directly associate Rand with the eclipse ending. Why does the Dark One need to do an eclipse when he can shut the sun out with cloud cover every day? Another theory I've heard mentioned is that the volcano on Dragonmount, the mountain created by Lews Therin Telamon that is this site's namesake, will erupt. I'm less a fan of this one because even a massive eruption from Dragonmount wouldn't quite be enough to compare to the brightness of a second dawn. In addition, how would the "once for mourning, once for birth" line fit in there?   I'm going in a slightly different direction with my theory. I believe too many instances exist involving a link between Rand and dawn to dismiss. There's also another connection made in the books between something else and bright sunlight or dawn: objects of Power that are drawing on massive amounts of saidin or saidar.     This brilliant light is seen by non-channelers as well, as we find from the two random passersby who venture near the male and female Choedan Kal in the taint cleansing scene in Winter's Heart:     Now we know the Last Battle has begun. The Shadow reaches across the Pattern, and the Dark One's influence upon the world grows. It will grow even more when Rand breaks the seals. As it is, the Dark One has been able to make things, well, pretty dark for a while, both literally and figuratively. The skies of Randland have been cast over with cloud cover the past few months, only parting around Rand after his "Veins of Gold" epiphany. I think it's safe to say that he can make things even darker in Randland, even without an eclipse. I think a "tempest" of a dark thundercloud will explode above Shayol Ghul and blanket the skies with an even more impenetrable darkness. Under such conditions, the normal dawn isn't even noticed at all because the sky is so dark.   And yet, as Rand confronts Moridin, each wielding their sword sa'angreal, the amount of Power being channeled will become a beacon in the sky, a radiant sun on the horizon (more than likely the confrontation will happen at Shayol Ghul, which is far enough from any civilizations that it would appear on the horizon for almost everyone). Remember, Callandor blocks balefire, as we see in the fight at the end of The Dragon Reborn between Rand and Ba'alzamon. It is more than likely that the Dark Callandor will have the same property, so this won't be a quick balefire fight to the dea- erm, oblivion. In fact, this property of Callandor might even have something to do with the Body Swap.   So, BAM! The body swap happens, and Rand gets put in Moridin's body, while Moridin is put in Rand's. The circle of Alivia and Nyneave will now be controlling Moridin; however, in a big blow to the Light, Rand becomes controlled by the circle of Cyndane and Moghedien. Remember that first verse in the dark Prophecy we saw written on the wall of the Fal Dara prison cell after Padan Fain's escape?     The "Daughter of the Night" is obviously Lanfear, who has been transmigrated into Cyndane. We never really saw her make Rand, her "new" lover, serve her up to this point, even though she was manipulating him for a time when she was donning her alter ego, Selene. There's also other parts of prophecy that suggest he will be controlled:     The first reference has to with his destruction of the Aiel, and the second has to do with making the Seanchan submit to him. The "wound of madness" is most likely the taint on saidin, and I would speculate that the cutting of hope that he healed has to do with the internal struggle he was having up until "Veins of Gold". The chains he has broken could have to do with the bonds of all men he breaks with his coming, but I'm crossing my fingers that it means he gets the Seanchan to free all damane. That last part could be foreshadowing the chains that Rand will be put in because of the transfer. So, now we see the ultimate reason why there is always so much devastation linked with the coming of the Dragon Reborn. Yes, he is the world's savior, but for a time, he will be the ultimate weapon of destruction. He will truly break the world with his loss of control to the Shadow. There's many things I can see happening in this scenario, and almost none of them are good. One of the awful atrocities I think he definitely will commit will be confronting his own gathering of Aiel and unleashing massive destruction on his own people. I suspect Rand might even kill Lan in this mode; the irony of Lan surviving a suicide mission to the Blight just to be killed defending Nyneave from Dark Rand 2.0 would be too much to pass on. Nyneave's grief was very important in a viewing Min had of Nyneave; it might be the thing which finally lets her truly let her anger go. If she's able to forgive Rand for killing her love (this would be after Rand is resurrected again, of course, so then there's no need for her to hold up that defense mechanism wall of anger ever again).   You probably noticed I mentioned Rand's resurrection even though I hadn't covered his death yet. Don't worry, I'm getting there. This muddled spiderweb of a blog post has a purpose, and it should all come together perfectly in the end, I hope think.   We already know that Alivia is guaranteed to be one of the people that will "help Rand die". One of the others is almost certainly going to be Moiraine in my opinion, simply because we've had an indication from Moiraine starting all the way back in the first book, The Eye Of The World, that if she felt it was in the Light's best interests to take Rand out, she wouldn't hesitate. I strongly suspect that the last person in the circle to take out Dark Rand 2.0 will be Narishma, because he seems to have his own connection to Callandor after drawing it out of the Heart of the Stone. His dark complexion also makes him a perfect candidate for satisfying Egwene's dream of a dark young man wielding a very shiny object (A Crown of Swords).   It is at some point during this tirade of terror when Rand sees himself either killing or about to kill Aviendha that he suddenly has "a memory of light" and wrests control back from Cyndane, giving Alivia and friends time to kill him. I believe he will end up dying in the Pit of Doom, his blood spilling on the rocks of Shayol Ghul to satisfy prophecy. Now we come to why this dawn is the one for mourning. The Light just saw their Champion turned against them, pave a wide swath of destruction through their forces, and die before the Last Battle was done. Many would be devastated, others would rejoice that Dark Rand 2.0 is dead, or that the Dragon is dead. Overall, though, things would look very bleak indeed.   I suggest that if you haven't read Terez's writeup on "Blood on the Rocks" and all the mystery surrounding Rand's death and possible resurrection, do it now. It states very clearly how easy and practical it would be for Nyneave to "rip" Rand out of Tel'aran'rhiod, just like Birgitte was. She would most likely need some help from Perrin, Egwene, and others in fending off Slayer and other Shadowspawn, and possibly Rand's help in fighting off the Dark One himself reaching for Rand's soul. Rand would also need his three ladies waiting in the real world to bond him immediately to keep him from dying when he is ripped out of Tel'aran'rhiod. Once resurrected, he turns things back to how they should be very quickly, brings Sunlight to Shayol Ghul through pure willpower, and seals the Dark One away for another turning of the Wheel. This second dawning would represent birth, in that Rand has a whole new life, a new opportunity to find love without the world resting on his shoulders, and the birth of a new age.   It's possible that most Randlanders would perceive the two dawns as being the normal sunrise, and the brilliant explosion of light coming from Rand and Moridin's fight, but I feel in the philosophical and literary artistic sense that it is more fitting that the second dawn be the rebirth of Rand.   With that, ladies and germs, my mind is about to collapse so I must put a stake in this undying vampire of a blog's heart, and bid you adieu.

Wow, the people at Ta'veren Tees are unveiling lots of exciting things this month! Here's the information for their newest bit of fun:     I don't know about you, but I'm going to go vote as soon as I've finished typing this!

Hello, all! With pleasure, I welcome you back to my blog this Thursday. I've had the luck of getting to interview a very impressive woman. Some of you may know her personally, yet others may not. Nevertheless, you surely have heard of her. So, without further ado, I present to you--Jennifer Liang!   Q: Where are you from? What do you do?   A: I'm originally from Salt Lake City. When I was fifteen, my dad accepted a job transfer to Atlanta, Georgia, where I've been ever since. Currently, I teach language arts at a private school for teenagers with autism spectrum disorders.     Q: Are you married with a little horde of Trollocs to call your own?   A: I'm married to James Liang (Segurant on the forums) and we don't have any children yet.     Q: What do you like doing in your time off from your duties at Dragonmount?   A: Teaching takes up most of my time. I'm also working on my Master's in Special Education via distance learning at Western Governors University.  I also chair JordanCon, run the Robert Jordan track at Dragon*Con, and I'm the host of Tor.com's official Wheel of Time Facebook and Twitter portals. I also have a food blog where I post about what I'm cooking and places I like to eat: Northside Food.     Q: How were you introduced to The Wheel of Time? What about it has made you such a fan?   A: My mom bought me the first three (that's all there was) when I was in the sixth grade. What's grabbed me the most over the years was the characters. They feel like real people to me, warts and all. I spent a lot of time in high school worrying about Rand and Egwene instead of paying attention in class.  I like the role of fate and prophecy and the puzzles that Jordan created for his readers. I'm not nearly the theorist that others are, but I still enjoy noodling around with ideas and reading others' thoughts.     Q: How far back do you and Dragonmount go? How did you find it and why did you join it?   A: I joined in 1998 about three weeks after Jason put the forums online. I found it because some guy kept spamming the Wheel of Time forums that existed back then with links to his super cool new Wheel of Time discussion site. A bunch of posters I knew from wheeloftime.com joined it and I followed them over.     Q: What is the best thing about Dragonmount, in your opinion?   A: Being able to interact with other fans. I'm old enough to remember the pre-Internet days when you usually knew absolutely no one else who shared your geeky interests. Being able to share my love for something with fans all over the world is not something I take for granted.      Q: Have you always enjoyed reading books, even as a young child, or were you a late bloomer?   A: Oh, I've always been a bookworm. My fifth grade teacher told my parents at a conference once, "In twenty years of teaching, I've never had to say this. Take the books away from your daughter and make her go outside!"      Q: Are you proud to be a geeky person?   A: Absolutely. It's a lot of fun.      Q: Have you ever dressed up as a character from the Wheel of Time or do you have any Wheel of Time inspired tattoos?   A: Yes, I dress up as the Amyrlin Seat every year for the Dragon*Con parade. No tattoos, alas. Every time I start thinking about one, my husband talks me out of it.      Q: Spear or Dagger?   A: Spear. Less chance of cooties.      Q: What Ajah would you be in if you had to choose one and why?   A: Brown. I love history and I love books.      Q: Who are your favorite and least favorite characters of the series?   A: My favorite is Egwene. My least favorite is Gawyn. She could do so much better.      Q: What profession did you want to have when you were a kid?   A: I've always wanted to be a teacher.      Q: Randland or our world?   A: As fun as it would be to channel, I'm awfully attached to indoor plumbing.      Q: If you could travel anywhere, where would you go?   A: Too many places! I still haven't been to Europe. Perhaps in a few years.      Q: What exactly is the position you hold on Dragonmount and how did you come by it?   A: My official title is "Project Manager". Originally at Dragonmount, I was an Org Leader, which is what we called Social Group Leaders back in the day. I eventually worked my way up to being Community Admin on top of that, which meant that I was ultimately responsible for everything on the forums except the RP. I did both these jobs for a number of years, until I founded JordanCon. The time demand of running a small business and chairing a convention didn't leave me with very much time to be active on the forums every day. So Jason and I agreed it was time to phase me out. We both still wanted me to be involved in Dragonmount somehow and Jason had gotten used to having an Admin who knew Team Jordan, knew the publishers, knew all the other Big Name Fans, etc. So we sort of created this idea that my job was now to work on all the weird odds and ends that kept cropping up, but didn't fit neatly into someone else's job description.   The first project I undertook was updating the Wheel of Time FAQ. That ended up taking more time than we initially expected, but we did finally get it out and updated in time for the release of Towers of Midnight. I also did much of the organizing of the Storm Leader and Tower Guard volunteer programs. I help with other odds and ends around the site too, like keeping our Twitter and Facebook accounts updated.     Q: Wow, you do a mighty amount of work for the Wheel of Time fandom! How is it that you were involved in the WOTFAQ, and what exactly does your work for Tor.com entail?   A: When I took over the WOTFAQ, Leigh Butler had not been able to update it since Crossroads of Twilight was released. This meant that it hadn't been updated for either Knife of Dreams or New Spring. So my job was to go through the entire FAQ, find the articles that were now out of date, and revise them. I also had to identify which topics were now currently under discussion and what the most commonly accepted answers were. It sounds simple, but the FAQ has something like 80 unique articles, ranging from just a few sentences in length to the 30-page monstrosity that is the Asmodean murder mystery. You have the added challenge of the FAQ changing home communities as well. It went from being based primarily from the old rec.arts.sf.written.robert-jordan newsgroup to being based off discussion from the Dragonmount forums. So I wanted to update, but keep as much of the original document in place as I could. It was a balancing act. I had lots of help from Linda Taglieri, Matt Hatch, and of course Luckers, among others. I think we got it right, overall.   We intended to release the updated FAQ in time for The Gathering Storm, but by the time I could start working on the FAQ, I'd already read the book and was worried that I'd inadvertently spoil something. It also took Jason and me longer than we expected to get the WOTFAQ's database set up. So we ended up shelving it until the Towers of Midnight release. It gave us more work to do for that update, but it was the right decision. I would not have been comfortable releasing the pre-TGS FAQ.   As for Tor.com, Jason let me know back in February that Irene Gallo had approached him about starting up a Tor.com branded Facebook and Twitter portal. They'd been starting up other portals like Tor.com Art Department, Tor.com Fantasy, Tor.com Steampunk, etc. and they wanted one for JUST Wheel of Time links. Jason didn't have time to take on another project, but he knew I was unemployed and I do the lion's share of keeping the Dragonmount Facebook and Twitter accounts updated anyways. So he recommended me for it. Irene called me that week and we talked for a bit about the time commitment and how I'd be compensated. And that was it. My job is to spend about ten hours a week looking for interesting Wheel of Time related links around the Internet to post on Twitter or Facebook. It's a fun job and the extra money was quite helpful when I was unemployed.     Q: Was the beta version of the book very different from the final print that all other fans read? Were you excited about being able to read it before everyone else?   A: Oh, of course I was excited. I got a binder with the manuscript copy of The Gathering Storm at the first JordanCon. I was really glad I'd taken the day off from work after the con, because I spent all day reading it. I didn't need to take time off from work to read Towers of Midnight, because I was unemployed at the time, but I still spent all day reading it. The other beta readers who received it that day and I kept each other posted on what chapter we were on via email.   The Gathering Storm was much more polished. Brandon had been working on it for awhile at that point and had spent time revising already. There were some minor revisions, like "that's not a Wheel of Time word", but otherwise, I don't think there were any substantial changes.   Towers of Midnight was much rougher when we got it and Brandon made several changes at our suggestion, including adding a new scene that wasn't in the draft we saw. There were other changes we suggested, but Brandon said, basically "That's word for word what Robert Jordan wrote. I'm not touching it."     Q: What are Dragon*Con and JordanCon, and what is the difference between them (i.e. How would you describe them in a nutshell for people that have never attended either; Do you find the same amount of people going or is one more prominent than the other, etc.)? Also, how is it that Robert Jordan has his very own conference?   A: Dragon*Con is a very, very massive multi-fandom event. It has 30+ tracks of programming, around 400 guests, and tens of thousands of fans. Wheel of Time is just one of many things celebrated at Dragon*Con. Dragon*Con is also a much more media-centered event. There's lots of actors on the Walk of Fame and lots of folks standing in line for autographs.   JordanCon is obviously a much smaller event. We're focused mostly on the Wheel of Time series, but we do feature other authors.  We do not have media guests, which means that all autographs are free. All of Team Jordan attends, along with members of Robert Jordan's extended family. In some ways, it feels like a family reunion. Everyone sort of knows each other, and we all have similar interests.   There's been commentary in other places saying that the small, literature-focused con is dying off, crushed beneath the weight of behemoths like Dragon*Con or Comic-Con. Those people haven't been to a JordanCon. We're a very lively bunch and the convention gets bigger every year.   I think it really boils down to what you are looking for. Dragon*Con has far more choices for entertainment, but JordanCon is more intimate.     Q: Is there anything else you would like to tell the visitors of Dragonmount?   A: Click on the ads and buy things in our store. The money goes to pay for necessary software and equipment upgrades.  We have more traffic than any other WoT fansite (only Theoryland comes close to us in traffic, I think) and that's as much as a small commercial site. And we do it without anything even close to the resources that a commercial site might have. So supporting us like that means we can afford upgrades like the big one we did just before Towers of Midnight came out last year.

<p><em><strong>Mat</strong></em>, our favorite “I am not a bloody Hero,” is our topic for the 103rd Episode of The 4th Age Podcast. Your hosts for this episode are Andrew, Virginia, Spencer, Carrie, and Daniel.</p><p>(This episode, like most of our talks, is chock full of spoilers if you haven’t read Towers of Midnight yet!) <span style="color: #800000;">Warning: SPOILER ALERT!</span></p><p>Be sure to check out <a href="http://www.dragonmount.com">Dragonmount.com</a> for forums, comments, and all the latest news in the Wheel of Time world.</p><p><span style="color: #ff0000;"><strong>ATTENTION! THERE ARE TOWERS OF MIDNIGHT SPOILERS in this podcast!</strong> </span><em>Also, spoilers on ALL the other books are VERY likely!</em> If you haven’t read all the way through the Wheel of Time, THERE WILL BE SPOILERS of all previous books! There also may be spoilers of other book series, tv series, and movies as well, too, or anything ELSE we can think of in the known and unknown universe…. We will try to give warning. We can give no guarantees, however.</p><p>Hosts: Andrew, Virginia, Spencer</p><h6>Editor for this episode: Richard F. Editor-in-Chief: Spencer</p><p><strong><a href="http://www.dragonmount.com/Podcast/Media/dm-4thAge-102.mp3">Download this Episode now</a> </strong></h6><h5>A HUGE thanks to all our editors, past and present, from all of us here! We couldn’t make this happen without your help and technical expertise. We are usually in need of editing help – please, contact Spencer at <a href="mailto:podcast@dragonmount.com" target="_blank">podcast@dragonmount.com</a> if you are interested in volunteering.</h5><h5>Music by: Josh Needleman. His website is at <a href="http://www.joshneedleman.net/">www.joshneedleman.net</a> and he has the music available to hear on his MySpace page at <a href="http://www.myspace.com/joshneedleman">www.myspace.com/joshneedleman</a>. Its title is <em>Floodgate</em>. Thanks, Josh!   Edited August 21: We are aware that the wrong link was posted. Please go here to download episode #103.

Welcome back, everyone! You may have noticed that we now have front page content scheduled for your pleasure on Monday-Friday of each week. When you've finished checking out the fascinating new blogs on the front page, take a look at our message boards.   If you enjoyed the topic of yesterday's theory blog and want something to tide you over until next week's installment, head over to the General Wheel of Time Discussion board. Share your own speculations about what could be in the Blight here.   The people in our Movies Discussion forum are discussing the best movies of 2011. Do you agree with their picks?   Do you enjoy puzzles and riddles? The Ogier Social Group has an ongoing thread where you can test your cerebral fortitude.   The Shayol Ghul Social Group wants you to hurry and vote for your favorite members in the Ghoulie Awards. You only have a couple of days left to get in your votes, so do it now!   Whether you call it shapeshifting, transmogrification, or metamorphosis, you probably have fantasized at some point in your life about changing your form. The Wolfkin Social Group recently posed an interesting question: If you could change forms, would you rather change into a wolf or into a better-looking version of your human self? Let us know what you think.   Our role players are getting closer to finishing their "Eyes and Ears Saga." If you have been following this story and are biting your nails off waiting for the killer to be found, you won't have to wait much longer.   It looks like the Children of the Light Role Playing Group is up to something. Let's keep an eye on them and make sure they don't cause too much trouble on their excursion.   Our Twitter and Facebook accounts have been buzzing about NPR's picks for the top 100 science fiction and fantasy books. The Wheel of Time made it to #12 on the list. I think we should have scored higher, but I may be a bit biased. What do you think about the results?   Stay tuned for more exciting news next week!

Hello there, fellow denizens of Dragonmount! Welcome to another weekly installment of "It Works in Theory...", Dragonmount's brand new theory blog headed by yours truly! Before I begin, let me say that I was thrilled to read all the comments and responses to last week's premiere entry, and I hope to continue to find little tidbits and ideas for you to bounce around in your head a little bit. Also, let me put in this disclaimer for legal purposes:   WARNING!!! Spoiler Alert!!! WARNING!!! This blog is based on theories that will include facts and material from the latest books in the series, so if you have not read through Towers of Midnight, continue reading at your own risk! "It Works in Theory..." is a free-flowing narrative that occasionally touches on immature subjects, and if you don't like that, then your mama wears combat boots.   There's one more thing I want to address before I move to the focus of this week's issue. Obviously, any theory I put out here is just one opinion or take on a subject. There's a good chance I'll be way off base with various predictions, but I occasionally will get lucky and hit the nail right on the head, and there's a chance I might spoil some big reveal for you. I know you're probably aware of this already, but I only stress this because I get the feeling I might have tripped onto the bombshell theory I was looking for last week.   So, what is the subject of today's article? It has to do with the "hand of onyx" that Min sees in a vision involving Callandor around Rand in Towers of Midnight. I was extremely excited to cover this topic because in earlier theories and discussions regarding the hand of onyx, Tel'aran'rhiod is usually brought up as a way of helping Rand replace the hand that Semirhage blew away. For a long time I believed something like this might happen, and I found it to be an amazing allusion to another favorite fantasy series of mine: The Chronicles of Amber, written by Roger Zelazny.   In The Chronicles of Amber, there exists a world/plane of existence known as Tir-na Nog'th, and there are huge similarities between it and Tel'aran'rhiod, the world of dreams in The Wheel of Time. Of course the names even look similar, but the overall feel of the two worlds, their relation to dreams/visions, and their use by the authors to reveal certain hints and foreshadowing all draw big parallels as well. There is also a main character in The Chronicles of Amber called Benedict, who is an amazing swordsman who loses a hand but later gains an artificial hand from Tir-na Nog'th that he uses to replace his lost appendage.   Unfortunately, even though it's still possible that Robert Jordan was alluding to Zelazny's epic fantasy series, I have come to a different conclusion regarding the hand of onyx. Before I go further, let's examine the full quote regarding the dark hand, found in Towers of Midnight, the last book to come out in the series:     There's also another viewing Min has, earlier in the same book, that seems very closely related to this matter:     In my quest to wrap my head around this issue and figure out what I thought it might be referring to, I started to look at different theories and discussion relating to Callandor. I still couldn't quite get a grasp on what I was looking for, so I started to venture to other subjects and focused on one in particular: The BLANK in the Blight.     At first I thought this was unrelated to what I had been researching, but suddenly I had a "Veins of Gold" type of revelation: There's a Callandor in the Blight. At least, there's a twin to Callandor in the Blight, a male sa'angreal most likely equal in power, which perhaps might even draw in the True Power instead of the One Power. This series has often examined the nature of duality (Light vs. Shadow, Saidin vs. Saidar, etc.) and the stage is set for the ultimate confrontation between the champion for the forces of Light (Rand) to face the champion of Shadow (Moridin). Both champions will have their sa'angreal swords, and both will have their two female companions to help them wield the swords (Rand has Nynaeve and Alivia; Moridin has Cyndane and Moghedien).   The only things we know about the _____ in the Blight are that it's something that would be very hard to unearth, that even Harriet didn't know about it, that it would be an instant shocker that must have huge implications, and that it would be hinted about in Towers of Midnight. I'd say the two Towers of Midnight quotes I provided would qualify for that, but there's even more hints:     The flaw Min speaks of, the blade binding by twain, has to do with the fact that there is at least an equally powerful sa'angreal which is the perfect antithesis to Callandor, and that wielding Callandor in the presence of that other sa'angreal will lead to the Dragon's fall. Needing two women in a circle is a red herring here; we have often seen that we will miss something big because we overlook a part of prophecy or foreshadowing in the novels, thinking it already has been fulfilled or explained. There is another reference to this sa'angreal in the fourth book of the series, The Shadow Rising:     One of the sa'angreal that Lanfear mentions is the male Choedan Kal, which is now kaput. As for the other, the one that supposedly is stronger than Callandor:     And here's another one four years later:     So, how does all of this apply to the black hand holding Callandor? Well, we all know that there is a link between Rand and Moridin (for more information see Rand/Moridin Link). If you take this one step further, and introduce the body-swap theory (here's the link for that one Body Swap theory) which essentially states that Rand and Moridin will switch bodies due to their link and the amount of Power they will be channeling in the vicinity of Shayol Ghul, you begin to see how a black hand might hold Callandor. When Rand and Moridin swap bodies, Moridin will find himself in Rand's body, and he will be held in a circle by Nyneave and Alivia, but he will be wielding Callandor. The black hand in Min's vision means the same thing meant by a "blade of black, held by a faceless darkness", that it will be someone from the Shadow.   There are other possibilities with this theory, as well as big implications in how this will effect the outcome of the series. Seeing as I've already covered a large chunk of material and rambled on for too long already, I will have to continue the rest of this theory next week, when I cover what is meant by "the day that dawns twice". Thanks for stopping by again, and please feel free to comment, whether you agree or disagree. Until next week!

Hello, and welcome to the new rotating feature blog on Dragonmount. Allow me to give you an overview of how this blog will work. Every week on a Thursday, I will post a new column. As it is a rotating feature, there will always be something new, every week of the month. I will include such content as book reviews, interviews with the big guys around Dragonmount, or other interesting snippets about the Wheel of Time fandom in general.   Seeing as this is my first blog, I will answer one of those questions that I'm fairly sure everyone has asked themselves before: "Where can I get myself one of those?" The term "those" often refers to Great Serpent rings, but it doesn't stop there. There is so much Wheel of Time jewelry out there, be it Dedicated Sword Pins, Ajah pendants, Lan's Signet Ring, or even your very own Dream ter'angreal as a necklace. It's an easy way for you to bring a piece of your favorite fantasy series right into your home, or even as the perfect gift idea for a fellow fantasy fan.   So, by this stage, I'm assuming that you want me to get to the point and tell you where to find whatever Wheel of Time jewelry your heart desires. A site with a great variety of items and prices that are not too unreasonable, especially since whatever it is that you're getting is most often in sterling silver or quality gold, is Badali Jewelry Specialties, Inc. You can find their Wheel of Time product list here. For those people like myself who live in outlying countries, you should check the international shipping charges and availability. They are not limited to Wheel of Time jewelry and have most things that a fantasy geek can ask for! Another easy option, especially for people on Dragonmount, is the Dragonmount store itself, although we sell jewelry that is also crafted by the Badali Jewelry Specialists. For those of you who often buy items on the Internet, you'll know all about Amazon. Amazon, being the large online retailer that it is, will naturally have a selection. You can have a look at their products here.   Now, all that is left to do is to save up that little bit of money, decide on your gift, and spoil yourself!   Until next time, folks, when I bring another piece of fandom closer to you!