luckily, for whatever reason, the access key wasn't taken, it could as easily have been.

No, it wasn't, was it? I wonder why not?

Actually, The Third Man is Harry Lime..

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Third_man

The darkness aura is just a spin on a technique called averted vision, basically you attempt to get a better look by using your peripheral vision rather than looking directly at something.  It helps detect detail in certain situations due to the physiology of the eye.

Try this when looking at faint stars on a cloudless night. It's quite striking.

A question concerning Rand's parentage:

Amys told Rand about his bio-parents in tSR Ch34. Rand announced this to the clan chiefs at Alcair Dal in tSR Ch57; Mat was also present, though Moiraine and Lan were not. He told Dyelin in LoC Ch16, when she commented on his resemblance to Tigraine.

Does anyone else know?

Is there any indication in legend that one of the HotH is spectacularly lucky? We don't know a lot about those. I'm thinking Mat may be one of them reborn (though one we didn't see at Falme).

Mat is a battle lord (against his preference ;) ). The dice seem to provide warnings of coming events, stopping when the events come to pass - the house falling on him in ED, his first encounter with Tuon. If he can learn to interpret them, much as Min interprets her viewings, they may give him an edge during TG.

That would fit, certainly.

I don't know if this has been asked but does it ever say that Cyndane/Lanfear actualy died in finnland. I always thought that she had gone once before and got her beauty and power, I remember from TGH Min's warning to Perrin about running away from the most beautiful women he's ever seen and Lolial's comment on her beauty which made it seem to me that it was unnatural and I think in WH Cyndane mentions something about power.

 

I always thought that they returned her to her original form and power

 

Just to clarify is it ever mentionned that she actualy dies?

 

The general consensus is that she was stilled and died and was then healed by a woman as the transmigration did not fix the stilling, but there is nothing in the books besides the new name to contradict your theory.

Am I correct in my understanding that channelling ability is in both the soul and the body? If so, perhaps if you transmigrate a strong-channeller soul into a weaker body, would that account for the drop in Cyndane/Lanfear's strength?

My post seems like the only one that really links us to being ogiers and that was just goofing around.

 

It's possible to have the stedding properties without it being an actual stedding. Something like the device in Far Madding might have been created on a global scale. Maybe with the resulting One Power war between the Black and White towers and the Seanchan they'll agree to a truce in which their channeling ability is removed from the world. To discover the ability to channel again would simply require for that device to be destroyed or turned off. It could exist in this age in the form of something like the great pyramids or Stonehenge.

I sphinx I know where it would be..

@papertiger - thanks for that ref.

That would make sense, thanks.

Regarding the seals, and the cuendillar focus points: what force is causing the cuendillar to weaken? I'm aware that it can be destroyed by the TP, but what would cause an FP to break when inside Nynaeve's washleather purse, for example?

What happened to the Waygate in Shadar Logoth, the one that Rand put a saidin guardfence around (LoC ch21), when he nuked the place while cleansing saidin of the taint?

 

 

The Waygate was probably obliterated. We know that the gates themselves can be physically damaged with "relative" ease because Moiraine cut a hole in the one near Fal Dara. That brings up another question, though: what happened to the connection within the Ways? Did the destruction of the Waygate sever the connection like pruning a branch from a tree (which I suspect would be the case), or is there now an opening to the Ways that can't be seen from the outside and is now sitting in the middle of the air where the Waygate used to be? Hmm.

Hmm indeed.. I don't know how much protection Rand's saidin fence would have been. I'm also wondering - we haven't heard about the Waygates since koD, or about Machin Shin since tSR.. could the taint have chased MS into the ways, hotly pursued by Mashadar, and might the three energies have annihilated one another down there?

What happened to the Waygate in Shadar Logoth, the one that Rand put a saidin guardfence around (LoC ch21), when he nuked the place while cleansing saidin of the taint?

He should compare notes with Deanna Troi sometime  ;)

Is the Wheel in any sense sentient / self-aware / able to predict events?

 

RJ said it's not sentient; more like a supercomputer.

So it would have data inputs from people and events in the world, process them, output some actions, like spinning out ta'veren on the basis of indications/predictions from its program. OK, fine. Thanks.

Is the Wheel in any sense sentient / self-aware / able to predict events?

Triangulation?  Lol are AS GPS satellites now?

 

What GPS satellites? Just travel, check, travel. Logain did manage to find Rand very fast. I don't think it's hard to figure out how to catch them or require any specific knowledge.

Triangulation as a technique for locating things has been around for centuries:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Triangulation

Here's what EncWoT has to say about the Ways. They were grown with the Talisman of Growing, but using tainted saidin:

http://encyclopaedia-wot.org/creatures/ogier/ways.html

According to Loial (TEotW Ch43) the Ways started to decay about a thousand years ago, and Machin Shin appeared.

It does seem likely that MS was a side-effect or product of the taint, but I don't think that's stated explicitly.

Could be.

On another subject.. Has the cleansing of saidin improved the Ways, and got rid of Machin Shin?

Apparently, they also need the Dragon banner, from what Artur Hawkwing said about 'somethng holding' him.

Good point.. Didn't Rand look at Laman's sword, given to him by Aviendha, and think to himself that it was just too showy and ostentatious by half?

Groan..................

'we know Nynaeve channeled through Moghedien'

At that point, Nynaeve hadn't taken the oaths. I don't think she has yet.

'Unseen Academicals' by Terry Pratchett.

It's about #30 in the 'Discworld' sequence.