Worth recalling that the actual time period of AMoL wont be very long. It takes maybe months (?) of training for a new channeler to develop control and use the OP usefully. So even if there are potential channelers around above, they won't influence the AMOL action with their channeling. 

Yeah, idk about you guys but I think it would be kinda a pain if RJ or BrS randomly decided to include another male channeler, seeing as AMoL is supposed to be the end of the series, and plot lines should be RESOLVED rather than created. I suppose exceptions would be Mat and Tuon and Perrin and Faile, as they had outriggers planned (I think). 

I think its just a twisting... Pevara has established her intentions to leave the corrupt BT and seems like a fairly decent AS, as AS go. I'd feel betrayed if one of the few AS i actually liked (along with Teslyn, Moirane, and a couple others) was black.

EDIT: Ninja'd by Finnssss.

Heres a random question: is there something special about 13 AS? we always hear that "even the thirteen weakest AS could shield Rand", but could the weakest 12? or does there need to be 13?

If we take Rand's approximate strength of about 25 (calling Lanfear 21, Nynaeve 18, and Elayne/Egwene/Avi 15, there is a saidar strength index somewhere and i recall Rand being a few levels above the strongest woman), and we know that the weakest AS (Daigain?) is a 4, then theoretically shouldn't only 7 AS be able to overpower Rand? Or does it not work like that.

Another related question: if we took 1 full AS of moderate power (say an 8) and had her link with 12 people as weak as Morgase, say, then they would only total a 20. Would they still be able to shield Rand because they hit the magical 13?

I would find it hard to believe Moiraine is correct in these statements. Lanfear is regarded as one of the strongest female channelers in the AOL. Nynaeve is just under her in strength. To think that Nyneave would not have been considered strong enough to attain the shawl seems a bit ridiculous. I think it much more likely that Moiraine was wrong in this assumption.

 

I believe Moiraine was talking about herself not about Nyneave, who is indeed only a few levels under Lanfear according to 13th depository ranking.

I think Lanfear was literally the strongest female channeler in the AoL, or maybe tied with a couple others. She said at one point she was "as strong as a woman can be" or something along those lines. Nynaeve is like an 18, while Lanfear is was a 21? something like that.

When I was deconstructing Mat & Tylin and deciding whether I care enough to do an analysis, I learned that the first modern romance novel is called The Flame and the Flower.

 

Is it known whether the methods of seizing saidin and embracing saidar are an intentional homage to this? RJ must've known about the novel, as at one point in his career he was considering writing romance.

It could just be a coincidence... I mean flowers are often associated with females and flames seem more masculine than a lot of other things. I haven't read any interview that would indicate that he was influenced by this

WOW the fandom is way sketchier than i thought, if someone actually asked that question to RJ. And i thought i was weird....

The question and answer are still around: http://www.theorylan...tvmain.php?i=55. The question is almost innocent; it's the answer that's sketchy.

AHHHH i didn't want those images in my head.... make it go awayyyyy

Can I just say yuck about the entirety of Graendal in TofM. Every single part of it represents the worst plotline in the books ever.

 

or he raped/violated her

That would be an interesting child... a Quarter-man? Would he only have one eye (2+0)/2 = 1? Either way though, i'm still going with Graendal being either mind-trapped or dead cuz she has failed a bunch, and certainly more than Mesaana or debatably Moghedien did

 

Would you believe that RJ actually has answered this? Fades can't impregnate women--not because their infertile, they are, but their sperm kills human ova.

WOW the fandom is way sketchier than i thought, if someone actually asked that question to RJ. And i thought i was weird....

or he raped/violated her

That would be an interesting child... a Quarter-man? Would he only have one eye (2+0)/2 = 1? Either way though, i'm still going with Graendal being either mind-trapped or dead cuz she has failed a bunch, and certainly more than Mesaana or debatably Moghedien did

Graendal's Towers of Midnight epilogue scene; did Shaidar Haran do to her the same thing that he do to Mesaana or something else?

If something else, exactly what?

Its not really clear, but I'm gonna guess that she's not a major player for the Forsaken anymore. It seems her responsibilities were given to someone else, possibly Lanfear (she appeared in Rand's dream, maybe trying to trick him?) or maybe Demandred

I had a response to Sephie's question typed up before, but I'm trying to curttail my rants about negative feelings toward the last two books lately and just let it go. Barid Bel Medar said it in a kinder, more consise way. The first read it was somewhat tolerable, but when it became apparent later that the whole ordeal was pretty much pointless, I began loathing it.

 

Also, did the dice game Mat won in Hinderstap make any sense whatsoever to anybody?

 

The dice game was the only way to get supplies. They didn't want to take gold for the supplies, but they'd make a bet of it. (Seems silly until you consider human nature, they thought they would get to keep their cake and eat it too, an analogy which makes 0 sense to me, who the hell keeps cake and doesn't eat it)

That analogy has been misquoted for years. It should be eat your cake and have it too (or as well). Once eaten you may not still have or keep it.

From brutal zombie stories in Hinderstap to cake... i like where this is going

This could open up new possibilities for how food and logistics are dealt with in the Blight. It takes some degree of sophistication to breed,raise, and feed warhorses. No way that raids into the Borderlands would provide enough horses to mount thousands and thousands of Fades.

 

To K.I.S.S., I'll just chalk this up as a bookism. Horses and fantasy go together like swords and fantasy. The bad guys need a set of wheels to get around also.

I think at one point, when we are at Shayol Ghul, we see that there are some shadow forgers that make the Fades' swords using souls. It seems reasonable that these forgers also can tame horses.