2 hours ago, Dedicated said:

 

Have you ever thought about what humanity would have been like if original sin had never happened? Set aside the argument of whether or not it's true. But the consequences of eating the fruit from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil was that humanity suddenly became aware of good and evil or they developed some perception of it. Before eating the fruit hanging out nude was deemed "good" by god and humanity was none the wiser, but then post fruit consumption being naked carried some sense of shame or wrongness so they started covering themselves up. 

 

I think Rand's "no evil" world was one in which Rand had defined what was good and what was evil, but then everyone was rendered to be like a "simpering", "vapid" child. Challenge and struggle defines character. There is a line in Romans about how suffering demands perseverance, perseverance builds character and it goes on and elaborates more, but I'm just pulling from a vague recollections here. Free will is a major theme here and free will cannot exist unless an alternative option is available. 

This makes me wonder on how free will interacts with the Wheel. Since the WoT creates the pattern of the age with the different threads of our lives, how does this fatalistic concept interact with the notion of free will? I know this is something that Ishamael and Rand bring up a lot, but I don’t think it was satisfactorily dealt with is the series. How can someone, especially a Taveran, honestly think they have free will when making decisions?

It’s seems to me that the Creator and the DO are represented in each person’s soul. This is why when the DO wins the people’s eyes are off to Rand and much the same when Rand destroys the DO. This implies that the destruction of either destroys a piece of what it means to be human. It seems Jordan wanted people to have innate good and evil in them and what Rand did at the end was stop the undue influence that evil had with the bore there. So even though the world is cyclical and the battle against evil will have to be fought again and again that applies for a linear worldview as well. Everyday we as humans have to choose good and fight the temptation to do evil. Doesn’t matter if this is your one life and you are working for salvation or this is your life until your rebirth, day to day you fight this battle. 

I believe the future for the Black Tower is very bright. The last battle saw huge losses of life in its military campaigns, so you see a world with a vastly decreased male population overall but we also saw huge loss of life in the civilian population from the war and the dark one’s touch on the world: bubbles of evil, failed agriculture, failed food stores. This environment of huge loss of life is one where big changes in culture and how you view the world are most readily made. How many orphans with no parents to tell them of the horrors of the Breaking of the World will only hear about how the Ashaman were heroes in the last battle? How many soldiers will go home with stories of how Ashaman saved their lives? How many of those civilians Logain saved at Merrilor will share their stories? 
 

On top of this positive PR, the Black Tower is also a blank slate. It can set its course as it chooses and define itself in the best way for the world. This maneuverability in mission sets it apart from the White Tower which is established and does not allow for quick or easy changes. And since Logain realized power for power’s sake isn’t the path, he’s in a good position to guide the tower down the right path. 

The Black Tower has a couple advantages over the White Tower. First, they don’t have a reputation of scheming and manipulating, so they should have an easier time being trusted and taken at face value. Because of this I can imagine rulers taking Ashaman advisors. Second, thanks to their Soldier, Dedicated, Ashaman structure they keep channelers that would be considered too weak to be Aes Sedi. Just because they are weak in the power doesn’t mean they don’t have valuable skills to help the Black Tower.  Third, each Ashaman doesn’t dedicate themselves to an Ajah. I believe this will allow them to be “Renaissance men”, Jack of all trades that focus on what is needed in the moment. This will help prevent White Tower style cliques. Fourth, the Black Tower is the only male channelers institution. The White Tower has to navigate complex relationships with Windfinders, Wise Ones, and even akin while the Black Tower is the end all be all. Finally, the Black Tower recruits. Enough said. 
 

It’s pure speculation if the Sheanchan keep the Dragons Peace or not, but since male channelers cannot be leased that adds an interesting dynamic and would allow Ashaman to operate in their lands while Aes  Sedi could not feel safe. Male Channelers natural affinity for Earth would also make them exceedingly valuable for rebuilding cities like Caemlyn. Since Shadowspawn are just constructions, I imagine at least trollocs can survive with the Bore unmade and the Ashaman can help mop up those dregs.

There are so many fun possibilities to contemplate!

On 1/20/2021 at 10:47 AM, loudbeak said:

I think the first time Moraine used it was on the Darkhounds. Nynaeve used it on the Fades in the brigands camp. on their way to Tear. Chronologically I think its about the same time frame, as they all seem to get to tear at about the same time. I can't think of an earlier incident of it being used. It has been a while since I read the books.

Rand was the first to use Balefire. He uses it when he is by himself heading to Tear and still struggling to reliably channel. It’s isn’t called balefire but is described as a solid bar of liquid fire. I believe he was still somewhere in Tarabon or Amadicia at the time. 

When Leane was healed of her stilling, she lost 2/3rds of her strength. It seems that being healed by Nyneave lead to an imperfect healing because of some sort of male/female channeling dynamic. So after the last battle, if she sought healing from Damar Flinn, would she need to be stilled again and then reconnected to the source or could the healing work off of the ground work done by Nynaeve and not require stilling Leane again? (Assuming Leane survived and didn’t die off screen)