On 12/3/2022 at 10:03 PM, bringbackthomsmoustache said:

Galad and Lan each use a lesser copy of the medallion made by Elaine

Pretty sure they use Matrim's medallion. But I could be mixing that up with the time Mat gives it to Elayne to study.

I'm picking up what you're putting down @Bugglesley.

I need more tho. Something deeper.

12 hours ago, Asthereal said:

 

Please note that you're about to speculate in a topic started by someone who at that time was only at book 3. 😉 

Thanks for the reminder.

22 hours ago, HeavyHalfMoonBlade said:

the Shadow could have two levels of victory. One within the constraints of the pattern where Rand is killed or turned, and one where the Dark One breaks the Wheel.

Hmm...[the official sound of speculation about to happen].

On 4/20/2023 at 8:59 AM, DojoToad said:

It's important because it is the 'current' one.  I never thought beyond that.  Everything is important when it is happening to you...

Aside from this, I don't recall any other reason presented as to why "This Turning" is more significant. 

I don't see why we shouldn't consider Rand's goosebumps as foreshadowing. Looking at it this way only adds to the story.

Additionally, we know very little about how male channelers begin their journey in channeling, at this point in TEotW and even after the series is over. So it's difficult to dismiss the idea.

18 minutes ago, dwn said:

The last 3 pose a problem, however, since the author change introduced a number of plot tangles and inconsistencies.

That's the part that I tend to shrug off. 🤷‍♂️

But I'm extremely generous in this regard, and unbiased to an extent as I've never read Sanderson. I sort of make my head canon work, to my personal benefit I'm sure. I agree that we will never know, exactly, about many things in the last 3 books. Sadly. But that's ok imo. I can live with it and happily make stuff up to fill the gaps. Some of which is sometimes plausible. For me, it's the journey, not the destination. And the journey is often better when shared.

4 hours ago, dwn said:

the Ashendarei was a masterful use of foreshadowing and resolution.

I whole-heartedly agree. This was a BOSS move that I, for one, never suspected was anything more than a cool weapon, especially for Matrim.

5 hours ago, dwn said:

It's fun, but ultimately futile for us to speculate how the inconsistencies and oddities of the last three books fit into the pattern.

From my point-of-view, this speculation is what leads to a deeper personal understanding of and connection with the series. Especially on re-reads. And provides fodder to share/discuss. I guess fruit is in the eye of the beholder?

Hope that doesn't lead to infection tho...

Anyone: "Man, your eye looks awful. What happened?"

"Me: I got strawberry-and-cherry eye from too much speculation about, and re-reads of, the WoT. Have you ever read it?"

Anyone: "No. What's it about?"

Me: "I can tell you, but...are you free for the next couple hours?"

Anyone: "Is the eye-thing contagious?"

Me: "Don't worry about that. You won't even notice yours at first."

😊

On 1/8/2023 at 8:01 AM, wotfan4472 said:

The answer is really bad news if a certain character finds out, now that a certain theory has been confirmed to be true.

Certainly, for certain. But I doubt [L]oial reads these forums.

On 12/12/2022 at 5:44 PM, SinisterDeath said:

the creator is a non sentient universal force that represents order and fuels the "wheel".

Either saidin & saidar, or the opposition between the two, is what powers the Wheel of Time. Not to far of a stretch, if any, to consider this a creative force and or "The Creator". However, this would imply that the all-caps voice at the beginning and end of the series is the voice of the "fuzzy-logic computer" we call the Wheel of Time. And I think this makes pretty good sense unless it contradicts Canon?

On 12/4/2022 at 2:36 PM, Jsbrads2 said:

tells the Aiel to keep the Way of the Leaf as if that has some deeper purpose.

I believe keeping to the Way of the Leaf, does have a much deeper meaning. Developing a very personal, spiritual connection or relationship with reality and all the entities therein.

I think it all boils down to choice, And consciousness. 

You may think this is a given, but I'd argue that there's an infinite variety in awareness levels. And if you're not aware that you have a choice; if you're not conscious of the choice on any level. Then how can you have any free will to choose?

Choices matter and free will is ultimately a choice of what mental/emotional/psychic or spiritual state you choose to interact with reality through. Free will is a metaphysical filter.

On 11/6/2022 at 3:10 PM, KakitaOCU said:

A good comparison would be the Matrix IMO.  Each iteration of "The One" involved a reset of the system to status quo and things continuing.  And let's be fair, while there's a lot of bad stuff in the Matrix, for the VAST majority  it's just life without issue.

I always took 'The Matrix' to be life, as in messy IRL...problems and all. So people have issues on a daily basis. The machines figured out that our nature requires us to be challenged. No challenge or too easy and we suspect the nature of reality and revolt or otherwise not serve the purpose the machines have given us. Too hard, and we commit suicide, or revolt, etc.

I took Neo as the system check to remind us of our innate humanity; a reminder to pursue your dreams, no matter how unlikely or outlandish; and finally a reminder that the reality you experience isn't necessarily the ultimate or true reality, so test your individual boundaries and see how far you can push the envelope.

A good comparison to the DR, but not a perfect one, imo.

What I still struggle to understand is how the machine was able to incorporate Neo into the Matrix program to produce a more-improved Matrix iteration. Neo isn't a program but an individual human consciousness. Unless the machine is/was able to implant an AI into a human embryo?

On 2/27/2023 at 3:30 AM, Finnssss22 said:

My personal small pet theory was that Androl had actually been channeling for a long time and was well over a century old.

He is so weak in the power that the madness took a long time to affect him.

It would've explained his multiple artisan masteries and his extensive travels.

I too like this theory.

4 hours ago, HeavyHalfMoonBlade said:

As I remember the flaw of the domination band was that while it gave control of a man, over time that control would waver and eventually give control of the link to the man, the in-story explanations only allowing for the slowing of this process and not its prevention (sharing the bracelets etc) . 

This is where I was going with my idea. The way I read it, [or remember it working], was that over time the man could gain control of the link. So, in essence, eventually it would be fight of wills as to who controls the link. And men in the WoT are known to be stubborn and mule-headed, especially the Two Rivers variety. According to Nynaeve anyway.

On 1/9/2023 at 10:53 AM, Scarloc99 said:

now that Men are at no risk of going mad they can also now be R

The Domination band might be just what it takes to force change in the Empire after all. I'm sure the Sul'dam have a pecking order or hierarchy, just like every other social organization in Randland. All it takes is for one/more of the highest Sul'dam to be dominated by a collared man into channeling themselves while describing what they are doing, and having this happen in a very public venue.

4 hours ago, HeavyHalfMoonBlade said:

Maybe Aemon went around telling everyone "I'm no bloody King!" and he would dance with Amyrlin and maybe steal a kiss but he wasn't going to follow her light-blinded plans.

Touche.

22 minutes ago, HeavyHalfMoonBlade said:

why don't they ever meet themselves or their friends from other worlds in Tel'aran'rhiod? 

Dreaming is supposedly a rare Talent, so mayhap that's why there's no T'A'R social clubs. Or maybe it's like 'Fight Club' rules?

22 minutes ago, HeavyHalfMoonBlade said:

Could people move through TAR from one world to a more pleasant world?

If suspect this is how the Portal Stones were researched and created. I also suspect the Wise Ones would say this is 'evil' as you'd have to travel between the realities in-person.

27 minutes ago, HeavyHalfMoonBlade said:

I never thought that TAR being a constant in the trousers of time made a lot of sense

I sort of agree with you when I first read the series. Since then, I've had more exposure to various metaphysical musings as well as various Quantum Mechanics theories. T'A'R makes a little more sense to me now, but not much more.

There's a theory about the nature of the Randland universe that I stumbled across in a thread here on Dragonmount. I should run across it again fairly soon, as I read, and re-read, these threads while I'm bored at work. In a nutshell, the true reality is T'A'R. All the infinite worlds are shards split off from T'A'R by the Creator at the time of creation. And something about that relates to how Rand got his newfound ability at the end of AMoL. There's more to the theory but that's all I can recall right now.

On 5/5/2023 at 8:15 PM, Qstar said:

for each weave there seems to be one creator one dark one and one Tel'aran'rhiod.

Many/infinite worlds, but only 1x Creator, 1x DO, and 1x T'A'R that connects everything and to everything. 

On 12/28/2021 at 5:58 AM, Finnssss22 said:

theory that Mat is actually Aemon reborn

If Mat was Aemon reborn, how do you account for Mat's extreme, some would say sensible, dislike/suspicion of AS? How do you account for Mat's OT outburst during the dagger-healing in the WT? He's pretty mean, too mean I would think were Mat channeling Aemon, so to speak.

I'm with you then HHMB, which may be how I felt when I first read the series.

On 2/18/2023 at 1:52 AM, Lightfriendsocialmistress said:

I definitely understand and appreciate your thoughts on this, and agree. I guess I’m just hung up on the confusion that I have about the DO being apparently defeated permanently by Rand in the last battle. If the choice of the dark side is necessary (which I agree with, free will doesn’t exist in truth without something to choose for or against) then what is the purpose of destroying it? And now what? I kinda wonder if the collective consciousness of the people, if they continue on as before without having transcended the consciousness of division and separation and selfishness, will inevitably create a dark force. Similar to mordeth and shadar logoth, meaning that it seems that the mindset of the people created the evil force that was their downfall. 

You just touched on something many ancient religions/philosophies expound upon. That humankind's collective negative thoughts / energies are the source of all our problems, so to speak.

GG

8 hours ago, Figs and Mice said:

Unfortunately for that theory , Danelle is not the other member of "the Three". She is in fact a solitary Brown with virtually no friends (making her a very convenient target for takeover).  The "Three" are actually all Blues : Cabriana , Anaiya , and Kairen (the latter two both murdered by Arangar.

Heh... old man brain strikes again. I wonder where, or when, my wires got crossed.

Is there any significance about the Three then? Seems an odd fact to just be all by itself.

On 6/27/2022 at 11:19 AM, SilentRoamer said:

The voice was like a thin breeze whispering in the back of his head, a thin, icy murmur working its way into the crevices of his mind.

Before reading this thread, I always though that was Ishmael taunting Ranf from within his own mind, like he does sometimes with the boys' dreams. And now I'm no longer certain.

Ishmael doesn't quite fit for me anymore, as Rand isn't sleeping.

Could be Fain as we don't know the extent of his mashadar powers, but there's nothing like this from Fain later on, that I can recall. 

Could be internal monologue. But the quote above gives me the impression that this voice is something new to Rand. Something intrusive. Something external but within himself now.

I think this may just be the first signs of the madness taking hold.

6 hours ago, HeavyHalfMoonBlade said:

Killing her off for a really tenuous reason - Halima had been in the camp for ages

If Anayia Sedai is the third member of "The Three", she may have been killed off to help provide cover for Messana's impersonation of Danelle Sedai. Anayia and Cabriana, being Danelle's [only] close friends in the WT, would have been able to notice the behavioural changes in Messana's performance and potentially start asking questions or otherwise draw unwanted attention towards Danelle Sedai. The timing may have been chosen by RJ to throw the reader off-track from making the connection?