I assumed part of her  madness (irrational behavior) was from her being around Fain.  I have to agree I didn't really like her offering other AesSedai if they let her go .For me her being taken was a way for Egwene to quickly takeover and  unite the tower without a trial and Ae Sedai still loyal to her trying to free her and such. It seemed like the convenient way to just unite the tower quickly.

@Luke, the one problem is Verin being BA and taking the oaths wouldn't of been able to fight on the side of the light against the DO I believe.  "I swear I will not betray the Great Lord, to keep my secrets until the hour of my death."  she can double cross DF's and turn against the Choosen if she can justify it.  But she can't betray the DO.  So siding with Rand in the last battle would of been a no-no.  I found her death fitting since she basically got a sort of redemption.  Instead of simply dying in the last battle she was able to deal a major blow against the shadow in her own way.

Some of those its possible only Rand knew, I think the ones he was putting on the watgates was from LTT memories) .  Others might not be good in a large battle where positions might change frequently.  Having your armies remember where all these lethal wards are might be impossible.  Not sure what wards Moiraine knew that would actually kill shadowspawn besides detection or hiding from them.  I think the big issue is to make them powerful enough (think It was leaving the waste Rand thought this) was the more powerful the easier it is to detect.  For wards attuned to just shadowspawn, with that many shadowspawn any channeler would be able to detect them and try to remove them.  I just don't think BS had the time to go into detail with a lot of the weaves being used in the battle.  The shadow forces seemed content with balefire but my theory is by getting into weaves being used BS probably felt it would drag the book out even longer.

Rand avoided the BT since he assumed it was a trap set by Taim so he simply avoided it.  Especially when he heard traveling wouldn't work there, but it also comes down to simply not enough time and he had more important things to do. Peace with senchean, avoiding forsaken traps, finsing the forsaken, getting the nations ready etc..

Instead of rand bringing back Lan he should of   brought back Bela.

I was always reading  darkfriend as darkfiend.  LOL I was the same with Emond's Field, until I heard an audio book and thought for sure they were saying it wrong.

The Fade with fain was acting differently because I assume its was in Fain's presence a long time, not to mention Fain was torturing it.  It was afraid of Fain yet was too afraid to try and flee.  We need a brown to study if shadow spawn can be affected by being around Fain like human's are.  I would suspedt since trollocs and fades are part human that they should be affected.  That would be important work but Verin had to waste her time trying to expose the BA.  Pffffff

ROFL the flicker idea would of been amazing.  At the end we discover Rand was simply having a vision and was using the portal stone to get to Toman's head still.  Man I bet people would of been pissed.  I love unexpected endings so I would of been YES.  I always thought would of been great had at the end of Return of the Jedi Luke was all I AM THENEW EMPEROR.

I know looks wise they all look the same the BWB describes them as "like the others as if poured from the same mold."  It also says "it has been said all myddraal are virtually alike"  I think they each might have a little personality differences here and there but like trollocs their nature has been probably been breed in them.  Shaidar Haran was said to be different in size and  personality.  It was  several feet taller, its demeanor was one  of arrogance  instead  of  servitude,and  has envinced a definite dark  sense of  humor,  something  previously unknown among Myrddraal.  I don't remember any myrddall having  a different personality except Shaidar Haran.

So Myrddraal are for the most part the same with maybe a little personality difference here and there.  Independent thought isn't  something the DO wants. There probably are no myrddaal wishing for something like a different purpose for its life.  

Egwene died at least imo to sort of make her the equal of Rand and to make her a legend, which I felt was a bit unnecessary.  As Azrayne said it added to her quick rise to power, seemingly singlehandedly holding back the Sharrans, and not just dying but taking out a forsaken and all the enemy channelers with her. Was a bit much imo. 

I agree ElSalvador Semirhage should of had a lot more screen time.  I do sort of like the way she died because it sorts of fitting in the end she was betrayed by the DO.  Really shows how naive the forsaken were to think the DO really thought they were special, but it shows if the DO thought it was in his best interest he wouldn't hesitate to toss them aside. In the end they were just tools to be used.

if RJ had come to you and said you could make 1 change to the series what would it be?

For me I think instead of Semirage simply causing Chaos in Seanchan imagine if she did  like Demandred did and took over.  It would seem sort of fitting for a nation so use to fighting each other to see them face off at the last battle.  Also would help counter the feeling I got that the Seanchan jut seemed too powerful  and really would of showcased Mat' skills of trying to hold off shadowspawn/Sharran/Seanchan.  Not to mention Egwene getting some revenge on the Seanchan by getting to fight some.  A gate opening one side of the Aes Sedai army with Sharran's coming out then they look behind to see another gate opening with Seanchan pouring out.  Egwene' army getting battered but pulling out just in time to avoid total disaster.  I think it would also of done a great trick of making Rand's forces  have extra cause to  distrust the Seanchan.  For me this would of given the last battle more of the epic feel I felt it was missing.

From one of the forsaken's pov It said in any other company Graendal would be considered stunningly beautiful, but in Lanfear's company she was simply plumply pretty.  So look wise she probably was top of the list, but when people figure in attitude, they way they use their sexuality etc..  others might top her for hottest.  But for pure looks I doubt anyone came close.  Rand even thought (when she was Selene)  how he had seen beautiful women before Moraine, Elayne, Ny, Egwene, and Min but this was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen, and he only thought she was hotter when she showed her true form to him in Tear.

What was this topic about again?

Almost every scene involving Gawyn was unnecessary. 

Sort of pointless as BS stated, there was simply not enough to even think about making the series.  But for the off topic stuff, I don't see BS work as being anymore bloated then RJ work was towards the end.  Both are guilty of it.

Don't see how her having  child would be RJ's way of saying no spinoff.  The Mat/Tuon series was going to be about retaking their homeland.  So  it easily could of been 5/10/15 years in the future.  After the last battle the Seachean (even though I felt they were made too powerful) aren't in any condition to launch a quick invasion off their homeland for awhile anyway.  Even though with the new technology they have such as gateways you would think they would have a great advantage over their foes bacj home.

BS pretty much said in the River of Souls prologue that it was the last WOT story.  RJ simply didn't leave enough to work with even BS and Harriet wanted to write about it.  From some of the things BS has said it didn't sound like even had RJ left enough to consider writing the series that he was really interested in starting another WOT project.

But again Moraine called it foretelling, maybe a word would need to be created in regards to a vision at the exact time its happening.  But both Moraine and Siuan were content with calling what happened as foretelling.  The words she used made it clear it was happening as she said it.  So is it accurate to call it foretelling, I think foretelling for the Aes Sedai just covers "visions' wether it happens at that moment or at a future date while awake, where a dreamer has visions but when asleep.. 

That was another foretelling, basically she was told to go into the waste and seek out the maidens.  She wasn't to return until the maidens went to tar valon.  The foretelling she had which I still don't understand was telling Luc he had to go into the blight.  Was that simply to take him out of the Andor rulership equation to ensure Elayne mom could take the throne?.  Seems all she did was send him to his death when he encountered Isam.  I don't see how his going to the blight helped, beides leading to the creation of slayer.

We have seen this many of times that just because the Aes Sedai believe something doesn't mean its totally accurate.  Moriane called it foretelling, it could be that foretelling the exact moment something happens is just extremely rare. 

Exactly, I doubt when anyone read "He will be of the ancient blood" thought Aiel before it happened not even sure after he was born if any of the Aes Sedai knew for sure it was an Aiel woman who gave birth to the Dragon.  Moraine even commented there were many places the old blood still run strong, the two rivers being so far from any place was probably an after thought to look.  I must say I still find it odd a woman 9 month pregnant is in any condition to be fighting in a battle.  Most by the stage struggle just to get out of bed let alone running into a fight.

Gitara had a  foretelling but she had it at the moment it happened not before, she specifically said "He is born again, I feel him! The dragon takes his first breath on the slope of Dragonmount!  He is coming!  He is coming! Light help us!  Light help the world!  He lies in the snow and cries like the thunder!  He burns like the sun!"  So she had the foretelling at the moment Rand was born.

In the great Hunt Moriane tells Rand nearly 20 years ago the Aiel crossed the spine of the world, and in the BWb is in the late spring of 976 the aiel swept over the dragonwall.  The battle of Tar Valon happened the morning of the day before Danshu in the year of grace 978 and the trollocs came in 998.  So seems Jack is right, Rand is probably a few months older then 19.

In the great hunt Moraine describes finding Rand as :There were many fatherless children after that  battle.  But we found a story that one man had found an infant on the mountain.  That was all.  A man and an infant boy.  So we searched on.  For years we searched, finding other clues, pouring over the prophecies.  'He will be of the ancient blood, and raised by the old blood', That was one, there were others.  But there are many places where the old blood, descended from the age of Legends, remains strong. 

Considering how much mistrust there is concerning Aes Sedai there were probably many women who didn't announce they gave birth to have aes sedai seek them out not to mention living in such a remote part of the world its possible Kari and Tam never even heard of the bounty.  Tam especially I could see not wanting any aes sedai coin.   Basically it came down to following rumors that lead Moraine to the Two Rivers there was after all a lot of people to track down and the BA killed the other Aes Sedai looking for the dragon reborn.  Not to mention "accidents" were befalling men of a certain age so that complicated things, she also had to becareful and take things slow so she didn't attract the attention of the BA who didn't know she had been tasked with this.

The 18 20 years thing I think is a contradiction depending where you look, I thought RJ had said Rand was 18.  So some sources seem to point to 18 while others to 20.  The way they were in Two Rivers they seem immature for 20.  I always assumed late teens.

Took me until  AMOL came out when I did a reread of TOM and casually flipped through the glossary to even notice it was there, I stopped paying attention to the glossaries after Lord of Chaos.  RJ and even BS are good for giving the information but never directly saying it in the book.

@Rose, In the glossary in TOM it states under Graendal:  A ruthless killer; she as responsible for the deaths of Asan'gar, Asmodean, and for the destruction of Mesaana.