The Wheel of Time Database

14 interviews available

Interviews

Interview Questions from Wotmania/Dragonmount

Question	Action(s)
Why have we not seen any Aiel Asha'man? The Aiel have a different tradition, as I have mentioned in the books. When a young Aiel man learns that he is beginning to channel, or thinks that he is, that is taken as sign that he has been marked out to try to kill the Dark One, and he sets out for the Blight in an attempt to do so. And given that any Black Tower recruiting party that showed up in the Waste would very likely find itself in a fight to the death fairly soon after arrival, it isn't a spot that anyone would pick for recruiting. Now, it may be that some Aiel may finally join the Asha'man (I'm not saying they will!) but traditions are hard to change, especially when they have religious overtones and have lasted a few thousand years.	View More Details
Was Erian Boroleos meant to disappear during the battle at Shadar Logoth or was that a mistake? Erian Boroleos was not meant to disappear. In my notes, she is placed guarding those with Cadsuane who cannot channel and not too pleased about it (there are reasons why she was chosen out for this, which I won't go into here), and there is even a note (under CHECKS AND CORRECTIONS, a category I use to make sure that I haven't blinked at the wrong time) to make sure of mentioning her in passing. It didn't happen, for which, mea culpa, mea culpa, mea maxima culpa. I was so certain that I had done it, that I didn't find out I hadn't until the paperback came out, but a correction will be made.	View More Details
How is it possible for Aes Sedai who have taken the Three Oaths to become damane and use the One Power as a weapon? They can't us the One Power as a weapon, not in any conventional sense. This presents some problems for the Seanchan, but then, damane are used for more than just weapons. And from the Seanchan point of view, at worst, an Aes Sedai who has been collared is one less marath'damane running around loose and doing the horrible things that their history tells them such women inevitably do. Remember, Seanchan history records a time under Aes Sedai rule, when no one could go to sleep at night with the certainty they would wake in the morning and Aes Sedai took whatever they wanted and killed anyone who crossed or opposed them. To the Seanchan, just removing these horrors from the board is a win.	View More Details
Why have we not seen any Aiel Asha'man? The Aiel have a different tradition, as I have mentioned in the books. When a young Aiel man learns that he is beginning to channel, or thinks that he is, that is taken as sign that he has been marked out to try to kill the Dark One, and he sets out for the Blight in an attempt to do so. And given that any Black Tower recruiting party that showed up in the Waste would very likely find itself in a fight to the death fairly soon after arrival, it isn't a spot that anyone would pick for recruiting. Now, it may be that some Aiel may finally join the Asha'man (I'm not saying they will!) but traditions are hard to change, especially when they have religious overtones and have lasted a few thousand years.	View More Details
Is there a reason the Dark One could not or would not re-taint saidin? The conditions would have to be exactly right. Those conditions were set up while the seals were being placed on the Bore. The chances that exactly those conditions would occur again are fairly small. And that is saying that it was a volitional act rather than a side-effect of trying to stop the seals from being placed. After all, if the Dark One could saidin at will, why could he not taint saidar as well, and why would he not have done so?	View More Details
Has the Padan Fain/Mordeth character been present in previous Ages, or is he unique to this particular Age? He is unique to this particular Age. A very unique fellow, indeed. In some ways, you might say he has unwittingly side-stepped the Pattern.	View More Details
In Winter's Heart, Min doesn't recognize Birgitte, but they were in Salidar at the same time. What is the story there? No story at all. In Salidar, Min knew Birgitte as a adventurer, you might say, but not until Caemlyn did she realize that Birgitte was, in fact, BIRGITTE BY GOD SILVERBOW!	View More Details
Why can't Ogier channel the One Power? Why can't fish sing? Why can't sparrows do the tango? Why can't I figure my own income tax? I'd really like to know the answer to that last one!	View More Details
Can [Ogier] be Darkfriends? Of course.	View More Details
I asked a question about using gateways as cannons, but I am not certain I made clear what I had in mind, so this is not completely shot down yet. You couldn't do it that way. Not the way you describe it, I think.	View More Details
Can burned out channelers still sense the Source? Ah, burned out? No. The difference between being burned out and being stilled.. We use the term as if it is interchangeable, but they aren't. Technically "stilled" means something that is being done to you deliberately. "Burned out" is an injury that you received accidentally. (Is it the difference between a clean cut and a cauterized wound?) Yes, and if you're burned out, you cannot sense the Source	View More Details
How come that Foretelling is only for those who can channel? How come breathing under water is only for fish? Some things follow natural laws and in this universe Foretelling is only for people who can channel.	View More Details
What is the origin of the raven as a symbol of the Seanchan Empire? Why isn't it a hawk? The conquerors of Seanchan suffered the fate of many smaller groups that conquer larger. They were, in many ways, absorbed by the conquered, with only an overlayer remaining of what and who they were before. In pre-conquest Seanchan, the raven was a symbol of rulers because (1) it was supposedly wise, and (2) (perhaps more importantly) it supposedly saw and knew everything that happened. Nothing escapes the eyes of the raven, and frankly, any hawk or eagle that tries taking on ravens, gets chased off. So, the golden hawk remains the symbol of the Imperial family, descendants of Artur Hawkwing, but the raven is the symbol of rule and of Empire.	View More Details
How does the idea of souls apply to constructs such as Nym and Trollocs? Could either of them be reborn? To whoever put this one forward, this is one of the best questions I've ever gotten! Nym and Trollocs both have souls, and either could be reborn, but since Nym were a pure construct (i.e. each of them was individually made, like hand-crafting) a Nym would not be reborn as a Nym. You might say that a Nym's soul was borrowed temporarily from the supply of souls awaiting rebirth. A Trolloc, however, bears a twisted, or corrupted soul, and would be reborn as a Trolloc. Though frankly, a Trolloc's soul is such a pitiful thing, it hardly seems worth calling a soul.	View More Details