But this was using Nynaeve as an example - and she is notoriously not the best at channeling nor the best at fighting.
I'm going to take the easy road and just assume that RJ's statement "The best generals" as nebulous as it is means the same as "Lews Therin was the greatest man of his Age": just words to make the readers accord those characters with some aspect of respect.
I wasn't that impressed by any of the battles the Forsaken have taken part in, and I don't actually think RJ's strong suit is showing strategy or politics - he's more of a ground-level writer of combat engagements rather than a strategic, officer-level writer. It's really no disrespect to him, but it seems that he gets bored with writing about how a larger scale conflict would play out, preferring to concentrate on the immediate surroundings of his protagonists and a more limited POV.
I'm going to take the easy road and just assume that RJ's statement "The best generals" as nebulous as it is means the same as "Lews Therin was the greatest man of his Age": just words to make the readers accord those characters with some aspect of respect.
I wasn't that impressed by any of the battles the Forsaken have taken part in, and I don't actually think RJ's strong suit is showing strategy or politics - he's more of a ground-level writer of combat engagements rather than a strategic, officer-level writer. It's really no disrespect to him, but it seems that he gets bored with writing about how a larger scale conflict would play out, preferring to concentrate on the immediate surroundings of his protagonists and a more limited POV.
I think Mat's campaign in Altara and Ituralde's campaign in Tarabon showed a lot of strategic insight. They were both campaign's were the end goal was not the immediate defeat of the enemy but to force the enemy to move in the direction the general wished.
When the Wolf King carries the hammer, thus are the final days known. When the fox marries the raven, and the trumpets of battle are blown.
Are women really bad generals?
- 01/10/2009 07:05:03 PM
1596 Views
No.
- 01/10/2009 07:41:35 PM
1048 Views
Or RJ just loves stacking ridiculously unfavourable odds against the male Forsaken generals...
- 01/10/2009 08:40:47 PM
1122 Views
Lol... too true
- 01/10/2009 09:32:29 PM
1050 Views
And you guys whine about the lameness of RJ's villains?
- 01/10/2009 09:41:54 PM
1065 Views
I still haven't seen proof of Demandred or Ishamael's "brilliance".
- 01/10/2009 09:56:41 PM
856 Views
but you are difficult to please
- 02/10/2009 05:10:13 AM
807 Views
But they are lame... they've done minimal damage to the Light
- 02/10/2009 05:06:05 AM
756 Views
You can't have it both ways....
- 02/10/2009 06:47:21 AM
845 Views
Why not?
- 02/10/2009 08:45:35 AM
811 Views
Yeah
- 01/10/2009 09:57:01 PM
842 Views
Re: Yeah
- 01/10/2009 10:40:28 PM
826 Views
I thought the same in the past...
- 02/10/2009 07:01:18 AM
798 Views
Gah! Hate!
- 02/10/2009 04:11:49 PM
809 Views
Ah, come on...
- 02/10/2009 04:41:37 PM
797 Views
No no, I was just being pouty that I haven't read the new stuff yet.
- 02/10/2009 05:01:15 PM
798 Views
- 02/10/2009 05:01:15 PM
798 Views
Re: Or RJ just loves stacking ridiculously unfavourable odds against the male Forsaken generals...
- 01/10/2009 09:51:30 PM
885 Views
What about Mat and Ituralde?
- 02/10/2009 04:28:49 AM
837 Views
Good points! Also, these "generals" haven't actually fielded any troops
- 01/10/2009 11:23:40 PM
768 Views
But as individuals they are meant to be deadly too
- 02/10/2009 05:09:21 AM
753 Views
Well, yeah. They're knowledgable and deadly in person. Generalship doesn't come into it.
- 04/10/2009 12:09:50 AM
737 Views
nope
- 01/10/2009 08:06:57 PM
900 Views
Tylee Kirgan, Birgitte, and one other, Egeanin
- 01/10/2009 09:47:00 PM
1195 Views
Birgitte's not a soldier though.
- 01/10/2009 10:10:50 PM
782 Views
She says she's not, but so does Mat.
- 01/10/2009 10:34:04 PM
693 Views
- 01/10/2009 10:34:04 PM
693 Views
Mat's not a soldier, either - he's a general
- 01/10/2009 10:51:29 PM
836 Views
Birgitte is too cautious to be better than an adequate tactician.
- 02/10/2009 04:22:45 AM
810 Views
My opinion
- 02/10/2009 01:30:12 AM
1205 Views
That's a poor excuse
- 02/10/2009 11:59:42 AM
718 Views
I disagree
- 02/10/2009 04:26:28 PM
807 Views
Re: I disagree
- 02/10/2009 08:31:29 PM
1038 Views
Oh, puh-lease.
- 02/10/2009 09:09:30 PM
961 Views
Re: Oh, puh-lease.
- 03/10/2009 04:52:37 PM
786 Views
Re: Oh, puh-lease.
- 05/10/2009 05:08:27 PM
3254 Views
I always know I've out-argued an idiot when they fall back on the tired old "RJ wanted it that way"
- 06/10/2009 04:42:11 AM
853 Views
And I can tell you're through when you've gotten to three+ insults per paragraph.
- 06/10/2009 05:46:24 PM
936 Views
Monday morning quarterbacking at its worst
- 04/10/2009 07:28:36 AM
901 Views
Men and football.
- 05/10/2009 04:49:35 PM
822 Views
She didn't kill anyone! Why SHOULD she feel guilty? She gave necessary orders.
- 06/10/2009 03:33:15 AM
893 Views


