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DP - Edit 1

Before modification by Shannow at 10/09/2015 09:23:00 AM

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Tor released the entries for every single (but one) Amyrlin Seat mentioned in the guide. It is an interesting, though many times banal, read. One of the most interesting tidbits concerned Elaida (SPOILER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!):

Ah, I just love how the puzzle is coming together. This excerpt has given us yet more ammunition showing that the Strength list has major flaws in it, or else that the distribution is most certainly not uniform from one level to the next.

This evidence comes from the Siuan entry in the Amyrlin list. It gives us both Siuan's pre and post stilling strength. Before stilling, she was a level 13, and after stilling, a level 35.

Now, if you plot that on a uniformly distributed 72 point list, then it means her post stilling strength was 64% of her former strength. Quite simply, this directly contradicts Siuan's own comments on the matter.

In the books, Siuan wishes that she could get back to at least half her former strength, but admits that even if she got back to two thirds of her former strength most sisters would still match her.

Clearly, Siuan is currently well below half her former strength, which makes it impossible for her to be at level 35 on a uniformly distributed strength list.

This is just another nail in the coffin of those who try to argue that the list somehow gives us an indication of the comparative strength of various characters. As if we needed any more convincing other than the absurdity of Elaida srupposedly being at 83% of Lanfear's strength, which would be the implication if she was indeed 60/72 as strong as Lanfear.

Elaida once met Cadsuane, during the Aiel War, the first time that Cadsuane had seemingly come back from the dead. Among other things, Cadsuane told her that she was too hard, that good steel had some give in it, and what was too rigid was too easily shattered. Cadsuane also told her that she allowed her anger too free a rein, that an Aes Sedai had to be the mistress of her emotions, not they of her. It was a cold chewing-out, in fact. Elaida had had the shawl for a few years then, but the meeting left her feeling like a novice wanting to run back to her room from the Mistress of Novices’ study.

Fascinating. Cadsuane already saw what Fain was to see later, and a lot more. Her assessment of Elaida as a "disaster simmering" makes a lot more sense now.

For the rest, it certainly seems RJ wanted to make it clear that whenever the Hall took the reigns, disaster followed.

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