Egwene + Lelaine + Romanda is weaker than one male Forsaken...according to Egwene herself... - Edit 1
Before modification by Shannow at 18/12/2009 07:02:54 AM
Seriously, a circle of thirteen would have a strength of 650 - do you really need to be six times stronger than someone to cut them off from the Source? We've seen already that high level channelers can shield one another, even at the same strength, so it makes no sense that this would require some insane boost.
So, all Aes Sedai are of strength fifty? Even if they are... why the hell not? These are women with lower dexterity than Rand trying to shield him. Their strengths are added up in the circle, the precision of the weave increases, but the dexterity of the weave is going to be the dexterity of the woman leading the circle.
Meaning that while she is of effective strength 50, the others only contribute 30, and some strength is again lost due to linking. Meaning its something like ((12*30)+50-10), 400. That you need to be four times stronger than a man to be able to shield him with absolute surety is not so unbelievable.
More importantly, who said a full thirteen is needed with sisters of strength 50?
As for Rand shielding Alanna and Verin, the answer is simple. Dexterity makes no difference when a man is shielding a woman. His weave uses both his dexterity and strength, but the woman's dexterity has absolutely no impact on her holding the power. She is, in effect, losing her dexterity advantage when being shielded. Thus, when Rand is shielding Alanna and Verin, their raw strengths of 30*2-10, ie. 50, is all he is fighting against with his effective strength of 100. He's twice as strong. What is tough to understand here?
Linking has a clear advantage in all aspects of the Power. The fact that it takes three or four of these women to link to Travel is the first blight on the theory that women cluster around 50 strength. The average woman is weak in the Power - only a fraction of Rand's strength. Rand himself can make six gateways of huge dimensions, and these women need a community to make one. There's nothing vague about it.
You assume again that Travelling is the same for men and women. On that flimsy basis, you're dismissing RJ's quotes and mathematical evidence?
In the Guide it says that the vast majority of channelers in the AOL were fairly weak. Those few channelers who had great strength were the ones who were famous for their One Power achievements.
Now, if the VAST MAJORITY of channelers are fairly weak, it means the vast majority falls below the median strength, and therefore the histogram is in fact a skewed curve (with the bulge lying below the middle point. There is no other way to interpret this.
Also, regarding strength: Egwene knows how powerful the Forsaken are. She has sensed Moghedien's strength, she has sensed Lanfear's strength in the battle of the wagons, she has sensed Nynaeve's strength and she has experienced Rand's strength - though at a time when he was still far below his maximum.
And when she judges how much it would take to match a male Forsaken, she says that she doubts that she and Lelaine and Romanda TOGETHER would be able to counter one of them.
Now, if we take your argument, then someone like Alanna would already be above 50 in strength, so Lelaine and Romanda - who are close to Moiriane in strength - would be significantly above 50 in strength. Probably around 55 each, at least. And Egwene is what 70 in strength? So add those three together, and you get say 55+55+70 = 180. How can it be doubtful that such a circle could match a man with a strength of 90-100?