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The Wheel of Time: Difference between revisions
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{{quote| ''"The Wheel of Time turns, and Ages come and pass, leaving memories that become legend. Legend fades to myth, and even myth is long forgotten when the Age that gave it birth comes again. In one Age, called the Third Age by some, an Age yet to come, an Age long past, a wind rose. The wind was not the beginning. There are neither beginnings nor endings to the turning of the Wheel of Time. But it was ''a'' beginning."''}}
An epic fantasy series by Robert Jordan, currently consisting of thirteen books, a prequel (''New Spring''), and a series guide entitled "The World of Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time," a [[First
Jordan [[Author Existence Failure|died of amyloidosis]] in the middle of writing the twelfth book, ''A Memory of Light'', which he had promised absolutely would wrap the series, even "if it's 20,000 pages long, Tor has to invent a new binding system, or it comes with its own library cart." His wife and editor, Harriet McDougal, chose up-and-coming fantasy author [[Brandon Sanderson]] (see ''[[Elantris]]'', ''[[Mistborn]]'', ''[[Warbreaker]]'', and ''[[The Stormlight Archive (Literature)|The Stormlight Archive]]'' ) to complete the series based on copious notes left behind. After working on the [[Kudzu Plot]], though, Sanderson himself announced that the last book had [[Trilogy Creep|grown to an additional three volumes]] to be released over at least the next three years, each of which is to be at least 250,000 words.
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Long story short, [[Hilarity Ensues]], [[Dissimile|if by "hilarity" we mean "death, war and blood."]] Lews Therin Telamon, "the one called Dragon", managed to successfully re-seal [[Names to Run Away From Really Fast|The Dark One]]'s prison (and trap its [[Quirky Miniboss Squad|powerful generals]] known as the Forsaken) with a makeshift cork, but not before the [[Big Bad]] tainted the male half of the One Power. All male Aes Sedai [[With Great Power Comes Great Insanity|quickly went insane]], as would all male channelers thereafter, and brought civilization crashing down by each committing a [[World Sundering]] or three. Eventually, mankind rebuilt itself, but [[Medieval Stasis|never regained its former glory]].
[[Exty Years From Now|Three thousand years later]], [[Power Trio|Mat, Perrin, and Rand]] were just [[Farm Boy|ordinary boys]] living in a small village... Until a mysterious woman called [[The Obi
The [[Cosmic Keystone|seven seals]] on the Dark One's prison are starting to weaken, and the "Last Battle" is approaching... [[Troperrific|but you knew that]].
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** Where the Snakes and Foxes live.
** Also ''Tel'aran'rhiod'', the Portal Stones worlds, the skimming place, the ways, etc
* [[Anti
** However, there are ways around this. Mat's amulet won't protect him against objects affected by the source (such as a rock thrown by ''saidar''), and Far Madding's is circumvented by ''ter'angreal'' that allows the user to store some of the Source within it. The latter method might work within a ''stedding'' as well, but it hasn't been tested.
* [[Apocalypse How]]: The Breaking, in which thousands of insane male channelers reshaped the face of the planet and wiped out what little civilization had survived the War of Power, was a Type 1, pushing towards Type 2. If the Dark One is set free, it's a full blown Type Z.
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* [[The Beautiful Elite]]: [[Evil Is Sexy|Lanfear]], [[The White Prince|Galad]], and [[The Vamp|Berelain]] are frequently described in this way. And {{spoiler|the latter two will probably have ridiculously adorable babies.}} Less mentioned is that Rahvin was said to be as handsome as Lanfear was beautiful.
* [[Because Destiny Says So]]: For lack of anything better to do, the Dragon uses the Prophecies of the Dragon to plan his schedule. The only reason this keeps working out is because Rand is an ultra-powerful ta'veren who [[Winds of Destiny Change|completely screws the laws of probability]] anywhere in the surrounding area; without that influence, Rand's entire business plan for the Messiah job probably goes out the window.
* [[
* [[Belligerent Sexual Tension]]: Rand and Aviendha, Perrin and Faile, Gaul and Chiad, Gawyn and Egwene, and probably more.
* [[Berserk Button]]: Do not, under any circumstances, call Lanfear by her birth name.
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** Happens to the bad guys too, namely a few of the Forsaken. Let's see. We have: {{spoiler|Graendal is "punished" by Shaidar Haran. Semirhage is humiliated by Cadsuane via spanking and later killed by Rand with the True Power. Moghedien was collared by Nynaeve and Egwene until she was let go by Aran'gar. Then, after being freed from that bondage, Shaidar Haran bonded her with a mindtrap and gave it to Moridin. Lanfear's reincarnated form of Cyndane is similarly given over to Moridin's cour'souvra. Messana was punished by Shaidar Haran for abusing Alviarin even though she had been completely faithful to the Dark One. Her haughtiness was broken completely (along with her mind) by Egwene.}}
* [[Breast Plate]]: Justified via [[Obfuscating Stupidity]]: Elayne's personal bodyguards wear such armor precisely to make people think they're all show and no bite.
* [[Buffy
* [[Butt Monkey]]: Morgase seems to exist for the sole purpose of being repeatedly humiliated.
* [[Cadre of Foreign Bodyguards]]: The Maidens of the Spear to Rand.
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* [[Can Not Tell a Lie]]: Aes Sedai are unable to lie after [[Restraining Bolt|they take their oaths]], which in practice leads them to become experts in [[Truth and Lies|twisting the truth]]. This in turn completely subverts the reason for taking the oath against lying, as people trust them even ''less'', so great is their reputation for manipulating the truth.
** Well, not entirely, because most know that if they say something right out it's true. {{spoiler|Unless they're Black Ajah, of course...}}
* [[Card
** The "show them all" part is not shared by all Forsaken. Only Meesana and Semirhage explicitely state that this was their motive. And many went over simply because they were jealous of the champion of Light Lews Therin Telamon.
*** Asmodean, formerly a bard, states he became a Forsaken for the music an eternal life would give him the chance to compose
* [[Cataclysm Backstory]] - The [[Was It Really Worth It?|Pyrrhic victory]] of the original War crippled both sides and brought the end of the Age of Legends' civilization. See also [[And Man Grew Proud]]. Interestingly--and to Moridin's ''great'' irritation--several weaves have since been developed that were unknown in the Age of Legends--such as the Warder bond and linking someone against their will--or even thought impossible, like {{spoiler|reversing gentling/stilling}}!
* [[The Cavalry]]: Two of them in the same battle, actually. One of them is led by {{spoiler|Faile}}, [[Crowning Moment of Awesome|as if it wasn't awesome enough already]].
* [[Character Tics]]: When agitated, Nynaeve tugs her braid. She gets agitated a lot.
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*** The art in the guidebook may be worse than the novels' cover art in terms of technical artistry, but in terms of accurately depicting scenes or characters from the novel, it almost couldn't be worse. Almost every book's cover art gets the mood wrong of the scene it depicts, or gets key details in it wrong, or depicts a minor, unimportant scene from the book when there were much more interesting options to choose from, or all of the above.
* [[Crapsack World]]: [[Your Mileage May Vary]] but... In the Westlands, many nations have descended into rioting and civil war. The stable ones are often ruled by corrupt nobles who constantly scheme against each other and casually kill anyone who opposes them. Andor is an exception, but it is quickly becoming a [[Vestigial Empire]] with retreating borders. Outside the Westlands? You have the Aiel Waste, which is nearly inhospitable due to the lack of water and harsh weather. Across the sea is the Land of the Madmen, the only inhabitable continent in the southern hemisphere, which is a hellish [[Death World]] of constantly erupting volcanoes and rogue channellers of both sexes. The other main continent and the lands east of the Aiel waste are ruled by Seanchan and Shara, both nations larger than the entire Westlands combined. Both have horrible elements---the Seanchan practice slavery, make all female channelers into [[Fate Worse Than Death|damane]] and are currently undergoing a massive civil war. Shara is even worse, banning all contact inside or outside the nation except for a few walled-off trading villages, having even more widespread slavery than the Seanchan and killing all male channelers as soon as they manifest their abilities. Nowhere is safe.
** Oh, and [[Satan]] is breaking out of [[Hell]] and is an [[Omnicidal Maniac]] who is gradually coming closer and closer to bringing about [[The End of the World As We Know It]], killing time by getting his [[Always Chaotic Evil]] army of [[Mooks]] and his [[Evil Sorceror]] [[Co
* [[Crazy Cultural Comparison]]: Happens every now and then; most of the time it's the Aiel culture that gets compared to the Western, but we also see comparison between Western/Seanchan cultures, Western/Ogier cultures, and different cultures within the big "Western" block.
* [[Crystal Spires and Togas]]: The Age of Legends. Literally so on the crystal spires part, at least.
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* [[Fisher King]] - As early as book one, Rand is having dreams of Thom saying that 'the Dragon is one with the land, and the land is one with the Dragon'. While there doesn't seem to be a specific link, the increasing ruin in the world (endless drought --> overly harsh winter --> disease, vermin, and decay --> famine due to poor harvests) does parallel Rand's increasing insanity. But this becomes most obvious in books twelve and thirteen. In ''The Gathering Storm'', after Rand is forced to {{spoiler|almost kill Min}} by Semirhage and then {{spoiler|draws on the True Power}}, he ends up with a dark aura/"warp in the air". End result, everything becomes even more ruined, dead, and horrific wherever he goes, and he no longer has any positive ''ta'veren'' effects around him, only the negative. But after his {{spoiler|moment on Dragonmount}} at the end of the book, we find out in ''Towers of Midnight'' {{spoiler|that he's gone the opposite direction, bringing life, vitality, and goodness with him, bringing the sun through the endless storm clouds and restoring the land and food, and even specifically undoing the ruin he caused in Bandar Eban through the positive results of his [[Winds of Destiny Change]] and the force of his charisma.}}
* [[Fixing the Game]] - Mat is occasionally accused of cheating because of his luck. He's so lucky that when he encounters weighted dice, he ''still'' wins.
* [[Four Lines, All Waiting]] - At least ''seven''. Especially bad in the later books, see [[Seasonal Rot]] in the [[The Wheel of Time (Literature)/YMMV|YMMV]] page.
* [[Functional Magic]] - The One Power, which has a myriad of complex rules governing its usage.
** Device Magic - In the form of ''ter'angreal''; see [[Lost Technology]].
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** [[Elemental Baggage]] - Water and Fire spells draw from existing materials.
** [[The Force]] - The One Power is not only [[Mana]], it's the force that turns the Wheel of Time.
** [[Gender Restricted Ability]] - There are a great variety of differences between male and female channelers of the One Power, the first being that women draw from the female half ''saidar'', and men draw from its opposite ''saidin''. Women can weave more flows, but men can draw larger quantities of Power. Women create Gateways by making two areas 'similar', [[Does This Remind You of Anything?|whereas men 'forcefully' bore holes]] into the fabric of space. Female channelers who begin to manipulate the One Power can be seen to glow, but only by other female channelers; men instead feel a tingling feeling when a woman is channeling. In the case of men channeling, a man able to channel get a strong feeling of menace from another man channeling, but women cannot detect a man channeling at all, other than the effects. Even the ''way'' you channel is different: women must "surrender to" ''saidar'', while men must "overmaster" ''saidin'', and if you try it the other gender's way, you get very dead very quickly. If ''saidar'' is tai chi, ''saidin'' is shaolin kung fu (or Krav Maga). Or more specifically, Yin and Yang.
*** Subverted in one case. Linking is a gender-restricted ability itself; only ''saidar'' channelers can link together "circles" of casters, whose power adds together, but the maximum number is determined by how many men are included (13 women can link alone, at least one man and 27 can, up to six men and 72 women...with technically no limit on the number of men). However, only one person actually channels in a circle, and in dual-gender circles, that person has to know how to direct both ''saidar'' and ''saidin.''
** [[Geometric Magic]] - All magic is pattern-based, involving the "weaving" of "threads," "strands" or "flows" of the various elements into intricate patterns. (This imagery is an extension of the idea that the Wheel of Time is a spinning wheel or loom.)
** [[Inherent Gift]] - There are a variety of extremely rare abilities that people can be born with, such as naturally accessing the World of Dreams, talking to wolves, ways of seeing the future, and sensing ''ta'veren''-- but despite what some characters believe, these have no connection with the One Power. Many others ''do'' however: innate Talents that allow sometimes-subconscious use of the One Power in specific areas that others might find extremely difficult or outright impossible: Healing, predicting the weather, Foretelling, finding ores, comprehension/reconstruction of [[Lost Technology]], etc. And of course there is a difference between people who can ''learn'' to channel and people who have [[The Gift]], and will begin to do it whether they are trained or not.
** [[Magic
** [[Superpower Meltdown]] - a major risk with channeling, [[Informed Flaw|though we've never seen anyone have one]]. Every channeler has a certain "strength," corresponding to how much of the Power they can draw safely. Go further than that and they might [[De Power]] themselves. Or render themselves brain-dead. Or kill themselves. Or disintegrate themselves in a [[Pillar of Light]] that results in a volcano and a brand-new mountain, called "Dragonmount" because that's where The Dragon killed himself. But only if you're [[The Chosen One]]. More likely to happen to people who have [[The Gift]] but no training. The series does a good job of making The One Power sound dangerous, but all the horror stories lose their bite when we know [[Like You Would Really Do It|the main characters won't be running afoul of them]] any time soon.
* [[Forging Scene]] - In ''The Dragon Reborn'', Perrin takes a break from chasing Rand to go work in a forge for a while. Some people consider it one of Perrin's most defining moments.
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* [[Gentle Giant|Gentle Giants]] - The Ogier. Well, the Randland ones, anyway. The Seanchan variety are called "Gardeners"... of the 'pruning a few limbs' variety.
** Even Randland Ogier qualify in a way. After spending a lot of time with Loial Perrin thinks to himself that the old saying "To anger the Ogier and pull the mountains down on your head", taken by everybody to mean "doing the impossible", once had a different meaning: "'Anger the Ogier, and you pull the mountains down on your head.' Difficult to do, but deadly if accomplished."
* [[Get a Hold of Yourself, Man!]] - All over the place. Expect the mains to give and recieve at least a couple of these per book. For example, Rand gets an ''epic'' one from Sulin in ''Lord of Chaos'' after he leaves his bodyguards behind when teleporting:
{{quote| “The great and powerful Car’a’carn gave his honor to Far Dareis Mai to carry,” she all but hissed in a low whisper. “If the mighty Car’a’carn dies in ambush while the Maidens protect him, Far Dareis Mai has no honor left. If the all-conquering Car’a’carn does not care, perhaps Enaila is right. Perhaps the omnipotent Car’a’carn is a willful boy who should be held by the hand lest he run over a cliff because he will not look.” -Ch. 19, "Matters of Toh," ''Lord Of Chaos''}}
* [[Girlish Pigtails]] - One of the Wise Ones threatens to do this to Egwene if she doesn't stop acting so childishly(!).
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* [[A Glitch in The Matrix]] -- happens a lot in the World of Dreams, but they are only rarely serious enough for visitors to notice. There is a good chance that the average reader will miss glitches.
* [[God]] - Entirely off-page. ''Anti-God'', Dualism-style, is the [[Big Bad]]. It's implied in some ways that the Creator's powers are greater, since he was able to imprison the Dark One, but for whatever reason he's apparently unable to directly affect the world in ways the Dark One can.
* [[God
* [[Go Mad From the Revelation]] - The test for becoming an Aiel chief involves passing through a ter'angreal that causes them to relive key moments in the culture's history. Aiel [[Honor Before Reason|place such emphasis on honor]] that the shameful truth of their origins -- they betrayed the oath they lived by -- hits ''hard''. Rand enters at the same time as a real Aiel, and by the end the other man is clawing out his own eyes. (Rand has a rather unfair advantage here, since he wasn't raised as an Aiel.) {{spoiler|Rand later reveals the truth to ''everyone'', and hordes begin to defect from the old warrior lifestyle every day, either vanishing altogether, joining a rogue tribe, or returning to the pacifism which their culture started with.}}
* [[Good Is Not Nice]] - Cadsuane, the Aes Sedai in general, the Aiel, and Logain. Rand is also a prime example and [[Lampshade Hanging|says so himself]]. {{spoiler|The latter ultimately subverts this later.}}
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** Rand specifically attributes his better qualities and ability to work through his [[Heroic BSOD]] to the good upbringing and parenting of his adoptive father, Tam. And although she died when he was very young, Rand's memories of his adoptive mother, Kari, are just as positive.
* [[Gossip Evolution]] - Used frequently. Several books end like this, with an omniscient narrator describing gossip versions of the main event of the book. The narrator mentions several contradictory versions of the big epic battle but one important, portentous detail that all the different rumors agree on. Something similar happens in-story several times as well, where side characters hear twisted versions of events of the story as rumors, sometimes even things the characters they are talking to were present for. The rumors are usually wrong on important details, and the viewpoint characters are usually happy to know that their role in the real events remains obscure.
* [[Green
* [[Green Lantern Ring]] - The One Power has enough potential uses to quallify it for this, considering that it helps drive time and existence itself.
* [[Grew a Spine]]:
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** In the most recent book, he even attributes the fact that he's able to successfully pass through his [[Heroic BSOD]] to the good upbringing Tam gave him.
{{quote| '''Rand:''' "My father is Tam al'Thor. He found me, raised me, loved me. I wish I could have known you, Janduin, but Tam is my father."}}
* [[Happily Married]]: To [[Your Mileage May Vary|many readers]], Perrin and Faile & Lan and Nynaeve are a bizarre variant of [[The Masochism Tango]]. In-universe, the couples are insistent that they're this trope. To be fair, there are instances of [[Aw, Look -- They Really Do Love Each Other|undisputed affection]], especially from book 12 and onward.
** Rand's adoptive parents, Tam and Kari al'Thor, certainly counted as this prior to Kari's death. So much so that even fifteen years later, Tam still hasn't remarried, instead devoting all of his time to raising their son and tending the family farm.
* [[Heads or Tails]]: Mat, and sometimes Rand, use this method to make decisions. Since they both have [[Born Lucky|luck-bending]] [[Reality Warper|reality powers]], this has extra significance.
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{{quote| ''What she did not quite understand was why she liked Areina best. It was her opinion, putting this and that together, that nearly all of Areina’s troubles came from having too free a tongue, telling people exactly what she thought. [...] Nynaeve thought a few days of herself for example would do Areina worlds of good.'' -Ch. 49 "To Boannda," ''The Fires of Heaven''}}
** Also Mat complaining about Olver's behaviour with women
* [[I Am Who?]] - Rand searches for the identity of his birth parents. {{spoiler|They're Tigraine, an Andoran noblewomen turned Maiden of the Spear, and an Aiel clan chief, Janduin.}}
* [[If I Can't Have You]] - {{spoiler|Lanfear}} says this to {{spoiler|Rand al'Thor}} when he tells her that {{spoiler|there isn't a chance in hell he'll ever love a Forsaken.}}
* [[I Know You Know I Know]] - Rand knows that the Wise Ones must know that he knows that they're trying to spy on him with Aviendha.
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* [[Long Running Book Series]]
* [[Loophole Abuse]]: Aes Sedai take this trope and not only run with it but they manage to take the family farm, get elected as Mayor and take over the Women's Circle. The main reason that people don't trust Aes Sedai is that they'll make a promise or statement they have no intention of keeping and just find ways around it, they are very good at this. {{spoiler|This bites the Black Ajah in the ass when Verin exploits a very obvious loophole in their secrecy clause by posioning herself to pass on the identites of all the Black Ajah she's been able to uncover.}}
* [[Lord Error
** It's hard to believe ''any''one could be quite as dumb, complacent and arrogant as he seems, especially in a [[Deadly Decadent Court]] like he comes from, but on the other hand he's been around for at least half the series and still has yet to reveal any hidden depths, so...
{{quote|'''Weiramon:''' Excellent plan, my liege. Shall I charge at the opposing army?<br />
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* [[Misery Builds Character]] - Female trainees are forbidden from using their powers to do chores, first as a safety measure, but secondly out of a belief that menial labor builds character
* [[The Mole]] -- "Eyes-and-ears" are a major recurring political element, and Darkfriends are ''everywhere''. Spectacularly {{spoiler|turned on its head with a double agent}} in the twelfth book.
* [[Morality Pet]]: Cadsuane attempts to use {{spoiler|Tam al'Thor}} as one to make Rand remember his humanity. [[It Got Worse|After some]] [[My God, What Have I Done?|tense confrontations,]] it eventually works.
* [[Mordor]] -- Home of the Dark One. Really unpleasant place. Walled off from the fringes of civilization by a mountain range and [[Garden of Evil|the Blight]].
* [[Mouth of Sauron]] -- Shaidar Haran often serves as the mouthpiece of the Dark One.
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* [[Mutant Draft Board]] -- The Seanchan enslave all channelers and periodically test all women under a certain age to root out any others who might show up. Before the collars were developed, their lands had been home to constant warring between rival channelers; they react with horror at the thought of such people roaming free in modern times.
** Also, the Aes Sedai, but only in the sense that they crush any attempts to abuse channeling or start rival organizations (they're a little unhappy to discover that the Aiel and Sea Folk each have their own). They actually turn a lot of women ''down'' for being too old or failing one test or another, as long as they aren't in danger of killing themselves. {{spoiler|When Egwene drops these conditions, membership jumps dramatically}}.
* [[My God, What Have I Done?]] -- Rand has one {{spoiler|when he almost kills ''his own father'' during a heated argument in ''The Gathering Storm''.}} Quite a few of his friends have been telling him in book after book that he's [[What the Hell, Hero?|going too far in his actions and losing it]], but it doesn't truly sink in until this confrontation.
** The emotional reunion between Rand and {{spoiler|Tam}} in the following book, where Rand tearfully embraces and begs for his {{spoiler|father's}} forgiveness, finally [[Heartwarming Moments|shows a side of Rand]] that has not been seen in a very ''long'' time.
* [[My Species Doth Protest Too Much]] -- Eventually, we meet some members of the Red Ajah who aren't man-hating psychos and/or secretly Blacks. Not many, though.
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** Though now Rand seems to know exactly what he needs to do, as of Towers of Midnight.
* [[Nice Hat]] -- Mat's is a dashing good hat.
* [[Nice Job Fixing It, Villain]] -- Moghedien's freakout in Ebou Dar directly causes Nynaeve to break free of her mental block.
** While the villainous bit might be questionable, from the Aes Sesai point of view the Seanchan performed one of these. {{spoiler|By ordering a raid on Tar Valon in order to capture as many Marth'Damane as possible, Empress Tuon accidentally resolved a power struggle. This is because during the raid one of the Aes Sedai taken captive was Elaida, the only viable candidate for the Amyrlin Seat, by virtue of being incumbent, besides Egwene.}}
** The Eelfinn gave Mat his ''[[Blade On a Stick|ashandarei]]'' when they returned him to Rhuidean. [[Chekhov's Gun|This turned out to be]] {{spoiler|the actual means by which he was released from the Tower of Ghenjei, and is what he then uses to escape when he, Thom, and Noal rescue Moiraine}}. Mockingly lampshaded by Mat himself.
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== P-R ==
* [[Eerie Pale
* [[Papa Wolf]] -- Tam al'Thor certainly invokes this trope in ''Gathering Storm,'' furiously confronting and demanding to know what Cadsuane has done to Rand to make him react so violently.
* [[People of Hair Color]]
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** One of the major themes across the books. You can want to help and serve goodness and fight evil all you like, but unless you're willing to trust other people and treat them like allies instead of victims, enemies, hindrances, and the distressed in need of salvation (whether they like it or not), you might as well be actively serving evil and destruction for all the good you actually end up doing. On the few occasions when the characters, major or otherwise, do actually talk honestly to one another, it tends to pay off in spades. Honestly, it isn't a bad message, but it does suffer from [[Author Tract]] and too much time taken to get to the "payoff" bits for this lesson. Shockingly, this mostly goes away as of book 12. As soon as Sanderson takes over as author, people start talking to each other, and TONS of long-dangling plots start to make real progress.
** The world at large is filled with [[Culture Clash|cross-cultural miscommunication]]. Sea Folk and Aiel (Shaido and non-Shaido) and Saldaens and Andorans (Caemlyners and Two Rivers folk) and Tairens and Illianers and Tar Valoners and Domani and Ogier... even with a common language, it's a wonder anyone knows what anyone says ever.
** It should be noted that Jordan intended there to be only one more book (which got split into thirds) which would tie up most of the major plot threads, and that while Sanderson has had to write much of the dialogue and narrative, all the major plot points were outlined and mapped out in great detail for him. So clearly Jordan intended the characters to start communicating properly and get plots resolved at this point. The fandom can be forgiven for believing this is all Sanderson's doing, though, thanks to Jordan's [[Idiot Ball|previous]] [[Doorstopper|track]] [[Four Lines, All Waiting|record]].
* [[Portal Cut]] -- Teleporting can kill whoever is unlucky enough to be where the exit portal is opened.
* [[Posthumous Character]] -- Many, as you'd expect in a series with [[Loads and Loads of Characters]] and [[Reincarnation]], but Gitara Moroso stands out. She gave at least two or three Foretellings that set the stage for the whole series. Gitara is probably in the top three most important characters born in the three thousand years before the story starts.
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* [[Quirky Miniboss Squad]] - The [[Numerological Motif|thirteen]] Forsaken.
* [[Ravens and Crows]] - ...and rats. Carrion eaters are spies for the Dark One because of their connection with death.
* [[Raven Hair, Ivory Skin]]: Lanfear to the point where even Loial, an Ogier, has trouble keeping his eyes off her.
* [[Reality Warper]] - The One Power pretty much does this. The Dark One has an even stronger reality warper.
* [[Really Seven Hundred Years Old]] - Channelers enjoy a drastically extended lifespan, perhaps influenced by power and usage. The oldest living Aes Sedai--and a powerful one at that--is approximately 300 years old. {{spoiler|The oldest living ''channeler'' met in the series is about 500.}}
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* [[Sealed Evil in A Can]] - The Dark One sealed behind the fabric of reality, best accessible from inside Shayol Ghul.
* [[Secret Circle of Secrets]] - The Darkfriends
* [[Self
** The series is full of prophecies and visions, and while it's possible that none of them are truly self-fulfilling (Mat's marriage ceremony wasn't finished until he had proven himself to her), a great many prophesies help push themselves along. The Stone of Tear was besieged more than once precisely because of the prophecy that only the Dragon could bring it down, and knowledge of that prophesy was why Rand went there. But even if the prophesy had never been made the Dragon Reborn would probably want to go to the Heart of the Stone anyway, because that's where ''Callandor'' was kept.
** Mat receiving the holes in his memory filled was an example of this--he was given them by the Foxes, but would never have gotten them if the Snakes hadn't told him to go to Rhuidean, which fulfilled them calling him a 'son of battles'. But in ''Towers of Midnight'' we also see the Finn literally make one of their prophecies come true: {{spoiler|Mat 'giving up half the light of the world to save the world' is enforced through them demanding of him a price for Moiraine's release, a price he had already guessed thanks to knowing Rand (and therefore the world) couldn't succeed without her. So he agrees...and they take his eye.}}
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* [[Sword and Sorcerer]] - The whole point of the Aes Sedai / Warder grouping.
* [[Sword Fight]] - Rand and Turak in ''The Great Hunt''.
* [[Tangled Family Tree]] - Rand is in the middle of this. As of book 12: {{spoiler|Rand is the half-brother of Galad by the same mother, Tigraine Mantear, although Rand and Luc/Isam are the only characters who actually know this.}} Galad is the half-brother of Elayne and Gawyn by the same father, Taringail Damodred. (Probably.) Rand is in a relationship with Elayne {{spoiler|and as of the latest book, she's pregnant, expecting twins}}. Gawyn wants to kill Rand in revenge because he believes Rand killed Gawyn's mother Morgase, although she isn't actually dead. Gawyn is in love with Egwene. Egwene is a friend of Elayne's and [[Childhood Marriage Promise|used to be betrothed to Rand]]. Morgase is now working for Rand's childhood friend Perrin as a servant. Moiraine Damodred, Rand's [[The Obi
* [[Tautological Templar]] - the Children of Light.
* [[Technical Pacifist]] - The Aiel, who swore an oath to never touch a sword. Doesn't stop them from using spears, nor from becoming a militant warrior culture. (This is the cause of the [[Go Mad From the Revelation]] mentioned above: the Aiel found out that they had obeyed only the letter of the law, not the [[Actual Pacifist|spirit]].)
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** The first three books makes a pretty good standalone trilogy as the ''origin'' of a [[Chosen One]], where he collects his main allies, beats a [[Starter Villain]], and the most difficult and important part, [[Because Destiny Says So|finally accepts his destiny]]. Same for the first six, by the end of which {{spoiler|the [[Obi Wan]] is gone and}} everyone has come into their power and made a mark on the world. One could read the first three or six novels, stop, and leave the actual Last Battle to the imagination or fanfic. Given the pace of the writing, though, getting from the Two Rivers to the Last Battle in six books would never have been remotely possible.
* [[Tsundere]] - A few. Not as many as is [[Flanderization|assumed]], though.
* [[Ugly Guy, Hot Wife]] - Gaidal Cain and Birgitte Silverbow, Lan and Nynaeve. Ugly ten-year-old Olver already tries to charm beautiful well-endowed women (and it works), so he'll probably end up with a hot wife too once he grows up.
* [[Uncoffee]] - The Seanchan drink "kaf".
* [[The Un
* [[Unusual Euphemism]] - Besides [[Oh My Gods]], several swear words are substituted to be more PG: "God damn you" = "Light burn you," "hell" = "Shayol Ghul" or "Pit of Doom," and the expletive so horrifying its equivalent can only be guessed at -- "Mother's milk in a cup."
** "Blood and ashes!" "Sheep swallop and buttered onions!"
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== V-Z ==
* [[Villain Decay]] - remember when one Myrddraal was a challenge? When beating a Forsaken in a fair fight was unthinkable? Justified in that the characters have learned and grown a great deal in the years since the books started - see [[How Do I Shot Web]] above - but still, it's a little funny that Trollocs and Fades are apparently still considered dangerous in-universe.
** It's more a case of [[Villain Forgot to Level Grind]]. Trollocs, Myrddraal ''et al'' never got any ''less'' dangerous; you still see them slaughtering [[Muggles]]. The protagonists, meanwhile, are all several orders of magnitude more [[Badass]] than they started out as, with Rand's [[Power Level]] in particular making him a literal [[One
** Forsaken now seem to have been just a distraction for the good guys, while the real evil was preparing. {{spoiler|Padan Fain's power has grown to the point where he can raise the dead, the majority of the Black Tower has probably been infiltrated and/or [[Mind Control|Mind Controlled]] by Darkfriends, Caemlyn has apparently been overrun by Trollocs when everyone's back was turned, and there's more weird stuff out there no one understands.}}
* [[Villainous BSOD]] Semirhage gets one in ''The Gathering Storm'' when {{spoiler|Rand uses the True Power while she has him collared with a device that renders him unable to use Saidin.}}
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* [[We Are As Mayflies]] - Humans compared to the Ogier.
* [[We Can Rule Together]] - Multiple times by different minions of the Dark One, usually on their master's behalf... [[Faustian Rebellion|but not always]].
* [[Well
** The dead nation of Aridhol also qualifies. Adopting the Shadow's methods of harshness and cruelty in the name of the Light, they became just as bad and quite possibly worse than the Dark One's servants.
** Pretty much ''all'' of the series' secondary villains (people who aren't aligned with the Shadow) qualify. The Seanchan, Whitecloaks, Elaida, and the Prophet are mostly well-meaning but deeply misguided people who have evil methods of getting what they want.
* [[What Happened to The Mouse?]] - Anyone with less than a photographic memory ''will'' be asking this at some point in the books. Guaranteed.
** [[Scarily Competent Tracker|Hurin.]] He returns to Shienar early in the third book, and is never mentioned again. This wouldn't be so odd, ''if'' the story weren't filled to the brim with [[Chekhov's Gunman|Chekhovians]].
*** {{spoiler|He's back. The fact that Rand hadn't seen him in so long was actually enormously significant.}}
* [[What the Hell, Hero?]] - ''The Gathering Storm'' {{spoiler|Nynaeve calls Rand out for balefiring an entire castle.}}
** He gets a lot of it throughout the series. In ''A Crown of Swords'' he gets it from Perrin because he lets the Aiel beat the Aes Sedai who captured him and Min in the previous book, though this turned out to be a staged argument so that Perrin would have an excuse to leave and get the Prophet. At least, it was supposed to be only staged.
** He also gets it in ''The Gathering Storm'' for {{spoiler|returning damane to the Seanchan instead of freeing them like he should, nearly balefiring '''his own father,''' condemning tens of thousands of people in Arad Doman to starvation and Seanchan invasion, exiling Cadsuane for plotting to control him and he gets a huge [[What the Hell, Hero?]] combined with [[What Have I Done]] from Lews Therin when he starts channeling the True Power.}} They might as well have entitled ''The Gathering Storm'' as ''WHAT THE HELL, RAND?!?''
*** But fortunately this leads to Rand asking himself what the hell he is doing, so there is hope that he might learn a bit now.
*** Indeed most of {{spoiler|Rand's actions in ''The Gathering Storm'' are designed to show that the effects on Rand's mind of all the crap he's gone through have '''not''' been positive, and the ending makes it clear that he's finally managed to get over at least some of it, and is now somewhat more human. Sanderson saw that the only way to fix Rand was to finish off breaking him, and then fixing him again afterwards. This may be a nod to the seals on the Dark One's prison, which need to be destroyed before he can be resealed properly.}}
** Another major [[What the Hell, Hero?]] moment is in ''A Crown Of Swords'', when Nynaeve and Elayne get called out for being such jerks to Mat after he crossed an entire continent to save their lives in Book 3 and for leaving him [[Locked Out of the Loop]] for the current story arc. They end up being forced to apologize, which is an extremely satisfying moment for a lot of fans. As soon as they apologize and let him help them out, he [[Born Lucky|sets off a chain of events]] that leads to the [[MacGuffin]] they're looking for.
* [[Wicked Cultured]] - Several of the Forsaken, but none moreso than Asmodean, who [[Good Omens (Literature)|didn't fall so much as saunter vaguely downward]] so that he could... play music?
* [[Winds of Destiny Change]] - The power that comes with being ''ta'veren.''
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