Wheel of Time: Explained

Author:  Dread Pirate Mikey Date: 2022-01-01 14:41:27+00:00

With the Wheel of Time series is here from Amazon Prime, I thought it might be helpful to provide a little background. The series consists of 14 really, really, thick books, making the lore for Wheel of Time quite extensive. This article only tries to explain the setting for the series, not the entire series. The goal is to provide a verbal montage much like the opening of Lord of the Rings. However, if you are worried about spoilers. Go no further, because some spoilers may follow. Note: This post was written for release in November. But alas, I got covid so I'm posting it now in the beginning of 2022.

The World

Our story takes place in the Westlands, a continent containing about a dozen free kingdoms at a medieval level of technology. (Robert Jordan never gave his planet a name or provided a complete map.) Steel swords, spears, and bows are typical weapons. Stone cities and fortresses are used to control countries. However, magic is very much a part of this world.

Magic comes from the one power. Channelers (about 5% of the population), have access to this power and can do very magicy stuff. A person strong in the one power can throw fireballs, call chain lightning from the sky, and use magic to heal wounds and injuries. However, magic users at the time our story starts, are considered somewhat primitive compared to magic users of the past.

The Age of Legends

About 3500 years before our story begins, the world had experienced several millennia of peace and prosperity. Magic was practiced and perfected. An advanced civilization existed with large, amazing cities all powered by magic. Magic users stood at the pinnacle of society. They were wealthy and politically powerful.

The greatest of these magic users was Lews Therin Telamon (nicknamed, the Dragon). A channeler so powerful that he became the standard against which all others were judged (on a scale of 100, he was 100). Although Lews Therin was a good guy and solidly on the side of good, he was also a huge jerk. He was arrogant, stubborn, and liked to make fun of his peers with less magic power. This of course created a lot of enemies.

Magic researchers of the day were looking into new sources of the one power. Through some experiments, the researchers essentially drilled a hole to one promising new source (much like drilling for oil with magic). Alas, the drilling accidentally opened a hole to the devil's prison. The devil (the dark one) was released into the world and immediately recruited many powerful magic users with promises of power and immortality. Turns out many of the rich a powerful magic users cared little about the suffering of normal people.

As a result, a terrible war between the dark and light magic users began which lasted 100 years. Eventually, Lews Therin came up with a brilliant plan. Using some magic stones and 100 channelers, half men and half women, he could close the "bore" in the dark one's prison. Thusly, sealing the dark one and his magic using minions. He brought his plan to the magic user's guild, the Aes Sedai. The female Aes Sedai thought the plan too risky and voted against it. Lews Theron felt his plan could not be delayed, so he got 100 men and set off on his own to close the bore.

Lew Theron and his 100 companions made it to the Dark One's prison and were successful in closing the bore. The Dark One was sealed along with all of his most powerful followers. However, there was a problem. Because Lews Therin went with men only, the 100 male channelers directly touched the Dark One when sealing the bore. This tainted the male side of the one power. Lews Theron and his 100 immediately went bat crap crazy. They started killing anyone they came in contact with. The 100 were only killed off with great effort by the female Aes Sedai and the entire world.

Lews Therin eventually killed himself, after in a brief moment of clarity he realized he had killed his wife and family. The magic released in his suicide was so powerful that it reshaped the continent and raised a mountain, Dragonmount, in that place. As a result of these events, a vast amount of magic knowledge is lost and the world is broken.

After Lews Therin's death, the taint on the male side of the one power remained. For the next 3500 years only women could safely wield the one power. Any men born with the one power went mad within 2 or 3 years of the power manifesting (which usually happened around the age of 16). So the female Aes Sedai hunted male channelers and either killed them or removed the ability to use to the one power (called gentling, which usually also resulted in suicide).

To further complicate things, an Aes Sedai prophesized that one day, the dragon would return and set things straight and defeat the Dark One (the Dragon would be reborn). Therefore, throughout history any male channeler with any serious amount of power declares himself the "dragon" and tries to conquer the world. Stopping these false Dragons is one of the main jobs of the Aes Sedai.

In summary, when the Wheel of Time begins, only female magic users (Aes Sedai) exist. Any man born with the one power can look forward to an early death. No man wants to be a magic user.

The Two Rivers

The Wheel of Time story starts in a remote region of the kingdom of Andor called the Two Rivers. The Two Rivers is farming community composed of the towns of Devin Ride, Watch Hill, and Emond's Field.

Two Rivers Map

Ancient Manetheran and The Trolloc Wars

About 2000 years before the story, the Two Rivers was the heart of the ancient kingdom of Manetheran. At that time, forces of the Dark One composed mainly of trollocs (think of them as tall funny looking orcs) began a protacted war against the free nations. Manetheran was the leading nation fighting against the trolloc invasion and eventually became the main focus of the dark forces (also called shadowspawn, human followers of the Dark one are called dark friends). In a climatic battle, King Aemon of Manetheran was defeated and his army destroyed. But at the moment of defeat, his Aes Sedai wife, Queen Eldrene, overloaded herself with the One Power and essentially destroyed everyone left, including the bulk of the trolloc army. The trollocs never fully recovered and eventually lost the war.

Emond's Field

The place this final battle took place was called Aemon's field and eventually over thousands of years became known as Emond's Field. The area was farmland in the days of Manetheran and was resettled over the two thousand years when the story begin. The people of Manetheran were known for producing especially strong channelers in the one power. This is something to keep in mind.

Moraine, Lan, and the Story Begins

Aes Sedai Moraine Damodred and her warder/bodyguard Lan are in the Two Rivers searching for children of prophecy. The problem with all male channelers going crazy is that one of them eventually will be the Dragon Reborn. So if the Dragon returns and he ends up getting killed by an Aes Sedai or a dark friend, the whole world is screwed. Moraine's purpose and that of her order, is to find the Dragon Reborn and guide him in becoming the hero the world needs. When the TV show starts, her search has brought her to the Two Rivers.

Wheel of Time Background Information

Here is some additional information used to create this introduction.

Resources

Two Rivers

Manetheran

Location of the Ruins of Manetheran

  • The city was located in the mountains just to the west of Devin Ride.
  • The Quarry Road that Rand lives on was the old road to Manetheran. Once the road reached the mountains it turned south and lead to the old capital.
  • The Waygate in the Two Rivers is the old Manetheran gate. Of course it would have been in a Ogier tree grove outside the city.