The QP I submitted asked who the 2nd most powerful Forsaken is, after Ishamael. The two most popular answers were Demandred and Lanfear.
Jordan named Ishamael, Demandred, Sammael, Lanfear, Graendal and Semirhage as the top Forsaken in the Shadow - who were always near to the top of the Shadow hierarchy due to their skills in the physical and political world.
My own personal theory is that these six Forsaken are pretty similar in the One Power - so similar that dueling will probably lead to unpredictable results. I don't think that they are similar in strength - Ishamael could be considerably strong in saidin compared to Graendal or Semirhage. However, they all have special skills which make them powerful Forsaken. None of them hid like Moghedien, and all of them have shown that they are prepared to openly challenge a threat of equal power.
All of those six are extremely powerful in the One Power, with Ishamael and Lanfear showing the highest possible levels attainable, and the other four with slightly less. Regarding individual skill, Demandred is generally skilled in most things, and Graendal and Semirhage are among the most skilled in their fields who have ever lived. All six are equally willing to kill an opponent, and are all established mass murderers. Lanfear, Sammael and Semirhage are openly aggressive Forsaken who devastate first and ask questions later. Ishamael, Demandred and Graendal shy away from direct conflict if they can and use precision strikes and uncommon skills to undermine their opponents.
In summary I think that those six Forsaken are close to the top of everything - strength, skill, attitude towards battle. Where one has great strength in something it is balanced by a weakness somewhere else. Ishamael is probably the single most powerful of the thirteen overall, which is pretty much hinted at in the books on several occasions. The other five are probably all on a relatively level playing field.
Demandred, Lanfear, Semirhage, Graendal and Sammael could probably duel one another with unpredictable results, and the result would be 50-50 if they dueled a hundred times. It makes them inferior to Ishamael and Lews Therin, but not to each other.
Wheel of Time board admin
Fan of Lanfear
Fan of Lanfear
The top 6 Forsaken - similar in the One Power
- 12/09/2009 09:27:20 PM
1887 Views
The Big White Book says...
- 12/09/2009 11:46:43 PM
1103 Views
Not Aginor
- 13/09/2009 08:36:37 AM
1111 Views
Re: Not Aginor
- 13/09/2009 03:16:13 PM
1020 Views
Re: Not Aginor
- 13/09/2009 05:47:14 PM
1062 Views
Fact is, the bwb is untrustworthy
- 13/09/2009 05:54:28 PM
979 Views
But, RJ himself said that the BWB was written from the standpoint of a scholar
- 14/09/2009 04:42:59 PM
1005 Views
It all depends on how you define "powerful"
- 14/09/2009 02:30:31 AM
1030 Views
So is graendal similar to lanfear then?
- 13/09/2009 05:41:42 PM
893 Views
Graendal could fight Lanfear and win
- 13/09/2009 06:01:57 PM
1477 Views
Graendal herself says...
- 13/09/2009 09:08:46 PM
921 Views
Lanfear was more powerful than Graendal, but Cyndane has less power
- 13/09/2009 10:19:35 PM
923 Views
Re: So is graendal similar to lanfear then?
- 13/09/2009 06:05:11 PM
1084 Views
Compulsion=any other deadly weave. Doesn't really change matters
- 13/09/2009 10:23:40 PM
950 Views
But it did give her an edge, and against two forsaken. *NM*
- 13/09/2009 11:12:09 PM
494 Views
Not at all
- 14/09/2009 04:51:48 AM
997 Views
But Graendal confronted her... twice! *NM*
- 13/09/2009 07:48:29 PM
445 Views
Apparently only the third time counts
*NM*
- 13/09/2009 08:00:37 PM
486 Views
But the third time's supposed to be lucky. So that won't count either. *NM*
- 13/09/2009 11:26:18 PM
509 Views
*NM*
- 13/09/2009 08:00:37 PM
486 Views
But the third time's supposed to be lucky. So that won't count either. *NM*
- 13/09/2009 11:26:18 PM
509 Views
Really?
- 13/09/2009 08:36:33 PM
922 Views
No falsely...
- 13/09/2009 11:25:40 PM
1143 Views
- 13/09/2009 11:25:40 PM
1143 Views
And, of course, the male and female OP strength ranks might not even correlate that much
- 14/09/2009 04:41:58 PM
859 Views
They correlate on some critical points
- 14/09/2009 06:57:43 PM
1060 Views
That's not exactly what I'm referring to.
- 15/09/2009 04:36:29 PM
812 Views
But then we are discussing the same thing
- 15/09/2009 06:59:04 PM
946 Views
I think, outside of semantics, our main disagreement doesn't lie amid the higher tiers
- 16/09/2009 03:53:09 PM
821 Views
Probably
- 16/09/2009 06:31:27 PM
966 Views
I only disagree on one point, I think they are all rather equal in potential, incl. Ishamael
- 14/09/2009 04:28:12 PM
954 Views
I do think Ishamel is special
- 14/09/2009 07:04:03 PM
1027 Views
He's special the same way any individual is special.
- 14/09/2009 11:36:42 PM
990 Views
Re: He's special the same way any individual is special.
- 15/09/2009 08:36:20 AM
958 Views
Re: He's special the same way any individual is special.
- 15/09/2009 03:48:34 PM
941 Views
Re: He's special the same way any individual is special.
- 15/09/2009 04:39:39 PM
909 Views
The more interesting question is...
- 14/09/2009 06:34:11 PM
853 Views
Hmmm
- 14/09/2009 07:04:34 PM
944 Views
I think we'll see Graendal vs. Aran'gar.
- 14/09/2009 07:31:16 PM
973 Views
Ah yes, that makes sense, and would be great! *NM*
- 14/09/2009 07:40:29 PM
790 Views
Yeah. Though I think its no competition. Graendal has got to be better than a walking tree!
- 14/09/2009 07:50:09 PM
850 Views
They do imply that Graendal is a lot more dangerous than she looks
- 14/09/2009 09:08:43 PM
878 Views
I've never underestimated Graendal
- 14/09/2009 09:42:49 PM
931 Views
Yeah... her frivolity was always a red flag for me too.
- 14/09/2009 10:18:40 PM
973 Views
To me, she is the most lethal.
- 15/09/2009 05:18:10 PM
722 Views
I still like Lanfear more
- 15/09/2009 06:51:03 PM
863 Views
- 15/09/2009 06:51:03 PM
863 Views
Graendal did not beat me and Moghedien
- 15/09/2009 05:59:39 PM
965 Views
Agreed
- 15/09/2009 06:36:48 PM
851 Views
Ummm... how do we know?
- 15/09/2009 06:40:57 PM
987 Views

only in love *NM*