Realistically more people need to know about the death of the Semirhage and the Mesaana for it to be a major blow to the shadow. I see your point that it makes a big difference to the people who saw it directly but it's not big enough in the grand scheme to be a major blow. The black ajah cleansing was way more important, as were the events at the Eye of the World.
I wonder if the Tower advertised the execution of the Black Ajah though? They've strongly denied the existence of the Black since their founding, and I wouldn't put it past them to officially declare that the executions were due to treason i.e. breaking the Tower.
But no need to advertise... It's still a much larger blow than the deaths of Semirhage and Mesaana. Several reasons
1. Losing the Black Ajah cost the Shadow over a hundred trained women channelers
2. Massive loss of influence, the BA gave the Shadow an insider angle into one of their most powerful enemies that in turn allowed them to exert influence over many other groups
3. As others have mentioned this limits their mixed circle capabilities
4. Your own point about Semirhage and Mesaana holds some truth here too. The AS have seen that the Shadow can Ben beaten now, they have witnessed their own weakness and overcome it making them a more potent enemy than before. This coupled with Egwene personally defeating Mesaana makes this event even more significant.
I'm not going to fight too much with you on this, mostly because I think you may be right. I guess it comes from my own huge disrespect for the BA. Thirteen of them escaped in TDR and they accomplished nothing and were defeated easily by Elayne and Nynaeve on different occasions. I think the Forsaken, although defeated, are a hundred times as competent than the Black Ajah. The BA are more like a cult, and most of them have never met more than a few others, meaning that they are disorganized and would suddenly be pulled out of the Tower and then asked to fight with the Power at the Final Battle. It's chaotic and slightly pathetic if you ask me. The dark Ash'aman seem to be far more organized and dangerous.
People mock the Forsaken but they were incredibly destructive in many ways. I'd much rather kill Demandred than a hundred evil Ash'aman.
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Fan of Lanfear
Fan of Lanfear
Biggest blows to the Shadow...
- 12/03/2012 07:15:32 PM
2149 Views
Re: Biggest blows to the Shadow...
- 13/03/2012 12:37:55 AM
1065 Views
Those were the exact three I had first on my list. Good call. *NM*
- 13/03/2012 04:55:29 AM
521 Views
Re: Biggest blows to the Shadow...
- 13/03/2012 04:51:32 AM
1210 Views
Re: Biggest blows to the Shadow...
- 14/03/2012 06:22:51 PM
916 Views
Re: Biggest blows to the Shadow...
- 14/03/2012 11:36:00 PM
1093 Views
Another Concord...
- 15/03/2012 12:33:51 AM
994 Views
The LB started in the epilogue of TOM, if you ask me...
- 15/03/2012 04:24:43 PM
843 Views
This is a wonderful summary of what I feel the situation at Merrilor wil be and I wish I wrote this
- 29/04/2012 07:41:53 PM
964 Views
Re: Biggest blows to the Shadow...
- 13/03/2012 08:03:59 PM
956 Views
I disagree on number three don't think it's broad enough
- 17/03/2012 02:53:08 PM
791 Views
I wonder if it was advertised though?
- 17/03/2012 04:25:23 PM
884 Views
I very much doubt it
- 17/03/2012 04:48:56 PM
786 Views
Re: I very much doubt it
- 17/03/2012 07:33:48 PM
738 Views
It's funny because I don't think the Forsaken have proven particularly effective either
- 17/03/2012 07:47:58 PM
816 Views
I think they've been pretty effective
- 19/03/2012 10:46:11 AM
793 Views
Yet they have done very little to move the grand plan forward
- 19/03/2012 11:51:59 PM
785 Views
What plan?
- 20/03/2012 08:18:40 AM
979 Views
I disagree ... The DO seems to have a plan and Moridin showed us he is following a prophesy
- 20/03/2012 01:05:40 PM
873 Views
Up until the very end of TGS, wasn't the plan to turn Rand/make him do the DO's job for him?
- 29/04/2012 07:46:04 PM
875 Views
Re: I very much doubt it
- 17/03/2012 09:59:15 PM
867 Views
Regarding Demandred
- 19/03/2012 11:11:22 AM
847 Views
Re: I disagree on number three don't think it's broad enough
- 17/03/2012 05:46:31 PM
938 Views
I always thought of the victory at the Eye as the Lights first big win in the series
- 17/03/2012 07:27:12 PM
866 Views
Re: I always thought of the victory at the Eye as the Lights first big win in the series
- 17/03/2012 09:16:08 PM
914 Views
Re: I always thought of the victory at the Eye as the Lights first big win in the series
- 30/04/2012 07:04:06 PM
862 Views
"Seemingly young girl"? Is she actually old or something? Maybe she's not a girl?
- 19/03/2012 01:39:12 AM
886 Views
Re: "Seemingly young girl"? Is she actually old or something? Maybe she's not a girl?
- 19/03/2012 03:34:11 AM
863 Views
Re: "Seemingly young girl"? Is she actually old or something? Maybe she's not a girl?
- 19/03/2012 10:35:57 AM
925 Views
