But this was using Nynaeve as an example - and she is notoriously not the best at channeling nor the best at fighting.
I'm going to take the easy road and just assume that RJ's statement "The best generals" as nebulous as it is means the same as "Lews Therin was the greatest man of his Age": just words to make the readers accord those characters with some aspect of respect.
I wasn't that impressed by any of the battles the Forsaken have taken part in, and I don't actually think RJ's strong suit is showing strategy or politics - he's more of a ground-level writer of combat engagements rather than a strategic, officer-level writer. It's really no disrespect to him, but it seems that he gets bored with writing about how a larger scale conflict would play out, preferring to concentrate on the immediate surroundings of his protagonists and a more limited POV.
I'm going to take the easy road and just assume that RJ's statement "The best generals" as nebulous as it is means the same as "Lews Therin was the greatest man of his Age": just words to make the readers accord those characters with some aspect of respect.
I wasn't that impressed by any of the battles the Forsaken have taken part in, and I don't actually think RJ's strong suit is showing strategy or politics - he's more of a ground-level writer of combat engagements rather than a strategic, officer-level writer. It's really no disrespect to him, but it seems that he gets bored with writing about how a larger scale conflict would play out, preferring to concentrate on the immediate surroundings of his protagonists and a more limited POV.
I think Mat's campaign in Altara and Ituralde's campaign in Tarabon showed a lot of strategic insight. They were both campaign's were the end goal was not the immediate defeat of the enemy but to force the enemy to move in the direction the general wished.
When the Wolf King carries the hammer, thus are the final days known. When the fox marries the raven, and the trumpets of battle are blown.
Are women really bad generals?
01/10/2009 07:05:03 PM
- 1521 Views
No.
01/10/2009 07:41:35 PM
- 956 Views
Or RJ just loves stacking ridiculously unfavourable odds against the male Forsaken generals...
01/10/2009 08:40:47 PM
- 1044 Views
Lol... too true
01/10/2009 09:32:29 PM
- 936 Views
And you guys whine about the lameness of RJ's villains?
01/10/2009 09:41:54 PM
- 952 Views
I still haven't seen proof of Demandred or Ishamael's "brilliance".
01/10/2009 09:56:41 PM
- 778 Views
but you are difficult to please
02/10/2009 05:10:13 AM
- 730 Views
But they are lame... they've done minimal damage to the Light
02/10/2009 05:06:05 AM
- 681 Views
You can't have it both ways....
02/10/2009 06:47:21 AM
- 766 Views
Why not?
02/10/2009 08:45:35 AM
- 725 Views
Yeah
01/10/2009 09:57:01 PM
- 716 Views
Re: Yeah
01/10/2009 10:40:28 PM
- 750 Views
I thought the same in the past...
02/10/2009 07:01:18 AM
- 727 Views
Gah! Hate!
02/10/2009 04:11:49 PM
- 739 Views
Ah, come on...
02/10/2009 04:41:37 PM
- 711 Views
No no, I was just being pouty that I haven't read the new stuff yet.
02/10/2009 05:01:15 PM
- 725 Views

Re: Or RJ just loves stacking ridiculously unfavourable odds against the male Forsaken generals...
01/10/2009 09:51:30 PM
- 800 Views
What about Mat and Ituralde?
02/10/2009 04:28:49 AM
- 755 Views
Good points! Also, these "generals" haven't actually fielded any troops
01/10/2009 11:23:40 PM
- 683 Views
But as individuals they are meant to be deadly too
02/10/2009 05:09:21 AM
- 675 Views
Well, yeah. They're knowledgable and deadly in person. Generalship doesn't come into it.
04/10/2009 12:09:50 AM
- 658 Views
nope
01/10/2009 08:06:57 PM
- 806 Views
Tylee Kirgan, Birgitte, and one other, Egeanin
01/10/2009 09:47:00 PM
- 1108 Views
Birgitte's not a soldier though.
01/10/2009 10:10:50 PM
- 701 Views
She says she's not, but so does Mat.
01/10/2009 10:34:04 PM
- 618 Views

Mat's not a soldier, either - he's a general
01/10/2009 10:51:29 PM
- 760 Views
Birgitte is too cautious to be better than an adequate tactician.
02/10/2009 04:22:45 AM
- 739 Views
My opinion
02/10/2009 01:30:12 AM
- 1107 Views
That's a poor excuse
02/10/2009 11:59:42 AM
- 643 Views
I disagree
02/10/2009 04:26:28 PM
- 743 Views
Re: I disagree
02/10/2009 08:31:29 PM
- 940 Views
Oh, puh-lease.
02/10/2009 09:09:30 PM
- 887 Views
Re: Oh, puh-lease.
03/10/2009 04:52:37 PM
- 707 Views
Re: Oh, puh-lease.
05/10/2009 05:08:27 PM
- 3161 Views
I always know I've out-argued an idiot when they fall back on the tired old "RJ wanted it that way"
06/10/2009 04:42:11 AM
- 750 Views
And I can tell you're through when you've gotten to three+ insults per paragraph.
06/10/2009 05:46:24 PM
- 855 Views
Monday morning quarterbacking at its worst
04/10/2009 07:28:36 AM
- 798 Views
Men and football.
05/10/2009 04:49:35 PM
- 719 Views
She didn't kill anyone! Why SHOULD she feel guilty? She gave necessary orders.
06/10/2009 03:33:15 AM
- 820 Views