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
1792 Views
No.
- 01/10/2009 07:41:35 PM
1188 Views
Or RJ just loves stacking ridiculously unfavourable odds against the male Forsaken generals...
- 01/10/2009 08:40:47 PM
1260 Views
Lol... too true
- 01/10/2009 09:32:29 PM
1162 Views
And you guys whine about the lameness of RJ's villains?
- 01/10/2009 09:41:54 PM
1240 Views
I still haven't seen proof of Demandred or Ishamael's "brilliance".
- 01/10/2009 09:56:41 PM
978 Views
but you are difficult to please
- 02/10/2009 05:10:13 AM
939 Views
But they are lame... they've done minimal damage to the Light
- 02/10/2009 05:06:05 AM
881 Views
You can't have it both ways....
- 02/10/2009 06:47:21 AM
968 Views
Why not?
- 02/10/2009 08:45:35 AM
940 Views
Yeah
- 01/10/2009 09:57:01 PM
958 Views
Re: Yeah
- 01/10/2009 10:40:28 PM
941 Views
I thought the same in the past...
- 02/10/2009 07:01:18 AM
915 Views
Gah! Hate!
- 02/10/2009 04:11:49 PM
934 Views
Ah, come on...
- 02/10/2009 04:41:37 PM
910 Views
No no, I was just being pouty that I haven't read the new stuff yet.
- 02/10/2009 05:01:15 PM
914 Views
- 02/10/2009 05:01:15 PM
914 Views
Re: Or RJ just loves stacking ridiculously unfavourable odds against the male Forsaken generals...
- 01/10/2009 09:51:30 PM
1020 Views
What about Mat and Ituralde?
- 02/10/2009 04:28:49 AM
962 Views
Good points! Also, these "generals" haven't actually fielded any troops
- 01/10/2009 11:23:40 PM
893 Views
But as individuals they are meant to be deadly too
- 02/10/2009 05:09:21 AM
870 Views
Well, yeah. They're knowledgable and deadly in person. Generalship doesn't come into it.
- 04/10/2009 12:09:50 AM
876 Views
nope
- 01/10/2009 08:06:57 PM
1065 Views
Tylee Kirgan, Birgitte, and one other, Egeanin
- 01/10/2009 09:47:00 PM
1325 Views
Birgitte's not a soldier though.
- 01/10/2009 10:10:50 PM
907 Views
She says she's not, but so does Mat.
- 01/10/2009 10:34:04 PM
818 Views
- 01/10/2009 10:34:04 PM
818 Views
Mat's not a soldier, either - he's a general
- 01/10/2009 10:51:29 PM
949 Views
Birgitte is too cautious to be better than an adequate tactician.
- 02/10/2009 04:22:45 AM
960 Views
My opinion
- 02/10/2009 01:30:12 AM
1397 Views
That's a poor excuse
- 02/10/2009 11:59:42 AM
853 Views
I disagree
- 02/10/2009 04:26:28 PM
930 Views
Re: I disagree
- 02/10/2009 08:31:29 PM
1170 Views
Oh, puh-lease.
- 02/10/2009 09:09:30 PM
1103 Views
Re: Oh, puh-lease.
- 03/10/2009 04:52:37 PM
927 Views
Re: Oh, puh-lease.
- 05/10/2009 05:08:27 PM
3400 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
1012 Views
And I can tell you're through when you've gotten to three+ insults per paragraph.
- 06/10/2009 05:46:24 PM
1076 Views
Monday morning quarterbacking at its worst
- 04/10/2009 07:28:36 AM
1023 Views
Men and football.
- 05/10/2009 04:49:35 PM
962 Views
She didn't kill anyone! Why SHOULD she feel guilty? She gave necessary orders.
- 06/10/2009 03:33:15 AM
1028 Views


