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
1627 Views
No.
- 01/10/2009 07:41:35 PM
1089 Views
Or RJ just loves stacking ridiculously unfavourable odds against the male Forsaken generals...
- 01/10/2009 08:40:47 PM
1151 Views
Lol... too true
- 01/10/2009 09:32:29 PM
1084 Views
And you guys whine about the lameness of RJ's villains?
- 01/10/2009 09:41:54 PM
1149 Views
I still haven't seen proof of Demandred or Ishamael's "brilliance".
- 01/10/2009 09:56:41 PM
892 Views
but you are difficult to please
- 02/10/2009 05:10:13 AM
856 Views
But they are lame... they've done minimal damage to the Light
- 02/10/2009 05:06:05 AM
793 Views
You can't have it both ways....
- 02/10/2009 06:47:21 AM
885 Views
Why not?
- 02/10/2009 08:45:35 AM
852 Views
Yeah
- 01/10/2009 09:57:01 PM
883 Views
Re: Yeah
- 01/10/2009 10:40:28 PM
855 Views
I thought the same in the past...
- 02/10/2009 07:01:18 AM
831 Views
Gah! Hate!
- 02/10/2009 04:11:49 PM
844 Views
Ah, come on...
- 02/10/2009 04:41:37 PM
833 Views
No no, I was just being pouty that I haven't read the new stuff yet.
- 02/10/2009 05:01:15 PM
833 Views
- 02/10/2009 05:01:15 PM
833 Views
Re: Or RJ just loves stacking ridiculously unfavourable odds against the male Forsaken generals...
- 01/10/2009 09:51:30 PM
923 Views
What about Mat and Ituralde?
- 02/10/2009 04:28:49 AM
880 Views
Good points! Also, these "generals" haven't actually fielded any troops
- 01/10/2009 11:23:40 PM
801 Views
But as individuals they are meant to be deadly too
- 02/10/2009 05:09:21 AM
786 Views
Well, yeah. They're knowledgable and deadly in person. Generalship doesn't come into it.
- 04/10/2009 12:09:50 AM
777 Views
nope
- 01/10/2009 08:06:57 PM
944 Views
Tylee Kirgan, Birgitte, and one other, Egeanin
- 01/10/2009 09:47:00 PM
1233 Views
Birgitte's not a soldier though.
- 01/10/2009 10:10:50 PM
818 Views
She says she's not, but so does Mat.
- 01/10/2009 10:34:04 PM
732 Views
- 01/10/2009 10:34:04 PM
732 Views
Mat's not a soldier, either - he's a general
- 01/10/2009 10:51:29 PM
878 Views
Birgitte is too cautious to be better than an adequate tactician.
- 02/10/2009 04:22:45 AM
853 Views
My opinion
- 02/10/2009 01:30:12 AM
1247 Views
That's a poor excuse
- 02/10/2009 11:59:42 AM
763 Views
I disagree
- 02/10/2009 04:26:28 PM
839 Views
Re: I disagree
- 02/10/2009 08:31:29 PM
1085 Views
Oh, puh-lease.
- 02/10/2009 09:09:30 PM
1000 Views
Re: Oh, puh-lease.
- 03/10/2009 04:52:37 PM
830 Views
Re: Oh, puh-lease.
- 05/10/2009 05:08:27 PM
3304 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
892 Views
And I can tell you're through when you've gotten to three+ insults per paragraph.
- 06/10/2009 05:46:24 PM
974 Views
Monday morning quarterbacking at its worst
- 04/10/2009 07:28:36 AM
939 Views
Men and football.
- 05/10/2009 04:49:35 PM
862 Views
She didn't kill anyone! Why SHOULD she feel guilty? She gave necessary orders.
- 06/10/2009 03:33:15 AM
935 Views


