Editing The Wheel of Time (section)

== Setting ==
{{Redirect|Damane (The Wheel of Time)|the TV episode|Damane (The Wheel of Time episode)}}

=== The One Power and the Aes Sedai ===
The series is set in the Third Age of a fantasy world in which the pattern of human existence is determined and maintained by the Wheel of Time, a cosmic embodiment of [[eternal return]]. The Wheel spins the Pattern of the Ages, manifest in both the physical world and human destiny, using the lives of men and women as its threads. Individuals with the power to influence and change the Pattern are called ''ta'veren''.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://screenrant.com/wheel-time-taveren-dragon-reborn-candidates-meaning-explained/|title=What Being ''Ta'veren'' Means in ''Wheel of Time''{{'s}} World|first=Charles Nicholas|last=Raymond|date=29 January 2022|website=[[Screen Rant]]|access-date=1 December 2023|archive-date=23 October 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221023084050/https://screenrant.com/wheel-time-taveren-dragon-reborn-candidates-meaning-explained/|url-status=live}}</ref> The Wheel is rotated by a magical force called the One Power. The ability to access and wield the One Power is known as channeling, and only women can do this safely.<ref name="sr origin">{{Cite web|url=https://screenrant.com/wheel-time-aes-sedai-origins-powers-explained/|title=''Wheel of Time'': Aes Sedai Explained (History, Origin, Powers & Members)|first=Faefyx|last=Collington|date=28 October 2021|website=[[Screen Rant]]|access-date=17 November 2023|archive-date=18 February 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230218024331/https://screenrant.com/wheel-time-aes-sedai-origins-powers-explained/|url-status=live}}</ref> Artifacts called ''angreal'' amplify the One Power, with ''sa'angreal'' being the most potent, and ''ter'angreal'' limited to specific functions.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://collider.com/wheel-of-time-season-2-terangreal/|title=What Is a ''Ter'angreal'' in ''The Wheel of Time''?|first=Kendall|last=Myers|date=27 September 2023|website=[[Collider (website)|Collider]]|access-date=1 December 2023|archive-date=29 September 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230929115228/https://collider.com/wheel-of-time-season-2-terangreal/|url-status=live}}</ref>

A matriarchal order called the Aes Sedai, made up of female channelers, are both respected and feared across the world. Their stated goal is to use their skills to serve and protect humanity, but they are also preparing for the inevitable, prophesized return of a malevolent entity they call the [[Dark One (The Wheel of Time)|Dark One]].<ref name="sr origin"/><ref name="nerdist origin">{{Cite web|url=https://nerdist.com/article/wheel-of-time-magic-who-are-the-aes-sedai/|title=''The Wheel of Time''{{'s}} Aes Sedai, Explained|first=Amy|last=Ratcliffe|website=[[Nerdist]]|date=29 September 2023|access-date=17 November 2023|archive-date=2 November 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231102162636/https://nerdist.com/article/wheel-of-time-magic-who-are-the-aes-sedai/|url-status=live}}</ref> The leader of the Aes Sedai, known as the Amyrlin Seat, rules from the White Tower in the city of Tar Valon. The order is divided into seven disciplines, or Ajahs: the Blue Ajah are dedicated to the pursuit of justice and inevitably intrigue, possessing extensive spy networks; the Brown Ajah are dedicated to the preservation of knowledge and history; the Gray Ajah are dedicated to mediation and politics; the Green Ajah are warriors trained in battle and strategy; the Red Ajah monitor the use of the One Power by outsiders; the White Ajah are concerned with logic and truth; the Yellow Ajah are mistresses of healing; and a secret eighth faction, the Black Ajah, pose as members of other Ajahs but serve the Dark One. The few men born with the ability to channel ultimately go mad, so the Red Ajah hunt male channelers and "gentle" them, or cut them off permanently from the One Power, ever aware of the danger they represent. With the exception of the Red Ajah, the Aes Sedai each bond magically with a Warder, a male protector. The link bestows the Warder with heightened senses, strength, stamina and resistance to injury.<ref name="sr origin"/><ref name="nerdist origin"/><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.denofgeek.com/tv/the-wheel-of-time-aes-sedai/|title=''The Wheel of Time'': Who Are the Aes Sedai?|first=Michael|last=Ahr|date=28 September 2021|website=[[Den of Geek]]|access-date=17 November 2023|archive-date=2 November 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231102213347/https://www.denofgeek.com/tv/the-wheel-of-time-aes-sedai/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://screenrant.com/wheel-time-aes-sedai-colors-robes-roles-differences/|title=''Wheel of Time''{{'s}} Aes Sedai Colors & Different Roles Explained|first1=Shawn S.|last1=Lealos|first2=Charles Nicholas|last2=Raymond|date=26 November 2021|website=[[Screen Rant]]|access-date=17 November 2023|archive-date=27 September 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230927013328/https://screenrant.com/wheel-time-aes-sedai-colors-robes-roles-differences/|url-status=live}}</ref>

=== Geography and cultures ===
The primary continent depicted in the series consists of three regions: the Westlands, Shara far to the east, and the Aiel Waste in between. The Aiel Waste is separated from the westlands by the spine of the world. Connecting these three areas in the north is the eastern part of the Great Blight, a once-verdant land mass that has been corrupted by the Dark One's influence. It stretches far west across the Aryth Ocean and borders the north of the continent of Seanchan. South of the Westlands is the Sea of Storms, and the small continent known as the Land of the Madmen.<ref name="world">{{cite book |title=[[The World of Robert Jordan's The Wheel of Time]] |first1=Robert |last1=Jordan |authorlink=Robert Jordan |first2=Teresa |last2=Patterson |publisher=[[Tor Books]] |date=1997 |isbn=978-0-312-86936-6}}</ref> The Westlands contain 14 nations, including Andor, Cairhien, Illian, Shienar and [[Tear (The Wheel of Time)|Tear]],<ref name="sr omit">{{Cite web|url=https://www.cbr.com/the-wheel-of-time-episode-5-omits-caemlyn/|title=''The Wheel of Time'': Episode 5 Omits the City of Caemlyn But Loses Nothing|first=Mark|last=Millien|date=12 December 2021|website=[[Comic Book Resources]]|access-date=20 December 2023|archive-date=31 August 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220831091229/https://www.cbr.com/the-wheel-of-time-episode-5-omits-caemlyn/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://ew.com/tv/moiraines-family-drama-intensifies-wheel-of-time-clip/ |title=Moiraine's family drama intensifies in exclusive ''The Wheel of Time'' clip |magazine=[[Entertainment Weekly]] |first=Christian |last=Holub |date=20 September 2023 |access-date=20 December 2023 |archive-date=20 December 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231220194212/https://ew.com/tv/moiraines-family-drama-intensifies-wheel-of-time-clip/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="sr shienar">{{Cite web|url=https://screenrant.com/where-is-rand-going-in-wheel-of-time-season-2/|title=Where Is Rand Going in ''Wheel of Time'' Season 2? S1 Finale Hint Explained|first=Charles Nicholas|last=Raymond|date=27 May 2023|website=[[Screen Rant]]|access-date=20 December 2023|archive-date=19 July 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230719223850/https://screenrant.com/where-is-rand-going-in-wheel-of-time-season-2/|url-status=live}}</ref> as well as four major city-states: Falme, Far Madding, Mayene and Tar Valon.<ref name="sr omit"/><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://screenrant.com/wheel-of-time-season-2-ending-explained/|title=''Wheel of Time'' Season 2 Ending Explained (In Detail)|first=Charles Nicholas|last=Raymond|date=6 October 2023|website=[[Screen Rant]]|access-date=20 December 2023|archive-date=14 October 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231014032249/https://screenrant.com/wheel-of-time-season-2-ending-explained/|url-status=live}}</ref> Other notable cities include Caemlyn, the capital of Andor,<ref name="sr omit"/> and Fal Dara, the northernmost city in Shienar.<ref name="sr shienar"/> Two Rivers is a region in Andor which includes the village Emond's Field, home of five of the series' main characters.<ref name="world"/> Shara, which extends much further south than either the Westlands or the Aiel Waste, is separated from the rest of the continent by the Cliffs of the Dawn and the Great Rift. Shara remains mysterious to outsiders, who are only allowed to enter walled-off towns to trade.<ref name="world"/> The world in which the series is set is sometimes called "Randland" by fans, referring to lead character [[Rand al'Thor]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.tor.com/2020/04/30/why-doesnt-randland-have-an-actual-name/|title=Why Doesn't Randland Have an Actual Name?|website=[[Tor.com]]|first=Sylas K.|last=Barrett|date=30 April 2020|access-date=20 December 2023|archive-date=20 December 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231220034457/https://www.tor.com/2020/04/30/why-doesnt-randland-have-an-actual-name/|url-status=live}}</ref>
[[File:The World of the Wheel map.jpg|thumb|left|Map of the fictional world of ''The Wheel of Time'']]
The {{visible anchor|Seanchan}} are a vast and powerful empire whose civilization has developed at a distance from the primary continent of the series. Their culture enslaves female channelers, who they believe are too dangerous to be free. Such channelers, known as ''damane'', are collared with a ''ter'angreal'' called an ''a'dam'', which allows women known as ''sul'dam'' to harness and control their channeling power. As the Seanchan invade, they use the ''a'dam'' to enslave any Aes Sedai they can.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://collider.com/the-wheel-of-time-season-2-seanchan-explained/|title=Who Are the Seanchan in ''The Wheel of Time'' Season 2?|first=Brandon|last=Moreno|date=1 September 2023|website=[[Collider (website)|Collider]]|access-date=17 November 2023|archive-date=29 September 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230929045304/https://collider.com/the-wheel-of-time-season-2-seanchan-explained/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://nerdist.com/article/the-wheel-of-time-who-are-the-seanchan-season-2-villains-explained/|title=Who Are ''The Wheel of Time''{{'s}} Seanchan?|first=Amy|last=Ratcliffe|website=[[Nerdist]]|date=6 October 2023|access-date=17 November 2023|archive-date=17 November 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231117155519/https://nerdist.com/article/the-wheel-of-time-who-are-the-seanchan-season-2-villains-explained/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.cbr.com/the-wheel-of-time-seanchan/|title=Who Are the Seanchan on ''The Wheel of Time''?|first=Jamie|last=Parker|date=27 May 2023|website=[[Comic Book Resources]]|access-date=17 November 2023|archive-date=17 November 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231117134130/https://www.cbr.com/the-wheel-of-time-seanchan/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://screenrant.com/wheel-time-season-2-villains-seanchan-far-western-shore/|title=''Wheel of Time'' Season 2 Villains Revealed & Explained: Who Are the Seanchan?|first=Thomas|last=Bacon|date=26 December 2021|website=[[Screen Rant]]|access-date=17 November 2023|archive-date=20 September 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230920163718/https://screenrant.com/wheel-time-season-2-villains-seanchan-far-western-shore/|url-status=live}}</ref> Also opposing the Aes Sedai are the Children of the Light, or Whitecloaks, a quasi-religious, militarized order bent on destroying anyone who channels the One Power, believing they are servants of the Shadow.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://screenrant.com/wheel-time-children-light-aes-sedai-hate-reason/|title=Why The White Cloaks Hate & Hunt Aes Sedai in ''Wheel of Time''|first=Graeme|last=Guttmann|date=24 November 2021|website=[[Screen Rant]]|access-date=17 November 2023|archive-date=21 January 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220121095347/https://screenrant.com/wheel-time-children-light-aes-sedai-hate-reason/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://collider.com/wheel-of-time-season-2-whitecloaks/|title=Who Are the Whitecloaks in ''The Wheel of Time''?|first=Maria|last=D'Amico|date=20 September 2023|website=[[Collider (website)|Collider]]|access-date=17 November 2023|archive-date=29 September 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230929180525/https://collider.com/wheel-of-time-season-2-whitecloaks/|url-status=live}}</ref> In Shara, channelers are known as Ayyad, and isolate themselves in special communities. The females, who secretly control the monarchy, cultivate a bloodline of channelers by using male Ayyad as uneducated breeding stock and executing them by age 21.<ref name="tor chaos 6">{{Cite web|url=https://www.tor.com/2022/01/25/reading-the-wheel-of-time-graendal-and-semirhage-treat-their-patients-in-robert-jordans-lord-of-chaos-part-6/|title=Reading ''The Wheel of Time'': Graendal and Semirhage Treat Their Patients in Robert Jordan's ''Lord of Chaos'' (Part 6)|website=[[Tor.com]]|first=Sylas K.|last=Barrett|date=25 January 2022|access-date=3 January 2023|archive-date=29 September 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220929132333/https://www.tor.com/2022/01/25/reading-the-wheel-of-time-graendal-and-semirhage-treat-their-patients-in-robert-jordans-lord-of-chaos-part-6/|url-status=live}}</ref>

The {{visible anchor|Aiel}} are a fierce warrior race who live in the Three-fold Land, called the Aiel Waste by outsiders, an inhospitable desert region located between the Westlands and Shara. They are tall, with characteristic pale eyes, and red or blond hair. There are 12 Aiel clans, plus the extinct Jenn Aiel, who built the city of Rhuidean, a repository of Aiel history and culture. The Maidens of the Spear are an all-female warrior society among the Aiel. Female Aiel who can channel the One Power or navigate ''Tel'aran'rhiod'', the World of Dreams, do not join the Aes Sedai, instead becoming known as Wise Ones. The Aiel await a prophesied "Chief of Chiefs", whom they call the ''Car'a'carn'', who will unite and rule all the clans.<ref name="world"/>

The {{visible anchor|Ogier}} are a hirsute, wide-featured and immensely tall and strong species of humanoid known for their proficiency in woodwork and masonry. Though physically intimidating, they are peaceful, intelligent and interested in historical and genealogical study. The Ogier also possess a unique ability called treesinging, whereby they stimulate the growth and healing of trees and plants by singing to them.<ref name="sr loial">{{Cite web|url=https://screenrant.com/wheel-of-time-loial-ogier-race-powers-origin/|title=Who Is Loial: ''Wheel of Time''{{'s}} New Main Character (Powers & Race Explained)|first=Charles Nicholas|last=Raymond|date=9 December 2021|website=[[Screen Rant]]|access-date=25 November 2023|archive-date=16 May 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220516133555/https://screenrant.com/wheel-of-time-loial-ogier-race-powers-origin/|url-status=live}}</ref> They live in sanctuaries called ''steddings'', in which the One Power is inaccessible. After the Breaking of the World, male channelers who sought sanctuary with the Ogier thanked them by creating the Ways, a series of paths through an alternate dimension that connected Ogier communities. Stone doorways called Waygates, placed outside each ''stedding'', were used to travel long distances quickly. In the millennia that followed, however, the Ways were corrupted by a malevolent force known as the Machin Shin, or Black Wind, which attacks travelers.<ref name="world"/>

The {{visible anchor|Tinkers}}, or ''Tuatha'an'', are a nomadic group of people who travel continuously and widely in brightly colored wagons, believing this is the only way to remain safe. They follow the pacifistic Way of the Leaf, which eschews violence. The Tuatha'an's main purpose has evolved to searching for "The Song", lost during the Breaking of the World, which they claim they will know when they find it.<ref name="world"/> The Sea Folk, or ''Atha'an Miere'', are dark-skinned people with complex customs who live on ships and on islands in the Sea of Storms. They only appear on the mainland to trade goods, and Sea Folk porcelain sculptures, delicate and graceful objects of art, are highly prized by mainlanders. Unknown to any but the ''Atha'an Miere'', the fabled porcelain is created by the Amayar, a group of island dwelling people protected by the Sea Folk as a solemn duty since the Breaking of the World. The Amayar adhere to the Water Way, a pacifistic way of life akin to the Way of the Leaf practiced by the Tuatha'an.<ref name="world"/>

=== The Dark One ===
Humans seduced by promises of power and immortality to serve the Dark One are known as Darkfriends.<ref name="mythology">{{Cite web|url=https://screenrant.com/wheel-time-world-mythology-story-characters-magic-explained/|title=''Wheel of Time''{{'s}} World & Mythology Explained: Magic, Characters & Story|first=Charles Nicholas|last=Raymond|date=2 September 2021|website=[[Screen Rant]]|access-date=27 November 2023|archive-date=29 September 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230929164008/https://screenrant.com/wheel-time-world-mythology-story-characters-magic-explained/|url-status=live}}</ref> The increasing influence of the Dark One has also introduced an array of creatures called Shadowspawn. Trollocs are brutal, humanoid monsters with animal senses who kill with pleasure and eat all meat, including humans. They are led by the Myrddraal, or Fades, terrifying and deadly creatures without eyes who can disappear in shadow but will not cross running water. Appearing human and designed to target channelers, ''gholam'' are constructs which possess superhuman strength, are impervious to harm and immune to the One Power, and feed on blood. Gray Men, or the Soulless, are humans who have sacrificed their souls to become drab assassins with the ability to pass completely unnoticed. Draghkar are flying, vampiric creatures that devour the souls of their prey. Darkhounds are otherworldly, doglike beasts the size of small horses, with acidic, poison saliva. They regenerate when wounded or dismembered, and can only be destroyed by balefire, a weapon of the One Power which erases the target from existence, retroactively through time.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://comicyears.com/tv-shows/wheel-of-time-shadowspawn/|title=A Guide to the World of ''Wheel of Time'': What Are Shadowspawn?|website=Comic Years|date=8 December 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211208213010/https://comicyears.com/tv-shows/wheel-of-time-shadowspawn/|archive-date=8 December 2021|access-date=1 December 2023|url-status=dead}}</ref>

The most significant minions of the Shadow are the Forsaken, a group of male and female channelers from  the Second Age, or the Age of Legends, who are among the most powerful to have ever lived. Calling themselves "Those Chosen to Rule the World Forever", they pledged their loyalty to the Dark One in exchange for power and immortality. In turn, the Dark One granted them access to the [[True Power (The Wheel of Time)|True Power]], his exclusive equivalent of the One Power which is not divided by gender, and is more chaotic. Use of the True Power manifests as ''saa'', black flecks moving across the eyes of the channeler, increasing in number in tandem with increased channeling. The more powerful among the Forsaken vie to be raised above the others to the position of ''nae'blis'', the Dark One's second-in-command. The thirteen Forsaken—[[Aginor]], [[Asmodean]], [[Balthamel]], [[Be'lal]], [[Demandred]], [[Graendal]], [[Ishamael]], [[Lanfear]], [[Mesaana]], [[Moghedien]], [[Rahvin]], [[Sammael (The Wheel of Time)|Sammael]] and [[Semirhage]]—were imprisoned with the Dark One at Shayol Ghul at the end of the Second Age.<ref name="collider forsaken">{{Cite web|url=https://collider.com/wheel-of-time-season-2-forsaken-explained/|title=Who Are the Forsaken in ''The Wheel of Time'' Season 2?|first=Kendall|last=Myers|date=13 September 2023|website=[[Collider (website)|Collider]]|access-date=16 November 2023|archive-date=26 September 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230926013923/https://collider.com/wheel-of-time-season-2-forsaken-explained/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="sr forsaken">{{Cite web|url=https://screenrant.com/wheel-of-time-13-forsaken-explained/|title=The Forsaken in ''The Wheel of Time'' Explained: All 13 Major Villains|first=Henry|last=Ladd|date=10 September 2023|website=[[Screen Rant]]|access-date=16 November 2023|archive-date=16 October 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231016184144/https://screenrant.com/wheel-of-time-13-forsaken-explained/|url-status=live}}</ref> Three thousand years later near the end of the Third Age, the Aes Sedai learn that the prophesied channeler known as the [[Dragon (The Wheel of Time)|Dragon]] has been reborn, signaling that a final battle with the Dark One is coming.<ref name="sr origin"/><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://nerdist.com/article/the-wheel-of-time-what-is-the-dragon-reborn-explainer/|title=Who Is ''The Wheel of Time''{{'s}} Dragon Reborn?|website=[[Nerdist]]|first=Amy|last=Ratcliffe|date=6 October 2023|access-date=16 November 2023|archive-date=17 November 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231117175828/https://nerdist.com/article/the-wheel-of-time-what-is-the-dragon-reborn-explainer/|url-status=live}}</ref> The Seven Seals of the Dark One's prison have weakened, and the Forsaken begin to reenter the world, presenting a new threat and paving the way for their master.<ref name="collider forsaken"/><ref name="sr forsaken"/>

=== Backstory ===
In the [[backstory]] of the series, the Wheel of Time and the universe were forged at the dawn of time by a deity known as the Creator, simultaneously imprisoning its antithesis, the Dark One. The One Power itself is divided into both male (''saidin'') and female (''saidar'') halves, and originally both genders could wield it. In the Age of Legends, the Aes Sedai was made up of both men and women who could channel. An Aes Sedai experiment inadvertently drilled what would become known as the Bore into the Dark One's prison, and his influence began to seep out into the world. In response to the threat of his eventual release, the Wheel produced the Dragon, [[Lews Therin Telamon]], a channeler of immense power. Lews eventually rose to command the Aes Sedai and their allies in the struggle against the Dark One's forces. Seven Seals were created, made of an unbreakable substance called ''cuendillar'', to be used as focus points to reseal the Dark One's prison for good. Lews and a host of 99 male channelers managed to imprison the Forsaken with their master, but at the moment of victory, the Dark One was able to taint ''saidin'', driving male channelers insane. Lews killed his friends and family, and then himself. Other male channelers devastated the world with earthquakes and tidal waves, an event called the Breaking of the World, before destroying themselves. The female Aes Sedai guided humanity out of this dark time, living in the shadow of a prophecy that the Dark One would break free from his prison and the Dragon would be reborn to fight him once more. And though the [[Dragon Reborn]] is humanity's only hope against the Dark One, he would break the world a second time in the process.<ref name="sr origin"/><ref name="nerdist origin"/><ref name="time butler">{{Cite magazine|url=https://time.com/6121275/wheel-of-time-books-explained/|title=What to Know About ''The Wheel of Time'' Books|date=18 November 2021|magazine=[[Time (magazine)|Time]]|first=Leigh|last=Butler|access-date=7 November 2023|archive-date=7 November 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231107234516/https://time.com/6121275/wheel-of-time-books-explained/|url-status=live}}</ref>