The Wheel of Time Companion

by Robert Jordan

  Golden Crane. The symbol of Malkier, a golden crane flying on a field of blue.

  Golden Crown of Heaven, The. A low-class inn in the Rahad, a seedy district in Ebou Dar. It was a dim hole with only a blue door to mark it, and black stains from old knife fights splotched the grimy floor. Mat went there.

  Golden Cup, The. A low-class inn in Tear with a male innkeeper. There, Mat and Thom found Comar, a man whom Rahvin had sent to kill Nynaeve, Egwene and Elayne. Mat diced with him, then broke Comar’s back in a fight.

  Golden Ducks, The. A lower-class inn in Ebou Dar where Noal, who had saved Mat from a gholam, had a pallet in the attic until he was displaced by an Illianer oil merchant whose room was taken by a Seanchan officer. Mat offered to give him accommodations in the palace.

  Golden Head, The. An inn in Amador. Lamgwin was to wait there while Morgase and her party were smuggled out of the Fortress of the Light, an escape which never happened.

  Golden Lily. Elayne’s sigil.

  Golden Lions of Aldeshar. An army that lost a decisive battle to Artur Hawkwing. They sang “Dance with Jak o’ the Shadows” as they launched their last, futile charge at Artur Hawkwing’s encircling army.

  Golden Sheaves, The. A small inn in Damelien, Andor, a village with three mills and a small, drying-up river. Elayne and the Kin stayed at the inn on the way to Caemlyn after using the Bowl and evading the Seanchan army. Its innkeeper thought that Morgase had been the best queen there ever was, and that Elayne had been killed by the Dragon Reborn.

  Golden Stag, The. The inn in Maerone where Mat and his officers stayed. Its innkeeper was Mistress Daelvin, and Betse Silvin, whom Mat had his eye on and taught an ancient dance, was a serving maid. It was a higher-class establishment, and the second best in Maerone.

  Golden Swans of Heaven, The. A tiny inn in Ebou Dar where Bethamin stayed with other sul’dam while she worked training damane at the palace. There she was questioned by a Seeker, who made her promise to spy on Egeanin. Its innkeeper was Mistress Darnella Shoran.

  Golden Wheel, The. An inn located in Far Madding that Rand visited while looking for the renegade Asha’man, and where he heard about Tear being under siege. Its innkeeper was Mistress Gallger. The inn was large, and full of bankers and merchants.

  goldenthorn. A plant that grew no farther north than one hundred miles south of Tar Valon. When Pevara and the group of Black Ajah hunters found goldenthorn seeds on Zerah’s saddlecloth, it revealed her to be one of the rebel Aes Sedai.

  Golever, Berab. See Berab Golever

  golliwogs. Having these meant that one was very nervous.

  Gomaisen, Aldred. See Aldred Gomaisen

  Gomanes. A Child of the Light. Dain Bornhald sent him and Joelin with Ordeith to find out what Ordeith was up to; Ordeith reported that they were the only two killed in a skirmish with Trollocs. Dain suspected correctly that Ordeith had killed them.

  Gome, Mairin. A traveling circus owner who was in Samara at the same time as Luca. The line for her show was almost as long as the one for Luca’s.

  Good Night’s Ride, The. An inn located in Lugard, Murandy. It was a three-storied inn of rough gray stone and purple-tiled roof, and bawdy songs were sung inside to a boisterous clientele. The sign in front of the inn showed a woman dressed only in her hair mounted bareback on a horse. Its innkeeper, Duranda Tharne, was an eye-and-ears for the Blue Ajah. Siuan learned from her that the rebel Aes Sedai were in Salidar.

  Good Queen, The. A crowded inn in Aringill, Andor. Its innkeeper was Master Jeral Florry. Mat and Thom paid a steep price to stay in its stable, and the innkeeper was foolish enough to gamble with Mat; Mat won two of his horses. Aludra sought shelter in the stable while they were there, and Mat rescued her from Tammuz and his cronies.

  Good Queen’s Justice, The. A two-story brick and thatch inn in the small village of Kore Springs, Andor. Bryne presided at this inn over Siuan, Leane and Min’s trial for burning down a barn.

  Goose and Crown, The. A small village inn a day’s ride from Caemlyn. Its innkeeper, Master Raimun Holdwin, was a Darkfriend and outside the inn met with a Myrddraal, who was inquiring about Rand and Mat. The pair overheard the conversation, and hitched a ride in the cart of a man going to Caemlyn.

  Goose and Pipe, The. An inn found in Deven Ride, Andor. It was a typical small village inn, thatch-roofed, and slightly larger than The Winespring Inn. Perrin visited it in the wolf dream while searching for Trolloc camps in the area. He saw the Whitecloaks had the village and villagers surrounded.

  goosemint. An herb used to relieve a burning or sour stomach. It had frilly leaves, and was chewed for its medicinal properties.

  Goraed, Beron. A wealthy Ghealdan merchant dragged from his bed to marry Queen Teresia and so disqualify her for the throne.

  Gorderan. A Tairen Redarm in the Band of the Red Hand. About thirty-five years old when first seen and standing 5'10" tall, he was heavyset and muscular with broad shoulders—nearly as broad as Perrin’s—and a heavy chest. Despite his bulk, he was much quicker than he looked and almost as good with a sword as Metwyn. He was fair-skinned for a Tairen, with black hair and gray eyes. He survived recovering the Bowl of the Winds in the Rahad, along with Harnan, Fergin and Metwyn. He acquired a heavy crossbow which he used to shoot Renna when she tried to return to the Seanchan. He and Fergin were killed by a gholam in Mat’s camp outside Caemlyn.

  Gorenellin. A plump Malkieri-born merchant located in Saldaea. When Nynaeve Traveled to Saldaea to drum up support for Lan, Gorenellin was bargaining hard with two Altarans. Gorenellin went with Aldragoran and joined Lan in Kandor, almost at the Arafellin border.

  Goridien, Shana. See Shana Goridien

  Gorin Rogad. A false Dragon who rose in Illian in 995 NE. He was taken and burned alive by the Illianers.

  Gorovni, Valera. See Valera Gorovni

  Gorthanes, Ries. See Ries Gorthanes

  Goshien Aiel. An Aiel clan; its chief was Bael.

  Governors, the. Sea Folk rulers on Tremalking. Governors were appointed for the Sea Folk islands from among the Atha’an Miere, never the Amayar. Sea Folk considered this duty off a ship to be onerous, but took the view that it had to be treated like duty on a ship; the ship must be tended and the crew cared for, and so the island must be tended and its inhabitants cared for. Because the duty was onerous, and because Sea Folk wanted to remain with their ships, the Governors and other Sea Folk rarely ventured away from the ports and shipbuilding facilities, except on tours inland to make sure that all was well.

  Grady family. See Gadren, Jur and Sora Grady

  Graeger. Almen Bunt’s brother-in-law who vanished; all that could be found was a twisted, leafless tree that smelled of sulfur.

  Graendal. A woman whose name in Age of Legends was Kamarile Maradim Nindar; she became one of the Forsaken. Her strength level was 3(+10). She was stunningly beautiful, lush and ripe, with long sun-colored hair. She was known around the world, famed and loved, if apparently more often by people who had heard of her than by those who knew her. Before going over to the Shadow, she immersed herself in curing those with mental illnesses that the Power and Healing could not touch. She was also a noted ascetic, not only living a spare and simple life, but preaching that others should as well. The reason that those who knew her often did not like her was that while her public calls for a sparse life were always moderate, in private she was inevitably abrasive and cutting toward anyone who did not live up to her standards of the simple life. Within ten years after the drilling of the Bore, she reversed all of this completely. Some years after, she became the second of those called Chosen to go over to the Dark One. Graendal pursued conquest as much as Sammael, though her methods did not involve soldiers; for all her concern with her toys, she took one solid step at a time, openly to be sure, as the Chosen reckoned such things, but never stretching too far at any step. Her tools were intrigue, subversion and sabotage. She was perhaps the most subtle user of Compulsion in all of its variations. She, of course, trusted no one. Among t
he Forsaken, she always supported whoever seemed to be winning, or at least able to give her some advantage. She opposed no one—openly, at least—unless she was relatively certain of a win. She was willing to gamble if necessary, but always balanced risks, rewards and consequences.

  On the surface she seemed foolish, indolent, dedicated to her own beauty and her own pleasures, especially sensual and sexual. She had buried many who took her at face value. When she awoke in the Third Age, she went to live in a palace in Arad Doman that she took from its proper owner; she sometimes masqueraded as Lady Basene, a Domani noblewoman. Some of her plans involved Rodel Ituralde, the great captain; she manipulated Domani politics. She had been meeting Rahvin at the Royal Palace, and was surprised to find it under new management when she arrived to see him. Encountering Asmodean, she acted and killed him. She concealed this fact, in large part to let the others wonder. Also, she planned to arrange things the others would not like and blame them on Asmodean if she worked them right.

  She devoted a great deal of her time to her own comforts and pleasures, to acquiring the servants/slaves she called her “pets.” Physical beauty was not enough to be one of Graendal’s servants; beauty was required, but they needed at least some degree of power or position as well—a former lord for a footman, a lady to draw her bath. A common man or woman, however beautiful, just did not interest her.

  It amused Graendal to keep Jain Farstrider and use him, a bit of Ishamael’s handiwork, a souvenir of the first move in the Dark One’s grand design. Also, for a time at least, she really did think that his age and battered appearance set off and heightened the beauty of her other servants. She used only the most subtle degrees of Compulsion on him, and sent him to Ebou Dar on the off chance that there might be something to her suspicions of an angreal there which was being sought by Sammael.

  She used Compulsion on her other pets like a bludgeon, so they would worship her beyond life. Sammael noted that this often made others forget her skill and subtlety with Compulsion; she was one of the best ever at manipulating the minds of others. One thing she came to believe, despite hearing Demandred’s rendition of the Dark One’s “Lord of Chaos” order, was that Rand al’Thor was too dangerous to leave alive. But she thought that killing him would have to be done very, very, very carefully. She very definitely did not want to face the Dark One’s wrath. Thus she aimed Sammael at Rand, but was caught by Sammael in a snare of her own sort. Although her own snares were working, she found herself forced into aiding Sammael far more than she wanted to, even having to follow his lead and most of his orders. She helped him to the extent of linking with him and letting him control her use of the Power while meeting Sevanna; her pseudonym then was “Maisia.” She went along with his “fool box” trick, scattering the Shaido widely.

  She had an angreal, a ring, a plain gold band too small for any but her little finger; it didn’t give her a great increase in power, in her opinion, but it could step her up into the “male levels.” She found it among Sammael’s belongings after his death. Soon thereafter, she was coopted by Moridin, acting through Shaidar Haran, Moghedien and Cyndane. Moridin told her not to kill Rand, and later told her to kill Perrin, giving her the dreamspike and the services of Slayer to accomplish the task. Blaming her for the failure to kill Perrin and for the death of several Forsaken, Shaidar Haran punished Graendal by killing her and putting her soul in an ugly body. She was given the new name Hessalam.

  She faced off against Aviendha during the Last Battle near Shayol Ghul. She attempted to use Compulsion against Aviendha, who was unweaving a gateway. In the explosion that followed, her Compulsion was turned back on her, making her Aviendha’s willing slave.

  Grafendale. A town in Andor. Androl thought that the houses at the Black Tower would look normal here.

  Grand Alliance, Grand Coalition. See Coalition, the

  Grand Emergence. The most secret ceremony of the Red Ajah. They walked through the ceremony in a warded place, speaking the parts in a guarded way even so. It was, in fact, nothing less than a plan for seizing the White Tower should that become necessary. Not all Red sisters were aware of that ceremony, since it was so shrouded in doublespeak and masked words. It supposedly had been practiced ever since the White Tower was founded. Every Red sister who knew what it was felt certain that the other Ajahs had something similar. In fact, at least some did.

  Grand Hall. A spacious room found in the Royal Palace in Caemlyn.

  Grand Hall of the Assembly. The building that housed the Assembly of Lords, which elected both the King and Panarch, in Tanchico.

  Grand Hall of the Sun. A hall found in Cairhien’s Sun Palace.

  Grand Hike, The. An inn in Caemlyn; Snert was the innkeeper.

  Grand Passions Cycle, The. A piece of music composed three hundred years before the War of Power; “The March of Death” was its mournful final movement, and was played by Asmodean on his harp.

  Grassburner. Another name for the Dark One.

  grassfang. A snake found in Seanchan.

  Gray Ajah. The main thrust of the Gray Ajah was mediation and negotiation. The Ajah was ruled by a council of varying number, but always an odd number. The leader of the council was considered by Gray sisters to be the head of their Ajah and was known as the Head Clerk, but in fact she had less authority than most Ajah heads and had to depend on gaining consensus among the council members. At the time of the Last Battle, there were approximately 140 members of the Gray Ajah, making it the third largest.

  gray fennel. A poisonous plant.

  Gray Fox, the. See Thom Merrilin

  Gray Gull. The three-masted rivership owned by Huan Mallia. It used sweeps (oars) inside the harbor. Sanor and Vasa were crewmen. Mat and Thom traveled aboard it from Tar Valon to Aringill.

  Gray Men. A type of Shadowspawn, unusual in being ordinary humans who gave their souls to the Dark One; they were called Notdead by wolves. Aes Sedai and their Warders could not detect the presence of Gray Men, as they could the presence of those far gone in the Shadow, because the taint of evil was not strong enough in them; however, Rand did sense one, because of his greater strength, and Perrin was able to smell them. Some Gray Men, both male and female, were serving the Forsaken, but Lanfear had an antipathy toward them and did not employ them. Only Gray Men and Myrddraal did not dream, according to Lanfear.

  Gray Owl. The symbol of Lord Ingtar of Shienar.

  Gray Tower. An organization mentioned by Emarin/Algarin in a ruse.

  Grayor Frenn. A Two Rivers man who watched the forging of Mah’alleinir.

  Great Arvalon. A place in the Fourth Age where a children’s game had a chant that mentioned the Lord of Chaos.

  Great Blackwood. See Forest of Shadows

  Great Blight. A stretch of territory north of the Borderlands, home of the Trollocs, Myrddraal and other creatures of the Shadow and characterized by the evil influence of the Dark One. Not part of the normal universe (as was also true of stedding or lands of Aelfinn/Eelfinn), it was not reflected in and could not be entered from Tel’aran’rhiod.

  great captain. The term for a military commander of extraordinary abilities. The five great captains of the time leading up to the Last Battle were Agelmar Jagad, Davram Bashere, Pedron Niall (murdered before the Last Battle), Rodel Ituralde and Gareth Bryne.

  Great Circle, the. A huge gathering place in Tanchico that could hold thousands to watch horse races or displays of fireworks. It was located on the Calpene, the westernmost hilly peninsula on Tanchico Bay.

  Great Council of Thirteen. See Supreme Council

  Great Fish Market. The largest fish market in Tar Valon. Built by Ogier, it seemed to be a school of huge fish, green and red and blue and striped.

  Great Game, the. See Daes Dae’mar

  Great Gathering, The. The inn at the Black Tower; it was owned by Lind Taglien.

  Great Hall of the Council. A building opposite the King’s Palace on the Square of Tammaz in Illian. The first King of Illian said the Council of Nine could
have any palace they wished, just as long as they did not try to build one larger than his; the Council copied the King’s palace exactly, but two feet smaller in every measurement. Both buildings were Ogier-built.

  Great Holding. A collection of angreal, sa’angreal, ter’angreal and other items supposedly connected to the Power that was held in the Stone of Tear. Nynaeve estimated that it would take ten riverboats to take them all to Tar Valon.

  Great Hunt of the Horn. 1) A widespread hunt called to search for the Horn of Valere. The tradition of the Great Hunt dated back to the Age of Legends. 2) A cycle of stories concerning the legendary search for the Horn of Valere, composed in the years between the end of the Trolloc Wars and the beginning of the War of the Hundred Years. If told in its entirety, the cycle would take many days.

  Great Lord of the Dark. The name by which Darkfriends referred to the Dark One, claiming that to speak his true name would be blasphemous; the shorter “Great Lord” was also used.

  Great Pattern. The Wheel of Time weaves the Patterns of the Ages from the threads of lives and events, interlaced into designs, each and every possible reality—past, present and future. Also known as the Lace of Ages.

  Great Purge. In Egwene’s test for Accepted, when she was the Amyrlin, part of her remembered something called the Great Purge that eradicated the Black Ajah, but part of her was sure no such thing had happened.

  Great Rift. One of the natural barriers, a giant chasm, that separated the Aiel Waste from Shara, extending over 450 leagues from the Cliffs of Dawn into the Sea of Storms.

  Great Serpent. A symbol for time and eternity, believed to have been ancient before the Age of Legends began, consisting of a serpent eating its own tail. A ring in the shape of the Great Serpent was awarded to women who had been raised to the Accepted among the Aes Sedai.

  Great Stump. A periodic meeting held by the Ogier, at which matters of the gravest importance were discussed. Such a meeting was held at Stedding Shangtai, which lay at the Spine of the World. It was the first meeting of the Great Stump in a thousand years. Only an Ogier old enough was allowed to address the Stump, unless, as in Loial’s case, he was married and his wife gave him permission. It was at this meeting that Loial argued convincingly that the Ogier should not yet open the Book of Translation, but rather help fight the Dark One.