Was this The ONLY Last Battle for every cycle?

[Axis m'Troutilas]

It could be like that (or not at all ;-)

Age 4 : humans rediscover science and live like us
Age 5 : humans travel to other worlds / create marvelous things and terrific weapons / destroy the universe(s) (Big Bang)
Age 6 : (re)creation of the universe(s)
Age 7 : Dinausors and etc.
Age 1 : humanity
...

I like RJ's response about dinosaurs.

[h=4]Interview: Feb 26th, 2003[/h] tarvalon.net Q&A (Verbatim)
[h=4]Question[/h] In the Wheel of Time mythos, how do extinct animals come back into existence when the Wheel comes back around?
[h=4]Robert Jordan[/h] Well, the world I created is based on the ideas and conceptions of the world from a roughly medieval viewpoint; time being circular and such. I didn't quite try to make it completely scientifically accurate, so there really is no answer for the question.

 

[Toral Delvar]

Apart from Fain of course, he was a unique aberration, but that of course didn't come to anything.

Fain was unique? Shadar Logoth must surely happen each time, unless the tainting of saidin was unique. does make me wonder if the Dark One tries different things each time, or if he just does exactly the same and expects that eventually it will come out differently

 

[Axis m'Troutilas]

Fain was unique? Shadar Logoth must surely happen each time, unless the tainting of saidin was unique. does make me wonder if the Dark One tries different things each time, or if he just does exactly the same and expects that eventually it will come out differently

yes Fain was unique

[h=4]Interview: Dec 9th, 2002[/h] Wotmania and Dragonmount Q&A
[h=4]Question[/h] Has the Padan Fain/Mordeth character been present in previous Ages, or is he unique to this particular Age?

[h=4]Robert Jordan[/h] He is unique to this particular Age. A very unique fellow, indeed. In some ways, you might say he has unwittingly side-stepped the Pattern.

Which on the one hand makes sense that his ending needed to be uneventful if the end of the age wasn't to be any different.

But on the one hand, Fain is the key to so much of the books, without him things would be very different.


All I can think of is that Mordeth is unique, but Shadar Logoth/Mashadar is not. as any without it Mat's story runs very differently which is pretty central to everything

Even so, without Fain much the books would be quite different

 

[Keril Cahendirr]

Fain/Mordeth is unique to this Age so he will come back for each third Age but will not appear in the others. It make sense to me since he's a "consequence" of the appearence of the Dark Lord in the previous Age.

 

[Raeviendha al'Toma]

Someone should post a sign saying " Do not drill here" outside the bore.

This totally cracked me up!!!

I am intrigued by the theory Dmaasen put forward..... I've got to try to wrap my mind around it.

 

[Axis m'Troutilas]

Fain/Mordeth is unique to this Age so he will come back for each third Age but will not appear in the others. It make sense to me since he's a "consequence" of the appearence of the Dark Lord in the previous Age.

I read that as unique to this third age, and not present in other third ages.

slightly ambiguous wording there unfortunately.

 

[Sorcha Al'Verdan]

I rather like the premise that Fain happens every time.

 

[Dee Aremm]

So... uhm... the Last Battle is essentially a Timewarped Wormhole? :scrath

 

[Aulrick Vendour]

I seem to remember that RJ's wording was less ambiguous. Didn't he clearly say that Fain was a specific thing of this TURNING of the wheel? Not just this age?

 

[Rand's Off Hand]

I have to disagree with many things that I've read in this thread.
first ishmael alluded that the dragon has been naebliss in other turnings of the wheel somewhere in the books, so the pattern is endless variation. this is further shown as rand holds the pattern looking at endless variation and realizes that it has never been just about him.
also new threads are still being bound to the wheel...noam, and not matt, further showing variety.
perhaps the pattern is infinit variation being spun by a wheel which only holds 360°