From the Aiel Waste to new members of the Forsaken, the world of The Wheel of Time is about to get a lot bigger.
Season 2 of Prime Video’s The Wheel of Time is now at an end. While we’re still processing our feelings over the show’s epic season 2 finale, it’s never too early to start theorizing about what we’ll see next. The Wheel of Time laid a lot of groundwork for next season, and we have some predictions about what lies ahead.
Season 3 will primarily adapt the fourth book in Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time saga, The Shadow Rising. It’s possible there will be elements from other books as well, but for today we’re going to be sticking mainly to analyzing what we’re expecting from book 4. As such, this article contains SPOILERS for the first four books in The Wheel of Time. With that, let’s get into what we’re excited to see in The Wheel of Time season 3.
1. The Three-Fold Land, or as wetlanders call it, the Aiel Waste
The Wheel of Time season 2 introduces us to three Aiel Maidens of the Spear: Aviendha, Bain and Chiad. They were searching for a mysterious figure known as the Car’a’carn, which translates to “Chief of Chiefs” in the Aiel language. Basically, they’re looking for the Dragon Reborn, about whom the Aiel have their own prophecies.
The bulk of The Shadow Rising revolves around Rand, Moiriane, Lan, Egwene and Mat going out into the desert homeland of the Aiel, called the Three-Fold Land. Or as everyone who doesn’t live there calls it, the Aiel Waste. We learn a ton about Aiel culture and history in this part of the story, and season 3 is poised to delve into the thick of it.
Like the Seanchan, the Aiel are a fascinating people with their own unique customs. There are 13 tribes of Aiel in the books; the show will have eight of them. We’ve already gotten an introduction to ji’e’toh, which is their system of honor, but there’s plenty more to discover. How are they related to the Dragon Reborn? How will they react to his coming? These are huge questions season 3 will answer.
2. Rhuidean
At the heart of Rand’s journey into the Aiel Waste is the mystical abandoned city of Rhuidean. This ruin is leftover from after the Breaking of the World and contains many objects of great magical power. Prospective Aiel chiefs must journey to the city, where they undergo a trial of visions which reveal secrets about Aiel history.
We won’t get into all of the details about what happens in Rhuidean, but suffice it to say that it’s one of the most memorable parts of The Shadow Rising. So far the production team hasn’t dropped any big hints about Rhuidean, but since it’s such a standout part of the book series we’re absolutely expecting to see it onscreen. Season 2 even foreshadowed a major event which is relevant to next season’s journey to the ruined city.
3. New members of the Forsaken
The Wheel of Time season 2 spent a lot of time fleshing out Lanfear and Ishamael. Considering that season 2 ended with the revelation that Moghedien and the rest of the Forsaken are free from their prisons, it should come as no surprise that we’re expecting to see more of them. The Forsaken are interesting, multi-faceted characters who possess immense power, and they’re a huge threat to Rand and his friends.
The television show is expected to include eight of the Forsaken, as opposed to the full 13 from Robert Jordan’s books. It’s likely that we won’t see them all next season; the novels introduce them gradually as they become relevant to events.
Out of the six remaining Forsaken, we have confirmation from showrunner Rafe Judkins that Moghedien will appear in season 3. The show has already introduced her, and she has a prominent rivalry with Nynaeve in the books.
Asmodean is another Forsaken we’re likely to see in season 3. He is one of the main Forsaken who features in The Shadow Rising.
Sammael could also feasibly turn up; he is a pervasive presence in the books, steering the course of politics and war for a sizable chunk of the story. If he does appear, I expect it will mostly be to set him up for a bigger role in later seasons.
So I wouldn’t be surprised to see Moghedien, Asmodean, and Sammael, and of course we’ll see more of Lanfear. After that, it’s hard to guess who else might show up since many of the other Forsaken become more relevant later in the series.
4. The hunt for the Black Ajah
In season 2 we learned of the existence of the Black Ajah, a sect of Aes Sedai sworn to the Dark One. The only one we’ve seen revealed so far is Liandrin, but there are plenty more of them lurking about.
A prominent plotline in both The Dragon Reborn and The Shadow Rising revolves around Nynaeve and Elayne hunting for members of this shadowy group. Their search eventually brings them to the city of Tanchico, where quite a few climactic events go down.
Given that season 2 combined some events from both The Great Hunt and The Dragon Reborn, it’s a little unclear exactly how season 3 will tackle the hunt for the Black Ajah. But this is an important storyline, especially for Nynaeve. We’d be shocked not to see some version of it in season 3.
5. New romances
Rand al’Thor met Elayne Trakand, daughter-heir of Andor, right at the end of season 2, and it was clearly a significant moment for them both. Elayne was one of the standout new characters in season 2, but we’ve hardly scratched the surface. Over time, she’s going to become just as important to the story as any of the Emond’s Field Five.
She’ll also have a very personal bond with Rand. In the novels, Rand has several romances, and one of the most important is with Elayne. They actually meet very briefly in the first book, The Eye of the World. When they reunite in The Shadow Rising, they grow closer before Rand heads out to the Aiel Waste. Aviendha, another character introduced in season 2, is also involved in this plotline. She becomes close friends with Elayne and spends quite a lot of time with Rand in the Waste.
Now, you might be asking, “what about Egwene?” Prepare for some disappointment if you’ve been stanning her and Rand: in the novels, Rand and Egwene’s relationship evens out into more of a platonic bond as they each pursue their own destinies. This really begins to manifest in The Shadow Rising, since it’s the first time she and Rand really get to spend some time together since The Eye of the World. It seems likely we’ll see Egwene’s romance with Rand wane in season 3, and Rand’s romance with Elayne wax.
Rand, Elayne and Egwene won’t be the only people exploring romance in season 3. We’re also expecting to see some new characters introduced who will be important to Perrin, namely Faile Bashere and possibly Berelain sur Paendrag Paeron, the First of Mayene. The show could streamline some of these complicated love triangles, but either way, we’re expecting romance to become a more prominent part of the story next season.
6. Rand’s blademaster moment
One of the parts of The Great Hunt that I was saddest to see cut from The Wheel of Time season 2 was Rand’s journey to becoming a proper blademaster…but I think there’s reason to hope we’ll see it next season.
In the books, Rand trains for months while traveling in search of the Horn of Valere, using lessons he learned from Lan to improve his swordplay. Rand receives a heron-marked blade from his father Tam al’Thor at the very beginning of The Wheel of Time, but he doesn’t have the skill with it to claim the title of blademaster.
When Rand finally arrives at Falme, he stumbles into a fight with High Lord Turak, who is an actual blademaster who earned his heron-marked sword. Rand’s duel with Turak is an important moment for him, because it shows that Rand has actually grown into a blademaster in his own right.
Since the show didn’t have time to get into Rand’s training in season 2, his encounter with Turak went differently, with Rand displaying his magical strength instead. I believe this was a good choice, since having Rand suddenly be a skilled blademaster without showing his extended training would have robbed the moment of its power anyway. It made sense to focus on Rand’s magic.
But it will still be important for Rand to grow into a proper warrior. Daniel Henney, who plays Lan, hinted during our interview with him that he had training scenes with a “certain other male character” in season 3, and Rafe Judkins has since confirmed that Rand’s training “is coming” still. So we’re expecting to see it in season 3. If the show goes this route, my theory is that Rand could have his triumphant warrior moment as part of his battle with Couladin, an Aiel warrior who challenges him during the climax of The Shadow Rising.
7. The Battle for the Two Rivers
While Rand, Mat and Egwene are off in the Aiel Waste and Nynaeve and Elayne hunt down members of the Black Ajah, Perrin Aybara returns home to the Two Rivers. However, things have changed while he’s been away, and the Two Rivers is now being menaced by both Trollocs and Whitecloaks.
The Battle for the Two Rivers is a major set piece in The Shadow Rising which spans nearly half the book. Perrin is at the center of it, since he arrives in time to help organize the defense against the forces which threaten his home, but he’s far from the only important character involved. Verin, Alanna, Dain Bornhald, the Tinkers and plenty of familiar Two Rivers folk from season 1 will become embroiled in the fight.
We know for sure that The Wheel of Time season 3 will be including the Battle for the Two Rivers because the production rebuilt the set for Emond’s Field, which was destroyed during the series premiere in a Trolloc attack. The battle will probably be the biggest action sequence we get in season 3.
8. The return of Tam al’Thor
In the books, when Perrin returns to the Two Rivers, many of the villagers he’s known since childhood join in his efforts to keep the town safe from the Whitecloaks and Trollocs. Rand’s father, Tam al’Thor, is one who plays a crucial role, since he has prior military experience from the Aiel War.
The Wheel of Time cast Game of Thrones alum Michael McElhatton (Roose Bolton) as Tam, so you know they were always planning on including him more because you don’t get an actor like that just to leave him offscreen. Season 3 will be an ideal time to bring Tam back after he sat out most of season 2.
Having Tam come back in a meaningful way in season 3 could also serve double duty. One important element of Rand’s character journey that fell by the wayside during season 2 is that he’s still reconciling the fact that Tam isn’t his father by blood, which he found out at the end of season 1. This haunts Rand in the novels, leading to some very important scenes down the road.
Tam al’Thor has the potential to be a memorable part of season 3, and I’d be surprised if The Wheel of Time didn’t utilize him in some way.
9. Thom Merrilin sings again!
The Wheel of Time has a sprawling cast of characters; according to a recent interview with Daniel Henney, there are upwards of 300 cast members involved in the series as of season 3. One of the most important of the bunch who we really haven’t seen much of is Thom Merrilin, the gleeman who appeared in season 1. Thom seemingly sacrificed himself to save Rand and Mat from a Myrddraal, but in the books we eventually come to learn he survived the encounter. He next appears in The Great Hunt when Rand is staying in Cairhien.
The television show cut that part of the story; we didn’t see Thom at all in season 2. But actor Alexandre Willaume has confirmed that Thom “should be in for season 3.” The gleeman will be making music again!
10. Upheaval at the White Tower
We end with one of the biggest events we’re expecting to see in season 3: the coup at the White Tower. Here come the MAJOR SPOILERS for The Shadow Rising.
One of the biggest twists of the novel is that the Amyrlin Seat Siuan Sanche, along with her Keeper of the Chronicles Leane Sharif, is deposed and stilled by a faction of radical Aes Sedai. The Aes Sedai uprising is led by a prominent member of the Red Ajah named Elaida do Avriny a’Roiha, who it’s been reported will be played by Shohreh Aghdashloo (The Expanse) in season 3. When the dust settles, Elaida is the new Amyrlin and Siuane Sanche sets off on a new journey.
The Wheel of Time show has already foreshadowed the White Tower coup. We got Liandrin telling Leane that if Siuan falls, she’ll fall with her. We got Moiraine telling Siuane that the tower is full of her enemies and that the Amyrlin’s grip on power is more tenuous than she believes. And most importantly, we have Lanfear’s chilling proclamation at the end of Episode 207 that a “broken Amyrlin is more useful than a dead one.” Let’s just say that the Shadow might have a vested interest in having a more pliable Amyrlin Seat at the White Tower.
The setup for the White Tower coup is very clearly there. This is a hugely important event, both because of how it impacts Siuan as well as the ramifications of having someone like Elaida in control. We’re excited for it, we’re dreading it.
The Wheel of Time season 3 is currently filming. There’s no solid word on a release date yet, but we’d mark our calendars for sometime in 2025.
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