The Wheel of Time star breaks down that chilling Moghedien scene in Episode 306 (Exclusive)

This article contains SPOILERS for The Wheel of Time season 3 Episode 6, "The Shadow in the Night."

The Wheel of Time is deep into its third season, and despite our heroes' best efforts to take a breather this week, the villains had other ideas. Nowhere was that clearer than in Tanchico, where Nynaeve al'Meara (Zoë Robins), Elayne Trakand (Ceara Coveney), Mat Cauthon (Dónal Finn) and Min Farshaw (Kae Alexander) are on the hunt for the Black Ajah. Despite having some success in their search, like digging up a dangerous artifact known as the Domination Band and ferreting out the location of the Black Ajah's hideout, they soon fell afoul of an even more dangerous villain: Moghedien, the sadistic Forsaken sorceress played by Laia Costa.

Moghedien was first introduced at the end of the show's second season, and the anticipation has been high to see her in action. The book on which this season is largely based, The Shadow Rising, features a few fan-favorite scenes with this scheming Forsaken. And this week we got to see one of them play out, when Moghedien strolled into the inn where Nynaeve and Elayne were staying and used the mind control magic known as Compulsion on them.

This turned Nynaeve and Elayne into obedient slaves who wanted nothing more than to please their mistress, as Moghedien pumped them for information about the Black Ajah before taking the Domination Band. Afterward, Nynaeve and Elayne's memories were wiped clean; splitting headaches, a slash on Nynaeve's cheek, and the missing ter'angreal were their only signs that something had gone seriously wrong.

Zoë Robins takes us inside Moghedien's Compulsion scene

We spoke with Nynaeve actor Zoë Robins about filming this scene, and the team effort from The Wheel of Time cast and crew that brought it together. "That was super fun to shoot," Robins said. "If my memory serves me correctly, I do think it was a complete collaboration between our wonderful director [Marta Cunningham] and the actors, and also our writing team."

Part of what makes this scene so effective is that we've heard about Compulsion before; it's the same kind of magic that Rahvin, another Forsaken, is using to hold Elayne's mother Queen Morgase (Olivia Williams) in his thrall. But Moghedien's usage of Compulsion on Nynaeve and Elayne is far more direct — and far more terrifying.

"We really needed to convey that Compulsion is quite different, and also very disturbing," Robins explained. "And we were going for...Elayne and Nynaeve being almost child-like, kind of stripped of any inhibitions and just being in awe of Moghedien. It's so creepy, but Laia [Costa], who plays Moghedien...she just went for it. So it made our jobs much easier, too."

Two episodes remain in The Wheel of Time season 3. We'll be releasing our full interview with Zoë Robins after the season finale on April 17, so make sure to check back if you've been enjoying this season of The Wheel of Time!

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