Balefire

[Immortal Platypus]

I was thinking the other day that balefire allegedly burns the thread away from the Pattern. How can this be true if the Wheel turns continuously and Ages repeat? Wouldn't they eventually run out of people?

Also, if actions are undone, say I kill some random person with balefire, and immediately after, someone kills me with balefire. Is the person I killed back to life now? 

[Argenti he/him]

On 7/22/2025 at 6:09 PM, Immortal Platypus said:

I was thinking the other day that balefire allegedly burns the thread away from the Pattern. How can this be true if the Wheel turns continuously and Ages repeat? Wouldn't they eventually run out of people?

Also, if actions are undone, say I kill some random person with balefire, and immediately after, someone kills me with balefire. Is the person I killed back to life now? 

They're burned out of the pattern, but that's not to say they're not eventually remade. The pattern can compensate and create new threads.

Depending how long it takes for you to die, and the strength of the balefire, yes.

[Immortal Platypus]

On 8/3/2025 at 3:00 PM, Argenti said:

Depending how long it takes for you to die, and the strength of the balefire, yes.

How is my thread unburned though?

[Argenti he/him]

25 minutes ago, Immortal Platypus said:

How is my thread unburned though?

Id asume the wheel just makes a new one eventually. It's just overuse of Balefire that distabalizes the pattern

[Ookla the Newt she/her]

I'm pretty sure that balefire doesn't remove your thread from the pattern, just burns it back a few seconds/minutes/hours depending on strength. At least that's my understanding of it.

As to the kill someone with balefire, then be killed by balefire, I found some quotes from Jordan that say that the person you killed would come back to life. Brisbane Signing Report - Joel Gilmore: Wheel of Time Interview Search: Theoryland of the Wheel of Time (Robert Jordan) (#2) and Brisbane Signing Report - Willum: Wheel of Time Interview Search: Theoryland of the Wheel of Time (Robert Jordan) (also #2). 

 

 

[Argenti he/him]

1 minute ago, Booknewt said:

I'm pretty sure that balefire doesn't remove your thread from the pattern, just burns it back a few seconds/minutes/hours depending on strength. At least that's my understanding of it.

As to the kill someone with balefire, then be killed by balefire, I found some quotes from Jordan that say that the person you killed would come back to life. Brisbane Signing Report - Joel Gilmore: Wheel of Time Interview Search: Theoryland of the Wheel of Time (Robert Jordan) (#2) and Brisbane Signing Report - Willum: Wheel of Time Interview Search: Theoryland of the Wheel of Time (Robert Jordan) (also #2). 

 

 

That's true. The thread isn't removed.

Don't ask what happens when you balefire yourself