Ishamael

Origin

An Aes Sedai and philosopher in the Age of Legends, Elan Morin Tedronai was powerful, but lacked the personal appeal of Lews Therin Telamon. He eventually determined that the only possible winner in the war between the Light and the Shadow would be the Dark One, and so became the first Aes Sedai to declare his allegiance to the Dark One. During the War of Power he was first among the Forsaken, and though he and his compatriots were defeated by Lews Therin, he was not sealed in the Bore along with the other Forsaken. Instead, he travelled to the place where Lews Therin, now mad, had killed every member of his own family. He granted Lews Therin sanity, causing him to destroy himself in grief. Ishamael then retreated from everyday contact with the world, returning to the world approximately once every millennium and wreaking havoc. The times in which he touched the world have been marked by some of the worst tragedies suffered by humanity.

Creation

Ishamael was created by Robert Jordan for his book series The Wheel of Time, making his first appearance in the first book of that series, The Eye of the World. He made his first appearance in comics in Robert Jordan's The Wheel of Time: Dragonmount #0, written by Jordan and Chuck Dixon and illustrated by Chase Conley.

Major Story Arcs

The Eye of the World

Using his identity as Ba'alzamon, believed by many to be the Dark One himself, Ishamael makes frequent threatening appearances in the dreams of Rand al'Thor, Mat Cauthon and Perrin Aybara.

Powers and Abilities

Ishamael is an exceptionally powerful channeler, rivalling Lews Therin Telamon in raw ability. He has also been granted the ability to channel the True Power, the Dark One's own version of the One Power. He is incredibly intelligent, but has been driven insane.

Other Media

Literature

The Wheel of Time

Ishamael was originally created for the Wheel of Time series of books. He appears in twelve books in the series.