In the world ofThe Wheel of Time, the Aes Sedai are a group of women who are born with the natural ability to perform magic, known as Channeling. Those who can Channel are sent to the White Tower in Tar Valon to train as Aes Sedai, though many do not make it through the training process and are expelled. Those who pass can consider themselves full-fledged Aes Sedai and may chooseone of seven Ajahs, with each color representing a specific purpose.
They are not widely accepted in the universe of the show or the novels, as many deem them to be witches or corrupt political manipulators, which they definitely can be at times. It isn’t always the case, though, and many just want to serve the Light and ensure the survival of the world, being generally nice to everybody.These are the best Aes Sedai inThe Wheel of Time, ranked according to their power and personality. However, note that characters like Nynaeve (Zoë Robins), Egwene (Madeleine Madden) and Elayne (Ceara Coveney), while lovable, don’t technically count as they are not fully-fledged Aes Sedai yet and are still in the Accepted phase.
The Wheel of Time
10Tsutama Rath
Tsutama Rath (Diêm Camille) is a sister of the Red Ajah who hasn’t had much time to show what she’s really all about yet, considering she was just recently introduced with the release of Season 3. The Red Ajah may be the largest, but it isn’t exactly the most beloved by fans. It’s known for openly despising men, having strict rules, and an extreme dedication to hunting down men who can channel, cutting them off from their abilities so that they can do no harm.
Moreover, members of the Red Ajah are often seen as egotistical, with a “holier-than-thou” attitude towards their other sisters. Despite this negative perception,Tsutama isn’t stuck up at all. When another of her Red sisters is handing out extravagant gifts from her travels, Tsutama is the only one who denies the gift because she feels it is too flashy and that it wouldn’t be very humble of her to accept the gift, especially considering that it is likely being given as some sort of political maneuver rather than outright generosity. It will beinteresting to see how Tsutama fits into the story, but her kindness and humility immediately put her amongst the most likable Aes Sedai.
Nyomi (Rachel Denning) is an Aes Sedai of the Red Ajah who was created solely for the TV series and does not appear in the novels. Normally, characters of this category can kind of feel one-dimensional and inconsequential, serving very minor roles, but Nyomi has actually been very fleshed out thus far. Appearing in Season 2, she initially seems to be a cheery, cooperative member of the Red Ajah who gets along well with everybody else. But in the Season 3 premiere, she reveals a much darker secret.
Nyomi steals a very crucial artifact from the White Tower, which plays a massive role in the story to come.
Asthe Black Ajah reveal themselves, so does Nyomi, exposing her true allegiance to the Shadow and attacking her friends. On top of that, she steals a very crucial artifact from the White Tower, which plays a massive role in the story to come. She may havelost some favor since she’s exposed herself as a villain, but for a wholly original character on behalf of the showrunners, Nyomi is very interesting indeed andmuch more important than it initially seemed.
8Sheriam Bayanar
Ajah: Blue
Sheriam Bayanar (Rima te Wiata) is the Mistress of Novices at the White Tower. Basically, her job is to punish the Novices if they get in trouble, assign them chores, manage their lessons, and determine who’s fit to progress to the next rank. It sounds like she might be a strict disciplinarian, but she actually has a bit of a grandmotherly demeanor and is pretty kind to the Novices that she presides over, including Nynaeve, Egwene, and Elayne.
So far, she’s only appeared in Season 2 and hasn’t had the chance to be really fleshed out like she is in the novel. Still,Sheriam is a memorable presenceand truly seems to believe in the young Novices who are under her watchful eye. It’ll be interesting to see what Season 3 has in store for her if anything at all. However, book readers already know exactly what fate awaits her in the end.
7Adeleas Mathwin
Ajah: Brown
Adeleas Mathwin (Nila Aalia) is the sister of Verin Mathwin (Meera Syal), both of whom belong to the Brown Ajah. Interestingly, Adeleas' book counterpart is much different. The Adeleas in the books has the surname of Namelle rather than Mathwin and has a different sister named Vandene, who is in the Green Ajah. However, it looks likeVandene isn’t appearing in the show, as Adeleas was instead rewritten to be the sibling of Verin.
Adeleas might have a minor role compared to her sister, butshe is very kindand spends much of her time sitting around, drinking tea, and engaging in polite conversation with some of those closest to her. Adeleasdoesn’t embody the snobby energy that Aes Sedai have become known for, and has no problem lending advice to any who approach her for it. Though she has very few speaking lines, making it hard to gauge her personality, Adeleas does give Verin, and the Aes Sedai in general, a whole new layer of depth.
6Kerene Nagashi
Ajah: Green
Kerene Nagashi (Clare Perkins) is an Aes Sedai of the Green Ajah who only makes a very short appearance. In the novels, she appears for two chapters in the prequel before meeting her swift end. Likewise, in the show, she’s only in it for an episode or two before snuffing it. Still, in that short time, Kerene has the chance to prove just how skilled she is with the One Power.
It makes sense because Kerene is a member of the Green Ajah, the division of Aes Sedai that are most skilled in battle and in fighting the agents of the Dark One.She’s a huge asset to the teambecause she’s currently thesingle most powerful Aes Sedaiin the entire show, even if she didn’t last very long on screen.Kerene is also a close friend of some of the more major characters and is one of the many Aes Sedai whodevote their life to fighting the shadowand ensuring the world doesn’t fall into chaos.
5Verin Mathwin
Verin Mathwin is of the Brown Ajah, dedicated to history, research, and documentation. Thus, Verin spends most of her time with her nose shoved into a book, learning about magical artifacts and studying the history of the Aes Sedai. She often presents herself with a sort of librarian energy:kind-hearted and full of knowledge. She spends a lot of time around theta’veren, trying to guide them on their way based on the histories of otherta’veren.
Verin becomesone of the most important Aes Sedai in the novels, being at the heart of a major plot twist that has yet to be fully explored in the TV show.She might not be the most powerful in terms of battle prowess, but there is no doubt that she isamong the wisest of the Aes Sedaiwho will have the most invaluable information from years passed for the days ahead, where her vast lexicon of knowledge sure to serve as an asset.
4Leane Sharif
Leane Sharif (Jennifer Cheon Garcia) is the Keeper of the Chronicles in the White Tower. It effectively means she is second-in-command and is in charge of running the Tower when the Amyrlin Seat is away. She also wields the iconic Keeper’s staff, which not only serves as a bit of a weapon but as a status symbol and as a means of calling order to the Hall when arguments arise.
She doesn’t just hold a large amount of political power in the White Tower but also a lot of power in the Source and is amongthe highest-ranking Aes Sedaiwhen it comes to channeling ability. Whenever the Amyrlin is in the White Tower, Leane is never far behind and is a close friend of the more major Aes Sedai in the series.She’s strong in presence and powerand is one of the more important roles in the Tower.
3Alanna Mosvani
Alanna Mosvani (Priyanka Bose) is of the Green Ajah, meaning she is a skilled warrior and serves as what is effectively the White Tower’s military. One notable characteristic of the Green Ajah is that they are the most likely to take Warders and often get married or have sexual relationships with their Warders. Alanna is one of these Aes Sedai, always flanked by her two Warders.
Alanna has proven that she can be a real force to be reckoned with in combat who is pure of heart and intentions. But these aren’t the only good things about her.She’s also a good teacherand seems enthusiastic about teaching new weaves to Elayne, Egwene, and Nynaeve; Alana doesn’t ever come across as rude or conceited. Lots of Aes Sedai have appeared on the show so far, but Alanna is one of the lucky few whohas had a lot of time to shineand who fans seem to be loving so far.
2Siuan Sanche
Former Ajah: Blue
Siuan Sanche (Sophie Okonedo) is the Amyrlin Seat, the leader of all Aes Sedai. She doesn’t technically have an Ajah—as the Amyrlin, she belongs to all Ajahs and none, but she previously chose the Blue. She and Moiraine (Rosamund Pike) grew up together in the White Tower and eventually became friends with benefits, a relationship they’ve maintained well into their time as Aes Sedai. As the Amyrlin Seat, Siuan’s job is to make the final decisions about what goes on in the Tower and how to tackle the issue of the Dark One and the Dragon Reborn.
Siuan not only bets how bad things in the world are, but she also knows the Black Ajah is operating in the White Tower.
Siuan can bestern and firm when governing, but she can also begracious and heartfeltwhen the situation calls for it. The reason she is so lovable is largely due to her “no nonsense” attitude, but also how well she understands the gravity of the situation. Siuan not only bets how bad things in the world are, but she also knows the Black Ajah is operating in the White Tower and is one of the few Aes Sedai who acknowledge their existence and is determined to stop them.Siuan is a fan-favorite character in the books, too, especially because of her closeness with Moiraine.
1Moiraine Damodred
Moiraine Damodred is played by Oscar-nominee Rosamund Pike and isthe first Aes Sedai that fans get to witness in action. Along with her Warder, Lan Mandragoran (Daniel Henney), Moiraine arrives at the Two Rivers to find the Dragon Reborn and bring them to the Eye of the World to combat the shadow and bring an end to the increasing violence in the world.
Moiraine isa crucial character in the series, with many of the episodes featuring Moiraine’s role in the story at an extensive level. She has endured many challenges, including being temporarily cut off from the Source and fighting Myrddraal, but none of this proves to be enough to take her down. If it weren’t for Moiraine, none of theta’verenwould have survived as long as they have. On top of that,Moiraine is kind yet can really be firmwhen she needs to be.She isa fan-favorite characterwho was cast absolutely perfectly, which is what makes her the best Aes Sedai in the series.
