RA Analysis

Welcome to RA Analysis, a blog that takes a deeper look into John Flanagan's Ranger's Apprentice series. If you have a question, please send us an ask. If there is a topic or subject you would like answered, please submit it to us. May your coffee be hot and your arrows sharp!

[raanalysis]

Ambiguity in Halt Age?

Hello, I've recently begun rereading the series and am currently on Book 4, the Battle for Skandia (titled Oakleaf Bearers in non-American countries). I've always wondered how old Halt was during the series, but once I stumbled across a post of yours, "How Old Are They? Part 2: Gilan, Crowley, and Halt," it gave me clarification on that front, so thank you for that. The post made sense to me and I was content with believing that Halt was 36 during the events of this book. 

  As a result, though, I was confused when I read Chapter 11. Occurring shortly after Halt & Horace save Will & Evanlyn from the Temujai scouting party, Chapter 11 sees Halt providing history on the Temujai to his young companions, explaining how they had come to be such a formidable military power and, more importantly to this post, providing details on his own history with them. In the first couple paragraphs of this chapter (I'm intentionally not citing page #s in case I have a different edition than someone else), Halt says "[the Temujai] haven’t come this far west in twenty years—and the last time they did, they put the entire western world at risk." Following this statement he describes how, at that time, the Temujai armies had set out to conquer the known world, only retreating when their Sha'Shan had died eating "a dish of bad clams." 

  Assuming that the invasion happened exactly 20 years before the events of the Battle for Skandia, this would mean that Halt would have been a mere 16 at the time. 

  Now, this does not confirm that Halt was present during the invasion, or that he was an active Ranger at the time. However, in one of the final paragraphs of the chapter, Will asks his mentor: "Where were you while this was all going on, Halt?" To this, Halt replies: "“I was hightailing it for the coast, with a small herd of... fairly purchased horses, and a Temujai fighting patrol was right behind me... Suddenly, one morning, they reined in and watched me gallop away. Then they simply turned around and started trotting back east—all the way to their homeland." Halt had mentioned earlier in that same chapter that during this time, he had been sent on a mission by the Ranger Corps to "trade" with the Temujai with the goal of acquiring some of their famous horses. As such, I found it logical to conclude that Halt was a fully-fledged, active Ranger at least 20 years before the events of the Battle for Skandia.

  The aforementioned post made a lot of sense to me when I read it, so I’m conflicted as I try to estimate how old Halt is. Maybe it’s just a point of inconsistency on the author’s part? Maybe those comments were added in as the publishers prepared Book 4, Oakleaf Bearers, to be sold in America as the Battle for Skandia? In any case, it’s not the most important thing in the world; Halt is a legend, whether he is 36 or 136. I just wanted to throw this out there in case anyone else was curious and wanted to delve deeper into this point and perhaps find an explanation. Sorry for the long read & thanks for sticking through my rambling haha.

 (Original post I read, which identifies Halt's age throughout the series: https://raanalysis.tumblr.com/post/137680840905/how-old-are-they-part-2-gilan-crowley-and-halt).

Thanks to boones2714 for submitting this post! I think it brings quite a few pieces of evidence to the table that wasn't there last time.

[raanalysis]

🌼~BEAUTIFUL PERSON AWARD! Once you are given this award you’re supposed to (anonymously) paste it in the asks of 8 people who deserve it. If you break the chain nothing happens, but it's sweet to know someone thinks you’re beautiful inside and out.~🌼

Thank you! You’re beautiful too. Thank you for being a part of the community!

[raanalysis]

Can I just say... I love that little tagline at the end of the analyses. "May your coffee be hot, and your arrows sharp!" That's amazing, I'm stealing it!

Thank you! I’m not sure how long this has been in my asks, but thank you!

[raanalysis]

Malcolm’s Chemicals

Throughout books 5 and 6, Malcolm, AKA “Malkalam the Sorcerer”, is thought to pull off feats of sorcery that we later discover are related to chemistry and science. Although we do find out his so-called sorcery is just science, we never find out how he does his “magic.”

The first “act of sorcery” Malcolm pulls off, is launching signal rockets and having them explode. How did he do that? I believe he did it using a combination known as black powder. Black powder contains a mixture of potassium nitrate, or saltpeter, charcoal and sulfur. To create this combination you need 75% saltpeter, 15% charcoal and 10% sulfur. Black powder was discovered by ancient Chinese alchemists and was used to create fireworks AND signals just like Malcolm does. The alchemists discovered black powder through experimenting with life-preserving elixirs, which I believe is quite ironic because they were trying to preserve life and ended up creating guns because the last function of black powder is gunpowder.

Now, back to Malcolm. I believe he used black powder because, just like fireworks, the signal rocket flew into the air and “exploded in a shower of sparks.” That sounds a lot like fireworks and it even mentions the word “fireworks” when the Siege of Macindaw was ending and Will was thinking about the recent battle. That seems like pretty clear evidence that Malcolm used black powder.

The only catch is that the Chinese discovered the combination long before the Europeans. However, the Europeans DID have access to all the ingredients required. We also know that Malcolm is a skilled chemist, so it is not impossible to say he discovered the mixture before the rest of Araluen/England and wanted to keep his secret mixture, just that, a secret! Malcolm wants to keep his patients safe, through the “sorcery of Grimsdell Wood” and if people found out his “magic” was just a few chemicals it would greatly reduce the aura of fear and mystery surrounding Grimsdell.

The second and last magic trick Malcolm pulls off is when they have captured General MacHaddish, the leader of the band of Scotti, who were going to take over Castle Macindaw. After they capture him, they try to question him by using Serthek’nish, a Scotti demon that steals souls. To add to the illusion, Malcolm puts a packet of an unknown substance in the fire and the fire flares up and goes back down, making it look like Serthek’nish is tampering with the flame. To make the fire flare, I don’t think Malcolm used chemicals at all, I think he used wood dust. Wood dust is a highly flammable substance that is a byproduct of all wood manufacturing. Which means that Malcolm could have easily acquired it and it matches the description of the flare. Wood dust explosions flare highly for 1-2 seconds then die back down, just like the book says. To make the wood dust catch on fire, you need two things, a heat source, which is the fire that was already burning, and you need a partially contained place, the gaps between the logs.

Lastly, these chemicals are VERY dangerous and should NOT be used without proper training. Even the wood dust can cause cancer unless proper precautions are in place. So be CAREFUL with chemicals, they are DANGEROUS!

Thank you to rangerdylanuttam for this analysis! It’s exciting to have different people from the community be a part of this, so if you would like to be an RA Analysis writer, let us know! We’d love to have you :) Join in on the conversation by either sending us an ask, or by reblogging this analysis and tagging it #raanalysis with your thoughts. Do you have questions or thoughts on future analysis’? Please send us an ask or submit it to us.

May your coffee be hot and your arrows sharp!

[raanalysis]

Warmweed In Real Life

Hi thebutterflyranger! Thanks for the question – it definitely led me on a bit of a goose chase!

Before we get started, I just want to point out that this post will discuss various modern and historical drugs and addictions. This blog does not encourage the use of illegal or dangerous drugs and if you have any concerns about drug addictions or would like more information, I would recommend that you talk to your doctor or your local drug addiction service. Stay safe my friends.

In the world of addictions, there are many different ways why someone may either be drawn to an addiction or to continue in their addiction, but they can basically be broken into two types: physical and emotional. For example, physical addiction to smoking is connected to how the body reacts to it and the effects it has on the body. Usually once the physical desires are taken away, such as through nicotine patches, a person will find it easier to quit as the physical connection is broken. Someone with an emotional addiction either started their addiction or remains in it because they have turned it into a coping strategy. Smokers wanting to quit who have an emotional addiction will be able to stay off it for a bit until something comes up, like stress or grief or even anger and frustration. As Psychologytoday.com points out, “When emotional suffering is caused by the intolerable conditions of life (tragedy), a quick ‘fix’ offers immediate satisfaction and escape from misery… Unfortunately, over time the brain of [an addict] adjusts o the continuous consumption … and instead of [taking it] to feel good, the person ends up [taking it] to feel normal”. If a drug is taken as a coping mechanism, then it doesn’t matter how ‘harmless’ or ‘scary’ it may be. It just begins this dangerous cycle unless processed and replaced with another – healthier – coping mechanism. Fortunately for Will, his addiction was physical. He took it for the physical effect on his body not the emotional support it gave him. In addition to this, he didn’t keep revisiting it or having a desire for it when Evanlyn was taken or after their return to Hallasholm.

So what sort of drug could have caused this? Before we get into a list of contenders, we need to outline what we know of warmweed. This way we know what we’re looking for. Warmweed is described as a bundle of dried herbs and is taken orally. It creates warmth in the user and has an almost immediate effect. Some of the side effects include loss of interest to live, loss of memory and ability to problem solve and think independently, and the person’s ability to connect to those around them. It requires a slow and gradual weaning of the drug over time to stop the addiction and withdrawal symptoms includes seizures.

While you are right that Methamphetamines are similar - they raise the body’s temperature and can cause hyperthermia - it also increases the user’s perceptions and talkativeness and is either smoked, snorted, injected, or swallowed in a pill. These are things that we don’t see in Will’s behaviour or in how he describes it. Other drugs – such as amphetamines, cocaine, and monoamine oxidase inhibitors – can also create this effect. Our biggest issue is that all of these drugs are modern and are not dried herb-like. They also had similar heightened side effects instead of the dulling that Will displayed. But what caught my attention with this is that they are able to inhibit the body’s ability to regulate its temperature, which got me thinking: what if warmweed didn’t create heat but instead took away the person’s ability to feel the cold? If this is true, then a whole new range of drugs are available.

The most obvious one to me was opium. Originally grown in Ancient Suma (modern Iraq), opium soon spread to Ancient Egypt and was traded across Europe for centuries, only reaching China in 400 AD. Opium is a pain suppressant and is known for causing the body to relax and for the user to feel intensely happy. If Will took something like opium, then allowing the body to relax and stop contracting with the cold could allow him to feel warmer as the blood would be allowed to flow freely through the body. Opium, however, does also cause drowsiness, confusion, nausea, constipation, and slowed breathing – some of which we don’t see in Will. Opium is also harvested as the sap of the opium pod and has a latex-like consistency – again, not the dried herbs given to Will.

The next contestant is called Wild Lettuce, or Opium Lettuce, due to its painkilling properties and similarities to opium (although with far less side effects). Wild Lettuce grows throughout Europe, North America and the Middle East, and was used during the medieval period as an anaesthetic and sedative for surgery. While the most potent part of the plant is through its sap, its leaves have been used for the same effect, albeit with vastly minimized effects.

The last contender is a plant called Henbane and was often used in Viking beer before hops or barley became popular. It was also used as the base of a drink the Vikings would consume before going into battle and turning into a berserker. In addition to this, it was also widely used as an anaesthetic and its leaves could be consumed to get the desired effect. It was also strongly psychoactive, however, although I’m not sure in which way. Some psychoactive drugs – like cocaine and LSD – have a strong heightening effect where it impacts their senses and perceptions of the world. Depressants and opioids, however, are more focused in their effects and can dull the user. If this is the case, then we may have found our drug.

There are a few other drugs out there that I looked at, such as Hemlock and Belladonna (although they are poisonous, they were also used in small amounts as anaesthetics and sedatives), but these were the only ones that I felt ticked the most boxes. I honestly think that Henbane is our best bet, but even that has a few question marks around it. It is also possible that such a drug doesn’t exist and Flanagan created a fictional drug to serve the plot.

Like always, I hope you guys enjoyed it! Join in on the conversation by either sending us an ask, or by reblogging this analysis and tagging it #raanalysis with your thoughts. Do you have questions or thoughts on future analysis’? Please send us an ask or submit it to us.

If you are interested in becoming a RA Analysis writer, let us know! We’d love to have you :)

May your coffee be hot and your arrows sharp!

[raanalysis]

The Destruction of Castle Gorlan

Hi Anon friends! Thanks for the excellent question! There are a few reasons why Castle Gorlan was destroyed.

Book

Based on what Hackham Heath, Duncan wanted Gorlan to be demolished to prevent Morgarath from having a potential headquarters back in the Kingdom. This makes sense as all of Morgarath’s resources and sources of income are attached to Gorlan. Even with a new Baron instated in his place, Morgarath could still overthrow a Baron and receive a strong backing when he re-entered Araluen. In addition to this, there was no way for Duncan or anyone else to know if Morgarath had hidden anything to aid in his usurpation, such as weapons, documents, army resources (like training resources, saddles, armour, stables, etc.), and records, as well as any other hidden passages that he may have created and treasure he may have hidden. Remember – Morgarath left with only what he could get others to carry. There would have been a lot of stuff he left behind. This was the only sure fire way that Duncan could be sure that Morgarath wouldn’t return with the same strength he had when he left.

Symbolism

Medgar Evers once said that “You can kill a man, but you can’t kill an idea”. In many ways, this is true. When Morgarath left, there were still many Barons that were either supportive of him or not completely against him. While it would have been easy to put another Baron into Gorlan, it would forever be seen as a symbol of rebellion and be a constant reminder to his potential supporters of who Morgarath was/is.

Historically

I wanted to include this section because I think Flanagan was inspired by some historical events and I also think that we can always learn from the past (btw, this is about to turn into a bit of a history lesson – just to let you know).

Two events really stand out to me when it comes to destroying an enemy’s architecture. The first one is from Ancient Rome and the Siege of Carthage. Carthage – the capital of Northern Africa – was a common enemy of Ancient Rome and was laid siege to around 149-146 BC. It was the key event in the Third Punic War (a series of wars between Carthage and the Roman Empire). It started when the Carthaginians grew restless after Rome’s lack of military support when part of Carthage’s lands were being annexed by the Numidians and they decided to declare war on Rome. After a hard-fought victory, Rome decided to not only plough the city into the ground but, according to various historians, they also sowed salt into the ground to prevent anything from growing there again. This is because cities – especially capitals – are established due to their proximity to water, fertile land, and trade routes. If you truly want to destroy a country or nation, you prevent them from using the natural and human resources needed to rebuild. In the same way, Castle Gorlan was strategically located to make the most of the natural resources around it. That’s what made it so prosperous. Razing it to the ground ensures that, like Carthage, nothing can continue to grow there or be rebuilt.

The second event is more recent: Germany post-WWI. This event explains why another Baron couldn’t have just taken over. Germany was a powerhouse in Europe before WWI in the same way that America and China are powerhouses. During the early 1900s, however, there were quite a few powerhouses in Europe, and all of them were waiting for the perfect time to display their power and dominance over the others. This came when the Arch-Duke of Austria Franz Ferdinand was assassinated by Serbian extremists. One thing led to another and it wasn’t long before the different powerhouses chose sides and began flaunting their dominance. Unfortunately for Germany, America decided to get involved after the Lusitania, a British cruise ship that was accused of carrying guns and ammunition despite having no evidence for the fact, was torpedoed by a German submarine – killing 128 American passengers. With a last boost from America, the Triple Entente won.

As the strongest and wealthiest of the countries on the Central Powers, Germany was unfairly focused on in the Treaty of Versailles and was made to not only pay reparations to the Entente but to sign the guilt clause, or Article 231. This stated that Germany would accept responsibility for starting the war and causing all of the damage made to Europe and supporting areas. Not only did this aggravate the German populace, it also put them in massive debt. The reparations was equivalent to US$442 billion today and they were also required to limit their military, making the nation incredibly vulnerable. The nation was broken, but not destroyed. You know who fixed it? Adolf Hitler. Germany went from debt-ridden poverty to being even stronger than they were before WWI. Through limiting their opponent, the European powers actually ensured that they could rise again. If they had been more lenient in the Treaty, Germany would not have suffered so much and would have not motivation to go to war a few decades later. If they had been harsher, Germany wouldn’t have been able to survive. Duncan is in the same scenario – if he leaves Gorlan as is, then it is possible that Morgarath or another leader would be able to bring it back to its former dangerous glory. His only option was to destroy it. It was the only way he could be certain.

Like always, I hope you guys enjoyed it! Join in on the conversation by either sending us an ask, or by reblogging this analysis and tagging it #raanalysis with your thoughts. Do you have questions or thoughts on future analysis’? Please send us an ask or submit it to us.

If you are interested in becoming a RA Analysis writer, let us know! We’d love to have you :)

May your coffee be hot and your arrows sharp!

[raanalysis]

Hi a random question, but how old are Erak, Svengal, Thorn and Seley el'then, since its never really been mentioned before and i've always been kind of curious as to the ages of these characters.

Hi Anon! 

I’m sorry for this, but there’s a reason why its never been mentioned before. Besides Will and the rest of the Wards, we are never given a straight answer to people’s ages. If you scroll through this blog, then you’ll see the previous problems and frustrations we’ve had trying to find out even Halt and Gilan’s age. For the Skandians and Selethen, there’s even less to go off. 

Unfortunately, this is all I can say: Erak is probably a few years younger than Halt, but they’re in the same ballpark. Svengal could be the same age as Erak or a few years younger, but they’re close. Thorn might be the same age as Halt. Selethen is probably younger than them all, but a decade or so (give or take) older than Gilan. 

And that’s it. Sorry I can’t go into more depth, but there’s basically nothing to go off. This is all sort of a vibe or guesswork, and it’s possible that the characters are actually older or younger than thought because of the terms used for them or their rank, or even their bearings. For example, Erak is a Senior Jarl, but that doesn’t mean that he’s of senior age. He does joke about Halt getting on in years and such, so I’m certain that he’s younger than Halt, but by how many years or what that figure may be is unknown.

Thanks for the question, Anon!

[raanalysis]

Wargals 101: Everything We Know

Hi Anon! Don’t worry – your English is practically perfect in every way!

When it comes to Wargals, there’s not actually that much we know before Morgarath brainwashed them into the killing machines we’ve gotten to know in the main series. The most information we have can be found in the prequels. For the sake of clarity, I’m going to describe everything we know based on what they were like before, during and after Morgarath.

Before Morgarath

All of our information on the Wargals before Morgarath comes from Tournament at Gorlan and Battle at Hackham Heath. For this, I’m going to include the Wargal’s actions shown at the beginning of Morgarath’s control over them, as it says that he hadn’t gotten complete control over them by Hackham Heath and their ancient customs sometimes seeps through.

Before Morgarath, the Wargals were a recluse race that was broken into tribes. Each tribe had their own chieftain and – if the tribe structure is similar to ours – elders who would help pass on their customs and stories. Because of this, they had fierce familial ties and felt death and loss intensely. They lived in caves in the Mountains of Rain and Night and were carnivores. While they communicated mainly through thoughts in their hive-mind, they could also communicate through different toned grunts and they even had songs.

Wargals were known to be peaceful in general but could be incredibly savage and brutal when provoked. For example, Norman was able to live peacefully with them for years as long as he kept to himself, but they had violently rebelled against King Prescott when he tried to turn them into an army but lost control of them after a drunken phase.

After Morgarath

In the first few books of RA, Flanagan describes the Wargals as one minded, senseless killing machines. They are mainly fearless with their biggest weakness being horses, and they can take multiple hits before succumbing to their wounds.

Physically, they are quick but incredibly clumsy and prefer to fight with their hands but will also use weapons like axes, maces, clubs and swords. They are also capable of fighting strategically and independently, as shown with the death of Dirk Reacher in BB. Some of them are bred specifically for their size, strength, and savagery, as Halt notices a special unit of Wargals attacking the right flank in his retelling of his meeting with Daniel in LS.

As far as social hierarchies are concerned, they are a highly hierarchical group but only in the same way that the military is strongly separated by ranks. A few times it is made clear that one Wargal may have more power over others or capable of more independent thought than those in the common ranks.

Post Morgarath

After Morgarath’s defeat in BB, it’s difficult to say whether they returned to their previous ways of living or not. They are described as child-like and purposeless, which isn’t what they were like before. This could be because of two reasons: Flanagan wrote the Wargals before he had fully fleshed out their society, or that the Wargals were so connected to Morgarath for so long, that a significant amount of their minds had lost the ability to function without him. Remember, it is possible that the majority of Wargals at that time weren’t alive in a time without Morgarath. And without their tribal chieftains and elders to help them process and learn their ways, the Wargal hive-mind would have been metaphorically lost. I’m not actually sure if they could ever recover from it – especially if all of their elders and those who lived before had already died.

 Sorry this took so long to answer. It was a really good question and I honestly don’t know why it took me so long. Like always, I hope you guys liked and understood all of that! Join in on the conversation by either sending us an ask, or by reblogging this analysis and tagging it #raanalysis with your thoughts. Do you have questions or thoughts on future analysis? Please send us an ask or submit it to us.

If you are interested in becoming a RA Analysis writer, let us know! We’d love to have you :)

May your coffee be hot and your arrows sharp!

[raanalysis]

Hello!

To those who have joined since my last post - welcome! I’m the Admin of RA Analysis. This is a blog dedicated to discussing and exploring the Ranger’s Apprentice series. To those who have been here a while - hello again! Sorry for the large gap of nothingness that has been this blog for two or so years! Teaching has definitely been harder than previously expected. 

But now I’m back! And I’m going to be trying a new system of posting for next year, so hopefully they’ll be some form of consistency with the release of new content. I’m really excited to be back and I hope you are too.

If you have sent in a question or a topic to look at and I haven’t responded yet, you are the first on my list to answer. Thank you for your patience, especially for one question in particular that I think has been waiting for over three years to be answered. It shall happen!

And if you haven’t sent one in yet but would like to, please do! If there’s a question that has been bugging you for ages, or a topic you’d like explored or discussed more, then please send an ask my way! If you’d like to write an analysis, then do the same thing! I’d love to feature your thoughts. Just remember - this is a family friendly blog. All asks should keep this in mind. 

Here’s to a new year of analysing and conversation!

May your coffee be hot and your arrows sharp!

[raanalysis]

Is it possible that Crowley and Duncan have a romance? They live in the same castle and now over analyze their behaviour towards each other. Also, I think Crowley's 24-27, Halt's 20 and Duncan’s 21 in the Early Years. Halt spends 4 years with Pritchard, 16+4=20 (also Crowley has to be about 20+4 but <30 because Cedric is 30ish & older and has more time in the corps). Halt thinks Duncan’s age about his, and when you're younger you tend to "boost" your age, so it's likely that Duncan is 21

Hello dear Anon!Thanks for the question, but I think I might be disappointing you with this answer. As far as the books are concerned, Duncan and Crowley are not in a relationship. In fact, it's revealed in The Kings of Clonmel that Crowley has always had a thing for Pauline, but has never done anything about it because of Halt. Also, their living arrangements are more administrative than romantic. As the Head of the Ranger Corps, Crowley is required to protect and inform the King, which would be difficult to do if he was elsewhere. In saying this, this is where the beauty of the fandom starts to shine. I know that there are quite a few shippers out there in the fandom who would argue with my answer. I would encourage you, if you're leaning that way, to seek them out and discuss your thoughts with them. Look at the amazing pieces of work that they have created and really get involved. Just because there is no explict evidence of it in the book doesn't mean that you can't believe it.I hope this helps! And remember: May your coffee be hot and your arrows sharp!

[raanalysis]

Hey, your blog is really good! A question, though: Why do other people always act so surprised when a ranger uses a weapon besides the bow like a sword or a sling? I don't get why characters always assume that rangers can't use other weapons. Like, if rangers are carrying a weapon, they probably know how to use it.

Hi Anon! Thanks for your question. When it comes to using other weapons, it's not so much that they are incapable of learning and mastering other weapons, but whether they want it to be a priority. As it's constantly pointed out in the series, Rangers are not warriors. They can fight, but their purpose is not based on fighting. The Ranger Corps is an intelligence group, similar to spies, and as such, they learn the skills of finding, collecting, and analysing evidence or information. They learn enough weaponry skills to help them in this, but their skills are better put to work in the information gathering. That's why Rangers tend to be smaller and far more inquisitive than Knights.Because of this, they see the years needed to learn and master any other weapon as a waste. While a bow takes the same amount of time to master, it's also light and transportable, and allows its user to stay away from the attacker. Any other weapon would require the bearer to have an in depth knowledge of hand to hand fighting.This is why the Rangers Corps have traditionally gone with the bow. Some exceptions are made, such as Gilan and Farrel who favoured the sword and battleaxe respectively. People are surprised by these exceptions because most people only see one or two Rangers in their lives, and what are the chances that it would be the exception?Thanks again for your question! I hope it answers it! May your coffee be hot and your arrows sharp!

[raanalysis]

Welcome!

Hello everyone! 

I would like to welcome those who have recently joined the RA Analysis community and/or the RA fandom as a whole. We are quite a friendly bunch and are happy to engage in any discussions, role plays, headcanons, and activities based on John Flanagan’s book series.

For those who have been with us for longer, I would like to say thank you for all of your support. This blog has been going on for about 2 years now, and I could not have done this without you.

Before you start thinking it: no, this is not my farewell post. I wanted to keep you updated and explain why this blog has been a little inconsistent over the past year. As many of you may not know, I have been studying to be a high school teacher. The postgraduate degree that I have been completing for the past year has a reputation for being one of the hardest and most demanding degrees within the education sector. Essentially, they try to cram four years of study into one. This meant that I was completing 15 to 16 assessment items in a 9 week time frame before going straight into a 6 week prac (where I actually go into a school and teach). Instead of posting once a month as planned, it became whenever I had the time or the mental energy.

As you can probably understand, this has been very stressful. But again, this is where I cannot thank you enough. Despite these inconsistencies, you were still supportive, encouraging, and engaged. I love reading your thoughts on posts and the fact that discussions were made reminds me of why I started this blog. I started it for us - the fandom. I wanted to create a place where people could share their thoughts and ideas about the minute aspects of the book series we all love. And I could not have done this without each and every single one of you.

As for this coming year, I will again try to keep to the once a month posts. Teachers often say that the first year of teaching is the busiest, so there may be times when they may not come out as frequently as usual, but I promise that I will try.

Here’s to having an amazing year full of great memories and experiences. And as always: May your coffee be hot and your arrows sharp!

[raanalysis]

I really love your work..... I'm currently reading off all that I missed in... what a year? 2 years? I really love you and am glad that you are still in this fandom! I missed RA so much for all the schoolwork I was caught in! I'm really glad that you're still here.

Thank you so much! It really means a lot to me :D

Homework gets to even the best of us, and, at the end of the day, certain things have to take priority in our lives. The good news is that I have no plans to take this blog down or stop posting completely, so you can always come back when things calm down :)

I hope your studies have been going well, and that this year will bring you many happy memories!

[raanalysis]

Icebound Land: Not such an innocent story

When I first read the Icebound Land, I was about 11 or 12. This meant that I was rather naïve and didn’t pick up on a lot of the subtleties that can be found in the RA series. Throughout the years, I have found more and more of them. Except for perhaps the most obvious one in the Icebound Land. So, if you’re like me and don’t really pick up on these sort of things, then I’m sorry to pop your bubble like this.

There are prostitutes in Ranger’s Apprentice.

Now, like I said before, I wouldn’t be surprised if I was the only one who didn’t pick up on this. But when Halt and Horace first arrive in Gallica at La Rivage, Horace notices three young women laughing at him, all wearing rather short skirts. They are not, as Halt had explained, Couriers, but prostitutes. In Medieval Europe, prostitution was a very profitable business. While the Catholic Church actively condemned all sexual activity outside of marriage, they tolerated it based on the idea that it stops other, eviler sins from occurring, such as sodomy and masturbation. Prostitutes and brothels were commonly found near ports, as there was a larger population of people ‘seeking relief’ from their time on the sea. While Flanagan’s description of the prostitutes wearing short skirts is historically inaccurate, it is a modern image connected to a promiscuous woman.

But that’s not all. After I had discovered this information, I remembered about the plants that Horace notices on their way out of the village. Originally, I had thought they were corn. Horace describes them as such: “large, broad leaves on stalks that stood as high as a man’s head were left to dry and seemingly to wither on the stalk before they were gathered”. When a specific type of corn called dent corn is harvested, they leave it to dry on the stalks. This ensures that the corn is fully matured before turning it into cattle food (or fuel and plastics in this modern age). Sweet corn (what is usually sold and eaten by humans) is picked a full month before dent corn when the corn is in early maturation. It is entirely possible that this is what Horace sees. Except for one thing: corn is native to the Americas. It wasn’t introduced to Europe until Columbus in the late 1400s. So what else could it be?

Marijuana.

Marijuana has been propagated throughout the world since the 3rd millennium BC(E). We know this as cannabis seeds have been found in a ritual brazier at an ancient Romanian site that dates back to this time. During this period, marijuana was used in medicine and religion. Marijuana plants have broad leaves and their stalks can grow up to 6 feet, especially when grown outside. When harvested, marijuana plants grow white hairs, giving an image of withered-ness, and their leaves can either be collected and hung to dry (as described in the book) or left on the stalk to dry naturally, which is known to create a far more potent product.

So if you were like me and had never picked up on this, then I’m sorry to ruin your childhood. If not, then I probably seem like a very naïve person (which I am). Join in on the conversation by either sending us an ask, or by reblogging this analysis and tagging it with your thoughts. Do you have questions or thoughts on future analyses? Please send us an ask or submit it to us.

If you are interested in becoming a RA Analysis writer or in doing a one off, let us know! We’d love to have you :)

May your coffee be hot and your arrows sharp!

[raanalysis]

I love this blog, it's fantastic <3 Thank you for your hard job!

Thank you so much, Anon - I’m honored!

[raanalysis]

The Courier Code: A Visual

The Courier Code is a secret way of messaging used by the Araluen Diplomatic Services and Ranger Corps. As readers, the first (and practically only) time we hear about it is in The Siege of Macindaw, when Will is sending messages to Alyss in Castle Macindaw. Although Flanagan describes it in detail, this is a handy little visual to show what it would look like.

The first thing Flanagan does is to arrange 24 letters of the alphabet into rows and columns. The end result looks like this (tumblr doesn’t like tables, so they’re jpegs instead):

W and Z would be substituted with V and S if necessary, which I have added in the table above.

The format of the message would be set in a square outline. The sender would shift a light to a corner of the square before flashing the light a certain amount of times. The letter’s row number corresponds to the corner it’s in, and its column number is how many times the light flashes. The format would look like this (row numbers 1 – 4 in the corners; column number in the middle):

In this case, for the letter I, the sender would put the light in the top right hand corner of the square, and then flash in the middle three times, as shown here:

This is what the rest of the alphabet would look like. And remember: the left and right is according to the receiver. The sender needs to flip it for themselves (i.e. left corner becomes their right corner).

Hopfully this is useful for people! Join in on the conversation by either sending us an ask, or by reblogging this analysis and tagging it with your thoughts. Do you have questions or thoughts on future analyses? Please send us an ask or submit it to us.

If you are interested in becoming a RA Analysis writer or in doing a one off, let us know! We’d love to have you :)

May your coffee be hot and your arrows sharp!

[raanalysis]

What type of horse is Cropper? Personally, I thought that he was just a normal horse because Halt was the one who stole the temujai breeding stock... but on the fan wiki, it says otherwise.

Hi @theycallmechocho!

In order to answer this, we need to go into Tournament at Gorlan, so if you haven’t read it yet, be aware of spoilers. When Halt goes to Young Bob to get Abelard, they discuss the key types of horses they use in their breeding program. Their breeding herd is based on the Temujai ponies, but they have added Glendan (Hibernian) horses into the mix for their speed, and Gallican Tireurs for their sturdiness and power. Occassionally they restock the original Temujai herd to enrich the horses’ bloodlines and to maintain the qualities that they had originally wanted. This was what Halt was sent to do - to get the Temujai horses for continued breeding.

As for Cropper, The Wolf in the Lost Stories describes him (or at least, Cormac) as taller than Tug, which means that he probably has more Glendan in him than the Temujai, which makes sense as by the time Crowley joined the Corps, the bloodline would have strayed more from the Temujai as Tug. Despite this though, Cropper is still descended from the original herds.

Hope this helps!