A major theory regarding The Wheel of Time season 3 changes how Rand acquires his most iconic weapon. In The Dragon Reborn, the third installment in Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time series, Rand al’Thor gets his hands on a powerful tool called Callandor. Known as “the sword that is not a sword,” Callandor is one of the most powerful artifacts in The Wheel of Time’s world. According to an ancient prophecy, it’s the weapon Rand is destined to fight the Dark One with in The Last Battle, thus making it a building block toward The Wheel of Time’s ending.

If the timeline is any indication, the show is approaching the point where Rand should acquire Callandor. However, the current direction of the story and the setup for The Wheel of Time season 3 creates some interesting complications for that scenario. His book counterpart’s next move after the battle at Falme was to find Callandor, but the show hasn’t put its take on the character in the same position. For that reason, it’s been speculated that the series will make a significant change to the story in order to accommodate its plan for Rand and his allies.

Why Wheel Of Time’s Season 3 Plan Is A Problem For The Books’ Stone Of Tear Story

Wheel Of Time Season 3 Would Struggle To Send Rand To Both Tear & The Aiel Waste

Ultimately what’s standing in the way of Wheel of Time telling a book-accurate version of Rand’s search and acquisition of Callandor is the source material for season 3. Rather than simply adapt The Dragon Reborn next, The Wheel of Time is jumping straight into the fourth book, The Shadow Rising, which deals with what happens after Rand claims Callandor. That raises important questions about where exactly Callandor fits into the picture. Of course, there’s every expectation for season 3 to visit multiple places on the Wheel of Time map, but Callandor will be far-removed from Rand’s journey.

Callandor is at the Stone of Tear, a place that Rand spends nearly a whole book traveling to in the series. His destination in The Shadow Rising – Rhuidean – is nowhere near that, as it’s deep into the Aiel Waste. And there’s no question that the Aiel Waste is where Rand will go in season 3; Aviendha identifying him as the Car’a’carn (the hero of the Aiel prophecies) set him up to head there next, plus Rhuidean is a confirmed Wheel of Time season 3 location. But while it’s apparent that Rand will indeed have some version of his arc The Shadow Rising adapted to the small screen, the same amount of certainty can’t be applied to The Dragon Reborn’s climactic ending.

This leaves The Wheel of Time with a few options as to how it can handle the events at Tear. One possibility is that it lets Rand take the Stone of Tear in a shocking season premiere twist, thus avoiding the long wait in getting there. That’s plausible, but such a development would be without setup. An alternative solution is that it could save Rand getting Callandor later on in the timeline. But that too could pose challenges, especially since it would negate the impact of this memorable moment. Acquiring Callandor is how he’s supposed to initially prove himself to the Aiel, meaning it’s what makes The Shadow Rising’s story possible in the first place.

The Wheel Of Time Season 3 Could See Rand Claim Callandor While Still In The Aiel Waste

Rand Could Find Callandor Somewhere Else

As controversial a choice as it may be, perhaps the easiest avenue for the show to navigate would be to move Callandor from Tear to the Aiel Waste. Admittedly, merging his narratives from The Dragon Reborn and The Shadow Rising would be highly consequential in terms of the changes this would force. But, taking this route would be more appealing than foregoing Callandor altogether, rushing the story, or saving it until it no longer matters.

As for how this could work, The Wheel of Time could incorporate Callandor into an existing part of the lore and The Shadow Rising’s story – the access keys. The book established the existence of three ter’angreal – referred to as access keys – which are needed to use the much more powerful ser’angreal called the Choeden Kal. Acquiring them was integral to The Shadow Rising’s overarching plot. But since Callandor is arguably more significant in the long run than the access keys or the Choeden Kal, there’s a chance the show will replace the access keys (or at least one of them) with Callandor.

Rand Could Fight Asmodean For Callandor (Not Be’lal)

The Wheel Of Time Can Combine Two Massive Fights Into One

If The Wheel of Time season 3 tasks Rand with finding Callandor instead of one of the Choeden Kal access keys during his adventure in the Aiel Waste, the series would also have a way to combine the finales of both books. In The Dragon Reborn, Rand battled Be’al, a member of the Forsaken who essentially staked out the Stone of Tear for centuries in preparation for the Dragon Reborn’s arrival. The Shadow Rising, on the other hand, concluded with Rand battling Asmodean in Rhuidean over possession of an access key. Since Be’lal looks like he’s going to be cut from The Wheel of Time anyway, it would make sense for these fights to be combined, particularly if there isn’t room for a proper book 3 adaptation.

It could be that in the TV version of these events, it’s Asmodean – and not Be’lal – who will use Callandor to lure Rand to him. When their fight ends, it can pave the way for Rand to unite the Aiel. Once he seizes Callandor for himself, representatives of the various Aiel tribes can recognize Rand as the Car’a’carn, which would be similar – at least tonally – to how The Dragon Reborn wrapped up at the Stone of Tear.

The Biggest Problem With Wheel Of Time Taking Callandor Out Of Tear

Rand Claiming Callandor Won’t Be As Epic If It Doesn’t Happen At The Stone Of Tear

The prospect of Callandor being relocated for the TV series seems like a doable plan, but that’s not to say that it wouldn’t come without viable criticism. Callandor isn’t just an artifact Wheel of Time can move from one place on the map to another without consequence; a key part of what makes this moment so special for Rand is the Arthurian element of the story. In the book, Rand pulled Callandor out of the Stone of Tear, proving his status as the Dragon Reborn in epic fashion. Having this happen anywhere other than the Stone of Tear would cost the show one of the best parts of The Dragon Reborn’s ending.