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Zeddicus Zu'l Zorander grew up in the Wizard's Keep in Aydindril, born of a wizard and a sorceress. He was sometimes watched over by the Mother Confessor herself, who would swat his rear when he misbehaved and twist his ear to make him sit in a lesson. He is described as mischief on two legs, driven not by guile but by curiosity. Zedd was a prodigy and could do things no other wizards understood. He was known for having a strong heart, as well as head. He married a woman named Erilyn and together they had a daughter. Those who were close to him called him "the trickster", a name he truly earned, more than "the wind of death". Zedd and his wife also had a cat named Lurk. Zedd reuses this name when he convinces his grandson Richard Rahl to go to the Wizard's Keep in Aydindril.

When Panis Rahlbegan his ruthless use of magic against the forces of the Midlands Zedd knew that the only hope to save more lives in the end was to fight. Zedd was named First Wizard and with his unique talents used his magic to hold the magic of Panis Rahl at bay and supplied the Midland armies with magical horns to defeat the shadow people created by Panis to aid the D'Haran troops.

Zedd laid waste to countless numbers of the D'Haran army and became known as the "wind of death". His help allowed the Midland armies to push the enemy legions back into D'Hara. Panis Rahl took revenge against Zedd by sending a squad out of D'Hara, to find and harm Zedd's wife, Erilyn. Zedd found his wife still alive, broken and bleeding and in inconceivable agony, her arms and legs all broken. When he used his gift to try to heal her, it activated a worm spell, which ripped his wife's insides apart.At first things were quiet in the Midlands after the boundaries were put in place as people recovered from the war. As time wore on the council of the Midlands began taking actions that Zedd said were corrupt. He found out the council had reneged on agreements about how the power of magic was to be controlled. He told them that their greed and the things they were doing would lead to worse horrors than those put down in the wars. They made political appointments of the Seeker of Truth, which made Zedd furious. They mishandled the boxes of Orden. The other wizards Zedd had trained, in their greed, sided with the council. He said his wife had died for nothing. As punishment, Zedd told them he would do the worst possible thing to them; he would leave them to suffer the consequences of their actions. He refused to help them further, and left for Westland to be free of the magic, vowing to never return again. As he left, he cast a wizard's web over everyone, making them forget what his name was or what he looked like.

While in Westland, Zedd lived in a squat house surrounded by tall, wild grasses with a sod covered roof aways from the town of Hartland, along a long and arduous path. A single plank served as a ramp for his big old coon cat. Near the back corner sat a wooden table whose top was worn smooth with years of use, where Zedd liked to take his meals in good weather. White lace curtains hung on the inside of the windows, flower boxes on the outside. The log walls were dull gray with age, but a bright blue door greeted visitors. Other than the door, the whole place gave the appearance of hunkering into the grasses surrounding it, of trying to go unnoticed. The house wasn't large, but it did have a porch running the length of the front.

Zedd's favorite piece of furniture was his "reason" chair. The reason chair was where Zedd sat and thought until he figured out the reason for whatever it was that snagged his curiosity. He had once sat in the chair for three days straight, trying to figure out why people were always arguing over how many stars there were. Zedd was a good friend and mentor of Richard, even while Richard was only a boy, taking him hunting for special herbs and teaching him of the world. Even then, Zedd always treated Richard as an equal. While in Westland, Zedd spent a lot of his time (often naked) on his "cloud rock" (which was actually a wizard's rock) at the top of a small barren hill nearby, watching the clouds. This rock is the only magical item he carries regularly and allows him to commune with some spirits and break powerful enchantments. His early interest in cloud watching becomes part of his alias as a form of fortune teller and healer, albeit one supposedly without mystical abilities. However, his mystical nature was not entirely disguised as actions taken by Darken Rahl inspired fearful locals to form a mob seeking his life as a supposed "witch," prompting his departure with Richard and Kahlan on their shared quest.

As a wizard, Zedd possesses vast knowledge and powers, but more importantly, great skill in applying both. He is very clever and far sighted and does his best to live by all of the wizard's rules, which are axioms about reason and passion that all wizards are encouraged to follow. His ability to create wizard's fire is exceptional. He was able to break free of a Rada'Han placed upon him, a feat assumed to be impossible by centuries old sorceresses. He raised nigh impassable boundaries that separated continents by creating fissures into the underworld. He cast a web of magic on the entirety of the then known world in order to make everyone forget his identity. Using ancient magic stored in the Wizard's Keep, he was able to trigger spells of power much stronger than would be possible to create fresh in modern times. Throughout the series, there are very few magical topics raised in which he doesn't have some prior knowledge, owing to his time studying ancient tomes in the Wizard's Keep. Z's poem