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So as I've been listening through the books again and reading through the forums, I've been trying to figure out something. If magic comes from the Shards, then which Shard made Allomancy? According to Sazed, Allomancy is of Preservation, but look at most of what it does. Most of the applications are short term and often destructive. That sounds more like Ruins pervue than Preservation, yet the mists (which is of preservation) react to Allomancers. My theory is thus: Because Ruin and Preservation couldn't do much of anything without the other having a hand in it (read: the constant struggle for either to get anything done at the end of HoA) then all three Metallic Arts carry both within them, but favor one or the other. Feruchemy is the art of preserving, hands down. You store away your attributes for later use, either in a time of need or to supercharge what is already there. It's long term and deliberate, it's of Preservation. But, there is enough of Ruin in it for copperminds to suffer the same corruption as non-metallic recordings. Allomancy is the flip. It's short term, and often only for immediate or near to immediate use. It relies on metal as a catlyst to burn the investiture inside the person. It is closer to Ruin, which is easiest to see in the power Atium gives. Quick bursts of flashing insight in to the immediate world around them, making them better to kill. While we don't know if that notion of Atium helps to kill is a product of Atium itself or the world it lives in, Elends final chapters make the thought ambiguous. Allomancy favors Ruin, but is birthed by Preservation. That Lerasium burns for everyone says something. Hemalurgy is the most directly built by Ruin. It is destructive in nature. However, I find it ironic that it does, albeit not perfectly, preserves the power it stored. It's leaking, but it's holding in the power. This is me just trying to get my thoughts out and seeing how other people see it. I'm not sure if it's been discussed before.

I just realized some crucial difference: some Shardholders have more freedom in their deeds than the others, regardless of their minds being warped to its Shard Intent or not. It depends on the Intent. For example: Preservation - makes it holder want to preserve all things. Cannot create, cannot change, can only preserve. Ruin - makes it holder want to ruin everything. Cannot create, cannot preserve, can only ruin. Odium - makes it holder want to hate everything (and apparently being hated by everyone) while Shards like: Honor - makes it holder want to be honorable... but he still has freedom to do anything, as long as it's a honorable thing and he is honorable about it Devotion - similarly, it only requires the holder to be devoted to some cause, doesn't specify what cause. And maybe inspire devotion in others. It's late in the night, so I will try to map other Shards later

Hey, i was wondering is anyone could explain to me a bit more on how Elantris works with all of this Cosmere stuff. Is Aon Dor a shard? How does this book fit into all of this stuff? Also, i have seen emperor's soul bunched up with Elantris, why? How are those two books similar? Thanks! - I have read all of the cosmere books so don't worry about spoilers to me.

Hey, i was just brainstorming about different connections and stuff when i thought of how in stormlight archive, the voidspren/odium were/was able to control the parshendi. I thought that this in a way might be related to ruin and how he could control (or influence greatly) anyone with a metal spike piercing them. I am just looking for thoughts and explanations on this topic, i like to know what people think. Another thing would be, if the 'evil' shardholders could control people/parshendi whom use the power that correlates to them, ex; voidspren and metallurgy. Why can't the opposite, or good shardholders do the same? I know that things like, "oh they are the good guys and wouldn't do that" would be a common response, but in the books, wouldn't it just be so much easier if Vin could at least hear preservation like she could ruin? These are just things that i wanted to say and see what people thought about them. Go ahead and post new questions if they kind of relate to this topic, i just want to learn more stuff and see what peoples opinions are.

Hi everyone. It’s been a long time since I became aware of the “Cosmere”, and I’ve spent most of the time in these forums (though I do not post much, I like to read you all ). There is one thing that always struck me as weird: The Shattering of Adonalsium, it’s said to have been done by an “opposing force”. As far as I know (and I could be terribly wrong) we know nothing about this force, yet everyone seems to think that’s some kind of “anti-adonalsium”. Another entity as mighty and powerful as him that somehow shattered him. But when I first learned about the shards that sixteen people took up the fragments of Adonalsium the first thing that crossed my mind was: “Hey, those 16 broke a god in Shards and are now having fun being godlike”. Couldn’t it be that the “opposing force that shattered Adonalsium” wasn’t an anti-Adonalsium godlike being but the actual 16 shardholders? We don’t know HOW was Adonalsium shattered, so I have no evidence for and against it… But we do know that they mostly chose their shards. It’s implied on a letter (I think in WoR) that they let Rayse take Odiums shard, fully knowing what it was. Also, neither of the 16 is actually in a hurry to restore Adonalsium. If they were ALL THERE, with all the shards in a single place, and before their intents started to influence them… Why didn’t they try to “fix” Adonalsium? Instead they took their shards and started toying with them in the world, creating their own planets, peoples, magics… I think that it’s not out of the realm of possibility that they shattered Adonalsium on purpose, to take its powers or just because some other reason and the shards were a nice spoil of war. The only thing that I think it’s “against” this theory, is the same letter that we assume is from Cultivation, in wich she says something like they should be careful on Roshar, because they tread lands made by Adonalsium, and she seems to respect him/it. (Sorry I don’t have the exact quote). My answer to this is that you can still respect an enemy, and more so if it’s done in hindsight, when you are in the same position that enemy was. What do you think? Is there anything out there that directly denies this theory?

Premise Thank youTempus for providing a Good Theory Template. The accepted version of Events is that some person, power or thing Hit Adonalsium, and it Shattered into the 16 Shards of Adonalsium. I doubt this. Hypothesis The Shards were Broken off of Adonalsium One at a Time. Possibly in an attempt to Make Adonalsium a Better Power. Chronology of Known Shards Odium The First Desolation was between 9000 and 100,000 Rosharan Years ago.[1] This translates to about 9900 and 110000 Earth Years.[2] Unfortunately, we don’t have a Timeline for When Odium visited Sel. Honor and Cultivation Honor and Cultivation came To Roshar together,[3] and they were there long before Odium was there. [4] This means that there is a Significant amount of Time Before the First Desolation. Endowment Endowment has only Been actively Returning people on Nalthis for a little over 700 years.[5] Preservation and Ruin The well takes 1024 Years to Refill, and has been filled twice that we know of.[6] Preservation and Ruin came to Scadrial together, and Preservation imprisoned Ruin in the Well as soon as they finished with Creation. Since the second Refilling, there was a 302 year gap.[7] So they’ve been on Planet for 2350 Years. Devotion and Dominion The City of Elantris was created hundreds, if not Thousands of Years before the Events of the book.[8] Shu-Keseg, the Original Religion, was founded after the Splintering of Dominion and Devotion.[9] Unnamed/Unseen Shards The Traveller/Space Shard We have a Word of Brandon that stating that there is a Shard that isn’t on a Planet. This shard isn’t the Shard that wants to Survive.[10] Tempus has talked about this and guessed that a Shard could only Stand being UnInvested for about 500 years, before getting Bored. (Note that His words are taken completely out of Context.)[11] Bavadin’s Shard The Shard of White Sand I can’t really Talk about this Shards activities Without Spoilers for Unpublished Work, so Suffice it to Say, that Bavadin has been on World for at least half of a Millenium. Probably More. The Shard of Survival Well. It’s been Surviving. We can assume that it’s invested in a planet somewhere, due to Brandon’s Comment about the Traveller Shard.[12] The Shardholders It’s possible that not all of the Shardholders were Human, Which means that some of them could have had a Longer lifespan than Normal Humans. They were all from Yolen though. and They all Knew Each Other.[13] Conclusion All the Shards have been active for Different amounts of Times. But if they were all broken off of Adonalsium at the same Time, then they should be Equally Experienced. So they were Shattered at different Times. Conjecture/Speculation Here’s What I think happened. Adonalsium was a Power on Yolen, Rayse, being a Crafty and Dangerous man, figured out how to Shatter Bits of it’s Power. He Broke off the Shard of Odium, took it up, and Left Yolen. The other 15, as well as Hoid, Figured out how he did this, and decided to Replicate it, to Spread out throughout the Cosmere. Aona and Skai both took up Shards, and headed off to Sel. Tanavst, being In love and Honorable, insisted on his Girlfriend/Wife getting one. They left together, and eventually Settled on Roshar. After a While, Odium learns that Others Followed his Lead, and Shatters Dominion and Devotion, then heads to Roshar to do the Same to Honor and Cultivation. He kills Honor, but gets trapped by the Surges and Cultivation. The remaining 16 learned that The Power and Intent of the Shard could Change a Person, So they Gave Ruin to the Nicest Person they could, Ati, and paired him with a Shard that could Balance out his Power. Eventually Endowment Takes up her Shard and heads to Nalthis. The other 8 Shards were also taken up and some point, and they left Yolen as well. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Other Possibilities are that Aona and Skai got their Shards, and Adonalsium kept Breaking, leading the Shardholders Forcing Odium on Rayse out of fear of it Deveolping Sentencee or Corrupting a Better man, As Ruin did to Ati. Rayse Blamed this on Devotion and Dominon, and Killed them References

So are all the Shardholders aware of the cosmere, or do some just consider themselves the god of that world. Vin certainly didn't seem to be aware of the cosmere and everything that was going on. And it never mentions if Sazed (I guess we call him Harmony now) is aware of it. However I feel like they would have to at some point. Do you think maybe once a shard changes hands that the Seventeenth Shard swoops in an informs them? It would certainly explain their purpose. Instead of a bunch of random events happening all over the cosmere the Seventeenth Shard links them all together and makes sure everything that happens links together.

Hi all, i'm new here and just wanted to ask more experienced 17th Sharders here their thoughts on the grouping of remaining Shards & major Shardworlds. Thus far the books have revealed: Preservation & Ruin (Harmony) on Scadrial (Mistborn world) - both holders deceased. New holder holds both Devotion & Dominion on Sel (Elantris & Emperor's Soul) - both holders deceased Endowment on Nalthis (Warbreaker) - holder alive but unnamed Honor & Cultivation on Roshar (Stormlight) - Honor deceased, Cultivation alive but unnamed. Odium on Braize but invested in Roshar (Stormlight) - Rayse, alive. Unknown disease effecting Shard on Ashyn (Silence Divine info from signings & forums) - holder unnamed, no idea if he/she still lives so close to Odium. Bavadin's Shard on Taldain (White Sands info from forums and coppermind.net) - Bavadin still alive if the Letter is any guide. That leaves 6 shards & their holders unaccounted for (though one is called Survival on Coppermind) & 2 unnamed worlds & Yolen (Dragonsteel & Liar info from coppermind.net) I read on one of the forums that there's a "Wandering" Shard that is on no planet, leaving 5 Shards spread accross the 3 as yet Shard-less worlds. UNLESS Bavain's Shard and the Shard on Ashyn have roommates (worldmates?). So far there's been only 1-3 Shard on any given world. I'm guessing Odium wouldn't be a pleasant roommate (forget the security deposit or the furniture ever coming back), so we could safely discount a second Shard on Braize. Any thoughts? or have I left anything out? By the way I LOVE THE COSMERE!