Chaos Posted January 28, 2011 Report Share Posted January 28, 2011 Okay people, it's time for me to stop monkeying. Everyone has asked for a guide to the cosmere, so I'm going to break down and finally write one. And I bet it's going to be a rather large guide, too. So, I'm posting this here to see what topics you want to see in it--collaborative outlining, essentially. I'm going to keep this as factual as possible, so there should be very minimal theories. However, there is one that I simply can't resist to tell you, because it is so illuminating to the cosmere. I might have told you before. It's not like it's a big secret. Anyways! Fact, not theory, will be the focus, and if there are theories, they will be marked as such. Other rules: Obviously, we can't discuss unpublished works, like Dragonsteel, so there won't be any information on it (except maybe certain publicly available sample chapters to Liar of Partinel...) that you can't get at the bookstore. Any info that is in published works or that Brandon has stated is fair game. Are you ready for a huge Chaos Theory? Of course you are, because I am always right [citation needed]. Outline: -The novels are connected? -Who is Hoid? -Hoid Appearances -Introduction to Shards --Solids, Liquids, and Gaseous forms -Weaknesses of Shards -Shardworlds and the Shards -Other Terminology --The Three Realms (Physical, Cognitive, Spiritual) ---Shadesmar --Focus --Invest --Shard, Splinter, Sliver --Adonalsium -So where did the Shards come from? -Hoid's origin story -Planet Hoppers That's my outline thus far. Anything else you want to see in a guide for newbies to the cosmere or as a general reference? Please, let me know. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Link Von Kelsier Harvey Posted January 28, 2011 Report Share Posted January 28, 2011 Looks legit to me. Get started already! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eerongal Posted January 28, 2011 Report Share Posted January 28, 2011 Looks legit to me. Get started already! i agree. I'll expect results on my desk in the morning! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chaos Posted January 28, 2011 Author Report Share Posted January 28, 2011 You'll get results "soon" and no earlier Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Finallity Posted January 28, 2011 Report Share Posted January 28, 2011 Hmm... the only thing I've got is to maybe include a list of which books are part of the cosmere. (published or unpublished, and written or simply planned). Also, are you planning on doing this in true, cohesive guide format, or will it be more of a FAQ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chaos Posted January 28, 2011 Author Report Share Posted January 28, 2011 Okay, I'll definitely include a list of known books in the cosmere. It'll probably be a mixture of both. The FAQ nature allows me to inject some sarcasm into the process, which is good, because technical writing (even about fiction) is really dull to write. It may get slightly ranty, as per my usual Sanderson theory posts, but I intend content to be as general and theoretical as possible. EDIT: I put in a subject on other planet hoppers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zas678 Posted January 28, 2011 Report Share Posted January 28, 2011 I got something. From rereading the Goodreads Q&A, I learned something important. There are four terms for subunits of Adonalsium. 1. Magic Users- This one isn't specifically mentioned by Brandon, but I think it should be mentioned. This person usually has a fraction of a shard in them that allows them to connect to Adonalsium's power, often called the "power of creation" (in HoA Q&A). 2.3 A splinter is a small piece of a shard that may or may not dwell in a person. The superpowered Breath that Returned have is an example of a Splinter. This splinter allows the user to do things such as forsee and connect with others on the spiritual realm. Other possible Splinters include Seons, and Skaze. 3. Sliver- Slivers are people who hold or have held a part of a Shard. This group includes Rashek, Vin, and Kelsier (he picks it up after Leras dies, but before Vin embraces the mists). 4. Shard- These people hold one of the (assumed) 16 shards of Adonalsium that include some of the following: Odium, Cultivation, Preservation, Endowment, and Ruin. They are compared to Greek gods in terms of power (aka, not God all-knowing). Oh! And Brandon said that there's only one shard behind Awakening. "It is unlikely that I will use this magic system in a different book because it is distinctly tied to that particular Shard." http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/264132-q-a-with-brandon-sanderson?page=2 "Imagine it as one breath that propels them up through the Heightenings, but it is only a single breath. It's what we speak of in Shard world terminology as a Splinter" What do you guys think? Quite a bit of this is theory on my part, but there's some fact in there to. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shivertongue Posted January 28, 2011 Report Share Posted January 28, 2011 I got something. From rereading the Goodreads Q&A, I learned something important. There are four terms for subunits of Adonalsium. 1. Magic Users- This one isn't specifically mentioned by Brandon, but I think it should be mentioned. This person usually has a fraction of a shard in them that allows them to connect to Adonalsium's power, often called the "power of creation" (in HoA Q&A). 2.3 A splinter is a small piece of a shard that may or may not dwell in a person. The superpowered Breath that Returned have is an example of a Splinter. This splinter allows the user to do things such as forsee and connect with others on the spiritual realm. Other possible Splinters include Seons, and Skaze. 3. Sliver- Slivers are people who hold or have held a part of a Shard. This group includes Rashek, Vin, and Kelsier (he picks it up after Leras dies, but before Vin embraces the mists). 4. Shard- These people hold one of the (assumed) 16 shards of Adonalsium that include some of the following: Odium, Cultivation, Preservation, Endowment, and Ruin. They are compared to Greek gods in terms of power (aka, not God all-knowing). Oh! And Brandon said that there's only one shard behind Awakening. "It is unlikely that I will use this magic system in a different book because it is distinctly tied to that particular Shard." http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/264132-q-a-with-brandon-sanderson?page=2 "Imagine it as one breath that propels them up through the Heightenings, but it is only a single breath. It's what we speak of in Shard world terminology as a Splinter" What do you guys think? Quite a bit of this is theory on my part, but there's some fact in there to. MWAHAHAHAHAHAHA! ;D Hey Eric, remember when I came up with almost the exact same thing a few months ago, with slivers and splinters and stuff. I can't remember, did you think I was wrong, or did you agree with me? EDIT: Wait, I remember now... that theory had more to do with my belief that the Seventeenth Shard was made up of Slivers and Splinters, working towards some unknown purpose. I based that theory, like most of mine, on little to no evidence whatsoever. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chaos Posted January 28, 2011 Author Report Share Posted January 28, 2011 Zas, I may have written somewhere that I didn't believe your division between Sliver and Splinter. Consider myself corrected, and thank you for the citation. Now I can direct quote it Hey Eric, remember when I came up with almost the exact same thing a few months ago, with slivers and splinters and stuff. I can't remember, did you think I was wrong, or did you agree with me? EDIT: Wait, I remember now... that theory had more to do with my belief that the Seventeenth Shard was made up of Slivers and Splinters, working towards some unknown purpose. I based that theory, like most of mine, on little to no evidence whatsoever. I did not agree with you on the principle that we knew nothing about world hoppers It also related to their supposed immortality, I think. I dunno, it was pretty wacky... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew the Great Posted January 29, 2011 Report Share Posted January 29, 2011 The topic list itself looks good. I'm interested to see what you come up with. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Silus - Shard of Flame Posted January 29, 2011 Report Share Posted January 29, 2011 Perhaps a rough timeline? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chaos Posted January 30, 2011 Author Report Share Posted January 30, 2011 Perhaps a rough timeline? Great idea. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Puck Posted February 18, 2011 Report Share Posted February 18, 2011 Will your Shard section cover Unifying Magical Theory (things we've been discussing like energy sources, net energy, fuels, rulesetc). I see you have a section on Foci and Investing, so you might've been planning on this already Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chaos Posted February 18, 2011 Author Report Share Posted February 18, 2011 Yup! Everything we know for certain will be present. I might forget a few things, but I'll get it all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Silus - Shard of Flame Posted February 22, 2011 Report Share Posted February 22, 2011 Well, we don't know the Unifying Theory of Magic yet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zas678 Posted February 22, 2011 Report Share Posted February 22, 2011 We know a little bit. We know that everything has three parts to it (Or at least God-Sazed says so) A Physical part, (aka mass), a spiritual part (which ends up being interpreted as energy, which includes Magic), and a Cognitive part, to guide the physical and the spiritual. So, when I tell my body to burn Pewter (cognitive), it does so (physical) my soul, which includes a piece of Preservation, uses Preservation as a "gate" to the Power of Creation (which I believe is Adonalsium's power), and that power flows into my body, giving my body extra energy (spiritual). Or at least that's how I interpret the Realmantic Theory. Edit- I believe I have now posted Gavarah's Theory of the Three Realms (WoK Hardcover, 621) Don't bother looking it up. I only got the name from there. Edit Edit- Actually, thinking more, I think that Gavarah's Theory of the Three Realms is something different (it relates to the Cosmere). Ignore above Edit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Silus - Shard of Flame Posted February 22, 2011 Report Share Posted February 22, 2011 When Brandon mentions the Unifying Theory of Magic (very sparingly) he refers to it a's being a sort of parallel to the Unifying Theory of Physics that scientists have been looking for. A single core rule that can be applied to everything. The three realms are a result of the rule, but aren't actually it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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