[OB] What are Honorblades made out of?

[Ashspren]

Throughout the Stormlight Archive, we see that Honorblades give a person Radiant powers— the ability to surgebind. Also, we know that one of the metals, nicrosil, stores investiture.

Are Honorblades made of nicrosil, and is that how they give abilities to people? It would explain how people gained powers, and why they no longer have them after losing possession of the Honorblade.

I don’t know if Sanderson has already answered this in a WoB, or if this is already a forum. If someone could please let me know, that would be great. If not, then... let the theories begin, I guess. 

[Weltall]

Honorblades are made of Honor's godmetal, which we've been calling Tanavastium as it fits the pattern of atium from Ati and lerasium from Leras (Harmonium only exists as such because Sazed didn't like how 'Sazedium' sounded) but that's not been canonized by Brandon. Common Shardblades are also godmetal and are likely an alloy of Honor and Cultivation's godmetals, depending on the particular spren involved. Brandon has described Honorblades as working on the same principle as an unsealed metalmind, but they're not the same thing.

Edited May 10, 2018 by Weltall

[go_go_gragdet]

1 hour ago, Weltall said:

Harmonium only exists as such because Sazed didn't like how 'Sazedium' sounded

Did Rayse like how 'Raysium' sounded? Or did he, being the heinous person that he is, choose 'Odiumium' over it?

Edited May 11, 2018 by go_go_gragdet

[Ashspren]

1 hour ago, Weltall said:

Honorblades are made of Honor's godmetal, which we've been calling Tanavastium as it fits the pattern of atium from Ati and lerasium from Leras (Harmonium only exists as such because Sazed didn't like how 'Sazedium' sounded) but that's not been canonized by Brandon. Common Shardblades are also godmetal and are likely an alloy of Honor and Cultivation's godmetals, depending on the particular spren involved. Brandon has described Honorblades as working on the same principle as an unsealed metalmind, but they're not the same thing.

Thanks so much!

8 minutes ago, go_go_gragdet said:

Did Rayse like how 'Raysium' sounded? Or did he, being the heinous person that he is, choose 'Odiumium' over it?

Storms, please no. That would be terrible. 

[Weltall]

7 minutes ago, go_go_gragdet said:

Did Rayse like how 'Raysium' sounded? Or did he, being the heinous person that he is, choose 'Odiumium' over it?

We don't know but I sure hope it's the former; I can't hear 'Odiumium' and keep a straight face.

[+Extesian]

Or the American spelling, Odumum.

[IllNsickly]

It absolutely HAS to be Odiumium.

 

I will accept nothing else.

[Barbarian AL]

Odiumium sounds like a soup Rock would make!

[Weltall]

Odi-yummy-yum. Bah, airsick lowlanders and their silly names.

[CalaCrisp88]

Personally, I've started calling Tanavium, because it sounds like a more wieldly name. I doubt all of the god metals would actually include the shardholder's full name, because then we'd end up with things like Uli Daium (Ulidium sounds better imo).

Of course, we do have some pretty awkward names in real life (like praseodymium), so I guess it doesn't really matter

[Ashspren]

Let’s make a list of all the Shards and what their god metals would be called!

Ruin/Ati: Ruinium/Atium

Preservation/Leras: Preservationium/Lerasium

Harmony/Sazed: Harmonium/Sazedium

Cultivation/???: Cultivationium/???ium

Honor/Tanavast: Honorium/Tanavastium

Odium/Raysium: Odiumium/Raysium

Ambition/Uli Da: Ambitionium/Uli Daium

Autonomy/Bavadin: Autonomium/Bavadinium

Dominion/Skai: Dominionium/Skaium

Devotion/Aona: Devotionium/Aonaium

Edited May 13, 2018 by Ashspren

[Fatikis]

25 minutes ago, Ashspren said:

Let’s make a list of all the Shards and what their god metals would be called!

Ruin/Ati: Ruinium/Atium

Preservation/Leras: Preservationium/Lerasium

Harmony/Sazed: Harmonium/Sazedium

Cultivation/???: Cultivationium/???ium

Honor/Tanavast: Honorium/Tanavastium

Odium/Raysium: Odiumium/Raysium

Ambition/Uli Da: Ambitionium/Uli Daium

Autonomy/Bavadin: Autonomium/Bavadinium

Dominion/Skai: Dominionium/Skaium

Devotion/Aona: Devotionium/Aonaium

I don't understand the point of this but.
Harmony is Harmonium/Ettmetal

 

Edited May 13, 2018 by Fatikis

[Ashspren]

1 minute ago, Fatikis said:

I don't understand the point of this.
Harmony is Harmonium/Ettmetal

 

I didn't know about Ettmetal, thanks!

And that was just because I was bored, and thought it would be interesting to see what all the names would be. Also, if we ever needed to reference a god metal, instead of saying something like "Autonomy's god metal," we could just say "Bavadinium," which is somewhat easier.

[Fatikis]

31 minutes ago, Ashspren said:

I didn't know about Ettmetal, thanks!

And that was just because I was bored, and thought it would be interesting to see what all the names would be. Also, if we ever needed to reference a god metal, instead of saying something like "Autonomy's god metal," we could just say "Bavadinium," which is somewhat easier.

I don't see how that is easier. We know the names of most of the shards. We don't know the names of most of the shardholders. For the most part saying Autonomy's God metal is more clear than saying Bavadinium because more people know about Autonomy than know Autonomy's name. The intent also is probably more important to the metal itself than the actual name of the shardholder.

Atium, Lerasium, and Harmonium are the exceptions because they are directly named in the Mistborn series. The Southern Scadrians refer to Harmony's god metal as Ettmetal. Harmony refers to it as Harmonium because he didn't like the sound of Sazedium.

Edited May 13, 2018 by Fatikis

[Weltall]

Since we're talking godmetal names, might as well mention 'Trellium' which is the mystery metal that appears in Shadows of Self. Brandon has said we can use that name for the time being and it is from a Shard that we know. And it's very likely to be Bavadin's godmetal, but not confirmed ad such.

[Ashspren]

32 minutes ago, Weltall said:

Since we're talking godmetal names, might as well mention 'Trellium' which is the mystery metal that appears in Shadows of Self. Brandon has said we can use that name for the time being and it is from a Shard that we know. And it's very likely to be Bavadin's godmetal, but not confirmed ad such.

Cool, thanks!

4 hours ago, Fatikis said:

I don't see how that is easier. We know the names of most of the shards. We don't know the names of most of the shardholders. For the most part saying Autonomy's God metal is more clear than saying Bavadinium because more people know about Autonomy than know Autonomy's name. The intent also is probably more important to the metal itself than the actual name of the shardholder.

Atium, Lerasium, and Harmonium are the exceptions because they are directly named in the Mistborn series. The Southern Scadrians refer to Harmony's god metal as Ettmetal. Harmony refers to it as Harmonium because he didn't like the sound of Sazedium.

That makes sense... it was still fun, though. 

[The Watcher]

On 13/05/2018 at 0:54 PM, Weltall said:

Since we're talking godmetal names, might as well mention 'Trellium' which is the mystery metal that appears in Shadows of Self. Brandon has said we can use that name for the time being and it is from a Shard that we know. And it's very likely to be Bavadin's godmetal, but not confirmed ad such.

Bavadin was confirmed to be on Taldain last time I checked, so unless Coppermind is wrong...there is actually a very low chance of Bavadin being on Scadrial, especially since Shards can't leave a planetary system if they are Invested in it.

 

[RShara]

42 minutes ago, The Watcher said:

Bavadin was confirmed to be on Taldain last time I checked, so unless Coppermind is wrong...there is actually a very low chance of Bavadin being on Scadrial, especially since Shards can't leave a planetary system if they are Invested in it.

 

Bavadin, aka Autonomy, is weird. She's creating avatars of herself on various planets and seems to be able to move around a lot more than other Shards normally do.

[Weltall]

41 minutes ago, The Watcher said:

Bavadin was confirmed to be on Taldain last time I checked, so unless Coppermind is wrong...there is actually a very low chance of Bavadin being on Scadrial, especially since Shards can't leave a planetary system if they are Invested in it.

It's not as simple as that. Also, we know for a fact that Autonomy has created Splinters and is acting on other worlds. In fact, Arcanum Unbounded's essay on the Taldain System says as much. Here's a (trimmed) WoB that makes both points clear.

Quote

We generally mean the term "Invested" to mean a Shard has taken permanent residence in a location, a kind of base of operations--but at the same time, this is meaningless, since distance has no meaning on the Spiritual Realm, where most Shards are. So imprisonment of a Shard like Ruin or Odium is a crude expression--but the best we have.

Autonomy never "invested" on First of the Sun. But even answering (as someone else asked) if they created an avatar without visiting is a difficult thing to explain--because even explaining how a shard travels (when motion is irrelevant) is difficult to manage. It's a subject that I intend to be up for debate, discussion, and argument by in-world philosophers and arcanists.

<snip>

When I said Patji was a Shard, I was meaning automony--but it is not quite that simple.

Take this post to mean "no, you should not be looking toward another Shard for Patji's origins. Autonomy is the one relevant." But Autonomy's relationships with entities like this (not sure entity is the right word, even) is complex. I'm not trying to confuse the issue, though.

source

We also have WoB that the second letter in Oathbringer's epigraphs (the one that uses the pronouns 'we' and 'our') was written by Autonomy, who is explicitly creating avatars to act on other worlds such as Obrodai.

[The Watcher]

Ohhhhh thank you, I totally forgot about the comments there that Khriss made!! I’m curious about the epigraph now!!!! Gotta go grab my OB!