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Brandon finally confirmed it!

IMO Adolin does indeed grow - in a natural, healthy way, without his character changing completely. He learns from his experiences and acts accordingly. Not every single character needs dramatic (or traumatic) change to function. Adolin is an element of stability that serves the books well (we have enough dramaqueens - no, I'm not talking about mental health issues here, oh my Honor. This is a humorous exaggeration. I really thought that was obvious), without being static or appearing badly written. Sanderson talked about him in an interview a while back where he said that Adolin is so easy to write because he's straightforward and doesn't hold things back. That makes less room for Big Drama™, sure, but of that, we have enough.

This post addresses a mystery: In a world riven by race warfare, why does an Ascended being give Roshar’s deadliest killer the cosmere’s most dangerous object? Why link this scary duo when one doesn’t trust his moral code and the other doesn’t have one? One answer: Cultivation foresees Investiture growth will cause Nightblood to ascend as a Divine Object, the super-sapient Sword of Retribution. She chooses Szeth to teach Nightblood the meaning of evil – who deserves to die (“retribution”) and who doesn’t – before Nightblood ascends. The starting point: 1. Cultivation knows about Nightblood, since the Nightwatcher offers Nightblood to Dalinar: “A Blade that bleeds darkness and cannot be defeated.” (OB, Chapter 114, Kindle p. 1078.) 2. We don’t know how the Nightwatcher acquires Nightblood, but we do know Nale ends up with him. 3. Nale delivers Nightblood to Szeth. ANALYSIS The main sections outline my narrative. The Spoiler sections are more technical. Nightblood Basics and Mechanics I tucked these subjects in a Spoiler because most of you already know this stuff. Cultivation Fears Nightblood’s Growth Nightblood adds Investiture “over time” (I believe each time he destroys evil). The added Investiture causes Nightblood’s mind to grow: “The more investiture clumped together, the more likely – and the closer to human-level intelligence it is likely to obtain.” Brandon tells us, “Nightblood is capable of more change than Vasher assumes.” “The only clues I'm willing to give on [Nightblood’s growth] right now are the ones that are in Oathbringer.” Nightblood picks up Lift’s vocabulary quickly enough, curses and all. That suggests some growth. If Nightblood continues to be used, he will inevitably reach “human-level intelligence” and theoretically surpass it. Cultivation fears a super-sapient being of enormous destructive power with no moral compass. With or without a conscience, if used enough Nightblood will ascend. Cultivation decides Nightblood needs a moral tutor. He’s still a child who doesn’t understand abstractions like “evil.” She may believe, “Give me a child until he is 7 and I will show you the man.” Cultivation implants Nightblood’s moral code while she can. How Nightblood Adds Investiture My best guess: Why Szeth? Szeth doesn’t trust his own moral judgment: “How was a twisted soul like his to decide who should die?” Impossible.” (OB, Chapter 118, Kindle p. 1124.) But the two Purelake scenes show exceptional discernment and judgment – when he assesses blame on the prison operator and when he “loopholes” himself to victory against other Skybreaker wannabes. Nale admires Szeth not for his combat skills but for his faithful adherence to an unforgiving moral code. Maybe Cultivation asked Nale to select Nightblood’s tutor; maybe she chose Szeth herself. Regardless, they chose well. But Szeth now navigates morality by Dalinar’s true north. As when bound by his oathstone, Szeth still avoids responsibility for his moral decisions. I believe this is unsustainable. Szeth himself must grow and learn to trust his own judgment before he can teach Nightblood who deserves to die. Cultivation Transforms Nightblood WoK describes a carved relief of “Nalan’Elin, emitting sunlight, the sword of retribution held over his head.” (Chapter 18, Kindle p. 286, bold added.) We don’t know what that sword is, maybe Nale’s Honorblade. Some posters note the idea of a “sword of retribution” fits Nightblood’s destructiveness. I think Cultivation/Nightwatcher transforms Nightblood into the Rosharan spren “Sword of Retribution.” The carved relief, still being worked on, shows the Sword’s cultural currency. “Retribution” means “deserved punishment.” I view Retribution as a subset of Just, the Skybreakers’ primary Divine Attribute. Nightblood might not technically be a highspren, because he was created differently and represents only a sliver of Justice. But I believe Cultivation/Nightwatcher gives Nightblood the ability to grant Skybreaking powers to Szeth. Nightblood does not Connect to Szeth through the Nahel bond: “Nightblood does not have the same spren bond, and so the renouncing of Oaths is not going to affect him.” As the Shard of transformation, Cultivation doesn’t need the Nahel bond (the “same spren bond”) to grant her magic to mortals. Nightblood’s existing Cognitive bond with Szeth communicates Szeth’s wishes. As a Rosharan spren (now), Nightblood can transform Stormlight into the Skybreaking powers. Why Not Another Highspren? Many posters believe Szeth does have a Nahel bond with a separate highspren. They may be right, but I think Nightblood himself is “the hidden spren who only rarely showed itself to” Szeth. (OB, Chapter 121, Kindle p. 1198.) I discuss this in the Spoiler. Conclusion Nightblood as the Sword of Retribution is not a new thought. I believe Nightblood as the living ideal of Retribution, a non-Nahel bond spren that grants Skybreaking powers and ultimately ascends, is. If this interpretation seems strained, it fits within SLA’s broader redemption arc. Why bring Szeth and Nightblood together if not to transform two mass murderers? They redeem the evil they’ve each done (like Dalinar tries to do) by destroying true evil here and now. Two predictions: EITHER – Szeth and Nightblood will ascend together. He will replace the broken Nale as Herald of Justice, wielding Nightblood the ascended Sword of Retribution. (Someone else must have predicted this by now.) OR – Instead, Szeth will achieve the Fifth Skybreaker Ideal and fully merge into Nightblood. He will become the Sword of Retribution’s Divine Conscience. (My personal vote goes to this one, if only for novelty.) Happy New Year’s, everyone! May it be a joyful, healthy, and prosperous year for all humankind! Confused

How come shipping threads always derail into Adolin... oh, well, I’ll get us back on track by suggesting something I havent seen suggested (and I dont ship stuff, I just suggest things for fun): Syl and Pattern

Please do. I have my defenses all ready and soon I'll start drawing my chalkling swarms.

Maybe amend your comment to carry your meaning further. As it currently reads, you state you prefer Adolin because he is stable (and the given comparisons are to characters that have severe mental disorders), and you go on to state that "we have enough dramaqueens tbh" in quick succession. Contextually, the implication--even if unintended--is that you think the characters with mental disorders are dramaqueens and need to just "get over" their problems--and as someone with a mental disorder, I can tell you I read it the same way as @SLNC. A few notes before I go silent once more: You picked some of the worst examples to further your point toward the end. Wayne, Wax, and Sazed all have HUGE character growth arcs. Even smaller characters in these respective series--Steris & Breeze, for example--have more visible growth over three books than Adolin has actually shown. Further, Sarene and Vasher are from standalone books--Vasher wasn't even the main character, and these two are from the earliest of Brandon's published books. And the two main characters of that book (Warbreaker) did show enormous growth within the bounds of that singular volume. No, I want characters to be believable and relatable. What I find funny is how much projection is placed on Adolin, and how much his narrative is retroactively rewritten with each book. He isn't even stable--his murder of Sadeas in a fit of anger is clear indication of that. He also is highly jealous, and demonstrates severe avoidance behavior with regards to responsibility. I've written an entire wallpost on the subject. I respectfully disagree. Adolin doesn't provide "emotional grounding," he provides a yes-man to Shallan's antics, someone who will tell her what she wants to hear instead of what she needs to hear. He actually exacerbates her mental problems, fragments her mental state further by his "acceptance" of "who" she is. He doesn't know who she is--she isn't even sure who she is--and therefore he's not qualified to tell her so. To say he knows her on the depth required is not only a ludicrous notion, but it's pathologically misogynistic. He's not good for her in the slightest. And to be clear, what Shallan needs isn't "emotional grounding," it's facing her problems and accepting that she is who she is--trauma, flaws, and all. And Adolin can't give her that because he doesn't know what she hasn't told him--which is a lot.

Some people demand too much from character growth. Look at Kelsier. He didn't changed much in the story, too. Only some minor things. Like Adolin. Like Sarene. Like Vasher. Like Wayne. Like Wax. Like Sazed... You people want characters to be HIGHLY UNSTABLE. Why? There is some fun in it but in accurate rations. I don't like that one because he isn't developing. Zahel doesn't grow and we love him!

Greetings everyone, and welcome to Armedius Academy's 35th annual Melee! I'm your host, Tom Middleton. And I'm your co-commentator, Ron Howard. You can smell the scent of chalk dust in the air, eh, Ron? Absolutely, Tom. Armedius's finest Rithmatists will be taking the field shortly. This should be a fight for the ages. Indeed. Each and every one of these students has a shot at the gold. However, there can only be one winner. Ron, would you mind going over the rules for anyone just joining us? Of course Tom. The Rules: This is a free-for-all game, which means there are no teams this game. Your goal is to be the last player standing. In the event of a tie, the player with the most kills wins. This game takes place in two phases: the Preparation phase, and then up to 9 Rounds in the Game phase. Preparation Phase: In the preparation phase, students decide on what strategy to use, and form temporary alliances. This phase will last 48 hours, and begins once the game starts. In this phase, PMs are open. Feel free to contact anyone you like to talk strategy. Please include both myself and the impartial moderator when making these PMs. In addition, you must choose a defense to use in the main event. These will be explained later. Rounds: After the Preparation Phase, Round 1 will start. Each Round lasts 24 hours, and PMs are closed during them. Each round, you can submit one of these three actions: Line of Forbiddance: Defend a player, usually yourself, from one attack Line of Vigor: Attack another player Line of Making: Swarm a player with chalklings. During the next round, they will be unable to take any actions. Defense: During the Preparation Phase, you may choose one of the following Ballintain Defense: You cannot draw Lines of Forbiddance, but your LInes of Vigor deal double damage Matson Defense: Choose a player when you draw this defense. You learn what Defense that player is using. Taylor Defense: You cannot take any actions during Round 1. If you survive the first round, you gain an extra life. Miscellaneous: @Alvron will be our impartial moderator. The game will be starting Tuesday, January 8th at 4 PM Eastern Standard Time. Well put Ron. Let's sit back and watch as the contestants enter the stadium. Player List: Quick Links:

If you shorten it you get The A.R.C.H.E.R. Index Clever.

@Archer a few questions and a new character. Can we use Era 3 characters in Era 2? Also, can you change my character Maq's name to Makc? Finally, and this is a more general question for anyone, Would I be allowed to Keep Mac as a character if I could guarentee his utter lack of power outside of DA territory, and possibly within DA territory? (This would be no more alleymatics or one power, or much of anything really. He may retain one power.)

Please just edit your previous post instead of double-posting. Thanks I don't think we have the same understanding, and I'm not sure how to react to this because there is so much in this post that is just...so, so wrong. I would like to inform you that my statements are very well grounded in facts. In fact (ha, pun), I use the books as a primary source for everything I say, and usually back up my comments with ample sourced evidence. I didn't this time for the sake of brevity since I've said these same points over and over... Cliff notes: No, you're not alone. I actually ship them quite a bit.

I think Adolin is a good fit for Shallan because while she doesn't even know who she is herself he knows exactly who he is. He has a stable personality, especially in comparison with Shallan. And claiming that Adolin cannot help her facing her "internal problems" is... well.. not grounded in facts. Having someone at your side who answers you - after you just asked him which person he prefers you to be - "I want the real Shallan, you don't need to disguise yourself for me" (I'm paraphrasing here) ... I think no psychiatrist could offer more. Isn't that a strong incentive to be yourself? At least when you are with that person? And wouldn't that be a first, healthy step? I think Adolin has such a stable personality despite the killing of Sadeas. I'd go so far and say that this murder underlines his pragmatic nature: It just was the best way to get rid of a major threat. That guy was a freaking mass murderer. And a traitor! He helped the enemy with whom he was at war with and killed thousands of his own countrymen. If someone deserved to die, it is him. And he did it on purpose. And was fine with it. Compare that to Szeth who killed maybe a few hundreds and didn't even do it on his own accords... well, what I wanted to say is, that killing Sadeas was necessary and Adolin sacrificed his good name and conscience for the greater good. Totally stable personality. No irony or sarcasm involved. And I am sure he'll help Shallan to "find herself" and accept the things she has done!

I don't know that I agree. Adolin used to be something of a playboy. Now, he's turned off even by the idea of Shallan illusioning herself as other women Adolin used to prefer a lot of shallow relationships, but is developing closer friendships with Kaladin, Skar, and Drehy. Adolin used to be a socialite and something of a dandy. Now, extreme fashion "doesn't fit" anymore and he's mostly rejected the others of his class. Adolin learned to accept and understand what his father meant by living the Codes, and backed him up when Sadeas betrayed them at the Tower Adolin once would have allowed himself to be bullied into the kingship. But with encouragement from Vivenna and Shallan, he's now looking for his own place in the world instead of the one Dalinar is projecting onto him. I think the only time in all of OB Adolin even thinks about dueling is to note that Shardblades aren't particularly good dueling weapons, but that instead they seem pretty specifically designed to kill thunderclasts. Dueling used to be something of an obsession of his. Most of all, I think Adolin used to be highly typical of Alethi society at the beginning of WoR. He certainly is not that anymore. Adolin is going to have to learn to find a place for himself moving forward.

Hey all Bit of a fun quick post. Curious what you think the best thing you learned about Stormlight was here. i joined a couple weeks ago and am loving the well laid out theories and wealth of information. I was pondering myself all the little, and not so little, things I’ve learned and trying to decide what’s my favourite. In my case I think just finding out that the books already had their perspectives allocated surprised me. I had no clue that information was out and available. It’s changed my view on how the series will progress dramatically. I’ve left the question vague for a purpose. You can decide what is “best” in your view.

Spoiler Warning: This post, and presumably the ones to follow, will contain frank discussion about the magic systems of every book and novella Brandon has written, excluding Skyward. It’s serendipity that this is my 1500th post. I like my milestones to be substantial messages. This, being something I’ve been working on for the last little while, qualifies. SO IT’S PARTY TIME, YEAH! This is my attempt at creating a list that quantifies characters’ powers for comparison and approval purposes. The principle is that powers and abilities add to a character’s score, while weaknesses and limitations subtract from it. Bios can be scored, generating a numerical value for their power level. I am recommending that we cap Era Three characters at 100 points. (But my recommended approach to ‘completely passive’ or ‘non-combatant’ characters would be to permit them to exceed this.) This list is in alphabetical order by planet name, something Ax did in his version that I thought worked well. Shout out to Ax and BB for their submissions! I’ve expanded on and stolen some of them ideas you’ve put forward for what this index should look like and include. I hope you don’t mind. So far, I have listed the settings/name of every Sanderson book and novella I am aware of that has a magic system characters could conceivably have, and assigned arbitrary values to the powers people could get from them. But, as you’ll see from the last seven entries, it is incomplete. Some entries are marked ‘TBC’ (To Be Continued) because I do not have enough information readily available to fill them in. If you are knowledgeable about these books/magics, I would welcome your input. This is very much a work in progress, which I am sure is full of omissions and misjudgments. So please, if you see anything on here you disagree with, go ahead and post what improvements you think should be made. The caveat on that invitation is that I have tried to use numbers ending in five or zero whenever possible, to make it easier to tabulate scores. So I’d appreciate if we avoid introducing decimals or other such nitpickery. Also missing from the list is the powers characters innately have due to their species (eg. a kandra). This list is designed to score humans. Other beings will need to be scored on a case-by-case basis, using nearest comparisons and best judgement. The same goes for technology and tools that act like magic. A shardblade, for example, could add a fair number of points to one’s score. And given the wide variety of weaknesses available, it will be up to the tabulator to decide how many points to subtract for them, bearing in mind the effect a weakness has on a character’s ability to use their power or otherwise function. The tabulator has to make some other judgement calls too, fudging the numbers to account for experience, resource limitations, skill level, and all manner of other potential traits a character could have. My working title for this is The Alleyverse Roleplay Character Hecatean Endowment Range Index. Yes, I took the liberty of using ‘Hecate’ as a metonymy for magic. I just wanted to see if I could do it. I having second thoughts about it, so the name will probably be shortened or changed altogether at a future date. For now, being lazy, I’ll just call it The Index, or something similar, when referring to it. I invite everyone to give this a read and provide feedback. Thanks for your time. THE INDEX: FIRST DRAFT Detritus (Skyward) [Redacted while the spoiler suppression period is in effect.] Earth (Alcatraz vs the Evil Librarians) Crystin: +25 Smedry Talent: Impure, +25, Prime, +50, Dark Talent, +150 Oculator/User of Blood-Forged Lenses: +40 Alivened augmentations: +15 Earth (Defending Elysium) Sense: +15 Mind Blades: +40 FTL transport: +40 Earth (The Reckoners) Epic Power: Counting primary, secondary, and tertiary powers all together and subtracting the impact their weakness has on their ability, rank on scale of 1 – 10 based on power output and usefulness. Multiply score by 10 and add 20. Additional Prime Invincibility (High Epic): +20 (or +40 if also lacking a weakness) Post-Calamity Epic (no Epic weakness): +5 Examples: Donny ‘Curveball’ Harrison = 30, Knoxx = 40, Refractionary = 70, Obliteration = 160 Earth (The Rithmatist) Rithmatist: +30 Melody-level ability: +30 First of the Sun (Sixth of the Dusk) Aviar: +10 per Imperium (Aether of Night) Amberite Bond: +35 Verdant Bond: +30 Bestarian Bond: +10 Ferrous Bond: +10 Luminous Bond: +25 Lukarvia (I Hate Dragons) Knack: Rank each knack’s power on a scale of 1 – 3. Multiply by five. Nalthis (Warbreaker) First Heightening: +30 Second Heightening: +40 Third Heightening: +70 Fourth Heightening: +100 Fifth Heightening: +150 Returned: +135 Roshar (The Stormlight Archive) Surgebinder: First Ideal, +60, Second Ideal, +80, Third Ideal, +100, Fourth Ideal, +120 Knight Radiant Squire: +50 Old Magic Boon/Bane: Treat like an Epic Power [see: Earth (The Reckoners)], but the minimum is 5 instead. Scadrial (Mistborn) Misting: Aluminum and duralumin, +5, Lerasium, +145, Level One, +35, Level Two, +45, Level Three, +55. [Note: Level distinctions are non-canon.] Level One: Brass, Bronze, Cadmium, Chromium, Copper, Electrum, Gold, Nicrosil, Tin, Zinc. Level Two: Bendalloy, Iron, Steel, Pewter, Malatium Level Three: Atium Mistborn: +160 Ferring: Level One, +30, Level Two, +40, Level Three, +50. Level One: Aluminum, Atium, Brass, Bendalloy, Bronze, Cadmium, Copper, Electrum, Duralumin, Nicrosil, Tin, Zinc Level Two: Iron, Pewter, Malatium Level Three: Chromium, Gold, Steel Feruchemist: +150 Complimentary Twinborn Combination: +10 Compounder: Level One, +100, Level Two, +120, Level Three, +140 Level One: Aluminum, Brass, Bronze, Cadmium, Copper, Duralumin, Electrum, Tin, Zinc Level Two: Bendalloy, Iron, Pewter Level Three: Atium, Chromium, Gold, Nicrosil, Steel Fullborn: +1000 Hemalurgist: Level One, +25, Level Two, +35, Level Three, +45 Level One: Brass, Bronze, Copper, Duralumin, Tin, Zinc Level Two: Gold, Iron, Pewter, Steel, Level Three: Aluminum, Atium Sel (Elantris, The Emperor’s Soul) Elantrian: +90 Dakhor user: +80 for full monk, +30 for single limb mutation. ChayShan user: +40 Forger: +60 Bloodsealer: +50 Taldain (White Sand) Sand master: Rank their ability from 1 - 5. Multiply by 5 and add 35. The Westlands (The Wheel of Time) Channeler: Rank their power on a scale of 1 – 10. Multiply by five and add 80. Blademaster: +15 ***** Earth (Centrifugal) TBC Earth (Dreamer from Games Creatures Play) TBC Earth (Heuristic Algorithm and Reasoning Response Engine from Armored) TBC (Firstborn) TBC (Infinity Blade) TBC ***** Alleymatics TBC (Warhammer 40k) TBC

This is actually just something I learned, doing some research for a Cosmere Character Roast. I've always known that the SLA was incredibly well written and that Brandon is the master of the long game (with his amazing outlines), but the sheer subtlety of some of the foreshadowing is amazing, and the thematic parallelisms. So I am looking up quotes from Taravangian, and in OB, during the scene where Dalinar and T are discussing the hanged man problem from the way of kings (where 3 people are guilty of murder and one person is innocent), T describes the utilitarian thinking behind his answer of "hang all 4". He basically says that ultimately the people in charge have to do reprehensible things for the good of the governed. And he has this line, which is complimentary yet functionally opposite of Dalinar's oath from the I am Unity moment: This is the story of two competing world views, both characters are struggling to do what they think is right, and what is super fantastic about this particular thread is that Dalinar wouldn't have been able to stand if T hadn't pursued his plan (which is most likely being orchestrated by Cultivation) fueled by the blood of the innocent. Brilliant stuff.

Wow son that was wild! We have no idea but I don't think Kaladin can offer what Adolin can to Shallan however I won't shoot down the ship.

This isn't just relevant to just the Stormlight series but also mistborn touches on it, which shows the ups and downs of humanity. The beautifully illustrated characterisation of how a person can seem okay is actually suffering, how mental illness does not just "go" away and how a person can have so many flaws but they aren't defined by them. The aspect of religion is intricately written to portray both the good and bad, thus making me as a spiritual person understand what other people think and how a philosophy does not define a person as I once thought. The culture brings awareness at our own society, showing how it can be silly like a safe hand but culturally significant, thus telling us to be tolerant of others even if we think something is silly. I could go one but I'll sum my points with dot points that provide evidence of what I mean. Characters created to be human being = humans as a whole Characters with mental illness are not defined as someone with depression but by a name Religion having flaws = every religion, Christianity, Judaism, Islamic, all of them have flaws Cultural understanding = Hanuka (if I spelt that right), wearing a Burka, wearing an American flag (I'll be honest, I wanted to quote the religious themes in Mistborn in my religion essay to prove a point and wanted to quote stuff about war and the human suffering from Stormlight, it is academic quote worthy!)

Not typically much of a shipper, I generally prefer to just see how their relationships play out on their own, to avoid the inevitable disappointment when my hopes dont work out, if nothing else. That being said: Jasnah and Rlain. Jasnah seems really unimpressed by the cultural gender roles she was born into, and there's that line when she proposed the engagement to Shallan where she said "Doesnt it bother you at all? The idea of being beholden to another, particularly a man?" This made me think she might lean the other way in the great game of Love; Id enjoy seeing her buck the cultural norm and find what Im sure for her would be an unexpected connection with another woman. But that would likely end up with her and another heavy Scholar type (just given the pool of folks she spends her time around), and I think it could be even more interesting to see her go further and find a romantic connection with a Singer, somebody from the race with several genders and little-to-no apparent gender bias. I think she'd enjoy being around a person that has to very consciously change Forms to Mateform before they have to deal with much sexual drive; it could lead to some fun scenes where for the first time she was the one dealing with the sort of heightened sexual distraction that Singers attribute to Mateform. We know from the Horneaters that inter-species relations work on a genetic level. Plus, I want Rlain to have as much development and screen time as possible, though Venli (as our other Named Singer character) could serve much the same narrative purpose in most respects. EDIT: Not to mention, that would mean that

Just drove by my father and retrieved my copy of Oathbringer and he was like "when will I get it back, I'm in the midst of a battle". And I had to promise to drive by on Sunday again and give it back. Then I got home and found his bookmark. He really is in the middle of Thaylen Field... Now I feel kind of sorry... @Ashspren The quote has to be word by word, or could I maybe change the tense/ adjust the form of a verb, so that it's right grammatically if I have to cut a sentence in half?

When you start trying to turn Christmas stories into Cosmere stories - I have this with "Twis the night before Christmas" so far - Anyone else want to contribute

So today I was at work and was thinking about allomancy and FTL technology when I realized that speed bubbles compress space. I can't believe no one has mentioned this before, so I'll act as if this has been proposed before and try and add as much detail as possible. Since I had many hours to work this out, here's what I have: I am basing this on the idea that the cosmere still has einsteinian physics, because I don't think Brandon is just throwing out all that stuff. He's relying on that. And here, there was an idea for a FTL drive called the alcubierre drive. The basic idea is that while no THING can move faster than light, space-time can. So, like surfing a wave, you compress space in front of you, and expand space behind you, and end up going faster than light. So, what I realized is that a speed bubble can't be dilating time without dilating space to some degree or another. Obviously it's not a huge amount, because it's not affecting the people inside enough for anyone to go "huh, this is weird." But, if you're compressing time, you should also to some degree be compressing space as well, based on the whole idea of space-time. And that means with 2 bubbles, you could potentially achieve FTL travel. This idea has several things going for it, but obviously there's a bit more to this process than just a slider and a pulser in a rocket ship. First, this is a relatively viable method of FTL travel, given that unlike many other methods in stories, it doesn't break hard physics. The main issue in the real world is that we don't have a great way to compress space and expand space in the way that an alcubierre drive would require. But huh, look at that! Coincidentally, Bendalloy and Cadmium EXACTLY fit the bill for what you would need! It's almost as if Brandon read about the alcubierre drive at some point, and decided to create speed bubbles to fit the bill, so that they could be around as a power but then later on be realized for their greater potential! Even recently, he's mentioned that there's more to speed bubbles in relation to FTL travel that we haven't figured out yet, and we've gone on and on about the ability for cadmium to enable a "cryosleep" of sorts. This would exactly fit the bill for something reasonable for them to discover in the future once they have a better understanding of realmatics and physics. Speaking of which, real quick, I'll list off what Scadrial needs to get to to have this be a viable technology. First, they need to get an understanding of Einsteinian physics, specifically space-time. Furthermore, they need to understand that speed bubbles are locked on in location to things like the planet, or a moving train. This would allow them to extrapolate that a bubble would stay in place on a spaceship as well. Finally, they need to have completely mechanized the metallic arts in order to get the ship off the ground so that this drive will even work, because it won't work on a planet. Furthermore, I expect them to have figured out how to create spirit webs with allomantic powers that can draw more investiture than even lerasium mistborn would be able to, much less any allomancer born to their powers in that era. So, here's what I'm imagining Era 4 to look like. A long, thin ship stands up on the ground, surrounded by a large, ringed tower. The tower activates, each ring activating a constant upward steelpush on the ship, sending it up and up, faster and faster, like an allomantic rail gun. Once in space, the ship stores its weight as it determines its course by going through similar, larger rings in space. Then, in the back, a large, powerful cadmium bubble activates, and in the front, a similar bendalloy bubble activates. Space time is compressed in the front, and expanded in the back, sending the ship to speeds that are faster than light. In the middle of the long ship, between the large bubbles, smaller, nested cadmium bubbles multiplicatively slow down time for the people waiting through the voyage. It probably also has another form of propulsion, perhaps a solar sail or ionic engines or something. It could land something on a new planet by simply finding a large enough metal deposit to push against as it descends. Now, my hope is that either I will get the chance to ask him about space compression next time I see him, or that someone else will get around to asking it. Given that he worked with Peter closely on the physics of speed bubbles, and that an understanding of space time is fairly universal, I can't imagine that he would create a power like speed bubbles where they manipulate time in such a way, and NOT have it affect space as well, especially as it affecting space leads into exactly the sorts of discoveries we expect from scadrial at some point. Frankly, I'm more surprised that I can't seem to remember this being mentioned before. edit: oh, and I figured I should mention this thought about Era 4 here. Brandon has always made it clear Era 4 isn't going to be the Avengers. My thought is that instead, it's going to be more akin to Star Trek. With a more focused plot line.

I hope this is the right forum, and it's okay to link to other sites. If not, I apologize. Over on the Stormlight Reddit (https://www.reddit.com/r/Stormlight_Archive/comments/absjnj/stormlight_book_four_update_1/) Brandon posted his first update for book 4. I won't quote the whole thing, but he mentions spending the first two months starting yesterday creating an outline, then possibly posting a spoiler free version of it like he did with OB. He also mentions that a part of Kaladin's WoR arc was originally outlined to be in OB, which I cannot picture at all with how perfect Kal's WoR story was. Another interesting tidbit at the end, 'I'll leave you with a random tidbit to theorize about. I'm pretty sure that at my signing last week in Idaho Falls, I was unintentionally misleading about some of the things I said about Dalinar's powers (regarding infusing of spheres.) I was trying to talk around spoilers for book four...' I couldn't find anything on the events and signings page, anyone know what he's talking about?

TO: All Silverlight staff and students, here is growing list of the classes that will be offered this Spring at Silverlight University. Art 160: Analysis of Cosmere Art. Art 170: Drawing Art 240: Selish Art-Investure connection Art 480: Preserving Art from the Court of the Gods, a Personal view from Professor Scoot. Accounting 378: Economic costs of Invested Abilities. Taught by Professor Steris Ladrian Anthro 100: Cultures of the Cosmere Anthro 220: Religions resulting from faulty historical filters. Taught by Professor Jasnah Kholin and Professor Lightsong. Bio 185: Overview of invested Flora and Fauna Bio 190: Surviving non-Scadrian field trips. Class equipment list includes sliver knife, aluminum dueling canes, and a gun. Note: Due to the inherent danger of the Threnody unit, all students have to sign a waver. Bio 215: Rosharian ecology Bio 235: Taldainian ecology Bio 240: Effects of investure on Human Anatomy and Physiology Bio 270: Singer Anatomy and Physiology Bio 275: Kandra Anatomy and Physiology. Taught by Professor Lann Bio 345: Vaxian microbiology Bio 400: Field Study of First of the Sun's Flora and Fauna: Prerequisites Include Bio 190 Business 380: Allomancy and sales. Chem 230: Metallurgy Chem 235: Allomantic Metallurgy Chem 350: Aonic transformative chemistry Chem 490/590: Chemistry of Soulcasting: All students are required to either have a soulcaster or be bonded to an inkspren or cryptic by the second week of class. Soulcasters can be rented from the book store. Computer Science 130: Creating Intelligence. All students are required to have the proper aluminum coated gloves for interaction with the TA. Taught by TA Nightblood Engr 120: Bridge design Engr 245: Rifles and anti-Allomancy weaponry. Taught by Dr. Ranette Engr 370: Airship design and construction lab Engr 450: Aonic computer design Fab Engr 265: Fabrial engines: Taught by Professor Navani Kholin with labs being run by the Ardents. Investure 101: Basic Realmic Theory. CoReq: with Bio 190 Investure 102: Manifestations of Investure on Major Shard Worlds Investure 103: Manifestations of Investure on Minor Shard Worlds Investure 205: The Metallic Arts. Guest Lecturer: Harmony, Formerly know as Sazed of Terris. Investure 215: Awakening and Biochromatic Breath. Taught by Professor Zahel Investure 225: Surgebinding. Colectured by Professor Dalinar Kholin, Professor Lift (if she happens to show up), and Professor Teft Investure 300: Hacking the Investure systems. Colectured by Professor Zahel, Professor Kelsier, and The Dean of Research, Lady Khriss Investure 450/Bio 450: Advanced Hemalurgic Theory Invested Engr 335: Aonic programming and development. Rotating lecturers from Sel. Note: All final projects have to be submitted to the Elantrians for Safety Testing. We do not want a repeat of the the killer swimming pool incident. Psyc 101: Wayne's world (of hats) Psyc 345: Singer forms and their effect on mental processes. Taught by Professor Venli Psyc 560: Lightweaving and Emotional Damage Physics 212: Allomancy Physics 309: Physical laws in the Cognitive Realm Physics 315: Gravitation. Taught by Professor Sezth and TA Nightblood PE 101: Shard Dueling: Shardblades can be rented from the books store or checked out from the rec center PE 106: Target Practice. Taught by Professor Venture of the Political Science Department Polisci 101: Governmental Theory: Taught by Professor Venture Polisci 210: How to rule without even trying. Taught by Professor Lightsong Polisci 400: Winning Friends and using assassins to take out the rest. Taught by Guest Lecturers Taravangien and Straff Venture Spren 101: Spren Identification Spren 200: The Nahel Bond Spren 350: Fabrials Spren 480: Spren society Theft 101: Con artist and Nobles: Taught by Professor Ladrian the Older Theft 205: Best place to stick a knife in a nobleman: Taught by Guest lecturer Kelsier Theft 315: Forgery. Taught by Professor Shai I am too tired to write any more. Please add more classes. All of Silverlight thanks you. Edit: I added some Mistborn stuff.

Here's the lowdown from the man himself:

Thanks guys! Glad to hear that the characters will (mostly) be the same as i really love the characters in these books

I think Sanderson might not be human. I love Kaladin's character ark, fighting the depression, blaming himself, feeling part of bridge 4 while simultaniously feeling apart from them, hating lighteyes yet seeing that some of them are good,etc. This character is incredibly complex and it might seem that Brandon has experienced this himself. But also you have Shallan, battling her demons, feeling guilt and coping with it creating personas, being in love with Adolin and attracted to Kaladin, acting like a kid around Jasnah, etc. And you have Dalinar, Jasnah, Navani, Adolin, Taravangian, Szeth,etc. All equally complex. Brandon can't possibly have lived 10 lives, yet he is able to create characters that feel so real while being so diferent, he doesn't minimize any viewpoint, he has males, females, Lift who is basically a kid and he even makes spren like Syl and Pattern feel real. He is just a genius, I don't know how he does this.

I'll work on something for Epics, I have a somewhat convoluted system I use for categorizing my Epic files for Reckoners RP so I'll make some adjustments to that. EDIT: Hi also hungry, I'm Voidus! (Sorry not sorry)

A man near the back of the audience sobbed gently, he seemed to almost be about to stand and say something. But, with a sigh, he instead stayed where he was and simply looked on mournfully.

Max listened to the priest continue on, and for a second he was unsure what to say. Did he say “I do” again? Hearing the priest continue he looked to the side, to Althea, and his heart melted at seeing her so happy. As the priest came to a stop on his question, Max gently squeezed Althea’s hand. “I do,” he said.

I'm a sucker for discussing things ad nauseum, so for me, it's all the little details that the posters here draw out of the books. What brought me first to this forum was a thread about deciphering the Alethi women's script, and what made me stay were the WoBs upon WoBs upon WoBs, and all the discussion surrounding them and the anticipation for what's coming next.

Just received a advance reader copy of what might be my favorite ongoing series! After reading and loving the first book of the series I follow the author on Facebook. The author (Brian Durfee) which seems to be a nice chap, offered me a adavance copy in exchange for a honest review. I still am keeping my preorder on it because I want to support authors. Here is a picture of it (e-copy was sent):

I met with a highly successful alumnus of my law school to learn a bit about his choice of practice area. I was worried that he would reject my request for a mentorship. When I asked he said yes.

The man continued to watch the ceremony, trying not to let the activity in the crowd distract him. With a start he realized he had forgotten to present his gift ahead of time, and in this instance it was necessary for the gift to be given before the ceremony instead of after. He called over an usher, who came over and quietly asked what was the matter. After a brief, hushed discussion the man handed a small box to the usher, who as inconspicuously as possibly approached the alter. Seeing this, the man breathed a sigh of relief. It wouldn't do for a wedding to happen without there being rings. I hope they fit right. Laonin thought to himself.

Holy........... macaroni. Seriously?! I have read Mistborn (the first 2 books) many years ago and that's why I was kind of.... suspicious because it felt so similar. I can't believe it I didn't realize that on my own, argh. Okay, seems I am starting with Mistborn today, I just saw that there are several new books from that series... nice And after that, Warbreaker. Oh, I am so freaking glad I registered myself in this forum

Maybe they have a Dawnshard? Or would that not be possible? I don't think it's ever stated if the Dawnshards were physically destroyed. Possibly lost according to Honor. Maybe they somehow brought one over from Ashyn after they razed it? The Sleepless who kills the ship crew that makes it to Akinah says it's protecting a secret that could end worlds. Sounds like a Dawnshard to me.

I'll sign up as Joseph "Taylor Defense" Watson, a prodigy of the Matson Defense.

This is not what I said and I'd be very grateful if you didn't read something like this into what I wrote, thank you.

*stamps Ark's file with a big red Untrustworthy stamp*

When he's training Shallan, he wonders what kind of fighting style to teach her. He considers dueling, but not any more than any other style of fighting. His love of fighting with his Shardblade is not the same to me as his love of dueling specifically. I don't think the Adolin in Kholinar with the strike team would have said something like this. I don't think he's really this person anymore. He doesn't see honor in this way anymore. And frankly, I think that after the duel with Jakamov et al that he hasn't really been as keen on the institution of dueling on the whole. All of these are signs of development to me

To expand upon @Bigmikey357‘s point, Nightblood kind of looks at the person, sees what they evil is, and if they would use the sword for those purposes, they go crazy and end up killing themselves. Here’s a WoB that touches on this: (spoilered for length)

Kaladin: Kaladin will spend either the intervening year between books 3 and 4 (if this happens, I hope Brandon changes his mind on this after his re-read) or the first chunk of book 4 taking the Windrunners and evacuating Alethkar. He expressed desire to evacuate Hearthstone and specifically to bring his family to Urithiru before going to attempt to liberate Kholinar, and I think he will be allowed to do so now. But, Kaladin being Kaladin, he won't be able to allow himself to just take the people of Hearthstone, he'll have to save everyone. This, obviously, will be harder than he expects. Meanwhile, Jasnah and probably Dalinar will arrange his marriage to some budding KR or foreign royalty while he's gone for political reasons. This will enrage Kaladin and will be grounds for his conflict for the rest of the book. His fourth oath, strangely, will have to do with him pledging to actually lead people in more ways than just Bridge Four on the battlefield. I've seen a lot of people suggest that he takes some sort of personal responsibility for Gavinor, but I don't see that happening. If he's going to pick a child to protect, it will be his new baby brother. Tien meant more to Kaladin than Gavilar/Gavinor ever will, and even now he sees that as his greatest failure. Shallan: Shallan will start taking her wardship seriously just as Jasnah actually becomes too busy to teach her. Between Jasnah's queenship and being a KR I doubt she'll have time to teach Shallan much of scholarship in the traditional sense. Shallan, much as in OB, will have to continue to find ways to be helpful for herself. I honestly don't know what this will look like. Obviously there's the whole thing with the Ghostbloods and Sja-Anat, but I have no idea what looking for Sja-Anat even really entails other than trying to track down instances of corrupted spren. Adolin: Adolin's bond with Maya will continue to strengthen. I think he'll be swearing Edgedancer oaths by the end of book 4. Adolin will also struggle to be highprince, as it will probably honestly bore him and he'll need some sort of shock to actually engage with his duties beyond just sort of reacting and doing what Jasnah/Dalinar need him to do. Not out of laziness necessarily, but out of a dislike of the job. Renarin: I think we'll finally see more of what's going on in Renarin's head now that the big reveal is out of the way. I still think there are unplumbed depths there, but broadly once Brandon allows someone to be a POV character there isn't much left to spoil or they're about to die or something like that -- interludes aside -- so here's hoping to much more out of Renarin than there has been previously. Venli: Venli is on Team Dalinar by the end of the book. I don't see how she can be telling the Parshmen the truth about the Listeners without getting sniffed out by Odium/the Fused, who already question her loyalty. I doubt that she straight up dies, and she's seen Dalinar standing up to Odium and not just getting totally squashed. Obviously she won't be immediately welcomed and trusted by Team Dalinar, so her and Timbre learning to trust them and them learning to trust her will be a big deal. And, as soon as Bridge Four sees a KR Listener, they'll rally around Rlain, who will become a Windrunner. I do not see him becoming a Bondsmith as I've seen suggested elsewhere. I think the presumption of impossibility is the only thing really keeping Rlain's feet on the ground (as it was for Lyn). Szeth: The biggest conflict I see on Szeth's horizon is that Dalinar is going to want to make contact and start forging alliances with the Shin leadership. Szeth will have obvious insights into Shin leadership, but it is unclear how useful those insights will be, given Szeth's hatred for the Shin leadership. He will encourage scouring them off the face of Roshar, which Dalinar will obviously want to resist. Meanwhile, he will have to overcome the fact that he's the Assassin in White and that all sorts of world leaders and even the Alethi will treat him badly and it will almost certainly cause problems for Dalinar internationally. I don't think even Jasnah is super keen on the idea of having Szeth apparently serve as Dalinar's full-time bodyguard now that the bridgemen have pretty much all become Windrunner squires at this point, and those who have not soon will. Szeth is still a big bag of problems that didn't get addressed in OB, both due to a lack of time in the book and a lack of time in-story (I hope that makes sense). Szeth also has a black sphere hidden somewhere in Jah Keved Dalinar might want to see, so we might actually get some answers Lift: Who knows what Lift is ever going to do? I imagine that Dalinar will try and leverage Lift's friendship with Gawx to rope in the skittish Azish, who seem to have put great stock into the reports of the Sadeas army turning on Theylanah and have no real basis of understanding of the Thrill or even really the Unmade in general. I'm sure Lift will continue to buck expectations, but also that as the Urithiru contingent becomes aware that she uses calories for Investiture will want to study her. Lift is going to spend a lot of time learning how to skate like the Fused. I don't think we've ever seen her draw in Stormlight traditionally, so maybe she'll learn how to do that or she'll learn that she can't, depending on how whatever the Nightwatcher did to her works. On the Cosmere scale, I think Lift is my candidate for Most Likely to Worldhop, as of all the KRs she's the only one not bound to Rosharan Stormlight. Dalinar: I think Dalinar will have two major issues. The first is the recurring issue of international politics and building his kill-Odium coalition. This will involve both learning who he can trust. Primary among these will be the Venli and whatever Parshmen she brings with her and then also Szeth. The second issue is running the city of Urithiru, especially if as I believe Kaladin will be bringing in more and more refugees from across Alethkar. I feel pretty confident that this will involve reawakening The Sibiling and finding a second Bondsmith. Gavilar: I don't know how much longer we can go without learning more about Gavilar's motives. Right now, they mostly seem to be "start a Desolation in order to bring back the Heralds so they can strengthen the Vorin Church". If this is really all there is to it, then he seems a lot less noble to me and a lot more foolish than many of our main characters seem to think. I think both Jasnah and Dalinar would feel immensely betrayed by this if they were aware of it. Jasnah: I think most of our Jasnah POVs will have to do with her having captured(?) Taln and Ash. As per usual she knows way more about them than we do, so hopefully this is how we can learn more about what's going on with them and with the Heralds generally, all of whom seem to be "getting worse". If they're all mad (understandable) but also uniformly getting worse, there's a reason for that and I think Detective Jasnah is the one to crack that mystery. Rock: I think same as Kaladin after agreeing to assassinate Elhokar, in order for Rock to keep moving forward as a KR he's going to have to swear a higher Ideal. Unlike Kaladin, I can actually see Rock walking away from being a KR entirely because his other more personal oaths mean more to him than being a KR. I don't know that that will happen, but I think it could. Interactions I'm hoping for/looking forward to: Lirin and Dalinar. These two are both sort of father figures to Kaladin and if Lirin makes it to Urithiru I can't imagine that Dalinar will just ignore Kaladin's parents. I don't think Lirin will think much of Dalinar. Venli and Rlain. Venli has a lot to answer for and I think Rlain either knows it or will piece it together Renarin and Glys. We know next to nothing about Glys. LET ME LOVE HIM Shallan and Ash. Seeing Shallan meet her namesake, especially in Ash's broken state, would be amazing. It even makes sense if Jasnah brings Shallan to interrogate Ash and Taln. Shallan will want guidance but will get crazy instead. Adolin and Lift. Especially as Adolin moves more and more towards Edgedancing (as I think is inevitable given what we learned in OB) he and Lift will be increasingly in contact with one another. I can't imagine two people on Roshar less alike Syl and the other Honorspren. Syl is such a savage with them and I love it and I want to see more Lift and Lopen. Who can out-weird the other? That might actually be too much to handle Adolin and his Bridge Four Bros. Adolin needs bros and the others of his class either betrayed him or left him hanging in WoR, and by this point I think he sees Bridge Four as his peers more than other Alethi lighteyes, especially Skar, Drehy, and Kaladin. We've seen some of it already, but I'm always in for more Whew this ended up going a lot longer than I thought it would.

Tanavast disapproves of this post.

Kaladin: *walks up to Nightwatcher* I need Stormlight, please. I'll do anything. Nightwatcher: Ok. *hands Kaladin one sphere* Granted, you now have Stormlight. Sadly, you no longer know how to Surgebind. Tata.

It's not an alphabet. It's a mathematical problem that Vin and the others failed to decipher that would have shown them where the atium was.