Search the Community

A little while ago, I was thinking about kandra and how powerful they were, and I thought of this. What would happen if a kandra was born with feruchemy or allomancy? Or even became a hemalurgist. They would be so overpowered! Just imagine if a kandra had Lord Ruler-level abilities. A creature like this would likely be able to topple the Final Empire on its own.

So we all know that Mistborn Era 4 Scadrial has become a space faring civilisation, and that in Sixth of the Dusk, there is at least one civilisation that has reached this status. Given the sheer versatility of the investiture systems, it is pretty likely that the aliens are in fact Scadrians. That opens up so many questions, but I would like to focus on one specifically: how did they do it? As mentioned before, it is Scadrials magic systems which probably made them the first space civilisation. I believe that it is a combination of Cadmium, Bendalloy, Ettmetal, and Medallions which have allowed them to enter the space frontier. Bendalloy makes speed bubbles, so if you attach one to a spaceship, the math on the wiki page says you would compress 2 minutes of the ship moving at full speed into 15 seconds of actual travel time. The problem with this is that people inside the spaceship will still age, as it is time which is being manipulated. That means that while the spaceship would travel FTL relative to the cosmere, inside the bubble, people would age normally. Essentially, it unpractical space travel and very limited. BUT, if you also create a smaller cadmium bubble around the structure of the ship ( a C.bubble within a B.bubble), we know from this WoB that the effects will cancel out: This means that the crew wouldn't be trapped inside the speed speed bubble, and so will experience time normally. However, to make this technology even more efficient, the Scadrians would put up ANOTHER cadmium bubble within the first cadmium bubble (C.bubble within C.bubble within B.bubble). This would allow them to travel FTL and not feel the time effects at all! Essentially, they would be able to get anywhere in no time. I do believe that Ettmetal will be used in the propulsion of the spacecraft, probably through some nuclear propulsion technology. This is what would take the spacecraft to such high speeds. I don't really know how to explain all the other uses, so here's @hwiles comment pulled from here: As for the medallions their benefits are endless: from breath, to healing, to warmth, to weight (which will probably be useful combined with pushing and pulling in space) and the various other technological impacts. NOTE: I just found out from the coppermind that time bubbles in fact compound if used together. This is crazy, and makes FTL travel much, much easier. A normal speed bubble speeds up time by a factor of 8. Compound this with 10 bubbles and you would be travelling insanely fast. WoB is unclear to me, not sure if will double (8x2) or multiply (8x8). We have no information on Cadmiums factor of change, but we can assume that it will be the same as they cancel, and that it'll also compound. Basically, you can use primer cubes each powered by Bendalloy and Cadmium, structured in specific layers. All the Bendalloy bubbles would need to be outside, and you would need about double the amount of Cadmium bubbles to counteract the Bendalloy bubbles and still create their own time-slowing bubbles. What do you guys think? Any other technology which would make FTL travel feasible or easier for Scadrians? (This is my first theory, so there might be gaps in knowledge. Feel free to point them out).

OK, people are probably going to just write this off. But I had a small question. In Era 2, Atium and Malatium were taken out, and 4 new metals were put in. However, this means that the temporal metals are now gold, electrum, bendalloy and cadmium. Bendalloy and cadmium have very different abilities than gold and electrum. And all the other pairings are for the most part, opposites. The opposite of gold and electrum have already been discover in Era 2, so it stands to reason that bendalloy and cadmium are NOT part of the same set. I propose this: there are 2 other metals. They create speed bubbles around someone else. Gold and electrum are actually part of a different 16, being paired with atium and malatium. Thoughts?

Per WoB, "Well, the Lord Ruler--don't forget--could compound any Allomancy he wanted." Did Brandon mean to say that TLR could compound Feruchemy, or is it true that TLR could compound alomancy? If so, would that be referring to Feruchemical Nicrosil usage? I'm a bit confused, because as far as I can remember we don't have a known mechanic to traditionally compound allomantic abilities.

In Bands of Mourning, we see people inadvertently tapping Investiture metalminds (when they first board the airship) and get access to fill iron metalminds. They only realized they could fill the iron metalminds once they thought about it. If they had instead thought they could burn some metal, woukd they have been able to? In short, how does storing Feruchemy Investiture give one power to allomancy?

Would a Mistborn wearing Shardplate be able to do allomancy, or would its investiture bubble interfere with its effects?

Time in the Cosmere does not seem like something that can be warped. For example, we don't have any time travel magic so far, and even shards that can see into the future only see possibilities. Then all of a sudden, in Mistborn era 2, something happened that allowed time to speed up and slow down. This is a really big deal! Bendalloy, which speeds up time, essentially allows a person to go into the future at a very slow pace! This is crazy! So I have a theory. I don't think the time is actually being altered. It's the cognitive aspect that is altered. The person's perception of time changes, not time itself. They age more slowly/quickly inside the bubble because their body itself doesn't think that it's aging. Time itself stays the same. Now, this seems kind of like a moot point to argue, since either way it looks like the same to the people both in and out of the bubble. However, this is actually a pretty big issue since if it's true, it proves that time in the Cosmere is immutable and can't be altered. Otherwise we would have to look at time as something that could be warped by investiture, and that would be very confusing. Ideas?

So this is just a silly little thing I've come up with: If other real-world metals like lead, nickel, or mercury granted one Metalborn powers, then what would they be? Here are my additions to Mistborn's Ars Arcanum. Please don't take this seriously, it's just a whimsical Mistborn fantasy of mine. So I won't be including Hemalurgic powers in this list, but I will be listing Allomantic powers (AP) and Feruchemical powers (FP). Lead AP: Pulls on Nearby Sources of Wood FP: Stores Physical Flexibility Magnetite AP: Pushes on Nearby Sources of Wood FP: Stores Creativity Mercury AP: Enhances Allomantic Pulses FP: Stores Body Fat Gallium AP: Erases Allomantic Pulses FP: Stores Emotion Nickel AP: Loops (Reverses) Emotions FP: Stores Musical Ability Cobalt AP: Slates (Erases) Emotions FP: Stores Artistic Ability Platinum Inert Trellium AP: Unknown FP: Stores Any Feruchemical Attribute (theory) I understand this is flawed in many ways, but I thought I'd try it anyway. What do you all think?

Using a combination of the Hemalurgy chart in the Hero of Ages Ars Arcanum and the Ars Arcanum from Bands of Mourning, I've complied a chart of what the remaining seven metals do as spikes. NOTE: These are educated guesses, based off of patterns and similarities that I've seen NOTE 2: Where it says "Steals Human ___", that means I don't know what it is, but it steals a human attribute like Senses, Strength, Mental Fortitude, etc. HEMALURGIC POWER Iron: Steals Human Strength Steel: Steals Allomantic Physical Powers Tin: Steals Human Senses Pewter: Steals Feruchemical Physical Powers Zinc: Steals Human Emotional Fortitude Brass: Steals Feruchemical Mental Powers Copper: Steals Human Mental Fortitude Bronze: Steals Allomantic Mental Powers Cadmium: Steals Allomantic Temporal Powers Bendalloy: Steals Human ___ Gold: Steals Feruchemical Temporal Powers Electrum: Steals Human ___ Chromium: Steals Feruchemical Enhancement Powers Nicrosil: Steals Human ___ Aluminum: Steals Allomantic Enhancement Powers Duralumin: Steals Human ___ The way I came up with these is that I figured out that the Physical Pushing metals steal Allomantic and Feruchemical powers, in the order of Allomatic, then Feruchemical. The Mental Pushing metals do the same, in the order of Feruchemical, then Allomatic. Going off of what Aluminum did, I guessed that the Temporal Pulling metals work in the order of Allomantic, and then Feruchemical, and finally, the Enhancement Pulling metals work in order of Feruchemical, and then Allomantic. Or, Physical: Pushing A-F Mental: Pushing F-A Temporal: Pulling A-F Enhancement: Pulling F-A The final thing: I have no idea what Human ___s would be, especially related to Temporal and Enhancement effects. Does anyone have any ideas?

I've noticed a few things while reading the coppermind and reading the mistborn novels, and they don't really make sense. If you melt a metal, the attribute of it still remains, but make an alloy of it and the attribute disappears. Now, what would happen if you got two different tinminds, each with a different sense stored in them, melted them and put the two pieces of molten metal together? Technically, you haven't made an alloy, so both the senses are still there. However, since you can't have two senses in a single tinmind, what happens? Can you feruchemically store in a hemalurgically charged spike? Is lerasium a metal that stores allomancy? How does compounding copper work? Could you burn duramlumin while storing to store faster? Can you burn a metal and store the allomancy as investiture in a nicrosilmind? If storing in an aluminiummind while storing makes a metalmind identityless, what if you tap an aluminiummind during active storage? What happens if you tap zinc while storing copper? What happens if you spike the shardholder of preservation with an atium spike, or make the shardholder of ruin burn lerasium? If you have spotted any other discrepancies or if you have any answers to the questions asked here, feel free to post Forum rules: please don't swear, necroposting is allowed and so is double-posting, have fun!

The first time Vin burned Allomantic Gold, she claimed she "felt" a possible alternate Vin. Kelsier made it seem that she must be mistaken. Given all the manipulations by Ruin and the grand plan put in motion by Preservation ages ago. Did she truly feel herself?

If Nightblood can be fueled by any form of investiture, is there a way to power the Surge bindings of Roshar with the metallic arts from Scadrail? I am thinking that the investiture may be keyed to the local magic system, but I have not had time to look into this very much. Feruchemy and Allomancy can both provide a sustained source of investiture, so they would make a nice backup if a Knight Radiant were able to use them to power the Surge bindings if their supply of storm light became too depleted.

I've been stalking Brandon on reddit for more ideas and I came across a really interesting post here: The whole thread is interesting, especially this post, but I'm most interested in the last line of this one. From what I can tell, altering the physical makeup of the metal does not alter the Investiture inside. This causes problems for "basic uses" i.e. tapping, but not necessarily for "advanced uses." To me, compounding is our most clear example of an advanced use of the metallurgic arts, and I've got a mini theory on how this would play out. Let's use the example of Iron. I propose that you could fill an Ironmind with unkeyed weight, melt it down and turn it into Steel, give it to a Coinshot and then have them burn it to increase their weight. This would be inline with what we understand about compounding. Feruchemical charge in a metal has been described as "creating a new metal for the Allomancer to burn," and while this is a mixing of different metals and effects, it would still just be another new metal that grants weight instead of speed when burned. In effect, Mistings could potentially have access to many different Feruchemical abilities, not just one. Thoughts?

I'm probably oversimplifying some pretty complex issues here, and retreading some old ground. But, as I understand it, all end-positive magic systems in the Cosmere are basically this thing: It's called the Fun Factory(tm). You put your Play-Doh(tm) underneath the red flap, then you push the flap down. The pressure forces the Play-Doh through a hole, extruding it into a funny shape. The blob of Play-Doh that goes into it? That's your investiture source. Preservation. Stormlight. The Dor. It's raw Shardic power. Formless and without specific function. The Fun Factory is you. The Allomancer, or Surgebinder, or Elantrian. You draw that raw, amorphous power into your body, and you turn it into something direct and specific. A force of repulsion against metal. 'Awesomeness' that reduces friction. A light source, or a deadly fireball. But what's that blue thing? That's the hole that your Play-Doh is extruded through. And you can swap it out for a different one. This is the piece that determines what shape your Play-Doh takes. In allomancy, this would be your metal. Each metal produces a different effect, channeling your Preservation-power into a different magical ability. In AonDor, it's the Aons themselves. Which Aon you draw determines the magic. It's the same in Forgery, Dakhor, and ChayShan. All across Sel, it's the shape you make that determines your magical action. On Nalthis, it's about the command. Every awakened object does something different, because each is given a different command. Metals. Shapes/forms. Commands. This blue thing... is the focus. So really, I think this is the definition of focus: It's the element of a magic system that determines the magical effect, or the precise action of investiture. It's the category whose internal variation corresponds to the versatility of the magic system as a whole. (Here's the WoB that backs this up: http://www.theoryland.com/intvsresults.php?kw=allomancy+aon) Which brings us, inevitably, to the question of Roshar. A common theory (endorsed by the Coppermind) is that gemstones are Roshar's focus, because Surgebinders and fabrials both rely on gemstones. But my definition disagrees. Kaladin can draw stormlight from any gemstone (or from a non-gem source), and his powers always remain the same. Whether he uses emerald broams or diamond chips, flying is still flying. Lift, notably, doesn't need gems at all. To find the focus, look for what distinguishes one type of magic from another. What distinguishes an Adhesion-binder from a Transformation-binder? I think there's only one logical answer. It's the spren. Each surgebinder-type bonds with a different spren. Sure, some spren offer overlapping surges, but the basic fact remains: the magic you can do is determined by the spren you bond. The metal you burn. The Aon you draw. The command you give. And fabrials? Fabrials use specific gemstones because specific gemstones trap specific spren. The real exception to this is the Honorblades, which provide surgebinder-bonds, but are not spren. Or are they? They look and behave exactly like ordinary shardblades. Bonding, summoning, cutting. They're not self-aware, like spren are, but they're clearly the same type of entity: splinters. Objects made of investiture. Honor's investiture, which seems to be inherently bond-forming, whether it's sentient or not. So the focus isn't spren, exactly. It's bond-forming splinters -- a category which consists almost entirely of spren, but also includes the Honorblades. This opens up some interesting speculations of Voidbinding. Is it done by bonding different spren, i.e. Voidspren? Or is it like on Scadrial, where different magic systems use the same foci? Maybe Voidbinding is just surgebinding, but with a different power source. Maybe Kaladin could intake the 'voidlight' from the mysterious black sphere, and access a new power-set.

The theory is straight forward. An allomancer can burn an unsealed/indentitiless metalmind that corresponds to a metal that they can burn regardless of any feruchemical ability. In support of this, I point out that Vin could sense Sazed's metalminds as if they were another allomatic reserve, but she was unable to burn them. I think that this was because the metalminds were locked to Sazed's identity. However the unsealed metalminds by the south scandrialians can be used by any one with the ability to use them. This, I believe, includes allomancers. This means that Wax would be able to burn steel metalminds filled with physical speed,Wayne would be able to burn bendalloy metalminds filled with nutrition. and Marasi would be able to burn cadmium metalminds filled with breath. This opens up some intriguing possibilities as the medallions and their manufacture spread to the north.

Hoid is not an Allomancer. Okay... maybe he is, but I want to suggest and alternate interpretation of the evidence. In one of the Shallan flashbacks, Hoid seems to be using allomancy. Given that he once obtained a bead of lerasium, it seems logical to assume that he used the bead to become a mistborn. However, he doesn't need the bead to be able to use allomancy. We know that he has been introduced to the southern scandrialian's metal arts medallions. He could very easily be using one of these medallions when he used the allomancy seen in the book. Further, there is some evidence from his letter that the bead may still be intact. So I suggest he didn't use the bead to become a mistborn, but that he still has it (probably implanted under his skin). Perhaps he is even using it a a feruchemical metalmind.

Hi people! Kell here. I need to work on a new intro. Anyways, I'm here to discuss weird metal effects (WMFX/E). Post your opinions down below. Alright. Here we go! •What happens when you burn Atium and Malatium at the same time against an opponent who is using the same metals? Will the Atium shadows have shadows too? Will you see all the possible paths of the past Malatium shadows? What happens with Gold in the mix? •What does Atium/Lerasium/Malatium/Gold/Electrum do in tandem with Duralumin? Duralumin and the metal as a Savant? •When burning Bendalloy or Cadmium, what does Atium do? The others? •Since the human body has trace amounts of iron, can we Push/Pull/Sense it with Duralumin/Harmony messing with your body/Lerasium? •If some Allomantic Metals are toxic, do Gold Metalminds (Bloodmakers) burn them away? Only Rashek would have this problem, tho. •If Harmonium could store any attribute, could it store non-Feruchemical attributes? •What the rust happens when you Hemalurgically Spike someone and Spike yourself and the stored Identity and you tapped the Metalmind? Would you BECOME THEM?!?!?! Thazzit for now, Having the want of seeing the you tomorrow!!

Kell here! (That's not my real name, though. If I was named Kelsier, I'd be so happy and wouldn't bother go on the forums.) If you lived on Scadrial, who-and what would you be? From Noble, to Koloss, to Allomancer Jak knockoff, you have a choice! Post your answer below. Ising the I of looking the forward of seeing thy answers! Here's a template I you're feelin' uninspired: Surname: Given Name: Nickname: Species: Race: Gender: M/F/Other:_______ Allomantic skill: Feruchemical skill: Hemalurgic talents: Time Era: Birthplace: Residence: Status: Noteable Valuables: Occupation: Renown/Infamy: Combat Profficiency: Age: Height: Weight: (You can say heavy or light, or specify in lbs/kg.) Accomplishments: Hobbies: Quirks: Family: Friends/Allies: That'll do for now, always remember you can skip some and add some more at will. Cya!

Hi! Kell here. So, I have a strange question. Let's say John is a Fullborn Feruchemist. One day he finds a tiny Hemalurgic spike. It's made of steel, so he decides to turn it into a Metalmind. When he stored his speed into it, he was also actively filling an aluminum Metalmind, so anyone could use the spike as a storage. Then, one day, a Mistborn or Coinshot/Crasher/whatever finds the spike, and burns it. It's a Feruchemical storage that he/she can use, so it obviously compounds, but what about the Hemalurgic part? What will it do? Ising the me of wanting the you to post opinion of you below.

Hello. First question on this site. Sorry if its terrible. I am happy to receive advice. Also, I am nowhere near as dedicated to some of the more hardcore users. The spoiler is for The Alloy of the Law Trilogy.

Hey y'all This is my very first post on the 17th Shard! Without further adieu, let's get in to the topic. So, is it possible—and if so, what it even does—to become an aluminum, duralumin, chronium, or nicrosil savant? Post your answer or thoughts/musings down below! I believe that it's possible, but doesn't do anything. (Wait-can you even flare aluminum?) Sorry for the short post, I'm just usin' my phone so it's hard to type. Ising the have of having a good day/night. -☫Kell

It's been a while but we are finally back on track with "Letters From the Cosmere!" Scadrial is a world with a dark past. Of all the known worlds, the people of this planet have come face to face with their local Shard wielders more than any other. As Ruin and Preservation battled over the fate of the planet, the people suffered until the end came. Now Elsric has published his essays about this world's Investiture and how these powers are connected to the Intents from which they came. Here Elsric describes the secrets of Pewter and Tin, the Internal Physical Metals. Transcript: Essay Number 2 The Secrets and Investitures of Pewter and Tin – The Internal Physical Metals My lifetimes of study and observation have lead me to a fascination about Shards, specifically the Intent of a Shard. This is one of many reasons why Scadrial is a major focus of my studies. It a system whose history and people have seen a great amount of direct interaction between Shard entities and the mortals who live on the planet. The fall of the World of Ash also taught us about the simplistic dynamic of shardic intent, and how the actions of the shard holders are guided along a track until they themselves are less of an individual and more a force of will. They become a hyper intelligent concept. In fact, the bonded spren of Roshar are approximate examples of what I feel a Shard Bearer becomes. It is a blending of the Cognitive and Spiritual essence into something far greater. The Intent of a shard can be extrapolated based on the shape their investitures take. These powers follow laws much like the laws that govern the physical universe. This essay is at the heart of my arguments in this matter. It is imperative that the reader understands that the purpose of these essays is to examine the internal nature of the powers found on Scadrial. Within these pages are my measurements and diagrams, but this is more a dialog intended to uphold my claims that investiture is patterned after intent. This is a fact that is highlighted in all the magic systems of the Cosmere. In this essay I will show how the Allomantic powers of Pewter and Tin are nearly perfect examples of this manifest intent. These powers are the personification of Preservation, which was the Intent that was carried by Leras until the Catasandra. Pewter is the Pushing Internal Physical Metal. It seems an apt description considering Pewter pushes the physical body to its peak and beyond. While burning the metal, the allomancer will experience and enhancement of all physical aspects of their body. The physical strength and speed are increased by magnitudes, although no muscle mass is actually added. The bones also are reinforced, becoming resilient to severe punishment. Once again, this extra strength does not come from an increase in bone mass or density. There is also an increase in the allomancers balance which compensates for the improved physical abilities, often resulting in a lithe almost cat-like grace that comes to a Pewter Arm. This heightened balance and increased speed means that at peak efficiency, a allomancer burning pewter can maintain a sprint at nearly the speed of a galloping horse. This means that a pewter runner can be clocked at over 60 kilometers an hour. Pewter is the fastest burning metal of the original 8 metals. It’s pure allomantic alloy is a casting of ninety-one percent tin and nine percent lead. A Pewuter Savant, or a pewter allomancer who has adapted to burning pewter over long periods of time, is hard to make and even harder to recognize. The benefits of long term Pewter flaring are often dwarfed by the physical dangers that come with doing so. A Pewter savant will consume Pewter more efficiently, and can start healing from wounds at an accelerated rate compared to other Pewter arms. However, this constant flaring drives a need for the metal, and if the allomancer ever runs out of metal to flair, they can die quite suddenly from the shock. This makes study of Pewter Savants difficult for most people are too wary to attempt and it would be unethical to perform tests on the unwilling. Of specific interest to me is the infamous Pewter drag. This is an instance where an allomancer consumes massive amounts of Pewter at a consistently high rate in order to maintain a prolonged and intense burn of the metal. This pushes the boundaries of what we know are the limits of Pewter. Allomancers have been known to run for days on one of these burns, moving at a break neck speed. The longer this allomantic burn goes, the underlying consequences grow steadily more severe. The body seems to understands on a primal level that pewter-dragging is unnatural. Many Mistings report an overwhelming fatigue and mental sluggishness that accompanies a pewter drag. When the drag is finished, the allomancer must continue to burn pewter for the next several hours. If not, the allomancer may slip into a coma which can be lethal. They also must maintain a high water volume and calorie intake so their bodies can continue to function. Pewter dragging is highly dangerous and should be overseen by other experienced allomancers in order to help train the mind for the incredible physical strain. My studies have led me to the conclusion that Pewter is the greatest example of Preservation’s Shardic Intent, and why I felt this should be the foundation for my claims. Experience and observation indicate that the Intents of the Shards direct the application of their endowed Investiture. In fact, I postulate that by studying the manifestations and laws that govern an observed Investiture, that you could determine from observation alone what the Shard’s core intent is. For example, I wish you to reflect upon the fundamentals of Pewter. Pewter brings incredible physical enhancements to the allomancer. This effect has a limit or cap, but these powers come with little to no consequence to the allomancer. Pewter isn’t necessarily making you stronger, but rather that strength is a consequence for what it is doing. I have observed that Pewter instead produces the effect of freezing an allomancer’s state of existence. While burning pewter, the physical body resists changes down to the microscopic level. The bones don’t get larger and tougher, they simple resist change making them harder to break. The body can sprint at speed for long periods of time because Pewter prevents the body from suffering the ill effects of motion and muscle degradation. The pewter is acting as a barrier, preserving the allomancer’s body by expelling the energy that would normally create these physical changes and dissipating it into the spiritual realm. This is speculation on my part, but the differences that we see in the physical Ferrochemical arts displays this discrepancy perfectly. As you will see in my future essays, alomancy uses investiture to effect the world around the alomancer, all the while preserving the allomancer. The other metallic arts require great physical sacrifice in order to obtain their power. Allomancies complete dependence on metals fits the observed intent of Preservation. Despite this drive for Preservation, any interaction with Investiture comes with risks as stated above. Just because a Pewter Allomancer resists changes, doesn’t mean that they are unharmed or changed from this process. In fact, quite the opposite. But it is apparent to me that the intent behind pewter’s power clearly follows the pattern of its shard. This can also be observed in Pewter’s metallic counterpart, Tin. Tin is the Internal Physical Pulling metal. This power creates a heightening in the allomancer’s perceptions of the physical world by pulling on the capabilities of the allomancer’s mind. This enhancement is unilateral, greatly increasing the sensitivity of all the senses all at once. Normally this information would be overwhelming and possibly damaging to the psyche. However, it is apparent that Tin’s abilities change the way the mind works, increasing its capabilities. I believe that this is actually the only true change that Tin proves. Reports indicate that a Tin eye, or a Tin misting, does not see anything that wasn’t already observable. Instead they become hyper aware of all the sensory input that their bodies are receiving and enhances the minds ability to interoperate the information. Tin also provides an ability to see through the mists of Scadrial. The Mists are a gaseous manifestation of Preservation/Harmonies power in the physical world, and thus Preservation’s Arcane abilities are granted an advantage in the Mists, most noticeably with the Tin eyes. This ability does come with many downsides. With such a sensitivity to stimuli, the allomancer is susceptible to any dramatic changes in sensory input. Unexpected loud noises or bright lights can stun and even incapacitate a Tin eye. Even with the mental enhancement, the mind can only handle so much data at once. Another cost is the enhancement of pain receptors which can also overwhelm a tin eye. In fact, the tin eye often avoids confrontation for this very reason for while burning tin they can be easily incapacitated. Tin Savants are some of the strangest invested entities in the Cosmere. The extended Tin flair causes the mind of the Allomancer to permanently change. With this enhancement, the mind becomes incredibly capable of filtering out unwanted sensations, allowing for… strange abilities. Before the Catasandra, the Lord Mistborn was a Tin-eye Misting who became the only documented Tin Savant on record. He was capable of seeing through cloth, could see stars on cloudy nights, and was even able to hear a man’s heartbeat from over thirty yards away. However, if the Savant ever runs out of Tin, his natural senses are dulled into almost nothing. This is a frightening medical condition that if left untreated runs a high risk of accidental death due to a lack of sensory data. In is my opinion that such Savants be discourage, although it must be admitted that the supernatural senses it creates fascinating and the effects of such abilities are powerful if executed properly. Tin also reflects Preservation’s intent. With the exception of the Savant, Tin does enhance an allomancer without altering the individual. Again we can see that Tin does not make the individual’s eyes better, or change the physical characteristics of the Tin-eye’s ears. Instead the changes are all about the capabilities of the mind and the ability to intemperate incoming data. This preserves the allomancer while also increasing the allomancer’s ability to survive. Savants challenge this assertion but I believe that the metaphysical changes observed in the Lord Mistborn’s life were caused by a fundamental law of investiture, rather than by the intent of Preservation. I have observed in my years of travel that those who channel large amounts of investiture for long periods of time are physically altered by the power. This is a study outside of my focus but such examples of metaphysical changes have been seen in the Soulcasters of Roshar, or the Dakhor of Sel. Prolonged and persistent Investiture creates changes in individuals even when the intent was never to produce such changes. In conclusion, the manifestation of Pewter and Tin are perfect examples of the manifestation of Preservation’s Intent, the guiding nature of the Shard. The other abilities of Allomancy also reflect this, but none as starkly as the internal physical metals. Following this article are my estimations of Pewters limitations and flared capabilities as well as personal annotations made in the Words of Founding concerning the effects of a Tin savant. Postscript: This essay is of particular note, perhaps we have been looking at these metals in the wrong light all along. If we can, I desire to conduct more tests of this nature on Kandra blessings, I am curious to see if Kandra can become Savants. Until the next letter, Elsric

Hey Sharders! Just something fun. If you could have any Twinborn combination--including Compounding--what would it be? Allomantic iron and Feruchemical pewter, or maybe Allomantic tin and Feruchemical gold. So many combinations! I think it would be cool to have steel on steel. Edit: I'm sorry if there are already things like this. Man, sometimes it's hard to be original!

We all know how much enjoyment Hoid takes in dropping references to things his audience is not familiar with. It has always made me wonder why no one tries to pry further though. For instance, when he greets Jasnah as she returns to the physical realm, he says, “Oh,” Wit said, “I don’t mean the Almighty. Tanavast was a fine enough fellow—bought me drinks once—but he was not God.” He adds a bit more about where Jasnah should look to find evidence of God, but that's immaterial. My point is, Jasnah doesn't even blink at Hoid's quip about Tanavast. Now, maybe Jasnah is just not taking him seriously, as she seems to have some sort of history with the king's Wit. But there are multiple instances of Hoid making an off-hand remark (or a point-blank remark, as with Dalinar and asking if he had ever hear of the name Adonalsium), when no one seems interested in the bits of knowledge he lets drop. True, Dalinar asks Hoid who he really is, but Hoid characteristically sidesteps the issue, and Dalinar lets the matter fall. So my theory, as relatively inconsequential as it is, is that Hoid uses allomantic brass to sooth people's curiosity so that he is not pressed to answer those question we so wish he would. Thoughts?

This is something that occurred to me a few years ago, when I first read through the epigraphs about spook being a tin savant. Vin burned pewter pretty much constantly. She often went without sleep because she was burning pewter and didn't feel the fatigue. Furthermore, she has burned pewter instinctively for as long as she can remember. I also suspect that learning to pewter drag might be something that approaches savantism... And Ham also notes that Vin was stronger than him when both of them were burning pewter. I've always figured that Vin must have been a pewter savant, for all the above reasons. In my time on these forums, however, I have never heard anyone mention this idea. So here I open up discussion and speculation on the matter.