So how many magic systems does roshar have?

[Frustration]

1 minute ago, IlstrawberrySeed said:

From my understanding, void binding is construed from fused and regals, though I could see it as binding with an unmade their children. But for the most part they have the same end effects based on what I know. Manipulation of the basic rules of the world in (mostly) minor ways. Can't say more w/o putting the whole thing in spoilers.

Fused are surgebinders

[alder24]

28 minutes ago, IlstrawberrySeed said:

From my understanding, void binding is construed from fused and regals, though I could see it as binding with an unmade their children. But for the most part they have the same end effects based on what I know. Manipulation of the basic rules of the world in (mostly) minor ways. Can't say more w/o putting the whole thing in spoilers.

Voidbinding is NOT what Fused and Regals are doing. Fused are using just Surgebinding. Voidbinding is something different, not explored yet, most likely Renarin is Voidbinder.

WoBs:

Spoiler

Argent

Let's talk about Renarin, and Voidbinding. So, with that page we talked about, Renarin Voidbinds. I asked about visions, you pointed to Voidbinding chart, he Voidbinds. Is that using Stormlight to power abilities different from the Surgebindings we've seen?  

Brandon Sanderson

Yes. 

Argent

Is that what voidbinding is? 

Brandon Sanderson

No, but close. You're on the right track. We are gonna get into that, I'm not gonna tell you what the chart means, and things like that. But yeah, something really weird is happening there. 

Footnote: The chart referenced is the back endsheet in The Way of Kings.
Oathbringer Chicago signing (Nov. 21, 2017)

 

TheFoxQR (paraphrased)

Is there temporal symmetry in between the Surge-binding and void-binding charts, from the front and back covers of The Way of Kings? As in, Surgebinding is a re-emerging system of the past, vs Voidbinding being a newly emerging system that will fully exist in the future?

Brandon Sanderson (paraphrased)

You can assume that Voidbinding has not been fully explored, but that parts of it have been looked into in the past. So I wouldn't say that temporal symmetry fully holds.

General Reddit 2019 (Aug. 3, 2019)

 

Argent

Voidbinding, and what Renarin does, we are still very confused about how much--

Brandon Sanderson

I am happy that you are very confused about that, because I haven't explained it very much.

Argent

Ok.

Brandon Sanderson

And Renarin didn't figure it out very much.

Argent

And he hasn't figured out it much, yeah. And we're not even sure whether he's a Voidbinder.

Brandon Sanderson

Yes.

Argent

He's probably a Voidbinder, right. Then I'm not going to ask you that, because you're going to say RAFO.

Brandon Sanderson

Yup.

JordanCon 2018 (April 22, 2018)

 

dvoraen

"To see the future originates with the Unmade..." "Voidbinding is a dark and evil thing, and the soul of it was to try to divine the future." Is it therefore safe to say that Voidbinding, by extension, also originates with the Unmade?

Brandon Sanderson

Not always. But usually.

Skyward Pre-Release AMA (Oct. 22, 2018)

 

Chaos

You've recently said that Rosharans call everything Surgebinding. So my question is: does Khriss call what the Fused do "Surgebinding"?

Brandon Sanderson

Yes.

Chaos

Interesting. We still don't know what Voidbinding is, but we'll get there eventually, I'm sure.

Brandon Sanderson

You will.

Shardcast Interview (Jan. 23, 2021)

 

And here is a WoB explaining how many magic systems are on Roshar:

Spoiler

Questioner

How many magic systems are in The Stormlight Archive, and how many of them haven't been seen?

Brandon Sanderson

I would say the only major one you haven’t seen is Voidbinding, it depends on how you count them. I count fabrials as one, Surgebinding as one, and Voidbinding as one. And then the Old Magic is kind of its own weird thing.

Calamity Seattle signing (Feb. 17, 2016)

 

[trav]

On 06/12/2022 at 8:47 AM, Oltux72 said:

They are, but they are not bonded.

Its still in line with what @Karger said. All Spren based. Honorblade are fragments of Honor. Spren are fragments of the power of creation/Adonalsium/Honor. They are not so different if you think about it. Highstorms and Spren being there before the Shattering does not mean they do not belong to Honor as Honor was a part of Adonalsium.

Technically all magic systems are the same at the bottom of it.

For this particular Question I would say at least 4 different Magic Systems are used on Roshar. 1 for each Shard + the Old Magic.

[DresdeMBM]

Quantumplation (paraphrased)

I haven't read Way of Kings yet, but I've read Warbreaker and Mistborn, and the thing I like most about them is the Magic systems.  Will Way of Kings have multiple magic systems?

Brandon Sanderson (paraphrased)

Depending on how you count it, Stormlight Archive will have 3 or 30 different magic systems.

Footnote: Part of me wants to say he said "3, 10, or 30 different magic systems", but I can't remember for sure.
Towers of Midnight Cambridge signing (Nov. 7, 2010)

 

As we see in this WoB (even though it is quite old, from 2010), there are like three main groups. My theory is that there are ten Surges, from Surgebinding, plus nine, from voidbinding, and the other eleven I don't know if it is a Cultivation-based magic system with eleven magics (if we think 11 is the number associated with Cultivation), or just various things, like certain spren thingies, fabrials, the fishes from purelake, etc. 

[Ati16]

On 25.11.2022 at 0:07 AM, Ookla the Frustrated. said:

What's Fabrials then?

In my opinion Fabrials don't count as a magic system the same way shardbearing doesn't count. They are simply using tools of the Radiants. If we had to categorize it in a magic system then it would be Surgebinding.