Questions for Seattle Signing 10/14

[Argent]

I feel this might actually get an answer. Only I'd ask whether all spren, not just the ones that form a Nahel bond, have Investiture from both Shards. Alternatively, it'd be interesting to know whether there are spren with Investiture from Odium...

 

Do all spren linked to KR Orders have investiture from both Cultivation and Honor?

[WeiryWriter]

I feel this might actually get an answer. Only I'd ask whether all spren, not just the ones that form a Nahel bond, have Investiture from both Shards. Alternatively, it'd be interesting to know whether there are spren with Investiture from Odium...

 

This quote talks a little about this.  I interpret as meaning some spren are wholly of one shard or the other with the rest being a mixture of the two.  I think restricting it to just bonding spren would be more useful.

[Argent]

Very well.

[Shardlet]

Sixth of Dusk will be out when it's out is probably what you'll get. I haven't listened to Writing Excuses in a while (I am a couple of seasons behind...), but I understand it's up to Howard and... Dan? Mary? 

 

Yeah, Brandon said that it will be released when the other members of Writing Excuses get their stories written. 

 

Edit: Oops, missed your response Weiry.

Edited October 9, 2013 by Shardlet

[Kurkistan]

13. Why does Feruchemical Gold sometimes leave scars and sometimes not?  (Wouldn't this just be based on how the object sees or wants to see itself?)

 

Well yes, that is how it normally works. Feruchemical gold, however, has a history of leaving scars at odd times: like with Sazed after his surgery or the Inquisitor after Vin arrow-faced him. The "why" is a bit nebulous at the moment, though we have had discussions about this.

 

I still don't understand the rationale behind asking whether Surgebinders have gemhearts. Surgebinders are human, somebody would've noticed if people here and there throughout the ages end up having a giant gemstone for heart...

 

First of all, it seems that Surgebinders haven't been that prevalent for the last millennium or two. They're just-now making a comeback. So it would be understandable not to have run across one or his/her gemheart in living memory.

 

Second, here is my warrant for asking this question:

 

We know that greatshells on Roshar are capable of growing to their absurd size because they bond with spren. We also have this quote from Brandon:

 

Source:

Viper

Ok. The gemhearts/stormgems/whatever that are grown inside the beasts in Way of Kings ... is that the same as the way Atium is grown inside geodes in the Pits of Hathsin?

Brandon Sanderson

It's similar. The pits are an area where there's like a leak from the spiritual realm into the physical. That's what happens there.

From this, I surmise that gemhearts arise spontaneously in spren-bonding animals. Therefore, a human with a bond to a spren (read: a Surgebinder [Well, normally *Szeth*]) might very well experience a similar phenomenon.

Gemheart doesn't necessarily mean that they have a gem in place of a heart, btw.

Edited October 9, 2013 by Kurkistan

[Argent]

Do we know that Surgebinders have been rare? 

[Kurkistan]

It's heavily implied. No one really seems to know about surgebinding, Brandon has talked about how the SA is all about the magic coming back (suggesting it's been gone awhile), all the talk of surgebinders so far has been in reference to the Radiants... It's a fair assumption.

[Argent]

Right, right. I should've elaborated. The reason I am not so sure they were too rare is because Kaladin, for example, was doing some basic Surgebinding for a while without anyone noticing. So has Jasnah. It's possible that some small fraction of the population has been using rudimentary Surgebinding, but because of how rare and unspectacular those displays were, nobody noticed. We are all pretty sure Dalinar did something Surgebindy-y when he stopped the chasmfiend from Soulcasting Elhokar into a strain on the ground - nobody seemed to mention Surgebinding there. And those are displays over a limited set of (mostly lighteyes) characters from, what, two nations? Who knows what has been going on behind the curtains?

[Kurkistan]

Ah, thank you for clarifying. I still get the sense that all this surgebinding is relatively new, though. All of these abilities showed up around the same time as the death rattles and End of Times and all, so far as we can tell.

 

Also, it seems that everyone is starting to catch on to their abilities pretty fast, not just using them unconsciously for all or most of their lives. They're recognizing cause and effect and trying to "game the system." There's really no need to hide things behind the curtains, that I can see: religion isn't vehemently anti-surgebinding and isn't very powerful in Rosharian society, and surgebinding grants obvious military and ancillary benefits. That's the kind of stuff that gets used, if not even flaunted.

 

The more I think about it, actually, the more sure I become that surgebinding has not been "accidentally" discovered on any scale before the series. There are simply too many reasons to use it, not least the seeming constant military conflict that the whole continent experiences. Even if feudal European landowners didn't particularly like the de-knightifying impacts of the longbow and gunpowder, pressure from other nations necessitated their use: so too with surgebinding. It's too powerful to intentionally leave to the side out of fear of mild social censure, and the odds of it not being properly understood and developed in any nation (thus necessitating the development of surgebinding in other nations. Hello arms race!) are quite low, in my estimation.

 

It's akin to why disruptive technologies like the crossbows would likely be impossible to suppress, really.

Edited October 9, 2013 by Kurkistan

[Natans]

Right, right. I should've elaborated. The reason I am not so sure they were too rare is because Kaladin, for example, was doing some basic Surgebinding for a while without anyone noticing. So has Jasnah. It's possible that some small fraction of the population has been using rudimentary Surgebinding, but because of how rare and unspectacular those displays were, nobody noticed. We are all pretty sure Dalinar did something Surgebindy-y when he stopped the chasmfiend from Soulcasting Elhokar into a strain on the ground - nobody seemed to mention Surgebinding there. And those are displays over a limited set of (mostly lighteyes) characters from, what, two nations? Who knows what has been going on behind the curtains?

 

Don't forget to mention the organizations that possible search and kill potential surgebinders, like Ghostbloods and "another ones"

 

And the Ardentia that must look with very bad eyes this kind of thing, any person that have this kind of power would try hid it. (Dalinar' visions, Jasnah fake soulcaster and Kaladin' fear to share his power with brigde 4 prove this).

 

So even if there is many surgebinders they woundn't expose themselves.

[WeiryWriter]

I thought of another question, "What is the likelihood that we will see the shardworlds explored in Shadows for Silence in the Forests of Hell and Sixth of the Dusk beyond those two stories?"

[Argent]

I thought of another question, "What is the likelihood that we will see the shardworlds explored in Shadows for Silence in the Forests of Hell and Sixth of the Dusk beyond those two stories?"

 

This would be interesting. My guess is that they won't turn into full shardworld novels or series, but we might see a novella or two (similar to The Emperor's Soul).

[Meg]

 

We know that greatshells on Roshar are capable of growing to their absurd size because they bond with spren. We also have this quote from Brandon:

 

Source:

From this, I surmise that gemhearts arise spontaneously in spren-bonding animals. Therefore, a human with a bond to a spren (read: a Surgebinder [Well, normally *Szeth*]) might very well experience a similar phenomenon.

Gemheart doesn't necessarily mean that they have a gem in place of a heart, btw.

 

The bond with the "chasmfiend"-spren are not the only reason for their size:

 

Observer

What are the smoke-y spren that appear around a dead chasmfiend?

Brandon Sanderson

They are in a symbiotic relationship with the chasmfiend, and are part of what allow the creatures to grow to the size they do with an exoskeleton. (Along with a high-oxygen, lower-gravity world.)

source

emphasizes mine

 

But I'm curious about an answer to your question, Kurkistan, though, honestly, I don't believe that humans -- or "all animals with a spren-bond" grow gemhearts.

 

 

Much more would I love to get a question on the time passed in TWoK as CheeseNinja asked.

 

In an annotation to the Mistborn books (I don't kow in mind which), he said that normally the books are chronological, that means Chapter 3 is later than Chapter 2. If he doesn't answer Cheese's question, could you ask whether this chronology is given in TWoK, too (aside from Flashbacks)?

[Kurkistan]

@Meg

 

Forgive me, I had not meant to imply that bonding with spren was the only factor in chasmfiends' sizes. Just a necessary one.

[WeiryWriter]

If Ruin and Preservation had settled on a shardworld that was not Scadrial, and there were no other Shards present, how would the manifestations of investiture be different?  Would the three Metallic Arts still have come into being?  If so, how would they be different?

 

What is up with Aon Ien meaning "Wisdom" but being used for Healing in AonDor?

 

Will you ever do more "in-depth" Aon descriptions like you have done For Aon Ehe, Aon Ene, and Aon Omi?

 

When King Raoshem settled in Elantris and made it his capital, did Seons exist? (This last one is kind of wishful thinking, it is a clarification of a question I asked Miyabi to ask him that had enough wiggle room to get out of answering, might be a RAFO though)

[Mailliw73]

What is the term for a full feruchemist plus Mistborn person? (like the Lord Ruler) Will we ever see another one?

Edit:Is the "S" that is the symbol of the Faithful related to Superman's symbol?

Edited October 13, 2013 by Mailliw73

[WeiryWriter]

Did the Lord Ruler actively have to choose to add super allomancy skills when he rebuilt his body, or was it the default when using the Well?

 

Can non-humans be surgebinders?

Edited October 13, 2013 by WeiryWriter

[Robot Aztec]

Okay So first there was Vo and he was the onlyreturned found and the first one and he came to life on a boat near to the tears of eglidi when they were first epxloring the place

And the Tears of Eglidi grow in the shadrpool of endowment and NOW returned can be foudn in all parts of the world, and NOW the tears can be foudn in all parts of the world beacuse of trade and so my question is does the trade in the tears of eglidi match the spread of the returned appearing in places because if it does that means that the returned follow the tears

[hoser]

Hi guys,

 

Thanks for all the thought and suggested questions.  In order to properly enjoy this event, I will not be expecting to ask any questions.  I will bring 6 or so, just in case.  The general strategy is to ask an open question, so he can give us something, if he wants.  If he wants a more specific question, the follow-ups narrow down to a particular concern.  My primary concern is to add to our information.  Based on your feedback and my inclinations, here is what I've got.  I will check in before the signing to review any further feedback.

1. Szeth carves his way through a stone wall then puts down his Shardblade to lash the piece of stone he just carved.  Hoid has been using lightweaving to make himself invisible and picks up Szeth's Shardblade.  What are you willing to say about the implications of this scenario?  Follow-up (if appropriate): Are Szeth's abilities affected by Hoid picking up the sword?
2. Szeth has acted in ways that don't seem to fit well with Shin society.  Will you tell us anything about how he gets the information and or training that leads him to those actions?  Follow-up (if appropriate): Is there a dissident faction, possibly including his grandfather, that he has learned from?
3. What are you willing to tell us anything about the history of the Vanrial community at this time? Follow-up (if appropriate): Are their eyes generally lighter than the Alethi peasantry?
4. From the Beaverton signing, it seems that Skybreakers are Radiant order 2 sharing pressure w/Windrunners.  The suggestion is that they share fire as a destructive surge with the Order 3 Dustbringers.  What are you willing to do to correct or increase our level of certainty about this information.  Follow-up (if appropriate): So fire is the order 2-3 surge and not something else like maybe electricity, weak or strong force. 
5. Will you tell us something more about the Oathpact?  Follow-up (if appropriate): Who are the parties to it?
6. Gavilar may have done something to change Roshar just before his death.  What are you willing to tell us about his actions or the information that led to those actions?  Follow-up (if appropriate): Does his info or the stone that he gives to Szeth from the Nightwatcher?
7. Can you tell us something more about larkin and their abilities?
8. Is there a relationship between where the Tears of Edgli are distributed and where returned appear?

Wish us luck.

 

hoser

 

Edit: incorporated Kurkistan's correction from below

Edited October 14, 2013 by hoser

[Kurkistan]

Thanks again for offering this opportunity.

 

Two things to note:

 

-I agree with others that Szeth's grandfather is likely a dead-end, simply a way to avoid shaming his father. So that one doesn't seem the best shot to me.

 

-We have from Warbreaker that the Tears only grow in Hallandren. The question is whether their distribution as an export is what causes Returning.

[Robot Aztec]

Yes Kurk that is exact what I mean thank you for saying.

If You get rafos maybe you can remember other things but dont know what time you have to talk thanks anyway i hope you have a fun time.

[Argent]

#2 is almost 100%, if not full 100%, RAFO. Or "wait until Szeth's book," which is essentially a RAFO.

 

#4, bring a printout of the Double Eye with the orders and surges. It will be much easier for him to know what you are talking about.

 

This being said, I must admit that I am a little skeptical about your approach open-ended questions... Hopefully you'll prove me wrong on this account

 

Here's a signing advice for squeezing in extra questions. Bring a few books and a few friends. Hand a book or two to each one of your friends, and have them ask a question or two as they go through the line and have their (your) books signed/personalized. Then, wait until the end of the end, and unload ALL THE QUESTIONS IN THE WORLD. Brandon usually stays for about 20 minutes after each event to sign the bookstore's books, so he is willing to just sit there, sign, and answer questions.

[hoser]

-I agree with others that Szeth's grandfather is likely a dead-end, simply a way to avoid shaming his father. So that one doesn't seem the best shot to me.

Do you have any evidence for this contention?  It seems clear to me that he has information and training that don't fit w/Stone Shamanism and his grandfather seems as likely a conduit as any. 

-We have from Warbreaker that the Tears only grow in Hallandren. The question is whether their distribution as an export is what causes Returning.

fixed, thanks

 

#2 is almost 100%, if not full 100%, RAFO. Or "wait until Szeth's book," which is essentially a RAFO.

#2, but not #1?

 

#4, bring a printout of the Double Eye with the orders and surges. It will be much easier for him to know what you are talking about.

good idea!

This being said, I must admit that I am a little skeptical about your approach open-ended questions... Hopefully you'll prove me wrong on this account

Do you have a better idea?

Here's a signing advice for squeezing in extra questions. Bring a few books and a few friends. Hand a book or two to each one of your friends, and have them ask a question or two as they go through the line and have their (your) books signed/personalized. Then, wait until the end of the end, and unload ALL THE QUESTIONS IN THE WORLD. Brandon usually stays for about 20 minutes after each event to sign the bookstore's books, so he is willing to just sit there, sign, and answer questions.

Thanks, I'll see what I can do. 

[cem]

If you have the opportunity, can you ask if no KR needs to breath while holding stormlight or is that just Windrunners? If every order has a "passive ability" like that, it might explain Shallan's Memory.

[Argent]

Fine, #1 is also almost probably definitely with certainty a RAFO

 

And I don't know whether I have a better idea. What worked for me is having over 20 questions prepared, and trying to unload as many of them as I possibly can, hoping to maximize the number of actual answers I get (so keeping some potential RAFOs, in case he was feeling generous, but aiming for questions that felt answerable). As opposed to yours, mine were chosen to be specific and preferably with a "yes/no" kind of answer. But again, I don't know whether that's a better approach, since it's the only one I've tried