WhiskeyJackDaniels Posted January 29, 2014 Report Share Posted January 29, 2014 Something caught my attention while reading the Parshendi interlude. When her sister says that they need stormform, because the Alethi now have surgebinders, Eshonai tries to counter it by saying that maybe he only had an Honorblade, the indication being that that would be something less worrisome than having to deal with a surgebinder. Combine this scene with the Lift interlude where Darkness (for the sake of this point I am assuming that he is indeed a Herald in disguise)waits to confront Lift until he has observed her for a few weeks, then waits until she is alone without friends, attacks her with a couple of shard-wielding lackeys in support, and after draining her of stormlight does everything in his power to make sure that she is unable to suck up anymore through spheres in the corridors before trying to give her his judgement. It seems like people are more scared of half-trained surge-binders and potential Knights Radiant than they are of either a Herald or their weapons. Is it possible that a fully trained and armored KR is a more devastating and fearful warrior than one of Honor's chosen ten Heralds? Or is it more likely that we just don't know the full extent of the abilities of the Heralds? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alice Rose Posted January 29, 2014 Report Share Posted January 29, 2014 This mast be simplistic on my part but I think it's sheer numbers. Surgebinders could ran hundreds of devastating enemies... Honor blade means at most ten. My personal opinion one on one Heralds will probably win in a fight with a KR. But I think multiple Radiants would probably beat a Herald. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Terra of Roshar Posted January 29, 2014 Report Share Posted January 29, 2014 There's also the fact that surgebinding or Nahel bonds could be hastening the return of the Desolations, as Darkness believes. And someone on the Honorblades grant surgebinding thread (I forget who, sorry) suggested that the Heralds could have some innate powers, and the Honorblade only gives them marginally stronger surgebinding abilities than they would have without it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WhiskeyJackDaniels Posted January 29, 2014 Author Report Share Posted January 29, 2014 True, but none of that explains Darkness's reticence and overly careful nature in confronting a 13 y/o surgebinder that has only had her abilities for what seemed to be weeks. Perhaps he just didn't want to make too big a scene with a big fight, or he was being careful because he doesn't have his Honorblade, but it still seems odd to me. In the series prelude Jezrien tells Kalak that humans will be ok because they have the KR to protect them so they don't need the heralds. Maybe it was just wishful thinking on his part, but Honor didn't tell Dalinar to find the lost Heralds or or their Honorblades. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oudeis Posted January 29, 2014 Report Share Posted January 29, 2014 True, but none of that explains Darkness's reticence and overly careful nature in confronting a 13 y/o surgebinder that has only had her abilities for what seemed to be weeks. Darkness acts very oddly all the time. I agree with you that he's acting oddly in this scenario, but your extrapolation from that is, "therefore, it's the way a rational person with all the facts would act," and I don't think I agree with that assessment. I like at least 90% of the oddness of his interactions with Lift comes from how odd her personally is, not from a greater truth about Radiants/Heralds. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marianmi Posted January 29, 2014 Report Share Posted January 29, 2014 Assume that human with honorblade = surgebinder in terms of power (e.g. Szeth and Kaladin). * You can have a limited number of people with honorblade; there is nothing special about them - just people with a powerful sword that grants them powerful abilities. * Surgebinders are worse, because it means that spren bonding has started, and where is now 1 can be tomorrow hundreds. I guess for the Parshendi, fighting a human with honorblade is not that far from fighting one with shards - can be killed using current warform... blade taken. Fighting surgebinders is different - is like humans found a new "form". Parshendi must match with their own powerful form. Darkness was also not sure what order Lift belonged to, so of course he had to be careful, not knowing how much she knows to do, or what exactly she can do... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MagnusMuses Posted January 29, 2014 Report Share Posted January 29, 2014 Another thing to remember is the general strange behavior of Darkness, specifically with regards to the law. Maybe he needed the right situation? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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