Where will we see new Shards?

[Toaster Retribution]

If we look at the plan for new Cosmere-books, there is mostly sequels on established planets. So, where will the remaining unknown Shards show up? Do you think they will be involved in existing series, such as SA or Mistborn, or will we get new series, with new Shardworlds, where they are introduced? 

 

[Leyrann]

I hope we'll get a book or series on a Shardworld with the Creation + Evolution Shards that I've theorized. I also expect a fourth Shard to show up in Stormlight Archive at some point because right now it seems like we know all big Cosmere things for the series, and I just don't believe Brandon isn't going to add some more cards to the deck when there's seven books still to go. Unity is the top contender for me, but Autonomy or another unknown Shard wouldn't surprise me either.

I could also see Ingenuity (may or may not be hinted at by Brandon, but also theorized by me) on it's own Shardworld, or maybe paired with another Shard.

Also, hasn't Brandon said somewhere he planned a total of 10 Shardworlds? Assuming the Roshar system counts as a single Shardworld, and not counting planets with 0 Shards (currently just First of the Sun), that means we have Vax (do we know this is a Shardworld?) and either two unknown planets or Yolen and one unknown planet still to go.

EDIT: Of course there's also the "hide and survive" Shard and a Shard not on a planet, possibly but not necessarily the same one. I think I can also remember a theory that this Shard not on a planet is in Silverlight.

Edited April 4, 2018 by Leyrann

[Yata]

I suppose  we will not see all the Shards and if we will...Probably this will happen into Mistborn Era 4 when the main cast will travel in space and will have the chance to visit other Shardworlds.

Another option is Dragonsteel where we will meet every Vessel as mortal and probably we will also have some bit of the Shards themself as in Dragonsteel the Shattering will happen

[Leyrann]

33 minutes ago, Yata said:

I suppose  we will not see all the Shards and if we will...Probably this will happen into Mistborn Era 4 when the main cast will travel in space and will have the chance to visit other Shardworlds.

Another option is Dragonsteel where we will meet every Vessel as mortal and probably we will also have some bit of the Shards themself as in Dragonsteel the Shattering will happen

I would expect that after Dragonsteel has been completed (and released, obviously) we will know all Shards and (original) Vessels. Which would of course perfectly set the stage for a space opera in which they are all involved.

Edited April 4, 2018 by Leyrann

[Toaster Retribution]

32 minutes ago, Yata said:

 

I suppose  we will not see all the Shards

 

I think we will, with the possible exception of the already dead ones such as Dominion and Honor. It would be a waste for Brandon to have sixteen but not use them all for sonething.

[Leyrann]

1 minute ago, Toaster Retribution said:

I think we will, with the possible exception of the already dead ones such as Dominion and Honor. It would be a waste for Brandon to have sixteen but not use them all for sonething.

I'd be sad if we wouldn't get to see Dominion and Devotion more just because they're splintered. I want to see every Shard in action at some point at least (a Sel double Shard would be fine as well though, imo).

[Pagerunner]

2 hours ago, Toaster Retribution said:

If we look at the plan for new Cosmere-books, there is mostly sequels on established planets. So, where will the remaining unknown Shards show up? Do you think they will be involved in existing series, such as SA or Mistborn, or will we get new series, with new Shardworlds, where they are introduced? 

I think the original Cosmere outline can give us some clues:

Quote

Original Cosmere sequence (from around 2003 or so.)

Core books:

Dragonsteel (7 books)

Mistborn (9 books)

Stormlight (10 books)

Elantris (3 books.)

Secondary stories

Unnamed Vasher prequel (1 book)

White Sand (3 books)

Unnamed Threnody novel. (1 book.)

Aether of Night. (1 book.)

Silence Divine (1 book.)

This version was after I decided I'd trim back Aether of Night, but felt confident that Dragonsteel would be coming out soon. (I tried a rebuilt version of it in 2007.)

By 2011, some things had changed. First, I'd rewritten Stormlight, and had sucked Bridge Four off of Yolen, following Dalinar (who had been moved to Roshar for the first draft of TWOK.) Warbreaker had been given a sequel. Dragonsteel, having lost the entire bridge four sequence, refocused to be more about Hoid and shrunk from seven books to between 3 and five, depending on what I decided needed to go there. Silverlight had grown from just a place I referenced to a place I wanted to do a complete story for. And, of course, Mistborn got another era. (Dark One also moved to the cosmere somewhere in here.)

So, a lot of these have been brewing all along, and I haven't really been adding that many books--I've actually been shrinking the numbers as I feel certain things combine, and work better together than alone.

Source.

Based on that, and assuming that all 16 Shards are accounted for somewhere in the above outline, here are my suspicions:

• Since we've already had hints of the Aethers as a canonicical magic, I think we'll get at least one Shard on that world.
• Silverlight, as an important place, might have a Shard with it as well.
• The final Mistborn trilogy, set among the stars, might be another place to meet new Shards on new worlds, although that will be quite a long wait for us to actually see them.
• And there's always the possibility that some Shards didn't make it off Yolen, and that we'll see some of them only in Dragonsteel. (Or if the final Mistborn trilogy takes us to Yolen, as well.)

2 hours ago, Leyrann said:

Also, hasn't Brandon said somewhere he planned a total of 10 Shardworlds? Assuming the Roshar system counts as a single Shardworld, and not counting planets with 0 Shards (currently just First of the Sun), that means we have Vax (do we know this is a Shardworld?) and either two unknown planets or Yolen and one unknown planet still to go.

He didn't say there are ten worlds with Shards on them, but that there are ten worlds that are core to the Cosmere story. Here's the full quote:

Quote

Fire Arcadia

Can you tell me something about the Cosmere that you haven't told anyone before?

Brandon Sanderson

There are inhabited planets in the cosmere that don't have any Shards there. There may be inhabited planets that only have a Splinter of a Shard. There are 10 core cosmere planets, which tell the overarching story of the cosmere.

FIRE ARCADIA

Are all the Cosmere books so far set on these 10 core worlds?

BRANDON SANDERSON

Yes.

FIRE ARCADIA

Are there any of the 10 core worlds without a Shard?

BRANDON SANDERSON

All 10 core worlds have significant Shardic influence.

Source.

That doesn't preclude multiple planets in a system as each being one of these ten core worlds - I count all three in the Roshar system. I also count Threnody, since it does have significant Shardic influence. (Definitely with the Shades; potentially with whatever the Evil is, and if Nazh's laser gun from BoM is Threnodite in origin.) With the world of Aether, that gives me a full list of 10. But you're right, taking a different approach could leave quite a few important worlds still yet to be revealed. Like I suggested above, there could be some major worlds that don't come into play until Mistborn Era 4, the space opera. Unless Brandon answers more definitively, I'm afraid it's something we'll never know for sure until the last book is published.

[Landis963]

To clarify, the list of 10 core worlds is probably: 

• Yolen
• Taldain
• Sel
• Nalthis
• Scadrial
• Roshar
• Ashyn
• Braize
• Threnody
• Vax

Edited April 4, 2018 by Landis963

[Discord]

2 hours ago, Landis963 said:

To clarify, the list of 10 core worlds is probably: 

• Yolen
• Taldain
• Sel
• Nalthis
• Scadrial
• Roshar
• Ashyn
• Braize
• Threnody
• Vax

Oathbringer Spoilers:

Spoiler

 

Given the letter epigraphs in Oathbringer, we have strong reasons to believe that Obrodai is one of those 10 core worlds, right? (i.e., It's a confirmed Shardworld inhabited by a Shard: "We have claimed that world, and a new avatar of our being is beginning to manifest there")

Makes me think that Roshar/Braize/Ashyn should be considered one "system"? (Much as they are described by Khriss in Arcanum Unbounded)

 

 

Edited April 4, 2018 by Pagerunner
Oathbringer Spoilers

[Pagerunner]

24 minutes ago, Discord said:

Oathbringer Spoilers:

  Reveal hidden contents

 

Given the letter epigraphs in Oathbringer, we have strong reasons to believe that Obrodai is one of those 10 core worlds, right? (i.e., It's a confirmed Shardworld inhabited by a Shard: "We have claimed that world, and a new avatar of our being is beginning to manifest there")

Makes me think that Roshar/Braize/Ashyn should be considered one "system"? (Much as they are described by Khriss in Arcanum Unbounded)

 

 

Oathbringer Spoilers:

Spoiler

Obrodai, with its avatar of Autonomy, might be in the same classification as Sixth of the Dusk. I don't count either of those worlds among the ten; the way I see it, neither of them were apparently present in the original cosmere outline I posted above. (Unless Obrodai is actually the Aether world, and Autonomy's avatar there is attacking the same way Trell [possibly another avatar] is attacking Scadrial... something good and complicated like that.)

 

[Khyrindor]

I've been coming around to the idea of a Shard on Silverlight. There's also the one that's trying to hide. That leaves four for other planets. Assuming one is on Vax, that's three Shards left. It's possible we'll see some in MB era 4 through the eyes of Scadrian spacefarers coming into contact with other worlds and Shards. There's probably a few that are Splintered as well. Also, as others have said, we'll get them all in Dragonsteel (probably).

If Brandon ties of the Cosmere with even one Shard unknown, I will be upset.

[What's a Seawolf?]

On 4/4/2018 at 9:45 PM, Khyrindor said:

I've been coming around to the idea of a Shard on Silverlight. There's also the one that's trying to hide. That leaves four for other planets. Assuming one is on Vax, that's three Shards left. It's possible we'll see some in MB era 4 through the eyes of Scadrian spacefarers coming into contact with other worlds and Shards. There's probably a few that are Splintered as well. Also, as others have said, we'll get them all in Dragonsteel (probably).

If Brandon ties of the Cosmere with even one Shard unknown, I will be upset.

 

I wouldn't be ENTIRELY upset if he wrapped up the Cosmere with 15 of 16 Shards revealed, then basically said, 'Well of course you've SEEN the missing Shard, and the impacts of its influence, up to you to figure it out :)"

[Khyrindor]

1 minute ago, What's a Seawolf? said:

 

I wouldn't be ENTIRELY upset if he wrapped up the Cosmere with 15 of 16 Shards revealed, then basically said, 'Well of course you've SEEN the missing Shard, and the impacts of its influence, up to you to figure it out :)"

I'd be okay with that if the clues were in there and able to be figured out. I'd hate for him to pull an RJ and say "yep, there are secrets hidden in there! Good luck finding them" and then dying with them unanswered. I'm sure there will be Realmatics left that are disputed even in-universe that won't be entirely answered (for example the Beyond, what Cognitive Shadows really are, what's up with Aluminum) that we can theorize for ages, but all the important things that people in-universe do  know, I would hope those are all answered.