Main Characters of Rhythm of War

[Wintersu]

So, according to the update Brandon did just barely, there will be three arcs of the story.

The Primary Arc, four characters:

Dalinar, Kaladin, Shallan, Szeth

This will be the ‘main’ story, continuing on with the core characters we’ve seen so far

The Secondary Arc, three characters that aren’t all together all the time, but the story has a lot to do with each other:

Venli, Rlain, Eshonai?

I think this will be the Willshaper part of the story. It seems like with Eshonai being the flashback character, this would make sense

Tertiary Arc, two characters off by themselves:

Jasnah and Ash

Because who better to explor Aimia than Jasnah and a Herald? 

The number of arcs and characters in each Arc was specified by Sanderson. The rest is me speculating (for all those that haven’t read his post)

 

Edited April 16, 2019 by Wintersu

[Karger]

3 hours ago, Wintersu said:

The Primary Arc, four characters:

Dalinar, Kaladin, Shallan, Szeth

Mmmm

I think Dalinar will actually be stepping back in book 4.  Another lead would make sense.  Adolin perhaps?  Or could we elaborate more on another character like Renarian or Lift?  I do think that you are right to exclude Jasnah as she and Shallan have not yet worked out their trust issues.

3 hours ago, Wintersu said:

The Secondary Arc, three characters that aren’t all together all the time, but the story has a lot to do with each other:

Venli, Rlain, Eshonai?

I think the obvious third is Timber

3 hours ago, Wintersu said:

Tertiary Arc, two characters off by themselves:

Jasnah and Ash

Because who better to explor Aimia than Jasnah and a Herald? 

Doesn't Jasnah have to do Queen work now?  I know she is pretty incredible but she can't travel the world and govern at the same time and I don't think Ash is in a condition to do much of anything.  Also I am not sure she would leave Taln.

Perhaps a Lift and Gawx?  (Would love it.)  Or maybe they are isolating Reinarain and Glys and they can interact only indirectly?

[Inky]

I think Dal's being held back for some killer moments in Book 5

[Wintersu]

19 minutes ago, Karger said:

Mmmm

I think Dalinar will actually be stepping back in book 4.  Another lead would make sense.  Adolin perhaps? 

I’ve been talking to a number of people on Reddit, and this is what I think now. So, replace Dalinar with Adolin. I think Lift will also be with that group, but not as a main character. Personally, I think she’ll be a main character for the second five books, but remain a side character for now

 

Jasnah does have Queen work to do. Really I just want her to be involved in an Aimia exploration, but I don’t have any logic to base that on. It would be cool.

The Tertiary cast is the one that is the most mystifying. Could be a lot of things. Could be Moash and Naln for all I know. Most of our main characters have coalesced into one area, so your guess is as good as mine

[old man moomba]

I've got it!

'Killer Queen' started playing in my head right when I read Jasnah's name.

[+Invocation]

40 minutes ago, Wintersu said:

The Tertiary cast is the one that is the most mystifying. Could be a lot of things. Could be Moash and Naln for all I know. Most of our main characters have coalesced into one area, so your guess is as good as mine

I wonder if it's Azure. Does her sword count as a character??

[Tjeed]

44 minutes ago, Invocation said:

I wonder if it's Azure. Does her sword count as a character??

Azure/Vivenna and Zahel/Vasher maybe? 

[+Invocation]

14 minutes ago, Tjeed said:

Azure/Vivenna and Zahel/Vasher maybe? 

That was pretty much my thoughts. The payoff to the whole "bounty" thing that was mentioned.

[Tjeed]

29 minutes ago, Invocation said:

That was pretty much my thoughts. The payoff to the whole "bounty" thing that was mentioned.

Sanderson might not put them as Pov characters though because it would basically require you to have read Warbreaker and would be the biggest interlap between books that he's done. 

[+Invocation]

1 minute ago, Tjeed said:

Sanderson might not put them as Pov characters though because it would basically require you to have read Warbreaker and would be the biggest interlap between books that he's done. 

The tertiary arc could be done somewhat like Szeth's arcs started as - interlude-based.

[Tjeed]

Yeah that could work, and would be really fun to read imo 

[Pagerunner]

Hmm. An interesting question, who the nine "main" characters are for this book. Let's engage in some rampant speculation on the subject. I think we can start with the ten flashback characters (swapping Venli for Eshonai):

• Kaladin
• Shallan
• Dalinar
• Venli
• Szeth
• Lift
• Renarin
• Ash
• Taln
• Jasnah

At least one of those characters, and possibly more, aren't going to be part of the RoW list, aren't going to get a ton of viewpoints. I think Lift is being saved for later (or, if I'm being honest, I hope she's gonna stay out of the way). And since we last saw Ash and Taln together, I suspect that they'll still be together in this book and that they also have a lot of their arcs being held in reserve until later books. So if one's gone, both is gone, and I think both will be gone.

So that leaves us with seven flashback characters who we can expect to have a good chunk of screen time in Book Four. What two other characters could round out the list? I'll go with Adolin and Navani, both of whom were once considered as candidates for flashback books. So, let's see how these nine could get assigned to arcs.

Quote

We have what I'm calling the Primary Arc, which focuses on four characters who are all together in one place, their plots interweaving.

I think the Primary Arc must include Venli, who is still with the singers. The book's title is about the singers, the flashback character is a singer. But who else could go with her, and what sort of a "place" could this be that has these apparent enemies together? Some sort of a battlefront, perhaps reminiscent of the Shattered Plains from WoK. (Heck, it could even be the Shattered Plains, with the singers on the offensive out of Alethkar.) Kaladin, though his OB arc and through Rlain, has a lot of connections to singers, so I think he'll be there on the battle lines. And two other main characters will be with him; I'm guessing Renarin and Szeth, but that's more process-of-elimination from whom I will assign to the other arcs.

Quote

The Secondary Arc is three different characters, their arcs interweaving, but in a separate location from the primary arc.

I'm thinking the Secondary Arc will be higher-level, political intrigue sort of stuff, centered around Dalinar, with Jasnah and Navani as the two other characters. This could involve maintaining the existing human alliance, attempting to expand it to include Shinovar or Iri, refounding the Knights Radiant as an organization, researching lost secrets of the Radiants and the spren, uncovering new fabrial science, all sorts of stuff. It's the secondary arc, but it's the big picture of the series. 

Quote

The Tertiary arc is the last two characters, in a third location.

The Tertiary Arc is the Romantic Getaway Quest. I'm thinking Shallan and Adolin are off somewhere random doing something. Maybe working with Sja-anat? This arc could be Ash and Taln (in which case, I'd bump Renarin and Szeth from the Primary Arc and put Adolin and Shallan there), but I don't expect we'll see enough of them for a full book yet. Maybe they get the Interlude sequence. Or it could be Dalinar and Navani, (and I'd probably toss Shallan and Renarin in with Jasnah, and put Adolin on the front lines), but I don't think Dalinar's in a position where he could get away like that.

I like the parallels this division of arcs would have to Way of Kings, in terms of its three characters. Kaladin, on the front lines of a battle. Dalinar, dealing with the broader war. And Shallan, off on her own. Very reminiscent of a ketek.

[Nymeros]

I need Vyre to fit in there somewhere. He'll likely be a key view point to from the Singer perspective from the field while Venli will be our point of view from the off the field.

Edited April 17, 2019 by Nymeros

[Pathfinder]

I see Kaladin, Shallan, Venli, and Rlain being the first arc in voidbringer controlled lands. Kaladin because of the excerpt posted earlier. Shallan to keep them hidden/disguised. Rlain to blend in and try to turn parshendi. Venli because by accident Rlain will be how they make contact with her and she joins team Kholin. Or Moash instead of Rlain to be a counter point to Kaladin and cause conflict. I see the secondary being Dalinar, Jasnah, and Adolin back at Urithiru. Dalinar needs to be in the tower to lead the radiants and possibly get the tower working with help from Navani to delve into the Sibling. Jasnah to rule as Queen of Alethkar and Adolin at her side to rule as Highprince of the Kholin princedom. The last I feel like it is going to be Shinovar with Szeth having gained approval from Dalinar to pursue the shamanate, but I cannot for the life of me figure out who would accompany him. Actually as I type this, Lift possibly?

So TLDR

First Arc: Kaladin, Shallan, Rlain, Venli or Kaladin, Shallan, Moash, Venli

Second Arc: Dalinar, Jasnah, Adolin

Third Arc: Szeth, Lift

[Rainier]

The first arc sounds like Urithiru, so Dalinar, Navani, Jasnah, probably Shallan, and the political might of Alethkar and the burgeoning alliance. I don't think Adolin gets the main focus here, as there are just too many characters here to spend much time in his head. I think we're mainly going to hear about Adolin from the perspectives of the other characters.

The second arc is probably going to be Venli's, and I wouldn't be surprised to see Vyre as one of the related people here. Maybe Kaladin, too, as he's the most connected to the singers. I don't think R'lain counts as a main character. He'll be around, but he's not going to count as one of the 9 major focus characters. This should the no-man's land between the two peoples, and the people passing from one to the other. Vyre is going from human to singer. Venli appears to be poised to traverse the same ground in the other direction. And Kaladin sits squarely in the middle, refusing to see either side as the enemy, and refusing to pick sides or resenting being forced.

The third arc has to be Szeth and Nightblood. Didn't Szeth swear at the end of OB to confront the Shin and purge the leaders who cast him out? I don't expect the purge to come in book 4, but the set up, the investigation, the necessary steps required, I'm thinking fit the two characters off on their own. Gimme that sweet Szeth and sword-nimi quest, even if it means I have to wait for my inevitable Nightblood-Vasher reunion. 

[+Child of Hodor]

17 hours ago, Wintersu said:

Tertiary Arc, two characters off by themselves:

Jasnah and Ash

Because who better to explor Aimia than Jasnah and a Herald? 

With being Queen I wouldn't think Jasnah would get to go on a road trips to ancient ruins anymore. At least not for this book.

Ash and Taln? Now that she's been reunited with Taln after 4,500 years she may not want to be apart from him. He'll probably barely speak or do anything, but he's an important character and I think they'll be together. 

[Ciridae]

I think the primary four will be Kaladin or Jasnah with Dalinar, Shallan and Adolin, in and around Urithiru. Im not sure about Kaladin here, he could also be among the secondary cast. He's off seemingly alone in the excerpt so maybe he'll end up getting captured and brought to Marat or something, who knows. I could see Dalinar going on more diplomatic missions while Jasnah does queen stuff in Urithiru. 

The second three could Be Venli, Vyre and Rlain, each doing their own thing but close to one another. If Kaladin joins then I think Vyre will get the interlude chapters. 

My pick for the last two are Szeth and Lift. I think Dalinar won't allow Szeth to cleanse the Shamanate yet, he needs their Oathgate and support. Destroying their government won't help with that. I think instead Dalinar is going to send Szeth and Lift across Roshar to find Radiants and to bring them back to Urithiru. They need to find as many budding Radiants as they can. Alternatively, I could see them already having done that in the year gap and Szeth and Lift begin to train the new Radiants in Urithiru. 

[Philomath]

I think it’s important to remember that when Brandon says “4 characters,” it might not exactly be 4 POVs. He compared it to WoK and in Shallan’s section we just had her POV but I would easily say there were 2 characters. Shallan and Jasnah. 

So thinking about who absolutely needs large amounts of POVs in this book, I would say Venli, Kaladin, and Shallan are our big candidates. Considering that Dalinar is stepping back to a WoR-esque role where he had a few of his own POVs but was mainly seen through Kaladin and Shallan. 

Primary arc seems likely to be at Urithiru. So I would say Shallan, Jasnah, Dalinar and Adolin. Outside chances of it including Szeth or Renarin. Shallan is researching Unmade/Voidbinding things and is acting as Jasnah’s research arm since Jasnah will be busy Queening it up. I will note that this will not follow the wardship they had earlier, but Jasnah will genuinely ask Shallan for help. And Shallan will be okay with it since she needs to do Unmade research for the Ghostbloods anyway. Good cover for her.

Secondary arc is Kaladin, Venli, and Vyre. Kaladin seems most likely to get sent out of Urithiru and to front line areas where Venli and Vyre will also likely be. 

Tertiary arc... throwing out something totally random since I have no ideas. Lift and Rock going to free the Horneater Peaks. Rock likes Lift because she eats all his food. 

Okay. I have revised my groupings so much. It’s hard to predict who could be where. Watch Brandon surprise us all and have Venli show up with Singer refugees at Urithiru in part 1. Ha ha.

 

[Jofwu]

I agree with @Pagerunner's approach at choosing the 9 characters Brandon is referring to, though I wouldn't write off Lift... Who would be included at the expense of Renarin, Adolin, or Navani. Probably Navani in my opinion, of those three, but it's a toss up.

What do these ten characters probably have in store?

---

Kaladin - I don't think we have too many clues from Oathbringer concerning specific things Kaladin needs to do next aside from swearing the 4th Ideal, and that could happen in countless ways. But the Lirin PoV gives some big clues for what Brandon's planning I think, despite the fact that he has trashed it. With Alethkar occupied and the Coalition in control of Jah Keved, there's bound to be conflict in the region around their northern border. The Herdazian general is apparently involved with what's happening there... and so is Kaladin. It makes a lot of sense that Kaladin would have a team that's active in the area.

Shallan - I think we're going to see a lot of interaction between her and Adolin, her [proto-] squires, and her brothers. She and Pattern noticed that Shadesmar is "weird" in some way around urithiru, and I'd be surprised if she weren't involved in following up on that. This points at Shallan in Urithiru. I also think she's going to have more dealings with the Ghostbloods in book 4, and they've asked her to get in contact with Sja-anat. Not sure how she can do this while stuck in Urithiru... So maybe her brothers won't matter as much and she'll be headed out into the field. Hard to predict where Sja-anat will be next though.

Dalinar - Dalinar's role will apparently be downplayed in book 4, and that's not surprising. He'll be busy politicking and establishing his refounded Knights Radiant.

Venli - I see Kaladin mentioned as a pairing for her, but I have a hard time seeing how that would work out. I think Venli will primarily be among the singers, which isn't really a safe space for... any of the other characters. I feel pretty strongly about this though. I think her role in the story is to lead her people in a rebellion against Odium and the Fused. It's possible that she'll run off and then return to do this later... But I think it's more likely that she will have plenty to do where she's at. It's possible we'll see some battlefield interactions, but Venli's not much of a fighter. Part of me wonders if Moash could be one of the 9 characters, because I can definitely see her interacting with him. (and we do need to keep tabs on Moash) I've seen her mother and Rlain thrown out as pairings, but neither of these would be a main character, whether they interact or not.

Szeth - He swore his oath to go after the Shin, but that's certainly going to have to wait until book 5. He could be hanging around Dalinar, but if Dalinar asks him to do something he's going to go do that. He does probably need some setup for book 5, but who knows what form that takes beyond a bit of screen time. I don't see him having anything interesting to do while stuck with Dalinar in Urithiru. I think he'll be out with one of the other two groups.

Lift - Not much to go on with her either. Definitely an easy argument to make that she's mostly sidelined as a PoV character.

Renarin - We need to explore the nature of Renarin and Glys to some extent. On one hand, that could happen anywhere. On the other hand, who better to pair him with than the girl who's supposed to seek out Sja-anat? Shallan/Renarin road trip?

Jasnah - I've seen lots of people wishing to see her go off on some awesome adventure, but she's the queen of Alethkar now. I'm not convinced she has time or freedom to go skipping across Roshar, putting her life at risk. I put her firmly in Urithiru, doing politics and figuring out how to "fix" the city. She'll definitely make some Shadesmar trips in or around the city, so it won't just be meetings for her.

Adolin - Brandon has suggested that he hasn't escaped the consequences of killing Sadeas yet, so perhaps this will come back to play--and that likely means being in Urithiru. He's also a Highprince, which means he's on a short leash like Jasnah. We also need to see some Adolin-Shallan interaction, but I don't suppose Brandon will bend the story out of shape to keep them together. There's not a lot here requiring him to be a PoV character though.

Navani - Another Urithiru character, I assume. Her interest in fabrials makes her a likely candidate to help out with the city/Sibling mystery, and I don't see her going far from Dalinar. I don't see any reason for her to be a PoV character for this, however.

---

So how to put all of this together?

I have to agree that Lift seems least likely to be a main character of the ten listed. Navani, Adolin, and Renarin seem next most likely to be sidelined.

We've got several characters who are likely to hang out in Urithiru, so it's easy to imagine the 4-PoV primary arc will be here. Dalinar and Jasnah are definitely here in my opinion. Navani is also definitely here, though hard to feel certain about her position as a major PoV character. Shallan, Adolin, and Renarin could have things to do here. Szeth and Lift could be thrown into the pile. I've got a little bit of hesitancy to assume this is the primary arc though, because humans stuck in Urithiru doesn't sound particularly... dynamic and exciting. Great content... but the primary arc of the book? Hmmm...

Two options for Venli. She's either deep in singer territory, and probably interacting just with Moash (these two forming the 2-PoV tertiary arc)... OR she's closer to the front lines and somehow interacting with humans there.

Everything I've noted above under Kaladin DOES make me feel very strongly that he will be very busy in northwest Alethkar / northeast Jah Keved / Herdaz. I'm not entirely sure who will be sent with him, however. Adolin is a pretty good option. Makes plenty of sense that he'd be on the frontlines trying to take Alethkar back. And he's got a lot of chemistry with Kaladin. Szeth is another good option, given his fighting ability and the fact that he can keep up with Kaladin. Could toss Lift or Renarin here, I suppose.

I think it would also be good to step back from the characters for a moment and take in the bigger picture. I haven't mentioned anything concerning the western half of Roshar, which perhaps feels like a big oversight. Then again, as much as I want to see more of these nations, I wouldn't be surprised if our time there is limited yet again. The Dalinar (or others) could make a few minor field trips away from Urithiru if necessary. I can see a lot of information about the Makabak region coming second hand. (i.e., conversations and reports from the Azish) Everything more towards the northwest has largely been a mystery all along, so not surprising if we continue to get little from there for now. We've also got interludes to help keep us on top of these areas. So I don't see a big problem here.

However, I DO think we need to see the Horneater Peaks. These are very important to the defense of Jah Keved, and Oathbringer made it abundantly clear that something is happening there. It's been a whole year since the Battle of Thaylen Field. Our characters HAVE to handle... whatever's going on there, in the next book.

---

With all of this in mind, I've got two propositions:

OPTION 1

Primary Arc
Who: Venli, Kaladin, Adolin, and Szeth
Where: frontlines the northern Jah Keved / Alethkar / Herdaz
Lots of direct human-singer conflict. Venli gets to see her people thrust in the middle of a somewhat reluctant war, and Kaladin is a good, empathetic person for her to run into here and there. Adolin-Kaladin chemistry will be on point. Szeth is maybe a bit out of place... I'm looking forward to the Kaladin-Moash confrontation(s).

Secondary Arc
Who: Dalinar, Jasnah, Navani
Where: Urithiru
Politics, Knights Radiant rebuilding, and the Urithiru restoration project.

Tertiary Arc
Who: Shallan and Renarin
Where: Horneater Peaks
Wild speculation here, but I like it so I'm sticking with it! Word is that that strange spren are starting to pop up around the Horneater Peaks, on top of the other weirdness going on there. Shallan and Renarin, escorted by Rock and some of Bridge Four, are sent to investigate.

OPTION 2

Primary Arc
Who: Dalinar, Jasnah, Shallan (and someone else... Adolin, Navani, Renarin, Szeth, Lift?)
Where: Urithiru
Politics, Knights Radiant rebuilding, and the Urithiru restoration project. Not entirely sure how to connect Shallan with her Ghostblood activities while she's here, but presumably some of that.

Secondary Arc
Who: Kaladin (and... others. Szeth, Adolin, Renarin, Lift?)
Where: frontlines between Jah Keved and Alethkar, including Horneater Peaks
Area is maybe too broad to be reasonable, but it might work. The "who" here is a big toss up. In fact, it's possible that this is even swapped with the primary arc.

Tertiary Arc
Who: Venli, Moash
Where: singer territory
We're deep in singer territory, dealing with mostly internal singer issues.

Edited April 17, 2019 by Jofwu

[Karger]

Does anyone know why Kaladin keeps leaving his greatest strength(his squires) behind in so many of our theories?

[Philomath]

@Jofwu I think most people put Venli with Kaladin because Kaladin is the most likely person to be on the front lines and around the Singers. That’s why I did it at least. Though I also really think Venli could be in the tertiary arc with fewer characters. I just get hesitant to do that to her since this book is supposed to be her book. 

I also agree with you that Szeth is not going to cleanse the Shin yet. That is a perfect set-up for his Book 5. I think I’m this book his knowledge of all the surges will be invaluable to the new Knights Radiant. And he may still not be entirely trusted on his own yet. So I think he sticks around Urithiru as a teacher. 

I also think going to the Horneater Peaks needs to be a thing this book. I just don’t have any good ideas as to which group does that. 

24 minutes ago, Karger said:

Does anyone know why Kaladin keeps leaving his greatest strength(his squires) behind in so many of our theories?

If he is at the front lines I wouldn’t be surprised if some of his squires go with him. Most of them just don’t seem mentionable as possible big POV characters. Also, many of them seem to be becoming Radiants in their own right so may get sent on their own missions or possibly training their own squires. Some radiants need to be in Urithiru to work the oathgate. Kaladin just doesn’t seem like a likely one to stay. 

[Karger]

Also Szeth is the only Skybreaker that team Radiant have.  I imagine they don't want him to die until he has trained up a couple of replacements so front lining him seems a bad idea.

[Jess]

Several people are separating Shallan from Jasnah, which to me goes a bit contrary to the end of OB. Also, Dalinar and Jasnah are likely at Urithiru, but we know Dalinar doesn't have much POV time in this book, and I suspect Branderson is holding back on giving us lots of Jasnah POVs just yet because she knows too much. So it makes perfect sense that we would be seeing both Dalinar and Jasnah primarily through Shallan's POV.

Anyway, I'm inclined to say Primary and Secondary are "Kaladin on a Mission in Singer Territory" and "Politics and Scholarship at Urithiru"... not necessarily in that order.

"Kaladin on a Mission in Singer Territory" would probably be told primarily through his POV and Venli's, and Eshonai's flashbacks. Branderson did say that all four Primaries were in the same place, so if this is the Primary arc then Eshonai's flashbacks wouldn't be contributing to his count of four (edit: unless it's at the Shattered Plains and he is being very sneaky about place vs time ). Possible appearances by Vyre, Rlain, Adolin, Szeth, or even Teft.

"Politics and Scholarship at Urithiru" would be mostly Shallan POVs, with possible appearances by Jasnah, Dalinar, Renarin, Adolin, Navani, or Szeth doing bodyguard stuff and/or helping train KRs. Wherever Szeth is (and it's pretty much a tossup), I think he will probably get a decent amount of POV time to set up book five.

Tertiary arc could be practically anything:

• Maybe Vyre, but paired with who? The obvious choice is Venli but I think she will get much more prominent placement than the Tertiary arc.
• Renarin could be doing something secretive, but again with who? Adolin maybe; they worked very well together in OB. Shallan would be a good candidate except for my hunch that she will be sticking by Jasnah. If he goes to the Horneater Peaks, perhaps he runs into Azure.
• I don't think Brandon will start giving us many Ash and/or Taln POVs this early, but you never know.
• Taravangian and... Malata? Highly unlikely I think.
• Lift and ???

Edited April 18, 2019 by Jess

[Wintersu]

5 hours ago, Karger said:

Does anyone know why Kaladin keeps leaving his greatest strength(his squires) behind in so many of our theories?

Because he keeps doing it! Brainless to a fault.

My biggest gripe with how the Knight are operating is their lack of regard for squires. That NEEDS to be something they’re good at, and they get ignored most of the time

Edited April 18, 2019 by Wintersu

[Jofwu]

6 hours ago, Karger said:

Does anyone know why Kaladin keeps leaving his greatest strength(his squires) behind in so many of our theories?

I assume he will probably have at least some of Bridge Four with him. Just didn't really mention them since the conversation is more focused on the main, PoV characters involved.

4 hours ago, Jess said:

Branderson did say that all four Primaries were in the same place

I think you're misinterpreting that slightly. It's the arc itself that he labels "primary"--not the characters who take part in that story arc.