Odium Steering Szeth

[Quantus]

Noticed something Id missed in the opening of OB:  Eshonai mentions that Klade "a voice speaking to the Rhythms" had led him to Szeth, who revealed what he was when pressed.  She then mentioned off-hand that Venli had apparently been there but Eshonai hadnt seen her sister since before that.  In retrospect that's seems pretty clear that Odium was manipulating things to make that happen.  So he was working both sides, with Gavilar and the Sons of Honor meddling in Voidlight, heralds, and Returning Odium, but also arranging for the Singers to assassinate said Son of Honor.  

So, do we think Odium simply wanted to spark the Shattered Plains war of retribution, or is there some longer game he was playing there by bringing Szeth into the mix and creating the Assassin in White, when he'd previously just been a very creepy slave?  

[StanLemon]

I definitely think he wanted to spark the war. I don't think that he was overly manipulating Szeth though, but more likely just took advantage of him. To me, Odium is a good schemer but not a great one.

[Elegy]

Maybe the war was just a side effect and the actual thing he wanted to achieve was getting Gavilar killed, since he showed signs of maybe becoming a Bondsmith? It also might have been an Unmade instead of Odium himself, since they seem to have their own minds (for the most part). I'd be surprised if Venli's meeting Szeth wasn't adressed in ROW, so maybe we'll get hints/answers there.

[Karger]

My first thought that it was one of the Heralds(possibly Kalak)I then thought that it was actually the spren Ulum that Gavilar had previously lost track of or who had somehow got past/around the weakened oathpact.

[Frustration]

Gavilar was too close to bondsmith a position Odium needed Dalinar to take to get free. So Odium cut Gavilar, added to Dalinars pain, and sent him to the Nightwatcher in grief so that the return of pain was an additional pressure for Dalinar to relinquish it.