Rhythm of War Part Three Reactions

[Kaid]

I can understand why some people felt this part was slow. I have a problem with wanting to know what is happening and it does feel like not a lot actually happens in this part but the information we get is really interesting. I will probably enjoy this part more on a re-read. 

[Govir]

7 hours ago, Kaid said:

For some reason I thought of the reference to "El" as Elend but I can't remember if anyone ever actually refers to him as El.

I can answer this from my memory of Mistborn

Spoiler

They do call him El sometimes. One time I can remember is Ham calling him El and Tindwyl not liking it.

 

[Mistborn Surgebinder]

OK, so, Jasnah and Wit is the pairing I didn't know I needed in my life. Just listened to the scene with Highprince Ruthar, and... 

Holy s#1t you guys. I rewound and listened to it 3 times in a row. I want Jasnah and Hoid to rule the universe. 

[+Oltux72]

10 minutes ago, Mistborn Surgebinder said:

Holy s#1t you guys. I rewound and listened to it 3 times in a row. I want Jasnah and Hoid to rule the universe. 

Actually I am wondering what Jasnah thinks about Hoid's statement that he would let Roshar burn. In the long run I can see irreconcilable differences coming up.

[Honorless]

Finally some meat in the epigraphs again! The texts from the eponymous books always take a while to get to the juicy bits! "It would have been so easy if Voidlight and Stormlight destroyed one another. Such a simple answer." Sounds like an interesting individual is writing these. So how do Stormlight and Voidlight interact? Lemme guess, they can be mixed.

Things have slowed down in Part 3. This must be what the reviewers were talking about. Part 2 was quite the rush! Felt like an early Sanderlanche.

Kal's chapters are still short here, and he's trying his best but reading Kaladin's chapters still got a bit too close for comfort. All of that's pretty accurate and on a relatively more relatable scale than his chapters were in Way of Kings. And yeah I can see why people would get frustrated with his chapters here, that's how it goes.

 

Dalinar is regretting being an absentee father and trying to be close with Gav, the recent friction with Adolin probably didn't help. Ugh, he's starting to get on my nerves. Finally some Renarin time! He's had another vision. Aw, I was hoping to get a Renarin chapter header. Glys can hide within Renarin, which I hadn't initially noticed in OB. He, also points out what Dalinar was beginning to realize, that while Odium agreed to a contest of Champions, he never agreed to a time and can delay indefinitely. Funny how in OB they were trying to get time, that which is dross to gods but the most precious thing men can have, is now against them in a drawn-out conflict against immortals. Renarin is aware his foresight clouds Odium's foresight (like Atium in Mistborn). Renarin and Glys plan to have another Bond a Corrupted / Enlightened spren. Renarin is... a lot wiser than I was expecting him to be. Hmm, he's of all three: Honor, Cultivation and Odium.

Okay, Syl isn't depressed, just grieving. Aye, aye spren are people too, they can choose who they want to be. Dabbid to the rescue! Syl agrees that she probably could become a syringe or other tools. Kaladin does a Spiderman impression... or Lift impression. Ah, the skin immune to Full Lashing threw me for a bit before I realized it was talking about Invested beings resisting being affected by foreign Investiture.

Huh, the Windrunners are all beginning to stir (I think the same would be true for Bondsmiths, aside from a Bondsmith of the Sibling). Secretspren and Chaosspren, we saw the former in Kholinar, warning of uses of most Radiant Surges, the latter is normally invisible but not with the tower's dampening field, so Venli is free to practice her powers. They found Rlain!

Eshonai's first meeting with Dalinar who warns her about humanity. This flashback chapter felt meatier. I think the first Eshonai chapter was heavily edited & cut or written while keeping the readers in mind, that they might get annoyed if it's Eshonai not doing anything plit-relevant, just exploring, living a simple life. But the character focus is back with the plot focus in this chapter. Venli's first meeting with the Rider of Storms and Ulim who was in the gemstone she was given. The Everstorm came from the south, the Nexus of Imagination?

Epigraph namedrops the in-world Rhythm of War and mentions someone named El. It's difficult for spren to change their color but Syl managed to make her dress red like a Voidspren. The Sibling begs and pleads with Kaladin to save him as Venli had accidentally realized where the nodes were hidden. It's difficult to sneak about when you're a famous hero, poor Kal. Kaladin eludes Lezian the Pursuer with a little help from Syl and knowledge from prev encounter that Lezian can only store enough Voidlight for three bodyjumps at a time, which he's very frivolous with. As Raboniel counted on, he couldn't attack an unarmed foe, plus there's only two options: destroy the gem to prevent the Corruption but weaken the barrier or fight there alone. Yup, the Sibling is acting kind of like a petulant child and expecting others to die protecting him. Kaladin used the Pursuer's hunting instincts and locked him in one of the Tower's hidden rooms. The Tower dwellers gawk at Kaladin, well he is a hero, a source of hope & he has a certain gravitas. Raboniel is removing either the Stormlight that Navani injected, the Sibling's Light or Voidlight mixed with either Stormlight or the Sibling's Light from the tower's system, Kaladin breaks it & Raboniel lets him escape... Raboniel is a very fascinating character! 

Oh my god! This chapter! Voidspren in a cremling?... one of the Sleepless? Lirin & Hesina will take care of the unconscious Radiants, I fully expect this will come back to bite the Fused... Hmm, I hope Lirin doesn't do anything regrettable. Venli & Rlain talk, so many feels... Raboniel & non-crazy Fused are rifling through Dalinar's socks (yes, you read that right). Mraize gives something to Raboniel that shocks her, then hands over Lift! We have a term for Cultivationlight! It's Lifelight. The Second Ideal of the Willshapers! "I will seek freedom for those in bondage" Venli's Words are not accepted... by Cultivation herself!

Epigraphs mention White Sand from Taldain! Ah, the silly project can be of help here, should've seen that one coming. We now have a term for the Sibling's Light! Towerlight! A mixture of Stormlight & Lifelight. Raboniel wants to create a mixture of Stormlight and Voidlight, but compares them with oil & water, Navani tells her oil & water can be mixed with an emulsifier. The Sibling is still being unreasonable, distrustful, presumptuous & hypocritical and does not want to divulge the location of the other nodes. Have I mentioned I do not like them? Because I don't.

Kal & Syl therapy group! Good god, Kaladin's been under so much pressure for so long, the break was doing him good, now this tower occupation and Vyre's Visions. Looks like Dabbid's getting better.

Hmm... can Odium look inside the Tower? I don't think he can, Taravangian had to let him in back in OB and he doesn't seem to be paying attention. Or maybe he's bound more tightly to Braize then he wants others to think in general, he's probably expending as little power to watch over as many operations as he can, comfortably, and no more. Though Odium isn't omniscient he should be able to see what's happening in Urithiru & Shadesmar. It's probably easier to see the Physical and he can't see through the Sibling, that must be it.

Is that why so many fabrials use ruby? They're the easiest to access as they can breed ruby Gemhearts. Is it just me or could the fabrial flight gloves could be made into effective fabrial cuffs? What slowed down his Stormlight healing? Navani thinks it wasn't the Corruption, was it Raboniel's blade?

Chain from the land of the dead (probs just Cognitive Realm)? Is it the same silver chain we saw in Celebrant? It can "anchor a person through Cognitive anomalies"? Who brought it to Shadesmar? Vasher? Nalthis is the world that comes to mind when mentioning Cognitive Anomalies.

A Jasnah chapter! Even we as readers expect something inhuman from Jasnah at this point, lol. Her first time being in a war. Jasnah has Plate confirmed. That's true, she'll never know what being an actual soldier is like, it's good that's she's respectful of that and trying to gain some perspective and practice without their forces' distinct advantages. The momentum & maneuvering of battle formations, the... purpose? and imagery is done as beautifully as Way of Kings' first chapter. The final type of Fused we saw in OB: the Magnified Ones, with the Surge of Progression, which let them grow carapace with extreme precision and speed, didn't give their name in their own tongue though. Air Soulcast into oil appearing even inside people's mouths? Shouldn't perception as that being part of one's body + innate Investiture hamper that? Singers attuning Forms are definitely more Invested than normal humans too, yet it's this easy for her? Living Shardplate's as cool as theorised. Wit expressed his point better than Ivory did, but Jasnah wasn't really wrong either, as the Mink puts it: "It’s too easy to forget the cost. Not only to the boys who die, but to the ones who live". One of the Sleepless is working for the Ghostbloods! And skilled enough that their hordeling could mimic a pen and get through Hoid's defenses.

minor Dawnshard spoilers

Spoiler

So it can't be any of the Sleepless we've met so far. Probably one of the... two? that were traitors as per the annotations, iirc

They saw Hoid's letters that he'd been sending off-world. Hoid has met Thaidakar before many times.

Wow, this chapter blew my mind! Stormlight passing through a prism produces a larger band of blue, Voidlight produces an enormous band of violet while the other colours are mere blips. Towerlight passing through a prism produces white-blue and white-green light from Stormlight and Lifelight but can't be recombined into Towerlight through a second prism. This experiment by Navani proved what was apparently just Raboniel's hypothesis regarding Towerlight. Raboniel wants to combine Stormlight and Voidlight, end the endless conflict, hmm... is she the author of the in-world Rhythm of War? The light Stormlight radiates is just Stormlight radiation. That must be why White Sand on Taldain takes so long to recharge, it's not getting getting much Investiture just Investiture radiation from sunlight. Matter and Anti-Matter, Investiture and... Anti-Investiture! So that's what was in Gavilar's violet-black spheres! It must've exploded when the experimenters put Voidlight in it! Navani thinks the same.

Raboniel's daughter is also one of the mindless Fused... Since, Odium's only ever made one group of Singers into the Fused, what is their number? How many as sane? How many are in each Brand?

Can you disrupt a Shard's Rhythm? To make it so the Vessel can't access the Shard?

Ah, I think I figured out what the Rhythm of War is! I paid attention to the epigraphs this time (I've learned from the original Mistborn trilogy)

potential spoilers?

Spoiler

Given the context of its mention in the epigraphs, I think it refers to the mix of Honor and Odium's Rhythms. So the effort to mix their Lights is, presumably, successful in this very book. War is a good name for a mix of Honor and Odium. We know some people with Connection to both. Could it happen in this book though? I expected it to happen in Book 5. But then again, I did not expect Rayse to be so... mundane after all that build-up of Shattering so many Shards and letters from Hoid. But even his mind must've been stretched at this point, like Ati's was. Harmony is probably right, Sja-Anat and Leshwi also saw the disconnect between the mind and the power.

The Destruction of Ashyn happened specifically because of Bondsmith Surges? Melishi could also see Connections, no surprise, he had to be able to, he disConnected a whole lot of people. Hmm... if the Stormfather considers the past him, before he merged with Honor's Shadow less alive, less intelligent and he was still so annoying, and the Sibling too was annoying, and the Nightwatcher was specifically Unconnected by Cultivation so she wasn't affected by perception... she's going to be very annoying isn't she?

Dalinar sees a reflection of himself in Taravangian. They continue their talk from OB about the why of Taravangian's actions. Taravangian tells him about his visit to the Old Magic (what is Cultivation's plan?) Taravangian does have a point though, he looked at the probabilities and took the path that had the best chance. Dalinar sounds like he wants to believe the worst of Taravangian for his own peace of mind.

"the project was ultimately doomed" right after seek to change the form of a god. If it's Raboniel... she didn't succeed?

As a Singer who can look into Shadesmar, Venli's going to be more effective in using Transportation than normal Willshapers, I think. Did the escaping Listeners die in the Chasms, it seems a possibility, one I hadn't really considered it before. I don't think Venli can use Voidlight for her Radiant powers, that's connected to her Regal form, and wouldn't Radiancy be blocked by the Tower's reversed defenses? Rlain is also with the fallen Radiants, that's good.

Voidlight naturally goes into Gemhearts & enflames emotions, Stormlight naturally spreads across the body and makes one feel energetic, which makes sense as it's tied to ecological processes on Roshar. Ah, Odium put in a filter to control who could get his Investiture, you have to sing the Song of Prayer, and humans can't even hear the Rhythms so. Huh, Venli can use Voidlight as fuel to power her Radiant abilities!

YEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAHHHH! Called it! "Listener", "Singer"... Listening to the Rhythms is one thing, Singing them another. The earth of Roshar speaks, eager to allow itself to be shaped by Radiants of the Willshaper or Stoneward Orders, and long, long before them, the Dawnsingers! That is how they created cities, shaped stone into buildings, tools. This was before they Bonded spren. "Old stones remember, new things came from old things", the Radiant ability came after, "new people from old people". There are Stonewards in the Coalition, do the stones not talk to them? Or has it just not been mentioned yet. I think, from what the stones said, that they could do something like this though they probably couldn't hear the pure Rhythms of Roshar, perhaps they simply didn't really try to listen or not of a high enough Ideal.

Willshaper spren are around Venli, looking for her Squires. They could make a way out with stone-shaping!

Eshonai was also getting jealous of Venli. Eshonai accidentally attracted the spren that she wanted for her mother... First time in Warform! The Rhythm of Honor is associated with Warform, and Workform with the tone of Cultivation. Gravitationspren for Workform and Painspren for Warform. The ten cities came with Shards (of the Plate and Blade variety, not the dietihood variety, and only eight)... so the Listeners left after the False Desolation, during the Recreance. Huh... only a dozen dead as the worst casualty during squabbles over the ten cities... Thude, Melu, I think I remember those names, the latter was also taken by the Fused. Eshonai wants to unite the Listeners, heeding Dalinar's warnings and her own instincts & common sense. Wow, we were told changing Forms is mind-altering, even those that are not one of the Forms of Power but seeing it is another thing. And it's so easy to imagine it happening too. Compared to the Forms of Power, this seems a more natural effect on the mind, I completely understand now why they wouldn't want certain Forms.

Navani remembers the ancient three note scale and upon experimenting on them finds that that each note corresponds to one Light, which she still can't get to mix. She also realizes that the Lifelight for her experiments comes from Lift. She persuades the Sibling (who's still very unreasonably difficult to deal with but Navani has experience dealing with & maneuvering difficult people) to reveal the location of another node: the well in the atrium, and finds out that Raboniel is already there. Uh-oh, Raboniel is spying on her somehow, some Voidspren are still invisible maybe? The Sibling had a falling out with humans that made them and Melishi distant, and made it difficult for him to acquire resources to make more nodes. They just naturally produced Towerlight, Navani wonders if that is because Odium's Rhythm is part of the pure tones of Roshar. "the Edgedancer has been surrounded by Ralkalest", they too called it Ralkalest, an indication of where this knowledge came from? The Sibling can feel Venli but doesn't understand why, as this is the first time they've seen a Regal in Envoyform they think that might be it. Navani puts Rlain as a candidate for Bondsmith! Not a human (+100 for the extremely humanphobic Sibling), doesn't make fabrials (another +100 for non-threatening), is a Singer, can hear the Rhythms of Roshar. Hmph, Rlain is nice but Navani is truly worthy, imo. Not that having a Bondsmith is possible right now (they need to touch the crystal pillar) nor will it solve the Towerlight problem.

Kaladin uses the flight gloves to mimic the Lashings and fights Lezian, tries to challenge Leshwi to take the pressure off then makes a run for it towards the node and Lezian locks him in the well. He breaks it but the Corruption of the Tower means he can't heal himself with Stormlight at all and begins to drown but swims towards and out of the reservoir into the Highstorm.

Dalinar joins the Stormfather in riding the Highstorm! Well, that's a gorgeous scene... Heh, and unlike Navani, he stops taking crem from the Stormfather and rips into him for his unthinking brutality after two helpless trappers are killed in the Highstorm, telling him he's not just a storm and calls him a coward who hides from choices. He also manages to move back in the storm to Urithiru and finds Kaladin clinging, via Connection and saves him, learning what has been happening in the Tower. Bondsmith powers would not have worked at Urithiru, according to the Stormfather (Hmm but Bondsmiths have Adhesion too, and Dalinar's at the same Ideal as Kaladin, though apparently Kaladin is close to the Fourth), Dalinar needs more practice and a higher Ideal. He wants to seek out Ishar!

Damn, Raboniel could hear the Sibling and Navani's conversations from the veins of garnet from the very beginning and played them both. 

Edited November 22, 2020 by Honorless

[Ramona Tehradin]

Kaladin traipsing, spying and pulling all impossible missions around enemy, coming out to spoil their plans all while battling is depression is legendary. 

[StormingTexan]

I liked this part. Not as much as part 2 but still enjoyed it. 

Thoughts in no particular order because I didn't take noes as I went.

I think Raboniel  is the author of RoW. 

Jasnah is such a bada$$ it was good to see her show that with Ruthar and then  fail with the fighting but cool to see plate in action. Her and Wit I think I can get behind this. 

I just cannot get in to these flashback scenes. I kind of thought this would be the case and maybe I have predisposed myself to not like them. 

I feel like something bad like seriously bad is going to happen to Kaladin. I hope I am wrong. 

Rlain as a Bondsmith that is interesting. The Sibling not a fan of humans this could work and would be cool. 

We have a name for Cultivation's investiture Lifelight! 

Mr T. I do not feel like he is done plotting. 

Why has Dalinar not been working on his Bondsmith powers this past year? I know he is behind some of the other Radiants. I guess too busy with a war for the future of humanity blah blah. 

Ready to get back to Shadesmar!

[Spren of Kindness]

It was interesting seeing Kaladin as essentially normal in this part.  He doesn’t have his Lashings, so watching him have to figure out how to work without the Surges he’s grown used to was very fun.  Those nightmares are getting worrying - I hope those don’t continue.  I love that Syl and Kaladin got to have a discussion about how to help each other, that feels like it’s a step in a very good direction.  And I find myself liking Dabbid’s character even more.  I nearly cheered when he spoke - it felt so triumphant.  Overall, I really enjoyed Kaladin’s chapters, I tend to really like the ‘sneaking around the occupied base’ storyline.  And the fact that’s he’s doing all this while battling very nasty nightmare visions and depression is inspiring, though I do not have problems with either of those.

Navani’s sections were fun to read.  I still didn’t get much about the Sibling, but we’ve two parts to go, and there was so much information!  Particularly Lifelight - I have a feeling a lot of theories got confirmed with that reveal.  I do wonder, since Odium and Honor have storms, could Cultivation have one?  Or no?

The teaser about Thaidakar was mean.  But, on the topic of Jasnah, I am slightly more terrified of her, and a lot more terrified of Wit, after the Ruthar scene.  Those two make a very scary team.  I can’t deny that I enjoyed the scene though.

Venli’s chapters were okay.  Still not my favorite, but I loved the scene where the stone spoke to her.  I wonder if that’s how the Dawncities came into being, the ones with cymatic patterns?

Based on the interludes after part two, I wonder if Taravangian is going to survive the book.

[Menderbug]

So much fascinating worldbuilding in this part. Some notes I made throughout (starting with the interludes):

Vyre

- How is Odium to the west? Does he have a specific presence on Roshar? In Emul? Or does Braize just happen to be that direction right now?
- Why is Vyre so obsessed with mindless, hard labour?
- Odium appearing as a Fused, interesting
- Also Odium being surprised at how Vyre is handling his gift
- The talk about breaking Kaladin is scary as storm

Lift

- Is that Hoid's flute?!
- Lift using Cultivationlight?
- "I'm her little girl" T_T
- Unknown spren type? "Like faces mocking her". Probably related to sadness, loss, grief. Could be agonyspren, I suppose.
- Huh, so Lift neither fell unconscious, nor is Regrowth fully blocked
- The red bird is an Aviar? Who was it bonded to? And was it attacked by Mraize's? ... It is! Lift is totally going to bond that red Aviar and get even weirder powers.

Taravangian

- His chapter icon does flip!!
- And as everyone expected, he saves the world on a compassionate day. though I wouldn't have expected it's because he understands human emotion on those. Szeth gonna be wearing white on the day he was to kill a god!

Chapter 44

- Huh, what's this medium (spanreed communication)? And who are the authors?

Chapter 45

- Flashbacks, finally! \o/
- "Rivers and their carapace-covered spren" ... assuming she's talking about riverspren that's a different description from what we had before. (From later in part 3: it seems that listeners/singers can actually see a lot more of a spren then humans, possibly even their full Shadesmar form.)
- green cremling could be Sleepless

Chapter 46

- really interesting, some fabrials are spren, in a process that seems somewhat inverted to Manifesting objects in Shadesmar. What type of spren becomes a Soulcaster? Can any spren be manifested like this? Does capturing a spren make the same fabrial as manifesting it? Will there be new types of fabrials?
- first Moash vision :/

Chapter 47

- epigraph "undertext"? Is this the other person responding?
- "Nale cradling a child"... these first few visions sound like good guy Nale before he became as confused as the other Heralds. When did that last vision happen? Jezrien sounds pretty lucid. Also first mention of reforging the Oathpact?
- Which Oathpact line is the strong one? The one to Ishar? Or to Taln? Dalinar should have some suspicion based on its direction?

Chapter 48

- Huh, this tribe of listeners thought the humans had been destroyed.
- "Lots of rings". Soulcaster? Or Terris?

Chapter 50

- Jasnah is storming savage

Chapter 49

- What does the Sibling look like?
- lol, Sibling wondering the exact same thing I did about Kaladin
- and Lift is the one in the cage, so Mraize caught her ... I hope the Aviar survived
- reverse Lashings being a mix of adhesion and gravitation and being semi-blocked makes sense. But surely Lift's healing was pure progression, so why was it partially blocked?

Chapter 51

- Odium created Fused only once. Did he not want to or was he unable to create more? This seems somewhat significant..

Chapter 52

- Axindweth is totally Terris with some Connection metalmind. She seems surprisingly dodgy for a worldhopping Terris.

Chapter 53

- Rhythm of War authors unsurprisingly not human and probably singers/listeners.
- Timbre can suppress the rhythms, what does that mean?

Chapter 54

- Interesting how Renarin and Adolin have different ways of dealing with Evi's death.
- Renarin is probably thinking of Rlain

Chapter 56

- Secretspren? New? Chaosspren? Ohhh, different types of voidspren. So voidspren are a category not a single type. What type is Ulim?

Chapter 57

- Interesting that the Stormfather would call Venli a Child of Odium if Odium was originally the god of the humans.
- That spren would probably be Ulim then. Why would that Terriswoman work for Odium?

Chapter 58

- Epigraph sounds like it might be between Navani and Raboniel.

Chapter 59

- El?
- Do we know what the Pursuer's surge is? Transformation?

Chapter 60

- Just a spren hiding in a random cremling, or a weird Sleepless who has bonded a voidspren?
- it's Lifelight!
- Second Willshaper oath! Free those who have been taken unjustly. Or specifically "I will seek freedom for those in bondage"
- I suppose the femalen voice is Cultivation or maybe the Nightwatcher?

Chapter 61

- Sand? As in White Sand?
- Fused can't use dead Shardblades, probably similar to Radiants
- Whoa lots of news about Light. The tower uses a mix of Stormlight and Lifelight called Towerlight. Raboniel thinks that Lights have opposites and that Storm and Void are, but then what's the opposite of Lifelight. Could Lifelight mix with Voidlight? Could Lifelight be the emulsifier between Storm and Void? Do these mixes have any special powers other than not being blocked by the tower defences?

Chapter 62

- "sigs cremling"?
- Sounds like "Parshendi" is a term the Alethi made up. I had assumed it's the listener word for "listener".
- hogs? O_o The last time we heard that term it was a nickname for a greatshell. I thought this was a term imported from offworld, like Mink and Chicken. So what are the actual animals called hogs here?
- Jaxlim deteriorating fast
- Is Venli humming one of Odium's rhythms already?

Chapter 63

- Definitely White Sand.
- These gloves could be used for a much simpler device that lets you climb in midair. Just attach the rubies to something heavy, then activate the fabrial to lock the glove in midair and pull yourself up. Do the same with a second glove and deactivated the first one. Rinse and repeat. Certainly less powerful than flying, but doesn't require a weight to be wound back up
- Punches from this glove are going to rip some holes in enemies

Chapter 64

- A chain from the lands of the dead. Threnody?
- Well that's a rather anticlimactic reveal/confirmation that Jasnah already has her plate
- "It belonged to another world." Probably literally, if she got it from Wit
- Oh boy, what a chapter ending.
- Which Sleepless did she meet?
- Which Sleepless is Wit in contact with? (probably the same)
- Good to know that Wit doesn't think that any of the unaccounted for Sleepless work for Odium.
- Thaidakar! The way he talks about him definitely is further fuel for the Kelsier theories.

Chapter 65

- Okay, I did not expect this to be antimatter.
- I expected that the deranged Fused was kept near Raboniel because they were close once, but I didn't expect her to be the daughter T_T

Chapter 66

- Aaaand we're talking about entanglement.

Chapter 67

- Voidlight can be created with a song?
- Dawnsingers were pre-Radiants and had access to the Cohesion (or maybe Tension)?
- But at the same time, the rock perked up specifically because Venli was using Voidlight, so were Dawnsingers using Voidlight? O_o
- Interesting question on why she can use Voidlight. Because she's a singer? Or because she has a voidspren? And Stormlight can't go in her gemheart because of the voidspren, but Voidlight can. [We see later that the same is true for spheres containing Voidlight.]
- And holding Voidlight has a different effect than holding Stormlight. Should I have noticed Lift experiencing a specific different effect when holding Lifelight?

Chapter 68

- Forms are also associated with individual Shards (or possibly combinations of them)
- Interesting that they only heard the pure tone the first time the form was adopted since the Recreance.
- Listeners can see more of gloryspren in the physical realm than humans

Chapter 69

- nice
- Haha, Navani discovering the concept of fluids. Or possibly even plasma. The physics are strong in this part.
- aaand Rosharan music theory. This is all kinds of amazing
- Why does Venli vanish to the Sibling sometimes. Is this related to Timbre being able to suppress the rhythms?

Chapter 70

- Sooo, Kaladin can't swim?
- You know, these tower nodes are totally going to be a metaphor for Kaladin's fourth oath and realising you can't protect everyone.

Chapter 71

- How do the Fused have Navani's passcodes? Secretspren?
- "curious animals with long tentacles for arms and leathery skin instead of chitin" what now
- Dalinar using the fabled all-caps surge
- Heh, Ash thinks she's sane. Though she does seem fairly lucid. But then so does Nale.

Chapter 72

- Sooo... how did Raboniel listen in? With the help of the Deepest Ones? But she said "I heard that", so can she listen in herself?

Had another read through the epigraphs at the end, and Navani + Raboniel just doesn't quite seem to check out. It still seems that the main text was written by an ancient being and the undertext is responses by a more recent scholar. The "in my fevered state" makes me wonder if the ancient being is the Sibling, or maybe Raboniel's daughter? Then "El" could be Raboniel?

Another option for the more recent scholar would be Zahel, since that person seems to be quite Cosmere aware. I don't think it could be Khriss since they talk about the Taldain sand with only passing familiarity.

[+AutonomousJoy]

Vyre Interlude

It's interesting that Odium can manipulate Vyre's Connection to Kaladin to be able to manipulate his dreams. This alludes to more manipulation of Connection that shards can do.

Lift Interlude
Is that red Aviar Magellan??? Brandon's bird matches the description!
Of course Lift bit it back! Only she would!
This means Mraize is going to be living through the occupation! I wonder what he'll get up to.
Also, the returning contingent from Lasting Integrity will be trying to come back through the Oathgate at a terrible time

Mraize killed the Kholin House Stewart! He was a feruchemist and had an Aviar?!

Part 3

The Fused refer to Aluminium the same as those on Sel do: Ralkalest. Is this due to Odium's time there before going to Roshar? The Fused can't have been there themselves.

The Sibling mentions that what Melishi did in capturing Ba-Ado-Mishram affected all things connected to Roshar. As far as we know this rendered all the singers into Parshmen except the Lost Legion. Why did it not affect the Lost Legion? Does this mean that every singer other than them was in a voidspren form and that's why they were all affected? Dullform has a spren, but it is simply one that doesn't grant any other form. Does this mean that Melishi's work affected every spren that actually grants a form, voidish or not?

Chapter 52:

Axindweth! A Feruchemist worldhopper by my estimation! It's the same kind of name the Terris use! She has rings on her fingers! She was able to speak the Listener language very early, perhaps she is using Connection medallions/Feruchemy?. She mentions that many do not call her that here. She brought Ulim to Venli? Ulim is The Envoy, first voidspren back on Roshar. How did this woman bring it to Roshar? How was she so prepared for this? She probably isn't a Ghostblood because this is too soon in their plans to be trying to bring back the Fused in order to start trade between worlds. The Ghostbloods didn't know enough about things yet to trigger the Desolation 8 years ago. Likely not part of the Sons of Honor either since they were even further in the dark. Not a Skybreaker, or part of the Diagram. Perhaps she is in one of the other 5 secret societies working on Roshar.

These flashback sequences really make Eshonai seem like a neglectful daughter. Poor Venli having to deal with the decline of her mother's mental faculties on her own.

For the Interludes: Is Rhythm of War a book jointly written by Taravangian and Venli? There's a part that sounds like it's from Taravangian's POV and one from a Singer's POV.

Chapter 53: Compassion

Timbre can stop Venli from hearing the Rhythms? When shocked they lose track of the Rhythms entirely?

Chapter 54:

Renarin can control his visions more!
Sja-Anat contacts him!
Dalinar isn't completely against more Enlightened Radiants and Renarin has some in mind to make!

Newer Storm in the South? Where Ulim entered the gemstone?? Is this part of how the Everstorm existed in Shadesmar before it came to the Physical Realm?

The emotional influence of the Rhythm of War will be of interest to El? Who is El? A god of some sort?

Lifelight! Towerlight!

Chapter 64:

There's a Sleepless with the Ghostbloods! One of the 3 'traitors'
Thaidakar and Hoid have met many times across the cosmerek

Chapter 67

Venli is a Shaper! Did the old Dawnsingers use the Rhythms to mold stone? I would assume they were aided by the Rhythms of Roshar.

Dawnshard Spoiler:

Spoiler

Did the Dawnsingers use temporary spren bonds to be able to manipulate the surges? It is alluded to that the Nahel bond was an outgrowing of something that already existed!

Chapter 68:
Did the painspren go for Eshonai because she was closer to the required mindset?

How did the Listeners get shards? Their people split from the war about a year before the Recreance so they should have been far from any Radiants. Did some abandon their shards in the ten cities on the edge of the plains?

How did the Singers get painspren before, when they didn't capture spren?

8 sets of shards in all the Listeners. Since they used uncut gemstones, would their Shardplate be weaker/less resilient since it had less Stormlight?

Chapter 69:

Training sheaths for Shardblades. They seem to have a fair number of them, but they don't know where they are from?

Chapter 70:

Oh gosh Kaladin really is beyond the end of his tether. He's been beaten down and should have stopped so long ago. It hurts to see him like this. He should be bringing exhaustionspren with him at all times!

Chapter 71: Rider of Storms

Dalinar is yelling at the Stormfather! I LOVE this! The Stormfather has been a petulant child for far too long and of course Dalinar would be the man to scold a demigod! I wonder if Dalinar would eventually be able to get the Stormfather to stop the storm briefly. The power with which he can manipulate it can be dangerous...

Will Dalinar be able to use riding the storms to view everything in the world as a form of scouting?

Chapter 72:

Raboniel is too smart! I wonder if she has been listening due to her connection from corrupting The Sibling?

 

I'm looking forward to Part 4 and finding out what's happened with Adolin!

 

[Chanarach]

CInterludes:

Vyre - Really running away with the lifetime achievement award for worst friend, all time. Sickens me how Jezriens sword is being used for so much evil. Well, bro  im not only a member of the cult of Stormblessed, I'm also the president,  and you ain't breaking him.

Lift - wyndle is everything a soren should be - kind, earnest. Determined. Man I'm so confused. Who was the old dude? The red "chicken" and aviar too i guess. I hate mraize and the GB. I mean, maybe they just want to be an intergalactic drug cartel, but seems more sinister than that.

Mr T - I don't like T, never have, never will, but I don't completely hate him.  Makes me sad - him, Elhokar, others that endless potential of humans, just cut off. If he'd only been able to believe and stand up tall. Wow, odiums plans though wow. So, going to use humans to invade other shard worlds. And the singers. It will never be over, they will never be free.  

Is Renarin another play by Culti or just a random outlier.  I had thought maybe a culti had really abandoned us but she's been fighting so much -4d chess.  So people close to Renarin - kholin's, Bridge 4, windrunners.  I get this feeling of pride in my chest - odium must have really hated honor and his heralds,  they stuck it to him for 7000 years.  I don't know how we cone back from this without a miracle. But maybe Kaladin and adolin turning the honor spren, lift, szeth - maybe there's a chance.  *bites lip*

Ch. 44 storming fool that I am, I teared up again. I think kal's pic is next to fidelity on the dictionary. Syl still the baddest spren to ever spren. Sibling! We down but we re not out.  

 Ch. 45 This is a record is it not for how far we have gone into a book before the first flashback? I guess no big revelations here though its nice to know they were always living around the shattered plains and uh no shardblades.  Wonder if the intricate well made weapons they talk about in Wok are their hereditary weapons or something new. 

Ch. 46 no tech just spren and humans, honor and cultivation,  working together. So much is being confirmed this book, its crazy. Odium and arserag wasting no time with the psy ops. Sibling! Syl! We fight.  

Ch. 47 I really hope mink isn't  plant but how else did the lure dalinar and jasnah away? Man. I've been. Clamoring for more herald backstory and I got it, but hurts seeing them fight for the other side. Dang though. I knew Nale was shamming with Lift. All ten together on the battle field must have been an unholy terror. Wonder why he and kalak bed. Powing around together. Seemz an unlikely pairing. 

48. Here we go. You remember the past? Great! Let's destroy the world. 

49. Badass chapter. I guess it was foolish to think the plan only damaged Singers. Looks like Melishi took a bite out of Roshar. Still though.  Ur! And son of Tanavast! So Adhesion being honor's personal surge is legit. Gonna be hilarious is the "fake surge " is the one that leads to the fuses downfall. I dunno how they get around gravitation being blocked. Wonder if you can reverse lash and pull yourself to the ceiling or whatever. Great stuff though. Syl is simply the best. Just noticed that know adolin in part 3 so brandon leaving us on tetherhooks til end of book probably. Joy.

50. Not super happy with team Kholin. Seems to be a disconnect between what dalinar idolized and his actions.  

51 raboniel too smart. I dunno whats going on with venli or even what I want to happen. Kaladinli would be hawt but I don't see willshapers and windrunners being compatible.  

52. You know, I was all, where's the flash back revelations at and then axi is all forms of power yada yada. I was thinking it would just be documenting that buttmunch ulim showing up but now. Also, man I can see how the hate festered between singer and humans. Can't be good for the ego to have these soulless weak dumb inferior humans whooping arse for 7000 years.  

53. Syl still best spren but Timbre on the podium. I want to despise Leshwi but can't quite do it.  What's her game.  Heart was in my throat. Glad family is safe but lirin basically disowned Kal, it all crazy.  I believe in you Venli. 

54. Still annoyed with Dalinar "absolute power" Kholin.  Yes, Renarin, yes. I don't like the idea of corrupted spren or Sja, but if it denies Ghost Bloods a tool and weapon, he'll yeah ill adopt them.

55. Adhesion, yes! Honor's truest surge! Yes!

56. Venli fighting it so hard, but she's still becoming a better person. Good job Timbre! Rain! Six degrees of stormblessed expanding. I guess its a race between the fused destroying the barrier and Navanidin/ Dal getting a clue. My stomach hurts. 

57. Huh Wonder if gavilar got the red gem from braize along with his voidlight. Makes sense that everstorm was formed in Shadesmar.   Guess the listeners just pulled it into physical realm. Spooky stuff. 

58. *blots forehead * phew I was sweating. Chapter 58 and Sylphrena is still the baddest soren in all the lands. I really feel like sibling and Kal have a connection, maybe cuz he's like dad. They're practically brothers. Please please make it in time Kal. 

59. Man hurts that the sibling was corrupted a little farther. But the fight with pursuer was great.  

60. "Essai," what are the Singers Mexican now? Herdazians true Singers??! Poor Rlain,  he gave it the old college try, but Bridge 4 forever, baby. It's a shame 2nd ideal failed but understandable, gotta stick your neck out, Ven. Ugh Lift.  I knew I was justified in hating the Ghost Bloods. Kind of feels like Shallan is betraying everyone and everything with her affiliation. I know it's strongly implied Ghostbloods are responsible  for all her trauma and ha e been mind raping her, her whole life, but still feels bad, man.  

61. At this point it's going take a miracle +1. Hurry navani.  

62. "Time. It was a sadistic master.   It made adults of children-- then gleefully, relentlessly, stole away everything it had given " This hit me pretty hard. Different kind of feel. 

63. Go go gadget arm. I've got a bad feeling about this.

64. I think I didn't fully appreciate modern Shardbearer training. Sure they might not fight quite like old radiants or maximize their plates abilities, but jasnah just isn't very good until she starts soulcasting. Nice to know jasnah isn't always the stone cold ice queen she puts herself forward to be.  The light on the hill confused me. Division? I can't decide if she's having pillow talk with Wit but it seems more likely. Great,  the Ghostbloods worry Hoid. Shallan, what you doing girl.  

 

65. Oh great. Grandmaster Sanderson isn't content with scaring me he has to terrify me. So, matter anti matter bombs.  Nuclear weapons +1 ar the very least.  Don't fall navani. Man navani, Kaladin and the sibling really are fighting against the annihilation of everything. 

66. I feel cheated. I thought the chapter would be about Taln! I don't k ow what I think about putting T under permanent house arrest. Will Dal feel the same when he finds out about Urithiru?

67. Stone shaping is so cool.  That little glimpse into what dawnsingers were like pre odium was haunting. 

 

 

68. Lot of stuff here. So singers go through puberty around 7 or 8? Crazy.  Original forms of Honor and Cultivation. How much did Odium corrupt? Sad that humans and singers getting ready to fight each other again,  even without Gavilar's forays into the occult. 

69/70/71 I legit cried here, my chest hurts and I'm hyperventilating.   Damn you Brandon I don't even know if I can keep reading. It's hopeless. Kal survived things and did things. Impossible things.  But what now? Ishar isn't going to help! The Heralds were the best of the best.  Better than any fused but ishi is crazy. The man he once was could have taken down raboniel,  but now? Are there even enough surgebinders to take back the tower? I mean maybe if venli rescues lift and attains 2nd ideal and rlain fights maybe there's a chance.  I hope there's a chance. I'm dying here.