Honor and Just War Principles

[Kyn]

While there is a long history of war in Roshar, there doesn’t appear to be a tradition of anything like a Just War Doctrine. This is the principal that going to war requires the right causes (Jus ad bellum) and that fighting a war demands right actions (Jus in bello).

I find it unlikely that peoples who revered Honor would not have come up with this at some point in history, and so much is lost or hidden that they very well could have. But it’s surprising not to see something along these lines at least proposed as the Radiants start up again.

From BBC’s Just War Principles summary:

Quote

What is a Just War?

Six conditions must be satisfied for a war to be considered just:

• The war must be for a just cause.
• The war must be lawfully declared by a lawful authority.
• The intention behind the war must be good.
• All other ways of resolving the problem should have been tried first.
• There must be a reasonable chance of success.
• The means used must be in proportion to the end that the war seeks to achieve.

How should a Just War be fought?

A war that starts as a Just War may stop being a Just War if the means used to wage it are inappropriate.

• Innocent people and non-combatants should not be harmed.
• Only appropriate force should be used. 
  • This applies to both the sort of force, and how much force is used. 
• Internationally agreed conventions regulating war must be obeyed. 

We don’t know much about war culture (beyond just trying to survive) in the time before and during Desolations, and it’s entirely possible (likely, even) that at least certain Radiant Orders ascribed to something like the above tenets.

I don’t think a Rosharan (or at least an Alethi) version of Just War Doctrine would rely on the same assumptions many ancient scholars in our world had: that war is an evil, but that if it is the only way to avoid a greater evil, then it should be engaged in as morally as possible.

The Ardents we’re familiar with preach that fighting is the most important devotion, because of the Tranquiline Halls. It’s interesting that most of what Honor is stated to be about is connections and oaths, yet his followers do seem to revere the concept of honor, as well.

Because they purport to follow Honor, I’m giving the Ardents the benefit of the doubt that they would distinguish between Dalinar’s actions fighting for survival at the Tower the day Sadeas betrayed Dalinar’s 8000 troops, and at the Rift when Dalinar burned the whole city. However, I’d like to explore where and why that line is drawn.

• Is there textual evidence that the issues individuals have with Dalinar’s war crimes 
  are institutional (I got this idea from the thread Reactions to Dalinar’s Crime)?

How would any current Rosharan human and Singer cultures create and implement these kinds of “moral warfare” guidelines? Who would be involved, who would be for and against and why, and what would be the best ways to ensure Urithiru and its allies adopted this kind of doctrine?

• The Oaths seem to provide some basis, depending on the Order
• Windrunners trained under Kaladin might have picked some of these principles up by osmosis, but has, say, their honorable behavior against the Shanay-im been codified?

What would a Just War framework for Roshar – or at least for Urithiru’s forces and allied/neutral forces – look like, what would be the impetus behind it, and how would it be implemented?

I have way too many ideas about all of this, so I’m just going to pose some of my biggest concerns regarding the likelihood of current leadership at Urithiru aiming for a Just War Doctrine.

Kaladin:

Spoiler

Kaladin’s only listed because he seems like the single most likely person to push for some kind of moral-warfare framework, at least of the Jus in Bello kind. In fact, I’m surprised he hasn’t already. Presumably, depression and doubts about his own rightness have prevented this.

So, Kaladin explicitly used an us-against-them mentality to keep from being overwhelmed by compassion for everybody that would have been crippling in combat. When that failed, he froze. He’s also the only character we’ve seen who repeatedly saves the weak on his own side and spares them on the enemy’s side.

However, Kaladin never had say over policy, and would seem likely to have less now. If he’s going to effect changes at this scale, it will likely be more indirectly, through evidence that his personal behavior has won over enemies or through potential increased survival rates for soldiers following his methodology.

 Dalinar:

Spoiler

We’ve seen him shy from killing personally, but we haven’t seen any transference of this to his work as a general or tactician. He also tends to dehumanize his enemy.

 It’s hard to prosecute a war when you’re constantly making conditional statements about how not all of the people who look like your enemy are, how combatants are justifiable targets but noncombatants are off-limits, or how your own people are guilty for starting the war. People prefer to get riled up, we naturally think in terms of us vs. them, and we also act more decisively both with simple, clearcut categories, and with self-righteous certainty that we are right and they are wrong.

For a man only concerned with winning a war, demonizing an entire species makes sense, vile and counterproductive as it is to make people feel like targeting anyone who looks a certain way is viable. Dalinar isn’t thinking about how right Kaladin is that fighting limited to chosen representatives and with nonfatal consequences simply makes more sense in certain circumstances, even if it means agreeing to a loss and a retreat when you could still throw away hundreds more lives trying to hold unnecessary ground.

He isn’t considering that fighting to the last man only makes sense when the current alternative is worse, not when it means giving up a non-vital resource as part of a larger fight for continued existence. This makes me doubt he is likely to see a need, let alone push, for restrictions on battlefield behavior to the extent of Jus in Bello. However, he does have expectations for how to treat allies, and tries to avoid repeating specific past crimes, that might be a useful start.

Jasnah:

Spoiler

I would have expected more from her on this front simply because Just War principles are practical. For example, enemies who know non-combatants will be killed tend not to have noncombatants – to survive, everyone must fight. Enemies who know those who give up will be well-treated are more likely to make that choice rather than engaging in last-ditch suicide attacks. Being the no-mercy relentless foe forces enemies to fight back equally relentlessly. And being perceived as the good guys because of moral behavior wins more assistance, or at least more allies in the longterm.

She wants to free all Alethi slaves for practical reasons, but she wants to slaughter so many of the Singers they can’t keep fighting? Yes, she wanted to kill the Heralds to lock the Fused away using remnants of the Oathpact as a first option, but even she didn’t expect this to buy much time if it worked at all. Given that the only other choice she presented was wholesale slaughter of an entire peoples, it seems likely the killing of the Heralds was meant to provide a buffer during which a new Oathpact could be forged and/or the Songers could be culled down to safe numbers.

In the meantime, Jasnah wants to fight all-out like Dalinar. She’s choosing a war of attrition where one resource she wants to deprive the enemy of is civilian manpower. I can only imagine that we would need somebody who thinks more like Kaladin to come up with something along the lines of the Just War Doctrine. Only after seeing how behaving like decent human beings even when killing minimized casualties and maximized diplomatic/reconciliatory options in the present and future, might Jasnah go for it.

I imagine she already believes (or at least will operate as if) the cause of the war is just – survival – and so would only be swayed in regards to how it was fought, sparing noncombatants and using proportional force. However, she has so far shown no signs of wanting to spare any Singers in her tactics, or accept using less than all available force to decide engagements, given the way she censured Kaladin in Oathbringer after she said that destroying all Parshendi was the only alternative to killing the Heralds.

If Singers can be Turned to the enemy at any time, and that’s why she’d rather commit genocide or mass re-enslavement, why not seek instead to work with some who want freedom in order to remove, or at least minimize, this option? Having “the enemy” owe you for a freedom that simultaneously makes them less of a threat seems like the more sensible way to go. 

I can understand that continued demeaning of the enemy in a general who is accustomed to fighting using the Thrill and claiming only through conquest. I am struggling to accept that someone as thoughtful and cunning as Jasnah, who sees the benefit of ending Alethi slavery, is willing to commit genocide as her only presented alternative if reforging the Oathpact fails. And that she does not see a need to limit atrocities that are acceptable in and around war.

With a religion that glorifies becoming a soldier in the afterlife, it’s credible that this sort of Just War consideration wouldn’t have picked up steam amongst Alethi Ardentia. There are, however, multiple religious orders in Roshar, and scholars from wide arrays of perspectives. Even if none of them have an existing Just War framework, with the Radiants returning, one should, logically and morally, be established soon.

[Quick Ben]

Interesting topic.

No wars we know of fought by the atleti would ever of been considered a just war though, so don't see why they would try and implement that now.

Also the history of this "war" prevents the argument of it ever becoming a "just war", the humans were the aggressors from the beginning. With the intent of gaining what the singers had.

In fact the only ones we see following the principals of a just war are actually the singers, they leave non combatatants alone, leave the injured alone, and when take over a city treat the population as good as possible.

Why wouldnt the atleti or wider rosharans institute "just war" practices ? Because quiet simply they are the people/situation, the principal of just war theory was thought of/developed/designed to justify war against.

Rosharans aren't fighting for survival as you put it, there fighting to keep/maintain, what they stole from the singers, and propagating an unjust war unfolding over centuries.

Edited January 31, 2021 by Quick Ben

[Honorless]

1 hour ago, Quick Ben said:

Interesting topic.

No wars we know of fought by the atleti would ever of been considered a just war though, so don't see why they would try and implement that now.

Also the history of this "war" prevents the argument of it ever becoming a "just war", the humans were the aggressors from the beginning. With the intent of gaining what the singers had.

In fact the only ones we see following the principals of a just war are actually the singers, they leave non combatatants alone, leave the injured alone, and when take over a city treat the population as good as possible.

Why wouldnt the atleti or wider rosharans institute "just war" practices ? Because quiet simply they are the people/situation, the principal of just war theory was thought of/developed/designed to justify war against.

Rosharans aren't fighting for survival as you put it, there fighting to keep/maintain, what they stole from the singers, and propagating an unjust war unfolding over centuries.

Alethkar was once Alethela, and they saw themselves as "the watchers at the rim", "those who maintained the arts of war, so others may have peace". They prepared for the Desolations and were the Kingdom most affiliated with the Knights Radiant of Urithiru, many of whom settled there too.

Remember that the fact that humans were the invaders was not known to Rosharans till OB. Indeed the knowledge might've helped with pushing the ancient Radiants to abandon their Oaths at the Day of Recreance, after losing their justification for warring with the "Voidbringers". Honor himself helped guide the people if/when they found out the truth, at least before he went mad.

 

This is why Honor + Odium = War made sense to me. Good work compiling all this, OP! 

[jamesbondsmith]

Don't the ardents (and by extension Vorinism at large) worship the 'Almighty', as opposed to a being called 'Honor'? Also, I thought it was fairly heavily implied that the Alethi warmongering culture is built out of an initial duty of protection that has been warped by the literal embodiment of bloodlust over millennia into something where war and combat are venerated above all other pursuits and resolving issues peacefully is rank cowardice. I see no reason why they would adhere to any kind of just war doctrine.

 

Also, it is extremely problematic that people are saying that Honor+Odium=War as if it is something inherently honourable. The text itself says that it is not, whether it's the weak/lower classes used as meatshields, or lives being traded to afford the lifestyle of the upper classes or the fact that many of the singers have been forced or manipulated into battle and simply want to live in peace.

Edited January 31, 2021 by jamesbondsmith

[Kingsdaughter613]

1 hour ago, jamesbondsmith said:

Don't the ardents (and by extension Vorinism at large) worship the 'Almighty', as opposed to a being called 'Honor'? Also, I thought it was fairly heavily implied that the Alethi warmongering culture is built out of an initial duty of protection that has been warped by the literal embodiment of bloodlust over millennia into something where war and combat are venerated above all other pursuits and resolving issues peacefully is rank cowardice. I see no reason why they would adhere to any kind of just war doctrine.

 

Also, it is extremely problematic that people are saying that Honor+Odium=War as if it is something inherently honourable. The text itself says that it is not, whether it's the weak/lower classes used as meatshields, or lives being traded to afford the lifestyle of the upper classes or the fact that many of the singers have been forced or manipulated into battle and simply want to live in peace.

I actually think Honor+Odium=Retribution, which contains elements of both concepts. Their Rhythm is War, but Rhythm does not have to have the same name as the Shard.

[Kyn]

Once a war has started, isn’t it the responsibility of those who consider themselves honorable to behave honorably? Just War principles have been coopted to justify wars, to convince people that they are right to kill for the reasons they have chosen, but they don’t actually do that. Their purpose is to mitigate the usage and consequences of war.

5 hours ago, Quick Ben said:

Also the history of this "war" prevents the argument of it ever becoming a "just war", the humans were the aggressors from the beginning. With the intent of gaining what the singers had.

A war can’t necessarily become just, but it can adhere to Just War principles that avoid causing more harm than necessary to achieve a worthy goal. Just because a war’s origins are not right does not mean that continuing to engage in it to prevent genocide of one’s own people is also wrong. Generally, regardless of original justifications or lack thereof, survival is deemed acceptable to fight for and genocide is deemed unacceptable to fight for.

5 hours ago, Quick Ben said:

Rosharans aren't fighting for survival as you put it, there fighting to keep/maintain, what they stole from the singers, and propagating an unjust war unfolding over centuries.

At this point, and throughout the Desolations, the humans are literally fighting for survival, since Odium intends to destroy them. So a cause that was originally unjust has at least partly morphed into one that most cultures agree to be worthwhile. However, engaging in atrocities or targeting innocents negates any claims to a just war or honor in Just War Theory.

1 hour ago, jamesbondsmith said:

Don't the ardents (and by extension Vorinism at large) worship the 'Almighty', as opposed to a being called 'Honor'? Also, I thought it was fairly heavily implied that the Alethi warmongering culture is built out of an initial duty of protection that has been warped by the literal embodiment of bloodlust over millennia into something where war abd combat are venerated above all other pursuits and resolving issues peacefully is rank cowardice. I see no reason why they would adhere to any kind of just war doctrine.

In Vorinism, the Almighty=Honor.

There are two components to Just War principles for a reason. Even if the Alethi or other humans know that their originating cause is unjust but continue to fight now for reasons they see as just (survival of the species or their individual cultures), or simply don’t care about right cause, that doesn’t mean they shouldn’t engage in right behavior – Jus in Bello. In fact, evidence says that they do have standards, just not consistently applied.

Just because the Alethi venerate waging war does not mean they elevate every method of waging war, or else there wouldn’t be ripples from Dalinar burning down a city.

However, you’re absolutely correct that we see a history of disregard for moderation in Alethi warfare.

Spoiler

The Blackthorn was expected to kill an enemy warlord’s entire family. Sadeas disregarded the lives of his own men, let alone allies, in the present with his bridge runs. He pushed for more burnt earth tactics and crossed lines, in Dalinar’s estimation, in the past.

But these are presented as exceptions. Even in those past battles, we see open warfare preferred, as a show of strength, rather than the primary targeting of family or noncombatants like ardents. There is no indication that the widescale Alethi warfare jockeying for power and territory ravaged the land or resulted in the slaughter of those who worked it. Just because they venerate waging war does not mean they elevate every method of waging war, or else there wouldn’t be ripples from Dalinar burning down a city.

The Alethi are accustomed to fighting for status, power, land, etc. Historically, battle has been a game, one the lives of their soldiers are freely spent in winning. But things have changed, as this is about survival now. Dalinar tells Kaladin their battles with the Fused aren’t a game, and although he intends this to push more aggressive combat behavior, it’s a better argument for restraint that keeps dirty tactics off-limits at least in staged battles (on a battlefield or at a resource rather than in defense of home, like at Urithiru).

Where we see references to what sounds like guerilla warfare engaged in by the Herdazians, it’s to retain what has become a homeland rather than to try to claim territory or resources from an enemy the way Alethi warfare often did in the past. The only place we see battle between humans progress to high-casualty utter brutality is where the Thrill is newly active.

Still, the lack of burnt-Earth tactics, the fact that others thought Sadeas crossed lines, and the continued existence and sometimes following of The Codes of War, makes me think there’s a place for Jus in Bello, right behavior in war, at least. Especially with the Radiants returned now, and the Thrill elsewhere, and multiple other societies involved in addition to the Alethi.

However, the reasons for adhering to a Just War Doctrine are far more practical, as I suggested. Even in-world, the Fused, who have a continual record of their history of warfare through the Desolations, have realized it simply makes sense to follow Jus in Bello principles. Their implementation varies on an individual level, but the overall policy seems to be preserving most of conquered humanity in familiar roles rather than exterminating or torturing them. If Odium has not changed his plans to destroy humanity, this would have to be a choice made because it reduces the cost of war for the Singers.

It may take evidence from the actions of someone softer-hearted to sway dispassionate Jasnah, but I expect her ruthless practicality to bring her to similar conclusions that Jus in Bello has disproportionate dividends. With the humans’ existing culture and even the warlike Alethi’s past restraint, it seems like the advent of new Radiants should be propagating codified Just War Doctrine, or at least Jus in Bello principles, amongst the allies.

[Honorless]

21 hours ago, jamesbondsmith said:

Don't the ardents (and by extension Vorinism at large) worship the 'Almighty', as opposed to a being called 'Honor'?

Navani and Shallan both seemed to recognize and correlate Honor with Almighty. Honor himself confirmed that he was the being the Vorins worshiped as the Almighty in Dalinar's Visions. In RoW, Navani ponders that Roshar has 3 gods, but they only worship one after discovering the Tones.

21 hours ago, jamesbondsmith said:

Also, it is extremely problematic that people are saying that Honor+Odium=War as if it is something inherently honourable. The text itself says that it is not, whether it's the weak/lower classes used as meatshields, or lives being traded to afford the lifestyle of the upper classes or the fact that many of the singers have been forced or manipulated into battle and simply want to live in peace.

That's the exact idea, imo! Any system of Honor is a societal construct: Bushidou or Maryada-Sanskar, all have their problems. I think the Knights Radiant represent this quite well. That's why Honor and War correlate, as they always have, across all the ages on Earth.

Edited February 1, 2021 by Honorless
grammar

[jamesbondsmith]

45 minutes ago, Honorless said:

Navani and Shallan both seemed to recognize and correlate Honor with Almighty. Honor himself confirmed that he was the being the Vorins worshiped as the Almighty in Dalinar's Visions. In RoW, Navani ponders that Roshar has 3 gods, but they only worship one after discovering the Tones.

That's the exact idea, imo! Any system of Honor is a societal construct: Bushidou or Maryada-Sanskar, and all have their problems. I think the Knights Radiant represent this quite well. That's why Honor and War correlate, as they have across the ages on Earth.

I'm sorry, but I don't follow your logic. You seem to be claiming that the reasons I gave for why war is not inherently honourable as the reasons why they are. Dalinar, generally considered the embodiment of honour, takes issue with the first two and Kaladin, who is literally bonded to an honorspren, objects to all three. If you want to claim that cultural subjectivity means that any interpretation is fine (with enough mental gymnastics I suppose you can justify anything) then how can you justify that when arguably the two people who most embody the concept of honour are against the way their culture wages war?

How do the Knights Radiant, a group who swear to protect, look after the forgotten, free the unjustly imprisoned etc. represent the idea that sacrificing lives for your own amusement and convenience is in any way honourable? If you're referring to the fact that Radiants can interpret their oaths how they want, then it still requires a personification of those concepts to agree with it.

 

Edited February 1, 2021 by jamesbondsmith
spelling

[Honorless]

3 hours ago, jamesbondsmith said:

I'm sorry, but I don't follow your logic. You seem to be claiming that the reasons I gave for why war is not inherently honourable as the reasons why they are. Dalinar, generally considered the embodiment of honour, takes issue with the first two and Kaladin, who is literally bonded to an honorspren, objects to all three. If you want to claim that cultural subjectivity means that any interpretation is fine (with enough mental gymnastics I suppose you can justify anything) then how can you justify that when arguably the two people who most embody the concept of honour are against the way their culture wages war?

How do the Knights Radiant, a group who swear to protect, look after the forgotten, free the unjustly imprisoned etc. represent the idea that sacrificing lives for your own amusement and convenience is in any way honourable? If you're referring to the fact that Radiants can interpret their oaths how they want, then it still requires a personification of those concepts to agree with it.

You're talking about universal vs subjective morality, which wasn't my point at all. My point is they're both ideas and sadly, platonic ideas don't actually exist. There isn't a perfect system of honor, justice, law, morality anything waiting to be found. We're just making things better (or worse) as we go along. So every framework is a construct. Some might be better, some worse. My point is simply that Honor, any societal construct of Honor, can be used for the purposes of War, whether their underlying intentions be noble or ignoble. Basically, that there is a correlation between the two. Like, wars are started because the honor/integrity of a nation is besmirched, they've been invaded, or the other nation has done something bad. Wars are fuelled by the idea of said war being noble in some way, worth fighting for. I'm not supporting the idea, just pointing out that it happens.

[Adonoliusm]

This theory is very similar to Naln's beliefs witch dalinar opposes 

[Kyn]

5 hours ago, jamesbondsmith said:

You seem to be claiming that the reasons I gave for why war is not inherently honourable as the reasons why they are.

No, @Honorless seems to be claiming that honor as people are capable of conceiving or interacting with it is not a monolith; can be viewed and applied contradictorily by different cultures and peoples; and has been both used as a requirement to go to war to protect and abused as an excuse to go to war for other reasons.

Spoiler

 

Even if we believe that there is some universal Truth that is perfect Honor, pure and inviolable, it wouldn’t be knowable by imperfect beings.  No single person or peoples would be following that Truth or applying it in their judgment of what is noble. Some might try to, others might instead weapon the concept of honor for their own desires, and most would presumably do some mix of the two.

So when Honorless says war is propelled by anybody’s concept of honor, they’re not saying war is capital-H Honorable. Something – in this case war – being driven by (individual takes on) honor does not make it (ideal-concept) Honorable.

 

I think they’re saying that honor and war are intertwined not because it is ideal-concept honorable to war, but because people use their personal imperfect (and sometimes entirely instrumental) ideas of honor to justify or impel war.

In their words:

2 hours ago, Honorless said:

We're just making things better (or worse) as we go along. So every framework is a construct. Some might be better, some worse. My point is simply that Honor, any societal construct of Honor, can be used for the purposes of War, whether their underlying intentions be noble or ignoble.

And that first line is kind of my point in why Roshar needs a Just War Doctrine. We expect a good surgeon who has (or chooses) to amputate to do what is necessary to cut off the leg with as little trauma as possible to surrounding tissue, and to completely avoid harming unrelated parts. Shouldn’t we be able to expect a good general who has (or chooses) to engage in war to target enemy soldiers with only as much force as necessary to defeat them, and to strive to avoid harming noncombatants in the process?

Not inflicting more pain on more people than unavoidable seems worthwhile. Particularly for the Radiants, who swear to Journey before destination.

@Adonoliusm

I’m not sure I get what you’re saying.

[The Technovore]

7 hours ago, Kyn said:

~snip~

I believe Adonalsium's comment applies better to Just Ben's comment, which is very "revenge of the original inhabitants" and basically the reasoning Nale uses to join Odium. As for me, that reasoning is far too simplistic of a moral definition, as it treats the collective races as individuals, when that's simply not the case. The humans on Roshar during the times of the book are not responsible for the humans that destroyed Ashyn (under Odium's reign), or the humans that started the desolation wars (also under Odium). They're not even responsible for the stealing of the singer's minds, although enslaving them after the fact was not a moral move. Also keep in mind that when the Singers talk about how Honor and the surges left them, Leshwi said "they've forgiven us", which implies that the Singers were not the oh-so-innocent victims. History and conflict is never that simple, and the more people attempt to dump the sins of a collective on individuals, the more the conflict continues. But that's just my philosophy. 

As for your original theory, @Kyn I think you're right. The more proper Codes of Honor the war on Roshar would have, the better it would be for everyone. I think that the reason that there is none at this point is that Honor died millenia ago, and they've been living under the gaze and influence of a hateful, destructive god for all that time. The Thrill turned the grim responsibility of war into a lustful sport, and stokes flames in leaders that drove them to do things we'd balk at in real life, the Rift a perfect example (although Dalinar chose not to allow Odium to take the blame for that). The sheer lack of accurate knowledge the humans have been operating under after the False Desolation and the Recreance also can't be discarded. Despite all the conflict the age of the False Desolation was a Golden Age of knowledge and power, but a thousand years can do a number on that, especially when you're constantly being corrupted by Odium. 

Odium and the Fused returned to Roshar after the work of corrupting humanity for thousands of years. Humanity chose to cling onto the ideals of Honor they've been trying (albeit pathetically) to uphold. They're still fledgling both as Radiants, and as honorable moral people, so it may be some time yet until they adapt those principles, and even longer until they impose those principles on Odium (although as you mentioned the behavior of the Fused, it seems like, at least as far as actual army-based conflict goes, Odium's forces are already there). It'd be cool if we saw something like this come out of Book 5 or Book 10, although because of how ruthless and immoral T-Odium tends to be, it also might not happen.

[Adonoliusm]

10 hours ago, The Technovore said:

I believe Adonalsium's comment applies better to Just Ben's comment, which is very "revenge of the original inhabitants" and basically the reasoning Nale uses to join Odium. As for me, that reasoning is far too simplistic of a moral definition, as it treats the collective races as individuals, when that's simply not the case. The humans on Roshar during the times of the book are not responsible for the humans that destroyed Ashyn (under Odium's reign), or the humans that started the desolation wars (also under Odium). They're not even responsible for the stealing of the singer's minds, although enslaving them after the fact was not a moral move. Also keep in mind that when the Singers talk about how Honor and the surges left them, Leshwi said "they've forgiven us", which implies that the Singers were not the oh-so-innocent victims. History and conflict is never that simple, and the more people attempt to dump the sins of a collective on individuals, the more the conflict continues. But that's just my philosophy. 

As for your original theory, @Kyn I think you're right. The more proper Codes of Honor the war on Roshar would have, the better it would be for everyone. I think that the reason that there is none at this point is that Honor died millenia ago, and they've been living under the gaze and influence of a hateful, destructive god for all that time. The Thrill turned the grim responsibility of war into a lustful sport, and stokes flames in leaders that drove them to do things we'd balk at in real life, the Rift a perfect example (although Dalinar chose not to allow Odium to take the blame for that). The sheer lack of accurate knowledge the humans have been operating under after the False Desolation and the Recreance also can't be discarded. Despite all the conflict the age of the False Desolation was a Golden Age of knowledge and power, but a thousand years can do a number on that, especially when you're constantly being corrupted by Odium. 

Odium and the Fused returned to Roshar after the work of corrupting humanity for thousands of years. Humanity chose to cling onto the ideals of Honor they've been trying (albeit pathetically) to uphold. They're still fledgling both as Radiants, and as honorable moral people, so it may be some time yet until they adapt those principles, and even longer until they impose those principles on Odium (although as you mentioned the behavior of the Fused, it seems like, at least as far as actual army-based conflict goes, Odium's forces are already there). It'd be cool if we saw something like this come out of Book 5 or Book 10, although because of how ruthless and immoral T-Odium tends to be, it also might not happen.

That sounds much better than what I came up with

[TheSprengineer]

The Alethi, IIRC, were targeted specifically by The Thrill for generations because Odium was looking to breed a champion. If all the wars they conducted were spurred on and encouraged by the Unmade, establishing a code of conduct like that would have just been in the way, and they adopted a more Might Is Right mindset as a result. 
The Way of Kings, inworld, is also a book of wartime conduct, and one Sadeas dismissed as sissy stuff right away after having it read to him. These more honorable conducts were seen as weakness not just by Sadeas, who definitely enjoyed The Thrill, but the other Highprinces as well.

With The Thrill hidden for now, it’s likely Dalinar’s and true Honor’s conduct can take hold, but it still has a ways to go because of how generationally engrained their mindset is.

(If you were to go to Azir, it’s very likely you’d find some code of war conduct like this buried under mountains of paperwork.)

[Lightdancer]

On 1/30/2021 at 7:12 PM, Kyn said:

it’s entirely possible (likely, even) that at least certain Radiant Orders ascribed to something like the above tenets.

Completely separate from the rest of these trains of thought, I could see the Skybreakers historically following a strict "Just War" or battlefield code. Maybe if we had more good Skybreakers, we'd see something like this develop.