Walter The Moral Posted May 11, 2023 Posted May 11, 2023 So, we know that if Nightblood is not given enough Kinetic Investiture, he will instead consume the soul of the one who wields him. We know that the soul just means the Spirit Web, so Nightblood is consuming the wielder's Spirit Web. Could you find a way to very specifically cull certain parts of your Spirit Web with Nightblood? Say you have an unwanted Connection, could Nightblood consume that? Could he consume a Nahel Bond? The fact that you're an Allomancer? That you are an Elantrian? Would this be plausible in any way whatsoever? I'm excited to hear your thoughts.
alder24 Posted May 11, 2023 Posted May 11, 2023 6 minutes ago, Walter The Moral said: So, we know that if Nightblood is not given enough Kinetic Investiture, he will instead consume the soul of the one who wields him. We know that the soul just means the Spirit Web, so Nightblood is consuming the wielder's Spirit Web. Could you find a way to very specifically cull certain parts of your Spirit Web with Nightblood? Say you have an unwanted Connection, could Nightblood consume that? Could he consume a Nahel Bond? The fact that you're an Allomancer? That you are an Elantrian? Would this be plausible in any way whatsoever? I'm excited to hear your thoughts. Yyy, no? There Nightblood just eats without control. You can't control him in that state, you just need to provide him investiture. If not given, he will eat your soul instead. Spoiler Questioner If someone—Vasher says that Nightblood would kill him, is that just because he has this one deific Breath? Would it kill an ordinary person, like a drab? Brandon Sanderson It would suck the Breath from anybody, and if they were unable to feed it he would feed on their soul. Questioner So they would die? Brandon Sanderson Yes. Anyone wielding Nightblood, he will suck their soul. If for too long, he will eventually—if you draw him—will suck your soul. Words of Radiance Philadelphia signing (March 21, 2014) There is nothing I can find about Nightblood sucking part of your soul or something like that. I guess that because Nightblood consumes a lot of investiture per second, your soul would be just gone, as it doesn't hold much investiture.
Walter The Moral Posted May 11, 2023 Author Posted May 11, 2023 If you could see the spirit realm, in order to keep tabs on your Spirit Web, and tap Zinc and Steel as a feruchemist, would you be able to put it back in its sheath at just the right moment? Or am I just pulling at straws?
alder24 Posted May 11, 2023 Posted May 11, 2023 5 minutes ago, Walter The Moral said: If you could see the spirit realm, in order to keep tabs on your Spirit Web, and tap Zinc and Steel as a feruchemist, would you be able to put it back in its sheath at just the right moment? Or am I just pulling at straws? No, because Nightblood would be feeding on your zinc and steel instead.
Walter The Moral Posted May 11, 2023 Author Posted May 11, 2023 5 minutes ago, alder24 said: No, because Nightblood would be feeding on your zinc and steel instead. Yeah, that makes sense. Thanks!
Leuthie Posted May 11, 2023 Posted May 11, 2023 "If for too long, he will eventually—if you draw him—will suck your soul." -- WoB above It will "eventually" suck your soul. Everything is made up of Investiture, and there's a lot of Investiture in a living thing that isn't a "soul" or a "Spirit Web". A Breath is a large portion of this Investiture in a transferrable package. Nightblood will first suck this Breath (whether packaged or not) to make the wielder a drab, first. Then it'll suck the rest, including your soul. I have to reread the Rayse death scene again to see more detail now that I'm talking about it. I believe Odium retreated from the Vessel not long after Nightblood started feeding. Rayse wasn't wielding, but I don't think wielding or being stabbed makes much difference except for who goes first.
Duxredux he/him Posted May 11, 2023 Posted May 11, 2023 (edited) Yeah... this is like trying to do surgery with a sentient wood chipper. Theoretically possible in a 1 in a million scenario, but even with all of the disadvantages (never thought I'd say this pre-Era 3) Hemalurgy is a much, much safer way to do minute targeted changes on the Spiritweb, particularly excisions. You'd have to figure out how to direct which part of your soul goes into Nightblood and still be in control over your body while your soul is being painfully devoured. There isn't a good way to practice this and you get one shot to do it juuuuust right and hopefully nothing you wanted to excise was close to anything important, like motor skills or brain function. Edited May 12, 2023 by Duxredux grammar 2
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