happyman Posted November 28, 2011 Report Share Posted November 28, 2011 Ok, so what I am about to say isn't really related to the subject, but I have no idea where else to put it. In the Interludes(I think thats what they are called), we are introduced to a spren researcher who appears to be immortal because he said his work would take only a couple more centuries, and to two ardents that were researching spren attributes and discovered that the spren change to match a measurement, and I was wondering, do we know how they relate to the book? Two points: We don't know that the Spren researcher is immortal. We do know, though, that he isn't human, so he could well just have a very long lifespan. As for how the interludes relate to the book, they don't. They do relate, however, to the overarching world-building and larger plot developments, as per word of Brandon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tulir Posted November 28, 2011 Report Share Posted November 28, 2011 Ok, thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thyrllann Posted November 30, 2011 Report Share Posted November 30, 2011 As for the spren, many of them seem to just be part of the ambient magic on Roshar, as has been mentioned before. However, two types of spren we've seen thus far - honorspren and the as-of-yet unnamed "symbolheads" (if they really are spren) - are different from the others; they are sentient, capable of communication, and are directly involved with two types of magic on Roshar: Surgebinding and Soulcasting, respectively. If any spren is a good candidate for being related to a shard, it's those two, not the more common varieties like rainspren or gloryspren. Wasn't Soulcasting a subset magic system of Surgebinding? (Binding the Surge of Transformation, like how Windrunners Bind the Surges of Gravity and Pressure) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arcanist Lupus Posted December 2, 2011 Report Share Posted December 2, 2011 As for how the interludes relate to the book, they don't. They do relate, however, to the overarching world-building and larger plot developments, as per word of Brandon. With the exception of Szeth's interludes, which are/will be important. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happyman Posted December 2, 2011 Report Share Posted December 2, 2011 With the exception of Szeth's interludes, which are/will be important. I just meant this book. I suspect that some of the other interludes will be important/meaningful as well, long term. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captain.Kaulu Posted December 5, 2011 Report Share Posted December 5, 2011 I just meant this book. I suspect that some of the other interludes will be important/meaningful as well, long term. From what I've gathered ... meaningful, yes; important, no. Brandon's said that, to avoid the exponential growth of viewpoint characters that has happened in Wheel of Time, he wrote the Interludes as a way to take "sneak peeks" at other parts of the world, without committing himself to explore deeply in any of those directions. It was implied that most of the Interlude characters other than Szeth (and Taravangian) won't really get explored much more in the course of the main plot. That said, of course they'll have an influence. Brandon hinted that the discovery the old couple of Ardents makes about measuring the spren (*cough quantum physics references cough*) will end up having a huge impact on the technology that fabrial engineers will be able to invent in the near future. But that doesn't mean we'll ever hear about those two again. I don't think we'll ever see Ishikk again (the Purelake dude), except maybe as a cameo. I think that interlude is probably mostly just to give us clues about the wider storyline of the worldhoppers and the Seventeenth Shard hunting Hoid. (After all, this interlude has already gotten almost the most attention in the book, just on that basis!) I bet we'll see more of Nan Ballat when we learn more about Shallan and resolve her family situation in some way, but I don't think he'll ever become a major character. This interlude is mostly to give us insight about Shallan's backstory. I don't think we'll ever see Rysn and Vstim (the Shinovar-journey merchants) again, except maybe as a cameo. This interlude is mostly to give us hints about Szeth's backstory. I kind of doubt we'll see Axies the Spren scholar Aimian again, except maybe as a cameo. This interlude was probably mostly just to get us thinking about spren and what they really are. I doubt we'll see much more of Baxil, Av, and their mistress (the art-destroying burglars) ... this interlude was probably mostly to get us thinking about the Nightwatcher. Although this one is more of a puzzle than most. Why the heck are they smashing art? OK, maybe this one will tie into a future sub-plot more than most. As a side note, it's kind of weird that none of the interludes give us any views of the parshmen or Parshendi. I suspect they will in future books, now that we've gotten a few key hints about the parshmen that were intended as major plot twists. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CrazyRioter Posted December 5, 2011 Report Share Posted December 5, 2011 (edited) there's a theory that Baxil's mistress is actually the Herald Shalash and is destroying art that depicts her, this is due to the statue of Shalash that was missing from Galivar's religious art display in the prolouge and a death-speaking epigraph about a woman vandal scratching out her own eyes. So we might see her again if not Baxil and his friend. Edited December 5, 2011 by CrazyRioter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zas678 Posted December 5, 2011 Report Share Posted December 5, 2011 And I've got a pet theory that Rysn (is he they guy?) is actually a Herald too. But that's more gut than fact. He just seems really culturally advanced for a Alethi, and seems more worried than he should be about people popping up and surprising him... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CrazyRioter Posted December 5, 2011 Report Share Posted December 5, 2011 Rsyn is the girl, the guy is Vistim, and they are Thaylen not Alethi. And I think he's just worried about bandits or something. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happyman Posted December 6, 2011 Report Share Posted December 6, 2011 I was thinking primarily of Baxil's mistress and some of the Worldbuilding might be important. Also, there may be hints we can't catch yet because we don't know enough. In general, though I agree that we won't see most of the folks pop up as main characters. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fiveAM Posted December 6, 2011 Report Share Posted December 6, 2011 Hmm.. I always thought the spren had something to do with the Spiritual Realm? I kind of saw them as the spiritual manifestations of things in the world. As to why they're only on Roshar... i kind of thought it was had to do with one of the Shards, most likely Cultivation. Hm.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Asha'man Logain Posted December 7, 2011 Report Share Posted December 7, 2011 Hmm.. I always thought the spren had something to do with the Spiritual Realm? I kind of saw them as the spiritual manifestations of things in the world. As to why they're only on Roshar... i kind of thought it was had to do with one of the Shards, most likely Cultivation. Hm.. IIRC recently at the signing Brandon implied that the spren and the Seons were similar in nature. He also implied in a different Q&A that the seons are the slivers (or caused by the slivers) of the shattered Shards. Therefore I'm going to guess that they are caused by Honor in some fashion, with the nahel bonding spren the actual slivers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zas678 Posted December 8, 2011 Report Share Posted December 8, 2011 seons are the slivers (or caused by the slivers) Err... I think you mean Splinter. A Sliver is a human who has held a major power of a Shard, such as TLR, Kelsier (after Sazed comes to power), and Vin (after Ascension but before becoming Preservation). That's why TLR was called the Sliver of Infinity. A Sliver is a piece of a Shard that is non-human that a Shard seems to give, though they may be natural upon death. The only confirmed Splinter is the uber-breath that Returned have. We know that Seons didn't exist till after the Splintering, and so, because of the verb used, people think that Seons are Splinters. This is what Brandon had to say about Seons: Are Seons splinter of Aona? He said that that line of theorising is very close and that we are figuring it out. So if Seons, sentient glowing spheres of magical make, are Splinters, than it makes sense that Spren, (or at least Nahel-bond spren that help make people have the powers of the Knight Radiants, like Syl and the Symbol-Spren that Shallan sees) are Splinters too. There is a quote out there that talks about Seons and Spren, but it's recent, and so not on the Brandonothology yet. EDIT- That's what I get for trying to correct someone. *Sigh* Changed "Splinter of Infinity" to "Sliver of infinity", which makes a lot more sense. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MasterGhandalf Posted December 8, 2011 Report Share Posted December 8, 2011 That's why TLR was called the Splinter of Infinity. I think you mean "Sliver" of Infinity And by the time of AoL, don't forget that his followers dropped the "of Infinity" part and just call him "the Sliver". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Asha'man Logain Posted December 9, 2011 Report Share Posted December 9, 2011 Err... I think you mean Splinter. A Sliver is a human who has held a major power of a Shard, such as TLR, Kelsier (after Sazed comes to power), and Vin (after Ascension but before becoming Preservation). That's why TLR was called the Sliver of Infinity. A Sliver is a piece of a Shard that is non-human that a Shard seems to give, though they may be natural upon death. The only confirmed Splinter is the uber-breath that Returned have. We know that Seons didn't exist till after the Splintering, and so, because of the verb used, people think that Seons are Splinters. This is what Brandon had to say about Seons: [/left] So if Seons, sentient glowing spheres of magical make, are Splinters, than it makes sense that Spren, (or at least Nahel-bond spren that help make people have the powers of the Knight Radiants, like Syl and the Symbol-Spren that Shallan sees) are Splinters too. There is a quote out there that talks about Seons and Spren, but it's recent, and so not on the Brandonothology yet. EDIT- That's what I get for trying to correct someone. *Sigh* Changed "Splinter of Infinity" to "Sliver of infinity", which makes a lot more sense. [/color][/size][/font] Yes, that is exactly what i meant. LOL. That's what i get for posting at the end of a long day of work. Thanks zas. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tulir Posted December 10, 2011 Report Share Posted December 10, 2011 Can someone tell me where exactly Brandon Sanderson said that the third Shard was Cultivation? Because when I was reading the book, I thought for sure the spren were from a Shard with a name like Change, or Adaption. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CrazyRioter Posted December 10, 2011 Report Share Posted December 10, 2011 Cultivation is actually mentioned by name in Dalinar's final vision at the end of the book. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tulir Posted December 10, 2011 Report Share Posted December 10, 2011 Can you get the exact quote? I have a copy of the book open and I can't find it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dj26792 Posted December 10, 2011 Report Share Posted December 10, 2011 “I cannot see the future completely. Cultivation, she is better at it than I. It’s as if the future is a shattering window. The further you look, the more pieces that window breaks into. The near future can be anticipated, but the distant future… I can only guess.” chapter 75 dont have page number cause ebook, still planning on getting a hard copy one of these days. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CrazyRioter Posted December 10, 2011 Report Share Posted December 10, 2011 it's on p. 995 of the NA hardcover edition, in ch. 75 "I cannot see the future completely, Cultivation, she is better at it then I..." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tulir Posted December 10, 2011 Report Share Posted December 10, 2011 Ok, thanks. That just completely destroyed my theory for that, so might as well through out another that might fit here: Only windspren and some other spren(I don't remember exactly but I believe that Kaladin said only a couple types of spren that do this) and only the big ones, played tricks on people by making stuff stick together. This is what Syl said that she helped Kaladin do. So thats my idea. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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