Trusk'our he/him Posted October 25, 2023 Posted October 25, 2023 I've been meaning to make this post for a while but couldn't fine the supporting WoB. Fortunately, I've got @alder24 at my back who somehow managed to dredge it up from thousands of other WoBs. This WoB shows that Hemalurgic spikes can be used to change a person in such a way that they become resistant to death through normal means, even without things like A-pewter or F-gold. Spoiler Hero of Ages Q&A - Time Waster's Guide - Arcanum (coppermind.net) Kaimipono Why exactly do some spike removals kill (dual eye, or central spike) but most don't? Brandon Sanderson For the same reason that a bullet through one part of the body will kill you, but getting shot somewhere else won't. The physical form of a person who has undergone a Hemalurgic transformation is no longer what we think of it. The direct connection to Preservation starts keeping them alive. (Imagine stapling someone's soul to another person's soul, their life essence, then stapling that to the power of creation itself, giving you a conduit directly to power, letting you leech it and steal it.) That power keeps you alive, despite the wounds. Some of the time, the other staples are enough to keep you alive, even if one is pulled out. Others are too important. This means that a Steel Inquisitor does have the nice perk of being extra durable (unless the spikes are removed), which is pretty neat. It also makes me wonder if a method similar to that of Kelsier getting his body back could be used on a non-Cognitive Shadow, allowing them extra durability and a resistance to death despite terrible wounds by actively pinning their Spiritual Aspect to their physical form. This WoB also made me wonder, could a Hemalurgist choose to have multiple Linchpin spikes? That way if one was ripped out, they could still survive until and surprised their opponent by not dying to a move meant to always kill Hemalurgists (imagine pulling out an Inquisitor's obvious Linchpin in their back, fully expecting them to drop dead only for they to spin around and backhand you across the room). 1
alder24 Posted October 25, 2023 Posted October 25, 2023 6 minutes ago, Trusk'our said: I've been meaning to make this post for a while but couldn't fine the supporting WoB. Fortunately, I've got @alder24 at my back who somehow managed to dredge it up from thousands of other WoBs. Nah, it was like the first one that showed up in my first search. 4 minutes ago, Trusk'our said: This WoB shows that Hemalurgic spikes can be used to change a person in such a way that they become resistant to death through normal means, even without things like A-pewter or F-gold. I am really skeptical about this, but on the other hand in HoA Marsh survived a shot into his head from Vin, while in AoL it was suggested that to kill a Bloodmaker you need to shoot him in the head. Marsh wouldn't know compounding yet, so he would be just a regular Bloodmaker at that point. Of course not every shot in the head is deadly and at that point he was under Ruin’s control who could provide additional intent to tap metalminds faster when Marsh was dying. There are some uncertainties about Marsh’s headshot but him surviving it because of Hemalurgy might be another possibility. HoA ch 65: Quote He hung on, barely, but when he turned to face Vin, he found her holding her earring in one hand. And she duralumin-Pushed it directly into his forehead. It was a tiny bit of metal, but it threw up a drop of blood as it hit, ripping through his head and passing out the other side. Marsh dropped, and Vin was thrown backward by her own Push. [...] Vin sighed in relief. And then, something grabbed her leg. She looked down with shock as Marsh climbed to his knees. She had sliced through his brain itself, but the amazing Inquisitor healing powers seemed to be able to deal even with that AoL ch 6: Quote Damn! Waxillium thought, feeling a spike of fear. If Wayne had been hit in the head … [...] Outlaws and lawmen alike were accustomed to Metalborn; if the bubble had stayed up, the bandit would have quickly shot Wayne in the head. 16 minutes ago, Trusk'our said: It also makes me wonder if a method similar to that of Kelsier getting his body back could be used on a non-Cognitive Shadow, allowing them extra durability and a resistance to death despite terrible wounds by actively pinning their Spiritual Aspect to their physical form. It doesn't make them immortal. They can survive removal of some spikes, but not every spike. The more they have they more they can take - Kelsier doesn't have his own physical body anyway so this doesn't apply to him. 17 minutes ago, Trusk'our said: This WoB also made me wonder, could a Hemalurgist choose to have multiple Linchpin spikes? That way if one was ripped out, they could still survive until and surprised their opponent by not dying to a move meant to always kill Hemalurgists (imagine pulling out an Inquisitor's obvious Linchpin in their back, fully expecting them to drop dead only for they to spin around and backhand you across the room). I'm really doubtful. Look at the Hemalurgic table for Steel Inquisitors - there is only one place for a linchpin spike (also note that this spike is necessary/recommended for 4 spikes and above, which we all missed when discussing how you can give yourself more spikes). The linchpin spike holds their body together, coordinates all other spikes, it has to be the task of a singular spike. Spoiler [...] 17th Shard So the linchpin spike is not always the same type of spike. Brandon Sanderson It doesn't have to be. The linchpin spike is just, when you're putting that many spikes together into somebody it needs a spike to coordinate them all. That is part of what's holding their body together from all of this damage, and it doesn't have to be the healing spike. The nature of Feruchemy is separate from that, if that makes any sense. For instance, you could put a few spikes into an Inquisitor without a linchpin spike, and they wouldn't die. 17th Shard Interview (Oct. 3, 2010)
Trusk'our he/him Posted October 25, 2023 Author Posted October 25, 2023 22 minutes ago, alder24 said: Nah, it was like the first one that showed up in my first search. I'm not even going to ask how that works- I searched for that dang thing for like an hour and a half and still didn't find it . 23 minutes ago, alder24 said: I am really skeptical about this, but on the other hand in HoA Marsh survived a shot into his head from Vin, while in AoL it was suggested that to kill a Bloodmaker you need to shoot him in the head. Marsh wouldn't know compounding yet, so he would be just a regular Bloodmaker at that point. Of course not every shot in the head is deadly and at that point he was under Ruin’s control who could provide additional intent to tap metalminds faster when Marsh was dying. There are some uncertainties about Marsh’s headshot but him surviving it because of Hemalurgy might be another possibility. HoA ch 65: Fair enough. It could be a situation like with the Set members being possess by Autonomy to allow them to heal even when they shouldn't (which isn't confirmed but very likely could be the case). 25 minutes ago, alder24 said: It doesn't make them immortal. They can survive removal of some spikes, but not every spike. The more they have they more they can take - Kelsier doesn't have his own physical body anyway so this doesn't apply to him. This is true. They wouldn't be immortal at all, but they would be significantly harder to kill I would think. Even if they sustained a serious wound that would prove lethal it could give them vital time to retaliate, to patch themselves up, or to get ahold of some of Invested healing (like with a gold medallion or Kandra grafts). It's not as effective as F-gold, but it would still be an advantage. 29 minutes ago, alder24 said: I'm really doubtful. Look at the Hemalurgic table for Steel Inquisitors - there is only one place for a linchpin spike (also note that this spike is necessary/recommended for 4 spikes and above, which we all missed when discussing how you can give yourself more spikes). The linchpin spike holds their body together, coordinates all other spikes, it has to be the task of a singular spike. Hide contents [...] 17th Shard So the linchpin spike is not always the same type of spike. Brandon Sanderson It doesn't have to be. The linchpin spike is just, when you're putting that many spikes together into somebody it needs a spike to coordinate them all. That is part of what's holding their body together from all of this damage, and it doesn't have to be the healing spike. The nature of Feruchemy is separate from that, if that makes any sense. For instance, you could put a few spikes into an Inquisitor without a linchpin spike, and they wouldn't die. 17th Shard Interview (Oct. 3, 2010) Hmmm. The table says that a steel Linchpin spike is recommended for the creation of Steel Inquisitors. This could be because that there needs to be a Linchpin in between the head and the torso to coordinate between those two areas- as removing their eye spikes is enough to kill them despite them still having their Linchpin spike and F-gold. This is why I think Inquisitors in particular need a spike there. Other Hemalurgists who didn't have spikes in the eye/head could probably have a Linchpin elsewhere in their body. Also, I don't know that this proves you can't have multiple Linchpin spikes, it just says that you need a Linchpin spike when receiving four or more spikes in total to avoid death.
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