Yet Another Theory for Fortune

[Trusk'our]

@alder24's answer on the Q&A forum about Spiritwebs and time got me thinking about Fortune again.

I think that when someone is using Fortune, what they are doing is using "echoes" of possible future Connections that exist in the SR, that are then filtered through their subconscious Cognitive Aspect.

For example, Syl "knew" Kaladin before ever meeting him.

Spoiler

Emerald City Comic Con 2018 - Arcanum (coppermind.net)

Questioner

Why is Kaladin so proficient-- Like naturally born to wield a spear. Is that a weapon he likes or is it a destiny for him?

Brandon Sanderson

So destiny is a strong term... I would say he has natural aptitude, but no more so than a normal person who has a natural aptitude for something. But the way the Spiritual Realm works in the cosmere and the way Connection works, there were certain things that were happening to Kaladin before they happened...

It's like Syl says in one of the books. "You didn't know me then, but I knew you then. Even though we hadn't met yet, I still knew you." You see some weird Connection things too. And these are mostly just for fun sort of cosmere connections. Like when you see Syl take on the look of Shallan standing on the beach. There's gonna be a connection there. It's forming, it doesn't exist yet, but all things are one in the Spiritual Realm, and we're just kinda seeing echoes of that. It's not meant to be destiny, it's more meant to be, "Hey there's little connections happening".

I would not say Kaladin is any more naturally gifted in that than your average professional sports player is naturally gifted in what they do.

 The difference with seeing visions, such as when Atium is Burned with duralumin, is that you're using your conscious mind to read Spiritwebs and probability in the SR, not using a natural mechanism built into your mind/soul.

Spoiler

https://wob.coppermind.net/events/171/#e8147

Questioner

Is looking into the Spiritual Realm the only way to look into the future?

Brandon Sanderson

Any looking into the future involves looking at Spiritwebs, probability, and stuff like that. So, yes.

Spoiler

Emerald City Comic Con 2018 - Arcanum (coppermind.net)

Chaos

Odium said to Taravangian, "You did this without access to Fortune or the Spiritual Realm?" How does one access Fortune without the Spiritual Realm or Feruchemical chromium, as almost all future sight tends to utilize the Spiritual Realm in some way?

Brandon Sanderson

So, that line is mostly just me saying... *long pause* I think you're picking apart those things too much.

Chaos

Right, that makes sense. Hey, Odium said it, so I didn't know-- Gotta take that seriously, so.

Brandon Sanderson

So, yeah, don't read too much into picking apart those two things. You can read it as-- Honestly, that is me making sure I am being clear in the text.

Chaos

That there are those are two different things.

Brandon Sanderson

Yeah those are two different things, but they are just interrelated. Fortune is a property, and the Spiritual Realm is a place, but not a place. Do you know what I mean? To use Fortune, you're always involving the Spiritual Realm, but in the Spiritual Realm, you're not always involving Fortune.

So, some instances of this in use could be a person like Navani might be able to invent a new type of Fabrial by "accidentally" stumbling upon a new discovery by subconsciously following the instructions of Fortune, Dalinar "knowing" Kaladin was a good fit for the job of guarding Elhokar because he "felt" it was right, and Vin potentially "sensing" that someone was dangerous by instinct alone.

All of those interactions would be useful in those people's own minds, thus making their Fortune making natural predictions about those circumstances, but because they would sometimes misinterpret or ignore this advice (especially when given seemingly clear evidence that would suggest following other courses of action), there is a good chance most people's Fortune goes to waste. What's more, everybody has access to some level of Fortune (whether or not they listen to it), so just as with all forms of seeing the future the more people who use it, the more chance that it will wind up being incorrect due to direct or indirect competition.

That said I think that people like Wayne may have a higher, or "stronger" Fortune than others, giving them an advantage when it comes to success; my goodness, Wayne had about 120 million boxings by the end of TLM, and he was basically running all of his decisions on gut-instinct reactions (I think his Resonance must have dealt with heightened Fortune).

Thoughts?

[Koloss17]

On 3/16/2024 at 1:19 PM, Trusk'our said:

@alder24's answer on the Q&A forum about Spiritwebs and time got me thinking about Fortune again.

I think that when someone is using Fortune, what they are doing is using "echoes" of possible future Connections that exist in the SR, that are then filtered through their subconscious Cognitive Aspect.

For example, Syl "knew" Kaladin before ever meeting him.

  Reveal hidden contents

Emerald City Comic Con 2018 - Arcanum (coppermind.net)

Questioner

Why is Kaladin so proficient-- Like naturally born to wield a spear. Is that a weapon he likes or is it a destiny for him?

Brandon Sanderson

So destiny is a strong term... I would say he has natural aptitude, but no more so than a normal person who has a natural aptitude for something. But the way the Spiritual Realm works in the cosmere and the way Connection works, there were certain things that were happening to Kaladin before they happened...

It's like Syl says in one of the books. "You didn't know me then, but I knew you then. Even though we hadn't met yet, I still knew you." You see some weird Connection things too. And these are mostly just for fun sort of cosmere connections. Like when you see Syl take on the look of Shallan standing on the beach. There's gonna be a connection there. It's forming, it doesn't exist yet, but all things are one in the Spiritual Realm, and we're just kinda seeing echoes of that. It's not meant to be destiny, it's more meant to be, "Hey there's little connections happening".

I would not say Kaladin is any more naturally gifted in that than your average professional sports player is naturally gifted in what they do.

 The difference with seeing visions, such as when Atium is Burned with duralumin, is that you're using your conscious mind to read Spiritwebs and probability in the SR, not using a natural mechanism built into your mind/soul.

  Reveal hidden contents

https://wob.coppermind.net/events/171/#e8147

Questioner

Is looking into the Spiritual Realm the only way to look into the future?

Brandon Sanderson

Any looking into the future involves looking at Spiritwebs, probability, and stuff like that. So, yes.

  Reveal hidden contents

Emerald City Comic Con 2018 - Arcanum (coppermind.net)

Chaos

Odium said to Taravangian, "You did this without access to Fortune or the Spiritual Realm?" How does one access Fortune without the Spiritual Realm or Feruchemical chromium, as almost all future sight tends to utilize the Spiritual Realm in some way?

Brandon Sanderson

So, that line is mostly just me saying... *long pause* I think you're picking apart those things too much.

Chaos

Right, that makes sense. Hey, Odium said it, so I didn't know-- Gotta take that seriously, so.

Brandon Sanderson

So, yeah, don't read too much into picking apart those two things. You can read it as-- Honestly, that is me making sure I am being clear in the text.

Chaos

That there are those are two different things.

Brandon Sanderson

Yeah those are two different things, but they are just interrelated. Fortune is a property, and the Spiritual Realm is a place, but not a place. Do you know what I mean? To use Fortune, you're always involving the Spiritual Realm, but in the Spiritual Realm, you're not always involving Fortune.

So, some instances of this in use could be a person like Navani might be able to invent a new type of Fabrial by "accidentally" stumbling upon a new discovery by subconsciously following the instructions of Fortune, Dalinar "knowing" Kaladin was a good fit for the job of guarding Elhokar because he "felt" it was right, and Vin potentially "sensing" that someone was dangerous by instinct alone.

All of those interactions would be useful in those people's own minds, thus making their Fortune making natural predictions about those circumstances, but because they would sometimes misinterpret or ignore this advice (especially when given seemingly clear evidence that would suggest following other courses of action), there is a good chance most people's Fortune goes to waste. What's more, everybody has access to some level of Fortune (whether or not they listen to it), so just as with all forms of seeing the future the more people who use it, the more chance that it will wind up being incorrect due to direct or indirect competition.

That said I think that people like Wayne may have a higher, or "stronger" Fortune than others, giving them an advantage when it comes to success; my goodness, Wayne had about 120 million boxings by the end of TLM, and he was basically running all of his decisions on gut-instinct reactions (I think his Resonance must have dealt with heightened Fortune).

Thoughts?

Wayne’s resonance being fortune is not something I would have thought of, yet it feels so right. Wayne is suspiciously lucky. Now, it could just boil down to pure luck, and sometimes that does happen, but in a world where one of the universal mechanics is quantifiable and tangible (not quite tangible, but you know what I mean) luck, the chance (heh) of it being a coincidence is low.

And yeah, I certainly think that some people are more fortune-prone than others. People are naturally invested in some form, so it would stand to reason that everyone has access to some amount of fortune. How it’s determined I have no clue, but I am a big fan of the theory!