How is shardplate made?

[KevinTheHerdazian]

Radiant's weapons is by the bond between the knight and the spren. Could it be that the shard plate is made by the bond between a knight and the squires? Like a squire for each segment of armor?

[Wyndrunner]

Well different orders have different limits on the number of squires available. I think there's a WoB somewhere that says that Windrunners can get more squires than most of the others. In that case I don't think it would be a bond between knight and squire, especially if you didn't have enough squires and you were running around with half your Shardplate like you just got out of bed or something.

 

I am more of the opinion that Shardplate is either a result of further Oaths or an artificial construct of the Radiants themselves. It could be that with a higher bond to a spren (like an honorspren) then maybe lesser spren (like windspren) would form the Plate. I've also heard a few theories that Plate is formed from a combination of all the Surges manipulating the armor (possibly made from aluminum?).

[KevinTheHerdazian]

I haven't read Sandersons other works besides Wok and Wor, so I don't know the significance of aluminum. maybe there were less squires for other orders because the radiants from some orders didn't have plate. But I can see what you mean that why it wouldn't be squires.

Edited October 26, 2014 by KevinTheHerdazian

[Dresden45]

Also squires are physical people not cognitive constructs like spren so you couldn't really make them into armor

[maxal]

Well different orders have different limits on the number of squires available. I think there's a WoB somewhere that says that Windrunners can get more squires than most of the others

 

Is there really a WoB that specifies the number of squires a knight can get? I recall a WoB stating Windrunners tend to get more squires then the others and that Kaladin has an abnormally high number of those.... I didn't get there was a limit....

[WeiryWriter]

I haven't read Sandersons other works besides Wok and Wor, so I don't know the significance of aluminum. maybe there were less squires for other orders because the radiants from some orders didn't have plate. But I can see what you mean that why it wouldn't be squires.

 

We do have WoB (which I'll try to find) that Shardplate was available to all orders, but that is generally up to the individual knight whether or not to use/have it.

[maxal]

We do have WoB (which I'll try to find) that Shardplate was available to all orders, but that is generally up to the individual knight whether or not to use/have it.

 

I think there is also another one stating the mechanism by which knights summons and dismisses Plate parts is akin to modern day bonding of a shardblade.....

[Twenty@20]

I am starting to think of the shardplates as armour fabrial because how they consume stormlight while functioning unlike shardblades. The Radiants were able to supply stormlight directly( ala Kaladin at the epic duel) while others need infused gems.

Since it is widely considered plate comes with higher oaths, can it be that ability to make Surge fabrials comes with a higher oath. After all Kaladin has 2 more oaths left. So a shardplate and Surge fabrials may come next.

The secondary spren theory of Shardplate is elegant and fits Mr. Sanderson's way of doing things. I would like to know if blades and plates are made of same material. (Unlikely I think since Blades are indestructible as far as we know.) Since all the different spren blades are of the same material, I would expect that the plates be of the same material too if they come from spren. Well, that is a roundabout way of making an argument against spren derived plates.

Another point. Syl, Pattern and company gain consciousness in the physical world from the bond with the Radiant. What will plate forming spren gain? It is evident they won't get consciousness because we haven't seen any discarded plate scream at our Radiants.

Errant thought. Syl wanted a spren for herself in WoR. Will she get one which eventually forms the plate?

[KevinTheHerdazian]

Well shard plates don't really "consume" stormlight. It uses stormlight to repair itself so I think that asking as it isn't damaged it could hold stormlight indefinitely

[Twenty@20]

Well shard plates don't really "consume" stormlight. It uses stormlight to repair itself so I think that asking as it isn't damaged it could hold stormlight indefinitely

I think, stormlight not only repairs damaged shardplates, but it is also necessary for the shardplate to function properly. During the duel with 4 shardbearers, the helm which Kaladin used as a glove, kept working only because Kaladin kept feeding it stormlight. All shardbearers are known to carry infused spheres inside their plates so ensure they don't fail in battle. Recall Eholkar's chasmfiend hunting incident, when dun spheres resulted in the plate cracking easily.

Edit: just found this quote from WoK, Chapter I-9

Szeth glanced to see men pouring into the room. The newcomers carried distinctive, diamond-shaped shields. Half-shards. Szeth had heard of the new fabrials, capable of stopping a Shardblade.

The new halfshards are described as fabrials which means they need stormlight to work. Also it is further proof that original shardplates are some sort of fabrial. Edited October 27, 2014 by Twenty@20

[KevinTheHerdazian]

Half shards work on different principles than shard plate. Half shards are just augmenter fabrials, which is just strengthened metal shield that are required to be shaped like a diamond. Shard plate has no specific shape and if they are just strengthened metal too, then how would it grow back? They are completely different so you can't really consider shard plate a fabrial based on what Brandon revealed to us in the books.

[Twenty@20]

Half shards work on different principles than shard plate. Half shards are just augmenter fabrials, which is just strengthened metal shield that are required to be shaped like a diamond. Shard plate has no specific shape and if they are just strengthened metal too, then how would it grow back? They are completely different so you can't really consider shard plate a fabrial based on what Brandon revealed to us in the books.

I quoted the example of halfshards mainly as a technology demonstrator. Augmenter fabrials mimic the most important feature of shardplates, which is stopping shardblade. I freely admit I am speculating on this point. May be the KR take the basic premise of an augmenter fabrial and add additional technology to make the shardplates as we know them.

Even if we ignore the halfshards, my other arguments for fabrial based shardplates still hold. I am just trying to offer a different perspective to the shadeplate origin question. I may very well be proven wrong you know. Mr. Sanderson can always spring surprises

[Unhinged]

One idea that I had was that shardplate is literally solid stormlight, to make a suit the radient would need to draw in massive amounts of stormlight (you'd probably have to be outside in a highstorm) and as it was streaming off their bodies their spreen would form it into a suit of armor. this would explain why Kaladin doesn't hear screams when he grabs the helmet. The only thing I'm not sure of is how the armor regenerates itself from more stormlight if it was separate from a spreen then how does it consume stormlight to regenerate. The only guess I have would be that it's connected to the spreen but it's not part of it.

[Unodus]

My conclusion is that Shardplate was forged through a variety of surges. The design of the armor in my opinion appears to be of human design: the folding plating, the faceplate, and the fact that the suit uses infused gemstones suggest that it is a marvel of Radiant technology rather than divine intervention- unlike Shardblades which are completely unlike any human weapon, and can appear at will, and appear to be completely unmechanical, unlike Shardplate.

The Shardblades weren't originally intended to be used on each other- why would the gods give them the only object that could block a shardblade? (Perhaps Shardplate originally belonged to the voidbringers, and was stolen by the radiants- in regard to Eshoni .3.) They could have created armor without that benefit- unless they predicted humans to turn on eachother... But why give your people a sword that could appear at any time in your hand, and give them armor that took ages to regrow and have to be taken on and off manually? Suppose each part of the armor has hidden fabrials (Or something else in which a surgecommand could be placed) which channel surges- we already know fabrials can affect surges like gravity, etc. Manipulating Progression (to regrow pieces of the armor), Cohesion (which I assume willshapers use to change shape, which would allow the armor to change shape to fit its owner, etc), Tension (Which I assume Stonewards & Oathbringers use to "strengthen" an object, which would therefore make the Shardplate as tough as it is), and Transformation (to soulcast that material used in Radiant training used to dull Shardblades- the Shardplate is made of a large quantity of the stuff- which is how it blocks Shardblades), and Gravitation (To make the Shardplate owner seem stronger than he is without it, by taking off some of the pressure of gravity) used in combination could replicate the effects of Shardplate. This could be the reason why Shardplate needs so much stormlight- to fuel the surgebinding. If this is true though, how can the Shardplate function even after the Nahel bond has been broken? Perhaps it has to do with something like "The Spren are still technically alive", or "Fabrials aren't affected by Nahels bond"- or something.. .3.;

 

If I'm wrong somewhere- or missed something out, I'd appreciate being corrected- I'm not an expert on Shardplate.. :3

[Kelsier Kenobi]

One idea that I had was that shardplate is literally solid stormlight,

 

Kind of like a construct of a Green Lantern.

[KevinTheHerdazian]

I like Unhinged idea better than mine. Upvote!

Edited December 19, 2014 by KevinTheHerdazian

[soulcastJam]

The Shardblades weren't originally intended to be used on each other- why would the gods give them the only object that could block a shardblade? 

The plate is also useful against other things.  The midnight shadows were able to harm it, so I tend to think that plate is meant to guard against the power of sprens in general.