Pewter Twinborn Pseudo-Compounding Hack

[Trusk'our he/him]

Compounding is an interesting ability, and a powerful hack for lucky Metalborn.

However, it requires a specific Intent that isn't always easy to pick up:

Spoiler

https://wob.coppermind.net/events/98-worldbuilders-ama/#e850

Moogle

Compounding requires practice, according to The Hero of Age's annotations. And yet, it's apparently as easy as burning a metalmind. What was going on that meant the Inquisitors couldn't figure out how to do it (despite Ruin likely knowing how and undoubtedly wanting them to learn) for over a year? What skill did they need to practice doing, exactly?

And what happened while they were practicing burning metalminds without successfully Compounding? Did they get an Allomantic effect?

Brandon Sanderson

What I think I was getting at in the annotations was a cosmere magic rule that, perhaps, I hadn't completely refined yet. This is the idea that INTENTION is vitally important to the workings of most cosmere magics.

You can learn to burn metals instinctively over time, but it does take time--time for your body to figure out what it's doing. If you have instruction and guidance, you can pick it up in an evening, like Vin did. Same goes for most of the magics. This ties into Awakening, with the idea that you have to form a command.

During Warbreaker was where I really refined this aspect of the magic. Logically, since the beginning of the cosmere, I've wanted all three Realms to be important to the way the magics worked. The "Practice" therefore for compounding is mental practice--a barrier to overcome in understanding what is happening, and what it will do to you.

If you already know all of these things by having it explained to you, that barrier is far less high. I think that was what I was talking about in the Annotations, without really having the idea specified yet--though I'd have to look back at the annotation and re-read it to say for certain.

We also know that Allomantic pewter can have other interesting functions, like changing one's appearance (irrelevant parts removed to prevent Cosmere spoilers): 

Spoiler

https://wob.coppermind.net/events/503-fanx-2022/#e15782

Questioner (paraphrased)

(Redacted)

2. Is there more going on behind the scenes when an Allomancer burns pewter? I suspect that the process triggers a "mind over matter" state, where the user's desires are made manifest, albeit in a limited way. If so, can a pewter burner alter their Physical appearance, similar to a (Redacted) (provided they knew they could and had access to enough pewter)?

Brandon Sanderson (paraphrased)

(Redacted)

2a. That is a valid theory. On the right track. 

2b. Possible in theory

With these in mind, it makes me wonder, if a Twinborn has both Allomantic pewter and a physical Feruchemical power, can they plausibly learn to focus their Allomancy to more directly fuel that Feruchemical attribute?

Say, an A-pewter/F-gold Twinborn learns that their Allomancy boosts their health a little bit, perhaps they could replace the other physical benefits with just more health if they chose? They'd already be familiar with such an attribute flowing through them, which I think would make the process so much easier to figure out. 

It would basically be Compounding, but more versatile (and cheaper than some metals, like gold).

[therunner he/him]

On 11/13/2024 at 3:03 AM, Trusk'our said:

Say, an A-pewter/F-gold Twinborn learns that their Allomancy boosts their health a little bit, perhaps they could replace the other physical benefits with just more health if they chose? They'd already be familiar with such an attribute flowing through them, which I think would make the process so much easier to figure out.

I don't think they could fully divert it like that, more switch it a bit. I.e. instead of doubling strength, double speed, but strength get only minor boost, etc.

And it would probably take being a Savant in the Pewter to get to that point. Minor shifts would probably be learnable by someone with enough time.

On 11/13/2024 at 3:03 AM, Trusk'our said:

It would basically be Compounding, but more versatile (and cheaper than some metals, like gold).

It really wouldn't be Compounding.

Compounding is exponential, this just multiplies your stores by fixed number. Basically, at most it would let you double/triple your stores, nowhere near what Compounding lets you do.

More useful application would be is the fact it would let you store for shorter periods of time.

[Sophrosyne he/him]

I think there's a few combinations that make Feruchemical draw backs much less so.

A-Bronze, A-Iron, or A-steel for F-Tin
A-Pewter for most physical Feruchemical 
A-Cadmium and A-Bendalloy is scary with MOST invested arts full stop.

Interesting topic I'll think on it a bit more.