WaT: Echo ... echo ... echo ...

[Nitpicking]

There's a lot of echoing going on in Wind and Truth.

The one that made me notice it was Adolin summoning a circle of Blades to create the Oathpact, mirrored by Ishar's summoning his old comrades to a circle of Blades to recreate the Heralds.

Then there's the various people who significantly stand. Taln stands to defend the wounded. Dalinar stands to save Gavinor. To quote Mayalaran, the Lost Deadeyes "stand again". And of course, Kaladin stands up despite the mood-blighting power of Ishar.

Another obvious one is people breaking oaths, for the best of reasons (again). Sigzil, to save Vienta. Szeth, because he feels that Aux is not a good match for him (and he doesn't want to be a corrupted Skybreaker). Dalinar, to use the Sunmaker's Gambit and make Taravangian everyone's problem, not just his world's.

I'm sure there are others. What springs to your mind?

Longer term echo that came to me after hitting Submit: Adolin killed Torol Sadeas with a knife to the eye, despite both having Shardblades. In WaT, Shallan kills Iyatil in almost exactly the same way, if you look at the fight choreography.

[Jult]

Well.. Maybe more of a mirror than an echo here, but this brings Navani to mind for me. Navani's condition of being encased in a gemstone of some kind at the end of WaT not only echoes what she's been doing to spren in fabrials. But it also echoes BAM's imprisonment at the hands of the Sibling's previous Bondsmith, Melishi.

I'm really wrestling with the right phrasing on this one, but there is also a recurring theme of characters desperately (and often blindly) trusting one another with incredibly high stakes:

• Dalinar trusts Kaladin and Szeth with everything in Shinovar
• Sigzil/Jasnah trusting Venli (and vice versa) with their gambit for Narak
• Renarin and Rlain trusting BAM
• Adolin trusting Maya to return with help
• The Heralds trusting Kaladin 
• Wit trusting Sigzil with the Dawnshard
• Maybe even Kaladin and Szeth trusting Nightblood could count here?

[Nitpicking]

Dang it. I meant that Adolin created the Oathless, not the Oathpact.

[mai_day she/her]

On 6/26/2025 at 9:50 AM, Jult said:

Well.. Maybe more of a mirror than an echo here, but this brings Navani to mind for me. Navani's condition of being encased in a gemstone of some kind at the end of WaT not only echoes what she's been doing to spren in fabrials.

I think it also echoes the resolution of RoW. There, the Sibling had to make a leap of faith to trust Navani in order to save their lives and everyone in the tower. In WaT, Navani has to take a leap of faith to trust the Sibling to save their lives and everyone in the tower.

And yeah, I love the imagery of Navani being trapped in a gemstone, becoming the heart of a fabrial herself. I can’t wait to see how the experience changes her and what her views on fabrials will be. 

[Jult]

1 hour ago, mai_day said:

I think it also echoes the resolution of RoW. There, the Sibling had to make a leap of faith to trust Navani in order to save their lives and everyone in the tower. In WaT, Navani has to take a leap of faith to trust the Sibling to save their lives and everyone in the tower.

Very true. And shame on me for not including Navani trusting the Sibling in my list above.

[Nitpicking]

Reverse of The Lopen's history (as we close out the ketek that is the Stormlight Archive). Adolin loses a leg, Szeth an arm, and Kaladin fingers. Kaladin may have regenerated his lost digits, though.

[Nitpicking]

I was looking up something else in Oathbringer and noticed this: when Dalinar visits the Nightwatcher, and Cultivation is about to grant him the boon of forgetfulness, he hesitates, then says "Do it". In WaT, Cultivation's child asks Navani to join her in resisting Retribution, and she says, "Do it!"

Deliberate echo on Brandon's part, or just a sentence he likes?

[announcer voice] You make the call!

[Nitpicking]

Hey!

In the battle for Thaylenah, Adolin cuts off a Thunderclast's foot.

In the battle for Azir, Adolin's foot gets cut off.

 

Edit: and Dalinar says to the Thrill, "I understand you."

Then he says it to Honor's personification in WaT.

Edited July 4, 2025 by Nitpicking

[TacoBellChoutaMeal]

I may be misremembering, but I was almost certain there was an echo of the whole "what is the life of a man worth"-->"everything" moment from tWoK in WaT when Dalinar is talking to Tarvangian. I was almost certain that Tarvangian asked him the same thing, but Dalinar said "Nothing" this time, referencing how he sacrificed himself. But I can't seem to find the moment anywhere. 

 

UPDATE: I've got it!

From WaT Chapter 145:

Quote

"You realize I can now do with you what I will?" Taravangian said to him. "I could torture you for eternity, Dalinar. You really think your sacrifice was worth the cost?" Rippling through the soul of his rival, a question:

"What is my life worth?"

"Nothing anymore! Dalinar, you are nothing!" 

"If so, then I traded for everything. Taravangian, I call that a bargain." 

I copied that manually from the audiobook, so the punctuation might not be accurate. 

Edited July 5, 2025 by TacoBellChoutaMeal

[Vielence She/Her]

 

On 6/24/2025 at 8:28 PM, Nitpicking said:

There's a lot of echoing going on in Wind and Truth.

The one that made me notice it was Adolin summoning a circle of Blades to create the Oathpact, mirrored by Ishar's summoning his old comrades to a circle of Blades to recreate the Heralds.

Then there's the various people who significantly stand. Taln stands to defend the wounded. Dalinar stands to save Gavinor. To quote Mayalaran, the Lost Deadeyes "stand again". And of course, Kaladin stands up despite the mood-blighting power of Ishar.

Another obvious one is people breaking oaths, for the best of reasons (again). Sigzil, to save Vienta. Szeth, because he feels that Aux is not a good match for him (and he doesn't want to be a corrupted Skybreaker). Dalinar, to use the Sunmaker's Gambit and make Taravangian everyone's problem, not just his world's.

I'm sure there are others. What springs to your mind?

Longer term echo that came to me after hitting Submit: Adolin killed Torol Sadeas with a knife to the eye, despite both having Shardblades. In WaT, Shallan kills Iyatil in almost exactly the same way, if you look at the fight choreography.

OMG your right. STORMS. 

Why is Brandon such and evil genius??

I'm 99% sure he'd be murdered by now if we weren't holding ourselves back bc WHAT IN PRESERVATIONS NAME HAPPENS NEXT??

On 7/4/2025 at 10:50 PM, TacoBellChoutaMeal said:

I may be misremembering, but I was almost certain there was an echo of the whole "what is the life of a man worth"-->"everything" moment from tWoK in WaT when Dalinar is talking to Tarvangian. I was almost certain that Tarvangian asked him the same thing, but Dalinar said "Nothing" this time, referencing how he sacrificed himself. But I can't seem to find the moment anywhere. 

 

UPDATE: I've got it!

From WaT Chapter 145:

I copied that manually from the audiobook, so the punctuation might not be accurate. 

Like when Dalinar traded "One priceless sword for 1000 priceless lives" 

And Kaladin was like 

Edited July 19, 2025 by VieB13

[Crustin]

On 6/26/2025 at 7:50 AM, Jult said:

Well.. Maybe more of a mirror than an echo here, but this brings Navani to mind for me. Navani's condition of being encased in a gemstone of some kind at the end of WaT not only echoes what she's been doing to spren in fabrials. But it also echoes BAM's imprisonment at the hands of the Sibling's previous Bondsmith, Melishi.

I'm really wrestling with the right phrasing on this one, but there is also a recurring theme of characters desperately (and often blindly) trusting one another with incredibly high stakes:

• Dalinar trusts Kaladin and Szeth with everything in Shinovar
• Sigzil/Jasnah trusting Venli (and vice versa) with their gambit for Narak
• Renarin and Rlain trusting BAM
• Adolin trusting Maya to return with help
• The Heralds trusting Kaladin 
• Wit trusting Sigzil with the Dawnshard
• Maybe even Kaladin and Szeth trusting Nightblood could count here?

I've noticed that it's not merely a recurring theme for the Stormlight Archive, but the Cosmere as a whole. Through following what is truly in their hearts, people will continue to strive and be worthy of touching divinity. And in recognizing no one person, even a vessel, can live in isolation on their own, those who trust in their own hearts and that of others will have their hearts connected to one another. And in doing so--after enough time has passed--they will reconnect the entire Cosmere to divinity. It won't be Adonalsium, but what all the hearts connected together believe to be divine. And it's what Adonalsium expected to eventually happen when letting the original 16 kill them.

[Ripheus23]

One echo internal to W&T is the epigraph from in-world WoK where Nohadon talks about abdicating a divine responsibility being the right thing to do, at times. So Dalinar, knowing the in-world WoK, abdicated the responsibility of holding Honor...