Open questions

[+Oltux72 he/him]

1. Are the people of Vax another alien species?
2. Where else does the perpendicularity of Vax lead?
3. What has happened to the Ghostbloods? How come no Aetherbound work for Scadrial?
4. Does this confirm that Roshar will lose its perpendicularity?
5. Have the Iriali lost their ethnic cohesion? Is their path over?
6. How and when does Nazriloff die?

[Argenti he/him]

3 hours ago, Oltux72 said:

• Are the people of Vax another alien species?

We can guess so, with the line "We’ve learned that mortals—be they human, Sho Del, or true Vaxilian—fear us." They seem to be a mortal race that's distinct from humanity.

3 hours ago, Oltux72 said:

• Where else does the perpendicularity of Vax lead?

If you mean the silver light one, we have no idea what the other two places are. Yolen and ??? Vax is possible, Dharti is unlikely. It's unknown, really. Maybe  Bjendal?

4 hours ago, Oltux72 said:

• Does this confirm that Roshar will lose its perpendicularity?

Well, cultivation's is gone.

[+Oltux72 he/him]

28 minutes ago, Argenti said:

Well, cultivation's is gone.

 

Quote

“A shallow pool of water,” he agreed. “I believe the portal is somehow at the bottom. There is real
water in it, and fake water too.” 
“Like used to exist on Roshar,” Dajer said, triumphant. “Same thing.” 

 

So you are saying that this refers to the specific structure of Cultivation's perpendicularity?

[Argenti he/him]

12 minutes ago, Oltux72 said:

 

 

So you are saying that this refers to the specific structure of Cultivation's perpendicularity?

Yes, her perpendicularity was under a lake, and now it's not.

[thecaptain01]

Yes, i think we can still assume that Roshar has Retributions perpendicularity somewhere under Narak on the Shattered Plains.

[+Oltux72 he/him]

For the rational part of the readers: Of course the Iriali have an extreme amount of ethnic cohesion. All of them left Lumar, really everyboody. That is extraordinary, but seems to have ceased. Both developments need an explanation.

[VersatileThrenodite he/him]

42 minutes ago, Oltux72 said:

All of them left Lumar, really everyboody. That is extraordinary, but seems to have ceased.

I don't think this is something we can guarantee. On Roshar some Iriali intermixed with the local population or switched to the local religion. This could be true of most other planets in their journey. We cant even guarantee that everyone left Roshar in WaT some might have been out of town when Cusicesh started pulling them into shadesmar.

I was actually thinking could the people of 1st of the Sun have started off as an Iriali offshoot? The golden eyes and skin of Cakoban in the flashback might indicate a connection. That or they come from a similar initial planet why else would an Iriali map show a location of 1st of the Sun?

[Erremin]

2 hours ago, VersatileThrenodite said:

I was actually thinking could the people of 1st of the Sun have started off as an Iriali offshoot?

We know their golden hair is a very dominant gene (breeds true), so I don't think that's likely. Maybe they have similar ancestry? 

 

[+Oltux72 he/him]

18 hours ago, VersatileThrenodite said:

I don't think this is something we can guarantee. On Roshar some Iriali intermixed with the local population or switched to the local religion.

Why is their language unknown on Lumar then?

18 hours ago, VersatileThrenodite said:

I was actually thinking could the people of 1st of the Sun have started off as an Iriali offshoot? The golden eyes and skin of Cakoban in the flashback might indicate a connection.

I took that as a sign of him being highly Invested.

18 hours ago, VersatileThrenodite said:

That or they come from a similar initial planet why else would an Iriali map show a location of 1st of the Sun?

They sent scouts to Patji. Those never returned. The map is a warning.

[VersatileThrenodite he/him]

13 hours ago, Oltux72 said:

Why is their language unknown on Lumar then?

Any number of reasons. Language is constantly evolving. Ask any random person off the street if they can read a middle ages form of their dialect let alone a potential root language like proto indo European

[+Oltux72 he/him]

2 minutes ago, VersatileThrenodite said:

Any number of reasons. Language is constantly evolving. Ask any random person off the street if they can read a middle ages form of their dialect let alone a potential root language like proto indo European

Not over less than 400 years. Yes, it is entirely possible that any given person won't speak a languge. But an educated person will know that the language is basically known.

[VersatileThrenodite he/him]

19 minutes ago, Oltux72 said:

Not over less than 400 years. Yes, it is entirely possible that any given person won't speak a languge. But an educated person will know that the language is basically known.

Ask any former college grad in their 40's or 50's who the Rizzler is or what Aura is and you'd probably get different answers and that's just evolving through slang.

And that's not taking into account forced assimilation efforts. Many native American languages have virtually disappeared in only a few hundred years since the founding of the USA for example. Its not unreasonable even in a Brandon story for a minority culture to be suppressed.

[Kingstar114 he/him]

On 7/3/2025 at 1:05 AM, Oltux72 said:

What has happened to the Ghostbloods? How come no Aetherbound work for Scadrial?

A couple things. Firstly, we know for a fact that Aetherbound do work for the Malwish Empire, one appears on screen, this is simply not public knowledge. Also, the Ghostbloods appear to have more influence in Northern Scadrial, which appears to be distinct from the Malwish Empire. I dare say the Ghostbloods are still active - possibly in the Malwish Empire - they just don't make their influence obvious or well known to the layman - which they never have.
 

IotE Chapter 48, Page 367

Spoiler

“Esandi,” he said to the screen. “Thank you for taking my call.” “Anything to repay the favor, Dajer,” she said in accented Malwish. “Will you show my friend your palm?” he asked, and the woman

raised her hand—exposing a fully alive aether bud.
Though Ed and Aditil had been certain no aetherbound served the

Malwish, here was proof otherwise.
“You realize,” the woman said, “that this reveals closely guarded state

secrets to that woman.”

 

[Yumiya]

On 7/2/2025 at 9:05 AM, Oltux72 said:

How and when does Nazriloff die?

I was assuming that it was part of whatever got Starling exiled 12 years ago, though rereading the relevant passage makes it less clear. 

Quote

“My intel,” Dajer says, “indicates you and the shade have traveled together for quite a while. He was involved in the events that got you imprisoned, was he not? A good friend, always by your side.”

-IotE ch 48

 

Does is clothing or hair style give us any clues?

[alder24]

On 7/2/2025 at 3:05 PM, Oltux72 said:

• Are the people of Vax another alien species?

Are they the lizard-people that served Riina in Tress?

On 7/2/2025 at 3:05 PM, Oltux72 said:

• What has happened to the Ghostbloods? How come no Aetherbound work for Scadrial?

I'm guessing they are still a secret organization and because Malwish are dominant on Scadrial, they might not be as influential as they are in Era 2 if they are still focused on Elendel. 

On 7/2/2025 at 3:05 PM, Oltux72 said:

• Does this confirm that Roshar will lose its perpendicularity?

It was about Cultivation's perpendicularity which was at the bottom of a lake. Drominad's perpendicularity was also at the bottom of a shallow lake of water. There was no mention of Retribution's perpendicularity but we have no indication that it's gone. Ch 47:

Quote

“A shallow pool of water,” he agreed. “I believe the portal is somehow at the bottom. There is real water in it, and fake water too.”
“Like used to exist on Roshar,” Dajer said, triumphant. “Same thing.”

 

On 7/2/2025 at 3:05 PM, Oltux72 said:

• Have the Iriali lost their ethnic cohesion? Is their path over?

We now know that Iriali sent scouts to look for habitable planets that can be used on their long trail. The Iriali that were mentioned in TLM might have been just scouts and not the entire population, so Lumar might have been the 5th Land and this means they can still be on the 6th Land. I don't think the book suggests that Iriali are no longer united, considering the amount of laws giving them special treatment, it's just that they are still composed of individuals and some might just want to travel on their own for their own goals - like the family rescued by Starling. Ch 30:

Quote

Records of visits to various planets the Iriali investigated as potential homelands on their voyage. Most of them are unsuitable, and many thought mythological, particularly ones this old.

[lacrossedeamon]

On 7/2/2025 at 9:05 AM, Oltux72 said:

1. Are the people of Vax another alien species?

I'm noting the omission of singers in Chrysalis's list (trying saying that five times fast). Do they fall under human, are they now somehow immortal, or since human and Sho Del are  found on multiple planets could singers and true Vaxilians be the same.

On 7/2/2025 at 9:05 AM, Oltux72 said:

       2. Where else does the perpendicularity of Vax lead?

Assuming you mean Silverlight Nexus: Yolen as mentioned, Vax seems like a good guess, and I'll throw in Mythos to round it out. Not sure if it is of note but the Rosharan subastral map shows three different nexuses: Imagination, Truth, and Transition.

[+Oltux72 he/him]

2 minutes ago, lacrossedeamon said:

I'm noting the omission of singers in Chrysalis's list (trying saying that five times fast). Do they fall under human, are they now somehow immortal, or since human and Sho Del are  found on multiple planets could singers and true Vaxilians be the same.

Well, the sinister interpretation is obviously that they no longer exist.

But benignly I doubt Singers can live off Roshar permanently. How would their offspring gain forms?

[lacrossedeamon]

3 minutes ago, Oltux72 said:

Well, the sinister interpretation is obviously that they no longer exist.

Didn't actually take that into account. A possibility but I have been working off the assumption the Skybreaker we see is a singer.

4 minutes ago, Oltux72 said:

But benignly I doubt Singers can live off Roshar permanently. How would their offspring gain forms?

With the ascension of Retribution, spren, especially for forms of power, are no longer bound to Roshar. We even see Rushu beginning the domestication of lesser spren. Maybe they can be brought during a migration of some sort. It could also be possible that they could bond with other cognitive entities if they are "native" to more than one planet.

[Walter The Moral]

1 minute ago, lacrossedeamon said:

Didn't actually take that into account. A possibility but I have been working off the assumption the Skybreaker we see is a singer.

I reread the chapter with the Skybreaker, and the description of the purplish hue is gone. Now our only evidence that he was a singer was that he spoke with "an unnatural air".

Quote

The deep voice had a peculiar cast to it. Not an accent, like someone from a backwater isle, but still a kind of…unnatural air.

I don't know if this means that he's no longer a singer, or if Brandon just doesn't want it to be as obvious.

[lacrossedeamon]

1 minute ago, Walter The Moral said:

I reread the chapter with the Skybreaker, and the description of the purplish hue is gone. Now our only evidence that he was a singer was that he spoke with "an unnatural air".

I don't know if this means that he's no longer a singer, or if Brandon just doesn't want it to be as obvious.

I wonder if this was to obfuscate if Retribution is still a thing at this point, either split, or god forbid became trishardic.

[+Oltux72 he/him]

47 minutes ago, lacrossedeamon said:

With the ascension of Retribution, spren, especially for forms of power, are no longer bound to Roshar. We even see Rushu beginning the domestication of lesser spren. Maybe they can be brought during a migration of some sort. It could also be possible that they could bond with other cognitive entities if they are "native" to more than one planet.

• No storms - having the spren itself is no use if you cannot get it into your gemheart
• you need the spren that give you mate form, or your population is finished after one generation

[lacrossedeamon]

13 minutes ago, Oltux72 said:

• No storms - having the spren itself is no use if you cannot get it into your gemheart

Not necessarily the only method, just the only one we've seen so far

13 minutes ago, Oltux72 said:

• you need the spren that give you mate form, or your population is finished after one generation

Explicitly not the case per WoB and just the parshmen in general

[JustQuestin2004 he/him]

1 hour ago, Oltux72 said:

No storms - having the spren itself is no use if you cannot get it into your gemheart

I am so sure that I've read a WOB somewhere stating that a Singer could just take a dip in a perpendicularity to change Forms, but I don't know where it is.

But I'm pretty sure that all a Singer need to change forms is the Spren and a large amount of Investiture around them, like the Highstorm, but that doesn't mean that it exclusively needs to be the Highstorm only.

[mtfires]

On 7/4/2025 at 11:12 PM, Kingstar114 said:

A couple things. Firstly, we know for a fact that Aetherbound do work for the Malwish Empire, one appears on screen, this is simply not public knowledge. Also, the Ghostbloods appear to have more influence in Northern Scadrial, which appears to be distinct from the Malwish Empire. I dare say the Ghostbloods are still active - possibly in the Malwish Empire - they just don't make their influence obvious or well known to the layman - which they never have.
 

IotE Chapter 48, Page 367

  Reveal hidden contents

“Esandi,” he said to the screen. “Thank you for taking my call.” “Anything to repay the favor, Dajer,” she said in accented Malwish. “Will you show my friend your palm?” he asked, and the woman

raised her hand—exposing a fully alive aether bud.
Though Ed and Aditil had been certain no aetherbound served the

Malwish, here was proof otherwise.
“You realize,” the woman said, “that this reveals closely guarded state

secrets to that woman.”

 

I had the same thoughts regarding the Ghostbloods. 

IotE Chapter 55, Page 410

Spoiler

You know the funniest thing, Dusk? the god asked. We didn’t kill the
person they all are worried we assassinated. Their leader? He engaged my
services as a spy. I was there when partisans killed him.

They were my first thought when I read that.

 

What I am also curious about is whether Autonomy and/or one of their avatar's ended up having success on Southern Scadrial and has set up shop with the Malwish Empire. The way Dajer is pressing so hard to prove himself before ministerial appointments seems like that kind of way Autonomy likes people to prove themselves at all costs (or fail in shame).

 

[JustQuestin2004 he/him]

43 minutes ago, mtfires said:

What I am also curious about is whether Autonomy and/or one of their avatar's ended up having success on Southern Scadrial and has set up shop with the Malwish Empire. The way Dajer is pressing so hard to prove himself before ministerial appointments seems like that kind of way Autonomy likes people to prove themselves at all costs (or fail in shame).

That's an interesting idea.

Perhaps in Era 3, Trell will mess with the Southern Scadrians, breaking their faith in the Soveriegn by revealing him to be one of the 'Northern Barbarians', and messing with their faith in the Jaggenmire by either associating it with Harmony and revealing Harmony's role in unintentionally causing the Ice Death, or by co-opting their religion and trying to take the Jaggenmire's place or something.

After all, the Southern Scadrians advanced technology is what spurred Bavadin into trying to destroy Scadrial in the first place, but if you can't beat them, manipulate them into worshipping you and despising everyone else.