Royal locks and breath

[Windborn_bolder]

In the beginning of Warbreaker vivenna is said to be good at controlling the Royal locks but when she gets a lot of breath the Royal locks become sensitive and changed all the time for her, but when she spends time as drab she finds it hard to change her hair could having breath or investor at all results in more active royal locks

[Treamayne]

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8 hours ago, Windborn_bolder said:

In the beginning of Warbreaker vivenna is said to be good at controlling the Royal locks but when she gets a lot of breath the Royal locks become sensitive and changed all the time for her, but when she spends time as drab she finds it hard to change her hair could having breath or investor at all results in more active royal locks

No, the amount of BioChromatic Breath isn't what is affecting her Royal Locks. You should have seen the opposite effect in Siri, as she became more comfortable and practiced, she gained more and more control of her Locks. It's about stability and emotional self control and the reversal between the sisters and how they control their Locks (or fail to do so) is part of the book's theme. 

Sanderson explains it in the free Annotations to Warbreaker:

Spoiler

Annotation to Ch 6:

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The Royal Locks

<snip>

The Royal Locks do work into the worldbuilding, as you’ll find out eventually in the book. However, mostly they’re around to give a distinctive feel to the world and the royal line, to show you that there is something unique about the royals. It hopefully enhances your understanding of why Hallandren would work so hard to bring them back into their own line of kings.

Annotation to Ch 13:

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Vivenna and Siri are beginning their role reversals here. Siri is learning to be more reserved—though it’s more that she’s learning to act like a queen. Taking responsibility, being active rather than inactive.

Vivenna is being forced, just a little bit, into inactivity. She thinks she’s doing things, but she’s mostly just reacting. Beyond that, she’s experiencing what it’s like to lose control of her emotions repeatedly.

Annotation to Ch 22:

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Only Potential Heirs of Idris Have Royal Locks

This is true. It’s not a matter of genetics, but lineage. That’s a subtle distinction. Only the children of the person who ends up inheriting will have the Royal Locks. (Though there are a couple of notable exceptions to this, they won’t show up in this book, as it will take another novel to explain why and how the Royal Locks really work. If I ever write a sequel, that should be in it.)

This factoid about the Royal Locks should be one of several hints about the lineage of the Idrian crown. There is something odd about their heritage.

Annotation to Ch 36:

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You should have been able to notice some changes about Siri, one of the most subtle being her ability to control her hair. The hair is, in a way, an extension of the metaphor. In the beginning chapters, Siri wasn’t able to control it at all, and it always changed back right after she tried to make it go to a specific color. It did what it wanted, reflecting her attitudes, and kind of represented her ability (or lack of ability, in her case) to control the world around her.

Now, she’s able to manipulate things around her slightly to her liking. In contrast, Vivenna’s life is completely out of control. And the hair will respond.

Annotation to Ch 40:

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I wanted a good, strong scene where we could see that Siri made the decision to keep her hair in check. Again, I’m moving her and Vivenna into different roles, but I want it to be natural, an evolution of their characters brought on by who they are and how their surroundings affect them.

In this case, living in the Court of Gods, there is a very good reason to learn to control your hair. If many are like Treledees, who is of the Third Heightening, then even the most minute changes in your hair color will tip them off.

This is one of the interactions of the magic system that was nice to connect, an interaction I didn’t expect or anticipate. With a lot of Breath, you can perceive very slight changes in color. With the Royal Locks, your hair responds to even your slightest emotions. Put the two together, and you get this scene. It was, in a way, inevitable from the beginning of the book.

Siri has come a long way. She’s still stumbling about and making a lot of mistakes. But she’s also winning some victories. 

 

Hope that helps.