Weaponizing Stories

[KSub]

I was just listening to the Emberdark reactions episode of shardcast. Argent brought up the idea of weaponizing stories to control the entities. I have to agree with the general consensus that it would take time. I think this is because people would need to really believe the story for it to affect the cognitive realm. And it would take time to affect anything once people actually do believe. 
 

Also, is this Hoids master plan?

[Nitpicking]

You triggered a thought: does Hoid work under so many different names, none of them his real one, specifically to avoid letting people's beliefs about him change him?

[Wits instant noodles he/him]

On 10/8/2025 at 5:15 PM, KSub said:

think this is because people would need to really believe the story

I think it would come down to whether or not the people knew that the intent was to shape an entity, if it’s like a story someone started 200 years ago for this purpose and now everyone’s knows it, it would work I think but if the people know that it’s a story used for this purpose I don’t think it works. 

 

10 hours ago, Nitpicking said:

 

You triggered a thought: does Hoid work under so many different names, none of them his real one, specifically to avoid letting people's beliefs about him change him

 

It’s possible but it shaping investiture usually only happens significantly to beings of pure or crazy high investiture, and although we’ve seen hoid has access to loads of magics we don’t know if he keeps that much investiture just on him, we know he has breaths from the end of rhythm of war, and that he sometimes has metals in his stomach from the scene where he shakes the metal in the room in WaT, and we know he has some kind of stormlight/whatever powers his light weaving, but I dunno if these are enough to justify worrying about being shaped.

now the other thought I had is that it might be the opposite of what you said, we see hoid act slightly different and have slightly different personality depending on the planet, I wonder if he’s maybe already been being shaped by the people. Of course this assumes my earlier comment is wrong and he does have enough on him to be changed. 

Edited October 10, 2025 by Wits instant noodles

[Nitpicking]

6 hours ago, Wits instant noodles said:

It’s possible but it shaping investiture usually only happens significantly to beings of pure or crazy high investiture, and although we’ve seen hoid has access to loads of magics we don’t know if he keeps that much investiture just on him, we know he has breaths from the end of rhythm of war, and that he sometimes has metals in his stomach from the scene where he shakes the metal in the room in WaT, and we know he has some kind of stormlight/whatever powers his light weaving, but I dunno if these are enough to justify worrying about being shaped.

now the other thought I had is that it might be the opposite of what you said, we see hoid act slightly different and have slightly different personality depending on the planet, I wonder if he’s maybe already been penis being shaped by the people. Of course this assumes my earlier comment is wrong and he does have enough on him to be changed. 

Note that this is an all-Cosmere spoilers-allowed forum.

Depending on the time period, Hoid is also a Radiant and an Elantrian. He can use Yolen-style Lightweaving. If he's Topaz from Dragonsteel Prime he can use microkinesis. He can apparently send his consciousness to the Spiritual Realm to commune with the spirits of dead dragons (with the help of a tamukek). And, most importantly, he's a Dawnshard, or former Dawnshard, again depending on the period.

 

On another note, I'd love to know what you meant to write in that penultimate sentence about sex organs.

[Wits instant noodles he/him]

30 minutes ago, Nitpicking said:

another note, I'd love to know what you meant to write in that penultimate sentence about sex organs.

Ima be real no clue how that got in there or what it was supposed to say

[Sythrin]

On 10/10/2025 at 4:42 AM, Nitpicking said:

You triggered a thought: does Hoid work under so many different names, none of them his real one, specifically to avoid letting people's beliefs about him change him?

I doubt it considering that he carries the dawnshard for "exist" and it seems to be extremly against the notion of change.

[Nitpicking]

4 hours ago, Sythrin said:

I doubt it considering that he carries the dawnshard for "exist" and it seems to be extremly against the notion of change.

Why do you say he's against change? He carried Exist for a while, but we don't know if he ever gets it back after passing it to Sigzil.

Also, why would not wanting change protect him from experiencing it?

[CoderDrag0n8 He/Him]

34 minutes ago, Nitpicking said:

Why do you say he's against change? He carried Exist for a while, but we don't know if he ever gets it back after passing it to Sigzil.

Also, why would not wanting change protect him from experiencing it?

Intent is a lot in the cosmere, and the direct intent of not wanting to change combined with such a large piece of investiture (even with only the after print) would do a lot.

And the after-effects of exist are still on him, just like how Sigzil had aftereffects

[Nitpicking]

5 hours ago, CoderDrag0n8 said:

Intent is a lot in the cosmere, and the direct intent of not wanting to change combined with such a large piece of investiture (even with only the after print) would do a lot.

And the after-effects of exist are still on him, just like how Sigzil had aftereffects

Again, what makes you think Hoid hates change? I mean, he helped kill Adonalsium, which I think was a pretty big change. He keeps learning new magic systems, which is changing himself voluntarily. He changes people he meets. His apprentices all feel that he changed them, right?

[CoderDrag0n8 He/Him]

5 hours ago, Nitpicking said:

Again, what makes you think Hoid hates change? I mean, he helped kill Adonalsium, which I think was a pretty big change. He keeps learning new magic systems, which is changing himself voluntarily. He changes people he meets. His apprentices all feel that he changed them, right?

Already in Dragonsteel Prime he had felt the mental effects of having the exist dawn shard, so imagine having centuries or even millennium of being stuck with that dawnshard

I imagine it would be somewhat similar to holding an actual shard.

[Wits instant noodles he/him]

17 hours ago, Nitpicking said:

Again, what makes you think Hoid hates change?

I don't think he hates change, I think the idea is that he doesn't like being subject to change he doesn't choose, like being shaped by people's perception.

On 10/13/2025 at 4:37 PM, Sythrin said:

I doubt it considering that he carries the dawnshard for "exist" and it seems to be extremly against the notion of change.

I think maybe your confusing the intent of exist and preserve. Existing just refers to being in a state of existing, it doesn't seem to prohibit change in anyway. The only thing we ever see it actually do is stop people from causing others to stop existing. I think it would definitely not prohibit change at all especially if it helps its carrier to keep existing.