[NEW WoB][WaT Spoilers] Whomst?

[TacoBellChoutaMeal]

https://wob.coppermind.net/events/546/#e16944
 

this has gotta be Adolin, right? Who else could it have been? Szeth? 

[Ookla the Newt she/her]

I'm more inclined towards Szeth tbh - as far as I can tell he kinda vanishes into the background, while Adolin looks like he'll be taking a very active role in the back half, so Szeth's fate could've been changed more easily without messing up the outline.

Also the Maya stuff is something he's been building up too much to throw away that fast.

[Xanpheon]

I actually kind of suspect it might have been Kaladin.

Obviously I don't have the full context surrounding the WoB, but... Kaladin's story is kind of complete. Syl seems to be ascending to fill the void left by the eradication of the Stormfather, Kaladin isn't over his depression but nonetheless freed the Heralds from their madness, Bridge Four is... well, I mean, it's a complete organization that doesn't "need" him anymore. He's a hero, yes, but he'd done his saving.

While I really like the decision that Kaladin made, I think his Fifth Ideal could have been something else. There were other ideals he could have sworn, going by how he had acted up until that point. But I could see a world where he didn't end up a Herald, but instead fought for Dalinar at the very end, protecting Syl in another way as she ascended beyond him.

But having said that - I like how things ended up, and probably the most likely is Szeth.

[Jult]

Probably Szeth. There are some other options that come to mind though.

Taravangian could have destroyed Gavinor when he was done with him. 

Yanagawn dying would have had interesting personal impacts on Adolin/Lift and interesting political impacts as well.

Lopen and several other members of Bridge 4 had a chance to try chasing after Moash when they rescued Sigzil and Moash fled.

[Returned he/him]

It could have been virtually anyone since we don't know how much the outline diverged from the final book. Top guesses from me are Szeth, Ishar, Nale, Shallan, Moash/Vyre, Lopen, Yanagawn, Adolin, and Gallant. All of these characters matter, but they've already done an awful lot of what mattered in the world and aren't obviously set up for the back five books (and so are fair game for being killed off at the end of the first five volumes).

I think Szeth is the most likely by far, since he faced an existential crisis at the climax of WaT and turned away from the duties and magic powers that defined him previously. He had no denouement after that climax and the "what happened to him after" section felt tacked on.