Direform vs. Koloss

[Frustration]

So on another thread I was talking about direforms being perhaps the single greatest foot soldiers in the Cosmere, when @Trusk'our brought up Koloss. So I have a two questions to pose to the community.

1. Which one would you choose as a foot soldier in your army?
2. Who would win in a fight?

 

 

[Deception He/Him]

25 minutes ago, Frustration said:

So on another thread I was talking about direforms being perhaps the single greatest foot soldiers in the Cosmere, when @Trusk'our brought up Koloss. So I have a two questions to pose to the community.

1. Which one would you choose as a foot soldier in your army?
2. Who would win in a fight?

 

 

1:

I would choose direforms, because Koloss are idiots. Even if I get them under my control, it can be broken, and it would be impossible to direct every single one to hold a formation on the battlefield.

 

2:

I think that depends what weapons they are fighting with. If they were using something like bare hands or clubs, the Koloss would probably win. If they were using something more skilled like swords or daggers, the direform would win.

[Trusk'our he/him]

2 hours ago, Frustration said:

So on another thread I was talking about direforms being perhaps the single greatest foot soldiers in the Cosmere, when @Trusk'our brought up Koloss. So I have a two questions to pose to the community.

1. Which one would you choose as a foot soldier in your army?
2. Who would win in a fight?

Depends on some stuff, including what Era of Koloss we're talking about.

Era 1 Koloss won't retreat from a fight. They're not psychologically wired for that. Meanwhile enemy armies will often break after only like 20% casualties I think?

They're also pretty dumb, and can be out maneuvered if not directed by an Allomancer or other powerful, intelligent force. Era 2 Koloss are more intelligent, but probably still on the slower side cognitively. 

They can subsist off of basically any biological substance, so keeping them in the field with no supply lines is quite feasible. 

Infections and disease don't appear to be a major issue given how torn up they get and we never hear it slow them down.

You can also create more of them if you have an enemy population, iron to shape into spikes, a potent Emotional Allomancer, and no morals so speak of.

Also, you don't need an Everstorm to create Koloss with spikes. An offworld Koloss force could create more in the field, but more Direforms likely would have to be converted from Singers on Roshar.

 

Direforms are very likely more Invested, and have full carapace armor.

They have minds more intact and can use their own agency to occupy captured territory without you needing to worry about them simply destroying it all.

They're also not going to get mind controlled, though given how Elend and Vin couldn't do this to a Koloss army untol the controlling Inquisitor was killed (at least as a whole. They got a few beforehand by causing enough emotional turmoil in them) I think this is much less of an issue than typically assumed. Unless you're going up against a Shard or something and don't have your own to back you up.

 

I'd probably choose Koloss for an army, but I don't know how they'd compare to a Direform 1 v 1. Probably weaker, but they're easier to get in large numbers and replace, easier to field, and easier to force into meat-grinder tactics.