Shallan's Powers

[Cheese Ninja]

Also, even though we've gotten most people (maybe not Voldy?) to agree that the Soulcaster was broken with a Shardblade, there's still division on whether it was the killing blow (my preference) or after death Shardblade materialization. Either seems likely to me.

Sorry I never got back to Voldy on listing all the usages of 'shear' in Way of Kings, page numbers are epub edition, it's a bit of a PITA, and then I forgot about it: pg. 30, 35, 216, 220, 222, 317, 397, 398 (through souls, instead of a physical thing), 469, 521 (where it's used to described the Soulcaster), 695, 696, 805, 806, 806 again, 923 (metaphorically, through ranks of Parshendi), and 955 Every instance except on page 521 is explicitly used for a Shardblade's actions. 16/17 times, if you count the Soulcaster, 17/17 100%. 'Shear' is never used in any of Kaladin's surgical scenes, which would be another likely place for it show up, but it doesn't.

Also, zas meant "Asmodean-like death" not "Adonalsium-like death" in his last post, and while I agree with my theory that Kaladin killed Helaran (obviously), I actually believe that particular comment refers to Gaz. More detail here.

[name_here]

I suspect it was not the killing blow, for a couple reasons.

1. Shallan apparently obtained the Shardblade by killing her father, so she couldn't have killed him with a weapon she didn't have.

2. There was apparently a lot of blood, which is not typical of Shardblade kills.

[Cheese Ninja]

She began the process anyway. Ten heartbeats, to bring forth the fruit of her sin, the proceeds of her most horrific act. She was interrupted midway through by a voice, uncanny yet distinct:

1.If he had summoned it, then set it aside, and then she killed him with it, I think she could still consider "fruit of her sin". Same for if it had belonged to someone else, her father killed him/her, and then she killed her father with it.

2. The first, killing blow with a Shardblade wouldn't draw blood, but once they're dead, any subsequent blows will cut them in half, which would have to be bloody. Also, there could have been someone that was killed by normal means (her Memory from "Burned into Her"), likely by her father, while her father was killed by her Shardblade.

I like the whole 2nd person theory because it allows her Shardblade to have an origin outside of their family, which might explain why they couldn't sell the Shardblade without getting into even more trouble themselves. The topic of selling the Shardblade is never even brought up, so we don't know if her brothers know about it. (I assume they must, if the killing blow was a Shardblade, it's too distinctive, and the Soulcaster being sheared is difficult to hide.)

Edited October 15, 2012 by Cheese Ninja

[Millennium]

Do we know that Shallan wields a Shardblade? Do we have evidence for this? I mean its possible she killed her dad and took his blade (provided he had a blade in the first place)....but do we have any backing for this theory?

Brandon has said that Shallan's ten-heartbeats thing "means what you think it means," which is generally taken as confirmation that she has a Shardblade. She certainly feels responsible for her father's death, and the symbolheads don't object to her saying so.

That said, Brandon's wording has been careful. We don't know exactly how Shallan's father died, so there is room for her murder of him to be "from a certain point of view." As for the Shardblade, it could have been her father's, or she might have taken it from someone else involved in his death: one of her father's bodyguards, or an assassin who fell. She might also have received the Shardblade as a payment or reward for killing her father: a payment or reward that she might or might not have earned.

[Zenith]

Brandon has said that Shallan's ten-heartbeats thing "means what you think it means," which is generally taken as confirmation that she has a Shardblade. She certainly feels responsible for her father's death, and the symbolheads don't object to her saying so.

That said, Brandon's wording has been careful. We don't know exactly how Shallan's father died, so there is room for her murder of him to be "from a certain point of view." As for the Shardblade, it could have been her father's, or she might have taken it from someone else involved in his death: one of her father's bodyguards, or an assassin who fell. She might also have received the Shardblade as a payment or reward for killing her father: a payment or reward that she might or might not have earned.

If an assassin was sent...

Although this is completely random, truthless, maybe? Szeth is the only one we know of (if there can be more than one), and a specific thing for truthless is that they can't give their shardblades up.

[name_here]

Nope, the Shin in the interludes say there are currently no others like Szeth. While theoretically they could be lying, the man talking to them had no idea what Truthless meant beyond obedient and good work ethic, so there was no particular reason to lie to him.

[Zenith]

Nope, the Shin in the interludes say there are currently no others like Szeth. While theoretically they could be lying, the man talking to them had no idea what Truthless meant beyond obedient and good work ethic, so there was no particular reason to lie to him.

Ah. Too bad, then.

[FaeMofo]

Nope, the Shin in the interludes say there are currently no others like Szeth. While theoretically they could be lying, the man talking to them had no idea what Truthless meant beyond obedient and good work ethic, so there was no particular reason to lie to him.

/

Maybe there aren't any other Shin truthless, but could there be truthless from other races maybe? Bound in the same way but by different rules?

[frozndevl]

I find that having other Truthless from other races doesn't make sense. It is, presumably, a sense of honor that causes Szeth to do what his oathstone holder does and no one else we have seen even approaches that level of honor to the point of committing evil acts.

[Alonin]

I think it is just an ability of Shallan. There are people who have a photographic memory. For Shallan, She can do it with scenes. and images. THe reason the spren show up in her drawings has to do with some wort of sense she has with them. Similar to Elhokar, who can actually see them without having to draw them.

[Zenith]

Another interesting thing:

I believe it was the chapter 35 heading, talking about (Uritihu, right?) being built in the west, close to Honor.

Capitol H. So, would that mean that Rosharians are aware of Honor somehow? Did the old people know of the shards? If you ask me, it also means that highstorms aren't of Honor; why would Honor's center of power be in the west, but highstorms come from the East? Could it be possible that they are somehow Odium looking to find Honor's power? Is it possible that Honor's center of power is Shinovar, where highstorms can't reach?

...Only on Brandon Sanderson's fansite do you make theories from the capitalization of one word.

[happyman]

Another interesting thing:

I believe it was the chapter 35 heading, talking about (Uritihu, right?) being built in the west, close to Honor.

Capitol H. So, would that mean that Rosharians are aware of Honor somehow? Did the old people know of the shards? If you ask me, it also means that highstorms aren't of Honor; why would Honor's center of power be in the west, but highstorms come from the East? Could it be possible that they are somehow Odium looking to find Honor's power? Is it possible that Honor's center of power is Shinovar, where highstorms can't reach?

...Only on Brandon Sanderson's fansite do you make theories from the capitalization of one word.

In one of Dalinar's visions, the one where he fights the midnight essences, the woman swears by the three gods. It seems likely that at some point, humans on Roshar knew more about what was actually going on.