Brandon Sanderson AMA 2015

[hafje]

I bet that speaking the words has to do with the language section of the brain/intelligence. An odd example is that in our world, when this section of the brain goes down, people can make noises, but they can't talk. Mute or deaf people have troubles "speaking" sign language. That means that this section is in charge of "speech", even when it's not spoken. 

 

I'd imagine that it'd be the same with the Ideals. Although it seems different for Awakeners. You can jump over the voice requirement with enough breath, but Suseborn couldn't just write the Commands and have them work. Hmm.

So, to add a bit more explanation of speech and language being linked. They are linked but they are both centered in two brain areas: Broca's and Wernicke's Area. It seems odd but damage in the different areas can cause different things.

For example damage in Wernicke's Area causes one to be unable to understand language (written and spoken), and in a lot of cases other sounds as well like the noise of a car. These people are able to say gramatically correct sentences but these sentences have no meaning at all.

Damage in the other area is very different. Those people are able to understand language but would be unable to respond. Their responses usually contain the right words but they are unable to construct sentences with them that make any sense to others.

[maxal]

About the speech WoB... Does it mean a proto-Radiant does not need to say the words out loud even if that person is not mute? Can simply acting on the oath, thinking it while not saying it be sufficient?

[Argent]

I think special circumstances are necessary - Kaladin had to speak his, Syl made it clear. Maybe it's just some orders.

[maxal]

I think special circumstances are necessary - Kaladin had to speak his, Syl made it clear. Maybe it's just some orders.

 

Yes, but he only acted according to the next ideal once he had said it... He was also in dire need of the additional power in both occasions. Brandon's answer was also unambiguous. He said yes, not in some cases or it may be possible or some orders would have trouble with it. It was a universal yes, which leads me to believe Kaladin did not have to say the words out load. However, it could be the fact Kaladin only tends to discover oaths while he is half-dying (I doubt this is how it always happens), he was more or less forced to speak them as he couldn't very well be acting on it before. Though one could argue, the second he tried to protect Elhokar, he enforced the 3rd oath...

[ParadoxicalZen]

I believe i may have a WoB on this (that or it was in book)

 

Not sure if this was the exact one 

 

 

INTERVIEW: Mar 18th, 2014

WOR-Lexington, KY

TGANCHERO

No specific question.

BRANDON SANDERSON

Not completely sure on this one: He said that at one point Shallan may have said all the oaths for her order (or may have been capable of saying all of the oaths by the end of the book) but has since regressed due to "memory loss/repression." Regarding Dalinar: He said that Dalinar has had a bond with the Stormfather "for a while." He also only said one oath at the top of the Urithiru tower, not two. Dalinar conveyed a single idea in that particular oath. Brandon also clarified that the oaths, with the exception of the first ideal, are not restricted to specific words. Rather, a specific idea must be conveyed for the oath to be accepted.

 

Uncertain if this helps, but hey

[CabbageHead]

There is a blue oval and a white sphere. As far as I can tell, they represent the Shardpool and something on the other side of the "gate." Since tWoK, I've assumed that it's Shadesmar/the Cognitive Realm. It's a black sky with a white sphere.

 

Oh, and Galladon thinks it represents the pool as a gate.

 

So, two questions. Is this Dominion or Devotion's "perpendicularity"? And is there a canonical term for Shardpool? Perpendicularity isn't canon yet, right? It was mentioned in a WoB...

 

I always assumed that "Perpendicularity" was just one of the Spren's unusual lexical constructions, referring to a tower, and that "Honor's Perpendicularity" was a reference to Urithiru, which likely would be a stable junction point for Jasnah to elsecall at.

[ccstat]

More answers! (I'll come back and edit the multi-parters into Q&A format when I have some more time.)
 

ArsenoPyrite: Hello! Your various audiobooks have been saving my sanity through a few weeks of 5-hour commutes. This has incidentally led me to a quick question: what might happen if you gave a parshman a breath (or breaths?) Would they develop a form for it, or might it generally help them think more clearly? Thanks!

Brandon: You're actually the first to ask this. And yes, it would work.

 

Hmm, pretty sure we already had a question on this before.

 

 

FirstSelector:
I hate to (yet again) draw your attention from writing to reddit, but I also had a few questions. Thanks for your time, it's pretty neat that you are still (perhaps) answering!
1) You have claimed that the Shardworlds had their names prior to the settlement of people and Shards. However, Ruin and Preservation created Scadrial (presumably post-Shattering). Where, then, did that planet get its name, and how did the rest of the cosmere learn of it?
2) When Kalak sees the ring of Honorblades in the Prelude, he describes them as "flowing in design, inscribed with glyphs and patterns." However, in the main text we encounter two (presumed) blades - Jezrien's and Talenel's, neither of which were included in Kalak's original accounting. The first is explicitly depicted as being devoid of ornamentation, and the second is ambiguous. Were all ten original Honorblades ornamented and inscribed, and if so, what causes the change?
3) Did pre-Shattering people on Yolen swear by the God Beyond?
4) Would an alloy of atium and lerasium produce the same effects pre- and post-Harmony?
Thanks again for your time!

Brandon:
1) While many of them were named, not all of them were. And the presence of a Shard warps Shadesmar much as large objects warp the physical realm (gravitation.) So if you know how to look, it's not hard to find them.
2) RAFO
3) RAFO
4) Yes.

 

 

Phantine: Are any of your novels simultaneous (or nearly simultaneous) with each other? Like, for instance, does Alloy of Law happen when Vasher is hanging out with Vivennia?

Brandon: None of them are exactly simultaneous yet.

 

 

ccstat: Would Mraize have recognized mugshots of the "thugs" who accosted Jasnah and Shallan in WoK?

Brandon: RAFO

 

(related to this thread)
 

blaze1616: I've got a couple of Perfect State questions, but first I want to say that the story captivated me unlike any of your other novellas or short stories!
1) When did Besk first meet Kai? Two different passages within the story imply two different times in Kai's life, so I'd love some confirmation.
2) Sophie's history is very detailed. I was wondering if her history is the same as Melhi's actual history?
Thanks for being such an awesome writer!

Brandon:
1) Man, I tweaked this in writing, and now I wonder if I created a consistency error. He met Besk during his adventuring days, but later in them. 2) Yes, she was being honest.

 

[WeiryWriter]

Hmm, pretty sure we already had a question on this before.

 

We did:

 

 

Extra [15:09]

Argent

Would a parshman who received multiple breaths, or any other type of Investiture, be able to gain sentence or become more like listener-- Kind of like mistwraith/kandra?

Brandon Sanderson

That would require some Identity changes and transformations.

Argent

So it's not just a dump of--

Brandon Sanderson

It's not just a dump. It's a biological thing for them, they’ve adapted. So they've evolved to the point where this sort of thing-- It would be like trying to power DC with AC current or the wrong voltage or something like that... I mean once you figure it out it could be an easy hack but finding out that hack it's like-- You know it's like going back to people in the 1800's and being like "Why don't you guys have electricity?" *laughter*

 

(source)

[ParadoxicalZen]

More questions ^^

 

https://www.reddit.com/r/books/comments/2ytg2h/im_novelist_brandon_sanderson_ama/ctylb76

 

Phantine: Would a lifeless Koloss still be super strong?

I have a player who wants to make one and use it as a mecha suit.

Also, which term do you prefer: Kolifeless or Lifeloss?

 

Brandon: If you were doing this in some sort of RPG setting, this is totally something (as GM) I'd let you do--because it's interesting and different and I like to play loose and free with letting the players do interesting things.

However, in the actual realm of cosmere metaphysics, this isn't going to work the way your player wants it to. You see, what is happening to create a koloss is a human soul is taken, sliced up, and sutured back together--with the spikes being the "stitches" that holds it all together. That's a problem, since the various forms of investiture don't play very well together. In Awakening, you're basically giving something a counterfeit soul. (But without the skill or knowledge of something like an Essence Mark.)

This means that in investing the corpse of the koloss, you have troubles. It's going to want to snap back to the original human shape and strength. If you COULD overcome this, then yes, it would be stronger. I'd go with Lifeloss myself.

 

https://www.reddit.com/r/books/comments/2ytg2h/im_novelist_brandon_sanderson_ama/cty5buo

 

SageOfTheWise:  Is there a reason why Rashek left a nugget of Lerasium at the Well of Ascension

 

Brandon: He left several. It was, in his opinion, one of the best kept secrets and best protected locations in his empire.

 

Phantine: Were there originally 16 of them?

 

Brandon: An excellent guess.

 

https://www.reddit.com/r/books/comments/2ytg2h/im_novelist_brandon_sanderson_ama/ctxqbak

 

ccstat: Prior to loosing his eye, was Gaz a heterochromat?

 

Brandon: No, but excellent question.

 

https://www.reddit.com/r/books/comments/2ytg2h/im_novelist_brandon_sanderson_ama/ctxnac0

 

ArsenoPyrite: Sorry to ask another question so soon! I got a bit further in WoR, and another thing came to mind. Of the few 'evil' magic systems we've seen, two of the most prominent, Fjordell glyphs and stormform both involve growing nigh-inpenetrable bones under the surface of the skin. Are these pointing to some similar fell influence, or is it just a cool thing for bad people to do? Edit: also, how great a name for a rock band is Weevil Wax??

 

Brandon: Weevil Wax would make a great band name.

This is mostly coincidence.

 

https://www.reddit.com/r/books/comments/2ytg2h/im_novelist_brandon_sanderson_ama/ctxhdos

 

Oudeis16: When Pattern is not floating as a 3D fractal ball, he has a tendency to travel just beneath the surface of things. Is this a deliberate parallel to blood?

 

Brandon: 

Not deliberate, but perhaps unconscious.

 

https://www.reddit.com/r/books/comments/2ytg2h/im_novelist_brandon_sanderson_ama/ctvpms0

 

ArsenoPyrite: Hello! Your various audiobooks have been saving my sanity through a few weeks of 5-hour commutes. This has incidentally led me to a quick question: what might happen if you gave a parshman a breath (or breaths?) Would they develop a form for it, or might it generally help them think more clearly? Thanks!

 

Brandon: You're actually the first to ask this. And yes, it would work.

 

https://www.reddit.com/r/books/comments/2ytg2h/im_novelist_brandon_sanderson_ama/ctwudve

 

ParadoxicalWims: 1) I remember reading a WoB about which of your characters you'd invite to dinner (of which Hoid and Kelsier were two) and you said the both of them have a bit of a problem with each other. Is it anything major and when did this problem happen? (Have they also seen each other again now Kelsier's a cognitive shadow?)

2) Have we seen the machinations/handiwork/involvement of any native Rosharan worldhoppers in any other published cosmere books? (if so, can we have a very, very, very, very, very small hint/clue?)

 

Brandon: 

Big RAFO. 2) Sorry. RAFO also.

 

Sorry guys, I tried

Edited August 12, 2015 by ParadoxSpren

[maxal]

I like the Gaz one: it settles one pet-theory of mine stating Gaz lost eye was light. I think it is interesting we are getting a perspective on Gaz, as a character, both from Kaladin and from Shallan and they widely differs. Kaladin presents us a rather negative portrait of Gaz whereas Shallan shows us a different man. I love this. The real Gaz is most likely not the despicable human being Kaladin led to believe he was, but he isn't either the nice eager one Shallan showed us. Brilliant work here.

[Shardbearer]

I like the Gaz one: it settles one pet-theory of mine stating Gaz lost eye was light. I think it is interesting we are getting a perspective on Gaz, as a character, both from Kaladin and from Shallan and they widely differs. Kaladin presents us a rather negative portrait of Gaz whereas Shallan shows us a different man. I love this. The real Gaz is most likely not the despicable human being Kaladin led to believe he was, but he isn't either the nice eager one Shallan showed us. Brilliant work here.

 

Well, Shallan's thing is Transformation. This also extends to the people around her. It's interesting me how this works. She has a tendency to see people as they should be, not as they really are, and as they interact with her they become more like her idealistic view of them.

 

Kaladin, on the other hand, well he has something similar going on with the people he's trying to protect, like Bridge 4. But he is more pessimistic about everyone else, especially for those who are part of the "them" (in regards to his "us vs. them" training he got in Amaram's army). 

[Argent]

This is the AMA that never ends...

 

https://www.reddit.com/r/books/comments/2ytg2h/im_novelist_brandon_sanderson_ama/cu239n5?context=10000

 

Q: I primarily listen to the books, so my spelling and visual imaging might be a bit off. But, the food that Lopen likes, choutta, is that kind of like a Runza?

A: They eat flatbread in Roshar--the bread doesn't rise. So in that respect, it's more like a burrito. Only, they roll it more like a cone, and they fill it with chunks of meat covered in gravy. The flavor is going to be more runza like than burrito like, but it's kind of like a pita filled with meatballs.

 

https://www.reddit.com/r/books/comments/2ytg2h/im_novelist_brandon_sanderson_ama/cu23apu?context=10000

 

Q: In allomancy, normal metals are simply a tool that channels allomancers already existing connection to the power of preservation, which is why non allomancers don't get powers from digesting metal. But if I understand it correctly, god metals are an exception, since they are a form of a shards power, burning them directly uses the power stored within.

If I have this right, how come a normal person can burn Lerasium, but not Atium? Or could they, and no ones thought to try? But if that was true why are there Atium mistings?

A: Suffice it to say that what people both in the books and out think about the god metals has some holes in it.

 

https://www.reddit.com/r/books/comments/2ytg2h/im_novelist_brandon_sanderson_ama/cu23er3?context=10000

 

Q: Sorry to ask yet another question, I promise this is my last one for a while. Is the act of taking up a shard parallel to the act of Awakening? In broad strokes awakening gives a piece of a soul for power along with a purpose or compulsion. So, say, when someone takes up Ruin, are they operating on the same principle, taking a fragment of Adolnasium's 'soul' along with the command "ruin things"?

A: You could make this parallel, and argue it to many of the cosmere-aware scholars in the books, and they'd find themselves nodding.

 

https://www.reddit.com/r/books/comments/2ytg2h/im_novelist_brandon_sanderson_ama/cu23hff?context=10000

 

Q: Worldbringers and Worldsingers have very similar names, is there a reason for this?

A: Yes.

Q: Any timeframe of when we'll find out why Vin avoided Hoid in Hero of Ages?

A: Next year, after the release of Bands of Mourning, is the earliest.

Excite!

 

https://www.reddit.com/r/books/comments/2ytg2h/im_novelist_brandon_sanderson_ama/cu23igi?context=10000

 

Q: In Alloy, there are those who use both Allomancy and Feruchemy. However, I recall Sazed in The Hero of Ages stating that he believed he was the last surviving Feruchemist (I think he may have said "Keeper"?). Was he incorrect in his assumption of being the last Feruchemist (based on the fact that people use Feruchemy in Alloy) or could Feruchemy have been recessive in some Terris people?

A: It was most certainly recessive. But the specific way Sazed speaks there is important.

Let's find a quote here, shall we?

[masaru]

A pita filled with meatballs sounds great.

[Moogle]

The god metals question is interesting, but I'm not entirely sure I follow the train of logic presented by the questioner. Allomancy (burning metals) is of Preservation, as is lerasium. Why would we expect atium to be burnable by default? Ruin has no part in Allomancy.

 

Lerasium being burnable by default is interesting, and I'd be quite interested in a mechanical explanation for why. But there's no reason to assume this extends to atium.

[Argent]

You can make the argument for both cases. Is lerasium burnable by default because it's a piece of the same power that fuels Allomancy, or is it burnable by default because it's the physical manifestation of a Shard, and as such doesn't behave like regular allomantic metals? We don't know.

[Moogle]

Perhaps, but I'm not sold on the idea. Again, burning metals is specifically the power that Allomancy grants. You could perhaps make a parallel to Hemalurgy being able to be performed by anyone anywhere, but in that case I wouldn't expect the effect to be limited to just god metals.

[ParadoxicalZen]

On the basis of terminology, I'd argue that you don't actually burn Lerasium the first time - and your body actually digests it - as I was always thought that ingesting the bead is what grants you access to/heightens that extra little bit of Preservation inside Scadrialese humans, manifesting as allomancy (or what Moogle said) whereas actually burning it (actually having allomancy first to burn the metal) provides a different effect (via WoB). It does make me wonder if ingesting Atium has any effect on a non-allomantic Scadrialese human though, I think that might be my next question.  

Edited August 14, 2015 by ParadoxSpren

[Curiosity]

 

Q: In Alloy, there are those who use both Allomancy and Feruchemy. However, I recall Sazed in The Hero of Ages stating that he believed he was the last surviving Feruchemist (I think he may have said "Keeper"?). Was he incorrect in his assumption of being the last Feruchemist (based on the fact that people use Feruchemy in Alloy) or could Feruchemy have been recessive in some Terris people?

A: It was most certainly recessive. But the specific way Sazed speaks there is important.

 

In the annotations, Brandon says that Sazed is likely mistaken in this regard and has depression coloring his reasoning.

[Curiosity]

 

Q: In Warbreaker, the closer an inanimate object is to a humanoid shape, the easier it is to awaken it.

Hypothetically, say a race of sentient quadrupedal canines had access to BioChromatic Breath. Would they have an easier time awakening objects if they were closer to a canine shape, or is the rule still that it needs to be more humanoid?

 

A: Closer to canine.

https://www.reddit.com/r/books/comments/2ytg2h/im_novelist_brandon_sanderson_ama/cucl8xa?context=3

 

 

Q: Could you train your pet parrot to Awaken things, if it learned to say the necessary Commands?

 

A: Afraid not. Intention is important.

https://www.reddit.com/r/books/comments/2ytg2h/im_novelist_brandon_sanderson_ama/cucl9yx?context=3

 

Edited August 26, 2015 by Curiosity

[Argent]

https://www.reddit.com/r/books/comments/2ytg2h/im_novelist_brandon_sanderson_ama/cuefpq7?context=10000

 

Q: Hypothetically, if all of the Listeners were to go extinct would the Rhythms still exist?

A: Yes.

Q: Are there any other species in the cosmere that also interact with the Rhythms like the listeners do? (Though not necessarily in the same way?)

A: Yes.

[mail-mi]

I wondered about that too.

 

A related question: Brandon has said somewhere that Sel's magic is location specific for reasons fandom hasn't teased out yet.  (And I had in my notes that this is not because the shard's intent is Dominion.)  I wonder if it has something to do with -- and I know this part may still be unsure -- the Dor's coming from both Devotion and Dominion, and the fact that Devotion is dead and Dominion is splintered. 

 

Then again, he also said at one point that Scadrial's magic would be easiest to use on other worlds (?)  Is this just because metal is everywhere?  If that's the case, then maybe Sel's magic's being location specific has more to do with the medium through which the magic is accessed rather than its source.

 

P.S. - @ ParadoxSpren -- The mental images of people belly flopping into Shadesmar made me laugh  

 

I know this is from a while ago, but I do have a thing on this: Brandon told me that there is some type of relation of how Investiture-rich a planet is to how easy it is to use off-world. More investiture poor, like Scadrial, easier to use off world. More investiture rich, like Roshar, harder to use off-world (like seriously how are you going to get Stormlight anywhere else?)

[Argent]

Here's an interesting take on how Brandon would design a Feruchemist in D&D (a bit of wall of text, easier to read on Reddit):

 

https://www.reddit.com/r/Mistborn/comments/3inuog/i_need_some_help_im_looking_for_dungeons_and/cuie8c9

 

I will second getting the Mistborn adventure game, just because those guys did such a great job with the game. However, let's talk about what a Feruchemist is doing in terms of storytelling and see if we can apply that to the context of a group storytelling session, like an RPG.

Why Feruchemy "works" in book terms is because it's about intrinsic trade off. We see the character pay something, so we accept when later on, they're able to do something dramatic. Narratively, their boost is "earned" in much the same way that a character "earns" their ending winning a duel by showing us through the story that they've been practicing with the sword.

You need to "earn" your boosts. If I were a GM, I'd suggest that you can store attributes during one day of gameplay, to use it during another day of gameplay. -2STR for one day, +2STR for the next day. I'd say no more than -/+2 at first--with feats or Feruchemist prestige class levels allowing you to do 4 or even 6. Storing senses could be covered with WIS, and health with CON.

Alternately, if you want to get into the specifics, you could try something where when you land a hit, you can use a smaller damage die (a d4 instead of d6) to "store up" strength. Then later, when you need it, you can trade in one of those stored moments (which would be capped with a maximum number that could be stored at once, to be raised by requiring you to find special metals) to raise a damage die during a climactic battle--maybe making your d6 into a d10. You could do the same thing with spot checks (take a penalty for specific rolls to be able to add to the later on.) HP could be done the same way--drop your HP for a battle to "store" then raise them for another battle.

This is more of a tweak to the way the books use the magic, but the idea is to make certain your cost is still a cost. You get ahead by choosing the times to - or +, making it fun--but you are always paying a price.

So the first question I'd ask myself is do I want this to be a time period thing or a specific instances thing--which would be more fun to play? Then ask is this about attributes or specific skills/hit points, etc? Define some rules, define how you get better, and then have fun within the system.

Personally, I'd avoid the will save as a cost to drawing out the attribute or ability. Perhaps make it require concentration checks if you want to make it tougher--but requiring a will save to magically gain strength doesn't feel very "feruchemist" to me and downplays the real fun you could have with the character. Role playing a day spent with very low spot checks, or a terrible constitution, could be really fun.

I'd also figure out if you can do some kind of "super move" with the abilities by storing up a whole lot. (Like ten units, however you decide upon them.)

My take on the attributes: Iron: To be used in a role playing way, making yourself lighter or heavier, with no battle implications. Steel: Increase/decrease movement speed in a fight. OR under the effects of a "slow" spell for a day, vs under the effects of a "haste" spell. Super move: Very limited time stop. Tin: Spot Checks or WIS. Pewter: STR checks, damage die, or +/- damage to each hit. Zinc: Bonus to hit (for thinking through the situation) or bonus to initiative. (With corresponding negatives.) Brass: Specific fortitude checks.

Copper: Mostly role playing. Memorize a book, or an entire library, if given time. Blank things from your mind to prevent mind reading. Bronze: Mostly role playing, with (perhaps) being able to "rest" immediately and get back any abilities that come with it. (Haven't played 5e--these were big in 4e, but don't know if they kept them.)

These metals are going to be rare.

Cadmium: Not having to breathe for a time could have all kinds of applications, though I'd love to hear you role play hyperventilating all day for one session. Bendalloy: Not eating and storing calories. Great for role playing.

Gold: CON bonus, hit points, or something like that. Sudden healing is great for gaming. Electrum: General bonus to all skills. Chromium: Bonus or minus to any roll.

The rest aren't even understood in-world, so I'd stop there. If you go all in on this, I'd say you need some kind of class built around it--perhaps a rogue or monk base, replacing their bonuses with feruchemical abilities that you gain over time.

Good luck!

[Argent]

The Beast has risen once more!

 

https://www.reddit.com/r/books/comments/2ytg2h/im_novelist_brandon_sanderson_ama/cuizvs9?context=10000

 

Q: Hello again, Mr. Sanderson! I've got another question for you (because I'm greedy), and you won't even have to RAFO me

 

What do your characters sound like in your head? Or more accurately, who "plays" your characters (if anyone) when you hear them? For example, in my head Lift's spren Wyndle sounds exactly like John Cleese. 

 

And since I love him, I have to sneak an Axies the Collector question in - what kindled his interest in spren?

A: I don't always have an actor.  Once in a while (like Rupert Everett for Lightsong) I imagine one that way, but often it's a voice dredged from my subconscious somewhere, one I can't pinpoint. 

 

Axies belongs to a race who, being extremely long lived, tend to dedicate themselves to some kind of task to keep themselves from going strange.  (Well, more strange.)  Spren tickled his fancy.

 

https://www.reddit.com/r/books/comments/2ytg2h/im_novelist_brandon_sanderson_ama/cuj00d5?context=10000

 

Q: In TWoK, Dalinar mentions that back home Reshi border encroachments grow increasingly bold...according to the map of Roshar, no Reshi islands are directly adjacent to Alethkar. Is this encroachment simply due to Tai-na migrating into Alethi waters and skirmishing with Alethi boats? Or are the Reshi actually sending raiding parties to the mainland?

A: The Alethi have a long history of skirmishing with the Reshi islands just to the north and northeast of Alethkar. (And at various points, they've just considered Herdaz to be an Alethi province.) The fertile fishing up there makes for some coveted seas.

Q: If a coinshot were to drop a gold coin of size X or an iron coin of the same size X, would the coin with more mass (the gold coin), under normal circumstances, allow the coinshot to vertically push themselves higher than they could with the coin with less mass (the iron coin)?

A: Mass is indeed a factor in anchors.

 

https://www.reddit.com/r/books/comments/2ytg2h/im_novelist_brandon_sanderson_ama/cuj06gl?context=10000

 

Q: <Questions 1-5 not included, for brevity>

Q: 6. Do you know for sure whether any of our protagonists are Heroes of the Horn? I'm sure that I remember reading that Mat is not (since the Trickster's soul won't stand for being bound to serve that way), but Perrin, Egwene, Nynaeve, Moiraine, and Lan all seem like potentially special candidates.

A: Wow! Excellent questions!

And mostly ones I have no answer for. You're asking a lot of difficult questions about a magic system I didn't design, and was very careful not to expand too much, because much of the metaphysics of these things was locked solely in RJ's head. Maria might know the answers to some, but I'm not sure my answers will be any better than the theories the community has come up with. (Like, for instance, Min's power.)

I'll pick one and answer it, though. Regarding number six, I don't personally believe that ANY of them are. These characters are cool and important, but they don't have the stories being told about them that are the essential part of becoming a Hero. If you read through the books, only Farstrider is being talked about the world over in such a way. That's what it requires to become a hero of the horn, and it's a different and specific thing.

 

https://www.reddit.com/r/books/comments/2ytg2h/im_novelist_brandon_sanderson_ama/cuj08r8?context=10000

 

Q: My question is however, is Kelsier influenced by Ruin in some way? Does he have any metal in him? The parts that got me thinking is how he is the one who suggested to Vin that she should keep her earrings in. Futhermore he has a strong urge to kill and destroy, though that is mainly limited to nobility and it is meant to help overthrow the empire. Lasltly there was someone in the last book (I'm afraid I can't remember who right now) who said that Lord Penrod (who at the time was contolled by Ruin) used housewars to destroy the city, which is the exact thing Kelsier did also. I'm sorry if my answer has an obvious answer, or if I've overlooked something, but these points got me to strongly belive that Kelsier was influenced by Ruin.

A: No metal in Kelsier, though good question. However, he was trained by a man touched by Ruin, and has a certain natural inclination toward destruction and killing. That's all him.

I've said before that Kelsier, in another story or time, might have become something far more terrible. That's what makes him interesting to me as a character.

 

https://www.reddit.com/r/books/comments/2ytg2h/im_novelist_brandon_sanderson_ama/culm7jd?context=10000

 

Q: Say an awakener wanted to cheat in a card game and strolled in with an awakened hat, which is promptly placed on a hat rack behind their opponent.

Assuming the awakener knows the rules of the game, would a command like "be as my eyes and signal when I should fold" let the hat tip someone off, or would they need a more general command like "be as my eyes and signal a flush"?

A: This is hard because the skill of the Awakener is a factor, as are other elements that aren't entirely understood. For sake of discussion, I'd say the second one is a whole lot more reasonable.

 

https://www.reddit.com/r/books/comments/2ytg2h/im_novelist_brandon_sanderson_ama/culm8j8?context=10000

 

Q: Could the Heralds be considered the splinters or would it be the Honourblades they once held? Or perhaps are they something else entirely?

A: That's a RAFO, more because I don't want to dig into the nature of the Heralds until the second five books, and would rather not have people's eyes on them too much right now.

[Blaze1616]

https://www.reddit.com/r/books/comments/2ytg2h/im_novelist_brandon_sanderson_ama/culm8j8?context=10000

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Q: Could the Heralds be considered the splinters or would it be the Honourblades they once held? Or perhaps are they something else entirely?

A: That's a RAFO, more because I don't want to dig into the nature of the Heralds until the second five books, and would rather not have people's eyes on them too much right now.

 

But...but...so many Herald theories...so few answers...so much time...

[Argent]

If anything drives me insane, it's going to be that - we open the first book with the Heralds, and then just as the hype train slows down a bit, BAM, (alleged) Talenelat'Elin, the Stonesinew, Herald of the Almighty.