Hoid's Lerasium and spiritwebs

[Djarskublar]

I have been thinking somewhat recently about the ways to rewrite spiritwebs. Lerasium does stuff (I'll discuss that in a bit), Hemalurgy steals chunks of web, soulstamps kinda sheath your web with a temporary fake one, and Listener forms change stuff with physiology and skillsets. I theorize you could rewrite webs with fabrials, but I don't have a ton of evidence, and I don't want to go into it in this thread.

Basically, we know that Hoid has some Lerasium. I have seen the theory that it is just being used for feruchemy, but I don't like that possibility. It also appears that he used a bit of his bead to make himself an Allomancer. That is probably a prerequisite for the idea I have.

Basically, everyone has been looking at the WoB about Lerasium doing things nobody would know about in the wrong light.

My theory is that Hoid is studying the Lerasium because he wants to use it to rewrite himself as an Elantrian. The wording of the WoB helps this theory. He says, "Were most Mistborn to just burn it, it would rewrite their genetic code to increase their power as an Allomancer."  Hoid is not 'most mistborn.' I now believe that Lerasium is able to do basically what Forgery does, only once you figure it out, the effects are permanent and can actually grant power. You could probably completely rewrite yourself if you had a big enough bead. Rewrite yourself into a Chasmfiend level of change, or any kind of magic user.

He originally stole it to make himself an Allomancer, yes, but he still has some. I bet that he burned a piece of it, and immediately realized it's potential. In the mean time he may be using it for feruchemy, but I think he is studying it so that when he burns the rest of it, he can control it to rewrite himself in a way that makes him into an Elantrian. That sounds like the most useful use of that bead to me, plus he already tried to become an Elantrian once, he may be trying again.

Given, he may want it for some other effect, I just think this is the most likely.

Any counter evidence? Thoughts?

[DarkJester]

I've read most of the books that Brandon has wrote. It sounds like I've missed an important one. What book did you find him talking about mistborns?

[The One Who Connects]

10 minutes ago, DarkJester said:

I've read most of the books that Brandon has wrote. It sounds like I've missed an important one. What book did you find him talking about mistborns?

Half of our more "specific/useful" information is from a Q&A session or random snippets from a book signing event, among other things.

[Blightsong]

1 hour ago, DarkJester said:

I've read most of the books that Brandon has wrote. It sounds like I've missed an important one. What book did you find him talking about mistborns?

Like the above mentioned we have gotten a lot of our information straight from Brandon himself. A huge wealth of this information can be found here.

[Spoolofwhool]

My first thought when reading this (Note, this can be construed as rude, so maybe avoid it. Also, kind of off topic.)

Spoiler

Incredible. Djarskublar has actually posted a theory in the Cosmere Theory forum. This almost deserves an upvote.

My first on-topic thought: Good points on rewriting spiritweb, though I disagree that Listener form-changing alters the spiritweb. I think that it just affects cognitive DNA, and by extension, the physical DNA. 

Even more on-topic (because yes, I nitpick): I agree with this. We have a WoB that lerasium can be used to modify the spiritual DNA. The only part I'm not sure about is that he would directly use it to become an Elantrian. He's not on Sel now, and may not be there for some time, if he keeps following events on Roshar. In addition, being an Elantrian wouldn't provide any benefits Hoid doesn't already have while he's off-Sel. Unless of course he has a way of using aons off-sel, though there is currently nothing which indicates that is possible. What I'm more leaning towards is that he's studying the lerasium to better understand how to manipulate his sDNA. He'll use the knowledge he gains at this point to become an Elantrian when he returns to Sel. 

Regarding your thoughts that he isn't holding onto the lerasium for the express purpose of feruchemy, there's a WoB that indicates otherwise. There are no feruchemical powers, that we know of, that seem to grant the power that is being asked about. In addition, such a power would probably be in the realm of a god metal. As such, I find it a fair that theory that lerasium grants a feruchemical power of some sort of prescience, and that Hoid is using it to get a better idea of where and when novel-worthy events are occurring so he can go there and then. 

Overall, good theory. Really like it.

Spoiler

I think.

Spoiler

Yes.

Spoiler

Have an upvote.

---

 

 

 

[Djarskublar]

Oh he is definitely using it for feruchemy in the mean time, but Elantrian is the end goal.

Also I laughed the whole time I was reading your post @Spoolofwhool. Have an upvote.

[Spoolofwhool]

21 minutes ago, Djarskublar said:

Oh he is definitely using it for feruchemy in the mean time, but Elantrian is the end goal.

Also I laughed the whole time I was reading your post @Spoolofwhool. Have an upvote.

Thanks.

I disagree though that he's actually going to use the lerasium for further rewriting of his sDNA. I don't why he would give up the power to tell where and when something novel-worthy is going to occur, when he could probably learn how to become an Elantrian through alternate methods, probably through studying the lerasium.

[Argel]

@Spoolofwhool, but how long has Hoid had his special luck though? I think it predates the bead of Lerasium. 

[Spoolofwhool]

18 minutes ago, Argel said:

@Spoolofwhool, but how long has Hoid had his special luck though? I think it predates the bead of Lerasium. 

He got the bead in WoA, which means he's been using to hit Warbreaker, Stormlight Archives and Mistborn Era 2. 3 out of 5 times in novel is pretty good so far, considering it's over multiple worlds and around 1300 years. It does state that he does land in some areas and not find anything, but that could've been before Lerasium, since he hit 3 times in 300 years after Lerasium.

[Djarskublar]

Maybe the special luck is something else and the bead is allowing him to buff it by storing the luck and tapping it in a burst to get an even better idea. So he doesn't need the bead, it is just convenient. Note: he isn't storing actual luck. Just to clarify for trolls and those who easily misunderstand.

[Argel]

Or maybe the bead can be used to make the special luck stronger/more precise (or both). Good idea. 

[zeppomarks]

Random thought: I know I've read (I think in I-1: Ishikk of WoK) that Hoid has white hair, like an Elantrian, but dyes it often. I only have audio books so I can't easily check but in any of his pre-WoA appearances is his white hair mentioned? If not, it may at least hint at him having already used it to become an Elantrian. It's a weak hint, sure, since he could have had his hair dyed in those few appearances, but it's something. And easily refuted, which is always a bonus. The while hair has always struck me as odd, since it's so attached to Elantrians. Ati and Leras didn't have white hair. But Tanavast did. Doubt it's meaningful though. Probably just a coincidence.

 

[Spoolofwhool]

13 hours ago, zeppomarks said:

Random thought: I know I've read (I think in I-1: Ishikk of WoK) that Hoid has white hair, like an Elantrian, but dyes it often. I only have audio books so I can't easily check but in any of his pre-WoA appearances is his white hair mentioned? If not, it may at least hint at him having already used it to become an Elantrian. It's a weak hint, sure, since he could have had his hair dyed in those few appearances, but it's something. And easily refuted, which is always a bonus. The while hair has always struck me as odd, since it's so attached to Elantrians. Ati and Leras didn't have white hair. But Tanavast did. Doubt it's meaningful though. Probably just a coincidence.

Don't think he's an Elantrian since he failed to do so at the end of Elantris then immediately left. Of course, in the 1000 odd years in-between that and Mistborn, or the 200-300 between Mistborn and Warbreaker he could've returned and done so. If he had, then there are no clues to the matter really. He doesn't actually dye his hair though, probably. He's theorize to possess a branch of lightweaving, so his appearances are just illusions.

Edited August 24, 2016 by Spoolofwhool

[zeppomarks]

1 hour ago, Spoolofwhool said:

Don't think he's an Elantrian since he failed to do so at the end of Elantris then immediately left. Of course, in the 1000 odd years in-between that and Mistborn, or the 200-300 between Mistborn and Warbreaker he could've returned and done so. If he had, then there are no clues to the matter really. He doesn't actually die his hair though, probably. He's theorize to possess a branch of lightweaving, so his appearances are just illusions.

Ah, I think Grump/Galladon mentioned that Hoid dyes his hair, but the lightweaving could be too. Grump/Galladon probably just said that Hoid dyed his hair, because Ishikk wouldn't have any idea what Lightweaving was. Either way, do you have the Elantris 10th Anniversary Edition with the Epilogue? This seems like the only time we'd see him without a disguise on, so if it mentions his hair...

[Ari]

23 hours ago, Djarskublar said:

Maybe the special luck is something else and the bead is allowing him to buff it by storing the luck and tapping it in a burst to get an even better idea. So he doesn't need the bead, it is just convenient. Note: he isn't storing actual luck. Just to clarify for trolls and those who easily misunderstand.

Um, he is definitely using Feruchemy. See Theoryland. Now, it's possible he found a way to access feruchemy without using the bead, or that he figured out how to make himself a Feruchemist and Allomancer using it. (as we also have reasonably strong implied use of emotional allomancy on-camera in WoR when he meets young Shallan, swallows something suspiciously like a metal vial, and then suddenly she's no longer suspicious of him) It's possible he's a Twinborn with emotional Allomancy and luck Feruchemy, but it's also possible Hoid is the only one running around as a Full Feruchemist and Mistborn atm. We also know he's probably already cracked immortality as of Elantris given that he shows up for Mistborn, which would be very difficult for him to do without having at least a "soft" immortality similar to TLR, (There's WoBs that imply very strongly that it's rather necessary for Worldhoppers to achieve immortality out there if you want to read them) if not full-blown immortality. So it looks like the reason he was gunning to be an Elantrian was for flexible powers, not immortality, and being a full feruchemist/mistborn would be about as flexible as you could need!

Edited August 24, 2016 by Ari

[Djarskublar]

Yeah he is definitely using feruchemy. Didn't say he wasn't, only guessing that he didn't need to, it just made his pre-existing ability stronger. He probably used a bit of the bead to make himself mistborn. Also, I don't think he is a feruchemist. Its Lerasium, so there's a decent chance anyone can store in it just as anyone can burn it.

I get the feeling that his immortality is very soft, as you put it. The only reason he is still alive is because he hasn't lived all those years. Time dilation. Becoming an Elantrian would still be useful to negate the necessity of time dilation.

1 hour ago, Spoolofwhool said:

Don't think he's an Elantrian since he failed to do so at the end of Elantris then immediately left. Of course, in the 1000 odd years in-between that and Mistborn, or the 200-300 between Mistborn and Warbreaker he could've returned and done so. If he had, then there are no clues to the matter really. He doesn't actually die his hair though, probably. He's theorize to possess a branch of lightweaving, so his appearances are just illusions.

... Are you being deliberately obtuse? You clearly understand the topic that Hoid is becoming an Elantrian via Lerasium as shown by your first comment (that was deliberately insulting btw, I'm just nice enough to laugh it off... Even gave you an upvote), and then this post about him going back to Sel to try again? Poor Zeppo makes a highly constructive comment, and then you contradict yourself to tell him he's got to be wrong. Which is it? Do you believe he could and maybe has used the bead to become an Elantrian, as you originally said, or is this quote that completely ignores the premise of the thread your opinion? Either way, I'm getting fed up with you being contrary to literally every post nearly anyone makes regardless of whether it is consructive, funny, or just plain old fact. I can understand nitpicking. This isn't that. Have a plethora of downvotes. Whether you are right or not about Hoid not being an Elantrian yet because his hair is an illusion is irrelevant. I agree that he isn't for the same illusions reason, but talking about him going back to Sel makes so little sense in context that I can interpret it as nothing but confrontationalism. *goes off to watch anime to calm down before I say something I'll regret*

[Spoolofwhool]

9 hours ago, Djarskublar said:

... Are you being deliberately obtuse? You clearly understand the topic that Hoid is becoming an Elantrian via Lerasium as shown by your first comment (that was deliberately insulting btw, I'm just nice enough to laugh it off... Even gave you an upvote), and then this post about him going back to Sel to try again? Poor Zeppo makes a highly constructive comment, and then you contradict yourself to tell him he's got to be wrong. Which is it? Do you believe he could and maybe has used the bead to become an Elantrian, as you originally said, or is this quote that completely ignores the premise of the thread your opinion? Either way, I'm getting fed up with you being contrary to literally every post nearly anyone makes regardless of whether it is consructive, funny, or just plain old fact. I can understand nitpicking. This isn't that. Have a plethora of downvotes. Whether you are right or not about Hoid not being an Elantrian yet because his hair is an illusion is irrelevant. I agree that he isn't for the same illusions reason, but talking about him going back to Sel makes so little sense in context that I can interpret it as nothing but confrontationalism. *goes off to watch anime to calm down before I say something I'll regret*

If you had actually gone back and read what I had posted previously, you would note that my opinion of him not using the lerasium directly to become an Elantrian and the requirement that he return to Sel to become an Elantrian has not changed at any point in this topic. I only agreed that he is studying the sDNA changing properties of lerasium and is using it for feruchemy as well, and being an Elantrian is an end goal.

On 8/22/2016 at 8:16 PM, Spoolofwhool said:

What I'm more leaning towards is that he's studying the lerasium to better understand how to manipulate his sDNA. He'll use the knowledge he gains at this point to become an Elantrian when he returns to Sel. 

On 8/22/2016 at 8:48 PM, Spoolofwhool said:

I disagree though that he's actually going to use the lerasium for further rewriting of his sDNA. I don't why he would give up the power to tell where and when something novel-worthy is going to occur, when he could probably learn how to become an Elantrian through alternate methods, probably through studying the lerasium.

11 hours ago, Spoolofwhool said:

Don't think he's an Elantrian since he failed to do so at the end of Elantris then immediately left. Of course, in the 1000 odd years in-between that and Mistborn, or the 200-300 between Mistborn and Warbreaker he could've returned and done so. If he had, then there are no clues to the matter really. He doesn't actually die his hair though, probably. He's theorize to possess a branch of lightweaving, so his appearances are just illusions.

Now my reasoning for this is that in order to become an Elantrian, he would have to establish a spiritual connection to Sel and the Dor, something which probably needs to be done on Sel. Also I responded to zeppomarks question about his white hair being a mark of being an Elantrian with my reasoning why he couldn't be an Elantrian at those points, which as I have stated, does not contradict with anything I have said. So no, I'm not changing my opinion just so that I can tell people they're wrong, I'm disagreeing with the opinions of others when our opinions don't matter and offering proof on the matter. I guess I'm so contrary because my opinion on theories doesn't usually coincide. Also, I am agreeing with theories. Finally, I don't see why you are getting annoyed for zeppomarks. If he found my response to be rude, or in any way out-of-line, he can remark on it himself.

Regarding me being insulting.

Spoiler

Djarskublar, this is constructive criticism, though can be interpreted as rudeness so if you want to avoid it go ahead. However, I, personally, feel it would help you write more cohesive theories.

Spoiler

The reason I posted that first comment, is because, by a fair definition, what you have been posting recently in the Cosmere Theory section has not been theories. Theories are explanations of an unknown, or an opinion of something, which is based off of a collection of evidence and facts. However, in your recent topics on Hemalurgy, Roshar, and Gold Allomancy, you have just been posting your opinion, with scant evidence explaining why you think what you propose is the case. While it's true that in your Lift topic you did provide more evidence, since then the amount of evidence has been dropping until this topic. That's why, after all, I made that comment. I have indirectly stated this before, but since you seemed to want to know, I thought I'd put out it directly.

Also, note that I did warn that what was in the spoiler of this post and the first post could be found rude.

 

 

Edited August 24, 2016 by Spoolofwhool

[Djarskublar]

Edit: ugghh spoiler tags. Most of the post ended up in that bottom spoiler. I swear I know how this works guys...

12 hours ago, Spoolofwhool said:

If you had actually gone back and read what I had posted previously, you would note that my opinion of him not using the lerasium directly to become an Elantrian and the requirement that he return to Sel to become an Elantrian has not changed at any point in this topic. I only agreed that he is studying the sDNA changing properties of lerasium and is using it for feruchemy as well, and being an Elantrian is an end goal.

Now my reasoning for this is that in order to become an Elantrian, he would have to establish a spiritual connection to Sel and the Dor, something which probably needs to be done on Sel. Also I responded to zeppomarks question about his white hair being a mark of being an Elantrian with my reasoning why he couldn't be an Elantrian at those points, which as I have stated, does not contradict with anything I have said. So no, I'm not changing my opinion just so that I can tell people they're wrong, I'm disagreeing with the opinions of others when our opinions don't matter and offering proof on the matter. I guess I'm so contrary because my opinion on theories doesn't usually coincide. Also, I am agreeing with theories. Finally, I don't see why you are getting annoyed for zeppomarks. If he found my response to be rude, or in any way out-of-line, he can remark on it himself.

Regarding me being insulting.

  Reveal hidden contents

Djarskublar, this is constructive criticism, though can be interpreted as rudeness so if you want to avoid it go ahead. However, I, personally, feel it would help you write more cohesive theories.

  Hide contents

The reason I posted that first comment, is because, by a fair definition, what you have been posting recently in the Cosmere Theory section has not been theories. Theories are explanations of an unknown, or an opinion of something, which is based off of a collection of evidence and facts. However, in your recent topics on Hemalurgy, Roshar, and Gold Allomancy, you have just been posting your opinion, with scant evidence explaining why you think what you propose is the case. While it's true that in your Lift topic you did provide more evidence, since then the amount of evidence has been dropping until this topic. That's why, after all, I made that comment. I have indirectly stated this before, but since you seemed to want to know, I thought I'd put out it directly.

Also, note that I did warn that what was in the spoiler of this post and the first post could be found rude.

 

 

I'm not even sure where I want to begin with responding to this... Let's start out talking about spiritwebs. Based off this and your posts over in the Gold Savant thread, I get the feeling you don't fully understand this bit. sDNA isn't really 'sDNA', it's just a good metaphor for it. What it really is, is the sum total of yourself and your experiences. You get small changes to your web with every choice you make, slowly but surely changing who you are. You are born with a set of sDNA based on your heritage, and what you do with it is your choice. Your choices change your Connections to other people, places, and intents. If you go around destroying things, you will gain a Connection to Ruin in your spiritweb, for example. This is why we call it a spiritweb, it is a web of Connections between you and everything else. Location is irrelevant to the spiritual realm. Savantism is where you damage your Connections via magic enough that you let in more Investiture through the cracks in your Investiture. There is no need for you to be in a specific location to rewrite your spiritweb. Your premise that he has to go back to Sel is ludicrous, so ludicrous, in fact, that I forgot you even said it. It simply doesn't factor in, so I didn't even think about it. He is using Preservation's power to rewrite himself anyway. If he was attempting it with the Dor, he would need to be on Sel if he didn't have a hack.

I have a mini theory about that, and I think it is relevant, so here it is: the reason Sel's magic is location based isn't because of Dominion or Devotion (though they may influence it), but because the Dor is trapped in the CR where location does matter. The location being based off of Dominion in particular didn't make sense because it is more about Hierarchy than control of land, as shown by the Fjordell Empire having a strict caste system. I understand that symbology is the focus for Sel, so it must be a Shardic reason for things being so location oriented, and this explains it pretty nicely. I will probably post about this shortly since it makes sense, and there is some evidence for it.

 

BlackYeti

With regards to the Dor, whereabouts is it located exactly in regards to the Realms?

Brandon Sanderson

Oh you're the first person to ask this one. It is in the Cognitive Realm. I think you might be the first one to crack that one. So, that's something that I've been dancing around for a while, waiting 'til people started to figure that one out. That's not where most of them are. [/spoiler]

 

On 8/22/2016 at 9:16 PM, Spoolofwhool said:

My first thought when reading this (Note, this can be construed as rude, so maybe avoid it. Also, kind of off topic.)

  Reveal hidden contents

Incredible. Djarskublar has actually posted a theory in the Cosmere Theory forum. This almost deserves an upvote.

 

 

... This isn't even criticism, let alone constructive. It is just sarcasm. I let it be since I'm nice, though. I'm not going to now. You can't just hide your insults in spoiler tags and pretend that is okay. You are basically saying, "I am about to insult you, you now have a choice: read what I am saying about you, or let me say it behind your back." Most of my posts are on mobile, so finding things is hard, and quoting them properly is harder. You are being hypercritical about low evidence posts, and you clearly have little to no toleration for humor in theories. There is nothing wrong with baseless speculation, we are Sharders, after all! If it makes sense, and there is even a smidge of evidence, it is probably worth posting about to see if someone else can think of some support that you didn't. The only thing is that you should post things that make sense, unless you are Yata, in which case being a non native speaker gives you some leeway.

Also, you are working on the extremely faulty premise that you can't use AonDor off planet, and while that normally holds somewhat true, it isn't always so.

 

Shadowsaber223 ()

Can someone use their native world's magic system on a different planet? (Ex. Would Galladon be able to use Aons on Roshar?)

Brandon Sanderson

Plausible. Certain things would need to be done.

Clearly you can, it just requires that you do something first. One person suggested that you tattoo Aon Rao on you somewhere, and Brandon RAFO'd that. I am certain that if he is studying the Lerasium to become an Elantrian, he is also studying it to see how to use the powers off world. I figured this was common knowledge. Once you understand what Elantris is, it is immediately heavily implied that you can do something to get the magic elsewhere. Besides that, you can use it elsewhere anyway, it is just greatly reduced in power. In the end, aside from your comments about his hair being an illusion, almost nothing you have said here made any sense in the context of understanding these premises. I thought you meant something completely different for your first post because I thought you actually knew what you were talking about, so you sounded contrary later, rather than just wrong. I won't apologize for what I said before. It made sense based on my understanding of things.

There, you now know enough about Selish magic to participate in this discussion.

Edited August 25, 2016 by Djarskublar

[Spoolofwhool]

I see. Fair points. Thank you for your correction regarding Spiritual DNA. I had forgotten the details mentioned in Emperor's Soul. Also, thanks for the detail regarding the location of the Dor.

The thing is, my thoughts are that while the lerasium does grant him the power to manipulate his spiritweb as he desires, I don't think he knows about the nuances required to be in the spiritweb to be an Elantrian. My opinion on needing to return to Sel is based in the fact that he needs to go there to correctly identify what changes to his spiritweb he needs to make. It is possible that he did correctly determine what changes needed to be made 1000ish years ago, but just didn't know the correct method of applying them at that time. My logic on returning to Sel had nothing to do with actually using the power. I just don't think becoming an Elantrian is as simple as swapping some connections in your spiritweb which are labelled "Elantrian == False". I think he needs to actually study the Dor, which, as you say, is location-based because it is in the cognitive realm, and also possibly study an Elantrian to determine the configuration of their spiritweb. I do admit though that I didn't think about making the changes to make it able to access the Dor away from Elantris. 

Regarding my spoiler comment. I wasn't actually sarcasm, though I don't think you'll believe me when I say it. I did mean it to be criticism regarding how you are posting theories since you clearly have a lot of great ideas you want to spread to other people. You are correct though that I am a critical person, and a part of that is applying fairly hard limits between more serious discussions and humorous ones. The thing though, is that for something to make sense, you have to post your reasoning to how you reached your conclusion. Otherwise, people just see an idea with few logical points of reaching it. Take your hemalurgy and Roshar threads for example. I honestly had little idea of how your theories made sense, because there was little explaining the logical progressions you made to get there. That's where the evidence comes in as well. The spoilers were because the comments weren't relevant to the topic, and because I didn't want you to read something you perceived as an insult. I didn't right those to be insulting, though the first one was edged, I admit, because I hadn't yet explained why I didn't really consider your theories to be theories, though I didn't vaguely state it earlier. I'm sorry for any emotional damages I may have caused. I won't do anything of the sort again to you. 

[kenod]

On 8/24/2016 at 8:52 AM, Djarskublar said:

I get the feeling that his immortality is very soft, as you put it. The only reason he is still alive is because he hasn't lived all those years. Time dilation. Becoming an Elantrian would still be useful to negate the necessity of time dilation.

We have a WoB That Hoid is still older than a normal human, even accounting for the time dilation.

Source:

Quote

ERIC LAKE ()

Can Hoid jump through time? If so, can Shards jump through time?

 

BRANDON SANDERSON

Hoid, so far, has only moved forward in time. He has not 'lived' all of those years, but has used some time dilation techniques. That said, he is far older (both in relative and real time) than a normal person can live.

Also (WoR spoilers),

In the epilogue Hoid isn't really impressed by Jasnah's Shardblade, and says that it wouldn't be able to hurt him, so I think that he actually has a fairly hard form of immortality.

[Spoolofwhool]

29 minutes ago, kenod said:

We have a WoB That Hoid is still older than a normal human, even accounting for the time dilation.

Source:

Also (WoR spoilers),

  Hide contents

In the epilogue Hoid isn't really impressed by Jasnah's Shardblade, and says that it wouldn't be able to hurt him, so I think that he actually has a fairly hard form of immortality.

 

It's more a WoB that he can regenerate really well, which does effectively translate to a fairly hard non-age immortality. That doesn't translate to him having an age-related immortality, though we do have the other WoB as you say.

[DarkJester]

Ok. I've listened to most all of the cosmir related books (audio), and I'm starting to understand a little better how things are connected. So from what I gather in this discussion, people seem to think Hoid wants to become an Elantrian, but why would he want to limit himself? He keeps world hopping, forging connections, and gaining experience/skills. He holds breath, noted by his perfect pitch, he can use storm light, and I'm sure there's much more if you look into it. The fact is, he's not just looking around and trying to figure out what form to pick. It's too simple for him. Yes, elantrians are extremely powerful when compaired with many of the other powerful beings in the cosmir, and they are immortal, but it seems to me that Hoid already has that going for him. It seems to me that Hoid is more interested in gathering connections, and experiences. Someone posted about how your experiences and your actions write themselves to your spirit web. Well I propose that he is trying to gather hints of all the shards of Adonalsium, writing them into his spirit web, even if only a little, so that if he were to rewrite his spiritual DNA, he will try to become the new Adonalsium. Why limit himself. If your going to hold on to the power to change yourself any way you want, and cary it around for hundreds of years, your going to use it for something big. A normal person becoming an Elantrian would be big, but for Hoid, it would be like a thanks for participating trophy to put on his shelf of dozens upon dozens of other trophies. Yeah, it's nice, but it's just not that big of a deal...

[Spoolofwhool]

5 minutes ago, DarkJester said:

Ok. I've listened to most all of the cosmir related books (audio), and I'm starting to understand a little better how things are connected. So from what I gather in this discussion, people seem to think Hoid wants to become an Elantrian, but why would he want to limit himself? He keeps world hopping, forging connections, and gaining experience/skills. He holds breath, noted by his perfect pitch, he can use storm light, and I'm sure there's much more if you look into it. The fact is, he's not just looking around and trying to figure out what form to pick. It's too simple for him. Yes, elantrians are extremely powerful when compaired with many of the other powerful beings in the cosmir, and they are immortal, but it seems to me that Hoid already has that going for him. It seems to me that Hoid is more interested in gathering connections, and experiences. Someone posted about how your experiences and your actions write themselves to your spirit web. Well I propose that he is trying to gather hints of all the shards of Adonalsium, writing them into his spirit web, even if only a little, so that if he were to rewrite his spiritual DNA, he will try to become the new Adonalsium. Why limit himself. If your going to hold on to the power to change yourself any way you want, and cary it around for hundreds of years, your going to use it for something big. A normal person becoming an Elantrian would be big, but for Hoid, it would be like a thanks for participating trophy to put on his shelf of dozens upon dozens of other trophies. Yeah, it's nice, but it's just not that big of a deal...

It has been confirmed by the ending of the 10th Anniversary Edition of Elantris that Hoid was trying to become an Elantrian, which was why he was there. I'm not sure what you mean by limiting himself. How would becoming an Elantrian be limiting?

[DarkJester]

He's a traveler. That's what he does. In Elantris, it is specifically stated that the further you go from Elantris the weaker your connection to the Dor grows. Something that works against who he is. I'm sure he was trying to become an Elantrian, and probably still is, but that's just a small step in completing the set in my opinion. As an Elantrian, he would only be effective as one when in close proximity to the city. When on other worlds he wouldn't have any real access to Dor. He could carry storm light with him for a few weeks. He can Cary breaths indefinitely. Dor, for as powerful as it is, is only effective in a limited area. If it were just one of the many parts that make up Hoids spirit web though... What I'm saying is that, yes, he wants to be Elantrian, but I believe it is only a small step in his broader plan. I think his ultimate goal is to replace Adonalsium. 

[Sarevok]

5 minutes ago, DarkJester said:

Dor, for as powerful as it is, is only effective in a limited area.

*checks what board this is before replying*
You should go read
 

Spoiler

Mistborn: Secret History

And you'll see this isn't as limiting as you think.