Growth Fabrials or a property of Stormlight?

[Tarion]

In the first Eshonai interlude in WoR, we get this line:

Quote

They were hauling rockbuds harvested on one of the nearby plateaus, plants which had been encouraged to grow quickly by use of Stormlight-infused gems

Have we ever had any confirmation on whether exposure to Stormlight directly encourages growth, or whether the Parshendi are using a growth fabrial?

If it's the former, it might relate to stormwater being better for plants than regular water. Some sort of response to the Investiture.

Edited January 24, 2017 by Tarion

[Ciridae]

A lot of the ecology on Roshar has evolved to coexist or depend on all the investiture present. A good example are the Skyeels and Chasmfiends that enter in symbiotic relationships with certain spren. I think that other organisms on the planet such as rockbuds have developed ways to use the investiture around them, perhaps as an alternate way of getting at the energy needed to grow and survive. 

I dont think the Parshendi have access to Surgebinding fabrials. 

Also Warbreaker spoilers:

Spoiler

Breath boosts the immune systems and makes you resistant to toxins, I think there is an argument to be made that investiture has positive effects on the health of most organisms.

 

Edited January 24, 2017 by Ciridae

[Tarion]

I dont think the Parshendi have access to Surgebinding fabrials.

Dalinar thinks they do - He assumes that's why they need the gemhearts.

And Eshonai confirms that they're using the gemhearts to eat. They'd need to be doing something with them, more than just using their light on their plants. Otherwise they wouldn't shatter (And so they wouldn't need a resupply of gemhearts). 

[Spoolofwhool]

1 hour ago, Ciridae said:

Also Warbreaker spoilers:

  Reveal hidden contents

Breath boosts the immune systems and makes you resistant to toxins, I think there is an argument to be made that investiture has positive effects on the health of most organisms.

 

I would argue that just because breath improves its vessel, that isn't a good reason to believe investiture always does. Consider savantism. Lots of investiture in a person and it can do some twisted things, such as in the case of soulcasters. My opinion is that breath improves because it's designed to do so. 

Chances are however that they do have fabrials. As @Tarion points out, they need a continuous influx of gems like the Alethi, and just holding stormlight wouldn't shatter them.

Edited January 24, 2017 by Spoolofwhool

[Itchy Savant he/him]

@Spoolofwhool

You have a point but aren't rosharans more resistant to disease and what not? 

Savants are a special case due to the constant influx of power warping their bodies, seems like more of a side effect of their investiture use as opposed to investiture in general

[Ciridae]

8 minutes ago, Spoolofwhool said:

I would argue that just because breath improves its vessel, that isn't a good reason to believe investiture always does. Consider savantism. Lots of investiture in a person and it can do some twisted things, such as in the case of soulcasters. My opinion is that breath improves because it's designed to do so. 

Chances are however that they do have fabrials. As @Tarion points out, they need a continuous influx of gems like the Alethi, and just holding stormlight wouldn't shatter them.

You're right of course that different types of investiture act differently, I was just looking for other examples of investiture that acts positively on the health of the invested being. 

I don't remember the parshendi mentioning cracked gemstones, but it's been a while since I read the books. If they refer to cracked gems you're right again, I dont see a way they would crack unless they were used in a fabrial. 

[Spoolofwhool]

12 minutes ago, Itchy Savant said:

@Spoolofwhool

You have a point but aren't rosharans more resistant to disease and what not? 

Savants are a special case due to the constant influx of power warping their bodies, seems like more of a side effect of their investiture use as opposed to investiture in general

Yes. My point was not that Rosharans wouldn't get beneficial effects, but more criticism towards your general statement that holding investiture is beneficial, when we have a number of examples that it isn't. The general case is that investiture changes the vessel it is in to hold it better. Slivers and savants are an example of this.

@Ciridae they don't, but it would be a main reason why they keep needing more.

Edited January 24, 2017 by Spoolofwhool

[Itchy Savant he/him]

@Spoolofwhool

The first one wasn't mine, I was just adding my 2 cents in.

And yes Investiture does warp and change its vessel, but it needs to be extremly large amounts. In small amounts it's only beneficial (for the most part) it's when some one abuses the powe for too long/in high enough quantities that negative effects start happening. In my mind it's been a little bit of investiture is beneficial and repeated/large uses start to warp the vessel.

A soul caster (person not object) most likely still receives the benefit of increased immune system, their bodies have just been changed due to the extreme use.

I guess what I am trying to say is that Investiture being good for health and warping the vessel are not connected and you can have one or both of the effects.

Edit: I'd also bet my pants that when a misting/mist born is burning metal they experience a similar health boost, but only while actively burning their metal thus activly drawing in investiture. 

Has anybody asked Sanderson about that?

Edited January 24, 2017 by Itchy Savant
Side thought

[Tarion]

39 minutes ago, Ciridae said:

I don't remember the parshendi mentioning cracked gemstones, but it's been a while since I read the books. If they refer to cracked gems you're right again, I dont see a way they would crack unless they were used in a fabrial. 

They never explicitly state their gems are cracking, just that they need a constant supply of them:

“We won,” Eshonai said, leaning back against the wall and folding her arms with a clink of Shardplate. “The gemheart is ours. We will continue to eat.”

The Parshendi win a fair few gemhearts, and their numbers have only reduced as the war has gone on. If they were just using the light to enhance their crops, as opposed to a fabrial, their supplies would be getting better, not worse. Something must be shattering their gems. 

 

[Itchy Savant he/him]

They shatter the gemstones that have the spree they are going to bond with in the storms so perhaps they are needed for that? I mean I find it unlikly as they don't need huge gem hearts for that, actually on second thought, does it have to be gem hearts that store storm light?  I don't think so, if they have gems with storm light in their beards why don't they just fill and use those for their crops?

[Ciridae]

30 minutes ago, Tarion said:

They never explicitly state their gems are cracking, just that they need a constant supply of them:

 

The Parshendi win a fair few gemhearts, and their numbers have only reduced as the war has gone on. If they were just using the light to enhance their crops, as opposed to a fabrial, their supplies would be getting better, not worse. Something must be shattering their gems. 

 

I always took that to mean that they had Soulcasters similar to how the Alethi do. Soulcasters are rare, but not Nale's Regrowth-fabrial-rare. I assumed that they farmed to have a more reliable food supply, as well as provide the little extra that they might need if the gemhearts aren't enough. The fields are probably not that extensive though, if Eshonai thinks her people will starve without the gemhearts.

They might have found other surgebinding fabrials in the ruins of Stormseat, but I think we would have heard of those.

Edited January 24, 2017 by Ciridae

[Tarion]

1 minute ago, Ciridae said:

I always took that to mean that they had Soulcasters similar to how the Alethi do. Soulcasters are rare, but not Nale's Regrowth-fabrial-rare. I assumed that they farmed to have a more reliable food supply, as well as provide the little extra that they might need if the gemhearts aren't enough. The fields are probably not that extensive if Eshonai thinks her people will starve without the gemhearts.

They might have found other surgebinding fabrials in the ruins of Stormseat, but I think we would have heard of those.

Ah right, I took your comment about them not having Surgebinding Fabrials to include Soulcasters (Personally, I'd describe Soulcasters as the best example of a Surgebinding fabrial). 

[Ciridae]

Just now, Tarion said:

Ah right, I took your comment about them not having Surgebinding Fabrials to include Soulcasters (Personally, I'd describe Soulcasters as the best example of a Surgebinding fabrial). 

You're right, I forgot about those earlier, I was only thinking of regrowth fabrials like Nales, sorry!