Mraize in Urithiru

[+robardin he/him]

How did he get there, and where is he now (since he can't leave except by Oathgate, which is to say, by grace of Shallan)?

I don't think we know, right?

When she saw him at the end of WoR Shallan assumes "he'd likely been among the armies, somewhere", but at the same time, Mraize appeared to her "twisted and scarred, yet somehow refined in his gentleman's clothing" (i.e., he's not in some kind of disguise, not even makeup to cover his scarred visage, much less some kind of uniform).

You'd think he'd stand out in the small group of people she'd brought in via Oathgate. Even if he passes for a lighteyes with his violet peepers, and many officers outside of Dalinar's camp dress finely and not in uniform when off-duty, his twisted and scarred face should be easy to identify, and he was originally described as speaking Alethi with a foreign accent, one that Shallan could not place (of course not, if he's from off-world).

[Jace21 he/him]

There were thousands of people on that plateau when Shallan activated the Oathgate. Considering we know at least some people in the armies are non-alethi it doesnt seem too hard to believe he was there.

As to his being lighteyes, he could have been a generic light eyed archer that didnt need to speak much, used the eye drops to change his eye colour or any number of things to remain unobtrusive.

And I imagine a fair few soldiers are quite heavily scarred.

That said it would be much cooler if he had some kind of light weaving fabrial.

[Calderis he/him]

Scars can be hidden. He doesn't need magic for make-up. I'd be much more interested in how Iyatil got there if she is. That mask has to stand out. 

[Toaster Retribution he/him]

First off, Mraize is actually native to Roshar, he is Thaylen (I believe there is a WoP on this). 

To answer the OP he could have posed as a mercenary. Sebarials forces consisted mostly of swords for hire if I remember correctly and a scarred mercenary wouldn't draw much attention. 

As for what he is doing in Urithiru, I guess that he has set up a base somewhere convenient, and started exploring like everyone else. He is probably very interested in the secrets of Urithiru.

I also like the fact that he most likely smuggled his suit with him while in the army. Mraize never disappoints.

@Calderis Iyatil was at the warcamps when Mraize spoke to Shallan. She tried to kill Amaram. 

Edited September 18, 2017 by Toaster Retribution

[Weltall]

Yeah, he could be posing as a mercenary or one of the many people an army needs to operate outside the soldiers. We know of at least one worldhopper in Dalinar's army (Felt) who's managed to get in without attracting attention so a native Rosharan should easily have been able to manage it, and Mraize is Thaylen per WoP.

But no, we don't yet have any confirmation on exactly how he came to be there.

[Calderis he/him]

2 hours ago, Toaster Retribution said:

Iyatil was at the warcamps when Mraize spoke to Shallan. She tried to kill Amaram. 

I'm aware she was there at the end of WoR, but as time passes the warcamps are going to be less and less important I think.

I just think that eventually she is either going to go elsewhere with a purpose or join Mraize in Urithiru. 

1 hour ago, Weltall said:

We know of at least one worldhopper in Dalinar's army (Felt) who's managed to get in without attracting attention so a native Rosharan should easily have been able to manage it, and Mraize is Thaylen per WoP.

That WoP has always bothered me. There no mention of the eyebrows, and Shallan should have easily recognized a Thaylen accent. She's spent entirely to much time with a group of Thaylen sailors not to recognize it.

[Necessary Eagle she/her]

46 minutes ago, Calderis said:

That WoP has always bothered me. There no mention of the eyebrows, and Shallan should have easily recognized a Thaylen accent. She's spent entirely to much time with a group of Thaylen sailors not to recognize it.

Maybe he shaves his eyebrows down, and learned how to fake a different accent?

[+robardin he/him]

16 hours ago, Necessary Eagle said:

Maybe he shaves his eyebrows down, and learned how to fake a different accent?

If he truly is Thaylen, I'm thinking it's in the same way that Iyatil is Southern Scadrial. Born into a worldhopping milieu, in other words.

 

[Toaster Retribution he/him]

4 hours ago, robardin said:

If he truly is Thaylen, I'm thinking it's in the same way that Iyatil is Southern Scadrial. Born into a worldhopping milieu, in other words.

 

While it is possible, it isn't that likely, in my opinion. He still seems to focus on the Thaylen culture, referring to Iyatil as his babsk. 

[The One Who Connects he/him]

On 9/18/2017 at 6:17 PM, Calderis said:

Shallan should have easily recognized a Thaylen accent. She's spent entirely to much time with a group of Thaylen sailors not to recognize it.

I don't see a false accent being that unthinkable.

Granted, a spanish accent came naturally to me when I started learning the language, so my opinion may be biased.

---

Since Mraize is a worldhopper, using an accent from another world is a very smart move on a world like Roshar. People will just assume he's from one of the various countries they've never been to, but not being able to pin down an origin. Even those who are a bit more versed in linguistics don't know everything. In the absence of clear physical features(like skin color/build/etc..), people try to use accents to place someone's ethnicity.

Ooh, here's an idea. (And an unlikely one, I'll admit that up front) All Shallan says is that she "couldn't place his accent." What do you guys think about the possibility that his accent is a mix of several? It's got the potential to be an even better tactic, as you'd have some sense of familiarity to his accent combined with unfamiliar things. That little sense of confusion could keep someone focused on his accent for a little while, giving him the edge in the conversation while the other party is slightly distracted.