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We have some exciting news to announce. So far in order to obtain some unpublished works of Brandon's, you'd have to email him through his site, and his assistants would distribute them. Well now you won't need to wait for that, because we will be in charge of distributing Aether of Night! All you have to do is post in this topic (you'll need a 17th Shard account, but that's it), and our staff will PM you the document. You do not need to post an email address here; we will send it to you through this website. Once we do this, we'll remove your post here. We'll be using this topic as a to-do list for requests. Ideally since we have lots of staff members, we will get this out to you soon, within a week or two. We hope you're excited about this, so many of you will be able to get this text in a much more obvious way now! You will receive a .docx file, and if you need to convert it into a .pdf or .epub, there are many converters to do that for you. (We are not distributing the old prose version of White Sand; that is distributed in Brandon's newsletters.) Thank you Dragonsteel for letting 17S do this! Edit as of 2026: This is still going! We've gone through over 300 pages of replies distributing. It's just that we remove posts here once we send them out.

Hey all, I want to let you know that we've updated our Forum Policies with some new rules regarding posting and discussing AI generated content: If you suspect that something someone posted is AI-generated, we ask that you simply report the post rather than confronting the poster directly, and the staff team will deal with the issue as needed. In addition, we've also clarified our stance on how the rep system is to be used: If you have any questions or concerns, feel free to either reply in this thread, or PM me or another moderator.

Hard to believe it’s been three years of existing here, and two years of being active. (Hard to believe the amount of posts I’ve made in that time, but, well, sometimes school is boring. Also do as I say and not as I do and pay attention in class. I need to get better at that myself lol) Guys, it’s been a blast. I have absolutely loved having the opportunity and the blessing to interact with all of you. Thank you all for the fun you have provided me (and for indulging my craziness, especially those of you who I spam with reels on Instagram. Sorry for the amount of reels, but not for the joy). (Personalized messages will be in the spoiler box below)

So I was looking at @Doc12's old trailer concepts for Mistborn and the Stormlight Archive, and I realized that this is actually something I've envisioned a lot. Especially for Wind and Truth. The trailer script here is decently long, so it would probably be the final trailer before the release, not that it really matters in this case. This took me way longer to make than I thought it would. Finding quotes for the voiceovers was especially grueling. So, yeah. Here it is. Not every scene in this trailer concept is actually in the book; but we can assume they took place, at some point or another. Words in red describe the sound playing; normal words describe what's on the screen. Voiceover sound generally corresponds to the scene below it. Music is intended to be an epic, highly edited version of Half Light by BANNERS. Needless to say, spoilers for Wind and Truth ahead: ... (black screen) Silence. Then thunder. (Shot pans around Dalinar as he stands atop Urithiru, holding the Way of Kings in one hand. He overlooks the landscape as the Everstorm rages below the tower.) Music begins. (Smooth transition to a mirroring shot of Shallan, standing atop Lasting Integrity overlooking Shadesmar with the same camera angle. Pattern and Testament stand nearby.) First musical beat. (Remaining members of Bridge Four party (muted sound), while Kaladin watches on wistfully from the doorway. Syl, life size, puts her hand on his shoulder.) Nohadon's voice: The question... is not whether you will love, (Black and white shot, Endgame trailer-style, of Kaladin playing in the fields with Tien as kid) Hurt, (Black and white young Shallan stands, holding a Shardblade, in a pool of red blood) Dream, (Young Shallan entertains her brothers, before looking back towards a doorway across which in another room, her father screams at his lover and hits her) And die. (Black and white older Kaladin holds Tien's body in his arms, weeping to the world, in a field of corpses) Silence. Fade to black. Music crescendos. (Series of flashes of quick shots: Kaladin carries a bridge in Sadeas's army. Kaladin stands above the Honor Chasm. Kaladin is strung up on the roof of the barracks, ravaged by the Highstorm, left to die) Music stops. Fade to black. Heavy breathing. Footsteps clatter. Music explodes. (Kaladin, Radiant, leaps across the chasm to the Tower, absorbing Stormlight from the parshendi. He lands, and a blast of Stormlight sends everything pushed back. From here on, the scenes are still black-and white, except the characters and Stormlight are in color) It is what you will love, (Shallan, also exempt from the black-and-white, draws on the boat approaching Kharbranth) Why you will hurt, (Kaladin stands between Moash and the conspirators, wielding Syl as a spear, protecting Elhokar) When you will dream, (Shallan stands in front of a mirror on her wedding day. Behind her, Veil and Radiant walk up and place their hands on her shoulders) and how you will die. (Kaladin falls through the sky, until suddenly exploding in a burst of radiance. Armor forms around him, and he catches Lirin.) This is your choice. (Kaladin lifts Lirin back up to safety, and joins the battle in Urithiru) Voiceover change to Dalinar: What is the most important step a man can take? (Black and white scene of younger Dalinar standing above the burning Rift, blade outstretched, eyes alight with flaming fury) The next one. Always the next one. (In the present, (no longer black-and-white) Dalinar plays with Gav, but as soon as the kid is distracted, he gazes into the distance, expression sorrowful) Child Szeth's voice: But... how do you know what to do? (Young Szeth dances around the family rock) The right choices. How do you know what they are? (Young Szeth weeps in the rain, holding up blood soaked hands and kneeling before Molli's corpse) (Older, but still young, Szeth defeats a pirate in hand-to-hand combat, then, chest heaving, looks down at his bloodied hands before glancing at the camera with a murderous gaze) Lirin: Somebody has to start. Somebody has to step forward and do what is right, because it is right. (A grinning Adolin greets Azish generals in the dome, shaking hands, Colot at his side) If nobody starts, then others cannot follow. (A wave of Regals crashes against the Azish line of defense at the dome, and Adolin, glowing in brilliant shardplate, stands against them) Hoid: It will get worse again. Then better. (Dalinar and Navani trot along Shin foothills, with a pack of ancient Singers. Dalinar stops, and pauses to overlook the expansive landscape) This is life. And I will not lie by saying every day will be sunshine. (Dalinar and Navani fight as Knights Radiant in a desolation. They pause to overlook a valley, where Fused and Radiant forces crash into each other.) But there will be sunshine again, and that is a very different thing to say. (Kaladin lands alongside Szeth to look over the plains of Shinovar (essentially the first concept art piece Brandon released)) Kaladin and Hoid, together: You WILL be warm again. (Kaladin dances with Syl, who morphs in his hand from spear to woman. They laugh, together) Gavinor: Everyone dies. So many people. Killing. (Abidi the monarch stands in the Azish dome, Fused forces surging to battle around him. He looks at the camera, demonic grin on his face) And dying. (Aerial shot of Vyre's body, strewn on a snowy mountaintop, eyes burned out, being found by Fused) And killing. (El wipes a bloody knife) And dying. (Close-up of Mraize's face as he sits on his chair in the Ghostbloods headquarters, sipping a drink carefully) So many being killed... (Back view of Ishar walking up an outcropping in the foothills of Shinovar as the sun rises before him, lines of Connection leaking from his fingertips) Adolin: People break. And sometimes... (Shallan, Renarin, and Rlain look through a Spiritual Realm barrier at the smoky form of Ba Ado Mishram. Shallan outstretches her hand towards the barrier) The strong ones break harder than the weak ones. Because they're the ones you pile everything on top of. (The floor beneath Shallan gives way, and she falls through a Spiritual Realm vortex of memories) (Young Renarin is held against the wall by a squad of bullies) Hoid: Would that any of us could protect ourselves from the costs that heroism often requires. (Abidi stalks, grinning with blade in hand, towards Shallan who is scrambling on the floor of an ornate room) But again, if there were no cost, no sacrifice... (Jasnah kneels in a Thaylen temple, face obscured. Fen walks up behind her) Would it be heroism at all? (Aerial view of Sigzil lashing himself across a battlefield in the Shattered Plains, strewn with corpses and wreckage, rain pouring. Sigzil catches himself, then looks up at the camera) Fade to black. Music dims. Adolin: The four of us. Drinks, once this is done. Promise me. (Adolin huddles with Kaladin, Shallan, and Syl in Azimir.) Shallan: Promise. (Everyone turns to Kaladin, who looks down. Finally, he looks up.) Kaladin: Drinks. Jokes. Laughter. At the end. I PROMISE. Music strengthens back up. Hoid: Everything you've done - everything you've been - has prepared you for what's next. (Venli pushes open the entrance of a cave and steps out into the Listener camp. massive chasmfiends lounge in the sun) Fade to black Music dims. We're heading straight into the most difficult moment in our lives. (Quick shot of Dalinar Kholin climbing the steps up to Urithiru, face stern, Way of Kings in hand, with a shadow looming over him (essentially the second piece of concept art Brandon released) before a quick fade back to darkness) Remember. Music explodes in rapid bursts (no longer a set song) Black screen w/caption: Urithiru (Quick shot of Renarin, Shallan and Rlain on the fields outside Urithiru, looking ominously into the distance) Hope is wonderful. Black screen w/caption: Shinovar (Spinning camera around Szeth and Kaladin brandishing weapons back to back, but without clear view of who they're fighting) Keep it. Black screen w/caption: Azimir (Quick shot of Adolin rushing across Fused forces in the dome in full plate, leaping over bodies and soldiers to get to Neziham) Treasure it. Black screen w/caption: The Shattered Plains (Quick shot of Listeners riding Chasmfiends into battle on Narak Prime) And if hope doesn't mean anything to you when you lose... Black screen w/caption: Thaylenah (Quick shot of Jasnah summoning Ivory while watching ships prepare for war in the harbor) Black screen w/caption, in different, crackly font: The Spiritual Realm (Quick shot of Dalinar and Navani rushing through human pilgrims during their arrival in Roshar) Then it wasn't ever a virtue in the first place. Fade to black. Music stops. Azish general screaming hauntingly: HOOOOOOOOOLD!! Silence. Taravangian's voice, taunting: Dalinar, Dalinar, Dalinar... (Close up of Taravangian's eyes flashing open, revealing infinite depths of gold and red) Fade to black. Hoid: This... it frightens me.

Made a chart combining all 3 metallic arts for ease of reference, thought I'd post it here as well

Overall I *really* liked this story. I really liked the mix of sci-fi and (I believe Polynesian) mythology, and I really appreciate Sanderson’s rendition of Moana. Dusk’s character arc was awesome, and I love the idea of finding a purpose in a world that is advancing beyond your skills. I also like how that mirrored starling and chrysalis’ predicaments, where this is showing that space age Cosmere is where technology advances past even gods. This story felt like a mythological journey that we’ve never yet seen in Sanderson’s work, and I think he did it wonderfully. I really liked the fact that the Dakwara was shaped by people’s cognitive perceptions of it, which makes perfect sense, but is frankly really poetic. As a big Greek myth fan, and a Percy Jackson reader, the idea that gods are shaped by the people who worship them feels really fitting. I also like that it showed how even “primitive” peoples had the ability to shape the Cosmere in significant ways, and that it is effort, not place in the world, that can determine success. I also found the idea of the space age superpowers fascinating, but also deeply depressing. Like one of the things I often do when reading is imagining what it would be like living in such a world, and in most other Sanderson works, I could see the silver lining, but this particular part of the Cosmere timeline seems like a terrible time to live in. Which is a neat concept, but is also kinda sad. I think dusk’s story was stronger than Starling’s, though I did like the fact that this painted Hoid in a good light. He might be a bit of an asshole at times, but he at least strives for kindness. And that (for the most part) lines up with what we see of him. He’s a problem child, but a caring problem child. I also really liked the fact that Starling willingly imprisoned herself, and that given the chance to free herself, she chose to keep herself trapped in order to save the ones she loved. That’s honestly a really nice tale, and while the message is a bit on the nose, it felt appropriate for the story. overall great book. Were there weaknesses? Yes, of course. However, the feel, the message, and the worldbuilding was just the right flavor for me, and that’s what counts. I loved this style of Sanderson, and am glad he branched out from his standard fantasy style into a more mythological approach.

the ten orders of purrbinders:

Important note: This list would be far less complete if not for the efforts of everyone who helped me compile it. Specifically thankyou to: Awesomeness Summoned, Delightful, Argent, PorridgeBrick, Kurkistan, Quiver, Green Hoodie Mistborn, Senor Feesh, Observer, ccstat, Swimmingly, Alvron, Metacognition, The Only Joe, GreyPilgrim, Aether, jasonpenguin, Mailliw73, Moodle, Tempus, Baine, Kobold King, LeftInch, Sir Jerric, Tensoon, Ashiok, Theorymaker, Seonid, Shaggai, TheYoungBard, Curiosity, Snoopy, Voidus, Frosted Flakes, Kasimir, Shallan. (Let me know if I missed you.) Hokay, for those who want to know the ranks, I looked through everyone who had at least 10 posts. Here are my findings. 10000+ God Beyond 9000 9999 Adonalsium 8500 8999 Hero of Ages 8192 8499 The Broken One 7800 8191 Shard 7500 7799 Splintered Shard 7200 7499 Splinter 6800 7199 Dragon 6400 6799 Stormfather 6000 6399 Herald 5700 5999 Sliver 5350 5699 Nightwatcher 5000 5349 Worldhopper 4750 4999 God of Color 4500 4749 Lord Ruler 4250 4499 Unmade 4096 4249 Dawnshard 3761 4095 Prime 3500 3760 Lerasium Mistborn 3250 3499 Bondsmith 3000 3249 Voidbringer 2750 2999 Knight Radiant 2500 2749 Most Ancient 2250 2499 Steel Inquisitor 2048 2249 Mistborn 1900 2047 Tarachin Superstar 1800 1899 Dawnsinger 1700 1799 Rambleman 1600 1699 Savant 1550 1599 Gerontarch 1500 1549 Midnight Essence 1450 1499 Listener 1400 1449 Enefel 1370 1399 Kalad's Phantom 1338 1369 Compounder 1337 So l337 Hoid Can't Compete 1300 1336 Surgebinder 1260 1299 Radiant Squire 1220 1259 Kandra 1180 1219 Twinborn 1145 1179 Returned 1111 1144 Scadrian Waffle Cook 1080 1110 Stone Shaman 1050 1079 Cryptic 1024 1049 Honorspren 1000 1023 Sentient Awakened Object 980 999 Truthless 950 979 Highprince 920 949 Worldbringer 890 919 Full Feruchemist 860 889 Full Shardbearer 830 859 Shardbearer 800 829 Seer 777 799 Spinner 760 776 Wyrn the King 730 759 Elantrian 700 729 Originator 667 699 Svrakiss 666 Torturer of Heralds 650 665 Shade 625 649 Soulcaster 600 624 Forger 575 599 Dakhor Monk 550 574 Lord Prelan 512 549 King's Wit 496 511 Son of Honor 475 495 Vanisher 450 474 King's Tester 425 449 Ghostblood 400 424 Envisager 375 399 Artifabrian 350 374 Ferring 325 349 Stormwarden 300 324 Bloodsealer 278 299 Silent Gatherer 256 277 Misting 225 255 Arbiter 200 224 Gyorn 180 199 High Prelan 160 179 Oldblood 145 159 Cobalt Guard 128 144 Hazekiller 110 127 Forescout 100 109 Houselord 90 99 Babsk 80 89 Prelan 75 79 Arteth 70 74 Idrian Monk 64 69 Obligator 56 63 Lighteyes 50 55 Grand 45 49 Noble 40 44 Crew Leader 32 39 Ardent 25 31 Pahn Kahl 20 24 Awakened Object 16 19 Noble-Blooded 10 15 Bridgeman 7 9 Spearman 5 6 Darkeyes 2 4 Skaa 0 1 Spren --- -1 -2 Negaspren -3 -5 Lifeless -6 -10 Hoed -15 -19 ? Beheaded Inquisitor -20 -24 ? Rotting Chull Carcass -24 -25 Lamespren -26 -100 Zucchini -101 and below Chasmfiend Corpse Note: negative reputation titles are no longer obtainable due to downvotes having been removed. I'll update this as we learn more We now know them all! I like the new levels. Good work Chaos Please don't ask me how long that took. Current lowest Unknown rep: nonexistent. We're so close to getting them all =D Edit: Wooohooo first popular post Later edit: For the record, at the time I added that comment 10 rep was a little more exciting Another edit: The lower rep ranks have changed at some point, I don't know where all of the new boundaries are yet.

IVE DONE IT 7000 posts in a little over a year wow it’s crazy. Just yesterday i was at 5000. this whole journey has kept me alive, through the role plays, the community, I couldn’t do it without you all. Looking around at everyone i know… yall have changed my life. Inspired me to write, to get out of a shell i hid in. And helped me through my darkest moments. I wanna give everyone a hug and say how awesome yall are for letting me into this place. Thanks, @Through The Living Glass @Bird Furious and @OOKLA_the LIV for being the first ones to talk to me, showing me the ropes and introducing me to everyone. @DragonHeir @TwinStorm @SpiritOfWrath @Kansas Stormcursed @NameIess and @xinoehp512 for everything in tlt.its Cheesy but that Roleplay shaped my life, and helped me learn about myself. @MirkerLurker @KnightSkye Reforged @#1 Taln Fan @Spark of Hope @A Silvereye in Silverlight . @Shatter Thank you all for the advice the hugs and supporting me whenever i came to you broken @CoderDrag0n8 @The Great Wyver @SpartanBrigade @mippo @Rynturning_Light @VieB13 @KaladinsSenseOfHumourSpren @ChipsAHoid @Cookie Sprenthanks for bringing joy to my day with your jokes and energy @Honors Ghost @Hmmm lies @Aeoryi and everyone else thanks for helping me on my journey of self discovery. i love all of you so much, here’s to the past 7000 post, and the next million and if you weren’t tagged its cause i forgot everyone i talk to, but thanks to you to!!!

So...you joined a Sanderson fansite forum, just to bash on a book and proclaim you're done with the author...? You do you, but this feels a tad much IMO.

Sorry, if someone said, "Hello, my religion's values say Black people are inferior. What's the problem, I feel uncomfortable with people celebrating Black Pride. Why won't you leave a space for me in your community?" would you really be surprised if that person was removed from the community? The fact that you can replace Black people in that statement with LGBTQ people should be very illustrative; it's the same terrible argument, and should be treated the same. The pendulum is not swung too far to recognize that queerness exists, that trans people exist, intersex people exist, and that their existence is affirmed. God forbid people exist and don't want to be hated for existing, right? That is not a radical or out there statement. And I don't really think a middle ground exists where like... queer people just need to hide themselves so that others can be in blissful ignorance about things that don't affect them. If an icon showing that a very much marginalized group just... exists is offensive to someone, well... that sounds far more like their problem than ours? Our stances in our Code of Conduct have been very firm, and it always has. We have lots of queer people in the community. That's how it is. They are people, they are all around, they always existed, and they are not going away, despite some groups very much wanting them to. There are lots of religious people who find queer people existing to be perfectly compatible...

GUESS GUESS WHAT GUESS WHO'S FINALLY AFTER OVER TEN YEARS OF BULLYING/LONELINESS/POOR MENTAL HEALTH BECAUSE I DIDN'T HAVE ONE GUESS WHO'S FINALLY GETTING A PHONE!!!! AHHHHHHHHHHH took long enough, considering how long ago my 18th birthday was . . . MY PARENTS HATE IT BUT OH THEY CAN'T STOP ME NOWWWWWWWWWWWW *CACKLES* I don't have it yet I get it Friday

I wanted to start a compilation of differences people have noticed between the original novella and the new revision. Feel free to chime in - I’ll update my original post with my observations as I continue to reread! There are more minor differences than I remembered at first, so I’ve started putting the ones I consider particularly interesting or important in bold type. * Much longer monologue about Dusk’s navigation techniques when first approaching the Pantheon. Only the new version acknowledges that he “hates” the more modern equipment, where his view seems more neutral in the original text. * Dusk’s age - he is 10 years out of apprenticeship in the original, but 15 years out in the update. * Dusk catches a fish before paddling closer to the Pantheon in the updated version, while he snacks on the previous night’s catch in the original (these lines are shifted to slightly later in the update). * The line “Patji. King of the Pantheon. God of the Eelakin.” is unique to the updated version. * Lore is introduced about the trappers’ medallions while Dusk is offshore from Patji in the new version. We learn they depict Cakoban, are rubbed for good luck, and are carried by a trapper until he dies. * In the original, Dusk sees the meekers immediately after noticing some of the trading company expedition has fled to the woods. In the new version, we get this somewhat chilling line and then a chapter break: “And so, he moved beneath the dark canopy, this time trapping not birds, but humans.” * In the update, Dusk is explicit about what questions he should not be thinking: “about why Patji was so terrible” * In the original, Dusk thinks Vathi’s name is “a name like the mainlanders used” while this reference is removed in the update (presumably to tie in with new information about the mainland) * In the new version, Dusk and Vathi pass a hive of masher wasps, which are not mentioned in the original. * In the original, Vathi refers to “Dusk” as a name, while in the update it is clarified as a forename. * In the midst of their argument about changing times, new version Dusk is shocked to hear Vathi doesn’t know the story of Cakoban, who of course is not mentioned in the original. * Original Vathi stated that all twenty chiefs have agreed to explore Patji, while new Vathi mentions one hundred and twenty! She also describes a supermajority vote and a Senate. * New version Vathi notes that the Ones Above have two arms and legs, and wear helmets, while original Vathi just says they look and speak like her people. * Original Vathi says the Ones Above ambassador choked to death and left his machines behind, which demonstrated they could die of normal means. New Vathi just says he left the machines behind by accident. * Original Dusk is warned of a sinkhole by Sak, while in the new version this is a den of a tokka. On the whole, I see many more creatures described in the updated version, which does lend more uniqueness to the setting compared to an Earth jungle. * New: Dusk thinks about the pool as the reason a bird could become an Aviar if raised on Patji, while Vathi is questioning him on the subject. * Patji’s Finger renamed to Cakoban’s fingers. * Dusk takes a medallion from the dead trapper in the new version. * More new flora in the updated version: stinging terror vines. * New version Dusk gives Vathi his uncle’s medallion after scolding her. * In the new version, Vathi opens a fruit to reveal the glowing worms inside. * New Vathi takes a moment to reassure Dusk about change meaning a person has the capacity to be someone new. * In the update, Dusk sees glowing butterflies while hiding from the nightmaws in the lake, and is told “well done” by a voice - presumably Patji. * Some rewording of Dusk’s inner monologue about the Ones Above’s plan in the update. * Dusk and Vathi hold up their medallions next to each other in the new version, rather than mating plumes.

We get quite a few insights and hints into the cosmere’s big-picture political situation, and I’m making this post to try to put some puzzle pieces together. Scadrial and Roshar are major superpowers. They are the two planets making a play for Drominad, and there are numerous references to those two being the big fish of the cosmere. There are several other spacefaring powers of note including Dhatri, Yolen, Silverlight, and Taldain. Sel and Nalthis are not mentioned much in this book, but should probably also go on the list. Everyone is scared of Threnodite shades, but it’s unclear how organised and cohesive the Threnodites are as a political entity. Lumar and Drominad are likely to count as notable powers following the events of this book. Scadrial is not politically unified judging by the separation between the Northern culture and the Malwish culture. The Malwish Empire has its own prime minister and its own military that is distinctly Malwish, and has no cultural features in common with the Northerners that I noticed. This is especially interesting as it suggests the tension between the north and south is still unresolved, and possibly a big part of what drives their rapid technological advancement (and aggressive territorial expansion). Going forward, we should keep in mind that planets in the cosmere are (generally) home to several people groups that are not necessarily unified under one government by the space age. It is probably more correct to view Scadrial as two powers, not one, and that may go for Roshar as well. The ‘Silverlight Accords’ form an international law that even the biggest superpowers have to at least pay lip service to. It seems that no single power has the ability to fight against all the other powers at once, which keeps their behaviour somewhat in line. The Accords have rules about how much a spacefaring culture is allowed to interfere with an industrial culture, and in what circumstances. These rules are designed not to limit contact, but to limit unchecked conquest. Silverlight views Hoid as a notorious outlaw, which suggests he is acting against most political powers’ interests and is effective enough to scare them. There are hundreds of accessible, inhabited planets currently documented as per Dajer’s slide show. It’s fair to assume that these are public knowledge, not military secrets, or the military wouldn’t be showing the slide show presentation to outsiders. (And yes, Dajer is unreliable, but photographic evidence is photographic evidence.) The discovery of a new planet is an exciting event in academia, with implications for business and political interests. Of these known planets, dozens have spacefaring cultures judging by the number of people groups from different planets that can be found in Silverlight. This implies that not every spacefaring culture is a notable political power. There are many more undocumented, unexplored planets which may be inhabited. Thousands, maybe tens of thousands. Following the events of the book and the availability of Navigators, there is likely to be a discovery boom and a rush to claim land and resources, which will have a big impact on the balance of power. There are several non-human species with human-like intelligence out there. Dragons and Sleepless are the obvious politically relevant ones, but there are more we haven’t heard of, including ones with different physical requirements than humans. The Shards are still relevant in that you don’t mess with them or take them lightly, but they seem to avoid direct involvement most of the time. There is uncertainty around what happened to Virtuosity and what is going on with Autonomy, so there is a degree of mystery still there.

WaT was supposed to feel bleak, but even in that bleakness there are rays of hope and potential for the future. I'm not sure we can paint a picture of the whole planet or even the faction these people represent. I'm not sure Odium or Retribution are still in charge of Roshar not to mention the only Rosharan we've seen so far was solo and a member of the Skybreakers who've already been shown to be hardliners in the timeline of the books. He doesn't seem to mind so much. I choose to be hopeful like Starling and view his absence from the Eternal Shores as an indication he's alive So he's just about as useful as usual? He doesn't seem to concerned or he probably would have tried giving starling a hint at where he is. Brandon's Dragons seem to be a combination of Tolkien's most discompasionite elves mixed with biblical angels. It sounds like their society has only gotten more calcified as the moderating voices in dragon society have died or cut themselves off from the cosmere. Its almost a stereotype of Brandon's at this point to have a protagonist that's diametrically opposed to their society. I felt it was pretty obvious from Starling's pov that her culture is stagnating and dyeing because they refuse to take part in the affairs of mortals. It's ok to no longer feel like a series is for you. But I would argue the current state of the Cosmere is not much bleaker than it was during Mistborn era one.

Guys I plan to leave the Shard on maybe Wednesday (no I'm not telling you when school ended/ends). My Shardiversary is encompassed by the summer. So ig I have to say something. If I forget you, it's because I'm not following you (I think). @___/Mippo, I've enjoyed getting to know you. Although you don't say enough insane things to make the one liners, you still say lots of funny things that make my day. You are a great sausage. @Through the Living Hopper, you helped me figure out this strange site, and for that, I am in your debt. I also appreciate your pfp. I laugh sometimes when I see it. It strangely reminds me of my little sibling, who looks like a Cryptic running in her nightgown sometimes. @AltonicKeys, you created the Battle for the Sandwich and the Shard wouldn't be the same place without it. Thanks for almost a year of crazy Sandwich-stealing. @Bird Furious, I didn't know you that long, but the time that I did know you was awesome. We all miss you Haly! I don't think that you'll see this, but thanks for your time on the Shard. @ChipsAHoid/[redacted], I'll try not to make this too long. Wow! You've almost lasted a year as both a Shard/irl friend. It's been amazing to have a friend (still sounds strange to say). Storms you're insane. Thanks for introducing me to the Shard/Stormlight, and being the only person in years I feel comfortable talking to. It's been surreal, truly. Thanks for being an awesome Sandernerd/ marimba player/absurdly kind and witty person. Thanks for making me laugh so hard my face hurts. Thanks for a year I'll never forget. Thanks for giving me hope. @CoderDrag0n8, the official ORV Bondsmith! I'm reading it, seriously (not sarcastic). And it's awesome. You're a pretty cool flavored concrete-snorting, fae king, book wyrm, etc. I know there's stuff I'm forgetting please don't kill me no no no. Anyway, the Shard is not the Shard without you and therefore you are the Shard and the Shard is you (don't question my logic it makes sense trust). @Conure1243, you're the most unhinged guy I know (and that is truly one of the best compliments I could ever give). Or maybe the entire world is insane, and you're the only sane one. You never know. Anyway, I love you're amazing quotes and your art that makes my art feel pathetic (which, it is), but that's beside the point. Conure's art is awesome. If you haven't seen it, go look at it because it's insane (and much better than my passable stick figures). I am honored to be the sandwich on the floor. @First of the Tide, the Shardblade you made for me is awesome! I know you're not active on most threads, but that doesn't change how much I've enjoyed talking with you. @GG0z, I still think of you as a 'New Sharder', but you've proven your activity by now. It's very fun fraternizing and being insane together on TLPL. I look forward to hopefully seeing you after summer. Congratulations on me remembering you! *spawns celebratory thunderclasts* @Honors Spectral Image, I believe you were my first Shardbuddy! Thanks for tolerating a year of insanity and confuddling comments! You're super awesome! @Ink and Embers, you're the first Brit I've ever known, and now my opinion of Britain is high. You're so funny and kind and just all around awesome! Thanks for being so nice! I love it when we're both on the Shard at the same time. @KaladinsSenseOfHumourSpren, I enjoyed meeting you this year, particularly on the Let's Be Radiant thread. Somehow, I've seriously multiplied my sanity by negative two this year (yes because my sanity was in the negatives before; also, no I'm not terribly sane now but it's an improvement), and I think my oaths had a lot to do with that. Understanding myself and all that nonsense. So, thanks especially for refounding the Knights Radiant. And just being yourself in general. You have more humor than Kaladin, trust me. *sends snow* @Kansas Stormcursed, I wish you were on here more often, but I hope you're having fun! You (like pretty much everyone on the Shard) are super awesome. When I first joined on July 5, my parents kicked me off shortly, and the only Shard username (besides Chips and his sister) by the time school startedwas you. Needless to say, I was momentarily very confused because I thought it was a reference I didn't get, but here we are! Thank you for contributing to this awesome year! @PianoSavant/[redacted], I know you don't post on here much, but that doesn't mean that you aren't an amazing Sanderfan! I love your banner---particularly the taynix art! It's beautiful, seriously. Wish I could see you more often. @The Great Wyver, I miss you and all of your absolutely big windy delectable platter of meaty liquids! Super sad that the Shard is blocked (surprised it hasn't on mine yet but am very happy). Hope you're doing okay! @Through The Living Ash, you're another one I miss. I really appreciated your Ashkalodaness (although I suppose I never learned what Ashkaloda even means). I hope you have an awesome life after high school!!!!!!!! @Through The Living Ketek, Master of Keteks, thank you for letting us be insane nerds together. No, I never joined your cult, but that was because it was too late by the time I noticed what was going on. Don't kill me...please. Fellow engineering nerd, fun acquaintance, and good friend overall. @Through the Living Shadow, yippee for like 70,000 name confusions! I survived! Thanks for your kindness, wit, and wrath. Well, it depends on how you define wrath. I wouldn't describe you as a 'wrathful spirit'. I read your writing, it's good too. @Through The Living Star, we're so similar we're practically clones! Except you're nicer, saner (yes you are don't argue), and better at writing! Also you speak Chinese and play ultimate frisbee and do all sorts of cool stuff. Anyways, stay super cool and awesome and don't leave over the summer bc I'll be sadddd. And try not to die. Too much. I'll miss youuuu. @Verdance, congrats on graduating high school!!!! And you're still on the Shard, so I continue to benefit from your presence. And I actually kinda thought about your username a little, and decided to go on a walk (with a Sanderson book). And now instead of sulking, reading, and being depressed, I stare out at nature, sulk, read, and am depressed! (It's better actually so thanks). @Vielence, I miss seeing you more often and hope you're doing great (and getting your much needed warrior cake)! *sends some as a 1 1/2 month late birthday present*. I have definitely enjoyed your often amusing comments! And update: I found Spartan, he wasn't following me (what a sane guy), which is why this part is a little later. If there's someone else I'm forgetting lemme know so I can clear up that terrible mistake @SpartanBrigade, you're the most awesome 148-year old guy I know! (well, so says your birth date). I've enjoyed the magic and the too juicy steak and the too buttery lobster. All in all, Spartan, you are a really nice guy and thanks for existing! Update 2: I also forgot @Usseewa, thank you for letting @----- (no I want my head attached, like Vie said at some point I think) change your username back. It's been simply awesome. Thank you for your persistent kindness and insanity. Storms that took a while. I'll miss you all. And no I'm not dying. See you August or smth (I might be able to sneak on and marvel at the amount of notifs at some point in the summer, but I won't be active until then).

Yeah, there's no way you're not a troll if you insist those are totally your pronouns but you hadn't thought about how they would function in practice. Goodbye.

Hey everyone! ^_^V TL;DR: Built an interactive timeline map for Mistborn Original Trilogy with character tracking, spoiler protection, and city zoom. Still super early (WIP) — looking for feedback, domain name suggestions, and let me know if you'd like milestone updates! Will be fully open sourced on v1.0 release! --- I'm a first-time reader of Brandon Sanderson's work. I just finished the Wheel of Time series and was introduced to Sanderson through his work on the final books. Took me 2 years to read those amazing books. I was trying to decide which books to read next, but I really enjoyed Sanderson's writing style and dove right into the Mistborn trilogy. Coming from WoT, I really missed having a good timeline visualization tool. There was an excellent one for the Wheel of Time that helped me track character movements and understand the geography. When I started Mistborn, I found Cosmere Maps which was okay, but it hasn't been updated in four years and was missing some features I really wanted. So... I built my own! Mistborn Atlas I used Isaac Stewart's official Final Empire maps as the base - I liked his cartography work and wanted to stay true to the official geography. Mistborn Atlas Features: Interactive Maps: Full Final Empire world map with 38+ locations (cities, ashmounts, landmarks) Detailed city maps for Luthadel, Urteau, and Fadrex City Easy switching between world and city views via dropdown Timeline & Character Tracking: Timeline playback through all three books (The Final Empire, Well of Ascension, Hero of Ages) Real-time character movement visualization across the map "Follow mode" - track individual characters with auto-opening popups during playback Character paths showing their journey throughout the story Chapter-by-chapter navigation with slider control Spoiler Protection & Customization: Characters only appear after they debut (by book/chapter) Toggle for "Show All" if you don't care about spoilers Show/hide locations and paths Character visibility filters Color-coded markers for easy identification User Experience: Fully responsive design (works great on mobile!) Information panels with rich location descriptions and lore Click locations/characters for detailed popups Play/pause timeline with smooth animations Book switching (TFE, WoA, HoA) with automatic chapter reset Saving where you were last when you visited the page Mobile friendly, a good partner to have while reading. Internationalization: Support for 10 languages: English, Spanish, Chinese, Hindi, French, Arabic, Bengali, Portuguese, Russian, Japanese Auto-detects browser language Language is set via the `lang` URL parameter (e.g. `?lang=es` for Spanish) `/?lang=en` is the default and does not need to appear in the URL Easy language switching via dropdown Current Status - Super Early WIP! Fair warning: this is still super super early! I'm actively working on it over the next couple of weeks. Think of this as a sneak peek rather than a finished product! Here's roughly where things stand: Location Mapping: ~70% done — most major cities, ashmounts, and key landmarks are placed, but some minor locations still need plotting Descriptions & Lore Accuracy: ~50% verified — going through all location and event descriptions to ensure accuracy and consistency with the books Character Movement Data: ~50% done — the movement system is built and working, but only a fraction of the chapter-by-chapter character tracking has been entered so far Known Issues: Popup positioning for markers near map edges can be a bit janky, and the timeline playback transitions between chapters need to be smoother — working on both! Translations: Completing translations for all supported languages (currently English is prioritised and when finished I can translate to all other languages with the help of AI) Polish: Fixing bugs and refining the user experience There's still a lot of data entry and verification ahead, but the foundation is solid and I'm chipping away at it daily. Your feedback, bug reports, and suggestions are incredibly valuable as I work toward v1.0! Would you like me to keep updating this thread (or post follow-ups) as I hit milestones? Happy to share progress updates if there's interest! The Future Right now this is just a passion project I've hosted on a temporary Azure address while reading through the series. If this gets some support/interest from the community, I'd love to buy a proper domain and host it publicly. I'm currently calling it "Mistborn Atlas" but I'm open to other names — if you have a cool suggestion for the domain, drop it in the comments! Some ideas I've been tossing around: mistbornatlas.com scadrialatlas.com finalempiremap.com cosmereatlas.com (if I expand to other Sanderson worlds later) Open to lore-themed ideas too — anything that fits the Mistborn/Scadrial vibe. What sounds best to you? I'm still making my way through Hero of Ages (no spoilers please! ), but I wanted to share this with the community and get your thoughts. Would this be useful for other readers? Any features you'd want to see added? Tech Stack (for the curious): React, TypeScript, Leaflet.js, SCSS Open Source: The entire project will be completely open sourced once v1.0 is complete. The full source code will be available on GitHub for anyone to fork, contribute to, or learn from. If you want to collaborate on translations, movement data, or features, reach out! A Note on Location Accuracy Since this is still early days, not all locations and descriptions have been fully verified yet. I've placed things as accurately as I can based on the books and the official maps, but I'm still working through everything and some things are definitely off or incomplete. If you spot anything that looks wrong — a misplaced location, an inaccurate description, a lore mistake — please let me know! Once the project is open sourced, you'll be able to contribute fixes directly via pull requests or just right here. Debug Mode: Add ?dbg=1 to the URL to see live coordinates as you hover over the map. Click to freeze coordinates and copy them to your clipboard. I used this tool to plot all the map points, and your help verifying locations would be greatly appreciated! Support the Project This is a free fan project that I build and maintain in my spare time. If you're enjoying this and want to see it grow, you can buy me a coffee on Ko-fi . Your support would help me: Buy a domain name and hosting to make it publicly accessible Keep the site running and ad-free forever Expand to other Cosmere series (Stormlight Archive, anyone?) Continue adding features and improvements No pressure at all — I'll keep building this either way! But every little bit helps turn this passion project into something even better for the community.

Edit: guess we're gonna keep adding people I missed Ok, here we go. God, 2025 was a year. That was...yeah, let's not do that again. Please. On the bright side, I did make some new friends (I'll get to all of y'all in a second), and have made it almost all the way to being an adult. Life goals! Plus freedom! Anyway, alright. Let's get into this. If I didn't mention you, my sincerest apologies. I tried to hit everyone, but space is limited and my head is still spinning somewhat, so I mostly limited it to those I interact with or have interacted with a lot. Alphabetically! ('Cause that's how my followers are sorted and that's the list I'm going by) @#1 Taln Fan thanks for being the fun mod and interacting with us! And also for putting up with my fairly frequent and probably annoying questions. @Akimikoisthecutest thanks for being fun! And queer! @Argenti honestly it's been awhile since I've interacted with you because it seems like a lot of RPs have died :(. However, thanks for being fun to RP with! @Ashkaloda thanks for being my TLT buddy when I first started! (Pretty please could you and Hawks continue the Cep/Aeryn plot at some point?) @Bird Furious We miss you Haly! It was always fun interacting with you when you were on here. @CalamityBorn (honorable mention since I know him irl) You should totally interact on here more, it's a fun crew @ChipsAHoid yeah you're just fun. You're in too many threads for me to pinpoint a particular one, which is good—when you're actually active and not at school @CoderDrag0n8 You, too, are fun you little dragon nerd @Cookie Spren I'm glad you're back! I mean I wish you'd be back more, but still. Glad you're back with us somewhat. @echo74 admittedly it has been quite some time since we've really interacted, you have moved into the realm of the SU-ers. That said, it was fun interacting with you when you were more active, and we still interact a bit. @Hmmm lies all hail the leader of the Cosmere Queers @Hoid Slayer Mainly I'm sad Brandon didn't read you script cause dang man that thing was good @Honors Ghost yeahh you know. I talk to you enough irl @Ink and Embers Also thanks for being fun! And for mostly putting up with Skye and I's chaos in GDRP @KaladinsSenseOfHumourSpren the sci-fi-est nerd I know. Hats off to you for the sheer level of sci-fi-dom you have achieved @mippo You are also a fun person. You're kind of all over the site it seems like in various periods, so I also can't really pin you down to one spot @MirkerLurker sad you're not on here more, but I get it. Thanks for patiently listening to the issues I throw at you and offering advice @momadrac also thanks for being fun and queer, and I swear I'll try to get back into the gay RP soon @Ookla the Fishy honestly didn't interact with you too much even back when, but thanks a lot for constantly making me lose the game (here's my retribution ) @Ookla the Whimsical come back!! I'm stuck fighting Skye all the time! He's fun and all, but I need some variety. In all seriousness, hope you're doing well and have a good reason for having been gone for months @Ryn keep the combat pan. Use it well. And much luck in your Ideals; I believe in you @Sarcasm spren dude, seriously, thank you. You've helped keep me sane for most of the past year. Know I'm always here to return the favor. You can even have my number once I turn 18 and am finally not under parental restrictions @Sequence shoutout TLT person! Thanks for having one of the most fun characters to RP with! (Please don't kill her) @Shatter No, I will not move to Canada, but I do enjoy interacting with you. I do need to try some of that Canadian maple syrup you keep telling me about @Spark of Hope I have you permanently catalogued in my head as "fun RP person who's everywhere" @SpartanBrigade dear God thank you for keeping me sane. And for sharing many of my same views, even if we disagree on a few important points (4th wing is good whether you like it or not) @SpiritOfWrath spooky scary old shard person...honestly that is what I associate you with. Specially Wrath. @strmblsd honorable mention cause even though we don't interact that much I remember that I used to see you on here more and EVERY SINGLE TIME I SEE YOUR PFP it gets me. So thanks VERY MUCH. @The Great Wyver I swear everybody from this crew is just goofy. I thank you very much for not going back to the days when I'd get fifty notifs in two hours from you and Coder alone...but also you should come back more. Also, you're stuck with Blue. That's not going away. @Through The Living Glass REALLY OLD SHARDER. Who is somehow still active. And not actually that old, but yk. I was hearing legends even when I joined. *nom* *combat pan bonk for good measure* stick around. @TwinStorm You, too, are fun to RP with. I may try to do some stuff with Cricket soon, so as to try to unfreeze at least one plotline...that admittedly I actually let drop cause I got busy. My bad And with that HOLY JESUS that took way longer than I meant it to. Started trying to write this around 7:30, and it is now almost 11. Had to pause 'cause the parents wanted to show me Schindler's List (hell of a way to mark the new year, let me tell you), but I finally got it all done. Was more rambly than I guess I originally intended, but whatever that's how my brain works. I love all y'all guys though, it's super fun being on here and I'm glad I found this place Anyway I really hope I get to meet some of y'all irl soon...like maybe in a couple years when I can finally make it to DSNX

GUYSGUYSGUYS I GOT DORM HOUSING :D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D I'm free T3T . . . for a few months at least BUT STILL AH

Holy crap i cant beleived i missed my shardaversery. I geuss it’s hard to beleve ive only been here a year. One years,… y a know i was looking at some old posts of mine today and holy craps… i changed so much. I joined this place as a nervous and quiet straight girl and now im a loud flamboyant gay trans guy. man i used to make every other post and apologize for breathing and i was the awkward lil kid and now im the irresponsible person… this year has been the most chaotic scary and painful year of my life. i was lose to ending so many times and i cant imagine doing it all without you guys. this community is the best thing to be created. every single one of you i swear are the best. all 70 of you who follow me and ever shaardbuddy or anything. you make me smile every time i log on. you make me cry. you remind me im human and humans feel emotions. hard ones. sad ones. happy ones. all of them. Thank you all every one here. You have been one of the greatest things that happened to me in a long time.

GUYS FHSBJWOASDKXLCVNKFGHWE I GOT INTO THE COLLEGE I WANTED won't say where but this is a huge relief AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH LITERALLY JUST OPENED MY ACCEPTANCE LETTER LIKE FIVE MINUTES AGO

@Through The Living Ash @Through The Living Coder @Through The Living Ghost @Through The Living Girl @Through The Living Grass @Through the Living Heir @Through the Living Hope @Through the Living Hopper @Through the Living Ink @Through the living keigs @Through The Living Ketek @Through the Living Mippo @Through the Living Wrath @Through The Living Spartan @Through The Living Shatter @Slay the Living Hoid @Throw TheLiving Silverware @Through The Living Skies @ThroughTheLivingIlliterate @ThroughTheLivingSequence @Through the Living Questio @Through the living jeff TO ME, MY CHILDREN! COME FORTH! *cackles* *thunder crashes*

Home is a wet dog held tightly, a pair of tangled earphones, sleeping people you’ve known for longer than they’ve known themselves. Home is a fleeting thing. Home is a scary thing, because home is where you’re allowed to be scared, and so home itself becomes frightening. home is hating. home is having. home is heavy and whole and unrelenting. i love my puppy

OH Also Am working on a Sharder Family Tree that EVERYONE will be able to access and edit Within reason of course so should have that for y'all in the next couple days :3333333 hehehe It's nice to be back on here after a month even if no one else is awake rn . . . Suppose that's my own fault heh . . . I'm gonna sleep now before someone chases me off NIGHT! *poof*

Hmm, it’s my shardiversary. Definitely not here as much as I used to be, but I’m glad for the time I’ve had. It’s been fun. Cool to see how much both I and the site have changed. Thanks, all, for making it the place that it is.

If you are trying to register and don't receive a validation email, it is possible your mail server is outright rejecting 17th Shard's emails. This has happened a few times, where people try to use the Contact Form, and I have had both my 17S email get rejected, as well as my regular Gmail. Essentially, if this is happening to you, your school administrators have heavily locked down your school email address. Please remember school / organization email addresses are monitored. They will restrict these to educational/organization purposes. In addition, when you eventually are not a student, you will often lose access to your school email address very quickly. (At the college I teach at, a student would lose their Gmail after a semester of not taking classes.) This means you will be locked out of many accounts if you use to register for many sites. For these and many other reasons, we do not recommend you use such emails for personal accounts. It is free and easy to register for a Gmail account, or Outlook account, or any number of other free services, like Proton. To the teens on 17th Shard: I cannot emphasize enough the importance of registering a personal email account that you will keep for years. If I could make a suggestion, I would also recommend you choose an email address that sounds professional, and that you will not be ashamed to give to potential employers or other official things. I say this as a person who needs to convert from my dorky "Chaos" email address to something more professional near the end of college, particularly when it's connected to tons of accounts (and in my case, Google Docs). I know that sounds far away, but it'll happen faster than you assume! If you would like to maintain anonymity online (which is a very wise idea), register a more professional-sounding email and use it for some purposes, and then have a pseudonym for things like 17th Shard/Reddit/Discord. Anyway, that's just a PSA for the day. Thanks for reading!

Ok ok. So. To recap. You, a person who hates all things sanderson because of a single book, joined the Brandon Sanderson Fansite for... what reason? To insult everyone and call them fools? To hate on a person with an opinion you know literally no one shares? Because you just really really want to tell everyone your opinion that their favorite series is trash? Please, enlighten me. I am so so curious to what the heck you are doing here. Also Credit to Use The Falchion for asking it before I did (and promply getting ignored, which is a whole other thing):

College applications scholarship applications writing contests (aka more scholarship apps) on a board to help plan Storycon, a writing convention especially for teenagers in Utah which Brandon Sanderson (among many others) is going to. new classes three campuses 6 college classes this semester CNA program first day of school, and none of my classes are at my actual high school watched the sunrise from the football field with beautiful friends I never expected to have new nails beautiful resin and flower necklace I made yesterday i have stories to tell i have people to meet i have a whole world to see and this whole world is going to see me, and i dare it to try to stay the same when I’m done with it guys, I know a lot of you are struggling. I know there are days when you don’t want to wake up. I know there are nights when you curl up on the bathroom floor, broken in pieces, trying to remember how to breathe, tearing at your hair and itching at the tearstains that never seem to leave. i know your ache i have sat on that floor i have looked in that mirror i have imagined the world if all it contained of me was a few words I’d left behind i have screamed at the wind and begged the earth to let me go and it didn’t because it knew that the person I was then wasn’t the person I’d be today it knew that there were untold wonders I couldn’t bear to imagine it knew that today was worth the hurt it took to get here And I know that the person you are now isn’t the person you will always be i know that there are untold wonders you can’t bear to imagine i know that some distant tomorrow is worth the hurt it takes to get there this whole life thing? it’s pretty amazing

I will get my thoughts in order over time, but one of my favorite things about this story is the radically different context it puts Autonomy into. When we experienced that force in the Mistborn series, it manifested as this gross fascist power structure. But from the standpoint of First of the Sun, Autonomy means "This is our planet and these are our birds and you can't just take from us." And that's pretty cool. I can see this world becoming fabulously wealthy and influential, while also completely preserving the natural world and oceans, and it's very cool to imagine. They could build the majority of their trade infrastructure out of imported materials on the Shadesmar side, and make the Physical side into magical hyper-resorts for the richest people in the galaxy. Only instead of being colony stuff like in our world, it'll be the Eelakin cashing the checks.

Haven't finished it yet, but... apparently one of the leaders of the Arcanists at Silverlight is named Argent.

These days, I look in the mirror and find myself a man of lies. I must apologize in advance, I am feeling seriously depressed right now and that is making me dramatic and eloquent; I feel like taking this seriously. At some point I was always going to have to make this decision, and it's not one that I am enjoying making, but I don't really have a choice. This was going to happen eventually. I am terrible at keeping secrets. Some of you may be aware I have some very loving, very conservative, very controlling parents. I have simultaneously defended and complained about them many, many times, but in the end, they love me very much and want what's best for me. Well, they have discovered this 17thShard account that I have, and they do not like it. I cannot say that everything I have said on here is true. I have time and time again expressed opinions on religion, gender and sexuality, mental health, and other topics, and I can't really say that all of it is true. At my core, I lie through my teeth, supporting things I do not truly support, condemning things that I do not condemn, because if I don't, I won't have any friends. You all would dismiss me as hateful and ignorant and never speak to me again, because in some ways I am. I certainly don't hate any of you. I really can't believe that all of this is just some mental illness or something like that. Regardless, I can't keep pretending to support it in any capacity. 2 Peter 2:4-10 mentions a person from Genesis, Lot, who lived in the city of Sodom, an ancient city legendary for its degeneracy and violence. Lot was a follower of God who lived among these people, even becoming an arbiter or judge among them. In Genesis 18, Abraham barters with God, who is planning to destroy the city for its sin. After some time, God agrees that if ten righteous men can be found in Sodom, the city would be spared. Immediately after, the account cuts to Lot. Two male angels have been sent to his house to warn him about the coming destruction. Lot asks them to stay the night in his house for safety, but they refuse, accepting his food and sleeping in the courtyard. Later that night, a mob arrives at Lot's house. Their intentions towards the angels, or strangers, are not pure. Lot literally is in the process of bargaining away his daughters to the mob, but the angels blind the mob, and everyone escapes. 2nd Peter mentions what Lot was feeling: he was greatly distressed, because he loved all the people around him and yet wanted nothing to do with them. You all are not Sodom. But I certainly feel like Lot. I cannot continue existing here on the Shard. Feel free to ban me or wipe my account, I can't say I won't care, it will hurt a lot. But I have already made this decision. After my father specifically violated my privacy, going through my posts, he was immediately shocked at what he saw. Lies. Beautiful lies, from a lonely little boy clinging desperately to some sort of friendship. Very, very convincingly. I cannot justify his anger. I am only glad he held his temper back physically, which he has not done in the past. He is watching, reading through everything I have said, joking or serious, lies or truth, and I'm about essentially stand trial for it. I would like to reiterate that I am 18 years old and would like to be allowed to make my own decisions, but I also would like to have a house and a bed and food and water, and it has been made very clear that enjoying those privileges is not compatible with any form of disobedience. Maybe I really am a hateful monster. I lie to everyone around me, just to cling to them and get something from them. Even when I try to show love, it's almost another form of manipulation. Are we all manipulating each other? On my way to the library where I am typing this, I passed a mother bird protecting her eggs, sitting a short ways away from the railroad track I was using to travel. I stopped, and watched as any time I drew nearby, she would puff herself up and screech at me. It took me a minute to register that I was the threat. I was the looming, dangerous monster who had not thirty seconds ago been screeching harsh lyrics in the woods at the top of my lungs. Why wouldn't she be wary around me? Everything I touch turns water into blood, I don't look away when the bough breaks, I don't really love, I just hate being alone. I am so very happy my parents have taken away my autonomy, my agency, my knives, so I can't hurt myself. And I hate it all the same. And when I return to some form of logical sanity, I just remember how self centered I am. It's not about me. I'm in this love hate relationship with absolutely everything in my life. And when it comes time to decide between the two, I will become the villain to you all. My parents will still see me as deceptive, hateful, cowardly, rebellious, and godless. You all will see me as nothing more than a hateful bigot. There's nothing I really can do to change all this; again, I need a place to live. And in truth, I don't support anything LGBTQ. I really can't say that I believe everything the Bible teaches and say "happy pride month" in the same sentence. A fountain cannot spout both fresh and salt water. That doesn't mean I see any of you any less, if anything, right now I am the worst person on the planet in my own eyes. None of my scant morality, precious philosophy, or arrogant theology means anything without my faith. I cannot continue straddling a line, I have to choose between one or the other- and when my life is completely meaningless without Christ, I will choose Christ. No matter what any of you think of me, I still love you all, I still respect you all, I still appreciate you all. This is goodbye. Whether something I have said here violates Shard rules or not, I will not be returning. Thank you all so much for these few months. I sincerely wish you all the best. - Noah.

I’ve noticed this sometimes on threads with 3 replies.

I missed Wednesday hmph Is okay Was busy all day hanging out with some wonderful amazing Sharders before Dragonsteel

Never have I ever thought I would post this. But im here writing it now. Sorry.

I went to my college orientation today :3 It was really fun, and I'm excited about going there! It was really pretty on campus today! ....... ........ . . .. I am also now officially an art major lol, we all knew it was coming

Well, I must admit that this is not the greatest of Brandon’s secret novels. It was enjoyable, the story, setting and characters were fine, but that’s it. Just fine. Not as engaging as other secret projects. The loredump was the best part of the book so far as so many things were revealed - dragons, Silverlight, the Evil, lots of tech, new planets and so on. While the story of Starling and Dusk on their own stood well, I like them, but together they never really clicked for me. It seems disjointed. Sure, in the second half of the book they had a common enemy and interest in Drominad’s perpendicularity, but Starling was focused on her crew, while Dusk was focused on the cave and they barely worked together. It felt like those two were just separate stories stitched together in one book. I wish they’d interacted more and planned an escape together (Chrysalis could have let them talk to each other after all). The villain was bad. I’m very disappointed in Dajer. He was a caricature of a villain, stupid with Dusk, yet smart with Starling. A space fascist, but at the same time being investigated by his own military for incompetence, disobedience and breaking laws. I could not take him seriously at all. Brandon can do better villains. What even was the point of introducing Malwish secret police at the very end if they did nothing in the story? It was a waste, it would be better to use them to actually imprison Dajer and introduce a real and threatening villain in the last part. Dajer just didn’t work, he was a joke trying to pass a serious threat. I still like the book, it was a nice and relaxing read. Starling was a nice character, her relations with Frost, Hoid and Xisis were fun to read about, her crew was good, but not as developed as the crew of Crow's Song from Tress. Those interactions were lacking. I wish there were more of them as they were too much in the background, while Starling was busy with Dajer. Dusk was also enjoyable, seeing how the First of the Sun changed in those years was both heartbreaking and interesting. Patji didn’t deserve this fate, at least leave a nature reserve on the island, but that’s just a step towards progress Dusk’s people had to make to survive. It's impressive how much can be revealed and teased about the future of Cosmere without actually spoiling other books. There are still some things that can tell us a bit about what’s going to happen. Malwish are dominant on Scadrial and they hold a firm grip on the vast section of Cosmere and Shadesmar, they seem to win the cold war in Era 3 and have the power to rival Roshar, there is a lot of going on with Shard’s involvement in human affairs, it’s definitely a complicated politics, Harmony did something unique, Autonomy is still alive (as Patji is still fine, but I wonder what would happen to Avatars during a death of Shard’s Vessel and a merger), Invention created multiple planets, the Grand Apparatus was made before the Shattering and it’s ruled by Sleepless, who are quite aggressive and enslave others (that’s why Masaka run away), Threnody was destroyed by the Evil (which was hinted at in TSM), dragons on Yolen have a Dawnshard and the most shocking of them all - Hoid got married. What kind of a crazy person would marry Hoid? Although she decided to leave him and forgot about him, so not so crazy after all. And she’s a twin, do we know of any twins in Cosmere? There is a lot to unpack here, this book will be worth rereading, so that’s why I think the lore is the best part of the book. I love all scenes with the Evil, Such an interesting and awesome entity. A being made entirely out of anti-investiture, capable of destroying anything. Can it run out of it eventually or can it be replenished somehow. Was Ambition's investiture almost fully converted into anti-investiture during her death by Odium and that’s why nobody can Ascend to it per WoB? How much does it think, it’s stupidly invested and does want others to suffer so it seems to be somewhat sentient. Is Argent a traitor? Does he work for Malwish in secret? There was an arcanist who gave Dajer a tip about the map, so was that you Argent? It can’t be Huio!