Shardcast: Cognitive Shadows

But, if the Heralds don't have bodies on Braize, how exactly do they get tortured? Hooks and flames and whatnot. Unless you think that Kel's experience with Hoid is anything to go by for all Cognitive Shadows.

5 hours ago, Wyndlerunner said:

But, if the Heralds don't have bodies on Braize, how exactly do they get tortured? Hooks and flames and whatnot. Unless you think that Kel's experience with Hoid is anything to go by for all Cognitive Shadows.

Came here to say the same thing. I was a little confused considering what Kalak was so worried about.

Quote

Kalak felt something within him break at the admission. How long had it been? Centuries, perhaps millennia, of torture. It was so hard to keep track. Those fires, those hooks, digging into his flesh anew each day. Searing the skin off his arm, then burning the fat, then driving to the bone. He could smell it. Almighty, he could smell it!

I think the Tenacity Shard WOB could be a stand-in for Ambition. We know Threnody is where the shattered Ambition ended up, and it does seem particularly easy to become a Cognitive Shadow there. Also, tenacity is often a key component for ambitious people.

On whether the Thunderclast is a Fused or not, I think this WoB essentially confirms that it was a Fused. 

 https://wob.coppermind.net/events/355/#e10440

The questioner asks whether Nightblood can perma-kill a Fused and brings up Szeth killing the Thunderclast. Brandon confirms it is perma-dead which will upset it's "friends" who are used to not permanently dying. 

When Venli views the spirits that become the Thunderclasts, she sees badly mangled forms. She compares them to Singers which would indicate she thinks they are Fused that are damaged beyond recognition.  She also comments on how the two Thunderclast spirits were much larger than the other spirits. The other spirits were spren about to enter humans, these larger spirits would be Fused which can't possess another living thing without killing it. Spren also don't get mangled like that from bonding or entering gemhearts and they weren't Unmade. Sort of narrows it down. 

"Among the waiting spirits were two larger masses or energy -- souls so warped so mangled, they didn't seem singer at all." - OB Ch. 116 

Heralds

Maybe a key to the Heralds getting the same body back and not being as damaged by reincarnation as the Fused is due to the Heralds being made cognitive shadows while they still were alive. We don't know that they didn't die first, but we know the Heralds were alive when they went to Honor with Ishar's Oathpact plan. The other CS people die first then get investiture injected into their spirit before they pass beyond, but I don't know if it has to be that way. 

Fused

The Fused: This may not help anyone like the name better, but I wonder if this means Infused or Suffused? In Edgedancer, Nale comments on how he doesn't feel anymore and says:

"Honor has suffused me, changed me. It has been a long time coming." - ED ch. 19

On 3/3/2019 at 0:11 AM, Bigmikey357 said:

I think the Tenacity Shard WOB could be a stand-in for Ambition. We know Threnody is where the shattered Ambition ended up, and it does seem particularly easy to become a Cognitive Shadow there. Also, tenacity is often a key component for ambitious people.

I asked the Tenacity question and so far as I'm aware it has no bearing on Brandon's actual plans for the Cosmere.  (I was thinking of using an insane ghost version of a Shard by that name as a villain in a homebrew TTRPG campaign)

So, I listened to this in the podcast version and then had to come see the infamous blanket-ghost-tech-lag intro, and it was worth it. I'm not laughing at you, I'm laughing WITH you. Promise. 

(and yes, that promise is the kind we moms make to our kids that we have no intention of keeping lollllll)