poolboy

We know the "Taln" from the city is the same one who is now in the warcamp but we have no real proof he is the herald Taln. The way he only has a few phrases he says over and over almost makes them seem like implanted memories.

I'm saying Taln in the warcamp is someone posing as Taln using lightweaving. Taln is still in the capital and has been replaced with someone from one of the secret societies. Kaladin will find him in the next book.

I was thinking more along the lines of that is how Dalinar's servant could have been fooled

Maybe the whole continent was created using a giant splatter art turntable

Sorry haven't read every comment in the thread but has it been mentioned that the Taln in the warcamp could be someone lightweaving themselves as Taln?

I think it is more important that it is described as a LEATHER bandolier. Where would you get leather on a world with no cows?

I'm not suggesting it stopped him from being who he was or changed him. I was thinking more along the lines of it allowed him to shake off the Thrill which we know is from the Unmade. I guess the ability would be protection from Odium/Unmade influence.

Dalinar changed from the battle focused warrior he was to someone who tried to instill order and discipline in his army and later nation. I think that desire to unite and guide could be benefits on his bondsmith connection. Make him turn away from pure warrior and see bigger picture.

"Stormlight makes plants grow"

Interesting tidbit as we all think stormlight is from Honor with its association with the Stormfather. What if stormlight is Cultivation's investiture to the world? The stormlight fuels the planet's life.

What if the entire continent of Roshar was created to be a map of the cosmere? A map within a map essentially.

What if Heralds are like spren and in order to regain his normal mental state fully he needs to bond with the people he will protect? Or a herald spren?

What if Roshar was originally a water world (no Costner sadly) with a storm that would later become the storm we know and love once it was invested. Honor and Cultivation created an original landmass or habitat and once the storm was invested over time the cream acted as lava and basically added land area to this original artificial structure. That continent can look the way it does symmetry wise as it was originally a ship or other man made object.

Harping back to WoB that hair color of nations on Roshar was chosen deliberately, and if we are thinking it is a nexus world, was humanity seeded there from all other shardworlds? Thus the hair color denotes what world your ancestors were from?

Has anyone asked if the Taln we saw at the end of WoK is the same Taln we see in WoR?

Where is this WoB database everyone is always talking about?

From that clue I'm thinking something you would never think to relate such as architecture or mathematics specialty (numbers on the map). I think cartography or geology seems too obvious. Biology maybe?

Love the crazy amount of work going into this mystery.

Have we checked if the lines on the map are meant to point us to specific numbers on the edges? Maybe they make up dates or more code?

Why do we assume it is a different blade just because of description? Maybe his honorblade was downgraded to normal shardblade during the trip? Not saying that is likely but if something about the story is wrong I'm just trying to figure out what.

I think the Szeth background will be extremely interesting as we'll find out more about stone shamanas/wardens and who exactly gave him the order to kill gavilar

I also think the center holds the ruins of the black fortress Dalinar saw which may have originally guarded the pool?

My thought is that Honor's shardpool is on the mountains which is why Hoid could travel through it/emerge from it since no one directly controlled it currently. I think cultivation would be in a different area and some place associated with life/growth/peace.

So I was thinking about the purelake and how it differs from other areas/bodies of water on Roshar and have a theory.

The Purelake is Cultivation's shardpool.

Oddly shallow and uniform with effects beong manifested in the special fish that live there and its ability to support life so easily. I also find it interesting that the 17th Shard looked for Hoid there as opposed to any of the capitals of centers of power.