the.fulgid

That's very good to know about Hoid and what he was up to. Or at least knowing what he was NOT up to. As for the magic systems, that's just my personal theory. It's very possible also that he got it before the events of Mistborn. I suppose it's potentially possible that he got Feruchemy while he was there in WoA, but I just don't belive that's what he was doing.

Atium and Lerasium are concentrated forms of Shardic power, and we know that they can each be used with the base 16 metals to create a whole new list of 16. I wouldn't be at all surprised if they're so highly concentrated that you could shave just a slight dusting off a bead in order to create a new alloy, and not have to use the entire thing. Hoid is from Yolen, which had access to all the powers of Adonalsium before the Shattering. I'm more inclined to think that he had access to some form of Feruchemy before the events of Mistborn because of that, or perhaps obtained his Feruchemical abilities way before the time we see him on Scardial. Especially since we also see him, and his actions, at important moments in three other books that predate The Final Empire. The reason he was in the Terris Dominance was because he didn't know where the Well had been moved to and was trying to find it.

I'm glad someone asked about Highstorms. That's a question I've had for a while as well. And that's very interesting about the Innate Investiture for Nalthians. Everyone has a Spark of Life, which is a type of Investiture, but I always assumed they were on equal level with each other. Thus, someone giving their Breath away would be equal with a person on a world without a Shard because of that. But it sounds like the Nalthian Spark is weaker than, say, one from First of the Sun. Maybe because Breath is designed to compensate?

The Coppermind does confirm that they are Lightweavers: http://coppermind.net/wiki/Order_of_Lightweavers And if you search the term Lightweaving there is another article you can find about Yolish Lightweaving.

You are DEFINITELY not the only one. Was keeping an eye out for him on my first read-through, saw Eric, and thought "This is him, for sure!" That scene is just so Hoid.

My thoughts exactly. We know Hoid uses Feruchemy to know when and where he needs to be. Or, rather, when and where something is going to happen. And he did it BEFORE going to Scadrial. It's likely all the abilities existed before the Shattering, though access to many of them might still have been limited to certain people. I don't know if the original Hoid was trying to gain access to them, but from the sample chapters of LoP there's no indication that's what Midius is trying to do.

I don't think you can find a full copy of it.From what I understand, Brandon did write a large part, maybe even a full book. But all that's out there is the first 6 sample chapters.

The theory has merit, for sure. There are 16 Allomantic metals, and we learn from Secret History that Leras chose that number intentionally based on the 16 shards. It's possible the effects are related as well. Pushing and Pulling, Internal and External, Physical and Mental, Enhancement and Temporal. The biggest concern I see with this theory is that the referenced ability of canceling someone's sand mastery would relate to Chromium, wiping another's reserves, which is an External Pulling Enhancement. Bavadin, the shard of Taldain, is Autonomy, which is closer to an Internal Pushing Enhancement, i.e. Duralumin. Zinc could also work for Bavadin, which riots emotion. But, because of that, I'd say Pathfinder's statement of "your own investiture interfering with another's investiture" seems the more plausible cause in this situation. Still, I like the possibilities here.

I have very little reason to believe they WON'T do well. Brandon has a large enough fan base now who will buy it, even if they don't like graphic novels. They're short, easy to read, and have pictures! But, unlike a children's book, they also have potential for great stories. And we all know how awesome this story is already, so that definitely doesn't hurt. Besides, even crappy graphic novels usually end up with 10-20 volumes.

At the Bands of Mourning signing I asked Brandon if the three Worldhoppers at the Purelake were cosmerically aware at the time of the books they were featured in, and he said they were not. Something happened to them AFTER each story that put them in their current position with the 17th Shard.

Oh!! That makes a lot more sense. I'll have to look into that again, then.

I wish Brandon had been more specific in where Hoid can be found. Starting in chapter 11 we see Ais as the name of the trackt, MUCH more than a passing character reference, and I don't find a character name Eis anywhere.

Most definitely. Like everyone else, I want to see plot and story differences. But mostly, I'm just obsessed with the all things Cosmere, and get my hands on anything I can find.

I had the same thought as well, that the crystal in Mraize's collection was likely from Aether of Night. While I don't disagree with the idea that Hoid has an Aether, I'm also not certain I can get on board with his stone being one. Without delving much into Dragonsteel (where the name Topaz is used), we saw his power of Growth on vines and the topaz that he wore as the focus of much of his magic. The growth of vines is similar to Aether Verdant, but most everything he does with the topaz sounds more like Progression, the Surgebinding on Roshar. Also, I've always pictured Verdant being green, not topaz in color, so using that as the focus for growing vines kind of clashes. A closer color match would be Amberite, but that does something much different and we've never seen Hoid display that ability. Though, if Aether of Night is post-Shattering, as I believe it to be, perhaps the Aethers function differently now. Perhaps they have abilities that overlap, like Surgebinding abilities do. If you ask me, it sounds like Hoid's abilities that require his topaz are more related to Stormlight than Aethers.

I'm also curious about whether or not we'll see a Dragonsteel forum, similar to this. I know that one is a little bit different, as it's even more difficult to get a copy of Brandon doesn't like to distribute it because it spoils too much for other things in the Cosmere. But, for those who have already read it, will there ever be a place to discuss it?

That's what I envisioned his splinters as, something akin to the Returned on Nalthis. They're splinters of Endowment.

Hmm... I like that idea. I wonder if Nightblood COULD kill a shard, though. After all he feeds on investiture, and investiture all comes from the shards. They have a nearly unlimited supply, so they could probably draw him from the sheath without too much of an issue. Cutting with shardblade separates the Physical, Cognitive, and Spiritual, but do we know if Nightblood does the same? And even if he does, would that be enough for a shard bearer? He's drawn to wicked intentions and seeks to destroy evil, but he doesn't know what evil is. What if Odium decided to take Nightblood for himself? I must think on this further.

Do we have confirmation somewhere of those two?

I guess that is a very good point. Though...if the destruction of Adonalsium also destroyed Yolen, at least the point that it forced everyone off, that would explain how hey could no longer be there, not be a worldhopper, and no one is going to or coming from Yolen.

We know that Yolen still exists in the Cosmere, and that space travel is a possibility. Plus he's an immortal dragon. No reason he can't just come and go as needed.

We have mention that The Lord Ruler could probably survive a beheading, as well as Miles. There is a currently non-canon novel that I'm not allowed to talk about that makes reference to such things being possible for Hoid. What makes you say that he's no longer on Yolen?

Without citing unpublished works, I can't make a valid argument about the function of pre-shattering magic. At least some of it. It's possible that Feruchemy was part of it, and some of the Surgebindings. As for how much power was required, I don't doubt one bit that a lot would be required. We're talking about the force that created the Cosmere. If any kid with a stick could bash it to pieces and take its power, it likely wouldn't have stood for very long. Nor would it have taken at least 16 people in the shattering. It's true that we don't know how involved those 16 were, or how much force needed to be applied. But if you break a rock to pieces, it's a fact that each piece is easier to break than the whole. And we've seen first hand how much force it takes to fight on a level with mere Shards of Aonalsium.

Thank you for clarifying that. I was primarily thinking of Investiture(2) during this discussion, you are correct. It's good to know that there are situations when it refers to something else as well. @Jondesu: I guess that hasn't been officially confirmed. However, at the Bands of Mourning release I asked him "What does '3 of 16 ruled, but now the Broken One reigns' mean? Did the Shards on Roshar have a pact of some kind, and is there something now wrong with Odium?" He got a very devlish, Brandon Sanderson-ish smile on his face and said "That's a RAFO." So, it was not officially confirmed, and RAFO could mean a dozen different things. But that smile leads me to believe there's something true in that statement. You could very well be correct that it is Honor, but I'm less inclined to believe he now reigns. It seems to me that everything happening is him grasping at straws to keep the world from falling completely apart. It feels similar to what Preservation did with the Terris prophecies and the Hero of Ages, but without the foresight to know where to place the pieces. We know Hoid uses Feruchemy to discern when and where he needs to be, and that comes from a Ruin/Preservation combo. So far Honor doesn't seem to have that ability. He doesn't know what Odium will do, or how he'll react, so he's just set up everything he can in hopes that people can figure out what to do with it in time.

I'll have to ask Brandon about the relationship between soul and Investiture. The only way I can think that they're the same, or at least strongly similar, is if he uses the terms soul and spirit separately. Investiture is different in each world, but as far as we know everyone has a spirit that passes through the Cognitive realm and into the Spiritual. And on Scadrial we see that not everyone can use Preservation's form of Investiture, despite all life containing a small splintering of his power. And that's not even counting the differences between planets and Shards, those are all people on the same world. So clearly there has to be some differences. @Oversleep:I think you are absolutely correct. Very much of who he is was likely taken from other sources. Hoid is very good at keeping his true self hidden.

Yes, Liar of Partinel and Lightweaver of Rens (currently only working titles) both pre-date the Dragonsteel series, which will be about the shattering of Adonalsium.