Argel

Any thoughts on this one?

All Scadrial has to do is field a lurcher or two (or a mistborn to get in and out) and the wall breaks. Though shield walls were never designed to deal with koloss with 12-foot swords, so I doubt it would hold. You also seem to be assuming the koloss would be immediately taken out. And if an entire first wave was, would the shield wall hold out against a second wave?? Shield walls tend to crumble quickly, so even one koloss breaking through might be enough. Sorry, but I do not see how a shield wall survives. Edit: Ninja'd by asterion137!

Or maybe they are waiting for the KRs to be reformed, which happens to be when Szeth is given Nightblood. Seems like even less of a coincidence now.

If they have an advantage, my guess is it has to do with cutting in the cognitive realm. To me, just being higher quality material (more Invested) doesn't count as a bonus for a shardblade in the context of this thread. I mean, we all know that better quality materials should have an edge over inferior quality materials. I think OP's question is about whether there is some bonus beyond the quality of the material.

Maybe it will be another Truth Shallan must come to accept?

I'm inclined to agree, but the POVs are a bit more limited than some of the others. Though it does never seem to come up, and you'd think any kids they had would be with them. Though if they are too young, maybe they are back home with their nanny, teacher, etc. If they have no love for their children, then maybe the children are just out of sigh, out of mind. Edit: Sadeas talks about him being the one to unite Alethkar. Seems like you would want an heir to maintain your legacy if you were doing that. Of course, if they already have one or more children....

Has it been explicitly stated they do not have children? If not, could they be back home minding the princedom (and not getting in the way of scheming)?

Granted. The day of the dreaded final for Linear Systems comes. It's one of your first ones, though it's late in the day so you have extra time to prepare. You focus intently on studying, and fortunately your alarm goes off an hour before the test. It jolts you out of your reverie, and you quickly take a shower, hit the local panini style cafe for some brain food, and head off to the final, knowing your fate is in your hands. The final for Linear Systems is a grueling slog. Sweat forms on your brow as you intently focus on the convoluted problems your insane professor cooked up. Beads of sweat trickle down your face, and your first impulse is to give up and switch majors. But you buckle down, finding mental resolve you never knew you had. So focused are you that you barely hear the ticking of the clock, as you tackle problems of varying degrees of ... ease?! As a bread of sweat dribbles onto a corner of your test, you realize it all makes sense to you now!! The rest of the test is a breeze, and you later learn you aced it. Unfortunately, you used all of your mental energy up on this one test and slept through the rest of your finals. If only you had found a holistic approach, a way to integrate Linear Systems in with the rest of your studies, instead making it your sole focus! Your bane is that you will never hold a job in the field you now understand the most. Which is still better than being audited by the IRS every year. (Loosely based on a true story! I actually had a CompSci final in the evening that was so mentally draining that I went bed that night, setting the alarm for 3AM to study for next mornings final because I was incapable at the time. I did really well on both, and completed my major. Unlike you. ). I wish I could do the cover art for one of Brandon's books! (Edit: Ouch, that was a painful Wikipedia article to read. Repressed memories of my math classes. I see more therapy in my future. )

Kaladin used a lashing to increase his speed. Does that really count as being Invested for the purposes of this discussion? For example, if Kaladin used his last Stormlight for that, would he have done the same damage? It's also hard to gauge how much force Kaladin hit with compared to the force from a boosted attack from someone in shardplate. Those "light taps" from Adolin would still pack a punch. Do we have any good examples of slashing vs. piercing attacks with shardblades? I definitely remember a piercing attack shattering some chest plate armor, though I am not sure if it was in the duel or a different fight. Anyway, what if shardplate is better at blocking slashing attacks than piercing? The hammer used also has less Investiture, so this could still be a "higher quality" materials thing. I wish we knew many hits that hammer could sustain, and how often hammers were used in duels (maybe when both duelists do not have a blade?).

I'm trying to get my head wrapped around how shardplate blocks the cutting power of shardblades. Do we know if shardplate without any Stormlight still blocks a shardblades special cutting power(s)?

Granted. You have the ability to create the greatest masterpieces, the most touching portraits of everyday life, the most stunning modern art ... if only you could concentrate on the same mental image long enough to actually finish it. Your bane is you are now colorblind. I wish I was done with my taxes.

Okay, so, new line of thought. Does it take longer to repair/regrow shardplate if it was damaged by a shardblade, a mundane weapon like our hammer, or no difference?

Yeah, but a virtually indestructible greatsword, so you can do things with it you could never do with a regular greatsword. I wouldn't call that a bonus though -- it's more like better quality materials. Cutting in the cognitive realm may give it a bonus though. I think the test in the OP should be changes to a shadblade vs. a hammer with the equivalent amount of Investiture in it but nothing special beyond that.

Granted. It's a cold, rainy day as you head to the Brandon panel you spent months saving up for. Suddenly, someone that looks just like Hoid rushs past, splashing muddy water onto your cosplay outfit you spent years making. He half turns, offering a quick apology as continues his mad dash to who knows where. A few seconds later the shock of the incident begins to wear off. You numbly start walking forward, but trip on part of your now wet outfit, causing you to fall and hit your head. You then roll off, sliding down the hill into a nearby pond, completely ruining your outfit. You drag yourself out of the frigid water and in a daze head back to your hotel to change into something dry. In your hazy state of mind, you fail to head the don't cross light, and are hit by a car. After being in a comma for several years, you wake up with no memory of the event. You later learn that somone framed Brandon Sanderon for breaking in and stealing several crates of the upcoming expansion to Magic the Gathering. After sorting the mess out, Brandon tells fans that he has decided to never write Liars or Partinal. Your bane is bad luck for the rest of your life. Since I am in the SkyNet version of Cosmere, I wish to become that Cosmere's version of John Connor.

Present tense is the default in English. For example, if a friend asks you for a glass of water, does he mean "now" or "decades later". So, even if no time frame was given, it would be understood to mean "now" (and of course, in the order given). Or more to the point, if the mob boss orders a hit and doesn't say when, is there any question about "now" vs. "decades"?! As a foreigner, Szeth likely has no legal standing in the other countries, so no legal recourse. Even if Szeth did, it would likely take decades of research, investigations, political maneuvering, etc. to legally depose a king. Not to mention, he would also need to learn the laws of each country, and presumably enough money to fund such a lengthy operation. And then do that for each country. I doubt even decades would be enough time. And if he could figure out how to pull all of that that off, someone else either in each country or spies from other countries with more direct interest would have figured it out first. There may not be a legal way to remove the king. Either literally within the law or because the king is not guilty of anything that would allow him to be removed. It's not like removing kings via legal maneuvering is a common occurrence in our history, so we have no reason or evidence to believe it is on Roshar. And even if all of the above was possible, Taravangian was not an idiot when he put that list together. He knows the assassinations need to be done sooner than later. We also know he put his own name on the list and safeguards to make sure he was not actually assassinated. We have no reason to believe that he would not make it clear these need to be done sooner than later. And even if Taravangian was not clear, how long would he wait before calling Szeth back to find out why not even one assassination had been made?? Sorry, but we can reasonably conclude that Szeth had no legal options available to him in the other countries. Interesting quotes, though. Looks like Nightblood can do some kind of Nahel Bond, and the surges it can provide will be different than the 10 known to Roshar. I wonder if it will turn his eyes red....

Oh, I always thought the Old Magic was pre-shattering, natural magic on Roshar. Anyway, considering how little we have seen of Cultivation, maybe she doesn't get along well with anyone.... Anyway, thanks! I was re-reading that section, and that quote stood out to me more this time, so thought I would ask.

Isn't Khriss close to the same age (in the grand scheme of things)? And the Old Magic could predate the shattering, so do we have any idea how long Nightwatcher has been around? Likely more recent, but are we just assuming that?

This has probably come up before but it's not easy to search on.... So what is the concensus on who Wit is referring to? Cultivation? Nightwatcher? Khriss? One of the Ghostbloods? Jasnah? I'm guessing Cultivation, though do we have any idea why they may not get a long (well, beyond his charming personality)? If the Nightwatcher is of the Old Magic, then she could fit as well.

Do we have any WoB that specifically supports that? I thought he was described as being similar to one, but not the same thing. I don't think we can assume it will work the same way. And Nightblood already bonds with his master. Not sure why that would behave differently. Or do you think he can bond twice?

Yeah, and even in your scenario, Scadrial still has a chance. So what about when the KR were at their peak? How would Mistborn Era 1 or Era 2 fare then?

You're quoting Nale. If he's insane, twisted, etc. then what he says can hardly be taken as credible/face value. And assassinating most of the worlds leaders is sowing chaos, not order. And Dalinar is not trying to bring the voidbringers back, and is arguably one of the most honorable men around, certainly out of those in a position of power. There's no honor or justice in killing Dalinar. Or Taravangian before Szeth learns the truth about him: Edit: As a side note, if Nale was as involved as you suggest then he would know Szeth was not Truthless. Some possibly interesting implications there.

I think the black sphere is still in Jah Kaved. I do not recall reading anything about since this early quote: Also, Cosmere spolier:

When Szeth was told to kill Dalinar, he was told it had to be brutal. And I don't see how you can follow the local nations laws to kill/depose said nation's ruler without it taking a great deal of time, and even then it would likely be deposing him on some technicality, and I doubt that could be found for every target. If it could be done, someone in the kingdom likely would have done it. Would an outsider even have any legal option? I think the only laws that apply are Shin laws, and given the oathstone situation.... On some of the points in the thread: Agree about Nale and I doubt he is a true Skybreaker anymore. IIRC, so far we know that the shardblades with the dead spren in them feel "wrong" to every new KR we have seen so far that has come in contact with one or more of them. If you have no breath to give to Nightblood, I do not see why Nightblood would kill a spren you are bonded to. The spren is not you. I also think Nightblood's nature -- removing Investiture from the Consmere -- would be a huge turn off to most if not all spren. At least the ones that gain sentience. Agree also about Szeth being used, though maybe his story will eventually lead to redemption. And maybe Nightblood is needed to take Odium on. We don't know why Vasher no longer has it or even when or why he gave it up/lost it. Though he doesn't seem to be concerned about it (though maybe he got tired of its charming *cough cough* personality).

That does match Dalinar's vision of The Recreanace. Are the king's shardblades -- the ones available for rent in the arena -- unbonded. I always assumed they were bonded to Elohkar, but I do not recall ever see him even trying to summon one. Anyway, obviously if the Scadrians can get their hands on a shardblade or two that could help even the odds. The biggest problem they have is Roshar will presumably adopt guerilla warfare tactics eventually. Maybe even sooner if the Scadrians start using shardblades that way. On the other hand, seeing a shardblade used against them (Rosharans) is a fear that could easily be pushed up to epic proportions. Still, it seems like Scadrial could not afford many mistakes at all in your scenario -- certainly not as many as Roshar could make.

It would be a lot harder in Voidus' scenario, but Scardial's magic system, "crews", etc. all naturally lend themselves to guerilla warfare. We haven't really seen anything similar on Roshar. Roshar may not even realize how small the forces against them are because they willl likely assume they ran into a scouting party. Scadrial may make that mistake as well, but since they would be using guerilla warfare tactics, their approach doesn't really change, so it doesn't hurt them as much. Though on the other hand, Scadrial cannot afford to make many mistakes. For example, if a lucky shot took Vin out, it would be a huge blow. So, here's a tricky one -- let's say Scadrial is able to get their hands on a shardblade -- can they bond to it while not on Roshar? And if so, will they figure how to in a reasonable timeframe, given that it takes a week to bond one?