Zhalfirin

Yes, physics in the Cosmere is the same as ours.

 

Viper

Hah. So in Cosmere, does physics work the same way in the physical realm as it does in our world? Specifically, particle physics; and are atoms made up of protons and neutrons and electrons, and is light photons, etc?

Brandon Sanderson

Yes.

On a different note, we seem to be caught up in tying Shardic Intent with how specific things in a magic system work. With Allomancy you are preserving your own strength by using the Shards instead, but you are free to use that strength to destroy. In Hemalurgy you steal another strength and grant it to another in a weaker form, but you can also create things using Hemalurgy, such as Kandra and Koloss.

 

Brandon Sanderson (20 October 2008)

As a note here, the powers granted by all of the metals—even the two divine ones—are not themselves of either Shard. They are simply tools. And so, it's possible that one COULD have found a way to reproduce an ability like atium's while using Preservation's power, but it wouldn't be as natural or as easy as using Preservation to fuel Allomancy.

 

The means of getting powers—Ruin stealing, Preservation gifting—are related to the Shards, but not the powers themselves.

Just because Atium is the physical form of Ruin doesn't mean its use in Allomany has to have some net-negative result.

 

Condensed 'essence' of these godly powers can act as super-fuel for Allomancy, Feruchemy, or really any of the powers.

As for why Atium gives people future sight even though Ruin is bad at it, think of it this way. When you burn Atium it is acting as the power source, which is normally provided by Preservation, then that energy is being channeled through Preservation. You are basically using Ruin's energy to power Preservation's abilities.

 The old KRs seem to have been able to summon and dismiss their Plate helms at will (from Dalinar's visions, where he made specific mention of being surprised by the sudden appearance or absence twice).  Also, per Dalinar's visions, they glowed and seemed somehow...more...than present day versions.

When Kaladin helped Adolin fight outnumbered in the dueling arena he takes the helm from a defeated guys Plate. While using it he finds that it has lasted through many more hits from a Shardblade then it normally would for others, but he also found it had drained a large portion of his Stormlight.

My guess is that while the KR fueled the Plate from the stormlight in their bodies directly it was much more effective as it allowed for more concious contol over it, like fuel the Soulcast function to dissipate the helm back to air then remake it when needed (or maybe the Cohesion to make it flow down into the suit and then back up when needed) or send Stormlight to the Soulcaster to speed up the repair.

I was looking through some quotes and came across this.

 

Q: You said that on Roshar the only reason they have aluminum is that they can Soulcast it, right? I think you said something like that … maybe?

A: (no answer)

Q: I was wondering how that would work, if an Allomancer were to--

A: Aluminum has some weird properties on all of the magic systems, not just allomancy. It does not have the same effect, but aluminum has some bizarre effects.

Besides the above quote there are a few other things about shardplate that I think are important in figuring out what they are.

 1. They require stormlight to function.

A lot of other posters seem to think that Shardplate comes from either a further level of declaring an Ideal or via some secondary bonded spren. This is based on that we know that Blades originate from bonded spren. But we also know that the gem placed in a bonded Shardblade can go dull and the Blade will still work perfectly fine. Shardplate on the other hand becomes completely nonfunctional once the Stormlight in its gems runs out.

2. The Gems in Shardplate crack from normal use.

In WoK when Elhokar's Plate failed they were unsure if the cracked gems were just a normal but coincidental event or purposely planned, so we know that gems failing and cracking in Shardplate is a fairly normal occurance.

3. The only other time we see gems cracking from normal use (that I can remember) is in Soulcasters (maybe also happens in other fabrials).

4. While Shardplate we see is mostly used against other Shardwielders to protect against a Shardblade, the original intent was to fight Voidbringers.

Okay, now onto the basic theory: Shardplate is an advance Fabrial that combines a Soulcaster (which would produce Aluminum, and allow the suit to rebuild itself) with other fabrials like an Augmenter (these might fall un der the Tension category of Surges, for increased strength) and one that deals with Cohesion (allowing the metal to constrict and lossen so it fits people of various sizes and let segments meet without joints).

The soulcaster builds the armor out of Aluminum as it resistant to attacks of a magic nature. We see this when Adolin is struck by the lightning created by the Parshendi and that it is completely nullified.

The KR built advanced fabrials that allowed them to replicate powers of other orders. I think Shardplate was their Masterpiece in that it combined the powers of many orders.