Master_Moridin

Is the way metals disappear when burned related to how someone filled with enough Investiture is vaporized as they ascend?

For anyone that wants it, here's the WoB on TLR's spikes
 

Dalenthas (15 October 2008)
Did the Lord Ruler have any Hemalurgic spikes in him? It would seem he'd need to for Ruin to influence him, but it wasn't mentioned. Or did his bracers work as spikes?

Brandon Sanderson (16 October 2008)
His arm bracers, which pierced his skin, were his spikes.
(source)

If it turns out Mistings can also attempt to burn any metal (with nasty results), that'd actually help to simplify the explanation of how Allomancy works we've had for a while.

WoB on what exactly happens to the metals have been somewhat confusing but I believe most have suggested that they return to the planet in some way or another.

Personal speculation: Since the planet was made by Preservation and Ruin the metals sorta get recycled in a way similar to how atium was.  Vaporized into Investiture, then reforming as metal in the planet.

 Sidenote: all the alloy spikes are essentially stealing Investiture, right?  Since Investiture on Scadrial manifests as the ability to use the Metallic Arts.  Forgive me if I am missing some of the nuance here (and educate me!)

 

Once again, great post and please let me know what you think of my thoughts! 

Effectively, yeah, they're stealing Investiture (as magic system).  Technically all of them are stealing Investiture (as substance) as that's what souls are made of, but that's another topic.

Yolish has been used to refer to the variety of a thing from Yolen (Yolish Lightweaving), but I think that's the only time we've seen it so hard to tell if it's also supposed to be the demonym, though it'd make sense

Certain aspects? Try every applicable one. It is the Unforgable Metal on Sel, wounds made by aluminum cannot be healed by either Allomantic steel or Feruchemical gold, it likely performs all the effects of a Coppercloud when used as a covering...

That's most of the cool stuff aluminum resists. I'm probably going to freak out when we learn more about what exactly Feruchemical Identity is. Yeah, it allows some interesting hacks, but what else?

Did you mean Allomantic pewter?

In addition, presumably the physical metal is removed from one's system when it is burned for allomancy.  Is this the reason that alloys that are not quite right result in the allomancer getting ill or dying?  They are poisoned by the metals that their bodies cannot remove?  This doesn't feel quite right to me since the metals may not be inherently toxic to humans.  Is there a physical strain on the body that is experienced if one is trying to use a biological entity (a human) to force investiture through an imperfect channel (a faulty alloy)?

My personal assumption was that when you burn an impure metal, the form that the Investiture takes after being filtered by it can't be processed by the Allomancer's body and spiritweb correctly, and so has nasty effects.

Now my thought about:

We know that a Shardblade cuts in Cognitive (not all three realm as far as I remember) and probably also if the Plate blocks it thanks to its Investiture, the Blade still "hurt" in some way (also minimal) the Cognitive Aspect of the Plate. As far as we saw that kind of damage are more "Stormlight needed" than the mondane damage to heal and this is probablythe reason of the "Shardblade bonus".

I swear there's a WoB where he says they cut in all three realms, but there's this

Pinpoint

If Hoid got beheaded, would his body grow a new head?

Brandon Sanderson

Yes.

Pinpoint

What if Hoid got cut by a shardblade?

Brandon Sanderson

The Shardblade cuts the soul and what Hoid does heals the soul.

(source)

So at the least Shardblades cut in the Spiritual and Physical

There are a bunch of factors other than how many arms you use that determine how much strength you're using. Using two arms /= two times the strength of using one arm even using one arm you typically use your entire body to put in the effort, adding the second arm only adds the strength of the arm, not the strength of your whole body.

I find D&D rules of 1.5 times your strength one-handed tends to be somewhat kinda accurate

Ok, so:

“[/size]Allomancy, obviously, is of Preservation. The rational mind will see this. For, in the case of Allomancy, net power is gained. It is provided by an external source--Preservation's own body.”[/size]

—Harmony on Allomancy

 

But this seems off to me.  Could Harmony have been wrong? We know that he was not all-knowing.  His mind "expanded" but that only implies that he is able to logic things out better, not that he gains new knowledge, right?  To me the statement "Allomancy, obviously, is of Preservation...For, in the case of Allomancy, net power is gained." seems inherently wrong.  Why would a force of preventing change oversee an ability that gives power?  Even the way that the statement is structured seems to imply that he is "logic-ing" it out with the information he has, which is that there are only two Shards.  But what if there is or was another?

WoB

Eric Lake ()

Allomancy provides many very dramatic effects, which some have noted is not very much like Preservation. Could you walk me through how Allomancy is of Preservation, though it does dramatic, dynamic things?

Brandon Sanderson

One of the 'basics' of the magic in all of the worlds is that the energy of Shards can fuel all kinds of interactions, not just interactions based on their personality/role. I did this because otherwise, the Magics would all be extremely limited.

The 'role' of the Shard has to do with the WAY the magic is obtained, not what it can do. So, in Preservation's case, the magic is a gift—allowing a person to preserve their own strength, and rely upon the strength granted by the magic. While Hemalurgy has a huge cost, ending in net entropy.

(source)

Is there? I thought we all agreed he was tapping Luck before deciding what to do...

I've seen people suggest he's doing something weird with Connection, even more involved theories about having a plan stored in a Coppermind.  We still don't know how Luck works after all.

Here's the Hoid Feruchemy WoB
 

Mike Cockrum
Hoid is regularly around when important events take place. How does he know where to go?

Brandon Sanderson
He uses Feruchemy. Part of it that will show up in later books.
(source)

There's a few different theories about how he's doing it.

Is the frost that forms when someone Surgebinds the same thing as what we would call frost?

In Warbreaker Annotation (it's there if I remeber right) it's said that Nightblood make a bond with anyone who unleashed it and survive.

From that moment this person will have no nausea or lust to held Nightblood.

Not to mention, the way Nightblood talks to people telepathically involves bonds

Question

How is it that Nightblood, who is merely a near-sentient awakened object, was able to read minds, something a Shard like Ruin was unable to do?

Brandon Sanderson

It requires bonding (with the person whose mind is to be read) to read minds.

(source)

Yeah, though that's an interesting point that our vocabulary for shardology uses the same term for both cases.

Well that's just because Splinter refers to the end product.  The total Splintering of a Shard and a Shard intentionally Splintering a small part of themselves both end up with self-aware pieces of Adonalsium's power.

It's like someone shaving your head and you cutting off a single-lock of your own hair.  Both end up with clumps of hair on the ground.

Aluminum is weird. What exactly can be stolen with aluminum?

The Coppermind says Enhancement Allomancy

Here's a WoB on what Nightblood can do while consuming Investiture
 

Question
How much more powerful is Nightblood than a a regular Shardblade?

Brandon Sanderson
I haven't actually quantified that in my own mind so can't give an accurate comparison at this point. I will say that when he is fully consuming Investiture he can do some really freaky things.

Footnote
In the past Brandon has described Nightblood as being "magnitudes more invested than a shardblade".
(source)

Unsure on spoiler policy so

Secret History spoiler?

It's in the newest news article.

"It is not unreacheable from Shadesmar due to a total lack of cognitive activity there"

That's saying that a lack of cognitive activity isn't the reason it can't be reached

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.

I think I see where some of the confusion might be.  Investiture as a term can apply to roughly two very different things.

1) Investiture as substance and power of creation.  This is the stuff souls, Breaths, Stormlight, and Shards are made of.  There's a WoB that in the Spiritual Investiture has a consistent form regardless of source.

trevorade (Reddit)

It has been explained that all things exists between three realms: Physical, Spiritual, and Cognitive.

I have surmised that different things "exist more" in a certain realm than another though all things have some presence in the three. Humans appear to "exist more" in the Physical realm. Spren appear to "exist more" in the Cognitive realm (Shadesmar in SA). Investiture appears to have various forms in the Physical Realm (e.g., alomantic metals, mist, stormlight).

Question 1: Does investiture have a consistent form (regardless of magic system and its Physical form) in one of the other realms?

Question 2: Vasher has shown us that he can substitue his need for Breath with another investiture (presumably Stormlight). To what extent is investiture interchangeable between magic systems?

Question 3: Is investiture finite? Hemalurgy and a Return's need to consume breath seems to show us that it can be destroyed. If it is finite, is the Cosmere's magic source doomed to the law of entropy?

Brandon Sanderson (Reddit)

1. It's consistent in the Spiritual Realm. Location isn't particularly important there.

2. Very interchangeable, but not always simple to apply.

3. Investiture can not be created or destroyed. It follows it's own version of the laws of Thermodynamics.

Joe_____ (Reddit)

So what happens to the investiture that is lost when a person is spiked and the spike isn't set in the new person immediately? Does it return to the big pool of investiture in the sky like the power from wheel of time where if its not actively being used it returns to the source?

Brandon Sanderson (Reddit)

What happens to someone's body when it's not being used by a particular person? The system is built to work like that.

(source)

2) Investiture as term for a magic system

The various ways different peoples spiritwebs/souls (Investiture(1)) are wired/composed determines the types of Investiture(2) they have access to.

(and sidenote, the reason some people can use Allomancy and others can't is because they have more Preservation in them than others)

I don't think that Investiture is directly connected to a spirit. Not in the way you mean at least. Investiture DOES connect to their spirit web, but while everyone has a spirit web, not everyone is invested.

A human soul is Investiture

Chris_from_Warrenton

Would it be possible to Soulforge NIghtblood and change the command that was given to him when he was Invested?

Brandon Sanderson

That is possible. That would actually not be a very difficult Soulforge. The problem is, he's Invested. So reInvesting him, which is what Soulforgery is, is really hard. So you'd have to figure out how you could use Forgery on something that is already Invested. But forgery can get through some of those hoops a lot easier than some other magic systems can.

Chris_from_Warrenton

Do you have to be a willing subject to be Soulforged?

Brandon Sanderson

You do not. Working with the soul is really hard though. You have to be a supreme expert in what you're doing, because soul is Investiture

(source)

*snip* 

The piece your missing is the nature of a person's Spiritual aspect. This is similar to a Platonic idea--the idea that there's a perfect version of everyone somewhere. It's a mix of their connections to places, people, and times with raw investiture. The soul, you might say.

*snip*

(source)

Speed bubbles are so wonk.  We've gotten a number of explanations for how lots of it works (using the Cognitive aspects of the objects it intersects to determine what its position is anchored relative to, relative motion of objects entering and leaving, etc)

And yet, bullet deflection still eludes us.

Where's Kurkistan with one of their speed bubble explanations when ya need them

I expect a RAFO on this one but it's just one I find interesting

Does the way Hoid uses Feruchemy to know where to go involve a coppermind?

About blood, there was something Cognitive about it being in motion. Some WoB on Hemalurgy.

It's actually about the Spiritual

Master_Moridin

1. What is the relationship between blood and the Spiritual Realm? (Since Hemalurgy needs blood to graft the sDNA in a spike into someone else's sDNA)

Brandon Sanderson

The blood being in motion is part of it.

(source)