Meg

I looked around but didn't find anything. But I found something about gemhearts being 'intended' to store stormlight: (source: Theoryland) (I know, this is not really belonging to the topic but I hope it's interesting.)

Lately when I read a bit through some Kaladin-chapters I found this, when Syl prodded Kal about the blackbane leaves: Umm ... With a big, very big stretch one might say a beetle (not the car! :-)) is a very small miniature edition of a chull or a chasmfiend *cough*. But what of a beetle's heart could be "powerful" if it's not a very very small gemheart? And going back to "chasmfiends feeding up stormlight". I just thought about how they should do this? Normally they live down the chasms -- will there be stormlight to be fed? But maybe it's stormlight they need to pupate which is why they leave the chasms therefor. But that would be another topic.

I believe this 'monster' could as well be the Soulcaster. We saw in TWoK (chapter 36 The Lesson) that the Soulcaster with it's fully infused gems made a "sudden light" that "was nearly blending." I admit that this scene acted out during night. Otherwise: What material might be used to build a safe on Roshar? I'm not sure such a safe could hide such a powerful light. And "there is a monster inside" might either be a "tale" told by her father to keep her (and others) away from the safe and/or she saw somebody soulcasting in a situation where she was afraid (about the result; remember: Jasnah soulcasted stone into dust, so I think there could be something for a little girl frightening actions done with a Soulcaster).

I knew I've read the referred posting, but couldn't find it when I read this here first; now I found it Crazy Heralds or Heralds with PTSD.

Please don't feel offended when I reply with a quote: (source: Honorblade) So there is no real answer to your possibility a. But b, c and d are replied to, I think. Interesting thought about leaving the blades means giving up (some of their) powers. But as the Heralds are said to be immortal (and stroll around nowadays), I think they didn't lose their immortality too. If so, they would have died around 4,450 years ago. I don't think the image of being immortal would last that long.

Bear with me, I have another idea (not a theory, no evidences, just a thought coming up reading another thread): I feel still confident that the Heralds are immortal. Whether or not they can sire children isn't my question, too. But what about the Knights Radiant? We don't no anything about their personal life. But would it be far-fetched to assume that at least some of them founded families or/and sired children? And, maybe this bloodlines will be of importance now, when the True Desolation is announced (or has just begun whereof I'm not convinced). So maybe Kaladin, Shallan, "the Kholinars" (for Dalinar as well as Navani as well as Adolin were mentioned as Radiants-to-be) and whomever have blood of the Knights Radiant and are therefor forgone to become the nowadays Knights Radiant. Could this be an aspect to discuss?

I think we are talking past each other. I think the 10 heartbeats are a kind of measurement -- but no time limit (as would be 10 seconds), because (as you explain) 10 heartbeats don't always take the same timespan (could I say so?).

No ranting, but: I don't have an idea what happened during Damnation, but I'm quite sure the personalities/bodies stay what they were. An obscure thought: Somewhere Dalinar (or Hoid?) mentioned the Aimians, which could have been disassambled and assembled anew. Maybe in Damnation something similar (but painful) happened to the Heralds. Hmm, no: If I remember right, the "souls" of the Aimians were changed too what surely don't happen to the Heralds. Another request: How would you define "immortality in the traditional sense"? To live an endless life if not being killed by -- what? Accident? Murder? Or is immortality the possibility to pass one's immortal part (soul) to another body and to live on this way? That would be an incarnation, which would make it possible that Shallan is Shallash's reincarnation. But then: "we" think, Shallash is still around, what contradicts the reincarnation-theory.

I think Syl is around Kal before he refused to take the Shardplate-/blade from the fallen Shardbearer. I don't remember exactly (sometimes an e-book might be useful), but there has been a spren around Kal before that battle in Amaram's army (the spren was sticking on Kal's purse when he wanted to give it to the head of the healers; I'm quite sure, this has been Syl already). Maybe her being around unwittingly affected Kal's refuse.

Hmm, I think that BS there hints to the fact that Shallan is a Shardbearer, but not more.

(emphasizes are mine)This is actually the question that ran around in my brain when I made the OP (without knowing the twitter-note). Hmm, if not all quarries where gems were mined where first made with a Soulcaster, there might be normal mines to get gems. (Here I think of Shallan's very first purpose why she wanted to become Jasnah's ward.) The latter is a nice idea. A kind of metabolism where the heart (or something else) transfers to a gemheart by feeding up stormlight? A may be stupid question at the edge: Do we know why gemhearts are called so? I mean, because a gem could not beat, so how would this animals live?

About ten heartbeats: I had to look up what happens about the heartbeat if somebody is dying due to blood loss. On Wikipedia it's written that the heartbeat (heart rate) increases the more blood is lost, so the 10 heartbeats of the dying that Taravangian observes will be only a few seconds. So here I go with Vindicator. As for 10 heartbeats while summoning a Shardblade Dalinar says he feels every single heartbeat of this 10 until the Blade is materialized. Whether this is Dalinar's own specific feeling or a general feeling of all Shardbearers, we don't know. I don't think that the 10 heartbeats are needed to focus on the summoning of the blade, rather than a fixed form of measure that the Shardbearer can be sure after this his blade is materialized. This too, because 10 heartbeats are 10 heartbeats but not a fixed period.

First of all: I do not want to seem to be pushing, excuse me. But as it seems to be my calling (the best thing I can :=)) I'm confused: There are 3 parts of readings for Stormlight 2 1st Parshendi reading, Shallan's reading and 2nd Parshendi reading. Thanks to Windrunner I got the transcriptions for the 1st Parshendi-reading and the Shallan's part. I see that there is an overlapping with the 1st P-reading (from 4:40 to 9:25 in this file), but after the end of this ("a lack of a form") the 2nd P-reading continues until the end of the file. I really tried to understand, but there were only a few things that I got. I see that most of you don't need a transcription for understanding, but I dare to ask whether the 2nd Parshendi-reading will be transcribed too. So please don't be angry with me.

Thank you very much.

Off topic, too, sorry: Is there a transcription from the second Parshendi reading somewhere? I'm really curious but I'm not able to understand the spoken reading.

This idea seems reasonable but: Isn't it said that Spren were bound to the Knights Radiant? Or do I misremember this? We know that Spren can die. Also we know that Syl is around for "a few thousand years". But if Spren are bound to the KR, why should they fear them respectively their blades? Beginning babbling, I fear.

Hey there! While flipping through the Coppermind Wiki I ran about this information: Vengeance Pact And Brandon gave us this hint: Forum Q&A Roshar-originate animals would be e.g. Greatshells which include not only chasmfiends -- those are only the biggest ones -- but also chulls and others and for example axehounds as well. We know at least that axehounds were bred. I think, chulls too, because they were used in many ways (pulling vehicles (as the ones Kaladin was brought to the Shattered Plains), bridges, being mounts ...). And I think, axehounds and chulls die. And looking at Shallan's sketch they are not really small. So I don't want to suggest that animals should be bred only for getting their gemhearts. That's not my idea. But if these animals have gemhearts too, it would seem natural to get the gemhearts out of them when they die. Has anyone an idea whether the Rosharian people do this? Even when the gemhearts are smaller than that from chasmfiends, I think it would help a bit, because gemhearts are not only needed at the war camps (but also for fabrials, lesser soulcasting, making money). Mining resources will not last endlessly neither chasmfiends. And I'm not sure whether losing chasmfiends as sources for gemhearts is the only thing that BS meant when he gave the above quoted answer. Any ideas?

There is something twirling around in my head (once again) and it's kind of fitting in here, I think. Roshar is a planet, so I think one could see it as a globe. When looking on a globe "east" and "west" kind of relates on what one has chosen as the central point. (For example: focusing on the North Atlantic Ocean the USA are west of it; focusing on the North Pacific Ocean the USA are east of it). I have the feeling that we should remember this. So if somebody brought this aspect up before, I apologize.

Ah, this makes sense.

Oh. I'd like to make it clear that surely I didn't want to swear. I hope I'm rehabilitated. There's another thought running around in my brain: Isn't every action the result of a decision?

... that it is more than stupid try to get some thoughts together for a draft while being worn out. Especially because I didn't save them. update 24.01.13: I did it again ... or better: I again did not save my edit.

I asked dict.cc for "Was es nicht alles gibt!" and got this expression. :-( Looking further around I found another one: "It's amazing what's out there!" which describes it better, I think. Sorry for confusion. That's exactly what I thought about, so my musing may be obsolete.

I'm really pleased. Stone the crows! I'm not sure how to read this: Does this generally mean, that everybody is invested? Or does it mean that "some people" are invested? And now I'm too tired to try to catch my thoughts and put them together to a posting. Too, because my thoughts may be redundant or obsolete when somebody enlightened me for my questions. Sleep well! :-)

(emphasizes are mine) Nice, thanks for this quote. IMHO, this statement is comprehensible. The people are "invested with magic powers". (really all? this would be another question to think about) Anyway, this investment doesn't make all invested people able to use their magical powers by intuition. Some can, some cannot. There are different causes that show up the (existent) powers to the people. So for example: The Elantrians are struck by the Shaod. "Now" the invested magic can theoretically be used by the Elantrians. But: They have to learn to use the magic (in this case to correctly draw the Aons). The Scadrials Snap. Taking Vin as example, then we see that Allomancy could be used unwittingly, but only to a small degree. To act as an full Allomancer (either as Misting or as Mistborn) one has to learn to use their skills (when to burn which metal for the best effect). On Roshar -- I stay with Kaladin as an example here -- we see that his "magic" turns out much earlier (just unwittingly) than he gives his "oath" during the Tower Battle. Me, I think Kaladin's trigger was this very first fight with Joster (IIRC). Later, when being in the army, he didn't speak any oaths, but was already called "Kaladin Stormblessed" because of his incredible fighting which focused on his will to keep his people alive (< his 'decision'). So I think that it is not absolutely necessary to speak this words aloud, but to become aware of them (for a further access to (t)his powers) what may be steadied by spoken word (and not only thoughts).

Should/could I add this link (excerpt of The Rithmatist) to the wiki-page?