Use the Falchion

Many of them indeed are, and we can excuse those. But there are other, decisions that aren't and those are some of the more controversial (and most praised) things. But at the end of the day, you'll make your own decision about it. I truly hope you love it, but we understand all feelings about it.

CHICKEN SCOUTS! There are a LOT of goodies from this Q&A, and I haven't even watched it all yet (I didn't watch it all live), but notes I have so far: Shai is corrupting souls when she is Forging things, but corruption isn't always a bad thing. Sanderson is seemingly still in Part 1 of Revision 5.0 There are greatswords added to some scenes (as per Shadiversity's advice and Rule of Cool). If Earth has Shards, Sanderson isn't comfortable answering what they'd be. RAFO! Dissociative Identity Disorder plays a role of RoW (probably with Shallan). DOCKSON AND HAM ARE WOMEN IN THE MISTBORN SCREENPLAY! There is a scene where Vin assumes what people's jobs are in Kelsier's crew, and she misinterprets everyone's role...except Spook's. July 7 WAY OF KINGS PRIME FOR FREE. Novella is most likely now going to be written in August and November (it seems like Sanderson is behind schedule). Rainbow Chicken Scouts (or something else as to not appropriate LGBTQ+ symbolism for personal gain). It's a new stretch goal now.

I can't answer, but I can sympathize. I have an urban fantasy series I'm working on that's best as a book, while a separate, more fantastical epic fantasy series I'm working on is planned as a cartoon. I think it just depends on how you first envision the story, and if the medium can properly convey your vision and accommodate the story you're telling. The novel works best for the urban fantasy since I want to be in one person's head the entire time. Meanwhile the cartoon is an ensemble cast, and I want a decent bit of banner, silly high jinks, overblown reactions, and cool fight scenes. I think games are...different. In some of my favorite games, yes, you do get to tell the story. But those are pretty rare. In most of them, I'm following a set story, but I get to explore the world along the way. The depth, the lore, the and the sense of the world are far grander than most books and shows. So I guess I'm saying that games are best if you want to show off the world you built. Not sure if any of this made sense.

You're not alone. I have LOT of problems with it (and am in the process of revising it in my mind for my own personal experience and in order to practice long-form thematic story planning, character development). But there are good spots in the show. Season 1 was built on a brilliant premise and mostly succeeded.* And Season 3 is easily one of the best seasons in the Avatar universe, period. But the flaws and lows of the show can be so low that I can't recommend it. *The love triangle felt more like the creators saying "here you go, Zutara shippers! Feast on this!" without adding any of the depth and connection Katara and Zuko had (and this is coming from someone who's aggresively against Zutara shipping).

Meat cooking with something sweet and potentially extra savory. To me that mostly comes in the form of Thanksgiving. My mom will be cooking the turkey, but the ham will also be out, and on the stove she'll be candying some sweet potatoes. These smells will mix and create a smell that's just heavenly. Combine it with the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade and a little Final Fantasy XII every couple of years (or Fallout New Vegas that one year), and you've got the perfect nostalgia trap. However if it's not thanksgiving, then making some candied bacon (just some brown sugar over bacon) works just as well. ...I'm too hungry for this...

https://www.stevenbohls.com/deathrise.html It's not much, but we have a potential title, a short sentence blurb, and more information "coming soon." Right now the blurb is way too vague, but the context makes it sound like it's a prequel of sorts. Either way, we can try to keep an eye on this.

It's not. It's most likely (if not actually confirmed to be) in a multiverse with Sanderson's YA books. During Dan Wells' reading of the book in February, the main character talks about different worlds, with one, "Hona, that's mostly the same as the world you know, but instead of continents it's all islands. Even Idaho is an island in a giant North American Archipelago. Crazy, huh?" That definition fits perfectly the world of The Rithmatist, where we spend the first book in The United Isles (and Idaho is indeed an island). Combine this with the fact that The Apocalypse Guard was intended as a sequel series to Steelheart* and connect the Cytoverse and the Reckoners trillogy**, and voila, you've got ANOTHER shared universe by Brandon. *Sanderson's real sequel will be a book focused on Mizzy and the power she gained...assuming Brandon can find the time to write it. Steven Bohls was tapped to do some audio original sequel novellas as well, but I haven't heard anything since he said that in November...although to be fair, I haven't looked it up past that; I've been assuming any news would make it down the grapevine... **This may not be the case by the time The Apocalypse Guard comes out, but we'll have to see.

I could see a variation on that: Shallan and Adolin find out they're expecting. They get back to Urithiru (or wherever their new base is if one is needed) and are ready to share the news, and either walk in on Kaladin and Jasnah in a romantic moment (nothing more than a kiss, but still unexpected) or she finds out through the Cultivationspren-vine that they are courting (because both are too busy to tell her and they don't think it's a big deal...or it's a secret). Shallan has a slight freak out and a tad bit of "grass is greener" syndrome, and is forced to admit that she and Kaladin could have been a thing. Then she quickly self-corrects her train of thought and focuses on making her relationship with Adolin the best possible thing she can. Drama, acceptance, closure, and improvement, and all of it possible within a chapter or two. Now I'm not sure it should happen. but it might be possible.

@Ness Wiskey Welcome to the 17th Shard!

Been keeping up with TDP when it was nothing but concept art and a blurb. That show is built for memes (part of me worries that all the memes and references will ruin the show, but then I remember how Power Rangers RPM and Community built nearly all of their jokes around memes and references, and it worked wonderfully). ALTA rocks. Ever week or so, I try to have a concept, theme, or idea I use to inspire me to write/create. Last week was wondering what a fourth season of ALTA would look like (no it's not necessary, but I always wonder "what if." and no, I don't really count the comics. They have good ideas but they...aren't the same. Not even close).

I actually considered Mercenary before Cavalier, so you're not alone there! But in the end I decided to switch it due to Eliwood gaining a mount in his promotion rather than his stat gain model (although Eliwood's resistance is very high, much like Pegasus Knights and the occasional Paladin). For Lyn it's easier since she turns into a Blade Lord and has the stats akin to a Myrmidon. For Hector it's the same. Armor Lord and General. For Eliwood, he's to well-rounded to be a Paladin IIRC, but he gains that mount. And then you have how he's represented in other material. In the trial maps for Binding Blade, Eliwood's class is actually Paladin. During the Spotpass missions in Awakening, Eliwood is always represented as a Paladin. In three of his four alts in Heroes, Eliwood is depicted as being on a horse. Granted, the latter two tie into his Knight Lord class rather than his base one, but the comparison still stands. I couldn't find the info about Eliwood being famed as a swordsman again, so I'll consider that apocryphal and stick with Cavalier (although I really do like the suggestion of Hero too). But then there's canon material that doesn't always line up with what characters want or should have (i.e. Cherche's history as a cleric is reflected in her class options even though no one should EVER put her in that class unless it's to pass down Dual Support+ to Gerome...and that grind is so, so painful, even with the DLC map and Rescue spamming...), and how skills work in this hypothetical remake. Are skills tied to a class like in Three Houses, or are they tied to a level and transferable like in Awakening and Fates? Because if it's the former, then Lyn would probably gain Swordfaire once she promotes to Blade Lord, making Swordmaster a bit redundant. If it's the latter, then maybe Myrmidon would be good, but it'd also make Lyn a sort of one-build unit (Swordfaire, Vantage, and whatever other exclusive skills the Lord and Blade Lord classes offer). Other than that, I think having Lyn's Secondary class be Nomad would be a nice way to reference her heritage (and keep Rath from being the only playable Nomad in the game). Lyn doesn't lose any real weapon experience since the Blade Lord class can use bows and the Nomadic Trooper class uses swords. But I see what you mean... There's always the "Azura-Shigure Solution," (in which the game treats Azura's Primary class as Sky Knight and her Secondary one as Troubadour, despite her having to Friendship Seal Elise to gain access to Troubadour herself; so Shigure inherits Troubadour from Azura because his Primary Class is Sky Knight*) but that doesn't fix the issue of Lyn not having access to Myrmidon. The Lords could also just have access to two classes, splitting the difference...and if it was only them who got that, the amount of branching classes would be limited...that could work... *The exception to this rule is when Azura marries Jakob, and she'll pass down the Wyvern Rider class instead. Inheritance is Fates is fun and complex at times.

Thanks! I love shipping in FE (always have, always will), but I think for 2nd gen units all depends on the game. In FE 4 it works because that game is a generational story (although with a remake and actual supports and more dialogue, it could work even better). The same is true for Awakening, and that has the added bonus of a story about time travel (for better or worse). The 2nd gen units fit here because the story telling allows for them to exist, and in some ways necessitates them. In Fates, they pushed in a popular mechanic without understanding why it worked (in story, for the characters, and how to use it to make units feel unique instead of Parent 2.0), and everyone got screwed over because of it. They could have taken those units out and given the paralogues to different characters ala Three Houses* or used that screentime and those supports to flesh out each character more instead of of "let's have a baby and then throw them into an alternate dimension!" All of that said for Fates, I LOVE how the inheritance mechanics work in this compared to Awakening. There's room for so much complexity, and sometimes giving a character a certain skill or class feels like a super fun puzzle (assuming you don't cheat and say "marry Corrin/Kana."). Want a Shiro that knows Pavise and Tomefaire? There are, like, three separate paths to that. Or would you rather have use your Sky Knight!F!Corrin pass down Wyvern Rider to Kana without marrying Percy instead? That is indeed possible. I think shipping in this game would be fine so long as IS keeps the support options limited to what they were in the original game (for FE 7 only. FE 6 is far overdue for a revamp in its support options and paired endings) and combine it with the inheritance of Fates. ...that would probably require units to have a Secondary class though...yeah, I'm cool with that...although that raises some questions: Lyn would most certainly get Myrmidon or Nomad, and Hector would have Knight or Fighter...would Eliwood have Cavalier? Then again, if Eliwood becomes one of the best swordsman in the world by the time FE 6 rolls around, maybe it's more fitting for him to have Myrmidon as a Secondary class and Lyn gains Nomad, in accordance to her heritage. ...but then if inheritance works like it does in Fates, and I marry Lyn and Rath to create Sue, Lyn would have to pass down something else since Lord is exclusive to her and Rath already passes down Nomad...what would be an alternate version of Nomad...? ...I'm having too much fun with this. please excuse me as I think of how this would work going forward... Oh absolutely. One shouldn't have to play both games every time; but I do think one should be rewarded for going through the complete story at least once. Oh good comparison! I totally forgot about that! *This is me looking back, however. At the time (or at least before Valkyria Chronicles 4), that would have been more difficult to imagine.

Fire Emblem 4-7 While all of the these games could very much use some QoL updates as well as graphic updates* (and after Three Houses they'd have a HUUUUGE audience) one of the biggest boons these games can use is an adjustment to their stories. I don't mean changing anything big or important, but the little, smaller details. Fire Emblem 5 (Thracia 776) is an interquel to the two parts of FE 4 (Genealogy of the Holy War). There are parts of Thracia that take place during Genealogy, and combining these two games - or at least reworking the stories for them at the same time - would allow the games to flow pretty seamlessly together as a narrative. Gameplay is a very valid concern here - Genealogy's gameplay is very different compared to the rest of the series, and the switch from "having every unit on these giant maps at once" back to the limited amount of units as well as other things Thracia does (Fog of War, Stamina, Capture, etc) would be very jarring. But even that can help players think more strategically than "send strong unit here, let him demolish." Let that mindset carry over, and you've got smarter players. FE 6 & 7 are an even larger issue. Fire Emblem Blazing Blade (or just "Fire Emblem" here in the West) is actually a prequel to Fire Emblem: The Binding Blade (FE 6). This shows in some aspects of the characterization, but many more things are left out because of it. Hector's wife and Eliwood's wife are dead** by the time the story starts, and Lyn is nowhere to be found in FE 6. Zephiel's motivation has changed a bit, given he was a kid in FE 7 , and other things happened. Like the previous games, combining these two also works to make a tightly woven narrative between the two parts. In terms of gameplay, FE 6 NEEDS a remake. Maps are too large for many non-mounted units (of which there are a lot), the balance is apparently all over the place (even from the small amount I've played, the RNG is all over the place), and Roy is useless for the rest of the game when he reaches level 20 (he promotes in the second to last chapter I believe, and it's VERY possible to get him to level twenty before the halfway point of the game...and since he's the main character, he's MANDATORY ON ALL MAPS. So you've got an XP sponge of a character with middling stats that you have to ferry around these giant maps...yeah, this game needs a redesign). Lilina should be upgraded to Lord or Noble status as a unit also. Combining the games allows for players to ship characters together in 7 and have child units with slightly boosted stats in 6. This isn't a new mechanic to Fire Emblem, but seeing it between games would be an interesting twist. This works best with Fire Emblem Fates' shipping mechanics (where the child will inherit one class from each parent, along with any stat modifiers and an average of their growth rates. It can be more complicated than this, but that's a conversation for another time and place). For those worried about playing FE 7 just to get to FE 6, there should be a workaround. In Mass Effect 2 on the PS3 on Mass Effect 3 on the WiiU, there was a little comicbook/recap session at the beginning of the game, that summarized the plot of the previous games while letting players choose the important choices from said previous games. In Fire Emblem Fates, after beating the game once, when playing a new game one is allowed to skip straight to the choice instead of playing the first five chapters again and again. Either one of these things can and/or should be implemented, so that players can skip straight to the new content if they want. Lastly, doing this for FE 6 & 7 gives the game an epic scope that larger and more popular games in the series have (the Tellius duology, Genealogy, and Three Houses). However, I will note that Fe 7 doesn't need an actual remake, just a re-release on the Nintendo e-shop. But if they're remaking FE 6, then why not do FE 7 as well? Also, re-releasing the game when the announcement of the remakes hit could be a very interesting marketing move, especially if they allow players to transport materials/gold/special stat-boosting items or even a special character or two from the original version to the remake, if the games are registered on the same Nintendo ID or Switch console. Pokemon did a similar thing with Sun/Moon. Players who downloaded the demo were able to play as Ash-Greninja and eventually transfer it over to the real game when it was released. *The GBA game sprites are actually amazing and the gameplay ones still hold up to this day. **A symptom of "Anime Dead Mom Storytelling, and it's stupid

Edgedancer 79% Windrunner 78% Bondsmith 69%

I'd LOVE Scadrial, but depending on how burnt out Sanderson is and on WHAT Sanderson is burnt out on (epic fantasy vs Cosmere vs just Roshar - we'll know more in July), Scadrial might unfortunately get pushed to next year. Also, if the Skyward movie deal moves forward, then Sanderson might want to push to finish that series so it can be complete around the same time the movie comes out. As for enough Roshar, I'm of two minds. On one hand, this was always supposed to be a part of the kickstarter and Sanderson has talked about how there are things referenced in the book that happened in the novella. So taking all of that into account - and the fact that Rysn is one of my favorite characters - I see this as a part of the whole package, and not getting it is seen as almost less than promised. On the other hand, I really, REALLY want W&W 4, and at this point would GLADLY take that and another Skyward book over Stormlight at this point. But the Wheel weaves as the Wheel wills. If Sanderson is burnt out on Stormlight and would rather work on W&W 4 before coming back to Roshar later in the year to write the novella, so be it. If he decides to do that, but between Skyward 3 & 4, also so be it. If all goes well, then there's a chance that he may write it the back half of next year if he has time. Well...either the Rithmatist sequel or that YA kite-based magic book that Sanderson really wanted to write last year.

"I'm Commander Shepard, and this is my favorite book in the Citadel in audiobook form." I'm not surprised Sanderson is sick of the book, but I am worried if this will disrupt his Wandersail novella plan. If he's sick of Roshar (which may more may not be the case), will he really force himself to write more in that world? If he's sick or revisions, then The Apocalypse Guard will probably be affected as well (he was supposed to work on a revision of that book as well as write Rysn's novella in July). I'm not too concerned, but I am curious about what will happen.

Not to be left out, Small Mistborn Screenplay Updates: Sanderson is plotting the trilogy as a movie, series, and movie respectively (Wax & Wayne would be a TV series). The largest hurdle has been Vin herself, since she's a very internal character.

Great nuggets from this signing too! Way of Kings Prime will be free, Jasnah IS NOT on the Autism Spectrum (MY QUESTIONS WOOOOO!!! SO I NOW CAN FINALLY BACK UP THAT SKYWARD SIGNING THING WITH A WOB). Dark One notes - There will be an audio prose version with Dan Wells, the pilot of the first episode is finished and Sanderson has indeed read it (show itself is slow-going, but it's really J. Michael Straczynski's thing) Purelakers have special feet and don't get pruney feet.

But even then Odium can't back out. He already agreed to the contest right before the climax of Oathbringer. So now Odium is stuck in a contest he may lose, what does he do? Does he choose a fighter that isn't as skilled as Adolin, Kaladin, Szeth (who is EXTRA scary with Nightblood) or Dalinar, isn't as logical as Jasnah, or isn't as creative as Shallan, isn't as much of a random card as Renarin? Or does he pick something that they can't fight? Innocence and potentially family, and then exploit the weakness of their Oaths?

Who is going to kill the child? Out of the Radiants, only two would - Jasnah and Szeth, and Szeth wouldn't do it if Dalinar told him not to. Shallan, Dalinar, Kaladin, Rock, and ESPECIALLY Lift would all rather sacrifice themselves than kill an innocent child willingly. Renarin is a big maybe, but I'd doubt he'd do it. It's too set up, both in the story and by Honor. Dalinar's going to go into that contest to rid Roshar of Odium once and for all. And he's going to lose. Heck, if we take what happened in Oathbringer, the contest has already begun; it's just that neither side has chosen a Champion, so it's still in a state of flux. Neither Odium nor Dalinar can back out now. Nightblood may be a viable option. I'm honestly not sure of the specifics because that isn't my forte. I do think it's likely, however. I do have a theory around that, but even then that theory would be stretching it. So I'll concede this point, but I still think Odium's Champion will be a baby, and one closely affiliated with - if not related to - the Kholin family.

Odium's plans are failing enough for him to pull a Hail Mary. He fails at converting Dalinar, his war isn't getting anywhere, the Listeners are switching sides and becoming Radiants, and his Desperate Mission in RoW ultimately fails. So by Book 5, Odium is left with very few options. So what does he do? He plays the last card available, a contest of Champions. And then the Radiants kill Rayse, the holder of the shard (since he's not guaranteed to survive as per WOB) and make sure the new Odium allows the child to grow up, prolonging the conflict but not solving it. You are very right it could! I'm just using it to fit a theory, but since we have no evidence either way, it could be used either way. Feel free to use it how you want, but that won't take away from me using it how I want so long as the context fits either. Dalinar was Odium's original pick, but Dalinar refused it. For a baby, I can't imagine it being that difficult to make it "choose" Odium. Take away its discomfort or distress. I think it's more of an "you can't win, so I technically dor" situation. The child can't kill Dalinar, but Dalinar won't kill the child. So if it's a fight to death and Dalinar refuses to kill the child, wouldn't that make Odium the winner by default? That's the sort of victory I imagine Odium resorting to.

Absolutely, if there's no time limit. To Odium, once the challenge is accepted, it's only a matter of time. Either Dalinar breaks his Oaths by killing an innocent child, shattering everything he built up; or Odium waits until the child is old enough to kill an aging Dalinar and he wins. Besides, Odium isn't omniscient - he didn't see Dalinar's Ascenion coming, nor can he predict Renarin. Again, HARD disagree. The KR Oaths and the Death Rattles - assuming they're predicting this event - already told us the answer. The person in this KNOWS what other people want them to do. Yet from the style of writing, there's an invisible "but." This tells it all. The good guys will not compromise their values in order to win, "for the choice of honor is life." Life Before Death. They're not going to do that. Dalinar won't allow it, nor will he be the killer. As for Odium not letting Dalinar raise the child, well, that depends on what child Odium chooses and how personal he wants to make this challenge. What if Navani is revealed to be pregnant and Odium chooses that child? What if it's Adolin and Shallan's child? Odium is willing to make the fight personal at times (not as much as Ruin, but still more than we give him credit for). Choosing a child that Odium is sure Dalinar wouldn't kill, well, that's just another level of insurance on Odium's part. Lastly, as a meta-note, I think The Rift is as dark as Sanderson is willing to go in his writing. Sanderson refers to a lot of things, and having a main character destroy a city is one thing, but seeing them on-screen kill a baby is another.

You're forgetting that Dalinar can accept the challenge and then refuse to fight until the child is grown. That is the route you're leaving out. It's the scenario that not only fits Dalinar's character, but also accommodates the time-skip that the series has. But you're leaving out that Dalinar gave them that choice. Dalinar can and will indeed wipe out enemies, but he now gives them the choice. Dalinar will NOT kill a baby that has no choice. So no, he's not going to kill a baby. He's more likely to raise the child (or have it be raised by someone close to him, depending on who the child is), prepare them for the situation, try to find another way, and then decide what to do. Because that is who Dalinar is now.

Yes, I think he would. I think Dalinar would because he understands what that choice is and what it means, and he understands more than ANYBODY in the Cosmere how one can make their own decisions and change. He's not going to kill a child because he isn't that person anymore. Taravangian wouldn't flinch at it, Jasnah could live with the guilt, and I'm sure Nale would do it in a heartbeat, but Dalinar wouldn't. Not anymore. The oaths may allow it, but Dalinar wouldn't allow himself to do it. Dalinar would rather save the world to the best of its ability, allow the child to grow, look for a way to save the world and the child, and then - and only then - he would fight Odium's Champion. Because Dalinar no longer goes into battles for the Thrill. With the Parshendi he wanted to sue for peace (until Venli got her way). With the newly revived Voidbringers he looked for a way to stop the flow without resorting to genocide or killing the Heralds again. With the other Rosharan countries, Dalinar went through GREAT efforts to assure them he wasn't going to take the easy way, the arguably efficient way, and simply conquer the world to unite them. No, Dalinar isn't The Blackthorn anymore, and he's showing it. And he DID try to spare the Rathalas. He talked to Tanalan Jr. in order to show that he came up with an entire plan to spare the storming city. Dalinar was then ambushed, gave into the Thrill, and then destroyed the city. Did he do it? Absolutely. Would he do it all over again or if a similar situation came up? No, not only because he regrets his actions, but because he's changed. You don't have to forgive Dalinar, nor would I ever ask you to. You don't even have to like him. But don't paint him as something he's currently - not previously, CURRENTLY - not.

I think that's very understandable. Personally, my head-canon to reconcile the two is that the voice we hear in TCW is Anakin's voice inside his head. Many people hear themselves differently than they sound, so why should Anakin be any different?