Longshot97

Alright, this is probably best settled in some form before further theorizing can take place. Also, we may want a sort of "index" for referential purposes. Trusk'our, whenever you get the chance, could you implement that? Okay, back in the thumbtacks-and-string zone. Let's start with F-Bendalloy. Okay, to me, this suggests bendalloy does not store actual ATP (i.e, biological energy), as it can also store fluid, and mentions directly "nutrition and calories." Because digested food is rendered entirely into nutrients and calories, which is then converted into ATP or tissue, we can guess that the term "energy" for F-Bendalloy is more of a label than anything. There's also a WoB which could be helpful. This suggests that a bendalloy mind stores neither food nor water, but instead stores the digested compounds, to be withdrawn for ATP/tissue/fluid synthesis. All this is to say that tapping a bendalloy mind should not make a person immediately fatter, unless tapping a bendalloy mind also enhances the body's metabolic rate (of which we have no proof). Of course, consistent tapping of a bendalloy mind in addition to standard food consumption would cause a person to gain weight, but only in the same way eating six meals---without proportionally adjusting one's phsyical and metabolic activity---causes a person to gain weight. As for tapping F-Bendalloy alone, surplus energy withdrawal will likely be converted to fat, but over a period of time. A Subsumer's body still needs to undergo metabolic activity--muscle and fat synthesis, rehydration, and so on. Next, F-Pewter. Unfortunately, couldn't find any WoBs for this. Simple enough. As opposed to Thugs, whose strength is supplemented supernaturally, Brutes physically gain muscle mass, increasing their strength and consequentially their size. Sazed proves that such mass can become a hindrance to mobility at a certain point, but bear in mind that he was drawing on all his reserves in order to survive the koloss. That was likely an immense amount of Brute strength (puns!) he compounded into a few seconds. We know that this extra muscular strength is granted by the pewterminds, so tapping the mind grants the extra muscle, and releasing it cuts off the source of extra strength. Storing pewter would mean the metalmind siphons your body's available muscular strength, consequentially making you weaker. To directly address some questions, would releasing a pewtermind leave you with extra strength? I would say no. Sazed is seen numerous times in The Well of Ascension to lose the extra muscular mass after releasing his metalminds. Most prominently, when he's battling the koloss, he runs out of strength just as Vin arrives to Luthadel and returns to normal size. I would argue the same would apply to kandra. Look at both Allomancy and Feruchemy. The moment you stop burning pewter, you lose the granted strength, sometimes to disastrous results (see pewter dragging). When you stop burning tin, you lose all senses. Feruchemy works on similar principles. The moment you stop tapping iron, you return to your normal weight. The moment you stop tapping gold, you stop healing. Thus, when you stop tapping pewter, and cut yourself off from the source of Investiture, you lose the Invested ability, in this case strength. About the Spiritual Realm differentiating between granted and existing muscle. I would argue that is not an issue. The Feruchemical muscle is being magically sustained by the Investiture in the pewtermind. Cutting off that flow of Investiture means nothing sustains the Invested Art, and so the power ceases. Obviously, we have no direct examples of this, but all evidence points to this. And, in fact, I believe Forch, the Steel-Pewter Twinborn that tries to kill Waxillium, exhibits this. I do not have the book on me, but after Waxillium kills him, I believe his body returns to normal size. Since he is dead, he can no longer draw on his metalminds, and dies. Sadly, I think not. Any F-Pewter-granted mass would disappear as soon as the kandra stops tapping (by the rules of my theory). I would, however, say that they can do this with F-Bendalloy. Recall how quickly TenSoon digested the pig and horse to become an absolute beast of a stallion, capable of plowing through several feet of ash. If kandra can swiftly make use of calories and nutrients, perhaps that could regenerate mass at an accelerated rate through F-Bendalloy, rather than shifting around mass to regrow limbs. I will, however, posit a replacement #61, 61. Temporary Mass On-Demand. With excessive tapping of F-Pewter, a kandra can gain huge amounts of muscular mass in mere seconds. It can then take the muscles, dissolve them, and use the resulting material however it sees fit. This is only a temporary fix, however, as releasing the pewtermind will cause all gained mass to disappear. As for storing away mass for a kandra to use later, I would say F-Pewter is most effective for storing muscular mass, while F-Bendalloy is best for storing digested material. Thus, F-Pewter can help them more in a pinch, as whatever muscle they gain, they can shift about to suit their needs. F-Bendalloy, however, can help them gain large amounts of permanent mass quicker than digesting meat would. They would still need to synthesize muscle from the calories, but it would be more efficient than simply eating. Anyways, this took far too long to write out. Feel free to address any errors.

I'd been toying with new Twinborn ideas in my head, and think I have something moderately exciting. Picture this: a Slider (or Pulser) enters a room with a hefty supply of their according metal. They activate a time bubble, then sit down and begin tapping brass. They would do this either for a significant amount of time or at a very large tapping rate, until the Twinborn has reached a significant body temperature (for the sake of this conversation, 500° Fahrenheit, or 260° Celsius). The Twinborn in question will then drop the time bubble. The idea is that the heat generated from the brassmind will transfer from the body of the Twinborn will transfer to the surrounding air. The amount of surrounding air, however, should be limited by the time bubble, and thus the heat should be trapped within the bubble's confines. Dropping the bubble, then, should remove the barrier, and allow the heat to rush into the room. If enough heat is trapped by the Twinborn, the process could be more than mildly violent. I have a few questions on this: Is this theory watertight? Does it actually make sense? If so, would this function with either External Temporal metal, or only one of the two? Which one? How effective would this theoretical attack be? My current thought is that only a Bendalloy bubble would work for this. The way I see it, the bubble wouldn't really stop heat from leaking through, but the rate of transfer should be affected by the temporal manipulation. If the time outside the speed bubble is slowed down significantly, whatever heat escapes the bubble should be trapped right outside of it. We know that when Wayne throws up a speed bubble, everything outside practically freezes, depending on how much he flares the metal. The heat should then collect outside the bubble, also serving to prevent excess heat escaping. After all, the Laws of Thermodynamics determine that heat seeks to make cold matter warm (I have overly simplified it, but that's basically it), so that any heat stopped in time outside the bubble would act as a buffer to the heat inside the bubble. Regardless, any thoughts?

As true as that is, Vin was quite literally Ascending. I think we can classify that as beyond normal Allomantic means, as even Lerasium can only go so far before turning the Mistborn into straight-up Preservation. You know, in hindsight, it's almost impressive the Inquisitors survived as long as they did. You bring up a good point about F-Iron. I would hypothesize the maximum level destruction to be just enough Compounded weight to avoid turning into a black hole, with just enough Lerasium-enhanced strength to avoid becoming a Vessel. Otherwise, that just becomes Shardic influence.

Oh my god, WAIT. 59. Photosynthesis. Alright, hear me out. What if a kandra learned to create ATP the same way plants do: absorbing sunlight? I very much doubt any could do so instinctively, but with sufficient scientific knowledge and enough trial and error, could they learn to absorb sunlight and produce energy? It's possible that kandra would be unable to meet their energy needs using a plant's methods of sustenance, but at the very least, it could supplement their reserves. And if not, they would basically never require food again. On a similar, far more spoiler-y note: (Stormlight)

This is really important to establish, yeah. We should have done this from the start, and looked at everything we know kandra can do, and go from there. Staring with their base "mistwraith" form, we know that in their base form of muscle and mass, they require food and water (recall TenSoon's imprisonment: they fed him and gave him water) to survive, like any other form of biological life. We know they possess consciousness, so preservation of sanity is a factor, unless the Blessing of Presence factors in. They are capable of limited mobility, hampered by their lack of a skeleton. They possess tactile and olfactory sense, but cannot see or hear (well, hearing is limited). With a skeleton, they gain all base physical attributes of the former creature, such as mobility and size. This can be adjusted based on the mass of a kandra and the placement of muscle. Organs are subject to the kandra's discretion, as are their location. We know them incapable of speech without lungs, and sight without eyes. Despite this, they need no stomach, tongue, brain, nose, or others for their intended purposes. There are certain things kandra can and cannot generate. They can, for example, produce organs. They cannot, for example, produce bones. Whether or not a kandra can produce venom, venom sacs, spinnerets, or such is unconfirmed, and very much in the string-and-thumbtacks zone. Still, it shouldn't be too much of an issue for theorizing, because they could simply remove them from creatures they digest. Addressing these questions specifically, Do they require water as well as food? Kandra require food and water, as shown by TenSoon in captivity in the kandra homeland. Do kandra sweat? I would venture that they do not need to sweat, but could choose to do so. Sweating is the body's method of regulating temperature. Do they run risk of hypothermia in extreme cold or run the risk of heat injuries in hot enviorments? I would theorize that extreme temperatures would become very inconvenient for them, and eventually fatal, but less so than humans. They require sustenance like us, so overheating would burn water reserves. Extreme cold could also cause them to burn reserves by shivering. This brings up the question of homeostasis. Do kandra need to maintain a consistent temperature? This is very much in the string-and-thumbtacks zone, but I would guess that they do. After all, they require food and water to gain energy, and that energy is lost very quickly without temperature regulation. Do they rely on breathing to oxygenate their tissue? I don't think it's ever explicitly stated, but I would guess they would. Humans require oxygen for ATP synthesis (to create energy), and if kandra were once humans, but rendered to a base of sapient muscle mass, it could be extrapolated that they still require most things a human would for survival. As for breathing specifically, they don't need lungs in their mistwraith form, but need it to speak. They could be constantly absorbing oxygen from the atmosphere Do kandra need to perform all human functions? Strictly speaking, no. They cannot reproduce, and thus do not require genitalia. Their sentience is dependent on their mass and their Blessings, so brains aren't absolutely necessary. Still, it stands to reason that in human form, kandra would be subject to many of a human's biological needs, such as shivering, producing and circulating blood, and so on.

Oh, I like that one. And it makes some sense, kandra don't digest themselves any more than humans do. 55. Prevention of Blood Clotting. Imagine a kandra coating their claws (or stinger, pincer, spine, teeth, etc) in anticoagulants, thus ensuring that a victim would be hard-pressed to avoid bleeding out. Not so sure of the science behind this, but they are kandra. 56. Allergic Reaction Triggering. Depending on if the kandra is aware of a person's biological sensitivities, they could introduce the appropriate compounds to the subject. Depending on the target, it could be delivered through the respiratory, digestive, or integumentary (sorry, skin) systems. 57. Emotion Detection. This goes beyond intuitively "reading people" to detecting specific hormones via scent. Could be useful in detecting lies. Really, the 101 goal is looking more and more feasible.

This leads to another idea I had, which potentially solves the limitation kandra have with skeletons. 50: Spoilers for Warbreaker There's an idea... 51: Element Isolation. Especially useful in scientific endeavors, a kandra could command their body to digest everything but a specific element/molecule/compound, and store it/eject it. Could be an effective way of creating supplements, or purifying materials, such as water. You have my sincerest apologies. That wasn't even deliberate, I have no idea how it occurred, all I did was edit the original post, and it duplicated.

Just me thinking of bloodsucking animals, such as mosquitoes and vampire bats. While it would not be much more effective than simply stabbing somebody, it would be very interesting to see. My mistake, thank you for pointing that out, will avoid it in the future. 44. Incendiary Gas. A surprising number of animals produce volatile gas as a natural part of their digestive systems (did you know you could set cow manure on fire? It's simultaneously fascinating and disgusting). All the kandra would need to do is strike a spark. They could do so manually, but I wonder if there is a biological means of generating a spark a kandra could mimic?

I'm a bit confused on this one. Could you explain it in more detail? I was thinking of something like a mosquito, vampire bat, or other bloodsucker. Not necessarily more effective than simply stabbing someone, but hey, it's an ability. Excellent point, sorry for the inconvenience. 44. Biological bullets. Could they force their bodies to eject small projectiles at comparable speeds to firearms? It would be nowhere near as effective as gunpowder, but they could defend themselves in a pinch.

This, among many other abilities theorized here, has led me to conclude that the kandra could very easily become Lovecraftian-scale horrors. We are very lucky Paalm was either sorely lacking in her creative faculties, or held back on us poor humans.

36. Vocal range. They could theoretically rearrange their larynx, either making it larger, stronger, or more efficient, and produce sonic shrieks. 37. Spinnerets? Could they weave webs? The durability of spider's silk is well documented in modern science. 38. Venom sacs? Could they biologically produce venom, toxins, poisons, or such, to be injected or otherwise imparted? 39. Echolocation. Need I say any more? 40. Blood drainage. Yeesh. 41. Acid manipulation. We know they possess the ability to digest without skeletal structures. If their digestive systems are even comparable to a human's (which can dissolve solid steel) they could use that as an extremely scary weapon. 42. Introduction of foreign bodies. Could they manufacture a virus, disease, or something similar, and inject that into a target? 43. Temperature manipulation. Could they siphon heat from a target via physical contact, or theoretically impart it?

I've always seen Tress of the Emerald Sea as perfect musical material.

Excellent point about duralumin, complete forgot about that.

I am extremely reticent to pick immortality of any kind, and Atium Compounding does run into an eventual limit. Thus, I'd rather live a short life, in both cases, but be effectively unkillable. Also, I can frustrate all Cosmerenauts with my mere existence as an Atium misting

The title says it all. To elaborate, I'm wondering if it is at all possible to use Emotional Allomancy to control an Inquisitor through the cracks of their Spiritweb, given that we have never seen it done before. Granted, there are some good reasons for this. Practically no one knew about this "Hemalurgic backdoor" and the ones that did couldn't and/or wouldn't try it. By the time this was discovered, Ruin had escaped, and no one could contest a Shard's hold. Inquisitors had access to Allomantic copper, possibly multiple times over, which was an excellent counter. Inquisitors have sapience and willpower, and if the Allomancer fails, Adonalsium have mercy upon them. I'm wondering if I have some of the facts wrong, or if there's a reason all its own for this to never happen. Otherwise, to cover all my bases, let's assume a group of several Soothers (or Rioters, but for the sake of argument, Soothers) with several Nicrobursts got together Post-Catacendre, and tried to overwhelm Marsh's copper and willpower with a combined Push. Excluding divine intervention, is there any reason this would not work?

An excellent theory. I'd completely neglected the excerpts from Words of Radiance (in-world) when researching the Truthwatchers. Though now I wonder: what could have prompted an ancient Truthwatcher to break this taboo? What is so terrible about predicting this course of action?

Maybe the reason this Intent was the one that worked (assuming this theory to be correct) is because it is the closest to the idea of Harmony. At the moment, Harmony is not Discord, by his own profession, and he cannot lie.

There's likely also the question of whether or not Kaladin would have used the Reverse Lashing in such a way. He did so in a fit of unthinking, bestial rage. Had he been more rational, he probably would have been horrified at the very thought.

Argh, this was what I was trying to convey in the first place. I really need to be more clear. I agree, it makes far more sense that it happens infrequently.

Ooh, you brought up an excellent point, and one I meant to address. We understand that seeing the future is something that involves the Spiritual Realm, that all Shards are capable of to some degree, and is not entirely uncommon across magic systems. I meant to include that it is very likely the Truthwatchers (assuming my theory to be correct) began to conceal this ability or downplay it when it became common custom to view seeing the future as "of the Voidbringers." This explains the secrecy of the Truthwatcher from the Urithiru Gem Archive, and why we don't see this recorded anywhere.

Um, I'm afraid the way you're describing this would not academically function. What he actually did was Push and Pull on it simultaneously, causing it to hover before him. Then, by Pushing on the close end and Pulling on the far end, he crushed it. No shifting of center involved there.

Introduction Well, this is one of the most incoherent theories I've ever cobbled together. But I think I have something, at the very least. Regardless, here we go. I will first state the theory, for the sake of retaining reader attention, then explain the evidence I have to prove it. Whatever the case, I believe I have found the nature of whatever resonance the Truthwatchers possess, or at the very least an ability they somehow employ. I will delay no further; I believe the Truthwatchers had the ability glimpse the future. Please understand, I have not taken temporary leave of my sanity. I know Renarin is not a true Truthwatcher, and I understand the Surges as well as any Cosmerenaut. Allow me to present my evidence, such as it is. Evidence 1: The Urithiru Gem Archive I think everyone who's closely read the epigraphs has flirted with this theory at one time or another. I quote below an entry made by an unknown Truthwatcher, detailing their plan to deny Voidlight to the parsh armies. See below: It has already been established that the gem type corresponds with the Order of Knight who recorded the message. I invite all to look at the final message, recorded in "a particularly small emerald." Obviously, whoever recorded it must have felt a need to record their foresight. Now, this can be taken two ways. The Truthwatcher had an uncannily acute sense of foresight, and very accurately judged the eventual findings and conclusions of a group of scholars, tacticians, and warriors. The word "foresaw" was used in a more literal sense. I'm inclined to believe the latter, for the fact that the gem was "particularly small" as well as the Truthwatcher's evident need for secrecy. Evidence 2: The Surgebinding Chart It is interesting to note how specifically the Truthwatchers are placed. Directly below the Bondsmiths. Not only this, but a strange line connects the two, completely unrelated to the surrounding art. I am not the first to note this; indeed, another user asked a question concerning it. Brandon admits that there is some significance to this placement, and that Truthwatchers are different from other Orders in much the same way a Bondsmith is. How interesting, especially in light of Evidence 1. Evidence 3: The Nature of Resonances We have some details concerning the nature of resonances. Kaladin and Shallan---and to a certain extent, Jasnah and Lift---have all demonstrated abilities that occur from their two Surges interacting. Kaladin can adopt far more squires, and those of far more power, than any other order. Shallan has uncanny mnemonic abilities that Brandon attributes to her order. The same goes for Kaladin. Jasnah is noted by Wit as having an uncanny sense of direction, leading to some speculation among the fanbase. Then Lift, who displayed a very keen sense of comprehension in the face of street slang worse than that of Spook's. What's interesting is how all these resonances seem have certain common characteristics. These are the ones I have noted. The resonances we do have, and some suspected ones, are at least tangentially related to the Surges that produce them. The resonances, at least in the case of Knights Radiant, seem to follow their order's underlying themes. There seems to be an almost thematic connection between the Surges and the resonance. Evidence 4: Renarin Fear not, intrepid readers, for I yet retain my sanity. I bring up Renarin only to point out the connection between this theory and one of Renarin's main abilities. As a Cosmerenaut, I do not believe much in coincidences, and find it very convenient that a Truthwatcher of old "foresaw" something, and Renarin, a corrupted Truthwatcher, sees the future in intermittent fits. Putting It All Together From all these pieces of evidence, I believe enough data has been gathered to draw conclusions. So, diving right in, we start with the very high likelihood that a Truthwatcher past somehow saw the future. This was something he fear, or was ashamed of, but regardless felt necessary to maintain secrecy over. Evidence 2 introduces the thought that Truthwatchers have some abilities that almost resemble those of a Bondsmith. At the very least, they have something Cognitively and Spiritually related. We know that seeing the future involves the Spiritual Realm, where time has no meaning. The conclusions drawn from Evidence 3 are the shakiest I have to offer, but I'll do my best to be clear. Truthwatchers of Ideals surrounding the nature of truth, and seeking it out. Thus, they are commonly scholars and scientists. They seek to banish lies and understand the world better. More than that, the Surges exclusive to Truthwatchers are those of Progression and Illumination. What an interesting combination. Looking at these purely thematically, a combination of the two might illuminate a future path, a way of progressing forwards. Finally, Renarin. Again, I find it far too coincidental how he can see the future. And perhaps this provides some insight as to the nature of Sja-anat's Enlightening. Maybe Enlightened spren almost lean into the resonance, and that is the pattern of affected Orders. Conclusion None of these pieces of evidence alone serve to help prove this theory. When taken together, however, the connections drawn follow some common paths. If you have any thoughts over this, please comment so. Any and all criticism are welcome. Many thanks for reading, Longshot97

I think these are well-reasoned arguments, and excellent point about Yomen and the Steel Ministry. There are possibly ways Brandon could retcon that, but for now, those stand as good reasons against electrum mistings=atium listings. It would make sense though, wouldn't it? If the Atium Retcon exists so that pure atium can be burned by any who swallow it (like lerasium) and it is possible to alloy God Metals with other viable metals to create unique effects when burned, then it should stand to reason that those specific mistings would have the key to unlock the functionality of that God Metal alloy. Then again, a big point of metallurgy is that an alloy is not simply two metals combined, but an entirely new metal. Having there be unique mistings for God Metal alloys would preserve the spirit of that. And hey, maybe all Scadrians are Metalborn in some sense. If there are sixteen (excuse me, 17, now) unique metals for each Shard (actually, 18, since Brandon mentioned the Dor has a unique God Metal) and each of those can be alloyed with the 16 normal metals...then we get to God Metals being alloyed with other God Metals...that's an awful lot of variability.

Do you have a citation for this? Because to this point, I've assumed that was up in the air, whether or not nalatium mistings are actually electrum mistings. There's evidence for both sides.

So, I'm almost certain others have theorized this already, but after some extensive searching, I was unable to find anyone on here who did. So, here we go. In Epilogue 7, Marsh approaches Wax, Steris, and Marasi before Wayne's statue. When asked on how he walks about without drawing attention, he passes it off as emotional Allomancy. Still, Wax expresses his doubts. I think all Cosmerenauts on all worlds stirred in their beds with that phrase. But regardless, this moves on to my theory. I think Marsh moves about unseen through a combination of emotional Allomancy... and Feruchemical duralumin. To quote from the Coppermind, Feruchmeical duralumin functions as such. This seems a very likely explanation for that "something more" Wax postulates. Granted, don't know if Marsh was given spikes following the Catacendre, and there is no way of knowing if Rashek was aware of duralumin's Feruchemical properties. Still, he was a Feruchemist himself, and discovered duralumin. It makes sense he would test it. Anyway, there's my three cents. Thoughts? ~Longshot97