Green Hoodie Mistborn

So the Shades in Shadows for Silence are cognitive shadows of their previous selves but twisted by the Evil of that world or something? Or did he just say that and move on?

That is why I feel the size/power of the Spren matters. These 3 would have been able to survive that split whereas the others perished, it would explain why the Stormfather is a little bit crazy/broken (per Syl). Perhaps Dalinar's bonding with him will help stabilize him in the same way that completing the Shaod returned the Seon's to sanity.

There is the Epigraph from tWoK which says I'm thinking it is mostly this/#2 of your points with a sprinkling of #3 for sure.

So, my though that Cusciesh is voltron spren has now been pretty well debunked, I would like to propose a grander, more elaborate theory/thought. Based on the epigraph above, we see that there are usually 3 Bondsmiths at a time, regardless of how large other orders may be or not. It may be that the Stormfather can bond more than one Radiant at a time given his power level, but I'm not inclined to think so. In tWoK/WoR, we hear of only 3 Spren who are very large and very in charge of what they have going on. The Stormfather: proven to Nahel bond with Bondsmiths Cusciesh: definitely spren, probably related to the KR the Nightwatcher: gives the "old magic" but we don't know what that means really and presumed to be a Spren My theory is that each of the 3 bondsmiths are bonded to one of these Spren, and that in some way, these 3 spren are similar in the way that honorspren or cryptics are different. I.e. not all Honorspren are like Syl in temperment, nor all Cryptics like Pattern. I don't have a lot to back it up really, other than that there are 3 very large Spren floating around Roshar and there are only 3 Bondsmiths at a time. Only other mention of Bondsmiths shows that they had a unique ability and they alone could address the divine duties and natures of the Heralds. I think that is because they are bonded to the 3 single most powerful/knowledgeable/oldest Spren on Roshar Well, there it is... let me know your thoughts!!

I was just thinking of starting a thread called "Secret Societies of Roshar", but you beat me to it! A few notes (possible WoR Spoilers): Amaram calls his group the "Sons of Honor" a few times towards the end of WoR I'm not sure the Ghostbloods were opposed to Gavilar Gavilar was involved with both the Sons of Honor AND the Diagram per WoRBoth Amaran and Taravangian talk to themselves, saying "we're nearing there Gavilar" or something to that effect. I'd say that Szeth is a person of Note for the "skybreakers" I'm leaning towards "Zahel" and Hoid being in cahoots in some way...

Heralan was no skybreaker, agreed. But he went to join the "Skybreakers", and was given a Blade and Plate...

I see a conflicted and confused Moash helping the Diagram in the next books and then turning on them at some point to help the heroes... He might even be Skybreaker material in his singleminded devotion to delivering "justice". Maybe not. I seem to be seeing Skybreakers all over the place right now. (Moash, Adolin...)

That is what I've been calling it in my head too, that or the Dragon's Response. At this point I think it's find to keep it as "the Letter" and "the Response" since we have a couple of years before book three will be out and may or may not have a 3rd one (though it is likely). Also - how on earth are they exchanging letters? The 17th Shard people can't even locate Hoid... how are they leaving notes for each other? I felt the Response wasn't as fun as the Letter. For some reason I'm picturing a Dragon speaking in a British accent wearing a smoking jacket dictating this letter to someone else in his library somewhere.

There is a Terriswoman in Warbreaker somewhere, per WoB and HERE who is a Worldhopper and romantic interest to Demoux Maybe she's on Roshar by now, but I doubt that is who Hoid is talking about when there is a millennia old Shardholder somewhere on Roshar in Cultivation

I agree that Nan is running a group called Skybreakers who aren't actually bonded Skybreakers. They appear more dedicated to Order than to Justice.

Interesting question... My inclination is that he would have used the power to further cement his rule. Maybe alter the existing Feruchemists to make them all sterile, etc. and then done some maintenance on the world. I don't think he would have tried a big move of the world again because he just didn't know enough about astronomy like Sazed did and would have continued to mess it up, I think he learned that lesson. Or maybe not... Ruin was getting to him, maybe he would have pushed Rashek to try that, just so it would destroy the world more quickly... I doubt he would care to increase the potency of Allomancy again, weaker powered allomancers are easier for him and the inquisitors to control/fight if needs be. Great question!

You and swimmingly raise an interesting idea that I hadn't considered really.

the thing that both surprised me the most and pleased me the most was that by the end of the book, none of the main characters who have started forming the Nahel bond (Jasnah excluded) are "secret" about it anymore. Everyone who needs to know, does. I'm SOOO glad that didn't drag on through books 3 or 4.

For some reason I don't see Szeth actually taking the Skybreaker oaths... I think Nan is taking advantage of a broken mind. Szeth worships Order, which is different than "just" or "Justice". (Justice n. the process or result of using laws to fairly judge and punish crimes and criminals). I, like has been theorized already, that when the Heralds broke the Oathpact, they went dark or are/have tainted their original attributes, so Justice becomes Order (at all costs). I think Nan told Szeth that he would become a Skybreaker, but then he gave him Nightblood. If he was really going to become a Skybreaker, he would get a spren and therefore a weapon, wouldn't need Nightblood. All that said I will be very surprised if Szeth says any oaths or gains a Nahel bond from those oaths. It will be very interesting to see what Vasher does once Nightblood becomes known to the outside world...

Since it was from a quote in the "Words of Radiance" the in world book that is a history of the Radiants, I doubt that it means anything about the Four who have come together so far... It does seem to imply that one of the orders turned against the others. Skybreakers is tricky right now. I feel like the fact that they were mentioned so much in this book means that they are a red herring. Though the Parshmen/Parshendi being Voidbringers was true, I feel like the Skybreakers that Helaran joined "may" have something to do with Nalan and what he is offering Szeth, but I don't think they are going to actually be surgebinding "Radiants" who will probably make themselves known in Adolin... (hopefully). The only "skybreakers" we have seen thus far, were given the Blade and Plate (Helaran) or Nightblood (Szeth). If Heleran was an actual Skybreaker, Kaladin would have stood no chance, instead of the minuscule chance he did stand. I can't believe there are 3 more books this size with all that plot that we've got before the resolution of this plot arc...

I don't think it would have been just the Dragon and Hoid. When i read "we" my mind included the 16 original shardbearers who would all have been present at the shattering of adonalsium

Agreed. I posted a little about this in the Kaladin vs. Adolin thread. My only problem with the extreme nature of the "skybreakers" that we've seen, is that "Life before Death" is also part of the first Ideal, and Darkness seems all to ready to kill for punishment. The only skybreakers we have seen are probably the Herald Nan would doesn't need a Spren, and eventually Szeth. If Szeth were to bond with a Highspren he would get the highspren shardblade eventually and wouldn't need Nightblood.

I don't feel it would be effective at all really. Just like Dalinar who locks Taln up because he doesnt' know what to do with him, it's really just wasting time that Taln should be working helping prepare for the Desolations and teach people about the Radiant ideals. Humans have the opposite problem than they used to, technology is very advance, but the Ideals of the Radiants are lost and honor with them so humans are much more divided. As to tech level... the building technology seemed to be beyond the Bronze age when Nohadon was king from that glimpse. I think the tech level varied with how bad the desolation was previously... Stone age humans wouldn't be reading Nohadon's book either.

Hmm,

But Vasher's main sword fighting tactic with it was to throw it at "bad guys" and let them kill themselves with it, so he may have thrown it away. There is no reason that Vasher won't be in Warbreaker 2, keep in mind that Warbreaker is after Hero of Ages, The Way of Kings is happening "slightly before" Alloy of Law, which is ~300 years after Hero of Ages, which is before Warbreaker. So Vasher has about 300 years to have his sequel and still make it to Roshar to have been working for the Kholin family for ~12 years as a swordmaster ardent

Big difference between 100 years and 4500 though i'd think which is the length since the Last Desolation. I'd say this is extreme and not something seen in the previous returns. We don't' know the time between desolations either, could have been 100 or 900 years between, probably much close to a couple/few hundred though. Taln's comments about teaching them about bronze since they don't have time for steel is interesting too.

I have a further theory related to Awesomeness' statements... WoR Spoiler

I agree that Adolin would most readily be given to becoming a Skybreaker, I just worry like Natan that he's set up for a fall!

I'd agree that this is possible. Probably based mostly on the ability of the bonded person to visualize that properly. WoR Spoiler

is it weird to anyone else, that the powers granted directly by Honor to the Heralds, via the Honorblades, seem weaker than the power granted to KR by bonding with Spren? I'm glad, otherwise Szeth would be even more crazy powerful, but the fact that his Honorblade granted windrunning is less effective at utilizing stormlight than Kaladin's level 3 Nahel bond powers seems interesting.