KChan

Wow, go 17th Shard! That's awesome!

I'm with Windy and Leuthie on this. One of the best things about Brandon's worldbuilding is all of the little touches he adds in that really make the worlds he writes come alive. It would be boring if everything he includes were a direct result of some sort of magic. Taln's Scar is probably just a cool constellation visible from Roshar that they named after one of the Heralds. If it has any connection to the planet from Silence Divine, I'm guessing that we'll see a character from that book observing the same constellation, but calling it something different. Just like how if I read any other Cosmere book and saw mention of a starbelt, I would assume that the story takes place in a nearby part of the galaxy to Scadrial.

Honestly, that right there is another great question: If Harmony were to be Shattered, would it break into Ruin/Preservation, two different Shards, or would it just be splintered? Knowing the answer to this could give us a little insight into the nature of Adonalsium.

We've seen nothing in the book to indicate that Jasnah has received visions from Cultivation, nor that she ever will. Perhaps her atheism will be central to her storyline; perhaps it's just an interesting part of her character. It's impossible to say more at this point. Also, as fun as speculation is, it's difficult to consider a theory to be plausible when it not only has no evidence to support it, but is also based on a theory with very little evidence. Speculation is fun, but this is a rather hard sell for me.

Tools in general, really. They don't have to be steel to be useful. I forget. Has fire been mentioned at all?

No, you have it backwards! Just line up a bunch of Thugs and have an iron Twinborn crash into them. The more Thugs they knock over, the higher the score!

The one in the above image actually sort of looks like the Alliance lion, to be perfectly honest. At least, that's what I think of when I look at it. And thanks for the quote, Windy! So now we know that it's definitely Dalinar. Let the theorizing on the cape symbol commence!

Provided the battlefield has the proper setup for this sort of thing, maneuverability can arguably be a Lurcher's biggest strength in combat. Pulling yourself out of the way of an incoming blow, Pulling yourself over to assist a teammate, or even Pulling yourself at your target with a knife in your hand all spring to mind. Not to mention, double-iron Twinborn could basically function human wrecking balls by crashing into people, knocking them over and likely momentarily stunning them as well.

Thanks for the great references! With them all lined up like that, I can actually see the similarities a lot easier. Whether or not you think there's anything there, it's pretty neat to look at. I like seeing how the overall composition, line, and shape can still match up so nicely even though the details in the two images are completely different. Like I said before, I'm not insisting that there has to be a connection here. I'm just saying that it's possible. EDIT: Completely unrelated, but in your upside-down versions, it sort of makes the one on the left look like a funny hat rather than a crab. Maybe THAT'S the secret behind all of this! O__O Don't mind me; I'm weird.

I was thinking bowling balls, actually. They have built-in handles and everything.

It annoys me too. I'd definitely be open to turning it off if: A) We could make sure it still worked properly for oversized images (one of the functions of the popup is so that downsized images can be displayed at their full dimensions without disrupting the layout of the site), and We could actually find the option for it in the ACP. Believe me; this part of it is harder than it sounds. I've looked for this option before. EDIT: Apparently the forum wanted me to wear sunglasses even though it's dark out. >>

There are also documented meanings for every element that goes into a coat of arms. Just because two different governments decided they wanted a shield, a bird, and two horses on their coats of arms - probably for similar reasons, and probably completely independent of one another - doesn't render my point invalid. Take away the fancy detailing of the crab on the banner, and what do you have? Same shape, same color, base lines that are strikingly similar. Is it possible that they're not related? Absolutely. But just because they aren't as identical as some of the examples here doesn't make the core similarities any less striking from an artistic standpoint. That's the only point that I was trying to make: it's plausible that they might be related.

The only "new people" type hooks I've seen that are compatible with IPB do things like sending an automatic welcome PM upon registration. Maybe more have been made since I last looked, but yeah. So far as I know, I haven't seen anything that grants rep upon doing various things. I can't speak for the others, but I'll keep it in mind, and if I see anything like that, I'll show it to the other admins. Also, if it's too much effort to do anything above and beyond leaving a rep vote, why did you ask for a way to tell people why they were downvoted? I'm a bit confused now.

You'd have to use a pretty solid ball too, to keep them from popping all the time. This thread is getting more and more dangerous... XD

Okay, not YOUR grammar. I hope. It's a making fun of bad spelling/grammar on the internet, and it's a riot. Who else here has seen it? EDIT: Slight language advisory. Nothing terrible, though; he censors the worst of what he's reading out loud, but you can still sometimes see it written in the comments that are shown onscreen.

Courtesy and common sense, as illustrated above. I love seeing people actually exercising self-restraint on the internet.

We're in the process of fixing the rep system now, so that a negative reputation won't show up as red until enough rep has accumulated. As for a boost right off the bat, I think that intro topics are an excellent place for that. I've upvoted more than a few people just because they made a good impression in their intro post. As for a "reason for downvoting" feature, that would have to be a plugin that we currently don't have the resources to create or commission. Your best bet in the meantime would be to (respectfully) tell someone in a reply why you downvoted them, or to politely help someone figure out why someone else may have downvoted them. It's not perfect, I know, but any sort of button or entry field that lets you anonymously submit a reason for downvoting somebody is a long way off.

Exactly why I qualified my statement by saying it might happen. Your theory is valid either way, as it seems unlikely at this point that taking up all sixteen Shards would instantly give us Adonalsium back exactly the same as it was before. Whether we get the magic sheet of glass back after a few millenia or not, the logic that got you to this point is still sound, which is one of my favorite parts about this theory. My thoughts exactly. Anyone going to any of the upcoming signings?

I guess that depends on how seriously people on Roshar have taken the duty of copying texts. For example, look at some of the rules set forth for copying the Torah: (Source: Here) If the regulations were anywhere near that strict, there's no way subext could have been added. However, if the guidelines were different (or there were none at all), it could be quite possible, and might be interesting to see. On the subject of reading The Way of Kings itself, I'm sure there either is or will be a Coppermind page dedicated to a compilation of all the excerpts of the book we've been shown. That'll probably be the closest we can get to reading the actual book.

I guess that depends on what we're considering under the umbrella term of "inventions." A lot of posts so far, for example, seem to be working on the assumption that we're dealing with tangible objects of some kind, but I can see your point.

Exactly my point. I like thinking up crazy stuff like that. And yes, that's essentially it, with the addition that you have to call out whoever's name you're "tagging" with the flashlight beam. Otherwise, they might not ever know they're being tagged. It's also somewhat of a balancing mechanic as you have to actually know who you're tagging or it doesn't count. Makes up for being able to tag someone several yards away.

I'm glad I'm not the only one who thought that it's Dalinar on the cover. So whatever symbol is shown on his cape there, that could be a clue as to what Order he'll be in if he is, in fact, a future Radiant (though does that really need to be debated at this point?) Re: the crab symbol - it very easily could have evolved over time. Also, PM, details being different is sort of the point of stylization. When an artist wants to put their own twist on a symbol or image, it's not uncommon for the artist to create a stylized version of it by adding/removing/changing details. For example, looking at the crab images, IF that's what going on here, we have a couple options: The window image is a stylized version of the banner image - In this case, the window artist would have simplified the more detailed crab design into a bolder, more streamlined version that fits stylistically with the rest of the window. The banner image is a stylized version of the window image - In this case, whoever made/designed that banner may have felt that the clean, almost simplistic lines of the window image weren't fitting with what they were trying to convey. Bold graphical elements are cool, but for a Highprince, something more regal and, well, fancy was desired. So the artist added details to enhance the original design and bring out the desired tone. Cosplayers do this all the time; google "Fancystuck" for examples. Both the banner and the window images are stylized versions of an unknown base symbol - In this instance, there exists somewhere a happy medium between "bold and streamlined" and "fancy and regal", from which both artists derived their own interpretations. I hope that clears things up as to what I meant by artistic stylization. Of course the details are going to be different; that's sort of the point of stylization in the first place. What I'm seeing is that the core elements are similar enough that I think making a connection between the two is definitely a plausible thought process to have.

The differences look more stylistic than anything else, IMO. A stained glass window doesn't exactly have the same capability for displaying fine detail as embroidering or painting a banner, and even then, the in-world designer of the window obviously wanted to go with bolder shapes. The overall shape of the symbol is close enough, though, for a connection between the two to be plausible. At least, that's my take on it.

Do we know who the figure on the front is supposed to represent in-world? The cover art could be a hint as to that character's Order. I always thought it was Dalinar, but other than the fact that he's a Shardbearer on the Shattered Plains, I have no hard evidence to back that up. Also, this thread is awesome. When I have more time to comb back over everything that's been posted so far, the upvotes will be flying.

Let's stick with only the canon Surges for now; I don't like scaffolding theories unless they have overwhelmingly strong evidence that's built up over time. It's definitely apparent that Dalinar is intended to become a Radiant at some point: between his visions, his dedication to honorable conduct, and the way his story has developed up to this point, it's pretty hard to argue otherwise. However, I'm with the others here: I don't think he'll be a Windrunner. However, I would need to learn more about some of the other Orders before I'd be comfortable guessing at where he falls in the grand scheme of things.