Joxy97

Thanks for pointing this out! Then, to me it sounds more like leaning towards the idea of Investiture being described by a discrete 16-dimensional state space, as originally proposed in the post. Personally, I've always felt like Brandon conceptualized the Cosmere magic as an attempt to model abstract ideas of everyday life (like soul, mind, emotions, perception, etc...) as strict physical phenomena, and thus use fictive physics to describe them. I am not sure whether this was his original intention, but he sure made it look that way Those well-versed in some advanced physics concepts can clearly see how all this could neatly be described by the tools we have in IRL physics. I even had the audacity to take this a step further and formulize a sort of a Standard Model of Investiture which may include SLT and other theories as well. If I have enough time, I might even write a short essay about it and post it on the forum, but in short it goes something like this: We define Investiture as a form of matter in an equivalence relation E=mc^2=kI where k is energy-investiture conversion constant. On a fundamental level, Investiture is described by an fermionic Investon field with an SU(16) internal symmetry and a quantum number called Intent, while the interaction is transmitted via gauge bosons called Mentons (mens = mind). The idea is that all the abstract emotions and intents can be desribed by superposition of 16 orthogonal intents, and to why these specific 16, upon the Shattering of Adonalsium, this 16-dimensional state space spontaneusly chose basis based on some specifics of the Shattering process. Now, think of this analogy: quarks in real life are described by color charge (red, blue and green) and they interact by exchanging gluons which also carry the color charge. These colors can be in superpositions, they have anti-colors. etc. Same goes with Investiture, it has an Intent charge, but instead of having 3, there are 16 flavours. We still can observe mixing (as in Harmony or Warlight), and anti-charge (anti-Voidlight, etc...) and it interacts by excahnging intent-flavoured Mentons (like gluons). This is where it gets interesting, hear me out The same way the electrons on fundamental level interact electrodynamically by exchanging photons, and that manifests macroscopically as an electromagnetic field influencing charges, excahnging mentons results in a Command field influencing invested matter. This means that creating a Command with a certain Intent basically produces Mentons which, on a fundamental level, interact with Invested matter based on the rules of Intent flavours described by SU(16) symmetry. What's even more crazy is that physics of this symmetry group leads to, what I would call an Intent-confinement. In quantum chromodynamics, color charged particles cannot exist free (unless stabilized by external factors) and must be color-neutral to be stable. This effectively can be described as a force acting on the color charged particles getting stronger as they try to move apart from eachother. Same would hold for Investiture and Intent-charged particles which would explain why invested entities are confined to their planets (yeah, planets as foci points act as stabilizers). This could lead to potential theory on how mixing various Investitures can lead to entites being able to traverse Cosmere without usual Intent-confinement problems, and eventually, what Thaidakar is up to. There might be even more things I forgot to point out here, but that is the core of it. Sorry if it sounds unwrapped, I just spat this out of my head on the go. Edit: I forgot to mention the idea of String theory where elementary particles are described as vibrating strings of different fundamental frequencies. This would perfectly fit into this model and explain the SLT, where different modes of vibrations might be related to the various manifestations of specific magic systems.

Correct me if I am wrong... I’ve been contemplating Shardic Lens Theory (SLT) and its implications for the nature of Intent, Investiture, and Adonalsium itself. Initially, I was under the impression that Investiture—as the third manifestation of matter in the Cosmere—was intrinsically tied to an underlying physical quantity called Intent. I thought of Intent as something that could be described by a 16-dimensional vector state space, where each dimension corresponded to a Shard’s essence. This would mean that all human intents and Shardic Intents could be represented within this 16-dimensional framework, and the Shattering of Adonalsium merely chose basis vectors for this space, possibly influenced by the personalities of the 16 individuals involved. But this framework faces a serious challenge: 16 isn’t intrinsic to Adonalsium. If Hoid had taken up a Shard, there would probably have been 17, which doesn’t fit the neat 16-dimensional structure. This raises questions about whether Intent and Investiture are truly bound to a discrete space or if the 16 Shards represent something less fundamental to Adonalsium’s nature, and more a consequence of the Shattering process. How SLT Addresses This Issue Shardic Lens Theory suggests a way to resolve this problem by reinterpreting Intent as part of an infinite, continuous spectrum. In this view: Adonalsium represents the full spectrum of Intents, embodying everything possible. The 16 Shards are filters, each aligned to a pure frequency within this spectrum. These frequencies represent idealized versions of fundamental Intents, such as Honor, Cultivation, and Preservation. Magic systems emerge from the harmonic content of these pure frequencies, with the Shard’s Intent shaping how Investiture interacts with the Physical, Cognitive, and Spiritual Realms. Hybrid systems (e.g., Warlight or Towerlight) arise when two Shards’ filtered frequencies combine, producing interference patterns and new effects. This framework works well for explaining magic systems and the interplay between Shards, but it introduces a new problem: The Problem with 16 Frequencies If Adonalsium represents everything, a full spectrum of Intents, then how can 16 discrete frequencies sum up to the entirety of that spectrum? Even with infinite harmonics, 16 notes cannot produce every possible sound, just as a 16-note music system cannot replicate the richness of an infinite soundscape. This creates a tension between the idea of Adonalsium as a representation of totality and the finite nature of the Shards. One way to address this is to hypothesize that Intent doesn’t correspond to a pure singular frequency but rather to a narrow band of frequencies. For example: Honor wouldn’t be a single tone but a narrow range of frequencies that are qualitatively "Honor-like." The 16 Shards collectively would cover the entire spectrum of Adonalsium, filling in all gaps through overlapping bands of Intent. This approach provides flexibility and aligns with how Shards and Investiture manifest in the Cosmere, but it faces its own contradictions. The Contradiction of Pure Tones We know from Navani’s experiences that there are pure tones of Shards, like the tone of Honor or the steady pulses of Preservation heard by Vin. These observations suggest that Shards do resonate with specific, singular frequencies, not bands. If Intent were a spectrum, we wouldn’t expect these discrete, steady tones. This leaves us with four potential explanations: The Cosmere is intrinsically 16-based: Adonalsium’s Shattering was shaped by something fundamental about the number 16. If Hoid had participated, someone else would have been excluded to maintain the symmetry. The divisibility by 4 might connect this to the Dawnshards, which were crucial to the Shattering. Adonalsium is not the only God: The full spectrum of Intents might belong to a broader metaphysical structure, with Adonalsium representing only part of it. There could be other "Adonalsium-like" entities or external systems shaping the Cosmere. The Shattering damaged the Cosmere: If Adonalsium truly represented everything, then the Shattering might have rendered parts of the spectrum unreachable. Infinite frequencies might now lie beyond the reach of Shards, leaving the Cosmere inherently incomplete. Shards represent narrow bands with uncertainty: On a quantum level, even a "pure tone" like Honor’s would involve uncertainty, manifesting as a range of frequencies too small to detect but significant enough to allow hybridization and flexibility. Conclusion The relationship between Adonalsium, Shards, and Intent is clearly more complex than a straightforward division into 16 parts. If Adonalsium represents the full spectrum, then 16 pure frequencies cannot account for everything, even with harmonics. The idea of Shards as narrow bands makes sense for filling the spectrum, but the evidence of pure tones complicates this theory. So, is the Cosmere intrinsically 16-based? Was the Shattering imperfect, leaving the universe broken? Or is there a deeper structure to Intent and Investiture that we don’t yet understand? Please, hit this post with references, WoBs and other good stuff I missed.