Arondell

Does simply renouncing the oaths necessarily kill your spren? I had the impression up until the bridge collapse that the bond was simply dissolving. I thought it wasn't Kaladin renouncing his oaths but Syl forcing stormlight through the almost broken bond that caused her to nearly die. The brief fight between Kaladin and Adolin on the training grounds shows that Kaladin can't force Syl to give the stormlight when she thinks he shouldn't have any.

I don't think the elevations for callings have any direct connection to the nahn or dahn ranks. I think they are primarily a religious thing not a measure of societal rank in general. Gaz at one point states he couldn't buy himself a higher rank then sixth nahn. Strongly implying that nahn isn't a spiritual thing unlike elevations for calling.

Yes. It is for instance mentioned that the ardents in Hearthstone occasionally came down to the village to administer tests for the farmers to elevate their callings. I think most professions can be considered callings. I don't think everybody is required to actually formally declare their calling but the more devout probably do. Since Kaladin isn't particularly devout he probably doesn't bother with it. That being said we haven't really been given much information about calling ranks. Only occasional mentions that people can seek "elevations" in their calling from the ardents. I suspect that if Kaladin actually bothered with it in regards to his skill as a spear wielder and/or soldier he would probably be considered highly ranked.

I actually liked the reboot quite a bit for the first two seasons. After a while though I actually started to get kind of tired of what I felt was an overly angsty tone. The irrepressible repressiveness if you will. I just kind of drifted away somewhere in the third season. I eventually read a synopsis of the final episode a year or two after it aired. I guess I just kind of prefer a more Stargate kind of show. A bit more optimism. The Stargate : Universe series actually tried to duplicate some of the BSG ambiance and it didn't last long compared to the other installments in that series. I suspect because it alienated the "traditional" Stargate fans.

As I recall the Shadowrun series mixed together science and magic with a vengeance. It had all the classic D&D type creatures mixed together in a world that was just as likely to have orcs with AK-47s as it was to have elves with magic wands. Advanced machines melding science and magic are a common item in that world. Research labs developing new magic and science techniques were rather common as well. Most superhero worlds tend to have magic as part of the background. Granted most superhero characters who are magic based tend to be exclusively that. Though I'm pretty sure you could find exceptions that mix the two ideas. Larry Correia's Monster Hunter International series probably counts as "urban fantasy". It has ghetto gnomes and trailer park elves. Heck it even has orcs. It certainly mixes in some science with its mayhem. One scene has a couple of the more tech oriented hunters mixing together a bunch of cleaning supplies in a laundry cart and throwing in a phosphorus grenade just before they roll it into a room they want to blow up really bad. Frankly I think you just haven't come across the right books.

I'm not sure where the reference is but wasn't it mentioned at some point that Szeth believes he will face a severe spiritual penalty if he breaks his truthless restrictions? Something about his soul facing oblivion or some such? He isn't technically being forced to do all those murders but if he honestly believes he is facing oblivion if he refuses that is a pretty strong "influence".

I think your being a tad harsh on honor. When Kaladin almost killed Sylphrena it was under circumstances in which he had decided to abandon his oaths. His bond to Sylphrena was already fading and if a life threatening event had not occurred I have the distinct impression that the bond and Kaladin's abilities would have simply dissipated. Early on in Way of Kings Syl explicitly tells him he can choose to break the bond. Honor isn't about forcing people to do things. Syl makes that point shortly before the bridge collapses. Also Dalinar didn't trust Sadeas simply because of his own sense of honor. He trusted Sadeas because he misunderstood the intention of something the Alimighty(Honor) said to him in one of his visions. Up until that point he honestly wasn't sure whether he should trust Sadeas. Of course he later realizes his error in the last vision in The Way of Kings. That being said I do agree that the shardic intents in isolation do have flaws. Syl's inability to answer questions regarding certain ethical issues is an example of this.

Nohadon also briefly mentions Yelig-nar in one of Dalinar's visions. So it looks like we might be seeing at least one of these Parshendi gods showing up in person in upcoming books.

It sounds just like what she did in the prologue to Words of Radiance when she first entered shadesmar. Since that happened before she even knew about the existence of such powers it is rather clear to me that she had no knowledge of Hemalurgy at that time. As far as I can tell nothing else we have been shown of her capabilities cannot be explained as originating from the surges associated with Elsecallers.

“Each highprince sought to seize the capital. That made them converge. It was almost like the wars of some Northern savages, with a time and place appointed for the shaking of spears and chanting of threats. Only here, it depopulated a kingdom.” Taravangian comments that he hopes that is an overstatement. He does not deny Mrall's observation outright though. I think it safe to conclude that the damage outside the capital isn't trivial. Given historical wars it is reasonable to assume that armies that marched through other princes territories on the way to the capital probably caused a lot of death and destruction. Especially since it appears the "thrill" was in full force. It will realistically take months to really get everything in order and they don't have months before the everstorm hits and the voidbringers manifest. Regardless of the long term effects the short term effects will be terrible. Taravangian's actions have guaranteed every major nations response will be degraded and cause a significantly greater level of destruction as a consequence. Maybe this is effectively a triage strategy but it seems to me that starting off the war by effectively guaranteeing that your side looses more in the initial confrontation is a poor strategic choice. On the flip side. It has been made clear that the Diagram does have sleeper agents in other kingdoms. If indeed it has sleeper cells in other kingdoms that are in any position to help this would be an ideal time to activate them. Have them help out in the defenses where they can. Perhaps save lives and resources that would have been otherwise lost. Something they would be well suited to given the diagrams information. Where such agents are successful Taravangian would now have ideally placed advocates in position that could, down the line, lend influence when Taravangian makes a takeover bid. This might also highlight why Dalinar could be such a potential problem for the Diagram. Actually Dalinar almost certainly is a major problem since it seems that it did not predict that Dalinar would become a Radiant and a Bondsmith at that. The consequences of that might throw a major wrench into to the Diagrams predictive ability. Edit : I have this image of Taravangian saying a few choice words and rubbing his forehead from the stress after he is informed that Dalinar is now a Bondsmith.

One major issue as of the end of the Words of Radiance is that Taravangian has barely established control over one major nation, Jah Kaved. The nation is in a shambles and the loss of life is enormous. My impression was that his goal was to unite all the kingdoms of the world under him to establish a unified defense but Taravangian's timing seems way off. The final desolation has come and he has effectively no authority in the other kingdoms and he has left most of them in a very poor state to respond to emergencies. How is this supposed to help humanity to survive? Perhaps he always intended to write large portions of Roshare off. If that is the case though wouldn't it be better if the nations had maintained strong leadership so that they could hold out longer? How does it benefit Taravangian if those nations fall faster under the onslaught of the final desolation? As things stand I don't even see how Taravangian is going to save Jah Kaved given the state it is in. Could the diagram be flawed or is their some super clever strategy that it has implemented that hasn't been brought up? Taravangian's opponent in this is Odium. An entity who we must assume has an intellect at least as great as Taravangian's on the day of the Diagram with several additional advantages and none of the disadvantages. Given this I'm actually having a hard time understanding how Taravangian's plan, alone, could carry the day.

An interesting theory but I'm very skeptical. Mistborn Spoilers Also the assassins that attacked Jasnah on the ship were not direct representatives of the Ghostbloods. They were agents hired by Tyn who was in turn hired by the Ghostbloods and not actually a member. Hence extremely unlikely to have any idea that Hemalurgy exists let alone proper placement for acquiring surges via that method.

Actually while she is often calculating and standoffish she is not particularly dismissive of people in general. In fact she is unusually courteous to people unless she feels she has reason to behave otherwise.(e.g. Kabsal) For example she treats Taravangian with courtesy and respect and insists Shallan also do so. Despite the fact that most other lighteyes view him as a mentally slow and weak king. I would also mention her view of the ships crew at the beginning of Words of Radiance. A number of other comments she makes when discussing the spren and radiants causes me to suspect that she more then most would realize that the worth of a person would not depend on birth or inherited social status but on personal character. For that matter almost every time someone else comments about Jasnah the fact that she behaves differently from others comes up in one form or another. I'm not actually trying express a preference for a relationship between Kaladin and Jasnah. I'm just thinking your view of Jasnah as dismissive of those beneath her as a bit off base. Yes she can be calculating. She also cultivates an air of authority. On the other hand she still recognizes the value of those of lower social status then herself. Nor does she really behave like a "classical" lighteyed lady.

While she is on occasion overbearing and demanding I don't agree that she is a classical lighteyed woman. She is in fact something of a rebel in Alethi society. Given her open and very public rejection of the devotaries and her willingness to portray her soulcasting ability as coming from a fabrial(Considered a holy object.) she could arguably be considered something of a renegade. She is a tesseract that refused to be placed into a round hole.

Actually in chapter thirty five of Words of Radiance it is made clear that Navani values order and rationality. "This was the mark of humankind: to take the wild, unorganized world and make something logical of it. You could get so much more done when everything was in its place, when you could easily find what or whom you needed. Creativity required such things." There are several more sentences regarding her views on the issue but that is the core of it. Also her relationship with Dalinar flies in the face of tradition not the law. “I was never unfaithful while he lived, though the Stormfather knows I had ample reason. The devotaries can say what they wish, but The Arguments do not forbid our union. Tradition is not the same as doctrine, and I will not hold myself back for fear of offending.” Sanderson, Brandon (2010-08-31). The Way of Kings (The Stormlight Archive) (p. 864).

Actually the Stonewards are one of the two orders we explicitly see abandoning their shards in Dalinar's Feverstone Keep vision. “…the Order of the Stonewards, my lord,” the still-mounted scout was saying. “And a large number of Windrunners. All on foot.” The Way of Kings (The Stormlight Archive) (p. 729). Macmillan. Kindle Edition.

Don't forget that at least four orders of Radiants have obvious ways to leave Urithiru via the Gravity and Transportation surges. Lightweavers in a pinch could probably leave via shadesmar. Edgedancers and Releasers could probably use the friction surge to travel over the mountains relatively easily.

I don't think we have enough info to make any decent conclusions. Word of Brandon indicates there is even some dispute among the spren about what constitutes "honorspren". All the bonding spren are splinters of Cultivation and Honor. Why would Cryptics and Honorspren(Syl type) be considered socially superior to the others? Is it because they are "pure" cultivation and honor respectively?

Which is all highly speculative. I can certainly imagine Mr. Sanderson throwing us for a loop with the sudden loss of Urithiru but via the Ghostbloods? Eh...I have so far seen them as small elite group that prefers to remain largely in the shadows. Such an attempted usurpation would be counter to that. Mraize's last conversation with Shallan seemed to indicate that he saw no fundamental need for the Ghostbloods to come into direct conflict with the Radiants. After all we don't really know what they want. For the Radiants to loose Urithiru I think any event or attack would have to occur very early on before Dalinar can get firmly established or be backed by powerful magical ability. Edit : We know the Voidbringers have potential access to dozens if not hundreds of forms. Can any of them fly? Is the legends Jasnah read of Urithiru being protected from Voidbringers true? If so is it a passive trait of the city or does it require able and aware Radiants to maintain? I must admit the idea of a climactic battle at Urithiru between Voidbringers and Radiants has a certain epic appeal.

Based on the description we got at the end of Words of Radiance "invading" Urithiru would be extraordinarily difficult. It is in the high mountains entirely without any non-magical access. Assuming they get any of the other gates working they can still only be operated by a Radiant with a living shard blade. I believe Dalinar described it as "incredibly defensible." Getting any long term use out of Urithiru pretty much requires the cooperation of the Radiants. It is a fortress city made by Radiants for Radiants.

I've never read Game of Thrones but I did read the WIld Card superhero series that he did back in the late 80s and early 90s. He wasn't particularly squemish about bumping off likeable or significant characters in that world either. Often in horrible ways. (e.g. Dinosaur Boy getting literally ripped apart by the Astronomer right next to Dinosaur Boy's father.)

Actually law figures are often shown as having assistants. Sheriffs have deputies and judges have bailiffs. Also weren't many of the Lone Rangers actions technically illegal? Should we just not bring up Tonto the sidekick?(i.e. squire)

I don't think Taravangian disapproves of the Knights Radiant per se. He simply views them as a potential impediment to his plan to save a remnant of humanity on Roshar.

I was wondering if the Adhesion surge is still officially associated with Atmospheric Pressure. If it still is then one somewhat nasty trick would be to get Syl to fly around sucking air away from an opponents lungs. I'll admit I'm still not entirely sure how the Atmospheric Pressure surge is supposed to work so I don't really know if that kind of trick would be possible. Isn't the adhesion part based on creating a vacuum? Edit : It is a rather nasty tactic. I can't really see Syl using it as a matter of course kind of thing.

Perhaps Kaladin could place a reverse lashing on her. She could fly around in ways to pull incoming projectiles off course.