MistLord

Ah yes, true, Tanavast's raving would indicate Honour's intent at its purest prefers to look at the wording, not the meaning. I took this to mean that as he was dying (a la Preservation) he was being corrupted, and losing sight of his intent, but that doesn't make any sense, so you're right. A bit tangential, but I do agree out of all the Shards, Honour is most about restraint, and therefore loss of Autonomy. Especially if you conflate Honour with responsibility. I do hope Kaladin's Fourth Ideal helps him overcome this hurdle, as I agree, it's becoming a bit repetitive.

I actually really liked how neutral Ruin seemed to be in Mistborn. Yes, he was out to destroy the world, but that's what entropy does. And entropy is a fundamental part of the world that has got to do with change. As a fundamental part of the universe, it cannot be inherently evil, as that is a human quality. It sucks at times, but it's clear that it's just part of the way things are, and it added to the existential conflict of Mistborn. It reminded me of the Hindu Gods (I forget which ones) and how neither the God who preserves or the God who destroys is any better than each other, but their cycle is what keeps the universe going. However, especially from my Christian point of view (which I believe Brandon would share), hatred is never justified. It just doesn't seem to do any good? Whatever hatred can achieve, rationality can do better. Hatred towards someone who has done the most heinous crimes in history is understandable, but is it really neutral in the way Ruin is? Our laws are decided based on policy and decision because we know emotions don't make us objective. Emotions just rile people up, and while this can be positive as it allows us to feel really human, hatred can also be the thing that takes our humanity away. Especially in Christian teaching, forgiveness – letting go of hatred – is powerfully, almost divinely therapeutic. Considering how much Oathbringer deals with forgiveness (and the abundance of Christian imagery) I can't help but feel this supports my feelings. I have a theory that Odium has less to do with hate, and more to do with conflict itself, as the multitude of emotions that Dalinar describes when seeing Odium have all to do with conquest. But I need to develop that theory first. Or maybe I just need to get with the programme and realise Odium is more fundamental than I admit The Stormfather said that in one point of the conflict, Honour lapsed into only caring about the wording of oaths, but that he wasn't usually so positivist as to not look at the meaning behind them before that. Kaladin talks to Syl about the subjectivity of Ideals, depending on the Radiant's interpretation of their meaning. So Honour's power definitively takes purpose into mind somewhat at least. That epigraph is interesting though, you have a point of Odium and Honour maybe being better opposites than I thought. I never considered this because Odium is a traveller, and Honour and Odium were never meant to be paired up in the first place (also, didn't Brandon say no two shards better complemented each other than Preservation and Ruin?). Either way, super hyped to see where this conflict takes us

"Beware of anyone who says they can tell the future." Yup, that was me. I saw the foreshadowing that Dalinar would be Odium's champion, that Renarin would be killed, and I thought this was going to be an Empire Strikes Back kind of tragedy. But nope! I fell for it hook bait and sinker. I have a confession: I've only read through Words of Radiance once, because I thought it was a huge disappointment. I was in a bit of a black spot, so maybe it was me rather than the book, but that's how it is. This book has definitely made it up to me. I've always been a sucker for redemption arcs. Dalinar's story, whilst feeling a bit contrived to have his memories return so suddenly, was enthralling and justified. It makes you wonder how one man can bear to have the knowledge that they've done such horrible things, and the answer is of course, because they must. Because doing anything else would be lying to themselves. I've missed the Blackthorn side of Dalinar during Words of Radiance, given the ending to Way of Kings, but now I can move on from that as I see the Blackthorn was a genuinely horrible person. I kind of feel like the characters are overshadowed by the worldbuilding. Not necessarily because the character development is bad – it's not, it's excellent – but that it seems to run parallel to the worldbuilding, neither character or worldbuilding affecting one another. At least Adolin has the grace to be intimidated by the vastness of Shadesmar, but Kaladin literally spends the entire time moping, and Shallan just being Shallan, jumping between scholarship, sketching, and immaturity. For the same reason, despite all these huge revelations in the world – Re-Shepir, the Midnight Mother lying in the heart of Urithiru. Sja-Anat, she who corrupts corrupting all and then she might be defecting?? Remember how terrified Shallan was of Shadesmar for the first time? But we as the readers are left to bear the brunt of the shock here, whereas the characters just carry on with the facts, as if it were nothing out of the ordinary. I get that they may be getting used to being surprised, but come on. It's why I was annoyed by the Shalladin shipping from Words of Radiance. Shallan is just not self-aware enough to deserve that potential. When Kaladin jumps in to fight three full Shardbearers, it's amazing, incredible! The next time we see her PoV, she's... texting Adolin. It's like she wasn't even paying attention to the fact an average spearman was fighting Shardbearers. And won. Kaladin sees her strength and somewhat idolises for it, but doesn't see the downsides – but this makes sense, she's a person who doesn't open up much anyway. She does to Adolin, and Adolin fights for her, and its sweet, and it's fitting. But she's still broken, and she's got a long way left to go, but that's okay. That being said, I love her character in Oathbringer. I loved her in Way of Kings, but lost her in Words of Radiance. She just seemed so undeservedly self-assured. People point out the fact she doesn't recognise the privilege she has, and I think that definitely factors into it. Now however, her character flaws are apparent. She lies, and lies, and lies again to get herself out of positions that give her the slightest bit of anxiety. It's a response I think many of us can empathise with. It's why The Girl Who Looked Up is so powerful, as we see her facing that part of her that is so fundamentally her. It's nice to see that she doesn't overcome it just like that as well. Growth, by definition, is a process and not an event. Still interested what Honour's Perpendicularity actually is. I thought it was going to be a Highstorm, and that seems confirmed by Dalinar channeling the Stormfather, yet our characters passed Highstorms, and there wasn't any Highstorm around Jasnah's departure either, which most people take to mean no junction too. Finally, this book cements for me the fact that there's something fundamentally wrong with Odium, realmatically. All the other Shardic intents have an air of neutrality about them. Odium being just hate is unequivocally evil, and the fact that even Odium in-universe tries to escape this by claiming to be passion (which he is clearly not) only confirms this to me.

Something that really hit me, as a law student in New Zealand, was the conflict about who are the legitimate rulers of the land. The Parshendi are native to Roshar. By their invitation, humans were allowed to arrive, being given Shinovar. Humans, ever seeking to expand, were not happy with the small boundaries they were given, and took more and more. Eventually, the Parshendi were being properly invaded, and had to fight back. Now the invaders are considered the de facto rulers, and the natives are a minority. For those unfamiliar, New Zealand was an English colony before it became an independent country. But before that, the Maori had settled. Through a series of events that involved the injustices that colonialism has become known for, Maori now represent a minority of the population, both statistically and politically. The country is now in a position where it can question whether or not its own rule is justified or not. And it is not a question with easy answers. We study the justification for following the Common Law system of Western countries, instead of the Tikanga Maori law system. We study how the Treaty created for the English to be granted title is unfair and unrecognised throughout its history. Without getting too far into the politics of New Zealand, I thought it was analogous to the issue of Parshendi or Human land title. This is why I felt that the conflict was a lot more powerful than I've seen other people reporting it to be, even though it is predictable. The Radiants are bound by their Oaths, in ways that require them to feel justified in what they do. But when only the descendents of perpetrators remain to bear the guilt, and the victims are still calling for justice, what really is the right thing to do? Cooperation, though the ideal solution, is extremely hard to achieve throughout a history of injustice. New Zealand attempts to address this with affirmative action, but then there are those who say there is too little or too much reverse discrimination, and that racial bias still is a factor. I'm aware other analogies exist, especially the Native Americans, but this was what I was most familiar with. One last thing, I've always felt that Nale and the Skybreakers seemed a bit silly, following the law as it is written instead of by what it means (what could be called a strict textual, positivist approach). A little of that was cleared up with Edgedancer and Oathbringer (though Nale does say that he only asked for permission to kill Surgebinders after confronting lift, meaning he was illegally executing people before that), I still feel that they need a more developed sense of jurisprudence (philosophy of law) to give meaning to anything they do. The law exists for a reason, namely to bring order to the chaos of human interaction. This was mentioned many times by various Skybreakers. Despite that, by joining the Parshendi, they encourage an escalation of chaos and disorder. I'll make a separate post about this later, after I've had more time to think on it. Sorry for the wall of text

Roshar+Scadrial. Scadrial for my favourite system, Feruchemy. Roshar just simply because I want a spren friend.

Wax goes for great periods of time when not burning steel -- he just finds it a comforting sensation when he does use it.

Wow, I can't believe I missed that. My bad habit of skimming when I get excited must be playing up. Cords always seem to represent Connection from what we've seen of the Cognitive Realm, don't they. Hmm...

You manage to ask him before I did ;-; damnation, and I thought I pioneered that theory. Good stuff, Seonid. I love how possible Khriss sounds during the encounter. Almost sounds like a 17th Sharder from this very forum trying to work out the mechanics of realmatics, from the question of mass / gravity to redshifting speed bubbles. I swear, I've read forums that spoke of that very subject

I am really impressed by this one

I don't really have anything to add myself, but I came across this very strange wiki page that seemed to describe Allomancy and Feruchemy, except with four extra metals, with corresponding metal symbols http://bladesandbeasts.wikia.com/wiki/Metallurgy (I hope it allows you to post URLs here haha) EDIT: Oh, it even seems like they've added even more metals since last I checked

Definitely Discord. Discord is the direct antonym of Harmony whilst having both attributes of Preservation and Ruin -- a truly fitting Sandersonian twist

Honestly, I prefer inertia. Has the best of both worlds without being misleading like both can be. And Edgedancer, I'm aware (and was extremely delighted when Wax noted the conservation of momentum) of the physics, but I don't think Feruchemical iron's shortcomings are big enough. Like I said, F=MA. A heavy fist moving at 10m/s imparts a lot more force than a lighter fist. In reverse, you'd simply be shifted if you were to be hit whilst lighter, like an ant you flick away (this is due to the square/cube law I believe), or if they're throwing you around, then you can increase weight at any time. I just feel Feruchemical iron's so underrated, and as you mentioned, with the fact its observes conversation of momentum, it can add a whole lot of fun

We have a WoB that Zinc doesn't increase reaction time, only thought processes. Whilst it seems contradictory, I still believe Zinc has a huge role to play when it comes to strategising, as most people aren't used to thinking under such mental and physical duress. The one I really love to think about though is Iron. Imagine storing when taking hits, dodging and weaving and maneuvering, and then suddenly tapping to throw a punch before dialling it down. F=MA, as good old Newton said, and reducing the force from the opponent whilst speeding you up and increasing the weight of your own blows whilst also increasing your strength in proportion is so incredible underrated. Honestly, while I myself would prefer being a Subsumer (Feruchemical bendalloy) and a Pewterarm, I'm fascinated by Iron. It seems so boring at first, but it can be just as powerful as its bigger brother, Steel (which still seems to get the better of the two for both Feruchemy and Allomancy).

Ever since the end of AoL, I found her character far more empathetic (probably not even the right word, but likeable anyhow). I agree with those saying the partnership is strong. I don't know about romance, but whatever it is I find myself far more intrigued and supportive of the budding partnership than of the potential relationship Marasi and Wax could have had. Others have pointed out similar feelings, and I do find it interesting that their chemistry is strangely... lacking. Marasi still gets excited around Wax, as is natural, but beyond that its hard to see much. Too caught up in events? I thought Wayne's reaction to Steris to be fine and quite clever narratively, as we're so used to seeing Wayne's good side we've never seen him reject someone that we like. However, I will need to think more on it as the "hello, crazy" "hello, idiot" made me think that if they weren't fond of each other, they had mutual respect.

Honestly, I thought it was going to be Wax, despite us having his viewpoint. The jump from the caves to the mansion seemed weird for me (though it was 2:00AM when I got up to this point) and I started convincing myself that Bleeder was doing a Wayne kind of thing where the they lose themselves in the act so much they start thinking like their role. I only let go when I saw Wax use Feruchemical and Allomantic powers in quick succession to break open the door. What a plot twist that would be lol, unfortunately the one they had coming with Lessie I could never have prepared for. And yes, I don't know how they would have Wax's bones without X-rays and 3-D printing, but it was 2:00 in the morning.

After careful review, I believe I now truly understand why Vasher killed Shashara.

Don't suppose she's glancing at a nearby reflection, I find that quite a useful method to seem mysterious Otherwise, guard your investiture closely

I'm glad I'm not the only slaving over this concept XD unfortunately, I don't have any more to add except for the fact I've thought of memory-enhancement and memory duplication before -- so I guess that's something?

Kaladin can fall the depth of the chasm comfortably by doing nothing other than holding Stormlight. It's under my own opinion that Shardplate is somehow able to mimic this ability, though understandably I won't be able to prove it as much as the rest of you lot.

Since everyone's mentioning Catacendre: "Long shadows stretched from the statues of the Ascendant Warrior and the Last Emperor in the green park where, according to fanciful legend, their corpses had been discovered following the Great Catacendre and the Last Ascension."As mentioned by the WOB, it's the end of the ash, the remaking of the world. You'd think in the eyes of history the Catacendre and the Last Ascension would be the same thing being so close in relevance and time, but I suppose there's a difference made for the Harmony's personal change and the more worldwide change (so in other words, possible differentiation due to religious connotations surrounding God and the world). Also, so happy Vin and Elend get to last together those two are just too lovely Aaaand on a more cynical note, politicians always worrying about their reputation over their lives

Personally, I'm really latching onto Lessie in this. She seems almost too contrived -- and in Sanderson, that doesn't mean she's not well written, that means you need to be suspicious. With people picking out the fact she mentions the God Beyond, I'm starting to wonder if there's a lot more going on that meets the eye. Also, Wax can only push in a general direction with his metal lines, as we can see when he tries to push their aim off but throws his own gun away in the process.We've never really seen inexperienced Coinshots with their abilities, so I guess with more experience comes more precision? Or am I just being silly and have they ever only been able to push in a general direction -- never being able to single out which line in particular to push on

I would say he obviously had some fear of dogs and that he had a weakness but was then able to get over the fear and weakness in unison, but as you've all said he never ever showed any signs of corruption. It might even relate to the nature of gifting itself.

I doubt that everything so clear as to equate Being able to see metal = Being able to Push/Pull on it, as we have seen from Inquisitors. The thread: Could a coinshot push on salt?" delved into many reasonings on why inquisitors cannot push on such minute substances, so I won't really try and elaborate on something I know so little of. But remember the Lord Ruler's power wasn't pushing on trace metals - Vin makes mention of the fact he pushed on the allomantic reserves in her stomach. Whether she is right or wrong is up for debate. As for the whole any External Physical Allomancer figuring it out, maybe they just need to get attuned to the metal-sense instead of just flaring as hard as you can.

The way I interpret allomantic manifestations (atium shadows, iron lines) is the fact that they're not actually directly wired to your visual cortex - they're just the best way your mind can interpret it. As such, and Inquisitor wouldn't have so much as sight as metal-sense - but to the degree and accuracy that we associate with vision. In many ways it is superior - from seeing 360o to seeing through walls. You can 'see' the shape and position of an object relative to you, therefore we think it sight, but only because we know nothing better.

I actually do think that Aluminium has the ability to remove any kind of metal from the body, insinuated from the fact Brandon has said if one were to become a Savant in Aluminium, they would gain the ability to remove other forms of impurities from the body. However, burning Aluminium basically is seen as a way of removing investiture from the body, so it may depend on numerous other factors. There is something that I worry about this idea however, and that is the fact are you sure that Allomantic Aluminium doesn't burn away the remaining Aluminium reserves?