Speculation: Horneater Nuatoma have Lift-like magic

[ecohansen]

So.  An alternative to my CO2 thread.  That thread hinges on the fact that horneater/unkalaki consume food more efficiently than other cultures, but seem to have negative returns from it.  If you eat something shell-and-all, you have to get at least 5% more calories than if you only eat the choice parts, so you should be able to free up 5% of your farmers for other pursuits, and have a lower-than-average farming population.  But horneaters are entirely devoted to food production.

 

I assumed that that meant that food production was harder on the Horneater Peaks than elsewhere, but there is also the alternative explanation that Unkalaki just need more food than other people.  And there is one very prominent in-world person who we know needs a whole lot of food.  It seems unSandersonian to waste a whole method of utilizing Investiture on a single person, no matter how cool that person is.  Maybe Horneaters can also convert food into stormlight.

 

We know that the Unkalaki are trying very hard to get shardblades--maybe they've learned of some synergy between their magic and shardblades that becomes unstoppale when combined, similar to compounding ferruchemists.  Maybe Lift is getting set up to be the world-bestriding hero.

Edited June 12, 2015 by ecohansen

[WeiryWriter he/him]

[Reddit]

 

TallRedditor

Is there a specific reason as to why Lift can synthesize food into Stormlight? Or is she just special?

 

Have we met/Will we meet anyone else that can take in Stormlight in a different way?

 

Brandon Sanderson

 

She is unique, and was not born with the ability.

 

Note: It is heavily implied that Lift's ability to metabolize food into Investiture was given to her by the Nightwatcher.

 

Sorry.

[ecohansen]

derp. ah well.

 

edit:

But OOOOOOOO!  I just remembered that there is ANOTHER food-based magic system on Roshar: the purelakers and their magic fish!  Maybe all Cultivation-linked Old Magic is tied to food.  The above WoB only says that Lift is the only nonstandard user of Stormlight, but doesn't say anything about food and Old Magic. Lift is unique because she combines Stormlight and food-magic, but food-magic itself might be ubiquitous.  SHAZAM!

Edited June 13, 2015 by ecohansen