Leviathan Posted January 3, 2018 Posted January 3, 2018 A random thing that came to me last night while reading Oathbringer is on the topic of Stormlight healing (or any investiture healing really, but lets stick with the place where it's so common that it literally falls from the sky). On an unrelated note, STAY AWAY FROM THE WIKI, I just accidentally spoilered myself while checking the name of something for this post We know from WoB that Stormlight essentially heals your physical self to match your cognitive self, hence why some 'injuries' don't heal like the Bridge 4 tattoos and Kaladin's brands because the person's self image essentially says "Those are part of Me". Lets start looking at that and jumping to some logical extensions. Age: Does this mean that if you often draw on Stormlight, you're essentially going to stop aging for as long as your self image says "I'm a person of X age", Stormlight will just keep you at that age? We do know that holding a lot of Breath seems to slow the aging process. Conversely, if someone's self image is that of an older person than they physically are (say a teenager who has had to look after his baby siblings all his life and therefore 'sees' himself as an adult), would Stormlight healing actually *age* them when they used it?Very minor spoiler here for early Oathbringer. I am unsure if this was in Words of Radiance or not. Spoiler Kaladin's Eyes: We know that Kaladin quite emphatically sees himself as a Darkeyes, but that holding a Shardblade makes you Lighteyed. Is this why his eyes 'fade to brown when he doesn't summon his Blade for a short time', because his Stormlight is actually 'healing' his eyes back to Dark to match his self image? Lasting Injury: Would someone who sees a particular injury as truly part of themselves simply *not* heal that thing? eg, if Renarin truly sees himself as someone with Epilepsy who requires glasses (as opposed to a healthy person with those inflicted upon him) then would this prevent his eyes or brain from healing? Transgender people: And now lets take things a bit further. If Stormlight heals your body to match your self image, then what about transgender people? Does this mean that they could essentially change their body to match how they are inside by taking in enough Stormlight? Deliberately warping self image: And now we're going off the reservation and to places unknown. What if you found a Parshendi baby and raised them Alethi, using Lightweaving (or possibly even cosmetics) on them their entire life so that they always see themselves as Alethi, with no clue that they're actually an entirely different species, and then once their self image has stabilised, pour Stormlight into them. Would their very species change to match their self image of being Alethi? What about other similar things? Could you raise someone as 'knowing' that they used to have horns and a tail, but these were cut off when they were a baby in a grievous act of violence, so that their image of themselves includes "I should have horns and a tail but I was maimed" and then have Stormlight 'heal' those imagined injuries? Could you imagine a Truthwatcher Dominatrix, someone who specialises in warping people's self image with psychology and lightweaving and then using Progression to heal them to match their new self? Anyways, that's my thoughts/theory, I'd be curious to hear what people think the limits of Stormlight are 1
I Am Witless she/her Posted January 3, 2018 Posted January 3, 2018 I have no idea the limits of Stormlight, and some of these manipulations are unkind to the victim and very complex, but this is a really cool idea! I say yes, though I think that there are limits to how much Stormlight can change a person's physical appearance. But what those limits are, who knows? Great idea!
Spoolofwhool Posted January 3, 2018 Posted January 3, 2018 Healing in the Cosmere can't reverse age as healing first starts with in the spiritual. There, it tries to match you with your perfect self, independent of your perception, which includes your age. No amount of perception can override that.
Leviathan Posted January 3, 2018 Author Posted January 3, 2018 23 minutes ago, Spoolofwhool said: Healing in the Cosmere can't reverse age as healing first starts with in the spiritual. There, it tries to match you with your perfect self, independent of your perception, which includes your age. No amount of perception can override that. Spoilers for Warbreaker Spoiler Yet we know that other forms of Investiture, eg Breath, can slow aging and even make you immortal?
Calderis he/him Posted January 3, 2018 Posted January 3, 2018 3 hours ago, Leviathan said: Spoilers for Warbreaker Hide contents Yet we know that other forms of Investiture, eg Breath, can slow aging and even make you immortal? That is not a matter of healing. Spoiler The fifth heightening prevents physical aging, and never lies tk the spiritual aspect. You are as old as you are, the physical is just made to be held apart from that. Healing cannot stop the aging process, and we have WoBs that Radiants fid not have exceptional lifespans. I'll try to dig them up when I have more time.
The One Who Connects he/him Posted January 3, 2018 Posted January 3, 2018 Age: Healing is healing is healing in the Cosmere. And our other example of overpowered healing(Mistborn Spoilers) does not prevent aging. Eyes: Holding Stormlight also seems to lighten the eyes, as we see several Radiants with pale and/or glowing eyes in Dalinar's Visions, even when they aren't holding their blade. Injuries: Yep. It's essentially the same reason Kaladin still has his brands, while [Spoilers] was able to start healing their arm in WoR. Transgender: It.. seems reasonable enough, but this depends on if the Spiritual Realm has Templates for "Male" & "Female," or simply a Template for "Human." If it's the former, then like with aging, you can't do it. Deliberately Warping: ooh boy. Parshendi Fellow: I highly doubt this would work. There should be a separate Spiritual Template per Species, since Humans, Chulls, and Aviar are vastly distinct species. (Why would they heal from the same primary template?) Horns & a Tail: This, on the other hand, has potential. But it depends on their level of belief. (And the level of believability. Body Hair instead being Fur seems like a small stretch, whereas stuff like suddenly Wings seem way farther from the Spiritual Template) Regarding said Templates: Quote Brandon Sanderson Each spren is based on the Ideal of Fire. Kurkistan And is that sitting in the Spiritual Realm? Brandon Sanderson Yes, we're using sort of a Platonic Ideal, and that concept is in force, so *sounds hesitant* "yes", but [spren] are manifestations of it. Kurkistan So these Ideals in the Spiritual Realm: Divine Breath, does that heal by accessing some Ideal of Human Health: so a guy who had never had a tongue and doesn't know how to speak all the sudden has a tongue and can speak? Brandon Sanderson You are... *LONG pause* You are, um, on the right track. Kurkistan Okay, so you know the ideals the spren are manifestations-- Do those have impacts on other magic systems? Brandon Sanderson Yes, yes, in the same way the Returned- that's the exact same system at work there. Kurkistan Okay, so it's all like these highfalutin Spiritual ideals? Brandon Sanderson Yes. I mean the original concept for the Three Realms is Platonic philosophy. A lot of the Cognitive is-- So like, the Cognitive has a bigger effect on how you can heal and things like that. Does that make sense? Kurkistan So it's like the Spiritual says "I want to be like this" and the Cognitive is like "Okay I'll try really hard to be like that, but I have a limit." Brandon Sanderson Right. Right. Filtered through how you see yourself, yeah. Kurkistan So for Soulcasting—-I talked a lot about those ideals that a lot of things are based on—-is that also like there's an ideal of stone that when you Soulcast stone if you don't do anything special, it just defaults as that? Brandon Sanderson Yes, there will be a default of all of them. Kurkistan And that's the same exact thing as spren and why the Lord Ruler dies of old age and all that stuff? Brandon Sanderson That is-- Yes, that's the same sort of concept. Yes. 2
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