Timewaster's Guide Archive

Okay I'm confused.

I thought that if a Shardbearer dropped his or her Blade, it would dissipate, to prevent it being taken? It says the Herald's Blade didn't dissipate, so I would think he WAS dead?

Could it be that the Oathpact was an end to the war between the Knight's Radiant and the Voidbringers? Maybe the Voidbringer's gave up their powers to become parshmen/parshendi ( in texts, it seems they have powers of some kind, whereas modern parshendi have inherent traits but no mystical powers, they even use Shardplate/Blades ) and the Knight's Radiant had to agree to disband and give up their Shardblades/Shardplate.

Maybe Syl is revolted by the Blades and Plate because it reminds her of the Oathpact they were forced to accept to get rid of the Voidbringer threat?

Okay, let me make a few bold speculations.
First, let's look at a few bits of information.
1) The Knights radient were surgebinders.
2) The figure that Kaladin's  stopped flight did so while claiming  that "The oathpact" was broken.
3) When the Knights radient gave up, their amor and blades faded and lost their Glyphs.
4) Shalan and Jasna are both people who can perform feats that are also possible with fabriels.
5) Syl finds Shards distasteful.
My conclusions are the following: The glyphs on the knights armor are a the representation of a contract between Humans and Spren.
When the Knights Radient abandoned their post, this contract became void, which made the shine of armor and swords fade.
Due to this, Shards only perform  basic functions, without granting "flight"  or other, more "fancy" powers.
Syl is revolted by shards because they remind her of the Knight's disloyalty.

So much for now.
Thoughts?

Okay, I have read that series and also found it quite enjoyable, but I think there are some serious differences between spren and furies. Spren, it seems, come from everything. Most seem to be either created by or come around because of events- LifeSpren around plants, etc., DeathSpren when something is dying, FireSpren around fires, HonorSpren are drawn to the honor of a person, you get it. Furies were independent creatures that had no need of any triggering event to exist. And you could use a furie's powers to change someone's emotions but I don't recall wild furies being able to do so.

Also, I don't remember where in WoK it says that spren directly change someone's emotions. I remember people reacting to them and becoming happier or sadder but that doesn't mean the spren intended that to happen. Just because I see a deer eating and it makes me happy for example doesn't mean the deer chose to do so. It doesn't have that power ( O.o;; or does it? ).

And as far as we've seen thus far, DeathSpren come around when something is dying, they don't bond to people to give people that mastery. The only type of Spren we know to confer powers are HonorSpren- but are there different types of HonorSpren that confer different powers, or are the ones that give powers other than Kaladin has other types of Spren? We know there were 10 orders of the Knights Radiant and I imagine they are each linked to one of the Ten Essences, particularly after the very end of the book when Talenel'Elin introduces himself as "Stonesinew, Herald of the Almighty" and it matches another of the 10 Essences we see in the back of the book. Kaladin's is obviously Zephyr.

2.  If people have read the Codex Alera Series by Jim Butcher, you would know what Furies are. In Codex alera furies are everywhere and all alerans have access to the powers granted by certain Furies.  Air Furies give increased speed, and the ability to fly.  Earth Furies give increased strength and the ability to influence emotions.  Water Furies give the ability of healing and shapeshifting.  Metal Furies give the ability of increased endurance and mastery of metal weapons.  Fire Furies give the ability to induce anger, control fire, and manipulate energy.  Wood Furies gives the ability to bend flora to you will and camoflauge.  Now in WoK you have Spren.  To me it seems like Spren act like the furies in Codex alera. Granted they're are a lot more spren, and they do not only effect the elements but emotions as well.  I assume though that Spren gives ability to people as well.  My question is though, does different spren give different powers to people like Deathspren giving a person the mastery over death, or a Windspren giving the ability of flight, or can only certain type of spren interact with only a certain amount of people?

Agreed, it seems like once the Knights Radiant abandoned their swords and plate that they lost some of their power and purity. Somehow Kaladin will acquire or make his own Shardplate- I wouldnt be surprised if Dalinar did as well.

Anyone else have the suspicion that Syl will be key to Kaladin getting a Dawnblade? I'm basing this on some information without much flesh, but here's the evidence I see:

1. In the prologue, it's mentioned that the Herald's blade was more "pure" than a Shardblade.
2. Kaladin has an aversion to Shardblades
3. Syl also has an aversion to Shardblades
4. Syl states at one point that even though she abhors killing, she remembers helping it happen before

So, I think Kaladin and Syl dislike Shardblades for the same reason: they aren't "pure." The line about Syl helping kill tells me that she has something to do with acquiring a "pure" sword. Maybe she leads him to one, or maybe she becomes a sword. Who knows.

At the very least, this could help explain why Szeth doesn't have a honorspren following him around. He carries a Shardblade, and his honorspren finds it so dishonorable that he/she won't be around him.