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Local Authors => Brandon Sanderson => Topic started by: Argent on January 15, 2011, 10:07:39 PM

Title: [WIP] The Cosmere
Post by: Argent on January 15, 2011, 10:07:39 PM

_-* SPOILERS *-_

It's been a while since I have posted in these forums. One thing surprised me when I first joined, and it surprised me again today, as I decided to start visiting again - there isn't a single place where all of the non-books information is compiled. I often see threads refer to Adonalsium, Shards, Hoid's nature, and a number of other things that one couldn't have found in the books.

Well, I would like to make a compilation. I know quite a bit about Brandon's universe, but the majority  of my knowledge is restricted to what he has written in his books. I know very little about interviews & Q&As, so I'll need the more knowledgeable forumers to help me out on this one. Simply... post whatever you know. It doesn't have to be organized, it doesn't have to be much, and it doesn't have to relate to any other posts. It may be easier to pick a world, and just summarize what you know about it - not about its geography, or nations, or peoples. Origination, magic system, religion & deities, interaction with other worlds, those are the kinds of things I am interested in.

I am going to try to make an encyclopedia-like entry, formatted and organized nicely, so new forum users can quickly get to knowledge level of everyone else in here and be able to join the discussions with fresh ideas.

I shall update this thread as we go. Hopefully enough people will participate, and over (a short period of) time I'll be able to transfer everything to a new thread and petition it for a sticky.

---

General Lore
Cosmere, Adonalsium, Shards, Shardworlds, Shardholders.

---

Shardholders

#	Name (host)	Shard	World	Series	Status (Living?)
1	Ati	Ruin	Scadrial	Mistborn	Dead
2	Leras	Preservation	Scadrial	Mistborn	Dead
2	Vin	Preservation	Scadrial	Mistborn	Dead
1&2	Sazed	Ruin/Preservation	Scadrial	Mistborn	Living
3	Aona	??	Sel	Elantris	Dead
4	Skai	??	Sel	Elantris	Dead
5	Rayse	Odium	Roshar	Stormlight	Living
6	Bavadin	??	??	??	??
7	??	Cultivation	Roshar	Stormlight	??
8	Tenevast	Honor	Roshar	Stormlight	Dead
9	??	Endowment	Nalthis	Warbreaker	Alive
10	??	??	??	??	??
11	??	??	??	??	??
12	??	??	??	??	??
13	??	??	??	??	??
14	??	??	??	??	??
15	??	??	??	??	??
16	??	??	??	??	??

World-Specific Lore

---

Elantris

• Name: Sel
• Magic:
  
  AonDor:
  

[/li]
[li]Theology:

Domi: Benevolent and loving, Domi is the unseen god of many Aonic people.
Aon Dor: Although technically not a real religion, many people of Aonic heritage choose to worship the Elantrians as their gods.
The Jesker: The Jesker is the dead religion of the Duladen Republic.
The Mysteries: An offspring of the Jesker, the Mysteries are more of a cult than a real religion. Key elements of the Mysteries include worship of the (full) moon, as well as animal and human sacrifices.
Jadeth: Worshiped in the Fjordell Empire, Jadeth is the one and only good of its people. The Wyrn, ruler and head priest of Fjorden, is his prophet, a mortal manifestation of his will.
[/list][/li]
[/list]

Mistborn

• Name: Scadrial
• Magic:
  
  Allomancy: Allomancy uses 16 specific metals to fuel various Allomantic abilities. The metals are divided into several overlapping groups based on their effects - Pushing/Pulling, Internal/External, and Physical/Mental/Enhancing/Temporal. Atium and larasium are the only two that don't follow any of those categories, for they are known as the god metals.
  Feruchemy: Feruchemy is the art of using one of the 16 metals in order to store various attributes for later use. Unlike Allomancy, Feruchemy is a balanced magic system - in order to store up strength, one must spend time being weak; in order to store up mental speed, one must spend time being slow-minded.
  Hemalurgy: While Allomancy uses the 16 metals to fuel magic, and Feruchemy uses them simply for storage, Hemalurgy can use those metals to steal Allomantic and Feruchemical abilities. This bloody art requires the recipient to kill the Allomancer or Feruchemist from whom he wishes to steal an ability. The murder must be done with a metal spike, which then stores exactly one Allomantic or Feruchemical attribute, depending on the metal used. The recipient must then drive the metal spike through his own body and remain in contact with it - no spike means no attribute.
  

[/li]
[li]Theology:

Lord Ruler: The Final Empire worshiped the demigod Lord Ruler for a period of a thousand years, up until his death. The vast majority of his followers now count themselves members of the Church of the Survivor.
Church of the Survivor: Founded by skaa workers after the death of Kelsier, the Church of the Survivor is a young religion with still vague dogmas.
Ruin & Preservation: Known only to the extinct kandra, the former Terris religion accurately defined the gods of Scadrial. After the events of the trilogy, both Ruin and Preservation are dead, their power and godhood obtained by Sazed.
[/list][/li]
[/list]

Warbreaker

• Name: Nalthis
• Magic:
  
  BioChroma
  

[/li]
[li]Theology:

Austre: As the unseen god of Idris, Austre's teachings are ones of avoidance of colors and ostentation.
The Iridescent Tones: The vague religion of Hallandren seems to require little of its followers. Their gods - the Returned - require very little of their followers; a Breath a week per god, to keep them alive. In many ways, it is the exact opposite of Austre - vivid, colorful, and full of life.
[/list][/li]
[/list]

The Stormlight Archive

• Name: Roshar
• Magic:
  
  Surgebinding
  Voidbringing
  Old Magic
  

[/li]
[li]Theology:

The Almighty
[/list][/li]
[/list]

Other Worlds
There are Shardworlds other than the four described above. Below you will find the names of not-yet-written books/series taking place in those other Shardworlds.

• The Silence Divine (standalone novel)
• White Sand (trilogy)
• The Liar of Partinel (the first novel in a series of two). Magic: Lightweaving
• Dragonsteel (epic). World name: Yolen

Title: Re: [WIP] The Cosmere
Post by: socom-delta on January 16, 2011, 05:30:28 AM

Just a forethought, but this purpose would probably be best served by creating a Wiki

Having said that...

The world of Elantris

Creation origins: Unknown

Distances traveled and described in the world lead me to believe that either this world is remarkably tiny in physical size or the events unfolding (and the nations described) in the book only involve one continent or one part of this world.

Example:
The distance from Elantris to the docks of Teoin is "1,326,805" strides of the boy Adien; from the tip of Arelon to Teod is "1,327,042" Adien strides.

Guesstimating, on the assumption that Adien is still a child and probably around 4'8" (average height for a child of 8-12 years; if anyone can correct me on this, please do so), his stride would be about 18" - 24" (1.5' - 2'). Therefore, the distance from the tip of Arelon to Teod is only 377-502 miles (which is also the distance across the sea separating them) and the distance from Arelon to the docks at Teoin capitol is 376.9 - 502.6 miles. Note: it also takes approximately five days to sail this distance from Teod to Arelon, if that helps. Averaging the distance, you get ~440 miles.

According to this map, then:

(http://www.brandonsanderson.com/graphics/Map5.gif)

which serves as a rough approximation of the world in which Elantris exists (parts of the world would undergo revision, as noted on the image), the area depicted on that map is about 1,720 miles* from west to east and about 1100 miles* from north to south. That's only about 1,892,000 square miles - significantly smaller than the mainland USA. I don't even think it's possible for a planet that size to be capable of supporting life; if so, then this would would have to be much larger than just this one portion of the continent depicted on the map shown above.

*Estimates are eyeball measurements not using very precise measuring instruments: just a line extruded from the image, connecting two points, as a reference to estimate distance.

Title: Re: [WIP] The Cosmere
Post by: Argent on January 16, 2011, 06:38:11 AM

I may have approach this project improperly. I am asking you to do work I can do myself, and that should not be. I, however, still need some definitions: Adonalsium, Shards, Endowment, how the different worlds' gods relate to those, and anything you feel is related to those.

Title: Re: [WIP] The Cosmere
Post by: andygal on January 16, 2011, 07:26:13 AM

Adonalsium was the original God of the Cosmere that shattered into 16 pieces (Shards of Adonalsium), various people got bound to the power of those Shards. Endowment is one of them, it is the Shard who's power is responsible for the phenomenon of the Returned.

Other such Shards include Ruin and Preservation, Honor (the Almighty), Cultivation (probably) and Odium

Aona and Skai are apparently the names of holders of other Shards, that were killed by Rayse (probably the name of the holder of Odium). Their Shards have  been Spliintered presumably to keep anybody else from getting a hold of them)

Title: Re: [WIP] The Cosmere
Post by: Argent on January 16, 2011, 07:36:56 AM

Seems like each Shard bears the name of some trait - or at least a type of action/activity.

I found this topic (http://www.timewastersguide.com/forum/index.php?topic=7839.0). Is this the most up-to-date information we have?

Title: Re: [WIP] The Cosmere
Post by: andygal on January 16, 2011, 08:03:03 AM

Almost, it's been confirmed that the Almighty held Honor, which isn't mentioned there.

And with that information some people have theorized that the Almighty's actual name is Tanavast (this is based on Kaladin's dream/vision "Child of Tanavast, Child of Honor".)

Title: Re: [WIP] The Cosmere
Post by: Argent on January 16, 2011, 08:31:27 AM

Splinters. Looks like when a Shard is destroyed - Splintered - it turns into a number of... beings? things? essences? Judging by the Returned, who have been confirmed to be Splinters (or have they?), the destruction of the Shard is not necessary for Splinters to spawn.

Are they like side effects of the presence of a Shard (and a holder) in the world? Do they only appear when a Shard is destroyed, and does that imply that Endowment was not the only Shardholder on Nalthis?

Title: Re: [WIP] The Cosmere
Post by: socom-delta on January 16, 2011, 11:39:29 PM

Quote from: ArgentSun on January 15, 2011, 10:07:39 PM

---

Elantris

• Name: Sel
• Magic: AonDor.

Mistborn

• Name: Scadrial
• Magic: Allomancy, Feruchemy, Metallurgy.

Warbreaker

• Name: Nalthis
• Magic: BioChroma.

The Stormlight Archive

• Name: Roshar
• Magic: Surgebinding, Voidbringing, Old Magic.

Might add the following notes, maybe paraphrased, explaining who can use magic and how it's used in each realm.

Elantris:
Magic usage:
Aonic peoples living in Teod or Arelon (or near the Arelon borders), who then spend a night in Elantris, will eventually become Elantrian and have access to the Dor through the AonDor. In Jindo, practitioners of ChayShan also have access to the Dor. In Fjorden, the monks of the various Monasteries have some access to the Dor (notably the monks of Dakhor, who appear to be infused with it).

The Dor transforms Elantrians into semi-immortal beings and makes them physically resilient, and transforms their outward appearance. Their skin becomes silvery, and their hair white. (Based on this description, it sounds like they're supposed to emulate the Almighty as he is described in WoK).

Otherworldly Visions:

The only interaction with any other supernatural forces is via the 'Lake', where it appears it is possible to commune with some unknown spirit or force. Usually, stepping into the Lake is fatal.

Warbreaker:
Everyone is born with one 'Breath'; the returned are born with one powerful breath. People who are skilled in the use of breaths are called Awakeners. The relative strength of each breath you have, but more importantly the amount of breaths you have, give you special powers (called Heightening). The Breath of the Returned boosts them up to the Fifth Heightening. There is no upper limit to the number of Breaths you can have, although holding them essentially alters your appearance and surroundings (makes colors more vivid). Likewise, there is no lower limit; you can give away your Breath, even sell it. Only the Returned will die if they give away their Breath, as they must have at least one to live.

The Fifth Heightening grants the bearer immortality - he will not age or succumb to disease, although other normal bodily injuries (impaling, beheading, immolation, exposure to acids[?]) will likely still kill.

Otherworldly Visions:

It's possible for some people to die, and be reborn as a Returned. Those who are allowed to Return must choose to do so; it's implied they speak to the creator himself.

Stormlight Archive:
Stormlight is apparently only available to only select people called Surgebinders (or Voidbringers?). Accessed by absorbing infused Spheres. The spheres are also currency, and may be considered counterfeit if they are 'dun' (have no Stormlight). Apparently, spheres can only receive a new infusion of Stormlight by leaving them outside - exposed - during a Highstorm. Therefore, the Highstorms are likely magical and not merely a force of nature. Highstorms do NOT occur in the western part of the main continent (Shin Kak Nish and perhaps other western kingdoms), and thus it may not be possible to obtain Stormlight there.

Surgebinders feel empowered by the Highstorms, and they can absorb Stormlight to heal their bodies.

Otherworldly Visions:

It's implied that some characters are able to travel to Shadesmar at will. Some are able to see the Father of Storms, the King of the Herlads himself, during the Highstorm. Others see visions from God himself during the Highstorms.

Title: Re: [WIP] The Cosmere
Post by: Argent on January 17, 2011, 01:37:39 AM

This is far from final version, but I do plan on adding explanations. I was planning something shorter, 2-3 sentences, but we'll see.

Title: Re: [WIP] The Cosmere
Post by: CabbyHat on January 17, 2011, 06:45:28 AM

In the interests of possibly saving people some work, isn't there already a Sanderson wiki?

Title: Re: [WIP] The Cosmere
Post by: andygal on January 17, 2011, 06:49:32 AM

There are several, 17th Shard has the Coppermind  wiki, there's a dedicated Stormlight Archive wiki,and I think there might be another.....

Title: Re: [WIP] The Cosmere
Post by: Argent on January 17, 2011, 08:43:45 AM

There are all those, but none of them - at least as far as I have seen - have an article that explains what I want to explain here. The purpose of this thread, or its final version rather, will be to introduce a reader who has read everything Brandon has written to all of the details that are not explicitly stated in his books. Adonalsium is mentioned only once (in WoK) or twice, and it's nothing more than just a name.

Normally I wouldn't bother with anything like that, but Brandon is a relatively new author and his community is still young. We don't have the resources Robert Jordan, John Tolkien, or George R.R. Martin have - we have to build them. And on top of that, Brandon is one of the very few authors that have recurring themes and cosmological motifs repeating across books set in different worlds. In fact, the only other writer that does that, at least in my library, is David Gemmell and his Source-based religion.

I guess what I am trying to say is that Brandon is, in a way, writing one huge series - the Cosmere series, so to speak. And the beginning of the process of understanding the Cosmere is an actual summary of everything we know about it.

P.S. This being said, I should probably become member of those Wikis...

Title: Re: [WIP] The Cosmere
Post by: socom-delta on January 27, 2011, 03:34:35 AM

So you want the reader to be able to comprehend what the Cosmere is and how it works?

The best way to understand something so immense is to break it down into constituent parts. As it would happen, Brandon has already done that for us (the Shards) so it might be prudent to explain how each of the Shards works and how they all contribute the same thing(s) to the Cosmere. I attempted to touch on that theme a bit in my last post.

Title: Re: [WIP] The Cosmere
Post by: Melriken on January 27, 2011, 04:51:13 AM

Quote from: Argent on January 16, 2011, 07:36:56 AM

Seems like each Shard bears the name of some trait - or at least a type of action/activity.

I found this topic (http://www.timewastersguide.com/forum/index.php?topic=7839.0). Is this the most up-to-date information we have?

Because it makes it WAY easier to read I took the liberty of putting everything into an actual table, you can quote this post then copy the code and paste it wherever you want.

Italicized data is unconfirmed.

Here goes:

#	Name (host)	Shard	World	Series	Status (Living?)
1	Ati	Ruin	Scadrial	Mistborn	Dead
2	Leras	Preservation	Scadrial	Mistborn	Dead
2	Vin	Preservation	Scadrial	Mistborn	Dead
1&2	Sazed	Ruin/Preservation	Scadrial	Mistborn	Living
3	Aona	??	Sel	Elantris	Dead
4	Skai	??	Sel	Elantris	Dead
5	Rayse	Odium	Roshar	Stormlight[/i]	Living
6	Bavadin	??	??	??	??
7	??	Cultivation	Roshar	Stormlight	??
8	Elithanathile (AKA The Almighty)	Honor	Roshar	Stormlight	Dead
9	??	Endowment	Nalthis	Warbreaker	Alive
10	??	??	??	??	??
11	??	??	??	??	??
12	??	??	??	??	??
13	??	??	??	??	??
14	??	??	??	??	??
15	??	??	??	??	??
16	??	??	??	??	??

Note: I took the liberty of putting the book/series name on the world column, I also noted that The Almighty was Honor and added Vin to the list.  There are a few I would take the italics off of personally (Odium's planet for example, we know there are 3 shards on Roshar, we know that Cultivation and Honor are two of them, and that Odium is responsible for the upcoming/current Desolation on that planet... While we know he visited Sel, we know that visit was brief and can safely assume Roshar is the correct planet for him... but that is an assumption.) but as the link you posted above listed them in Italics I tended to leave them as such.

Edit: Cultivation's status should be ?? not "Status (Living?)" and Nalthis is Warbreaker, removed the ?

Title: Re: [WIP] The Cosmere
Post by: Argent on January 27, 2011, 06:01:02 AM

This is a very nice table you've got there. Sorry for being a little slow maintaining and updating this thread, but life's been busy lately. One day I will have my compendium complete :)

Title: Re: [WIP] The Cosmere
Post by: Ari54 on January 30, 2011, 01:06:28 AM

Kelsier also had access to some of Preservation's powers for a while after he died, although we're not sure if he exactly counts as a shardholder in the same way that Leras, Vin, and Sazed did. Endowment should probably be Living, not Alive, and because we can reasonably guess that the pool in Elantris is related to Aona, (s)he's has been tentatively referred to as Relief.

Title: Re: [WIP] The Cosmere
Post by: Melriken on February 01, 2011, 09:01:38 AM

Quote from: Ari54 on January 30, 2011, 01:06:28 AM

Kelsier also had access to some of Preservation's powers for a while after he died, although we're not sure if he exactly counts as a shardholder in the same way that Leras, Vin, and Sazed did. Endowment should probably be Living, not Alive, and because we can reasonably guess that the pool in Elantris is related to Aona, (s)he's has been tentatively referred to as Relief.

Updated table.

Italicized data is unconfirmed.

#	Name (host)	Shard	World	Series	Status
1	Ati	Ruin	Scadrial	Mistborn	Dead
2	Leras	Preservation	Scadrial	Mistborn	Dead
2	Vin	Preservation	Scadrial	Mistborn	Dead
1&2	Sazed	Ruin/Preservation	Scadrial	Mistborn	Living
3	Aona	Relief	Sel	Elantris	Dead
4	Skai	??	Sel	Elantris	Dead
5	Rayse	Odium	Roshar	Stormlight[/i]	Living
6	Bavadin	??	??	??	??
7	??	Cultivation	Roshar	Stormlight	??
8	Elithanathile (AKA The Almighty)	Honor	Roshar	Stormlight	Dead
9	??	Endowment	Nalthis	Warbreaker	Living
10	??	??	??	??	??
11	??	??	??	??	??
12	??	??	??	??	??
13	??	??	??	??	??
14	??	??	??	??	??
15	??	??	??	??	??
16	??	??	??	??	??

I made the correction and addition (alive to Living and Relief for Aona) as well as added some spacing to the columns so they are a little wider then the longest element in them.

Title: Re: [WIP] The Cosmere
Post by: Tortellini on February 01, 2011, 03:47:55 PM

How exactly is it confirmed that Endowment is alive? We saw seons and aon'dor in Elantris, after Aona was killed. So it could well be that Endowment is not around any more.

In fact, and here's an interesting thought, for all the magic systems we have ever seen in the hands of "ordinary people", the shard status is dead, unconfirmed or severely handicapped:

Aona & Skai - dead. Ruin - trapped. Preservation - gave itself up to trap Ruin. Honor - dead. Endowment -  unknown. (yes, I'm mixing shards and people  ::))

Is there a reason for that? Is Rayse on an extermination trip behind the scenes (well, yes, but is he that far along that?) or is there another reason? We'll know more once we see Scadrial after a few centuries with a living, caring shardholder...

Title: Re: [WIP] The Cosmere
Post by: Argent on February 01, 2011, 06:33:59 PM

Didn't Lightsong hear a voice when he was remembering his death just before he healed Susebron? I am absolutely certain there was a godlike voice in the Graphic Audio book, but they are known to have a few things off.

Title: Re: [WIP] The Cosmere
Post by: happyman on February 02, 2011, 02:26:19 AM

No, Lightsong talked to a voice in the book as well.  It isn't absolutely certain that this means that Endowment is alive, given the pool in Elantris speaking, but if we have met a living shard (besides Sazed), enddowment is the best choice.

Title: Re: [WIP] The Cosmere
Post by: Argent on February 02, 2011, 02:48:40 AM

I am not sure if the pool spoke as much as it conveyed emotions. But it may be that Endowment is also dead, it's a theory I haven't given much thought to.

Title: Re: [WIP] The Cosmere
Post by: Ari54 on February 19, 2011, 02:39:26 AM

I think it's pretty reasonable to assume that Endowment is alive until we have active reason to call that into question. If Endowment was obviously dead as of WoK, I think their death would have been mentioned along with Aona and Skai.

Title: Re: [WIP] The Cosmere
Post by: Argent on February 20, 2011, 09:43:38 AM

I added a little general knowledge about some of the worlds and changed the format a little. I am not sure I like how things are starting to look though - forums seem to offer very little formatting options. Maybe I should maintain a Wiki page instead?

Title: Re: [WIP] The Cosmere
Post by: happyman on February 21, 2011, 06:38:10 PM

Quote from: Argent on February 20, 2011, 09:43:38 AM

I added a little general knowledge about some of the worlds and changed the format a little. I am not sure I like how things are starting to look though - forums seem to offer very little formatting options. Maybe I should maintain a Wiki page instead?

Maybe try the Coppermind Wiki at 17th Shard?  I'm sure they'd like the help.

Title: Re: [WIP] The Cosmere
Post by: atlas689 on March 19, 2011, 09:46:34 AM

Quote from: Argent on January 15, 2011, 10:07:39 PM

_-* SPOILERS *-_

[li]The Silence Divine (standalone novel)[/li]
[li]White Sand (trilogy)[/li]
[li]The Liar of Partinel (the first novel in a series of two). Magic: Lightweaving[/li]
[li]Dragonsteel (epic). World name: Yolen[/li]
[/list]

Two questions:

1) Is the Silence Divine an unpublished work of Sandersons?
2) What about the world from Aether of the Night?

Title: Re: [WIP] The Cosmere
Post by: Argent on March 19, 2011, 09:41:52 PM

The Silence Divine, as far as I know, as not yet written. And Aether of the Night doesn't sound familiar, but the name 'Aether' makes me think of The Liar of Partinel.

Title: Re: [WIP] The Cosmere
Post by: Ipood on March 20, 2011, 06:01:35 PM

If you want info on unpublished books of Mr. B. Sanderson: http://www.brandonsanderson.com/article/55/EUOLogy-My-History-as-a-Writer

Title: Re: [WIP] The Cosmere
Post by: andygal on March 21, 2011, 03:01:51 AM

the holder of Honor is now confirmed to have been. named Tanavast, courtesy of Brandon on Twitter.

I asked "But the person who held the Shard Honor was originally named Tanavast?"

And Brandon said "Yes. You wiggled it out of me. That was the name of the original holder of the Shard Honor."

Link to Original Tweet (http://twitter.com/#!/BrandSanderson/status/49647539623952384)

Title: Re: [WIP] The Cosmere
Post by: Peter Ahlstrom on March 21, 2011, 05:57:00 AM

He already confirmed that for the Tor.com questions, but it just didn't go online yet.

Title: Re: [WIP] The Cosmere
Post by: zas678 on March 25, 2011, 06:08:27 AM

Is there a date on that second batch of questions Peter?

Title: Re: [WIP] The Cosmere
Post by: Peter Ahlstrom on March 25, 2011, 07:26:06 AM

No.