Timewaster's Guide Archive

I really didn't think any of the "villains" were that villainous... I mean, Szeth SEEMS the worst, because he mows down people for what some might say is "no reason at all", but he clearly, and I mean, really clearly, can't control himself.  The Oathstone literally forces him to do things.  Maybe in a realistic novel, where some murderer is saying "my Oathstone made me do it" would be wacky, but in a fantasy novel, its completely acceptable, and I for one am very excited to see how Szeth's character plays out.  I don't think he is, or ever will be, entirely, a villain.

The other characters you talked about were d!cks, I'll admit, but none of them were that villain from a comic book, who does evil stuff just to be evil.  I think we have yet to see who the real villain of WoK is.  Although only mentioned a few times, Odium does seem to have influence (much like Ruin) on the people of Roshar.  I have a feeling he will be showing up a lot more often in the future.  Most of the people did what they did because it is the best way for personal gain, which is repeatedly shown to be core of Alethi culture.

I hope Elhokar doesn't get a book, I'm not really a fan of him.  Renarin on the other hand could have an awesome back story, and I feel like Brandon will definitely flesh out his character by the end of the series.

I doubt Hoid will get one, just because part of what makes Hoid interesting is his LACK of backstory (or at least getting his backstory in very small bits). 

Plus, she doesn't start seeing the "Soulcasting Spren" until shes studying under Jasnah for a decent amount of time.

The idea of a Unity shard - the embodiment of the ideal - splitting, is more than a little ironic.  That is all.

Lol.  Thats what I was thinking.  Although, I wouldn't put it past Brandon :p

I guess how likely this is depends on how Shardblades respond to being held by someone who is not their owner.  Is it even possible to steal a shardblade?  If you grab it, do you claim it, or what?  These are good questions.

Call me pedantic, though, but I still feel that the words I cited are strong evidence in favor of the simplest scenario of Shallan killing her father through mundane means and then getting the blade.  This simple cause-effect relationship is well-established in-world and is one that Shallan would know about.  It agrees with the simplest interpretation of the image she made of her father.   Everything else requires introducing new rules or speculating well beyond the evidence or weakening the simple statement I cited as evidence (and yes, your proposed alternate interpretations are not impossible, just weaker, because they don't match the usual meaning of the words).  I just considered that quote the best evidence (it's really close to being the only evidence of what actually happened) and wanted it accounted for.

As for the fabrial---we don't know what happened to it.  And that's the rub-we don't know!  It's an empty spot.  But emptiness isn't evidence, just room for more speculation.

As for whether killing her father would be considered a terrible sin---well, a few points to consider:

(1) She calls herself a murderer when referring to her father's death.  No rationalizations behind that word.  The Spren accepts it, too.
(2) She reacts badly to the death of four people who were ready to rape and kill her, and whom she had never met.
(3) She feels tremendous guilt over her families situation and her place in it.

I agree with you 100%.  It seems very unlikely (although possible) that Shallan killed her father with the Shardblade.  Every quote we have about the events, which are very few and far between, give us evidence that she killed him in a "normal" fashion (blood pooling on the floor, doesn't happen if you're killed by a shardblade AND even if you slice someone up with one after they are dead, it still wouldn't be "pools" of blood).  Really the only thing that doesn't make a lot of sense is the breaking of the soulcaster itself.  It does sound like the shardblade cut the fabrial, but theres always other possibilities, obviously the shardblade cuts through everything easily, but other things can cut through a soulcaster as well.

Bump to the front page for awesomeness!

Hang on.

What are the Ten Deaths?

I assumed, when I first read the quote, that they were just a type of Voidbringer... or weren't there 10 Desolations?  Maybe its just another name for those.  I'm not sure, especially now that I've finished the book and I'm looking back at the quote.

On topic, I agree that the Thrill seems like an almost inhumane bloodlust.  Its quite plausible that Odium influences it in someway, although I don't think Brandon uses a direct connection like the one that Ruin has with Hermalurgic spikes.  I toyed with the idea that shardplate gave a person a more powerful version of the Thrill, but I discarded the idea.  The more I think about it though, Kaladin is an amazing fighter, perhaps parallel in abilities to Dalinar, but he does not experience the Thrill in the same way that Dalinar does.  The Thrill almost controls Dalinar in a battle, while Kaladin is more in control of himself, relying on the Stormlight to guide him through the battle.  The Thrill COULD be an influence from Odium, while Stormlight is perhaps the leftovers of the Almighty (or another Shardholder's) influence on Roshar.  We already know that, even after a shardholder has "died", or whatever happens to them, they can still influence the world (see Mistborn).  In Mistborn, Leras' connection is Allomancy, and it still works even when he is gone.

As I typed that paragraph, I changed my views a lot, and made a lot more connections than I originally was thinking.  Anyone have any other ideas about the Thrill?