#roshar map

[tousleheadedpoet]

ID: THE GRAND APPARATUS??

Scadrial What is happening with Aethers

I think that Cultivation is planning deep. She has invested directly in 3 people (Dalinar, Taravangian, and Lift). The endgame is to fuse all 3 shards into 1, growing their potential. She has to carefully cultivate all 3 into vessels with Unity pushed towards integrating the others into a mega shard. Cultivation is hoping to become a part of Adonalsium again. This could set Roshar as an ?antagonistic? force for the cosmere in the back 5. They would be journeying the cosmere to claim the shards for themselves. Scadrians get prickly. Nalthis goes on lockdown. Sel falls to Roshar. idk about Taldain, haven't read White Sand. Threnodites live in terrified ignorance. Yolen welcomes them. The Iriali believe it to be The One.

Cultivation + Honor + Odium = Conquest Mastery Supremacy Colonization Dominion Toil Adaptation

Had the inexplicable urge last night to actually write down my stream of consciousness thoughts about a theory I have been brewing for a bit. I don't know if I actually believe everything in it but I can definitely seeing Cultivation being the shard to want Adonalsium to reform.

[cosmerelists]

If Cosmere Characters Were Given Three Wishes From a Genie...

As requested by anon. :)

[A few of the jokes in this are WAT spoilers! They are marked in the entry title in case you need to skip 'em]

Cosmere characters have just rubbed a magic lamp and now they're being offered three wishes by a genie! How will that go for them?

1. Steris

Genie: There are three rules! Genie: I cannot kill anyone, I cannot bring anyone back to life, and I cannot make anyone fall in love. Steris: (Taking notes) Can I wish for more wishes? Genie: No. Steris: Can I wish for someone else to have more wishes? Genie: Also no. Steris: Can I cancel a wish in the future if I no longer want it? Genie: ...no. Steris: Can I modify a wish after wishing it? Genie: ...no. Steris: I see. Steris: My first wish, then, is to help you create an actual Wish Rule Handbook because that, I'm afraid, is a lot more than three rules. Steris: Let's get drafting! Genie: Why am I afraid

2. Kelsier

Kelsier: Three wishes? Amazing! Kelsier: First, I'd like to finally obtain the exact physical body I've been dreaming of all these years! Kelsier: Second, I'd like Scadrial to be utterly protected from the nefarious designs of Odium or any other hostile Shard. Kelsier: And third, I'd like Hoid to stub his toe every day for the rest of his life. Kelsier: Phew! That was way easier than what I've been doing! Kelsier: I can't believe I wasted hundreds of years on machinations, ha ha! Genie: ... Kelsier: What?

3. Szeth [Mild WAT spoilers!]

Szeth: (suspiciously) Wishes? Szeth: As in, things that I personally want? Szeth: What is this, some kind of therapy? Szeth: Away with you! Genie: H-Hey, if you want to wish for some therapy, it sounds like that might be kind of helpful for you? Szeth: Away, I say! Genie: Well, I tried.

4. Taravangian

Taravangian: [slams a 400-page tome down on the table] Taravangian: This is my first wish--it includes caveats for every possible loophole, bad faith interpretation, and/or unintended consequence. Taravangian: I declare that this whole book constitutes the sum total of Wish #1. Genie: ...Which is? Taravangian: I'd like Hoid to stub his toe every day for as long as he lives. Genie: ... Genie: That wish required 400 pages?! Taravangian: I like to be thorough.

5. Vin

Vin: I would like to always have the exact metal or metals I desire in my flask as soon as I desire them. Vin: I'd also like Elend to feel a surge of reassurance that yes of course I love him whenever he feels doubt. Genie: Two very fine wishes. What is your third? Vin: Hmmm.... Vin: Honestly, I just keep thinking that I'd like to be faster than a horse. Genie: ...Like, horses in general or one specific horse? Vin: Just...horses in general. Genie: ...It's not the weirdest wish I've heard today.

6. Adolin [WAT SPOILERS!]

Adolin: Oooh, I've always wanted the ability to point at an outfit in a fashion magazine and instantly have that outfit in my perfect size. Genie: Granted! Adolin: I'd also like Shallan to be brought here safely to Azimir if that's what she wants--like, please ask her first just in case. Genie: Granted! Adolin: ... Adolin: I would also like everyone to think I gave those wishes in the reverse order. Genie: Granted! Adolin: Wait, does that count as a wish?? Adolin: ... Adolin: No, actually I'm okay with that.

7. Azure

Azure: I would like to know where Nightblood is, please. Azure: I've been looking for so long! It's IMPOSSIBLE to find! Genie: [silently hands her a map] Azure: ... Azure: IT'S BEEN ON ROSHAR THE WHOLE TIME?!

8. Lightsong

Lightsong: You grant three wishes, huh? Lightsong: I can only grant one wish. And I have to die to do it. Genie: That's a tough break. Lightsong: Well, to be fair I live a life of luxury and worship, rather than being trapped in a tiny lamp. Genie: I appreciate that. Many people treat my abilities as frivolous, wishing for things they could obtain for themselves if they tried or for things they should never truly have. Genie: It is a genuine relief to meet someone who understands the true import of wishes. Lightsong: ... Lightsong: I was gonna wish for you to hand me that glass so I don't have to get up, but now it feels awkward. Genie: ... Lightsong: I'm just really comfortable right now.

9. Kaladin

Kaladin: [muttering to himself] Can't wish for all of my friends to be safe. They'd probably be magically locked in a room forever or something. Kaladin: I could wish for Oroden to grow up happy, but what if that means he dies if he gets sad or something? Or like loses the ability to feel things? Kaladin: I could wish for Moash to go back to how he was, but how could I take away his ability to make choices? Kaladin: It's too much! I don't want any wishes! Genie: Uh....granted? Kaladin: Did that count as a wish???

10. Venli

Venli: I wish for your freedom. Genie: ... Genie: As your first wish? Venli: Yup. Genie: Not as, like, your third wish after you obtain two other wishes? Venli: Nah. Genie: W-Who are you?? Venli: I'm a Willshaper, baby. Tumi: [hums contentedly]

[thegoodnameeal]

Map of the continent of Roshar from the Stormlight Archive

Made this back in early 2023... and didn't notice the two (?) missing nations or the slight mistake of the veracity of the altitude of a certain place.

https://inkarnate.com/p/PMv1gN/maps/A1LKVd

It's freely editable here if you have an Inkarnate subscription.

[mistywitcher]

a dear friend bought me a puzzle of the map of Roshar for my birthday and I have spent over a week doing it.

It has become one of the most enjoyable projects I've done, while also becoming the bane of my existence.

ITS JUST OCEAN. ALL THE PIECES ARE SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT SHADES OF BLUE. ITS KIND OF LIKE PSYCHOLOGICAL TORTURE.

this being said, the actual map part was great fun, and I've been listening to Stormlight as I do it, which has really solidified my knowledge of the different places.

Will update when it's done!

[gallium-spoon]

I have finally acquired my copy of Wind and Truth (side note but wasn't it supposed to be Knights of Wind and Truth? What happened to the knights?)

This book is gorgeous! I got the hardcover and while I was hesitant about paying extra, the beautiful full color map of Roshar on the inside dust jacket was absolutely worth it

This book is also enormous! It's too big to keep in my purse so it's gonna be my evening only read. It's also roughly 3 million pages long

I'm gonna be reading this book til August aren't I? 😅

[awindandtruthliveblog]

[Wind and Truth: Chapter 82]

That map's funny too. Also, on the bottom, "checked for accuracy by Du(???)ix (???)". Man idk

Navani can see a Connection! An important one.

Of course these days are shadowed. Also, every Radiant in this time kinda sucks, what's up with that?

If Nale did actually tell the Radiants about humanity on Roshar, I can't really blame him for it. Shouldn't have been a secret.

Surface level, illiteracy does do that. The page is right about gender injustices though

Neat that this guy (Garith) is a Windrunner. They do look only like heroes so far, we forget the variance in people

Gav needs to get out of here he's 5. Stormfather please get over your pettiness for Dalinar.

Yooo Connection in it's simplest form, hell yeah

Wow Navani's so cool. She deserves to learn cosmere-level secrets. Brandon writes such nice characters

Adolin's a ragdoll. Poor guy. He's got a concussion.

That's so many Fused. They've won the numbers game by far.

Poor Zarb's probably dead too

Ooh, Nezahim, that's rough. Squashed.

Wait so why was the chain even aluminum? Just because it's light enough to be massive? But, so easily breakable. I don't get it.

Azimir is not going well.

[uinferno]

Fun fact. The map of Roshar is hidden on the wikipedia page for Julia Sets

[guardians-of-exo]

Was tagged by @xiuhunsoo and @baekhyunsbestie to do two different "get to know me tags" and I think I'm going to combine them ❤️

Last song: Listening to music rn as I'm going through the last (many) tages games I haven't gotten around to do - currently listening to Drunk-Dazed by Enhypen

Favorite color: Blue / Pink / Black

Last book: Currently reading Madame Fourcade's Secret War

Last movie: I think it was Cloud Atlas? A friend recommended it. A really interesting movie

Last tv show: Does kdramas count? If so, Potato Lab

Sweet/spicy/savory: I usually go for savory, but do have a sweet tooth

Last thing i searched for online: The teaser pics for my Minseok birthday post

Current obsession: Probably the diamond painting I bought of the Roshar world map (Stormlight Archive Series)

Looking forward to: Saturday where I have time to actually relax and do fuck all the whole day

What's the origin of your username?: A friend and I created this blog way back in 2017 together, and we decided on this because we wanted to be fans who stood by EXO no matter what

OTP(s) + shipname: Haven't really been into fanfic and stuff like that for a long while now. But Dramione (Draco / Hermione from Harry Potter) was always a good one. And I really liked Robin/Starfire from Teen Titans way back as well.

Song stuck in my head: Since I'm currently listening to music, I don't really have anything stuck - and I've now gone from Drunk-Dazed to Lit by Oneus.

Weirdest habit/trait: I don't really know? I'm a really fidgety person, so I'm always like tugging on my hair, picking my nails, playing with my jewelry. I speak way too fast - and tend to mumble.

Hobbies: Coloring books, reading - trying to get into water color as well. I like some cozy video games from time to time as well.

If you work, what's your profession? I'm a lab tech - working in the environmental sector. Working mostly with controlling the levels of like different pesticides and medicines in our groundwater and drinking water. Making sure it's all safe to use/drink. When I'm not in the lab, I'm one of three lab techs who tend to all our HPLC-MS instruments as well, and I think that part is really fun.

If you could have any job you wish what would you have? Honestly? While I do like my job, I would rather just not work at all.

Something you're good at: Idk? I think I've really improved my coloring skills, and I don't hate anything I did with my watercolors at first like I usually do. I'm told people enjoy it when I'm the one who has to train them at work because I'm patient with them.

Something you hate: This list would be too long should I list it all... Let's just go with onions and tomatoes.

Something you forget: My tea

Your love language: Probably quality time? And gift-giving - nothing big or expensive, more like "I found this cool rock and thought of you".

Favourite movies/shows: I have a soft spot for anything Disney/Pixar - Barbie as well actually. They can cheer me up when nothing else can. Avatar the Last Airbender and Merlin are my favorite shows.

What were you like as a child?: The quiet, weird kid who never really fit fully into any friend group - I was just kind of there.

Favourite subject in school: Probably English (I'm Danish) - one of the few subjects I was good at without having to try too hard. Chemistry and biology as well.

Least favourite subject: Social sciences or whatever it's called. Political history and so on. My teacher was nuts and I didn't understand a thing, so I fell behind and never caught up for the rest of my school life.

What's your best/worst character trait? I procrastinate way too much and then stress myself out. I'm not very confrontational, meaning I usually just let things pass - can be both good and bad depending on the situation. But I try to keep positive and take each day as it comes - and no matter how bad a day I'm having, I try to lift others up so they don't have to share my black cloud.

If you could change any detail of your life right now, what would it be?: I don't really know?

If you could travel in time, who would you like to meet?:

Tagging: @yoonkyoong @intergalacticpcy @miramizar

[thestormlightnetwork]

Nazh and Khrissalla on Roshar

Nazh: Yeah, remember when you told me, “there’s been no progress made on this planet for four thousand years, Nazirlof, you should go and get maps of this planet for me, Nazirlof!”? Well, I get there, and guess what happens?

The little bitch from Scadrial gets there and starts moving his little agents through the planet, now all of the sudden Yolen's Cuntiest is there thirsting over some local-

KHRISSALLA ARE YOU EVEN LISTENING TO ME?

Khriss, painting her nails: What? No, yeah, totally. You were saying?

[shakesthewizard]

Untitled Stormlight OC Fic, pt 2: Shalebark

@cosmereplay, for your consideration.

---

One Year Later

“Give up, Sahan,” said Rek. “You’ve got no options left. You’re beaten.”

“Like hell,” she bit at him, black hair falling in loose curls in her face. “The day I stand down to you is the day the Storms wipe this city of the map.”

Rek barked a laugh. “I admire your tenacity. If you insist, I suppose I can indulge a deathwish.” He extended his hand, rushing for her. Sahan braced, then stared in shock – he wasn’t moving how she’d predicted. No, something was off about his approach. It was almost as if...

She swept forward in retaliation, meeting his arrogant dance with a furious attack of her own. It was a risk, she knew, but she had no choice. If she was right, then he had entirely failed to see her opening. With no small amount of pride, she saw his face grow slack as he realized his mistake. Then, suddenly, she had him. He went still.

“I’ll admit, you had me on the ropes,” she said. “But true victory requires an iron will. And you just don’t have what it takes.” With a final blow, she left him defeated.

Rek sat back in his chair and laughed. Sahan grinned diabolically, taking a drink from her cup.

On the table between them was a small, square stone board, inlaid with a grid of etched lines. Within the square spaces outlined therein was a tangle of flat, rectangular stone game pieces, stacked on top of one another in what resembled towers of books.

“I told you,” Sahan gloated, “I’ve got a knack for these things.”

“And I should have believed you,” Rek conceded with a smile. “Storms, but you’ve got a mind like an axehound's jaw, woman. Two games and you’ve already got it mastered.”

“Well, I wouldn’t say mastered,” she said. “But I appreciate the complement. Now, I believe we’re about to open, and you’ve just won an extra shift.”

Rek groaned, standing. He moved away from their table near the bartop while she cleared and stored the game in a series of cinch bags. “Where shall I store this?” she asked.

“Under the bar will be fine,” he said, taking chairs from tabletops. “Open the doors, will you?”

After setting the board and bags on a shelf underneath the back side of the bar, Sahan obliged, lifting the heavy crossbar and pulling open the heavy stone doors. Immediately, a small crowd of low-Dahn lighteyes began trickling into the tavern. Guardsmen, scribes, and minor military officers made their way inside, jackets unbuttoned and hair loose.

Sahan weaved her way back behind the bar into the storage room, where they kept barrels of wine, extra chairs, and spare clay cups. She sat on a stool, letting the slightly muffled sound of the crowd wash over her.

The entry to the storage room was at an angle such that she could see out behind the bar and about half of the body of the room, but it was difficult for patrons to see inside. It made for a great roost on nights like these – when she had no work to do, but had to stay anyway. Tonight was a Highstorm night.

This tavern, the Shalebark Bloom, was also a storm shelter. It was a favorite of ninth and tenth Dahn lighteyes, who enjoyed having a place to socialize with those of their own station, without cramming into public shelters with the darkeyes.

She observed Rek as he began tending bar. They were quite a pair, in her estimation. He was in his early thirties, contrasting Sahan’s twenty-two. Where her hair was a permanently damp Alethi black to her shoulders, Rek had a receding line of red veden hair, kept short. She also technically outranked him, being herself a tenner to his first nahn, but she felt no shame in being something like his protege. When she’d first come to Kharbranth looking for work a year ago, he’d given her a place behind his bar and hadn’t asked questions. They’d been friends since, and he had made it his quest to search all of Roshar for a game of skill he could best her at. He hadn’t succeeded yet.

She didn’t startle when she noticed the spiderwebbing pattern of cracks crawling up the stone doorframe separating her den and the bar. She just reached into her pocket and retrieved a small, rectangular block of flint.

Dusk spoke. “Not going to mingle?”

“Nope,” she replied casually. She took a shallow breath, drawing in a pinch of stormlight.

“Hoping to see someone?” He asked, somewhat jokingly.

She snorted as she coated her thumbnail in light. “Not likely. She’s bound to be feasting with some noble house tonight. Besides, the storm will be hitting any second now. Doors are closed.” With her stromlight-covered nail, the flicked the block of flint. The magically enhanced friction between her it and the stone caused a small flurry of sparks to spill onto the stone floor.

At the bar, the men – there were three of them, it looked like – were still talking to Rek.

“I wish you wouldn’t do that,” Dusk said. “It’s not why you have the power.”

“I never agreed to power,” she argued.

“You said the words.”

“You don’t want me to stop. You just want me out there, jumping from rooftops and performing feats of daring-do.”

“I emphatically do not want you jumpting from rooftops,” Dusk hurried to reply, a curl of smoke rising from the maze of fractures that were his body.

“I don’t hear you denying the other thing.” Flick; more sparks. A flamespren rose up from the ground, red like hot iron and dancing slowly, lethargically.

“As a matter of fact, I think a little daring-do would be good for your health.”

“Well I don't. I...” Sahan trailed off.

At the bar, Rek had gone still, his arms raised in a gesture of surrender. The men across the bar had grown aggressive, looming over him.

Cold ran down Sahan’s spine. One of the men – tan, with thaylen eyebrows – thrust a finger at Rek’s chest, scowling.

Dusk crackled. “Kid?” She was stock-still. The stormlight within her was pushing her up, to her feet. She forced herself not to move with an effort of will. It was like holding her breath too long underwater.

“Sahan,” Dusk hissed urgently. “Help him.”

The noise of the crowd hadn’t faltered; no one had noticed the altercation. No one but her.

She stayed still. “Dusk, I-”

She watched as Rek took a cloth sack from one of the men, filled it with spheres, and handed it back. She could see his hands shaking even from so far away.

Dusk’s voice was quiet when he spoke again; he almost sounded younger. “Please, Sahan.”

The last of her stormlight puffed from her lips. “No,” she said. “I won’t.”

The men, satisfied with their takings, turned and walked out of the Shalebark and into the riddens.

part 1

[gal-palanaeum]

Thinking, Overthinking, and a Pile of Letters by bridgeboy

Rated General, 6000 words, Khriss/Design and Cord/Rysn A philosophical treatise on the nature of love, masquerading as a fanfiction about two dorky scholars meeting for the first time. Design has questions, Khriss has answers... maybe. Beware spoilers across the cosmere!

Despite having her own office, Khriss preferred doing her research in the university's enormous library. Proximity to massive amount of information played into it, of course, but the bigger reason was that it was easier to get away from people and actually focus on her research. Her office was known to everyone at the university—why, it was known to practically everyone in Silverlight itself—and as a result, she had frequent visitors. The library, meanwhile, may as well have been a maze. It was easy to find a quiet corner far from distractions, and Khriss made a point to never hole up in the same study nook twice in a row; that helped make it much harder for people to find her on purpose. Of course, she'd still see other people as they wandered by, but they were just other users of the library; they never actually disrupted her.

Usually, at least.

Khriss looked up in surprise when she heard the scrape of someone pulling out the chair across from her. She'd been poring over maps of Western Roshar, and she'd been so absorbed in her thoughts she hadn't heard the newcomer approach.

They appeared to be a human woman, although Khriss knew that didn't necessarily mean much. Her long white hair was piled on top of her head in a messy bun, and a tight, dark green dress showed off her frankly stunning curves. She seemed to be looking over the piles of assorted notes that were spread across the table.

"What are you working on?" the stranger asked.

Khriss ignored the question. "Who are you?" She was happy to talk about her work, but she wouldn't tell just anybody about it.

"My name is Design," the stranger said cheerily. She picked up one of the maps and started scanning it over.

Khriss wrinkled her brow, searching her memory for how she knew that name… Hoid's spren. Of course. She relaxed; Hoid was a pain in the ass, but he could be trusted—well, he could be trusted with knowledge of Khriss's current project, at least.

"I'm Khriss," she said. "I'm currently trying to get to the bottom of how a simple merchant on Roshar got a hold of one of the Dawnshards."

"Oh, Hoid told me about you. The famous scholar!" Design grinned. "Have you tried lifting up all your notes and checking underneath? Or… wait… that was a figure of speech, wasn't it?"

Khriss raised an eyebrow, then nodded slowly. She'd never actually met a Cryptic in person, but she'd read about their tendency to take things far too literally. "So Hoid is in town, then? What's he working on?"

"I'm honestly not sure!" Design let the map drop back to the table, eyeing a stack of letters. "Something about Aons, probably. Or Awakening. Something with an A. He said he didn't need my help but now I'm bored. Can I look through those?" She pointed at the letters.

"Uh, sure." With her concentration broken and distraction-free environment disrupted, there wasn't really any point in trying to get much work done at this point. Khriss decided she'd indulge a few questions from Design, then send the spren on her way.

Meanwhile, Design helped her self to the letters and began reading through them. Khriss couldn't help but notice how quickly she moved from one letter to the next—much faster than the average human could read. Fascinating. Would Design be interested in letting herself be timed?

Barely a moment passed before Design looked up. "The note on top is right, I don't see anything in here about Dawnshards." She wrinkled her nose and frowned. "Why are the letters written in two different languages? Also, does my facial expression look sufficiently confused? I still have a hard time getting confusion right. It doesn't come up much."

"You look kind of confused but mostly annoyed."

"Damnation, I'll have to practice that some more. Anyways, the languages? It would be more logical for them both to pick one to have their conversation in."

Khriss nodded. "It's because they were in love," she explained. "From what I can tell, they were practicing each other's native tongues."

Design quirked an eyebrow. "What does learning a new language have to do with love? They seem to like each other from all the 'I miss you' stuff but what does language factor in?"

Khriss sat back in her chair. How was she supposed to explain this? "Doing nice things for someone is a way to show you love them, through your actions instead of your words. Learning someone's native language so that they can understand you better is a really big action, and a really kind thing to do for another person."

Design hummed thoughtfully. "Would solving a complex math problem for someone show that you loved them?"

"Um. I guess so? If the person on the receiving end was really struggling and needed help."

"Does that mean all teachers are in love with their students?"

"No, definitely not."

"Why?"

"You don't have to be in love with someone to care about them."

"What's the difference between loving and caring?"

Khriss opened her mouth to reply, then stopped. There was a difference, of course, but Design's questions had her all turned around. "I… I need to think about that. It's hard to explain."

"Okay!" Design said, surprisingly chipper given that her question hadn't actually been answered. She put down the stack of letters and stood. "Thanks for the chat!"

And then she walked away, leaving Khriss sitting alone in stunned silence.

Keep reading

[femmefaggot]

need a totk like map for roshar and shadesmar

[dont-eat-the-algae]

Got my hemp hand inked map of Roshar today!

[rhetoricandlogic]

Wind and Truth - Brandon Sanderson

Wind and Truth sticks the landing for The Stormlight Archive's first arc (SPOILER-FREE review)

The fifth book in Brandon Sanderson's Stormlight Archive is here at last. We've read it and are here to give you a SPOILER-FREE review of what awaits you on Roshar.

Book review: Wind and Truth by Brandon Sanderson

Let's start with the set up. At the heart of The Stormlight Archive is a growing conflict between the Knights Radiant — led by characters like Dalinar Kholin, Shallan Davar, and Kaladin Stormblessed — and the forces of Odium, a deity who has bent the indigenous Parshendi people of Roshar to his will. Over the course of the first four books we watched the Knights Radiant return after they'd vanished in ancient times, and ultimately Dalinar agreed to a contest of champions with Odium to settle the fate of Roshar once and for all.

The previous book, Rhythm of War, largely covered the occupation of the Radiant tower of Urithiru. After Odium's forces were ousted from the place, Dalinar and Odium agreed the cost of this war was becoming steep enough to warrant a contest of champions: in 10 days time, they would bring their chosen heroes forth, and the lines of conquest would freeze on the map. Whatever the two factions had managed to capture by that point, they would keep. And whoever won the contest would receive an extra boon: if the Radiants were victorious, Odium would return several precious kingdoms to humanity; if Odium was the victor, Dalinar would be forced to become his general on a campaign to conquer the wider Cosmere beyond Roshar.

Those are some pretty lofty stakes to kick off Wind and Truth, and that's not even getting into the minutiae of characters like Kaladin, Shallan, Dalinar's son Adolin, and the assassin Szeth. Kaladin began the series as a fairly typical Chosen One hero, but Sanderson flipped that idea on its head in Rhythm of War by having Kaladin try — desperately — to retire from fighting after years of it have utterly traumatized him. Instead of being the war hero everyone expects him to be at this crucial moment, Kaladin essentially becomes the world's first therapist, because he's suffered so long with depression and trauma that it's given him an innate understanding for how to help others with their own darkness.

Meanwhile, Shallan finally made peace with the fact that she has multiple personality disorder while journeying through the Spren dimension of Shadesmar, her husband Adolin at her side. Szeth embraced his path as a Skybreaker and swore himself to serve Dalinar Kholin. And atop it all, Odium shed his previous incarnation and inhabited an even more dangerous avatar.

With a new Odium on the rise as the contest of champions nears, Wind and Truth has a great starting point. The book only gets better from there, with an ending that is among the best Sanderson has ever written. I won't lie to you, I cried at one point. It's emotional to see big conclusions to this chapter of The Stormlight Archive, and Sanderson took some frankly wild risks as he sets up what comes next. It's hard for me to imagine any Cosmere fan being disappointed with this book.

The Format

Something that is very interesting to me about Wind and Truth is the format, which in some ways is indicative of the larger ethos of this work. So far, The Stormlight Archive is probalby the most static series in Sanderson's catalog from a format perspective. Each book is broken into five distinct parts, with interludes peppered in between. There are lots of little formatting traditions Sanderson follows in Stormlight, right down to the titles: when they're all put together they roughly form a "ketek," a symmetrical poem unique to Roshar.

Wind and Truth shows that, despite how entrenched he has gotten in his way of constructing stories in the Cosmere, Sanderson is still willing to take some risks. The format for Wind and Truth is different, which I don't feel is a spoiler since it's been talked about openly at this point, including at Reactorwhere they've been sharing sample chapters from the novel. Instead of the usual five-part format, Wind and Truth covers each of the 10 days leading up to the contest of champions, with the usual interludes between.

The downside to this is that this novel takes place over a fairly short amount of time compared to, say, The Way of Kings, which spanned years. But thanks to some pretty bold narrative choices, it doesn't always feel like it takes place over that short an amount of time. These are 10 of the most important days in the history of Roshar, and Sanderson makes the most of them.

The Plot & Characters

Now let's touch on some of the most important elements for any story: the plot and characters. The Stormlight Archive is known for huge sweeping arcs that leave readers in awe by the end, full of twists and turns, betrayals and battles. They also feature many of Sanderson's most iconic characters, like Kaladin Stormblessed and Shallan Davar. Does Wind and Truth live up to the rest of the series?

What I'll say is that Wind and Truth is an interestingbook in more ways than one. I am firmly of the opinion that it's one of the best novels in The Stormlight Archive, but some aspects of it might divide fans a bit, similar to the fourth book, Rhythm of War. My journey with this book went something like "wow, this is incredible" followed by "oh, this is a little weird. Do I like this?" followed by "oh my god, this is incredible." This book is a journey, and I expect readers' feelings will shift as they read. But overall, I'd say that Wind and Truth managed to bring this first arc of The Stormlight Archive to a head in admirable fashion. I was left extremely satisfied by the time I finished. And the "Sanderlanche" — the bombardment of climactic events Sanderson tends to put at the end of his books — is very real here.

As for how Sanderson handles the characters, once again, he nails it. The Stormlight Archive isn't always even-handed with its characters; different books pull different ones to the forefront, which means others linger in the background. For example, Szeth played a relatively small role in Rhythm of War while Navani Kholin became one of the main characters. In previous books, Navani played a much smaller role while others got more page time.

Since Wind and Truth is the end of this arc and there's a 10-year time jump around the corner, Sanderson couldn't get away with that quite as easily. Instead, he strikes a balance between all of the major players introduced so far, giving each of them time to shine. He also spends a lot of time building up some other characters who will presumably be even more important in the back half of the series. And he takes some of the more unexpected character developments from previous books, like Kaladin becoming Roshar's first therapist, and builds on them in a way that feels reverent to their entire character arc from the beginning of the series. So while I do anticipate fans having some complicated feelings about some of the plot decisions in Wind and Truth, personally, I think Sanderson knocked it out of the park.

The Writing

Another thing I was curious about heading into Wind and Truth was, obviously, the actual writing itself. Now, if you're this deep into the Cosmere, you know what to expect from Brandon Sanderson; he can be a bit goofy with his sense of humor, throws in some modern parlance, etc. I don't hold any of that against him, because if you're on book five of The Stormlight Archive, you should already know whether you like his style or not.

The gauge for me is how Wind and Truth stacks up to Sanderson's own previous works and standards. I always thought that the prose in the third book in The Stormlight Archive, Oathbringer, was a little looser than usual, perhaps because Sanderson wrote it while coming off an insanely exhausting tour schedule for the previous book, Words of Radiance, that was so bad it made him "physically ill." For whatever reason, that's something that has always stuck out in my mind; Oathbringer was a solid book, but is still probably my least favorite in The Stormlight Archive.

Wind and Truth is the opposite. This is an immense novel, and it's obvious Sanderson tried really hard to get it right. The prose in this is among the best Sanderson has ever written. It can get a little weighty and philosophical at times...but honestly, that's something I've always enjoyed about The Stormlight Archive. He strikes the balance really well between those moments and others where he unleashes his full capacity to write thrilling action scenes.

The Setting

The setting itself has always been one of the strongest aspects of The Stormlight Archive; there just aren't any other fantasy worlds out there quite like Roshar, with its shelled plants, highstorms, crab-like animals and dramatic vistas. Obviously, returning to Roshar will always come with a certain amount of wonder.

However, this is one aspect of Wind and Truth where Sanderson spends a little less time than usual. We've already spent ample time getting to know the world of The Stormlight Archive, so there isn't as much of a need to describe the landscape as in the previous books. For the most part, I didn't mind that, but I did miss some of the wonder those early books gave me with their focus on just how strange the little details were compared to our own world. A large part of Wind and Truth also deals with the Spiritual Realm, and while Sanderson does describe that setting really well, by its very nature it's a much more nebulous place. So while the setting has always been a highlight in Stormlight, I found it to be a little less so in Wind and Truth.

The big exception to this is Shinovar, which is easily my favorite setting of the novel. In Wind and Truth we see this new location from Szeth's native perspective as well as the perspective of someone who is used to the rest of Roshar's rockier landscape. I devoured every second of the Shinovar storyline and think Sanderson did a wonderful job portraying its landscape, history, and culture.

The Flashbacks

Another aspect I want to shout out is the flashbacks; so far, we've learned about a different character's past in each book. It's no secret at this point that the flashbacks in Wind and Truth are from the perspective of Szeth-son-Neturo, the mysterious assassin who kickstarted the events of the series when he murdered Dalinar's brother, King Gavilar. Szeth has undergone a lot of change throughout the series, and at last, we get to find out how he became the morose assassin we met at the start of The Way of Kings.

Szeth's flashbacks are something which have a certain mystique about them in the fandom, because Sanderson originally planned to include them all the way back in the third book. Then they got bumped to book four, and then finally to Wind and Truth. "It felt natural not to delve into his story until I got to the end [ofThe Stormlight Archive’s first half]. It matched what I was planning to do in this book for reasons I won’t say," Sanderson told Esquirein a recent interview.

Roshar & the Cosmere

The last aspect of Wind and Truth I want to discuss is how this book relates to the wider Cosmere. Since this is the culmination of the first part of The Stormlight Archive, and we're now at a point in the Cosmere where things are starting to cross over a bit, you might be wondering if this is a novel you need to have done a lot of homework to understand. Will this have an Avengers-level amount of references and easter eggs? Will it still be comprehensible if you haven't read all seven Mistborn books, Warbreaker, Elantris, and all the various short fiction of the Cosmere?

My answer to that is yes...and no. Sanderson has long held that each discreet series in the Cosmere is meant to stand on its own, without requiring you to read everything else. But if you do read all the rest, you'll get more out of them. I think that's especially true of Wind and Truth. I vascilated between feeling like this was a very Roshar-centered book (as it should be), and one which felt like a gateway to the story of the wider Cosmere. It has a lot of references to other Cosmere books, but even if you miss them, you'll still absolutely be able to enjoy Wind and Truth. This is, first and foremost, a Stormlight Archive book, and that is what gets the main focus.

However, Wind and Truth also feels like the book that finally brings the conflict of the wider Cosmere into focus in some pretty major ways. The deep lore of the Cosmere has largely been confined to fan wikis and interviews with Sanderson, but at long last, it's starting to become relevant. Even better, it's becoming relevant in a way that feels organic, rather than just tacked on so Sanderson can expand his MCU-style book universe.

If that intimidates you a little, I'd say don't worry. I'm going to give you two specific examples of how my own ignorance didn't impact my reading experience at all. The first is a reference to a name from one of Sanderson's other Cosmere books, which I read years ago. When I hit that reference in Wind and Truth, I knew on some level that I should know what it meant, but couldn't quite remember which book it was from. But I kept reading, and after I finished, I circled back to the internet and did some digging. Then my mind was absolutely blown. But in the moment, it didn't impact my reading experience whatsoever, aside from knowing a few sentences were more important than I could fully wrap my head around.

The other is that, I am ashamed to admit, I haven't yet read The Lost Metal, the final book in Mistborn Era 2 (I was waiting forever for the mass market paperback release, because they need to match on my shelf, damn it). Even though I haven't read it, I know The Lost Metal has important implications for the wider Cosmere, which undoubtedly have relevance to Wind and Truth. But my enjoyment of Wind and Truth was in no way diminished by not having read it; if anything, it just makes me more excited to get to The Lost Metal now.

Verdict

At the end of the day, Wind and Truth is a special book. We live in a time where dozens of new fantasy and science fiction books are released every single month...which just makes The Stormlight Archive stand even further apart. Sanderson is a master storyteller, and here he brings every tool in his arsenal to bear to create a massive epic that can stand alongside the genre's best. This isa dense fantasy book made for people who love big dense fantasy books; it's not trying to pretend it's more mainstream just for broader appeal. Since I'm one of those fantasy nerds who loves a door-stopper, that just makes me love it more.

Wind and Truth sticks the landing for the first arc of The Stormlight Archive, while opening new doors for the bold next chapter of the Cosmere. If you've been enjoying the journey, I think you're going to be really pleased with this destination.

[gebracrafters]

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[softness-and-shattering]

, Not a lore master here. I assume the pale is very tall. They have planes, right? And they always have to travel through it, I dont think I remember anything about flying above it.

Idk if there has to be atmosphere, they might not even be on a planet, right?

Im thinking about Sanderson's Roshar, and how the map shape is based on a specific, though possibly obscure, natural phenomenon. "A 3d slice of a 4d Julia set" which, yeah, means absolutely nothing to me. No idea what that is. However. I wonder if the world of DE is similarly based on something real, if people with the right knowledge set could figure it out. I dont remember the exact description but if iirc it was pretty specific, either in a book or in conversation with Joyce.

Re "after pale, life again", I wonder if theres an in-world basis of truth at all, or maybe its a kind of afterlife wish. As they experience the pale, its the end of all life, so maybe theyre hoping theres somehow life on the other side again.

(Im thinking now about motorway south and like. You ever had a dream meet a dead end, cannot proceed, and your sleeping mind kinda freaks out and hopes to wake up immediately? I wonder if its like that. Every direction you turn is pale. Do you die? Do you become like a ghost?)

My other thought is about pale and time. In the indecisive middleman...moralist! quest, you hear Kim through the pale/radio saying its cold, but he doesnt speak that line till you get to the islet in the bay. The pale echoes back and forward in time. Of it swallows all, maybe it also births all too. I feel like the phasmid said something relevant but I cant quite twig the memory.

more questions about pale for lore masters! first one, how tall is pale? i assume elysium has some sort of atmosphere, so does it fill the space all the way up to it or is it somewhat heavy and stays closer to the ground? second one, since the saying goes "after pale, life again", is there any known theory to how does pale dissolve after it has covered everything/made everything disappear? is it just the absence of humans that makes it slowly decompose since no new input is added to it? i wonder how many hundreds or thousands of years it would take for it to be fully gone again?