Found 16 entries in 0.085 seconds.
Questioner
Do Everstorms bring a different type of Investiture?
Brandon Sanderson
Yes, though do note, the Everstorm, this is the first one. Previous Desolations did not have an Everstorm. What they had was a different way of that Investiture being distributed.
R'Shara
How many times did a Herald break and let the Fused return to Roshar?
Brandon Sanderson
Oh, so how many Desolations were there, total?
R'Shara
Between the Oathpact and Aharietiam?
Brandon Sanderson
Not as many as people say there are.
R'Shara
More than fifty, less than fifty?
Brandon Sanderson
I would guess offhand more than fifteen, but not much more. That's the sort of thing I just have to look at the timeline on. You're catching me flat-footed on that one. I would have to go look. Not as many as they think, but more than fifteen.
R'Shara
More than fifteen? Okay, because I actually asked more than fifty.
Brandon Sanderson
Oh you asked more than fifty. More than fifteen, less than fifty.
Questioner
I have a bit of a problem with the first Desolation timeline. I'm wondering how old were the Heralds when they became Heralds.
Brandon Sanderson
The age that you would see them as when you met them. They basically are the age they look. When they became Heralds, they are the age that they appeared.
Questioner
So they were like in their younger middle age?
Brandon Sanderson
Some of them. I mean Ishar is older.
Questioner
So that means that the entire timeline of the first Desolation happened within a single lifetime?
Brandon Sanderson
A lot of the ancient chronologies are wrong and you won't get the actual answers until the Heralds themselves explain it in their flashback sequences in the back five.
Questioner
You've said that the Heralds came over from Ashyn.
Brandon Sanderson
Yes.
Questioner
Okay. How old were they then?
Brandon Sanderson
Younger than they were when they became Heralds.
EHyde
Were there Desolations before there were humans on Roshar?
Brandon Sanderson
No.
Shawn M. Halversen
(paraphrased)
I asked him about the time between each of the original 99 desolations.
Brandon Sanderson
(paraphrased)
It turns out that the number 99 in the stories was made up, and that there were much fewer of them. He also then stated that the cosmere runs along a 10,000 year gap and that Roshar falls right into the middle of the timeline. He ended with "That should give you a perspective of the timeline and events of the desolations".
Kogiopsis
Is the time between Desolations regular?
Brandon Sanderson
No.
luke.spence
(paraphrased)
What caused a Desolation to end? Was it just the defeat of Odium's forces? Because the Desolations start when the Heralds break under torture.
Brandon Sanderson
(paraphrased)
Because the Heralds can no longer be in existence. There is a certain period of time that they can be there, and after that, if they're there, they will start a new one. So the Heralds do need to leave for a Desolation to end
darkanimereal1
(paraphrased)
Oh. So they've got a time limit.
Brandon Sanderson
(paraphrased)
They do. Otherwise the Desolation will start again. What they discovered is not all of them have to. As long as one remains, the Desolation will not start again.
luke.spence
(paraphrased)
So, by the nine leaving, did that actually break the Oathpact for them? Did it change the cycle of Desolations?
Brandon Sanderson
(paraphrased)
They have not completely broken the Oathpact, despite what they may think.
CaptainRyan
Prior to the death of Gavilar, had nine (9) Desolations occurred? If not, can you please share how many have happened?
Brandon Sanderson
No... but no.
chocolatechoux
Hello Mr. Sanderson. This is probably too late but I just wanted to ask what ends a desolation? Is it mainly about winning the battles or is the fighting just about holding out and buying time for something else?
Brandon Sanderson
It involves the departure of the Heralds.
Stormlightning
Were there Radiants on the Voidbringers' side in ancient Desolations?
Brandon Sanderson
I will RAFO this for now. Excellent question. There were humans on their side, and there were occasionally singers on the humans' side.
XS-Terrain
Is each Herald only broken once for each Desolation, thus making there nine Desolations, or are they broken multiple times?
Brandon Sanderson
There are more than nine Desolations.
Kogiopsis
Finally, what point, usually, is society at when a Desolation comes? Because Taln was prepared to introduce them to bronze...
Brandon Sanderson
Yes.
Kogiopsis
...and Alethi society is so far beyond that.
Brandon Sanderson
Yes. Historically a lot of the-- What would happen with the Desolations would destroy all civilization and then the Heralds would leave, and leave people basically in the Stone Age again. And they came back numerous times and found humankind still in the Stone Age, after having left. And so they are prepared-- Sometimes they would come back and they would already be in the Bronze Age or-- and things like that and get them beyond that but frequently they had to be ready, the Heralds learned they had to be ready to try and bring humankind forward several thousand years worth of technology in a year.
Shadow Guardian
<At one point it says> that there were 99 Desolations before the Final Desolation, in the Prelude. Was there actually 99?
Brandon Sanderson
Nope, there were not actually 99. That is a mythological relic. Like the 40 days and 40 nights may well be a metaphor for "a lot" ...Good question.
Questioner
At the start of previous Desolations, how long would it take the Fused to get back after one of the Heralds broke?
Brandon Sanderson
I'll RAFO that for now. I'm gonna be digging into it. We will have some-- I'm just going to RAFO it.
Telen
How would a Desolation look like on another Shardworld? Would it look different or just more or less similar?
Brandon Sanderson
The term "Desolation" isn't really a cosmere-wide term. It's a Rosharan word for a specific type of event that happens there--and so I have no context for what it would mean no other worlds.
Darkness
(paraphrased)
Previous to the heralds giving up, could the Desolations be mathematically predicted, kind of like highstorms?
Brandon Sanderson
(paraphrased)
Umm… no.