Questioner 1
How did Marsh survive for so three hundred years and *inaudible*?
Brandon Sanderson
Compounding atium. He got a little pouch that one of the kandra gets sent out with if you watch, and then Marsh shows up and he has the pouch.
Questioner 2
<When is that>?
Brandon Sanderson
Go look for the little pouch of atium.
Questioner
In Well of Ascension, Zane: how and when did he get spiked?
Brandon Sanderson
That is an excellent question. That someday I will answer, but not right now.
Questioner
I was wondering if you were planning on writing anything else in the Elantris world?
Brandon Sanderson
Yes. There will be some more [clipped off]. Yeah. I'm going to do some more full books. I'd like to get Shai into things a little bit more, but I don't wanna ruin The Emperor's Soul by writing a bad sequel. Mmhmm, you know, it just turned out so well.
Questioner
Calamity, it is just, because it talks about it always being in the sky. Is it hovering above North America or is that a global thing?
Brandon Sanderson
You will find out in the next book.
Questioner
I was wondering if there was any update on the movies, similar to video games?
Brandon Sanderson
The movies are moving along better. They're taking some time, but they are moving along better. I think, right now the farthest along are going to be Steelheart and Emperor's Soul.
Questioner
Okay. Are they like in production right now?
Brandon Sanderson
No. They are in screenplays. So, yeah, nothing's really gotten done.
Questioner
Are you writing the screenplays?
Brandon Sanderson
I'm writing the treatments.
Questioner
Okay.
Brandon Sanderson
I don't want to write the screenplays but I can do the treatments.
Questioner
Thing about Stormlight, are you kinda writing a series about the nature of abstraction?
Brandon Sanderson
Kinda yeah see…*recording paused* journey before destination.
Questioner
Yeah, that is my favorite, so far. I mean I don’t know all the orders yet. Because that is...I’m looking forward to the rest of it.
Brandon Sanderson
It is, the nature of abstraction and that sort of stuff is a very big part of it.
Questioner
Are Steelpush and Ironpull strictly momentum conserving
Brandon Sanderson
I believe they are, Peter has the math, but I believe that they are. You are not losing anything to the cognitive and spiritual realms, if that’s you are asking. You are pulling energy from those places, but only to cause the push/pull.
Questioner
There is quantitative difference in Allomancy (e.g. Elend is stronger than Vin), there is skill difference (e.g. Breeze is better than Vin with zinc), but is there a qualitative difference too?
Brandon Sanderson
That’s the scale of what we call savant. Wax can do more with less. It’s not just skill, the burning for long, using for so long, will actually adapt your soul to the power.
Questioner
So can bronze savants pierce copperclouds?
Brandon Sanderson
Yes, a bronze savant should be able to pierce copperclouds. It depends on the strengths of the coppercloud and the strength of the savant, but yes.
Questioner
So Elend could theoretically learn to pierce copperclouds?
Brandon Sanderson
Weaker ones, yeah, totally. He can learn how to do it by brute force.
Questioner
Is aluminum shielding from emotional Allomancy strictly line of sight? So, can someone in the basement bypass somebody’s aluminum hat on the first floor
Brandon Sanderson
No, they could not. You just put enough aluminum there and it disrupts.
Questioner
So it disrupts like a field.
Brandon Sanderson
Yep.
Questioner
Navani’s emotion fabrial, are those correspondent to the Thaylen Passions in any way?
Brandon Sanderson
Yes, but the Thaylen Passions would’ve come second to some of this.
Questioner
So through a cultural filter?
Brandon Sanderson
Yes. There is no magic to the Thaylen Passions, they are a religion but with no magical component. Sometimes a religion is just a religion.
Questioner
Is crem something like spren poop? Or similar, because I know poop is important.
Brandon Sanderson
It's more like... Yes, but it’s more like... Shard poop?
Questioner
Do you have a name for the division or the veil between realms? Like what separates the Cognitive from the Spiritual from the Physical?
Brandon Sanderson
I’ve had like three of four different names, and I don't think I've settled on one yet.
Questioner
Could-- would Odium ever work with another Shard? Maybe not pick up another one--
Brandon Sanderson
If he were in charge. Yes, this is within the realm of possibility of what Odium would do. In fact, that may have happened at various points *sly smile*.
Questioner
What would happen--
Imagine I had-- imagine Wayne is standing near the end of an aluminium tube. He tries to set up a speed bubble such that he radius would go through the tube, what would happen?
Brandon Sanderson
Okay standing at the end of an aluminum tube, well I don't know--
Oh I see what you're saying. Yeah, yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah. I think that if it's trying to be set up through aluminum it's gonna' disrupt it, you're gonna' have that sort of the "backlash" that you get when-- yeah.
Questioner
Oh so you can't even set it, it won't be there *inaudible*--
Brandon Sanderson
I don't think you can set it up, I think it's gonna' cause it to collapse the second that it tries to pop up around the aluminum.
Questioner
Okay that makes sense.
Brandon Sanderson
[...]
Yeah, it's probably gonna' act like you tried to set up a speed bubble on something that's too small and moving.
Questioner
Can all Shards have champions?
Brandon Sanderson
This is a, um, Theoretically possible, but you will find more about the backstory of why this works here.
Questioner
Aradel doesn’t sound like he is from Scadrial, seems out of place with his dark - well, tanned, - skin.
Brandon Sanderson
Aradel is actually based off Goradel, he is a descendant of his. So he is local. The skin, there are streaks of dark skin in Scadrial, they don’t associate them 100% with ethnicities because of the small [gene] pool they were building from, and they are stronger in the Terris bloodlines. So if they see someone with darker skin they will likely think they are from Terris, but there’s so much intermixing so that you can’t really say. Wax would have a darker complexion, maybe like a tanned caucasian.
Questioner
When Marasi goes into the carriage with the Soother & Rioter pair - were they really a Soother and a Rioter?
Brandon Sanderson
Why do you ask?
Questioner
I have a feeling that one of them was not an emotional Allomancer.
Brandon Sanderson
I believe that they were, yeah. I’m not gonna string you out on that one.
Questioner
What were Wayne and Hoid talking about outside the carriage?
Brandon Sanderson
RAFO
Questioner
Is it possible for spren to move from one planet to another?
Brandon Sanderson
It is possible for them to get to other planets. They are tied to certain realms… A lot of them reside in the cognitive realm and are pulled into the physical by their bonds--
Questioner
Would they bring the same magics?
Brandon Sanderson
That you will have to wait and see.
Questioner
If a Mistborn burned both cadmium and bendalloy at the same time, would the bubbles default to the same size?
Brandon Sanderson
That's an excellent question that I'm not gonna' to answer yet; because a lot of people have been asking me it and I want to make sure it comes out in the right way.
Questioner
If they made the bubbles the same size, would there still be a barrier between the space inside and outside?
Brandon Sanderson
That's the question. I'm gonna' RAFO these things.
[...]
In general the cadmium bubbles are bigger than the bendalloy bubbles, but you can influence the size.
Questioner
Somebody said that you were writing “hands all red” in all the books, can you tell me what that means?
Brandon Sanderson
It’s just a line from the book I feel captures the tone of the book well.
Questioner
I read some stuff, it’s pretty old, about the sequel to Elantris. Are you still planning on doing it, and is it the same thing?
Brandon Sanderson
It’s still the same thing, and I’m still planning to do Sarene’s uncle, Kiin, and his family as the main characters.
Questioner
And do we get to learn more about the monks, the Dakhor?
Brandon Sanderson
The Dakhor, yes. You will find more about them, it will take place over in, uh, Fjorden.
Questioner
I was wondering about the Ryshadium. So, they can’t be tamed, so where do you go to [get them from]?
Brandon Sanderson
You will find out some of this in Book 3.
Questioner
Do you think we are likely to get another story in the Shadows for Silence in the Forests of Hell world?
Brandon Sanderson
Yeah, you’ll probably get another story in the same world, just different characters.
Brandon Sanderson
Brandon recommended the writings of Brent Weeks and Brian McClellan multiple times to various questioners asking for authors with a similar writing style to Brandon. Especially the book The Black Prism.
Questioner
I was wondering, is Nightblood a Shardblade?
Brandon Sanderson
Nightblood is an attempt by someone who didn’t know how Shardblades were made to create a Shardblade using a different magic system.
Questioner
How does Harmony know about radio?
Brandon Sanderson
There are actually two answers to this. First, Harmony was given a grand understanding of the laws of the universe during his Ascension. Second, Preservation had some limited precognitive abilities. Either one of those can lead you to the answer.
Questioner
Could an old [Feruchemist] go and transfer his Coppermind to his star pupil using Hemalurgy?
Brandon Sanderson
Like Deliberate…? Right. Ask me that question after you’ve read a few more Mistborn books.
Questioner
Is there a limit to the amount of useful energy that can be extracted from an end-neutral system? Like Skimmers on a Terris wheel on opposite sides.
Brandon Sanderson
So... Skimmers by making their weight lighter, spinning the thing around, and things and then--
Questioner
You got one on opposite sides--
Brandon Sanderson
Yeah you could totally do this. In my mind, the way I work this out is that it's no more-- having people do it and things like this-- yeah you could totally do that. The power for making this happen, you are drawing Spiritual energy into the Physical plane can power your motor. It's not power-negative, it's changing forms.
But in realistic terms that would be so much less cost-effective than other methods because Allomancers are expensive, but yeah you could just keep that going.
Questioner
Same with Lifeless? Telling them to push a wheel around?
Brandon Sanderson
Yeah, the sustenance for life is coming directly from the Spiritual plane. So if you remove that, it wouldn't work. The whole idea from this is that energy is getting recycled back into the Spiritual plane when people are dying and things like that, so...
Questioner
IF they were to fight with a lightsaber and a Shardblade, which would be able to cut through the other?
Brandon Sanderson
Depends on who’s world you're in, that's what I would say. Is Lucas writing it or am I?
Questioner
Well say you are writing it, since we're--
Brandon Sanderson
If I'm writing it I say they bounce off of each other.
Questioner
If an Allomancer found themselves on Nalthis or Roshar, would they be able to use chromium on someone using Stormlight or Breath?
Brandon Sanderson
I am staying away from answering too many questions like that until I start having it happen. But do know that the magics interact... some ways they interact very naturally, some ways, they don’t. One way I’ve released is, you could use bronze on most forms of Investiture to find it. So you can extrapolate that some of these things would work. But not necessarily all. All of them could be made to work.
Questioner
In Shadows for Silence one of the characters refers to “Justice has died here.” Is that the actual Shard of Justice?
Brandon Sanderson
That’s a great theory! (Big grin, raised eyebrows.)
Questioner
So I’ve noticed a certain syllable, “Vo,” that turns up in this book [Warbreaker] and also in Vorinism. Is there supposed to be a link between Vo, the First Returned, because there seem to be a great deal of similarities between the monks of Austre and the Ardents.
Brandon Sanderson
So there are, um, more links between the planets than people know about, and I’m not going to confirm or deny anything. But the fact that you’re finding words that are connecting, like Worldsingers and Worldbringers, says that there’s… intentional connections. I’m not [confirming a connection], I’m saying that these theories should not be dismissed out of hand.
Questioner
Do the glyphs on Roshar have any fundamental connection to [the geography? Some confusion about if they’re connected to Sel
Brandon Sanderson
I’m not going to answer that yet, since I’m going to dig into what’s happening on Sel later.
Questioner
Does Alloy of Law take place after the whole Stormlight sequence?
Brandon Sanderson
I have not nailed down the exact timing, but it’s at least after book 5 of Stormlight. Because I haven’t nailed down exactly how long
Questioner
So alternate ending of Well of Ascension … *inaudible* three more spirits… *inaudible* if another Shard would show up [with the?] mist spirit, is that in [???]
Brandon Sanderson
That’s in *inaudible* There are things you don’t know about the mist spirit yet I am planning to reveal soon.
Questioner
Have we met any of those three yet?
Brandon Sanderson
For what I was planning there, yes, you have.
Questioner
The whole Cosmere thing, is there an end to it, and do you have a specific year in mind for when that will be?
Brandon Sanderson
Yes, there is an end. Here’s what has to be happen before I finish it. We have to do another two Mistborn trilogies, The Stormlight Archive, at least three Dragonsteel novels. That’s the soonest I can do. I’ll probably have to do a few more Elantris and Warbreaker, but that’s the minimum. Because the third Mistborn trilogy is where we bring things to a head.
Questioner
Does the spren have to be present for a Surgebinder to have their abilities? Because with Dalinar, the Stormfather won’t be around all the time...
Brandon Sanderson
Good Question! Fortunately, the Stormfather is a little more omnipresent. Normally you’re gonna have to have your spren close, but the Stormfather absorbed... is basically Honor’s Cognitive Shadow, which means he’s got a connection to a lot of different things, so he’s not bound by a lot of the rules that others are.
Questioner
How far away from the original Mistborn trilogy is The Stormlight Archive?
Brandon Sanderson
From the original Mistborn trilogy? 300 years-ish. It’s happening kind of… Just before The Alloy of Law era.
Questioner
Is Stormlight an infinite resource or a finite one?
Brandon Sanderson
Stormlight is a renewing resource.
Questioner
Does Hoid go to the same place the Elantrians are going?
Brandon Sanderson
Yes.
Questioner
In Hero of Ages, I don’t quite understand why… the point of Hoid is in Fadrex, going around the city, gathering information…?
Brandon Sanderson
Not many people do! It’s an intentional secret, I have to wait a little while longer to explain it.
Questioner
What are the odds of making a Stormlight RPG?
Brandon Sanderson
If the Mistborn RPG goes well, maybe in the future.
Questioner
Have we seen Odium’s champion?
Brandon Sanderson
RAFO.
Landis963
(paraphrased)
Imagine a hypothetical Shard of Tenacity. What happens when the Vessel of that Shard dies?
Brandon Sanderson
(paraphrased)
The magic will change drastically. Among other things, it would be very easy for practitioners of that magic to become Cognitive Shadows.
Landis963
(paraphrased)
Is the programming-esque nature of the Dor a product of the power being in the Cognitive Realm or is it for some other reason?
Brandon Sanderson
(paraphrased)
A mixture of the Vessels' personalities, the fact that the power's in the Cognitive Realm, and the nature of Sel's focus.
CrypticVoidbringer
(paraphrased)
When Khriss visits Scadrial, does Harmony know it?
Brandon Sanderson
(paraphrased)
*written* Some times He does. (more often than not, these days...) But it is possible to hide.
*spoken* Khriss doesn't have a lot of reasons to hide. She doesn't mind the attention, usually.
Brandon Sanderson
The short is this: A fan asked if there were any holidays in the Mistborn world. I jokingly said Koloss Head-Munching Day. Fans ran with it.
eKalb
is Koloss Head-Munching Day when people munch on Koloss heads, or Koloss munch on people’s heads? Just want it to be clear.
Brandon Sanderson
It’s the day the koloss celebrate by having a nice head to eat.
vetemix
How do you reason using such specific historic terms as “Messiah” & “utilitaristic” in Mistborn world?
Brandon Sanderson
What you are talking about is sometimes called the “translation question” in regards to fantasy novels.
The book—and the dialogue—weren’t in English & had to be translated. The translation uses similar English words to the originals.
So when the book uses a word like those, the translator from the original Mistborn language feels it is the closest approximation.
CorbyCampbell
‘IronEyes’ at the end of AoL is actually Marsh? It could be any kandra could it not?
Brandon Sanderson
It could be a kandra, but I will tell you specifically that this time it is not. It is him.