#32 - Full Cosmere Spoiler Stream with Brandon Sanderson

I'll be doing a spoiler-filled livestream Thursday night at 6:00 MDT. I will be taking questions from every series so if you're not up to date, and don't want to be spoiled, I would steer clear.

You can also follow me on:

[Rhadagar]

Hi folks. Just a rough set of timestamps for the video. The questions have spoilers. The answers have spoilers. The floor is spoilers. Also, happy Pride month to all 😊!





<Intro>



00:00:00 [We are live. How is the audio?] [Audio is good.]



00:00:19 [What is being covered spoiler wise.]



00:00:36 [Brandon on spoiler streams, R.A.F.O explained and how canon his answers are.]



00:02:18 [Brandon explaining where the questions will come from.]



00:02:48 [Brandon making sure chat gets a chance.]





<Q&A With Brandon - Full Spoilers>



00:04:00 Is there a canonical reason why Vasher and Vivenna changed their names to Zahel and Azure on Roshar?



00:06:20 Science question! With the discovery of anti-investiture in Rhythm of War, would the correct anti-investiture be useful to clear up the mess in the Sel cognitive realm? If so, would this completely destroy a splintered Shard? [Brandon’s face when asked XD]



00:08:44 Will you base a character on Adam and how horrifically will he die? [We are a Team Kathy household!]



00:09:59 If Taravangian had another intellectually “brightest day” before his main event in Rhythm of War, could he have seen the existence of other forms of investiture on Roshar? For example, would he have been able to recognize areas where there is use of sand, allomancy or breath, or would those have been too small for him to notice?



00:10:54 Was Teft’s death part of your plan from the book’s inception or series’ inception, or did you decide it while writing Rhythm of War [Too soon ☹]



00:15:17 How many awakening commands are there? Is there a finite number, a finite but large number or infinite? Can you awaken with sign language?



00:15:47 Can you elaborate a little more on Dalinar killing Elhokar (in previous incarnations of the books)?



00:20:20 Do you have a prediction or estimation of when Horneaters release will be? [This book is going to rock!]



00:23:10 Was Adonalsium bound by any Intentions like the Vessels of the different Shards are or did they have free will because the Intentions balanced each other out? {R.A.F.O counter:1}



00:23:37 First, I wanted you to know how your character development of Kaladin positively impacted me as an Iraq combat veteran who lives with PTSD. I had a period of my life where I did not understand how my PTSD was affecting me and those I care about, just as Kaladin exemplifies in your work. Especially in the last Stormlight book. I found solace in the stability of becoming a social worker and now help homeless veterans navigate civilian life. Your descriptions of Kaladin’s experience with PTSD and other character’s experiences with mental health are great examples of the symptoms people struggle with, and I would like to thank you for brining accurate descriptions to your readers. My question is, how did you prepare and research mental health issues and the specific diagnosis you describe in the Stormlight series? [Well covered in previous streams, but Brandon gets into it again with a few new nuggets of information.]



00:32:24 Do Rosharans believe that their planet is flat?



00:33:42 Are there any Rosharans who believe they float through the void on the back of four great elephants on The Great A’tuin? [From Adam. Also, Sir Terry was taken too soon ☹]



00:34:12 If Brandon got a Shard, what Shard would it be and what would he do with it? [No new name drops.]



00:35:26 If a planet were orbiting a black hole would time be distorted in the Cognitive realm in that area in the same way? [Science!]



00:35:55 Are the strange refractive properties of invested light related to the backwards shadows in the Cognitive realm and Axies the Collector? [That feeling when the answers just mean more questions!] [Brandon seems really fricking happy about this answer XD]



00:36:09 Were the Riders on the Storm on Roshar prior to The Shattering? {R.A.F.O counter:2}



00:36:30 Could Sja-anat heal a deadeye by changing them?



00:36:54 Could a spren bond another spren?



00:37:16 The aviar we see in Sixth of the Dusk were all fruit eaters. They all have to eat the fruit that the grubs live in. However, Mraize’s aviar seems a lot more like a predator than a herbivore. Did his species become extinct or is it a unique aviar like Sek? [I suspect Mraize’s bird ate an aviar and got “infected” that way.]



00:37:53 Do worldhoppers take time to adjust to the gravity of a new world? How about in the Cognitive realm? [Worldtrudgers!]



00:39:28 Is Hoid afraid of the Beyond?



00:39:41 Looking at allomancy you’ve mentioned that over time the power dilutes, and each ability becomes less powerful. For example, a tineye in era two will generally be less powerful than one in era one. Does the same effect happen in feruchemy? How would feruchemy become less pure, or diluted other than ferrings appearing?



00:41:35 Do you have a favourite magic system that you did not create?



00:42:55 Is there going to be a magic system for every Shard?



00:44:44 Is the cognitive anomaly that exists in the Nalthian system orbiting the star or is it stationary? {R.A.F.O counter:3}



00:45:15 What would happen if a radiant spren went to the physical realm through a perpendicularity instead of a natural transition that they usually do? {R.A.F.O counter:4}



00:45:51 Along the lines of biochromatic breath being akin to a person’s soul, how would a shardblade react to someone who does not have any breath? Would it cut them like an inanimate object? [Plot armour from the soul.]



00:51:17 A riddle: What kind of snake can change forms at will? [Took 10 points of psychic damage…]



00:52:38 Is Nightblood considered a Sliver after what happened in Rhythm of War? [Slivers, oh dear…]



00:53:31 If all your main characters competed in a reality tv competition, like Survivor/Big Brother etc, who would win and who would be the first one voted out?



00:55:14 Is Kelsier in Fortnite canon?



00:56:11 Are the Rhythm of War communication devices called Selphones? [XD!!!]



00:56:34 The investiture on Scadrial is genetic. If someone was born from two different mistborns on a different planet, could they be mistborn?



00:56:53 Are there any names you wish you could use for Shards that just don’t fit narratively? [I appreciate the sneakiness of asking about Shard names like this, process of elimination.]



00:57:33 What would the Unkalaki think of the Aiel and vice versa?



00:58:35 If you could write a script for any superhero who would you like to control a story for?



Part 2 as the first reply.

[ninnusridhar]

If I was a shard, I'd create the most broken ass magic system ever. Like with Bethesda level bugs. People have wikis up on how to exploit the system up in 2 weeks. I update the rules every month, removing old bugs, introducing new ones, just to keep the scholars on their toes

[MobBossBobRoss]

He ended the stream saying he wouldn't want to do another era for Cyberpunk Mistborn because then we'd have 16 books in the series... But that is the PERFECT NUMBER OF MISTBORN BOOKS

[snowdayplease]

1:01:55
Brandon: "I wouldn't lose sleep over that."
Me: *doesn't go to bed until 2am because I'm so pumped that Brandon answered my question*

[jamcdonald]

Other authors: I have big plans for the next two books
Brandon Sanderson: I have plans for the next 10000 books

[Asduuggee]

Timestamp guy keep up the goodwork. Take your time putting the timestamps they're really helpful. Thanks for your effort.

[wwfix]

I love that almost giddy yes at 36:04 like he’s so pleased someone’s been paying attention

[luciabee]

I love that he couldn't remember what he'd said Hoid's favorite color was so he answered black off the top of his head. He said black before too!

[captainsirk]

Let's be honest though, if a Cosmere character where to discover how to traverse the multiverse and end up in Fortnite, it would be Kelsier.

[darynherzberg]

"...part of how the magic works is how you view yourself."

[giranamharper]

Adolin's character progression and viewpoints are my favorite. I absolutely love what he's done with him and hope his character gets even bigger (and with the current trend, it sure looks like it will).

[Shimmy]

Brandon you are a wonderful writer and person.

[jeffreyday]

The immediate "Yes you can awaken with sign language" is one of my favorite Brandon things

[urhxor]

I just re-read Final Empire and Secret History as an origin story for Thaidakar... a completely new viewpoint. Funny how Hoid is the villain of Kelsier's story...from a certain point of view.

[chillerkiller]

Can we as a community vouch for the timestamp guy can he get something special from Brandon? He is a real hero!

[NiIIawafer]

Screw the haters when it comes to the Kelsier in Fortnight. I want the most amount of people exposed to Sanderson's works. The more the better.

[TheArchersArms]

You writing mental health as well as you do helps normalize them and that is very important. Thank you

[laiaal.]

1:16:30 that was a really nice explanation for the Odium change, I'm still not sure what I think about it as I am very curious to know more of the vesels of the Shards and their relation to Hoid so I was sad that Rayse was killed just like that, but Taravangian gives so many new possibilities. That answer helps understanding why it was done, really well

[DrakkanWoW]

First time really hearing/seeing Brandon speak or answer questions, and I just finished Emperor's Soul last week to complete the whole Cosmere. Somehow his greatness has been escalated in my mind!

[shumandaniele]

13:00 I'm glad Adolin was expanded, one of my favorite characters.