Miscellaneous 2025

Axies the Collector's Deck of Radiant Spren

- Windrunners: honorspren (Radiant spren), windspren (armor spren)

- Skybreakers: highspren (Radiant spren), gravitationspren (armor spren)

- Dustbringers: ashspren (Radiant spren), flamespren (armor spren)

- Edgedancers: cultivationspren (Radiant spren), lifespren (armor spren)

- Truthwatchers: mistspren (Radiant spren), concentrationspren (armor spren)

- Lightweavers: Cryptic (Radiant spren), creationspren (armor spren)

- Elsecallers: inkspren (Radiant spren), logicspren (armor spren)

- Willshapers: Reacher (Radiant spren), joyspren (armor spren)

- Stonewards: peakspren (Radiant spren), bindspren (armor spren)

- Bondsmiths: Stormfather, Nightwatcher, the Sibling (Radiant spren), gloryspren (only included based on vibes; not necessarily armor spren)

Priscellie

The Plate spren for A and 3-9 are canonical, and the deck can be cited in the Coppermind as confirmation for those orders. 

The Skybreaker Plate spren are canonically confirmed to be mandras/luckspren. While I was working on the deck I was under the impression that gravitationspren were the same thing, but I art directed these cards over a year ago at this point, and don't recall where I got that impression. Continuity was totally slammed with WaT at the time, and the explanatory card did not go through their department. In the absence of confirmation from a more definitive source, you can cite mandras/luckspren as the Skybreaker plate spren and treat the 2 card art as an example of an official depiction of mandras/luckspren, but do NOT make any assumptions about whether or not gravitationspren are the same thing based on the explanatory card.

As for the question of whether Bondsmiths can have Radiant Plate, which came up previously, I am not privy to any more information than you guys. Gloryspren were included so that we could have something on the 10 card, and chosen solely because of their significance in the Oathbringer sanderlanche and [WaT] the scene where Dalinar opens the perpendicularity to the Spiritual Realm.  No conclusions about the question of Bondsmith Plate should be drawn based on their inclusion here. No canon, just vibes.

Peter Ahlstrom

In the alpha draft of Words of Radiance, at the end Eshonai survived—there was a scene much like the one in Oathbringer where Venli goes to find her body, except it was Thude and Bila who found her, and she was alive. Brandon deleted that scene before it went to the beta read. (One reason was that the end of Words of Radiance already had a character who the audience thought was dead and who turned up alive, in Jasnah. In fact, that scene immediately followed Eshonai's.)

(Rereading the scene just now, it had a great line at the end: “This is what they planned all along, Thude. Our gods. We thought ourselves so brave, so bold. We thought ourselves hidden.“We never were. We were just...just yeast...boxed away to someday leaven the next batch of horrors...”)

In Wind and Truth, nothing like that happened in the drafting. Brandon rewrote scenes in the revisions, but the fate of every character was essentially the same.

SquattingDog99

Also, what did he write on July 18th? I just finished reading the other day and I’m trying to find an answer.

TheTenthLawyer

Peter’s guess is that it was the first reveal of the Champion. Brandon couldn’t remember when the Betas asked him; he said he’d have to check his notes.

Peter Ahlstrom

That's not what I said. But specifically, it was chapter 143. 

Mybrainisnotworking_

I remember Sanderson saying to ask him what he wrote on a specific date, because that was a segment that he was particularly proud of. Unfortunately I don't remember the exact date he mentioned, but what do you all think he might be referring to?

-Ninety-

According to u/PeterAhlstrom it was chapter 143.

Peter Ahlstrom

The Dalinar section of chapter 143. But he ended the day writing the Taravangian section of chapter 145. Anyway it was the end of the Dalinar sequence, starting as early as the Dalinar section of chapter 137 but possibly a couple chapters after that.

grandpa_fathom

As I’ve read Brandon’s books, I smile every time I come across allusions, borrowings, and references to real-world influences. I’m hoping the community can help me flush out this list (speculation welcome).

• Kelsier as a Christ figure resurrected & starting a religion
• Dalinar as Genghis Kahn
• Shards as the Greek (or insert your favorite) pantheon
• Wit as a Shakespearean fool
• Chana & Shallan as Abraham & Isaac
• Nohadon as King Benjamin
• translation lenses (Alcatraz) as urim & thummim
• Iriali exodus as the Mosaic exodus

Brandon Sanderson

• Kelsier as a Christ figure resurrected & starting a religion (More that he is trying deliberately to ape off of similar stories from Sazeds myths. Then ended up living, kind of, and now has to work with what he did.)

• Dalinar as Genghis Kahn (More Subutai in military strategy and position. But I did intentionally include one Genghis myth for the history lovers in Dalinar's backstory. This is because one inspiration for the Alethi is the Yuan Dynasty, where the Mongols had to learn to rule China.)

• Shards as the Greek (or insert your favorite) pantheon (Kind of, kind of not. More uplifted humans in over their heads. I wasnt looking at panthons here as they don’t really involve one another.)

• Wit as a Shakespearean fool (Yup. See Lear and 12th night)

• Chana & Shallan as Abraham & Isaac (Not intentional, but I can see it might be unconscious.)

• Nohadon as King Benjamin (I doubt he was as silly, but this is an influence and a concious one.)

• translation lenses (Alcatraz) as urim & thummim (Also not intentional. When I think about powers, I just wish I could speak and read all languages. But maybe there is something unconscious here? For all this looks like a slam dunk, I really think it was just me thinking of powers I wanted, and relating them to wearing glasses.)

• Iriali exodus as the Mosaic exodus (Also not deliberately done...but you probably have something here. This is almost certain part of the inspiration.)

WaitUntilTheHighway

I feel like Rock was one of the best characters in Kaladin's world, and it seems like he was 'sent off' for literally no plot-relevant reason. It's like it's a TV show and the actor died so they had to get rid of the character. I'm bummed because I'm almost done with RoW now and there's just no more fun camaraderie among bridge four, largely thanks to Rock being gone. He was one of my faves.

Brandon Sanderson

As others have said, Rock will get his own novella--but that's not why I sent him off. Even if there had been no time for a novella, or no plot-relevant things for him to do, he would have left.

I need Bridge Four to be alive. Their time together, as a cohesive unit, was a powerful moment in time--and you can always reread the first few books to experience it again. However, in life, nothing remains the same, and time draws people apart. Rock has a family, a people, and responsibilities. He has to be about those, now that he's free from Alethi slavery.

Bridge Four, as it stood in books one and two, had to eventually evolve, and some members had to go their own way. That's life. For all Kaladin wanted to grasp for it, hold it together by force, he couldn't--just as we can't keep rigidly hold of the friends and family we love. Time inevitably divides us.

Each book of the Stormlight Archive must be something new. New tone, new feeling, evolved from the previous volume. They are too big, too weighty, to be allowed to repeat the same plot cycles, same emotional beats, or to allow the characters to stagnate into repetitive playacting of the people they were in the first few volumes. As readers travel through the series, I intend for them to realize this, though it may take a while for it to really click.

Brandon Sanderson

My plan was for Renarin to be gay when I wrote Way of Kings Prime in 2002. 

#1 Nuclear Salt Watergun Enjoyer

Chat, I am trying to figure out if the slugs from skyward can pass the harkness test

Janci Patterson

I had this conversation this weekend. I say no.

Janci Patterson

I don't think they have equal to adult human intelligence.

LadyLameness (paraphrased)

In Rhythm of War it is noted that the honorspren have a large container given to them by the Ire, in which they store Stormlight. Does it actually contain Stormlight, unkeyed investiture, or something else?

Karen Ahlstrom (paraphrased) (paraphrased)

Karen said it is likely Stormlight in the container but wouldn’t be surprised if there is also unkeyed investiture in the room. 

LadyLameness (paraphrased)

If it is Stormlight in the container, would it have been affected by Retribution removing all Stormlight? Would perfect gemstones have been affected?

Karen Ahlstrom (paraphrased) (paraphrased)

*very long pause* Karen said she did not know in terms of the Ire machine and KAFO'd the question about the perfect gemstones. Regarding the perfect gems, she did add that if Brandon asked her whether he could have them interact differently with Retribution's removal of Stormlight, she would not say no. 

spectria.limina (paraphrased)

Is "tamukek" in Isles of the Emberdark a typo?

Peter Ahlstrom (paraphrased)

No.

RShara

So in the [revision of Sixth of the Dusk to include in Isles of the Emberdark], most of the references to the mainland as where people lived have been removed. Currently the mainland is considered cold and inhospitable

However, in the flashbacks, Vathi still considers Sak a mainland bird, which doesn't quite fit in with the mainland being a frozen wasteland. 

So is Sak still from the frozen wasteland mainland somehow, or should those be changed to homeisles instead? 

Peter Ahlstrom

I asked Brandon about the mainlander bird issue, and he said it's correct as written. 

pje1128

Is Lux still getting a print form at some point?

Peter Ahlstrom

Lux has some continuity inconsistencies with the Reckoners that would need to be fixed before a print release. Its pacing may also work better in audio form than in print. Right now we are holding off on doing anything more with it until we decide whether it makes sense to release either of the two sequels that were originally planned.

Brandon Sanderson

This [Songs of the Dead] is, at long last, the resurrection of the old story Death by Pizza I've talked about in the updates: the story of a metalhead who ends up becoming a necromancer. (It lost the pizza in the title when the main character moved from running a pizza place to working at a music club.)

It's come a very long way. The worldbuilding, in which the various versions of a city (in this case London) exist as "strata" in layers populated by spirits extending down beneath the real one, never would leave me alone. (So, London has a ghostly version of Victorian London beneath it, then Elizabethan London beneath that, etc, representing major turning points in the city's live all the way down to prehistory.) Necromancers can walk these strata and pull spirits up from them to the living world.

Imagine this as my setting outline (it was quite extensive) mixed with Peter's experience as a metal singer, along with his storytelling. (I did give him a plot outline, but it severely shifted over the years as he labored over the book, naturally evolving it to be less comedic, more epic. The bones of my original story are still there, but buried deeply.)

We got it into what I think is a really good place, then I stepped back from the project because I just didn't have the time. So book one I had a huge hand in; any sequels will be just Peter, and the my name won't be on them. (Unless I miracle the time to look them over.) Not because I'm not proud of the book or the series, but because I won't have time to do a developmental edit/revision, and I want to always be up-front about that with readers. I really only want to be doing one co-authored series like that at a time, and I'm deeply involved in Skyward currently.

Use_the_Falchion

1. Will you be providing updates on Books 2 & 3 as they come along, or will you leave that to Peter? I ask because casual updates from you reach a wider audience than many authors' blogs or newsletters.

2. Should we expect a book from this trilogy every year or every other year, or is it too early to tell?

3. How does the "one coauthored series at a time" affect the search for a coauthor for the Atzlanian? Are Team Dragonsteel coauthored projects excluded from this rule, as their works are in-house?

Brandon Sanderson

1) I hadn't thought of it, but I'm sure upon reflection that we'll let people know when the other books are out. I'm quite fond of the setting, as I said--and our deal lets me write in the world solo (like he's going to do for books two and three) if I ever decide I want to, so I do intend on keeping up on happenings. We imagine it a bit like what happened with Malazan. (If you aren't familiar, it's a book setting owned by two others, where both can write in it.)

To establish proper expectations, I don't imagine going and writing in this setting. I have my hands full with the cosmere, but I should note that it's an option.

2) Too early to tell for sure. I know Peter wants to be as fast as possible with it, and having a publisher helps. My GUESS would be every two years, based on Peter's previous writing schedules. He's a diligent guy, and was excellent to work with, punctual and passionate. He does like a lot of time in revisions to get things right, however.

3) I consider the Atzlanian to be an "outstanding obligation" sort of thing. I'd do other co-authored books, I just don't want to get into another big series with commitments to do big edits. 

Eyre_Guitar_Solo

If it’s not too late, I recommend reconsidering the title. It’s too similar to (as others have noted) Star Wars, which in turn has been mimicked by Storage Wars and so on. I get that it’s not about a pizza place any more, but “Death by Pizza” is far more unique and intriguing.

Brandon Sanderson

Strata Wars, and Songs of the Dead, were both chosen by Peter.

Songs of the Dead is a good match to the story, as it stands now. Death by Pizza just wouldn't work for what the book became.

Strata Wars was chosen after I left the project. It does have flaws, but it's his call at this point.

Brandon Sanderson

(We still haven't decided if my name should go on Dan and Isaac's cosmere books, when those end up being finished. I'm involved in those, naturally, but the story ideas and writing belong to them.)

Use_the_Falchion

(Also, as a random aside and as a random fan, I think your names should go on Dan and Isaac's books if the books were going to be shelved in a different section of a bookstore had your name NOT been on the cover. Unless/until the Cosmere gets big enough to have its own section ala Star Wars and Warhammer, having your name on the books could keep them all in one section, which makes them easier to find for those searching in bookstores. My guess is that it would also increase sales for Dan and Isaac, whose books may not be picked up if those looking don't already know its connected to your worlds. However, if the books were going to be shelved next to your books because it's the same series even if the authors are different, then I wouldn't put your name on the book.)

Brandon Sanderson

Regarding my name on books, you're probably right, and these are the discussions we're having internally. I don't want the cosmere to go the Star Wars/Warhammer route. I don't want a separate section of the bookstore, for example. That feels...I don't know, too commercial? We're not writing these books just to expand an IP or the like, but because Issac and Dan are excited to tell specific stories, and they happen to fit into the cosmere. It makes sense to put my name on them, to get them where people can find them, and I see that.

At the same time, these are really their stories. Told because they're passionate about them, rather than any mandate by me. I feel uncomfortable putting my name on them because of that--I'm really just there to make sure the cosmere continuity functions, and to give my advice as a fellow writer on narrative. Same as they do for me, when they read early drafts of my work.

That's why I go back and forth.

Peter Ahlstrom

Both Infinity Blades are novellas. The second one is longer than the first.

Dark One (the novel) is now planned to not have sequels, and Forgotten comes before it. And Prophetic Histories does not and will not exist. The graphic novel exists in its own continuity.

Death & Faxes is a novella.

Isles of the Emberdark contains Sixth of the Dusk.

Book of Nails is a novel.

The Silence Divine won’t be a series, if it ever appears.

Songs of the Dead is in a trilogy called the Strata Wars, but Brandon is only coauthoring the first book; the other two are just by Peter Orullian.

If there’s a third Rithmatist book and it doesn’t wrap up with the second one, no guarantees on the title.

ooglybooglies

It has to be so freeing knowing you can write whatever you want, and if it's good enough you can release it as a secret project. If you don't like it, just abandon it. No one knows or cares.

Brandon Sanderson

It's legit wonderful. I get to experiment a lot. There were three before this [Fires of December] that didn't make it, things I wrote for a few days to see what I thought. With these, as nobody is expecting them, I can push myself in inexpensive directions and I don't have to stress failed experiments. I think I read one of those early this year, where it went to silly and insincere.

Allgamergeek

I like that Brandon is enjoying doing these secret projects because it keeps him energized, but at the same time I have a hard time seeing Stormlight 6 out by 31, especially if he has to push things back while working on Hollywood stuff. I enjoy reading the books he puts out, but Stormlight is what I want most of all.

Brandon Sanderson

I highly doubt (though cannot promise) that Hollywood will push Stormlight back. More likely, it will push back Elantris sequels, which is why I'm being cagey on them, and take any time away from secret projects I might have otherwise have struck me. The screenplays will be the secret projects, just not so secret.

I plan to write Ghostbloods 2 next year, and three in 2027. That puts me (almost certainly) writing Stormlight six the year after. They take two years to write, so we finish it 2030, hence the 2031 release expectation.

That said, I'm pretty excited for the next five stormlight. I doubt it will be sooner than 2031, but sooner is more likely than later as I see it right now.

samienferni

I always figured a 'mink' is any feline mammal on roshar

Peter Ahlstrom

They're not felines. They're actually minks or at least Mustelidae.

tybernator1234

I have just seen post about some (added 150 page) changes on Final Empire. The publisher on my country said some changes happened. Do you guys now what Brandon Sanderson changed and added to book. I dont wanna buy the book again.

Peter Ahlstrom

There were a bunch of changes made to the leatherbound, but they’re mostly small wording changes. The biggest plot change concerns the use of Allomancy in the Pits of Hathsin, especially when Kelsier goes back to destroy it. There was a plot hole in the original version.

Hero of Ages required many geographical and architectural changes in the city of Fadrex in order to fix inconsistencies.

Brandon Sanderson

Hoid stories are tough. Getting that voice, that balance of humor with actually telling something meaningful, right is difficult. And I did one reading of one earlier (maybe at Nexus, I believe) which was called Kingmaker, and this one which I never really named about Princess <Celebrin>. And anyway, it's fun and it didn't quite work. I think there's actually one more sitting somewhere that I didn't finish. This is how much work it took to get to Tress of the Emerald Sea and Yumi and the Nightmare Painter, was three failed attempts at doing Hoid stories that just didn't quite work. But maybe I'll do a reading of that other one sometime. It's a little more spoilery. But you can go watch this one, which has almost no spoilers for anything, that is not canon and enjoy that reading. I think the book is very fun; it just went too silly. And that's a hard balance to walk, with Hoid.