Dalinar Kholin

Dalinar Kholin is a character from the series The Stormlight Archive. He was a Highprince of Alethkar, and is one of the four central characters in The Way of Kings.

Dalinar was a Shardbearer for the majority of The Way of Kings, who chose to wear his Shardplate in its original slate grey color without any adornment or decoration. His Shardblade was called Oathbringer. He rode a Ryshadium horse named Gallant.

Dalinar was nicknamed "the Blackthorn", and was one the greatest generals of the Alethi. Due to his prowess in battle he has won many Shardplates and Shardblades in battle, and has gifted his King Elhokar Kholin with one of each.

Dalinar had to be restrained during highstorms because of the apparent fits that he entered into when they arrived. It is later revealed that the visions he saw during highstorms had been sent by Honor, also known as the “Almighty” on Roshar.

Family

Widower of Brightness Kholin / Shshsh, brother of Gavilar, brother-in-law of Navani, father of both Adolin and Renarin, uncle of both Jasnah and Elhokar.

Dalinar began to court his sister-in-law, Navani, who pursued and attempted to seduce him in The Way of Kings. Despite initial excuses that their marriage would be improper and frowned upon by those around them, Dalinar relented and admitted his love for her. It is revealed that they courted when they were younger, but Dalinar's "intensity" frightened Navani and she decided to marry his brother instead.

Dalinar was formerly married, but he was cursed by the Old Magic and could no longer remember her name. Whenever someone said her name, Dalinar heard only the sound of the wind, and if he ever encountered the name in any other manner, he could not retain it in his mind.

Plot

During the assassination of Gavilar Kholin, Dalinar was in a drunken stupor, and was therefore unable to aid his brother. After the King’s death, Dalinar considered himself to be at fault and underwent a radical change in personality. He began to read The Way of Kings, a book that his brother was fond of and began to adhere to the Alethi Codes of War that his brother attempted to make him follow. Had Dalinar been following the first Code, "Readiness", then he would have been sober enough to aid his brother against the assassin. After the death of Gavilar Kholin joined forces with the new king, Elhokar and the other Highprinces to pursue the Parshendi under the Vengeance Pact.

Dalinar's adoption of the Codes caused the other Highprinces to underestimate him, as he no longer possessed the thirst for battle that made him one of the most feared generals in Alethkar. He and his brother Gavilar Kholin managed to conquer all of the other Highprinces and force them to crown Gavilar as their King. Despite sporadic heroic acts such as saving Elhokar's life from a chasmfiend, Dalinar began to lose his influence over the conquered Highprinces, as rumors of his fits during highstorms circulated.

Dalinar was charged by his nephew King Elhokar to investigate a suspected assassination attempt on the King's life. This involved the girth strap on his saddle being cut so that he would fall from his horse in battle, and weakened gemstones being placed in Elhokar's Shardplate so that the armor would easily crack and break. When Dalinar failed to uncover anything of use, Elhokar named Highprince Sadeas the Highprince of Information, and requested him to investigate. This accelerated Dalinar's loss of power and suspicion is cast upon him for the assassination attempt. Later, after investigation, Dalinar realized that the "assassination attempt" was a fabrication and confronted his nephew. The King admitted cutting the girth strap but maintained that he had nothing to do with the weakened gemstones.

Dalinar Kholin was of the belief that the war on the Parshendi has become nothing but a game to the Highprinces and sought to unite them as the Highprince of War. However the King would not grant him this title unless Dalinar could prove that it was possible for the Highprinces to productively work together. One by one the Highprinces rejected Dalinar's pleas that they join forces, until Dalinar and Highprince Sadeas became friends and they decided to try working together. However this alliance was a ploy used by Sadeas to attempt to kill Dalinar. Sadeas withdrew from a battle that they entered together, leaving Dalinar and his men stranded and surrounded by an overwhelming number of enemy troops. Dalinar was rescued by Kaladin and the other members Bridge Four, but not before he had his armies severely weakened and almost died at the hands of a Parshendi Shardbearer.

Despite Dalinar Kholin's prowess in battle, the battle against the Parshendi marks the first time that Dalinar lost the "Thrill". This loss of the Thrill during battle caused Dalinar to question why he is fighting and whether the alternative methods of settling the Alethi dispute with the Parshendi could yield better results. The Highprinces viewed Dalinar's wish for a more peaceful existence as a sign of weakness rather than wisdom, and this prompted him to talk to the King about his beliefs. When Dalinar explained to the King that he is not afraid of battle, but would prefer to approach it in a different manner, Elhokar listened to him for the first time, and Dalinar finally felt that he was making progress.

Dalinar Kholin was plagued by visions of the Knights Radiant during highstorms which he believed to be sent by the Almighty. When Dalinar began to make important decisions based on the visions his son Adolin questioned the wisdom in trusting dreams. Dalinar expressed his belief that the visions are true and Adolin questioned his father's sanity. The realization that even those close to him thought that he has lost his wits resulted in Dalinar going through a period of self-doubt, and he considered abdicating his position as Highprince to save House Kholin from being destroyed by his foolish decisions. However at the suggestion of his son Renarin, Dalinar enlisted his sister-in-law and scholar Navani to investigate whether the dreams are true or a result of an addled mind. Navani concluded that the gibberish that Dalinar spoke during the fits is actually Dawnchant, a now (apparently) dead language, and therefore that the visions are real.

After Dalinar had been rescued by Kaladin, he promised to free the Bridge Four bridgemen from their slavery at the hands of Highprince Sadeas. When Sadeas refused to sell the Bridge Four bridgemen, Dalinar offered his "priceless" Shardblade in exchange for all of Sadeas' bridgemen. He appointed Kaladin as the Captain of all of the bridgemen, who would be trained as recruits to replenish Dalinar's armies. He also gave Kaladin his cloak, to mark the new Captain as one of Dalinar's men. Dalinar also decided to give his son Renarin Kholin his Shardplate, fully relinquishing his Shards to fulfill his promises to those around him and maintaining his honor.

Another highstorm hit and Dalinar Kholin experienced another vision in which he realized that The Almighty who had spoken to him in his visions was unable to hear what Dalinar said. Dalinar's misinterpretations of the visions are then explained, and the last chapter concerning Dalinar in The Way of Kings ended with the Almighty admitting that he is dead and that Odium has killed him.