Knights Radiant

File:Knights Radiant symbol.jpg

Knights Radiant symbol sketch

The Knights Radiant, commonly known as Radiants. Were a military organization of ten consecrated orders, centered at Urithiru,Roshar. They are commonly believed to betray mankind and refereed as the Lost Radiants. Their symbol was golden hourglass shape, of eight spheres connected with two at the center.

History

According to legends, the Heralds founded the Knights Radiants and gave them Shardplates and Shardblades to protect mankind against the voidbringer during conflicts know as as Desolations. For centuries maintained their duty to watch, combat and protect. Until eventually they abandoned their duty, on what is now known as the Day of Recreance. Possibly even turned against their wards, as some legends say. It has been centuries since the fall the last Radiant, today only legends of the lost radiants and their Shardblades and Shardplate remain.

Radiant Orders

The Knights Radiant comprised of ten different orders, some of which had several hundred members. They lived and recruited across Alethela, the Silver Kingdom who had to maintain the arts of war. The radiants share a bond with spren, who are related to their powers. Each Order had two Surgebinding Powers associated with it, and each Powers was used by two different Orders. Scholars associated the ten orders with the [[Ten Essences] as well.

The Knights Radiant used Shardblades and Shardplate, which were etched with glyphs and glowed a different color according to the Order they were a part of. Among the orders were Order of Windrunners, Order of Stonewards, and possibly Dustbringers.

• Order of Windrunners, were an order of Radiants who used two primary types of Surgebinding, manipulating gravity and atmospheric pressure. The combination of these two Surges resulted in three separate powers which were known as the Three Lashings. The glow of their Shardplate was blue.

• Order of Stonewards, the glow of their Shardplate was amber. With the combination of topaz and heliodor fixed in metal, one could regrow flesh and bone. The combination was called a Regrowth; however, this may be a kind of fabrial and not a power of the order.

Among orders these Powers were the ability to ride the storms, walk on walls, Regrowth(heal), make stone melt and said to move great distances in a single heartbeat, command the sunlight.(according to Teft)

• Soulcasting, is the art of changing one substance to another was a radiant power, that were used by two orders. Soulcaster is a fabrial that replicates its effect and named after it. The ability was derived from using stormlight trapped in gemstones to transform one thing into one of the Ten Essences, depending on what gemstone was used.

• Dustbringers could apparently burn things, mostly combustible items, though occasionally rock.

Ideals

The Ideals by which the Radiant lived, known as 'The Immortal Words. Serve as a guide to the Radiants for how they were to live their lives. The First Ideal being the same for every order. while the four later ideals were said to be different for every order. These ideals were based off of book of Way of Kings.

First Ideal - Life before death. Strength before weakness. Journey before destination., was explained by Teft:

• Life before death, The Radiant seeks to defend life, always. He never kills unnecessarily, and never risks his own life for frivolous reasons. Living is harder than dying. The Radiant’s duty is to live.

• Strength before weakness, All men are weak at some time in their lives. The Radiant protects those who are weak, and uses his strength for others. Strength does not make one capable of rule; it makes one capable of service.

• Journey before destination, There are always several ways to achieve a goal. Failure is preferable to winning through unjust means. Protecting ten innocents is not worth killing one. In the end,all men die. How you lived will be far more important to the Almighty than what you accomplished.

Vorinism

In Vorinism, the fall of the Knights Radiant was called the Recreance.

Vorinism taught that the Radiants betrayed the people. It was taught that their powers were not real, but elaborate tricks, and that they only pretended to have a holy calling. The "evidence" for this was that the powers could not be reproduced.

Notes

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