Difference between revisions of "Gemheart"

Gemhearts occurform becausenaturally within some of Roshar's organisms. The [[crem]] that falls with Rosharan rains is full of minerals, which the creatures absorb by drinking and then use to grow the gemheart.{{wob ref|13335}} Their formation is also influenced by [[Investiture]] leaksleaking into the anatomy of certain Rosharan species, creating an effect similar to the formation of [[atium]] on [[Scadrial]].{{wob ref|4678}} Creatures with gemhearts still have normal hearts.{{wob ref|15302}}

Like any gemstone that is one of the ten [[Polestone]]s, gemhearts can glow with either [[Stormlight]] or [[Voidlight]], suggesting that an animal's gemheart is the thing that enables the types of Investiture that many such animals utilize, usually involving a [[spren]] bond. A singer's gemheart, for example, contains the spren thethat gives them their current [[Singer#Forms|form]], which varies depending on the type of spren hethey bondsbond.{{book ref|sa3|i|6}}

Humans on Roshar, even [[Surgebinder]]s with spren bonds, do not have gemhearts,{{wob ref|2685}}, but those who swallow [[Yelig-nar]]{{book ref|sa3|120}} have been known to undergo several physical transformations, including having their heart and lungs replaced with a large Voidlight-filled amethyst that has been described as a "gemstone heart".{{book ref|sa3|120}} It is uncertain whether this can be considered a gemheart or not, but its nature is similar in that it is a gemstone created through Investiture and it functions as a vital part of the transformed human, who would not survive if it is destroyed.

In general, the bigger the animal, the bigger the gemheart. Those found in Chasmfiendschasmfiends were worth a small fortune.{{book ref|twok|13}} [[Chasmfiend]]s and other large [[chull|chull-like]] animals called Greatshellsgreatshells have enormous gemhearts.{{book ref|twok|36}} [[Dalinar Kholin]] stated that the ones found in Chasmfiendschasmfiends were the largest gemhearts he had ever seen, although it is likely that the [[Tai-na]] have even larger ones.

Just as StormlightSoulcasters isare considered valuable by the people on Roshar, so are the Polestones that holdenable their Stormlightfunction. Because much of the land on the continent has been covered by crem, mining is more difficult compared to other planets, and so most gemstones that people use are from gemhearts, which are harvested from various animals.

Chasmfiends have emerald gemhearts. The ability to Soulcast grain from them, combined with their relatively large size, makes Chasmfiendchasmfiend gemhearts extremely valuable. Because Chasmfiendschasmfiends are aggressive and extremely dangerous Greatshellsgreatshells that cannot be domesticated, humans resort to hunting for their chrysalises on the [[Shattered Plains]] most of the time.

The discovery of Chasmfiendschasmfiends containing such valuable gemhearts completely altered the [[War of Reckoning]]. Attempting to directly attack the [[Parshendi]] base, located far into the [[Shattered Plains]], was risky and expensive. However, when a Chasmfiendchasmfiend climbed onto a plateau to pupate, the [[highprince]]s and Parshendi alike would extend themselves to attempt to retrieve the gemheart of the resulting chrysalis. The [[highprince]]s all agreed that these periodic clashes suitably upheld the [[Vengeance Pact]], and the War of Reckoning effectively devolved into little more than a decade-long competition spanning half a decade.

The hunting for chasmfiends to gain gemhearts will harm [[Roshar]]'s ecology in the long run.{{wob ref|1204|When was the last pupation of a Chasmfiend?|date=26 September 2012}} The extinction or near-extinction of a Greatshellgreatshell species due to excessive hunting has happened before, as in the case of the [[lanceryn]]. In the case of the chasmfiends, the sudden drop in the number of juveniles that reach maturity, due to the hunting of chrysalises, have led to fewer chrysalises appearing over time. This is because the chrysalises are being hunted almost at a faster rate than the chasmfiend population could recover from given their slow growth and slow reproduction rate.{{book ref|sa2|49}}