Investiture

This page or section deals with theories or speculation.

Please read carefully and note that this is not necessarily canonical.

Investitureis a term describing the principle on which all Cosmere magic systems are based.

Terminology

An official definition of the term has not yet been given.

The term Investiture has only seen in-world use by the Seventeenth Shard and spren. Most who refer to investiture use magic-specific terminology; Feruchemists refer to the process of investing metalminds as 'charging', and Windrunners refer to the process by which they create Lashings as 'infusing'.

Categories of Investiture

In the Alloy of Law Ars Arcanum, the author categorizes the three Metallic Arts. Every type of Investiture can be classified along these categories.

End-positive Investiture

When practicing an end-positive Investiture, the practitioner draws in power from an external source. The practitioner gains power from the external source. The Investiture is positive in that it adds -- in most cases temporarily -- power to the practitioner. Most types of Investiture are end-positive.

Allomancy draws Investiture from Preservation in a similar way to AonDor pulling power from the Dor; both are considered End-Positive since they add power to the Allomancer or Elantrian. Allomantic Atium draws power from Ruin's concentrated Physical form, but is still considered End-Positive as the power comes from an outside source.

Although Allomancy

End-neutral Investiture

For an act of Investiture to be considered end-neutral, power is neither gained nor lost. A practitioner manipulates power that already exists or power that comes from themself..

Feruchemy is end-neutral, since the amount of Investiture remains constant. Awakening is also considered end-neutral, even though color is lost.

End-negative Investiture

In the practice of an end-negative Investiture, some power is lost. End-negative Investiture is very rare.

Hemalurgy is end-negative. Investiture held in a spike outside the body decays.

Forms of Investiture

Investiture is known to exist in solid, (ie Atium and Lerasium), liquid (Shardpools), and gaseous physical forms (Preservation's Mists, Stormlight, BioChromatic Breath).

Accessing Investiture

Several ways to access Investiture exist. Investiture can be directly given by a Shard to fuel magic (Preservation's Mists, the explosion of Stormlight that comes with each oath of the Knights Radiant), innately extant (Scadrian potential for Allomancy and Feruchemy, the initial BioChromatic Breath) or artificial ("Cracks in the soul" are required for a Nahel Bond, Hemalurgy steals Spiritweb fragments, Snapping in Classical Scadrial), or used without "flowing" through the user (Forging, Rosharan Fabrials, Hemalurgical theft).

Investiture of people

Generally, humans are not Invested. However, on some worlds, a Shard has invested humans. For example, Preservation gave part of his power to humans to make them sentient. On Nalthis, people are born with Breath. Both cases are known as Innate Investiture.

Under specific conditions, some humans can become Invested with more power than others. In general, the closer the connection between a human and a Shard, the more powerful the human becomes. A normal human on Scadrial is less connected to Preservation than a Misting, who snapped (chose Preservation) at some point but is less powerful than a Mistborn, who either consumed Lerasium (the direct Physical essence of Preservation) or has the proper Spiritweb needed to access all the Allomantic Abilites who is weaker than a Sliver during the time they held the power of Preservation, who is weaker than a human who held the Shard permanently.

The conditions required for becoming invested with a larger amount of power differ from Shardworld to Shardworld. It is assumed that the intent of the respective Shard influences these conditions. On Scadrial connection to a Shard is determined by genetics and Snapping, or choosing to live, following Preservation. On Sel it's the Shaod comes to those who live in the correct area and are Devoted to something, and on Roshar acting with Honor allows a Surgebinder greater strength.

Investiture of Objects

Objects are not Invested in their original state. They can become invested by a Shard or by a human having met the above-mentioned requirements. An Invested object gains magical properties. The more invested an object is, the more power it has. Examples for invested objects include:

• filled metalminds of a Feruchemist
• a charged Hemalurgic spike (Vin's earring, Wax's earring)
• any Awakened object. Nightblood, as a Type IV Biochromatic Entity, is an extreme case.
• Shardplate and Shardblade, as well as the Honorblades
• a Forger's Seal

Invested objects tend to be harder to affect with more Investiture.

Investiture of Natural Phenomenon

It is possible for a natural force to become Invested. On Roshar, Zahel states that the Highstorms are Invested. Whether this is the result of purposeful design by a Shardholder, or the continued maintainence of another entity such as the Stormfather, has not been revealed. It is also not clear whether the storm is invested in and of itself, or if it houses another form of Investiture.

Manifestations of Investiture

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Investiture	World	Books

Notes

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