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|image=Cultivation and the Nightwatcher 2.jpg
|species=Spren
|abilities=[[Nahel bond]], [[Bondsmith]] magic{{book ref|sa3|111}}, {{tag+|Splinter|Cultivation}}, {{tag+|Cognitive Shadow}}{{book ref|sa3|111}}, {{tag+|oldmagic}}
|world=Roshar
|universe=[[Cosmere]]
|books=[[The Stormlight Archive]]
}}
The '''Nightwatcher''' was a remnant of the [[Old Magic]] that was the prevalent religion across [[Roshar]] before the rise of [[Vorinism]]. She is a [[Splinter]] of [[Cultivation]].{{
▲The '''Nightwatcher''' was a remnant of the [[Old Magic]] that was the prevalent religion across [[Roshar]] before the rise of [[Vorinism]]. She is a [[Splinter]] of [[Cultivation]].{{cite}}
The Nightwatcher would bless those who sought her out with one blessing of her choosing. In exchange for this blessing, she also bestows a single curse, although this curse very rarely has any obvious relation to the blessing that was gained.{{book ref|twok|i|7}} Because of the Nightwatcher's ethereal nature and ties to a single location, the [[Valley]], she is considered by many to be a powerful [[spren]].{{book ref|sa2|3}}{{book ref|sa2|6}}{{book ref|sa2|24}}{{book ref|sa2|41}} It is surprisingly common for devoutly Vorin [[lighteyes]] go to the Nightwatcher at one point or another over the course of their lives.{{book ref|twok|61}}
== Description ==
The Nightwatcher manifests in the Physical Realm as a dark green and vaguely person shaped. Described as crawling on the ground with too-long arms reaching out and pulling her along as she floats above the ground. She appears to leave a trail of her essence behind her, like a river of twisting vapor curling through the trees. The only part of her that has any detail is her smooth distinctly feminine face with silken black eyes. She seems to be able to create extra limbs like smaller hands to interact with people.{{book ref|sa3|114}}
<gallery caption="Images of Nightwatcher">
Cultivation and the Nightwatcher 2.jpg | The Nightwatcher by [[Coppermind: Artist/Kyle Pearson|Kyle Pearson]]
Cultivation and the Nightwatcher 1.jpg | Cultivation and the Nightwatcher by [[Coppermind: Artist/Kyle Pearson|Kyle Pearson]]
</gallery>
== Origin ==
== Blessing ==
The Nightwatcher claims to have the ability to grant almost any physical request one might ask of her, though just because she can does not mean she will give what is asked for. She claims to be able to give many things such as renown, wealth, skill, the ability to swing a sword and never tire, or beauty, followers, even glory. She even claims she can give a person physical possessions such as spheres, gemstones, shards, or a Blade that bleeds darkness and cannot be defeated ([[Nightblood]]
Anyone is allowed to seek a single boon from the Nightwatcher. To do this, the supplicant must first travel to the [[Valley]] in the west, where the Nightwatcher resides. After finding the Nightwatcher, the supplicant may request a boon. There are no clear restrictions on what the Nightwatcher has the power to grant--like most things regarding the Old Magic, the few known facts are surrounded by a web of myths and legends. The precise phrasing of the request does not appear to make a difference, however, since the Nightwatcher bestows a boon that she feels the supplicant deserves. In most cases, the continued pain of the curse appears to outweigh the blessing of the boon, even if the supplicant receives the boon they desired. A notable exception was [[Av]]'s father, who received enough cloth to keep his family from starving during a famine. His curse, seeing the world upside down, apparently stopped troubling him after he acclimated to the situation.{{book ref|sa1|i|7}}
== Curse ==
Contrary to popular belief, it is not possible to avoid the curse by carefully phrasing a request--or even to predict the curse that the Nightwatcher will bestow.{{
== Known Visitors ==
;[[Taravangian]]
: Taravangian claims to have asked the Nightwatcher for, "Capacity. Capacity to stop what was coming. The capacity to save humankind."{{book ref|wor|i|14}} As a result, Taravangian's level of intelligence varies from day to day. This enabled him to write the [[Diagram (literature)|Diagram]] on a day of particularly notable intelligence. He believes that his curse is a level of compassion inversely proportional to his intelligence; he feels little to no compassion on days of high intelligence, contrasted with days of low intelligence and great compassion "to feel pain for what he had done."{{book ref|wor|i|14}} As with Dalinar, Cultivation personally intervened when he asked for his boon.{{wob ref|13097}}
;[[Lift]]
;[[Av]]'s father
: As his boon, Av's father received a heap of good cloth, which he sold to keep his family from starving during the lurnip famine.{{book ref|twok|i|7}} As a curse, he sees the world upside down. He claims that his curse was worth it, and it just took some getting used to.
== Notes ==
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