Difference between revisions of "Shard"

The '''Shards of [[Adonalsium]]''', or '''Shards''' for short, are pieces of the power of creation itself.{{qa ref|727|45|Allomancy is fueled by Preservation's body?}} They are named after a specific action or ideal, called an [[intent]]. A mind must control a Shard. When a person holds a Shard, they are imbued with its power, but they also become the Shard.{{qa ref|697|21|Barring (Honor), did we see any Shards (like Sazed) in (TWoK)?}} Despite this, fans have created the term '''Shardholder''' to refer to the person who holds a Shard (not to be confused with [[Shardbearer]]), but this term is not canonical.

There are sixteen Shards{{epigraph ref|TWoK|11}}, and they are the most powerful known entities in the [[cosmere]]. They are related to many, if not all, magic systems, and for practical purposes, they are gods. All Shards started at an equal power level.{{17s ref|2383|post|42116|All shards started equal?}}

Nine Shards have thus far been mentioned in the novels, either referenced by their Shard's name or its holder. Those known by intent are [[Ruin]], [[Preservation]], [[Honor]], [[Odium]], [[Cultivation]], [[Endowment]], [[Devotion]]{{qa ref|715|9|Aona's shard is Devotion?}}, and [[Dominion]]{{qa ref|763|2|Another Shard revealed}}. In addition, a person called [[Bavadin]] has been confirmed to hold (or have held) a Shard, though his Shard's intent is currently unknown.

When a person takes up a Shard, the extreme power vaporizes the body, allowing the person's mind to expand.{{qa ref|727|45}} From then on, the person's consciousness feeds on the power of the Shard to remain alive{{annotation ref|mb3|chapter=58}}, but the Shard's intent is the driving force of the power. Over an immense time--centuries, perhaps millennia--a Shardholder’s mind begins to change, slowly molding to the Shard's intent.{{annotation ref|mb3|chapter=57}}{{qa ref|691|17|Will Sazed go mad?}}

It is not clear who the original Shardholders were, or where they came from. Over time, Shardholders begin referring to themselves as their Shard's name (though they do remember their original selves{{qa ref|700|5|Do (Shards) still remember their original names?}}). They eventually scattered throughout the cosmere, taking residence on several different [[Shardworld]]s and influencing events on their given planet. Ruin and Preservation made a pact to create life on Scadrial,{{epigraph ref|mb3|53}} and constructed humans in the form which they have seen before{{book ref|mb3|76}}--presumably on the planet where Adonalsium and these Shardholders came from. Judging from humanity on other Shardworlds, the Shards on those worlds probably created humanity there, too. However, the Shardworlds existed before the Shards arrived there{{qa ref|700|3|Who names the planets?}} so there is a case to be made that humans already were present during the Shards’ arrivals.

Ruin and Preservation were drawn together because they were such perfect opposites{{qa ref|691|9|Are all Shards paired?}} (though not all Shards have pairs like those ones do{{qa ref|691|9}}). Direct confrontation between their two powers was excruciatingly painful, and they eventually destroyed each other. It is not clear whether if any two Shards collided, they would both die, or if this was simply an effect of Ruin and Preservation having such opposite intents.

It is implied that not all Shards are equal (though they started at an equal level{{17s ref|2383|post|42116|All shards started equal?}}). Rayse is said to hold the most dangerous of the sixteen, Odium.{{epigraph ref|sa1|19}}{{book ref|TWoK|46}} It is unknown what makes Odium inherently so dangerous, whether it is due to the intent, or because Odium actually has more power than other Shards.

Odium is not native on Roshar{{qa ref|675|32|Can you give me a hint about Odium?}} and it's not known yet whether any Shard is native on its Sharldworld.{{qa ref|836|49|Are any of them native?}}

If Brandon were to do a novel where different magic systems collide as the focus of the book, he refers to it as a '''conflux''' book.{{qa ref|692|12|Will you ever write a book or series where different magic systems come into the same world?}}

{{/row|Ruin|Ati|Scadrial|mb|c2=(later [[Sazed]])|{{qa ref|727|19|E=x}}{{qa ref|428|106|What planet is Elantris is set on?}}|}}

{{/row|Preservation|Leras|Scadrial|mb|c2=(later [[Sazed]])|{{qa ref|727|19|E=x}}{{qa ref|428|106}}|}}

{{/row|Endowment||Nalthis|wb|{{qa ref|428|59|E=x}}{{qa ref|428|106}}|}}

{{/row|Devotion|Aona|Sel|e|{{qa ref|715|9|E=x}}{{epigraph ref|sa1|22}}{{qa ref|428|106}}|}}

{{/row|Dominion|Skai|Sel|e|{{qa ref|763|2|E=x}}{{epigraph ref|sa1|22}}{{qa ref|428|106}}|}}

{{/row|Honor|Tanavast|Roshar|sa|{{qa ref|698|1|Honor was held by Tanavast first?}}{{qa ref|428|106}}|}}

{{/row|Odium|Rayse|Braize|sa|{{qa ref|700|7|E=x}}{{qa ref|428|106}}|}}

{{/row|Cultivation||Roshar|sa|{{qa ref|692|21|E=x}}{{qa ref|428|106}}|}}

{{/row||Bavadin|Taldain|White Sand|{{qa ref|727|19|E=x}}{{qa ref|428|106}}|}}

Some worlds have more Shards than others.{{qa ref|428|59|Could you tell us the numbers per book?}}

Ruin and Preservation are the only Shards on [[Scadrial]] at the moment.{{qa ref|727|19|Is Scadrial the name of the Mistborn world?}} By the time of the Hero of Ages spoiler thread (before the Way of Kings release), Brandon mentioned that there were four Shards other than Ruin and Preservation that have been seen:

|Brandon Sanderson{{qa ref|727|31|Have we met these (Shards)?}}

Endowment was confirmed to be the Voice from [[Warbreaker]],{{qa ref|428|59}} which Lightsong interacts with. [[Raoden]] interacts with a second voice when he jumps into the [[Shardpool]] in [[Elantris]] (presumably Aona's). Before the release of [[The Way of Kings]] it was not clear what the other two Shards were. However, Hoid was not a Shardholder on that list.{{qa ref|691|12|Does Hoid hold a Shard?}}

There are three Shards on Roshar{{qa ref|691|13|How many Shards have existed on Roshar?}} and they are confirmed to be Honor, Odium, and Cultivation.{{qa ref|692|21|Is Cultvation a Shard on Roshar?}} Honor and Cultivation arrived at the same time on Roshar,{{17s ref|2383|post|42213|Did Cultivation come to Roshar with Honor?}}, prior to Odium's appearance.{{qa ref|836|49|Honor and Cultivation were there long before Odium showed up}}

|Brandon Sanderson{{17s ref|2652|post|46099|Clues in signed things}}

Shards can will themselves to various parts of their world instantaneously (or near instantly).{{book ref|mb3|76}} They can will themselves to other Shardworlds, as noted from Odium's journey to Sel{{epigraph ref|sa1|21}} and Brandon implying that [[Sazed]] could travel to another world, but chooses not to.{{qa ref|691|16|Can Sazed worldhop?}}

Shards can see into the future, though this is difficult to do. [[Honor]] describes seeing the future like "It's as if the future is a shattering window. The further you look, the more pieces that window breaks into."{{book ref|twok|75}} Some Shards are better at seeing into the future--Honor says Cultivation is better at future sight than Honor.{{book ref|twok|75}} Preservation saw into the future and created the [[Terris Prophecies]].{{qa ref|727|9|How were the Terris Prophecies created in the first place?}} Most of the time, temporal abilities are related to the pure essence of a Shard (see [[atium]]) or to a Splinter (like Returned do).{{qa ref|590|46|How did Wyrn see into the future?}} Since Wyrn can see into the future through some method, it is theorized he may hold a Splinter or be a Sliver, but he may also have this power via [[Seon]] or [[Skaze]].

Aspects of Shards' power regenerate over time. The Well of Ascension reformed every 1024 years{{qa ref|691|3|Why did the Well of Ascension refill every thousand years?}} rather than vanishing forever. Atium also regenerates, though when atium was burned away, Ruin was not able to use it. It isn't known whether all of a Shard's power would regenerate eventually.

One of the largest weaknesses a Shard has is that its holder is shaped to its intent. Ruin and Preservation could not create by themselves, as it was against their Shards' intent to do so alone. Odium refuses to take additional Shards simply because doing so would change his personality.{{qa ref|675|12|When Odium slays the Shardbearers, why doesn't he absorb the enemy Shards?}}

Shards, though their minds are significantly expanded, are not omniscient, omnipresent nor omnipotent. Even after Ruin was free from his prison, he couldn't influence everything. After the end of ''[[The Hero of Ages]]'', Sazed can more easily influence events where the mists are located{{qa ref|727|8|Do the Metallic Arts still exist after Sazed's ascension?}}, which implies that there is a limit to his Shards' powers.

Ruin could not read minds, but this is not a limitation to all Shards. Ruin is invasive, it can insert thoughts, but that power can't hear the reaction. Preservation listens and protects, and as such can hear what is inside people's minds, but cannot insert thoughts.{{qa ref|723|13|How does Harmony hear Wax's thoughts?}} Brandon has also stated, however, that Shardic mind reading in this case has to do with humans having more Preservation than Ruin.{{qa ref|708|3|How was Sazed/Harmony able to communicate with Waxillium near the end of the book?}} It is possible a Shard could only read a mind when the Shard has given its power to make sentience (as Preservation did with humans on Scadrial). If that were true, then if Odium did not give humans sentience on Roshar, Odium would also not be able to read minds, similar to Ruin.

Preservation and Ruin are blind to metal, the [[focus]] of the [[Metallic Arts]]. It is not clear if other Shards are blind to an aspect of their respective focus, but Brandon has stated that Sazed is also blind to metal{{qa ref|727|80|Is Sazed effected by the metal blindess, or can he see thing written in metal?}}

The types of magics that exist on a world depends on which Shards are present. If Endowment were to move to Scadrial, additional combinations of magics may form.{{qa ref|691|25|If Endowment went to Scadrial, would more magic's appear?}} However, Shards did not ''create'' magic systems. Ruin and Preservation did not create the Metallic Arts.{{qa ref|727|5|Is Hemalurgy dead?}} Rather, magic is a natural function of the world, a Shard's intent, [[Realmatic]] interactions, and sometimes genetics.{{qa ref|727|45}}

Though magics are related to a Shard, that does not mean that the effect of a magic is in line with a Shard's intent. For example, Allomancy does things like Pushing and Pulling that don't bring to mind "Preserving" things. Rather, a Shard's intent determines ''how'' the magic is obtained, not its effect.{{qa ref|622|107|How is Allomancy of Preservation?}} In Hemalurgy, the method of gaining magic is spiking and it is inherently destruction, but the ''effect'' of the magic actually enhances something else. (This is the more exact, confirmed statement of {{17s|369|the Principle of Intent}} theory).

Magic systems have a [[focus]]. Metals are the focus for the Metallic Arts, Aons are the focus for AonDor, and the Commands are the focus for Awakening.{{cite|need better than 'Eric says so}}<{{ref>|[[User: Chaos2651|Chaos]]'s meeting with Brandon insists it is so.</ref>}} The focus seems to be related to Shards themselves, as Ruin and Preservation could not perceive metal. It is not known what determines a focus for a given Shard, or if all Shards are blind to their focus in some way.

It has been theorized that a Shard's power creates sentience.{{17s ref|549|text=Shardic Sentience}}{{17s ref|636|text=Power generates sentience}} Preservation put a fragment of himself into the people on Scadrial, granting them sentience, and the large quantity of Breaths (presumably fragments of Endowment) in [[Nightblood]] are a factor in his sentience.

Endowment's Shardholder is currently unknown, but since the Tears of Edgli are related to color and Awakening, it's been proposed that Endowment's original name was Edgli.{{qa ref|691|7|Is Edgli Endowment's real name?}}

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