Vasher

Vasher
Spouse	Shashara
Abilities	Returned, Awakener, Worldhopper
Aliases	Zahel
Profession	Five Scholars
Nationality	Idrian
Homeworld	Nalthis

Vasher, Kalad, Strifelover, Peacegiver the Blessed, Talaxin, Zahel, or Warbreaker the Peaceful is a Returned on Nalthis.

He helped create the awakened sword Nightblood and was one of the Five Scholars.

History

Return

Vasher was born on Nalthis, but nothing is known about his natural life. Upon being returned, the Cult of the Returned named him "Warbreaker the Peaceful."

Five Scholars

Vasher was a member of the Five Scholars. He worked with Shashara to create Nightblood, among other things.

He married Shashara shortly before he slew her with Nightblood. He killed her in order to prevent the knowledge of its creation from being disseminated.

Much later, shortly before the events of Warbreaker, Arsteel attempted to disarm Vasher so as to talk sense into him to attempt to make him reconcile with Denth, Shashara's brother. Arsteel, however, was slain by Vasher in their duel for at first unknown reasons. As Arsteel was the superior swordsman, Vasher was forced to use a trick to win the fight. When, during the events of Warbreaker, he fought Denth, we learned how he defeated Arsteel: He passed on a small quantity of Breaths to Arsteel, and slew the other Scholar when the shock of receiving Breath stunned him. Vasher used the same tactic to kill Denth.

The Manywar

Vasher, then known as Kalad, started an aggressive war between his kingdom, Hallandren, and the kingdoms of Kuth and Huth. The exact details are unknown, although it was hinted that Vasher was the first to strike. He believed war was unavoidable and decided to attack before the others did instead of trying for peace. The war ended when Vasher, having seen the death caused by the war, used his own creations, Kalad's Phantoms, to take control of Hallandren.

Historians were confused by his sudden change of heart. This led to the Hallandren calling Vasher Peacegiver. Eventually this led to the belief that they were separate people.

Peacegiver's Treasure

At the end of the Manywar, Vasher gave his store of Breaths (approximately fifty thousand) to the priests of Hallandren. It was passed down from God King to God King, all of whom had their tongues removed so that they wouldn't use the Breath.

Vasher in Hallandren

At the beginning of Warbreaker, Vasher used a trick to get himself imprisoned in the God King's palace. He escaped his cell and killed Vahr, in exchange for Vahr's Breath. He later on rescued Vivenna and taught her to awaken. He helped Vivenna undo her work of trying to get the Idrians to start a war. Later on he broke into the God King's palace and got trapped by Denth. He killed Denth and told the God King how to use Vasher's army to stop the army of Lifeless which the Pahn Kahl had sent to attack Idris.

He then sets off to confront Yesteel who was attempting to restore Huth and Kuth.

Vasher on Roshar

A depiction of Zahel by User: Botanicaxu.

Vasher worldhops to Roshar, where he is known as Zahel. He is a reclusive warrior ardent who teaches the Kholin princes and Kaladin how to sword fight. He uses exclamations and phrases involving colors, which generally confuses the Rosharans.

Powers & Abilities

Returned

Vasher was one of the first Returned, he has a Divine Breath; however, over the years he has developed abilities unique from other Returned. He is capable of altering his appearance, including altering his height as well as removing the Returned natural glow. Because he possesses a Divine Breath he automatically has the Fifth Heightening. In addition he also has extended life and agelessness. It is speculated that sources of investiture other than Breaths can sustain Vasher.

Awakening

Vasher is one of the greatest Awakeners to ever live. Having been alive for as long as he has, as well as dedicating large amounts of his life to study and experimentation, Vasher has extensive knowledge of Awakening. Vasher can issue highly advanced commands to aid in combat, mobility, or espionage. He often does this using the minimum amount of Breaths required, as he knows exactly how much is needed. Vasher has also developed innovations in the application of Breaths. He created Kalad's Phantoms, a near-unstoppable army of Lifeless stone soldiers. He is also one of two people who know how to create sentient inanimate objects, having created Nightblood, an extremely powerful sword.

Swordsmanship

Vasher is a very skilled swordsman, with three hundred years of practice along with his Returned speed and strength. Though he has admitted that he is not the best swordsman because his temper gets in the way, his ingenuity in combat gives him an edge. He also is open to using "cheap tricks" in combat, such as when he transferred Breaths to stun his opponent. A clear indicator of his sword fighting prowess is that on Roshar he is a highly sought-after Alethi blademaster, having directly trained both of the Kholin children and Kaladin in the use and defense against Shardblades. His familiarity with using Shardblades most likely stems from Nightblood having similar abilities to Shardblades.

Trivia

• Vasher has visited fewer than six planets
• He was in the original Way of Kings draft

Notes

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