Surgebinding and Shardwielding can return [spoilers]

[Arcanist Lupus he/him]

I think Dalinar is a Shardplate specialist, and if his order has any powers beyond superior use of Plate we haven't seen them. His armor glows faintly whenever he's being exceptionally spectacular with it, and in addition to being even stronger, faster, and more graceful than normal Shardbearers he apparently managed to activate some sort of gyroscopic stabilizing effect during the fight with the chasmfiend to land on his feet when thrown. But I think those are all inactive powers of the armor that only Knights Radiant can access instead of an ability specific to one order.

Besides his visions, of course...

[Wispsy he/him]

Jasnahs thing could have just been rly skillful soulcasting I think

[ulyssessword he/him]

I think Dalinar is a Shardplate specialist, and if his order has any powers beyond superior use of Plate we haven't seen them. His armor glows faintly whenever he's being exceptionally spectacular with it, and in addition to being even stronger, faster, and more graceful than normal Shardbearers he apparently managed to activate some sort of gyroscopic stabilizing effect during the fight with the chasmfiend to land on his feet when thrown. But I think those are all inactive powers of the armor that only Knights Radiant can access instead of an ability specific to one order.

I don't attribute most of this to anything special about Dalinar, with the exception of it glowing and having more strength when he saved Elhokar's life from the chasmfiend and . The stabilizing effect would be very odd if it was unique to him, because it happened in our first peek at Shardplate, so I put it in the same category as being able to feel textures through the gloves and being able to see through the helmet.

[Zas678 he/him]

Indeed, from his last Europe tour, we have reference that it isn't genetic:

Also he said that the ways of magic are different. In Mistborn it's genetic (or through ingesting atium, but he didn't talk about that). In Warbreaker it has to do with gathering other people's Breath, etc.

In Elantris through the Shaod, In mistborn it's genetic, in tWoK it depends on what some one has done.

Now this is an after-the-fact report, but I think that there is evidence here that your actions that you perform is what attracts Spren with Nahel Bond capabilities.

[happyman he/him]

I don't attribute most of this to anything special about Dalinar, with the exception of it glowing and having more strength when he saved Elhokar's life from the chasmfiend and . The stabilizing effect would be very odd if it was unique to him, because it happened in our first peek at Shardplate, so I put it in the same category as being able to feel textures through the gloves and being able to see through the helmet.

Except Dalinar has been using Shardplate for years. He mentions some of the oddities in passing, but they don't surprise him, even if he knows that that behavior is unusual for anything but Shardplate. If it had been a standard feature, surely he would have mentioned it that way as well (e.g. "Dalinar focused his thoughts on regaining his balance, and the Shardplate responded in its usual way")? Instead, it's a mysterious event that happens halfway through the fight with the Chasmfiend which he doesn't question because he is waaaaaaay too busy afterwards.

[Odium's_Shard]

Maybe I'm seeing too far into puddles, but if we're trying to theorize the magic systematics, then I have come up with a theory. It'll probably contain spoilers simply because I am just trying to draw from as many sources as possible.

I'm sure that somewhere Brandon has confirmed or at least mention that, like in the Mistborn series, where the symbols stood for the different metals (and, coincidentally, while this doesn't quite correlate, had two systems in Pushing and Pulling), the glyphs that were on the front cover each stood for a Surgebinding, or perhaps just a system of magic.

He said that the top-right one (I think?) was the one we have already seen; Windrunning. I don't believe he clarified whether if this itself is a single magic system, or the two disciplines (as I will call them) of Basic and Full Lashings are each a system in their own right. As there were, as we know, Ten Orders of the KR, this would imply that the Windrunners operated just as single outlet of this kind. Implying that there are nine other sets of dual abilities? On this cord, we can safely assume that a Reverse Lashing is the discipline of a Stoneward? If so, what is the other one? This obvious suggests there are further uses for Surgebinding we do not know, as neither do Szeth, Teft or Kaladin (although he does not know of the Reverse Lashing, as he is surprised when he draws the Parshendi arrows to his shield, as is Teft).

This also leads onto the possibility that the glowing marks that Dalinar saw on the early Radiants in his visions could be this other ability of Stonewards. Or another ability. This then is clearly contradicted by the fact that one of the Radiants makes a jump that "is so much more that a Plate-assisted leap", probably half- or quarter-Lashing their weight upto leap further, which raises the question: Can the KR use abilities of other Orders? Then how can Kaladin do so?

I think it has been mentioned that one of the Orders handled Soulcasting, which must be one of two dual disciplines under a set Order title, of which I cannot speculate. Or perhaps there is just two abilities under Soulcasting. Clearly, the link to Shadesmar isn't coincidental, and so, in essence, I am going to theorize that accessing Shadesmar was the ability of this seperate Order, and that under that, within Shadesmar, there were two options: Soulcasting, that is changing the object's essence (or combination of essences), into another (combination, perhaps) of the Ten Essences, and Hoid's method to travelling the Shardworlds (and his pursuers, Seventeenth Shard, if his is the author of the Letter), which Brandon confirmed was linked to Shadesmar.

Also, moving onto the number of magic systems, there were said to be 30. Making assumptions, I will dole out 10 to each Shard(holder) currently present in Roshar as their direct influences. This is also, maybe, evidence to suggest that Ten is a special number in Roshar, like 16 in Scandrial.

Obviously, of the 10 they each hold, some will be variations of the other. However, this leaves a tangible confusion, with the KR possibly practicing what we think of as different magics, Soulcasting (Shadesmar Access, at least) and Surgebinding (maybe even Voidbinding, if you are so inclined about the KR). The following is my views on distributions of the magics:

Soulcasting: I am going to call Cultivation. I surprised myself with this one. But to me, at least it makes sense. Probably not to you. But isn't it the intent of Cultivation to grow? Then, isn't it reasonable that, rephrased, evolving one substance to another could be considered growth? However, the problems with this is whether or not Soulcasting could be classed as an independant Shard's domain. After all, how can ten other powers spring from Soulcasting to fill the quota (if there is one)? And then there is the question of it being included in the Orders (if it is) which would suggest it is a Surgebinding.

I will even go so far as to suggest that, as an access point to Shadesmar, the Cognitive Realm, then Soulcasting as Cultivation's domain implies that Cultivation resides over the Cognitive Realm. I would then place Honor over the Spiritual Realm, as his Shards (perhaps Splinters of Honor after Odium kills him) disappear to this Realm when not in use. That would imply Odium, bringer of Physical destruction, resides over the Physical Realm. This falls apart if Surgebinding though.

Voidbinding: Odium. In my opinion, however it is most likely to mix with the others at points. To little is known about it to make full assumptions.

Surgebinding: Honor. Again my opinion, but it makes sense. Following the Shards as Splinters theory, then it is entirely possible, if not likely, that the users of Surgebinding could wear or would wear these Splinters of the governing Shard of their power.

However, in line with a spren being responsible for all magics (or just Surgebinding, I'm not sure?) then this would suggest that the symbolspren related to Shadesmar Access would too be a part of the Surgebinding, like honorspren and bindspren, form a bond with certain people, aka Shallan and Jasnah, maybe even Dalinar and certainly Kaladin, in order to give them these base powers. Clearly associating Soulcasting with the Orders, and thus placing it under Surgebinding and Honor's domain.

Old Magic: In line with spren causing all change, and thus magic, I would assume this would make the Nightwatcher (sometimes described as a spren) the source for this. However, not sure whether to place it under Cultivation or not. Could fit, but this is a long enough post save that.

However, I do think that the Aimian man who collects notation on spren around the world, can't remember his name, could be very important to discovering or giving to us how all these magic systems work around one another.

Long post. Sorry.

[SerArthurHeath]

I don't know if I would say that Shardwielding is a magic system. Overall, we have yet to see any evidence of the old Shardplate and blades doing more or anything different than the current ones (other than implying very heavily that surgebinding was useable while wearing Shardplates before). The only place I can think of where the Shardplates did more than the current era's is in Dalinar's vision where he meets the 2 Radiants in the forest. One of them jump in a huge arc (described as something more than a simple Shardplate assisted jump, but it wasn't flying) which sounds very similar to the fight scene where Szeth assassinates the king of Jah Keved where he binds a part of his weight up to make himself lighter. Magic systems are inherent by the intent of the shards they are based on, the simple existence of materials isn't enough to be a magic system. I could see Shardplates and blades being an invention or result of a magic system but since there isn't a requirement nor is it an ability to use/wield Shardplates/blades, anyone can use them.

Also, I like your connection of Shinovar as Cultivation's base, which would mean that the Old Magic isn't purely Cultivation's as it's further east, but I don't think Szeth's magic would be from Cultivation. There is a thorough rejection of Szeth as Truthless in Shinovar, it doesn't seem to stem from him killing someone or picking up a weapon, we've seen the warrior class in one of the interludes, which I feel the surgebinding that Szeth does seems to be a possible reason for it. If what Szeth is wielding is Cultivation's power, why would the Shin, if Shinovar is the center for Cultivation, reject it? Maybe the Horneaters have some connection too? They have a similar system of cooks and farmers at high importance and soldiers at low (the 1st son, 2nd son thing).

Hey, I'm new here. I quite like aspects of this theory, but i have. another suggested reason for why Szeth's abilities should not be purely from Cultivation. It is implied ( and I just read a couple of theories based on this) that Stormlight, sharing it's name with an alias of Honor's lead Herald/angel counterpart, is linked to Honor. He can send visions from the grave to Dalinar when there is a Highstorm. Theories suggest these storms come from where he died/lies. This is purely conjecture until we see magic we know is linked to Odium or Cultivation and how it relates to Stormlight. What we know of the old magic does not have it rely on Stormlight, so I suggest it is not linked to Honor. However, Szeth's magic certainly is so I would suggest that it is linked to Honor in some way.