Roshar’s Revenge: The Rise of Spren, Stone, and Wind!

[Confused]

This theory continues to evolve. I posted an earlier version in the Chapter 12-13 thread. @Alder24 inspired this version when he reminded me of the Venli-Stone RoW scene. If you like this theory, please award him with the same reputation points that you award me (if any).

These are just my musings and speculations, regardless of how affirmatively I express myself. Please remember that as you read.

Summary

Roshar is a living planet, and Cultivation is its natural Shard. The Eila Stele’s Spren, Stone, and Wind are Roshar’s native gods. Honor’s and Odium’s heavy Investiture has changed and almost silenced the native gods. Cultivation conceives and implements a plan to rid Roshar of Honor’s and Odium’s outsized influence. The Fleet story culminates her plan – a contest between the old gods and new, Wind vs. Storm – peace vs. conflict. Kal’s victory, as Fleet, marks his ascension.

Spren, Stone, and Wind

I think the Eila Stele names Roshar’s three pre-Shattering native gods: “spren, stone, and wind.”  Wind has contacted Kal, asking for his help. Stone has talked to Venli, reveling in freedom after long stasis. Sja-anat enlightens Spren, giving them personal choice.

It sounds like Roshar itself stirs and wants to shrug off Honor’s and Odium’s yoke. Brandon says Roshar’s special. I believe Roshar is a living, self-conscious planet. I think the planet manifests its consciousness through Spren, Stone, and Wind, each a separate being. I think Stone and Wind have achieved consciousness in their own name, not through the intermediation of a spren that represents them. Wind speaks directly to Kal, not through the Stormfather or any windspren. Stone speaks directly to Venli. Dawnsingers probably manipulated Stone without Spren, relying instead on Roshar’s tones like Venli does.

Is “Spren” a single entity or all spren collectively? Stone and Wind seem universal; Stone is the ground – don’t walk on it! – while Wind blows everywhere. If you have the ability to talk to them, Stone and Wind appear alive and conscious everywhere. Stone might even have a hive mind, since they all talk at once.

Spren also exist everywhere on Roshar, but each appears as an individually sentient or sapient entity. BAM and Sja-anat both influence spren. BAM somehow powers native “form” changes. Spren are central to changing forms. BAM’s imprisonment has disrupted Roshar itself and spren transformation. After Shallan frees BAM, we’ll know more about BAM’s role with spren. Sja-anat “enlightens” spren made from Honor’s and Cultivation’s Investiture to give them free choice. She apparently infuses enlightened spren with Odium’s Investiture.

“Freedomlight”

Spoiler

@Alder24 has an interesting idea that Sja-anat infuses spren with something he calls “Freedomlight”:

On 9/10/2024 at 1:33 AM, alder24 said:

Maybe Sja-Anat's Enlightenment infuses spren with combined investiture of Odium and Cultivation (Freedomlight?), not just pure Odium's investiture? Maybe she is a perfect combination of Odium and Cultivation, equivalent to the Sibling who is of both Honor and Cultivation, working with Towerlight (she calls the Sibling her cousin after all)?

I very much like the idea of Odium and Cultivation’s Lights harmonically merging into “Freedomlight.” I’ve long believed (to ongoing ridicule) that Odium’s Investiture breaks Connections. Brandon says Cultivation has a similar Intent to Ruin, in that Cultivation also relies on destruction and entropy to evolve new life forms. Put those Investitures together, and you have the means of replacing bonds and restrictions with new growth. It’s the perfect combination for “pruning” spren the way Cultivation “prunes” Dalinar’s memories.

SJA clearly infuses Odium’s Investiture into the enlightened spren, but Freedomlight may not be necessary for that. If I’m correct that Odium breaks Connections, Voidlight should be sufficient to remake the spren. It would be interesting if SJA does mirror the Sibling in her capacity to produce Freedomlight. Lots of possibilities...

Cultivation’s Role

If Roshar is a living planet, it makes sense the Oathgate spren want freedom from Honor and Odium but not Cultivation. Even before the Shattering, Cultivation’s power seems indispensable to Roshar. IMO, her power is “Transformation,” the interconvertibility of Investiture, matter, and energy – how Lift obtains her Investiture. Venli notes Cultivation has long guided her people:

Quote

 

Venli searched for something else. The tone of Cultivation. Odium’s song could suffuse her, fueling her powers and enflaming her emotions, but that tone … that tone had belonged to her people long before he’d arrived.

RoW, Kindle p. 935 (bold added).

 

If we assume Spren, Stone, and Wind do predate the Shattering, we have to conclude Adonalsium substantially Invested the living planet using his Cultivation power. Roshar must have a lot of Cultivation’s assigned Investiture.

Post-Shattering, Honor and Cultivation move to Roshar. My guess is Cultivation chooses a planet with large amounts of her assigned Investiture. Honor follows. Ashlyn humans later bring Odium. Honor and Odium heavily Invest Roshar.

Honor’s Stormfather became the planet’s most powerful spren. Highstorms subsume Wind and dominate the ecosystem. Odium unmakes the Unmade into his creatures. Whatever Honor and Cultivation do to trap Odium in the Rosharan system also requires major Investiture commitments. As Stone tells Venli,

Quote

 

Odium and his tone had become part of Roshar, as Cultivation and Honor—who had not been created alongside the planet—had become part of it.

RoW, Kindle p. 935.

 

With Shards ascendant, Spren, Stone, and Wind dwindle. Now at the end of all things, truly the Final Desolation, Roshar’s original gods appear ready to reclaim their primacy.

Cultivation’s Goal

In 2018, I wrote a post entitled “Cultivation’s Long-Term Plan,” much of which I now disown. Here’s the gist: "Cultivation is the Growth Shard. Roshar has stopped growing. The Growth Shard feels compelled to change that."

IMO, Cultivation abhors stagnation. The Desolations are like laundry – wash, rinse, dry...Repeat. Like laundry, civilization thins and suffers. As the personification of thought, spren civilizations suffer too. Cultivation chooses Roshar as her home. She knows the native gods in their original state; some are part of her assigned Investiture. I suspect Cultivation doesn’t interfere with the native gods. Honor, though, imposes rules and strictures on the native gods consistent with his Intent. Wind bows to the fierce Stormfather. The Eila Stele claims Odium brings death and destruction to Roshar.

I think Cultivation acted to change Roshar’s vector. She might have assisted in Tanavast’s death and helped shepherd his fading mind into the Stormfather. She definitely “pruned” Dalinar’s memories to enable him to survive and grow. I believe Cultivation made Lift “awesome.” She might have granted Taravangian’s boon/curse, helped him create the Diagram, and brought about Rayse’s death and Taravangian’s ascension.

Regardless of how the Contest of Champions resolves, I suspect many combatants will join forces to pursue cosmere conquest. Odium will lead them and leave Roshar. I predict those who remain will live in harmony with Roshar’s native gods and a changed ecosystem. Koravellium Avast will “retire” as Cultivation’s Vessel, and Lift will succeed her. Lift will heal the planet...and never be hungry again.

Fleet is Wind’s Champion

Just as Shards choose their Champions, I believe the old Rosharan gods do as well. That is the context for the Fleet story, the battle of Wind vs. Storm. Fleet (Kal) is Wind’s Champion, and the Stormfather is Honor’s Champion. Perhaps more than the Honor-Odium contest, Fleet’s race will determine the future of Roshar. I replace “Fleet” with “Kal.”

Kal’s body dies before the finish line, but his will holds the Storm at bay. Kal and Syl’s shared consciousness – their conjoined soul – rises to race to victory. I believe this is the moment of Kal’s ascension. Roshar’s native gods rule once more.

Conclusion

Kal and Syl ascend. To what? A topic for another day. Thanks for reading my latest speculations. All the best! C.

[ZenBossanova]

8 hours ago, Confused said:

Odium’s Investiture breaks Connections.

If Adonalsium had all the powers of a God and Creator, then there should be someone who could act as a Anti-Bondsmith. Of all the Shards, Odium fits that the best. 

But, since each shard appears to have a characteristic number, and Odium has 9, then there isn't a separate Unmade doing Anti-Bondsmith stuff. That power would be spread among all the Unmade. 

[MarcieIsForager She/They]

Minor spoilers for Isles of Emberdark preview

Spoiler

In the preview we see a radiant either skybreaker or windrunner travel to First of the Sun on their own power. We know at least from dialogue that they dont use a perpendicularity but flew there through regular space.

Now if the rosharan forces were planet based physically the amount of FTL youd need simply though a radiants powers should effectively be impossible
However if you had a raid party similar to the nightbrigade travelling the cosmere led by Odium/Honor or maybe even the shard of war a radiant being sent as advance to a planet would be way more realistic

So ig your theory is super plausible given what we know now and tbh in general i just love the theory

Edited September 13 by MarcieIsForager

[Michael Portz he/him]

If it turns out not to be so I vote for creating an alternate ending for SL arc 1 …