Recent entries

George

Will, is it a coincident that the Wei Clan was taught their skills by A or several FOXEs, and that there is a Division with the same name.I'M rather scepticall, though, as both concentrate on completely different skills; while the one focuses on illusions, the other one on spatial control.

Will Wight

Well, the Abidan originally came from Cradle, so the names of their divisions come from animals that exist in Cradle and were significant there.Other than a distant cultural connection, no, there's no tie between the Wei Clan and the Fox Division.

FoolRegnant

So, does each Abidan division have an internal power-ranking? Does the Abidan have a specific set of ranks below Judge, or is it organized more organically/decentralized?

Will Wight

There are ranks below Judge, and there are specialized positions as well.The different Divisions are organized differently, but there are some common ranks.

Family of Raccoons attempting to rally the broken Australian troops in the great emu war

Will, I was rereading the house of blades, and something occurred to me: Why did Damasca take the yearly sacrifices from their outlying villages instead using criminals on death row? Just seems like it would be easier, and would greatly reduce to chances of, say, having Damasca's outlying villages begin to conspire against the throne

Will Wight

It started off as a way of bringing the whole country together, making sure that everyone shared the pain of the sacrifice so that everyone would feel how important it was.And, over time, it just became tradition.

George

Will, does one, though, by mastering a law raise one's cultivation stage, or does the same stage remain, yet the strength increases immensely, thus making that person as strong as someone from a higher stage?It is, after all, often seen that the MC of various Xianxia novels is stronger than people of much higher ranks, if we take Cradle system, then it could be a an Underlord defeating a Sage.I, personally, dislike it, as it makes the whole ranking system almost worthless. Why build it, when you completely disregard it later on. You made Lindon, a Copper, defeat a Truegold, though, but the difference is that you used an understandable reason for the shocking result, namely the carelessness of the Truegold(showing the back to an enemy without checking his status). I hope, when similar scenes come up, you keep using methods that don't seem over the top, like him using some overpowered technique, which One-shots him.

Will Wight

Yes, there will be people of lower ranks capable of defeating people at higher ranks.However, you won't have the situation you find in a lot of cultivation novels where the MC has the strength of someone five stages stronger than him, and then six stages stronger, and then seven stages stronger, until at a certain point he's just the strongest and you might as well stop comparing his cultivation level.[SPOILERS FOR MARTIAL WORLD]In Martial World, for instance, the main character is at Revolving Core, but he can kill sixth-stage Life Destruction experts like it's nothing. That's literally six levels above where he is....so his cultivation level is totally irrelevant to his strength. If that's true, why have cultivation levels at all? Why not just say X is stronger than Y because he's better?I agree with you, and we won't see that. There won't be Jades going around killing Sages (except under very specific circumstances, HMMMM?).But, for instance, you might see a particularly skilled, suitable, or lucky Lowgold defeat a Truegold.

George

Will, how many people of Northstriders level would it roughly take to defeat weakest member of The Wolves? I know that suitability is a huge factor in a fight, which is why i don'T expect a definite answer.

Will Wight

Assuming the weakest of the Wolves, i.e. someone who has no other powers besides those of the Abidan and little combat experience but they're trying to work in the Wolf Division anyway...AND assuming we mean "beat in a fight" rather than "kill"...Northstrider might be able to do it in a 1v1. There's a wide gap between the least of the Abidan and the Judges, plus people who are weaker than Northstrider could still technically ascend.

George

Do you ascend simply after reaching a certain level, or is it only possible after gaining an enlightenment of a certain laws of the universe, kinda like Linley did in Coiling Dragon later in the books?(For example, Profound Laws of Earth)If it is the latter, could technically a copper ascend by understanding a certain amount of laws, or is that, already, not possible, because mastering such laws allows you, immediately, to reach a higher cultivation rank even if it is an unconventional way.

Diego

I imagine it's a lot like the transition to iron for Lindon though. If someone weak ascends too early it probably limits their future growth. Or maybe the iteration the weakest Wolf came from allows early ascension so he's not all that strong yet.Hey Will another question: What stops immortals from mastering different magic systems from different iterations? (Like in disguise so they don't disturb fate too much)

Will Wight

@George: It's more like mastering Laws than pure cultivation, but no a Copper couldn't do it.@Diego: Yep, you nailed it. The weakest Wolf is from an Iteration other than Cradle (so he might have to leave a lot of his power behind) and has just started learning to tap into the Way.What stops immortals from going to another Iteration and learning the magic system?The Abidan. There's nothing in the rules of the universe to prevent that, and indeed one of the rival organizations of the Abidan is made up of people who do this.

Reddan

On a bit of a Suriel kick here with these questions:

How many years has the current Suriel been alive?

Is she as strong/skillful as her predecessor? (Is that a useful distinction or are all the judges really close together)

How well did she know her predecessor?

What other court roles could Suriel have filled if she wanted?

Was/is Suriel a "wild" Abidan, or did she come from Sanctum (or another place like Sanctum)?

Will Wight

1.) Age:

...I won't lie to you, I don't know. I haven't invented that answer yet.

2.) Skill:

She's more temperamentally suited to the role of the Phoenix than her predecessor was, but they both had different strengths and weaknesses. All in all, they were basically on the same tier.

3.) Familiarity:

She worked alongside him for many years. They were very familiar.

4.) Roles:

She has skill in almost all the other roles, but she's only Judge-level as a Phoenix. That's pretty common.

Most of the Judges excel in one area, though they're skilled in several others. The only exceptions are Gadrael, Makiel, and Ozriel: Gadrael because he's useless in every area but one, Makiel because he has the skills of a Judge in two areas, and Ozriel because he's good at everything. Except healing.

5.) Wild or not?

She did ascend from an Iteration on her own; she's not from Cradle, but she's not from Sanctum either. She mastered her original magic system before rising into the Abidan and eventually making her way onto the Court.

Before she was a Judge, she was personally acquainted with both Ozriel and the previous Suriel.

Nocturniquet

So far Will seems to always paint Ozriel in a good light as if he is noble and one of the good guys.I think we will slowly begin to see him as the villain of the overall universe for a few reasons.He has an absolutists goal that cannot currently be achieved because the government forbids it. If the abidan were removed from the picture or overthrown then Ozriel would be free to enact his ideals.Will confirmed there are non-abidan entities that illegally use the Way and/or are opposed to the abidan. Makes sense that Ozriel could rally or lead these people against the Abidan.If this is the case I find it to be great writing because in most stories the villain simply is and we never get to experience his rise to "villainship" in real time. It's always as if the main characters are fighting to stop the master plan or fix the world after the villain has almost fully succeeded.This way we start off with Ozriel as a good intenioned character who slowly goes too far.

Will Wight

I can't comment on ultimately what role Ozriel will play in the story, because obviously that's a spoiler.I will say this: I'm painting him that way now because that's how Suriel sees him. She sees him as ultimately good-intentioned, maybe a little arrogant, but the system has some good points too.Her viewpoint and yours might change as the series goes on.Maybe he'll be even MORE of a good guy. Who knows?

Devin

How would a fight between the Reaper and the Wolf go?Also, could a retired Judge craft a new mantle and weapon to be on par with a current Judge? And if so, did Ozriel craft his own mantle and weapon?

 

Will Wight

Ozriel crafted his own weapon, but I don't think the mantle (I'd have to check my notes to be sure, but I don't think so).A retired Judge could not (in theory) craft his own mantle and weapon to be on par with a current Judge, because you couldn't do it secretly. The Abidan would notice the rare materials and the huge conflux of power it would take to create something like that.It's also difficult for anyone but the Abidan to do it because it requires materials and magic from multiple worlds.

Nitin

Has any asked before what was Ozriel's real name?

Will Wight

No, and no one's asked me Suriel's real name either.

Adarsh

Well what are they?And as a side note why do all their names end with -el? Is that a culture thing?

Will Wight

I made up seven archangel names.Razael, Suriel, and Adriel at least have all already been used--I found out through Google; I have no idea what Blood Omen: Soul Reaver is--but I made all of them up according to general angel mythology.Kaballah, Jewish tradition, and some Christian tradition holds that there are seven archangels, but their names vary wildly, so I came up with ones that sounded cool.In the original draft of this universe, they had taken the titles of seven actual archangels, but I eventually nixed that. The angel names stuck because A.) I had gotten used to them, and B.) they're a court of seven holier-than-thou celestial judges, and naming them like archangels reinforces that point.As for why the angels have names ending in -el, it's because in Hebrew, the -el ending refers to God. So it has an "of God" or "of the Lord" or "God's" connotation.In this universe, it's because it was an ancient naming convention they used because it sounded authoritative.

Nitin

Adriel? Is he the first Abidan?Did anyone work under Reaper or was he one man machine?Sanctum is home of Abidan or is it a world of ascended beings? Or both?Titan tanksPhoenix healersWolf dps.There goes our raid!

Will Wight

Adriel: You'll have to find out in a few days, won't you?Ozriel: The Reaper is a one-man band.Sanctum is home to the Abidan AND people who have ascended beyond other Iterations, but mostly it houses the Abidan and the civilizations that support them.Titan tanksWolf DPSPhoenix healersFox...rogues?Ghost bardsSpider scoutsHounds don't raid, they're in the RP servers solving crimesReaper OP, needs nerf.TL;DR - balance team, wtf

Shane

For some reason, I think Lindon and the Fox would get on well together.

Will Wight

I've wanted to write a scene with the Fox for years now.With anybody really, but mainly between Ozriel and Zakariel. Because Zakariel irritates all the other Judges with a smile on her face, but the only one who gets on HER nerves is Ozriel.Fun fact: probably the first scene I wrote for this series, when I was working out the Suriel storyline, was a dialogue between Ozriel and Zakariel.

Kaileonis

Will we get to enjoy that scene that you wrote about?

Will Wight

Probably not, no. I originally wrote it for Elder Empire.

Family of raccoons laying siege to the city of carthage in order to prevent hannibal from crossing the alps in the dead of winter, catching roman forces completely by surprise and allowing him to march his armies through italy unchallenged

Here's something I've been wondering: you mentioned that creating a path around guns would be pointless, but then how are sword paths even remotely viable? It seems like the best paths would focus on long-range capabilities, and have techniques or an iron body that greatly enhance speed, allowing them to stay out of range. It doesn't matter how good a sword is if it can't land a hit.Also, how are armies organized in times of war? Are soldiers required to change to a standard path for uniformity among the ranks, arranged into divisions of people with similar skill-sets, or thrown onto the field with no regard for paths? Are officers determined by merit or cultivation level? Are more powerful sacred artists fielded first or last, as using them early could allow more control of the battlefield, but they don't want to risk the shame of being seen defeated. Do coups often follow wars? As the conflict would likely create powerful sacred artists to challenge the ruling power.

Will Wight

It depends on what you mean by "best" Paths. Best Path for what? Best Path for killing a sword artist, sure.However, the real answer is that in this world, a sword isn't a short-range weapon.The nature of sacred arts in this world means there aren't armies as we know them. It's pointless to mass together a bunch of people when one enemy who's advanced enough could kill all of them unopposed.War-level combat is a lot more about matching experts with experts. This is a world where it's even viable for wars to be settled by duels; if their Underlord beats your Underlord, and you don't have anyone else as strong or stronger, you might as well surrender.There are squads and divisions divided by specialty function and ability, which we'll get into. Also, Carthage must be destroyed.

Family of attack badgers (raccoons busy attacking carthage for mollusk blood to make purple dye, a priceless commodity of the ancient world, and a symbol of wealth and power in the roman empire)

That seems strange, as all previous examples of conflict (heavens glory, jai clan) show the leaders more than willing to throw weak fodder at their enemies, because if they go and fight themselves, they risk losing face, or appearing weak (pride/appearance of strength being a pillar of the culture here) Wouldn't kings and lords want to avoid this as much as possible? Sending low-rank fodder to fight their low-rank fodder (enemy kings won't want to risk themselves needlessly either, after all) seems like a preferable alternative, especially since if your fodder survives, they will likely become stronger from the fighting.

Will Wight

An Underlord loses face when he HAS to go deal with a group of Golds, because he's lowering himself to their level.If the enemy doesn't have an Underlord of their own, he doesn't have to deal with them at all. The threat of him doing so is enough.If they keep defying him, then he would lose more respect and reputation by allowing them to continue hurting his interests unopposed than he would taking care of them himself.So basically, if you're not roughly equal to the enemy in strength, you don't fight.If you ARE roughly equal in strength, as you say, fights are usually carried out by the lower ranks. It's not normally duels between the upper-level people, I was just using that as an illustration of where the real power is. It's a viable strategy, but it's not common.

 

And furthermore Carthage must be destroyed.

Patrick

Sorry, two more questions: Now that Ozriel is around, what does the wolf division do exactly? Are they actively on the borders of the abidan space attacking threats or are they the one's who dealt with the Elder's before they were bound or ?

Will Wight

We'll get into that much more as the books progress, but the bottom line is that the Wolves fight against rivals of the Abidan. So yes, unbound Elders, yes rival organizations, and yes people who ascend out of their Iterations and don't listen to reason.

Patrick

So by this point I assume that Ozriel is considered more powerful than the rest of the current judges, but possibly not stronger (or just as strong) as the original judges? What happened to them (the original judges who made the pact)? If they had just retired from their positions, they're still just as strong as they were originally (minus their mantles) and presumably immortal right? So there are a few impossibly powerful beings who created the current system just hanging around somewhere? Or did they die? 

Will Wight

Possibly. Most of them are confirmed dead, but there are a few that could be lingering around.They can't compete with the current Judges, lacking mantles and weapons, but they haven't lost any skills or knowledge.If, hypothetically speaking, they still exist.

April

I've been wondering for a while, but haven't asked as I assume you will not answer, but decided to ask anyway; with whom did the Abidan make this pact?

Will Wight

Between the seven original Judges and the Way.

Adarsh

So if Simon managed to ascend, would he become a Wolf? And how far away is he in terms of power from the weakest of the wolves?

Jerry

I'm going to guess LIGHT YEARS away from ascending. Remember that the Emperor could smite all the incarnations at once, and unless he was secretly an ascended being, it would seem that Simon is way way behind even that. So unless he masters valinhall and becomes the next traveler.. He's got a ways to go.

Will Wight

Yeah, the Emperor has enough power to ascend past his world. The only reason he hasn't is because he's in Asylum, which is effectively a prison.We haven't seen anyone in Traveler's Gate strong enough to do that. But if Simon DID get to ascend, then he would end up as a Wolf, yeah.

 

Otarin

Would the emperor have ascended and ditched his planet had he been able to or would his sense of duty have kept him there?

Will Wight

He wouldn't have left on his own. He may have tried to take a team into the Way, or tried to cast the Elders out.

Mathew

I'M quite curious how Lindon's father would react, if he were to discover that he was never a genius to begin with.Would this knowledge be more devastating or could he easier let go of the past.Isn't he so miserable, because he thinks that without his injury he could have become someone great, accomplished many great deeds.But by knowing the standard of the rest of the world, he would be aware that the strongest he could have gotten, would be the strength of children of teenagers.What is your opinion?

Will Wight

Also, Mathew, you've raised a good question. Lindon's father would be devastated at the knowledge of how far behind they are in Sacred Valley, and would resist the truth as long as possible.See, he KNOWS that the world outside the Valley is more dangerous, and therefore the people there must be more advanced. But he's picturing a wily, skilled Jade.If he learned that Lowgolds outside were more common than Irons in Sacred Valley, he would feel like he'd wasted his life.

Will Wight

What do you want to see in Skysworn

Questioner

Maybe adding some romantic relationships? I know he has a one track mind of "getting stronger" but he is still a 15 year old boy, he should be thinking about girls at least sometimes.

In most fiction works it is either "one fated love" or "A huge harem", I would love to see a more realistic approach in your work which mean Lindon having 4-5 different relationships during the course of the series.(not at the same time, of course).

Will Wight

You know, I understand and feel the same way, but I'm not sure this is the series for it.

It's not like I spend much time on Lindon's day-to-day life. I've been trimming away basically everything except progression and exploration, so anything focused purely on relationship development would be taking time away from either the story or the world.

It's the reason why so many series default to either a single, fated relationship or a harem: time.

For a harem, you just have one love interest per arc. It's part of the story formula, and you repeat it over and over. It takes no extra time because it's part of the story, and because the girls only get shallow development and have no real lives of their own.

And a single relationship is either gotten out of the way early or is someone intimately involved in the plot, just like the main character is, so their development together can be folded into plot development.

Basically, that's two ways to bake romance into a story without it taking up too much word count.

As it is now, an ongoing series of romantic relationships would mean 20-30k more words per novel. Which means either 20-30k fewer words spent on the meat and potatoes of the story, or a lot more time to develop and write each book.

Plus, writing engaging and organic character relationships is far more challenging than writing fights or cool magical doohickeys. So...it comes down to having a limited amount of time, and having to choose where I spend it.

However, despite everything I just said, I'm not entirely ruling it out. I'm spending some time over the next few days just trying to figure out how much of my books should be spent on plot progression, and how much room I have for other things. This will be part of that discussion.

dyring

So, is it Orthonardo, Orhtael, Orthangelo or Orthello that we should call Orthos after he advances to underlord and becomes a ninjaturtle?

Will Wight

Orthonardo. Orthael is his name after he joins the Abidan Court.

Decadakon

Is there a path that utilizes black holes? Or is that too dangerous?

Will Wight

No, no one on Cradle is strong enough for that. Plus it would destroy the world.