Recent entries

    Amalgam ()
    #1863 Copy

    Questioner

    Can you give info on the origin of Simon’s dolls both in the book and IRL? Or anything else. That works too. Excited for the Christmas short story!

    Will Wight

    I wanted Kai to be crazy, so I needed a prop to show how crazy he was. The first thing I thought of was a girl's doll that he whispered to. But then I asked myself, "Wait a second, is he hallucinating this, or should the dolls talk back?"

    Amalgam ()
    #1864 Copy

    Questioner

    Who would be a good matchup for Valin?

    Questioner

    I have trouble matching the Cradle power scale to other realities too, because the Cradle scale only works relative to its own magic system.I have some minor characters who might be a good matchup for Valin, but they won't be introduced until Blackflame (or possibly the next book, depending on where I end up). So...spoilers!

    Amalgam ()
    #1865 Copy

    Questioner

    Lucan, Meia, and Shera vs. Simon, Elaina, and Andra

    Will Wight

    Hmmm...I think the Gardeners have the advantage if they have time to plan and it's more than just a "run out there and fight RIGHT NOW" battle. If they have to face three Valinhall Traveler's head-on immediately without preparation or anything to use in their surroundings, I don't see how they could overcome the advantage in strength and speed.The most even matchup would probably be sealing both teams in a small town for three days, by which time the team with the most surviving fighters will be declared the winner. A tie results in being tossed into a ring and made to fight straight-up.This gives a chance for Lucan's Reading to come into play, both in tracking the opponents down and preparing weapons or other items. He finds them, Shera goes in to kill them, and Meia fights to cover their retreat....in the meantime, Simon and the others are going to be using the powers of their advisors (Korr senses sources of danger, Caela senses movement, and Andra's advisor--whose name is escaping me and I'm too tired to look it up--has a perfect spatial memory) to find their opponents and try to trap them into a battle.The advantage the Valinhall Travelers have is that they're very difficult to surprise.The Gardeners have the advantage of being perfectly willing and trained to kill people unaware.In that scenario, I think Shera and her team get it unless Simon-and-company get lucky.

    Amalgam ()
    #1866 Copy

    Questioner

    Northstrider vs Kelerac, or Northstrider vs high ranking elders

    Will Wight

    Unsealed Elders no, simply due to the nature of the fight. At that point it's not a power level thing. Using sacred arts to fight unsealed Elders is, by and large, like trying to use your fists to fight a virus.But sealed Great Elders (like the ones the Emperor dealt with)...yeah, easily.

    Amalgam ()
    #1867 Copy

    Questioner

    Which is stronger, Elysia or Ragnarus.

    Will Wight

    I don't know how to do a battle of one place against another. In a war, obviously Elysia would win, because Ragnarus is uninhabited (OR IS IT?) and Elysia has a ton of soldiers.But I will tell you that, when I'm writing the books, I think of Valinhall, Ragnarus, and Elysia all on the same tier.

    Amalgam ()
    #1868 Copy

    Questioner

    Does valinhall have plumbing?

    Will Wight

    It does not. The pool has a weird organic system that cleans and drains it, and the toilets are haunted and flush waste beyond reality.The air comes from magic.

    Amalgam ()
    #1870 Copy

    Questioner

    What level of power could Simon earn?

    Will Wight

    This is kind of a meta answer, but I haven't decided yet.Totally depends on where I want to take the series. If I go where I've been planning to go, and keep the story relatively grounded but focused on Valinhall and giving Simon a satisfying arc of emotional development and growth, then yeah, probably Sword Sage level.But there's nothing that stops me from scrapping all those plans and having him ascend beyond his world just like Lindon is trying to ascend beyond Cradle. It's even easier for Simon, since he just needs to figure out how Valin left.

    Amalgam ()
    #1872 Copy

    Questioner

    How much can Simon lift?

    Will Wight

    As far as how much Simon can lift...I'm not sure how to answer that without contradicting something in the books or irritating somebody who already has a specific answer in mind.I know how strong I think he is, but I'll leave specific estimates to you.

    Amalgam ()
    #1873 Copy

    Questioner

    What would happen if a nation's worth of people moved into a Territory?

    Will Wight

    As you might expect, that would depend on the Territory. There's usually a reason why nations don't form there.

    In Asphodel, which is actually one of the most inhabited Territories, a nation-sized settlement would draw the Mist by the strength of their collective emotions. They would have to constantly contend with it, and would likely find it more worthwhile to settle elsewhere.

    In Naraka, they would either leave or die of thirst. There isn't enough water in Naraka to sustain such a population.

    Helgard might be able to support them. Some Helgard Travelers believe there might already be a nation-sized population somewhere in the Tower, there being huge floors and lots of nooks and crannies in Helgard.

    Amalgam ()
    #1874 Copy

    Questioner

    Is it theoretically possible to have a connection to all territories or are some bloodlines or tests incompatible with each other?

    Will Wight

    Theoretically yes. It's not realistic simply because most of the tests involve spending large amounts of time in the Territory. And also you'd have to be connected to Travelers of each Territory who were willing to administer the tests, which most Travelers probably wouldn't be.Ragnarus is the only one that would be difficult, because it's limited to the descendants of Queen Cynara.

    Amalgam ()
    #1876 Copy

    Questioner

    What would have happened to the house of blades or any other terrioty fragment if humans didnt discover it?Would it break apart and be consumed by the unamed world or would it just reach an all time low of power and sit there?

    Will Wight

    A fragment would slowly dissolve into the void if not bound to the Way by human will. This is true even for corrupted fragments, which is the preferred outcome: they drift off into nothingness until they dissolve.

    Amalgam ()
    #1879 Copy

    Questioner

    How would you, using cradle lingo in the blackflame empire, ask someone if they wanted to "Netflix and chill"? Same for in Damasca (Im think both what Simon would say and what Leah would say).

    Will Wight

    If you're asking what Simon would say and what Leah would say, I have to imagine Leah would be smoother about it than Simon.

    Amalgam ()
    #1880 Copy

    Questioner

    What other food sources exist in Valinhall? Since Kai could disappear deep within the house for long periods of time, he obviously didn't need to come back to the garden, do what else is there?

    Will Wight

    The deep part of the House contains some spoilers, because presumably I'll want to get into that when we return to Traveler's Gate, but there ARE other rooms with food in them.There are animals in the house that can be caught and cooked, and there are edible mushrooms that grow in many rooms.