Bling: Feruchemy in Mistborn

With 16 metals, many of which we haven't even seen in use, Feruchemy can be tough to keep track of. So, let me break it down for you.
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Stories referenced: Mistborn Era 1 (Final Empire, Well of Ascension, Hero of Ages), Mistborn Era 2 (Alloy of Law, Shadows of Self, Bands of Mourning), Warbreaker, Oathbringer
Botanicaxu is one of the BEST fan artists for the Cosmere. Her's was the piece of Raoden and Sarene. Check out more of her stuff here: / botanicaxu
Thanks Intrepidati0n for the gorgeous Vin artwork! www.deviantart.com/intrepidati0n
Animator and Designer Michelle Bond provided the art of Shallan in Shadesmar. More of her work can be found on her Twitter: / may3of4

[@iacobuseurus509]

Windrunner spaceships vs Feruchmy starships... Mistborn era 4 theory

[@TheCosmerenaut]

The Cosmere Space Race.

[@Bzhydack]

I think more Ellsecallers spaceships...

[@Checheno1906]

Elantris is a giant spaceship made by the first Elantrians

[@cyrusmann5443]

imagine star wars but now the rebels and empire are replace by windrunners and feruchemists

[@Xanderqwerty123]

Urethiru is going to be way cooler than scadrian ships.

[@camerongrow6426]

I've been buried in Feruchemical research for fanfiction reasons, and now I can't go two minutes without thinking how much I'd like to be a feruchemist. There are so many practical or just underrated theoretical applications. Firesoul Human Torches, Duralumin spies, SoulBearer enhancement, Some kind of Forging but for Trueselfs, etc. I can't wait for them all to be explored further.

[@bohdanpyzh2712]

Gotta be careful with Duralumin, store too much Connection and you might lose the ability to understand the language of whoever you're spying on.

[@camerongrow6426]

@@bohdanpyzh2712 I never thought of that, that's a really neat limitation

[@Ash-qp2yw]

Fire souls store heat. They’ll still be burned by fire

[@camerongrow6426]

@@Ash-qp2yw I was thinking they'd have a fireproof suit. There's a lot of cool things you can engineering wise with clothing and armor when you don't have to worry about cooking the wearer.

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Yeah, the limitations of strict feruchemy make it a FASCINATING magic system.

[@Hadrian1616]

Rashek has disliked this video.

[@joshphillips5238]

John Flemings there is no feruchemy in Luthadel. The Lord Ruler has requested your presence at Kredik Shaw

[@Hadrian1616]

@@joshphillips5238 Sazed has entered the chat

[@TheCosmerenaut]

So HE was that one...

[@alphagamer3869]

Oreseur has joined the chat

[@rayseodium]

"You could use surges without bonding to spren... Sounds familiar?" I thought about it for a second and then it hit me like a truck. That would probably be one of the smartest things Brandon has ever written.

[@Alan7moore]

Honorblades right? Yep seems likely that that's the underlying principle at play, although not sure how explicitly we will get it spelt out for us

[@duskshard4854]

Alan7moore i agree. I was recently re-reading the parts of Wow where Kaladin Depressed-Blessed meets Szeth and Syl thinks it is unnatural. We know the spren mimicked the honorblades but are beings of pure investiture, so it might be that seeing an investirure mind ish thing which isnt directly of a single shard might make her see it as unnatural. Edit: this just makes more and more sense! We know the Heralds were Ashynites and that they had some sort of Surge based magic, relating to a type of disease. Perhaps the Honorblades were originally much less powerful, and Tanavast simply created something similar, but far more powerful.

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Not sure if there's actually any connection there, but it's really fun to theorize about.

[@great-wall-of-nowhere9377]

How would Nicrosil bind surges? Would they stick them on a Radiant or chuck it at a spren or something?

[@Alan7moore]

afaik there is a wob saying you can use hemalurgy to transfer surges but I may be making that up. Anyway I think hemalurgy is closer to the changing of Connection/Investiture that must be happening with the Honorblades. Ferruchemy seems more laborious - having to make unkeyed,unsealed metalminds to give a Surgebinder Ferruchemy, and then the Surgebinder somehow storing their Surges in the metalmind. Agreed that this is all unlilely to happen in this way

[@Alan7moore]

Now I'm just imagining Lift with Subsumer power also - OP af

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Even more awesomer!

[@Buphido]

Oh snap, now I‘ll be mad if Lift doesn’t get her hands on an unkeyed Subsumer metalmind in era 2

[@Alan7moore]

Your preparation and research - for the theories, jokes, science etc + editing makes for probably one of the best if not the best Cosmere channel. Keep it up!

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Wow, thanks!

[@ethanellefson1467]

This is also one of my favorite channels. I haven't really been able to talk to anyone else about Brandon Sanderson and his cosmere stories because, apparently, no one I know personally is that into reading. I do greatly enjoy watching these videos though, especially when I get to see theories about the magic systems and what could potentially be done with them. Keep up the good work RAFO!

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Thank you!

[@cannon9283]

"...and Kaladin can make poor life choices and cry."

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Sorry, Kaladin can make MAGIC poor life choices and cry.

[@karlfranzemperorofmandefil5547]

That explains it I'm a Pinnacle , in saving up all my motivation then tap it one day before the exam.

[@TheCosmerenaut]

The Pinnacle of Procrastination.

[@dcmbassi]

"How about bingeing on my old videos?" Ha. Joke's on you! It's how I got to this one.

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Curses! Foiled again!

[@Masonio]

An important thing you didnt mention is that when you stop filling or tapping a metalmind you return to your default state. So if you stop filling or tapping an aluminummind then you return to the amount of identity you were at when you started.

[@TheCosmerenaut]

That's am important point!

[@shmoogersgoml2437]

thatd be correct if Copperminds didnt take memories out of your head unable to be recalled until tapped.

[@MrSanemon]

Eventually Feruchemy could bring about a dystopia a la the matrix where they use each other as batteries forcing people to charge up metals to be sold on the open market. Maybe the poor will sell their mental speed or physical strength like we sell plasma. I honestly think Feruchemy is the coolest magic system in the Mistborn series, and Sazed is probably my favorite character in the first book.

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Unsealed metalminds do have crazy implications.

[@bujugalawrence873]

And he's back!

[@TheCosmerenaut]

I had... stuff I had to do.

[@DarkClaw0912]

“And Kaladin…makes poor life choices and cries.” Shots fired at my boy Kal. 😂😂😂

[@TheCosmerenaut]

I mean, am I wrong?

[@dawidwojacki5049]

Out of all preseted theories, this one 11:06 concerned me the most :DD Btw. Kaladin with a Electrum metalmind could some day become an unstoppable one-man army

[@TheCosmerenaut]

He'd have to compound, or else losing the little bit of determination he has in order to fill the metalmind would be devastating.

[@noelhann5262]

Feruchemy is my favorite of the metallic arts and I wish we got more of it. I'm hoping there will be more of it in era 2, which I'm about to start

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Oh yeah, Wax leans hard into feruchemy and it's awesome.

[@picivyvortac2641]

I appreciate the restraint you showed when theorizing about taping the relationship with someone's mother.

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Just wondering how generalized Connection can be.

[@amarualfaro6832]

Really excited for this video:)))

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Hope you enjoyed it!

[@amarualfaro6832]

@@TheCosmerenaut I did! Very very much, feruchemy was one of the hardest to understand for me but your explanation made it so simple and easy to understand (combined with some wonderful puns)

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Awesome! It's always great to hear that my explanations are genuinely helpful.

[@idkusernamesarehardrip3688]

The "if they get sick while storing health" one I think may actually have been brought up in Era 2, sorta. I think he gets wounded, and isn't able to heal, because first he'd have to store health and that would end really poorly in the state he was in, and his goldminds were empty.

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Yeah, it doesn't quite work like how I said it; I just thought it would be funny.

[@tuckhoichan6638]

I should probably write some fanfiction just to see how far I can push the abilities of the metallic arts in terms of creativity. Like maybe steelrunners producing sonic waves at their foes.

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Ooh, I like it. Supersonic farts.

[@joshphillips5238]

Is it bad that I’m feeling genuine excitement?😂

[@telekinesys7025]

Why would it be bad? You're not alone!

[@Hadrian1616]

A soothing parlor can help you with that excitement you're dealing with.

[@TheCosmerenaut]

I'm flattered. ;)

[@joshcash5768]

Love the way you make these videos. Very cheeky

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Thanks!

[@USAFWolf]

I'm really enjoying these videos. I'd love to see one exploring how Feruchemy and Allomancy interact. It would also be cool to see a video exploring theories on how something like Stormlight or Breath could be used to power Allomantic/Feruchemical abilities, or how a surgebinder would recharge their investiture on a planet without highstorms/Stormlight

[@TheCosmerenaut]

I'm planning a video on compounding, so that should be here soon! As for how off-world investiture could power other magic systems, that would require "hacking" that we just don't have info on yet.

[@Rajathon]

This is great I wanted to do one of these but yours is better than mine would be. Great job.

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Hey, you live your dream. Make the content you want to watch.

[@Rajathon]

@@TheCosmerenaut Thank you sir.

[@KeepersofKeys]

Some nice, simple, funny edits when clarifying 'tap'. Well done

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Thank you!

[@duskshard4854]

A few thoughts about the last one. Firstly, you said that Connection may be able to connect to individual people. Perhaps this is somewhat like the gemstone in the pommel of Shardblades, just perhaps more powerful. Secondly, this might also be something like the Honorblades, which do not have Deadeyes (i assume. We havent seen them in the cognitive realm, but the spren immitated them, not vice versa) or spren, so it might be something similar. It might be the same as something Identity. I also belive a Compounder potentially might be able to create something similar to a Nahel bond with a spren. Like a chasm fiend perhaps, or would it be more like a weaker knights radiant, one who may not have sworn any oathes. Just speculation, but it’s fascinating how these things line up

[@TheCosmerenaut]

It totally makes sense that the gemstones on shardblades are related to Connection! That's why you have to carry them around for so long before they become "bonded" - you have to establish a Connection with them in order to be able to summon them! You're right that honorblades don't have spren, so that makes me wonder how they are bonded. Compounding Connection could be totally crazy! I'll definitely have to consider that in my next video.

[@uncanny_i3752]

"make poor life choices and cry." Yep, that's Kaladin. I wish he'd be happier

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Depression sucks. It will be interesting to see how he evolves with his bond with Syl.

[@franketlamb]

This video just made my day with all the theories :)

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Well I do what I can for you!

[@hoid1918]

Yay! I love your videos man you’re my favorite cosmere youtuber. Hope all is going well for you and your family during this pandemic, very glad to see you posting videos again! You planning on any special videos in preparation of RoW ?

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Thanks! I probably should do a Stormlight Sum-Up of some kind, huh? We'll see if I can at that in!

[@fast.food.ninjalarry954]

Just started your vids man they are awesome. And i love how you keep spoilers at bay !!!

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Just like with milk, I try to prevent exposure to spoiled things. Thanks!

[@thefastmagician]

And a compounder video. Let’s go.

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Working on it!

[@aniolc98]

as a biologist i love the 2000 theorys in this video

[@TheCosmerenaut]

I figured I needed something to keep it interesting!

[@ThePanoramicPanda]

Well, stumbled across this and now I'm a follower. Hope to see one on Hemalurgy at some point!

[@TheCosmerenaut]

That's gonna be my next one!

[@rookhobbes9055]

The idea of storing or magically taking away someone's identity combined with the philosophy that we are the sum total of our experiences has some interesting connotations for the Justice System of a given world. What if instead of execution or life imprisonment, their identity was blanked away? Sealed in a metal mind and locked in a vault while the body and soul went on to live a new life.

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Interesting... That would go a long way to solving the argument between nature vs nurture.

[@benatmorenodominguez4020]

love ur videos

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Thanks!

[@maxjohnson0703]

Gosh your videos are soooooooooooo goooooooood!

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Thaaaaaaank yooooooooooooouuuuuu!

[@DragonoftheRust]

Feruchemical tin is HORRIBLY underrated. Tapping chronoception, proprioception, balance and kinaesthesia would give you a massive advantage in a fight (ever watched Muhammad Ali dodge punches?), especially while partially storing pain.

[@ginge641]

Wait what if you applied this to people moving, say, in a spaceship inside a Bendalloy speed bubble? From the ship's perspective, it would take ages to reach its destination, but if everyone on board could alter their own perception of time...they could effectively counteract the effects of the bubble and perceive time as if from the outside.

[@TheCosmerenaut]

As long as you're able to separate those senses in your mind, that would be dope.

[@Enndorii]

Could a Steelrunner, using the surge of abrasion, basically become the flash?

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Yup. There would be an upper limit to how fast they could go, but functionally yes.

[@HMK-nh4ft]

I honestly think that would be too dangerous, I could easily see one ejecting themselves out of their planets orbit

[@TheJcpeterman1985]

Welcome back !! ..... explain how compounding works next

[@TheCosmerenaut]

That's next on the docket. I'll either fit it in with Hemalurgy, depending on how short that ends up being, or that will be the one after.

[@anniebot_45-73]

i love the slamming on kaladin the paladin

[@TheCosmerenaut]

The boy deserves a break. BUT NOT FROM ME.

[@merai4024]

ahhh just nerding out....i love it....

[@TheCosmerenaut]

We have a good time over here.

[@RandomGuy-xb4ez]

Feruchemy is the most awesome magic system I've ever read. Storing an attribute for later? That makes me think "why haven't I thought of that?"

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Oh it's so good. And then compounding just makes it go crazy.

[@RandomGuy-xb4ez]

@@TheCosmerenaut quick question though: skimmers gain strength when they increase their weight, right? So what happens if they decrease their weight to say, 1/100th of their normal weight? Do they become really fragile, or do they remain strong, or is this all just supposed to be handwaved?

[@TheCosmerenaut]

It doesn't decrease their weight technically, but rather decreases the pull that gravity has on them. There's no change in mass, so structural integrity would stay the same. We can assume that the increase in strength which compensates for increased weight is simply how the investiture interacts with the intent.

[@RandomGuy-xb4ez]

@@TheCosmerenaut That makes sense. Thanks for the explanation :)

[@tonyoliver4920]

Oxygen and glucose combine during aerobic cellular respiration to create ATP. So it’s not storing that. Also I get the impression bendalloy stores other essential nutrients not just glucose. On a side note bendalloy is woods metal which is and alloy of bismuth/lead/tin/cadmium

[@TheCosmerenaut]

The main reason ATP isn't stored in the body is because it hydrolyzes in water. In a bendalloymind, that wouldn't be an issue.

[@ResandOuies]

As for the weight feruchemy power influencing how much the user is affected by the Higgs field is a neat theory, it seems unlikely to me. It's an remarkably small portion of your mass that you get directly from the Higgs field, only something like 1%

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Brandon soft-confirmed that iron feruchemy does interact with the Higgs field: wob.coppermind.net/events/6/#e327 But also magic.

[@Mark-in8ju]

Mass is different from weight. Weight is a by-product of gravity that changes depending on location. Mass is how much material an object is composed of.

[@cilvet1]

This video is just filled with wonderful puns

[@TheCosmerenaut]

It is indeed a punderful one.

[@Girentina242]

Feruchemy is the coolest magic system of the Scadriel 3 by far

[@TheCosmerenaut]

It's so useful!

[@ethanellefson1467]

I was thinking, if a feruchemist stored as much investiture in an iron mind as they possibly could, then were to melt it down and alloy it into steel, they would have a substance that could be used to make armor and weapons that could block or at least resist shard-blades and would be more practical than aluminium. I know that you could just store directly into steel, but then you'd have to store physical speed, and not weight, which would be a much larger sacrifice.

[@TheCosmerenaut]

That would be really interesting! You wouldn't be able to access that store anymore, but the investiture should still be intact!

[@leonmitas]

One correction: Mass of an object IS all the matter that it is composed of. Weight is how strongly the Planet pulls the said object. Therefore, it is interesting what effects Skeemers will have in the cosmos. Maybe their powers will be used to create artificial gravity?! hmm

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Totally possible, though probably easier through other magic systems.

[@rodrigonewell1152]

The reason a person doesn’t require extra strength with stored weight is that it’s not about their mass, but about their interaction with gravity. Think about lashing in Roshar, it works the same way, with the added bonus of being able to direct it elsewhere. This way other effects based solely on mass (like transfer of momentum) are not different and no extra strength is required to move you. If your mass changed, then a weightless person would be extremely subject to the whims of slight breezes and a controlled fall (which happens often) would be imposible. This is because even though they’re not accelerating downwards anymore (or just having a smaller acceleration), they’re maintaining momentum and are thus impervious to the small momentum gain from the wind.

[@TheCosmerenaut]

That's incorrect. Khriss determines when she talks to Wax in Bands of Mourning that it is indeed changing density and not their connection to the planet, so feruchemical iron functions on a completely different principle than Radiant lashings.

[@thekwjiboo]

There was a guy in...one of the world wars, I believe, who suffered a head wound and was unable to and lost the necessity to sleep as a result (and lucky for him it didn't have the same sort of negative effects on him that a normal person would suffer if they just stopped sleeping). Anyhow, yes, he had to eat like 8 means a day to meet the extra caloric demands that staying awake perpetually caused.

[@thekwjiboo]

Meals* I can't edit my comments without my KZbin freaking out.

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Paul Kern! Wacky.

[@thefastmagician]

This needs another video on the spiritual section. These are some interesting theories.

[@TheCosmerenaut]

We just need more information!

[@thefastmagician]

@@TheCosmerenaut I like where you’re going with this though. I’m a fan.

[@jaaecl2001]

This videos are so fucking good. WOW

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Thanks!

[@thefastmagician]

All you have to say is tap the keg and we know.

[@TheCosmerenaut]

That would have been quicker. Yep.

[@jobobminer8843]

Next - Compounding!!!

[@TheCosmerenaut]

It's gonna be good!

[@sada1504]

That Captain America joke was flawlessly executed

[@TheCosmerenaut]

It's because we're both named Steve. There's a Connection there.

[@sada1504]

@@TheCosmerenaut Storms, man, you're good at these jokes

[@TheCosmerenaut]

I've got two kids now! I better be!

[@wolftamer117]

Sazed may claim that Feruchemy is not as offensively potent as allomancy. I believe it's all about how you use it. Obviously a scholar wouldn't think his power set is that suited for fighting when a lot of the powers are more suited to exploration and learning. But I see feruchemy and allomancy like the difference of a manual and an automatic car. You have a lot more things to be aware of and control with feruchemy. But if you're creative and understand the percentages of what you're tapping and storing at any given time then you could be an extremely formidable opponent

[@TheCosmerenaut]

That's an excellent analogy!

[@ethanellefson1467]

Honestly, a feruchemist trained as a warrior would be WAY more dangerous than a mistborn in my opinion. If you just spend a week being slow, sick, and weak beforehand, you can crush just about any opponent you could ever face.

[@lukelear_bomb]

Man, this guy is so underrated

[@TheCosmerenaut]

You know, I gotta agree!

[@neodigremo]

I wonder if the Feruchemical activity of Aluminium is less different than we think to the allomantic one. The basic idea of all investiture seems to be you have to forge some sort of connection with one of the Shards (or the innate in the world) and use their investiture. I think perhaps aluminium when burned allomantically basically burns the other metals but wipes your identity, breaking the necessary link to the Shard and their power. That is perhaps the anti investiture part of aluminium is always to do with identity, so it being able to work in Feruchemy is not a shock as the investiture all come from you, and not from the Shard. Just a random thought.

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Interesting! You're saying aluminum isn't so much anti-investiture as it is Identity manipulation; and without the right Identity, investiture can't be accessed.

[@neodigremo]

​@@TheCosmerenaut Something like that yes. So when a Mistborn burns aluminium is basically burns the other metals, but disrupts the identity portion enough that the investiture just can't find you to trigger the powers. It basically means your identity is to nowhere. While Duralumin does a similar thing, increasing the connection to the shard so the investiture comes through all at once. Just a theory for now, but it may help iron out the seeming discrepancy, and as Feruchemy is the only art we know of where investiture comes from YOU alone....... I wonder what would happen if a person with like 1000000 breaths tried to awaken aluminium?

[@jamesguthrie9454]

Speaking about bronze and changing ones identity, theoretically one could remove all of their important memories, but they would also have to store every single time the remembered it, or thought about it. So, removing a core memory would take storing hundreds or thousands of memories.

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Sounds like it would be easier to just dump everything.

[@ethanellefson1467]

So, a lot of people at the 17th shard have hyped up the radiants and how powerful they are combat wise. I agree with this somewhat, but I always circle around and remember the feruchemists. Can you really stop a feruchemist who is patient and devoted enough to save up a lot of physical speed, aside from counting on their investiture stores running out?

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Seeing Sazed in full battle mode during Well of Ascension is really impressive, but the amount of investiture available from feruchemy is WAY less than what you can get from a supply of Stormlight. Also, feruchemy mostly enhances normal human abilities to superhuman levels, whereas radiant surges grant additional powers like flight and transmutation. If both had an unlimited supply of investiture, my money would still probably be on the Radiant.

[@ethanellefson1467]

@@TheCosmerenaut I suppose you make some good points, but surge-binders can only use their investiture at a set rate, similar to allomancy. A feruchemist could tap far more power over a short period of time, allowing them to completely overwhelm almost any opponent I can think of, including a knight radiant. It's kind of hard to hit someone with your magic sword when they're moving 20 times the speed of a normal human, and it's hard not to die when they rip you in half with their hulk muscles.

[@unwantedmacguffin5611]

What I want the most is elecrum finally a cure for my depression!

[@TheCosmerenaut]

The only trouble is you have to have the determination to tap your metalmind to get determination.

[@ethanellefson1467]

When investiture is left alone for a long enough period of time, it gains a will of it's own. This made me wonder if leaving a full metal mind alone for hundreds, thousands, maybe even longer, would cause it to become sentient. If so, would the type of attribute matter? Like memory, connection, or investiture itself.

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Probably! And probably!

[@Bzhydack]

Sooo, next Vid will be about Compounding? It is fascinating how Metalic Arts are designet to be usefull during SpaceConquest... Compounded feruchemical... basicly everything, plus allomantic steel, tin, cadmium, bendalloy...

[@TheCosmerenaut]

In my next video, I'll be focusing on hemalurgy, but depending on how much info I can dig up about it I may include compounding as well. If not, that will be the next one.

[@tairbolgario538]

14:10 HONORBLADES!

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Got it!

[@arifaygenov4358]

Great content as always! Do you have any idea when your video on Hemalurgy will be coming out?

[@TheCosmerenaut]

I'm almost done with the outline of it, so it should be pretty soon!

[@arifaygenov4358]

Sweet! We're all looking forward to it

[@Xanderqwerty123]

Era 3, 4 and 5 (if he does a cyberpunk series) is going to be lit. Not storm-lit mind you, but lit none the less...

[@TheCosmerenaut]

I mean, it's entirely possible, if not likely, that there will be significant crossover by then.

[@theninjalion2811]

I've viewed iron and steel as akin to punching in boxing. It's split into weight class because boxers punch with their weight, throwing their mass behind a punch. Likewise with speed, the punch has more force/energy the faster the fist moves. I don't think they're really stronger, they just hit harder/faster. I have only read the first trilogy so idk what happens in era 2

[@TheCosmerenaut]

That makes sense!

[@wwellthemage8426]

1:40-1:44 nearly made me spit out my breakfast

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Don't choke! (Like Kal at the end of Oathbringer)

[@ginge641]

5:12 Or perhaps this is something that can be countered with Zinc. A steel Ferring would then be rather limited in their abilities, only able to run along flat ground with no obstructions. A full Feruchemist would be able to use mental speed to be able to make decisions at high speed and react to obstacles. This means that a full Compounder like the Lord Ruler would basically have the capacity to be The Flash if they bother to store all that speed on themselves, and also can get past the burning and friction thing. Oh shit wait, gold compounding and shit loads of pewter could probably get around that. Tho surely there would be an upper limit where the gold can't heal you fast enough to recover from the damage caused by the speed. But in a vacuum.....and applied to a mobile object like a spaceship....and with a mobile speed bubble....oh shit FTL travel. Another comment mentioned that tinminds could store the perception of time, which could have the effect I mentioned zinc could have, cuz I'm fuzzy on if mental speed would actually work like that. And yeah, brass would also work to counteract friction.

[@TheCosmerenaut]

That's FTL without even using speed bubbles. Or at least lightspeed. Nice work.

[@ginge641]

@@TheCosmerenaut Certainly gets you to upper speed limits that are beyond our current ability to calculate because our understanding of these systems isn't scientific as it probably will be going forward into Eras 3 and 4. By then, they're probably be standard measurements for how much of an attribute is drawn out of a metalmind and associated measurements of how much of the attribute you could get for how long. Say a metalmind could have 2 Sandersons of speed in it, which correlated to 100mph for 2 seconds, or 50mph for 4 seconds and so on. There would probably be measures for how many Sandersons worth of metalmind can fit on a ship. Say the added metal would have an adverse affect, so there's a balance to maintain between potential speed and the function of the ship.

[@hazamax2139]

Hear the copper part. Mind instantly decides we won't sleep tonight

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Research?

[@arifaygenov4358]

Can't wait for cyberpunk feruchemists who're covered in piercings

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Seriously! It'd be super easy hide spikes that way too.

[@arifaygenov4358]

@@TheCosmerenaut I was thinking more along the lines of using the piercings as metalminds, so there's no danger of losing them.

[@cyrusmann5443]

imagine using an unsealed brass metalmind in a gun to shoot it and force the enemy into pouring their warmth to the point they freeze to death.

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Like a different type of ice beam. I like it!

[@cyrusmann5443]

@@TheCosmerenaut dang, 1 year ago i made this comment, here i am, back in the cosmere fandom, neato.

[@cyrusmann5443]

@@TheCosmerenaut oh yeah, also step 1, use pewter metalmind step 2, hit the gym step 3, store the strength you just got and repeat process until satisfied step 4, hulk smash.

[@martenberke457]

I wonder if cadmium doesn't necessarily store oxygen but the stores something that provides energy for that organism during times when their usual energy source is unavailable. For instance (if it could even occur), would anaerobic bacteria store methane, carbon dioxide, or even lactic acid when in a primarily oxygenated environment? Or would plants tap for carbon dioxide when they weren't in an environment that they could obtain it naturally?

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Not strictly oxygen, but whatever is needed for cellular respiration? Probably! The Command would have to be there though, so bacteria or plants might not be able to. Then again, we've got Invested microorganisms with White Sand. So maybe!

[@JoePauley]

OK, so we both want to tap Chris Evans. Glad we're on the same page here.

[@TheCosmerenaut]

After all, he does have America's Ass™.

[@storyspren]

I think anything one healing can do, another could conceivably do too, considering it all works with the same mechanism. So I think a Bloodmaker could transition fully with the power, and in fact I think anyone receiving healing would just get that as a side effect, as in some of the Investiture used for healing them would go toward transition. Also, appropriately, gold is a transition metal :D

[@TheCosmerenaut]

I could see it happening with a gold compounder, but it seems to me like that would take an unreasonably large amount of stored health. Totally possible though.

[@storyspren]

@@TheCosmerenaut yeah it would, but for a Compounder that could be made almost immediate. For any old Bloodmaker, I think they'd start getting markers of a transition in process that goes further the more they use the power. Negligible at first, then some little changes, and it goes further as they use it little by little in their everyday life. The regular Bloodmaker might also take the longest sick leave to speed up the process. I wonder though, would it also work for a trans person who hasn't yet figured out that they're trans? I seem to remember some source saying that the spiritual self doesn't necessarily align with the cognitive, but I don't know for sure.

[@TheCosmerenaut]

That's a great point. I was only thinking about it as a single event, like what would probably happen with regrowth, but I think you're right that a normal bloodmaker could still transition gradually. That's cool! As for someone who doesn't yet know they're trans, I think that would likely be a similar situation to Kaladin and his brands; until the mindset changes, the physical would be blocked from achieving the spiritual ideal.

[@snowman9631]

A full mistborn/feruchemist has to be the most dangerous being in the cosmere just short of the shards. Imagine coumpounding mass and creating your gravitational field

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Brandon has said there are upper limits to things like that, but I'm sure we there's going to be some crazy things in the next eras of Mistborn!

[@snowman9631]

@TheCosmerenaut I'd be interested in what those limits are... I don't know if it was ever explained in MB era 2 but does the size of the metal mind count? What if you are a higher mass creature by nature like a dragon. Is it a set limit across the board or does having more mass naturally increase that? It's probably a set limit thing. I can understand their being a limit for things like weight, but is there a limit for memories or other intangibles?

[@psyfozim]

Not just twins. Even if you made a batch of perfect clones and tried to train them similarly I'd argue that they cannot share the same metalmind because while they share the same genetics, they will no doubt have differences in their spirit webs and cognitive templates as time goes on. The only time they could possible share would perhaps be the first few days after birth before their own sensations and perceptions of the world take begin forming their own sense of Identity. A person would be composed of characteristics in the sacred number three: - Physical body (Genetics. This would be the same especially in their youth. Epigenetics may play a role later based on their lifestyles) - Cognitive template/shadow (Self-visualization. This would differ the moment the kids recognize themselves by the different names their parents call them and then further over time as they learn different skills, hobbies, professions and just become different people altogether. ) - Spirit web (This is known to change over time, for the good or for the worse I think? Just having different friends/acquaintances can provide unique bond and different life experiences/traumas may result in unique strengths and cracks) Basically, imo, even twins are almost equally different to each other than they are to non-family members. That was a lot longer ramble than it felt in my head.

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Haha, a long but very well put ramble! Those are good points!

[@psyfozim]

@@TheCosmerenaut TY, I absolutely cannot wait for the next Cosmere book. Love this channel, I only lament bumping into it so late. 👊🏾

[@waldo8791]

Only read Mistborn the first saga. I’m about to start reading the Way of Kings next month and I’m very excited. Hope to come back to this when I find out what shards are lol. Should I know shards from Mistborn? Maybe some metals are shards? If anyone can answer this without spoiling Stormlight archive that’d be greatly appreciated

[@TheCosmerenaut]

By the end of Mistborn Era 1 you've definitely met your share of Shards. Ruin and Preservation, the primal forces fighting for the planet that become Harmony at the end are two Shards. There's a total of 16 (that number again) that are spread through the rest of the Cosmere. I go into more depth in this video: kzbin.info/www/bejne/l4PZe2CCjd-tbpI

[@waldo8791]

Thank you so much! Yeah I was thinking that because the Atium is ruins body. In my mind I’m picturing atium as a sort of shard. I’m going to watch that video you linked. I am confused at the second shard that must be preservations body? Well of ascension?

[@TheCosmerenaut]

The Shards are Ruin and Preservation, not atium and lerasium. Just like how there are the Physical, Cognitive, and Spiritual realms, each Shard has a physical representation (their "body," which in Ruin's case is atium), the mind that controls it, and the spiritual power. Does that make sense?

[@waldo8791]

This makes so much sense. Getting me more excited to read the Way of Kings! I’m glad that there are channels like yours who interact with their comment section and help out people who have questions! I was thinking them as gods but now I’m starting to think that they themselves have a “god” who has created them to rule over certain worlds in the Cosmere

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Happy to help! Yeah, Shards are basically pieces of a god - divine power tied to a divine attribute.

[@storyspren]

Yes sunburns, because it's radiant damage. No other types of burns though.

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Would it be possible to shift the Intent in a brassmind to absorb other types of energy, rather than just thermal?

[@storyspren]

@@TheCosmerenaut well heat is just kinetic energy acting weird, so maybe? Would have to be a Firesoul who really knows what they're doing though, but you could see them slowing down their falls and stuff like that. Sunburn prevention is at the extreme far end of this in my view though. With movement it's just a matter of aligning the slowing effect with one specific direction, whereas with sunburns it's a matter of storing the kinetic energy of specific electrons in a moment, since you'd need to prevent DNA damage caused by ionization. The issue is that you don't know beforehand which electrons will be affected, and when the photon hits you don't have much time to store it before the electron goes too far to settle down in the same spot. And then there's the issue of knowing what parts have been hit, since the pain of a sunburn only happens when the sunburn is already there. I could see a Firesoul Savant learning something like it with a specialized always-on technique similar to Wax's bubble, but more selective. Others? I'm not so sure.

[@TheCosmerenaut]

That's some really excellent analysis! I guess we'll see probably around Mistborn Era 4.

[@jeanlouise4707]

It took me a minute to get tgat joke at the intro 😂

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Yeah, it's pretty bad...

[@jeanlouise4707]

@@TheCosmerenaut It was really funny when I got it actually 😆

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Oh good! Honestly I was a little concerned about putting it at the front of this video; I didn't want people to just groan and turn it off. Glad you found it amusing!

[@makcraft]

“Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.” I wonder if Adolnasium was a descendant of a super high-tech race when creating everything and all of these Shard powers are just programs to manipulate the nanomachines - quite similar to the Numenera setting. Yolen and everything else was created by him, but he could have been someone older than that - similar to dragons in the eyes of ordinary people of Cosmere - since dragons totally manipulate matter and totally know about science and quantum stuff.

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Entirely possible, but I would argue that the reverse is also true: any sufficiently understood magic is indistinguishable from technology. That's exactly what we see starting to happen on Scadrial, where the magic is so well understood and integrated into society, it is used as an extension of technology.

[@ethanellefson1467]

One other thing I was wondering about; if you worked out, there by damaging your muscles as is natural for exercise, and you tapped feruchemical gold, and you viewed yourself in the right state of mind, could you become super muscular really fast?

[@TheCosmerenaut]

I don't think you'd get really muscley really fast, but you definitely wouldn't ever get sore!

[@Mark-in8ju]

Using painkiller medication when lifting, and then healing the otherwise permanent damage, should allow significant muscle-building.

[@ethanellefson1467]

How much time do you think it would take a feruchemist to fill a piece of metal with enough investiture to equal that of a shard-blade?

[@TheCosmerenaut]

A long time. Years, if not more.

[@joshuagooch3687]

What is that figure to you left and where did you get it? I would love a tour to see what other cosmere goodies that you have.

[@TheCosmerenaut]

That's a whitespine sculpture from a friend of mine. I probably should do a bookshelf/memorabilia tour at some point.

[@joshuagooch3687]

@@TheCosmerenaut do they sell them?

[@TheCosmerenaut]

She does do commissions. You can contact her on her Instagram: instagram.com/nicoleparishart

[@Masonio]

You mention mechanical Feruchemy access a few times and I have a theory on how that could work. Perhaps if you compounded a Feruchemical attribute near Harmonium it may begin producing that attribute like it does with Allomancy.

[@TheCosmerenaut]

I like it; that makes sense.

[@Masonio]

I just wish we knew how Harmonium worked with internal abilities. We've only seen it used with some of the external abilities.

[@TheCosmerenaut]

The only trouble is if you get Harmonium internally, it just blows you up.

[@Masonio]

@@TheCosmerenaut I meant when it comes to burning metals next to it like with steel. We see that it broadcasts a bubble of steel pushing when steel is used nearby. We've seen allomantic steel, cadmium, bendalloy, and chromium used with Harmonium. All 4 of them are external metals. How would Harmonium work if you were to burn, say, tin next to it for example. It's an internal ability so how would Harmonium react? Would it do nothing or would it create a bubble where anything inside got better senses. This is relevant to my previous comment because all Feruchemy is internal, so compounding is like making 16 more internal metals. If Harmonium did nothing when internal metals are burned near it then my original idea wouldn't work.

[@TheCosmerenaut]

I think creating a bubble of enhanced senses would make sense, though I'm sure we'll see it eventually. Probably in the next book!

[@carlsmith4568]

your theories about bronze were hilarious

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Once I started thinking about them, they just kept on developing!

[@legofalco]

So I'm going through the mistborn era 2 and one thing that I really picked out is that when wax and sretis are at the party in New Sarin he dances with a woman who wont give him her name, but ask him questions about is misting and fearing abilities and if I understood it correctly she concludes that he's not actually changing his mass he's changing physics, basically like surgebinders but with the metal being the catalist to tap their power. Maybe I did understand this wrong though, please free to correct me?

[@TheCosmerenaut]

The woman Wax talks to while dancing is actually Khriss, the woman who writes the Ars Arcanums, as well as the planetary essays in Arcanum Unbounded. She asks if his trajectory changes if he taps iron mid-flight, which it doesn't, consistent with the law of conservation of momentum, which means Wax's mass (density) changes rather than his Connection to the planet. For more explanation, check out this page: coppermind.net/wiki/Iron#Feruchemical_Use

[@jking1343]

Would a feruchemist be able to essentially "become" different people if they stored subsections of their experiences in different copperminds? They could then switch between them at will by filling/storing certain personalities.

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Feruchemically facilitated schizophrenia. Shallan would love it.

[@bryanmcclure2220]

What do you think trillium will if digested by allomancer?

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Grant sand mastery?

[@imahumanperson7045]

interesting idea i had what if a brass compounder became a savant somehow and then learned how to direct heat to such a degree where they could literally shoot fire out of their fingers

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Ooh, interesting! That would take a lot of practice.

[@Ckaldren]

What do you think would happen to the power stored inside of a Feruchemical metalmind if the metalmind were to break or be melted down?

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Excellent question! As long as it stays the same metal, you'd still be able to access it. Splitting a metalmind would result in a proportional amount of investiture in each piece, and melting it down wouldn't destroy it either. wob.coppermind.net/events/131/#e3969

[@lorddenithal]

The more i learn the more over powered the lord ruler becomes

[@TheCosmerenaut]

He didn't have access to all the metals yet, or else yeah, he would have been crazy unstoppable.

[@lorddenithal]

@@TheCosmerenaut good point. Is there a non shard character who could defeat the lord ruler if the lord ruler had full access and knowledge of all the metals? And does harmony have a metal like ruin and preservation?

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Full knowledge and access to all metals? Oof, I dunno. A really lucky Dalinar using Nightblood. Or Vin with Nightblood. Or maybe just Nightblood. Ooh, the Hallandren God-King! He'd put up a good fight. And yes, Harmony has his own metal - ettmetal or harmonium - that we learn about in Bands of Mourning.

[@ethanellefson1467]

Wouldn't Susebron just get steel-pewter speed stomped before he could react?

[@lorddenithal]

@@ethanellefson1467 ya. The Lord ruler is probably the most powerful mortal we've seen. The God King is powerful but there's theoretically no limits to the lord rulers speed and strength. Compounding metals is op

[@matthewbrightman2884]

An unkeyed brassmind could be used to make an air conditioning unit

[@TheCosmerenaut]

If they make feruchemical cubes like the allomantic ones we see in Era 2, totally!

[@mrswimfastrunlong]

is that a 3D printed white spine? I want one! are the files for that somewhere?

[@TheCosmerenaut]

It's actually a sculpture! One of my friends gave it to me for Christmas.

[@ethanellefson1467]

Do metal minds of rust-able metals still rust when oxidized? If they do, is the power in them lost, is it inaccessible, or does nothing change to the power?

[@TheCosmerenaut]

I believe (but haven't been able to verify) that the investiture prevents oxidation to some extent. However, Brandon has said that reforging a metalmind into a different alloy would make the store inaccessible. So if they do rust, you wouldn't be able to get it all out.

[@MillerCustomGuitars]

So good! How do you learn all this stuff!

[@Ash-qp2yw]

It’s a combination of digging into the books, the Ars Arcanum glossary at the end of each book, and tons of Words of Brandon, things Brandon has said at signings, online etc - they’re kept at WoB . Coppermind . Net

[@TheCosmerenaut]

I'm... a nerd. And also all the things Ash said.

[@merai4024]

well...he reads, and finds out!

[@Mark-in8ju]

He uses copper feruchemy!

[@tonyoliver4920]

The bands of mourning are unkeyed metal minds that grant all allomantic powers. Presumably using identity and investiture shenanigans. However only one surviving character has both power sets and it’s not kelsier!!! Marsh! Old Iron Eyes himself! He’s the only person who could create them... Addendum: while wearing the bands you could create more bands if you know how it’s done!

[@TheCosmerenaut]

I don't think Marsh is a full feruchemist, but he probably is pretty close.

[@tonyoliver4920]

He was the first to receive the additional spikes and is the only remaining steel inquisitor. He had 21 spikes the newer ones were atium

[@ethanellefson1467]

I was just wondering, if you can use feruchemical gold to heal your body by matching it to your spiritual self but first by filtering it through your cognitive self, and you are able to change your physical self to better suit what you think yourself to be, and we already know that it is possible for a transgender person to fully transfer, could someone change themselves further with the right training? For instance, could you shape shift into a the opposite gender, change your race, or possibly even become a different species?We've seen that the returned on Nalthis can change their size and appearance based on how they view themselves, but they do apparently have some limitations, although they can't heal themselves the way blood makers can.

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Doing that would require fundamental shifts in your cognitive perception of your self, so much so as to be functionally impossible. And I think that no matter how much willpower you have you're not going to be able to supersede what's in your spiritweb, and that's essentially the blueprint that feruchemical gold is drawing from. Cognitive perception would be like the contractor doing the building, but they're not going to deviate from the plans too drastically.

[@ethanellefson1467]

@@TheCosmerenaut sounds legit. Okay, new plan. Get an unsealed metalmind that grants you the Identity of a specific person, plus the ability to feruchemically heal. Tap the other person's Identity and then tap lots of health. Since Identify is your spiritual DNA of sorts, then presumably tapping enough of someone else's Identity would temporarily overwrite your own. Pair this with healing, which re-aligns your physical self to your spiritual self, and my hypothesis is that you will change to look more like them. You would still be limited by things like how much your own Identity interferes (perhaps making you more like a hybrid between your former self and the other person), your self perception, and of course what kinds of entities are even willing or capable of storing their Identity for you. After the change, your spirit web would likely remain unchanged, but as long as you stay in your new form, your self perception will likely shift to better fit what you are now (or just refrain from using feruchemical healing again). Boom. Shape-shifting via the metallic arts.

[@TheCosmerenaut]

Intriguing!

[@user-bb8dj6wo1l]

Electrum pinnacles are just bipolar lol

[@TheCosmerenaut]

*...* True.

[@joesunshine4006]

Wait, are the honor blades metalminds? Storing radiant powers between desolations for use during the fighting.

[@TheCosmerenaut]

They certainly function off a similar mechanic it seems like.

[@emosongsandreadalongs]

I'll always pronounce it fer-U-chemy

[@TheCosmerenaut]

I'm with you there. It took SERIOUS re-training, and I still slip up.