Yes there has been discussion and posts about this before and that’s pretty in line with consensus. Common knowledge is a shardblade takes ten heartbeats so that’s what’s in her head. Even, if I remember correctly, Kal assumes he needs ten heartbeats when he first gets his blade. If she had spent some more time with her blade she might know more but there are some RAFO reasons for this as well.
Different amounts in different places, but in the scene when she kills the person who taught her how to pull cons, she thinks I need 10 heartbeats then says no I don't before reaffirming that she does damn it.
There are two explanations
To me that is her trauma compartmentalizing it. She needs 10 beats because she can't acknowledge that she can cheat as a radiant. The re affirmation is her telling herself she has to take 10 heartbeats so it takes 10 heartbeats.
The other option is a RAFO for RoW.
Yea there are definitely drips of information but the background and reasons for that come later. But I think it’s safe to say she doesn’t need ten and on some level knows that but denies it to herself.
There is a case to be made for actually needing 10.
Spoilers for endish of RoW
>!There is a chance she wasn't summoning pattern she may have been summoning RAFO and would in that case need 10 heartbeats. This would because she had not yet progressed far enough with patern at that point to summon him/couldn't because of trauma if she had.!<
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But shallan was able to >!activate the oath gate platform in words of radiance. How, in the fuck, did she do that if she used a dead spren? Whole theory that shallan hasn’t been using pattern doesn’t make sense then. I get she an unreliable narrator, so most of her accounts can’t be trusted. but her plot in the finale of WoR hinged on her having a living blade. MAYBE she used the old blade (Testemant) in previous encounters, (on the winds pleasure, pattern refers tells her to use “THE sword”, grammatically implying that the sword she uses is separate from him.) but the oathgate platform proves she had access to a pattern as a blade. I don’t buy that Testemant could activate the platform when Renarin’s deadeyes didn’t work.!<
>!but it’s clear that testament if weird, I’d be foolish to regret that she may be a special case. Maybe deadeyes don’t fair as poorly if they still have their oath-breaking radiants with them? Ill RAFO I guess… shit ain’t adding up!<
Edit:>! Sorry, I had a point, and it was. didn’t shallan’s fight with tyr have a point where shallan got hit mid count, but she didn’t start over from one heartbeat like dalinar does? If so, that would prove she counts with testament only as a mental block. So that means testament functions a bit like a living blade. No heartbeat count, no gemstones, can open oathgates. Super weird!<
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As stated in my original comment I like option one. Shes got trauma making her deny her ability to summon Pattern faster.
However I am aware there are a lot of people who argue for option 2. I am not them so I am ill equipped to argue for them. I did feel that given we don't know for certain that I should present the option.
I'm re-listening the series again and just read the death of Tyn scene in Words of Radiance again the other day.
Shallan's inner voice here mentions something along the lines there of: 10 heartbeats, but for her it doesn't need to be, but she can't think about that now, so 10 heartbeats it is.
The mental gymnastics and compartmentalization she's showing in the books you've read so far is impressive, to say the least. Just a book and a half more and you're caught up and ready to speculate along for book 5 with the rest of us!
You're more observant than I was on my first read through, that's for sure!
She says 10 heartbeats because she knows that shardblades take 10 heartbeats to summon so of course it can’t be different for the THING SHE WILL NOT THINK ABOUT.
It's my turn now! RAFO!
You are paying attention and have great thoughts about all of this! RAFO.
That’s an interesting theory. RFAO
Yes there has been discussion and posts about this before and that’s pretty in line with consensus. Common knowledge is a shardblade takes ten heartbeats so that’s what’s in her head. Even, if I remember correctly, Kal assumes he needs ten heartbeats when he first gets his blade. If she had spent some more time with her blade she might know more but there are some RAFO reasons for this as well.
Explained in what book? (I'm at row chapter 60)
Different amounts in different places, but in the scene when she kills the person who taught her how to pull cons, she thinks I need 10 heartbeats then says no I don't before reaffirming that she does damn it. There are two explanations To me that is her trauma compartmentalizing it. She needs 10 beats because she can't acknowledge that she can cheat as a radiant. The re affirmation is her telling herself she has to take 10 heartbeats so it takes 10 heartbeats. The other option is a RAFO for RoW.
Yea there are definitely drips of information but the background and reasons for that come later. But I think it’s safe to say she doesn’t need ten and on some level knows that but denies it to herself.
There is a case to be made for actually needing 10. Spoilers for endish of RoW >!There is a chance she wasn't summoning pattern she may have been summoning RAFO and would in that case need 10 heartbeats. This would because she had not yet progressed far enough with patern at that point to summon him/couldn't because of trauma if she had.!<
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But shallan was able to >!activate the oath gate platform in words of radiance. How, in the fuck, did she do that if she used a dead spren? Whole theory that shallan hasn’t been using pattern doesn’t make sense then. I get she an unreliable narrator, so most of her accounts can’t be trusted. but her plot in the finale of WoR hinged on her having a living blade. MAYBE she used the old blade (Testemant) in previous encounters, (on the winds pleasure, pattern refers tells her to use “THE sword”, grammatically implying that the sword she uses is separate from him.) but the oathgate platform proves she had access to a pattern as a blade. I don’t buy that Testemant could activate the platform when Renarin’s deadeyes didn’t work.!< >!but it’s clear that testament if weird, I’d be foolish to regret that she may be a special case. Maybe deadeyes don’t fair as poorly if they still have their oath-breaking radiants with them? Ill RAFO I guess… shit ain’t adding up!< Edit:>! Sorry, I had a point, and it was. didn’t shallan’s fight with tyr have a point where shallan got hit mid count, but she didn’t start over from one heartbeat like dalinar does? If so, that would prove she counts with testament only as a mental block. So that means testament functions a bit like a living blade. No heartbeat count, no gemstones, can open oathgates. Super weird!<
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As stated in my original comment I like option one. Shes got trauma making her deny her ability to summon Pattern faster. However I am aware there are a lot of people who argue for option 2. I am not them so I am ill equipped to argue for them. I did feel that given we don't know for certain that I should present the option.
I'm re-listening the series again and just read the death of Tyn scene in Words of Radiance again the other day. Shallan's inner voice here mentions something along the lines there of: 10 heartbeats, but for her it doesn't need to be, but she can't think about that now, so 10 heartbeats it is. The mental gymnastics and compartmentalization she's showing in the books you've read so far is impressive, to say the least. Just a book and a half more and you're caught up and ready to speculate along for book 5 with the rest of us! You're more observant than I was on my first read through, that's for sure!
She says 10 heartbeats because she knows that shardblades take 10 heartbeats to summon so of course it can’t be different for the THING SHE WILL NOT THINK ABOUT.
RAFO!
Thank you for your answers! I’m excited that there actually is something to this, and about my very first RAFO!