#I only have Mistborn era 1 knowledge and tress knowledge

[deadinarussianelevator]

I need more Hoid.

[evapillar]

I read the entire Cosmere so you don’t have to!

Curious about Brandon Sanderson’s Cosmere books but not sure where to start? Read one series and looking for more? Want to know what’s skippable? Here’s a handy subjective guide!

Good starting points

Warbreaker

This is a fun, self-contained fantasy novel with some classic Sanderson twists! Zero prior knowledge required. This is one of the only Cosmere novels that tells a complete story, and it’s a normal length. No caveats.

The Final Empire/Mistborn Era 1

This was my starting point! It’s a fun read but was his second published novel and it kind of shows. I LOVED the first Mistborn book (and the rest of the trilogy), but when I was halfway through I did describe it as “a pile of intricate world-building with a heist stapled on top.” I turned out to be very wrong but if that sounds like something you wouldn’t have patience for, then start someplace else. (Also the audiobook reader is normally great but a poor match for the characters.)

The Emperor’s Soul

Please please please read this novella. Even if you have no interest in Brandon Sanderson or fantasy in general. This is maybe the most brilliant single book in the cosmere. It fully deserved the Hugo Award it won. The magic system is simple yet original. It is a beautiful meditation on the concept of identity, how we are shaped by our pasts, and what it means to be human. 80% of the story takes place in one room. The Emperor's Soul and the epilogue of Rhythm of War are the only things in the cosmere that made me cry.

The Way of Kings

This is the first book of the Stormlight Archive so I put it in this section but uhhhhhh only start here if you have a high tolerance for lengthy hard fantasy epics. I adore Stormlight but holy smokes does Way of Kings start off slow! The first six chapters contain three time jumps and six different perspective characters. I might not have gotten through it if I hadn’t gotten sick right after checking it out of the library.

I read something and liked it, now what?

The Stormlight Archive

This series of door stoppers has, for my money, the best characters and best world building in the cosmere! Also some really cool depictions of mental health struggles. Currently four books + two interstitial novellas, with the fifth and final book coming out this December. The Stormlight Archive is a great choice for people who don’t like deciding what to read next. If you started with Warbreaker this is the natural place to go because a bunch of Warbreaker characters make cameos in the later books. (Also the audiobooks are FANTASTIC!!!)

Tress of the Emerald Sea

An extremely fun, stand-alone romp! I almost put this on the starter list but it’s not representative, kind of spoilery, and also I truly don’t know what it would be like to read it without knowing who Wit is. This is Wit telling a story written for the prompt “what if Buttercup ran off to save Westley from the Dread Pirate Roberts” and it’s as fun as that sounds! (One of my all-time favorite audiobook experiences)

Mistborn Era 1

In case you didn’t start there! It’s great! (See above)

GIVE ME THE LORE!!

Mistborn: Secret History

There is an ongoing fandom argument about when to read this. I personally think you can read it any time after Mistborn Era 1, preferably before The Lost Metal. I stopped reading Era 2 while I tracked down a copy because I was so so confused after The Bands of Mourning.

Everything else in Arcanum Unbounded

Arcanum Unbounded is a collection of short stories from across the Cosmere, with prefaces that contain info about each planetary system. Several of the other stories I’ve mentioned are in here, but there’s a whole lot else. A big ol’ tasty pile of lore!

Mistborn Era 2

Okay, confession: I didn’t really like these much. The characters just didn’t connect for me, and one in particular, who happens to be the author’s favorite, I utterly despise. That being said, you’ve got cool fights, magical industrialization, characters from era 1 being worshipped as gods centuries later, and SO much lore. I know other people liked these but not my cup of tea. Obviously must be read after Mistborn Era 1.

The Sunlit Man

I…think this is a sequel to a book that doesn’t exist yet?? It was really cool in its own right and also brought together a ton of lore. Do not read before Stormlight!

Things you can skip

White Sands vols 1-3

This is a comic book adapted from one of Sanderson’s early unpublished novels. The art is dreadful and the writing isn’t much better. Almost no connections to the larger cosmere.

Yumi and the Nightmare Painter

This is the weakest of the Kickstarter books IMO. It just has some major structural problems, the biggest of which is that Wit is narrating for no discernible reason. He spends the whole book disrupting the narrative to complain that he’s been turned into a hatstand.

Elantris

Sanderson’s first published novel and it shows. I have really complicated feelings about Elantris. I think if I had read it as a teenager it would have merged with my soul and become a pillar of my personality, but it doesn’t suit the person I am now. There is a lot of cool stuff in this book! It’s a really impressive first novel! And the naive, Strong Female Protagonist feminism would be forgivable if not for a more specific issue. I was teetering on the edge of disordered eating when I picked up Elantris, and unfortunately this book has a major theme equating eating more than the bare minimum necessary for survival with immorality and subhuman behavior. If you struggle with food or body image do not touch this book with a ten foot pole!!! If you don’t, go ahead, it’s otherwise a perfectly fine book.

[senadimell]

Yo Cosmere people, does anyone know where I might be able to get a crash course on it?

Background: I’ve read most if not all of the Cosmere books, and I understand the main plots of the stories but not the Cosmere part of it (except for the really obvious bits, like Hoid). I’ve never been a choose-your-own adventure kind of gal, and I don’t really do video games or solve mysteries before the answers are revealed because I can’t really keep that info in my brain. So the inter-world connecting stuff is...just really confusing, to be honest. I read the published secret project 4 and I felt like half of it went over my head.

@shallanswit​ @onlycosmere​ (Feel free to ignore if there’s spoilers or you’re not up to answering!) Anyone else feel free to chime in!

My basic understanding right now (spoilers for Rhythm of War, probably Mistborn eras 1&2 and Secret History, secret projects, and more):

Adonalsium = pre-shattering state of power or magic or existence, God?

(Dawn?)shards = magic power sources left over from the shattering of Adonalsium that are usually hosted/wielded by a person, often considered gods (e.g.. Ruin and Preservation, now held by Sazed as Harmony).

Odium is a dawnshard and is the only one so far who doesn’t have a name commonly in use in the English language. Fancy word for the state of being hated. Basically the equivalent of being named “maleficent.” He sucks for reasons. Taravagian (sp?) is him now and I hate it and if he kills Sazed I will probably die an angry agonized death.

Seriously don’t mess with Sazed.

There are three realms of existence: physical, cognitive, and spiritual; the spiritual realm is left up to the audience to imagine and seems to be associated with afterlife. Cognitive = animated ideas of things, and it’s also where spren live.

Spren? There are powerful spren? Things that I thought were shards are actually spren? Is Honor a shard and the Stormfather a spren? How do spren get so powerful? Why don’t other planets have spren?

There are hybrid spren? Spren of different shards? The nightsister messes with them?

Metals have power? Some kinds of metals exist primarily in the cognitive realm? Some metals are spren bodies???? Salt and silver have properties in many places? Unless Tress of the Emerald Sea also happens on Threnody?

Things have souls, or something resembling souls, and can persist without their bodies. This happened to Kelsier? (look I know there is so much going on there in Mistborn 2 but basically all of it went over my head. People have said Kelsier’s out and about? didn’t notice it, didn’t understand it. He hates Hoid and warned Vin once. That’s about the extent of my understanding. Marsh is easier to notice, though).

Souls can be re-attached to other things? Not sure how it works but apparently this makes you immortal but in the “two princesses of bamarre Fairy State where you look like you but are fundamentally changed and not actually you even though you have all of You’s memories. This also probably sometimes possibly happens to inanimate objects? Nightblood is like that?

Using the Cognitive realm, people can travel between worlds without having developed space travel. This is known as worldhopping. Wit/Hoid has done a lot of that. This is how human Rosharans arrived and colonized the world. Knowledge of how to do this is not super mainstream right now, but lots of individuals and small groups know it.

(Due to the different natures of the Dawnshards,) magic manifests differently on different planets. Fundamentally, it is usually energy tied to matter for a certain effect. Sometimes it’s fortune-telling chickens and sometimes it’s metabolizing metal into superpowers. Sometimes it’s magic that makes you immortal until the land cracks and you’re a pain zombie since magic is geography-based. Imbuing things with magic is called Investiture.

Not all planets have the same strength of magic. The White Sand planet doesn’t have much? (haven’t read the graphic novels, only the manuscript. This is where Khriss comes from? Have no idea what she’s doing or why). Also magic can make it possible to live on places where physics are not kind. That seems to be happening in the secret projects.

The ghostbloods are...a thing? Mraize is someone? He has goals and acts Malicious? There was a seon at one point? idk how he got that except through worldhopping I guess

(also I really really really love the Emperor’s Soul. not really relevant but I like how it was someone deep in their own world using their expertise in craft and magic to solve a thematically resonant character-plot problem. Any implications of it for the broader Cosmere also went over my head).

People. Change. Names. When. They. Travel. and I can’t keep up with it. Wit/Hoid is all I got. And apparently Sigzil/Nomad.

there are probably Kandra somewhere. Also there are shapeshifting things on Roshar that mimic everyday things. Don’t know what that’s about.

There are Rules about traveling to other planets, and it’s possible to be too stuck to travel. Not sure how. I think it’s having magic too tied to a place? Being bonded to a place? Pretty sure Wit is currently stuck on Roshar? Also I was under the impression that Kelsier was but idk. kelsier’s so confusing. the madman. odium missed an opportunity there. we all dodged a bullet

Odium is killing shards? or wants to? and can maybe travel between places? or maybe he’s stuck?

how do kandra travel if investure is what locks you to a place? they’re basically scadrialian physically-manifested spren except I don’t know what they look like in Cognitive.

There are something called shadows and that’s Bad/Dangerous and idk what’s up with that.

Nalthis. You can tack magic energy onto something and make it more Powerful, aka Invested. People become demigods like in Elantris. (Elantris-planet is Sel)

(Okay the reason I don’t “get” the cosmere is probably because Nalthis was my least favorite Cosmere world. The story of Warbreaker was fine (liked the arranged marriage plot, didn’t like the other sister’s plot) but...it was really hard to get into the world and the aesthetics and naming just didn’t jive with me. Hoid was there. Nightblood was there. One of the royal sisters who travels around a lot and I think has been on Roshar was there (I get them confused). (oh also the swordmaster dude on Roshar is probably from Nalthis?) There were Ancient Mysteries and Dudes Who Have Sworn Off Things But Know Practically Everything and Won’t Tell You For Reasons (unlike gandalf, who spills the beans the second he figures things out because his knowledge isn’t Super Angst-Cursed)).

Some worldhoppers are scholar and others are more power-hungry. 

Wit is from somewhere and is very old and people hate him because he’s smarmy and obnoxious (/affectionate) but also probably other reasons. Also there were dragons on his planet and he was probably involved in the shattering of Adonalsium and isn’t a shard. He collects magic and apparently learns race-shape-shifting to blend in with the Alethi. He’s like Angela from Eragon except Branderson’s actually explaining him bit by bit instead of making him Tom Bombadil Manic Pixie Dream Witch edition. Someday he will mostly make sense. Probably.

Oh also there are secret societies. And immortal Rosharans who are heralds? Sigzil is part of somebody’s order? Wit trained him? And the dustbringers are the law-people whose leader has lost it? Nale, I think?

I dunno how they work either. Nale tried to kill Lift at some point.

Still not sure how desolations or the fused work. Pretty sure it’s odium. not sure what Damnation is about either, but there’s pain.

Half of these names I looked up. First version had “andalosium” instead of Adonalsium.

How dare Hoid wear a Bridge 4 uniform.

That is all.

please send help or at least point me to where I can find things out without breaking my brain.