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*** I will walk away and concede this argument now if you can show me ''one'' example where any official Valdemaran force -- from the army or the Heralds -- killed a civilian from another country who wasn't posing a direct threat to them. There are none. Valdemar even did their best to avoid killing the mind-controlled troops from Hardorn once they realized these were magically coerced soldiers -- they dispatched Elspeth and company to kill Ancar, making Heralds into assassins to reduce the loss of ''Hardonian'' life.
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*** The short version is that the politics of modern sexuality -- efficient FantasticContraception, no stigma against gays, no SlutShaming -- is a privilege of Heralds and their standing outside the realm of property and heirs. Again, there's no paternity testing in Valdemar. There's no corner drugstore where you can always get a condom... though you'd think Haven would be trying to promote birth control. There's money and property that mostly passes hands through inheritance, and you'd better be sure the lords want to ''know'' their heirs are their biological offspring. That's going to lead directly to reduced rights for women, among other things. As for "why can't the mindreading fire-throwing policemen change their minds?", that's a combination of they won't -- there is no One True Way -- and they can't. You can't make people change their minds just because you hold the equivalent of nuclear weapons.
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*** So what it boils down to is ostensibly benevolent gods going "yeah, poor cannon fodder, we know you're no worse morally than the people killing you *and* you're being forced by higher-ups to colonize their country, but we're going to send your enemies [[TheChosenOne an 'I Win' button]] because ''their'' higher-ups thousands of miles away are good people like you (maybe we'll replace ''your'' higher-ups with good people in a few centuries, if we feel like it)"? That's not better. The first rule of storytelling is "[[PetTheDog give your readers a reason to sympathize with the protagonist]]". You can't switch between grey and [[BlackAndWhiteMorality binary]] morality as it suits you.
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*** Sure, but the question isn't why they're in Haven. The question is why the vast majority of nobles in the series seem to have been teleported out of the Dark Ages when they are dominated by, and spend a quarter of every year with, people whose ideals are more or less modern. And have mindreading fire-throwing police with which they enforce national stability. A government that's always had an extra power bloc like the Heralds would in no way function like "typical real-world government with [fantasy group] tacked on".
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*** Valdemar is the 'protagonist' country, so the tendency is to support it just as you would the protagonist of any story. Every time it's been involved in a war, another country attacked it. Further, that other country was always further to the bad. Karse? Run by a corrupt church which put people with Gifts to death by mage fires and summoned demons. Hardorn? Usurped by an EvilPrince who used magic to turn his own people into mindless cannon fodder. Whatever Valdemar's faults in bringing its citizenry up to a basic moral standard, the bastardry has always been local: the Crown has never indulged or supported bigotry. In cases where it can't really be helped, like with the Holderkin, they've let it be known that they will tolerate it, but only so far.
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** Heralds don't own property. They also don't do the day-to-day local governing. The ones with money and local influence are the nobles, and there's political maneuvering for the same reason as in RealLife -- to keep the money and property in the family. The actual heads of household probably don't live in Haven full-time, but they probably have seasonal residences (I think it's mentioned in one book that Valdemar has a social Season), plus there are probably surplus sons or daughters who hang out there. And as it was mentioned in the ''Last-Herald Mage'' trilogy, Haven is the safest and most fortified city -- if things look truly scary, nobles will leave their own holdings and go there.
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*** borders into WMG, but... the other situation where the arrow code might be needed is sheer distance from a Companion. This would normally be a spy. Who thinks that Mags or Nikolas is going to create the Arrow code during the ''Herald Spy'' series?
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*** borders Borders into WMG, but... the other situation where the arrow code might be needed is sheer distance from a Companion. This would normally be a spy. Who thinks that Mags or Nikolas is going to create the Arrow code during the ''Herald Spy'' series?
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** It's even weirder because ''Mage Storms'' explains that the first Valdemarans were literally just one baron, his immediate family, and all the peasants working on their estate. Not much room for ancient exalted bloodlines or any sort of council in that...
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* [[folder:Why are Valdemaran nobles so powerful?]]
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*[[folder:Why are Valdemaran nobles so powerful?]]
In nearly every book, there's some discussion of those darn nobles who are so behind the times with their restrictive gender roles, political in-fighting, greed, and their children that clutter up the Collegium. But why would Valdemar even have a powerful nobility and why would its values and social mores be so markedly different from the royal family? Valdemar has been shown to have a very strong centralized government, with lots of educational and social initiatives coming from and being funded by the national government (The massive infrastructure of the Collegium being one of the main ones). There's rarely any mention of any nobles having private armies of substantial size, and the Crown has the HERALDS. Yes, the Heralds are loyal to the principles of Valdemar rather than personal allegiance to the monarch, but since the monarch has to be a Herald anyway, it's pretty much a moot point. With SO much power being consolidated in the Crown and the Heralds, how do the nobles have so much relevance and so much latitude to do whatever they want (and create problems for the main characters)? It's always IN Haven they're making trouble, not out in their own lands far from the capital.
*[[folder:Why are Valdemaran nobles so powerful?]]
In nearly every book, there's some discussion of those darn nobles who are so behind the times with their restrictive gender roles, political in-fighting, greed, and their children that clutter up the Collegium. But why would Valdemar even have a powerful nobility and why would its values and social mores be so markedly different from the royal family? Valdemar has been shown to have a very strong centralized government, with lots of educational and social initiatives coming from and being funded by the national government (The massive infrastructure of the Collegium being one of the main ones). There's rarely any mention of any nobles having private armies of substantial size, and the Crown has the HERALDS. Yes, the Heralds are loyal to the principles of Valdemar rather than personal allegiance to the monarch, but since the monarch has to be a Herald anyway, it's pretty much a moot point. With SO much power being consolidated in the Crown and the Heralds, how do the nobles have so much relevance and so much latitude to do whatever they want (and create problems for the main characters)? It's always IN Haven they're making trouble, not out in their own lands far from the capital.
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** Every noble would revolt en-mass if they were subject to constant truth spells. They're already a prideful prickly bunch with a hunger for power. Subjecting them to Truth Spells would imply that the Crown uniquely doesn't trust them (as neither the common folk nor the Heralds are put through the same test) which they would rightfully object to.
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** Every noble would revolt en-mass en-masse if they were subject to constant truth spells. They're already a prideful prickly bunch with a hunger for power. Subjecting them to Truth Spells would imply that the Crown uniquely doesn't trust them (as neither the common folk nor the Heralds are put through the same test) which they would rightfully object to.
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*** If Valdemar isn't good, then why the hell are we expected to root for it in in all the national wars it keeps getting into? Yes, ''realistically'' a country's citizens would be "all across the moral map", but the scope and genre that Mercedes Lackey has chosen for this series demand that Valdemar be comprised mostly of good people. And there are multiple '''gods''' in the setting with a vested interest in making sure it stays that way. It simply makes no sense that the powers that be would ''not'' intervene to make Valdemar more egalitarian than [insert real-world medieval country here], when they have already intervened to do so damn much, including establishing Heralds in the first place. Yes, [medieval country] would be bigoted, but [medieval country] isn't policed by a group of diverse peacekeepers who have the monarch's ear!
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** I can't answer your first question, but the second is relatively simple. Uber-level Firestarters ''aren't that common''. Based on how people talk about Lavan, there's never been one as powerful as him, ever. That means nobody who can train him as he needs to be trained, nobody who can neutralize him if he truly '''wants''' to be dangerous. The Heralds saved him not because it was the safe or traditional thing to do, but because it was right (as proved by Kalira's Choice), and Heralds do the right thing even if it's dangerous. These guys, magical though they may be, are still in a medieval setting and have mostly medieval levels of therapy. How do you comfort or protect a kid who's terminally distrustful of people? How do you explain to him that his soulmate is a literal angel? How do you explain any of the above dilemmas to him without making it sound like you think he's a [[BestialityIsDepraved monster]]? (Remember how badly Pol's first attempt at "helping" Lavan went.) They ''couldn't'', so they let Kalira handle things and taught Lavan as best they knew how. And they didn't dismiss him as a lamb for the slaughter, either- they taught him knowledge he would need for a longer career than he ended up having, and they let him rest and have fun like any normal kid. He was by no means some disposable {{Tykebomb}} to them.
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** I can't answer your first question, but the second is relatively simple. Uber-level Firestarters ''aren't that common''. Based on how people talk about Lavan, there's never been one as powerful as him, ever. That means nobody who can train him as he needs to be trained, nobody who can neutralize him if he truly '''wants''' to be dangerous. The Heralds saved him not because it was the safe or traditional thing to do, but because it was right (as proved by Kalira's Choice), and Heralds do the right thing even if it's dangerous. These guys, magical though they may be, are still in a medieval setting and have mostly medieval levels of therapy. How do you comfort or protect a kid who's terminally distrustful of people? How do you explain to him that his soulmate is a literal angel? How do you explain any of the above dilemmas to him without making it sound like you think he's a [[BestialityIsDepraved monster]]? (Remember how badly Pol's first attempt at "helping" Lavan went.) They ''couldn't'', so they let Kalira handle things and taught Lavan as best they knew how. And they didn't dismiss him as a lamb for the slaughter, either- either -- they taught him knowledge he would need for a longer career than he ended up having, and they let him rest and have fun like any normal kid. He was by no means some disposable {{Tykebomb}} to them.
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* The Truth Spell is easy, well known to be infallible, and any of the dozens of Heralds hanging around the palace can cast it. So why have so many traitors been able to infiltrate the council? Just make it standard procedure- every week, a Herald asks them something like, "Have you ever conspired to murder someone?" and doesn't let them in the council room if the person says yes. It wouldn't [[ExactWords entirely prevent would-be usurpers]], but it would have stopped so many problems in the books before they could've started- ''and'' without any of the ethical/authoritarian/reliability issues that interrogation presents in our world.
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* The Truth Spell is easy, well known to be infallible, and any of the dozens of Heralds hanging around the palace can cast it. So why have so many traitors been able to infiltrate the council? Just make it standard procedure- procedure -- every week, a Herald asks them something like, "Have you ever conspired to murder someone?" and doesn't let them in the council room if the person says yes. It wouldn't [[ExactWords entirely prevent would-be usurpers]], but it would have stopped so many problems in the books before they could've started- started -- ''and'' without any of the ethical/authoritarian/reliability issues that interrogation presents in our world.
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** In addition to the points above, 1) there's a series-wide emphasis against MundaneUtility, coupled with MindOverManners -- Heralds simply don't use Gifts on civilians without cause. It costs energy, and there are less intrusive ways to determine whether a Council member is a scumbag. 2) Using Truth Spell too often would reveal its limitations and weaknesses, making it easier for someone plotting evil to work around it. 3) Heralds save Truth Spell for cases where they already have a sense of who is at fault and what to ask, e.g. Talia interrogating the man who murdered his stepdaughter in ''Arrow's Flight''. Doing it as a blanket sweep wouldn't be as effective.
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** Valdemar isn't "good." Heralds and the royalty are good, but its citizens are all across the moral map. It's also in MedievalStasis, and the fact that the [[MamasBabyPapasMaybe paternity of a child]] simply ''cannot be proven'' means that female sexuality is going to be tightly controlled, especially when titles and inheritance are in the balance. As for lesbianism among the Holderkin; well, there's no chance of conception that way, so what's the harm?
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** Time and resources. The group at Urtho's barely managed to come up with a sufficient plan before the last Mage Storm hit. Deactivating the other weapons likely required time, magic and other resources for proper containment and disposal diverting necessary resources from canceling out the storms.
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** Every noble would revolt en-mass if they were subject to constant truth spells. They're already a prideful prickly bunch with a hunger for power. Subjecting them to Truth Spells would imply that the Crown uniquely doesn't trust them (as neither the common folk nor the Heralds are put through the same test) which they would rightfully object to.
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[[foldercontrol]]
[[folder:Kerowyn's decisions]]
[[folder:Kerowyn's decisions]]
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*** First of all, Elspeth has abdicated from her position as Heir, so the injuction that the Heir must not go into any danger if at all possible no longer applies to her. As for the Skybolts, it was only just in that book that magic was now open in Valdemar, so none of the mages that were originally part of the mercenary group were in Valdemar. The Skybolt mages had all returned to Rethwellan and later all went their separate ways or became part of the mage school that Quenten set up in Bolthaven. The decision, after all, was to send a covert team of mages, not a covert team of fighters, so it makes sense that Elspeth, as one of the few mages available immediately in Valdemar, would be part of the team.
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*** First of all, Elspeth has abdicated from her position as Heir, so the injuction injunction that the Heir must not go into any danger if at all possible no longer applies to her. As for the Skybolts, it was only just in that book that magic was now open in Valdemar, so none of the mages that were originally part of the mercenary group were in Valdemar. The Skybolt mages had all returned to Rethwellan and later all went their separate ways or became part of the mage school that Quenten set up in Bolthaven. The decision, after all, was to send a covert team of mages, not a covert team of fighters, so it makes sense that Elspeth, as one of the few mages available immediately in Valdemar, would be part of the team.
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[[folder:Choice-related doctrine]]
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[[folder:Timeline question #1]]
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*** it's been awhile since I read ''Take a Thief'', but is it possible that Bazie was injured in a separate, earlier conflict against the Tedrels, but they weren't identified as such until the 'official' Tedrel Wars? They were all mercenaries, after all, and their participating in an earlier conflict with Valdemar as part of a larger foreign army could explain a lot.
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*** it's It's been awhile since I read ''Take a Thief'', but is it possible that Bazie was injured in a separate, earlier conflict against the Tedrels, but they weren't identified as such until the 'official' Tedrel Wars? They were all mercenaries, after all, and their participating in an earlier conflict with Valdemar as part of a larger foreign army could explain a lot.
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[[folder:Timeline question #2]]
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[[folder:The necessity of nodes]]
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[[folder:Monarch's Own choice]]
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** It's established that the Monarch's Own's companion can and often does choose someone who is already a Herald. IIRC, the previous companion would turn out to have only had a temporary bond to the Herald in question
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** It's established that the Monarch's Own's companion can and often does choose someone who is already a Herald. IIRC, the previous companion would turn out to have only had a temporary bond to the Herald in questionquestion.
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[[folder:Karathanelan's death]]
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[[folder:Karathanelan's death]]
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* In ''Mage Storms'', Urtho's armory is labeled with each weapon, what it does, and ''how to destroy it'', including a note from Urtho to the finder saying "Do yourself and the world a favor and get rid of these." Fair enough. But when they active a big Magic Sink weapon to neutralize the Final Storm, all the other weapons go off and the combined energy almost destroys them all. Afterward, Firesong is kicking himself for not realizing the other weapons would fire. ''Why didn't they deactivate them before the last Storm''??
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[[folder:Weaponry foolishness]]
* In ''Mage Storms'', Urtho's armory is labeled with each weapon, what it does, and ''how to destroy it'', including a note from Urtho to the finder saying "Do yourself and the world a favor and get rid of these." Fair enough. But when theyactive activate a big Magic Sink MagicSink weapon to neutralize the Final Storm, all the other weapons go off and the combined energy almost destroys them all. Afterward, Firesong is kicking himself for not realizing the other weapons would fire. ''Why didn't they deactivate them before the last Storm''??
[[folder:Weaponry foolishness]]
* In ''Mage Storms'', Urtho's armory is labeled with each weapon, what it does, and ''how to destroy it'', including a note from Urtho to the finder saying "Do yourself and the world a favor and get rid of these." Fair enough. But when they
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[[folder:Valdemar's supposed 'goodness' #1]]
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[[folder:Lack of therapy]]
[[folder:Lack of therapy]]
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* The Truth Spell is easy, well known to be infallible, and any of the dozens of Heralds hanging around the palace can cast it. So why have so many traitors been able to infiltrate the council? Just make it standard procedure- every week, a Herald asks them something like, "Have you ever conspired to murder someone?" and doesn't let them in the council room if the person says yes. It wouldn't [[ExactWords entirely prevent would-be usurpers]], but it would have stopped so many problems in the books before they could've started- ''and'' without any of the ethical/authoritarian/reliability issues that interrogation presents in our world.
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[[folder:In the Fantasy genre, yet...]]
* The Truth Spell is easy, well known to be infallible, and any of the dozens of Heralds hanging around the palace can cast it. So why have so many traitors been able to infiltrate the council? Just make it standard procedure- every week, a Herald asks them something like, "Have you ever conspired to murder someone?" and doesn't let them in the council room if the person says yes. It wouldn't [[ExactWords entirely prevent would-be usurpers]], but it would have stopped so many problems in the books before they could've started- ''and'' without any of the ethical/authoritarian/reliability issues that interrogation presents in ourworld.world.
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[[folder:Valdemar's supposed 'goodness' #2]]
* The slut-shaming that Violetta is put through goes against everything the series has built up about Valdemar to date. When Violetta's innocent letter of infatuation to Brand is found out, an enraged Lady Dia berates Violetta over it, claiming that the letter is somehow proof of Violetta being wanton and sluttish, and topping it all off by stating that if Violetta had sex with Brand, her reputation would be ruined because she'd been "deflowered". When the strict, repressed, isolated ''Holderkin''[[note]]who are polyamorous and have no problem with lesbian relationships[[/note]] come across as more accepting and open than people in Valdemar's main city, there's a major problem.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:In the Fantasy genre, yet...]]
* The Truth Spell is easy, well known to be infallible, and any of the dozens of Heralds hanging around the palace can cast it. So why have so many traitors been able to infiltrate the council? Just make it standard procedure- every week, a Herald asks them something like, "Have you ever conspired to murder someone?" and doesn't let them in the council room if the person says yes. It wouldn't [[ExactWords entirely prevent would-be usurpers]], but it would have stopped so many problems in the books before they could've started- ''and'' without any of the ethical/authoritarian/reliability issues that interrogation presents in our
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[[folder:Valdemar's supposed 'goodness' #2]]
* The slut-shaming that Violetta is put through goes against everything the series has built up about Valdemar to date. When Violetta's innocent letter of infatuation to Brand is found out, an enraged Lady Dia berates Violetta over it, claiming that the letter is somehow proof of Violetta being wanton and sluttish, and topping it all off by stating that if Violetta had sex with Brand, her reputation would be ruined because she'd been "deflowered". When the strict, repressed, isolated ''Holderkin''[[note]]who are polyamorous and have no problem with lesbian relationships[[/note]] come across as more accepting and open than people in Valdemar's main city, there's a major problem.
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* ''Brightly Burning'' bothers me because of how FunctionalGenreSavvy all the characters seem to be. ''No one'' makes a serious effort to treat Lavan's obvious problems. No one has a plan for what to do with a Herald who doesn't have full control of his Firestarting gift, already has a reputation for mindless destruction (no matter how justified), and is easily panicked or enraged. It's like they've already read ''Arrows of the Queen'' and realize that all they have to do is get him to the Karsite border for his fated HeroicSacrifice.
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* ''Brightly Burning'' bothers me because of how FunctionalGenreSavvy all the characters seem to be. ''No one'' makes a serious effort to treat Lavan's obvious problems. No one has a plan for what to do with a Herald who doesn't have full control of his Firestarting gift, already has a reputation for mindless destruction (no matter how justified), and is easily panicked or enraged. It's like they've already read ''Arrows of the Queen'' and realize that all they have to do is get him to the Karsite border for his fated HeroicSacrifice.HeroicSacrifice.
** I can't answer your first question, but the second is relatively simple. Uber-level Firestarters ''aren't that common''. Based on how people talk about Lavan, there's never been one as powerful as him, ever. That means nobody who can train him as he needs to be trained, nobody who can neutralize him if he truly '''wants''' to be dangerous. The Heralds saved him not because it was the safe or traditional thing to do, but because it was right (as proved by Kalira's Choice), and Heralds do the right thing even if it's dangerous. These guys, magical though they may be, are still in a medieval setting and have mostly medieval levels of therapy. How do you comfort or protect a kid who's terminally distrustful of people? How do you explain to him that his soulmate is a literal angel? How do you explain any of the above dilemmas to him without making it sound like you think he's a [[BestialityIsDepraved monster]]? (Remember how badly Pol's first attempt at "helping" Lavan went.) They ''couldn't'', so they let Kalira handle things and taught Lavan as best they knew how. And they didn't dismiss him as a lamb for the slaughter, either- they taught him knowledge he would need for a longer career than he ended up having, and they let him rest and have fun like any normal kid. He was by no means some disposable {{Tykebomb}} to them.
* The Truth Spell is easy, well known to be infallible, and any of the dozens of Heralds hanging around the palace can cast it. So why have so many traitors been able to infiltrate the council? Just make it standard procedure- every week, a Herald asks them something like, "Have you ever conspired to murder someone?" and doesn't let them in the council room if the person says yes. It wouldn't [[ExactWords entirely prevent would-be usurpers]], but it would have stopped so many problems in the books before they could've started- ''and'' without any of the ethical/authoritarian/reliability issues that interrogation presents in our world.
** I can't answer your first question, but the second is relatively simple. Uber-level Firestarters ''aren't that common''. Based on how people talk about Lavan, there's never been one as powerful as him, ever. That means nobody who can train him as he needs to be trained, nobody who can neutralize him if he truly '''wants''' to be dangerous. The Heralds saved him not because it was the safe or traditional thing to do, but because it was right (as proved by Kalira's Choice), and Heralds do the right thing even if it's dangerous. These guys, magical though they may be, are still in a medieval setting and have mostly medieval levels of therapy. How do you comfort or protect a kid who's terminally distrustful of people? How do you explain to him that his soulmate is a literal angel? How do you explain any of the above dilemmas to him without making it sound like you think he's a [[BestialityIsDepraved monster]]? (Remember how badly Pol's first attempt at "helping" Lavan went.) They ''couldn't'', so they let Kalira handle things and taught Lavan as best they knew how. And they didn't dismiss him as a lamb for the slaughter, either- they taught him knowledge he would need for a longer career than he ended up having, and they let him rest and have fun like any normal kid. He was by no means some disposable {{Tykebomb}} to them.
* The Truth Spell is easy, well known to be infallible, and any of the dozens of Heralds hanging around the palace can cast it. So why have so many traitors been able to infiltrate the council? Just make it standard procedure- every week, a Herald asks them something like, "Have you ever conspired to murder someone?" and doesn't let them in the council room if the person says yes. It wouldn't [[ExactWords entirely prevent would-be usurpers]], but it would have stopped so many problems in the books before they could've started- ''and'' without any of the ethical/authoritarian/reliability issues that interrogation presents in our world.
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** Fair point, though my question was more why they didn't just deactivate the weapons so they couldn't go off at all. The best I can understand it is that 1. they figured that whatever energy the weapons fired would just go into the Void too, not expecting anyone to enhance the Final Storm, or 2. the unexpected problem they had with Urtho's early Kaled'a'in meant they didn't have time to translate all the disassembly instructions and figured it was better to just leave them alone rather than mess up and possibly kill themselves.
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** ''Was'' the problem the other weapons, or was it Charliss' decision to release all the mage-energy of every single magical artifact in the Imperial vaults and add that energy to that of the Storms? Granted, it's implied that at least some of that energy wound up inside the Iron Throne after Melles killed Charliss mid-spell, but if Charliss was remotely accurate as to the amount of energy he could tap there's no way ''all'' of it wound up inside the Throne.
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** Talia does state that after what happened with her, the Crown set things up so that Heralds can take away any Holderkin kids that are unhappy with that way of life (the Holderkin Elders don't care as it removes any troublemakers) and strongly reminded the Holderkin that when they were first granted permission to settle in Valdemar, they had agreed to also follow Valdemaran law.
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** Talia does state that after what happened with her, the Crown set things up so that Heralds can take away any Holderkin kids that are unhappy with that way of life (the Holderkin Elders don't care as it removes any troublemakers) and strongly reminded the Holderkin that when they were first granted permission to settle in Valdemar, they had agreed to also follow Valdemaran law.law.
* ''Brightly Burning'' bothers me because of how FunctionalGenreSavvy all the characters seem to be. ''No one'' makes a serious effort to treat Lavan's obvious problems. No one has a plan for what to do with a Herald who doesn't have full control of his Firestarting gift, already has a reputation for mindless destruction (no matter how justified), and is easily panicked or enraged. It's like they've already read ''Arrows of the Queen'' and realize that all they have to do is get him to the Karsite border for his fated HeroicSacrifice.
* ''Brightly Burning'' bothers me because of how FunctionalGenreSavvy all the characters seem to be. ''No one'' makes a serious effort to treat Lavan's obvious problems. No one has a plan for what to do with a Herald who doesn't have full control of his Firestarting gift, already has a reputation for mindless destruction (no matter how justified), and is easily panicked or enraged. It's like they've already read ''Arrows of the Queen'' and realize that all they have to do is get him to the Karsite border for his fated HeroicSacrifice.
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* Why doesn't the Crown do anything about the Holderkin? Sure, Valdemar's credo is "there is no one true way", and the Holderkin are entitled to be isolationist Puritan-minded preppers if they want, but beating children, locking them in solitary, and forcibly marrying off thirteen-year-olds to grown men is just a ''wee bit'' past the reasonable bounds of religious freedom. Maybe they didn't know how bad things were before Talia was Chosen, but now she's the ''Queen's Own''--Selenay is her best friend, for crying out loud. So why is everyone (including her!) acting like the Holderkin are just quaint conservative oddballs instead of sending a pack of Heralds down there to make them shape up?
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* Why doesn't the Crown do anything about the Holderkin? Sure, Valdemar's credo is "there is no one true way", and the Holderkin are entitled to be isolationist Puritan-minded preppers if they want, but beating children, locking them in solitary, and forcibly marrying off thirteen-year-olds to grown men is just a ''wee bit'' past the reasonable bounds of religious freedom. Maybe they didn't know how bad things were before Talia was Chosen, but now she's the ''Queen's Own''--Selenay is her best friend, for crying out loud. So why is everyone (including her!) acting like the Holderkin are just quaint conservative oddballs instead of sending a pack of Heralds down there to make them shape up?up?
** Talia does state that after what happened with her, the Crown set things up so that Heralds can take away any Holderkin kids that are unhappy with that way of life (the Holderkin Elders don't care as it removes any troublemakers) and strongly reminded the Holderkin that when they were first granted permission to settle in Valdemar, they had agreed to also follow Valdemaran law.
** Talia does state that after what happened with her, the Crown set things up so that Heralds can take away any Holderkin kids that are unhappy with that way of life (the Holderkin Elders don't care as it removes any troublemakers) and strongly reminded the Holderkin that when they were first granted permission to settle in Valdemar, they had agreed to also follow Valdemaran law.
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** First of all, Elspeth has abdicated from her position as Heir, so the injuction that the Heir must not go into any danger if at all possible no longer applies to her. As for the Skybolts, it was only just in that book that magic was now open in Valdemar, so none of the mages that were originally part of the mercenary group were in Valdemar. The Skybolt mages had all returned to Rethwellan and later all went their separate ways or became part of the mage school that Quenten set up in Bolthaven. The decision, after all, was to send a covert team of mages, not a covert team of fighters, so it makes sense that Elspeth, as one of the few mages available immediately in Valdemar, would be part of the team.
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** First of all, Elspeth has abdicated from her position as Heir, so the injuction that the Heir must not go into any danger if at all possible no longer applies to her. As for the Skybolts, it was only just in that book that magic was now open in Valdemar, so none of the mages that were originally part of the mercenary group were in Valdemar. The Skybolt mages had all returned to Rethwellan and later all went their separate ways or became part of the mage school that Quenten set up in Bolthaven. The decision, after all, was to send a covert team of mages, not a covert team of fighters, so it makes sense that Elspeth, as one of the few mages available immediately in Valdemar, would be part of the team.
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Changed line(s) 50 (click to see context) from:
* In ''Mage Storms'', Urtho's armory is labeled with each weapon, what it does, and ''how to destroy it'', including a note from Urtho to the finder saying "Do yourself and the world a favor and get rid of these." Fair enough. But when they active a big Magic Sink weapon to neutralize the Final Storm, all the other weapons go off and the combined energy almost destroys them all. Afterward, Firesong is kicking himself for not realizing the other weapons would fire. ''Why didn't they deactivate them before the last Storm''??
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* In ''Mage Storms'', Urtho's armory is labeled with each weapon, what it does, and ''how to destroy it'', including a note from Urtho to the finder saying "Do yourself and the world a favor and get rid of these." Fair enough. But when they active a big Magic Sink weapon to neutralize the Final Storm, all the other weapons go off and the combined energy almost destroys them all. Afterward, Firesong is kicking himself for not realizing the other weapons would fire. ''Why didn't they deactivate them before the last Storm''??Storm''??
* Why doesn't the Crown do anything about the Holderkin? Sure, Valdemar's credo is "there is no one true way", and the Holderkin are entitled to be isolationist Puritan-minded preppers if they want, but beating children, locking them in solitary, and forcibly marrying off thirteen-year-olds to grown men is just a ''wee bit'' past the reasonable bounds of religious freedom. Maybe they didn't know how bad things were before Talia was Chosen, but now she's the ''Queen's Own''--Selenay is her best friend, for crying out loud. So why is everyone (including her!) acting like the Holderkin are just quaint conservative oddballs instead of sending a pack of Heralds down there to make them shape up?
* Why doesn't the Crown do anything about the Holderkin? Sure, Valdemar's credo is "there is no one true way", and the Holderkin are entitled to be isolationist Puritan-minded preppers if they want, but beating children, locking them in solitary, and forcibly marrying off thirteen-year-olds to grown men is just a ''wee bit'' past the reasonable bounds of religious freedom. Maybe they didn't know how bad things were before Talia was Chosen, but now she's the ''Queen's Own''--Selenay is her best friend, for crying out loud. So why is everyone (including her!) acting like the Holderkin are just quaint conservative oddballs instead of sending a pack of Heralds down there to make them shape up?
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* Is Kerowyn incompetent? Consider the following two cases:
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* Is Kerowyn incompetent? Consider the following two three cases:
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** When the decision to send a covert team of mages to kill Ancar is made, Kerowyn clearly thinks Elspeth is the best person for the job. Not her Skybolts, who've done things like that before. Elspeth, who must not go into danger, who has very little experience, and who Ancar will brutally torture to death if he catches.
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Changed line(s) 48 (click to see context) from:
** It's a RetCon. ''By the Sword'' was one of the earlier books, while the Exile Duology is more recent.
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** It's a RetCon. ''By the Sword'' was one of the earlier books, while the Exile Duology is more recent.recent.
* In ''Mage Storms'', Urtho's armory is labeled with each weapon, what it does, and ''how to destroy it'', including a note from Urtho to the finder saying "Do yourself and the world a favor and get rid of these." Fair enough. But when they active a big Magic Sink weapon to neutralize the Final Storm, all the other weapons go off and the combined energy almost destroys them all. Afterward, Firesong is kicking himself for not realizing the other weapons would fire. ''Why didn't they deactivate them before the last Storm''??
* In ''Mage Storms'', Urtho's armory is labeled with each weapon, what it does, and ''how to destroy it'', including a note from Urtho to the finder saying "Do yourself and the world a favor and get rid of these." Fair enough. But when they active a big Magic Sink weapon to neutralize the Final Storm, all the other weapons go off and the combined energy almost destroys them all. Afterward, Firesong is kicking himself for not realizing the other weapons would fire. ''Why didn't they deactivate them before the last Storm''??
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Changed line(s) 24 (click to see context) from:
** Kyril doesn't actually say it, but the Arrow code is heavily implied to be a last-ditch resort for worst case scenarios, where a Herald, for some reason, can't communicate via their Companion (Talia can't at the time because she's being Mage-blocked; a situation that hasn't happened for centuries). It's not used very often because a Herald separated from their Companion is usually dead. If you think about it, every other hero (who is also a Herald) in a really bad situation in the books is either a strong mindspeaker in their own right (Mags, Skif), or in a situation so dire that they don't have time to send such a message (Vanyel, Alberich) or in a situation where a message wouldn't help (Lavan).
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** Kyril doesn't actually say it, but the Arrow code is heavily implied to be a last-ditch resort for worst case scenarios, where a Herald, for some reason, can't communicate via their Companion (Talia can't at the time because she's being Mage-blocked; a situation that hasn't happened for centuries).centuries and which the Heraldic Circle could not have accounted for as a possibility thanks to the country-wide mental block regarding magic). It's not used very often because a Herald separated from their Companion is usually dead. If you think about it, every other hero (who is also a Herald) in a really bad situation in the books is either a strong mindspeaker in their own right (Mags, Skif), or in a situation so dire that they don't have time to send such a message (Vanyel, Alberich) or in a situation where a message wouldn't help (Lavan).
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Changed line(s) 14,15 (click to see context) from:
*** I just re-read those chapters, too - at no point does Talia actually say 'I have no idea what's happening to me, can you please tell me what in the Havens is going on?' or variant. Her own shyness and severe training in 'don't question authority' means that she never really says more than a line or two to anyone on her journey, so everyone who talks to her simply thinks she's a little confused, not that she has no idea what's happening.
Not to mention that given what's revealed about the Companion's abilities later - and especially Talia's - it's very probably that Rolan was 'encouraging' her mentally not to ask questions or to be too afraid. (after all, the two-way mental/spiritual/magical connection from the moment of Choosing means that Rolan '''knows''' that Talia wants to be a Herald. Consent to whatever happens in order to get her to the Palace to do just that is included; if Talia knew the whole situation she'd simply say it was fine.)
Not to mention that given what's revealed about the Companion's abilities later - and especially Talia's - it's very probably that Rolan was 'encouraging' her mentally not to ask questions or to be too afraid. (after all, the two-way mental/spiritual/magical connection from the moment of Choosing means that Rolan '''knows''' that Talia wants to be a Herald. Consent to whatever happens in order to get her to the Palace to do just that is included; if Talia knew the whole situation she'd simply say it was fine.)
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*** I just re-read those chapters, too - at no point does Talia actually say 'I have no idea what's happening to me, can you please tell me what in the Havens is going on?' or variant. Her own shyness and severe training in 'don't question authority' means that she never really says more than a line or two to anyone on her journey, so everyone who talks to her simply thinks she's a little confused, not that she has no idea what's happening. \n Not to mention that given what's revealed about the Companion's abilities later - and especially Talia's - it's very probably probable that Rolan was 'encouraging' her mentally not to ask questions or and stay calm, so she never came off as frightened enough for anyone to be too afraid.ask her directly about her confusion. (after all, the two-way mental/spiritual/magical connection from the moment of Choosing means that Rolan '''knows''' that Talia wants to be a Herald. Consent to whatever happens in order to get her to the Palace to do just that is included; if Talia knew the whole situation she'd simply say it was fine.)
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*** it's been awhile since I read ''Take a Thief'', but is it possible that Bazie was injured in a separate, earlier conflict against the Tedrels, but they weren't identified as such until the 'official' Tedrel Wars? They were all mercenaries, after all, and their participating in an earlier conflict with Valdemar as part of a larger foreign army could explain a lot.
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** There's also the fact that his being 'elderly' is only mentioned from Talia's POV. Talia is only 13, and peasant-born in a medieval world (where commoners were middle-aged at thirty). Talia's narrative states that Jadus reminds her of her paternal grandmother; given that Talia was to be married off at thirteen, and that's implied to be typical for Holderkin, her grandmother could have been as young as 45.
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Changed line(s) 14 (click to see context) from:
*** I just re-read those chapters, too - at no point does Talia actually say 'I have no idea what's happening to me, can you please tell me what in the Havens is going on?' or variant. Her own shyness and severe training in 'don't question authority' means that she never really says more than a line or two to anyone on her journey. Not to mention that given what's revealed about the Companion's abilities later - and especially Talia's - it's very probably that Rolan was 'encouraging' her mentally not to ask questions or to be too afraid. (after all, the two-way mental/spiritual/magical connection from the moment of Choosing means that Rolan '''knows''' that Talia wants to be a Herald. Consent to whatever happens in order to get her to the Palace to do just that is included; if Talia knew the whole situation she'd just say it was fine.)
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*** I just re-read those chapters, too - at no point does Talia actually say 'I have no idea what's happening to me, can you please tell me what in the Havens is going on?' or variant. Her own shyness and severe training in 'don't question authority' means that she never really says more than a line or two to anyone on her journey. journey, so everyone who talks to her simply thinks she's a little confused, not that she has no idea what's happening.
Not to mention that given what's revealed about the Companion's abilities later - and especially Talia's - it's very probably that Rolan was 'encouraging' her mentally not to ask questions or to be too afraid. (after all, the two-way mental/spiritual/magical connection from the moment of Choosing means that Rolan '''knows''' that Talia wants to be a Herald. Consent to whatever happens in order to get her to the Palace to do just that is included; if Talia knew the whole situation she'djust simply say it was fine.)
Not to mention that given what's revealed about the Companion's abilities later - and especially Talia's - it's very probably that Rolan was 'encouraging' her mentally not to ask questions or to be too afraid. (after all, the two-way mental/spiritual/magical connection from the moment of Choosing means that Rolan '''knows''' that Talia wants to be a Herald. Consent to whatever happens in order to get her to the Palace to do just that is included; if Talia knew the whole situation she'd
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** Kyril doesn't actually say it, but the Arrow code is a last-ditch resort for worst case scenarios, where a Herald, for some reason, can't communicate with their Companion (Talia can't at the time because she's being Mage-blocked). It's not used very often because a Herald separated from their Companion is usually dead. If you think about it, every other hero (who is also a Herald) in a really bad situation in the books is either a strong mindspeaker in their own right (Mags, Skif), or in a situation so dire that they don't have time to send such a message (Vanyel, Alberich) or in a situation where a message wouldn't help (Lavan).
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** Kyril doesn't actually say it, but the Arrow code is heavily implied to be a last-ditch resort for worst case scenarios, where a Herald, for some reason, can't communicate with via their Companion (Talia can't at the time because she's being Mage-blocked).Mage-blocked; a situation that hasn't happened for centuries). It's not used very often because a Herald separated from their Companion is usually dead. If you think about it, every other hero (who is also a Herald) in a really bad situation in the books is either a strong mindspeaker in their own right (Mags, Skif), or in a situation so dire that they don't have time to send such a message (Vanyel, Alberich) or in a situation where a message wouldn't help (Lavan).
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*** I just re-read those chapters, too - at no point does Talia actually say 'I have no idea what's happening to me, can you please tell me what in the Havens is going on?' or variant. Her own shyness and severe training in 'don't question authority' means that she never really says more than a line or two to anyone on her journey. Not to mention that given what's revealed about the Companion's abilities later - and especially Talia's - it's very probably that Rolan was 'encouraging' her mentally not to ask questions or to be too afraid. (after all, the two-way mental/spiritual/magical connection from the moment of Choosing means that Rolan '''knows''' that Talia wants to be a Herald. Consent to whatever happens in order to get her to the Palace to do just that is included; if Talia knew the whole situation she'd just say it was fine.)
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** It is possiable that the "powers" of Heralds have gotten stronger over the generations. So the Arrow Code used to be needed more in the past.
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** It is possiable possible that the "powers" of Heralds have gotten stronger over the generations. So the Arrow Code used to be needed more in the past.past.
** Kyril doesn't actually say it, but the Arrow code is a last-ditch resort for worst case scenarios, where a Herald, for some reason, can't communicate with their Companion (Talia can't at the time because she's being Mage-blocked). It's not used very often because a Herald separated from their Companion is usually dead. If you think about it, every other hero (who is also a Herald) in a really bad situation in the books is either a strong mindspeaker in their own right (Mags, Skif), or in a situation so dire that they don't have time to send such a message (Vanyel, Alberich) or in a situation where a message wouldn't help (Lavan).
*** borders into WMG, but... the other situation where the arrow code might be needed is sheer distance from a Companion. This would normally be a spy. Who thinks that Mags or Nikolas is going to create the Arrow code during the ''Herald Spy'' series?
** Kyril doesn't actually say it, but the Arrow code is a last-ditch resort for worst case scenarios, where a Herald, for some reason, can't communicate with their Companion (Talia can't at the time because she's being Mage-blocked). It's not used very often because a Herald separated from their Companion is usually dead. If you think about it, every other hero (who is also a Herald) in a really bad situation in the books is either a strong mindspeaker in their own right (Mags, Skif), or in a situation so dire that they don't have time to send such a message (Vanyel, Alberich) or in a situation where a message wouldn't help (Lavan).
*** borders into WMG, but... the other situation where the arrow code might be needed is sheer distance from a Companion. This would normally be a spy. Who thinks that Mags or Nikolas is going to create the Arrow code during the ''Herald Spy'' series?
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** So, overall, what they're trying to do is to make people wait to have the proper discussion we see with Teren in Orientation, rather than have it all happen in a more confused fashion. (And it's not just the Roadguard, Dirk says the same).
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Headscratchers is for questions, not for complaining about flaws in the writing.
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* In the Black Gryphon, I feel rather shocked at the lack of actual ability associated with Skandranon throughout the book. Either he is building up someone else to insane levels-usually Zhaneel who has reason to be due to earlier lacking self-esteem and confidence, but perhaps too much since she just accepts giving Skan the boot in the rear from Amberdrake-or just sitting around. When he gets back into combat, he's nearly a ButtMonkey; captured in a net, and then enters a freefall so that Zhaneel can get the kill. He barely seems to do anything as the incredible soldier and black-ops gryphon we expect in the story except for the first bit, and that doesn't feel right. It is essentially InformedAbility.
