Hoid
| House / Order | Unaffiliated (Cosmere-wandering) |
|---|---|
| Race / Culture | Yolish (ancient; pre-Shattering) |
| Status | Alive |
| Origin | Roshar (and across the Cosmere) |
| Born | Yolen (before the Shattering of Adonalsium) |
| Died | |
| Weapon | Wit; a memory-flute; fragments of Investiture; Lightweaving |
| Fate | Ancient Cosmere traveler pursuing his own hidden agenda; serves as Wit in Dalinar's court |
| Portrayed by |
Hoid, most often appearing on Roshar under the guise of Wit, the King's Wit, is one of the most enigmatic figures in The Stormlight Archive and the wider Cosmere of Brandon Sanderson. An ancient being who predates the Shattering of Adonalsium, Hoid travels between worlds pursuing a vast, secret purpose, appearing throughout Sanderson's works under many names -- Cephandrius, Dust, Topaz, the Wandersail's teller, and others.
On Roshar he serves in Dalinar's court as Wit, a razor-tongued storyteller licensed to mock kings, while quietly steering events and aiding chosen individuals like Kaladin and Shallan Davar.
Background
Hoid is among the oldest known characters in the Cosmere, present at the Shattering of Adonalsium -- the event that split a god into the sixteen Shards. His exact origins and aims remain deliberately obscure, but he is known to collect fragments of power (Investiture) and to manipulate events on world after world toward an end he keeps hidden even from his closest acquaintances. He is feared and distrusted by gods and Shards alike; several have warned others against trusting him, even as he insists his intentions are ultimately good.
Biography
Role on Roshar
Hoid arrives on Roshar and embeds himself as Wit, the King's Wit, in the Alethi court. The role grants him license to insult anyone, even royalty, which suits both his nature and his cover. In The Way of Kings he tells the parable of the Wandersail to a despairing Kaladin and offers cryptic encouragement. Throughout the series he aids the protagonists at crucial moments -- mentoring Shallan Davar in Lightweaving, comforting Kaladin, and steering events from the margins.
Aims and methods
Hoid is revealed to be gathering power and knowledge across the Cosmere. On Roshar he obtains forms of Investiture and Lightweaving, and his presence ties the local conflict between Honor, Cultivation, and Odium into a far larger story. He claims to oppose Odium and to be working toward preventing catastrophe, but he is willing to be "cruel to be kind," sacrificing individuals for his larger design, which makes him a figure of profound ambiguity.
Character
Hoid is brilliant, witty, and unfathomably old, masking immense purpose and not a little weariness behind humor and storytelling. He is kind to the broken and merciless to the powerful, yet he holds his ultimate goals so closely that even allies cannot be sure of him. He believes in stories as a means of changing people, and he wields them as deliberately as any weapon.
Powers and abilities
Over millennia Hoid has accumulated abilities from many worlds of the Cosmere. On Roshar he demonstrates Lightweaving and the use of Stormlight. Elsewhere in the Cosmere he is associated with other magic systems and Investitures gathered across his travels. His most consistent "power," however, is knowledge: an unmatched understanding of the Cosmere, its Shards, and how to manipulate events toward his ends.
Relationships
- Kaladin -- whom he comforts and steadies at his lowest points.
- Shallan Davar -- whom he mentors in Lightweaving and watches with interest.
- Dalinar Kholin and Jasnah Kholin -- rulers he serves and quietly counsels as Wit.
- The Shards -- the gods of the Cosmere, several of whom distrust him.
Quotes
I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I have to be cruel to be kind.
A story is not about what happens. It is about the people it happens to, and what they learn.