[Shurque's biatch]

I haven't seen this discussed before so forgive if my search skills are deficient.

Does SOLEtaken mean single as in only one to contrast with d'ivers or is there some other meaning?

I had originally changed it in my mind to soultaken to denote something along the lines of traded their soul for something.

I am guessing it isn't a foot fetish and we see that there are more than just fish.

[Obdigore]

There is a question only SE, ICE, or maybe Kallor could actually answer for sure...

However, I do see the point you are making about the sole being single and not spelled soul (although this means different things to different people, depending on theology).

[Illuyankas]

This is something I think SE and ICE made up when the Malaz series was only an RPG, while coming up with names for the concept of someone shifting into an animal form/s.

[Gem Windcaster]

It is probably only SE playing with words. Not that I don't like it.
I love word games.

[Aptorian]

Well I'm not sure about the difference between sole and soul, but D'ivers are several times mentioned as Soletaken D'ivers.

Soletaken obviously means shapeshifter, Divers just implies many bodies.

Who wants to meet the guy that can morph into soletaken divers dragons?

[Cold Iron]

:eek:

[GardenGnome]

So, here we are discussing the meaning of a word made for this series of fantasy books versus the meaning of a nonsensical word? Interesting...

[Abyss]

Both are properly called 'shapeshifters'.
Soletaken = one form taken.
D'ivers = diverse forms.

But there are the obvious plays on words in there. I don't think it's more complex than that.

- Abyss, fishstealer.

[Clip]

Probably it is more than a play on words, perhaps when people in the First Human Empire started to experimant with becoming soletaken they thaought of it as soultaken and over time and once the ritual went wrong the word degenerated into soletaken.

If you look at it from a point of view from inside the books.

[Monoch Ochem]

The 'soul' innuendo did hit me but I came to realise that it was nothing to do with possession. It later struck me that the singular vs. plural orders of shapeshifting could mean a 'sole' (single) taken (chosen) form of changing rather than a multiple one.

Diivers I took to be a biblically derived term- divers plagues and afflictions mentioned in the Bible.

[Dolorous Menhir]

I think "divers" is just an antiquated spelling of "diverse" and SE stuck an extra apostrophe in there.

Your "sole - taken" as "one form - chosen" is very good Monok, I like it.

[Bl1nder]

I had the same problem, reading the books on a differnet language, I thought that the idiots who translated the book made a msitake somewhere, and wrote it soletaken, instead of soul, but later realised there aint no mistake. But yeah, Sole :single" taken "chosen", i agree with that

[Monoch Ochem]

Yeah...that's the biblical usage as well Dolorous; an old form of spelling 'diverse'.

Those plagues were swarms of animals to...fits SE's description of multiple animals. I just think it's the anthropology thing...we'll find inferences from all sorts of sources, religious and cultural.

[Malarion]

I took it as:

Soletaken - sole form

D'ivers - dividers

Somewhat simplistic, I know, and likely wrong.

[Veilside]

Malarion;168080 said:

I took it as:

Soletaken - sole form

D'ivers - dividers

Somewhat simplistic, I know, and likely wrong.

As far as anyone knowns that's absolutely correct.

[Bl1nder]

Im with the above post

[Raymond Luxury Yacht]

When one becomes a shapeshifter of either variety, is there a choice as to which you become? How does someone become D'ivers or soletaken? I haven't read th books recently. Apologies if this is already explained.

[Kurt Montandon]

Raymond Luxury Yacht;178193 said:

When one becomes a shapeshifter of either variety, is there a choice as to which you become? How does someone become D'ivers or soletaken? I haven't read th books recently. Apologies if this is already explained.

There's no explanation in the books. We only know that it was possible to become some form of shape-shifter through a kind of ritual in the First Empire, but we've no idea what that ritual was, or how anyone in the present time acquires the ability.

Note that we've seen both D'ivers and Soletaken from the First Empire, so they had the ability to become both.

[Imperial Historian]

As far as we've seen d'ivers are only a result of the first empire ritual, and as a result of this corrupted version of the ritual are all fairly loopy, in fact it's implied that most of those created in this ritual even the soletaken are more bestial than those who became soletaken through other means.

Soletaken are the natural path to become a shapeshifter, are generally not mad and have one form.

Oh and d'ivers at least can change what animal they transform into to some extent anyway, but I don't think soletaken can change their soletaken form.