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Chronicler

character · importance 70 · 20 theories

“The scribe who coaxes Kvothe into telling his true story over three days”

also known as Chronicler, Devan Lochees

Appearance§

A slight, bespectacled man of letters rather than a fighter, his power lying in words and in the name of iron rather than in physical presence. He arrives at the Waystone travel-worn, having been robbed five days earlier; he throws up his hands and stumbles backward when a scrael lunges, strikes his head on a stone wall and blacks out. He wears the Iron Wheel symbol. Kvothe and Bast judge the innkeeper younger than themselves; Chronicler in turn judges the innkeeper to be no more than twenty-five.

Description§

Chronicler, whose true name is Devan Lochees, is a travelling scribe and story-collector of noble lineage, given the education of the wealthy. He is the author of The Mating Habits of the Common Draccus, a book that had reached multiple editions before Kvothe enrolled at the University, and is known as a debunker who interviewed Oren Velciter. He was once a scriv in the University Archives and is acquainted with Skarpi. Baited to the Waystone Inn by Bast, Chronicler persuades the innkeeper Kote to confess that he is the legendary Kvothe and to dictate his life story over three days, which Chronicler records in a fast personal cipher of vertical and horizontal marks. The cipher is a phonetic system of roughly fifty sound-symbols that records sounds directly, so he can transcribe a language he does not understand; Kvothe deduces and completes the cipher's table in under an hour and tests Chronicler's speed before agreeing. Chronicler is no mere clerk: he knows and can bind the name of iron, one of perhaps forty people alive with such power, and wears the Iron Wheel symbol. He used the name of iron to bind a skin-dancer at the Waystone Inn. Kote rescues him from the scrael at the start of the first book, after which Chronicler wakes with possibly broken ribs. Kvothe promises to tell him specific things: the king he killed, what happened to Ambrose, Denna, Auri, the Doors of Stone, and how the world came to be as it is, while warning him he may not be free to walk away knowing what he learns.

Relationships§

  • Records Kvothe — Persuades Kote to confess he is Kvothe and records his life story over three days
  • Practitioner Naming — Knows and can bind the name of iron, one of perhaps forty alive with such power
  • Baited By Bast — Baited to the Waystone Inn by Bast, whom he recognises as Fae almost at once
  • Guest At Waystone Inn — Comes to the Waystone Inn to record Kvothe's story
  • Former Scriv The Archives — Was once a scriv in the University Archives
  • Acquaintance Skarpi — Was once a scriv in the University Archives and is acquainted with Skarpi
  • Bound Skin Dancer — Used the name of iron to bind a skin-dancer at the Waystone Inn
  • Attacked By Scrael — Rescued by Kote from the scrael at the start of the first book
  • Author Of The Mating Habits of the Common Draccus — Author of The Mating Habits of the Common Draccus
  • Robbed Near Shep — Robbed by five men, one of whom later kills Shep

Established facts§

  • Chronicler's true name is Devan Lochees; he is a travelling scribe and story-collector of noble lineage.
  • He is the author of The Mating Habits of the Common Draccus, which had reached multiple editions before Kvothe enrolled at the University.
  • He was once a scriv in the University Archives and is acquainted with Skarpi.
  • He is baited to the Waystone Inn by Bast and persuades Kote to tell his life story over three days, which he records in shorthand.
  • He writes in a personal cipher of roughly fifty sound-symbols that records sounds directly, letting him transcribe a language he does not understand.
  • Kvothe deduces and completes the cipher's table in under an hour and tests Chronicler's speed before agreeing.
  • Chronicler knows and can bind the name of iron, marking him as one of perhaps forty people alive with such power, and wears the Iron Wheel symbol.
  • He uses the name of iron to bind a skin-dancer at the Waystone Inn.
  • Kote rescues him from the scrael at the start of the first book, after which he wakes with possibly broken ribs.
  • Kvothe promises to tell him specific things: the king he killed, Ambrose's fate, Denna, Auri, the Doors of Stone, and how the world came to be as it is.
  • Kvothe warns Chronicler he may not be free to walk away knowing what he learns.
  • Chronicler conceals his true identity at the Waystone, introducing himself to the regulars as Devan Carverson.
  • He was robbed about five days before reaching the Waystone by five men, one of whom is the mercenary who later kills Shep.
  • He recognises Bast as Fae almost at once when they meet.
  • He offers to write Kvothe's true story whether or not Kvothe cooperates, and Kvothe concedes that only the truth could break him.
  • Kvothe insists Chronicler transcribe his account exactly as dictated, intending it to be written down and preserved.
  • What Chronicler sets down in writing carries legal weight and would expose anyone named in the telling.
  • He reports a rumour of a new Chandrian whose hair is as red as the blood he spills.
  • In Chapter 6 of The Name of the Wind he recites Kvothe's legendary names, among them 'Kvothe the Kingkiller.'
  • He recalls the tale that Kvothe sought his heart's desire, tricked a demon to win it, and fought an angel to keep it, judging the innkeeper a man who could kill an angel.
  • Chronicler states that he and Kvothe were never at the University at the same time.

Theories§

Appears in theories§

Top contributors§

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