KKC Theory Wiki

The Iceless's Gashed Runes May Be Someone Practising Sabotaging Heat Exchangers

fringe mechanism · popularity 68 · 1 source thread

A deep gash on the iceless's cooling runes could mean someone practised breaking heat exchangers, echoing the Fishery fire.

About: Sygaldry

Also involves: The Fishery, Kvothe, Waystone Inn, Iceless

The theory§

When Kote repairs Anker's iceless, the narrative notes a deep gash across the cooling portion of its sygaldry runes and remarks that scratching a rune can ruin a device. This theory speculates that someone has been practising the destruction of heat-exchanger runes, recalling the fire in NOTW that was started when a damaged heat exchanger in the Fishery failed. The more grounded readings hold that the iceless was simply poorly built, its runes set on the outside of the band rather than the protected inside, so a thin coating wore away over time, or that it was scratched in ordinary use, or deliberately broken by Anker for repair money or by Kvothe himself. The same exposed-rune flaw is noted as a possible parallel to the damaged Lackless box, whose writing also sits on the outside.

Evidence§

  • In WMF, when Kvothe fixes the iceless he notices a deep gash on the cooling part of runes.
    OP's core observation: a deep gash on the iceless's cooling runes. — u/Puzzleheaded_Pay7428
  • is it possible someone has been practising breaking the runes on heat exchangers?
    OP's central speculation that the gash is deliberate sabotage practice. — u/Puzzleheaded_Pay7428
  • The fire in TNotW caused by a damaged heat exchanger comes to mind.
    OP links the gash to the Fishery fire from a damaged heat exchanger. — u/Puzzleheaded_Pay7428
  • Wasn't the iceless described as being poorly made in the first place? The runes were described as being on the outside of the band instead of the inside, so I just assumed they had some protective coating that was scratched off over time
    CounterCounter: a poorly built iceless with exposed runes wore away naturally. — u/sdlouhy
  • Possibly but the runes were facing towards the contents of the box. I assumed someone scratched it while putting something in or taking something out.
    CounterCounter: ordinary use scratched the rune, not deliberate sabotage. — u/RetainedByLucifer
  • What if Kvothe himself damaged it so that he could save someone and then create more stories of himself
    Refines culprit: Kvothe broke it to build his own legend. — u/Remote-Sky-7890
  • Could it be possible the inkeeper broke it to give kvothe money
    Alternative culprit: Anker broke it to pay Kvothe for repairs. — u/hezied
  • Anker's did it on purpose. He was feeling guilty for helping to dose Kvothe with Plum Bob. … He knew already how much it would cost to fix. So it has probably been broken and fixed before
    CounterDetailed counter-culprit: Anker deliberately broke it, guilty over the Plum Bob dosing. — u/Zhorangi

Book refs: WMF, NOTW

Tier reasoning§

tier correct: speculative, mundane explanations more likely

Contributors§

Source threads§