Aether density on Souce vs. remaining shards

[Morningstar1337]

One thing to consider is that even seven-times-Rejoined (Ardbert wasn't part of us at the time), one Ancient that mistakes us for a child can't even detect our ability to use Creation magic, it's so small. You'd think that seven-times-rejoined would mean that we'd have half the capability of a fully-rejoined Ancient - but that's clearly not the case. Additionally, beings on the First, each with a seventh our "soul density", can put up as much of a fight as anyone on the Source.

My guess is that there's some kind of tipping point, or some kind of asymptotic curve; power levels are relatively flat until you reach a certain point, beyond which you quickly become godlike. Conveniently, we will never see that tipping point come into play.

This theory does make one wonder, though, why Hydaelyn split the world into fourteen, if folks would effectively be crippled just split into two. Perhaps she had no control over the number of pieces into which she split the world, or perhaps Zodiark's tipping point comes much sooner, or maybe she anticipated that some misguided souls would try to glue the world back together again and wanted to make it harder for them to do.

correct me if I'm wrong, but was the step after rejoining everything being to sacrifice the current inhabitants of the Source to bring back the deceased Auamrotines? It might stand to reason that the results of the sundering had left the mortal shells with an aether capacity that is far lower than the an Ancient's body, and while while rejoining or the Echo might increase that capacity, that capacity might still be too low for them to reach the same heights. And that it was probably by design (since IIRC, post Final days there were debates about whether to sacrifice the then new life to Zodiark or now, which was what lead to Hydaelyn. the implication being that the Ancients created new life with built in limits to manipulating aether). Of course that doesn't explain how the Ascians got their powers back, but then again Emet-Selch seems to be the only one among them that actually displayed creation magics in all its glory so maybe the Sundered, while still closer to the Ancients, likely still has a cap too low for them to use creation magics like Emet, Lahabrea or Elidibus could.

[YianKutku]

correct me if I'm wrong, but was the step after rejoining everything being to sacrifice the current inhabitants of the Source to bring back the deceased Auamrotines? It might stand to reason that the results of the sundering had left the mortal shells with an aether capacity that is far lower than the an Ancient's body, and while while rejoining or the Echo might increase that capacity, that capacity might still be too low for them to reach the same heights.

That's correct, yes. Hythlodaeus said that the plan was to rejoin the shards, then pick up where they left off and sacrifice what life was left on the now-rejoined Source. Which means, by inference, that all the death and destruction associated with Calamities on the Source and complete destruction of a shard are irrelevant in terms of aether required to sacrifice to Zodiark.