Lord of Colors!
/LORD uv KUL-erz/ interjection
≈ “Oh God! / Good Lord! (strong oath)”
A stronger form of the 'Colors!' oath, elevating it by invoking a divine personification — the Lord of Colors. In Chapter 38, Lightsong actually lampoons this convention, asking why the Returned gods swear by colors rather than by their own names. His conclusion: they should just swear by 'You!'
“Lord of Colors! What happened to the court?”— Various Hallandren characters
Etymology
Combines the sacred concept of colors (tied to BioChromatic magic and divine power) with the reverential 'Lord' title. Escalates 'Colors!' the same way 'Lord God!' escalates 'God!' — adding a layer of formal reverence to casual blasphemy.
Usage History
Warbreaker (2009).
Taboo Trajectory
The middle tier of Warbreaker's three-level oath system. Sanderson builds these tiers into every Cosmere world — Stormlight has storms/Kelek's breath/Almighty, Mistborn has Harmony/Rust and Ruin/Lord Ruler. The tiering makes the profanity feel like a real linguistic system rather than a single substitute word.
Semantic Drift Timeline
Stable within Warbreaker. Part of a tiered oath system: 'Colors!' (mild) → 'Lord of Colors!' (moderate) → 'Kalad's Phantoms!' (extreme).
Regional Notes
Used primarily in Hallandren. Idrians who worship Austre would use different oaths.