Talk:Xi Kang's Sand/@comment-4273152-20160422131930/@comment-24588058-20160423034142

Perhaps the sand acts as more of a buffer to prevent extreme happenstances. By that, I mean the sand isn't super powerful. It would really only be effective if the Vault was covered completely in it, and I doubt there is enough sand to do that. Therefore, we could assume that the sand might act as a "buffer". Something to prevent mass-destruction of the combination of so many dark artifacts combining forces. But then again, as Scalac pointed out, it doesn't appear to do much good under any circumstances.

One might argue that the sand isn't an artifact, but they why are the pillars filled with it? Under normal logic, one might assume that purple goo flows through them at all times. Obviously not. It definitely has to be an artifact, and the effects make sense. In a strange, nonsensical sort of way. As Scalac pointed out, obviously, the artifacts in the Vault act up regardless of their containment field. And as we know from the show, just because an artifact is "neutralized", doesn't mean it's "deactivated". Example: Mother Shipton's Tarot Cards

Here's what I think the sand does, and how it works: The sand calms down evil ideas and artifacts. It doesn't have a strong effect, and can't reverse any artifacts or even alleviate symptoms. What it can do, however, is prevent the artifacts in the Vault from acting up when people are not present. Think about it this way: the artifacts in the Vault act up because they want to escape. They want to cause havoc. With people around, the artifacts have their way to escape. Even if it doesn't work, they are more prone to act up because of the presence. Now, let's take people out of the equation. The artifacts will still want to escape their fields, or at least the ones that can move on their own. Obviously, neutralizer isn't perfect and can't do everything. Think of the sand as the way to prevent the artifacts from acting up and escaping/causing havoc when agents are not there.