docs/kb/seed-nodes.rst
A ScyllaDB seed node is a node specified with the seeds configuration parameter in scylla.yaml. It is used by new node joining as the first contact point.
It allows nodes to discover the cluster ring topology on startup (when joining the cluster). This means that any time a node is joining the cluster, it needs to learn the cluster ring topology, meaning:
Once the nodes have joined the cluster, the seed node has no function.
The first node in a new cluster must be a seed node. In typical scenarios, there's no need to configure more than one seed node.