"Destroy anyone who has ever slighted you."

[Leewei]

Belkar, it's been a good run buddy!

[homeosapiens]

Nah, he wont waste spliced time 4 Belky.

[Thanatos 51-50]

Good theory. I like it.

Maybe you could mark this thread as [speculation]

[kusje]

I'm pretty sure Roy, Elan, Durkon have also slighted V. OOTS is doomed.

[magic9mushroom]

I'm pretty sure Roy, Elan, Durkon have also slighted V. OOTS is doomed.

V respects Roy as an intellectual near-equal, and Elan as her understudy. Durkon, on the other hand, well... that "posthumously" might be coming along.

[The Minx]

V respects Roy as an intellectual near-equal, and Elan as her understudy. Durkon, on the other hand, well... that "posthumously" might be coming along.

V by himself certainly does, but it is another matter when he has got three epic level evil casters in his mind egging him on to do evil all the time. Notice how all three of them are tempting him in each and every comic frame after the splice? I fear that it will be hard for V to tell the difference between his own desires and the goading voices in his head after a while.

[Laughing Dragon]

V by himself certainly does, but it is another matter when he has got three epic level evil casters in his mind egging him on to do evil all the time. Notice how all three of them are tempting him in each and every comic frame after the splice? I fear that it will be hard for V to tell the difference between his own desires and the goading voices in his head after a while.

V has become an ABOMINATION a la "Dune." The idea that the splice is of short duration is something that the temptors implied. However, the 3 epic spellcasters have been given a chance to wreak havok anew ... no matter how evil they are I don't believe that they will squander that chance; they will cling to V like cat hair to polyester. And just like poor Alia (Dune again), if V chooses to let one of the possessers take the "wheel" (so to speak), then technically he is still in control because he made the original choice.

I'm afraid that the "blue pill" is going to take V on a very bad trip indeed!

And did you note how scarey V looked after the splice ... when his family sees him they are going to FREAK! When (not if) they reject him after their "rescue" he just might kill them himself! If that happens then V (as we know him) is toast.

If he is killed and resurrected the splice will be broken, however if the incident in Azure City gave him PTSD, then killing his own family ...

Of course, if that's how it plays out he won't consent to return to life anyway (unless he's really gone "round the bend").

[DigoDragon]

when his family sees him they are going to FREAK! When (not if) they reject him after their "rescue" he just might kill them himself!

I was thinking something similar to that.
"With great power comes great piles of dead bodies"? :smallconfused:

[SteveMB]

V by himself certainly does, but it is another matter when he has got three epic level evil casters in his mind egging him on to do evil all the time. Notice how all three of them are tempting him in each and every comic frame after the splice? I fear that it will be hard for V to tell the difference between his own desires and the goading voices in his head after a while.

Another thought on that matter: While V may be physically healed, I strongly suspect that h** baseline personality is still suffering from the mental effects of trance deprivation.

[Janmorel]

Belkar, it's been a good run buddy!

That would be almost anticlimatic at this point, given how high-stakes V's arc has become.

Nah, if the elf is going to take out an Order member, my money is on either Haley or Elan.

Haley makes more sense from the standpoint of dramatic irony. But if that happened, I don't think there would be any turning back -- V's either a villain or out of the story from that point on.

Elan was probably the last friend who "slighted" V, with the whole Kubota thing. Killing him would be like shooting a basket of puppies, but I don't think it would be as much of a point of no return. Once rezzed, I doubt that Elan would hold a grudge, particularly if he knew the whole story (kid's a sucker for a good tragedy).

[Dig]

I disagree that V will kill Elan or Haley, because Elan has been promised a happy ending by the Oracle.

Because Elan is in "twoo wub" with Haley, and Haley's permanent death would make Elan's ending bittersweet at best, I feel that Haley is also under the protection of the Oracle's prophecy.

This is a shame, because I strongly feel that if Elan (in particular) was not such a buffoon at all times, Vaarsuvius' share of the party's burden to save the world from the snarl would have been a fair share instead of the lion's share. Were that the case, perhaps V would not be so afraid of failure because she knew she had a reliable team for backup. V's downfall, therefore, is partly the responsibility of the rest of her team, because they have let her down so many times in the past she has abandoned her trust in their support.


I predict that the first protagonistic casualty of V's newfound power will be her old master, Aardinarius. Not because he slighted Vaarsuvius, but because he is the most likely to detect V's powerful evil presence in his homeland, and also the most likely to confront that powerful evil presence. I am looking forward to this inevitable confrontation; if the master is wise, he may even be able to help V with her current quandary instead of being instantly killed ("with a thought") before pleasantries are exchanged.

PS. Just as Durkon remembers the Oracle's specific answer to his question ("posthumously"), should not Vaarsuvius remember the specific answer to her own question? If so, why not take that answer to heart and use the knowledge to her advantage? Being a highly intelligent and thoughtful planner who also appears to have a firm grasp of the metagame, why would V not be more careful about the four-word phrases that she utters? For example, if she told the 3 fiends "I decline your offer", she would still be on a path to ultimate arcane power, no?

Edit: removed a misspelled opening, added a spoiler tag. Thank you, sweet Janmorel, for helping me.

[Janmorel]

spoiler tags: [ spoiler ] [ /spoiler ]

Unless V goes on some sort of soul-binding spree, I doubt he's going to kill any of the Order permanently. Of course, people tend to take it personally when you kill them, even if it doesn't stick.

[Yendor]

V will blast anyone who has started a topic claiming to know V's gender. :smallwink:

Seriously though, there's no reason to think V will follow through on this any more than the other suggestions. Belkar is a dead halfling walking in any event, though.

[oball]

Belkar, it's been a good run buddy!

I was thinking about this earlier. The Oracle prophesied that Belkar would not live to see the end of the year, and with V's evilness and Belkar's new team playerness, I could see Belkar sacrificing (although probably not deliberately) himself to take out Evil V. Remember, V was on Belkar's list of people that he could potentially cause the death of, and while he's already killed the Oracle, that doesn't mean that everyone else on the list is in the clear. Although if this did happen, I imagine Belkar would be incredibly pissed to die doing a Good act.

[aurianmage]

And did you note how scarey V looked after the splice ... when his family sees him they are going to FREAK! When (not if) they reject him after their "rescue" he just might kill them himself! If that happens then V (as we know him) is toast.

I was thinking along these same lines....V's goal all along has been attaining ultimate arcane power, but at what cost? Losing the very family s/he is risking everything to save? It's been said that Pride is the worst of the 7 deadly sins; with all the others, just thinking/acting unselfishly is enough to break their hold, but with Pride, no matter what good acts you do, they will always be performed for The Greater Glory of Self. This is the trick that V has fallen for.

I don't know if V is capable of killing his/her own family, but there is more than one way to lose a family. And I think this will cause V to go on an evil, murderous, world-endangering rampage, and Roy & Co. will be forced to face off with V.

[Undead Prince]

I predict that the first protagonistic casualty of V's newfound power will be her old master, Aardinarius. Not because he slighted Vaarsuvius, but because he is the most likely to detect V's powerful evil presence in his homeland, and also the most likely to confront that powerful evil presence. I am looking forward to this inevitable confrontation; if the master is wise, he may even be able to help V with her current quandary instead of being instantly killed ("with a thought") before pleasantries are exchanged.

QFT. From the Fiends' discourse it's clear that V has an inferiority complex towards his Master. At this point, V is not evil enough to actively seek A's destruction, but if there will be a confrontation, V will take the chance to prove he's the better wizard.

[holywhippet]

I'm thinking V targetting Belkar is a strong possibility - both because it could resulting Belkar being killed in a way that prevents raise dead or ressurection working, and also because it will get V near Haley who might be able to talk the crazy elf down.

[Enlong]

Ooooor it could be a temptation by Haera that V has ignored now that (s)he has asserted control.

[Optimystik]

Ooooor it could be a temptation by Haera that V has ignored now that (s)he has asserted control.

Ah, but how long will it be before the voices' ideas appeal to him? That is the question.

Even agreeing with them about the dragon is a step in the wrong direction.

[Cúchulainn]

I'm more concerned about that 'tear down creation' guy, and you all should be too!

[Waspinator]

Honestly, I can't see this ending well for V or anyone within line of sight as long as this soul-splice lasts.

[Optimystik]

I'm more concerned about that 'tear down creation' guy, and you all should be too!

There's that anti-chaotic bent of yours :smallamused:

Prediction:
Actually, I wouldn't be worried about him; the lawful guy (the conjurer) wants to subjugate reality, so he's not about to let the whacko unmake everything. If V loses control Haera will be the greatest threat, assuming they don't all just end up squabbling and spraying spells everywhere until the splice ends.

[Castamir]

Remember how his/her master evicted V. I'd expect at least a Bigby's Bitch Slap in revenge.

[Ellye]

If V is going to target a OOtS member, then Haley is the most likely one, in my opinion.
V inability to contact Haley has caused him deep frustration and stress - and while V in a normal state of mind would never blame Haley of that, V in his current state probably would.

Killing Belkar would be totally anti-climatic and pointless at this time. V probably almost don't even remember him. She's too powerful and arrogant to waste her time with a prankster.

[rxmd]

Remember how his/her master evicted V. I'd expect at least a Bigby's Bitch Slap in revenge.
I haven't read OtOoPCs, how did he?

[Belkar Rocks]

I don't know how much longer my man Belkar has in this world. The Giant has all but slapped us in the face with "he's gonna die soon" omens and portents.

But dammit, he's The Belkster! The Sexy Shoeless God of War! For this reason, I think he'll end up somehow surviving until nearly the very end of the comic. When he finally bites the dust I think it'll be one of the signs that the climax is coming.

[Cúchulainn]

There's that anti-chaotic bent of yours :smallamused:

Prediction:
Actually, I wouldn't be worried about him; the lawful guy (the conjurer) wants to subjugate reality, so he's not about to let the whacko unmake everything. If V loses control Haera will be the greatest threat, assuming they don't all just end up squabbling and spraying spells everywhere until the splice ends.

What can I say, I take my universal threats more seriously than my personal ones. :smallwink:

Anyway:
I'd agree with you if not for the fact that something capable of literally unraveling creation is constantly on V's mind. If the splice lasts long enough for V to get to one of the gates the evilgasm from Jephton could well overpower any other desire any of the other souls have, leaving him with the most influence. And having the most powerful mortal ever tinkering just outside its reach would probably awaken the Snarl, then it'd devour V, massacre Azure and something worse than hell will break loose.

Sure that's probably never going to happen because it wouldn't be good story-wise, but if these guys can forebode about what the evil dead people said so can I!

[Morgan Wick]

What I think will happen:
V will return to the party clearly mad with power (Durkon and Elan will just think it's a logical progression from what they saw on the boat, not the result of a deal with the devil). He/she may just tag along for a while, but this will be heightened near Girard's Gate, where V wants to kill Belkar because (s)he's long wanted to, and Belkar wants to kill V a) to show his team spirit to the party and b) because he wants to kill people, duh.

It may end with Belkar just stabbing V, but it may also well end with Belkar and/or V destroying the Gate in a way that kills them both. (Think of how the destruction of Soon's Gate bisected Miko.)

[Kish]

I haven't read OtOoPCs, how did he?
Bixby's Evicting Hand, when Vaarsuvius seemed likely to never go outdoors again.

[Linkavitch]

Nah, he wont waste spliced time 4 Belky.

He can teleport now. If he wanted Belkar to be dead, it'd only take a few seconds.

[MickJay]

What about Aarindarius? There's a good chance that during the 100 years when V was learning his first spell his master "slighted" him. Plus, since A. is not a major part of the history, he could be a "good" target for V to kill, which would show how far he has fallen (and which could give him later on something to think about).

[Volkov]

V would probably end up depopulating the world severely, because a lack of intelligence is a slight to V, and the majority of the Giant's world are idiots. It would probably take Momma Dragon, Xykon, Redcloak, and Aarindarius pooling their efforts to stop V from killing all the stupid people around.

[holywhippet]

He can teleport now. If he wanted Belkar to be dead, it'd only take a few seconds.

Dang. I had a similar thought amd just realised the obvious flaw in that plan. Haley and Belkar are presumably still shrouded by the cloister spell. Roy's father was able to scry on them due to the power of the heavenly realm he is in and his high level. V may or may not be able to do the same.

[Volkov]

Dang. I had a similar thought amd just realised the obvious flaw in that plan. Haley and Belkar are presumably still shrouded by the cloister spell. Roy's father was able to scry on them due to the power of the heavenly realm he is in and his high level. V may or may not be able to do the same.

Three epic level spell casters and one high level spell caster combined would easily pierce Xykon's cloister.

[SteveMB]

What about Aarindarius? There's a good chance that during the 100 years when V was learning his first spell his master "slighted" him.

Minor OtOoPCs spoiler:

Aarindarius kicked V out (in a non-malicious "time to leave the nest" sort of way, but still...).

[homeosapiens]

V is aware of the fact that splice might last only few rounds and that is why he wont waste time for personal grudge. I wouldnt call hes on evil vengenful path. Why would he care about his family if he didnt care about going back to them? They might freak out, but he can explain. If fiends wont gossip, everybody shall understand :smallbiggrin: .

[Volkov]

Dang. I had a similar thought amd just realised the obvious flaw in that plan. Haley and Belkar are presumably still shrouded by the cloister spell. Roy's father was able to scry on them due to the power of the heavenly realm he is in and his high level. V may or may not be able to do the same.

Three epic level spell casters and one high level spell caster combined would easily pierce Xykon's cloister.

[[TS] Shadow]

Belkar may eventually be killed by V. They are paralell characters, with one going from evil to a semi-neutral (or maybe even good, eventually) and another going from neutral to evil. I think that a V-Belkar fight would be fun to watch, if there was something to give Belkar a fighting chance against V. However, I doubt it will happen during V's spliced time, because Belkar is probably the last thing V would think of right now.