OOTS #685 - The Discussion Thread

[The Giant]

New comic is up.

[Milskidasith]

Nobody messes with Belkar's cat. As an aside, it's nice to see Belkar actually is capable of making friends.

[Gamerlord]

I think we found his berserk button people!

[Dark Faun]

Caring about his cat most certainly doesn't redeem Belkar, but I'm happy Mr. Scruffy is safe with him. :smalltongue:

[Adeen]

You do NOT mess with Mr. Scruffy.

[Optimystik]

Nobody messes with Belkar's cat. As an aside, it's nice to see Belkar actually is capable of making friends.

And just as capable of killing them. A good thought to keep in mind.

[Elfin]

Nice, an update while I'm online.
I like the way the Thri-kreen are drawn.

[bue52]

LOL, To think after so long Belkar has finally reached a certain level of Humanity. But it has a certain Evil-Mastermind kind of feel especially with the stereotypes of dictators with pets, and especially cats in the new media.

[golentan]

Nice one. He seems to honestly care about Mr. Scruffy, as much as Belkar is capable of mental response other than "Hatred" and "Lust."

(please don't let it be lust)

[Lupy]

Maybe there is a third category in there somewhere.

I pity the fool who hurts Mr. Scruffy.

[FlawedParadigm]

A pair of magic +3 daggers: 18,604 gp
Meeting up with a long lost friend: A small bit of time
Saving your pet cat and carrying out one of your usually-over-the-top threats for once: Priceless.

Absolute win for Belkar on like three levels.

[CoffeeIncluded]

Awesome!

I think the one of the more notable things here is that Belkar really has turned over a new leaf in a way: He cares about Mr. Scruffy more than anyone else so far in the entire strip. For Belkar, this is huge.

(And the last panel is great.)

[Kroy]

Nooooooooo!!!!!!!! Not Buggy Lou!

[Zocelot]

I think Belkar cares for Scruffy humour is really running dry. This comic was funny, but I don't think any more will be.

[Dark Faun]

Nice one. He seems to honestly care about Mr. Scruffy, as much as Belkar is capable of mental response other than "Hatred" and "Lust."

Maybe there is a third category in there somewhere
To be frank, I wouldn't really trust Vaarsuvius to understand how Belkar, or anyone else for that matter, really works. :smalltongue:

[NeonRonin]

You can take however many slaves you want, but touch the Scruffinator and you DIE!!!

Ahh, Belkar... that lovable demented psycho...

[The Bookworm]

Still the old Belkar. Mostly.

[Jonathan327]

Mr. Scruffy for ultimate victory!

[xyzzy]

The chatter with Lou is priceless.:smallbiggrin:

[Shale]

That was fantastic. Of all the possibilities I figured we could see with Belkar, that wasn't one of them.

Also, I like that he considers eviscerating an old friend easier than saying "hey, that's mine, don't touch."

[chaoticjosh]

Seems really odd to me though, he was just politely asking them to avoid his adventurer buddies a second ago, then, when it looks like his cat is in danger, he doesn't just say "Oh hey, that's my cat. Could you just leave him with me?".

Seems sort of weird that he'd immediately resort to violence against an old friend instead of just resolving the situation with a few words. It's not like they were trying to spite him personally, they just found a cat and thought they found a good snack.

[deuxhero]

Do not mess with Mr. Scruffy.

[Forbiddenwar]

Great tie in with previous comic. That how a dm builds a world. Everyone knows each other, and has a history. Nice to see how Belkar's old friends are doing.

[Silverraptor]

Absolutly, NO ONE, Touches Mr. Scruffy!!!:furious::furious:

[AlterForm]

Heh, Belkar at his finest. :smallbiggrin:

I think that marinade might be a little strong, though...

[Lizard Lord]

Seems really odd to me though, he was just politely asking them to avoid his adventurer buddies a second ago, then, when it looks like his cat is in danger, he doesn't just say "Oh hey, that's my cat. Could you just leave him with me?".

Seems sort of weird that he'd immediately resort to violence

I am going to stop you here and give you time to think about this for a second. It is not odd for Belkar to resort to violence ever, old friend or not.

[Water-Smurf]

Nice to see that Belkar is capable of attachment, even with animals. (Maybe he has difficulty trusting sapient beings?) Though I feel bad for Lou despite myself.

[Zevox]

Seems sort of weird that he'd immediately resort to violence against an old friend instead of just resolving the situation with a few words.
You really haven't been paying attention to Belkar for the last 684 strips, have you?

Anyway, good comic. I just hope Belkar doesn't change too much. He wouldn't be the same loveable - or at least, enjoyable to read about - little psychopath if his affection for Mister Scruffy lead to further positive changes in his personality and actions. Fortunately, his continued willingness to jump to violence to solve his problems seems to indicate that hasn't yet come close to happening.

Zevox

[Kurien]

Apparently, Lou's head is still alive, since there's no Xes on his eyes. What Belkar should have done is positioned his head so his last seconds of life can be spent watching as his the body is "marinaded". :smallyuk::smallbiggrin:

[EleventhHour]

Do not touch Mister Scruffy!

Heh heh. Belkar. :smallwink:

[Iago]

Nice one. He seems to honestly care about Mr. Scruffy, as much as Belkar is capable of mental response other than "Hatred" and "Lust."

(please don't let it be lust)

Well, depends on the kind of p---y you want to talk about, I guess...

<ducks>

[Forbiddenwar]

Seems really odd to me though, he was just politely asking them to avoid his adventurer buddies a second ago, then, when it looks like his cat is in danger, he doesn't just say "Oh hey, that's my cat. Could you just leave him with me?".

Seems sort of weird that he'd immediately resort to violence against an old friend instead of just resolving the situation with a few words. It's not like they were trying to spite him personally, they just found a cat and thought they found a good snack.

Daggers speak louder than words. As true then as it is true now.

[CrimsonAngel]

Missuses or Missises?

[jidasfire]

Nice continuity reference here.

http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0171.html

Belkar knows a guy who knows a guy, and I guess that guy was Buggy Lou. Also, how many times does this make for Belkar decapitating his friends?

[malakim2099]

Nice continuity reference here.

http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0171.html

Belkar knows a guy who knows a guy, and I guess that guy was Buggy Lou. Also, how many times does this make for Belkar decapitating his friends?

Well, the thief from Azure City wasn't a friend so much as an acquaintance...

Clearly Belkar has evolved a third emotion in his proto-brain. :smallbiggrin:

[Lemmingboy]

Four arms and only one weapon. Tut tut.

[kpenguin]

Awwww... he weally wuvs his wittle kitty-cat.

[DrakebloodIV]

And that, my friends, is why every good villain needs a cat.

[CrimsonAngel]

Awwww... he weally wuvs his wittle kitty-cat.

Wut Ware Woo Walking Wabout, Weveryone Wuvs Wr.Wuffy!

[David Argall]

I think Belkar cares for Scruffy humour is really running dry. This comic was funny, but I don't think any more will be.
Given my laughs, I suspect it is not yet dry, or even really close. Of course Elan and Haley certainly help out here.



Re: OOTS #685 - The Discussion Thread
Seems really odd to me though, he was just politely asking them to avoid his adventurer buddies a second ago, then, when it looks like his cat is in danger, he doesn't just say "Oh hey, that's my cat. Could you just leave him with me?".

Seems sort of weird that he'd immediately resort to violence against an old friend instead of just resolving the situation with a few words. It's not like they were trying to spite him personally, they just found a cat and thought they found a good snack.
Which way is funny? Belkar behaving in a sane and sensible way? Or Belkar behaving like Belkar?

Now I am getting frustrated. Haley meeting her pop and likely Elan's dad as well has been heavily foreshadowed, and here we are on the Western continent, where that is going to happen, and the party is only going to visit it for about 1 book. And the strips keep on hinting of ways to divert the party to this side-quest...
And then the next strip shoots the diversion down.
How many times is that going to happen?

[Querzis]

Well, the thief from Azure City wasn't a friend so much as an acquaintance...

Clearly Belkar has evolved a third emotion in his proto-brain. :smallbiggrin:

Oh come on, I'll never understand why did anyone ever take the proto-brain theory seriously. V said it. That alone should have been more then enough for anyone to realize that it wasnt true and that he just said that because he hated Belkar and really underestimated him.

That being said, I dont get how being perfectly willing to kill an old friend to save your cat instead of talking to him is supposed to be a redeeming factor. People really need to stop trying to find excuse for Belkar, hes still a nasty little sociopath.

[Assassin89]

I guess if you want to stay on Belkar's less evil side, you should not plan on injuring Mr. Scruffy in any form.

[X2]

Once again... fantastique!

91/100

[the_tick_rules]

you don't mess with the scruffinator.

[LuisDantas]

Seems sort of weird that he'd immediately resort to violence against an old friend instead of just resolving the situation with a few words. It's not like they were trying to spite him personally, they just found a cat and thought they found a good snack.

That's Belkar for you. He is all impulse and no reflection. His fever dream about a resemblance of Shojo changed his goals somewhat, but his basic nature is as destructive as ever.

It is true that in acting by those impulses he loses himself a friend and ally. But such is the nature of evil: self-destructive.

[Sewblon]

Awesome!

I think the one of the more notable things here is that Belkar really has turned over a new leaf in a way: He cares about Mr. Scruffy more than anyone else so far in the entire strip. For Belkar, this is huge.

(And the last panel is great.)

I wonder if The Giant is foreshadowing a redemption=death ending for Belkar?

[DukeGod]

that's what happens when you mess with the one true power of Azure City!
Let's make a Kung Fu Tournament!

[Scarlet Knight]

Oh, dear God! I haven't laughed so hard in a long time! "I got your marinade right here...."!

[Trobby]

Seems really odd to me though, he was just politely asking them to avoid his adventurer buddies a second ago, then, when it looks like his cat is in danger, he doesn't just say "Oh hey, that's my cat. Could you just leave him with me?".

Seems sort of weird that he'd immediately resort to violence against an old friend instead of just resolving the situation with a few words. It's not like they were trying to spite him personally, they just found a cat and thought they found a good snack.

I have a theory about that.


Belkar isn't just angry because it's Mr. Scruffy (though that certainly enhances his hate). He's pissed because his best friend eats cats. And recently, Belkar has come to see that he actually really LIKES cats. They remind him of Shojo, the coolest Nobleman he's ever met.

Also, Belkar's Animal Totem is cat-oriented maybe?

[flamingoptimus]

Been hiding in the dark for the longest.
But this strip def deserves the thumbs up!

Go Belkar!!! *double thumbs up!*

[Sewblon]

[QUOTE=Introbulus;7097438]


Belkar isn't just angry because it's Mr. Scruffy (though that certainly enhances his hate). He's pissed because his best friend eats cats. And recently, Belkar has come to see that he actually really LIKES cats. They remind him of Shojo, the coolest Nobleman he's ever met.

I was wondering about that. Does Belkar care about Mr.Scruffy mainly because he likes cats? Or is it mostly his way of honoring Lord Shojo?

[Lerky]

RIP Lou
yet another character given a name in a comic...and then ended up dying in the same comic...

[Silverraptor]

Belkar isn't just angry because it's Mr. Scruffy (though that certainly enhances his hate). He's pissed because his best friend eats cats. And recently, Belkar has come to see that he actually really LIKES cats. They remind him of Shojo, the coolest Nobleman he's ever met.

I was wondering about that. Does Belkar care about Mr.Scruffy mainly because he likes cats? Or is it mostly his way of honoring Lord Shojo?

I think both.



RIP Lou
yet another character given a name in a comic...and then ended up dying in the same comic...

And by Belkar too.:smallamused:

[Lerky]

I've actually been wondering if these bugs are in the actual monster manual, if anyone knows what they are please share, my curiosity will make me explode if it is not appeased:smalleek:

[Optimystik]

Nice continuity reference here.

http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0171.html

Nice catch!


Wut Ware Woo Walking Wabout, Weveryone Wuvs Wr.Wuffy!

Icanhascheezburger is that way. ------>


Now I am getting frustrated. Haley meeting her pop and likely Elan's dad as well has been heavily foreshadowed, and here we are on the Western continent, where that is going to happen, and the party is only going to visit it for about 1 book. And the strips keep on hinting of ways to divert the party to this side-quest...
And then the next strip shoots the diversion down.
How many times is that going to happen?

You're jumping the gun a bit. Who's to say a grateful NPC won't run up to the party eager to share their knowledge of the land, including former countries? Surely that old man was alive back when there was a Tyrinaria, for instance.

[Shale]

They seem to be Thri-Kreen (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thri-kreen).

[Herald Alberich]

To be frank, I wouldn't really trust Vaarsuvius to understand how Belkar, or anyone else for that matter, really works. :smalltongue:


Oh come on, I'll never understand why did anyone ever take the proto-brain theory seriously. V said it. That alone should have been more then enough for anyone to realize that it wasnt true and that he just said that because he hated Belkar and really underestimated him.

That being said, I dont get how being perfectly willing to kill an old friend to save your cat instead of talking to him is supposed to be a redeeming factor. People really need to stop trying to find excuse for Belkar, hes still a nasty little sociopath.

Agreed. I don't understand why people trust V on that point. Belkar has never given any indication that he views people only with hate or lust. He's a violent destructive sociopath, but his thought processes are at least more complicated than that.

On another note, and I hate to be the one to point it out (not least because I'll probably get ninja'd), but there's a typo in the last panel: "enthusiastic" is missing the h. That's the second comic in a row; perhaps the Giant needs to get his H key fixed.

[Surrealistik]

He does seem very entusiastic about helping those people!

[zql]

RIP Lou
yet another character given a name in a comic...and then ended up dying in the same comic...


good to notice, sir!

10 points

[Zevox]

And unless Belkar is into bestiality this debunks V's theory that he is only capable of hate and lust.
V's "theory" has been debunked for some time now. This is hardly the first indication we've had of Belkar's attachment to Mr. Scruffy, plus we know that Belkar admired Shojo, and there was a time early in the strip when he was friendly with Elan, if only for the purposes of causing Roy mental pain. And those are just the big, obvious ones that I know off the top of my head.

Really, V's "theory" was a funny joke, but it has never been an accurate description of Belkar.

Zevox

[Sewblon]

I think both.





I know that a little of both are involved, but I am pretty sure that it is more one than the other.

[Katana_Geldar]

No one messes with Mr Scruffy while Belkar is around.

[Silverraptor]

No one messes with Mr Scruffy while Belkar is around.

Especially when the entire forum has backed him up.:smallamused:

[EmeraldPhoenix]

Wow, new comic so soon? You da' man, Giant!

Oh man, I can just see his train of thought:

:belkar:Alright. Take all the people you want. Hell, take V, he's a right ambiguously-gendered pain in my @$$.

But NOBODY, and I mean NOBODY messes with my cat.

*kills all*:smallfurious::smallfurious::smallfurious:

[Tiktakkat]

Like I said, Mr. Scruffy is more than just an animal companion!
No ranger gets that upset over a simple disposable animal companion.

[Aimbot]

Belkar should grow some facial hair, rock the Lenin

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v54/Atlarge/lenin-cat.jpg

[Kish]

I wonder if The Giant is foreshadowing a redemption=death ending for Belkar?
He really might be.

If Belkar dies saving Mr. Scruffy and gets sent to the Chaotic Neutral afterlife because of it, the Order will be able to hear him scream on the Prime Material Plane. "WHAT?! I've been Evil all my life!"

[Conuly]

Oh come on, I'll never understand why did anyone ever take the proto-brain theory seriously. V said it. That alone should have been more then enough for anyone to realize that it wasnt true and that he just said that because he hated Belkar and really underestimated him.

People take seriously some of the stuff Miko said. Taking V seriously is positively sane compared to that.


That being said, I dont get how being perfectly willing to kill an old friend to save your cat instead of talking to him is supposed to be a redeeming factor. People really need to stop trying to find excuse for Belkar, hes still a nasty little sociopath.

Yeah, he is, but my heart still melts a little every time I see him with Mr. Scruffy. It's just so adorable!


If Belkar dies saving Mr. Scruffy and gets sent to the Chaotic Neutral afterlife because of it, the Order will be able to hear him scream on the Prime Material Plane. "WHAT?! I've been Evil all my life!"

LOL, that's what I'm hoping for, certainly!

[DnDgeek13]

if anyone remembers, belkar said when dealing with the bandits that he knows a guy

[Querzis]

People take seriously some of the stuff Miko said. Taking V seriously is positively sane compared to that.

Cant deny that. But its still pretty annoying since in most of the strip who revolve around Belkar, he show emotion other then lust or hate.

[Katana_Geldar]

Yeah, I remember now. I also wonder what Beljar was doing before he ended up in that jail cell in Origins.

[dish]

Yeah, I remember now. I also wonder what Beljar was doing before he ended up in that jail cell in Origins.

Well according to Origins he
killed 15 people in a tavern fight.

[Vemynal]

Belkar really cares about that cat XD


Nice one. He seems to honestly care about Mr. Scruffy, as much as Belkar is capable of mental response other than "Hatred" and "Lust."

(please don't let it be lust)

rule 34 is now in effect

[madtinker]

True to form, the Belkster eviscerates any who offend him. A working relationship and getting drunk together are apparently not the basis of a lasting relationship with Belkar.

[Aystra]

I'm surprised Mr. Scruffy wasn't putting up a fight for being held like that. I know my cat wouldn't have stood for it.

[Turkish Delight]

I sense a build-up to Mr. Scruffy having a very direct relationship with Belkar's impending death.

[Hardcore]

In any case Belker still need to learn a simple "No" suffice.
HE could have told his slaver Pal to let scruggy go.
But I guess his limit to character growth is more limited than that of V.

[Blaznak]

Disturbing AND funny. A great way to end a Saturday! (Grin)

[Mugen Nightgale]

No one messes with my cat! :furious:

I kind of understand Belkar, not that I'd eviscerate someone like that. But the mere though of someone hurting my cat makes my blood boil. Plus I don't think we ever saw Belkar being mean to animals. He seems to like them much more than humanoids.

[Optimystik]

People take seriously some of the stuff Miko said. Taking V seriously is positively sane compared to that.

Sane, yes; correct, no.

Every bit of evidence we have since that strip shows that V was way off base.

[rewinn]

Belkar is now the anti-Hinjo (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0453.html)


Four arms and only one weapon. Tut tut.
Lou shoulda been forewarned about Belkar's attack.

Cuz, you know, he's four armed.


In any case Belker still need to learn a simple "No" suffice.
HE could have told his slaver Pal to let scruggy go.
But I guess his limit to character growth is more limited than that of V.

Both V and Belkar are having difficulties; remember V just blasted a bunch of bugs to stop Elan's dreadful puns. Nice parallellism Giant! And after all, if the path to growth were easy, it would not be interesting to the reader.

On further thought, I disagree that not killing Lou necessarily shows character growth; it's more like lapsing back into chaotic-evil - caring more about his personal friendship with Lou than about the captive bond directly in front of him. This strip reassures us that Belkar really is faking all that cooperation stuff; his loyalty to the party is very much in question.

[Turkish Delight]

On further thought, I disagree that not killing Lou necessarily shows character growth; it's more like lapsing back into chaotic-evil - caring more about his personal friendship with Lou than about the captive bond directly in front of him. This strip reassures us that Belkar really is faking all that cooperation stuff; his loyalty to the party is very much in question.

It's not his 'friendship' with Lou that shows character development, obviously; that would be hearkening back to his blatantly Chaotic Evil days, since choosing to ignore a slaver is pretty nasty stuff. It's his willingness to fight in the defense of another living creature, Mr. Scruffy, when there is no gain for himself that shows character development.

[Shale]

It's also the fact that he actually cares about whether or not his teammates think he's loyal. Pre-Greysky, he wouldn't have bothered pretending to fight.

[Ellen]

I'm really hoping the following is far too crazy to need spoiler protection, but on the off chance this is right --

This is all leading up to the terrible scene where Belkar gets killed by Mr. Scruffy, the one being he would never harm, isn't it?

I'm guessing either Mr. Scruffy gets transformed into something large and hungry or Belkar gets turned into a mouse.

[AxeD]

Jeez! Belkar first decapitates hims and then urinates on him! And Lou was an old friend of his! Don't mess with the Belk-ster's cat!:smalleek:

:belkar: "I got your marinade RIGHT HERE!"

[AxeD]

Lou shoulda been forewarned about Belkar's attack.

Cuz, you know, he's four armed.


10gp says that elan makes a similar 4-arm joke in the next couple of comics.

[TooManySecrets]

Man, Belkar being friends with slavers. Surely nobody could harbor any thoughts about him still being Evil anymore.

[15 page discussion. Greeks owning slaves. Unfortunate implications. Bringing up how D&D alignment is a poor substitution for morality. Accusations that the other side is stupid. End with a mod lock (who, incidentally, uses the opportunity to put in his own opinion on the matter)]

[Tubal-Cain]

First salsa, now marinade. What's next, chili?

Why am I reminded of my other favorite stick-figure comic (http://xkcd.com/231/)?

[Venedlor]

Don't post much but I loved this comic!!! YAH FOR BELKAR!!!!!:belkar::belkar:

[baerdith]

What did we learn today class?

NEVER pick on Belkar's pet!

[Elan's Modron]

I've loved every strip on this continent so far.

I like how, just like with the strip titled "A Dragon's Victory" - 685's title willfully -and deftly!- misleads you.
"Oh Belkar and Buggy Lou - they know each other, they're old friends- I guess Evil people can have old friends too..." etc.

But then you get to the last coupla panels, and you learn who Belkar's real (and arguably 'only') friend is.

Very nice indeed.

And here's hoping Belkar's 'marinade' wasn't some kind of Mama Bitterleaf's Secret +2 Circumstance Bonus Ingredient.

[Elan's Modron]

OMG- another way to read the title just occurred to me...

What does Belkar do "on friendship" -? He pisses on it.

[Tredrick]

This is what Shojo and the MoJ did to Belkar. He now has a moral compass. Its totally screwed up, but it exists.

That is also part of why his reaction is way out of proportion to the crime.

[FoE]

Of course Belkar knows the slavers.

Ooh, talk about adding insult to injury in that last panel ... :smallbiggrin:

[lothos]

Nice strip.

Quality - I have enjoyed all the recent strips very much.
Quantity - Speedy updates too

What more could we ask :-)

Belkar may still be Chaotic Evil, but he did keep his promise in this strip.... disturbing as that may be.

[Sewblon]

He really might be.

If Belkar dies saving Mr. Scruffy and gets sent to the Chaotic Neutral afterlife because of it, the Order will be able to hear him scream on the Prime Material Plane. "WHAT?! I've been Evil all my life!"

That would be a good parallelism with Vaarsuvius falling from grace; and Belkar would probably hate not being recognized for his life of sowing misery and death more than he would many of the traditional afterlife punishments.

[Ave]

Seems really odd to me though, he was just politely asking them to avoid his adventurer buddies a second ago, then, when it looks like his cat is in danger, he doesn't just say "Oh hey, that's my cat. Could you just leave him with me?".


You forgot he is EVIL :)
It was perfectly in line with the 'do evil things, but for the party'.
That includes backstabbing a friend.
He really improved.

[Kaytara]

Wow! Love the update rate! :D

Hilarious. XD Of course, a simple "No, wait a minute, the cat's with me" wouldn't have worked, would it, Belky? XD I second what someone else said about Mr. Scruffy being a genuine Berserk Button.

[Azukar]

So, Belkar is... really powerful. I don't know a lot about D&D-type things - is it normal for a 12th-level-or-so ranger/barbarian to be able to do the things he can do - OHKO the Oracle and that thief guy from Azure City, take down the bug creatures single-handedly etc?

[Coliumbos]

Lust...
Hate...
Mr Scruffy...

[Optimystik]

So, Belkar is... really powerful. I don't know a lot about D&D-type things - is it normal for a 12th-level-or-so ranger/barbarian to be able to do the things he can do - OHKO the Oracle and that thief guy from Azure City, take down the bug creatures single-handedly etc?

Belkar's build is fueled by equal parts Phlebotinum and Rule of Cool. Building a similar character in actual D&D would not be nearly as effective as he has made himself look in the strip, don't even bother.

[Turkish Delight]

So, Belkar is... really powerful. I don't know a lot about D&D-type things - is it normal for a 12th-level-or-so ranger/barbarian to be able to do the things he can do - OHKO the Oracle and that thief guy from Azure City, take down the bug creatures single-handedly etc?

Depends on what those bug things are...and particularly what level they are. Elan was picking them off like flies (errr...beetles?) too, so they can't be too powerful.

Frankly, though, as many have pointed out, Belkar's build makes zero sense whatsoever. He's just weird, plain and simple, and mostly constructed from Rule of Funny.

[Azukar]

Belkar's build is fueled by equal parts Phlebotinum and Rule of Cool. Building a similar character in actual D&D would not be nearly as effective as he has made himself look in the strip, don't even bother.

TV Tropes Will Ruin Your Vocabulary, you know...

Applies equally to Turkish Delight above, too.

So right, Burlew goes for realistic D&D portrayals most of the time, but Belkar is in a league of his own.

[Trixie]

Belkar's build is fueled by equal parts Phlebotinum and Rule of Cool. Building a similar character in actual D&D would not be nearly as effective as he has made himself look in the strip, don't even bother.

Um, that's completely not true. Yes, he has a few weak points, but if his highest stat is STR, he can easily outshine anyone else except V.

[Killer Angel]

Oh, Belkar, i can understand you're corncerned for Mr. Scruffy, but... killing a bunch of poor slavers? how can you sleep at night, if you do such good? :smalltongue:

[Sewblon]

TV Tropes Will Ruin Your Vocabulary, you know...

Applies equally to Turkish Delight above, too.

So right, Burlew goes for realistic D&D portrayals most of the time, but Belkar is in a league of his own.
If I remember correctly the most powerful base classes in 3.5 are Wizard, Cleric and Druid, which would make Durkon and V the most powerful PCs if this was an actual campaign.

[King of Nowhere]

So when Belkar proposed to sell the bandit chick into slavery, saying "I know a guy who knows a guy", that's what he was talking about


This is what Shojo and the MoJ did to Belkar. He now has a moral compass. Its totally screwed up, but it exists.


Belkar's moral compass: touching Mr Scruffy is bad and needs to be punished. Stop.

[DrGonzo]

If I remember correctly the most powerful base classes in 3.5 are Wizard, Cleric and Druid, which would make Durkon and V the most powerful PCs if this was an actual campaign.

They're not optimized. It is a possibility that Belkar is the strongest in the group. With a little bit of power attack, and a little bit of shock trooper he can dish out a lot of pain.

Kudos for the great comic!


- DrGonzo

[Sewblon]

They're not optimized. It is a possibility that Belkar is the strongest in the group. With a little bit of power attack, and a little bit of shock trooper he can dish out a lot of pain.

Kudos for the great comic!


- DrGonzo

Didn't previous comics establish that Vaarsuvius was the most powerful member of the order?

[DrGonzo]

Didn't previous comics establish that Vaarsuvius was the most powerful member of the order?

Well.. Yes..

I was trying to point out that the order isn't optimized. V probbly is strongest, but he isn't the batman wizard he could have been with a different build. (Not that he needs to, V is cool the way he is)

In overall damage dealing Belkar and V (if blasting) will probably do about the same amount. V does have more options besides dealing damage.

[Freelance Henchman]

Darn, I kinda liked Buggy Lou.

[Ikialev]

Wait, what. Buggy Lou is still alive when his head is ripped off? How

[Sewblon]

Well.. Yes..

I was trying to point out that the order isn't optimized. V probbly is strongest, but he isn't the batman wizard he could have been with a different build. (Not that he needs to, V is cool the way he is)

In overall damage dealing Belkar and V (if blasting) will probably do about the same amount. I think the most effective damage dealers would be V, with his high level AoE's prepared, Belkar while raging, and Durkon under the influence of Thor's Might.

[DrGonzo]

I think the most effective damage dealers would be V, with his high level AoE's prepared, Belkar while raging, and Durkon under the influence of Thor's Might.

I agree. It's been long since Durkon used Thor's Might. A shame really.

[Ichneumon]

I feel sorry for the slavers, I started to like them.

[Weimann]

9th panel I went "OH SHI-".

[Lkctgo]

Belkar showing genuine affection for his party member (a cat but still)? NO Freaking Way.

[Mauve Shirt]

You mess with Mr. Scruffy, you mess with Belkar!

[Mike_the_Mystic]

I think we found his berserk button people!

While I agree, I'm sure that he's got an entire panel of them up there in his noggin.

[LuisDantas]

No way Belkar would outfight Roy. :smallwink:

[Zevox]

They're not optimized. It is a possibility that Belkar is the strongest in the group. With a little bit of power attack, and a little bit of shock trooper he can dish out a lot of pain.
Belkar can't use power attack. It doesn't work with light weapons, which his daggers are.

Even a bad spellcaster should be more powerful in combat than Belkar, really. And V and Durkon, though not highly optimized, are not bad spellcasters. They almost certainly are the most powerful members of the group. Followed, most likely, by Roy, Haley, Belkar, and Elan, in that order. Though if she has a few levels on Roy now, Haley may be the best of the group's non-casters at this point.

Zevox

[Terminalchaos]

Nice to see that Belkar is capable of attachment, even with animals. (Maybe he has difficulty trusting sapient beings?) Though I feel bad for Lou despite myself.

I can never feel bad for dead slavers. I think it might be the chaotic good leanings in me but I think slavery should be a capital offense. I like Belkar but now that I know he was actively involved in the slave trade I look forward to his imminent death. For some odd reason mass murder bugs me less than slavery.

I can sympathize with his attachment to Mr. Scruffy. I value my cat more than most humans I've met. I can totally see empathy for animals over people.

BTW thri-kreen are more mantis-like than beetle-like.

I am reminded of the photo of the nazi with the kitty on his motorcycle. Morality is such a relative and convoluted concept.

[Mugen Nightgale]

Halfling Rangers are bad? Why? It's kind of a standard class for the race. I have played a lot of them through my 3.5 life and none of them was bad..

Ok, I know that Belkar has a Wis penalty that cuts his ability's by half. But in melee that doesn't make much difference.

[Irbis]

No way Belkar would outfight Roy. :smallwink:

He outfought Miko. Alone.

And that CR 15 monster in bonus Dragon strips. And EoF&F. And CR 17 Thief backed by Cr 13 Assassin. And... shall I go on?

Q.E.D. :smallamused:

[Platinius]

So when Belkar said long ago he knew a guy who knew a guy, it was not a figure of speech

and obody messes with Mr.Scruffy:smallamused:

[LuisDantas]

He outfought Miko. Alone.

Did he? The one time I remember them fighting one-on-one, Belkar ended up badly beaten in Shojo's throne room.

The one time Roy fought Miko one-on-one, he had the Greenhilt Sword back in his hands at long last and Miko was no longer a Paladin with booster items, so it is hard to directly compare anyway.



And that CR 15 monster in bonus Dragon strips. And EoF&F. And CR 17 Thief backed by Cr 13 Assassin. And... shall I go on?

Q.E.D. :smallamused:

Sure, be my guest.:smallwink:

[Irbis]

Did he? The one time I remember them fighting one-on-one, Belkar ended up badly beaten in Shojo's throne room.

The one time Roy fought Miko one-on-one, he had the Greenhilt Sword back in his hands at long last and Miko was no longer a Paladin with booster items, so it is hard to directly compare anyway.

http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0281.html

One coup de grace = one Dead Miko.

And Miko wiped the floor with the entire OotS party (minus Belkar, who was grappled) - twice.

Roy & V included.


Sure, be my guest.:smallwink:

Hydra, Swamp Witch (who owned V, btw), several high level goblin clerics and undead, etc.

I think I proved my point enough, thank you.

Entire OotS (maybe with the exception of V) << Belkar (just look at kill count and quality of the kills - he killed all the most dangerous creatures with most levels, except Black Dragon).

[Voyager_I]

He outfought Miko. Alone.

And that CR 15 monster in bonus Dragon strips. And EoF&F. And CR 17 Thief backed by Cr 13 Assassin. And... shall I go on?

Q.E.D. :smallamused:

Belkar gets by on funny bonuses. Going by actual 3.5 mechanics, he should be fairly weak. The biggest benefit of TWF's extra attacks is being able to apply bonus damage more often (such as a Rogue's Sneak Attack dice). However, since Belkar uses Daggers, he can't Power Attack and therefore misses out on the primary source of bonus damage for strength-based melee characters.

Roy isn't a terribly optimized character, either, but he's still got a better build than Belkar; Power Attacking with a Two-Handed Weapon is probably the most powerful of all 'conventional' Fighters (as in people who hit bad guys with weapons). If he actually wanted to be a good character, he'd have to specialize in trip/disarm/sunder or munchkin his ass off into becoming an Ubercharger. That or be something out of ToB instead of a Fighter.

[LuisDantas]

http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0281.html

One coup de grace = one Dead Miko.

And Miko wiped the floor with the entire OotS party (minus Belkar, who was grappled) - twice.

Roy & V included.

#281 was basically a case of plot-trumps-stats. Or more accurately, gag-trumps-stats.

And as I remember, Belkar was the one most hurt by Miko in the unseen #251 fight.


Hydra, Swamp Witch (who owned V, btw), several high level goblin clerics and undead, etc.

Which "high level" goblins and undead? How does that score compares with Roy's, btw?


I think I proved my point enough, thank you.

Hmm, sorry, you did not.


Entire OotS (maybe with the exception of V) << Belkar (just look at kill count and quality of the kills - he killed all the most dangerous creatures with most levels, except Black Dragon).

Elan is weaker than Belkar. So, probably, is Haley (although she recently had quite the weapons upgrade, so who knows). Durkon, Roy and V are not. Belkar is more trigger-happy, and has a bit of plot armor. That is all.

[Lvl45DM!]

Roy wouldve taken Belkar down before his death, but not now that hes lost a level and hasnt been adventuring for 200 strips
Belkar would be the party's toughest fighter right now, followed by Haley with her +5 bow then Elan
V and Durkon..well they could kill more monsters but most of V's attacks would just be Evaded by the belkster and then belkar would rip his about 17 new ones
durkon would own belkar with one spell...hold person. Belkar doesnt have a will save belkar has a will not save

Ahhhh Buggy Lou you never got to discover electricity....
(anyone who follows that train of thought may have an internet)

[epollo79]

He's an evil little guy with a soft spot in his heart... I don't want him to die.

[Belkster11]

Roy wouldve taken Belkar down before his death, but not now that hes lost a level and hasnt been adventuring for 200 strips
Belkar would be the party's toughest fighter right now, followed by Haley with her +5 bow then Elan
V and Durkon..well they could kill more monsters but most of V's attacks would just be Evaded by the belkster and then belkar would rip his about 17 new ones
durkon would own belkar with one spell...hold person. Belkar doesnt have a will save belkar has a will not save

Ahhhh Buggy Lou you never got to discover electricity....
(anyone who follows that train of thought may have an internet)

*Takes internet*

[Sijo]

You know, maybe I should just skip any strip with Belkar in it altogether. Or at least the ones that focus on him.

He's just plain odious. In this strip, we found out:

-That he worked for a slaver;

-That he wouldn't hesitate to kill an old friend (well, drinking buddy) ;

-He cares too much for his cat (he could just have asked for it back, you know.)

I suppose the point here was to remind us that Belkar hasn't really changed, but that his partners are starting to think he has. Grrr.

I can't wait for him to be killed off, though it will likely not happen until the end of the series. Hmm... I wonder if Elan will be the one to kill him? Hey, it would be unexpected! ;)

Well, at least as long as he gets his own strips to spew his bile, he should appear less in the others!

[Zevox]

Halfling Rangers are bad? Why? It's kind of a standard class for the race. I have played a lot of them through my 3.5 life and none of them was bad..
Halfling Rangers are not necessarily inherently bad per se (though no, it's not the standard class for the race - that's Rogues), but Belkar in particular is a pretty bad Halfling Ranger. His lack of wisdom means spellcasting is right out. He doesn't have an animal companion, unless it's Mr. Scruffy, in which case he has a pretty darn weak animal companion (a house cat is on par with the weakest options for a Druid or Ranger's animal companion, perhaps even weaker, since most comparable options can at least fly) which he only got recently. He dual-wields the weakest melee weapon in the game, which means no shield, extra strength damage from two-handed wielding, or power attack. And he apparently has no ranks in survival, a (perhaps the) key skill for his class.

And yes, Ranger, at least a melee-oriented one, is overall a sub-optimal choice for a Halfling, given their -2 strength penalty and the damage penalty of using small-size weapons, which just adds to how poor his build is. (Now, a ranged combat oriented Halfling Ranger is less problematic, since they get +2 dexterity and a racial +1 to slings and thrown weapons. Still low damage, but that can be dealt with via things like rapid shot + a strong magic weapon. But Belkar is melee-oriented.)


He outfought Miko. Alone.
No he didn't, Miko stupidly let herself be KOed. Something which wouldn't happen by usual D&D rules.


And that CR 15 monster in bonus Dragon strips.
Cannot comment, have never seen those.


And EoF&F.
The coward that was totally unwilling to resist him, you mean? And whose main weapon was fireballs, which target his best save, and against which he has evasion?


And CR 17 Thief backed by Cr 13 Assassin.
Er, no. He beat the CR 13 Assassin, who was an abject idiot and even worse in melee than him when she lacked her sneak attack ability, one-on-one, then helped Haley, who had a new uber-weapon, defeat the higher-level Rogue. Against both he merely survived a round or two, during which he was probably fighting very defensively (taking advantage of the inferior bab of their classes and the defense bonus from his impromptu shield, thus explaining why they couldn't hit him even with flanking).


And Miko wiped the floor with the entire OotS party (minus Belkar, who was grappled) - twice.

Roy & V included.
Belkar included for the second one, you forget to mention. Which rather undermines any argument you could attempt to make that he beat Miko on his own.


Hydra,
Because the rules were altered for that fight. If it had worked as normal, he would only have been getting himself screwed fighting that as he did, as he was only giving it more heads to attack him with.


Swamp Witch (who owned V, btw)
Who cast a Baleful Polymorph spell on V, hitting her in her weakest save, while doing nothing to Belkar. Most likely she wasn't a difficult creature at all, she just got a good shot off on V with a spell that was effective against her.


several high level goblin clerics and undead, etc.
Where did this occur and what evidence do we have that these creatures were "high level?" Because if you're just referring to the random critters from the Dungeon of Dorukon or Azure City, we have no reason to believe they were anything but low-level mooks.

Zevox

[Tubal-Cain]

-That he worked for a slaver;


Read it again. He was just friends with the supplier.

[bladesyz]

Roy wouldve taken Belkar down before his death, but not now that hes lost a level and hasnt been adventuring for 200 strips
Belkar would be the party's toughest fighter right now, followed by Haley with her +5 bow then Elan
V and Durkon..well they could kill more monsters but most of V's attacks would just be Evaded by the belkster and then belkar would rip his about 17 new ones
durkon would own belkar with one spell...hold person. Belkar doesnt have a will save belkar has a will not save

Ahhhh Buggy Lou you never got to discover electricity....
(anyone who follows that train of thought may have an internet)

Ummm... meanwhile, Belkar was being sick due to the Mark of Justice activating. If we compare Belkar and Roy's activities during Roy's time in heaven, we'll see that Belkar killed a couple of wights, got level-drained, killed the Oracle, a bunch of low-level thieves, and defeated 2 high level rogues. Roy, on the other hand, defeated a party of evil adventurers who were capable of plane-shifting into a celestial realm, and trained with his grandfather in combat techniques. Add to that fact that Belkar has a 20% XP penalty, and that he was likely lower level than Roy to begin with, I wouldn't say he's higher level than Roy at the moment.

[pendell]

C'mon, there's no way slavery is not something Belkar would do. He proposed selling Samantha into slavery, once upon a time, remember?

Hmm. I can see the attempted joke here, but TBH the humor -- for me -- is completely overwhelmed by a sense of horror and disgust at Belkar's behavior.

So ... we've got somebody who's a friend, and the minute he threatens the cat, Belkar instantly kills him and his friends without warning?

Then defiles the corpse? Which incidentally, is completely over the top and indicates the value Belkar truly places on 'friendship'?

The man is a flippin' hand grenade waiting to go off. What happens if it had been Haley, or V, or Roy, who crossed Belkar's 'red line', whatever that would be? Did the beetle people have any idea what would make Belkar flip out like that?

What else is going to make him flip out?

I know Roy is going to keep Belkar around until he serves his purpose in the story, but I don't consider him any different from a grenade with the pin pulled -- just get it away from you as quickly as you can.

Respectfully,

Brian P.

[jafar]

Oh come on, I'll never understand why did anyone ever take the proto-brain theory seriously. V said it. That alone should have been more then enough for anyone to realize that it wasnt true and that he just said that because he hated Belkar and really underestimated him.


Actually, the "proto-brain" idea was more of an hypothesis ("gravity" is a theory). And as V said, the evidence/data supporting this hypothesis CONTINUES to accumulate at an alarming rate. :smalltongue:

[Omergideon]

Well this strip certainly had a different focus to last time. Much more character based humour than puns and the like. But, as always, I must comment fairly.

Good:
1) The artwork. I praise this constantly but the level is consistently high. Characters are well drawn and distinctive, the details are all accurate etc. But I put special mention to 2 points. First Belkars slight reddish/pink tint, a wonderfully consistent sign. And Second, the 3rd row of the comic, panels 7 and 8. When we zoom in the background matches perfectly, near as I can see. This attention to detail is something I love to see in the comic.
2) The insight into Belkar is perfectly handled. Since his "reformation" Belkar has had only a couple of moments away from the order, in which he showed selfishness but not truly evil acts (e.g. Sandwiches with the bard). This strip demonstrates that the old Belkar is still there and still kicking, and that the good side is completely a front. Except he does care about Mr Scruffy. A perfectly crafted scene to show us the real Belkar.
3) The final comments and panel are both hilarious (the responses of Haley and Elan are amusing, as well as Belkar's reactions) and perfectly in character. Haley's hesitation is a nice touch as well.
4) I personally found the whole chat with the slaver chief to be good and amusing. I think it works better if you imagine a deadpan voice, or total chumminess when they talk about slaving. Plus the "wave our weapons" gag was pretty clever I thought. I like the cerebral and deadpan humour here. Not perhaps laugh out loud funny but enjoyable to read.
5) I just noticed another detail I liked. Panel 4 one of the critters looks down at scruffy, who then vanishes until he is brought out as a snack. Plotholelessness thy name is the Giant.

Bad:
1) Nothing really to say here. I see nothing that I found to be a real detriment to the strip. Perhaps the only detriment is that the strip lacks abything to call it truly awesome. But this is hardly a crime.
2) I lie. Whilst enjoyable and well done, the end result of the Mr Scruffy thing is somewhat predictable, and the comic lacks re-readability value. What I mean is that it is less enjoyable the 3rd or 4th time, which is not often the case for the OoTS. After a break it may be better again, but still this is a problem, minor as it may be.

So in closing, the strip works as a character study of Belkar. The jokes are well timed and the main conversation gag does not carry on too long. The art is all we would expect and it wraps up this minor incident in a simple way.(p.s. the incident itself has worked to examine closely the 3 characters most changed in recent times, Belkar, V and Elan very well.) It lacks anything to set it apart, but it does nothing truly wrong. Your enjoyment will depend largely I guess on wether you like Belkar focused strips. Normally I do not too much, but the character study was good enough (and Belkar amusing enough) that I am fine with it.

Overall another 4 star comic.

P.s to explain, I dislike Belkar as a person and for a time he was very one note, but has since evolved into an interesting character especially with this character "development" he is exhibiting. I Dislike the Halfling, but he is interesting.

[Shademan]

can't Belkar also rage? I believe he took a level of barbarian, didnt he?

Pendell: you know how people in those circles are. they will call each other friends but they will double-cross each other in an instant if they havn't been REAL friends for QUITE some time

[Antacid]

I am shocked that a character with a name like "Buggy Lou" turned out not to be a long-term recurring character.

[Zanaril]

I am shocked that a character with a name like "Buggy Lou" turned out not to be a long-term recurring character.

His head is still alive!

[Aerysil]

When a rescued commoner pauses in shock instead of running back to the caravan, you know something is wrong.

Don't touch the cat.

[Daen]

I hope that Belkar gets a "side adventure" that helps further examine his evolving moral compass. We'd get to know more about the psychopath's past, and it'd be bound to have tons of humor.

[Herald Alberich]

Wait, what. Buggy Lou is still alive when his head is ripped off? How

He's an insect. I'm not sure how scientifically accurate it is, but bug heads surviving for a short while after being removed from the body is fairly common when they appear in fiction.

Ever seen Antz? Z's soldier pal gets the head-cradled-in-lap death after the big battle - with only his head. He must have lasted several minutes that way.

Z: I'm gonna find your body. It's gotta be ... around here *looks over corpse-strewn battlefield* ... somewhere.


And Second, the 3rd row of the comic, panels 7 and 8. When we zoom in the background matches perfectly, near as I can see. This attention to detail is something I love to see in the comic.

I consider that a slight weakness, actually. It's so minor I normally wouldn't bother, but you brought it up so I'll reply. It says to me that the Giant creates his backgrounds first, then puts panels in before drawing the characters in the panels. That's fine (anything that saves him time is fine, really), but it is inconsistent. Take a look at panels 4 and 5, or 8 and 9. The characters don't move, but the backgrounds change, because they flow smoothly between panels. Logically, they should be the same (and no, sand dunes don't shift that fast).

I don't see the perfect match between 7 and 8 you do, either. The darkest line of dunes is more prominent after the zoom-in.

Again, not a big deal, though.

[Conuly]

-That he worked for a slaver;

We already knew that. He brought it up when they defeated the bandits.


-That he wouldn't hesitate to kill an old friend (well, drinking buddy)

His old friend the slaver? Everybody else was killing these guys left and right, and by killing his old friend he's ALSO letting the captive prisoners go free again.


-He cares too much for his cat (he could just have asked for it back, you know.)

We already knew that too. I mean, he didn't even let Elan get the string! (Poor Elan.) Killing slavers in defense of innocent kitties isn't as odious as usual for Belkar, actually, though his motives are as twisted as always.


He's an insect. I'm not sure how scientifically accurate it is, but bug heads surviving for a short while after being removed from the body is fairly common when they appear in fiction.

I don't know about the head surviving independent of the body, but I know there are at least some insects (such as roaches) that can survive as a headless body for WEEKS before finally dying of thirst.

[HolderofSecrets]

I hope that Belkar gets a "side adventure" that helps further examine his evolving moral compass. We'd get to know more about the psychopath's past, and it'd be bound to have tons of humor.

Sadly if plot standards are to be followed, a flash back will cover all of Belkar's past right before he takes his final breath. It will probably be a saddening and extremely humorous look back for us Belkar fans.

[Kaytara]

http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0281.html

One coup de grace = one Dead Miko.

And Miko wiped the floor with the entire OotS party (minus Belkar, who was grappled) - twice.

Roy & V included.



Hydra, Swamp Witch (who owned V, btw), several high level goblin clerics and undead, etc.

I think I proved my point enough, thank you.

Entire OotS (maybe with the exception of V) << Belkar (just look at kill count and quality of the kills - he killed all the most dangerous creatures with most levels, except Black Dragon).

Um.

We ARE talking about combat POWER here. By your logic, Frodo is more powerful than Sauron because he did pwn Sauron in the end. Or pretty much any other example from pretty much any dramatic story where a supremely powerful opponent is defeated against all odds.

One character being able to exploit another character's Achilles Heel does not automatically imply greater power. That Belkar got the drop on Miko by surprising her with a lead sheet and incapacitating her does not make him more powerful. The fact that Vaarsuvius did much the same to a young black dragon that had been mopping the floor with them likewise does not mean V was the more powerful of the two. The swamp hag taking V down with a Save-or-Die does not make her more powerful. Even Miko's victory over the OotS - twice - does not necessarily imply she is more powerful than them, because they were severely handicapped both times - the first time by Durkon's lack of participation and the horrible weather, and the second time because they didn't expect Miko to just go all out and attack them with no warning at that point, and again by Durkon's meager participation. Also, she wouldn't have won were it not for a few very lucky rolls on her part and very unlucky rolls on their parts. And the very use of a handicap implies that the Order would be MORE powerful than Miko without it.

And so on and so forth. Exploiting loopholes is mostly how defeating more powerful or equally powerful opponents WORKS. It's a technique more or less outside of sheer power, though. Hence why it messes up discussions about power.

[Zea mays]

I don't know about the head surviving independent of the body, but I know there are at least some insects (such as roaches) that can survive as a headless body for WEEKS before finally dying of thirst.

Reading this right after looking at that last panel... :smalleek:*shudder*

[ThePhantasm]

THIS IS WHY Belkar must NOT die. He is comedy gold.

Please please please do not kill off Belkar Bitterleaf. Kill off O-Chul or V or Durkon but not Belkar.

[factotum]

Please please please do not kill off Belkar Bitterleaf. Kill off O-Chul or V or Durkon but not Belkar.

Belkar has been prophesied to die several times now. I don't think the Giant is going to completely throw away his planned plot just because you're a little unhappy at the sadistic halfling's imminent demise... :smallwink:

[The MunchKING]

THIS IS WHY Belkar must NOT die. He is comedy gold.

Please please please do not kill off Belkar Bitterleaf. Kill off O-Chul or V or Durkon but not Belkar.

I'm afraid... It's FATE...

[zillion ninjas]

Ahhhh Buggy Lou you never got to discover electricity....
(anyone who follows that train of thought may have an internet)

But at least he does appear to be Breakin'. Or anyway, broken.

(Teh internet: it is mine!)


To be frank, I wouldn't really trust Vaarsuvius to understand how Belkar, or anyone else for that matter, really works. :smalltongue:

Yeah, V is a lot like Dr. Manhattan - "You know how every damn thing in this world fits together except people!"

And divine magic, of course.

[Gullara]

I wonder how many times someone has said don't mess with Mr. Scruffy or something similar in this thread.

[thevorpalbunny]

Don't mess with The Scruffy.

Also, Belkar is following imaginary Lord Shojo's advice extremely well.

EDIT: I don't know, but it's now 1 more.

[Selene]

I'm finding the thought that some people are saying Belkar cares too much about his (disposable animal companion :smallfurious: ) cat to be more disturbing than Belkar killing his old acquaintance. Animals are not disposable. That kind of sociopathic thinking is how serial killers are made.

[Random832]

I'm finding the thought that some people are saying Belkar cares too much about his (disposable animal companion :smallfurious: ) cat to be more disturbing than Belkar killing his old acquaintance. Animals are not disposable. That kind of sociopathic thinking is how serial killers are made.

...Right. And since Belkar is a sociopath, not thinking in this way is at least somewhat out-of-character (to at least the point of being worth noticing)

[AyuVince]

You messed with the wrong halfling, Lou. :smallwink: The Belkster hasn't changed his ways much, to everyone's glee. I wonder, though, if we will ever see the death of Mr. Scruffy? A common housecat can only do so much to avoid the dangers an adventuring group is faced with.

[butterbow]

Aww. I've read this comic just now and loved it. Belkar killing an old friend for threatening Mr. Scruffy was wonderful. And so RIGTH. The cat is the only one who does not only not care about him annoying, hurting and killing other people, he even helps him doing it. I don't consider Mr. Scruffy only as a animal companion for Belkar, but the best available buddy he can have - no moral talk, does what he says and eats raw fish ;)

[TehSheen]

Nobody messes with Mister Scruffy. Not even old friends. :smallbiggrin:
I do like how Belkar cares for Mister Scruffy so well, this comic completely made my day.

[Radical Raven]

The fact that Belkar cares so much about that cat..... makes him somehow even more awesome then before.

[Half-Orc Rage]

That comic was awesome, forget the haters. I'll bet there's a lot of people who would get violent if you threatened their pets. People freaking love their dogs and cats; Micheal Vick is hated more than guys who beat their wives. It's not like it takes a lot for Belkar to get violent anyway; this was more justifiable than most of his outbursts. And it's not like I feel sorry for slave traders getting killed.

I actually predict Belkar's death will be some kind of redeeming one. Maybe not a deliberately heroic death, but one that will at least inadvertently save his soul at least somewhat.

[Optimystik]

Um, that's completely not true. Yes, he has a few weak points, but if his highest stat is STR, he can easily outshine anyone else except V.

You realize you're not actually contradicting me, right? The fact that he can "outshine" anyone is proof that he is powerful. It says absolutely nothing about WHY he is powerful.

[Dancing_Fox]

I liked the character Buggy Lou, short though his appearance was. A nice tie into the past and a possible ongoing link to it.

Is there any chance that Buggy Lou could come back?

The http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thri-kreen entry did not list any special "come back to life ability" or "if head is removed, it can be replaced"

Would any of his own kind be able to bring him back to life? (Wish, Raise dead . . . ) Or probably a better question (Given how easy it is to restore creatures in D&D) is, have any reason to if it were possible?

I am not familiar with D&D (outside this comic and forum). His race is mentioned in the above entry as having access to psionics - anything in there which could bring Lou back?


As an aside, I wouldn't have known what Belkar was doing in the last panel, if it wasn't for the forum. (Additional note - I'm mortified!) I assumed he was disembowelling Buggy Lou. However, checking the first panel I see that the forum has been horrible correct in this instance. I wonder if Elan/Haley can see/guess what is going on at that moment in the scene? I would have expected them to be more disturbed. (They might not be close enough to have seen more than the fight.)

Also, why aren't the Thri-kreen (under any spelling) listed at http://www.d20srd.org? They're not in the FAQ of that site as being under licence.

[Nimrod's Son]

I am not familiar with D&D (outside this comic and forum). His race is mentioned in the above entry as having access to psionics - anything in there which could bring Lou back?
We only have the forum's word that the slavers are Thri-Kreen. There's been nothing in-comic to confirm it; they could just as easily be one of Rich's creations. For instance, the best guess the forum came up with for the identity of the larger beetles was that they were Ankhegs, but the latest strip merely calls them "riding-beetles".

Regardless, I don't see Buggy Lou playing any further part. Just because a character has a name and a few details about their past doesn't mean they're going to be significant to the story.

[Omergideon]

Hmmm.

On closer inspection it does appear that there are small differences, which I missed due to Belkar's head being in the way. The zoom is extremely similar, but the thickness is a little off behind Belkar's head. The other side is explicable as the thri-keen leader has leant forwards. My mistake, though as you say it is a very small point.

However I do like the flowing sands background style itself, as I said last week, because it looks nice to me. I mentioned it as a strength when I reviewed the previous comic in fact. Any piece of art needs to utilise it's medium. A film can use cuts and fades to convey meaning whilst a comic uses panel sizes and shapes (for instance). In this case the smooth flow between backgrounds of identically sized panels helps the eye flow between connected scenes, and also gives a sense of continuity between panels. At least this is my experience and opinion of it. Plus it does indeed save time and energy in the production.

Personally I find one of the Giants greatest strengths is his ability to utilise the comic medium in interesting ways, with panel shape, position and orientation adding to the effect. It's much the Calvin and Hobbes sunady comics, which frequently played with the medium. The author in fact secured the right to alter the format in his original contract, with a garunteed size for the strip and not the panels themselves as was common at the time. If you ever read the sunday strip compilations you get to see how he played at times, and it shows a real understanding of the medium. As does The OoTS.

[SwordsageErrant]

I think we'll all agree on the point that we love how Belkar's still badass. xD
And yes, I'd very much like to see his death as a heroic and redeeming event, but only one where he completely denies that fact, as an epic antihero, to the very end. For now we can only wish!

[malakim2099]

Oh come on, I'll never understand why did anyone ever take the proto-brain theory seriously. V said it. That alone should have been more then enough for anyone to realize that it wasnt true and that he just said that because he hated Belkar and really underestimated him.

That being said, I dont get how being perfectly willing to kill an old friend to save your cat instead of talking to him is supposed to be a redeeming factor. People really need to stop trying to find excuse for Belkar, hes still a nasty little sociopath.

You know what people need to do more than that?

Learn that :smallbiggrin: means that you're just having fun with the post, and not to take things so freaking seriously.

To paraphrase Joel and the Bots, "It's just a webcomic, you should really just relax." :smalltongue:

[Sijo]

You know what people need to do more than that?

Learn that :smallbiggrin: means that you're just having fun with the post, and not to take things so freaking seriously.

To paraphrase Joel and the Bots, "It's just a webcomic, you should really just relax." :smalltongue:

Except different people enjoy things different. For example, I'm perfectly aware that having a psychopathic halfling in a party of heroes is supposed to be a joke. I just don't find it funny. In fact, he disturbs me often. I have no problem with other people loving Belkar, I just feel like posting my feelings about him here (which is what the site is for.) I'm not more right than Belkar-lovers... but I'm not more wrong, either. This is just casual talk.

[mistformsquirrl]

I wonder how many times someone has said don't mess with Mr. Scruffy or something similar in this thread.

DO mess with Mr. Scruffy <^_^> I'll get the popcorn.

[Nimrod's Son]

However I do like the flowing sands background style itself, as I said last week, because it looks nice to me. I mentioned it as a strength when I reviewed the previous comic in fact. Any piece of art needs to utilise it's medium. A film can use cuts and fades to convey meaning whilst a comic uses panel sizes and shapes (for instance). In this case the smooth flow between backgrounds of identically sized panels helps the eye flow between connected scenes, and also gives a sense of continuity between panels. At least this is my experience and opinion of it. Plus it does indeed save time and energy in the production.
It's nothing new though. Rich has always (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0143.html) drawn (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0162.html) his outdoor (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0192.html) backdrops (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0665.html) as one (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0216.html) picture (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0485.html) behind a whole row of panels, with the only exceptions being when a panel is zoomed in or has a static object in the frame. The only difference here is that the colours are a bit nicer.

[Herald Alberich]

However I do like the flowing sands background style itself, as I said last week, because it looks nice to me. I mentioned it as a strength when I reviewed the previous comic in fact. Any piece of art needs to utilise it's medium. A film can use cuts and fades to convey meaning whilst a comic uses panel sizes and shapes (for instance). In this case the smooth flow between backgrounds of identically sized panels helps the eye flow between connected scenes, and also gives a sense of continuity between panels. At least this is my experience and opinion of it. Plus it does indeed save time and energy in the production.

Personally I find one of the Giants greatest strengths is his ability to utilise the comic medium in interesting ways, with panel shape, position and orientation adding to the effect. It's much the Calvin and Hobbes sunady comics, which frequently played with the medium. The author in fact secured the right to alter the format in his original contract, with a garunteed size for the strip and not the panels themselves as was common at the time. If you ever read the sunday strip compilations you get to see how he played at times, and it shows a real understanding of the medium. As does The OoTS.

Hmm, ok. I'd personally prefer the chronological continuity of an unchanging background, rather than the visual continuity you point out. It is an interesting effect, though, and you're right about everything else.

Edit:

It's nothing new though. Rich has always (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0143.html) drawn (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0162.html) his outdoor (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0192.html) backdrops (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0665.html) as one (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0216.html) picture (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0485.html) behind a whole row of panels, with the only exceptions being when a panel is zoomed in or has a static object in the frame. The only difference here is that the colours are a bit nicer.

... I suppose my not noticing (or noticing and not really caring) for so long should just emphasize how minor a quibble it is. It's not like intra-strip continuity is a huge deal in a comic like this, anyway.

[Nightfall]

Seems really odd to me though, he was just politely asking them to avoid his adventurer buddies a second ago, then, when it looks like his cat is in danger, he doesn't just say "Oh hey, that's my cat. Could you just leave him with me?".

Seems sort of weird that he'd immediately resort to violence against an old friend instead of just resolving the situation with a few words. It's not like they were trying to spite him personally, they just found a cat and thought they found a good snack.

It's not weird at all. It's proof that the "new Belkar" is only skin-deep, and his natural psychotic instincts are just a hair-trigger away. Buggy Lou just pushed the wrong button.

[Lvl45DM!]

You know in games ive urinated on fallen enemies before, when i was palying a beastmaster, like a druid with spell like abilities rather than actual spells, and i was fighting a night hag who i couldnt touch with my non magical club so i just whipped it out....its a chaotic act not an evil one and since in D+D killing slavers who threaten to eat kitties is a good act, those who are abhorring belkar for his actions in this strip are just a little senstive, especially when you comapre it to some of his other actions...killing that poor gnome for example.
You know now that i think about it, though yes Belkar is very evil in ideals, his actual quota of evil acts is pretty limited.Trying to Kill Elan, killing the gnome oh and that pre story incident with the fists in a knifefight... but in story i cant think of any more overtly evil actions...
hmmm maybe dumping O-Chul, but that couldve just been practical, know when to fold em mentality at work...

[CoffeeIncluded]

Yeah, but it's really starting to get deeper. Becoming the Mask, anyone?

[Tobimaro]

He's an insect. I'm not sure how scientifically accurate it is, but bug heads surviving for a short while after being removed from the body is fairly common when they appear in fiction.

Ever seen Antz? Z's soldier pal gets the head-cradled-in-lap death after the big battle - with only his head. He must have lasted several minutes that way.

Z: I'm gonna find your body. It's gotta be ... around here *looks over corpse-strewn battlefield* ... somewhere.

I do not consider the Antz scene to be the same as this comic. I really think that Lou is just about to die, but is only going to last long enough for Belkar to provide another "ingredient" to Lou's last meal. Not that he can eat it or anything. :smallwink:


I'm finding the thought that some people are saying Belkar cares too much about his (disposable animal companion :smallfurious: ) cat to be more disturbing than Belkar killing his old acquaintance. Animals are not disposable. That kind of sociopathic thinking is how serial killers are made.

This is an unfortunate instance where people are thinking in terms of the game as opposed to real life. In game terms, house cats do not make good animal companions for characters like druids and rangers because of the low hit dice given to cats, as opposed to wolves (and later to rhinos). This just shows that, despite a sub-optimal build, Belkar can take a house cat as an animal companion and still be a badass. :smallsmile:

[Timberboar]

Great comic, but this thread doesn't have near enough "Enthusiastic was misspelled!" in it.

[Lvl45DM!]

Enthusiastic was mispelled!!!!

[Optimystik]

I am not familiar with D&D (outside this comic and forum). His race is mentioned in the above entry as having access to psionics - anything in there which could bring Lou back?

By himself? Astral Seed (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/psionic/powers/astralSeed.htm), though the chances of that are on the infinitesimal side.

[Dancing_Fox]

By himself? Astral Seed (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/psionic/powers/astralSeed.htm), though the chances of that are on the infinitesimal side.

Thanks, Optimystik! You are a font of wisdom on the obscure (in my eyes) abilities of D&D.

My chances of seeing Buggy Lou again though have just received another nail in the coffin. I may have to settle for a relative of Buggy Lou - such as a brother or nephew - or some more of the drinking buddies, to pick up that thread of the story then.

Ways to get Buggy Lou back:
* He's not Thir-keen but another race with the ability to overcome decapitation.
* He's "home brew" and there is that ability.
* Someone stumps up the money for Raise Dead or Wish. Maybe a buyer who depends on him (?) or a pre-bought "life insurance contract."
* A psionic ability which he is unlikely to have.
* He has an artifact which restores life. (If that exists).
* He gets a cameo after-life or ghost scene.
* "Or other."

All of which fall into the category of "highly unlikely."


I hope to see a bit more of the Thir-keen (Or whatever they are) at some point. Or Belkar's former companions.

[Rizzer]

They seem to be Thri-Kreen (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thri-kreen).

I'm not so sure they are Thri-keen. OotS is not a Dark Sun world. These bugs are slavers, don't carry the double-ended polearm or throwing crystals. Seems more likely that they are Aspis, who ran the slave pits of the undercity
http://www.rpg.net/reviews/archive/12/12756.phtml
http://www.librarything.com/work/1092590
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scourge_of_the_Slave_Lords
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/a/a9/A1SlavePitsCover.jpg

[Hithros]

I didn't expect Mr. Scruffy to get involved....wow.

[pjackson]

since in D+D killing slavers who threaten to eat kitties is a good act

No it isn't. It might qualify as non-evil, but certainly not as good.

[hamishspence]

They exist in Faerun, they exist in Eberron, they are in MM2- its more likely that they are Thri-keen (since The Giant has been shown to use MM2 material) than that they are an obscure monster that doesn't even exist in 3.5.

I'm not saying that its impossible, just that the odds are very much against it.

[geekwraith]

I think I just had an evil warm fuzzy. What a weird combination.

[Optimystik]

Thanks, Optimystik! You are a font of wisdom on the obscure (in my eyes) abilities of D&D.

You're quite welcome! The site I linked you to (d20srd.org) is a great source of information on 3.5 D&D, and many of Rich's references in the comic can be researched there. Just remember to come up for air every so often :smallwink:

[Myrmex]

Belkar is 4chan.
CE sociopath with a surprising number of fans; loves cats. Sometimes amusing.

[Lvl45DM!]

Mrymex you may have one internet!

[Myrmex]

Mrymex you may have one internet!

Thanks! I'll be sure to download it, just don't dump it on my tubes. They're not like a truck or anything

[Optimystik]

Belkar is 4chan.
CE sociopath with a surprising number of fans; loves cats. Sometimes amusing.

Also: impossible to shock with depravity. Bad idea to give your social security number to. Myrmex, I believe you're on to something there.

And thus /b/elkar was born.

[Myrmex]

And thus /b/elkar was born.

Buahahaha!
Oh man, that's good.

[Conuly]

Belkar is 4chan.
CE sociopath with a surprising number of fans; loves cats. Sometimes amusing.

Wow. You're right. That's... wow.

[Dra-Goon]

Nice one. He seems to honestly care about Mr. Scruffy, as much as Belkar is capable of mental response other than "Hatred" and "Lust."

(please don't let it be lust)

What? You mean you haven't noticed all the love Belkar has for poor Lou, even going as far as marinading his corpse body after the act...?:smalleek:

[Last_resort_33]

Belkar is 4chan.
CE sociopath with a surprising number of fans; loves cats. Sometimes amusing.

THAT is going on my sig!

[Janmorel]

No it isn't. It might qualify as non-evil, but certainly not as good.

And even if it were, defiling the corpses of your enemies is still an evil act. (And classifying it as Chaotic doesn't make any darn sense at all. It's a pretty common tactic across the Evil spectrum. The choice to take a whiz down the bug-guy's neckhole instead of carving the Great Eye on him or something is more a mark of Belkar's frat-boy immaturity than his chaotic nature.

[Akisa]

What? You mean you haven't noticed all the love Belkar has for poor Lou, even going as far as marinading his corpse after the act...?:smalleek:

Not corpse yet... You see there are no red X on his eyes....

[John Cribati]

Seems sort of weird that he'd immediately resort to violence against an old friend instead of just resolving the situation with a few words.
No. No it doesn't. We are talking about Belkar, here.

[Omergideon]

It's nothing new though. Rich has always (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0143.html) drawn (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0162.html) his outdoor (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0192.html) backdrops (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0665.html) as one (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0216.html) picture (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0485.html) behind a whole row of panels, with the only exceptions being when a panel is zoomed in or has a static object in the frame. The only difference here is that the colours are a bit nicer.

Indeed, I guess that I never noticed before. If I had to guess it was probably done as a time saving measure for the comic as you said. But I stand by what I said of it being a nice effect as well.

Though, Herald, I do get what you say. We all have our preferences for visual syles and techniques. I, for instance, am a big fan of decompressed comics and especially like the loose "sketchy" style such as found in the Superman "Birthright" comic. But I know many people who don't. things like this make me reject any idea of truly objective rules on storytelling/art.

[Selene]

...Right. And since Belkar is a sociopath, not thinking in this way is at least somewhat out-of-character (to at least the point of being worth noticing)

...Right. But that's not what they were saying. Example:


Like I said, Mr. Scruffy is more than just an animal companion!
No ranger gets that upset over a simple disposable animal companion.

Emphasis mine.


That comic was awesome, forget the haters. I'll bet there's a lot of people who would get violent if you threatened their pets. People freaking love their dogs and cats; Micheal Vick is hated more than guys who beat their wives.

Because it's hard for a battered wife to leave, but it's impossible for a chained up dog to leave.


To paraphrase Joel and the Bots, "It's just a webcomic, you should really just relax." :smalltongue:

Mike > Joel.

*ducks* Kidding! :smalltongue:

[Kish]

{Scrubbed}

[Rizzer]

its more likely that they are Thri-keen ... than that they are an obscure monster that doesn't even exist in 3.5.


Hardly obscure. The Slaver series is the very one which invented the Drow and gave us Lolth.

[Tiktakkat]

Hardly obscure. The Slaver series is the very one which invented the Drow and gave us Lolth.

No it isn't.

The Drow first appeared in G3 Hall of the Fire Giant King.
Lolth was mentioned there, and first appeared in D3 Vault of the Drow.

[Rizzer]

No it isn't. The Drow first appeared in G3 Hall of the Fire Giant King.

Hmm ok I stand corrected :)

[BriarHobbit]

I found this issue to be very interesting. Belkar is clearly protective of Mr. Scruffy.

[Mr. Pin]

wow. That is my new second favorite belkar moment after SSGoW*

the scruffster is so totally badass. I wish I had a kitty like that.

----
*closed captioning for the humor impaired: SSGoW= Sexy Shoeless God of War.

[HOLEkevin]

Don't take this the wrong way… I love the Belkster and all, but aren't there some other members of the party too?

[Edhelras]

4) I personally found the whole chat with the slaver chief to be good and amusing. I think it works better if you imagine a deadpan voice, or total chumminess when they talk about slaving. Plus the "wave our weapons" gag was pretty clever I thought.

I just wondered about this. It was only on re-reading the comic I noticed borth Belkar, Buggy Lou and that other guard seem to be actually waving their weapons, with those "waving" artworks indicating movement.

Is that some gag I don't catch? Like, is it something gangsters do or something? I haven't heard the phrase before, but it seems likely to be some sort of gangster behavior. Can anyone explain for me?

[Random832]

I just wondered about this. It was only on re-reading the comic I noticed borth Belkar, Buggy Lou and that other guard seem to be actually waving their weapons, with those "waving" artworks indicating movement.

Is that some gag I don't catch? Like, is it something gangsters do or something? I haven't heard the phrase before, but it seems likely to be some sort of gangster behavior. Can anyone explain for me?

The point was to make it look like they were fighting, from a distance if you don't look too closely.

[Dark Faun]

Belkar wanted the Order to think he was fighting (cue waving weapons menacingly) instead of having a chat with an old buddy.

EDIT: ninja'd!

[Larkspur]

Belkar is 4chan.
CE sociopath with a surprising number of fans; loves cats. Sometimes amusing.

Holy crap, you've uncovered his secret identity. Halfling ranger by day, forum full of trolls by night!

[Omergideon]

I just wondered about this. It was only on re-reading the comic I noticed borth Belkar, Buggy Lou and that other guard seem to be actually waving their weapons, with those "waving" artworks indicating movement.

Is that some gag I don't catch? Like, is it something gangsters do or something? I haven't heard the phrase before, but it seems likely to be some sort of gangster behavior. Can anyone explain for me?

If it's them just waving the weapons, then it's them doing so so that other people watching think that they are fighting. At least this is the impression I got from the strip. It is not stated as such in there, but Belkar's attitude has been one that he hides his evil from his team mates recently so it is a reasonable supposition. It may be something else though, but unless someone contradicts it I will continue to believe that.

[Platinius]

Perhaps not that he is evil, but that the slaver cief used to be a friend of his (as far as the Belkster has friends), although both is possible.

[Edhelras]

Belkar wanted the Order to think he was fighting (cue waving weapons menacingly) instead of having a chat with an old buddy.

EDIT: ninja'd!

Of course... I didn't think of that. But of course.

[rewinn]

Don't take this the wrong way… I love the Belkster and all, but aren't there some other members of the party too?
I'm hoping Haley is using her +5 Icy Burst Bow (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0615.html) so the party can finish the battle with some giant ice blocks ... which would probably be very valuable in the desert (...except for the bugparts stuck inside)

[Puns de León]

I'm hoping Haley is using her +5 Icy Burst Bow (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0615.html) so the party can finish the battle with some giant ice blocks ... which would probably be very valuable in the desert (...except for the bugparts stuck inside)

V might choose to employ a similar (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0041.html) tactic should Elan let his imagination run wild and start firing off Buggy Holly and the Crickets puns.

[Closak]

I'm just waiting for someone to scream "YOU BASTARD! YOU KILLED BUGGY LOU!"
Wouldn't surprise me if someone did scream that only to be instantly stabbed bye Belkar.

Bugman: YOU BASTARD! YOU KILLED BUGGY LOU!
:belkar:: *Stabs*

[Zanaril]

(...except for the bugparts stuck inside)

Extra protein! :smallbiggrin:

[Dinocarl]

No one messes with my cat! :furious:

I kind of understand Belkar, not that I'd eviscerate someone like that. But the mere though of someone hurting my cat makes my blood boil. Plus I don't think we ever saw Belkar being mean to animals. He seems to like them much more than humanoids.

Except, of course, Miko's horse....

[Forbiddenwar]

Except, of course, Miko's horse....

Miko's horse isn't an animal, it is a magical beast.:smalltongue:


And even if it were, defiling the corpses of your enemies is still an evil act. (And classifying it as Chaotic doesn't make any darn sense at all. It's a pretty common tactic across the Evil spectrum. The choice to take a whiz down the bug-guy's neckhole instead of carving the Great Eye on him or something is more a mark of Belkar's frat-boy immaturity than his chaotic nature.

If anything, it is a lawful act, as he promised he would do so, and followed through on his word.Just kidding.

[Jokasti]

Miko's horse isn't an animal, it is a magical beast.:smalltongue:

Plus, you know, Miko's.

[Ashram]

Except, of course, Miko's horse....

Maybe Belkar being a ranger has something to do with the "not hurting normal animals" thing.

That, or the author has a thing for cats. :P

[Silverhammer]

If it's them just waving the weapons, then it's them doing so so that other people watching think that they are fighting. At least this is the impression I got from the strip. It is not stated as such in there, but Belkar's attitude has been one that he hides his evil from his team mates recently so it is a reasonable supposition. It may be something else though, but unless someone contradicts it I will continue to believe that.

I think that's the sensible interpretation, Omergideon. Presumably, Roy would not be impressed by Belkar turning out to be an old mate of the insectoid slave trading captain. ^^

[Pyron]

I think that's the sensible interpretation, Omergideon. Presumably, Roy would not be impressed by Belkar turning out to be an old mate of the insectoid slave trading captain. ^^

:elan: "You can say it'll make Roy's skin crawl!"
:roy: "Elan, you're starting to bug me... ah, dammit!"

[Dvandemon]

:elan: "You can say it'll make Roy's skin crawl!"
:roy: "Elan, you're starting to bug me... ah, dammit!"

V: I wish I still had Mind Blank

[Almaseti]

It would make a kind of sense if Belkar, as messed up as he is, only has empathy for animals. Not that I think that's true, mind you, but it would make a kind of sense.

[wzeller]

Seems really odd to me though, he was just politely asking them to avoid his adventurer buddies a second ago, then, when it looks like his cat is in danger, he doesn't just say "Oh hey, that's my cat. Could you just leave him with me?". Seems sort of weird that he'd immediately resort to violence against an old friend instead of just resolving the situation with a few words. It's not like they were trying to spite him personally, they just found a cat and thought they found a good snack.

Think about that for a minute. Belkar's old slaving friends go home and start laughing and telling everybody, "Yeah, remember ol' Belkar? He has a CAT now! And would you believe he actually seems to care for the little morsel? Whatta little pansy!"

Belkar couldn't risk having his reputation sullied like that. Far better to piss down his friend's neck hole as promised and keep his reputation.

w

[Kiayateo]

It would make a kind of sense if Belkar, as messed up as he is, only has empathy for animals. Not that I think that's true, mind you, but it would make a kind of sense.

Well...."wild empathy" is a ranger ability.

[ThePhantasm]

Well...."wild empathy" is a ranger ability.

Didn't work on the horse. :smalltongue:

[Kish]

Wouldn't work on paladins' mounts for any ranger, even the most good-aligned and nature-loving ranger who ever lived.

Which isn't to say that I think Belkar cares about animals other than Mr. Scruffy, I don't.

[Kiayateo]

Wouldn't work on paladins' mounts for any ranger, even the most good-aligned and nature-loving ranger who ever lived.

Yeah, stupid magical beasts.


Which isn't to say that I think Belkar cares about animals other than Mr. Scruffy, I don't.

I whole heartily agree there. I've pretty much come to the conclusion that Scruffy (the janitor)* is the only thing Belkar cares about, otherwise he wouldn't have pulled the vaugely lawful act of actually carrying out his threat.

*bad Futurama joke

[see]

The cat is the only one who does not only not care about him annoying, hurting and killing other people, he even helps him doing it. I don't consider Mr. Scruffy only as a animal companion for Belkar, but the best available buddy he can have - no moral talk, does what he says and eats raw fish ;)

Also, Mr. Scruffy is a housecat. This means he hunts other animals for fun, plays with them while they're injured, then kills them. Afterwards, he tomcats around with any females that will have him.

[Zanaril]

Also, Mr. Scruffy is a housecat. This means he hunts other animals for fun, plays with them while they're injured, then kills them. Afterwards, he tomcats around with any females that will have him.

No wonder he and Belkar get along.

[Larocs Macalar]

seriously, i dont understand why belkar ask them to wave their weapons while they're talking...

[Shale]

Because that way it looks like he's fighting the slaver instead of having a friendly chat with the bad guys.

[Forbiddenwar]

I'm just waiting for someone to scream "YOU BASTARD! YOU KILLED BUGGY LOU!"
Wouldn't surprise me if someone did scream that only to be instantly stabbed bye Belkar.

Bugman: YOU BASTARD! YOU KILLED BUGGY LOU!
:belkar:: *Stabs*

Hmm. What are you referencing?:smallconfused:
There's the famous Southpark quote, but you got it mixed up, so that can't be it.

[Itous]

seriously, i dont understand why belkar ask them to wave their weapons while they're talking...

ok your standing in the middle of a battlefield the people your traveling with are being enslaved or are fighting, are you really going to just stand there and have a nice conversation with the hive mind behind the whole attack?

when they get what you want your going to be queestioned by yo comrades. waving your weapons around looks flash as if theres some kind of attack or fighting at least as many people have explained

[Sewblon]

No way Belkar would outfight Roy. :smallwink:

Roy is good at hand-to-hand fighting, but that is pretty much it. And Belkar can fight with two weapons effectively, has small-size bonuses to AC and attack, substantial skills with throwing weapons, and barbarian rage. Belkar is at least better in a one on one fight.
Also, Mr. Scruffy is a housecat. This means he hunts other animals for fun, plays with them while they're injured, then kills them. Afterwards, he tomcats around with any females that will have him.

That at least explains how he befriended Belkar in the first place.

[Holyhatred]

Roy is good at hand-to-hand fighting, but that is pretty much it. And Belkar can fight with two weapons effectively, has small-size bonuses to AC and attack, substantial skills with throwing weapons, and barbarian rage. Belkar is at least better in a one on one fight.

no way would belkar beat roy. belkar is just a silly heroic sociopath. The order of power in order of the stick is.
1.vaarsuvius-The guy beat a drag that was owning the whole team alone in two shots.
1(i can't decide who is better).Roy-pounded miko when he had his sword without getting a scratch. Something the whole team was unable to do.
2. Belkar- definitely has proven himself useful and has beaten enemies that the haley had been unable to best.
3. Durkon-Has a giant lighning attack and can become huge. Possibly higher but he doesn't fight enough for me to be able to tell. Also i think Belkar kills more goblins regularly than he does.
4. Haley-More combat experience than elan and has saved his butt even when he got his dashing swordsmen powers
5. Elan-Um yeah

[Somniloquist]

Durkon's got to be just behind Vaarsuvius in power (remember the fight with Leeky?). He's just less flashy about it.

[Holyhatred]

Durkon's got to be just behind Vaarsuvius in power (remember the fight with Leeky?). He's just less flashy about it.

yes i did remember that that's why i said he had a giant lightning attack.

[Zerkai]

Another good comic, can't wait for more