How did Tarquin and the people in the arena know how the fight ended?

[Mr. Snuggles]

Comic 808, Roy drops a ceiling on Thog. Comic 809, Tarquin knows how the fight ended and is there to congratulate Roy. The soldiers know, too, and one of them even has his autograph book out (canon says Thog is subliterate). How?

From Tarquin's box, he (and the rest of the spectators in the arena) sees Thog throw Roy into the stands. Roy clears out the section before Thog jumps on him. Both crash through a hole and disappear from sight. A few seconds later, there are thumps and then the hole greatly widens as the whole section collapses.

How did Tarquin know he would be congratulating Roy? Or he's not, and he's there to see whoever? He did seem to have his evil villain threatening speech ready, telling Roy he's not going to escape after winning the fight.

How could it be fight of the year without a conclusion? It would be like the Heidi Game (http://www.inhistoric.com/2008/11/11171968-heidi-game.html), a titanic battle cut off before the spectacular come-from-behind victory. Maybe the guards are just cheering for the part of the battle they saw? But that's like celebrating something that happened in the second quarter - no matter how great it was, it's nothing compared to the competition after the two-minute warning.

Seriously, what sort of hick arena doesn't have a giant widescreen crystal ball, with a scrying eye following the action? :smallbiggrin: Too "magical train"? :smallamused:

[Kish]

(canon says Thog is subliterate).
Oh? What strip is that in?

Two preemptive guesses:

If you mean when Roy called him a "subliterate thug," Roy's name is Roy, not Canon, and that was an insult directed at Thog's intelligence, not a statement of literal factual accuracy Roy had been told by Rich Burlew.

If you mean simply that he's a barbarian, he has two levels of fighter, and a barbarian who takes a single level of any other class gains literacy, officially.

[FujinAkari]

They don't care how it ended, they care that the fight was amazing. Whether Roy won OR Thog won, they would be cheering, and from their perspective Thog lept into a hole that collapsed onto him, they may think both were killed, but the spectacle was complete.

Tarquin was going to do cleanup, much as he did with the Wizard duel, and when Roy was the victor he reacted accordingly. You'll notice the Autograph guard DIDN'T have the paper out until after they'd approached Roy and knew he was the one who won.

[137beth]

Tarquin was going to do cleanup, much as he did with the Wizard duel, and when Roy was the victor he reacted accordingly. You'll notice the Autograph guard DIDN'T have the paper out until after they'd approached Roy and knew he was the one who won.
This. Or, more to the point--
They saw Roy alive. They saw Thog dead. Who do you think won?

[Mr. Snuggles]

They don't care how it ended, they care that the fight was amazing. Whether Roy won OR Thog won, they would be cheering, and from their perspective Thog lept into a hole that collapsed onto him, they may think both were killed, but the spectacle was complete.
I disagree. What sort of satisfying sporting event denies the ending? It would be like the Heidi game. The match between Roy & Thog might become infamous for being interrupted, just like the way the Heidi game is more famous for what it became instead of being famous as a tough playoff game between rivals.

Besides, how does the crowd know that the hole collapsed onto Thog? The audience would be more disappointed, if anything. Thog is their favorite, remember.

I could see the "both gladiators died in a stadium collapse" being the "narrative" of the fight. But still, the crowd loses their favorite gladiator. It's like your favorite player receiving a career-ending injury.

[FujinAkari]

I disagree. What sort of satisfying sporting event denies the ending? It would be like the Heidi game. The match between Roy & Thog might become infamous for being interrupted, just like the way the Heidi game is more famous for what it became instead of being famous as a tough playoff game between rivals.

You have now mentioned The Heidi game like three times and have yet to explain what the heck it is...


Besides, how does the crowd know that the hole collapsed onto Thog? The audience would be more disappointed, if anything. Thog is their favorite, remember.

Because they're standing right there looking at the rubble? Or are you not talking about Tarquin and the guards anymore?


I could see the "both gladiators died in a stadium collapse" being the "narrative" of the fight. But still, the crowd loses their favorite gladiator. It's like your favorite player receiving a career-ending injury.

Yeeeeah... that isn't how gladitorial games go. Favorites die all the time, its pretty much expected. Truthfully, crowds were MUCH more angsty about favorites retiring or earning their freedom.

[Adicted To]

Tarquin diden't know who was the victor of the battle. He just came over to see who had won. There were three posible outcomes to the battle.

1: Thog lost and Roy wins. Tarquin congradulates Roys and recruits him.

2: Thog wins and Roy loses. Tarquin and his bodyguards capture or execute Thog. He want's Thog dead and after this epic battle the people wouldn't be surprised if both combatants got killed. Thog is heavily weakend at this point so it woulden't be hard for Tharquin and his bodyguards to kill Thog. And killing him without witneses is posible under these surcomstanses.

3: They are both dead. Thog is killed and that is a plus for Tharquin. To bad he coulden't recruit Roy but Roy isn't realy critical for him so not a big loss for him in this case.

[JSSheridan]

canon says Thog is subliterate

"Illiteracy

Barbarians are the only characters who do not automatically know how to read and write. A barbarian may spend 2 skill points to gain the ability to read and write all languages he is able to speak.

A barbarian who gains a level in any other class automatically gains literacy. Any other character who gains a barbarian level does not lose the literacy he or she already had."

-D20srd.org, Link. (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/classes/barbarian.htm)

Thog has two levels in fighter, so he's literate.

[Threadnaught]

Why is the OP trying to compare this to the Heidi Game?

Thog vs Roy, the fight was so awesome the arena was destroyed. Both fighters fell out of sight and the audience didn't see the ending because of how the game itself ended.

Heidi Game, the game is running past it's schedualed ending time, but the guy in charge of what the audience is able to see didn't get the memo and blocks all ability to know what's happening Live.


The only equivelent to this in OotS would be either, Darkness or if there are any spectaters Scrying on the Arena, Cloister.

[Ron Miel]

You have now mentioned The Heidi game like three times and have yet to explain what the heck it is...


I didn't know either, but it took me a whole 5 seconds to look it up on Wikipedia.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heidi_game

Basically, TV had scheduled a sports match followed by the film Heidi.
The sports match overran. Heidi started on time, so people missed the end of the game. It had been a really exciting game, so there was much outrage at the end being cut.

[Mr. Snuggles]

You have now mentioned The Heidi game like three times and have yet to explain what the heck it is...
Underlined text in a different color means that there is a hyperlink you can click on, which will lead to more information.


It would be like the Heidi Game (http://www.inhistoric.com/2008/11/11171968-heidi-game.html), a titanic battle cut off before the spectacular come-from-behind victory.
I still say that Tarquin was inexplicably informed about the outcome of the duel before he could have seen it. Moreover, a sporting event without a definite conclusion could be infamous, but hardly best game ever. Well, maybe all the gladiator fights are as fast and anticlimactic as cat vs. commoner, which would explain a lot.

[Xiander]

I still say that Tarquin was inexplicably informed about the outcome of the duel before he could have seen it. Moreover, a sporting event without a definite conclusion could be infamous, but hardly best game ever. Well, maybe all the gladiator fights are as fast and anticlimactic as cat vs. commoner, which would explain a lot.

Yes you do, but in actuality, you have no reason to. Tarquin has eyes so do his guards.

[Ron Miel]

Actually, I think most spectators wouldn't feel as though they missed the ending. The arena collapsing on top of both fighters would count as a definitive and spectacular end that they would remember and talk about for years.

[Ancalagon]

Tarquin would say about the arena crashing in due to two fighters wrecking it: "It was the best climax 50.000 goldpieces (+ repairs) can buy".

[ORione]

Whoever was in earshot would have heard, "THAT'S how I use my Intelligence score in combat, DUMBASS!!" right after the arena collapsed. That would make it a pretty safe bet that Roy won.

[FujinAkari]

Whoever was in earshot would have heard, "THAT'S how I use my Intelligence score in combat, DUMBASS!!" right after the arena collapsed. That would make it a pretty safe bet that Roy won.

But no one was in earshot, that whole section of the arena had been evacuated...

[Dr.Epic]

I'm sure someone noticed the pile of rubble falling on Thog. A ceiling collapsing isn't that difficult to not notice. That, and Roy obviously had time to change outfits so that's a pretty big indication the fight ended. I doubt he could don new armor while fighting someone.

[mikeejimbo]

Clearly, they just read the strip like the rest of us. :smallwink:

It wouldn't be the first time the fourth wall was broken in such a manner.

[WoodStock_PV]

There were people to see the outcome of the fighting: The guards dragging the dark elf. I'd be amazed if they didn't hear the "crash" of part of the coliseum falling down, for them it was as simple as to stop dragging the elf who was already subdued and watch the rest of the finale (which was fast) and then tell Tarquin.