Elan's Plan

[Maquise]

I remembered Elan's plan in Comic 836 (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0836.html), and noted how Durkon seemed to be a key part in this. I can't help but wonder if this most recent turn of events will affect this.

[Ramax]

I can't help but wonder if Roy was even going to humor Elan's plan.:smallbiggrin:

[Thrax]

Virtually all plans the Order ever had depended on Durkon. His death ruined them completely.

[Diadem]

Well let's analyze the facts:
- All the OOTS characters, including the ones with high wisdom, interacted extensively with Malack. It's highly unlikely none of them figured out he was a vampire before
- Durkon has a fairly high wisdom, and would never be foolish enough to engage a much more powerful enemy like Malack alone, if there was no good reason for it.
- Durkon is a lot more powerful now

Clearly, Durkon becoming a vampire was the plan all along :)

[Shred-Bot]

New theory: Elan was thirsty and wanted Durkon to create some water for him! They are in the desert after all.:smallbiggrin:

Seriously, though... whatever it is I suspect it will be fantastically effective and will hit Tarquin right in the narrative structure. And also something that nobody other than Elan would ever attempt.

[Bravo]

Yeah, several plans seemed to depend on Durkon:


Roy's strategy for when they encounter Xykon requires Durkon's Mass Death Ward
The Order's plan for keeping the Linear Guild from getting the Gate required Durkon to summon some Devas.
Elan's plan (to thwart Tarquin's plan to make Elan's struggle against him give him the immortality his narcissism craves) seemed to require Durkon's help with something. It's possible that Durkon's part in the plan is already complete and we'll find out what it was later, though.


More to the point, the party needs a Cleric. A proper, full Cleric. It's not just the healing; Clerics can counter many attacks and enemies that are fueled by negative energy.

[busterswd]

Well, this thread proved one thing to me: just like the characters in-universe, readers tend to ignore Elan's ramblings too.

I read this one and it completely slipped my mind, but this has a lot of interesting potential, especially in light of Durkon becoming a vampire. The plan seems to have been triggered by Roy suggesting Elan "find that sense of family among people who are good". Perhaps he sent out a sending to Hinjo? Durkon looks confused at the conclusion of the super secret plan, though.

[ReaderAt2046]

You know, I just got a really off-the-wall idea. What if Elan's secret plan is to become a Cleric of Banjo and start a "Spreading Cult/Holy Crusade" plot archetype, to shift the metagame from his father (and undermine his secret rule by establishing a second secret Empire). He needed Durkon's help to get that first level of Cleric somehow, but he's ready to set the plotline in motion when they return to civilization.

Come to think of it, if Elan wanted to he could probably use that 18+Cha to get a fair few people from the EoB peonage to follow Banjo. Maybe that will be the plot of one of the remaining books?

[notthephonz]

Roy says, "...it's better to find that sense of family among people who are good than it is to find a sense of good inside your family." Elan gets an idea which requires Durkon's help.

Shot in the dark here--Elan wants to marry Haley? I'm not sure how that would help defeat Tarquin, though.

[Rakoa]

Roy says, "...it's better to find that sense of family among people who are good than it is to find a sense of good inside your family." Elan gets an idea which requires Durkon's help.

Shot in the dark here--Elan wants to marry Haley? I'm not sure how that would help defeat Tarquin, though.

Wouldn't that be great? Elan just wanted Durkon to be the priest guy for this wedding.

[Bravo]

Elan might not necessarily agree with what Roy said; his idea could be to do the exact opposite of what Roy just said (which would be par for the course with Elan). Maybe he has some idea on how to make Tarquin good, or appear good. If all Tarquin cares about is looking badass, Elan's idea could be to make it appear as if Tarquin was a good guy.

Alternatively, maybe he wanted Durkon to try some Burlew-homebrewed spell that allows Elan to talk to the ghost of his mother, so that Elan could ask her whether there's some hidden good in Tarquin that he can exploit? Y'know, in keeping with the whole Darth Vader theme that Tarquin has going. Is Elan's mother even dead? I'm not actually sure. If she's alive, then Elan probably had Durkon cast Sending to his mother.

[JackRose]

The narrative rules that Elan's trying to exploit with his unrevealed plan demand that it cannot fail at least until he springs it. Therefore, Durkon's death/rebirth cannot have ruined it. Presumably Durkon's part is already fulfilled, or is otherwise not impacted by his vampirism (I don't believe that Elan planned for Durkon to get vamped, but perhaps he just needs someone dwarf-sized in the vicinity to hop off the head of as part of a dramatic chandelier swinging sequence).

Or, Elan may have accidentally cast himself as the sneaky human crushed by the heroic troll.

[SowZ]

You know, I just got a really off-the-wall idea. What if Elan's secret plan is to become a Cleric of Banjo and start a "Spreading Cult/Holy Crusade" plot archetype, to shift the metagame from his father (and undermine his secret rule by establishing a second secret Empire). He needed Durkon's help to get that first level of Cleric somehow, but he's ready to set the plotline in motion when they return to civilization.

Come to think of it, if Elan wanted to he could probably use that 18+Cha to get a fair few people from the EoB peonage to follow Banjo. Maybe that will be the plot of one of the remaining books?

Banjo is just too silly to be used as a major plot point in one of the books at this point. He is still funny, and I expect a few more gags about him, but I would be pretty surprised by anything beyond a joke. Banjo's role on the Orc island is the most spotlight he will ever get, IMO. The comic is still mostly light-hearted, but it is probably serious enough nowadays to preclude an arc where Banjo plays a heavy role.

[NZNinja]

If she's alive, then Elan probably had Durkon cast Sending to his mother.

Oh no; not the dreaded 'Summon Ex-Wife'!

Actually, if Tarquin never divorced Elan's mother (because he doesn't seem the type for divorce, more divorcing his wives from the mortal coil), then I'm sure that our old friends Mr Jones and Mr Rodriguez could mount a legal campaign to seize all of Tarquin's accumulated wealth and magic items as a divorce settlement, as well as garnishing 99.9% of his future earnings for failure to pay a lifetime of child support.

It's silly enough to be an Elan plan, that's for sure; and only required a Sending from Durkon, so his recent flirtation with vampirism would not affect its success or failure.

----

EDIT: Actually, on second thought, Elan's plan would probably be more along the lines of getting his mother to the Empire of Blood so that the family could be reunited.
Although waaaaaay back in comic 50 (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0050.html) we saw part of the divorce proceedings (due to "irreconcilable alignment differences"), so naturally we assume the divorce was completed, although that doesn't mean that Tarquin wasn't still dodging child support payments.

:elan: Your story isn't "Tarquin: the legend" - it's "Tarquin: the dead-beat dad"!

[SowZ]

Oh no; not the dreaded 'Summon Ex-Wife'!

Actually, if Tarquin never divorced Elan's mother (because he doesn't seem the type for divorce, more divorcing his wives from the mortal coil), then I'm sure that our old friends Mr Jones and Mr Rodriguez could mount a legal campaign to seize all of Tarquin's accumulated wealth and magic items as a divorce settlement, as well as garnishing 99.9% of his future earnings for failure to pay a lifetime of child support.

It's silly enough to be an Elan plan, that's for sure; and only required a Sending from Durkon, so his recent flirtation with vampirism would not affect its success or failure.

----

EDIT: Actually, on second thought, Elan's plan would probably be more along the lines of getting his mother to the Empire of Blood so that the family could be reunited.
Although waaaaaay back in comic 50 (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0050.html) we saw part of the divorce proceedings (due to "irreconcilable alignment differences"), so naturally we assume the divorce was completed, although that doesn't mean that Tarquin wasn't still dodging child support payments.

:elan: Your story isn't "Tarquin: the legend" - it's "Tarquin: the dead-beat dad"!

Based on how cultures in OOTS treat gender, I doubt Tarquin would be required to make child support payments since both he and his wife had one child to take care of.

[NZNinja]

Based on how cultures in OOTS treat gender, I doubt Tarquin would be required to make child support payments since both he and his wife had one child to take care of.

I have no personal experience here, and it's probably a touchy subject for a lot of people in the real world, so perhaps it's not the sort of thing the Giant would use for a laugh. I would, in a heartbeat or less, because I find the idea of Elan's mother finagling everything Tarquin has built up out from under him through legal shenanigans hilarious.

But then, I'm not the Giant.

Heck, Elan's mother could just introduce herself to the Empress as Tarquin's ex-wife while Tarquin is off playing in the desert and by the time he gets back, the Empress could have a brand new chief adviser...

[Rig]

Elan might not necessarily agree with what Roy said; his idea could be to do the exact opposite of what Roy just said (which would be par for the course with Elan). Maybe he has some idea on how to make Tarquin good, or appear good. If all Tarquin cares about is looking badass, Elan's idea could be to make it appear as if Tarquin was a good guy.

Alternatively, maybe he wanted Durkon to try some Burlew-homebrewed spell that allows Elan to talk to the ghost of his mother, so that Elan could ask her whether there's some hidden good in Tarquin that he can exploit? Y'know, in keeping with the whole Darth Vader theme that Tarquin has going. Is Elan's mother even dead? I'm not actually sure. If she's alive, then Elan probably had Durkon cast Sending to his mother.

*Nudges, point's at Belkar's comment on unknown hero being more interesting plotline in latest strip, Elan's shock the first thing panned too, next strip showing a contemplative expression*.

[Ornemus]

When I first read this comic, I thought of a very simple idea about Elan's plan. I just cheked the rules, and it would be a little more complicated that I first thought, but still.

When Roy mention the idea to " find a sense of good inside your family", Elan got an idea which needs Durkon's Help. The question is : is there a Cleric Spell which can be related to Roy's previous phrase ?

Atonement. But the exact effect I first thought about is the one of a Helm of Opposite Alignment. You see ? A CG Tarquin clearly would be "sort of" defeating ! You can get such an effect with a simple Atonement, but it remains quite unsure... Well, it is an Elan's plan, isn't it ?

The problem is : it is no more possible with a vampiric Durkon. Notice that, unlike Malack, Durkon does not serve a god which will accept a vampire as a cleric. So he is probably no more able to cast a spell...

[Bravo]

Atonement. But the exact effect I first thought about is the one of a Helm of Opposite Alignment. You see ? A CG Tarquin clearly would be "sort of" defeating ! You can get such an effect with a simple Atonement, but it remains quite unsure... Well, it is an Elan's plan, isn't it ?

Aha, that's exactly the kind of thing I was thinking Elan would try; trying to genuinely redeem his father... or...

Perhaps Nale?

OR...

Perhaps change his OWN alignment so that he's no longer the "hero" required for his father's story?

I have no idea what exactly Elan is planning, but that spell is exactly the kind of lateral thinking I know he's gonna use.

[FlawedParadigm]

My concern is more that the plan has something to do with bringing Tarquin down, and now the only other person who knows about it in detail is working for Tarquin's best buddy at the moment. One little "tell us everything you know about your allies, omit nothing" and...

[Copperdragon]

Virtually all plans the Order ever had depended on Durkon. His death ruined them completely.

It's possible that the parts that relied on Durkon already were completed by him before Durkon left with Malack.

[The_Tentacle]

New theory: Elan was thirsty and wanted Durkon to create some water for him! They are in the desert after all.:smallbiggrin:

Seriously, though... whatever it is I suspect it will be fantastically effective and will hit Tarquin right in the narrative structure. And also something that nobody other than Elan would ever attempt.

You mean like the pickle death attack? Except effective?

[Shred-Bot]

You mean like the pickle death attack? Except effective?

Exactly! Something wacky like "Plane-shifting Tarquin to the semi-elemental plane of Ranch Dressing"... even if he slays both Prince Oozalot and the evil sauce dragon and rules over the Hidden Valley with an iron fist, he's not going to look very cool doing it.

(I doubt that will actually be the plan (Edit: especially as Durkon was the only member of the order that could cast plane shift), but definitely something approximating that level of weirdness.)

[Shred-Bot]

My concern is more that the plan has something to do with bringing Tarquin down, and now the only other person who knows about it in detail is working for Tarquin's best buddy at the moment. One little "tell us everything you know about your allies, omit nothing" and...

Well, judging by the face Durkon is making (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0837.html) he has no idea what is going on. And I don't think "Well, tha lad had me cast [spell X] but I dinnae what the daft fool be plannin'!" is going to sink Elan's scheme.

[Gift Jeraff]

My theory is that it somehow involves Nale:

-Roy mentioned the hole that a family member can leave behind. This reminded Elan of his brother for 2 reasons: a) he literally left a hole behind in Elan, and b) he figured that Nale was probably affected by losing his mother.

-Elan got a glimpse at all the hideously Evil food Nale ate while growing up, so he got Durkon to cast Create Food in order to conjure up something simple his mom used to make (a crustless peanut butter sandwich, going by the foreword to War and XPs), in an attempt to give Nale a literal taste of the Good life.

-This will somehow lead to answering the question of nature vs. nurture with regard to Elan & Nale's alignment which Rich said would be a spoiler (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=12242039&postcount=45).