Is it me, or is Nale smiling in the last panel of #910?

[The Pilgrim]

What the title says.

Abuse of "Ctrl++" against the last pannel seems to indicate that Nale looks like pleased to be marching along his Dad and his army.

However, the image must be enhanced to a level in which one more or less pixel actually makes a difference, so I'm not sure.

Not sure also about the implications of Nale being pleased with the turn of events, assuming he is.

[F.Harr]

He can stomp Durkula into the ground, for one. And I've wondered the same thing.

[Rakoa]

I can guarantee it is not you smiling in the last panel. Unless you're the guy who got the cameo.

[SamDerringer]

Had the same impression as well. As we cannot see Tarquin's face (nor his expression), we can only speculate what his reaction is going to be. Maybe he IS smiling. A big Smug Snake smile that says "oh, now the Order's gonna GET IT", only to be verbally trounced and humilliated by Tarquin.

Well, a couple of days till we find out.

[One Skunk Todd]

I can't tell if he's smiling but he's definitely still wounded. Not sure how quickly we'd expect him to be healed up in this situation though.

[Vinsfeld]

He must be relieved that he is safe, for now.

[Malistrae]

He must be relieved that he is safe, for now.

I agree with this. Without the drow, his chances of leaving the Windy Canyon alive were very low. Sabine could have possibly rescued him, but the Canyon is a pretty large place and you can't fly in the maze part. Nale would have dehydrated to death, probably. If the thirst wouldn't have killed him, the sun and his wounds probably would.

[rs2excelsior]

It looks like he is.

It also looks like none of Tarquin's soldiers have faces. That'll be disturbing when we see them up close.
:smallbiggrin:

[The Pilgrim]

It also looks like none of Tarquin's soldiers have faces. That'll be disturbing when we see them up close.
:smallbiggrin:

It's only fitting since they are faceless mooks, after all.

[Malistrae]

It looks like he is.

It also looks like none of Tarquin's soldiers have faces. That'll be disturbing when we see them up close.
:smallbiggrin:

Maybe they are really faceless. When an enemy sees them some sort of illusionary effect forces him/her to see the face of his/her loved ones. It would be quite disturbing and surprisingly effective for confusing and disorienting their opponents. Though I wouldn't bet on it.

[Porthos]

Unless you're the guy who got the cameo.

This is actually a great point, if sarcastically made.

I've been wondering occasionally just how the hell the cameo would be put into this book since there didn't appear to be anywhere they could come from.

But some soldier reporting to Tarquin? Or other person marching in along with the army? Yes, I can definitely see that now.

So thanks for that, even if that wasn't your intention. :smallwink:

[NerdyKris]

I agree with this. Without the drow, his chances of leaving the Windy Canyon alive were very low. Sabine could have possibly rescued him, but the Canyon is a pretty large place and you can't fly in the maze part. Nale would have dehydrated to death, probably. If the thirst wouldn't have killed him, the sun and his wounds probably would.

He hasn't cast many spells today. How many more Dimension Doors can he cast? Even with the short distance, it can get him out of the canyon fairly quickly, and it prevents that "walking in circles" thing that occurs when you don't have a point of reference.

[Malistrae]

He hasn't cast many spells today. How many more Dimension Doors can he cast? Even with the short distance, it can get him out of the canyon fairly quickly, and it prevents that "walking in circles" thing that occurs when you don't have a point of reference.

Yeah, but one Dimension Door transports you for 400 feet + 40 feet per level. Now, for Dim. Door he needs to be at least an 8th level sorcerer. Assuming that he is around the Order in levels, he can't have many more sorcerer ones due to his silly mutlticlassing. So his Dimension Door transports him for 720 feet at minimum. That's 219 meters (I am a continental European so I am going to use the standard decimal system from now on). How many times can he cast Dimension Door? If we assume that he has 8 levels of sorcerer, then he can cast it 3 times a day + his cha bonus. If we assume that his Cha is 18-19, then he can cast 1 extra 4th level spell. So he can cast Dim. Door 3 more times. That means that at his barest minimum he can use it to travel 657 meters. That would be probably enough to get out of the Canyon. But he is still stuck in a huge desert without provisions and a compass.

[Quild]

Looks to me like he's smiling. I can't help but notice that Tarquin didn't provided him a mount, though.

[pendell]

He looks to me as if he's smiling.

Respectfully,

Brian P.

[Domino Quartz]

I don't see how anyone could possibly tell whether he's smiling, since at this size and image resolution his mouth just looks like a straight line.

[Quorothorn]

His expression looks like a smile to me, too. Only time will tell if that's the case and/or if he is 'correct' to have such an expression.

[Gift Jeraff]

He's thinking of a funny joke he heard earlier. :nale:

[rs2excelsior]

Maybe they are really faceless. When an enemy sees them some sort of illusionary effect forces him/her to see the face of his/her loved ones. It would be quite disturbing and surprisingly effective for confusing and disorienting their opponents. Though I wouldn't bet on it.

That... That is actually a really good idea. And quite horrifying.

[Caex]

Yeah, I saw the same thing, but no one in the comic's thread seemed to take note. It might give some indication of how Tarquin's talk is going to go for Nale--though really it just means Nale thinks it is going to go well.


He's thinking of a funny joke he heard earlier. :nale:

What's black and white and red all over?

[Malistrae]

That... That is actually a really good idea. And quite horrifying.

Psychological warfare and terror tactics are my specialties, so I will take that as a compliment. Though, if the soldiers are not some specifically bred creatures who can naturally manifest the effect, it would probably take too much time and money to give them that power.
Can we transform still-functioning organic things (like faces) into magical items? I distinctly remember a rod from the Book of Vile Darkness that was made of tongues. It conferred shapechanging powers on the user. Perhaps we can graft the tongues of slaves into a soldier's face and then enchant them to have the same effect as the rod. Then we have to figure out how to make it automatic and tied to the onlookers' mind. And voilá, we have soldiers with faces polymorphing into their enemies' loved ones.

[Gift Jeraff]

What's black and white and red all over?

:thog: vampire-snakey with evil robes on fire.

[Caex]

:thog: vampire-snakey with evil robes on fire.

Correct! You win a puppy.

[Quorothorn]

Maybe they are really faceless. When an enemy sees them some sort of illusionary effect forces him/her to see the face of his/her loved ones. It would be quite disturbing and surprisingly effective for confusing and disorienting their opponents. Though I wouldn't bet on it.

I think Kytons (and Narzugons to a much lesser degree) have an ability like that, in fact. Technically there's D&D precedent, therefore. :smallwink:

[The Pilgrim]

Well, so since I'm not alone in the feeling, and looks like Nale feels confident after clashing with his father - who, as a matter of fact, probably chose to teleport straight into his nose...

Then, let's speculate why Nale feels reassured.

So, maybe he is thinking....

:nale: "That old fool is still willing to work with me, even trough I've killed Malack. And we have got back the strenght to bone the OOTS. I'll figure out how to backstab Dad later - in fact, I already have a plan in motion. That stupid vampire dwarf derrailed my plans, but the waters are flowing back to their natural course."

I'm looking forwad to what Tarquin has to tell him.

[Paseo H]

Here's what I think.

Tarquin's not mad at all, he's serious. Deadly, super serious.

He may well even be pleased with Nale's accomplishment, but guess what...Tarquin's reward might still be hell for Nale.

What if, having defeated Malack, Nale must now step into his position and take on his dire responsibilities in Team Tarquin? As opposed to not having as much expected of him before? Nale would not want that, I assure you.

[veti]

I think he's relieved. First, now he's got a decent chance of not dying of thirst in the immediate future; second, Tarquin hasn't killed him on sight; third, now he doesn't have to worry about being heavily outnumbered by Durkon. He's counting his blessings.

Remember, he's also an (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0046.html) incurable (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0399.html) optimist (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0793.html). I'm sure he's now 100% confident he can use his winning charisma and maxed-out Bluff skill to pull the wool over his dad's eyes.

[DaggerPen]

Yeah, but one Dimension Door transports you for 400 feet + 40 feet per level. Now, for Dim. Door he needs to be at least an 8th level sorcerer. Assuming that he is around the Order in levels, he can't have many more sorcerer ones due to his silly mutlticlassing. So his Dimension Door transports him for 720 feet at minimum. That's 219 meters (I am a continental European so I am going to use the standard decimal system from now on). How many times can he cast Dimension Door? If we assume that he has 8 levels of sorcerer, then he can cast it 3 times a day + his cha bonus. If we assume that his Cha is 18-19, then he can cast 1 extra 4th level spell. So he can cast Dim. Door 3 more times. That means that at his barest minimum he can use it to travel 657 meters. That would be probably enough to get out of the Canyon. But he is still stuck in a huge desert without provisions and a compass.

... you know, I was going to say that Nale and Elan should have identical charisma, because as twins they have identical stats except for Int, but it turns out that Giant did not confirm that their charisma is the same (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?p=821955#post821955). Still, given Nale's inexplicable ability to recruit henchmen and his sorcerer skills, he probably still has good charisma.

[SowZ]

I can guarantee it is not you smiling in the last panel. Unless you're the guy who got the cameo.

This made me laugh.

Also, it looks like the left, (his right,) side of the face is curved up a bit in a smile.

[Lombard]

Yeah, but one Dimension Door transports you for 400 feet + 40 feet per level. Now, for Dim. Door he needs to be at least an 8th level sorcerer. Assuming that he is around the Order in levels, he can't have many more sorcerer ones due to his silly mutlticlassing. So his Dimension Door transports him for 720 feet at minimum. That's 219 meters (I am a continental European so I am going to use the standard decimal system from now on). How many times can he cast Dimension Door? If we assume that he has 8 levels of sorcerer, then he can cast it 3 times a day + his cha bonus. If we assume that his Cha is 18-19, then he can cast 1 extra 4th level spell. So he can cast Dim. Door 3 more times. That means that at his barest minimum he can use it to travel 657 meters. That would be probably enough to get out of the Canyon. But he is still stuck in a huge desert without provisions and a compass.

He might have provisions in the same place he had his potion of protection from negative energy. ;)

Anyways if I was Nale my most important calculation would have been "how many more hours til Sabine gets back so she can fly us out of here."

[Morquard]

Anyways if I was Nale my most important calculation would have been "how many more hours til Sabine gets back so she can fly us out of here."
And the answer to that is "Much too long if the Order starts searching for me. Of that crazy vampire cleric."

They aren't doing that, from the looks of it, they're simply aware he's around and on the lookout. But Nale doesn't know that.

[Malistrae]

... you know, I was going to say that Nale and Elan should have identical charisma, because as twins they have identical stats except for Int, but it turns out that Giant did not confirm that their charisma is the same (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?p=821955#post821955). Still, given Nale's inexplicable ability to recruit henchmen and his sorcerer skills, he probably still has good charisma.

I gave him 18-19 Cha because a higher one seems unlikely to me. We know that his physical stats are the same as Elan's but Nale evidently put a lot more points into Int than Elan. Their Wis seem rather equal, so I think Nale has slightly less Cha than Elan, to compensate for his increased Int. Or he uses Wis as his dump stat.

And the answer to that is "Much too long if the Order starts searching for me. Of that crazy vampire cleric."

They aren't doing that, from the looks of it, they're simply aware he's around and on the lookout. But Nale doesn't know that.
Judging by his rather panicked state, I guess he would have tried to run away from the Rift asap. Which is not a really bright idea since Sabine has no "Locate Nale" ability, so her only point of reference would be the location of the rift. Although Nale might possess some scrolls of Sending which would help him get in touch with Sabine after she comes back to the Material Plane.

[Ron Miel]

But he is still stuck in a huge desert without provisions and a compass.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't there a simple spell to create food and water that every magic user knows?

[SavageWombat]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't there a simple spell to create food and water that every magic user knows?

Nope, that's a simple spell that every 5th level and higher cleric knows. Arcane casters like Nale are S.O.L.

[Kish]

Wizards like Nale are particularly S.O.L due to being wizards who don't actually have any wizard levels.

[Rakoa]

Damn it, Kish beat me to a sarcastic response about Wizards.

[F.Harr]

Yeah, but one Dimension Door transports you for 400 feet + 40 feet per level. Now, for Dim. Door he needs to be at least an 8th level sorcerer. Assuming that he is around the Order in levels, he can't have many more sorcerer ones due to his silly mutlticlassing. So his Dimension Door transports him for 720 feet at minimum. That's 219 meters (I am a continental European so I am going to use the standard decimal system from now on). How many times can he cast Dimension Door? If we assume that he has 8 levels of sorcerer, then he can cast it 3 times a day + his cha bonus. If we assume that his Cha is 18-19, then he can cast 1 extra 4th level spell. So he can cast Dim. Door 3 more times. That means that at his barest minimum he can use it to travel 657 meters. That would be probably enough to get out of the Canyon. But he is still stuck in a huge desert without provisions and a compass.

That's 2,160 ft., fellow non-metic folks. 2,880 for all four castings.

[hopeful1212]

Yeah, but one Dimension Door transports you for 400 feet + 40 feet per level. Now, for Dim. Door he needs to be at least an 8th level sorcerer. Assuming that he is around the Order in levels, he can't have many more sorcerer ones due to his silly mutlticlassing. So his Dimension Door transports him for 720 feet at minimum. That's 219 meters (I am a continental European so I am going to use the standard decimal system from now on). How many times can he cast Dimension Door? If we assume that he has 8 levels of sorcerer, then he can cast it 3 times a day + his cha bonus. If we assume that his Cha is 18-19, then he can cast 1 extra 4th level spell. So he can cast Dim. Door 3 more times. That means that at his barest minimum he can use it to travel 657 meters. That would be probably enough to get out of the Canyon. But he is still stuck in a huge desert without provisions and a compass.

Maybe I'm missing something, but It looks to me like Nale has already cast Dimension Door twice today. #1 (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0862.html) #2 (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0908.html)

[skim172]

I'm gonna take another tack on this and say maybe Rich Burlew used a smiling Nale initially and minimized it, and he didn't think anyone would zoom in close enough to tell. Same with the faceless grunts. :smallsmile:

[Warren Dew]

It looks to me like he might be smiling, but this might just be due to the proximity of his goatee plus psychological or antialiasing artifacts.

Either way, a blowup of that panel would make a great poster.

[The Pilgrim]

I'm gonna take another tack on this and say maybe Rich Burlew used a smiling Nale initially and minimized it, and he didn't think anyone would zoom in close enough to tell. Same with the faceless grunts. :smallsmile:

That would explain the line of headless grunts. Just at the Gate line.

[Malistrae]

Maybe I'm missing something, but It looks to me like Nale has already cast Dimension Door twice today. #1 (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0862.html) #2 (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0908.html)

You are right, probably not enough time passed since then for him to refresh his slots. Which means he can only cast Dim. Door 2 more times. Which means that it is possible that he couldn't even get out of the Canyon with Dim. Door.

On an unrelated note, he is not a wizard, folks. He is a sorcerer/fighter/rogue and don't you dare forget it:smallwink:! Though he has probably enough Int to be a Wizard. And he would be more far more effective and powerful as a pure wizard (like V or Z) or even sorcerer (like Xykon), than this multi-class mess.
On an even more unrelated note, a thought struck me: do we even have non-evil sorcerers in the comic? The three I can remember (Xykon, Samantha and Nale) are all evil.

[Kish]

On an even more unrelated note, a thought struck me: do we even have non-evil sorcerers in the comic?
Celia.

Girard was probably not evil, considering Soon adventured with him and didn't fall.

[Gift Jeraff]

Jenny the bard/rogue/sorcerer was confirmed to be Chaotic Neutral.

[Malistrae]

Celia.

Girard was probably not evil, considering Soon adventured with him and didn't fall.

Ah yes, Celia. I almost forgot about her since I can't remember any strip explicitly mentioning her class, but her usage of magic implies she is a spontaneous arcane caster, ergo a sorcerer.
Do we certainly know Girard's class? He could have been a wizard but his flamboyant appearance and draconic ancestry points to a sorcerer.

[Bulldog Psion]

Sure looks like a smile to me.

[Kish]

Ah yes, Celia. I almost forgot about her since I can't remember any strip explicitly mentioning her class, but her usage of magic implies she is a spontaneous arcane caster, ergo a sorcerer.
Do we certainly know Girard's class? He could have been a wizard but his flamboyant appearance and draconic ancestry points to a sorcerer.
Celia said that she's a sorcerer (in the strip where she's posing as an evil necromancer to get past the hobgoblins), and Rich said Girard's a sorcerer, aside from his two-level ranger dip (check the Index of the Giant's Comments).

[137beth]

I gave him 18-19 Cha because a higher one seems unlikely to me. We know that his physical stats are the same as Elan's but Nale evidently put a lot more points into Int than Elan. Their Wis seem rather equal, so I think Nale has slightly less Cha than Elan, to compensate for his increased Int. Or he uses Wis as his dump stat.

Judging by his rather panicked state, I guess he would have tried to run away from the Rift asap. Which is not a really bright idea since Sabine has no "Locate Nale" ability, so her only point of reference would be the location of the rift. Although Nale might possess some scrolls of Sending which would help him get in touch with Sabine after she comes back to the Material Plane.

Sabine can probably scry on him from her home using her master's wide screen hell-damned crystal ball.

[Quild]

Quite sure Nale isn't smiling this time :D.
This may be for several reasons but I am quite surprised that he hasn't be given (is that correct English? :smallconfused: ) any healing potion.

[Domino Quartz]

Quite sure Nale isn't smiling this time :D.
This may be for several reasons but I am quite surprised that he hasn't be given (is that correct English? :smallconfused: ) any healing potion.

That's almost correct English. It should be "he hasn't been given any healing potion." Everything else is perfectly fine.

[F.Harr]

That's almost correct English. It should be "he hasn't been given any healing potion." Everything else is perfectly fine.

Rather, "He hasn't been given A healing potion".

Sorry for the nit-pick.

[Goosefeather]

Rather, "He hasn't been given A healing potion".

Sorry for the nit-pick.

Nit-pick to the nit-pick - 'any' is fine if you treat 'potion' as a non-count noun, like 'water'. "He hasn't been given any water", "he hasn't been given any healing potion". :smalltongue:

[warrl]

Why would Nale be smiling? Well, he has probably noticed that Tarquin prefers that violence occur at some distance from himself. Which is (a) pretty smart in general and (b) particularly appropriate for a general or ruler.

And this includes violence on Tarquin's orders.

Up close and person, Tarquin tends to be a gracious host.

On top of which, Tarquin seems to be rather tolerant of his sons' failures, foibles, and general contrariness.

So as long as Nale is close to Tarquin, and there is someone else around (like, say, an army) to engage in any necessary violence, Nale is probably not subject to immediate threat, and also probably will have access to necessary provisions at the earliest reasonable opportunity.

[The Pilgrim]

Well, he sure is not smiling anymore.

Looks like he is very frustrated right now. I guess either Tarquin has already told him what's going to happen, or he just depises the idea of a family reunion with Elan.

[Quild]

My guess is also that Tarquin's speech wasn't to his taste. Maybe they will have to work together as suggested somewhere else.


That's almost correct English. It should be "he hasn't been given any healing potion." Everything else is perfectly fine.

Crap, that was my first guess but it somehow sounded weird to me, thanks!

And I used "any" because he may need more than one potion.

[Holammer]

If he smiles, I wouldn't read into it too much. Rich might have simply used a walking Nale prefab and scaled it down. Figured details won't be necessary and left it at that.

Nale's head is only 9 pixels across. With such limited detail, this is close to pareidolia territory. :smallwink:

[Silva Stormrage]

Jenny the bard/rogue/sorcerer was confirmed to be Chaotic Neutral.

Wait when was this :smallconfused: I don't remember her ever getting an actual alignment.

[Goosefeather]

Wait when was this :smallconfused: I don't remember her ever getting an actual alignment.

Word of Giant. I don't have the quote on me right now, but you should be able to find it in the thread called 'The Index of the Giant's Comments'.

[Silva Stormrage]

Word of Giant. I don't have the quote on me right now, but you should be able to find it in the thread called 'The Index of the Giant's Comments'.

Ah got it, thank you for that.

[F.Harr]

Nit-pick to the nit-pick - 'any' is fine if you treat 'potion' as a non-count noun, like 'water'. "He hasn't been given any water", "he hasn't been given any healing potion". :smalltongue:

Ha! Point, but, counterpoint, in D&D, Net Hack and Slash'em, potions are all count nouns. You can't drink SOME of a potion because that makes for extra book-keeping. But I like how your think.

[rs2excelsior]

"Any" also works if you make "potion" plural: "He hasn't drunk any healing potions" works fine, because it makes a potion a countable thing.