Elan's plan is going to fail.

[NIXslayer]

I've seldom seen loose ends like this never being tied. Ian and Elan's plan WILL come back. And when it does, it's going to fail. I don't know how; Tarquin might be so savvy he prepared for an anti-showmanship plan. But it will fail, and when it does, Ian will never trust Elan again, assuming Ian lives through the ordeal.

[Porthos]

Tarquin might be so savvy he prepared

Wasn't one of the points of the last 30+ strips or so is that Tarquin isn't as Crazy Prepared or as Genre Savvy as some people believed? :smallconfused:

[137beth]

Tarquin might be so savvy he prepared for an anti-showmanship plan.

What gives you the idea that Tarquin is savvy:smallconfused:?
EDIT: swordsaged.

[Gift Jeraff]

I don't see the plan failing so much as being a red herring, unless the plan accounts for Tarquin continuing to pursue the OOTS (after convincing his teammates that the Gate is worth it).

[Warren Dew]

Wasn't one of the points of the last 30+ strips or so is that Tarquin isn't as Crazy Prepared or as Genre Savvy as some people believed? :smallconfused:
I think it's more likely Elan's plan will succeed. That way Elan will have defeated his father, and Tarquin will have his satisfying ending after all.

[Rodin]

I think it's most likely that we won't find out.

Elan leaving his father in charge to do what he wants is a major loose thread which pretty much says "he must come back after Xykon falls to deal with this".

Now, there is a group of mid-to-high level adventurers who are interested in dealing with Xykon now. Plans are afoot, and Elan has fulfilled his narrative requirement by constructing the plan. Elan will be fully focused on Xykon now, instead of worrying over what is father is up to.

And so, Tarquin will be defeated...offscreen. Or not. We'll never know. And that's the worst humiliation Tarquin could suffer.

[Forikroder]

maybe laurins favour will unknowningly make the plan fail


And so, Tarquin will be defeated...offscreen. Or not. We'll never know. And that's the worst humiliation Tarquin could suffer.

except the bards will still tell the story of Amun Zora who was betrayed and had her country reduced to ash only to manage to rise up and strike down the dictator responsible

not as good the story as he was hoping for definently but he still lived a good life

[Tiiba]

Wasn't one of the points of the last 30+ strips or so is that Tarquin isn't as Crazy Prepared or as Genre Savvy as some people believed? :smallconfused:

He IS prepared, he just has a few idées-fixes that blind him.

So now that he's been shown at his weakest, perhaps it's time to show once again how he has stayed in the game this long.

[Finagle]

It means two things:

1) Elan & Company don't have to come back to the Empire of Blood to finish the plot there.

2) Tarquin won't be defeated by Elan, thus denying him his epic ending.

[Ramien]

Of course it will work. Elan made sure to have the existence of the plan known, but all the details are in writing that someone as paranoid as Ian would never let slip to the audience, allowing the plan to unfold as dramatically necessary.

[ThePhantasm]

Of course it will work. Elan made sure to have the existence of the plan known, but all the details are in writing that someone as paranoid as Ian would never let slip to the audience, allowing the plan to unfold as dramatically necessary.

This, exactly. Just like Elan's previous plan, involving Julio's rescue.

[Forikroder]

This, exactly. Just like Elan's previous plan, involving Julio's rescue.

i dont know if that really counts as a plan though all he did was call for reinforcements

[Ridureyu]

It counts as a plan.

[Weiser_Cain]

Elan's plan may fail in a way that keeps Tarkin busy and off balance until the team can come back and finish him off.

Then Roy will rule until he dies again and Durkon will take over in a reversal of Tarkin's plan.

[The Kind Knido]

What if Elan's plan failing means Tarquin getting killed?

[Copperdragon]

I've seldom seen loose ends like this never being tied. Ian and Elan's plan WILL come back. And when it does, it's going to fail. I don't know how; Tarquin might be so savvy he prepared for an anti-showmanship plan. But it will fail, and when it does, Ian will never trust Elan again, assuming Ian lives through the ordeal.

I think one of the big points of this arc is that Tarquin is not a main villain and what Elan does here is letting go. Another big point is that the story told here does not revolve around the assumptions Tarquin has made about stories.

There's no reason to assume a) the Tarquin story has to wrap up and b) that if it does, it must be Elan who does it.
If we learn in the Epilogue after Xykon is dead that Ian has overthrown and killed Tarquin that would be a valid conclusion for the story "Elan and his Father".

[Jay R]

Wasn't one of the points of the last 30+ strips or so is that Tarquin isn't as Crazy Prepared or as Genre Savvy as some people believed? :smallconfused:

Not quite. He is extremely Genre Savvy. He is correct about what happens to the Great Hero; he is correct about what happens to the Great Villain. That's understanding the genre.

He is simply mistaken about a couple of facts. He believes that he, not Xykon, is the Great Villain. Therefore he assumes that Elan, not Roy, is the Great Hero. Those are simple items of fact.

So his excellent genre savviness is leading him astray, like using a correct map of Texas to try to find your way through India.

[nmphuong91]

Not quite. He is extremely Genre Savvy. He is correct about what happens to the Great Hero; he is correct about what happens to the Great Villain. That's understanding the genre.

He is simply mistaken about a couple of facts. He believes that he, not Xykon, is the Great Villain. Therefore he assumes that Elan, not Roy, is the Great Hero. Those are simple items of fact.

So his excellent genre savviness is leading him astray, like using a correct map of Texas to try to find your way through India.
No, that's not genre savvy. Know the genre is not enough at all, but your role and plot development as well.
Example 1: This is genre savvy (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0556.html)
Example 2: While knowing that you're in a horror genre film, yet believe that you're the hero and then get killed by some random ghost...is not savvy at all, which is Tarquin's current state.
Most evidently in the last few strip, while Elan correctly predict that Julio will aid them, turn the battle in the Order's favor while Tarquin admit that he can't grasp the story.
Conclusion: I agree that Tarquin just know the genre, but not Genre Savvy enough.

[hamishspence]

Wrong Genre Savvy is when a character misidentifies the story, or at least their role in it:

http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/WrongGenreSavvy


"A character who tries casting himself as the Brave Peasant Lad Who Outwits The Troll may find that he is actually one of the Twenty Poor Peasants Eaten Before The Knight Comes Along. Or even the Devious Little Human Squashed By The Troll Hero. (Troll fairy-stories are not very subtle.)"

— GURPS Discworld, on the dangers of playing with the Theory of Narrative Causality

Even Elan has succumbed to it on occasion:

http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0590.html

[Greatmoustache]

god i love this comic

[Yendor]

One of the key things here is that this group will have no compunctions about killing Tarquin when the time comes. This is something that Elan, even now, is unwilling to do.


Wrong Genre Savvy is when a character misidentifies the story, or at least their role in it:

And Tarquin has, without even realising it, written himself into a completely different story to the one he thinks he's in. He's the treacherous general being pursued by Amun-Zora's ragtag bunch, who have all been wronged by him, so she can avenge her husband and free her people.