Let us all hail the Recent Arc

[Gorm_the_DBA]

Gate 4's story arc, Strips 673-946, 8/31/2009 - 2/18/2014.

1632 Days, 273 strips, 5ish weeks of in-comic time.

Amazing Development of characters
Shocking Twists
The Most Successful Kickstarter in it's Category (at the time, at least)
One bada** dinosaur
More montages than you can throw a stick at
One gruesome plot twist

And an Epic Cliffhanger...

We race to Gate 5 now, with at least 3 prophecies still in play...

WTB Time machine to get to 3/31/2014 NOW PLEASE thank you!

[AstralFire]

This arc was definitely the best one in this comic's history. It shows in the energy of the writing that so many elements (Durkon, Elan, Ian) were planned from the word "go" -- in comparison, the entire comic prior feels like a bit of a meandering prologue to where the "meat" of the plot finally hit just now. Hayley, Belkar and Vaarsuvius became considerably more interesting characters. OotS is on the very short list of comics I actively recommend because of this arc.

[Porthos]

The Most Successful Kickstarter in it's Category (at the time, at least)

And still is. :smallcool:

[Jaxzan Proditor]

I think that, out of all the books, this one has been my favorite. Congratulations to the Giant!

[Ghost Nappa]

I'm sorry. I couldn't help myself. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qKggnBh2Mdw)


Edit: The reason Durkon put down his hammer, was because he picked up an axe.

*imagines "Count Durkula" as Eddie in Brutal Legend*

[Gift Jeraff]

Meh. The third book was better.

[Koo Rehtorb]

If there's never another Elan focused arc it'll be too soon.

[ti'esar]

I don't know where I'd put it comparatively, but this was a great arc.


One gruesome plot twist

One?!?

[Raphite1]

Easily my favorite so far. Intense and moving, and great storytelling all around. Amazing art upgrades, too.

Thanks, Giant!

[Ellye]

And I must confess that I wasn't enjoying it at the beginning. Shame on me, it turned out fantastic.

So many great moments this arc. My favorite one probably goes to:

:belkar: : "It's the only thing I'm good at."

And my second favorite is probably when we finally got some insight on why Nale is such an egomaniac, and his character suddenly made so much sense.

[Passer-by]

Meh. The third book was better.

I know you're not being serious, but I'd say the third book was the second best. The fourth was kind of slow and I got mad at most characters all the time for their stupid decisions. Yeah, this can happen. For example, when Celia loses Roy's body. Not even that book's awesome ending (from the moment Belkar gets back in the game) can make up for that awful scene.

This last arc is so good I can't believe how good it is. And it took so long it doesn't make sense.

[HendoJ]

And I must confess that I wasn't enjoying it at the beginning. Shame on me, it turned out fantastic.


Indeed, shame on you! I'll say this; I reserve judgement until I read the book. I would originally say that book 3 would be my favorite. Having spent some time with the books, I find numbers two and four to be stronger.

I'm enjoying it all, my only knock on five is that it feels more "middle chapter" than the others. Which I don't understand myself; because it's a great read.:smalleek:

[Karoht]

So many questions.
It really feels like everything up until this point has been just the tip of the iceberg. We had so much exposition... and it still feels like we have SO far to go.

[Knight.Anon]

I like the strip and how well thought out it is. A lot of strips would have imploded by the time they've reached this point.

[Mrc.]

Indeed. This book has some amazing moments, and probably the best callback joke in the Oots history. It doesn't quite hold the accolade for best strip, #449 (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0449.html) for me, but it has some interesting characters, surprising deaths and is the best all-round in my opinion. Good job, Giant!

[nogall]

it's a great arc and book, but I have to say the thing I'm most anticipating is the Giant's comments and bonus material. Specially the comments, as they are a very honest (and funny) behind-the-scenes view to his reasoning and work process. I think he'll probably address lots of issues that were widely obsessively discussed in the forums...

[pita]

Tarquin is one of my favorite villains. I have to say that, in general, my favorite plot elements in OotS so far have been (In order of best to really good):
1. Darth Vaarsuvius (and the repercussions)
2. Tarquin
3. Belkar's transformation/dream sequence
4. The Xykon/Redcloak interaction post-book 1 (I don't think the Giant had it in mind during book 1 - Redcloak is way too flippant then. I think it was developed during book 2 and finalized in SOD)
5. The end of Tsukiko.
6. The rest of the comic.
What's happening with Durkon is awesome except I never really had much of an opinion re: the character. Vaarsuvius's character development in this book continues from the amazing book 4 twist.
This was really Elan's book, from beginning to end. Nothing surprising or intelligent about this statement.
In order of how good the respective books are:
1. Book 4 had great amounts of character development. I'm a sucker for character development. Even if relatively little happened, it was a book chock-full of character moments that were incredibly important.
2. Book 5 was just amazing, moving the plot from book 4 onward in a way that lived up fully to what preceded it. It had a great villain, while never forgetting about the main plot, and spreaded the awesome around quite a bit.
3. Book -1 is one of the best tragic villain origins I've ever read. I think that Start of Darkness was really the moment Order of the Stick transcended the original concept of "Stick figures in a Dungeons & Dragons game make fun of the rules".
4. Book 3 was most excellent, but there's actually not that much of it that I find exceptionally memorable... Definitely not to the degrees of the aforementioned three.
5. Book 2 was very good, definitely a step up from the humble beginnings. Nothing special to mention here, except that it's ridiculously quotable in game sessions with true nerds.
6. Book 1 is the beginning. It's the weakest book writing-wise, art-wise, and pretty much everything-wise. If I started reading OotS today, I'd have to have some real encouragement to continue. Not that it isn't good, but it isn't anywhere near the level of the rest.
7. Book 0 is problematic. It's a little better than book 1, but my own subjective reading experience wasn't as positive. I started reading it after a lot of what went on in it had been revealed in the main comic, and in a somewhat funny twist, nothing new has been revealed in the main comic since then that originated from book 0. The only really relevant unrevealed bit of info got a good twist from Durkon's fate in the current book.
TLDR version: Awesome job Giant, can't wait until books 6,7,8, and 9.

[Gift Jeraff]

For me it's

1. War and XPs
2. Start of Darkness
3. Don't Split the Party / Blood Runs in the Family
5. Snips, Snails, and Dragon Tales
6. Dungeon Crawlin' Fools
7. On the Origin of PCs / No Cure for the Paladin Blues

[AutomatedTeller]

Gate 4's story arc, Strips 673-946, 8/31/2009 - 2/18/2014.

1632 Days, 273 strips, 5ish weeks of in-comic time.

Amazing Development of characters
Shocking Twists
The Most Successful Kickstarter in it's Category (at the time, at least)
One bada** dinosaur
More montages than you can throw a stick at
One gruesome plot twist

And an Epic Cliffhanger...

We race to Gate 5 now, with at least 3 prophecies still in play...

WTB Time machine to get to 3/31/2014 NOW PLEASE thank you!

To say nothing of the 500 stanza epic poem honoring Bold Sir Thumb!!

[Mike Havran]

For me, hands down the best arc so far. The desert palette; Tarquin's introduction; sand and sun; dinosaurs; Durkon's magnificent fight with Malack; Tarquin's buddies from the Legion; Z'zdtri's return; pyramid; speciesist Elf gets his just desserts; Tarquin's speech to Elan; Girard's trolling; Tarquin on a triceratops; dreamworld illusions; Snarl's appearance; Tarquin kills Nale; lizardfolk prostitutes; Belkar matures a little bit; Redcloak feeds Tsukiko to her own Wights; The Flying Empress; Tarquin falls from Mechane; Gannji and Enor...

And Tarquin. He rules :smallcool:

[Deepbluediver]

Honestly, I was feeling much better about this arc right up until the final post. I was thinking "thank god we're FINALLY resolving some of these dangling plot threads, the characters are maturing slightly, and everything isn't looking completely terrible".

Then it was "nope, we need to keep the Order's 'murderous backstabber' quotient filled and since V and Belkar are off the hook looks like Durkon needs to step up to the plate". I have faith in the Giant to handle it well in the end, but right now it's kind of undone all the warm fuzzy feelings I had. What's so wrong with getting a happy ending occasionally? Or at least a happy intermission.

[Porthos]

What's so wrong with getting a happy ending occasionally? Or at least a happy intermission.

You got one at the end of Don't Split the Party. :smallwink:

[hamishspence]

The Order at least, seemed fairly happy, at the end of DCF - even if there was an ominous hint of Miko.

[pita]

Just reread one of the great reasons Tarquin is such a great villain:
"A father can't be too careful. He is my only son, you know."
"Starting two minutes ago!"
"Right, which is why I need to be more careful going forward. Try to keep up."
He's as callous as Xykon and as connected to reality as Elan. Such a delightful villain.

[Heksefatter]

I enjoyed the arch very much, so a thumbs up from here.

[zimmerwald1915]

You got one at the end of Don't Split the Party. :smallwink:
That was a happy ending? I'd hate to see what you think an emotionally ambivalent ending looks like.

[Vinsfeld]

I'm gonna miss Nale :(

[rs2excelsior]

This is the first book I've read as the comics came up. I've spent the last couple of years on the edge of my seat. While I think the fight for Azure City was still my favorite part of the story, but this... this arc was full of excellent moments, excellent dialogue and character development, and excellent scenes and art.

I doff my hat to you, Giant!

[Porthos]

That was a happy ending? I'd hate to see what you think an emotionally ambivalent ending looks like.

The events leading upto it were crap, but the last few pages themselves?

Roy's returned to the world of the living.
The band is back together.
V and Durkon patch things up.
Roy and Elan have a nice boding moment. <ETA: As I remeber, I think that was Book Only, but it still counts :smalltongue:>
V makes amends with Blackwing.
V starts his long long path of introspection.
O-Chul gets saved from the clutches of Xykon.
The Elven liberation force is put into position in Azure City.
And, finally, Team OotS is finally progressing to the Main Goal* after about 200 strips of spinning their wheels.

Pretty positive end to a fairly dark night.

Fairly happy ending for this comic, at least. No invading army on the march. No what we think to be an assassin sent to kill them. No forces of darkness waiting in the wings. About the only thing we really know about is the IFCC hinting that they are about to sic the Linear Guild on Team OotS.

Don't know about you, but that didn't exactly fill me with dread. :smalltongue:

And, oh yes, a huge WTF moment as the book ended. But not exactly emotionally ambivalent. More a head scratching moment to top all head scratching moments.

I'd compare it to the sun rising after a dark dark night.

* NOTE: I am well aware that the point of the comic is the trials and tribulations of The Order of the Stick and that the Gate Quest is a glorified McGuffin ('journey not the destination' and all that). Still feels good to see progress. :smalltongue:

====

IMO, there's a reason why the next 60 to 70 someodd strips were fairly light. It was to get past that rather dark chapter in the comic. In fact, if I recall correctly there was a lot of griping in the forums about the shift in tone post DStP. People were expecting ALL ANGST ALL THE TIME.

They really didn't get it again until we hit the pyramid. :smalltongue:

So, yes, I do rather think that the end to DStP was a happy ending. And an intentional tonal shift.

[Timix]

One of my favorite moments in this arc was "THIS IS A TERRIBLE ENDING!"

[Blisstake]

Woah, that was seriously 4 and a half years? Man, I forgot how long this webcomic has been around.

[uncool]

One bada** dinosaur
Just (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0925.html) one (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0926.html)?

[Porthos]

Woah, that was seriously 4 and a half years? Man, I forgot how long this webcomic has been around.

Just a hair under 30% of the comic so far as well. It's been a looooooooo-

-ooooooong ride.

[goodyarn]

Hail Arc! I was amazed time and again. How deep the story got, how irresistible its impact.

Favorite scenes: V's remorse, Durkon's last moments alive, Belkar and his dinosaur mount, and (yes, dammit!) the death of Nale.

Bravo.

[Living Oxymoron]

I'm gonna miss Nale :(

I have this feeling that we will see him again soon. Looks like there are some unresolved things concerning his alignment and his destiny in the world of the dead. Where the Hell was he (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0918.html), if he's allegedly a Lawful Evil character (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0057.html)?

[Heksefatter]

I have this feeling that we will see him again soon. Looks like there are some unresolved things concerning his alignment and his destiny in the world of the dead. Where the Hell was he (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0918.html), if he's allegedly a Lawful Evil character (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0057.html)?

That's my feeling too. I think we'll learn more about him through Sabine's efforts to find him.

[Chantelune]

I have this feeling that we will see him again soon. Looks like there are some unresolved things concerning his alignment and his destiny in the world of the dead. Where the Hell was he (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0918.html), if he's allegedly a Lawful Evil character (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0057.html)?

Burried under the neverending piling up of dead mooks ? That we can't see Nale doesn't mean he's not there.

Plus, that was a gag, I wouldn't read too much on it (though I'm well aware this is among this forum's specialities).

On to the topic now :

I enjoyed that arc for the most part. The Vector Legion was fun in their own way, a lot of things happened, hinting that Belkar might be turned into a vampire and thus subverting his prophecy but then "Nope, it's Durkon ! Gotcha !" was a masterstroke, Nale got finally killed and so on. Oh, and yeah, Hel got her very own High-Priest !

A few things lowered my enthusiasm, though. Mostly that it was too Elan-centric for my taste and yet another run-in with the LG, though how it ended for them made up for it.

I'm looking forward to the next arc, though. All in all, that was a really good arc. And the Snarl making an appearance. That was one of those badass "s**t got real !" moment. :smallcool:

[goodyarn]

Where the Hell was he, if he's allegedly a Lawful Evil character (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0057.html)?

Who said Nale was Lawful Evil? I thought that was the whole conflict between Nale and Tarquin: Tarquin wanted Nale to appreciate the importance of procedure, "the proper way of doing things," order...law. And Nale refused to toe that line.

[Rodin]

Who said Nale was Lawful Evil? I thought that was the whole conflict between Nale and Tarquin: Tarquin wanted Nale to appreciate the importance of procedure, "the proper way of doing things," order...law. And Nale refused to toe that line.

I believe Nale said that he was Lawful Evil.

Of course, that doesn't mean that he actually was.

On topic, this was probably my second favorite of the books, behind War and XPs. Tarquin and crew are great, but they just don't have the star power that Xykon brings.

[Living Oxymoron]

Who said Nale was Lawful Evil? I thought that was the whole conflict between Nale and Tarquin: Tarquin wanted Nale to appreciate the importance of procedure, "the proper way of doing things," order...law. And Nale refused to toe that line.

Wow, I linked the comic where HE says he is Lawful Evil. As for the conflict with his father, he didn't like Tarquin because in his view (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0794.html), Tarquin was shortsighted.

[goodyarn]

Wow, I linked the comic where HE says he is Lawful Evil.

You did, and I was busy at work and so I did not even click on the link. I take my lumps for that. It's been so long that I didn't even remember that Nale used to be like that. IMHO, that's not who he has been for years.


As for the conflict with his father, he didn't like Tarquin because in his view, Tarquin was shortsighted.

I think there was a bit more to it than that, and I could haul out a lot of quotes to support my position and turn this into a debate thread. But really, why would I want to do that?

Hail Arc!

[Jaxzan Proditor]

I think there was a bit more to it than that, and I could haul out a lot of quotes to support my position and turn this into a debate thread. But really, why would I want to do that?

Hail Arc!

Indeed. Hail Arc! :smallbiggrin:

[Asteroid Bomb]

I started reading this comic at strip #709, brought by TVTropes. It quickly usurped 8-Bit Theater's position as my favorite webcomic even though I've still never played D&D. And this book is my favorite. Mostly because Tarquin became my favorite villain of the comic, although I don't think he's as cool as before with the revelation that he thinks EVERYTHING runs on story structure.

I was shocked to see Elan's father appear in person... I figured he was just a one-off panel to explain why Nale was evil. I am dismayed by the turn with Durkon, but I guess it was inevitable given On the Origin of PCs and the Giant deciding it by Strip #2. I've only bought On the Origin of PCs and Start of Darkness so far, but I'll probably get this one too for the bonus strips.

[Living Oxymoron]

You did, and I was busy at work and so I did not even click on the link. I take my lumps for that. It's been so long that I didn't even remember that Nale used to be like that. IMHO, that's not who he has been for years.

I'm sorry, I was kinda rude in my approach.


I think there was a bit more to it than that, and I could haul out a lot of quotes to support my position and turn this into a debate thread. But really, why would I want to do that?

Hail Arc!

Hail!

[Harbajar]

Hail!

And now carry on as you were.

[Cizak]

I'm fairly sure this was my favorite arc, and I can't wait for the book. So much happened both on the side of the Order and on the side of the villains. Tarquin was awesome, Elan who has always been my favorite character got a ton of screentime, Durkon's death brought a tear to my eye... so much great stuff.

Can't wait to see Rich trying to top himself with the next arc. Hail!

[Draxonicar]

Oh dear, has it really been that long?

[Hydro]

I was about to post a new thread to this effect, but since I noticed this one, yes.

Thanks for rocking it Rich. Just wanted to post a personal thank-you for everything related to Tarquin.

It was awesome.

[Felhammer]

Did the current arc begin in 2009?

[Gift Jeraff]

Did the current arc begin in 2009?

Yep. August 31st, 2009.