When did you join the story?

[happyturtle]

When did you start reading OOTS? I got started, on the recommendation of a friend, right at Miko's fall, which is sad, because when I then went back and read the whole series, I already knew what she was going to do.

[Darkxarth]

#325 Test of the Body, to be specific.

[Setra]

lmao 1-1-1-1-1

I started as they left the Dungeon, when Elanicus made his appearance.

[Foucault]

Around 66-67, when dndonlinegames.com used to post links to the most recent ones in their newsposts.

[Sean92k]

174 where miko is looking for oots

[EricDerKonig]

Someone on the IrregularWebcomic forums linked to the Titanium elementals comic (#423)

[happyturtle]

I actually could have joined at 399, the first time my friend referred me there, but a strip tying up a story arc is not one likely to engage a newbie. I didn't get any of the references or jokes. The next time the friend insisted, I joined at 408. A little more accessible for a newbie. I read backwards for a few strips, then realized I really needed to get the story from the beginning, and read from strip 1 in a couple of sittings.

(OT: Darkxarth, I love your sig. Me and a friend have said from the release of ep1 that the Jedi should have been planning on exterminating the Chosen One if he ever turned up. After all, by the end of Revenge, we indeed ended up with a balanced situation of two Jedi and two Sith.)

[Ariko]

I think it was a little before Miko was introduced, though it might have been as early as the end of the Dungeon of Dorukan. I looked up the comic after reading mention of Evan's Spiked Tentacles of Forced Intrusion in someone's signature on another forum. and since I read from thge start I didn't notice what the current strip was..I know when i caught up, it was Miko's appearing out of the storm scene.

The above poster's responce, thats how I got my friends to start reading it..They avoid the forums though. XD

[Hushdawg]

I joined Waaaaay back in strip #25 because someone told me to check out what would happen if AC was taken literally :D

I didn't join the forum until last year because, well, I just got bored one day...

[Closet_Skeleton]

I can't actually remember. I know I read through an extensive archive but I'm sure it wasn't after they'd left the dungeon.

The first comic was posted in 2003 and I joined the Forums in 2005. I wouldn't have joined the forums the moment I started reading the comic however. The first strip marked 2005 is http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0134.html so I guess I would have started about then.

[SteveMB]

I was at Balticon, saw these hilarious D&D parody cartoons at this table, and after deciding that there wasn't anything more pressing to do with my dealers'-room budget, picked up a copy of Dungeon Crawlin' Fools. I then continued on to this site, and the rest is history.

[factotum]

Can't remember exactly which number the comic was on when I joined because I started reading the archive from 1...didn't want anything to get spoiled. ISTR it was a link from the "Schlock Mercenary" webcomic that sent me here, though.

[the quinn]

I started when it first started in Dragon and the started reading from there.

[draco193]

After some people on another message board told me about it. Read a few in the 200s, fell in love, and havent stopped reading since.

[Lord of the Helms]

I know it was some time in 2004, but am not sure when exactly. It was some time after the infamous defeat of Zz'dtri, because I got to know the comic when somone at the NWN forums linked to said comic in one of the endless Drow/Drizzt debate threads. I then took my time reading from the beginning, but am fairly sure it was before the conclusion of the Dungeon of Dorukan storyline. As such, probably 1-100, but it could be 101-200 as well - I'm not rightly sure.

[Threeshades]

I started reading when the comic was around 370. read all through it in a little more than a week. maybe 2

[BisectedBrioche]

I got interested when some links were posted in another forum last year (8BT to be exact), I looked the comic up on WP a couple of months ago then read the archives (this took about 3 days, other things allowing). My join date says it all really.

[Kjata]

Janury 1st, 2006. Episode 261. I was on my 40k website, and i followed a link in someones sig to the first comic. Now i have that link in my sig, bringing people to the site.

[S.ilver]

#377. I remember specifically, because a friend told me to check it out, and I ended up reading them all that night. Suffice to say, I got no sleep :P

[Pantler]

I'm reading since #177. I remember it well, because it was the first strip I read and I got absolutely nothing of it. So I started reading the previous strips, but not from the beginning, but backwards from #177. Understandably, I got even less. One day I grew tired of that, sat down and read all the strips from the beginning. Then I finally got it... And I've been in love with OotS ever since :smallsmile:

[Legendary]

The weekend between 306 & 307, or some such. I read through it all in like 20 minutes. :P

[happyturtle]

Heh... 261 is certainly a better starting point than 177, and way better than 399. It doesn't require any story or character knowledge to be amusing.

[Shott]

I started at the first strip that actually featured the oracle and I went back and read all the old strips. The rest, as they say, is history.

[Kef]

I was reading something on Wikipedia and found a link to this site, then started at the beginning and spent the next few days working my way up to the most recent strip, #417.

[Wojiz]

Right when Elan was breaking out of jail. I went to the beginning out of curiosity, spent a while reading the entire comic carefully and now I sit here at 2 AM on a Tuesday praying that the new comic will come up.

[Tawkis]

After the LG, but before the first defeat of Xykon.

[Imrahil]

I think it was at strip 192, when a friend quoted the "Sacrificing minions" line to me. I've been following it ever since.

[Tmabbbb]

327 or so. I don't remember, but it was the comic where you see Nale in the sending spell.

[Green Bean]

The gang's first strip in the cell. I remember that day well. I was yelling at the screen because I wanted to find out what happened with Miko and the trial.

[Artega]

I joined when Elan and Thog were entering Azure City. I don't know the name of the comic, or the number. =p

[Tolkien_Freak]

The first comic I had to wait for was 409. I found it by seeing the board game in a gaming store.

[Strengfellow]

I'm so uncertain because when I was nudged this way I ignored the daily post and decided to start from the begining.

[Bel_Bel]

During the trial. It was kinda confusing, and I had to read the whole story several times to finally get it all straight.

[Kiero]

I think it was 200-and-something. But I spent about three days reading strips from the beginning to get up to speed, rather than starting in the middle.

[Demented]

The Inn and Roy's Trouser Titan
(or: Roy and Miko, the Truth Revealed)

[Fishies]

I joined when the Dirt Farmers sidequest was beginning.

[Guildorn Tanaleth]

I came in at strip #340, in early September.

[StoryKeeper]

A couple panels ago when roy is first fighting with xykon on the dragon

[Mewtarthio]

349: Every couple has their quirks (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0349.html)

[Brother_Hood]

Honestly? I think about early 2004, which is pre-50.

[soni]

somewhere in the mid 200's, while Roy was wearing the Belt

[Shadic]

#325 Test of the Body, to be specific.

Craziness, I started on #324. Guess I've been here a bit longer than you, haha.

[Wiggle]

Comic 140 when Belkar wants to unleash the fury with his riding weiner dog

[happyturtle]

I find it very interesting that the numbers (with 104 votes) are so evenly split. Even to the account that the 400s, which has only 39 strips, has around 40% of the number of votes as the other splits.

[Caractacus]

Like so many others, I am unsure.

A friend showed me some about a year ago and I liked them but forgot the link. Then in the late summer, I think, I started reading them regularly (starting from the beginning) and registered in the autumn.

Starting from the beginning (took one evening (or was it two sittings?) has meant that I am no longer at all clear where the storyline was when I began reading, and this has been further muddied by the fact that I own all the books and have read them through at least four times...

I just remember that reading the strips rapidly generates even more humour to me than one at a time - it sort of escalates from strip to strip. :smallcool:

[Jawajoey]

Dang, I can't remember. I think it was somewhere in the early 100's.

WAIT! Now I remember. It was #150 (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0150.html). Right at the start of the bandit storyline.

Wow, it's been a long time, hasn't it.

I remember where I was introduced to the comic, too. It was #20 (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0020.html), I found it on a link from the World of Warcraft forums. Someone was jokingly proposing a new Warlock spell, hehe. I started reading the other comics and bam--hooked.

[sun_tzu]

I joined early in the bandits arc, after discovering the comic through Websnark.

[RMS Oceanic]

I joined the story when Belkar was about to kill Nale after smelling him out.

I started reading the forums at number 400. Good times...

[wodan46]

142, when Sabine was revealed to be the cause of the sidequest.

[Hinton]

#408: Fallsville, Population: 1 (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0408.html)

Someone posted a link to that strip in another forum and others were commmenting on how funny it was, so I checked it out. The "Treasure Type O" line by Roy definitely made me laugh.

I decided to go back through the archives to find out why the gal killed the wacky old dude with the cat, why the fighter was so mad at her and why the little guy in green (who I liked instantly for some reason) couldn't stop her.

[Ettlesby]

I forget exactly when, but I know I joined quite early on in the story, they hadn't even left the Dungeof of Dorukan yet. Something compelled me to stay, and I'm glad it did.

[Baalzebub]

Around 300...

[Azukar]

It all started with strip 302. I was recommended by a friend, looked into this whole "order of the stick" thing, then read the whole lot in one sitting.

Talk about laugh.

[Pronounceable]

A friend recommended it sometime last summer. I don't know where, because I started right from the start.

[Maelstrom]

Somewhere around 50...been so darned long now, can't remember exactly which one...

[Haruki-kun]

I started..... when Nale cut off the guard's head at Azure City. Cliffport, sorry. By the time I was done reading the other 35-something strips, he was getting caught kissing the cop (Sabine)

[Zone]

I'm not sure. Really, it's very hard to remember such thing. Only thing I know for sure is that I wait for comic number 300, not sure did I wait for 200 or 100 too. I was possibly reading older comics and joined like 250 strips ago.

[Khime]

I'm a bit obsessive-compulsive, so I keep a webcomic spreadsheet. I started reading on Nov 11, 2004. I didn't write down which strip # I started with, though...

Yay for http://web.archive.org ! I started at #118 or #119 (Depending on when the Thursday update happened). Thought I had started was sooner. I put my vote in the 1-100 range. :-(

[Nimelennar]

I think I made a false start at the archives and then got distracted by something shiny, so I probably started reading a few comics before this.
However, I think the first time I made it all the way through the comic the latest one was this one (still a favorite): http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0339.html

[Reed]

Wow, that really took me some time to figure out (and the result went totally against my intuitions). I must have started when the strip was somewhere in the 200s, judging from the copyright dates on the strips, as I discovered OOTS in late 2005 or early 2006. I would have guessed it was at a much lower number.

This is probably because I never started on the last strips. I came to the site via a link to a specific comic (the introduction of banjo :smallbiggrin:) and almost immediately jumped to the start.
Yeah, I had a fine number of strips to read in a row to get me thoroughly hooked... happy times!

[Jawajoey]

I gotta say, it's an interesting spread of votes we're getting.

[myeerah]

I actually started reading from the beginning, because I found this (http://www.giantitp.com/Images/bcx/MagicItems009.gif) to be absolutely hysterical when it was linked from a board I visited. I think the storyline was somewhere around when Nale & Co. revealed themselves to be evil.

[HealytheHealslime]

I jumped in around the time the OotS was getting ready to consult the oracle, with the exact strip being "The Test of the Heart".

[KeiranHalcyon]

#325 Test of the Body, to be specific.


Craziness, I started on #324. Guess I've been here a bit longer than you, haha.

And I, #327, The Test of Mind. That was a great strip to show to a friend, because it didn't require any knowledge of OOTS lore to get a kick out of, and it didn't contain any plot spoilers. It didn't even have Haley talking in cryptograms.

[Allandaros]

Roy's repudiation of Miko. I'd seen the strip before, and thought it to be funny, but wasn't too thrilled by the 3.5e jokes. Then I reread the entire thing and found It was Awesome.

[Fale]

#175 (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0175.html). Before that, I saw a few people using the characters as avatars with a link to the comic in their signatures. I just never visited the link.

[Grey Watcher]

I don't remember per se. All I can say for sure is that I was already reading the strip regularly (though probably not for that long) when Haley had her wardrobe malfunction (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0035.html).

[l)ark_ssj9kevin]

One of the 3.

395 Two Steps Forward, One Step Back
394 Hell Hath Exactly As Much Fury
393 Truth

I was actually reading the WHOLE archive in like 1 day

[PlasticSoldier]

I joined at the Titanium elementals i was so confused I read the entire comic in one night, needless to say hilarity ensued.

[Snow]

#2 or #3 I'm not sure

[Kanthalion]

I don't remember where they appeared in the course of the strip numbers, but I started reading with the guest comic week and a half. I had been a regular reader of Alien Loves Predator, and Bernie did one of the guest strips. I went back and read every one from the beginning that night and the rest is history. I'd be happy to vote if someone could tell me where they fit in.

[Turcano]

I joined the story at #225 ("Checking In" (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0225.html)).

[Guest15]

224 for me. Man, I didn't think it'd been that long.

[mimicgogo]

#12. I was lucky enough to catch a link from Rich himself on the Wizards boards waaaaay back in the day. Amazing.

[Plactus]

I joined around #351 or #352, although the one I was linked to was #24, so I got to read from the beginning more or less blissfully unaware of the events that were to come.

[Tharivol123]

http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0423.html
Heard about the elemental joke on a podcast I listen to and had to see it for myself. That night, I read the entire series up to that point (much to my roommate's annoyance).

[Zmek]

Dont remember the exact Strip but I am sure it was Pre #25 and 75% sure it was just before Elan Summoned Plot Exposition #13.

Joined the message board a few months later, although i dont post much.

I saw a Link the first strip on a Everquest Ranger Forum, Because the Ranger in the party got Nerfed.

Zmek

[Wiione]

When I started, the latest strip was 332.

[Snake-Aes]

Oh, Kinda late for me. I caught up-to-date on C.C.P.D. Blue

[Assassinfox]

Joined at 283 after seeing the comic in Dragon magazine. :smallsmile:

[Rasumichin]

Sometime during the stay in Cliffport, after the comic was linked in the FanPro-Forum.
Read all of it in about 3 days then.

[Fury1671]

I started reading around the first meeting of the Linear Guild. Not exactly sure on the numbers though.

[Aramis_fan^^]

I just started from the best place you can start.... the begining *cheers* woot go me

Elan: Read read read read from the begining

Me: *coughs* yes thank you Elan *giggles* Yeah anyway I heard about it when on on my friends on Deviant art drew herself in OotS style and I thought the name was kewlie and it sounded right good so I Googled it and came here.

...and that is the amazing tale of how I became OotSified :smalltongue:

Must read must read the rest of OotS *joining in with Elan*

Roy::smallsigh:

[GAZ]

I started somewhere in the early 50s. When the OotS and the LG were going after the sigils together.

[Lizard Lord]

I forget already, but Miko had already fallen.

So I guess I am fairly new.

[Akaziel]

When Elan and Thog got arrested... #363, actually.

[Innis Cabal]

1-3, cant remember really....it was a LOOOONG time ago

[dragoncmd]

for me I was refered to strip # 11 because of an arguement about drow sterotypes, I think it was around 160

[Bogardan_Mage]

At the time of 177 (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0177.html), from a link to 79 (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0079.html). So what does that count as?

[tis_tom]

My friend introduced it to me aaages ago in sept 2004, just when they had left the dungeons and V was complaining at Elan about becoming a wizard

[Vulion]

I joined in the strip "The Road to Adventure", been a loyal fan since!

[Om]

Started reading sometime in 2004 after seeing the 8BT guest strip. Can't remember what strip exactly but they were still in the dungeon.

[Arlanthe]

I discovered, forgot; then rediscovered it.

I actually read the first 60 strips or so- I recall the linear guild had just been beaten, I believe, and then forgot about the strip for almost a year and a half.

Then someone directed me to it, and I thought "Oh yeah- that." And then it "stuck" that time, because I keep checking the bookmark and post in the forums now.

[Ceres]

I have a horrible memory for these sort of things, but it was shortly after NWN 2 was released. Someone linked to spiked-chain double AoO-strip on a discussion thread in the NWN 2 forums. The AoO-rules don't work that way, though (sorry Giant)

Started reading a little bit every day, and caught up with the strip around 280 (or was it 380?)

[Rai Thunder]

I joined during strip #354 - Copper Piece Arcade.

Then, I proceeded to head to the first strip and spent the majority of the Saturday night reading the rest. It was totally worth it.

[Lolzords]

I've been reading OOTS since #334.
http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0334.html
The one where Belkar gives Elan a whistle.

[Raziel3024]

Oops, I voted for the wrong option........

The first strip was 417: The Most Important Place To Be.

[The Vorpal Tribble]

I know it was before the 100 mark... sometime in summer of '04 I believe. There anyway to date these things? :smallconfused:

[EYanyo]

I started after the Giant posted his guest comic on 8-Bit Theatre. I don't remember exactly when that was, but I'm pretty sure it was somewhere around 130 or so.

EDIT: I did a little digging and found out that the 8BT guest strip was May 18 '04. Does anyone know when that was strip-wise? Heh heh. Pop: Yes. That was the classic moment when I realized that I would love this strip.

EDIT AGAIN: I did some more looking using the Way-Back machine (web.archive.org) to look up the archived version of giantitp.com from MAy 2004. It turns out that at that time the strip was up to about #60, so I was way off in my initial estimate. It's just that I can't see myself as having the patience to read it one strip at a time for almost 400 strips and 3 years.

[Willahad]

About 332 when they were leaving the oracle

[WoDHells]

I joined when they had to rescue Elan from the bandits.

[WarriorTribble]

Hmm... I joined when the 8-bit theather guest strip was put online. I've no idea when that was specifically though. I think before the attack on Xykon's throne room?