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View Full Version : OOTS #274- Discussion Thread (Tuesday comic! Woo!)



The Giant
2006-01-31, 10:50 AM
Special Tuesday OOTS is up. The crayon saga continues.

Deuce
2006-01-31, 10:53 AM
Well that narrows the pantheons a bit, and explains why V's not making toys. :)

Great strip Giant!

Flux
2006-01-31, 10:53 AM
One word - WOW

thatwolfguy
2006-01-31, 10:54 AM
i love the crayon

ninjas were created by the monkey - hee hee

great work giant

(wow, first time i ever made the first page)

SteveMB
2006-01-31, 10:57 AM
Well, I guess now we know how ninjas got into a pseudomedieval fantasy world....

Max_Sinister
2006-01-31, 10:57 AM
Now that explains why noone ever heard of the eastern pantheon. D*mn... that snarl really must've been powerful...

The Giant
2006-01-31, 11:01 AM
The Voice of Mod: For the record, any post that says nothing but "First page!" or "First post!" and contributes nothing to the topic will be deleted as spam.

Flux
2006-01-31, 11:01 AM
How do the people in the East worship that pantheon if those gods have all been killed off?

xrestassuredx
2006-01-31, 11:02 AM
Yay for daily comics! I guess that's why poor Zeus and the gang haven't been around ..

The Giant
2006-01-31, 11:04 AM
How do the people in the East worship that pantheon if those gods have all been killed off?

There are no people of the East any more. That was referring to the first world, which was destroyed. This is why in yesterday's strip, no one had ever heard of Gods of the East, because there isn't a land called "The East" in the current world.

rosebud
2006-01-31, 11:04 AM
I t lo ok s l i k e you 're ov er l y p o p u l a r a g a in . Sit e sl o w ri g h t n ow .

O r th e sn a r l of th e un i v er s e d o es n 't w a n t it s s to r y to ld.

Omellette
2006-01-31, 11:08 AM
Beauty, Rich!

It's so nice to see the namby-pamby gods from the Greek pantheon given their come-uppance for once!

:-)

And of course, LOVE the crayon.

SITB
2006-01-31, 11:09 AM
The best part was:"Twenty seven minutes later the univearse was undone"

Lousy gods doing subpar job...

jogom
2006-01-31, 11:09 AM
Then, Olimpus Mount Resort has vacancies!

Midnight Son
2006-01-31, 11:09 AM
Ninja Monkeys? That would be cool!

I love how The Giant continually pokes fun at ninjas in a medieval European setting.

sednanalien
2006-01-31, 11:09 AM
Man! I really love crayon sagas! Keep it up Rich.

Anyway, 27 minutes to destroy nearly everything...OWWWW!

I wonder why reality is Purple?

slowly_insane
2006-01-31, 11:12 AM
Yay (claps hands in glee like a little girl)!!!! Tuesday comic! And I'm so happy that I get to read it the day it came out-Giant, you rock, and crayon stick figures rock too!

Loghren the Barbarian
2006-01-31, 11:12 AM
I say: NINJAS! ;D

Good stuff. Still diggin' the crayons for story telling.

Quixote
2006-01-31, 11:12 AM
Oh my god... that is... BRILLIANT.

Kanashimi
2006-01-31, 11:13 AM
I love the crayon Tangle Monster. Sooooo awesome, and destroys EVERYTHING in 270 rounds. With enough time left over to move 30 feet!

That's not too bad for killing a pantheon and the universe

dylosaur
2006-01-31, 11:15 AM
Great comic. Extra long and on a tuesday?
Also, kudos on the crayons. Even better than yesterday.

Ilaun_Undil
2006-01-31, 11:17 AM
It is good to know that at once Thor and Loki worked together, in quasi peace at least.
kinda ruins all the Knot of Doom ideas though.

Amalthea
2006-01-31, 11:19 AM
1) The Snarl is the best D&D All-Powerful Evil Force ever.
2) Poor Eastern Gods.
3) Did anyone else notice that each of the Eastern Gods was identifiable with the Greek god they parodied? Down to Aphrodite clad only in her hair.
4) MONKEYS! NINJAS! Where are the PIRATES?
5) Was that Freya arguing with the Monkey?

Finally...
as one who was born in the Year of the Monkey, I take full responsibility for inclusions of ninjas in medieval settings. ;D

Alfryd
2006-01-31, 11:20 AM
Rich is posting additional, consistently humorous comics in a timely fashion this week! Black is white and up is down! My world is crashing down around me!

"The Story is continued- tomorrow!"
GAAAAAAAAH!
And yet, I feel oddly comforted.
(Seriously, good work.)

I am enlightened! I see now the hidden plan behind the gaping anachronisms and incongruous geographical juxtapositions that plague the D&D continua!
No, wait, it's still nuts. But now we can blame someone specific.

Greebo
2006-01-31, 11:21 AM
What ninja?

Istielthia
2006-01-31, 11:25 AM
Oh, the poor Greeks, they never had a chance.

Its a wonder that the new world was even able to get new gods to join (ie V's elven god of knowledge)
Personally, I'd be scared to rule a world that had "The Evil Snarl of Doom" anywhere near it.

Great comic, thanks Giant!

petermarcus
2006-01-31, 11:26 AM
In real life, it takes cultures many generations and many people, usually starting with oral myths, to come up with the story of the creation of the universe.

Only Rich could handle crayon cosmogony for his own.

(that's a compliment. ;) )

rosebud
2006-01-31, 11:26 AM
Okay, it finally loaded.

Favorite line, the obvious one: "OK, my turn. Ninjas."

Favorite character: Hmm, tough call. I really like the doomed man who looks like he just ran into a glass wall and the mouth of the snarl is most excellent. I think I'll have to go for the monkey, though. On second though, monkey wins best line, man in the yellow shirt wins for best expression.

Hey, are those shadows I see? The old world seems 3-D with perspective and the planet seems to have volume and shading with black crayon. Oh, cool, you can also see the pencil marks laying out the scene (especially in what looks like Apollo). I guess this world really is made of threads!

I'm a little curious how close the scan looks like the original.

SimonMoon5
2006-01-31, 11:28 AM
Hmmm.

Some unanswerable ponderables:

When an entire pantheon dies, does the afterlife they set up go away too? In other words, what happens to the souls of their (now dead) worshippers? Do the gods get to go to an afterlife? And if so, if their afterlife is gone, do they get to go to another pantheon's afterlife?

:)

RawBearNYC
2006-01-31, 11:31 AM
OK, Rich.

I've been able to quietly ignore other references to Ninjas as coincidence, but now you're doing this on purpose just to keep me from breathing!!!!

The Giant
2006-01-31, 11:37 AM
OK, Rich.

I've been able to quietly ignore other references to Ninjas as coincidence, but now you're doing this on purpose just to keep me from breathing!!!!

This "NINJA!"s for you, Ray.

xrestassuredx
2006-01-31, 11:43 AM
Ninja Monkeys? That would be cool!
I see I wasn't the only one who thought of this .. XP

(edit: messed up quote tag)

Antina
2006-01-31, 11:46 AM
Wow!

And again I´m quite surprised by the explanations to the "open questions" that stood around for some time.
Not to mention the pretty cool "by the way"-"just if you noticed" attitude ;)

As always: There IS a good reason for everything in the universe!

GLAD to be able to read on!

Thanx, Giant! :)

GM_West
2006-01-31, 11:49 AM
I'm LOVING this story about the creation of the D&D world! And using the crayon is sheer genius!!!

OK... maybe that's laying it on a bit thick... But it really does add a nice touch to the comic. Especially with the occasional 'windows' where we get to hear the OoTS characters make their comments.

And now finally I learn how the ninja, samurai, etc classes got into the D&D game! Who would have thought a monkey was responsible? :o

brummeren
2006-01-31, 11:54 AM
Crayon is the best! Comics on tuesdays are the best! Ninjas are the best! Giant is the best!

Wrecan
2006-01-31, 12:00 PM
All I know is that V has to be in seventh heaven with all the forbidden reality-shattering knowledge being bandied about!

sniffles
2006-01-31, 12:11 PM
Tuesday comic - you're spoiling us, Giant! ;D

Love the drawings. Much as I love the usual style, there's just something so great about a hand-drawn illustration. At least, I'm assuming you usually use the computer to do some of the work.

BurntOfferings
2006-01-31, 12:12 PM
And now finally I learn how the ninja, samurai, etc classes got into the D&D game! Who would have thought a monkey was responsible? :o
I had my suspicions.

;)

spite48
2006-01-31, 12:17 PM
My employer would like to formally register a complaint about the quality and frequency of the comics this week. She'd rather have me thinking about work than crayon epics.

Arakune
2006-01-31, 12:17 PM
that's explain WHY in these pseudo european medieval fantasy have norten, oriental panteons and NEVER goes up the NT level₢ (gurps players know this).

plommon
2006-01-31, 12:20 PM
nice nice.... one new tomorow!
and i made it to thrid page! (if no one posts before me now pushing me to 4:th,,, (damn fours...)
just wanted to thank you Giant. You make my days as a swedish student so much more meaningfull (or at least distracts me from doing anything productive like school work..)
Thanks!

Zaku_III
2006-01-31, 12:23 PM
Tuesday?

Morning?

Massive plot development?

Awesome alternative style?

...couple of things, Rich.

A. My birthday's not until March.
B. I wanted a pony.

Albion
2006-01-31, 12:27 PM
The height of cruelty, shocking horror... fair Aphrodite slaughtered without a second thought - IN CRAYON! Too disturbing, unbearable. Heh, maybe I'll manage though.

Would be enjoyment as well as necessary to take in all this just in itself, but the artist is still managing to squeeze in the jokes and the humour, as well.

Duraska
2006-01-31, 12:30 PM
Ah nerts! I was really excited about the Eastern gods. I'm just too obsessed with Greek and Roman stuff I guess...

Oh well, still a good comic. ;-)

Sanctu
2006-01-31, 12:35 PM
That's brilliant. Well, while I morn the loss of the once-Eastern gods (*sniff* even Pan died), it's a great story. I love how the gods even speak in their pantheon color.

Ah, it was just my birthday (the 28th), and instead of cake I get a great series of Order of the Stick comics. It's so nice...

Great avatar, Raw Bear.

garylian
2006-01-31, 12:35 PM
I can't be the only one to think that when Rich gets done with his crayon week of explanation, that he should poll the forums and see how many people would want a signed, numbered print of the whole set.

Here's betting he can get over 100 comittments to purchase a signed print, and he can have people bid on the first 10 numbers. (Traditionally, anything in the first 20 is considered to be worth "more" than the lower x-20 prints.)

Great job, Rich. This has really been fun.

The only disturbing part was that one of the people on the world that was destroyed look a whole heck of a lot like Halee. Ouch!

Nerd-o-rama
2006-01-31, 12:36 PM
I love the crayon Tangle Monster. Sooooo awesome, and destroys EVERYTHING in 270 rounds. With enough time left over to move 30 feet!

That's not too bad for killing a pantheon and the universe
Hmm...sounds like a pretty average Epci Spell to me.

Y'know, a couple things about this strip strike me as references to something, but I can't quite place it. Mostly the arrangement of the dead Olympians and Zeus's "Why?" in the first panel, and the "Twenty-seven minutes later." The second one sounds like Terminator...

luilupino
2006-01-31, 12:41 PM
Ow.. poor Eastern Gods, they were my favorite ones. I guess Rich doesn't like them a lot... ( a bit, I mean)

Great strip !!!

(That's so more information that V was expecting...)

Blaznak
2006-01-31, 12:48 PM
Over the top... That's for sure!

Again, I'm really enjoying this current... thread... in the comics. I'm amazed at how consistent the story line and how it uses prior events to build upon. Always fresh!

Thanks!

hunisu
2006-01-31, 12:49 PM
There's just something ultimately hilarious about monkeys and ninjas. Go Monkey!

U2QueenBee
2006-01-31, 12:57 PM
There's just something ultimately hilarious about monkeys and ninjas. Go Monkey!

Anyone know if Rich is a Kim Possible fan? (Probably not, because I'm just a big dumb girl who likes silly cartoons). But ninjas and monkeys make me think of Monkeyfist and his army of ninja monkeys, and the sacred Monkey Kung-fu.

Eastern gods = :'(
Crayon drawing = :o

WampaX
2006-01-31, 01:00 PM
Ah, it was just my birthday (the 28th), and instead of cake I get a great series of Order of the Stick comics. It's so nice...

You had cake, it was on your member profile page, next to your birthday, if you entered it.

Hey, Giant. I was wondering how the medium of crayon is affecting the creation times on the strips?

Krytha
2006-01-31, 01:02 PM
NNNNNNNNNNNIIIIIIIIINNNNNNNNNNNNNNJAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA SSSS!!!!!

...

Fine.

Hooray for... uh.... the destruction of the universe!

Blackeagle
2006-01-31, 01:08 PM
...couple of things, Rich.

A. My birthday's not until March.
B. I wanted a pony.

So did Raymond Chen (http://blogs.msdn.com/oldnewthing/archive/2005/12/23/507064.aspx). He didn't get one either.

Iuris
2006-01-31, 01:16 PM
Well, while I'm glad that most people like the crayon, I must admit it makes me feel as if I had gone cold turkey on the OOTS.

It's not just the crayon, but the drawing style is also more childlike, losing the real mastery the Mr. Giant is capable of, and the story doesn't quite agree with me. Well, apparently I've a few days (hopefully not weeks) left to suffer...

All the rest of you, don't let me spoil the fun for you!

soozenw
2006-01-31, 01:20 PM
seeing this strip made my day...especially since i didn't get a job that i was trying for. but the monkey made me laugh. NINJAS!

;D

Supagoof
2006-01-31, 01:23 PM
New comic = awesome.

Anyone who has followed my questioning from 273 should have figured out I'm a big fan of Banjulu (Banjo) joining the gods. Now apparently their is space to the east for him. Yay.

The crayon is so beautifully done. Sure normal Oots artworks is nice, but can be easily edited and made to look good. Much like perfect circles are easier to make in paintshop as opposed to freehand. However, bringing the artwork in crayon across not only adds style, but also confirms how spectacular the Giant is. (He can draw and come up with a story! Two thing I can not.)

Kudos, again to your work and also for yet another comic tomorrow!

Gary_Schaper
2006-01-31, 01:24 PM
Hooray for... uh.... the destruction of the universe!
Don't fret; it's only the destruction of A universe.

dragon95046
2006-01-31, 01:31 PM
Wow. I really didn't see the destruction of the world coming. After yesterdays comic and no one knowing who the Gods of the East were I figured they had something bad coming to them, but the unraveling of reality was a complete surprise. :o

Love it.

Thanks Rich.

Meanwhile, elsewhere in the galaxy:

"I felt a great disturbance in the Force, as if millions of voices suddenly cried out in terror and were suddenly silenced." - Obi Wan ;D

Flak_Razorwill
2006-01-31, 01:35 PM
-MONKEY STYLE! Ha-CHA CHA!

-So that explains the lack of the greek pantheon.

-Kinda like the war in heaven, but with magic instead of Cthulhu.

myomer
2006-01-31, 01:43 PM
Long time reader, first time poster here... had to post great comic and on a Tuesday, hurray! ;D

And of course, the Monkey god had to be the one to introduce ninjas. Great stuff, plays well with the personality of a monkey in the Chinese zodiac.

Can't wait to see how the gate ties up with all of this. Probably to bind/jail the snarl? Can't wait, hope this week is a comic a day week, Giant!

McBish
2006-01-31, 01:46 PM
Ahhhhh Ahhhhhhh Tuesday Comic Ahhhhhhh Ahhhhhhh.

Rich Burlew your my hero.

Wow I am so very happy right now. After my 3 hour chem lab this is just what I needed. Three cheers for Rich.

Ryltar_Swordsong
2006-01-31, 01:55 PM
Poor Olympians. :'(

Oh well, at least they died to advance the story.

Zeekar
2006-01-31, 01:57 PM
Anyone know if Rich is a Kim Possible fan? (Probably not, because I'm just a big dumb girl who likes silly cartoons). But ninjas and monkeys make me think of Monkeyfist and his army of ninja monkeys, and the sacred Monkey Kung-fu.

Well, you're not the only one. The Monkey (who also governed the year I was born) asking for ninjas also made me think of Lord Monkey Fist.

Rich might not be a KP fan, but I guess I'm just a big dumb boy who likes silly cartoons.

Of course, OOTS is arguably a silly cartoon, so that should surprise no-one. :)

bexie
2006-01-31, 02:03 PM
yaaaaaay Rich! You are such a genius. You brought back the crayon! ;D

And who knew ninjas were created by monkeys? Cooooool.

Superb job, waiting so eagerly for the next one (is it tomorrow? Pleeease say it is!).

"There would be no fighting, just cooperation and harmony.....well, mostly harmony."

:) :) :)

I love you Giant! :-*

Oh, and I like Kim Possible too! Monkeyfist is strange. :-/ But anyway....

Zeekar
2006-01-31, 02:04 PM
Also, today is the Day of the Monkey (traditionally, the Chinese 12-animal cycle was applied to days as well as years;kinda like a 12-day week), so Rich picked a good day to showcase that particular character. :)

KuH
2006-01-31, 02:07 PM
OK, if Rich actually knew that today was the day of the Monkey, and posted on a Tuesday because of it ... I am seriously impressed!

Oznstuff
2006-01-31, 02:10 PM
Anyone know if Rich is a Kim Possible fan? (Probably not, because I'm just a big dumb girl who likes silly cartoons). But ninjas and monkeys make me think of Monkeyfist and his army of ninja monkeys, and the sacred Monkey Kung-fu.

That's what I was going to ask! My son want's to know when Kim and Ron are going to make guest appearances now...
I second the motion to auction off prints of the crayon drawings, I think they would go over well. Of course if the Giant's spot isn't that high we could always higher some Monkey Ninja's to steal them for us ;)

Lord Herman
2006-01-31, 02:17 PM
Also, today is the Day of the Monkey (traditionally, the Chinese 12-animal cycle was applied to days as well as years;kinda like a 12-day week), so Rich picked a good day to showcase that particular character. :)

A day... dedicated to monkeys... and it's every 12 days?

Processing...

OMG!

Tyrmadris
2006-01-31, 02:28 PM
I know that no one else will ascribe to this strip an even greater and dangerous concept than that brought up in the Miko VS Belkar discussion, but...


...does anyone else seem to appreciate the grand scope of how completely and totally shameful the deities have been in the past?

Seriously, I can see why this knowledge is considered such an important 'state secret' by ruler of Azure City.
I'm sorry, but Durkon is a stouter man... er... dwarf... than I. At such a revelation, I'm afraid I'd have to hand over my holy symbol and either believe in some abstract concept or start taking levels of the Ur-Priest prestige class. Sorry, Thor old buddy, but there'd be no way I could even speak your name without there being a 'damn you' in front of it somewhere.
What Soon has revealed is instantaneous atheist-making material:

The 'gods' that everyone worships allowed an entire world... which they had created be destroyed by a monstrous entity which their own petty bickering and quabbling had brought into existance. Rather than stand together to defeat the thing, working as a team in lawful fashion to deconstruct the chaos, they instead cowered in their little Outer Plane sanctuaries whilst their children were slaughtered and then they wet themselves hoping that the "Snarl" didn't come and end their miserable 'immortal' lives.

Personally, I think they deserve it.

I do, however, believe there is a distinct reason why the Snarl killed off the Greek pantheon first, beyond just the desire to have them 'disappear' and be the odd group out (you know, opposite of the real world and all). It's hopefully not spoiler material or anything, but I believe the Snarl killed them off first since in 'their' form of beliefs, mortals can achieve the power of gods. After all, the 'gods' of the Greek pantheon were originally weaker than the Titans, the 'gods' they usurped, until Zeus and Co grew in power enough to challenge them. Thus, they were always worried about mortals doing to them what they had done to the Titans, and had absolutely no qualms in constantly meddling with mortal affairs. This was never a concept held to be true among the Norse or ancient Babylonian religions. A mortal might become almost or even slightly more skilled than a deity in one, very specific task, but could never achieve the power necessary to challenge them directly.
Zeus may have been confused as to the Snarl's motives, but should he have survived, he would have turned to infusing mortals with heroic power, perhaps 'bending time and casting them into another world' so that they might come back just in time with the power necessary to stop the Snarl.

I wonder if the 'current' goods of the OotSverse will figure this out, or if he has a different plan in mind for them. If such pondering qualifies as Spoiler material, feel free to edit out this portion of my post.

Either way, they'd better do something incredibly thoughtful and noble to redeem themselves for their absolutely atrocious behavior. I'm hoping we see something of that nature tomorrow. I know my view won't affect characters in Rich's story, but I'll never be able to look at any such Clerics in there again without lamenting the fact that they waste perfectly good praise and adoration on such cowardly charlatans.

theKOT
2006-01-31, 02:30 PM
Does anyone know what kind of crayons Rich is using? At first I thought that the "rifts" sealed by the gates were going to be tangles in the threads created by arguments, but now I have no clue how the rifts came about. Guess I'll have to stay tuned! er, htmled?

Terrafire
2006-01-31, 02:35 PM
FIRST of all, If the Gods had even tried, they would have been slaughtered. Horribly. As in, the Snarl would rip each of them from limb to limb, then drink the blood that pours out of each stump, then gnaw their limbs down to the bone, and... and...

Well, It wouldn't be fun.

Flak_Razorwill
2006-01-31, 02:40 PM
I know that no one else will ascribe to this strip an even greater and dangerous concept than that brought up in the Miko VS Belkar discussion, but...


...does anyone else seem to appreciate the grand scope of how completely and totally shameful the deities have been in the past?

Seriously, I can see why this knowledge is considered such an important 'state secret' by ruler of Azure City.
I'm sorry, but Durkon is a stouter man... er... dwarf... than I. At such a revelation, I'm afraid I'd have to hand over my holy symbol and either believe in some abstract concept or start taking levels of the Ur-Priest prestige class. Sorry, Thor old buddy, but there'd be no way I could even speak your name without there being a 'damn you' in front of it somewhere.
What Soon has revealed is instantaneous atheist-making material:

The 'gods' that everyone worships allowed an entire world... which they had created be destroyed by a monstrous entity which their own petty bickering and quabbling had brought into existance. Rather than stand together to defeat the thing, working as a team in lawful fashion to deconstruct the chaos, they instead cowered in their little Outer Plane sanctuaries whilst their children were slaughtered and then they wet themselves hoping that the "Snarl" didn't come and end their miserable 'immortal' lives.

Personally, I think they deserve it.

I do, however, believe there is a distinct reason why the Snarl killed off the Greek pantheon first, beyond just the desire to have them 'disappear' and be the odd group out (you know, opposite of the real world and all). It's hopefully not spoiler material or anything, but I believe the Snarl killed them off first since in 'their' form of beliefs, mortals can achieve the power of gods. After all, the 'gods' of the Greek pantheon were originally weaker than the Titans, the 'gods' they usurped, until Zeus and Co grew in power enough to challenge them. Thus, they were always worried about mortals doing to them what they had done to the Titans, and had absolutely no qualms in constantly meddling with mortal affairs. This was never a concept held to be true among the Norse or ancient Babylonian religions. A mortal might become almost or even slightly more skilled than a deity in one, very specific task, but could never achieve the power necessary to challenge them directly.
Zeus may have been confused as to the Snarl's motives, but should he have survived, he would have turned to infusing mortals with heroic power, perhaps 'bending time and casting them into another world' so that they might come back just in time with the power necessary to stop the Snarl.

I wonder if the 'current' goods of the OotSverse will figure this out, or if he has a different plan in mind for them. If such pondering qualifies as Spoiler material, feel free to edit out this portion of my post.

Either way, they'd better do something incredibly thoughtful and noble to redeem themselves for their absolutely atrocious behavior. I'm hoping we see something of that nature tomorrow. I know my view won't affect characters in Rich's story, but I'll never be able to look at any such Clerics in there again without lamenting the fact that they waste perfectly good praise and adoration on such cowardly charlatans.

-Well, I doubt anyone can be an atheist here, being that the gods and all of their actions HAVE been seen to have an effect. Losing devotion and FAITH, however...

-I'm sure they come up with something good. Hopefully wacky and full of niceness. If you think about it, this reminds me of Typhon, and his reign of blood against the fledgeling olympian gods.

-This feels like new Battlestar Galactica, with the Gods blowing themselves away and mankind scattering to the winds.

PhoeKun
2006-01-31, 02:47 PM
I love comics on a Tuesday.

I think the (remaining) gods deserve praise for knowing when to retreat. There is a difference between cowardice and intelligence, and the gods fought smart. Had they charged into battle, the entire multiverse would proabably be gone. It is not dishonorable to retreat in order to come up with a plan for victory.

Although really, what has me most excited is the implication that Dragon is the leader of the Southern pantheon. I really like Dragon.

Shadowed_Rain
2006-01-31, 03:05 PM
I've never felt my stomach drop reading a comic before.

silvadel
2006-01-31, 03:23 PM
If these crayon drawings are easier to do than the computer ones -- I would certainly not mind the regular OOTS being drawn as opposed to computer generated.

They actually seem to have MORE style than the computer ones as opposed to less...

Still love the way you do surprised eyes on horses...

GM_West
2006-01-31, 03:28 PM
The Snarl wiped out the planet (and destroyed an entire pantheon of gods to boot) in little over a half-hour.

I don't think the other gods even had a chance to forumulate a plan as to how they would defeat the creature that they unwittingly wrought upon all of creation.

Plus, there's still more to the story! I don't think that Durkon will have any reason to lose his faith in Thor.

Oh... and I'm another grown man who watches cartoons with his kids. Though my favorites are Veggie Tales (the older ones), Fairly Oddparents and Jimmy Neutron. Everytime Cosmo opens his mouth I'm reminded of myself! :)

Ilaun_Undil
2006-01-31, 03:35 PM
But then agian the Gods could have countered the knot of Doom by not arguing in the first place. however if we are going to start the blame game, I guess we'll have to blame the person that made the Gods.

GM_West
2006-01-31, 03:40 PM
Indeed, hindsight is always 20/20 in these situations. I remember one of the more 'fun' adventures I'd been a player in was the Desert of Desolation series (I think it was called...) where the hero PCs unwittingly release a terrible, evil djinni on the world. Almost the entire trilogy of modules is spent trying to undo their horrible mistake!

mipers
2006-01-31, 03:41 PM
Love the crayon theme, would have said so yesterday, but I ran into a small snag while registering. All better now though. Thanks again for the Tuesday goodies Rich.

alanajoli
2006-01-31, 03:43 PM
Hooray for a Tuesday comic!

Rich just made my day.

-A

(*snicker* Monkey ninjas *snicker)

ref
2006-01-31, 04:00 PM
4) MONKEYS! NINJAS! Where are the PIRATES?

And the ROBOTS? and the ZOM... ah, yeah, they were in Xykon's dungeon... And the ROBOTS?

mossfoot
2006-01-31, 04:06 PM
I have got to say, I am really impressed with this part of the storyline. Great visuals (brilliant to use drawings), funny and exciting at the same time. Not an easy task.

What makes this whole series work is how it is both self-aware of the fact it's a game world, yet approaching it on the basis of "hey, it works in this reality"

Love it!

PhoeKun
2006-01-31, 04:09 PM
And the ROBOTS? and the ZOM... ah, yeah, they were in Xykon's dungeon... And the ROBOTS?

The robots are in Origins.

The pirates are Right here. (http://www.giantitp.com/cgi-bin/GiantITP/ootscript?SK=121)

Do we have all the bases covered?

The_Cardinal
2006-01-31, 04:15 PM
Seeing that there are no God's of the East anymore, I wonder if there is even an east at all.

I would crack me up if we see a compass in a future comic that reads "North, South, West"... or would it be "North, Elsewhere, South, West"

Lawful_Stupid
2006-01-31, 04:18 PM
*bows before Rich*


I'm not worthy! I'm not worthy!



But seriously, it is quite nice to have a comic on Tuesday. And the crayon style is great. I always had my suspicion that nature's joke box was responsible for ninjas in Dnd.

xrestassuredx
2006-01-31, 04:23 PM
Anyone know if Rich is a Kim Possible fan? (Probably not, because I'm just a big dumb girl who likes silly cartoons). But ninjas and monkeys make me think of Monkeyfist and his army of ninja monkeys, and the sacred Monkey Kung-fu.
The monkey/ninja tandem actually reminded me of the Buddhist Monkey, although he is regularly attacked by ninjas..

Jibar
2006-01-31, 04:25 PM
Say, does this mean we get one a week this week if it's done crayon styly, or is this it for them?
Cos I rather like the idea of crayon week,

Darius Midnite
2006-01-31, 04:29 PM
Good god what a fine strip..
Oh me like..

The_Kobold_Hero
2006-01-31, 04:31 PM
"Hey! I thought we agreed on a medival Knights and Wizards theme!"

That made my day. ;)

I love crayon storys!

Gralamin
2006-01-31, 04:34 PM
I think the Giant is doing one every day for this week, at least thats what I hope.

poor greek gods they didn't even see it coming...wait a minute, where's zeus shield Aegis? or was that destroyed by the snarl?

Zeekar
2006-01-31, 04:59 PM
I think the Giant is doing one every day for this week, at least thats what I hope.

Being the cautious type and not wanting to get my hopes up unduly, I prefer to assume that today's strip was to make up for the missing Monday strip last week. So I won't be expecting a new strip on Thursday.

I would love to be pleasantly surprised, of course. :)

Ebon_Drake
2006-01-31, 05:12 PM
poor greek gods they didn't even see it coming...wait a minute, where's zeus shield Aegis? or was that destroyed by the snarl?
The Snarl probably stole it from him, like it did with his thunderbolt, which is on the opposite side of the beast.

Great work Giant, I'm looking forward to the rest of the week :)

MelTel
2006-01-31, 05:35 PM
Why Crayon? (tis fun)

Lord Fullbladder, Master of Goblins
2006-01-31, 05:47 PM
By the Gods! (wuh, wuh, wuh ;))

A TUESDAY comic? That's crazy! The world shall be undone! (which, incidentally is part of what the comic is about) But still, COOOOL! also, I thought the Snarl would be scarier. And I can see the monkey god of the west put ninjas in our very anti-ninja world.

Abd al-Azrad
2006-01-31, 05:48 PM
I gotta say, I was not seeing that coming. I keep getting tricked by the bright colours and silly animation. This is a dark comic at times.

Niiiice. A being that can kill the universe in moments really brings a new sense of urgency to the storyline.

HOO
2006-01-31, 05:56 PM
Whoa! I really like the crayon style.

About losing faith: Well the gods had no chance against Snarl so why use brute force (Thor's approach I think)? Attacking it is no option and that's why cunning Odin and the other chief deities worked out a clever plan.
And I ask you: If you a a common worshipper of one of these god's why not worship a rather clever god? Yeah they acted dumb in the first place but you have to consider that it was their first universe and everybody makes mistakes and at least they've learned something...

About V's god of magic and arcane sercrets (and so on and so forth, whatever his name was ;) ): I'd like to know about hin and the elven gods if they exist (We haven't see any "dwarven" gods other than Thor who didn't look like a dwarf IIRC)

shadowfox92
2006-01-31, 06:30 PM
I love it!

Every great backstory is told in crayon. If you watch enough cartoons, eventually you'll see a character narrating a horribly dramatic event while holding up crayon-colored posters.

Speaking of which, the undoing of creation was really pretty...is it bad that I think that?

Caledonian
2006-01-31, 06:31 PM
Sweet, merciful Buddha on a pogo stick! I've seen epic roleplaying backstories that involved the death of a god... but never an entire pantheon.

I think we must concede that Giant has finally gained that final level in the legendary "Author" Prestige Class.

On a side note, I've re-examined yesterday's comic to gain more insight into today's, and I've noticed something interesting. The panels which showcase individual characters' statements are the color of the Gods they worship in two cases: Shojo and Roy. Shojo's word boxes are light blue, Roy's are yellow. Shojo is from the South and his gods' color is blue. Roy is from the North, as presumably his gods are as well, and his word box is yellow, the color of the Gods of the North.

Now, look at Elan.

Dun dun DUN!

Zypher_X
2006-01-31, 06:58 PM
...
Every great backstory is told in crayon. If you watch enough cartoons, eventually you'll see a character narrating a horribly dramatic event while holding up crayon-colored posters.
...
Thinking of squidi's AMD http://www.enderak.com/squidi/archive/amd1/amd1-319.gif and onward?

Not up to Giant's standard, if you can compare pixel art with real crayons, but the idea is similar.

Cireneg
2006-01-31, 07:04 PM
About losing faith: Well the gods had no chance against Snarl so why use brute force (Thor's approach I think)? Attacking it is no option and that's why cunning Odin and the other chief deities worked out a clever plan.
Some people believe that doing what is Good is more important than doing what is practical. The Good option would have been to try to save those millions of lives. The practical option was to hide and let them die.

For one who believes that he worships a Good deity and sees Good in this way, his deity's cowardice could prove troublesome. Of course, it could also simply drive him into denial about the whole story.

Starla
2006-01-31, 07:07 PM
On a side note, I've re-examined yesterday's comic to gain more insight into today's, and I've noticed something interesting. The panels which showcase individual characters' statements are the color of the Gods they worship in two cases: Shojo and Roy. Shojo's word boxes are light blue, Roy's are yellow. Shojo is from the South and his gods' color is blue. Roy is from the North, as presumably his gods are as well, and his word box is yellow, the color of the Gods of the North.

Now, look at Elan.

Dun dun DUN!

You mean the color of Roy's is yellow so he worships a god in the yellow pantheon? But that doesn't fit with Durkon. His is is grey and his god speaks in yellow.

52736941
2006-01-31, 07:11 PM
On a side note, I've re-examined yesterday's comic to gain more insight into today's, and I've noticed something interesting. The panels which showcase individual characters' statements are the color of the Gods they worship in two cases: Shojo and Roy. Shojo's word boxes are light blue, Roy's are yellow. Shojo is from the South and his gods' color is blue. Roy is from the North, as presumably his gods are as well, and his word box is yellow, the color of the Gods of the North.

Now, look at Elan.

Dun dun DUN!

Durkons box is grey, though. Doesn't he worship Thor and the rest? But those Gods are yellow. But it would be interesting if it turns out that Elan does worship the Gods fo teh East. ;)

JoseB
2006-01-31, 07:13 PM
On a side note, I've re-examined yesterday's comic to gain more insight into today's, and I've noticed something interesting. The panels which showcase individual characters' statements are the color of the Gods they worship in two cases: Shojo and Roy. Shojo's word boxes are light blue, Roy's are yellow. Shojo is from the South and his gods' color is blue. Roy is from the North, as presumably his gods are as well, and his word box is yellow, the color of the Gods of the North.

Now, look at Elan.

Dun dun DUN!

Hm... However, look at Durkon: He most definitely worships Thor, a god from the North, but his word box is gray, which doesn't correspond to any pantheon.

I don't think that the colour of the word boxes has any particular meaning, apart from making it easy to distinguish one speaker from another.

Besides, Roy's shade of yellow in his word box is different from the shade of yellow used for the gods of the North (compare Roy's word box with Thor's balloon). Same with Shojo.

Just my 2 eurocents! :)

Starla
2006-01-31, 07:15 PM
But you made an excellent point about the colors of the pantheons. I checked and comics 137 and 201 both show Thor talking in yellow.

Edit: and #40 has Thor plus he is fight some demon that speaks in red.

Conman815
2006-01-31, 07:33 PM
Does anyone else think that


spoiler theory:

No spoilers in the main comic thread. I don't care how much you mask them or put a billion spaces in front of them, no spoilers here. Start a new thread if you want to discuss it.

Wrecan
2006-01-31, 07:39 PM
If monkey added ninjas, which of the 12 Southern Gods decided to add hentai?!

redmind0
2006-01-31, 08:08 PM
If monkey added ninjas, which of the 12 Southern Gods decided to add hentai?!

Now thats just vulger.

My thoughts:
1)Monkeyes would make good ninjas if they got more skillpoints.
2)Shading with crayon is tough (props to Big G in the p out there)
3)I am a poor speller.
4)Woot! Im now a dwarf.

Tyrmadris
2006-01-31, 08:14 PM
Gralamin Shieldheart:

poor greek gods they didn't even see it coming...wait a minute, where's zeus shield Aegis? or was that destroyed by the snarl?
Correct me if I'm wrong... but I thought he loaned that to mortals and never got it back? Err, in 'our' universe, anyway.

Flak_Razorwill:

-Well, I doubt anyone can be an atheist here, being that the gods and all of their actions HAVE been seen to have an effect. Losing devotion and FAITH, however...
Phooey. In D&D (and most likely the OotSverse, since it is based on D&D and we haven't seen any evidence to the contrary) a Cleric can have a set of 'beliefs', based on morality or cosmic forces, and still gain divine power and spells. It's easy for an Atheist in such a universe to exist. A more 'kind' one could state that the "so-called Gods" are nothing more than mortals who have achieved vast amounts of this divine power and taken upon themselves to represent their 'belief system' as a figurehead. The less 'kind' variety could simply say all the Clerics who worship gods are dupes, and they are just hallucinating the whole experience or are actually in contact with 'pure' divine power and make up the concept of a 'god' so it is easier for them to understand.
I've played a similar character before, back in the 3.0 days, so I know it can be done. Provides for great roleplaying (a bit like the Paladin in the Yakuza...).

---
PhoeKun:

I think the (remaining) gods deserve praise for knowing when to retreat. There is a difference between cowardice and intelligence, and the gods fought smart. Had they charged into battle, the entire multiverse would proabably be gone. It is not dishonorable to retreat in order to come up with a plan for victory.
Oh, you're right. Hiding oneself so that one's own children can be slaughtered in one's stead is certainly 'smart', since it means you live to see another day.
This, however, doesn't stop it from being a despicable, cowardly act. They didn't even try, they just stained their pants by reflex and ran off.
You'll notice that they did not even try to fight. Not even the Greek pantheon. It specifically says that they were all killed off by surprise, and even Zeus was standing there wondering what had just happened. They never tried, and obviously the surviving pantheons did not as well.

They also didn't even attempt to forumulate a plan until after their world was destroyed. If they had retreated for the express purpose of developing a plan, it wouldn't be as cowardly. Instead, they just fled out of self preservation.

The fact that they made no attempt whatsoever to save any of their creation, whether the inanimate bits or the thinking, feeling, living bits, is what takes this from being just a 'bad judgement call' into a cruel, inhumane statement against life itself. Oh, wait, let me correct that, against non-Deific life. They saved their own skins, after all.


--- ----
GM_West

I don't think the other gods even had a chance to forumulate a plan as to how they would defeat the creature that they unwittingly wrought upon all of creation.
I formulated a plan within about 2 to 3 minutes, and then posted the idea of it here. And I'm just an Int 10 or Int 11 human, not an Int 30+ deity. But you are correct. As mentioned above, they didn't even try to do so until after their world was toast.


Plus, there's still more to the story! I don't think that Durkon will have any reason to lose his faith in Thor.
I seriously, seriously hope so. I don't think Durkon would lose faith, even if this was the end of the creation story, but I know that if there is not more to be revealed, than I certainly have lost faith in them.

Because of this tale-spinning, however, my faith in the Giant's abilities has only grown. I have to agree with Shadowed_Rain in that I've never had a 'humorous' comic ever make my gut bottom out before. The fact that Rich did that says volumes about his storytelling ability.

Just as long as he doesn't expect me to like those gods so far...

--- ---

Conman_815: No, no I don't. The 'shadowy creature', if at all related to the Snarl, could at best be some itty-bitty tiny fragment of it. The Snarl is a vicious monstrosity hell-bent on annihilating existance. The 'Shadowy Creature' is rather charming, amiable, and innocent... and, of course, quite ditzy.

--- ---
Wrecan:

If monkey added ninjas, which of the 12 Southern Gods decided to add hentai?!
Probably the ****... (Rooster) ;)

Zaku_III
2006-01-31, 08:35 PM
The Snarl slew two gods in one round. That would give me the impression you couldn't stop it with another 30 or so deities. Yes, the Gods could've rushed in to try to save their people, and died along with them, having no chance to make any plan.

You made a plan in 2-3 minutes. The thing destroyed existence in 27. The Gods did the wise thing, and above all Gods are supposed to be wise.

Wrecan
2006-01-31, 08:53 PM
Hiding oneself so that one's own children can be slaughtered in one's stead is certainly 'smart', since it means you live to see another day.

"in one's stead" implies the gods could have saved their children, for which you have no evidence. in fact, given that Snarl destroyed the universe in less than half an hour (including every single Olympian) indicates the gods had no chance to save anybody.

The idea that the gods are bad for not committing rank suicide in the face of an overwhelming threat is silly.


This, however, doesn't stop it from being a despicable, cowardly act.

I refuse to believe the only choices are cowardice and idiocy. If those are the only choices, I'll take cowardice.


They never tried

Hold on. You're blaming the Olympains for being surprised!?


They also didn't even attempt to forumulate a plan until after their world was destroyed.

Yes they did. The plan was retreat in the face of overhwelming strength. And it worked.


I formulated a plan within about 2 to 3 minutes, and then posted the idea of it here.

A silly plan that wouldn't have worked in any way shape or form. Their plan -- retreat and rebuild the world more intelligently -- was much better.


Wrecan:
Probably the ****... (Rooster) ;)

Good one!

Wrecan
2006-01-31, 08:59 PM
The Snarl slayed two gods in one round.

Technically, it appeared to have killed Ares (the god of war!) and Apollo (the god of divination!) in the surprise round, which isn't even a full round! It then killed the remaining Olympians in the next round, before, it appears, any of the Olympian gods even got their intial action.

Since the Olympian gods included Poseidon, Hades, Zeus, Demeter, Pan and Aphrodite, at least, Snarl was able to kill at least five gods in a single round (3 second)... and before any other god got to act.

At most, Zeus managed to take a free action (speech).

The idea that there was anything that the other gods could do against such a creature other than retreat and plan for a new day, is monumentally absurd.

Zaku_III
2006-01-31, 09:07 PM
To be fair, I think Zeus may have got an action off, that's assuming his bolt being across the screen means he threw it and missed.

I thought a round was 6 seconds?

Single Shot Zombie
2006-01-31, 09:21 PM
Well, a lot can happen in 6 seconds. As we can see from the Snarl's actions........

That thing must have a gay divine rank to be able to own an entire pantheon in under a minute.........

nagora
2006-01-31, 09:25 PM
Phooey. In D&D (and most likely the OotSverse, since it is based on D&D and we haven't seen any evidence to the contrary) a Cleric can have a set of 'beliefs', based on morality or cosmic forces, and still gain divine power and spells.

That's interesting. In first edition (the only edition IMO) AD&D, such a cleric would be limited to 1st and 2nd level spells. Of course, a GM might instigate some other rule but I'd find it hard to justify higher level spells for someone with no deity, and even those would be subject to question.

Besides, why would an atheist want to be a cleric anyway? That's like wanting to be an anarchist King.

Hyrael
2006-01-31, 09:28 PM
I would doubt it has a divine rank at all, or any stats. its a plot device, kind of like an Eldrich Machine (ECS)

Im still trying to get used the idea that gods exist independently of their worshipers. In the stuff I normally read, gods are just beings powered by beleif, are unbeleivably stupid, and largely incapable of making a cup of coffee. They only exist* as a function of beleif. and they are never Good, either. gods are only concerned with themselves and maintaining their followers, not in some higher moral or ethical purpose. But, thats discworld, and this is D&D. I still like the pratchett system more, though.

Looking very good, giant. this is high-quality storytelling, and explains so much about, well, everything.

*modified. damnation

Zaku_III
2006-01-31, 09:31 PM
They only sexist as a function of beleif.

Where do I sign up?

nagora
2006-01-31, 09:32 PM
gods are only concerned with themselves and maintaining their followers, not in some higher moral or ethical purpose.

Except Om, The God Who Learned. He at least appreciates the idea of being nice to those you meet on the way up, lest you meet them again on your way down...

PhoeKun
2006-01-31, 09:35 PM
* Super Snipping Action *
PhoeKun:

Oh, you're right. Hiding oneself so that one's own children can be slaughtered in one's stead is certainly 'smart', since it means you live to see another day.
This, however, doesn't stop it from being a despicable, cowardly act. They didn't even try, they just stained their pants by reflex and ran off.
You'll notice that they did not even try to fight. Not even the Greek pantheon. It specifically says that they were all killed off by surprise, and even Zeus was standing there wondering what had just happened. They never tried, and obviously the surviving pantheons did not as well.

They also didn't even attempt to forumulate a plan until after their world was destroyed. If they had retreated for the express purpose of developing a plan, it wouldn't be as cowardly. Instead, they just fled out of self preservation.

The fact that they made no attempt whatsoever to save any of their creation, whether the inanimate bits or the thinking, feeling, living bits, is what takes this from being just a 'bad judgement call' into a cruel, inhumane statement against life itself. Oh, wait, let me correct that, against non-Deific life. They saved their own skins, after all.


First, two points of clarifiaction: Zeus did loan the Aegis to Athena (and occasionally, exceptional mortals), but he always got it back. You just didn't steal from Zeus. Secondly, atheism is the belief that gods aren't real, which is patently absurd in a world where they walk the earth when bored.

Now, about the gods being cowards. Just... no. I mean, you've got 27 minutes to come up with a plan to kill something that not only knows all your weaknesses, but has functionally none that you can exploit. And... go. Yeah, I'm gonna run, and I'm one of those "Bushido is my way of life" types. Self sacrifice is only a valid idea when there is a chance it can accomplish something.

To heck with Earth version 0.5, there's a whole multiverse out there, and if the deities throw themselves upon the claws of the Snarl, its all gone. Where's the honor in that?

I'm trying to look at this from the perspective of a Cleric of... oh... let's say Odin. Odin's cool. So I see that my god is not infallible, and that he (and every other deity) made a huge mistake, and nearly destroyed all of reality, and while we're at it, unreality. I see my god wasn't blinded by arrogance or wounded pride, and by making the hard choice, managed to not only snatch victory from the jaws of certain defeat, but even fix the mistake that caused it in the first place. If I doubted Odin before, then I'm hoping to lose my eye in battle now for sure.

Amalthea
2006-01-31, 09:40 PM
I do, however, believe there is a distinct reason why the Snarl killed off the Greek pantheon first
What is this 'Greek Pantheon' of which you speak? It hasn't been mentioned in the comic.

It was the Eastern Pantheon that was horribly slain.

Hyrael
2006-01-31, 09:49 PM
That's interesting. In first edition (the only edition IMO) AD&D, such a cleric would be limited to 1st and 2nd level spells. Of course, a GM might instigate some other rule but I'd find it hard to justify higher level spells for someone with no deity, and even those would be subject to question.

Besides, why would an atheist want to be a cleric anyway? That's like wanting to be an anarchist King.

because cleric is a powerful class, thats why. an atheist in D&D is just as stupid as a religious person in our world. the gods plainly exist. no one said you have to beleive in them. so a D&D atheis would accept the existance of gods, they would just not be happy about it.

there are other sources of divine power other than those godsdamned gods, like nature (I like druids more than clerics). or, being an atheist cleric could be
their way of sticking it to the man, stealing divine power for their own ends, their sniggering, impious vocies lost in the babbling multitude of truely-beleiving, praying idiots.

Id stick to druidism, thank you very much. Its spiritual without being dogmatic, and has real power that doesnt involve big beards in the sky. my kind of organization.

come to that, id like to see an spontanious arcane caster with druid spells. like a nature sorceror. that would be cool.

Baron Von Mod: Insulting someone for a religious belief is not tolerated on these boards.


Specific things you cannot do on this message board that might be allowed elsewhere:


Posting insults or slurs based on anyone's race, religion, ethnicity, age, gender, or sexual orientation

Amalthea
2006-01-31, 09:49 PM
Some people believe that doing what is Good is more important than doing what is practical. The Good option would have been to try to save those millions of lives. The practical option was to hide and let them die.

For one who believes that he worships a Good deity and sees Good in this way, his deity's cowardice could prove troublesome. Of course, it could also simply drive him into denial about the whole story.
Just like to point out, the story goes that the Snarl killed the Eastern Pantheon, destroyed the world while the other pantheons couldn't do anything, and THEN the pantheons hid. It doesn't read like they fled in terror while the Snarl went about it's work, it reads like they were actually helpless.

nagora
2006-01-31, 09:50 PM
So I see that my god is not infallible.

Indeed. It is the case that most religions allow for their gods to be fallible; there are lots of stories where Odin or Thor suffer momentary set-backs. In fact, of course, there is often an Apocalypse story which hinges on the idea that the gods will be defeated. In Odin's case, he will be consumed by the Fenris Wolf when he slips the chain of ideas which the dwarfs forged for him, while Thor is slain by the Midgard Serpent, Jormundgard. Similarly, "our" Poseidon was often vexed by the actions of Odysseus (Hooray! Let's hear it for Odysseus), and Zeus was captured by titans on at least one occasion.

Even Jehovah, the Judeo-Christian god, is portrayed as making mistakes which have to be fixed (eg Tower of Babel, initially making Adam alone etc.). Christ is the only god (or demi-god) I can think of who is normally regarded as never having done anying wrong.

nagora
2006-01-31, 09:52 PM
come to that, id like to see an spontanious arcane caster with druid spells. like a nature sorceror. that would be cool.

Some sort of elementalist, perhaps?

Hyrael
2006-01-31, 09:57 PM
Similarly, "our" Poseidon was often vexed by the actions of Odysseus (Hooray! Let's hear it for Odysseus),.
WOOT! I agree. He's the best hero ever. not at all like that idiot Achilles, who should have worn bronze boots. and, odysseus has a penchant for revenge, remember those murdered suitors and maids?

as belkar would say, payback's a bitch.

the one smart hero, lost in a crowd of muscle-bound dolts.

drackcove
2006-01-31, 09:57 PM
"What? Hey, we all agreed on this Medieval-knights-and wizards theme!"

I love this line, it sounds like this is a story that could well have a ooc (out of character) origin, 4 dms each representing a pantheon try to make a campagn setting, their arguring and bickering causes one dm to leave forcing them to start over.
but i only have two more words to say

"ninja monkey"

Hyrael
2006-01-31, 10:00 PM
Some sort of elementalist, perhaps?

and whatt'r dem tings? must be something not from 3.5. sorry, Im a newbie (though I know alot, particularly about eberron, im not familiar with the old school stuff)

and no, I was actually thinking of the Mages from Magic, the Gathering. drawing arcane power from their connection to the land. Im not sure these 'elementalists' are what Im looking for.

PhoeKun
2006-01-31, 10:07 PM
There are no elementalists. I'm pretty sure it was a suggestion.

On the subject of heroes: Odysseus, the best hero ever? The same Odysseus who was practically dragged kicking and screaming to Troy? The Odysseus who laid claim to both his own feats of prowess by virtue of his strength and everyone else's by virtue of his having spoken before they did anything? The guy who took Achilles' armor from Ajax just because he could?

Ugh, no thank you.

theKOT
2006-01-31, 10:20 PM
On the subject of heroes: Odysseus, the best hero ever? The same Odysseus who was practically dragged kicking and screaming to Troy? The Odysseus who laid claim to both his own feats of prowess by virtue of his strength and everyone else's by virtue of his having spoken before they did anything? The guy who took Achilles' armor from Ajax just because he could?

Ugh, no thank you.
So? An unwillingness to go to war for Helen's sake isn't neccisarily bad. Lots of greeks were unsure. I don't know the stories behind the other two, but I do know that Odysseus was a good thinker who suffered through a heckuva lot of crud. You could give three stories about anyone that would make them sound terrible. Oh, and poor poor Hephaestus, first he becomes lame, then Aphrodite cheats on him, and now he doesn't even appear with his pantheon!

Methuselah_Amakiir
2006-01-31, 10:23 PM
Although elementalists do not exist, I think his point is they should. Plus, with a D&D storyline, an athiest cleric could get his powers from his "understanding of the cosmos" or something, a little different from a wizard or sorcerer, but still out there enough to invoke magic. Plus, it's not like you have to actually bow down to the D&D gods, so I don't see why you're worrying about it. Just pick the one with the best domain spells, IMO.

Sir_Banjo
2006-01-31, 10:24 PM
Did anyone else get the monkey reference in that last one?

xyzchyx
2006-01-31, 10:34 PM
If he had said 27 years instead of minutes, I just *KNOW* that this story would have been an allegory for something.

PhoeKun
2006-01-31, 10:34 PM
So? An unwillingness to go to war for Helen's sake isn't neccisarily bad. Lots of greeks were unsure. I don't know the stories behind the other two, but I do know that Odysseus was a good thinker who suffered through a heckuva lot of crud. You could give three stories about anyone that would make them sound terrible. Oh, and poor poor Hephaestus, first he becomes lame, then Aphrodite cheats on him, and now he doesn't even appear with his pantheon!


I just went with three well known examples. I can name more if you want me to.

...Your Hephaestus comment makes me smile. Thought you should know.

The_Shadow
2006-01-31, 10:45 PM
The Snarl doesn't seem to know about the Outer Planes. So it seems likely that all the dead from the newly-created world are with their gods.

...Drat. I just noticed that it "devoured each and every soul". That's harsh. :'(

EDIT: I just have to add that Odyssesus is also my own favorite mythological hero of all time.

Yes, he was rather a prick during the Trojan War, but who wasn't? He grew up an awful lot in the Odyssey - *wonderful* story!

TheWinterBard
2006-01-31, 10:52 PM
Yay for first posts... or whatever. Anywho, know it's been said, but this crayon thing is really neat. Great style for the story and, let's face it, it looks cool, the Snarl especially.
Can't wait to hear more of this world-building saga..

PhoeKun
2006-01-31, 10:53 PM
...Drat. I just noticed that it "devoured each and every soul". That's harsh. :'(

Yes, he was rather a prick during the Trojan War, but who wasn't? He grew up an awful lot in the Odyssey - *wonderful* story!

Wow, I didn't notice the soul thing, either. That does suck.

To the second point: Ajax.

The_Shadow
2006-01-31, 10:58 PM
Wow, I didn't notice the soul thing, either. That does suck.

To the second point: Ajax.

OK, and Hektor too, if it comes to that. But you have to admit, a lot of the "heroes" on both sides were jerks. Odysseus doesn't have a patent on it.

Seraph
2006-01-31, 11:00 PM
There are no elementalists. I'm pretty sure it was a suggestion.

On the subject of heroes: Odysseus, the best hero ever? The same Odysseus who was practically dragged kicking and screaming to Troy? The Odysseus who laid claim to both his own feats of prowess by virtue of his strength and everyone else's by virtue of his having spoken before they did anything? The guy who took Achilles' armor from Ajax just because he could?


you forgot "Pwned an entire room of suitors because they were macking on his woman".

5tephen
2006-01-31, 11:02 PM
Wow, Giant, great work once more.

I believe we are getting comics more often because you are pushing through the exposition, like you have in the past. But I am also wondering about the production of these comics:
Does it take longer, do you find it more or less satisfying, is that really a relevant question...?

And as for all the ranting about Gods being cowardly: hold off your judgement- we weren't there. And quite possibly couldn't comprehend the nature of the conflict anyway.

Perhaps the situation was much more like a bunch of people building a village, and laying out roads all wrong, and building too close together, and having too many pets, and planting vines and trees and crops in each other's backyards, and generaly making a great big tangle of the place, and then because it was all such a shambles an accident happenned, and it all caught on fire.

Alright, so perhaps the grain silo exploded, but you get the idea. The Snarl might not be so very sentient, as much as angry.

Perhaps it wasn't such a stand-up fight, as a giant terrible collapse of everything. Sure, it seemed to want to kill the Gods first, but in that case, anyone would run. Especially if they couldn't understand it.

I am sure that the Gods felt like crap about everything they had built being destroyed (even the pets and plants) and even blamed themselves, but the fire is still burning and threatens to engulf the valley, and perhaps the whole forest they built their village in.

So they are forming a plan.

So let's just see how it comes out. The Giant generally plots these things out fairly far in advance.... I trust him.

Tharr
2006-01-31, 11:06 PM
Folks there are very smart monkey race in current printed in Legend of the Five Rings called Varna favored class is shaman. They live in the Phoeniex clan forest.

Also techinally Norse hates Greek so do a dance they were finally killed.

Interesting enough the Snarl reminded me of the very first Samurai Jack. Who oddly was attacked by the big three champion of those remaining pantheon attacked a blob and the arm fell to prime become Aku the great evil.

Odd the Norse myth survived with Ragnrok they should have gone through now.

Great speech I mean great comic.

The_Shadow
2006-01-31, 11:08 PM
you forgot "Pwned an entire room of suitors because they were macking on his woman".

They weren't just "macking on his woman". They were mooching off his property and planning to murder his son and heir, "marry" his wife by force (ie, rape) and seize it all for themselves. (Heck, even without all that, I know I'd start getting highly annoyed if I had houseguests who wouldn't leave for TWENTY YEARS!)

It wasn't the 21st century. It wasn't like Odysseus could call the cops and get something done about it. He was the *King*, for crying out loud. What higher authority was he supposed to go to? What is it you suggest he should have done instead?

In the context of the tale, the killing of the suitors is nothing but heroic and just. That's how it was received by its original listeners, and that's how I received it when I first read it at the age of six. Haven't seen much reason to change my mind, either.

PhoeKun
2006-01-31, 11:18 PM
Which of course, is why I didn't mention it. The suitors deserved death.

I don't deny Odysseus hero status. But he's no Turnus.

Tharr
2006-01-31, 11:27 PM
Hey back to comic start a classical book thread somewhere else on a board.

ref
2006-01-31, 11:33 PM
If monkey added ninjas, which of the 12 Southern Gods decided to add hentai?!

My guess is Dragon. Lazy artists then corrupted the image to simple tentacles.

PhoeKun
2006-01-31, 11:52 PM
My guess is Dragon. Lazy artists then corrupted the image to simple tentacles.

Oh really? I would have said Tiger. It would go a long way to explaining the proliferation of cat-girls.

Evik
2006-02-01, 12:09 AM
Ha!
i just wanna say .....Next time you are attacked by Ninjas....Blame the Monkey God!!!!

Flak_Razorwill
2006-02-01, 01:02 AM
I've been doing that ever since Jackie Chan stepped onto the scene.

Jibar
2006-02-01, 02:18 AM
Ya know, thae snarl sounds a lot like Lord C'thulhu (all praise!)
He comes, he destroys everything, he devours their souls. Like when Lord C'thulhu (all praise) awakes.

Count-Tyr
2006-02-01, 04:16 AM
Great strip the daily thing has got me all worked up and excited

Alfryd
2006-02-01, 05:52 AM
Who would have thought a monkey was responsible?

I had my suspicions.
Like all good things, it begins with a Monkey.
http://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2000/03/15

http://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2000/01/07

http://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2000/05/31


B. I wanted a pony.
I second this.

-This feels like new Battlestar Galactica, with the Gods blowing themselves away and mankind scattering to the winds.
I would just like to comment that series rocks more than any other thing in the lengthy history of things that rock.

It is not dishonorable to retreat in order to come up with a plan for victory.
And it is entirely possible to be dishonourable, yet good.

Some people believe that doing what is Good is more important than doing what is practical. The Good option would have been to try to save those millions of lives. The practical option was to hide and let them die.
And thereby open up the possibility of creating a new world. If the Gods had been slaughtered, those unmade millions would have been effectively destroyed. That would be evil. Selfish acts are not inherently evil when the self has importance.

...his deity's cowardice could prove troublesome.
As opposed to selfishness and glowering stupidity in favouring the satisfaction of a private honour-code over the future of the cosmos?

I formulated a plan within about 2 to 3 minutes, and then posted the idea of it here.
What plan? You moaned and whinged about a lack of futile kamikaze behaviour, but proposed no idea on how to actually tackle the snarl, assuming you magically have some secret, affirmable insight into it's hidden weaknesses that has eluded everyone else here, which I doubt.

...the one smart hero, lost in a crowd of muscle-bound dolts.
Unfortunately, he's still a complete bastard. I think Hector is the only remotely likeable 'hero' in the Illiad.

Oh, and poor poor Hephaestus, first he becomes lame, then Aphrodite cheats on him, and now he doesn't even appear with his pantheon!
The only likeable deity in Homer. He's productive, wise, forbearing, actually stood up to Zeus' wife-beating and usually steers clear of the incessant celestial bitching that occupies the remaining pantheon. Greek mythology is most fascinating for being almost completely amoral on an individual basis.

...Also techinally Norse hates Greek so do a dance they were finally killed.
They probably wouldn't get along in person, (the average Greek deity makes Loki look like an arbiter of chivalry,) but I don't recall any distinct traditional animosity.

Shatteredtower
2006-02-01, 05:53 AM
So let's see if I understand things.

First, the Snarl took the fight out of Ares and stuck Apollo where the sun don't shine. Then it went on to plant Demeter, fry Pan, shells Aphrodite, run Hermes down, roll Hades over into his grave, and gut Poseidon like a fish. Then it takes Zeus, still in complete shock, and hangs from the heavens as it finishes him off, before, uh, titaning its grip on the world?

I'm sorry, Giant. I've tried to make sense of the carnage, but it's all Greek to me.

Alfryd
2006-02-01, 05:55 AM
*B-dum Chish!*

The Glitter Ninja
2006-02-01, 06:42 AM
As a ninja -- an executive glitter ninja, might I add -- I am appalled that you would say we were the product of monkeys! It's like... like... reverse evolution, except with ninjas!

Seriously, though, I love the ribbing ninjas get. The RPG I played had explanations for how ninjas got all mixed up with the knights and the sorcerers, and that was cool, because, hey, ninjas.

Love the strip!

Leo_Forestclaw
2006-02-01, 06:48 AM
So let's see if I understand things.

First, the Snarl took the fight out of Ares
***Edit***
uh, titaning its grip on the world?

I'm sorry, Giant. I've tried to make sense of the carnage, but it's all Greek to me.

Wow. I don't know if I want to applaud or groan. Perhaps a bit of both...
:o

But back to the comic: Rich, this work is wonderful. I find myself going back to the last two crayon strips and just enjoying the art. Just wonderful.

Has anyone else noticed the pencil "trace" lines around the heads and other body parts? I love these small glances into the process that is use to create these strips.

Honestly, I'd love to spend an afternoon watching the strip being put together just to have greater insight into the process.

What are the chances of a "making of..." Quicktime movie? ;D

Edit: 'Cause my grammar sucks.

chibibar
2006-02-01, 07:42 AM
if there are ninja... then you must have...

PIRATES!!!

(we are at war for a long long time)

OzymandiasVolt
2006-02-01, 08:33 AM
Monkey is the best deity ever.

Hyrael
2006-02-01, 08:49 AM
if there are ninja... then you must have...

PIRATES!!!

(we are at war for a long long time)


No, the issue with ninjas is that they are a specialized order from china. its hard to get them in mideival fantasy without some stretching. but pirates can turn up anywhere, because no matter where humans live, if its near the coast, they will transport valuable goods by sea, where there's little help and its easy for the pirates to hide afterward. Pirates just show up where ever there are suitable conditions (just like life) and even where there arent sitable conditions (just like life).

Piratry is only banditry on water, but with bags and bags of style.

Pirate, ddefinitely pirate. In D&D terms they have better classes. Id be a Shwashbuckler (CW) over a Ninja (CV) any day. Better BAB

Aeek
2006-02-01, 08:58 AM
"Friend dwarf"

hmmm

no comment

Amalthea
2006-02-01, 09:20 AM
Seriously, though, I love the ribbing ninjas get. The RPG I played had explanations for how ninjas got all mixed up with the knights and the sorcerers, and that was cool, because, hey, ninjas.
I DMed one (1) game in college before I gave up on D&D for a few years. I had a reasonably cool campaign set up, and my players were all uber-munchkiners, and several of them decided to play evil characters in a good campaign.

So, whenever one of them did something particularly obnoxious (like, say KILLING OFF the story hook!) that player got killed by a ninja. Under the principle that if you can see a ninja, you're safe, but if you can't see a ninja, you are moments away from death.

Chlodwig
2006-02-01, 09:22 AM
If he had said 27 years instead of minutes, I just *KNOW* that this story would have been an allegory for something.

I will have to look at it but it sounds a bit like something out of Terminator (not sure if 1 or 2) where they tell how Skynet startet the nuclear war.

Come to think of it.... There are similarities to the Snarl.

Alfryd
2006-02-01, 09:29 AM
"Friend dwarf"
That did strike me as a little... encouraging?..

Flak_Razorwill
2006-02-01, 09:42 AM
...Under the principle that if you can see a ninja, you're safe, but if you can't see a ninja, you are moments away from death.

I can name a number of contemporary parallel jokes here...but I'd probably be stoned.

Ambrogino
2006-02-01, 09:44 AM
No, the issue with ninjas is that they are a specialized order from china.

Erm, Japan dude.

Amalthea
2006-02-01, 09:50 AM
I can name a number of contemporary parallel jokes here...but I'd probably be stoned.
Any mention of Chuck Norris merits a ninja attack. :P
I mean it. >:(

IRSWalker
2006-02-01, 09:53 AM
Erm, Japan dude.
That's what they want you to think...... :)

Reborn
2006-02-01, 09:53 AM
Erm, Japan dude.

There are no ninja, and you shouldn't ever talk about them. Talk about what? mimblewimble *takes two shuriken in the neck*

Leveller
2006-02-01, 09:58 AM
I'm just waiting for someone to go: "Hey, I thought ninjas were chinese samurajs" ;D

The Giant
2006-02-01, 10:19 AM
OK, so there WILL be a comic today (Wednesday), but it won't be up until the afternoon. Other commitments kept me from getting started on the crayon drawings until now.

Reborn
2006-02-01, 10:28 AM
That's ok Rich, I still love you :D

Reborn
2006-02-01, 10:29 AM
I'm just waiting for someone to go: "Hey, I thought ninjas were chinese samurajs" ;D

Well they won't now, will they?!?!!? YOU'VE RUINED EVERYTHING!!! AAAAAARGH.



^^^ This is a joke. I am not flaming. Honest.

PhoeKun
2006-02-01, 10:30 AM
OK, so there WILL be a comic today (Wednesday), but it won't be up until the afternoon. Other commitments kept me from getting started on the crayon drawings until now.

Fantastic. Thanks for the update, Giant!

Grey Watcher
2006-02-01, 10:33 AM
OK, so there WILL be a comic today (Wednesday), but it won't be up until the afternoon. Other commitments kept me from getting started on the crayon drawings until now.

It must be interesting to say to your banker or your lawyer or whoever you were meeting, "Well this has been a great meeting, but I have to go draw with crayons now." ;D

Zeekar
2006-02-01, 10:56 AM
It must be interesting to say to your banker or your lawyer or whoever you were meeting, "Well this has been a great meeting, but I have to go draw with crayons now." ;D

Heh. There's a great image - Rich carrying around a briefcase with art paper and crayons. Sitting in the waiting room for a business meeting, or an airport gate area . . . coloring.

"Whatcha workin' on there?"

"Oh, just some stuff for my business."

themunck
2006-02-01, 11:00 AM
OK, so there WILL be a comic today (Wednesday), but it won't be up until the afternoon. Other commitments kept me from getting started on the crayon drawings until now.
We would rather have a good comic than a fast.
Take your time, o great lord of the OOTS

Deuce
2006-02-01, 11:02 AM
Ya know, thae snarl sounds a lot like Lord C'thulhu (all praise!)
He comes, he destroys everything, he devours their souls. Like when Lord C'thulhu (all praise) awakes.

Really? I thought there was much more of an Azathoth vibe going with the Snarl (I'd praise Azathoth, but as it's blind and crazy as well as all powerful, it won't make much of an impression).

theKOT
2006-02-01, 11:18 AM
OK, so there WILL be a comic today (Wednesday), but it won't be up until the afternoon. Other commitments kept me from getting started on the crayon drawings until now.

Well, seeing as a normal comic takes two to three hours I guess this means a crayon drawing takes a bit longer. So the reason we are getting a comic every day so far this week is because the Giant already knows what he wants their content to be? Or is it something like he is trying to get through this exposition? I heard he had done this before. for which comics?

warmachine
2006-02-01, 11:20 AM
"These threads could be used to fight the Snarl on its own terms."

Surely this in incorrect? Surely, you'd conspire to fight an enemy on your terms. Or to push the frontline back to their home territory. Or to gain the initiative. But never let the enemy choose to fight on their terms.

Sanctu
2006-02-01, 11:28 AM
Thank you, Rich!

*hug*

kyrin
2006-02-01, 12:02 PM
First off, lovin' the strip. I may steal some of it for my game someday, which is of course the highest compliment a gamer can give. ;D

Gotta disagree with some of the people here, though. It is ridiculously easy to be an atheist in a D&D setting. You've got people throwing around lightning bolts and calling down columns of flame, summoning beasties from other planes just before breakfast and creating something out of nothing during lunch. Some of those people claim to get their power from a deity, but others can do almost exactly the same thing, and claim to get their power from studying books or having "the blood of the Dragon," whatever THAT means. Heck, it's even possible for one spellcaster to "imbue" (great word) another with spells! Why is it such a leap to just say that these "gods" are jumped-up wizards with REALLY high Bluff skill?

A fifth-level wizard could probably pass himself off as a "god" to a bunch of tribesmen with the proper spell selection. "He killed those who spoke against him with holy fire! He summoned servitors from the outer realms to do his bidding (*cough* for 30 seconds *cough*). He can change his appearance! Behold how the Holy Light dances around his head! Truly he is Glabblefrarp the Grim Incarnate!"

In my game world, the Githyanki are avowed atheists. When the Mind Flayers enslaved them, their gods did not help them. So, they came to the conclusion that the "gods" are no such thing, and they take every opportunity to drive home that point. I also have a cult of philosophers who think that humans give the gods power, and not the other way 'round. Needless to say, their not terribly popular with the clerics.

Do these powerful creatures exist? Sure, no one would deny that. But are they "gods?" That is up for debate. Or in the case of the Githyanki, the answer is "No!"

So it could happen.

Waiting with bated breath from the next installment...

JIM
aka kyrin

Jibar
2006-02-01, 12:04 PM
Really? I thought there was much more of an Azathoth vibe going with the Snarl (I'd praise Azathoth, but as it's blind and crazy as well as all powerful, it won't make much of an impression).
To be perfectly honest, Lord C'thulhu (all praise!) is all I really know about with the whole mythos. That and the fact Gariza can take down great old ones.
That, and when it comes to the whole eaty worldy thingy, we loyal worshippers will have the privaledge of dieing last!

GM_West
2006-02-01, 12:09 PM
With the amount of effort it must take to create these 'crayon comics' I think your fans won't mind waiting a few hours to see the next installment.

How the heck are you doing those so quick anyway? I just cannot understand how artists can create such drawings so effortlessly (or so it seems to me...)

Thanks for the update though, and I'll be back to check the board this after lunch! :)

Zaku_III
2006-02-01, 12:27 PM
That, and when it comes to the whole eaty worldy thingy, we loyal worshippers will have the privaledge of dieing last!

I was to understand we got killed first.

NEO|Phyte
2006-02-01, 12:45 PM
You know, what if the Giant means that THESE threads can be used to fight the Snarl?

TomBoniface
2006-02-01, 12:49 PM
And now finally I learn how the ninja, samurai, etc classes got into the D&D game! Who would have thought a monkey was responsible? :o
Anyone who knows some of the Monkeys who work in the gaming industry?

Deuce
2006-02-01, 12:52 PM
I was to understand we got killed first.

Indeed, the *really* lucky might even get to die as part of a great sacrifice to raise the Great Old Ones from their slumber.

Of course, those who conduct the sacrifices would become gods in their own right - gods of a dead world, of corpses and ash, but gods none the less.

Then again the only "Great Old One" realated diety in the OotSverse that we're aware of is Banjthulu - whose worshiper(s) will probably be rewarded with a large supply of cat-gut and Punch&Judy shows.

(added): Banjo's near entry into the Northern Pantheon might indicate that the current roster of gods may include those not introduced in this creation story.

Jibar
2006-02-01, 01:41 PM
I was to understand we got killed first.

Where's the privaledge in that? I want to watch those suckers scream...heh heh heh...
Alightment right now: Neutrel Evil.
Burn the orphans!
Neutrel Chaotic Evil

Buzzaro
2006-02-01, 01:56 PM
You know, what if the Giant means that THESE threads can be used to fight the Snarl?

As I see it, and I hope I am not over stepping my bounds but since I am talking about what is happening not what will happen then I hope this isn’t seen as a spoiler.

It is obvious to me but I see these threads and the message board are the Snarl.

- Someone makes a prediction that is near what The Creator has planed and The Creator feels the need to throw away two weeks of work of build up to maintain the integrity of the strip.

- Someone whines and complains that the comic isn’t up when they want it, and The Creator feels his creativity sucked right out of his fingers and fill with a desire to give it all up.

The Creator needs to hide from The Snarl (i.e. “All predictions are now [SPOILERS]” ) to protect his creation

These threads and messages are The Snarl that can destroy the world in 27 minutes and people using hidden text are just pressing their luck and endangering the strip that we enjoy so much.

kierthos
2006-02-01, 02:09 PM
Hrm... the Snarl = Flying Spaghetti Monster? Just a thought...

Frem
2006-02-01, 02:29 PM
It is obvious to me but I see these threads and the message board are the Snarl. Wow. That sounds frighteningly acurate. The strip describes gods (multiple), though. As far as I know, we have not killed off any mods. (Yet, anyway...)

armatil
2006-02-01, 03:09 PM
Wow. That sounds frighteningly acurate. The strip describes gods (multiple), though. As far as I know, we have not killed off any mods. (Yet, anyway...)

maybe we users are the "gods" (hahaha), and we may end up being killed by the monster we are creating right here and now.

btw, i love the crayon work. new and refreshing but still very very OotS-ish. :)

Brianish
2006-02-01, 03:38 PM
Im pretty sure, since it was always referred to as the (apparently literal) fabric of the world, the threads and snarl hook were in the plot since long before anything here happened.

gj overthinking though. ::)

Illsbane
2006-02-01, 04:39 PM
I just had a horrible thought ...

"Belkar, Avatar of the Snarl."

I mean, they're both pretty much about killing anything and everything that can't effectively kill them first, right? No regard for anyone else, no consideration that anything else deserves to live ... They'd get along swimmingly - up to the point where one of them tries to kill the other because they have no further use for each other.

outherelistening
2006-02-01, 04:45 PM
Older reader/new poster here. Just chiming in to say... wow. This week's comics are beautiful.

Also? They're instant gratificatasty.
-A

theKOT
2006-02-01, 04:55 PM
Older reader/new poster here. Just chiming in to say... wow. This week's comics are beautiful.

Also? They're instant gratificatasty.
-A
Welcome to the jungle-er I mean board! I like the username. Instagratifitastic!

Buzzaro
2006-02-01, 05:01 PM
Im pretty sure, since it was always referred to as the (apparently literal) fabric of the world, the threads and snarl hook were in the plot since long before anything here happened.

gj overthinking though. ::)

Rich has said he knows generally where things started, how things will go, and how he wants it all to end. Everything in-between is written the day before it is needed (much like an episode of 24) so it can change to reflect new ideas. If The Snarl is was meant as to represent The Message Threads or if its just a ‘string’ of coincidences the similarities are still there. It just may be Rich's subconscious trying to send us a message to stop being warrior oracles; Rich's conscious may not even be aware of the message he is sending. (wwwoooaahhh dude that’s deep... Maybe I am over thinking things, which is rather easy for a troll like myself to do.)

Devastation_Bob
2006-02-01, 05:01 PM
Boy howdy am I sick and tired of gaming with monkeys.... >:(

GeekDaddy
2006-02-01, 05:05 PM
Snarl, huh? Looks like Belkar can finally fill in that empty "Diety:" slot on his character sheet!

BTW: Love it! It's almost like Rich is setting up the foundations for a gaming universe....


Hmmm...


OOTS: The RPG.

YAY!!!

PhoeKun
2006-02-01, 05:06 PM
I would like to call everybody's attention to the deific glow around Demeter. Notice how its being sliced in half by the Snarl's claws, and how the halves are joined only by the plants at her side?

... Tell me that isn't cool.

The Lady Auneredra
2006-02-01, 05:34 PM
I know this has nothing really to do with OOTS #274, but it does have something to do with OOTS in general. My quesiton is:
How is Elan's name pronounced?
I think it's pronounced "e-LIN", and my dad thinks it's pronounced "e-LAWN". It might even be "e-LAN", like it's spelt.
...there's another 5 bucks (US dollars) riding on this, so...yeah. ;D

Edit: Come to think of it, is V's name pronounced "VAAR-sue-VEE-us"?

PhoeKun
2006-02-01, 05:39 PM
I know this has nothing really to do with OOTS #274, but it does have something to do with OOTS in general. My quesiton is:
How is Elan's name pronounced?
I think it's pronounced "e-LIN", and my dad thinks it's pronounced "e-LAWN". It might even be "e-LAN", like it's spelt.
...there's another 5 bucks (US dollars) riding on this, so...yeah. ;D

Edit: Come to think of it, is V's name pronounced "VAAR-sue-VEE-us"?

You guys must pass money back and forth all day.
Here. (http://www.giantitp.com/cgi-bin/yabb/YaBB.pl?board=comics;action=display;num=1129007175 )

Hoseki
2006-02-01, 05:43 PM
I will! Let me!

*Ahem* No, that's not really cool, IMHO.

Anyway: I think the Greek gods of our world act like spoiled children.


Zeus: I will give a box full of faults to a woman created to open it.
(He does so)
Pandora: Since I was created to open this box, thus not DIRECTLY pinning the blame on the gods, I shall.
(She does so)
Faults: Neener neener. We exist. In your faces, Zeus and Pandora.
(Faults wrek havoc)
Zeus: I do not like the way mortals behave under the influence of faults I semi-direcly brought upon their heads. I'm gonna flood the world.
(He does so)


Prometheus: I will give man fire so they can live better lives.
(He does so)
Zeus: Bad boy.
Prometheus: I shall also tell them how to not burn up the best meat so they can live better lives.
(He does so)
Zeus: Bad boy! I shall chain you to a rock and have an eagle with nothing better to do preform daily liver sugery!
(He does so)

'Nuff said.

Gary_Schaper
2006-02-01, 05:43 PM
I think it's pronounced "e-LIN", and my dad thinks it's pronounced "e-LAWN". It might even be "e-LAN", like it's spelt.
The word "elan", which I suspect inspired the name, is pronounced "eh-LAHN", I believe. It's how I've always read it.

Edit: Come to think of it, is V's name pronounced "VAAR-sue-VEE-us"?
I'd always thought "var-SUE-vee-us".

EDIT: And then I saw the subsequent post and the link. I'll shut up now.

Skynet
2006-02-01, 05:44 PM
EE-lin
HAY-lee
vahr-SOOV-ee-us
DUHR-kon
ROY
BELL-karr
ZYE-kon
NAIL
sa-BEEN
THOG
YIK YIK
ZIZ-di-tree
HILL-gee-ya
DOOR-oo-kon

If anyone has any other names I forgot, let me know.


It seems you win again. :)

The Lady Auneredra
2006-02-01, 05:46 PM
You guys must pass money back and forth all day.

Oh, no. We bet on lunch and dinner a lot, with the occasional movie.
See, my parents are divorced :(, so when I go to my dad's, I always bring a lot of money. ::)

The Lady Auneredra
2006-02-01, 05:51 PM
It seems you win again. :)
Well, I didn't really 'win' last time, but it's all how you look at things. 8)

Popkorn
2006-02-01, 06:15 PM
sigh
i have in 50 minutes Midnight and still no new oots

and I'm soo addictet that I can't sleep *and I have to stand up at 5 o'clock in the morning ^^*

RebelRogue
2006-02-01, 06:40 PM
Diety
Is it me or does the word "diety" relate to "deity" as "rouge" relates to "rogue"?

Edit: And then I went on to screw it up myself ;D

PhoeKun
2006-02-01, 07:02 PM
I will! Let me!

*Ahem* No, that's not really cool, IMHO.

Anyway: I think the Greek gods of our world act like spoiled children.


I'm sad now.

I just thought that seeing something in the middle of tearing apart a deity's very essence, in crayon was too cool for words.

Guess not...

Hoseki
2006-02-01, 07:17 PM
Well, I'm sorry you're sad. I studied cause and effect oh so long ago... :P

Gralamin
2006-02-01, 07:24 PM
Crayon MIGHT must come! If I don't get a comic today I will still be an avid follower and slight complainer :P
but on topic just had a thought that I think might be spoiler!

Tharr
2006-02-01, 07:43 PM
The next day is fun Groundhogs day.
Hopefully the days posts wont keep looping.
Wonder about shadow this year.

Zargon
2006-02-01, 07:45 PM
As much as I enjoy the regular Oots strips (alot!), I really like the week of crayon - the story is tight & well paced and the drawings are amazing!
Looking at how the story is being flushed out, I'm wondering if there are some similarities to Giant's runner up finish to Elberon? And why do I have the suspicion that Giant's world would have been better...?

Hurlbut
2006-02-01, 07:51 PM
I like this plot so far. Man I wonder if Belkar find someone like a Golaith with Fling Ally, that would be wicked cool.

Sylvius
2006-02-01, 07:58 PM
Technically, it appeared to have killed Ares (the god of war!) and Apollo (the god of divination!) in the surprise round, which isn't even a full round! It then killed the remaining Olympians in the next round, before, it appears, any of the Olympian gods even got their intial action.

Since the Olympian gods included Poseidon, Hades, Zeus, Demeter, Pan and Aphrodite, at least, Snarl was able to kill at least five gods in a single round.

This is what makes these message boards so cool. Someone looked at this comic and said, "Ares and Apollo must have been killed in the surprise round."

Ghull_Ka
2006-02-01, 08:12 PM
Hoseki,

That's probably the best interpretation of the Pandora myth that I've ever heard. Well done! :D

Caledonian
2006-02-01, 08:55 PM
I'd always assumed that Elan was named after the personality trait, and thus his name would be pronounced the same way.

Huh.

Wardog
2006-02-01, 09:34 PM
Gotta disagree with some of the people here, though. It is ridiculously easy to be an atheist in a D&D setting.

The other way to look at it, and the reason I'd probably be an "atheist" in D&D, or any world with a pathenon based on Greek mythology:

I "don't believe in the Gods" in the same way that some people "don't believe in capital punishment".

Or, to quote Granny Weatherwax: "Of course they exist. That's no reason to go believing in them. It just encourages them".



I will! Let me!

Prometheus: I will give man fire so they can live better lives.
(He does so)
Zeus: Bad boy.
Prometheus: I shall also tell them how to not burn up the best meat so they can live better lives.
(He does so)
Zeus: Bad boy! I shall chain you to a rock and have an eagle with nothing better to do preform daily liver sugery!
(He does so)


I like the Discworld take on that myth, with the world's first Hero (and first Thief) stealing Fire from the gods. But he was unable to fence it. (It was too hot)*.


(But then the Discworld is described as a place where the gods are not so much worshiped as blamed. And where the more unruly ones have a habit of going round to atheist's houses and throwing bricks through their windows).

And of course Cohen the Barbarian deciding to return fire to the gods, with intrest. (Using what appeared to be the Discword equivilent of a nuclear bomb).

And freeing the Prometheus-equivilent (I forget his name), and arming him so he could get his revenge on the eagle.


*He got burned on that one.

ref
2006-02-01, 10:07 PM
I know what the Giant wrote, but those are a little inaccurate as pronunciations. for example, Thog's pronunciation should be written THOK. (yes, I'm a major nitpicker)

Adeptus
2006-02-02, 05:14 PM
I'm pretty sure Elan's name comes from the word "elan", which pretty much means "style".

http://www.answers.com/topic/lan

Edited with a better link, and a pronunciation quide

Rich says something about pronouncing the names as he does with a Jersey accent (I think) but I have no idea what that would be like. Anyway, I'd think Elan himself pronounces things very beautifully, being a bard with CHA 18