Quote Originally Posted by Mad Humanist View Post
So what's the latest hot take from all the youtube commentators about how Redcloak is the good guy here?
People are complicated and if they've made poor choices in the past they're likely to continue down that path unless forced not to. It becomes familiar.

Stealing to feed a family becomes stealing because it's what you're good at.

Lying to protect yourself leads to suspecting everyone is a threat and lying all the time.

Killing in self defense or killing to defend the community can lead to killing others in other communities just because they might be a threat, or because someone else in that community was a threat. The death penalty lines people up to be systematically killed, and best of all, you don't have to do it yourself. You don't have to see how the sausage is made.

He's always been a character doing the wrong thing for a fairly understandable reason. That's not changed.

This decision is a bit more baffling, but that comes from the perspective of someone with no stake.

Through one show of strength and going the peace route already, peace with humans proved impossible.

Now this man's god has specifically commanded him not to trust humans. Why trust a dwarf more? Why fail to learn the lesson of history which is, from his perspective, other species are potential threats?

Makes sense to him.

So through violence and conquest and terror, the terrorist has learned that he can gain territory.

Why would the terrorist stop now?

This perfectly mirrors how conquerors and terrorists behave in real life. Once they get a cookie, they want a glass of milk.

Redcloak has to not be winning to consider peace. Right now, he thinks he's winning and that his plan will succeed, and that if the gods are sending Durkon the merciful to hammer out another deal that sounds too good to be true, it probably is too good.

So if he disarms his terrorist plan, he'll just be vulnerable. There is no peace to be made with your enemies. Their honeyed lies are meaningless. The plan must continue.

The plan must continue.

Makes perfect sense to Redcloak. Only we, the audience, through the eyes of the author, can know for sure that Durkon's intentions are sincere, let alone the Gods or the Azurites he is speaking for.

I can't even guarantee the Azurites would go for this, nor can I speak for the gods of this universe.

A lot of them are scheming, petty, untrustworthy jerks who hold grudges and treat mortals like commodities. Slaves, even.

I can't guarantee Durkon's compromise plan would ever work for the goblins, and I know that's the story Rich is trying to tell. People are untrustworthy and complicated and they do seek revenge.

Why give up all your holdings and stakes and power on the chance your enemy is telling you the truth?

Seems quite reasonable to me, if you don't have TMI.

But we, as audience members, do.

Redcloak only knows what he's seen: humans are treacherous genocidal exterminators who will crusade against goblins for no reason at all, other than the fact that they exist. And now they even have a strong reason to do so, since Gobbotopia is a stationary target and it belonged to the Azurites who have wacky, insane crusaders for sure.

He knows that the last time his God parlayed with the humans, and he talked peace while having an army at his back, he got a knife in his back for his mercy.

So, Redcloak only knows what humans have taught him: That goblin cannot make peace with humans unless they defeat them in combat and hold the world hostage.

Redcloak is doing exactly what he rationally should do, given the events of his life, his history, his people's history, and what his God told him to do.

I'm not even mad. It makes total sense for his character.

It's wrong, it's cruel, it's evil, and it risks everything he's won and threatens to destroy everything everywhere all over again, and lose something precious that may never come back.

He's just had nothing to lose for so long, that now that he has something, he needs to win in battle to ensure it is protected. Since a peace without that battle might result in a knife in the back and a loss of all he has gained.

He's taking that risk for his people. Silly from our omniscient perspective. Cold and rational from his.

Very, very well written, Giant. Wow'ed.

Didn't think Durkon would come around and be that effective. Wasn't expecting him to be that effective and yet, so ineffective at the same time.

I figured Durkon would not make the deal sound strong enough, or make mistakes and fail diplomacy checks.

I didn't see this coming, as usual. I almost never do.