Murphy's Law 5: To Comic 100...And Beyond!

[Asta Kask]

However, Drow poison has a very legitimate and benign use: One of its main ingredients is poppy seeds. When mixed in the right solution and in the proper quantities, it it a very powerful painkiller; effectively morphine.

More like heroine if it works as quickly as it says...

[HalfTangible]

Drow aren't evil, they're just stoners. XD

Awesome. Just AWESOME.

[CoffeeIncluded]

More like heroine if it works as quickly as it says...

There's other ingredients in the poison. I just said that the effects and makeup are most similar to morphine.

[Eleanor_Rigby]

More like heroine if it works as quickly as it says...

Sometimes one letter can make a big difference. [/spelling pedant]

Also, Coffee: your inkscape eyebrow work is considerably better than mine! (Fair for its Time)

[Asta Kask]

Yeah, ok. Heroin was actually named so because of it's heroic envisioned role in fighting pain. Among other things, it was meant to be less addictive than morphine...

I have a friend who collects Xena memorabilia. Is he a heroine addict?

[Eleanor_Rigby]

Yeah, ok. Heroin was actually named so because of it's heroic envisioned role in fighting pain. Among other things, it was meant to be less addictive than morphine...

Did not know this. Matt obviously knows this on some level and has purchased the drow poison to use any opiates contained within for heroic purposes to impress Radic. Also, I linked oed because I thought it was the quickest way to illustrate my 'point' with links, not because I was under the impression you genuinely didn't know the difference!

I have a friend who collects Xena memorabilia. Is he a heroine addict?

Yes. Most definitely. Or at least that's one of the kinder lables you could attach to that habit...

[Asta Kask]

Did not know this. Matt obviously knows this on some level and has purchased the drow poison to use any opiates contained within for heroic purposes to impress Radic.

Yeah... there are other less... savory implications...

[Eleanor_Rigby]

Yeah... there are other less... savory implications...

...Which I'm choosing to ignore/deny...
In any event, Coffee said the poison contained the seeds, not the pods or stalks which would most likely be worse... Does the standard d&d version contain poppy seeds or is this an Aequar thing? I don't play, so I wouldn't know.

[Asta Kask]

I don't think it's been ever stated what Drow poison contains. But they live underground and like spiders, so fungi or spider venom would be my first guesses.

[mucat]

Yeah, your standard-issue, non-Aequar drow wouldn't have easy access to poppies, and would have easy access to spider venom and exotic fungi, so I would suspect both their poisons and their recreational drugs would involve mushrooms and spider spit.

However, I also like the image of sinister, shadowy figures surfacing from their underground haunts on a moonless night, to creep around the surface world...picking flowers.


On Aequar, where Drow live on the surface and haven't so far shown any particular affinity for spiders, opiate-based poisons make perfect sense.

[Asta Kask]

Eh. Everybody knows that drow exist to provide people with fan-service.

[Geno9999]

Yeah, your standard-issue, non-Aequar drow wouldn't have easy access to poppies, and would have easy access to spider venom and exotic fungi, so I would suspect both their poisons and their recreational drugs would involve mushrooms and spider spit.

However, I also like the image of sinister, shadowy figures surfacing from their underground haunts on a moonless night, to creep around the surface world...picking flowers.


On Aequar, where Drow live on the surface and haven't so far shown any particular affinity for spiders, opiate-based poisons make perfect sense.

My friend who plays World of Warcraft essentially made the same imagery when she was describing people collecting herbs for glyphs or something.

[CoffeeIncluded]

Dammit, dammit, THIS is why you do ALL the research beforehand! Poppies don't grow in swampy locations!

Okay, I can fix this; it's a world of magic so it shouldn't be too hard...

1. They're not exactly poppies as we know them, but some kind of hybrid plant that grows well in swampy locations.
2. Alternatively, some other plant that produces opium (The extract).
3. This is only one of the active ingredients in Drow Poison, but one of the bigger ones.

[Asta Kask]

Nightshade grows in swampy locations and causes narcosis. Presumably drow know how to amplify the narcotic effect while diminishing the other effects (it's deadly as Hell...) It likes to grow in shadly locations without sun... Sound good?

[CoffeeIncluded]

Nightshade grows in swampy locations and causes narcosis. Presumably drow know how to amplify the narcotic effect while diminishing the other effects (it's deadly as Hell...) It likes to grow in shadly locations without sun... Sound good?

Aah! Opiates and tropoids! A magical hybrid that creates a morphine-like effect when mixed in the proper solution! That's it!

[mucat]

Aah! Opiates and tropoids! A magical hybrid that creates a morphine-like effect when mixed in the proper solution! That's it!

I'm totally not going to look up what tropoids are, because I want to go on believing they're the neurotransmitters that mediate tropes.

[RdMarquis]

I'm totally not going to look up what tropoids are, because I want to go on believing they're the neurotransmitters that mediate tropes.

I so want to see that in a psychology textbook someday.

[Lycan 01]

Sesame seeds also contain trace amounts of opiates. That's why you can fail a drug test if you eat a sesame muffin or something beforehand.

[mucat]

Sesame seeds also contain trace amounts of opiates. That's why you can fail a drug test if you eat a sesame muffin or something beforehand.

You sure of that? It's true of poppy seeds (although their opiate levels are low enough that it shouldn't cause trouble on a drug test, unless your employer/athletics regulatory body/All-Seeing Overlord sets ridiculously low thresholds) but I'm not aware of any problems from sesame seeds...

Now, better say something on-topic before Coffee catches us.

In the most recent strip, I assume Serrin also followed Lloyd? We didn't see her decide one way or the other, but I figure if she was still too angry with him to go, her reaction would have been shown on-panel.

[Marnath]

Dammit, dammit, THIS is why you do ALL the research beforehand! Poppies don't grow in swampy locations!

Okay, I can fix this; it's a world of magic so it shouldn't be too hard...

You uh, do know that it's permissible to invent plants native to your world, right? It doesn't have to be a real world analog.

[CoffeeIncluded]

I'm totally not going to look up what tropoids are, because I want to go on believing they're the neurotransmitters that mediate tropes.

YES.

You uh, do know that it's permissible to invent plants native to your world, right? It doesn't have to be a real world analog.

Yeah, but I said poppies before. Retcon time! Species of poppies that also produces opium, and the opium extract is used in conjunction with tropoids and some other narcotics!

[blackjack217]

Retcon time!

*sing song Christmas carol* It's everyone's favorite time of the year!!

[Lycan 01]

Whoops, my bad, its poppy seeds.

Awesome. Just AWESOME.

You can sig that if you want.

[HalfTangible]

You can sig that if you want.

I already had

[leakingpen]

To all the, faces cant make two expressions people, yeah, and moving a limb or weapon doesn't cause a buncha lines behind it. Motion, especially quick motion, is hard to draw. The face made perfect sense to me, it was showing what is referred to as two expressions warring for control of your face.


why not just make it poppies that were bred to grow in swamps?

[Mina Kobold]

You sure of that? It's true of poppy seeds (although their opiate levels are low enough that it shouldn't cause trouble on a drug test, unless your employer/athletics regulatory body/All-Seeing Overlord sets ridiculously low thresholds) but I'm not aware of any problems from sesame seeds...

Now, better say something on-topic before Coffee catches us.

In the most recent strip, I assume Serrin also followed Lloyd? We didn't see her decide one way or the other, but I figure if she was still too angry with him to go, her reaction would have been shown on-panel.

Mythbusters did an episode on one of those.

It worked.

[HalfTangible]

Mythbusters did an episode on one of those.

It worked.

Duct. Tape. BRIDGE. Just because mythbusters can do it doesn't mean it's a good idea or feasible from an everyday standpoint.

[MoleMage]

Duct. Tape. BRIDGE. Just because mythbusters can do it doesn't mean it's a good idea or feasible from an everyday standpoint.

They achieved it with a not-unreasonable amount of bagels, though. Something like three bagels.

[HalfTangible]

They achieved it with a not-unreasonable amount of bagels, though. Something like three bagels.

...Bagels? Wha... what are you talking about?!

[CoffeeIncluded]

Can we PLEASE get back on topic here? (Also, methinks the TvTropes page needs updating. )

EDIT: Ooh, it has been!