OOTS #895 - The Discussion Thread

[The Giant]

New comic is up.

[Ionbound]

Well, Roy's reaction doesn't bode well.

[Silverbit]

This could be interesting...

[Bulhakov]

(Scrubbed)

[AstralFire]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but Roy was informed that destroying the gates was a bad thing, no?

[Mammal]

So Roy's going to pull a Miko?

I suppose that's a viable option.

EDIT: I guess it's the logical thing to do. You need a hell of a lot stronger force than what they've got to hold the gate against the Linear Guild AND Team Evil. At least the bad guys won't get their hands on it.

[Psyren]

Dammit Malack, I'm trying to hate you.

Roy doesn't have much time before the lizgreaper comes back with his real boss after Nale's failure though. Get cracking Roy.

Now to lay odds that he won't be able to smash it before Xykon shows up...

Correct me if I'm wrong, but Roy was informed that destroying the gates was a bad thing, no?

He was also informed that it was slightly less of a bad thing than letting them fall into enemy hands.

EDIT: Here we have Hinjo saying it's better to break them than let Xykon capture them.

[k_bukie]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but Roy was informed that destroying the gates was a bad thing, no?

Letting it fall to Xykon is a worse thing, though.

And the party is in no condition to fight both the Linear Guild and Xykon, so the best course of action is to destroy it and regroup.

[Emmit Svenson]

Malack can't just be acting out of pique by not revealing the OotS.

Compassion for his new spawn, perhaps--when Durkon is released from thrall, Malack can give him the option of trying to reconcile with old friends, or killing them himself.

Ace in the hole against more important (to him) enemies, like Nale, perhaps. Malack's Sense Motive may not be the best--he didn't figure out the association between Durkon and the rest as quickly as Tarquin did--but he's got to realize Nale's building a plan to backstab him before he backstabs Nale.

[Conte_Vincero]

Next pannel: Hold Person

[Xervous]

I'm still wondering, is this really the gate and not a triple bluff?

And @ malack, just what we needed, more confusing actions provoking guesses about more hidden motives.

[McNum]

Oh, sure, leave it to the Fighter to suggest pummeling the problem into submission.

On the other hand, what options do they have? Xykon is incoming, Tarquin is at the exit, and Nale just left the room. There are way too many badguys in the area to leave it around.

[B. Dandelion]

I wonder -- Is Roy destroying the Gate compatible with the prophecy that Xykon will be within range of the Gate?

Oh! I sorta guessed something!

Random theory: maybe the sending is to Haley because they had tried to send to Roy before and he wasn't responsive (still caught in the illusion). So now they're trying the other members of the Order.

(Which would be a bad sign, because it would put even more time in between Xykon's departure and the Order's forewarning.)

Yay me!

[Killer Angel]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but Roy was informed that destroying the gates was a bad thing, no?

it only weakens the fabric of the universe.

[mattie_p]

Congratulations to all those who predicted Malack would ignore the OOTS, as well as those who predicted lead sheeting.

So Roy will destroy the gate, hrm? Interesting way of guarding something.

[Edhelras]

NOW it's time for a Dun dun dun!!

But I wonder if Malack actually guessed about the lead sheet, judging from his dubious look in the former strip. Is he actively, secretly, working against Nale, now?

[SaintRidley]

Well, Roy, that works.

[Ruduen]

The problem with destroying the gate right now is the inevitable explosion. Unless this gate also has a self-destruct mechanism, most of the people around will be in range, and I doubt most of them would be able to survive. Haley might due to evasion, but past that...

[pasta]

I wonder if they'll get the chance to destroy it before Xykon comes knockin' ...

[Cifer]

@Bulhakov

I don't understand why Nale's party gave up so easily, without physically inspecting the stone block.

Same reason why Roy's dad would have fallen for it: Magic is powerful, magic can do everything. If magic says it's not there, it isn't. Take a look at how gleeful he was when he got to command a full spellcaster party.
Also, I think by now he on some level expects his plans to fail - which is how he got out of the phantasm, as you may recall.

[AstralFire]

Oh, sure, leave it to the Fighter to suggest pummeling the problem into submission.

On the other hand, what options do they have? Xykon is incoming, Tarquin is at the exit, and Nale just left the room. There are way too many badguys in the area to leave it around.

Batman: Ingenious.
Superman: Yeah, I'm impressed. Let's go wreck it.

[Lord Torath]

Yes! Putting those cross-class ranks in Knowledge-Architecture and Engineering to work again! Go Roy!

Now to figure out how to destroy the gate without killing himself...

[Agnostik]

And @ malack, just what we needed, more confusing actions provoking guesses about more hidden motives.

Durkon asked Malack to spare the rest of OOTS. He's probably doing just that.

[CoffeeIncluded]

...Well. Looks like a lot of us were right. I felt it was going to come to this too. And almost in time for #900 too, hrm.

Of course, the next question is: How is the group going to avoid getting killed? Looks like this may finally be it for Belkar.

[pendell]

*Applause* . Started a new thread to ask just what Malack's game is.

At any rate, the book is rushing to its denouement and I'm on the edge of my seat.

ETA: And glad to see Roy's knowledge of architecture does indeed come in handy again.

E AGAIN TA: And an elegant call back to 894 when Malack cast true seeing, thus allowing him to penetrate Elan's illusion.

Respectfully,

Brian P.

[Mike Havran]

Roy maybe doesn't remember exactly what happened when somebody shattered the last gate because he had already managed to get himself killed by that point, but Haley might remember that destroying a gate without a legitimate means of escape (read: teleport) or O-Chul's toughness is a bad idea.

Also, why is Haley calling it double-bluff? It's just a bluff.

[Kurald Galain]

Good to see that evil is still One Big Happy Family

I don't understand why Nale's party gave up so easily, without physically inspecting the stone block.

Because Nale doesn't have cross-class ranks in Knowledge (Architecture and Engineering). Nice foreshadow there, too.

[Liliet]

Wow, I was in half the forum that called double-bluff!
If it is not triple-bluff...

Also, I thought so that Malack would ignore them.

But I hoped that the Sending was not late )= And this bad news is worth all the rest )=

I wonder how exactly the group of non-casters is going to destroy the gate. Dorukan was so kind as to attach a mechanism, but I doubt Girard would do it. Sword was enough for Azure city gate, however, so they might manage it...

If it`s not triple-bluff.

[SN137]

it only weakens the fabric of the universe.

Wasn't the gods only reason for not destroying the world and remaking it because the gates were in place ? Couldn't destroying it, there then being only one gate holding a deicidal monster imprisoned , be enough to make them decide to destroy the world ? Didn't Shojo say that in the crayon story or something ?

[Prospero7]

Dammit Malack, I'm trying to hate you.

Ditto! Now if Malack will only kill Nale my conversion will be complete...