The Annotated Order of the Stick - A Companion Guide

[TheWombatOfDoom]

1. I think this works for now. One bullet for every strip would be...overwhelming.

2. You should do it the way the archive does it. However, I wouldn't bother putting the strip titles in unless you have something to say about them. Adding the title for every strip just seems like too much work.

2: Second Grade all over again. The title of this strip refers to how Elan (presumably) always got picked last in second grade.

Well I'm taking about format like this:

For Update 1, I have it like this:

Update 1 – In the update, we see the Order of the Stick updating from D&D 3.0 to the later 3.5 installment, which had minor changes to the existing system. We see how the party is affected in each panel:

• In panel 3, Durkon feels "more stable" because Dwarves got a +4 to ability checks opposing Bull Rushes or being Tripped in the update to 3.5.
• In panel 4, Elan gets a chain shirt because Bards become proficient in them in the update to 3.5.
• In panel 6, Roy feels more intimidating because the skill Intimidate becomes a class skill for fighters in the update to 3.5.
• In panel 10, Belkar's weapon shrinks because in 3.0, Small characters could use Medium weapons. They would just use them differently (it would be treated as a weapon one size larger). Due to this, his Medium daggers became Small daggers in the update to 3.5.
• In the last panel, Elan gets more skill points because Bards went from 4 (pluss INTelligence modifier) skill points per level to 6 (plus INTelligence modifier) skill points per level.

And Update 3, I have it like this:

Update 3 – In panel 2, Belkar notes he "failed a spot check", which references a dice roll in D&D 3.5 that determines whether or not a character sees something using the Skill - "Spot". It is one of the more common rolls players (or their DMs) make during a gaming session and often if a player rolls, but nothing happens after the roll, there is a sense that you "missed" something, even though the character should not realize a check was failed.

In panel 4, Belkar references an instance where in D&D, so long as your familiar is within reach, you gain the benefits of any feats they might have - in this case Alertness - which grants you a bonus to the Skills: Listen and Spot.

In panel 6, we see a reference to a common instance in D&D where a player would often forget his or her familiar was present, and so forget to describe its movements on a regular basis. So the familiar would "pop up" whenever its abilities were needed, thus giving the player a reason to describe its location/activity.

In panel 10, the reference of failing a Skill Check is furthered when they fail a Listen check, which also creates the same "dice rolled, but no new information" issue that spot checks create.

Should I separate the panel by new paragraphs, turn new paragraphs into bullets, or make it all one paragraph like this:

Update 3 – In panel 2, Belkar notes he "failed a spot check", which references a dice roll in D&D 3.5 that determines whether or not a character sees something using the Skill - "Spot". It is one of the more common rolls players (or their DMs) make during a gaming session and often if a player rolls, but nothing happens after the roll, there is a sense that you "missed" something, even though the character should not realize a check was failed. In panel 4, Belkar references an instance where in D&D, so long as your familiar is within reach, you gain the benefits of any feats they might have - in this case Alertness - which grants you a bonus to the Skills: Listen and Spot. In panel 6, we see a reference to a common instance in D&D where a player would often forget his or her familiar was present, and so forget to describe its movements on a regular basis. So the familiar would "pop up" whenever its abilities were needed, thus giving the player a reason to describe its location/activity. In panel 10, the reference of failing a Skill Check is furthered when they fail a Listen check, which also creates the same "dice rolled, but no new information" issue that spot checks create.

[littlebum2002]

Definitely either of the first two. the last one looks awful.

Both of those look good, but my personal preference is the bullets




EDIT: Also, I love this thread, in case you can't tell. Stuff for #931:

The title is based on "My Two Dads", a cheesy sitcom from the 80's

In Panel 6, Laurin can be seen "Pop"ing back in in the background.

Durkon looks AWESOME in the dark (although that probably isn't worth being in the thread...)




EDIT2:
#639 is called "if they pull a knife". This is a reference to a quote from "The Untouchables".

"If they pull a knife, you pull a gun. If they send one of yours to the hospital, you send one of theirs to the morgue. That's the Chicago way."

Which means, apparently, that V is from Chicago.


EDIT3:

Didn't realize I made the last post, so I deleted the double post

I've got another good one for you!

In #732, Durkon obtains papers that say he can stay in the city for 30 strips.

They don't leave the city until #818.


So, you think "Hey, a Lawful guy like Durkon is overstaying is stay in the city? No way!"

No way, indeed. If you count how many strips Durkon is in from #732 to #818, it's less than 30. So his visa is still good!

Already taken care of

[TheWombatOfDoom]

Alright, folks, I've started reformatting the list, starting with updates 1-100. How does it look with the bullets? Also, it seems like I should start adding each update to the list, even if they don't have a notable thing to add (for now). That way, if a title has a notable thing to add, I can list it. Until something is added to the update, I could put something like -

• Nothing of note thus far

Thoughts folks?


EDIT:

EDIT3:

Didn't realize I made the last post, so I deleted the double post

I've got another good one for you!

In #732, Durkon obtains papers that say he can stay in the city for 30 strips.

They don't leave the city until #818.


So, you think "Hey, a Lawful guy like Durkon is overstaying is stay in the city? No way!"

No way, indeed. If you count how many strips Durkon is in from #732 to #818, it's less than 30. So his visa is still good!

If you look at 732 -

Update 732 – In panel 5, Durkon finds Haley’s bow and Crystal’s knife in the inn. In the last panel, the guard estimates Durkon will be in the Empire for 20 strips. Between this update and update 818 when the Order of the Stick leave the Empire of Blood, he is in a total of 20 updates, making the guard correct.

- I already make note about that.

[Ron Miel]

Alright, folks, I've started reformatting the list, starting with updates 1-100. How does it look with the bullets?

It looks good. I like it that way.

[TheWombatOfDoom]

Alright! So I've done the first 100 in the format I mentioned, making every link and title attached. Any that didn't have an entry yet I put the "Nothing of note thus far" entry in. How does that look to everyone? If it works, I'll likely work on the whole list, and then start working on the titles, and backfilled entries.

The post with all the updates seems a little unwieldy...but what do you folks think?

[Gwynfrid]

Wow, this is really a project born of love, and a huge amount of work you've undertaken. I think this could grow into a compendium that could be very helpful to newcomers to OOTS.

I'd like to help alittle, but maybe you can indicate what kind of help would be most useful to you:
- Help with D&D references? Or rather, help with external references?
- Reviewing what you have gathered so far, and proposing edits? Or rather, proposals for entries for the comics you have nothing for?

[TheWombatOfDoom]

Wow, this is really a project born of love, and a huge amount of work you've undertaken. I think this could grow into a compendium that could be very helpful to newcomers to OOTS.

I'd like to help alittle, but maybe you can indicate what kind of help would be most useful to you:
- Help with D&D references? Or rather, help with external references?
- Reviewing what you have gathered so far, and proposing edits? Or rather, proposals for entries for the comics you have nothing for?

Hmm! Offer of help! I'll take whatever you think more rewarding. :) I think for now the second one would be of more help, but if you have suggestions for either option, I'll take it! Yes, this is a project that proves to the suspicious that I am in fact insane. And I like it that way. If I can help the comic be better enjoyed by those that might miss something or not understand something, then it's worth it in my mind!

[Ron Miel]

Any that didn't have an entry yet I put the "Nothing of note thus far" entry in. How does that look to everyone?

Not bad, but I think it may be better worded as :"No annotations yet"

[TheWombatOfDoom]

Not bad, but I think it may be better worded as :"No annotations yet"

I can change that pretty easily, but is it too overwhelming that they are there at all?

EDIT: Changed them to "No annotations yet" and also got rid of the bullets until such a time as they have annotations.

[Ron Miel]

Maybe we can give each update a 1 line plot synopsis. I've done the first 25 as an example. What do you think?

Spoiler: Updates 1-100

Show

Update 1: New Edition -
The Order are upgraded to 3.5 edition.

In the update, we see the Order of the Stick updating from D&D 3.0 Edition to the later 3.5 installment (which the title references), which had minor changes to the existing system. We see how the party is affected in each panel:

• In panel 3, Durkon feels "more stable" because Dwarves got a +4 to ability checks opposing Bull Rushes or being Tripped in the update to 3.5.
• In panel 4, Elan gets a chain shirt because Bards become proficient in them in the update to 3.5.
• In panel 6, Roy feels more intimidating because the skill Intimidate becomes a class skill for fighters in the update to 3.5.
• In panel 10, Belkar's weapon shrinks because in 3.0, Small characters could use Medium weapons. They would just use them differently (it would be treated as a weapon one size larger). Due to this, his Medium daggers became Small daggers in the update to 3.5.
• In the last panel, Elan gets more skill points because Bards went from 4 (pluss INTelligence modifier) skill points per level to 6 (plus INTelligence modifier) skill points per level.

Update 2: Second Grade All Over Again
The Order split into two teams

• In panel 1, Elan is referencing the skill points he got in the previous update.

Update 3: See Spot Spot
Sensing danger, the Order attempt a spot check.

• In panel 2, Belkar notes he "failed a spot check", which references a dice roll in D&D 3.5 that determines whether or not a character sees something using the Skill - "Spot". It is one of the more common rolls players (or their DMs) make during a gaming session and often if a player rolls, but nothing happens after the roll, there is a sense that you "missed" something, even though the character should not realize a check was failed.
• In panel 4, Belkar references an instance where in D&D, so long as your familiar is within reach, you gain the benefits of any feats they might have - in this case Alertness - which grants you a bonus to the Skills: Listen and Spot.
• In panel 6, we see a reference to a common instance in D&D where a player would often forget his or her familiar was present, and so forget to describe its movements on a regular basis. So the familiar would "pop up" whenever its abilities were needed, thus giving the player a reason to describe its location/activity.
• In panel 10, the reference of failing a Skill Check is furthered when they fail a Listen check, which also creates the same "dice rolled, but no new information" issue that spot checks create.

Update 4: The Power of Music -
The order are threatened by an ogre.

• Nothing of note thus far

Update 5: When Plotlines Collide!
The two halves of the order are reunited.

• Nothing of note thus far

Update 6: The Cleric is 'In' -
Durkon performs some light healing, but Elan is more seriously hurt.

• Nothing of note thus far

Update 7: ThorPrayer
Out of healing spells, Durkon prays to his god for help
-

• Nothing of note thus far

Update 8: The Benifit of a High Bluff Score -
Haley has a potion for Elan's wounds, but where did she 'find' it?

• Nothing of note thus far

Update 9: I am Curious, Elan -
What magic lies in the ogre's belt?

• Nothing of note thus far

Update 10: Like Enthrall, Only Boring -
V casts a sleep spell ... sort of.

• In panel 1, we see the Goblins in the background are speaking a different language – likely Goblin.

Update 11: Alignment Differences -
Can the Order withstand the power of Evil magic?

• Nothing of note thus far

Update 12: Up a Level, Down a Level -
The ambiguities of gaming terms explored.

• Nothing of note thus far

Update 13: Plot, Ahoy! -
The mission of the Order explained: defeat Xykon.

• In panel 7, when Roy cuts off Xykon’s head, the sound effect is Snicker snack!, which is what the Vorpal sword does in the book, Through the Looking Glass.

Update 14: Why Roy is Always Tired -
Roy has problems assigning Watch duties.

• Nothing of note thus far

Update 15: Family Time -
Roy receives a prophecy from the spirit of his late father.

• Nothing of note thus far

Update 16: Turn of Phrase -
Roy consults V about his father's visit.

• Nothing of note thus far

Update 17: Rapier Wit -
Elan displays his prowess with a blade, and calligraphy skills.

• Nothing of note thus far

Update 18: Double Surprise -
Haley shoots at a Chimera.

• In panel 3, we see Belkar and Elan say they are surprised, referring to the surprise round that occurs at the beginning of combat.

Update 19: Evade! -
The chimera breathes fire. Elan tries an illusion.

• Nothing of note thus far

Update 20: Arcanolypse Now -
V blasts the chimera.

• Nothing of note thus far

Update 21: It's All About the Drama -
The chimera is slain.

• In panel 2, when Belkar delivers the killing blow to the chimera, all three heads say Gak, which represents the monster's name - Trigak.

Update 22: Leadership in Action -
Roy asks Belkar to use his ranger skills.

• Nothing of note thus far

Update 23: Meanwhile... -
Meet Xykon, Redcloak and the MITD

• Nothing of note thus far

Update 24: Do You Hear What I Hear? -
The enemy hear the Order approaching.

• Nothing of note thus far

Update 25: Armor Begone -
Elan tries a new method to avoid enemy spot and listen checks.

• Nothing of note thus far

[TheWombatOfDoom]

Ooooh, I like these...hmmm...this would be secondary to the actual annotation, and so I'd likely not be working on this side of things. If other contributors or you were interested in doing this side of things, I'd certainly include it. I just think I'd not be as efficient at summarizing the pages.

Maybe we could do it more like this? -

Update 1: New Edition - The Order is upgraded to 3.5 edition.

Edit: I have a feeling that the character count is going to pose a problem soon rather than later...even with the additional pages.

Edit 2: I have input a whole bunch more annotations that originally had been suggested but not processed. The to do list has gotten a LOT shorter!

[Gwynfrid]

Hi! Here are suggestions for the first 20 comics. This is quite a bit of work, I don't think I can do it for more than a few dozen comics...

Spoiler

Show

#3 Haley's boots anecdote will be referred to again in #608 and #609, playing a role in her long-standing feud with Crystal. In #675, she will solve the problem by having them dyed.

#4 Inspire Competence is a feature of the Bard class. By singing an inspiring tune, Elan improves his friends' success odds.

#5 Expeditious Retreat is a spell that increases the caster's speed, whether to retreat or not. In later comics, a magical aura would be visible whenever a spell is being cast.

#6 Panel 2 refers to how most clerics are seen in D&D adventuring parties: The walking Band-Aid box is a cliché, but often a correct one. This has been an annoyance to cleric players since the early days of D&D.

#7 A cleric must pray to his god to regain spells. In the D&D game this is usually a very easy process that gets overlooked as it's the same every day. Not so in this comic.

#8 If Haley's father was a 1st Edition thief, the implication is that this was a very long time ago. Her father would then have experienced conversions to 2nd Edition, then 3rd Edition and finally 3.5.

#11 Panel 1: Roy uses a game mechanic called Coup de Grace to kill off the sleeping goblins. Panel 5: Belkar is shown to be unaffected by the Unholy Blight spell, which harms Good and Neutral creatures. The implication is that his alignment is Evil, a fact that the group chooses to ignore.

#12 Panel 4: Haley is referencing the vampire's power to drain energy from people, which may result in character level loss.
Panel 5: In old-school "dungeon crawl" D&D adventures, the toughest monsters would typically reside in the dungeon's lowest levels. In order to be victorious, the characters would have of be of a higher level in their class. Hence the confusion, as the group needs to go up in character level at the same time it goes further down the dungeon's physical levels.

#17 Panel 4: Sunder is a combat maneuver in the D&D game, the goal of which is to destroy the opponent's weapon or armor.
Panel 8 refers to Spot and Listen checks again, see comic #3.

#18 Panel 1: Bardic lore is a Bard class feature that the bard can use to determine if he has some useful knowledge at hand.
Panel 7: When a Rogue such as Haley has the advantage of surprise, her attack can be a Sneak Attack, with bonus damage. If, on top of that, she wins the Initiative roll over her opponent, then the opponent is caught flat-footed, thus granting the Sneak Attack bonus again. The interaction between Elan and Haley in Panel 6 is typical of a game session, where the Rogue player, having just acted, doesn't realize it's her turn again due to her high Initiative roll.

#19: Panel 5, Evasion is a Rogue class feature. With it, Haley sustains no damage when her Reflex saving throw against the chimera's breath is successful. Lacking Evasion, Belkar and Elan take full damage if they fail their own saves, or half damage if they succeed.

#20: Panel 6: Sulfur and bat guano are material components used in the casting of the Fireball spell. V's line is referencing the famous quote "I love the smell of napalm in the morning" in the movie, Apocalypse Now.

[TheWombatOfDoom]

Hi! Here are suggestions for the first 20 comics. This is quite a bit of work, I don't think I can do it for more than a few dozen comics...

I hear you. Welcome to my world. It's a hard project, so don't burn yourself out! The D and D reference stuff you have below is really great, and short enough to not take up as much room. I'd love for you to continue along that line.

#3 Haley's boots anecdote will be referred to again in #608 and #609, playing a role in her long-standing feud with Crystal. In #675, she will solve the problem by having them dyed.

I actually have this listed in the Gags section.

Lime Green Boots Gag - http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0608.html, http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0003.html, http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0573.html, http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0675.html.

#4 Inspire Competence is a feature of the Bard class. By singing an inspiring tune, Elan improves his friends' success odds.

#5 Expeditious Retreat is a spell that increases the caster's speed, whether to retreat or not. In later comics, a magical aura would be visible whenever a spell is being cast.

#6 Panel 2 refers to how most clerics are seen in D&D adventuring parties: The walking Band-Aid box is a cliché, but often a correct one. This has been an annoyance to cleric players since the early days of D&D.

#7 A cleric must pray to his god to regain spells. In the D&D game this is usually a very easy process that gets overlooked as it's the same every day. Not so in this comic.

#8 If Haley's father was a 1st Edition thief, the implication is that this was a very long time ago. Her father would then have experienced conversions to 2nd Edition, then 3rd Edition and finally 3.5.

#11 Panel 1: Roy uses a game mechanic called Coup de Grace to kill off the sleeping goblins. Panel 5: Belkar is shown to be unaffected by the Unholy Blight spell, which harms Good and Neutral creatures. The implication is that his alignment is Evil, a fact that the group chooses to ignore.

#12 Panel 4: Haley is referencing the vampire's power to drain energy from people, which may result in character level loss.
Panel 5: In old-school "dungeon crawl" D&D adventures, the toughest monsters would typically reside in the dungeon's lowest levels. In order to be victorious, the characters would have of be of a higher level in their class. Hence the confusion, as the group needs to go up in character level at the same time it goes further down the dungeon's physical levels.

#17 Panel 4: Sunder is a combat maneuver in the D&D game, the goal of which is to destroy the opponent's weapon or armor.
Panel 8 refers to Spot and Listen checks again, see comic #3.

#18 Panel 1: Bardic lore is a Bard class feature that the bard can use to determine if he has some useful knowledge at hand.
Panel 7: When a Rogue such as Haley has the advantage of surprise, her attack can be a Sneak Attack, with bonus damage. If, on top of that, she wins the Initiative roll over her opponent, then the opponent is caught flat-footed, thus granting the Sneak Attack bonus again. The interaction between Elan and Haley in Panel 6 is typical of a game session, where the Rogue player, having just acted, doesn't realize it's her turn again due to her high Initiative roll.

#19: Panel 5, Evasion is a Rogue class feature. With it, Haley sustains no damage when her Reflex saving throw against the chimera's breath is successful. Lacking Evasion, Belkar and Elan take full damage if they fail their own saves, or half damage if they succeed.

#20: Panel 6: Sulfur and bat guano are material components used in the casting of the Fireball spell. V's line is referencing the famous quote "I love the smell of napalm in the morning" in the movie, Apocalypse Now.

Again, these explainations are excellent! Well done! I'll put them in my "to do" folder in my last post of the OP. I just cleared that out, too! No worries. This is great! Keep up the good work, and thank you for the contributions!

[Gwynfrid]

Ah, I had forgotten about the discussion of boots with Celia. A great running gag over the whole span of the story.

I think it makes more sense to list everything in order, for easy reference by people who are new. The Gags section is kind of a bonus, I would simply copy the running gags there rather than expects folks to look there as well. That said... As the OP writer, it's your call.

Oh, and another thing I should have done in #20 is to cross-reference #919.

My 12-year-old daughter is a fan of the comic, but she's missing most references. When it's a bit more full, I will advise her to read your compendium!

[TheWombatOfDoom]

Ah, I had forgotten about the discussion of boots with Celia. A great running gag over the whole span of the story.

I think it makes more sense to list everything in order, for easy reference by people who are new. The Gags section is kind of a bonus, I would simply copy the running gags there rather than expects folks to look there as well. That said... As the OP writer, it's your call.

Oh, and another thing I should have done in #20 is to cross-reference #919.

My 12-year-old daughter is a fan of the comic, but she's missing most references. When it's a bit more full, I will advise her to read your compendium!

Running gags are basically placed there for now until I get them into the annotation in a better format...at least that's my hope. It might end up staying that way too, I'm not decided.

I actually tend to be more in favor of back referencing than cross referencing. As in, 919 references update 20, however, update 20 doesn't reference 919, because it hadn't been made yet. I generally try and avoid linking to future updates because within the story if I were reading through and saw a link as reference, it might spoil something to skip ahead just to see. I much prefer to back reference things as they come up. This is one reason why gags are hard to process.

I think it's wonderful that your daughter is a fan of this comic! Excellent!

[Gwynfrid]

I actually tend to be more in favor of back referencing than cross referencing. As in, 919 references update 20, however, update 20 doesn't reference 919, because it hadn't been made yet. I generally try and avoid linking to future updates because within the story if I were reading through and saw a link as reference, it might spoil something to skip ahead just to see.

I hadn't thought of that, it makes a lot of sense.

[Ron Miel]

Just a small correction - the annotations for #353 ought to be for #354.

[TheWombatOfDoom]

Just a small correction - the annotations for #353 ought to be for #354.

Ack, a silly copy and paste error. Fixed.

Also, did you have any thoughts in my changes to your summary format?

[Ron Miel]

Also, did you have any thoughts in my changes to your summary format?

I prefer it with the title and summary on separate lines. But it's your thread, and you're entitled to format it however you want. It's just a minor thing either way.

[TheWombatOfDoom]

I prefer it with the title and summary on separate lines. But it's your thread, and you're entitled to format it however you want. It's just a minor thing either way.

True, I just like input on options. I figured having the summary in the same line as the title separated it from the annotations within the update a bit, and saved a bit on space. As in, we have direct description of the update in the first lines (update number, title, summary) and then anything below that is notable details (references, annotations, so on).

EDIT: Put the non annotated updates into spoilers to not clog up the annotations. This should make things easier for casual readers to find annotations, or find which need annotation.

EDIT EDIT: Hit my first Character Limit reached on my first post while editing 201 - 300. Moved it down to then next post and bumped everything respectively...I should have reserved another page, me thinks...

[Lord Torath]

Spelling Alert: In the update to 675, you misspelled "their".

"I before E, except after C. Or when sounded like "A", as in Neighbor and Weigh."

Or in weird words like weird, weir, and their.

Edit: And I misspelled "mispelled" (the double s is correct)

[TheWombatOfDoom]

Alright, so about a THIRD of the comic is up-to-date in the current format. Before I get much further, how does it look? I'm currently devoting a little more time to knocking out more of the first 100 annotations a little more thuroughly. You can see those on the last page of the OP. Very rough stuff, and some I'm porting in from other sources, but still.

Anyone got anymore things to contribute - lay 'em on me! Even more recent stuff! Let's knock away some of those spoilers!

Any D & D reference suggestions and term definitions will be VERY helpful, so if that's your thing, have at it!

How do other people feel about a brief description of each update, as Ron Miel suggested?

Spelling Alert: In the update to 675, you misspelled "their".

"I before E, except after C. Or when sounded like "A", as in Neighbor and Weigh."

Or in weird words like weird, weir, and their.

Edit: And I misspelled "mispelled" (the double s is correct)

Ah yes, my down fall for rushing is to misspell things. Thanks for the clarification, and keep an eye out for more! Fixed now.

[Gwynfrid]

Looks good. Two remarks:
- Looks like you didn't enter my input fro #11, 11, 17, 18, 19, 20.
- It's "Competence" not "Competance". I know this isn't about fixing the comic's typos, but we don't have to copy them into the thread, I think.

About short descriptions: I don't thing they are absolutely necessary.

About character count per post: I guess you'll eventually be forced to copy this to a new thread, splitting the contents into more posts. Meanwhile, one way to cut on characters is to replace "Update XX" with "#XX" which serves just as well and saves you as much as 1800 characters per post

[TheWombatOfDoom]

Looks good. Two remarks:
- Looks like you didn't enter my input fro #11, 11, 17, 18, 19, 20.
- It's "Competence" not "Competance". I know this isn't about fixing the comic's typos, but we don't have to copy them into the thread, I think.

About short descriptions: I don't thing they are absolutely necessary.

About character count per post: I guess you'll eventually be forced to copy this to a new thread, splitting the contents into more posts. Meanwhile, one way to cut on characters is to replace "Update XX" with "#XX" which serves just as well and saves you as much as 1800 characters per post

Yeah, I'm compiling and then inputing. I'll get there. I'll change competence tho. Thanks!

The short descriptions I'd likely be more inclined to put in if I had someone actively and continually working on them. I just can't do all this AND that, .

Truuuue...but I like having the Update word in there. I suppose you're right, if push comes to shove.

[Ron Miel]

I know this isn't about fixing the comic's typos, but we don't have to copy them into the thread, I think.

About short descriptions: I don't thing they are absolutely necessary.

Oh, the irony.

[martianmister]

Oh, the irony.

Irony or brilliance?

[Gwynfrid]

Irony or brilliance?

Neither. New keyboard I need to get used to, combined with an urgent need for a vacation to rest my poor, overtaxed, aging brain. It's not like g and k are close on the keyboard

[Gwynfrid]

Here is another small contribution. In the early strips, there really are a lot of references that will be totally obscure to non-D&D players.

Spoiler

Show

#24 This strip pokes fun at the traditional D&D adventure, where the player characters explore the dungeon to find monsters conveniently waiting for them, loaded with treasure, including magic items which they never use against the enemy adventurers. Thanks to the noise of Durkon's armor, we get to see the situation from the perspective of the goblins.

#25 In D&D, the Armor Check Penalty is a game mechanic which models how hard it is to swim, climb, jump, move silently, etc, while wearing heavy equipment or armor. Elan just drives this to its "logical" conclusion.

#26 Panel 5, Protection from Law is a spell meant to protect from magical effects or enemies of the Lawful alignment, similar to Protection from Evil, Good, or Chaos.
Panel 6, "p.c. P.C.'s" = politically correct Player Characters.

#27 Panel 5, Cat's Grace is a spell that provides a bonus to Dexterity, which in turn provides a bonus to the Hide and Move Silently skills.
Panel 7, Roy invokes the bonus stacking rules: Depending on their nature, bonuses may or may not "stack", ie. be cumulative with each other. Counting on Elan's limited knowledge of the D&D rules, Roy is arguing that the bonus from Cat's Grace will not stack with the "bonus" Elan thinks he gets from removing his clothes.
Panel 9, a Touch spell is a spell that requires physically touching the target (Elan in this case) to work.

#28 Panel 10, Charisma is one of the six character abilities in D&D (the others are Strength, Dexterity, Constitution, Intelligence, and Wisdom). It represents physical attractiveness, among other personal qualities.

#29 The Rogue leveraging her role as party scout to swindle the other characters out of their fair share of the treasure is an old cliché of D&D games. Adding insult to injury, Haley demonstrates the power of the Bluff skill when it is high enough to get away with the most blatant lies.

#30 Panel 2: Elves in D&D have an innate talent for detecting secret doors.
Panel 4: A cross-class skill is a skill that a class isn't very good at, in this case, a wizard such as Vaarsuvius cannot have a high Search skill. Being an elf allows V a good chance to find secret doors, but not anything else.
Panel 7: The mind flayer, or illithid, is a classic and very dangerous monster in D&D. It is famous for its psionic abilities and for feeding on people's brains.

[Gandariel]

Update 741:

The bottom part of the banner says "Bread! Circuses!"
This is a reference to the ancient Rome, where it was said that people only wanted "panem et circenses" (bread and gladiator fights) to be happy

[Gwynfrid]

Here are a few more.

Spoiler

Show

#32 Panel 3: John and Rodriguez refer to Wizards of the Coast, the company that edits the D&D game.
Panel 6: The SRD is the System Reference Document, a compendium of the D&D game's basic rules. The SRD is freely available to all under the Open Game License, a scheme similar to open source software. Certain iconic monsters such as the mind flayer aren't described in the SRD and are thus subject to ordinary copyright rules. Mr. Jones is therefore claiming the mind flayer should not appear or even be named in the comic, thus saving Roy from a nasty fate.
Panel 10: The monster depicted here is a beholder or sphere of many eyes. Like the mind flayer, isn't part of the SRD.

#34 This strip spoofs a classic situation in a D&D session, where players have difficulties remembering the various bonuses that may apply to their attacks depending on circumstances, as the rules are fairly complex. Here Durkon, like many players before him, remembers bonuses belatedly, and the generous DM (or strip's author) lets him record the bonuses effects retroactively.

#35 Panel 12: Taking 20 is a rule for situations where the character isn't pressed for time and can try her skill check any number of times. When taking 20, the die roll is considered to be 20, the maximum for such checks.

#36 "Wardrobe malfunction" is a reference to a famous incident during the Superbowl half-time show in 2004, the year this strip was written.

#37 In the US, a 401(k) is an employer-provided pension plan.

#38 Panel 4: The effect of most poisons in D&D is "ability damage" reducing one or more ability scores. In this case Roy has received so many doses of poison that his Strength is reduced to zero (it can't get any lower), rendering him helpless until healed.

#39 In D&D, creatures in ethereal state are invisible and can pass through material obstacles. Creatures such as ghosts are naturally ethereal, but can become visible to material creatures if they wish to.

#40 Thor and Surtur are gods in one of the classic D&D pantheons. Surtur, god of the fire giants, is evil and an enemy of Durkon's god, Thor.

#41 Panel 2: In D&D, when a character drops his defenses due to being busy with something that requires a mental effort, sch as spellcasting, ennemies close to him get a free attack, called an Attack of Opportunity (AoO). It is however possible to cast defensively, ie. while continuing to dodge enemy attacks. This denies the possibly of an AoO, but runs the risk of failing to cast the spell.
Panel 10: A classic problem with offensive spells with a large area of effect, like Cone of Cold, is the risk of unwittingly harming comrades. In this case, V's mistake is very probably intentional.

#42 Most readers will recognize the name of Elijah Wood, the actor who plays the halfling Frodo in the Lord of the Rings film trilogy.

#43 Panels 9 and 10 are mirror images: Each Linear Guild member is presented in opposition to an equivalent OOTS character.

#44 The first four panels reinforce the mirror image pattern.
Panel 5: To create a character in D&D, the players usually roll six ability scores, and assign them to Strength, Constitution, Dexterity, Wisdom, Intelligence, and Charisma in the order they wish. The ability that got the lowest score in the player's choice is dubbed the "dump stat".
Panel 7: Zz'dtri is a dark elf, or drow, which was a monster race in early editions of D&D. With the publication of the Unearthed Arcana expansion rulebook in 1985, dark elves became a playable race.
Panel 8: Since the entire drow race was described by the Monster Manual as evil, the vast majority of players who wished to play a drow described their character as a Chaotic Good outcast, which quickly became a huge cliché.
Panel 9: Zz'dtri is a parody of the popular novel character, Drizzt Do'Urden, by fantasy author R.A.Salvatore. Like his model, Zz'dtri has with two scimitars; however, unlike Drizzt, he is a wizard, making the scimitars more of a fashion choice that a preferred fighting method.
#45 Panel 2: A doppelganger is a D&D monster that has the power to mimik the appearance of another creature. A Mirror of Opposition is a magical item that creates evil opposites of those who look in it.

#46 With a good score in the Sense Motive skill, Roy might be able to tell that something is amiss in Nale's story.

#48 Panel 2: Under the Attack of Opportunity rules, leaving an enemy's threatened area (the area he can reach with a weapon) gives him an opportunity to attack.
Panel 6: The Combat Reflexes feat allows a character to perform more than one attack of Opportunity in the same combat round.

#49 Panel 2 is a typical discussion of the intricacies of rules across multiple editions. The 3rd Edition rule of the Fly spell was more favorable to the wizard that the revised 3.5 version, so some playing groups adopted house rules to continue using the older version. V tries and fails to acquire that special spell by proposing increasingly powerful spells in exchange.
Panel 10: This is a reference by a totally different fantasy game, Magic: The Gathering, created by Wizards of the Coast before the company acquired TSR, the original publisher of D&D.

#50 Panel 18: Nale's complicated choice of character classes is a throwback the original, equally complicated Bard class from D&D 1st Edition. Back then, to become a bard, a character first had to take several levels in the Fighter class, then several levels in the Thief class, to finally learn to cast druid spells and thus become a bard.