Goblins XVII: The shocking end of the story arc

[JavaScribe]

the way Kore is running around his Detect Evil is not working.

Maybe part of the curse makes it so that everyone, even other paladins, ping as evil.

[Kantaki]

It's gonna be hard to remember that thread title for 37 pages, but I'll try.

I mean, now we kinda have to.

Goblins XVIII2: Blame it all on Peelee

Works.

[Vinyadan]

About the planned timetable, I have no idea. Assuming 2 pages a month, that would mean 72 to 96 pages. Assuming 3 pages a month, 108 to 144.

So I took a look. More or less 100 pages ago, we were here: http://goblinscomic.com/comic/04132016-2 (2016)

150 pages ago: http://goblinscomic.com/comic/01112014 (2014)

[Agi Hammerthief]

So I took a look. More or less 100 pages ago, we were here: http://goblinscomic.com/comic/04132016-2 (2016)

I think that is where I lost a big chunk of my interest in the story.

[Draconi Redfir]

New Comic is out by the way

nothing too spectacular, just Thaco's section of the combat. We'll be seeing Big Ears soon!

[Lord Torath]

New Comic is out by the way

nothing too spectacular, just Thaco's section of the combat. We'll be seeing Big Ears soon!

Here's a thought. Leave him. The golem's got a deathgrip on Kore's arm. He's not going anywhere. You can do all sorts of things while he's trapped there... tickle his toes, beat on his chest, light a fire under him... the possibilities are endless!

Also, something that just occurred to me, in light of the Axe of Prison Prissan: Core/Kore. What do you think Kore is the core of?

Also, if we peel the rest of K(C)ore's armor off him, do you think he'll be completely covered in "small faces"? What would happen if Fumbles hit him with his staff of "Breaking Bindings"? Would all those trapped souls be freed? Something else to add to the list of "Things to Do While Kore is Held by the Golem".

[Traab]

I honestly expect something to go wrong soon, but things are looking grim for kore. His gear is busted, his body is getting busted, and he is about to face a monk, 2 barbarians, a healer, and a paladin in combat even without the statue. As for leaving him like that, his other arm is free, he could probably yank his axe out of his trapped hand the way it is and cut his way free in fairly short order. Get him into a back to front bearhug where both arms are pinned to his side and he is off the ground and you might be able to maintain the grip long enough for a coup de grace. Or go for a more complicated ground pin where you use the golems legs to lock kores in an awkward position while having his arms trapped and he would be pretty much immobilized and face down on the ground.

[Vinyadan]

Kore could still have some ace up his sleeve. He had those talk-to-undead pills, maybe he has some atomic button.

[Traab]

Kore could still have some ace up his sleeve. He had those talk-to-undead pills, maybe he has some atomic button.

What kind of tricks could a high level paladin pull in a scenario like this? Both class skills and spells and random items a guy his suggested level might have access to. I remember in order of the stick their cleric used some sort of holy word spell that banished their succubus, and deafened everyone else in the radius, causing all sorts of damage and havoc, do paladins have access to something along those lines? Lets work under the assumption that good and evil dont matter for his spells as he is clearly broken somehow. If there are aoe spells he could use to utterly wreck someone of the right alignment, he might break it out soon.

[Keltest]

What kind of tricks could a high level paladin pull in a scenario like this? Both class skills and spells and random items a guy his suggested level might have access to. I remember in order of the stick their cleric used some sort of holy word spell that banished their succubus, and deafened everyone else in the radius, causing all sorts of damage and havoc, do paladins have access to something along those lines? Lets work under the assumption that good and evil dont matter for his spells as he is clearly broken somehow. If there are aoe spells he could use to utterly wreck someone of the right alignment, he might break it out soon.

As far as magic goes, paladins are mostly towards the "beat people with metal objects" end of the spectrum. They do have some spells, but a significant chunk of those are mostly just buffs to make them better at said beating.

[Vinyadan]

What kind of tricks could a high level paladin pull in a scenario like this? Both class skills and spells and random items a guy his suggested level might have access to. I remember in order of the stick their cleric used some sort of holy word spell that banished their succubus, and deafened everyone else in the radius, causing all sorts of damage and havoc, do paladins have access to something along those lines? Lets work under the assumption that good and evil dont matter for his spells as he is clearly broken somehow. If there are aoe spells he could use to utterly wreck someone of the right alignment, he might break it out soon.

Unless he took a variant, he could summon his mount. I was mostly referring to items, however. Something that throws a fireball centred on himself, for example. Or an Efreeti bottle. The GAP is still fairly low level.

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Vorpal is useless in this fight, at least in theory: he cannot use the golem, his level is unknown, and he probably doesn't have any class ability of worth. We know that he can heal, and, in theory, he can foresee and direct like Y&B did. However, what if Kore is a prison, like the Axe was? What if it counts as a magical binding, and a touch of Vorpal's cane can undo it?

[Traab]

Unless he took a variant, he could summon his mount. I was mostly referring to items, however. Something that throws a fireball centred on himself, for example. Or an Efreeti bottle. The GAP is still fairly low level.

Spoiler: Speculation

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Vorpal is useless in this fight, at least in theory: he cannot use the golem, his level is unknown, and he probably doesn't have any class ability of worth. We know that he can heal, and, in theory, he can foresee and direct like Y&B did. However, what if Kore is a prison, like the Axe was? What if it counts as a magical binding, and a touch of Vorpal's cane can undo it?

I think vorpal counts as a cleric, iirc young and beautiful was fighting cleric spell to cleric spell against forgath. As to what level he is, its hard to say. Maybe the teller ceremony goosed his levels? As for Kore, yeah I know there are objects he could use as well, I just figured we should start with the obvious and ask what a level 15ish paladin could do then branch out to what could someone of that level be expected to have access to in items. And yeah he could easily have a wand/scroll of x on him or something of the sort.

[Draconi Redfir]

he is about to face a monk, 2 barbarians, a healer, and a paladin in combat even without the statue. .

just one barbarian. Minmax and Parchment managed to reach the top of the glass stairs before they gave out, dropping the goblins.

as for Fumbles, "Tellers only have access to low-level cleric spells" according to one source. this is for most tellers though, Fumbles IS an exception due to how many spirits he was able to absorb. i'd bet money that he only has an NPC class at best, or maybe some kind of template.

[deuterio12]

There's nasty stuff even in low level cleric spells. Blindness/Deafness is only 2nd level and Animate Dead is 3rd level after all. Necromancer Fumbles when?

What kind of tricks could a high level paladin pull in a scenario like this? Both class skills and spells and random items a guy his suggested level might have access to. I remember in order of the stick their cleric used some sort of holy word spell that banished their succubus, and deafened everyone else in the radius, causing all sorts of damage and havoc, do paladins have access to something along those lines? Lets work under the assumption that good and evil dont matter for his spells as he is clearly broken somehow. If there are aoe spells he could use to utterly wreck someone of the right alignment, he might break it out soon.

Hahaha, Holy Word is 7th level and paladins cap at 4th level ones.

In the basic book, paladins get several defensive buffs (Death Ward, Protection From X, Magic Circle against X, Resist Energy) besides the already mentioned "hit harder buffs" plus some anti-chaos/evil stuff. Plus healing, including HP and stuff like poison. Also got several group buffs, but for somebody like Kore...

Splatbooks in 3.5 did considerably expand the paladin spell list, which included some nukes like Holy Storm that makes rain that damages evil creatures besides some penalties and Righteous Aura that makes you explode when you die, healing good creatures and damaging everybody else nearby.

[Vinyadan]

I'd like to say that Kore got a divine variant of still spell, since he could cast remove paralysis on himself without moving, but it's more likely that it just was some handwaving.

[Agi Hammerthief]

I'd like to say that Kore got a divine variant of still spell, since he could cast remove paralysis on himself without moving, but it's more likely that it just was some handwaving.

I consider it bad spell design, though technically it has to be still and silent spell to be used by a paralysed character.

[Draconi Redfir]

just remembered, fights in Goblins always end with some form of permanent change as a result. that may have already happened with Kore's helmet being wrecked up, but i wonder if the Goblins will see any kind of change. Maybe BigEars will loose one of his titular ears.

[Traab]

Im more curious about names. Will he eventually change so much that he becomes a demon, personality and all? Will he look like a full demon but still be himself?

[Draconi Redfir]

probably not in this fight. He seems to only change when in direct contact with something demonic like the axe, or when he's recovering from a grievous wound like his chopped-off hand followed by an explosion. but that too may be because it was cut off by the axe.

so long as his OTHER arm doesn't get chopped off, and he stays away from the axe, he should be fine.

[Draconi Redfir]

New page is up

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the ears. they are a problem.

[Radar]

New page is up

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the ears. they are a problem.

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Both very obvious in hindsight and completnly unexpected. Well done.

[Traab]

I honestly didnt expect that. I expected

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Kore to break loose and get to ears before he could activate it. Starting off a deadly dance of trying to contain kore and reactivate the golem in such a way that it would be useful still.

[Lapak]

Prediction:

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now that he has thoroughly messed up the golem they will slap the helmet on him to confuse/distract him while they get away.

[Radar]

Prediction:

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now that he has thoroughly messed up the golem they will slap the helmet on him to confuse/distract him while they get away.

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Good one! Four rounds is quite a lot of time for running.

[Vinyadan]

Personally, I was expecting the statue to let Kore immediately go as soon as Ears put the helmet on, since his hands would have then been around his head.

[Anteros]

I'm not expecting Ears to get his ear chopped off and then be able to wear the helmet.

[Morgaln]

Prediction:

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now that he has thoroughly messed up the golem they will slap the helmet on him to confuse/distract him while they get away.

If the helm is a tight fit for a goblin that is about the size of a five year old human child, how is it supposed to fit on the head of a dwarf?

[Lacco]

If the helm is a tight fit for a goblin that is about the size of a five year old human child, how is it supposed to fit on the head of a dwarf?

I misread and thought the idea was to slap it on the golem

Existential crisis ensues: golem suddenly self-conscious... about his barenaked backside!

[Gez]

If the helm is a tight fit for a goblin that is about the size of a five year old human child, how is it supposed to fit on the head of a dwarf?

Do they have to try to fit the helmet over Kore's entire head? There's a chunk to the side they could leave off.

[Avaris]

Theory: Kore will get the helmet on, and then through the golem’s eyes see himself for the first time in centuries. Horrified at what he has become, he destroys himself.