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2021-02-19, 05:35 PM (ISO 8601)
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- Jun 2015
Re: OOTS #1226 - The Discussion Thread
So just going to point out to the people discussing the current status of the various characters making up the order of the scribble, that (SoD spoilers)
, given that it was supposed to be in Xykon's pocket, and his body was destroyed by Dorukan's gate. Decent chance the gem was destroyed and the souls freed when X's body went boom. Figure they're chilling in their respective afterlives by now.SpoilerLiran and Dorukan's souls probably aren't in that gem anymore
(unless I'm forgetting some critical detail or statement by The Giant)
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2021-02-19, 05:53 PM (ISO 8601)
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Re: OOTS #1226 - The Discussion Thread
Forum Wisdom
Mage avatar by smutmulch & linklele.
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2021-02-19, 06:00 PM (ISO 8601)
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- Feb 2013
Re: OOTS #1226 - The Discussion Thread
Also, there's nothing in the spell description for Trap the Soul that says destroying the gem frees the soul.
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2021-02-19, 06:04 PM (ISO 8601)
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- Jan 2010
Re: OOTS #1226 - The Discussion Thread
So, that dartboard in panel 1. The one with three darts that missed very badly. I don't imagine a halfling rogue would have any business missing with darts at all. I'm thinking that either Orangetext threw those, or they're from Serini trying to acclimate to her "second" left hand.
(This signature intentionally left blank)
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2021-02-19, 06:07 PM (ISO 8601)
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- Aug 2007
Re: OOTS #1226 - The Discussion Thread
???
https://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/trapTheSoul.htm
The gem holds the trapped entity indefinitely or until the gem is broken and the life force is released, which allows the material body to reform
GWInterested in MitD? Join us in MitD's thread.There is a world of imagination
Deep in the corners of your mind
Where reality is an intruder
And myth and legend thrive
Ceterum autem censeo Hilgya malefica est
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2021-02-19, 06:13 PM (ISO 8601)
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- Feb 2013
Re: OOTS #1226 - The Discussion Thread
Haven't fully caught up, but I suspect Serini is half-undead now, not half-golem. Golems don't have red eyes as far as I can remember, and while I'm sure it's mostly a coincidence, the final effect on her does make her look a fair bit like the mythological version of Hel, half-dead, half-living.
More importantly, if she were half-golem, there would definitely be visible stitches were the golem parts were grafted on, but here the two halves are blended seamlessly.
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2021-02-19, 06:24 PM (ISO 8601)
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- Mar 2009
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2021-02-19, 06:31 PM (ISO 8601)
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- Feb 2021
Re: OOTS #1226 - The Discussion Thread
I've trained HEMA w/ longswords. Full disclosure, only longswords and I've never done full contact sparring. That being said....
Katanas are like longswords because they are used like longswords. There are some European longsword techniques that have no analogues in Japanese swordsmanship (like anything using the false edge) but in general, the overlap between the usage of both is significant. The both have most of the same stances and footwork, and many of the same kinds of swings. Both are used to stab and cut. Conversely, the saber is nothing like either. It is an exclusively single-handed weapon with swings made not with the hips but with the wrist, and the lead foot is almost never changed. Treat yourselves to some youtube videos of longsword vs katana, or longsword vs saber, or any combination thereof. Or for a more thorough breakdown, watch technique videos for each weapon.
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2021-02-19, 07:04 PM (ISO 8601)
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- Dec 2006
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2021-02-19, 07:08 PM (ISO 8601)
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- Feb 2013
Re: OOTS #1226 - The Discussion Thread
Half-clay golems also have "grotesquely distorted musculature, such as an overlarge chest, arms attached by thick knots of muscle at the shoulder, stubby fingers, or arms that hang almost to the ground." I don't see any sign of that either. In general, my point here isn't even literally about stitches, but just that stylistically, the union between golem and person will invariably be depicted as mismatched and awkward in some way, while Serini's halves seem too harmonious for that, at least the way I see it.
Remember also that Rich cares more about having things feel thematically consistent as opposed to rules consistent, which is one of the reasons characters always use healing potions and almost never use healing wands the way actual 3.5 players do all the time. I think that mindset rules out a half-golem who would look this well-put together, even if it were mechanically or even flavor-text possible.Last edited by TRH; 2021-02-19 at 07:10 PM.
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2021-02-19, 07:09 PM (ISO 8601)
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- May 2009
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- In a castle under the sea
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Re: OOTS #1226 - The Discussion Thread
Spoiler: Imagining Xykon doing silly things, because jokes
"Alright, I know this sounds crazy, but it'll make a bunch of people go nuts. It'll be hilarious! Also you're too low-level to object."
Unless Serini stole the crystal from Xykon when they last met. Or, more likely, it got lost between the couch cushions when Xykon moved and it was wound up in a black market novelty lamp she happened to buy last time she was in town.
...okay, the part about losing a crystal containing the soul of one-time enemies because he doesn't care enough to keep track of it does sound plausible.
"Alright, your choice: Do I kill you or the kid?"
"Oh ****. Okay, calm down, think logically. If I die, what're the odds Junior could find a cleric willing to resurrect me? I'd probably have better odds, so from that perspective I'd be the better choice to survive. But am I just trying to justify a selfish—?"
"Time's up, I'm killing half of each of you."
I'd like to point out that you started your response to "Why were the paladins abducted if they're just going to be amnesia'd and released?" with an explanation of what would happenif they were abducted and released without being amnesia'd.
Anyone else have D+D=T flashbacks?
Even assuming she had the time to prebrew the potion (ie, it doesn't take longer to brew than it takes to wake up), the paladins left their alarm clocks at home, so it's hard to know exactly when they'd wake up.
Xykon canonically washes his laundry, and most people empty their pockets before washing their robes. Jokes aside, the gem is more likely to have been destroyed in the dungeon explosion than the gate explosion.
Unless you let an iron golem rust. Or build a stone golem out of sandstone. Pretty sure I remember these things being in 3.5, too.
But it's pretty rare for only the eyes to be red, barring an after-market paint job.
glances at Serini's color palette
I think you're confusing clay with swamp gunk.
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2021-02-19, 07:16 PM (ISO 8601)
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- Mar 2007
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- Oregon, USA
Re: OOTS #1226 - The Discussion Thread
That's the book art for a psion-killer.
FeytouchedBanana eldritch disciple avatar by...me!
The Index of the Giant's Comments VI―Making Dogma from Zapped Bananas
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2021-02-19, 07:28 PM (ISO 8601)
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- Feb 2012
Re: OOTS #1226 - The Discussion Thread
If you're responding to me, I'd say that releasing the Paladins merely with a bad case of amnesia, doesn't help Serini very much. It's not enough that the Paladins don't remember getting darted, or her little cave; they need to remember something innocuous that prevents them from wondering why they have a blank spot in their recollection for however long it was.
The point is for the Paladins to think of the area as unremarkable. Big lapses in memory aren't unremarkable.
I love your idea of the proposed dialogue between Serini + child, and Xykon. He's a Complete Monster, but damned if he isn't one of the most entertaining characters in the strip.
Well said comments too, in the rest of your post. EDIT: Not having looked at the SRD for the critter, Crystal really should have been made into a Crystal Golem. I had no idea such were possible.
I still think the art is a nod to the Terminator. We'll see.Last edited by Ghosty; 2021-02-19 at 07:30 PM.
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2021-02-19, 07:38 PM (ISO 8601)
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- Feb 2007
Re: OOTS #1226 - The Discussion Thread
Have undead in OOTS ever had coloured text on coloured background for their speech bubbles? The Nightcrawler had coloured text on black background (as opposed to the white text that is standard for undead) - but the coloured text on coloured background is less usual.
Whereas, as demonstrated by Crystal, it's quite appropriate for constructs:
https://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0978.htmlMarut-2 Avatar by Serpentine
New Marut Avatar by Linkele
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2021-02-19, 07:41 PM (ISO 8601)
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- May 2009
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Re: OOTS #1226 - The Discussion Thread
Told you it was in 3.5!
(I googled "red crystal golem," found a familiar-looking image; the page title said Pathfinder, so I made a silly assumption.)
My point being that you seemed to be answering the opposite question of what had been asked. Even if the answer to the actual question was buried in there, it was far from the best way to explain it.
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2021-02-19, 07:58 PM (ISO 8601)
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- May 2018
Re: OOTS #1226 - The Discussion Thread
It’s not impossible that she is, in fact, evil.
There’s no guarantee that she’s actually *protecting* the gate at this point.
It seems unlikely, because if she was actively trying to destroy the world it’s hard to see how she’s currently doing that. But it’s impossible for me to guess at her current mental state.Last edited by Dion; 2021-02-19 at 08:00 PM.
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2021-02-19, 08:02 PM (ISO 8601)
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- Jan 2019
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Re: OOTS #1226 - The Discussion Thread
Honestly, Serini's condition resembles greyscale from ASOIAF; a slow-moving disease that consumes the body and mind, leaving a rotted husk behind. She might only have a few years or even months to live.
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2021-02-19, 08:28 PM (ISO 8601)
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- Feb 2013
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2021-02-19, 09:05 PM (ISO 8601)
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- Feb 2017
Re: OOTS #1226 - The Discussion Thread
My guess for Serini's Template is a rush-job fix by Grubwiggler. She was rushed in to the castle in a series of bags, but Grubwiggler pointed out that she was only *mostly* exploded. Now, mostly exploded means partly intact. All exploded, there's only one thing you can do; get a mop.
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2021-02-19, 09:45 PM (ISO 8601)
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- Mar 2009
Re: OOTS #1226 - The Discussion Thread
"Besides, you know the saying: Kill one, and you are a murderer. Kill millions, and you are a conqueror. Kill them all, and you are a god." -- Fishman
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2021-02-19, 11:13 PM (ISO 8601)
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2021-02-20, 12:35 AM (ISO 8601)
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- Jan 2019
Re: OOTS #1226 - The Discussion Thread
Ugh, that Rich Burlew is a sneaky bastard. When I first saw that cloaked figure in #1225, my first thought was "Is that Serini? Can't be, whoever that person is, they're too tall to be a halfling." Come one strip later and...yup, it's an old female halfling (quarterling?) on a stepladder.
Wicked, wicked Rich Burlew. Sneaky bastard, he is. It's precisely that sort of double subversion that makes me question his parentage once again.
Very well done indeed, Rich!
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2021-02-20, 01:30 AM (ISO 8601)
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- Mar 2020
Re: OOTS #1226 - The Discussion Thread
I just wanted to point out something interesting with her wording. At first I thought that Xykon had blasted her with some necromancy spell and that's why she's like this, but her saying that he's the reason she lost her first hand makes me think he somehow injured her in a way she couldn't regenerate from and she ended up getting this green hand to replace it. I'm not sure how educated this guess really is, but I'm pretty sure that Xykon wasn't the one that made her be all half-green.
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2021-02-20, 01:37 AM (ISO 8601)
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- Sep 2020
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Re: OOTS #1226 - The Discussion Thread
There's also the fact that she still has her white hair on her green side, including on her green foot.
It kinds reminds me of gangrene a bit. Is there a spell that inflicts onto someone?
Then again, she does say she lost her original hand so unless it's basically her old flesh golemized and attached...
As for the stat concerns about her potentially being part-golem, it has been pretty clear that the Giant has been willing to tweak the precisions for the sake of the story.
I mean, losing Int doesn't always makes sense for a half golem and it may not affect her alignment.
For example, from the "The Year of Rogue Dragons" trilogy by Richard Lee Byers, we have the Chaotic Neutral half iron-golem mercenary named Dorn Graybrook. According to the Forgotten Realms wiki, he has 10 levels of Fighter and 3 in Ranger (according to the Forgotten Realms wiki) so he wasn't too impeded by his condition mentally, though I never read the books.
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2021-02-20, 01:40 AM (ISO 8601)
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- Aug 2009
Re: OOTS #1226 - The Discussion Thread
Last edited by bunsen_h; 2021-02-20 at 01:44 AM.
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2021-02-20, 01:52 AM (ISO 8601)
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- Feb 2018
Re: OOTS #1226 - The Discussion Thread
Props to the people who called "halfling or other small creature standing on something"
I'm hoping the paladins will be able to get an explanation out of her over the next couple comics. The story of what Xykon did to her is bound to be interesting.
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2021-02-20, 01:56 AM (ISO 8601)
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- Feb 2021
Re: OOTS #1226 - The Discussion Thread
long time lurker, first time poster: Serini might be a Green Star Adept, a 3.5 prestige class for casters that focuses on replacing the character's body piece by piece with starmetal. we have seen already that starmetal is a material that exists in this setting and which has some narrative significance.
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2021-02-20, 02:45 AM (ISO 8601)
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Re: OOTS #1226 - The Discussion Thread
Um, but Serini wasn't a caster? She was a rogue. I mean, I suppose you could argue she multiclassed to caster and then went for a prestige class, but seems really, really unlikely to me--not to mention that the clear implication of what she says in this strip is that she was forced to replace parts of her body because of Xykon, not because she chose to go prestige.
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2021-02-20, 05:43 AM (ISO 8601)
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- May 2017
Re: OOTS #1226 - The Discussion Thread
Dumb question: Is it just me, or are the circles on Serini's face more evocative of her being partly insubstantial (i.e. bubbles) than they are of boils/warts/etc? I blame the cauldron bubbles for making me think this. (^_^)°
My memory plays tricks on me, not sure: Have we ever seen that happen in this comic, apart from O-Chul?
(With MitD, that is. I don't think anyone could seriously believe I'm talking about Redcloak with O-Chul, but better safe than sorry.)
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2021-02-20, 06:52 AM (ISO 8601)
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Re: OOTS #1226 - The Discussion Thread
I don’t think it is Serini. At least, not the brain part.
What I suspect is happening is that “Serini” is Redcloaks niece. She had some conflict with Xykon gone poorly and was left in a badly damaged state. In the same conflict, Serini was killed.
In order to survive, the niece grafted Serinis body parts to her own, but it isn’t Serinis brain in that head.
Why do I think this?
1) Serini should have good ability with projectiles, being a halfling. Instead we see that she can’t hit a dartboard particularly well.
2) Serini was a chirpy, happy go lucky, bubbly character. Yeah, I suppose it could be conceded this might have changed given the severe trauma she had obviously suffered.
3) Making potions like this isn’t really rogue skill set. It’s something else...