Goblins XIX: New Year, New Updates

[Kish]

No accounting for tastes.

[Traab]

It's a healing spell, not a necromantic one. It revives the corpse as a normal living person, with their original soul and mind and free will, though a bit worse off -- they lose a level in the process, or two points of Con if they were level 1.
http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/raiseDead.htm

You want zombies, you'll get Animate Dead instead. It's a lower level spell, but a necromantic one, instead of a healing one.
http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/animateDead.htm

Ah I remember that one now, huh, for some reason i thought it had stricter requirements than that as to who it could raise. I suppose level 9 casters isnt that legendary after all. Not exactly super common, but as you said, one in every capitol city isnt unreasonable.

[Androgeus]

Surely if resurrection kicks the monarch out of their throne then every usurper would spread rumours that the ruler had been resurrected in secret. That time everyone saw the King get wounded in battle? It was actually a mortal wound, why do you think they hurried him off the battlefield. Hey remember when the Queen was taken ill 6 months back? Well I heard she actually died and they couldn’t get in a priest to cast Raise Dead.

[Vinyadan]

The most interesting characters in Goblins continue to not be goblins.

I guess Ears pays for the late introduction of his beau, while MM and Kin have been growing organically since Goblinslayer died, and they both had their own story before that. Plush doesn't even have a backstory, just some vague racial description.

[Anonymouswizard]

Surely if resurrection kicks the monarch out of their throne then every usurper would spread rumours that the ruler had been resurrected in secret. That time everyone saw the King get wounded in battle? It was actually a mortal wound, why do you think they hurried him off the battlefield. Hey remember when the Queen was taken ill 6 months back? Well I heard she actually died and they couldn’t get in a priest to cast Raise Dead.

Burden of proof lies on the one making the claims, plus ensuring witnesses/proof exists in the case of a long term illness. You might still end up with a Girl Genius situation where everyone breaks the rules, but it's more logical than the other way around. Sure you're basically relying on the honour system, but what else can you do?

[Vinyadan]

Personally, I would expect death to be treated like grave illness, but the effects depend on who has the power to say "this is the new king".

For example, the king has sole power to abdicate, and no one can force him to. He is extremely ill, and gives instructions that he relinquishes the crown and his son must now be king. An equivalent would be a dead king leaving in his testament the instruction that the crown is now his son's. He can then be resurrected, the same way he could be healed from a disease, but the crown stays where it is.
The ill king instead could say, "I give full power to my son and associate him to the duties of a king, but I am king, and he is not, and I can retract his powers." A dead king could leave in his testament "in case of death, proclaim X person regent, until I am resurrected".

Instead, it could be a parliament making these choices. It could be a religious figure. There could be other laws. There could be no law, and then it would be might makes right, or there would be powerful men meeting, more or less formally, to decide what to do.

[BaronOfHell]

Sure you're basically relying on the honour system, but what else can you do?

How about once the ruler is no more, a process to make a new heir into a regent starts. If the former ruler is resurrected before the process has finished, the former ruler retains their rule. If a new ruler is named however, the new ruler stays.

Similar to how a country can only be without a government for a limited amount of time, that time period in this example could be the period from when those in power learn about the demise of the previous ruler, to the new ruler is proclaimed.

Of course previous examples where it is not proclaimed to the relevant people that the ruler is no more, to extend the time period to resurrect, is an issue. But it is no different than from the issue of the puppet king, a true ruler from behind the shadows.
So in my opinion it is a completely different issue than that of old rulers not remaining rulers upon resurrection.

[Traab]

So current comic, its impressive how close they are without seeming to really even realize it. I get that its kin comforting a seriously distraught minmax, but its still impressive.

[137beth]

Piperka says the current page is the 1000th one.

[Gez]

Piperka says the current page is the 1000th one.

Even though it's been running for about 18 years now (the oldest pages on site are from 2005), 1000 pages are still rather impressive. Gives an average of about 56 pages per year, so just slightly more than one per week (52 weeks per year), despite all the prolonged hiatuses.

[Laurentio III]

How about once the ruler is no more, a process to make a new heir into a regent starts. If the former ruler is resurrected before the process has finished, the former ruler retains their rule. If a new ruler is named however, the new ruler stays.

Similar to how a country can only be without a government for a limited amount of time, that time period in this example could be the period from when those in power learn about the demise of the previous ruler, to the new ruler is proclaimed.

Of course previous examples where it is not proclaimed to the relevant people that the ruler is no more, to extend the time period to resurrect, is an issue. But it is no different than from the issue of the puppet king, a true ruler from behind the shadows.
So in my opinion it is a completely different issue than that of old rulers not remaining rulers upon resurrection.

The Oglaf's comic covered it. (No, not going to link)
Essentially, the new ruler is the new ruler, after completing all the coronation steps. Turning back from life is the same as abdicating and later saying you want it back. Doesn't fly well.

[Vinyadan]

Next Goblins plot: https://poorlydrawnlines.com/comic/an-adventure/

[Cygnia]

Can't be. Not nearly wangsty enough.

[Anonymouswizard]

Can't be. Not nearly wangsty enough.

I mean, she's had her surgery, maybe that'll prompt a 180 in the comic's tone.

[Vinyadan]

I was taking a look at the Twitter account, and I saw a couple of interesting interactions.

Question: Wanted to be clear on something: Minmax & Ken know they love each other, right?
Answer: They know that they have feelings for each other.

Question: I think they're at the 'don't want to really admit it' stage, with a dose of 'Kin has trauma and MinMax is respecting that'.
Answer: Minmax is thinking "I crossed her hardest limit and traumatized her. I'd be the biggest asshead, if I ever tried anything with her." Kin is thinking "I broke him by sending him away forever. I'd be such an asshead if I were like 'I changed my mind, I want you again'"

I really wish this last one had been somehow visible in-comic. MM I can read (he flinched after using the leash), but Kin's feelings and thoughts have never really been explained, especially given the reality-warping aspects of the Maze oblivion holes, and the fact that she doesn't know what her IME means (it shows MM's birthday gift).

[Quild]

New page.
no plot, though

[Vinyadan]

Uhhh... so, what if genius Kin said "my collar is safe and easy to remove" and just left it there? Maybe with an added password like the one on the Maxoverse, so people don't get the chance to use it again, even by mistake?

[Fyraltari]

New page.
no plot, though

It be cute, though.

[Keltest]

Uhhh... so, what if genius Kin said "my collar is safe and easy to remove" and just left it there? Maybe with an added password like the one on the Maxoverse, so people don't get the chance to use it again, even by mistake?

Kin is presumably reluctant to experiment with it.

[137beth]

Uhhh... so, what if genius Kin said "my collar is safe and easy to remove" and just left it there? Maybe with an added password like the one on the Maxoverse, so people don't get the chance to use it again, even by mistake?

Or maybe it would reappear on her if she left the room.

[Anarchic Fox]

New comic. I guess two of the plotlines are about to merge?

[Vinyadan]

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Is the serpent prophecy about to come true due to a misunderstanding? MM doesn't know how Forgath looks, and Idle and Bumper might not know about Kin, as Forgath could have supposed they were never going to reunite.

[Keltest]

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Is the serpent prophecy about to come true due to a misunderstanding? MM doesn't know how Forgath looks, and Idle and Bumper might not know about Kin, as Forgath could have supposed they were never going to reunite.

Spoiler

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I hope not. It would be kind of stupid for such a dramatic prophecy to essentially be "she gets killed by friendly fire by accident."

[Cygnia]

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I hope not. It would be kind of stupid for such a dramatic prophecy to essentially be "she gets killed by friendly fire by accident."

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It would fit with the misery and wangst of the overall comic though

[Fyraltari]

Spoiler

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Is the serpent prophecy about to come true due to a misunderstanding? MM doesn't know how Forgath looks, and Idle and Bumper might not know about Kin, as Forgath could have supposed they were never going to reunite.

Remind me what that prophecy is again?

[Kish]

"When the serpent becomes your prey, friends will become enemies and love will fuel hate," given to Forgath.

[Fyraltari]

"When the serpent becomes your prey, friends will become enemies and love will fuel hate," given to Forgath.

yeah, sounds like it's time for a tragic misunderstanding.

[Kish]

I doubt it.

Whatever the prophecy indicates, I do not think it is going to be "Forgath attacks Kin, who is still clearly Kin, because her tail's gone all shiny," and Kin attacking first would fit neither the prophecy nor her personality. Bowst dragging Forgath into battle against people he didn't recognize would fit his personality, but not the prophecy and again, Forgath would have no trouble recognizing them.

[Traab]

Obviously one of the kliks or whatever they were called forgaths body is made of will have a violent reaction to kin or at least her tail material. Its the classic cyborg who cant control his augments for dramatic reasons scenario. His body will move to attack kin before they get the chance to establish to minmax who he is. Since this strange rock golem looking monster is attacking kin, he is gonna roll for initiative first and ask questions never.

[Vinyadan]

Obviously one of the kliks or whatever they were called forgaths body is made of will have a violent reaction to kin or at least her tail material. Its the classic cyborg who cant control his augments for dramatic reasons scenario. His body will move to attack kin before they get the chance to establish to minmax who he is. Since this strange rock golem looking monster is attacking kin, he is gonna roll for initiative first and ask questions never.

The ugly part is that this is a real possibility. Salt was too young to safely perform Forgath's resurrection and pitched in anyway, so it's possible that Forgath's whole body will end up acting like Dies's arm. Even if it doesn't drink blood or turn into a feral abomination, Dies's arm did autonomously grab its negative and throw it down a bridge.

Of course, we don't know what Forgath's negative(s) is/are, but his body suddenly becoming aggressive as soon as he goes to sleep is not impossible.