OOTS #658 - The Discussion Thread

[Iranon]

V has charmed a muskrat before...

[NamonakiRei]

Oh man oh man OH MAN!!

I wonder what will happen if they succeed. I mean, to Xykon.

[JeptCloak]

Funny story... the soul splice replenished V's spell slots, so V should still have fly.

[SPoD]

Of course, it remains unclear how V can possibly be out of fly spells... we have not seen him cast Fly since he got his awesome powers, which leaves 2 options available:
1) V was using his pre-existing flight spell from the island, or
2) V has since cast a new one off screen.
In the first scenario, V should still have fly because his slots were replenished.

Stop right there. There are NO RULES regarding the phrase "spell slots replenished". It was invented by Rich, right here. Therefore, it MAY mean that he gets all of his spells back, exactly as he chose them before, OR it may mean that he gets to choose NEW spells for those slots. We don't know.

So it is entirely possible that V got to choose what spells he would have prepared in his own slots, and CHOSE not to prepare more than one Fly spell.

It makes no sense he'd have used his own fly spell if he had to use it again, because his fly spell is so inferior to the spliced characters fly spells (they could do overland flight for instance), and would be very prone to the ABD or Xykon dispelling it.

Just because it makes no sense to YOU does not make it against the rules. V may have wanted to save the spells of the splices for powerful attack magic, figuring his own spells were good enough for the utility magic.

And by the way, V could cast Overland Flight, too. So you obviously don't know what you're talking about.

So even if V had only a single fly spell prepped, V should still have it.

Unless he made a poor decision and assumed he wouldn't need more than one spell between himself and the three splices. But hey, it's not like V has made any poor decisions lately.

[Military Man]

Man, I hadn't thought of that.

Go V! Go O-Chul!

V has already cast a fly spell, when she entered the tower, and how many people have 2 fly spells ready?

Stop right there. There are NO RULES regarding the phrase "spell slots replenished". It was invented by Rich, right here. Therefore, it MAY mean that he gets all of his spells back, exactly as he chose them before, OR it may mean that he gets to choose NEW spells for those slots. We don't know.

Good point. New spells or original spells?

[Ridureyu]

Another funny story. V's been flying constantly since getting those spell slots regenerated, but not after losing the recently-gained epic slots.

[Kaytara]

Funny story... the soul splice replenished V's spell slots, so V should still have fly.

A possible explanation is that the Splice did not specifically replenish the same spells V had already prepared that day, but made him choose his prepared spells anew, and he didn't prepare any flight spells because he didn't count on his current one getting dispelled.

Another explanation is that the re-prepared spell slots were granted by the Splice as much as the black robes were, and disappeared as soon as the Splice ended.

[SPoD]

Funny story... the soul splice replenished V's spell slots, so V should still have fly.

Again, the phrase, "replenished V's spell slots" has no official D&D meaning. It means whatever Rich wants it to mean. Therefore, you CANNOT argue that the rules say this or that. They say nothing.

[silversaraph]

Wow. Just wow. You know, If it "unmakes" his soul, wouldn't all fundamental beings of Xykon also cease to exist? Being thrown in the snarl apparently didn't do much, but even if he doesn't un-not-live, I'm thinking it would wreck havoc with him. I kind of always thought of the soul being magically channeled into Xykon from the phylactery, and if it dies he wouldn't have control whatsover of his body... he'd just be more of an empty shell.

Unless my brother is right, that we all have 17 souls and they're completely useless.

Any ideas if Blackwing will even comply? It seems to me like V didn't summon him/her on purpose, it decided that it was an important scenario.

[Toper]

Oh, my... the raven's always good for a chuckle.

Also, yowser. That rift is getting dangerous. Though this is probably just the Giant stretching things for the plot, it's certainly had a lot more than a hundred feet of growth since we first saw it.

Other thoughts:

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The raven has Improved Evasion, and V could protect the bird from line-of-sight attacks with something as simple as Obscuring Mist or a last invisibility spell, so it actually might have a shot here, depending on how many rounds it takes to fly to a position over the rift. Or if O-Chul dies, the MitD could get angry and stomp down the tower, which would also do the trick of shutting down Xykon.

[Porthos]

*POP*

Classic.

[docstrange]

I wonder who has more hit points right now: V, or the raven?

[Da'Shain]

Yes, I find the fact I am the one who keeps having to correct people on the rules to be a bit embarassing frankly.

Embarassing for yourself, because your "corrections" are frequently wrong, you mean?

As for V having a Fly spell, he also had the chance to rememorize all his spells when the splice took place. It's perfectly possible that he
A) Didn't memorize any Fly spells because he already had a 24-hour one up and he was too arrogant to believe it might be dispelled, or
B) Used the spliced souls' slots to memorize Fly spells, reserving his own for Evocation spells since he was the only Evocation specialist in the splice.

[holywhippet]

Why exactly would Blackwing be in any danger? As a bird he/she (can't be bothered looking for gender indications in past strips) can just carry the phylactory above the rift and drop it in.

Also, even if complete escape isn't possible via magic, V might have a feather fall spell handy which will at least get them to the ground.

[MasterDinadan]

Any ideas if Blackwing will even comply? It seems to me like V didn't summon him/her on purpose, it decided that it was an important scenario.

I don't think it's a matter of summoning him or not. Blackwing seems to exist only when somebody remembers that he exists.

It's a running gag which has some truth. Nobody pays any attention to the wizard's familiar until it's actually useful, so they forget it even exists.

[Adeen]

Can we all lay off of JeptCloak and can he please lay off of being a rules nazi, whether or not he is correct. I think it would benefit all of us to stop flaming and actually discuss the comic! I mean come on, the Giant did the classic *pop* joke again, that's gotta be worth a few laughs. Now can't we all just get along?

[Porthos]

Oh, my... the raven's always good for a chuckle.

Also, yowser. That rift is getting dangerous. Though this is probably just the Giant stretching things for the plot, it's certainly had a lot more than a hundred feet of growth since we first saw it.

All we see are the tendrils, so we don't really know how much bigger the Rift is from the last time we saw it.

[Trizap]

chekhovs gunman has arrived at the front line, ladies and gentlemen!

[EmeraldPhoenix]

Did anyone see blackwing coming? If so, they didn't say anything.

BY A LONG SHOT. And yes. yes i did say something.

[Silverraptor]

Wow! Guess that, "Throw the Phalactery into the rift" theory was accurate. Come on guys! You can do it!

[Forbiddenwar]

I have an Idea, let's all ignore Jept. He's taking the thread away from the topic and taking the spotlight away from The Giant and forcing it on to himself.

Repeat after me:
I, ForbiddenWar, solemnly swear (or affirm)
to no longer respond, quote or in any way reffer to Jept Cloak,
to ignore everything he says as his statements are calculated to generated anger and hatred of him and his ideas,
until such time as JeptCloak speaks in a calm tone, cites his sources and sticks to the topic of the discussion.

Now I feel clean.

The *pop* at the end of the comic was priceless and Funny.
Who knew Giant could do such a great punchline from using 2 letters?

I wonder if Blackwing has been in Azure city this whole time.
I wonder if V will remember blackwings name.

[JeptCloak]

So the story is again asking us to invent an implausible explanation to cover for the flaws in the story. How surprising.

Yes, I can totally see it now... when they said "the rejuvanating effect of the soul splice will allow you to start with all spell slots fully replenished" what they meant was "in the instant in which you get this power you will off panel have the ability to go through your spell book and consider the spells you wish to use, contemplate the ones you want, memorise them, and then resume laughing madly, all while no time passes and nobody notices". I can't see why I'm so skeptical.

[Kaytara]

A question: What, exactly, is the reference in the title? (I'm assuming there IS one, naturally.)

Also, what exactly happened to that Meteor Swarm? It looks like Xykon missed O-Chul with it, but that should still mean that both him and V have to make reflex saves just for being in the area of effect, and even those would only make the damage partial.... Yet they don't seem to get any injuries from the Meteor Swarm.... So what gives?

[Forbiddenwar]

A question: What, exactly, is the reference in the title? (I'm assuming there IS one, naturally.)

Also, what exactly happened to that Meteor Swarm? It looks like Xykon missed O-Chul with it, but that should still mean that both him and V have to make reflex saves just for being in the area of effect, and even those would only make the damage partial.... Yet they don't seem to get any injuries from the Meteor Swarm.... So what gives?

MAGIC

the title references an old english saying that a bird in the hand is worth 2 in the bush, or that it better to keep what you have than to lose it all in chasing after more.
Hey, cool. It didn't know where that sentence was going until it finished, but it's a perfect lesson for V and her arcane power.

[R. Malcovitch]

NICE. Prediction time!

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My guess is Blackwing takes the phylactory, flies well above the rift, and drops it in (ensuring that Blackwing doesn't come into contact with the rift) while O-Chul (and maybe V though I doubt it) keep Xykon occupied long enough that he can't shoot BW down. V will escape, O-Chul will die.

[dogmac]

Yipes, relying on Blackwing.

er... go blackwing?

[MisterLeirus]

V does not have more combat spells... but feather fall is not a combat one... I wonder...

Also... The MiTD should do something, anything really, before the action is over, shouldnt it/he?

I want this arc to end now, because the wait between strips is killing me

[choie]

Amazing, just ... amazing. How do you keep this suspense up, Rich? We haven't been able to exhale since V left the Order! My heart's still in my throat! Bravo. Boy, V looks even worse, if possible.

Re: the flight thing. I know it's been four whole strips, JeptCloak, but please direct your attention to #653, bottom left panel. After the Greater Dispel, V crashes to the ground and cries out:

Vaarsuvius: My defenses! My flight spell!

We already knew V had no flight spell! Maybe you didn't hear V through all the gnashing of teeth over V's wizardry not uber alles-ing?

Anyway, what I'd like to see is sort of my prediction, FWIW (and with Rich's incredible storytelling skills, my prediction's definitely not worth much!):

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Blackwing takes the phylactery and tosses it into the Rift. Xykon tries to zap the bird, but O-Chul flings himself into the blast of the spell, sacrificing himself.

Thank you for a phenomenal ride so far, Rich. I can't wait to see how this progresses. You're making me chugalug on blood pressure medicine!

[Adeen]

A question: What, exactly, is the reference in the title? (I'm assuming there IS one, naturally.)

Also, what exactly happened to that Meteor Swarm? It looks like Xykon missed O-Chul with it, but that should still mean that both him and V have to make reflex saves just for being in the area of effect, and even those would only make the damage partial.... Yet they don't seem to get any injuries from the Meteor Swarm.... So what gives?

"a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush" Basically a classic quote that means it's better to have a small actual advantage than the chance of a greater one. I think he just named the title that because of the blackwing reference (obviously) and most people have heard that phrase uttered before and will probably recognize it.

[Calmness]

The large panel is very impressive.

It was a short comic, but it's my favorite of the latest batch. I was always a fan of stupidly heroic last stands and this comic sure delivered in that aspect.

I think, that when all is said and done, the most awesome solo quest will belong to V. She´ll have a nice story to tell if she makes it back home.