"Who was the old guy, anyway?"

[Flame of Anor]

Redcloak clearly implies that he was more important than just a janitor. But who is he? I don't think he can be a character we've seen before, but if that's the case why is he important? Could he be the polymorphed spy*, whom Redcloak wanted to interrogate?**


*or do we already know what he looks like?

**or does polymorph end when the subject dies? I don't have my books with me

[ti'esar]

We saw the polymorphed spy - he's (implicitly) the goblin raising an eyebrow in the third panel of 825, and looks indistinguishable from your generic hobgoblin mook.

That said, it sounds like there probably was something odd about the old goblin.

[Gift Jeraff]

I thought the joke was that Redcloak didn't even known whether he was a janitor or not. Thus, he's a "something," i.e. he's insignificant to Redcloak.

And we saw the elves' spy in panel 3 of #825. Different clothes and no beard.

[Ninjadeadbeard]

He looked like Jirix (did I spell it right?). Can't remember if he's already dead though. Too late past bedtime to look it up.

Edit: Nope. Just looked it up. Thought Jirix had a beard.

[Delusion]

I thought the joke was that Redcloak didn't even known whether he was a janitor or not. Thus, he's a "something," i.e. he's insignificant to Redcloak.

Except that the Redcloak gave him the keys to his private study. I doupt he would give those to someone he didn't even know.

[ti'esar]

Except that the Redcloak gave him the keys to his private study. I doupt he would give those to someone he didn't even know.

Yeah, I read that as an evasive "something" - he wasn't a janitor, but Redcloak isn't going to admit who he really was either.

[Delusion]

If there were still a crag pairing(sp?) thread, I'd quess that they would go wild with that something.

[Flame of Anor]

Yeah, I read that as an evasive "something" - he wasn't a janitor, but Redcloak isn't going to admit who he really was either.

Exactly what I thought. The overalls are kind of odd...I'm sure they're significant somehow but I don't know how. Maybe he was just posing as a janitor?

If there were still a crag pairing(sp?) thread, I'd quess that they would go wild with that something.

Crack pairing. My understanding is it's supposed to be...um...referring to a certain non-board-appropriate topic.

[B. Dandelion]

Do the overalls hint at being a armorer/craftsperson of some sort?

Planning to do some alterations to the phylactery?

[Onyavar]

The general here had a similar beard, but already white and with a slightly different style.

I suppose that this guy was "something" like a janitor, but more along the lines of "trusted personal servant".
I expect Redcloak to raise him since he was really trustworthy and gave his life to protect the ward. If Reddie doesn't raise him, this means that the janitor wasn't really important and we could safely forget about him.

And for the fans of nonsense fandom creation: What Would Janitor-Guy Do? (WWJGD)

[V'icternus]

Do the overalls hint at being a armorer/craftsperson of some sort?

Planning to do some alterations to the phylactery?

That'd be my bet, too. I mean, he's got to make sure he's the one with the power when the time comes for the Dark One to act.

[Baron Pineapple]

Honestly, given the context that the 'old guy' had the passkeys to Redcloak's wards and was drawn with the apron- it seemed to me that he was rendered to emulate the Keymaker from the Matrix Reloaded. It seemed a pretty geeky enough reference for Rich and not something to read too deeply into. :-)

[KillianHawkeye]

Do the overalls hint at being a armorer/craftsperson of some sort?

Planning to do some alterations to the phylactery?

Those guys are all wearing aprons, not overalls. So NO.

EDIT: But, looking back on the last comic, the old guy might be wearing an apron as well. So yeah, he was probably a blacksmith of some kind. Maybe he was helping Redcloak make magic items?

[NerfTW]

He was a trusted guard. Redcloak didn't want to tip his hand too early. At least not until Tsukiko revealed she'd deduced everything.

[Thomos]

I'm thinking that

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the old guy is his brother right-eye, polymorphed
1) to be unrecognizable to Xykon or
2) to not have to look at his zombie body.
We never saw right-eye outside of SoD, so maybe this is him.
I know it is farfetched but I wondered if it could be true.
I'm not certain if this is possible with the polymorph rules.
Or that if he is polymorphed, Xykon or Tsukiko could see through the polymorph.

[lord_khaine]

Im thinking thats epileptic tree level speculation.

Also, polymorf would be completely unnececary when a simple regenerate would be enough.

[Jay R]

It's not necessarily definitive, and yes, I see Redcloak saying "Something", but I will point out that the one person who always has the keys to every private office is, in fact, the janitor.

Of course, since that's the straightforward answer, and Rich hasn't revealed anything yet, I assume that the guy is some other plot-essential person.

[luc258]

I'm thinking that

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the old guy is his brother right-eye, polymorphed
1) to be unrecognizable to Xykon or
2) to not have to look at his zombie body.
We never saw right-eye outside of SoD, so maybe this is him.
I know it is farfetched but I wondered if it could be true.
I'm not certain if this is possible with the polymorph rules.
Or that if he is polymorphed, Xykon or Tsukiko could see through the polymorph.

Oh I like that one.

Maybe

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he brought his brother back when he got his 9th level spells True Ressurection and instead of going for the portal he is trying to get rid off Xykon and make Gobbotopia work.

[ORione]

Except that the Redcloak gave him the keys to his private study. I doupt he would give those to someone he didn't even know.

Much less a polymorphed enemy.

[Forealms]

Oh I like that one.

Maybe

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he brought his brother back when he got his 9th level spells True Ressurection and instead of going for the portal he is trying to get rid off Xykon and make Gobbotopia work.

I don't think it's him. I think if it were, Redcloak would be more upset at his death at the hands of Tsukiko, instead of chatting frustratedly with her. Besides, Redcloak doesn't need him for Gobbotopia to work, since Xykon would have no reason to destroy it. Also, he and Redcloak are still too weak to overcome Xykon in almost any circumstance.

[fergo]

Oh I like that one.

Maybe

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he brought his brother back when he got his 9th level spells True Ressurection and instead of going for the portal he is trying to get rid off Xykon and make Gobbotopia work.

As awesome as that theory is,

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firstly, there's that scene where Redcloak (recently reduced to one eye) is looking in the mirror and sees the face of Righteye. This wouldn't make sense if he had already resurrected him, and it wouldn't be nearly as dramatic if he was about to resurrect him.

Secondly, I think Righteye being killed (again) would be accompanied by more angsting on Redcloak's part, or at least some emotion other than just a short-lived feeling of surprise.

On the other hand, I do believe there's something more to the old guy. I'll wait and see .

[Winter Light]

It was obviously,

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the Monster in the Dark.

Not sure how nobody figured that out yet.

[OPM]

It's hard to say for sure, but I believe he's the guy from comic #451. At least, the guy in question has a white beard and was a personal servant of RC. Yes, the clothes are totally different, but it's not like they can't change them. We haven't seen too many hobgoblins with white beards hanging around RC, either, though I realize it doesn't prove anything.

[Forealms]

It's hard to say for sure, but I believe he's the guy from comic #451. At least, the guy in question has a white beard and was a personal servant of RC. Yes, the clothes are totally different, but it's not like they can't change them. We haven't seen too many hobgoblins with white beards hanging around RC, either, though I realize it doesn't prove anything.

That's RC's general. He was killed here.

Edit: More accurately, he was confirmed to be dead here.

[Alagaesian]

I believe he is a smith of some sort, considering the apron.

Why would I assume this? Well, it's clear that Redcloak is currently trying to hide the phylactery. But he wouldn't be able to keep this up indefinitely, and there really is no benefit in keeping it hidden from Xykon. It would prevent them from heading off to the next Gate, and as soon as Xykon found out about it, he would turn Redcloak into a smear on the ground. If hiding that phylactery from Xykon is such a stupid decision, something I cannot believe Redcloak would make, why does he do it?

Answer: he's not planning on hiding it forever. He can get someone to make alterations to the phylactery and make it look like his back-up holy symbol, and alter the holy symbol to look like the phylactery. Now, he can show the "phylactery" to Xykon and say he just recovered it after destroying the Resistance that Tsukiko failed to keep in check. Considering what happened to the phylactery when it was lost, Xykon will probably insist on keeping it on his person, forcing Redcloak to use his "backup" for spell-casting. Now, Redcloak is safe to secretly remove most of the phylactery's protective abjurations, allowing him to destroy it if Xykon gets too out-of-hand.

So, that goblin was probably the smith he would require to make the alterations. After the phylactery was recovered, he probably swung by the smith, gave him the keys to his office, and told him to meet him there as soon as he came back with the phylactery. (Granted, this also means he will probably assassinate the smith after the alterations are done, as he mentioned with his polymorphed spy.)

[Flame of Anor]

Im thinking thats epileptic tree level speculation.

Yeah, I thought of that too, but then I thought this.

[The Dark Fiddler]

Crack pairing. My understanding is it's supposed to be...um...referring to a certain non-board-appropriate topic.

I think your understanding is wrong, then, because at its heart, the Crack Pairings threads were completely board appropriate. It was just a few specific pairings and stories that caused issues.

[Flame of Anor]

I think your understanding is wrong, then, because at its heart, the Crack Pairings threads were completely board appropriate. It was just a few specific pairings and stories that caused issues.

No, I'm not saying that the pairings themselves were supposed to be inappropriate, just that the title made reference to a certain...you know...inappropriate topic.

[The Dark Fiddler]

No, I'm not saying that the pairings themselves were supposed to be inappropriate, just that the title made reference to a certain...you know...inappropriate topic.

Nope. The drug isn't the only use of the word crack, you know.

Edit: Disregard this, because apparently the etymologies ARE related.

[ti'esar]

Nope. The drug isn't the only use of the word crack, you know.

Though I was under the impression that was what the title was referencing, as in "pairings you could only conceive of when on drugs".

What the Twelve Gods does this have to do with the topic, anyway?