Schlock Mercenary VI: Eat It, Kill It, Make Friends With It, Take a Bath in It

[Lizard Lord]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I get the impression that Masey putting his name in there (even if it was an accident) counts as a contract, where if he didn't make that mistake the Oafans wouldn't be able to force him into becoming their Chief Justice.

[factotum]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I get the impression that Masey putting his name in there (even if it was an accident) counts as a contract, where if he didn't make that mistake the Oafans wouldn't be able to force him into becoming their Chief Justice.

I agree with this. The Oafa could have *asked* Massey to become the Chief Justice if he hadn't put his name on a signed contract saying so, but he could have refused. (Whether he would have done so or not is another matter--that's not the story Howard has chosen to tell, though). It was only because the Oafa already had a contract with Massey's name on it that they could force the issue in this way.

[Felius]

Strictly speaking though, he doesn't actually need to resign from the toughs, if nothing else because they are in the Oafan jurisdiction right now, and, as chief justice, he essentially has the last word on what's legally required and/or allowed or not, including, say, interpreting the law to mean that he can resign as chief justice without replacing himself with anyone, no matter what's in the actual letter of the law, at least so long he's the only chief justice.

Mind you, he's very unlikely to do such thing, that'd be making a mockery of the constitution he just wrote and one of the spirit of the law as well, but, as Tagon senior put it, he wrote the law he can change them.

[eschmenk]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I get the impression that Masey putting his name in there (even if it was an accident) counts as a contract, where if he didn't make that mistake the Oafans wouldn't be able to force him into becoming their Chief Justice.

Nah. Companies rescind job offers even if they've been accepted and prospective employees change their minds after they accept offers. That's a good way tick off the other side and hurt your reputation, but it happens often enough anyway. One company gave me a job offer in a different city, then rescinded it the day before the movers were going to show up and pick up my belongings. I was out a bunch of money as a deposit for the movers and had already given away a bunch of belongings, so I was not happy, but there wasn't anything I could do about it.

The thing is that even if it were a contract, there isn't any duration on it. Massey could quit as soon as he is hired. There isn't any point in the Oafa trying to force Massey to work for them if he doesn't want to. Also, since Massey quickly informed them of his mistake, Massey didn't reduce the time they had to find someone else, so he didn't harm them at all. They don't have any damages to sue for.

Also, courts consider fairness and intent. For a contract to be valid, both parties must actually intend to enter a binding contract. That didn't happen in this case. The courts know that simple mistakes happen. If Massey hadn't said anything to the Oafa, it would be one thing, but I can't believe a court would consider Massey's simple mistake that he immediately tried to rectify to matter. That's not how the law works, at least not in the USA. (Yes, I know they don't have a court yet, but as their lawyer, Massey can tell them what the court would decide -- especially what it would decide if they tried to force him to be chief justice. )

I don't know. Maybe were are supposed to ignore all of these reasons and just assume it would be a valid contract for the sake of the story. The things involving Massey have been so strange lately that it's hard to know what we are supposed to think.

[Kantaki]

New comic.

Is Massey really planning to turn Ennesby into the Toughs new lawyer? I'm not sure if that is a good idea. Especially if he wants his money. The Maraca isn't what I would call a "suitable replacement".

[NEO|Phyte]

New comic.

Is Massey really planning to turn Ennesby into the Toughs new lawyer? I'm not sure if that is a good idea. Especially if he wants his money. The Maraca isn't what I would call a "suitable replacement".

Stuffing an AI with all the legal knowledge possible is probably the closest you can get to that implant in Massey's head.

[Kantaki]

Stuffing an AI with all the legal knowledge possible is probably the closest you can get to that implant in Massey's head.

And with most other AIs I would agree that it is a good idea. But Ennesby. I'm not sure he would use that knowledge the way Massey intends him to.

[eschmenk]

Stuffing an AI with all the legal knowledge possible is probably the closest you can get to that implant in Massey's head.

Hiring the Partnership Collective would probably be closer, not that the Toughs could get much work out of them anywhere SA is located.

And with most other AIs I would agree that it is a good idea. But Ennesby. I'm not sure he would use that knowledge the way Massey intends him to.

Right. I think the page was just supposed to be silly and perhaps to make Massey appear to be desperate.

Really, if Massey wants money, he should just resign and cash out before Murtaugh fires him, then go to work for the Oafa, who seem happy to throw money away.


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Wednesday's comic

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Being easily manipulated and tricked by an attorney demonstrates that Enesby has what it takes to be an attorney?

And Enesby's failure to argue that point proves that Enesby doesn't have what it takes to be an attorney. So Enesby just needs to chase after Massey and argue that point well and...oh, never mind.

Anyway, Massey would probably feel like he need not fear being manipulated by Enesby if Enesby would ever appear in front of Massey. BTW, apparently it was not just Massey being silly and desperate, then.

[Cikomyr]

Thats both 100% in-character, perfectly believable behavior from a good officer, and actually hilarious.

Tagon does not want to give Flinders the impression that he does not trust her judgement. Nor that he micromanage.

But damnit, he wants to know what was happening. Basically, whats best for his command is not what he'd like to get.

[Rockphed]

Thats both 100% in-character, perfectly believable behavior from a good officer, and actually hilarious.

Tagon does not want to give Flinders the impression that he does not trust her judgement. Nor that he micromanage.

But damnit, he wants to know what was happening. Basically, whats best for his command is not what he'd like to get.

Well, he is a good officer, so I am sure he wants what is best for his command. He just also wants to know what is happening and to feel like he is in control. The three things are currently mutually exclusive.

[eschmenk]

To be clear, we're talking about Thursday's update, and yes, it was pretty well done, although I'd say "amusing" rather than "hilarious" since what's going on is pretty transparent.

Spoiler: I feel like we should use spoiler tags

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HT is trying to build up suspense for the big reveal. It's not working for me.

So they ran into a snag, but the class we go on as scheduled, so Flinders & co must have come up with a solution just in time for Christmas shopping. Gee, I wonder what the solution could be?

[Cikomyr]

To be clear, we're talking about Thursday's update, and yes, it was pretty well done, although I'd say "amusing" rather than "hilarious" since what's going on is pretty transparent.

Spoiler: I feel like we should use spoiler tags

Show

HT is trying to build up suspense for the big reveal. It's not working for me.

So they ran into a snag, but the class we go on as scheduled, so Flinders & co must have come up with a solution just in time for Christmas shopping. Gee, I wonder what the solution could be?

Amusing. Fair.

I am 100% its the new RPG system set in a Space Opera setting. Probably the Edge of the Empire rulebook i bought a few weeks ago. This real good

[eschmenk]

Friday's update

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Thats both 100% in-character, perfectly believable behavior from a good officer, and actually hilarious.

Tagon does not want to give Flinders the impression that he does not trust her judgement. Nor that he micromanage.

But damnit, he wants to know what was happening. Basically, whats best for his command is not what he'd like to get.

Well, except for "hilarious," that was the way I read Thursday's update, too, but it seems that we were both wrong. In addition to pulling rank, Karl is micromanaging and is letting Flinders know that he doesn't trust her judgement. Also, now it seems that we are further from revealing the game than I originally thought.

[Cikomyr]

Friday's update

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Well, except for "hilarious," that was the way I read Thursday's update, too, but it seems that we were both wrong. In addition to pulling rank, Karl is micromanaging and is letting Flinders know that he doesn't trust her judgement. Also, now it seems that we are further from revealing the game than I originally thought.

Curses.

The message you have entered is too short. Please lengthen your message to at least 10 characters.

[Kornaki]

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Great, now the whole company is going to be playing the roleplaying game!

[Lizard Lord]

Friday's update

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Well, except for "hilarious," that was the way I read Thursday's update, too, but it seems that we were both wrong. In addition to pulling rank, Karl is micromanaging and is letting Flinders know that he doesn't trust her judgement. Also, now it seems that we are further from revealing the game than I originally thought.

I must have missed the part where Karl doesn't trust Flinders, because I am not getting that impression at all. He still just wants to know whats going on? Why wouldn't he want to know what solution Flinders has planned?

[eschmenk]

I must have missed the part where Karl doesn't trust Flinders, because I am not getting that impression at all. He still just wants to know whats going on? Why wouldn't he want to know what solution Flinders has planned?

I was talking about Friday's update. My comment was already posted on Thursday in my time zone. I wasn't talking about Sunday's update, which hadn't appeared yet. On Friday's update (starting with the last panel on Thursday's update) Karl showed Katherine that he didn't trust her. On Sunday's update he kind of showed that he did. That's just Karl being inconsistent.

Both Karl and Katherine are being inconsistent, actually. On Saturday Katherine called called needing to retrain everyone a "snag" and Karl said it was "a can of flying venomous worms." On Sunday's update Katherine said that retraining everyone is a "solution" and Karl seemed to agree.

Oh, as far as "Why wouldn't he want to know what solution Flinders has planned" goes, of course, he would want to know. However, he would find out the next day anyway and even though he wanted to know sooner than that, micromanaging people is bad, so he shouldn't have done it. A good boss learns to not keep checking up on their subordinates more than necessary. What Karl should have done was different than what he wanted to do. Read this comment and this comment by a couple of other people (Cikomyr and Rockphed) who understood the distinction.

[Lizard Lord]

No the problem is that they need to retrain every, the solution is that they don't need to start from scratch. I am not seeing an inconsistency.

[eschmenk]

No the problem is that they need to retrain every, the solution is that they don't need to start from scratch. I am not seeing an inconsistency.

Third panel Sunday: Katherine: "You were right. The solution is to re-train everybody." She's clearly saying that it's a solution, not a problem, and she's also indicating that Karl said the same thing.

According to a dictionary, a solution would be a means of dealing with a problem. Not needing to start from scratch isn't a means of doing anything. It would be count as a mitigating factor, not a solution.

[Lizard Lord]

Well Okay.

Here is how I see it went: Karl saw that the senior officers have no official military training (at least not AS officers). So the solution was to train them. Flinders points out that training senior officers would matter to nothing if the people below them are not similarly trained. The solution to that would be to retrain everyone, but it is a problematic solution for reasons that are obvious. Flinders offers a way to make the problematic solution less problematic.

[Kornaki]

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God Howard can you thrust the roleplaying game any more into this comic?

[Cikomyr]

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God Howard can you thrust the roleplaying game any more into this comic?

Cant blame a man for wanting to eat or send his kids to college

[HandofShadows]

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God Howard can you thrust the roleplaying game any more into this comic?

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It can also be a 4th wall breaking joke.

[Bulldog Psion]

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God Howard can you thrust the roleplaying game any more into this comic?

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I've had a quasi-humorous theory since the comic (IMO) took a nose-dive that the meandering tedium of the last few storylines is actually a marketing device for the RPG.

That is, those who want to recapture the freewheeling adventure of the comic as it was for a long time, can do so by -- buying the game and playing it! Meanwhile, the comic remains singularly non-adventurous in order to make playing the RPG to get that "original Schlock feel" more attractive.

That's mostly humorous, but there's a corner of my brain that actually believes that's what Mr. Taylor is attempting.

If that's the case, it's kind of backfiring; I supported the Kickstarter at a quite high level, and now I'm thinking of canceling my support, if possible, in order to avoid rewarding Mr. Taylor for putting out a subpar comic for several years and expecting his fans to just grin and fork over the cash anyway.

[eschmenk]

Wednesday's comic:

Kaff displays excellent situational awareness and Katherine promises drugs.

[factotum]

OK, what's the betting this discovery the crypt spiders made has a direct influence on what the Toughs are doing right now?

[Cikomyr]

OK, what's the betting this discovery the crypt spiders made has a direct influence on what the Toughs are doing right now?

An expansion ruleset for the Schlock Mercenary RPG!!

[eschmenk]

An expansion ruleset for the Schlock Mercenary RPG!!

Seriously, I wouldn't rule out an old Oafan RPG ruleset or an explanation of how to use RP gaming as a training tool.

OK, what's the betting this discovery the crypt spiders made has a direct influence on what the Toughs are doing right now?

I know you didn't mean this, but one of the things the Toughs are doing right now is monitoring the crypt spiders and documenting what they find.

Actually, I'm not sure what you meant, though. I think you probably were just thinking about the training, but would something related to the mission the Toughs are deploying on count?

Anyway, that got me thinking about what are the Toughs doing now as a big picture. Basically, the Toughs are taking care of anything the Oafa need done no matter what it is. So far in this book, the only thing the Toughs have done that someone would normally hire a mercenary company to do is to deploy for the mission to retrieve something from the gatekeeper wreckage. Fortunately, as a mercenary company, they can supply their own security, but they probably would be better off reinventing themselves as a general services company with a security division given their recent mission profiles. After all, the Toughs have been acting much more like a general services company than as a mercenary company lately.

IIRC, these are the missions the Toughs have taken or worked on so far in this book:

• Transporting bulk materials
• Diplomacy(!) and food catering
• Transporting a battleplate
• Designing a city (architecture and structural and civil engineering).
• Building the city.
• Hiring a rent-a-cop company to police the city.
• Transporting SA's depot twice.
• Providing medical services to Vog.
• Designing and building (and testing) the crypt spiders.
• Acting as anthropologists to analyze what the crypt spiders found.
• Managing the Oafan fabbers.
• Designing the Oafan legal system and writing the Oafan constitution.
• Providing legal advice to Chinook.
• Retrieving something from the Gatekeeper wreckage (for free).

Given all that, it's kind of hard to think of the Toughs as a mercenary company anymore. It seems a bit odd that they would train as if they still were one. Granted, the Toughs have done things you wouldn't expect a mercenary company to do in the past, but those were set up as temporary situations. This seems to be a more permanent and fundamental change.

Anyway, I can see why people would think of the Toughs as being fundamentally different than they used to be, even if many of the same characters are still around.

[factotum]

Actually, I'm not sure what you meant, though. I think you probably were just thinking about the training, but would something related to the mission the Toughs are deploying on count?

No, I was actually thinking of the mission the Toughs are deploying on--the RPG/training is entirely irrelevant to the plotline and I just wish it would get over with. Really disliked it when Howard introduced the coins into the plotline, too.

[eschmenk]

OK, but then I'm afraid it doesn't look good for that. It was going to take about three weeks to reach the wreckage. Unless the Toughs have been been training for a couple of weeks already, I think they will still be training and traveling for a while more, even if the spiders did find information that is relevant to that mission. Elf and Para can't build something and send it to them, so we won't see that happen, either.

I wouldn't rule out something that would create a parallel plotline, though. Maybe the crypt spiders found out something that's relevant to Vog or it could be something that would be relevant to Massey being a judge or maybe it's something completely new. I doubt that the spiders found anything that would make the Toughs turn around, but even if that's the case, they would have a few days of travel before they could teleport out.

Of course it could have something to do with the training or RPG, instead. I don't really know what to expect.


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Friday's comic:

OK, now I know what to expect. I have to admit that Para probably has a good point. (The comic's readers will be more like Elf, though.)

I guess the Toughs aren't bothering to make sure that people like Elf and Bunni are trained the same way everyone else is? There didn't seem to be any operations manuals for junior officers who aren't platoon officers.