Things You Never Noticed V: Your Familiar

[Ruck]

She calls it "the combined Western and elven pantheons".

Ah, it's Wrecan that explains to Roy "[The elven gods] vote as part of the Western Pantheon. I'm not really sure why, though."

[Gift Jeraff]

In the last panel of Page 1, there appear to be 2 wisps of the Greenhilt sword's legacy magic starting to manifest. Or Roy has bad breath because it looks green to me.

Fixed that for you.

Nah, when the title is a sentence like that it's usually meant to be a response to the last line in the strip.

[Lord Torath]

Nah, when the title is a sentence like that it's usually meant to be a response to the last line in the strip.

"Elves are awesome; that's why there are, like, 17 types." Gotcha. I figured they were referring to 17 types of goblinoid (hobgoblins, koalinths, nilbogs, xvarts, bugbears, etc).

[Kish]

I'm not seeing how that would even fit the strip. Good goblins are dead goblins and that's why there are like 17 types?

[Rogar Demonblud]

No, the last line is "Elves are awesome." So the title is referring to that.

[Delta357]

The showdown between Darth V and Xykon (#667) takes less than a minute from #650 to #653. So... about 18 seconds per page?

I don't see how thats the case, the Directors say " 3 minutes, 6 seconds for you" (after the necromancer left at the end of the dragon fight), and "20 minutes, 35 seconds for him and me" which is 17 minutes and 29 seconds inbetween to teleport to the fleet, teleport the fleet, go to graysky, go back to the fleet, and fight the lich. Considering V left at the start of the Res spell being cast, and arrived moments before it finishes (#664), its a safe bet to say the fight took around 5/6 minutes, since it took a short while after the soul spices got knocked out for V to escape (the invis spell, the potions, blackwing and teleport).

Can't post links yet sadly

[Quebbster]

I don't see how thats the case, the Directors say " 3 minutes, 6 seconds for you" (after the necromancer left at the end of the dragon fight), and "20 minutes, 35 seconds for him and me" which is 17 minutes and 29 seconds inbetween to teleport to the fleet, teleport the fleet, go to graysky, go back to the fleet, and fight the lich. Considering V left at the start of the Res spell being cast, and arrived moments before it finishes (#664), its a safe bet to say the fight took around 5/6 minutes, since it took a short while after the soul spices got knocked out for V to escape (the invis spell, the potions, blackwing and teleport).

Can't post links yet sadly

Did you read the two strips I referenced? In #650 one of the spliced souls says it's "19 minutes, 41 seconds", and when the splice ends in #653 it has been, as you Point out, 20 minutes and 35 seconds - or, as I pointed out, less than a minute.
And not to get too nitpicky, but it really isn't stated how much time passes between #663 (when V and O-Chul arrive) and #665 (when the Resurrection spell is done). We do know that 10 minutes pass between #650 and #665, but aside from that first minute we don't really know how much time pass between each strip.

[martianmister]

Xykon's colour scheme is just a darker version of Superman's colours. It's especially obvious in twelfth panel of strip 652..

[Mad Humanist]

Xykon's colour scheme is just a darker version of Superman's colours. It's especially obvious in twelfth panel of strip 652..

And Xykon is not trying show off "manhood".

[Quebbster]

And Xykon is not trying show off "manhood".

Hey! A man's Worth is not defined by what, if anything, is between his femurs!

[Yanisa]

Did you read the two strips I referenced? In #650 one of the spliced souls says it's "19 minutes, 41 seconds", and when the splice ends in #653 it has been, as you Point out, 20 minutes and 35 seconds - or, as I pointed out, less than a minute.
And not to get too nitpicky, but it really isn't stated how much time passes between #663 (when V and O-Chul arrive) and #665 (when the Resurrection spell is done). We do know that 10 minutes pass between #650 and #665, but aside from that first minute we don't really know how much time pass between each strip.

Interesting enough, that's 54 seconds to be exact, which is exactly 9 combat rounds (6 seconds per round). Which is a good fit of the amount of rounds shown. 8 rounds might have been a better fit, so V should get a refund on those 6 seconds.

Spoiler: 9 Rounds

Show

Round 1-2 (Could be one round)
V moves (enough for two move actions?), talks a bunch and casts Epic teleport

Round 3 - Surprise Round
V Casts Time Stop (which fails) and Quickened Chain Lightning

Round 4
Xykon casts Energy Drain
Redcloak casts True Seeing
V casts Empowered Sunburst and Quickened Dimensional Archer

Round 5
Xykon casts MAXIMIZED Energy Drain
V casts Bixby's Crushing Hand

Round 6
Xykon casts Meteor Swarm
Tsukiko casts Mindfog
V casts Disintegrate

Round 7
Xykon gloats(?)
Redcloak casts Greater Magic Dispell
V Points magically at Xykon (?)

Round 8
Xykon casts Superb Dispelling
V stands up from prone and casts Greater Teleport

Round 9
Xykon SMASH

But that's very nitpicky.

[Quebbster]

Interesting enough, that's 54 seconds to be exact, which is exactly 9 combat rounds (6 seconds per round). Which is a good fit of the amount of rounds shown. 8 rounds might have been a better fit, so V should get a refund on those 6 seconds.

Spoiler: 9 Rounds

Show

Round 1-2 (Could be one round)
V moves (enough for two move actions?), talks a bunch and casts Epic teleport

Round 3 - Surprise Round
V Casts Time Stop (which fails) and Quickened Chain Lightning

Round 4
Xykon casts Energy Drain
Redcloak casts True Seeing
V casts Empowered Sunburst and Quickened Dimensional Archer

Round 5
Xykon casts MAXIMIZED Energy Drain
V casts Bixby's Crushing Hand

Round 6
Xykon casts Meteor Swarm
Tsukiko casts Mindfog
V casts Disintegrate

Round 7
Xykon gloats(?)
Redcloak casts Greater Magic Dispell
V Points magically at Xykon (?)

Round 8
Xykon casts Superb Dispelling
V stands up from prone and casts Greater Teleport

Round 9
Xykon SMASH

But that's very nitpicky.

I like picking nits, I am just not well versed in game minutiae. :)

[Mad Humanist]

Njord is a njerd.

[Peelee]

Njord is a njerd.

I may need explanation, I'm not seeing it.

[TheWombatOfDoom]

I may need explanation, I'm not seeing it.

Page 3, Panel 2. Gets one hint at a building a new world, and gets all excited at the prospect at world building again by trying out some new ideas for coastlines. Sounds like me when I'm making a new setting. I never realized how much he portrays the Gods like GM's, co creating a setting in the scribble story.

[Peelee]

Page 3, Panel 2. Gets one hint at a building a new world, and gets all excited at the prospect at world building again by trying out some new ideas for coastlines. Sounds like me when I'm making a new setting. I never realized how much he portrays the Gods like GM's, co creating a setting in the scribble story.

"One hint" is literally "hey should we create a new world, it's a really close vote?" Doesn't sound nerdy to me, especially considering the other joke of Njord wanting to make a fjord.

[TheWombatOfDoom]

"One hint" is literally "hey should we create a new world, it's a really close vote?" Doesn't sound nerdy to me, especially considering the other joke of Njord wanting to make a fjord.

I think the Fjord is what was being referenced for being nerdy. But yeah its loose at best. Maybe its because it sounds like a reference to Slartybartfast from Hitchhiker to the Galaxy? I don't know. I'm just trying to clarify what I think someone else meant. Probably not the best ground to stand on.

[Quebbster]

I just noticed some people seem to think "Njord" and "fjord" rhymes. They certainly don't in my mouth.
(I suppose other Scandinavians may feel differently though.)

[Peelee]

I just noticed some people seem to think "Njord" and "fjord" rhymes. They certainly don't in my mouth.
(I suppose other Scandinavians may feel differently though.)

I don't know about rhyming, but they're one letter off, which is where I figure the joke was.

That said, I have absolutely no idea how to pronounce Njord.

[hroþila]

I don't see any reason why they wouldn't rhyme, since they've always been pretty much the same (English fjord/Njord, Old Norse fjǫrðr/Njǫrðr, Proto-Germanic *ferþuz/*Nerþuz) and English didn't seem to borrow the Modern Norwegian pronunciation of fjord, as far as I know.

Your Scandinavian language is broken if this doesn't hold is what I'm saying. BROKEN.

[Zyzzyva]

The Bash University fraternity in OtOoPCs, Beta Alpha Beta, isn't just a random Greek letters thing; it's a reference to base attack bonus.

[Ron Miel]

I don't see any reason why they wouldn't rhyme, since they've always been pretty much the same (English fjord/Njord, Old Norse fjǫrðr/Njǫrðr, Proto-Germanic *ferþuz/*Nerþuz) and English didn't seem to borrow the Modern Norwegian pronunciation of fjord, as far as I know.

so, how do Modern Norwegians pronounce it, then?

[Ruck]

The Bash University fraternity in OtOoPCs, Beta Alpha Beta, isn't just a random Greek letters thing; it's a reference to base attack bonus.

Oh, I never would have caught that. That's really good.

[Riftwolf]

Lirian and Varsuvius lived in the Elven lands at the same time. The Lirians Gate incident happened before V had finished getting her first level. So, for a short time at least, the key to unmatched total arcane power was on Vs figurative doorstep.

[Mad Humanist]

Lirian and Varsuvius lived in the Elven lands at the same time. The Lirians Gate incident happened before V had finished getting her first level. So, for a short time at least, the key to unmatched total arcane power was on Vs figurative doorstep.

I don't see how Lirian's Gate was ever on Varsuvius' path to ultimate power.

[Kurald Galain]

Lirian and Varsuvius lived in the Elven lands at the same time. The Lirians Gate incident happened before V had finished getting her first level. So, for a short time at least, the key to unmatched total arcane power was on Vs figurative doorstep.

At that time, V was nowhere near high enough in level to cast the arcane half of the gate ritual, in addition to not knowing any clerics for the divine half. Aside from that, the gate's location was supposed to be secret.

[Mad Humanist]

Lirian and Varsuvius lived in the Elven lands at the same time. The Lirians Gate incident happened before V had finished getting her first level. So, for a short time at least, the key to unmatched total arcane power was on Vs figurative doorstep.

I don't see how Lirian's Gate was ever on Varsuvius' path to ultimate power.

At that time, V was nowhere near high enough in level to cast the arcane half of the gate ritual, in addition to not knowing any clerics for the divine half. Aside from that, the gate's location was supposed to be secret.

Also the ritual would not provide Varsuvius with ultimate power. It would provide the Dark One with divine blackmail power. Varsuvius was a lot closer with the soul splice.

Still Riftwolf had a point - just poorly expressed I think. There was a geographical coincidence. I suspect however it was not put in intentionally for any sort of plot irony. I suspect it was simply driven by both Lirian and Varsuvius being Elves.

[unbeliever536]

Unlike Xykon's Moderately-Escapable Forcecage (which is cagelike and lacks a bottom), a proper Forcecage is a featureless cube.

[Peelee]

Unlike Xykon's Moderately-Escapable Forcecage (which is cagelike and lacks a bottom), a proper Forcecage is a featureless cube.

Oh really?

[Kish]

There are two options for Forcecage. Xykon's Moderately-Escapable Forcecage is escapable because its bars act like they're physical and can be broken.