OOTS #1116 - The Discussion Thread

[Emanick]

You are indeed very much mistaken



GW

Ah, thanks for the correction. I can't believe I've never come across that rule before. I even checked the SRD before posting to make sure I hadn't missed something - but clearly I looked at the wrong page.

Apologies if anyone believed my misinformation.

A valley where they could be easily slaughtered, one might say. Some sort if valley of dying, or valley of deadness, or something.

Also, after googling the battle in question to make sure, a passage about the leader of the brigade:

"After riding back up the valley, he considered he had done all that he could and then, with considerable sang-froid, left the field and went on board his yacht in Balaclava harbour, where he ate a champagne dinner."

It must be nice to be a general.

What a strange reaction. I could easily understand that behavior from an armchair general (it might be callous, but you half-expect it), but not so much from a general who led the charge from the front and was thus putting his life on the line. For those who haven't seen it, a full(er) version of the passage reads:

"Cardigan survived the battle. Although stories circulated afterwards that he was not actually present, he led the charge from the front and, never looking back, did not see what was happening to the troops behind him. He reached the Russian guns, took part in the fight, and then returned alone up the valley without bothering to rally or even find out what had happened to the survivors. He afterwards said all he could think about was his rage against Captain Nolan, who he thought had tried to take over the leadership of the charge from him. After riding back up the valley, he considered he had done all that he could and then, with considerable sang-froid, left the field and went on board his yacht in Balaclava harbour, where he ate a champagne dinner."

Even by the standards of 19th century aristocrats, the fact that he never even bothered trying to figure out what had happened to his men is... strange.

Also, I didn't know yachts were even around in the 1850s. Learning is happening!

[factotum]

Even by the standards of 19th century aristocrats, the fact that he never even bothered trying to figure out what had happened to his men is... strange.

Also, I didn't know yachts were even around in the 1850s. Learning is happening!

In the context of "a vessel used to carry important people" yachts have been around since the 17th century, when Charles II used a Dutch "jacht" to return to take up the crown of England.

[Manty5]

Even by the standards of 19th century aristocrats, the fact that he never even bothered trying to figure out what had happened to his men is... strange.

Agreed. Looks like this fellow saw his army as a vehicle to get him to the place where he can have his glorious charge. It's not hard to believe that once a vehicle has taken you where you want to go, you get out.

[Peelee]

Agreed. Looks like this fellow saw his army as a vehicle to get him to the place where he can have his glorious charge. It's not hard to believe that once a vehicle has taken you where you want to go, you get out.

His full name and title was Lieutenant General James Thomas Brudenell, 7th Earl of Cardigan. Take that as you will.

[Shining Wrath]

The Charge of the Light Brigade led to reforms in how Great Britain selected officers, precisely because the callous behavior of the nobles toward the non-nobles was a bit much even for the other nobles. As a French observer remarked at the time, "It's magnificent, but it's not war". Also, losing wars was bad form, even for the nobles, and the Charge didn't help win the war.

OTOH, what Tennyson did with that terrible story was ... magnificent. The way the rhythm of the poem feels like a galloping horse ... well, anyway, making something heroic out of a stupid slaughter is what Imperial poets do, I suppose.

[8BitNinja]

The Charge of the Light Brigade led to reforms in how Great Britain selected officers, precisely because the callous behavior of the nobles toward the non-nobles was a bit much even for the other nobles. As a French observer remarked at the time, "It's magnificent, but it's not war". Also, losing wars was bad form, even for the nobles, and the Charge didn't help win the war.

OTOH, what Tennyson did with that terrible story was ... magnificent. The way the rhythm of the poem feels like a galloping horse ... well, anyway, making something heroic out of a stupid slaughter is what Imperial poets do, I suppose.

Charge of the Light Brigade is one of my favorite poems, and was one of the few poems I liked in high school.

I know this doesn't forward the conversation, but I just wanted to comment.

[Reboot]

I know this doesn't forward the conversation, but I just wanted to comment.

Well, to be fair...

[Goblin_Priest]

Well, to be fair...

Also, these threads don't have much of a subject to begin with, and it only takes so many pages to really discuss a page in a comic. ;)

[zimmerwald1915]

Also, these threads don't have much of a subject to begin with, and it only takes so many pages to really discuss a page in a comic. ;)

They're not actually for discussing the comic. They're for advertising each new strip in the comic by their presence. What goes in them is quite beside the point.

[Rogar Demonblud]

Well, it's better if the thread is entertaining and/or informative.

[Fitzclowningham]

Does anyone here remember the siege of Azure City? This battle reminds me of it, a lot.

[Devils_Advocate]

Since Roy's doing all this before he actually enters the room, it couldn't be for the benefit of fooling Durkula, who as far as I can tell can't see what he's doing. Thus, it would only be to fool us, the reader.

It wasn't obvious to me that Roy wasn't visible to Durkon from where they're standing.

(Also, again, I don't see how it makes sense strategically or tactically for the riders to be anything but creatures from the Bag of Tricks.)

(Yeah, that was a long shot anyway.)

I suspect none of them are druids, since there are probably few dwarves who choose that path. Although I did play a dwarven druid who primarily revered mountains and stone.

Ah, but several of vampires were created from members of the Creed of Stone, which worships Elemental Earth. I'd practically expect their clergy to include a few Earth Druids like you describe.

If the Giant scrupulously followed the 3.5 rules, we'd be looking at an artifact. As it is, we don't know what rules apply, but I'm not going to be surprised if the sword has more capabilities.

Probably the rules from the Weapons of Legacy sourcebook, given that Wrecan specifically uses the term "Weapon of Legacy", and the book that he gives Roy has a simplified/stylized version of the cover of that sourcebook. I think that the specifics have been discussed at least briefly in at least one other thread, although I don't know any of the details myself. The Class and Level Geekery thread probably contains some in-depth analysis.

You know, I wonder if we aren't underestimating Greg. If Salvatore was writing this story, surely he would be considered Hel's Chosen. That probably gives him an extra trick or two up his own sleeve we haven't seen yet.

I'm not sure Burlow has ever endorsed the idea of Chosen in quite the same way, so maybe it is meaningless here. But maybe not.

The Oracle has special divinely-granted magic, from which we can infer that characters can, well, have special divinely-granted magic. The details are unimportant, save that Hel in particular probably isn't allowed to grant magic to the living, as being able to do that in other ways would render her inability to have living clerics significantly less meaningful a restriction. But I expect that she's no less capable of specially empowering an undead worshiper than Tiamat is a kobold.

[Pinkpi]

so there's no actual stat block for chaos giraffes? ;-;

[Peelee]

The Mod on the Silver Mountain: Chaos Giraffes are Conjuration, not Necromancy.