Why is Stanley still alive?

[quinnte]

First off, were I in Parson's position, I think I would have offed him in the first 10 minutes when he started getting bossy, never mind the dozen times he's proved himself arrogant and incompetent. Were it not for Wanda, he would not be capable of anything, regardless of his ownership of the hammer.

I think it's a bit silly that Parson hasn't stolen the hammer from him and played croquet with his decapitated head. He hasn't even shown that he has any real power over Parson yet other than to simply annoy him. Why is he taking orders from that runt?

[Surfing HalfOrc]

Mostly because that "Runt" can destroy him with just a word. The dwagons as backup add to his hold over Parson.

[quinnte]

I guess I missed it when they specified that. How can he kill him with a word? Is that what's meant by "disbanding" him?

*Edit*
also, seeing as how Parson came into Erfworld by extraordinary means (via a powerful spell) I doubt that Stanley has normal powers over him as he would with normal troops.

[SteveMB]

I guess I missed it when they specified that. How can he kill him with a word? Is that what's meant by "disbanding" him?

*Edit*
also, seeing as how Parson came into Erfworld by extraordinary means (via a powerful spell) I doubt that Stanley has normal powers over him as he would with normal troops.

Parson has personal experience confirming that Stanley can compel him to laugh at lame jokes and stop speaking. Given that, Wanda's statement that refusing Stanley's orders would end his existence is plausible enough for Parson to take seriously. (When he ran out of options, he decided that he had to risk it. However Stanley's departure has made the issue moot.)

Edit: Considering the matter a bit more, there are two possible escape hatches to Wanda's claim that Parson's continued existence depends on accepting Stanley's orders:

1. The statement is false. Wanda is either lying or mistaken. The instances where Parson finds himself physically unable to disobey Stanley's orders would seem to undercut this possibility (though they don't positively rule it out).

2. The statement is meaningless. If Erfworld is just a hallucination caused by brain trauma/acid-spiked Mountain Dew/whatever, then the threat and the evidence that seems to back it up are all part of the fantasy.

Parson's decision to risk Stanley's wrath straddles the latter issue. He was impelled to do it because he saw the situation as hopeless if he didn't, but he also holds out some hope that if Stanley tries to disband him, he'll just "be sent home" or "wake up".

[the_tick_rules]

an idiot stanley may be, but he's good at covering his butt.

[Gamebird]

It's the old lawyer's rule: Never ask a question you don't already know the answer to.

The strategist's corollary is: Never take an action you don't already know the reaction to.

[Bongos]

Stanley Tools has a destiny, a plan decided for him by the Titans.

[Ogmios]

1) Stanly is a high level overlord plus some artifacts (plus the dwagons). Parson is a level 2 gaming nerd. Do the math?

2) There's no indication that Parson would gain overlord/warlord status if he croaked him. At worst, he might disband himself, at best, be left around in the world with uncertain status (it's not like those people are used to characters that aren't warlord or pieces of someone else's army). Where'd he get the upkeep from?

3) Any ally Parson might have in Stanleys army WOULD in fact have to do everything Stanley says or disband.

4) Even if Parson would gain Gobwin Keep and overlord (or royal?) status, Stanleys army might disband, leaving him with what he could spawn (level 1 units).

5) Parson still doesn't know all the rules. It would be silly to take over GK, and lose it by incompetence.

For starters..

[The Old Hack]

There is also the small fact that Parson is not from Erfworld. He is a wargamer, a human being and very much a product of our modern civilisation -- in which it is perfectly socially acceptable to slaughter thousands in the form of small cardboard tokens on a tabletop, but frowned on to strangle annoying people you meet in everyday life.

Briefly put: To Parson (and to me, for that matter), killing thousands in a wargame is just fun. However, strangling your boss at work just because he makes your fists itch... is so far beyond the pale that it is an action not even to be contemplated.

[Shhalahr Windrider]

Briefly put: To Parson (and to me, for that matter), killing thousands in a wargame is just fun. However, strangling your boss at work just because he makes your fists itch... is so far beyond the pale that it is an action not even to be contemplated.

Gee, it took 8 replies before someone suggested that rather than a calculated risk assessment, Parson hasn't killed Stanely simply because he's not a psycho that offs people simply for being "bossy"?

Wow.

[PyritePyro]

After reading Klog 10 (Erfworld 94) it appears he hasn't killed Stanley because he simply can't. It's not permitted by the rules.