Erfworld 107; The Battle for Gobwin Knob

[Prince_Rohan]

I'm not a long time reader of Erfworld, but is it always +/- two weeks between episodes?

I only ask because it's good.

[brob]

I'm not a long time reader of Erfworld, but is it always +/- two weeks between episodes?

It varies. It's frustratingly intermittent, and this has caused grousing in the past that has escalated into unpleasantness. People are a little touchy about this topic on the forums. But we bide our time, because it's good. :)

[teratorn]

I'm a bit confused about the giraffe going into the tunnels. It doesn't seem a good place for one. I'm expecting it to do something , but can't gess what.

I'm not a long time reader of Erfworld, but is it always +/- two weeks between episodes?.

It varies from 3 to 4 strips per month. But better avoid the subject or the thread will get locked.

[SteveMB]

I'm a bit confused about the giraffe going into the tunnels. It doesn't seem a good place for one. I'm expecting it to do something , but can't guess what.

If the mechanics of Erfworld allow it to go into a tunnel, then it is presumably capable of fighting in a tunnel. My guess is that Ansom held back enough heavies to make an attack (possibly just a feint) on the walls and to give the defenders the impression that such an attack was at least a possibility that needed defending against.

[fendrin]

If the mechanics of Erfworld allow it to go into a tunnel, then it is presumably capable of fighting in a tunnel. My guess is that Ansom held back enough heavies to make an attack (possibly just a feint) on the walls and to give the defenders the impression that such an attack was at least a possibility that needed defending against.

Chances are, if the mostly-transparent things are Tchotchkies, they won't do much of anything...

[Lamech]

If the mechanics of Erfworld allow it to go into a tunnel, then it is presumably capable of fighting in a tunnel. My guess is that Ansom held back enough heavies to make an attack (possibly just a feint) on the walls and to give the defenders the impression that such an attack was at least a possibility that needed defending against.

Actually numerically just over half of Ansom's the coalition forces are going into the tunnels. (Assuming ALL Jetstone and Marbit forces are going in the tunnels, and none of them were the air units that got roasted.) But since the best leaders of the coalition are staying out of the tunnels, I'm guessing the leadership bonuses mean the forces above ground and below are even. Therefore the above ground forces are close to double what is necessary to take the city. (If we believe Ansom about the 4 times the forces needed.)

Definitely not just a feint with the above ground forces.

[SteveMB]

Actually numerically just over half of Ansom's the coalition forces are going into the tunnels. (Assuming ALL Jetstone and Marbit forces are going in the tunnels, and none of them were the air units that got roasted.) But since the best leaders of the coalition are staying out of the tunnels, I'm guessing the leadership bonuses mean the forces above ground and below are even. Therefore the above ground forces are close to double what is necessary to take the city. (If we believe Ansom about the 4 times the forces needed.)

Definitely not just a feint with the above ground forces.

However, I think he wants to take the city with Jetstone forces (I'm guessing that a city-less, royal-less, etc side like the Marbits can't accept surrenders in its own right) because Parson's needling has succeeded in making him act like A Man With Something To Prove[tm]. If so, he would order all other forces to hold back, making (at most) minor feint attacks on the walls.

[MedPig]

oh, poor Webinar...

He may have a gump up his rump, but he is loyal, sincere and smart.

He's got that look most guys get, when the Doc snaps that glove, and says "You're going to feel some pressure..."

And for about the same reason...

Poor Webi...

[SteveMB]

He's got that look most guys get, when the Doc snaps that glove, and says "You're going to feel some pressure..."

And for about the same reason...

Poor Webi...

On top of everything else, he argues that it would be better to stick to the standard doctrine of securing the walls first. That's one more reason for him to believe that he's been sent on a doomed mission.

[Tola]

Well.

It's clear why he's always been so 'grumpy'.

He's afraid. Always afraid like hell.

What's the easiest way to deal with fear?

Turn it into anger(or at least 'dislike').

Though he my have had good reasons..

[Vreejack]

It does seem that Ansom is restricting the attacking forces to those he innately trusts just in case Parson wasn't bluffing. Now we must wonder if that was Parson's intention all along, with the obviously ridiculous bluff hiding a more subtle one, all crafted to make Ansom angry enough to want to prevent any chance of Parson's surrendering to "secret allies."

It must have been Parson's intention all the time, and it has successfully taken a huge chunk out of Ansom's forces. He obviously has another cunning plan in play, but with all these wild cards on the table---Jillian and Wanda, with the looming threat of the Tool's untimely interference---it should play out very interestingly.

[Suicide Junkie]

Which means, of course that the coming devastation will eliminate all of the high loyalty troops, as far as Ansom is concerned.

Which leaves him with more than enough firepower to win, but all in a powder keg of distrust.

[teratorn]

Which means, of course that the coming devastation will eliminate all of the high loyalty troops, as far as Ansom is concerned.

Yes, part of what makes Ansom the natural leader of this coalition is that he could take over GK with Jetstone and Marbit forces alone. If these get wasted in the tunnels he faces a serious problem, leadership wise. Jetstone stops being the major asset in the coalition, why should they lead? Will we see Ansom taking orders from a non-Royal?

[Suicide Junkie]

Will we see Ansom taking orders from a non-Royal?

I would have to say definitely no to that. He might be asked to do so, but that would go against everything he believes in.

[Wender]

The "powder keg of distrust" has always been Parson's only real hope against those odds.

And it occurs to me that if Ansom cannot take orders from a non-Royal, how will he react to a situation in which, if Parson or Stanley were Royal, he would surrender to them? Would he? If, after the Jetstone forces get decimated, Parson expressed a willingness to accept generous terms of surrender from Ansom the resulting tirade might actually be enough to shatter the coalition.

[Suicide Junkie]

I can't imagine Ansom getting into a position where he would have to surrender to Parson. At worst he might get captured by force if he leads an attack, although Stanley returning with his dwagons is not completely impossible.

Even if he loses the capacity to take Gobwin Knob, Parson doesn't have any capacity to go on the offensive.
(Unless perhaps he gets his sword finished, decides to go for a midnight walk, and doesn't start his turn (dawn) until the alliance forces have all been stabbed in their sleep)

[Wender]

I can't imagine Ansom getting into a position where he would have to surrender to Parson.

That's not necessary. All that's necessary is for Parson to be cheeky enough to throw Ansom's haughty "terms of surrender" question back in his face after the Jetstone forces are crushed, and watch the resulting tirade further weaken, and perhaps even explode, the Alliance--who will be in a position to remind him that he can either trust them or take Gobwin Knob by himself.

If Parson asks the question before it is clear that Ansom is ready to surrender, but after he's lost the bulk of the forces under his own banner, it's precisely the impertenance and arrogance of the question that makes it effective. The goal, remember, is not to get Ansom to surrender. He won't. He'll die on the field first. The goal is to destroy the Alliance.

Even if he loses the capacity to take Gobwin Knob, Parson doesn't have any capacity to go on the offensive.

Moby-**** doesn't have to go looking for Ahab. Ahab will come.

[SteveMB]

If the siege units were supplied by Jetstone, it's possible that all of Parson's attacks were against Jetstone (and Marbit) forces, ignoring the other allies. That could have interesting political implications.

Wanda's AGGRO blast booped that up, though....

[teratorn]

Moby-**** doesn't have to go looking for Ahab. Ahab will come.

Wow, forum filters block di*k but not crap!

[glenstorm74]

Long time lurker here trying to get his erfworld fix...

It occurred to me as I was reading this comic for the tenth time that Webinar actually has things a lot harder than I first imagined. Furthermore, this comic raises more rules questions concerning scouts.

My rules question is: "To whom exactly do the scouts report to?" When Vinnie was scouting the dragon circle with his bats the information was sent directly to Vinnine and to a map which the allied commanders could see.

Do the marbit scouts report at all to Webinar? Personally, I don't think they do. I believe they report back to that map. If I'm right, then Webinar will be blind as he charges into those caves.

I think my point may be supported by the look on Webinar's face in the last panel. He seems to have encountered something he did not expect. A wall where he expected an entrance perhaps?

The next point implicated by the text is that Webinar is expected to complete his mission within a limited time. The only way the Allied Commanders will leave Gobwin Knob without casualties is if they stay out of archer range. Well, they can only fake setting up an attack on the walls for one, perhaps two turns. That means that Webinar has to take Gobwin Knob within that time to avoid suspicion.

That time limit adds tremendous pressure to Webinar's mission. He may be forced to charge in using all possible move each turn. Couple that with poor intelligence and you have the makings of a very successful geurilla resistance.

As a side note, I think Webinar will make it out of this battle alive, but radically changed. He may be popular enough now to have been promoted from a red-shirt to a character-foil for Ansom.

[brob]

Apropos of nothing, is "Webinar" just an amusing and appropriately shlumpy sounding name, or is there some deep joke about underling warlords and online presentations that eludes me?

[Ninjamuffin]

If the sword is a uber-powerful weapon why can't he just hand it to bogroll (or a random knight) and promote bogroll. I really don't see the problem, as to why Parson must use it.

I've been wondering, what if Parson's sword turns out to be an Arken-tool?
I mean, yeah, none of the others are traditional weapons, but, since we haven't seen the final piece yet, it could end up being the Arken-screwdriver or something.
It's not like his stupid meals can't give him ridiculously powerful/expensive items.....

[SteveMB]

Apropos of nothing, is "Webinar" just an amusing and appropriately shlumpy sounding name, or is there some deep joke about underling warlords and online presentations that eludes me?

As far as I can tell, it's simply another Internet reference.

I've been wondering, what if Parson's sword turns out to be an Arken-tool?

If the distinction between "Arkentools" and other "artifacts" are that the fomer are the tools used by the Titans (either actually or just in the beliefs of Erfworlders), then it couldn't be.

[Ninjamuffin]

If the distinction between "Arkentools" and other "artifacts" are that the fomer are the tools used by the Titans (either actually or just in the beliefs of Erfworlders), then it couldn't be.

Then again, we don't really know if his toys just pop from nowhere or if they get pulled from somewhere. Though, admittedly, the fact that they be custom-tailored to his needs seems to say they just pop........
Also, we don't really know enough about the Arkentools to say one way or the other if they can come in pieces and must be assembled, or if they're always in one piece, or a bit of both.

On another note, I just noticed this.
If the magic uses a combination of one or more of the three 'elements', how does clevermancy work by relying on none? Were I Parson, I think I would be looking into this discrepancy, post haste. It may not be a magic bullet, but it might be a helpful loophole. Heck, it might even be magic that Parson himself can use.

[Justyn]

On another note, I just noticed this.
If the magic uses a combination of one or more of the three 'elements', how does clevermancy work by relying on none? Were I Parson, I think I would be looking into this discrepancy, post haste. It may not be a magic bullet, but it might be a helpful loophole. Heck, it might even be magic that Parson himself can use.

To quote directly from Mr. Balder himself:

It's raw magic dealing with raw magical forces.

[El_Chupacabra]

Apropos of nothing, is "Webinar" just an amusing and appropriately shlumpy sounding name, or is there some deep joke about underling warlords and online presentations that eludes me?

Sounds like the Godwin Knob version of Tech Support/Customer Care to me, based on all the references to Webex and other Online Conferencing Tools.

[SteveMB]

Sounds like the Godwin Knob version of Tech Support/Customer Care to me, based on all the references to Webex and other Online Conferencing Tools.

Er, what references are you referencing?

[fendrin]

I have attended several webinars.
"Webinar" is corporate-speak for a "Web Seminar". Basically, you get a bunch of people logging into a website (and often calling in on a conference call), and using those media to participate in a seminar.

[Zolem]

Who here thinks Webner will survive the next five comics? Not me. I'm giving him five at most simply because of pacing and cutscenes that could delay his death.