Girl Genius XIII: "Gott's Leedle Feesh in Trousers!"

[Calemyr]

Originally Posted by Knight13

But he let them out for Christmas! Well, all except for the control group. That would have compromised the experiment.

He also gave them memory wipes for their birthday. All heart, this guy.

[Imgran]

Originally Posted by GaeasSon

I have the impression that there was a high turnover in chief minions under the previous administration at Sturmhalten.

Not really. Selnikov was only really killed after the Sturmhalten arc, and if there was a chief minion in Sturmhalten it was probably him. His mannerisms are definitely more minion than spark at any rate.

Sparks seem to be able to recognize the usefulness of a good chief minion. Even Beetle, washed up as he was, got a lot of good years of service out of Silas Merlot until the crash came.

[Candle Jack]

Moloch used Mixed Message!

It's super confusing!

Originally Posted by Scowling Dragon

That joke made me kinda look awkwardly. It just was pushing too far in my opinion. It was funny in the same way Bioshock Little sisters are funny (They are not).

It's black comedy! It's funny because it's so horrible.

[Scowling Dragon]

I get that its black humor.

Just it didnt work for me. This was too dark for GG.

It could work in something like Lamas in hats.

[Lynn]

This kind of dark humor was always present in GG. like when the baron was about to cut Ithar's brain and kept being interrupted. And there's the implication that virtually every spark alive has done things with horrifying consequences at some point. Even the most benign, or heroic sparks seem to loose empathy when they are in the madness place. Sometimes it's played for drama, sometimes for laughs.

[Scowling Dragon]

There was more to the situation then that when the baron was getting the scalpel.

This type of light Dark humor doesn't work for me.

[eee]

Originally Posted by Scowling Dragon

There was more to the situation then that when the baron was getting the scalpel.

This type of light Dark humor doesn't work for me.

If the orphanages around the university were Dickens-like, being put in a containment tube and turned into a glowy eyed creature with fangs was probably a step up. Maybe several steps.

Also good for long term job prospects. There's always a call for monster minions...

[Grey_Wolf_c]

Originally Posted by eee

If the orphanages around the university were Dickens-like, being put in a containment tube and turned into a glowy eyed creature with fangs was probably a step up. Maybe several steps.

Given that the world as described is not just as bad off as the world was in the 19th century (by our current standards), but explicitly worse off because of the destruction brought forth by the constant spark fighting, I'd say that is a very definite possibility. Children used in the enforced slavery of the European orphanage system would've loved to be transferred to test tubes where they'd get fed and not experimented upon (for the control group) and given amazing sparky abilities (for the rest). Beats working the coal mines or catching typhus and tuberculosis from the terrible living conditions.

Grey Wolf

[stsasser]

He was just acting in loco parentis.

[lord_khaine]

That joke made me kinda look awkwardly. It just was pushing too far in my opinion. It was funny in the same way Bioshock Little sisters are funny (They are not).

Just think of those children, as a man stuffs them in a tube, and starts injecting them with strange stuff. They don't know if their going to die or not. And then they start to warp and change. Thought replaced with animal instinct.

It just feels more like a horror scenario to me. Showing what a twisted abomination of a person the profesor is.

I gotta admit, the first thing i though was "Nooo, you FOOOL!!!, you are ruining your own experiment by creating an unplanned difference between the control group and the test subjects, thats bad science"

[datalaughing]

So if something bad is about to happen to the group and Moloch has to choose between saving Sanaa and Snaug, who does he pick?

[The Glyphstone]

Originally Posted by stsasser

He was just acting in loco parentis.

With particular emphasis on the loco.

[eee]

Originally Posted by datalaughing

So if something bad is about to happen to the group and Moloch has to choose between saving Sanaa and Snaug, who does he pick?

This is von Zinzer; he'll save BOTH of them (and probably everyone else as well) in a comic way that will embarrass him and make them love him more...

[Oracle_Hunter]

I, for one, am glad to see the S.S. Saazinzer and S.S. Snaugzer trading shots. It will leave them both too banged up to survive the sneak attack by the S.S. Moletta.

Confusion to our enemies!

[Grey_Wolf_c]

Originally Posted by lord_khaine

I gotta admit, the first thing i though was "Nooo, you FOOOL!!!, you are ruining your own experiment by creating an unplanned difference between the control group and the test subjects, thats bad science"

Not so sure about that. He's the social spark: observing the the children mingling during their time out of the test tubes may have been part of the experiment. Unless, of course, he had let out the control group, in which case the experiment would indeed have been compromised.

The softheartedness would come from using the actual occasion of Christmas for the mingling. He didn't need to, nor did he need to dress in red and carry a big bag with Ho^3 on it.

Grey Wolf

[Morph Bark]

Moloch just keeps on reminding me why I love him.

He's handling this situation even better than I did! Darn thee, alpha minion, thou hast the power.

[hajo]

Update !

Spoiler

Good old C-Gas makes a comeback

[petersohn]

So, is C-Gas nonlethal even in large quantity?

[Oracle_Hunter]

Originally Posted by petersohn

So, is C-Gas nonlethal even in large quantity?

Yeah, that's kind of the point of it

That said, being unconscious on a battlefield is not the healthiest position to be on -- particularly if a Wasped Baron is likely the one making this assault.

[Grey_Wolf_c]

Originally Posted by Oracle_Hunter

Yeah, that's kind of the point of it

That said, being unconscious on a battlefield is not the healthiest position to be on -- particularly if a Wasped Baron is likely the one making this assault.

It's healthier than if the baron had just carpet-bombed the city with explosives rather than with sleeping gas. Or canisters of actual poisonous gas, if explosives are somehow unavailable. I suspect that the baron continues to purposely sabotage his own plans in every way his dominated mind will allow.

Alternatively, he wants to take the city with minimum casualties, which I suppose could be his style. In which case being unconscious is the healthiest position.

By the way, where is everyone else in that last panel?

Grey Wolf

[eee]

It's kind of hard to get R-79's range. On the one hand he's obviously not an unthinking brute; on the other he seems to favor the "Hulk SMASH!!!" approach. It would be good to get some backstory on him, too.

If Klaus is bombing the city with C-gas, that could actually be an effective tactic. As long as the gas affects Jagers. And monsters. And the Mechanicsburgers don't have gas masks at hand. Which they probably do. And Violetta isn't close enough to Agatha to put a mask on her before the gas reaches her.

It's be funny if the only people KOed by the gas are Moloch's group...

[Oracle_Hunter]

Originally Posted by Grey_Wolf_c

By the way, where is everyone else in that last panel?

They ran for cover

[Ravens_cry]

At least it's not C-Stoff.

[The Glyphstone]

We know C-gas works on constructs, because Klaus used it to disable Von Pinn, and the fact that the Jaegers had to wait till the gas dispersed in Beetleburg indicates it works on them too. Monsters probably vary according to the specific monster.

[datalaughing]

Finally got around to reading the second GG novel. You know, these are getting pretty good.

[NEO|Phyte]

Originally Posted by The Glyphstone

We know C-gas works on constructs, because Klaus used it to disable Von Pinn, and the fact that the Jaegers had to wait till the gas dispersed in Beetleburg indicates it works on them too. Monsters probably vary according to the specific monster.

Actually, Pinn got D-gas

[The Glyphstone]

Originally Posted by NEO|Phyte

Actually, Pinn got D-gas

Hm, you're right. So constructs are not known to be vulnerable to C-gas then, though Jagers are likely still susceptible.

[Luzahn]

Originally Posted by The Glyphstone

Hm, you're right. So constructs are not known to be vulnerable to C-gas then, though Jagers are likely still susceptible.

"Susceptible" isn't a term I'd use to describe Jagers.

[Jimor]

Originally Posted by Luzahn

"Susceptible" isn't a term I'd use to describe Jagers.

For gas, they probably just hold their breath until the battle is over.

[The Glyphstone]

Originally Posted by Luzahn

"Susceptible" isn't a term I'd use to describe Jagers.

"Capable of being affected by'?