Order of the Stick 596!

[Orius]

This is D&D land. The only thing V did that was wrong was not taking Kubota's stuff after killing him.

V's a wizard and doesn't need or can use +5 armor. The party fighter is dead, and even if the party cleric can use it he's a dwarf, and V is an elf.

 

[That One Guy]

Oh, and another thought. Look back at #331 for a moment.
V: "How will I achieve complete and total ultimate arcane power?"
Kobold oracle: "By saying the right four words to the right being at the right time for all the wrong reasons."

Four words.
Disintegrate
Gust
Of
Wind

I'm thinking that V won't get away with this, and as a result will be executed (either by Hinjo & The Paladins, or more informally by some of Kabuto's followers), which will lead V to undeath and greater arcane power.

Either that, or V will get access to Kabuto's resources, including some form of spellbook or other thing boosting V's powers.

Oh, and a totally unrelated thing. A kabuto is the helmet associated with traditional japanese samurai armor. So I'm guessing that makes Lord Kabuto Lord Helmet

Hmm... I'll witness to you calling it if that's how it turns out.

 

[orsal]

Anyway, V is still what s/he's always been - True Neutral - just a more aggressive and short-sighted version of it than previously.

I've always seen Vaarsuvius as LN, at least since strip #220.

 

[Mustrum_Ridcully]

Anyone remember Vs actions after the Belkar-Vaarsivius New Years Eve incident? Or the Explosive Runes V has prepared for Miko?

In all incidents, V knew that he wouldn't kill anyone, sure, but it's obviously not that he has ever been in a "good" mindset.

Also, for a long-living Wizard, V certainly is a little impatient.
Heck, didn't he plan to ignore those dirt farmers that asked for help because it was meaningless for his studies or the party's original goals?


---

Oh, and who else has already read "War and XP", the new OotS book?

 

[Imp]

Well, Miko was attacked...paralysis IS a serious threat, which could have left her open to free shots from dominate person, suggestion, or whatnot...if not a cdg...

Sure, it's a "threat," though Miko was a high-level paladin/monk, which combo not only gave her saves out the yin-yang but allowed her to go nonlethal at little penalty anytime she wanted esp. against foes she outclassed; by some of the standards being applied to V's actions here, Miko's summary killing of the bandits here would have forfeited her paladinhood – since she was in no real danger (to the point of not even getting any xp from the fight, probably) she should have subdued the two and sought out the local authorities so that the law would be carried out. But she was in a hurry as well. Also, she was performing an act of awesome, as Nifft puts it.

Generally in D&D adventuring situations, frontier justice applies. It's not much of a stretch to suppose that frontier justice would also apply in a community of refugees.

That said, V's action was evil due to his callous thought process, though not evil enough to kick him out of neutral, and I'd imagine V, Durkon, & Elan are going to be splitting from Hinjo & company fairly soon because of it.

 

[Mathew_Freeman]

SMITE DIGRESSION!

Back on topic: hell yeah V, and rock on elf buddy indeed.

CLEAVE INTO ALIGNMENT DEBATE!

I just hope Alignment debate is a minion with 1hp, so it can die.

On a more serious note, I'd leave V as Neutral for the moment. It's the sort of action that I, as a DM, would keep a careful eye on and probably email the player about afterwards to see what they might be thinking for the future of their character.

But just slapping the "EVIL!" tag on V seems a bit premature, to me.

 

[WhatGravitas]

But just slapping the "EVIL!" tag on V seems a bit premature, to me.

I dunno - he has shifted his outlook and behaviour over the last strips immensely, he's pretty ruthless. And the point is probably that he feels OK with it.

I reckon it boils down to when you set the "evil". Is V overlord-evil? No. But I'd say he approaches petty thief- or mugger-evil, that sort of "everyday-evil".

Cheers, LT.

 

[Mustrum_Ridcully]

CLEAVE INTO ALIGNMENT DEBATE!

I just hope Alignment debate is a minion with 1hp, so it can die.

I am afraid it is a Solo Brute*, and usually leads to TTK**


*) It deals massive damage, but rarely hits anything, and takes quite a beating.
**) Total Thread Kill

 

[Switchblade]

You say ruthless like it's a bad thing...

Just because (s)he is a trigger happy evoker who knows "Evards tenticles of forced intrusion" and carries out summary exectutions on a whim doesn't mean (s)he's evil, just very, very .

Man that spell scares me.

 

[Henry]

Off Thought: What if V is ALREADY a lich, and the toll is starting to show? It would explain the lack of sleep, the increasingly worse look, the gradual shift to neutral evil, and a couple of other things. Maybe we'll see a panel later of one of the Order of the Sticl talking with V and watch his ear fall off or something, letting the undead cat out of the bag...