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This is the thread for discussion of The Order of the Stick plot, characters, etc. We have a separate thread for discussing game rules and mechanics. Excessive rules discussions here may be thumped as off-topic.

OP edited to make this header - Fighteer

edited 18th Sep '17 1:08:08 PM by Fighteer

Kostya (Unlucky Thirteen)
#52576: Feb 10th 2020 at 12:02:32 PM

I imagine if Julia was dead she wouldn't be snarking as much and would be more pissed. Also when did we last see her? It wasn't the Cliffport arc was it?

Edit: If so then is this a record for longest gap between appearances of a named character? Let's exclude one off gag characters like the poleshop emporium owner. The only person I can think of that comes close is Hilgya and she technically reappeared a few years back.

Edited by Kostya on Feb 10th 2020 at 3:08:51 PM

Tharkun140 The Arch-Douchebag Since: Apr, 2016 Relationship Status: What is this thing you call love?
The Arch-Douchebag
#52577: Feb 10th 2020 at 12:42:39 PM

[up] I believe Hilgya still holds the record. She was absent for over a thousand strips and her only 'reappearance' came in a form of an outdated picture.

Apathy is Death. Worse than Death, because at least a rotting corpse feeds beasts and insects.
Silasw A procrastination in of itself from A handcart to hell (4 Score & 7 Years Ago) Relationship Status: And they all lived happily ever after <3
A procrastination in of itself
#52578: Feb 10th 2020 at 1:28:22 PM

Nale’s evil elf wizard holds the second place I think, they had a huge gap.

If you discount flashback appearances than the Snarl, the Scribble and Durkon’s and Haley’s side characters are out, one of the gods probably has a pretty good score.

Edited by Silasw on Feb 10th 2020 at 9:32:57 AM

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Kostya (Unlucky Thirteen)
#52579: Feb 10th 2020 at 1:44:38 PM

[up][up]I'm talking real world time not strip count. We last saw Julia in what...2006? That's almost fifteen years ago.

TobiasDrake (•̀⤙•́) (Edited uphill both ways) Relationship Status: Arm chopping is not a love language!
(•̀⤙•́)
#52580: Feb 10th 2020 at 2:14:52 PM

Burlew's always been very careful with the limitations of the Sending spell. So I don't think it'd be something as cavalier as "Burlew's just ignoring the rules of Sending this one time even though he's never done that before."

I also doubt she'd have died offscreen, especially given a) how flippant she is and b) the fact that she's a very minor character who was last seen not really doing anything that might lead to an offscreen death. It's not like she's a hardened adventurer last seen to take on an Epic Dragon or something. Some characters can just turn up dead and you're like, "Yeah, that makes sense. They lead a dangerous lifestyle." Julia isn't one of those characters.

I also don't think it's The Tape Knew You Would Say That. Roy first acknowledges Julia without knowing it's her, floating there and just watching him. He then asks a question, to which she answers.

Sending doesn't do that. Sending does not scry. You cast the spell to send a message, and then Sending allows a response. Julia can't appear in a Sending and just stand there saying nothing; she has to speak first, and then Roy can respond. You can't Reverse-Sending someone and then wait around to see if they have anything to say to you. That's not a thing.

So, given the flaws in all other options, I'm putting my chips on this being a Greenhilt Family Sword thing.

Edited by TobiasDrake on Feb 10th 2020 at 3:15:27 AM

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#52581: Feb 10th 2020 at 2:32:00 PM

[up][up]Farther back in time and farther back in strips would both be the same thing though.

Kostya (Unlucky Thirteen)
#52582: Feb 10th 2020 at 3:14:11 PM

[up]They're different units of measurement. Rich's schedule has been inconsistent for a long time so two characters can be absent for hundreds of strips with one missing for a few years while the other hasn't been seen in a decade.

Edited by Kostya on Feb 10th 2020 at 6:20:37 AM

Bisected8 A casual tief of punk from Her Hackette Cave (Primordial Chaos) Relationship Status: Arm chopping is not a love language!
A casual tief of punk
#52583: Feb 10th 2020 at 3:18:43 PM

[up]x9: It's entirely possible she's graduated by now.

Or gone on some sort of work placement.

Edited by Bisected8 on Feb 10th 2020 at 11:19:05 AM

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Arha Since: Jan, 2010
#52584: Feb 10th 2020 at 10:03:50 PM

How would Julia know enough about Roy's sword to use it for communication?

tclittle Professional Forum Ninja from Somewhere Down in Texas Since: Apr, 2010
Professional Forum Ninja
#52585: Feb 10th 2020 at 11:03:50 PM

Considering Roy asked the sword to pawn Eugene's visits on Julia while trying to learn how to empower himself during Eugene's visit right after the Godsmoot visit, maybe it actually did and Eugene taught Julia how to talk to Roy through the Sword?

Or maybe she just made a custom spell tied to their ancestral sword. Or plane shifted and asked her family.

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Millership from Kazakhstan Since: Jan, 2014
#52586: Feb 11th 2020 at 12:23:12 AM

I also doubt she'd have died offscreen, especially given a) how flippant she is

Regarding this. Considering how Death Is Cheap in the OOTS'Verse her flippancy would make some sense.

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Elfive (4 Score & 7 Years Ago)
#52587: Feb 11th 2020 at 3:41:21 AM

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#52588: Feb 11th 2020 at 4:06:45 AM

[up][up][up] That is a really good point. Okay, I take it back. This is almost certainly Julia communicating via the sword's link to Roy's family.

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M84 Oh, bother. from Our little blue planet Since: Jun, 2010 Relationship Status: Chocolate!
Oh, bother.
#52589: Feb 11th 2020 at 4:20:51 AM

Hmm, is that within the abilities of a Weapon of Legacy?

Disgusted, but not surprised
TobiasDrake (•̀⤙•́) (Edited uphill both ways) Relationship Status: Arm chopping is not a love language!
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#52590: Feb 11th 2020 at 7:20:24 AM

I'm pretty sure Roy's sword is a homebrew, in which case anything goes.

IIRC, actual Weapons of Legacy from the Weapons of Legacy guidebook are notorious for the fact that they suck. They have some sort of significant drawback that makes people hesitant to actually use them. Like if Roy's sword drained a level from him every time he got the green aura or some shit.

Edited by TobiasDrake on Feb 11th 2020 at 8:22:53 AM

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blkwhtrbbt The Dragon of the Eastern Sea from Doesn't take orders from Vladimir Putin Since: Aug, 2010 Relationship Status: I'm just a poor boy, nobody loves me
The Dragon of the Eastern Sea
#52591: Feb 11th 2020 at 7:49:51 AM

That

is a significant drawback for barely any benefit.

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Kostya (Unlucky Thirteen)
#52592: Feb 11th 2020 at 7:53:27 AM

Damn that sword better make you an indestructible god otherwise that drawback makes it functionally worthless.

Resileafs I actually wanted to be Resileaf Since: Jan, 2019
I actually wanted to be Resileaf
#52593: Feb 11th 2020 at 7:57:28 AM

Well it's probably not a permanent level drain. Most likely something that can be cured with spells or even just rest, like most temporary level drains.

Kostya (Unlucky Thirteen)
#52594: Feb 11th 2020 at 8:04:15 AM

Then is it really a major drawback?

TobiasDrake (•̀⤙•́) (Edited uphill both ways) Relationship Status: Arm chopping is not a love language!
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#52595: Feb 11th 2020 at 8:22:28 AM

I don't know, I made it up on the spot as a drawback for what Roy's sword might do if it were really written up as a Weapon of Legacy.

Weapons of Legacy provide negligible bonuses to your ability in exchange for sabotaging your abilities in other places. Picture a +1 Longsword, except it's a +1 Longsword that cuts your Reflex save in half and provides few if any benefits over a +1 Longsword. Shit like that.

Weapons of Legacy are terrible and nobody uses them, which is why Rich homebrewed an In Name Only version for Roy's sword.

Edited by TobiasDrake on Feb 11th 2020 at 9:27:30 AM

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alekos23 Since: Mar, 2013
#52596: Feb 11th 2020 at 8:39:24 AM

Huh. Any stated lore reasons for the major drawbacks or are those not really considered when it's time for "balance" ? [lol]

Discar Since: Jun, 2009
#52597: Feb 11th 2020 at 8:39:24 AM

It's not In Name Only, it's explicitly a Weapon of Legacy. Roy is literally reading the Weapons of Legacy splatbook.

Anyway, yes there are tradeoffs to using a Weapon of Legacy, and they're not really worth it, but it's not so bad as "level drain every time you use the cool power" or "cut your Reflex save in half." You get a minor penalty to a couple saves, a minor penalty to a couple skill checks, and a minor penalty to max HP, all depending on the exact Weapon of Legacy and how far you've advanced with it.

They were trying to prevent the system from being another Game-Breaker, and they succeeded, but then they had a system that wasn't really worth the trouble of using. It's not actively bad, having a Weapon of Legacy is better than not having one, it's just that there are other ways to get similar power without all the hassle.

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Resileafs I actually wanted to be Resileaf Since: Jan, 2019
I actually wanted to be Resileaf
#52598: Feb 11th 2020 at 8:41:20 AM

In a way, I can kind of understand it from a balance point of view, if weapons of legacy were direct upgrades from normal weapons with no downside, everyone would have a weapon of legacy since you'd start with it at level 1. But the detriments need to be better thought of.

If you think about it, a temporary level drain after a power up would be a pretty balanced drawback. It forces you to rest after a power up, or you risk draining yourself too weak, so it's the kind of thing you use for big battles or when you need to turn things around.

alekos23 Since: Mar, 2013
#52599: Feb 11th 2020 at 8:41:46 AM

Actually come to think of it Roy's grandpa does give a good excuse for some nerfs, you picture the weapon as someone else's, not your own. Probably works well enough.

Discar Since: Jun, 2009
#52600: Feb 11th 2020 at 8:48:09 AM

[up][up] Well, the level drain system in 3.5 is horribly unbalanced, and for once it's unbalanced against the players, so anything that uses level drain is a lot more dangerous than it's really intended to be.

Writing a post-post apocalypse LitRPG on RR. Also fanfic stuff.

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