The Order of the Stick

I think I'm going to steal that "shapechangers can't get humanoid hands right" detail if I ever use doppelgangers or humanoid mimics (are they a thing?) in a game. (Incidentally, someone mentioned using a homebrew humanoid mimic that had to remain physically tethered to the rest of its mass, which sounds a lot like an Oblex.)

Beyond the comparisons to AI art and to human beginner artists, it's also a classic part of the folklore of The Fair Folk that they may appear human, but details like their eyes, fingers and toes will be very subtly off.

The official 3rd edition Mimic from the MM can only assume the shape of "an object". It is also larger in volume than a regular human (5x5x6 feet, like "a stout bed") and "cannot substantially alter its size".

Of course, variants are myriad. Specially if it comes from Dorukan's menagerie of older edition critters.

Does a lifelike doll/statue of a human qualify as an object?

So a stone statue would be fine. A doll would be iffy due to the "rough texture" bit.

Which gives me the idea of a mimic pretending to be a golem.

And of course, mechanics to tell the statue is fake by counting its fingers:

You wouldn't be the first. Frankly, I thought it was just another reference to dopplegangers having unusual amounts of fingers or having them the wrong length.

Edited by Arha on May 16th 2023 at 4:45:44 AM

So, a Weeping Angel?

It could still fake looking like a doll just fine, the texture mismatch requires you to touch it to notice; which would also be an issue with a statue that looks polished or otherwise smooth.

Also I feel like if one's willing to grant a Mimic can look like a statue or doll of a humanoid, being able to do an actual humanoid falls out of it. I don't think in a 'Convincingly fake being a normal living humanoid' way, but being able to take that general shape (of appropriate volume) if the mimic wants. Though moving with shapeshifted limbs instead of pseudopods might be an issue, I could see a Mimic learning the skill, with practice.

What Mimi's pulling in this comic isn't that far from 'a statue that walks', I don't think.

Plus by the time you're touching a mimic, it's probably too late.

"Oh, man. This toilet feels really weird and rough, I wonder what it's made o-OOHH SWEET FANTASY JESUS!"

Edited by KnownUnknown on May 16th 2023 at 7:06:49 AM

The fantasy series The Lost Years of Merlin had this as a plot point in the first book. There's a kind of shapeshifter that always gets one detail wrong no matter what. The first one took the form of a beautiful bird, but it was missing a leg.

The second one is a girl that acts friendly towards Merlin. He doesn't realize he's in danger until his companion points out that the girl's hands look a little odd. Merlin takes a closer look and realizes she has webbed hands.

Schlock Mercenary version of the incident

Looks like they are really going to the Very Definitely Final Dungeon.

Edited by AxolotlFan on May 19th 2023 at 6:23:46 AM

I dunno, I doubt Serini's taking them to be teleported to Xykon's astral plane fortress.

I guess they were right about "already saying it a dozen times"

While it was probably just meant to be a gag at the time, I like to think that the strip showing a Goblin starting a successful Hydra head bbq franchise in the future shows that the Goblins will become an accepted part of civilization in the OOTS world.

That goblin is actually active in Gobbotopia. Given the tone of the comic, I wouldn't be surprised if Goblins eventually got accepted, but that particular scene doesn't foreshadow that.

I like to think Goblin Dan franchised and has Hydra Head BBQ Huts all over the world. It's not like there's only one Hydra out there.

As for why others haven't tried to copy him, I also imagine that his real secret isn't just realizing he could use Hydra heads as a source of limitless meat, but also a blend of 11 herbs and spices that make said heads tasty.

Edited by M84 on May 18th 2023 at 4:51:10 PM

Shut down one location, two more shall take its place,

And not toxic, unless that’s not an issue in D&D.

Not an issue. The default D&D hydra is just a large reptile-ish monster that regenerates cut heads. No poison.

New Comic.

Is there another free-to-play he could play?

Count on a lawful neutral entity to advertise lootboxes, one of the most evil creations ever devised.

And not even surprised Xykon is a whale.

Edited by Resileafs on Jun 2nd 2023 at 10:26:35 AM

I'm not familiar with the concept of loot boxes, but I am familiar with the Stanford Marshmallow Experiment, which the Modrons seem to be faithfully re-creating.

What I find amusing is that the real-life is kind of controversial because as I understand it, poor kids did badly on the experiment (i.e. chose to have the marshmallow right away), which lead to some very broad conclusions about them having a bad culture / being deservedly poor.

Even though it makes sense that someone who doesn't get a lot of marshmallows would more readily eat one than someone who can get a marshmallow anytime they want.

But in Xykon's case, it's just that he has zero impulse control. And unlike the kids in the study, doesn't have the justification of wanting a treat. Since he literally cannot eat anything.

Edit - I'm also tickled by the fact that the "game" is just them conducting an experiment on Xykon. And him failing it.

Edited by Hodor2 on Jun 2nd 2023 at 7:51:31 AM

Ah, I see. I thought it was something about buying rewards in a game in comparison to playing it to get the reward.

Yeah, this isn't lootboxes, but closer to games like Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp or Farmville where either you have a set number of actions per day and have to wait for those to recharge (which can take hours) or you have to wait for an action to be done (which can also take hours).

Or you can spend real money to have it done immediately.

Lootboxes are Random Drops you can either earn during gameplay or buy for real money. The issue with them is that games with the ability to buy them with real money makes it more enticing to buy them with real money, effectively making them gambling.

Edited by tclittle on Jun 2nd 2023 at 11:52:11 AM

and

Thanks. I can see the similarities with those things too. I also vaguely recall some "perfectly legal" download things doing something similar with options of paying immediately or waiting a certain amount of time.