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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

dcutter2 Since: Sep, 2013
#64501: Jun 8th 2025 at 5:16:54 PM

I take it Cerberus is a D&D thing?

Charon and Cerberus should have been part of the snarl killed eastern pantheon.

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
#64502: Jun 8th 2025 at 5:19:23 PM

I mean, if anyone avoided it, it's the ones who'd be busy in the afterlife anyway.

TV Tropes's No. 1 bread themed lesbian. she/her, fae/faer
HeraldAlberich from Ohio (Before Recorded History) Relationship Status: Gonna take a lot to drag me away from you
#64503: Jun 8th 2025 at 6:51:51 PM

Tartarus is also Greek-inspired, and it’s been mentioned in-comic by name as one of the Outer Planes.

thok That's Dr. Title, thank you! (4 Score & 7 Years Ago) Relationship Status: Non-Canon
That's Dr. Title, thank you!
#64504: Jun 8th 2025 at 8:24:46 PM

I wonder if we'll get a Zz'drti resurrection as well.

M84 Oh, bother. from Our little blue planet Since: Jun, 2010 Relationship Status: Chocolate!
Oh, bother.
#64505: Jun 8th 2025 at 8:29:20 PM

It's almost fitting that the Linear Guild would show up for the finale. They were there in the strip's first dungeon crawl, and they're here for its last one.

Disgusted, but not surprised
DatLonerGirl Gimme your desire... from a top secret place Since: Mar, 2014 Relationship Status: Chocolate!
Gimme your desire...
#64506: Jun 8th 2025 at 9:47:33 PM

Now I'm imagining Cerebus constantly waiting for Hades to come back. Crap, why did I imagine that? sad

Writer, or something. Push the button, if you dare. 🖲️
LSBK Since: Sep, 2014
#64507: Jun 9th 2025 at 7:19:32 AM

Oh yeah, I didn’t even catch on to that. There’s no Greek Pantheon analogy anymore so where does Cerberus fit into things now?

FuzzyBoots from Outlying borough of Pittsburgh (there's a lot of Since: Jan, 2001 Relationship Status: And they all lived happily ever after <3
#64508: Jun 9th 2025 at 8:12:32 AM

I can see a scenario where lesser aspects were "out of office" so to speak, with their quiddity adapting to the pantheon they serve, lacking a greater degree of divinity.

Mouser Since: Jan, 2001
#64509: Jun 9th 2025 at 8:22:28 AM

Or maybe Charon and Cerberus are outsiders, which don't seem to have a quiddity at all.

Arha Since: Jan, 2010
#64510: Jun 9th 2025 at 8:26:40 AM

Or maybe the author didn't really think the joke through.

Bense Since: Aug, 2010
#64511: Jun 9th 2025 at 8:31:33 AM

Yeah, Charon and Cerberus would be powerful outsiders who were originally aligned with the Greek Pantheon, but not actual surviving Greek gods.

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
#64512: Jun 9th 2025 at 8:33:24 AM

Oh, were we imagining the other deities encouraging people to worship Charon as a Green deity so they could help create a new 4 color cage?

Say to the others who did not follow through You're still our brothers, and we will fight for you
Mouser Since: Jan, 2001
#64513: Jun 9th 2025 at 9:05:15 AM

I don't remember that. Which strip was it?

Reflextion from a post-sanity world (Time Abyss) Relationship Status: What's love got to do with it?
#64515: Jun 9th 2025 at 3:04:09 PM

[up]x5 IIRC, the author has said that the Rule of Funny takes precedence over the story

Someone did tell me life was going to be this way.
RaichuKFM Nine thousand nine hundred eighty-two reasons. from Where she's at Since: Jun, 2010 Relationship Status: Wishing you were here
Nine thousand nine hundred eighty-two reasons.
#64516: Jun 9th 2025 at 6:57:38 PM

I mean, they have hydras in this world, why not have a Cerberus? Not everything that's Greek to us could only come from the extinct Greek-esque Eastern gods. Or maybe the first world had a Cerberus courtesy of them who was since recreated as intentional homage or cryptoplagiarism (or was an Outsider and has just survived all this time).

Mostly does better things now. Key word mostly. Writes things, but you'll never find them. Or you can ask.
M84 Oh, bother. from Our little blue planet Since: Jun, 2010 Relationship Status: Chocolate!
Oh, bother.
#64517: Jun 9th 2025 at 7:07:30 PM

The other Pantheons probably co-opted the Eastern Pantheon's surviving Outsiders and various ideas for races and monsters as their own. It was all they could do to keep the memory of said Pantheon alive without exposing the existence of the Snarl.

This means Cerberus may not even remember Hades anymore due to repeated mind-wipes.

YMMV on whether that's worse than waiting forever for a master that's never coming back.

Edited by M84 on Jun 9th 2025 at 10:08:36 PM

Disgusted, but not surprised
ACW from Arlington, VA (near Washington, D.C.) Since: Jul, 2009
#64518: Jun 12th 2025 at 4:30:27 AM

Wait, what happened to the Greek pantheon?

FuzzyBoots from Outlying borough of Pittsburgh (there's a lot of Since: Jan, 2001 Relationship Status: And they all lived happily ever after <3
Fighteer Lost in Space from The Time Vortex (Time Abyss) Relationship Status: TV Tropes ruined my love life
Lost in Space
#64521: Jun 16th 2025 at 7:24:29 AM

#1328: Facing Rules

Turns out I was both right and wrong at the same time. Right because Nale was indeed going to sacrifice Thog. Wrong because he doesn't.

That said, I'm not quite sure I agree with this loophole.

Edited by Fighteer on Jun 16th 2025 at 10:25:01 AM

"It's Occam's Shuriken! If the answer is elusive, never rule out ninjas!"
dcutter2 Since: Sep, 2013
#64522: Jun 16th 2025 at 7:36:09 AM

Well given those terms no wonder Sabine wanted to make sure he had another Ally to hand.

AbyssGazer Foolish mortal from the Netherlands Since: May, 2020 Relationship Status: Gonna take a lot to drag me away from you
Foolish mortal
#64523: Jun 16th 2025 at 7:36:38 AM

Perhaps the plan just blew up in his face?

KnownUnknown Since: Jan, 2001
#64524: Jun 16th 2025 at 8:08:22 AM

I like the loophole, but would like it better if it was used for anything other than an explicitly evil agreement. It feels odd that a situation like this can be resolved by personal growth.

Resileafs I actually wanted to be Resileaf Since: Jan, 2019
I actually wanted to be Resileaf
#64525: Jun 16th 2025 at 8:16:41 AM

It makes sense really, devil deals are all about loopholes and more than one story describes a devil being foiled by someone's well-timed character growth. It usually doesn't happen with the villain, but it's an interesting subversion of the usual story.

Also lol at the Phineas and Ferb reference


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