I wasn't the one who first suggested they might be
those players. That was Aegis J Hyena. I just... thought it sounded like a really plausible idea, and ran with it. It does actually make a lot of sense. There's a progression.
Truly terrible roleplayers:
1. Seth Bainwraith - tall, vain, oh-so melodramatic knockoff of Drizzt - Killed by Thaco
2. Drasst Don'tsue - a short, me-too copy of Seth - killed by
our Klik,
who took the shape of a sword to do it.
3. Tryst Drow'Den - "Drowbabe", spellcaster, teenage-guy's stereotype female - Killed by Big Ears.
Better roleplayers. They've learned something, but they're still pretty bad:
1. Baka - still tall. His 'cool thing' is Japan, not Drizzt, but he mixes up ninja and samurai. Killed by Junior while complaining about the rules.
2. Tuck - still short. Linked to Drasst Don'tsue for sure by this page:
http://www.goblinscomic.org/11302012/ - first one killed by Junior.
3. Yodettte - still new to the game, still a scantily clad female spellcaster with more moderate-sized collarbone-boobs. Smartest of the three, knows they should run, but she's still a trope. Knowing doesn't save her.
Quite a bit better roleplayers (which is why I think the DM made them watch someone else doing it right, before he'd let them back in the game):
1. Bowst - still tall, still a copycat. Now the character concept he's copying is MinMax. We haven't seen enough of him yet to know what else he can do.
2. Ward - still short, except now very short! Killed twice by Kliks, and is now a Klik...
who is also a sword. (This is the clincher, to me.)
3. Idle -
still a scantily-clad female, but with boobs that are much less teen-boy fantasy. Spellcaster. Earthy sense of humor. Maybe Forgath's player has given Idle's player a few pointers on how to play a female character!
I think the parallels are just too striking for this
not to be the same trio returning to the game.
(The Cursewalk wouldn't have to have been played out at the gaming table. It doesn't sound like the sort of thing that would be much fun. It could have been, I suppose. If we start getting really long detailed multi-page flashbacks to it, then it probably was. Otherwise, it could just be backstory to explain why the Bowst and Idle characters, at least, are starting at 3rd level with a whole lot of disadvamtages they have to RP -- that is, it's Herbert handing the characters a page of pre-made background to help them out.)