Order of the Stick

[redfeather]

I hope the Order is smart enough to realize that they have to target Xykon with extreme prejudice, trying to destroy him in the hopes that Redcloak will then reconsider Durkon's effort to negotiate. Of course, none of the Order knows about X's "fortress-tomb thingy", so when they actually manage to put a serious hurt on him, he can port away to that and we still have our final boss battle.

[Krulle]

update notification!
page 1225 - Chain Reactions


Yes, being constantly captured doesn't help.
But hold your heads up high, for the next imprisonment storyline we will need you again, so you will be given a chance to flee.

[RocketScientist]

I wonder if they're in Xykon's extra-planar fortress thing. Would they know if they were on another plane?

[redfeather]

1126 - Half Expected

► Show Spoiler

Serini?

[Krulle]

Looks like her. From the Order of the Scribble.

Also, someone on twitter translated the runes on the pot as "MAGIC INSTANT POT". (and cites source https://oots.fandom.com/wiki/Chain_Reactions )

[Krulle]

Update notification!
https://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots1227.html - Like Riding a Bike

Also, confirmed. It is Serini.

[redfeather]

Trolls gonna troll....

[Krulle]

Well, she did point at Lien and said "If you can tell me...".
Technically, she can use this.

But I also wonder whether she has the power to actually let them go. I saw no door.
She may be able to unshackle them, but that's just a first step to freedom.

[redfeather]

https://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots1228.html - No Intention

Well, that answers some questions and raises some others....

[Krulle]

She knows an awful lot about what happened...

[Krulle]

Update notification!

https://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots1229.html - No Chance


Yepp, there seems to be no ordinary entry/exit to the prison room.

[redfeather]

Now this is QUITE the shift in the status quo....

► Show Spoiler

The Order just got a huge advantage which might have given them a chance of beating Xykon; now it's almost surely going to be taken away by Serini's ambush. It's doubtful she'll succeed in affecting all of the Order, but given that none of them really know she exists - they know there's a halfling rogue out there somewhere, but not this crazy half-monster Mordenkainen wannabe - the odds are good she'll neutralize at least two characters before the others manage to rally and stop her. And since she's clearly a Batman Wizard in terms of her preparation skills, I wouldn't put it past her to manage three kills. Combine that with the labyrinthine setting, and this could well be another Split the Party situation, unless Rich simply ensures that this doesn't happen for reasons of his IRL logistics.

Serini has clearly been spying on the involved players for ages, and probably has plans for every contingency, including whatever Contingency that Vaarsuvius is currently using (I assume there is one because there really ought to be for any wizard of sufficient level, unless they're intentionally avoiding it for various reasons, none of which we definitively know to be in effect here). That said, it is probably most likely to be V who has the ability to stop Serini, and both the knowledge and inclination to talk her down while they're both frozen in time or something. Which is exactly why I suspect the IFCC are going to spend their second possession op to ensure that V is taken out of this conflict, since the half-halflingtroll (aka the trolling half-half) is unintentionally acting in concert with their interests for the moment. The other reasonable possible outcome here is that the one thing Serini hasn't prepared for is Minrah, and that with all of Serini's magic items, she still has no defense against a low-level cleric spell that she didn't expect because it isn't one Durkon habitually uses, despite it being a typical choice of other Thorites (maybe something that recently started being commonly practiced in dwarventown which came after Durkon's exile).

Regardless of exactly what ends up happening, I think it's likely that with Serini's interference, the Order's chances of stopping Xykon are shot, and X will find the Gate and start doing his thing. The heroes will show up at the last second, too late to fully stop him, but will manage to hurt him badly enough that he flees to his FTTITAP, and the Order will have to deal with the Gate situation - possibly up to and including an unleashed Snarl that Xykon has ripped a piece off of for his own use, or something of that nature), and only later will they finally chase down X and have the true final showdown, possibly with a repentant Serini actually helping them. Also likely is that the IFCC will have to spend their other 20-minute possession in the current kerfluffle, so that when the actual showdown happens, they have only the three-minuter left, and that will give us a ticking clock scenario where V can come in as last-second cavalry as soon as the possession ends.

There, I think that's all the predictions this page has inspired in me. Been a LONG time since I was this enthused about where the story was going.

[Krulle]

update notification!
https://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots1230.html page 1230 - That's His Bad


Time to think of old times?
Well, having to wait does that to you....

[Hope_Caswell]

It's a good comic for anybody who is new to the strip, whether or not they have binged the archive.

[Krulle]

update notification!

https://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots1232.html page 1232 - Equity Options.

That was a lot of help....

[Krulle]

(thanks RS)

update notification:
https://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots1233.html - Concerning Thoughts


It was foreseeable that Durkon would want to start talking about this problem.

[RocketScientist]

welcome

Thanks, Durkon. Roy has guilt now. I don't see what he can do about it, though.

[Krulle]

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Page #1234 I Mean, Geez.

Astonishing how this fits in with real-life current issues.

I wonder whether this was pre-planned, or current topics just fit too good to put them in and dwell a bit longer on this.

[Krulle]

Update notification!

Page #1235 Idle Thoughts.

All by myself. (Youtube link)

Yes, it is hard to be alone in thoughts.
Especially if you're somewhat of an extrovert blabbermouth.

[Hope_Caswell]

#peoplepersonproblems

[redfeather]

Page #1236 No Strings

Finally, Serini strings...er, springs her trap. And it was such a *good* ambush for Xykon they had all worked out....

[Krulle]

Luuteeeyyyy!

[Krulle]

Another update notification:

https://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots1237.html : Page 1237: That's Bait

[RocketScientist]

Interesting. So is every door trapped, but then if you defeat the trap you come here?

[Krulle]

And anpother update notification:
https://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots1238.html - See It Coming


Why do things keep going "Wump!"?

Also: trademark lawyers incoming! ( https://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0032.html )


Edit to add:

But I thought mimics could only look like TREASURE CHESTS :-)

Little known fact: that's just a mimic's natural form. Then people started making their treasure chests to look like that so that thieves would be afraid to steal them.