14 KiB
[RT][HF] A Practical Guide to Evil Book 3: Chapter 50: Preparation
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Author: u/Yes_This_Is_God *
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URL: https://practicalguidetoevil.wordpress.com/2017/12/06/chapter-50-preparation/
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Score: 43
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Created: 2017-12-06T05:09:59
Post:
Comments:
u/haiku_fornification [+18] (3 hours later)
Cat being angry at Hune felt kinda out of the left field. She's been on the receiving end of making these hard choices for most of her life as Squire so you would imagine she would be less hypocritical.
The way the situation is presented, I'm thinking the best way to go forward would be for the Woe to go in on their own once the battle starts. The way Cat beat Akua before was by playing the role of the Queen, pulling out the sword etc. Playing the role of a Heroic group, outnumbered and outmatched, would give them a big boost imo.
u/Kinoite [+8] (21 hours later)
I think I agree about Hune. Lots of the story is about Cat's struggle with Sacred Values vs Utilitarianism. She wrestles with where she should draw the line.
But, a lot of the internal conflict seems artificial. Much of it doesn't fit with a military commander who's willing to bet the souls of a continent.
Take Nauk. Cat's a woman-of-the-people. She leads a legion. I'd assume that she knows 100s of legionaries by name. And 1000s by sight. After battle, even the minor ones, there'd be dozens of people dying in a medical tent. I'd assumed that Cat would visit and write condolence notes. This just happens off camera, since we don't know Unnamed Legion Member #245.
But she's got to have spent hundreds of hours talking to the dying. She's sent her friends to their deaths dozens of times. Many of them, she'd know that they were likely to die.
The Nauk thing shouldn't be new to her. It's just new to us because it's the first time it happened on camera.
u/CouteauBleu [+2] We are the Empire. (2 days later)
Oh yeah. I hadn't thought about that, but it does make sense that Cat would do a lot more "accounting" regarding her dead/injured soldiers than we're shown.
u/melmonella [+3] Tremble, o ye mighty, for a new age is upon you (15 hours later)
I am frankly not sure how The Narrative would deal with a group of two heroes and three villains. Heroes get heroic boosts for being outnumbered, but villains don't? If they were in a tower that exploded, would only Archer and Thief survive because there was no way for them to survive, thus giving them a heroic trope insuring their survival, but villains in a party don't get that trope?
It has already been estabilished that you can't hijack all heroic tropes as a villain-Cat got her ass handed to her by the demon in her soul, while a Hero would have been fine. So it's up in the air if that's what would happen. That being said, that episode while fighting summer fey where they all acted as a unit seems to imply their effectiveness is multiplied when acting together, so staying together may very well be the optimal move.
u/TheEngineer923 [+5] (16 hours later)
Archer and Thief are not as clear cut as White's group of sheep. Both of those Names are not intrinsic Hero names, they are what I call Skill Names. Names earned through skill alone (Scribe is another example if Scribe is even a true Name and not a nickname) and not based on some deluded moral.
They are part of the superclass called Neutral names so as such don't benefit as much from the favors of the Assholes Above as a true hero Name would (like the White Knight).
Whether the Narrative will account for that is up in the air. Still, gambling on that Narrative for a win for The Woe, would be a very bad gamble after all the shit Cat has done.
I agree though that staying together is a sound choice. Their skill sets compliment one another.
That's true for Heroes and Villains alike. Only Villains due to their nature, rarely form groups (Calamities notwithstanding). That's One of the reasons Black was adamant and thorough on killing individual Heroes BEFORE they could gang up for their misguided and (for the most part) stupid goals.
"Never underestimate the destructive capabilities of a group of idiots with insane moral delusions and resources."
u/silver7017 [+5] (19 hours later)
In all known examples, Names which can go either way (to include Squire) are still always granted by either Good or Evil. there is no proper noun neutral, at least not that we have evidence for yet. there are some cases where it is not really clear whether their powers are granted by Heavens or Hells, but so far everyone is either one or the other.
u/TheEngineer923 [+1] (19 hours later)
Fair enough.
u/Rheklr [+1] (5 days later)
Isn't that indicated by aging? Good named age and evil named don't.
u/silver7017 [+1] (5 days later)
yes, that is one way of determining for certain. if a person has been Named for a long enough time, and if you observe them over that time (or have reliable records) that will give them away. I was speaking more specifically to the case of Thief and Archer, who we haven't seen enough of to be able to use that method. And most specifically Thief, who doesn't have any magical light construct powers to give her away either.
u/Ardvarkeating101 [+8] Father of Learning (17 minutes later)
Anyone notice the new home page?
Also: Catherine, grow the fuck up, she made a call and more of your men are alive than dead because of it
u/nick012000 [+4] (7 hours later)
Anyone notice the new home page?
No. What's changed? I'm looking at it, and I can't notice anything different.
u/Ardvarkeating101 [+3] Father of Learning (13 hours later)
It gives book 1 and 2 summaries, like they would on a book jacket
u/cyberdsaiyan [+2] (29 minutes later)
I'm curious as to how this doubt will affect the general story structure of Cat's battle with Akua. Will it give her the slight advantage of a Hero? Or will it take plot power away from her villain side?
u/Yes_This_Is_God [+6] (2 hours later)
I've noticed that the more complex the speculation, the less complex the end result, and vice versa.
It would be entertaining to see if Creation and Arcadia were moving in tandem in this instance such that Winter (New Evil that's tired of the old patterns) and Summer (New Good that is trying to play the old pattern) align to take down Akua (the last remaining bastion of the old pattern).
EE has stated that Arcadia merely shadows creation, but I don't see what other event would correspond well enough to the highly influential change that just occurred to the faerie realms.
Again, just like the speculation on Ranger dying, this may not go anywhere. Would be fun, though.
u/Esryok [+6] (14 hours later)
My take is that the events in Arcadia foreshadow what's going to happen in books 4-5, as of all the players in that drama I think Akua aligns best with the Duke of Violent Squalls:
New Evil (Malicia/King of Winter) wants out of the old patterns. Catherine takes down a paragon of Old Evil (Diabolist/Duke of Violent Squalls) and claims their power for herself. She uses this power to wage war against Old Good (Principate? Bard?/Summer) and eventually forces them into a corner, where she's able to wrangle them into becoming New Good.
u/Yes_This_Is_God [+1] (18 hours later)
That's a good idea! I look forward to seeing how it plays out.
u/Oaden [+1] (a day later)
That would suggest a merger of the Principate and Praes
u/None [+1] (11 hours later)
I think the king of winter was mirroring black while the queen of summer was doing the same to the first prince, would be see a Deus exmachina on this battle in the form of an enemy (heroe's side) helping cat against Diabolits, I think bard would love to mess with both side although she have more to win by helping akua.
u/eaglejarl [+1] (a day later)
Again, just like the speculation on Ranger dying, Did Ranger die and I missed it, or is this speculation that she's going to?
Speaking of Ranger -- what makes her so powerful? She's apparently the strongest being in Creation, possibly excluding some gods. How did she get there?
u/silver7017 [+2] (a day later)
looks like some combination of elven heritage, having learning-related aspects in a non-transitional Name, and having more than one learning-related aspect. my money is on that last one making the most difference. Cat almost ended up with Seek, and from the brief glimpse of it we got before the demon fucked everything up, it looked pretty terrifyingly powerful.
u/eaglejarl [+1] (a day later)
Do we know what her Aspects are?
u/Oaden [+2] (a day later)
Yes, its in her interlude. The first is Learn, the same as the squire and the hedge wizard has. Helps a person pick up new skills quickly.
The second is Master, another learning themed aspect that helps her become an expert at whatever she learns.
The third is Transcend, which helps her ascent from worldclass expert, to whatever is above it.
So Ranger is so strong because she is litterally the most skilled fighter almost by definition.
u/eaglejarl [+1] (a day later)
Aha. Thanks, that makes things clearer.
Still, linear fighters and quadratic wizards. How she can be a threat to a Fae Queen I have no idea. Well, I suppose that Fae are supposed to be uncreative, so maybe that's it.
u/Yes_This_Is_God [+2] (a day later)
Dnd mechanical limitations don't really have sway in writing like this.
u/eaglejarl [+1] (2 days later)
It's not about mechanical limitations, though. It's about breadth of options. If Ranger's combat abilities are just run, jump, hit thing with sword, and shoot thing with bow, then she will do poorly against a Level-1 intelligent Fae Queen. Consider:
Fae Queen: I control time in my domain. You are frozen in time until I say otherwise. I'll set off a bunch of explosives around you and unfreeze time just as they go off.
Ranger: You can't freeze time in your immediate area / I dodge the explosions / whatever other contrived reason allows me to survive this.
FQ: Okay, I turn invisible, fly up 1 mile, and control the weather to cause a blizzard that freezes you to death.
Ranger: I'm the Ranger. I'm transcendent at wilderness survival, so I'm immune to blizzards. Also, you're from Summer so blizzards aren't really your thing.
FQ: Fine. I drop an invisible rock on you.
Ranger: I have transcendent senses and dodge ability, so I sense it coming and dodge.
FQ: Okay, well, I control the terrain in my territory and/or can generate blast-furnace levels of heat at will, so I turn a 1-mile radius around you into lava.
Ranger: Well, crap.
u/Yes_This_Is_God [+3] (2 days later)
Breadth of options are literally mechanical. As such, those perceived limitations on part of Ranger have no hold in this story. If the story says she can do it, she can do it.
It may not jive with your sense of what's possible, but it's clearly possible from the view of the author and the story. Whether or not it's jumping the shark is up to you.
The same "contrived reason" that allows Ranger to break a time stop is the same "contrived reason" why she'd be able to ignore the effects of a 1-mile lava pit.
u/eaglejarl [+1] (2 days later)
We have no evidence that she can do more than sword-and-board, nor is it terribly consistent with the idea of her Name -- rangers were woodsmen and warriors, not mages.
u/melmonella [+2] Tremble, o ye mighty, for a new age is upon you (3 days later)
I mean
The sky split in half and Ranger stood between us as if she had always been there.
She can cut the sky in half?..
u/hoja_nasredin [+1] Dai-Gurren Brigade (3 days later)
Embrace the old truth. If you are strong enough the creation will do your bidding.
u/eaglejarl [+1] (5 days later)
Good point, I had forgotten that one. I don't know what it actually does, but at least it suggests that she's more than sword'n'board. Thanks for the reminder.
u/melmonella [+1] Tremble, o ye mighty, for a new age is upon you (5 days later)
Seems to cut AoE magic attacks in half so that they don't hit you. Kinda like in Avatar strong fire mages can go through flames by parting them.
u/melmonella [+2] Tremble, o ye mighty, for a new age is upon you (3 days later)
I mean, Ranger cut the slaming sky FQ summoned apart on screen. Like, we have literally seen her do it.
u/eaglejarl [+1] (5 days later)
Good point, I had forgotten that one. I don't know what it actually does, but at least it suggests that she's more than sword'n'board. Thanks for the reminder.
u/Jangri- [+1] (2 days later)
My speculation is that the transcend aspect gives her the ability to counter more esoteric threats - for example the ability to cut through Sulia's sky in arcadia
u/silver7017 [+1] (a day later)
She has learn, perfect, and transcend, if I remember correctly. she had a point of view chapter a while back.