# Forum > Play-by-Post Games > Message Board Games > Structured Games > Pool OOTS death pool (thread #4)

## Sniffnoy

So martianmister PMed me saying his computer had crashed and asking me to take over the death pool thread again.  Sorry for any mess in transferring stuff over.  As always, if I've misrecorded your bet, or failed to record it, please let me know.ca

(For those encountering this thread for the first time, by the way, the thread was originally started shortly after Tsukiko's death.  So no it is not very old.)

Here then, once again, are the rules, as copied over from the original thread, with some clarifying additions of my own:




> For those who are unaware of the term or just have a certain red and black mercenary on the mind, a Dead Pool is a game where you take bets on who will be the next to die. There won't be any actual money up for grabs, of course, so the only real prize is bragging rights.
> 
> Whenever a character is killed off, we will begin a new round of betting. Anybody who had bet on that character's death will be awarded a point. Then everybody (even the people who didn't guess right), will be asked to make a new bet for the next round.
> 
> I'd like to set a few ground rules, though.
> 
> 1. a) The character who dies generally has to have at least ten appearances in their name. For example, if the Order of the Stick were to suddenly come across a Cave Troll, you would not be allowed to bet on the Troll. The characters you bet on have to have some significance.
> 
> b) If the character happens to be very significant to the story and has had enough dialogue, I am willing to make certain exceptions. I will make it clear which characters qualify.
> ...


Let me also add: If you are making a post with a bet in it, please be clear about it.  That is to say, either include it in the first line (best if the post is just 1 line or so); or else go and *bold* your bet so it stands out.  I will read it and add it even if you don't do this, but it makes it easier for me if you do.

Most recent death (that counts for the purpose of changing bets): *Nameless Vampire* (implied in #1175 on 2019-08-14)

Now, then:

The current point totals:
*Spoiler*
Show


4 points:
Sniffnoy (Nale, Crystal, Vampire Dwarf, "Durkon")
ti'esar (Malack, Zz'dtri, Ponchula, "Gontor")

3 points:
Pory (Yukyuk, Malack, Nale)

2 points:
PhantomDennis (Yukyuk, Durkon)
Seharvepernfan (Yukyuk, Malack)
Squark (Yukyuk, Zz'dtri)
VanaGalen (Durkon, Malack)
Heksefatter (Durkon, Nale)
theinsulabot (Durkon, Nale)
onionbreath (Durkon, Nale)
Sunken Valley (Malack, Zz'dtri)
FujinAkari (Malack, Zz'dtri)
sam79 (Malack, Zz'dtri)
Alabenson (Nale, Nameless Vampire)
ZidIles (Bozzok, "Durkon")
FlawedParadigm (Ponchula, "Gontor")
DeliaP ("Durkon", "Gontor")
Kish ("Durkon", "Gontor")
Askthepizzaguy ("Durkon", Nameless Vampire)
Elenna ("Durkon", Nameless Vampire)

1 point:
*Spoiler*
Show

Ravian (Yukyuk)
ella ventic (Yukyuk)
ThePhantasm (Yukyuk)
Giddon (Yukyuk)
Johanz (Yukyuk)
Cleverdan22 (Yukyuk)
Dr. Gamera (Yukyuk)
Endon the White (Yukyuk)
Petey7 (Yukyuk)
olthar  (Yukyuk)
Orsen (Yukyuk)
Bad Hair Day (Durkon)
Jan Mattys (Durkon)
Knight.Anon (Durkon)
The Squirrel (Durkon)
MarchiMcFly (Durkon)
trufflehound (Durkon)
Winter (Durkon)
rgrekejin (Durkon)
The Pilgrim (Durkon)
Cisturn (Malack)
Dark Matter (Malack)
Keeper of Starlight (Malack)
Loreni333 (Malack)
Ulysses WkAmil (Malack)
Wizard (Malack)
Saithis Bladewing (Malack)
The_Tentacle (Malack)
Liliet (Malack)
padraig (Malack)
chessdudeguy (Malack)
Gift Jeraff (Malack)
Bulldog Psion (Malack)
gorocz (Malack)
Rui (Malack)
John_Richards (Malack)
Xenrei (Malack)
Warren Dew (Malack)
Flame of Anor (Malack)
Onyavar (Malack)
Peregrine Crow (Malack)
WastedTalent (Malack)
Zerobot (Malack)
Yumori123 (Malack)
GreatEscape_13 (Zz'dtri)
Emulgator (Zz'dtri)
EnragedFilia (Zz'dtri)
Gurgeh (Zz'dtri)
Vulkos (Zz'dtri)
Obnoxious Hydra (Zz'dtri)
Emperor Flumph (Zz'dtri)
curtis (Zz'dtri)
CountD (Zz'dtri)
Nyes the Dark (Zz'dtri)
ThomasMink (Zz'dtri)
Cuthalion (Zz'dtri)
Reltzik (Zz'dtri)
Kornaki (Zz'dtri)
r2excelsior (Zz'dtri)
Rakoa (Zz'dtri)
durron597 (Zz'dtri)
BroomGuys (Zz'dtri)
Sabeki (Zz'dtri)
Ellye (Nale)
AlfredAmeoba (Nale)
squidbreath (Nale)
bengator (Nale)
Dragongirl (Nale)
sparky9042 (Nale)
Byzantine2 (Nale)
Stormlock (Nale)
Silverionmox (Nale)
Rob Roy (Nale)
AshesOfOld (Nale)
Avangor (Nale)
RedneckTex95 (Nale)
2323mike (Nale)
WindStruck (Nale)
CircleOfTheRock (Ponchula)
Kyndraer ("Durkon")
braveheart ("Durkon")
Oudyn ("Durkon")
Disc Lorde ("Durkon")
Bob_McSurly ("Durkon")
Jaxzan Proditor ("Gontor")
jwhouk ("Gontor")
Harrisonvinny ("Gontor")
Caerulea ("Gontor")
heretic (Nameless Vampire)


1/2 point: GnomeGninjas (Demon Roaches)



The current bets:

Kilkil:
*Spoiler*
Show

RSLee
Squeejee
Cizak
The Glyphstone
EmperorSarda
Zigg'rrauglurr
Ferreroni
Anne Calie
Mr. Pants
ThePhantasm
Verithrax
Johanz
Toy Killer
Sajach
Ninja Dragon
Vovix
137ben
Olinser
Sorator
white lancer
The Squirrel
Xhosant
Darkefang
Demolator
Peregrine Crow
Oko and Qailee



Ian Starshine:
*Spoiler*
Show

Adoendithas
Coopenhagen21
nohamotyo



Jirix:
*Spoiler*
Show

Mr. Pink
SheepInDisguise
bluewurm
ORione
EternalRuin
DemonRoach
twinkletoes



Geoff:
*Spoiler*
Show

zimmerwald1915
Alaba Blackveil
Bulldog Psion
ArnoudX
Zjoot



Belkar Bitterleaf:
*Spoiler*
Show

sparkyinbozo
Anarion
Vemynal
weso12
martianmister
toughluck
Dr. Gamera
Petey7
Silver2195
Dracarot
Dark Elf Bard
Hydra Druid
Icedaemon
Peelee
Turgon9357
MeanMrsMustard
Felixc-91
SowZ
isoriveil
TheTeaMustFlow
GnomeGninjas
Drynwyn
HedgehogRanger
Torrasque
Redgoblin
lio45
Winter
Morph Bark
DrBurr
Syklone
Minitroll
Prowl
MarchiMcFly
mhsmith
DoctorStandard
WastedTalent
Kornaki
sparky9042
blueblade
Heksefatter
Bedinsis
Ben Kenobi
Infinite
Sir_Leorik
declinator
dmaxno
Ulthwithian
ajp1011
Pory
gadren
necrochicken
Celticbear
Insertmeme
Ezeze
Dellis
b_jonas



Xykon:
*Spoiler*
Show

Agnostik
Poppy Appletree
Xihirli
Kish



Mr. Scruffy:
*Spoiler*
Show

IrnBruAddict
LudiDrizzt
Iferus
The Grimmace
Emperordaniel
lycunadari
ReturnOfTheKing
Rinazina
Papaya101



General Tarquin:
*Spoiler*
Show

G-Man Graves
Miklus
Forbiddenwar
smasher0404
873
Dracon1us
androkguz
Rui
PhantomDennis
rgrekejin
hopeful1212
Dungeon_Crawler
The Pilgrim
davidbofinger
ChaosOS
oppyu
Rob Roy
Warren Dew
Sunken Valley
Firemage
Cuthalion
Silverionmox
Sabeki
Tanar Aerdoth
DarrenLocke
TRH
Dark Matter
trian
Klanos
David Argall
Zar Peter
Hurkle
SmaugTheYounger



Thog:
*Spoiler*
Show

Sith_Happens
Oscredwin
The Zoat
EnragedFilia



Elan:
*Spoiler*
Show

Uchiha Richard
TKoTD
dadada
Son of A Lich!



Enor:
*Spoiler*
Show

Hazzardevil



Miko Miyazaki:
*Spoiler*
Show

blackjack217



Haley Starshine:
*Spoiler*
Show

The Second
gorocz
PandoricaJem
prism6691



Sabine:
*Spoiler*
Show

Lord Ruby34
onionbreath
WindStruck



Niu:
*Spoiler*
Show

t209



Qarr:
*Spoiler*
Show

Lintecarka
Ravian
darlingt
sr123
Arkhosia



Vaarsuvius:
*Spoiler*
Show

Sonata Arctica
Gorm_the_DBA
McDougal
Christ0ph3r4
Magentamist
Sniccups



Celia:
*Spoiler*
Show

Zmeoaice



Empress of Blood:
*Spoiler*
Show

Savil
2323mike



Amun-Zora:
*Spoiler*
Show

rewinn



O-Chul:
*Spoiler*
Show

CRtwenty
rs2excelsior
Ornithologist
Moo, I'm Human
Black Socks



Laurin Shattersmith:
*Spoiler*
Show

Mollez
dps



Nale:
*Spoiler*
Show

ravenmeister



Spiky the Barbed Devil:
*Spoiler*
Show

Rakoa
sam79



Miron Shewdanker:
*Spoiler*
Show

zql
Thrillhouse
ikosaeder
ImperatorV



Roy Greenhilt:
*Spoiler*
Show

Psionic Dog



Julio Scoundrél:
*Spoiler*
Show

Procyonpi
Aran nu tasar



Hieronymus Grubwiggler:
*Spoiler*
Show

ella ventic



Bandana Secundus:
*Spoiler*
Show

ramakidin
Markozeta
Generic-Guy



Wrecan:
*Spoiler*
Show

Rorrik



Lien:
*Spoiler*
Show

anjxed
Gift Jeraff
trtl
georger0171



Felix:
*Spoiler*
Show

Mister Tom
Fin
DeliaP



Hilgya Firehelm:
*Spoiler*
Show

username1



Sigdi Thundershield:
*Spoiler*
Show

GM_3826



Minrah Shaleshoe:
*Spoiler*
Show

Snowblaze
Vulsutyr



Pompey:
*Spoiler*
Show

Rollin



Durkon Thundershield:
*Spoiler*
Show

FlawedParadigm



Greyview:
*Spoiler*
Show

Caerulea



Oona:
*Spoiler*
Show

Alexandrite



Monster in the Darkness:
*Spoiler*
Show

hustlertwo



Banjo:
*Spoiler*
Show

Persolus
yeetusmcgeetus



Once again, if I've misrecorded your bet, or failed to record it, please let me know.

And, because I want to, some betting stats:
*Spoiler*
Show


Number of bets and number of appearances.  Note: Number of appearances will not be updated with every comic, so those numbers are not necessarily up to date (they're currently as of #1267).  Look at the number of appearances thread if you want up-to-date numbers.


```
bets	app	char
57	553	Belkar Bitterleaf
33	 93	General Tarquin
28	 28	Kilkil
 8	218	Mr. Scruffy
 7	 22	Jirix
 6	488	Vaarsuvius
 5	 16	Geoff
 5	 49	Qarr
 5	 63	O-Chul
 4	 13	Miron Shewdanker
 4	 61	Lien
 4	 68	Thog
 4	119	Xykon
 4	604	Haley Starshine
 4	610	Elan
 3	 23	Felix
 3	 28	Ian Starshine
 3	 61	Bandana Secundus
 3	 80	Sabine
 2	 12	Spiky the Barbed Devil
 2	 16	Julio Scoundrél
 2	 20	Empress of Blood
 2	 21	Laurin Shattersmith
 2	 23	Banjo
 2	 96	Minrah Shaleshoe
 1	  7	Hieronymus Grubwiggler
 1	  9	Amun-Zora
 1	 11	Pompey
 1	 15	Wrecan
 1	 19	Niu
 1	 21	Greyview
 1	 24	Oona
 1	 25	Enor
 1	 34	Sigdi Thundershield
 1	 49	Hilgya Firehelm
 1	 69	Miko Miyazaki
 1	 75	Celia
 1	 85	Monster in the Darkness
 1	117	Nale
 1	528	Durkon Thundershield
 1	678	Roy Greenhilt
```




Links to old threads:
Thread #3
Thread #2
Original thread

----------


## Sniffnoy

A note: ti'esar's bet was not changed, because as old as it was, it was still after Yukyuk's death.

And yeah, Belkar doesn't count as dead/undead yet.

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## Seharvepernfan

Is the rule "Must have appeared in at least 10 strips" still active?  I'll have to look to make sure, but I think some of the characters that are currently being bet upon don't qualify, but then I think Yukyuk didn't either...

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## Flame of Anor

*rubs hands together in anticipation of winning*

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## Sniffnoy

> Is the rule "Must have appeared in at least 10 strips" still active?  I'll have to look to make sure, but I think some of the characters that are currently being bet upon don't qualify, but then I think Yukyuk didn't either...


Amun-Zora's the only one bet on who hasn't appeared in 10 strips.  Though you're right, Yukyuk hadn't at the time either.

Note the use of the word "generally" in rule 1 -- 10 strips isn't a firm rule; rather it's more of a means of enforcing the rule that "the characters you bet on must have some significance".  Certainly appearing in 10 strips is sufficient, but it isn't necessary.  Both RSLee and I have allowed bets on characters without 10 appearances when we considered the character to have some significance.

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## FujinAkari

... although I could -totally- cheat and say Belkar (since he hasn't technically died yet) I am going to guess *Malack* since I think he will die shortly after Belkar and I kinda feel like putting down a bet for Belkar -now- would violate the spirit of the game.

I would almost suggest a rule specifying that votes cast during a combat sequence won't be counted if the character in question dies during -that- combat sequence, though I'm unsure how easily that could be monitored.

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## Seharvepernfan

I wish we could somehow limit the votes to only being voted immediately after the last death.  For instance, only the votes that were stated in the week following Yukyuks' death.  I'm aware that the thread would die in that case, though.  I mean, I voted on Malack about a year ago...

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## Flame of Anor

> I wish we could somehow limit the votes to only being voted immediately after the last death.  For instance, only the votes that were stated in the week following Yukyuks' death.  I'm aware that the thread would die in that case, though.  I mean, I voted on Malack about a year ago...


Maybe bets could be not counted if they were made, say, two strips or less before the character dies? With exceptions, of course, for deaths that occur less than two strips apart.

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## Seharvepernfan

> Maybe bets could be not counted if they were made, say, two strips or less before the character dies? With exceptions, of course, for deaths that occur less than two strips apart.


I'd like _that_, at least.  However, it still requires someone to keep track of when each strip is posted.

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## ella ventic

> Amun-Zora's the only one bet on who hasn't appeared in 10 strips.  Though you're right, Yukyuk hadn't at the time either.
> 
> Note the use of the word "generally" in rule 1 -- 10 strips isn't a firm rule; rather it's more of a means of enforcing the rule that "the characters you bet on must have some significance".  Certainly appearing in 10 strips is sufficient, but it isn't necessary.  Both RSLee and I have allowed bets on characters without 10 appearances when we considered the character to have some significance.


Yep, that about covers it. :nods sagely: 
Just to be needlessly precise, though, yes, bets on Yukyuk were allowed before he had accumulated 10 appearances and RSLee explicitly said that they would have counted had that still been the case when he died. ...But the point was moot in any case since at his actual death his strip count was up to 14. </pedantry>

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## Bulldog Psion

Heh, I couldn't remember who I bet for long ago. As it turned out, it was Belkar Bitterleaf.  :Small Cool:

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## Kish

> *rubs hands together in anticipation of winning*


Indeed. Victory tastes like...blood.

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## lio45

There should definitely be a ~two-comic buffer before any bet gains validity... otherwise, the best strategy by far is to not bet until someone's in deep, and then bet on that character. The "death process" of a character is, statistically, pretty likely to begin at least one strip ahead, if not even more.

Sure, a character can go from totally un-threatened to dead in a single strip, but that's not the norm.

Therefore, I'm betting on *Belkar*.

----------


## The_Tentacle

Just to be _slightly_ different, I'm going for *Malack*.  He's not keeping Belkar under wraps for long!

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## Bulldog Psion

Looking back, I think I already lost, because I believe I bet on Belkar_ before_ Yukyuk was killed by the acid spheres. 

Well, I'm not going to bet again until after Belkar is dead. It wouldn't be sporting, IMO, since it's so obvious that he's going down at the moment.  :Small Smile:

----------


## Procyonpi

Put me down for *KilKil*

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## sam79

> ... although I could -totally- cheat and say Belkar (since he hasn't technically died yet) I am going to guess *Malack* since I think he will die shortly after Belkar and I kinda feel like putting down a bet for Belkar -now- would violate the spirit of the game.


Perhaps you will be rewarded for your honourable approach to this game!  I'm feeling a little more comfortable with my punt on Malack since 871 went up.  

And this is probably why we don't need to police any sort of rules regarding placing 'late' bets, or bets during combats etc; the Giant seems to have some sort of feat that allows him to Flat-foot all of us from time to time!

----------


## Chessgeek

So close!  :Small Furious: 




> Looking back, I think I already lost, because I believe I bet on Belkar_ before_ Yukyuk was killed by the acid spheres.


I'm pretty sure that a previous bet is kept until you change it. So if Belkar does croak next, everyone who has bet on him and has not changed their vote since will get the point, regardless of how recently or how long ago the bet was placed.

----------


## Rakoa

Damn it Durkon. I was quite excited for my imminent point.

----------


## Sunken Valley

Told you Belkar won't die.

Now if only I'd bet Malack except Z. I was thinking V would find Malack, who would escape because by dramatic law, Malack should die by Durkon's hand. But now that Durkon's here...

Go Malack! Dominate them!

----------


## Rorrik

I'm just glad we seem to have cornered someone into dying.  My bet on Sabine before she was banished turned out to be extra rash.  We won't be seeing her for a long time.

----------


## Liliet

My bet: *Malack*

(And yeah, I registered specifically to say this. It`s like magic: the more you bet on it, the more likely it will happen. Isn`t that right?  :Mitd: )

----------


## Bulldog Psion

Looks like I was wrong twice in a row. Maybe three times or more. And I'm cool with that.  :Small Cool:

----------


## Kish

I hope FujinAkari, The_Tentacle, and Liliet win, I do.

----------


## Flame of Anor

> I hope FujinAkari, The_Tentacle, and Liliet win, I do.


Same here.

----------


## Rorrik

Does being vampirified count as death?  If so, without serious intervention, Durkon may be the next one to go.

----------


## VanaGalen

I just noticed the thread and I love the idea  :Small Smile:  My bet is on *Durkon*

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## Kish

> Does being vampirified count as death?


According to Rule 6A, yes.

----------


## Dr. Gamera

#877 is up.  I again bet on Belkar.

Not sure when I'll post again.

----------


## oppyu

> I just noticed the thread and I love the idea  My bet is on *Durkon*


heh. Twenty minutes earlier and you'd have one shiny point.  :Small Tongue: 
EDIT: Now that we've had a death, I'd like to change my vote to *Zz'dtri*.

----------


## The Pilgrim

*Dang*

Point.

----------


## padraig

Let's go with *Malack*

----------


## Ninja Dragon

I'll keep my bet on *Kilkil*.

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## Chessgeek

> heh. Twenty minutes earlier and you'd have one shiny point.


Except that that post was 12 hours ago, so they do, in fact, have a shiny point. And I'm jealous. *Malack* shall pay for his actions.

----------


## dps

I'll stay with Uncle Geoff

----------


## Dracarot

I'll maintain my bet on *Belkar*. I cannot see improvement in his situation.

----------


## Rakoa

Is it now necessary to state that you are maintaining your bet? Or is it still implied?

----------


## 137beth

I'm going to keep my bet on *kilkil*, although it seems increasingly unlikely.

----------


## Winter

Btw, your measure to take points is broken.

Assume two people, one predicts A will die, the second predicts D will die.

Now people in the comic die in the order A, B, C, D, E, F. When A dies, the first person picks B. When D dies, the second person picks F. At the end, both people have the same number of points (2), but D has been wrong four times before his estimates died, while A was much better (two in a row).

You need award negative points for being wrong or your way of taking track will lead to results that do not represent the quality of the vote. Or create some other setup.

I suggest you award 10 points for a death at the point when the vote is cast first. For each character that dies in between then you subtract one point, which means a character will be worth if it saw 10 characters dieing without kicking the bucket.
If someone decides to join in later on a character, he gets the reduced points as well. Simply because if you join in later, more story has happened and you do not deserve a chance to as many points as someone who picks a fresh character (as you already saw "Durkon not dieing twice").

Example:
I call Roy, who is worth 10 points. But in between die Roy, Belkar, some Side-NPC. If Roy dies now, he's only worth 7 points, as he saw three dead in between.
In my above example, Player 1 would have 20 points (A died with 10, B died with 10), but Player 2 would only have 11 (D died with 7, F with 4 (assuming all characters A to F were picked at the same time).

----------


## Koo Rehtorb

Only the first person to name the victim should get a point. Otherwise it just encourages holding back your vote until you've got good evidence for it.

----------


## Winter

> Only the first person to name the victim should get a point.


This is impossible. There are too few characters for too many people.




> Otherwise it just encourages holding back your vote until you've got good evidence for it.


That is an entirely different matter. I think votes for "fights or encounters that have already started" should not count.
You can jump in on Durkon if the Order enters the pyramid, but not after the LG has attacked. Note I include "encounters", which means the pre-fight talk with Malack would exclude you from picking Durkon.
It is also relatively easy policeable as the most current comic at the point of casting a vote would decide if it counts or not. The rule would be: you can only pick a character whose party is not recently involved in any sort of conflict.
You currently could not pick Roy or Tarquin. Both are not on screen but their parties are involved in an encounter. You could very well pick Hinjo, Xykon Celia.

----------


## VanaGalen

I'll go for *Malack* now. Btw, does Sabine's reaction to Holy Word count as death?

----------


## Heksefatter

YES!!!! I won 25 qvumsels. I'll drink 'em all up and then figure out how to win more.

----------


## Winter

> Btw, does Sabine's reaction to Holy Word count as death?


Of course not. She is banished for 24 hours, not dead/destroyed/forever unable to come back.

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## sam79

> That is an entirely different matter. I think votes for "fights or encounters that have already started" should not count.
> You can jump in on Durkon if the Order enters the pyramid, but not after the LG has attacked. Note I include "encounters", which means the pre-fight talk with Malack would exclude you from picking Durkon.
> It is also relatively easy policeable as the most current comic at the point of casting a vote would decide if it counts or not. The rule would be: you can only pick a character whose party is not recently involved in any sort of conflict.
> You currently could not pick Roy or Tarquin. Both are not on screen but their parties are involved in an encounter. You could very well pick Hinjo, Xykon Celia.



I don't really think this is necessary; it makes a relatively simple and light-hearted game needlessy complicated, and could result in a lot of petty arguments.  Also, as this series of strips proves, 'late' voting does not necessarily give an unfair advantage; people who bet 'late' on Belkar after strip 870 or Malack after 873 did not gain as a result, and there is always the risk of holding back your bet and being too late.

In other news, I'm going to stick with my current bet of *Malack*.

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## onionbreath

> I don't really think this is necessary; it makes a relatively simple and light-hearted game needlessy complicated, and could result in a lot of petty arguments.  Also, as this series of strips proves, 'late' voting does not necessarily give an unfair advantage; people who bet 'late' on Belkar after strip 870 or Malack after 873 did not gain as a result, and there is always the risk of holding back your bet and being too late.


I agree with this.  

I vote on *Belkar* for this round.

----------


## Winter

Yeah, blocking characters from getting picked is probably not necessary. I think the way of keeping track of the points is still not telling, though.

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## Gift Jeraff

Hmmm, 2 PCs dying in a row seems unlikely. Although I think Zz'dtri and Kilkil are safe votes, I'm going to go with *Malack* because I so badly _want_ to see the bastard horribly slain (and his body defiled in the most humiliating way...to prevent his return.)

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## Winter

> Hmmm, 2 PCs dying in a row seems unlikely.


That's why it might happen.  :Small Wink:

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## Kish

I don't think there's any need to make the rules more complicated than they are.

I am not moving my current bet. Even if both Malack and Durkon were likely to let Belkar live now, he still has a nearly-expired prophecy.

----------


## Winter

Given that Durkon just now got Xs in his eyes, I want to make a new bet: I put it down that *Belkar* is going to be next.

----------


## dps

> I don't really think this is necessary; it makes a relatively simple and light-hearted game needlessy complicated, and could result in a lot of petty arguments.  Also, as this series of strips proves, 'late' voting does not necessarily give an unfair advantage; people who bet 'late' on Belkar after strip 870 or Malack after 873 did not gain as a result, and there is always the risk of holding back your bet and being too late.


There's another problem with this, which the current situation highlights.  Anyone who had picked Durkon now needs to pick another character, but is blocked from taking any member of the Order, or of the current Nale/Tarquin version of the Linear Guild.  That doesn't seem fair--they'd be getting penalized for having been right.

----------


## Bulldog Psion

Now that Durkon is dead, and I've been proven wrong again, I'd like to:

Remove my bet on Belkar Bitterleaf

and say that *Malack* is the next to die. 

Because of a private theory of what's going to happen next.  :Small Wink:

----------


## Seharvepernfan

Dammit, there goes my lead.

----------


## gorocz

Now with a new round of betting, I'd like to chip in on this. Because it looks really grim for Belkar atm. and really well for Malack, I'd go with *Malack* dying next. Just so my avatar doesn't come true and because, honestly, vamping two characters would be kinda weird...

----------


## Morph Bark

An interesting idea, this. I'll vote on *Belkar*.

----------


## ThomasMink

Just popping in to say that I'll keep my vote for *Zz'dtri*.

----------


## Emulgator

> Just popping in to say that I'll keep my vote for *Zz'dtri*.


Pretty much this.

----------


## Rorrik

With Sabine banished and big battles in the near future, I'm changing my vote to ... well dang, Malack is going to get away, I agree that two PCs is unlikely, but that far out there are a ton of variables.  I'm going with *Belkar*.

----------


## rgrekejin

Woo woo! Point for rgrekejin!

Question: If Durkon becomes a Vampire, can I bet on Durkon again, in this case my wager being that the undead Durkon will be destroyed, like how a bet on Xykon or Malack would work?

----------


## sam79

> Woo woo! Point for rgrekejin!
> 
> Question: If Durkon becomes a Vampire, can I bet on Durkon again, in this case my wager being that the undead Durkon will be destroyed, like how a bet on Xykon or Malack would work?


That would seem reasonable.

----------


## Rui

*Malack* is the next. I think it will wear off (its a round per caster level and Malack and Durkon fought for a lot of time) and Belkar will run to warn the others, or Vaarsuvius will save him... she is powerful enough to kill Malack alone.

----------


## DrBurr

With Durkon's demise and Malack appearing to have no intention to Kill Mr.Scruffy I'm changing my bet to *Belkar*

----------


## Sniffnoy

Sorry all, had to step away from the internet for a day.  Bad timing, it sems.  Will update shortly.

*Edit*: OK -- updated, though stats may be a bit off.  Will recheck those, and answer rules questions later -- although all the rules questions I've seen so far are already covered in what's written and don't require additional judgment calls.  Still, will expicitly get to those anyway before too long.

----------


## Mike Havran

Eh. I'm going for a longshot. 

*Qarr* is my bet.

----------


## Syklone

I'd like to bet on Belkar instead of Kilkil.

----------


## Minitroll

I put my monopoly on Belkar... I think he's next after Durkon... maybe even Durkon will do him in...

----------


## Flame of Anor

> *Malack* is the next. I think it will wear off (its a round per caster level and Malack and Durkon fought for a lot of time) and Belkar will run to warn the others, or Vaarsuvius will save him... she is powerful enough to kill Malack alone.


But I don't think the vampiric gaze will wear off.

----------


## Rui

> But I don't think the vampiric gaze will wear off.


Maybe, maybe not. He might get a neutral 20 on the save or even die. I just bet that Rich wouldn't kill 2 PCs in 2 strips. It'll lower the dramatic death of Durkon and will be silly, because the Order of the Stick will be doomed.

----------


## ti'esar

I'm going to change my bet to *Malack*.

----------


## martianmister

*Belkar Bitterleaf*, again.  :Small Big Grin:

----------


## Rorrik

> Maybe, maybe not. He might get a neutral 20 on the save or even die. I just bet that Rich wouldn't kill 2 PCs in 2 strips. It'll lower the dramatic death of Durkon and will be silly, because the Order of the Stick will be doomed.


I'm starting to think the point is for the Order of the Stick to be so doomed they have to fish around for allies against Xykon, including Tarquin, Malack, and maybe Redcloak.

----------


## rgrekejin

My money is once again on *Durkon*.

----------


## The Squirrel

Hmmm... vampire Durkon is tempting, and while I do think he'll be killed soon, I think it'll be in a showdown with the linear guild during which kilkil will be the first (and possibly only) member that dies. I don't think Belkar will die anytime soon (next 50 strips), but if he does it won't be before taking out another kobald. So my next vote is for *Kilkil*.

----------


## Peelee

> *Belkar Bitterleaf*, again.


Yeah. That. Might as well keep horses.

----------


## white lancer

> I'm starting to think the point is for the Order of the Stick to be so doomed they have to fish around for allies against Xykon, including Tarquin, Malack, and maybe Redcloak.


I don't think they would even consider aligning with Malack after what he just did to Durkon.

Anyway, I guess I was right that neither Belkar nor Malack were going to die (at least not right away) in that fight, but I didn't guess Durkon at all. I don't think two members of the OotS will get vamped, especially not so close together--it would even be a little extreme for two of them to get killed normally in such quick succession. I think that Belkar is going to live for a while yet; either Malack honors Durkon's last request and lets him go, or someone intervenes, or he gets used against the Order via dominating gaze.

Do we have to post here if our vote isn't changing? Because I think I'm sticking with *Kilkil*. This may not be the wisest decision since he's not in any immediate danger, but it's gotta happen eventually, right?

----------


## Sniffnoy

OK, everything should now be caught up to the present, though I may have miscounted in some of the betting statistics; I'll fix that later.

To answer the various rules questions that have come up: No, you don't have to restate your bet if you're keeping it the same.  In fact, if you restate it, I'll just ignore this (i.e. I won't take this to mean you can't change it later).  And yes, if vampire Durkon is destroyed, that will count as another death for Durkon.

And no, I'm not going to go changing the basic rules now, however sensible the new system may be.  This thing's been going for a while now and I don't want to have to work out any sort of transition.  That just sounds like too much work.  You want to start a different death pool thread with your own scoring mechanism, go ahead (so long as you make the thread title sufficiently different that it won't get confused with this one).

----------


## ti'esar

My congratulations to the remarkably accurate PhantomDennis, incidentally.

----------


## John_Richards

I wager on *Malack*, because now he needs to die!(re-die?, be "put-down"?)

----------


## Prowl

I'm going to go for the odds-on bet here and switch my prediction from Jirix (yes it was some time ago) to Belkar. I think I'll let that one ride since it seems to me that Belkar's clock is about up.

----------


## sparky9042

I'm not going to head straight for the Belkar bandwagon just yet. If I recall correctly he's got a few weeks left to live. Having said that, I do think *Nale* is bound to go sooner rather than later -- he was unconscious and a halfling attack from death last fight and is being entirely manipulated by Tarquin.

----------


## Xhosant

"For example, you would not be able to say "I bet that somebody from the Linear Guild will die". You have to specify which member it will be."

The kobold, d'oh.

----------


## declinator

Grmpf. Accidentally posted to the dead death pool thread yesterday  :Small Mad:  But I take that opportunity to "improve" my bet (posts in the wrong thread don't count for me, so I take it that's OK) and put my stakes on *Durkon*, who will not be undead for long.

----------


## Xenrei

Put my money on *Malack*. "A kill for a kill" as they say... :Small Mad:

----------


## Warren Dew

*Malack*, mostly because I'm getting to like the evil softie.

----------


## Flame of Anor

Actually, I'll change my vote to *Malack* as well.

----------


## Sniffnoy

OK, I've incorporated the stuff people posted to the old thread now too (except for declinator, I'm allowing him to get away with that since I didn't notice earlier and it was on the wrong thread).

And I'm counting Xhosant as having bet on Kilkil unless he says otherwise pretty soon.

----------


## 873

It seems likely that Malack will die next, but I have a hunch that says Tarquin is going to die, so *I vote Tarquin.
*

----------


## Sniffnoy

OK, I've fixed the betting stats, so everything should be up to date now.

Once again: If I've misrecorded your bet, or failed to record it, please let me know.

----------


## Ornithologist

I'm betting on *Belkar Bitterleaf*. Mostly because he has a short clock at this point, and I can't see the LG Kobold getting anywhere near enough to Belkar to join in a running gag...

----------


## ella ventic

Oh, man, I've been in mourning for Durkon for a bit and haven't felt like posting, but I think I'm finally over it enough to switch my vote to *Tarquin*. Going with a long shot.

(But I really HOPE it's gonna be Malack. Snake Boy needs to go DOWN. ...Maybe I'm not quite over it.  :Small Red Face: )

----------


## Onyavar

Is it allowed to bet that* Malack and Belkar* are both going to die both next - if not in the same strip then within a maximum timeframe of three strips total?

If not, then I'm putting all my money  bragging rights on *Malack*.

----------


## Silver Swift

I would like to change my bet to *Malack* as well.

----------


## Sniffnoy

> Is it allowed to bet that* Malack and Belkar* are both going to die both next - if not in the same strip then within a maximum timeframe of three strips total?


Nope.  See rule 2.




> If not, then I'm putting all my money  bragging rights on *Malack*.


Done.

----------


## Thrillhouse

Ok...I'd like to change my vote to something kinda ridiculous. *I bet that Hinjo will be the next to die.*

*Spoiler*
Show

Essentially, I'm betting the longshot that Hinjo's rush back to camp in previous comics isn't just to throw them a sending spell warning of Xykon. He's going to have them scried and then teleport himself along with some nameless soldiers as reinforcements. Then, he will die during the struggle for the gate in a suitably dramatic fashion.

----------


## Flame of Anor

> Ok...I'd like to change my vote to something kinda ridiculous. *I bet that Hinjo will be the next to die.*
> 
> *Spoiler*
> Show
> 
> Essentially, I'm betting the longshot that Hinjo's rush back to camp in previous comics isn't just to throw them a sending spell warning of Xykon. He's going to have them scried and then teleport himself along with some nameless soldiers as reinforcements. Then, he will die during the struggle for the gate in a suitably dramatic fashion.


Interesting idea, but I doubt Hinjo is that foolhardy.

----------


## Sunken Valley

Call me a crowd follower, but due to someone dying, we can change bets made before the death yes?

I change my bet from *Dark Elf Z* to *Malack*. Durkon has to learn to be a vampire on his own. 

Also, do you think we should make it so that only recurring characters death's count? I have the suspicion that the Cameo may die before Malack.

----------


## Sniffnoy

> Call me a crowd follower, but due to someone dying, we can change bets made before the death yes?
> 
> I change my bet from *Dark Elf Z* to *Malack*. Durkon has to learn to be a vampire on his own.


And, done.




> Also, do you think we should make it so that only recurring characters death's count? I have the suspicion that the Cameo may die before Malack.


Yeah, that's not explicitly in the rules, but I agree it should be.  I figure a sensible way of doing it is, we only count it (for the purposes of changing bets) if either A. the character has at least 10 appearances or B. someone has bet on the character.  Do other people think that's sensible?  If no-one objects, I'll go and add that to the rules later.

(BTW, the most frequently-appearing characters with no bets, as of right now, are Roy, Redcloak, the MitD, O-Chul, and Lien.)

----------


## Byzantine2

I'd like to bet on Nale.

He's outlived his usefulness now that they have Durkon, who knows everything he does, and more, and who can't (currently) lie or mislead them.  Also, Malack probably still wants him dead.

----------


## Heksefatter

I am putting down 50 qvumsels on Nale.  :Nale: 

He's surrounded by enemies. Many of them in his own group.

----------


## genderlich

I'l bet on KilKil. He's the weakest person in the area right now.

----------


## FlawedParadigm

Zz'dtri. He's served his narrative purpose in teaching V to think laterally and has absolutely no other disclosed purpose (unless Drow become one of the Nine Sides for some reason), not to mention is not far from a hostile group that wants to kill him.

----------


## Sniffnoy

I'm going to get off the bandwagon and change my own bet to *Nale*.

----------


## theinsulabot

I'm tempted to vote durkon and go two for one on him, but I suspect nale does first to Tarquin or malak. So nale.

----------


## martianmister

Too close. It was too close... :Small Frown:

----------


## Sniffnoy

Heh, I was about to bump this one anyway (because it's been a long time and I figured people might want to place new bets with the reintroduction of Xykon and Redcloak), and then I saw today and thought I'd have to actually update it again.  ("Why have both character deaths occurred while I happened to be away from home?")  I was certainly fooled.

----------


## Stormlock

I was going to say Mr. Scruffy (I except he'll die before Belkar and Belkar is on the short list for sure) but I think I'll go with *Nale.* He's being sent off with Malack and Durkon, and I doubt Zzditri is going to lay down his life to save him if things go sideways. And Sabine isn't around to watch his back either. Also, he's kind of filled his purpose, and has no loose threads to tie up except maybe a rivalry with Elan, but eh, the rivalry with Malack takes precedence imo.

----------


## TRH

I can't quite picture Nale dying separated from Sabine, and Malack would never consent to raise him, so I'm guessing *Zz'drti* will be the next to go. His only well-defined character motivation seems to be revenge on Vaarsuvius, which won't last him the way Nale's status as a contender (albeit a feeble one) for the Gate Race does. And really, Nale is an A-lister, much as we may be loathe to admit it; he's influenced the plot greatly, and he has had some development as a character. He can still go places, just as much as Elan can. 

As for the good guys, I don't see another Order member dying at this Gate, when only one died at Soon's, so I'm guessing Belkar makes it through this arc. Is there any special reason to expect him to die here, and not at Kraagor's Gate? The sheer volume of speculation makes me feel as if I missed something.

----------


## Stormlock

Well, putting aside the prophecy (which made him a pretty safe bet before Durkon died) he's currently floating at 1d3 con and probably been level drained besides. So Scruffy likely wouldn't have any trouble taking him out in a single round of attacks like that poor bastard he disembowled back at the arena. Given the danger he's currently in with AoE deathmagic flying everywhere, there's a significant risk he dies in the near future even if he were being exceedingly careful.

----------


## TRH

> Well, putting aside the prophecy (which made him a pretty safe bet before Durkon died) he's currently floating at 1d3 con and probably been level drained besides. So Scruffy likely wouldn't have any trouble taking him out in a single round of attacks like that poor bastard he disembowled back at the arena. Given the danger he's currently in with AoE deathmagic flying everywhere, there's a significant risk he dies in the near future even if he were being exceedingly careful.


Yeah, but the prophecy's been out there for hundreds of strips, and the drumbeat for his death has been going on since way before his encounter with the vampires. Surely not even this forum can have maintained a Death Watch on the halfling for the entire arc so far without just giving up and waiting to see? I say this as someone who didn't start following the forums until shortly before the Giant got injured, so I'm kind of making a historical inquiry here. How long has this been going on, exactly?

----------


## ti'esar

> Yeah, but the prophecy's been out there for hundreds of strips, and the drumbeat for his death has been going on since way before his encounter with the vampires. Surely not even this forum can have maintained a Death Watch on the halfling for the entire arc so far without just giving up and waiting to see? I say this as someone who didn't start following the forums until shortly before the Giant got injured, so I'm kind of making a historical inquiry here. How long has this been going on, exactly?


I would strongly suspect since strip 331. But as far as personal experience goes, I joined the forums around the time of the LG fight in the EoB, and not only was there speculation going on then, but speculation that Belkar would die in his arena fight with "Evisceratus" had just ended.

So yeah, pretty much nonstop.

----------


## TRH

> I would strongly suspect since strip 331. But as far as personal experience goes, I joined the forums around the time of the LG fight in the EoB, and not only was there speculation going on then, but speculation that Belkar would die in his arena fight with "Evisceratus" had just ended.
> 
> So yeah, pretty much nonstop.


Wow. Apparently the capacity of this board to obsess over various plot minutiae knows no limits. Not that it's wrong to have theories about an important character death, but the sustained _immediacy_ of the speculation is really something. Madness of Crowds if I've ever seen it.  :Small Annoyed:

----------


## sam79

I think there was some talk of Belkar's time being up during the fight with the Bug slavers, and there definately was when the spice-covered Belkar attracted that big worm thing in the desert (to which, I admit, I contributed).  Some of this speculation (the giant worm, the arena, the set-up of the fight with Malack) was obviously done deliberately by the author; knowing that two of his main characters have a death prophesy, the author has taken pains to trail/tease the death of the one with the short time limit on that prophesy (i.e. Belkar).  Then when the other character who was who was marked for death (Durkon) gets killed first, the surprise/shock is that much greater.  Well, that's how it seemed to work on this reader, at any rate!

----------


## WastedTalent

Put me down for *Malack*, please.

I was almost going to call Zz'dtri, since he's pretty much the most expendable character around at the moment, having already seemingly fulfilled his purpose within the story - but he serves as a reason for Qarr to show up, and I don't think we're going to be rid of the little imp just yet.

So Malack. Because we want our Durkon back!

----------


## onionbreath

Do those of us who voted for Belkar, Mr. Scruffy, or Xykon get i point for the imaginary deaths?   :Small Big Grin: 

(this question is only 18% serious)

----------


## declinator

Three deaths in one (double-panel) strip. Lots of points going out, none to me.  :Sigh:  

My bet is on *Durkon*, and I'll hold my horses at least until the next strip to see if I change.

----------


## Kish

1) No points are going out; no one actually died.
2) You can't change your vote until someone dies.

----------


## Sniffnoy

Yeah, nobody actually died, no points are being awarded, in case that wasn't at all clear.  I'll add it to the rulings section to prevent any further confusion.

----------


## declinator

OMG. I do feel stupid now. I probably have a horrible save against anything like that.  :Small Mad:  The illusion/enchantment got me as well.

----------


## prism6691

Put me down for *Belkar*.

----------


## Kish

> 1) No points are going out; no one actually died.
> 2) You can't change your vote until someone dies.


I forgot to mention, if the illusion wasn't an illusion, I suspect points would only go to those who bet on Belkar, since Belkar died before Mr. Scruffy or Xykon.

Is that accurate, Sniffnoy? We should probably have a ruling just in case multiple people do die in one strip.

----------


## Gift Jeraff

9. If two characters are killed in the same strip, then points will be rewarded to anybody who bet on either character. For example, if Blackwing were to be eaten by a dog at the beginning of a strip and then V were to be killed by the same dog during the last panel of the same strip, then anybody who voted for either V or Blackwing would receive a point.

----------


## Kish

Missed that, thanks.

----------


## David Argall

Belker is the clear bet at this point. His predicted death is soon, if not overdue.  However we are likely to have a big fight at the same time, and just about any of the LG might be eliminated a strip earlier.  So don't bet the house on him.

----------


## Darkefang

My money is on Kilkil.

----------


## Sniffnoy

> Belker is the clear bet at this point. His predicted death is soon, if not overdue.  However we are likely to have a big fight at the same time, and just about any of the LG might be eliminated a strip earlier.  So don't bet the house on him.


I'm going to take that as not a bet, then?

----------


## Poppy Appletree

Xykon. But not permanently.

----------


## David Argall

> I'm going to take that as not a bet, then?


Oh it's a bet, but only if the stakes are low [which they usually are around here.]

----------


## Zerobot

I bet *Malack.*

I want to bet Belkar because he's got to kick the bucket one of these days, but I think it would cheapen Durkula AND his death to have them occur so close together. I also want to bet Nale, because I'm hoping Malack will kill him soon, but Nale is so much more relevant to the story than Malack that I imagine Nale would come out victorious. Somehow.

I guess I should also consider that Malack seems to be obeying Durkon's last request, but I doubt that would stop the remaining OOTS from seeking extreme revenge of the ask-questions-later variety should they happen upon him again.

----------


## Yumori Zatsuken

I bet for Malack.He killed Durkon,I will bet,he will die.HE SHALL NOT LIVE!

----------


## davidbofinger

> I bet for Malack.


I'll back him to take down *Nale*, who in my opinion is past his use-by date.

----------


## onionbreath

> Yeah, nobody actually died, no points are being awarded, in case that wasn't at all clear.  I'll add it to the rulings section to prevent any further confusion.


Sorry, I was just trying to make a math joke.  I asked for i point (not 1 point) because the death was imaginary.

----------


## Sniffnoy

Given that we might well have a confrontation soon, I thought this would be an appropriate time to bring back this thread.

I've also updated the appearance numbers to match the numbers from the appearances thread.

----------


## Kornaki

I'm betting *Zz'drti*.  When team evil rolls in someone's getting dropped fast to up the stakes, and Zz'drti is the one with a combination of not enough relevance to the story to be affordable, along with having already served his purpose in helping V's character growth.

Double irony when he gets killed by a spell resistance: yes spell from Xykon

----------


## Gift Jeraff

What would happen if a character were to die in a dream/illusion, but the audience doesn't know it's fake at the time?

----------


## Sniffnoy

> What would happen if a character were to die in a dream/illusion, but the audience doesn't know it's fake at the time?


Yeah... that's troublesome.  (Some people didn't realize it was fake at first last time!)  There doesn't really seem to be anything in the rules as to how to handle that.  Suggestions?  What are the options?  I guess basically as I see it, they're:

1. Just count it
2. Count it, you can roll it back later
3. Some sort of waiting period if we think it might be an illusion?
4. ???

Yuck.  Right now I'm leaning towards #1, but if people have a preference, or other suggestions, well, I'm open to ideas.

----------


## Silver Swift

> Yeah... that's troublesome.  (Some people didn't realize it was fake at first last time!)  There doesn't really seem to be anything in the rules as to how to handle that.  Suggestions?  What are the options?  I guess basically as I see it, they're:
> 
> 1. Just count it
> 2. Count it, you can roll it back later
> 3. Some sort of waiting period if we think it might be an illusion?
> 4. ???
> 
> Yuck.  Right now I'm leaning towards #1, but if people have a preference, or other suggestions, well, I'm open to ideas.


The problem with #1 is that you have to draw a line between something that is obviously fake and something that might be plausible. Like you said, some people didn't realize it was fake last time, if that same situation comes up again, should we count it?

I would prefer a combination of 2 and 3, count it right away (so people can make new bets) but don't update the first post until we are reasonably sure it wasn't fake. That way you get the advantages of 2, but potentially save some work updating and rolling back the first post.

----------


## Kish

#2 sounds best to me.

----------


## Sniffnoy

OK.  So I figure, best way of implementing #2 would be something like this:

If it might be an illusion, I'll make a private backup so I can roll it back later; then count it and keep going.  Bets changed afterward will be rolled back.  However, if someone entirely new bets, that won't be rolled back, but I will allow them to change it if they want.

The alternative I guess is something like this, but instead of a private backup, the first post acts as the "backup", and my private version acts as the "real version"?  (Except it's not the "real version" in this scheme, it's the, uh, speculative version.)

----------


## Silver Swift

> OK.  So I figure, best way of implementing #2 would be something like this:
> 
> If it might be an illusion, I'll make a private backup so I can roll it back later; then count it and keep going.  Bets changed afterward will be rolled back.  However, if someone entirely new bets, that won't be rolled back, but I will allow them to change it if they want.
> 
> The alternative I guess is something like this, but instead of a private backup, the first post acts as the "backup", and my private version acts as the "real version"?  (Except it's not the "real version" in this scheme, it's the, uh, speculative version.)


Both of those sound good  :Small Smile:

----------


## Silverionmox

*Nale* really seems to be doing his Swan song right now.

----------


## Sniffnoy

OK, added rule 13 to cover this.

I figure, if an earlier death is only revealed to have been an illusion after some later death occurs, it's too late to go rolling things back...

----------


## mhsmith

Belkar is the obvious pick, but I'll go with *Nale* instead.

wrt the possibility of illusions, I'd say that during the remainder of this storyline, waiting 1-2 more strips before restarting the death pool makes some sense.  There doesn't seem to be much indication that Rich is going to spend substantial time in between a death and the reveal of an illusion, but a slight wait make some sense (to me anyway).

----------


## Rob Roy

*Nale* is one of the more obvious choices.

----------


## Sniffnoy

Before anyone asks: No, this doesn't count as a death for Vaarsuvius.

----------


## AshesOfOld

Alright, I'm in baby! And all my hard-earned monopoly-money is on *Nale*. His death is long overdue.

----------


## Avangor

I'll change my bet to *Nale* as well.

----------


## RedneckTex95

I want in on this!

*I place my vote on Nale!*

----------


## Sniffnoy

And there are now as many bets on Nale as there are on Zz'dtri...

----------


## Mollez

Can anyone just waltz in here and bet? If so, I bet on *Sabine*.

Wait, did her dismissal with "holy" count as dying?

----------


## Sniffnoy

> Can anyone just waltz in here and bet? If so, I bet on *Sabine*.
> 
> Wait, did her dismissal with "holy" count as dying?


Yes you can and no it doesn't.

----------


## Gift Jeraff

Another possible grey area: vampires aren't actually destroyed when reduced to 0 hit points by standard means, unlike most undead (panel 1). Should this be treated like Xykon--even though they can regenerate it is still counted as a death?

I'd say no, since unlike a destroyed lich the soul doesn't leave the body to go form a new one, the body just takes on a new form. It's probably more comparable to negative hit points. Unless the comic depicts the vampire with X's in their eyes. "x_x" trumps all, unless it's in an illusion/dream/etc.

But I wouldn't be opposed to counting it as a death (should it ever happen).

----------


## Sniffnoy

Huh.  Yeah offhand my thought would probably be to count it as a death, but that is a good point.  Well, there isn't any ruling on it yet.  I don't know, does anyone else have an opinion on the matter?  Otherwise I'll probably put a ruling up saying that Gift Jeraff's suggestion is right.

(Or just wait to see if it occurs and if so whether there X-eyes.)

----------


## Oko and Qailee

Is it too late for me to put in a vote for one *General Tarquin*?

----------


## Sunken Valley

By law, should Amun Zora bets not be invalid due to her low appearance quota. If say she died in her next strip, she wouldn't hit 10.

----------


## Silver Swift

> By law, should Amun Zora bets not be invalid due to her low appearance quota. If say she died in her next strip, she wouldn't hit 10.


10 appearances are more like a rule of thumb. You can bet on a character if that character is important enough to the comic. Who is important enough is decided by the thread curator (Sniffnoy), but any named character with more than 10 appearances almost certainly qualifies.

----------


## CRtwenty

I'm going to vote for *Tarquin*. Improbable? Maybe but it's worth a shot.  :Small Wink:

----------


## Kish

> Huh.  Yeah offhand my thought would probably be to count it as a death, but that is a good point.  Well, there isn't any ruling on it yet.  I don't know, does anyone else have an opinion on the matter?  Otherwise I'll probably put a ruling up saying that Gift Jeraff's suggestion is right.
> 
> (Or just wait to see if it occurs and if so whether there X-eyes.)


I don't think being driven into mist form back to the coffin should count as a death for a vampire.

----------


## CRtwenty

> I don't think being driven into mist form back to the coffin should count as a death for a vampire.


I agree, only actual destruction of the vampire should count.

----------


## Sniffnoy

OK, people seem pretty agreed on that, I'll make it a ruling.

----------


## Mollez

So...who bet on Malack?

----------


## Gift Jeraff

I did! Thank you, Nale!

----------


## Sunken Valley

Yes!

I'm going to wait before I bet again. But do the fiends count as bets I don't think they should but they've had 7 appearances so

----------


## Chessgeek

What's that smell?

Smells like victory. And burnt lizard.

@^ I think they have to be named characters to count.

----------


## mhsmith

Well if Malack counts here (and the comic title "Nothing Lasts Forever" suggests that he's gone), then I'll switch my vote to *Belkar*.

----------


## ti'esar

> Well if Malack counts here (and the comic title "Nothing Lasts Forever" suggests that he's gone), then I'll switch my vote to *Belkar*.


Rich confirms: he's toast.

----------


## genderlich

Alright then. That was unexpected. I'll change my vote to *Belkar*.

----------


## Sniffnoy

Yup, that's a death alright.  I've updated the first post.

And yeah, I'm going to disallow betting on the summoned fiends at this point.  They have no names, less than 10 appearances, and no real story significance.  If they get to 10 appearances I guess I'll have to allow it?

----------


## FlawedParadigm

Hm. Longshot. Tarquin next.

----------


## Sunken Valley

I was tempted to pick Belkar as my next bet, but I don't think he will die until book 6 or 7. He has a unique voice and he hasn't quite finished developing. 

Put me down for *Dark Elf Z*

----------


## Rob Roy

Huh. The new strip certainly complicates things. I'm fairly certain one of the LG is going to bite the dust next, and there are only two mortal members of them left. I'm going to stick with *Nale*, even though Z is probably going to get off'd first.

----------


## FujinAkari

I am going to flow along with the crowd and say that *Zz'diri* is the next one to go.  His existence is a clear threat to Durkon, he is V's nemesis, and there is no way either of their stories are ending soon.

----------


## Gift Jeraff

I'll go with *Kilkil* again. Weak, possibly badly damaged by the explosion, and I can't see any reason why even Tarquin would care that much about him once they're done doing whatever they're doing. And to top it all off, he's a Linear Guild (sort of) kobold.

----------


## Arkhosia

I doubt Durkula will survive much longer: His master was just killed by Nale. Durkula attacks Nale. Nale's the secondary antagonist.

----------


## ti'esar

> I doubt Durkula will survive much longer: His master was just killed by Nale. Durkula attacks Nale. Nale's the secondary antagonist.


Are you serious? What a waste of a character that would be.

I honestly think this book's pretty much over - if anyone's still going to die, it's the elemental and the fiends, and neither of them count. I'll place my bet once more on *Zz'dtri*, but I don't think any predictions made now are likely to pay off.

----------


## Mike Havran

*Belkar*, but I think that we're done with killing bigger characters for this book and the first to die would be the fiends, or some other unimportant being.

----------


## Silver Swift

I'm going to refrain from making a new bet for the moment, because I really don't know who to bet on next.




> Yup, that's a death alright.  I've updated the first post.
> 
> And yeah, I'm going to disallow betting on the summoned fiends at this point.  They have no names, less than 10 appearances, and no real story significance.  If they get to 10 appearances I guess I'll have to allow it?


By the rules as they are now, that seems to be the case. Though this might not be a desirable situation and you could always change the rules. 

I'd say just allow it, the goal of this game is accurately predicting the flow of the story and at this point the question as to whether the demons will be able to stay alive long enough for the summon to expire is not exactly clear cut.

Also, just to check, if we were allowed to bet on the fiends and the summon expires before they are killed it doesn't count as a death, right? How about the silicon elemental? (I think it seizes to exist once the spell expires, instead of  being sent back to wherever the fiends came from, though I could be wrong about this)

----------


## Kish

> Nale's the secondary antagonist.


...And Durkon is the _protagonist_, so, um, yeah. Narrative weight definitely _not_ on Nale's side in the clash you propose.

----------


## sam79

This is a tough call.  I think in the short term, it looks like Z could be in trouble. Nale too, but another significant-ish antangonist death so soon after snake guy?  Not sure. Pretty sure that Durkon is going to make it.  I think the rest of the LG could bug out intact after a bit of a tussle with the Order and Vamp Durkon, and if that is the case, the smart money would be on Belkar. So...yeah.  Don't know.

I'll call *Z*.

----------


## Pory

Another shiny point, wohoo!  :Small Big Grin: 

I think there's going to be at least another death before the end of this arc and my vote goes to...Nale.

----------


## gorocz

Yay, I got a point on a long shot! Though that doesn't stop me from being sad that my favorite character died...

I'm gonna go with *Haley* next. No, I don't think the elemental's gonna kill her, that would be predictable (though I still want points if he does  :Small Big Grin: ). I just think she's gonna die next...

----------


## Sniffnoy

OK, I've updated the first post, except Arkhosia, I can't tell whether you're making a bet or not.  Could you clarify?

----------


## Warren Dew

> So...who bet on Malack?


28 people, by my count - almost twice as many as bet on Yukyuk.  A highly predictable death.

----------


## Arkhosia

> OK, I've updated the first post, except Arkhosia, I can't tell whether you're making a bet or not.  Could you clarify?


I'm betting that Durkula will be laid to rest.

----------


## RedneckTex95

Since a character has died, can we renew our vote? Or make a new one?

----------


## Rakoa

> Since a character has died, can we renew our vote? Or make a new one?


My understanding of it is that your previous vote will stay as is, but you can freely change it if you desire.

----------


## martianmister

> Since a character has died, can we renew our vote? Or make a new one?


*............*




> 3. You can not change your bet unless a character has been killed off. For example, if you'd nominated Belkar and a dragon were to swoop in and attack Nale, you wouldn't be allowed to suddenly change your vote to Nale.
> 
> 3a. If you don't explicitly change your bet, you're assumed to have re-bet on the same person until you state otherwise. Explicitly stating that you're re-betting on the same person has no effect (i.e. you can still change your bet after doing this).
> 
> 3b. A death only counts for these purposes if either someone has bet on the character or the character has at least 10 appearances.

----------


## RedneckTex95

> My understanding of it is that your previous vote will stay as is, but you can freely change it if you desire.


Alright, thanks!

Although, I'm not going to change it yet.

----------


## darlingt

I'm gonna jump in here and say that, when Sabine comes back, she's gonna be livid with the recent turn of events. This will lead directly to *Qarr*'s demise.

----------


## 137beth

I'm going to renew my bet for *Kilkil*.  Seriously, someone needs to Kil(l) KilKil already :Small Tongue:

----------


## rs2excelsior

I'd like a bet on *Zz'dtri*, please.

----------


## Sniffnoy

I had bet on Nale last time since I figured there were only two ways this storyline could be resolved: The gate blows up, or Nale dies.  Evidently, I picked the wrong one.  (And it hasn't even really resolved the storyline.)

I think I'm just going to hold for now.  I doubt Nale will die next but I can't think of who else to bet on.

----------


## Warren Dew

> ...And Durkon is the _protagonist_, so, um, yeah. Narrative weight definitely _not_ on Nale's side in the clash you propose.


Durkon hasn't been a protagonist since he died.

He could return to being a regular protagonist now that Malack has been destroyed, but that would rather cheapen his death, in a way that was carefully avoided with Roy's death.  It might still happen, but I don't think it's a sure thing.

----------


## davidbofinger

Kilkil or Nale, Kilkil or Nale, Kilkil or Nale ... *Kilkil*

----------


## TRH

If this doesn't earn a stay of execution for Nale, then nothing will. No, I'm changing my vote to *Lien*, because I don't really expect any more deaths this arc, and support characters are really getting wasted now.

----------


## Sir_Leorik

I'd like to wager on *Blackwing* being next. We don't know if the IFCC directors included his body with their assurance about V's body remaining safe from all harm. If they didn't, Blackwing may have been caught in the heart of the Pyramid's destruction.

----------


## Aquillion

> 28 people, by my count - almost twice as many as bet on Yukyuk.  A highly predictable death.


For people paying close attention, I suppose it was (comparatively) predictable for two reasons:

1.  Giant had said that vamping Durkon was Malack's entire purpose for existence in the comic; that purpose had been completed.

2.  Malack's death was necessary to free Durkon.  (He could have freed him willingly, but it would likely have taken much longer.)

----------


## Warren Dew

I think I'm ready to bet on *Durkula*.  There's a chance that Durkon's death will be made meaningful by the destruction of his body.  If not, the bet will tie me up for longer than I'd like, but Durkula is still likely to be killed to allow Durkon's resurrection or to allow him to be laid to rest.

----------


## Dracon1us

Tarquin
killed by Nale

----------


## androkguz

Hmm... I am gonna go with a long shot here that I am not completely sure is legal:
*The High Priest of Odin* and I feel that very soon.

If you feel that is illegal then count me as betting for *Tarquin*

----------


## Sniffnoy

> Hmm... I am gonna go with a long shot here that I am not completely sure is legal:
> *The High Priest of Odin* and I feel that very soon.
> 
> If you feel that is illegal then count me as betting for *Tarquin*


Yes, I think I'm going to have to disallow betting on the High Priest of Odin.  He has zero in-comic appearances, only one appearance in the prequel book he appears in, and doesn't even currently have a name.  He does have some story significance, to be certain, but given the rest I don't think I can allow it.  (And I'm not sure he has any story significance to those who haven't read OtOoPCs.)  Your bet on Tarquin has been recorded, though.

----------


## trian

A long time lurker, I just registered to place a bet here.
I'd like to bet on the *Empress of Blood*,

----------


## martianmister

> For people paying close attention, I suppose it was (comparatively) predictable for two reasons:
> 
> 1.  Giant had said that vamping Durkon was Malack's entire purpose for existence in the comic; that purpose had been completed.
> 
> 2.  Malack's death was necessary to free Durkon.  (He could have freed him willingly, but it would likely have taken much longer.)


He also had said that being a vampire was Durkon's entire purpose for existence in the comic.

----------


## white lancer

I'm surprised at the number of votes for Nale and Durkon right now. Like someone else mentioned, Nale's probably earned a stay of execution with that most recent comic (it would be kind of a waste otherwise), and I'm fairly convinced he'll survive to the next book if only to be one of the multiple sides that the cockroaches talked about. I'm almost thinking that means Z needs to survive a little while as well, just to give Nale a bit more firepower without having to reestablish a whole new character so close to the end. As for Durkon, I think his destruction at this point would make his vampirization entirely pointless (plus there's the prophecy about him bringing death and destruction to his homelands--that could be accomplished in a different way, but vampirism is the most likely at this point IMO).

I honestly think it's more likely than not that we're done with major deaths for this book--there's so much fallout to be had from the one's we've seen already that adding more would just be ridiculous. I can't think of who I would bet on as a backup anyway--among the Order, Elan and probably V are protected for plot-based reasons, Roy's already died and seems unlikely to do so again, Haley and Belkar are possibilities but probably too close to Durkon's death. Tarquin is a remote possibility, but I think he'll probably have a role to play in the next book. Sabine and Qarr are our links to the IFCC. Blackwing is a possibility, I suppose, but I feel like he's got more to do with V. Mr. Scruffy will probably outlive Belkar so we can all feel sad when the cute kitty mourns. Any of the Azurites (except probably O-Chul) would be possibilities, but probably not after we've spent so much time away from them. I'm just not convinced enough that any of these other characters' time is up yet to switch my bet, so I guess I'll leave it as-is (on Kilkil), since I believe I'll still be able to change it later. If no one dies between now and the next book, I'll probably change it then.

----------


## TRH

I think Blackwing's especially unlikely to die right now because when you think about it, a big part of Vaarsuvuius' character arc entails keeping her isolated in her own little personal subplot - the fewer interactions she has with other Order members, the better, it seems. As such, you've got Blackwing as the voice of conscience and reason, and you've also got the Fiends as temptation - V hasn't interacted with with other characters in a meaningful way in maybe 200 strips. Insofar as there's no reason to expect any of these dynamics change, there's no particular reason to remove the one good influence V has at the moment.

----------


## Warren Dew

> I honestly think it's more likely than not that we're done with major deaths for this book


I actually suspect this is correct.  The fight still needs to be finished, but given it's with recurring villains, deaths don't seem that likely.

Tarquin is really the most expendable character right now from a plot standpoint.  It would be quite a change in characterization for his death to be part of Nale's happy ending, though.

----------


## Mollez

I'm not changing my vote for Sabine. She's been getting more characterization lately, I'm really starting to think that it's gonna be a Therkla situation; make us like them then pull the rug out.

----------


## FlawedParadigm

> I'm not changing my vote for Sabine. She's been getting more characterization lately, I'm really starting to think that it's gonna be a Therkla situation; make us like them then pull the rug out.


Are you sure that's not more properly called a Whedon or Martin situation? :p

----------


## Kyndraer

I say Durkula. What has happened to Tarquin and Kilkil though?

----------


## sam79

> For people paying close attention, I suppose it was (comparatively) predictable for two reasons:
> 
> 1.  Giant had said that vamping Durkon was Malack's entire purpose for existence in the comic; that purpose had been completed.
> 
> 2.  Malack's death was necessary to free Durkon.  (He could have freed him willingly, but it would likely have taken much longer.)


Unless I missed it earlier, the author only made clear that Malack's (initial) purpose in the comic was to vamp Durkon after he (Malack) had been dusted.  So that comment was of no use in making a prediction.

But yes; once Durkon was made into vampire, Malack seemed a good bet to many people, and not only for your reason 2).

----------


## Warren Dew

> I'm not changing my vote for Sabine. She's been getting more characterization lately, I'm really starting to think that it's gonna be a Therkla situation; make us like them then pull the rug out.


Good point; this was pretty much my reason for voting for Malack.

That said, Sabine has a certain amount of plot armor from being a recurring character - not as much as Nale, but some.

----------


## androkguz

> Yes, I think I'm going to have to disallow betting on the High Priest of Odin.  He has zero in-comic appearances, only one appearance in the prequel book he appears in, and doesn't even currently have a name.  He does have some story significance, to be certain, but given the rest I don't think I can allow it.  (And I'm not sure he has any story significance to those who haven't read OtOoPCs.)  Your bet on Tarquin has been recorded, though.


Ok... but lets say that no one dies for a couple of comics and the High Priest appears and gets like... 5 or more comics of significance where he talks to Durkula or Redcloak and explains his importance on the comic... and then dies.
I would just want everyone to remember that I said it first.

----------


## Bulldog Psion

Wow, I was actually right about Malack. I can't believe it. 

I'm going to go out on a limb here and predict that the next death with be *Geoff*. I don't think they'll leave the desert without the Tarquin/Ian subplot being resolved. Malack already died, so I doubt Tarquin will. I also doubt that Ian Starshine will die. However, Geoff seems to be involved in some dubious stuff, and his fate is tied to the Ian/Tarquin/Bozzok mess. So, I'm betting on him being the next one to bite it. 

Carefully reasoned; therefore, undoubtedly, I've just talked myself into a totally wrong opinion.

----------


## Mollez

> Good point; this was pretty much my reason for voting for Malack.
> 
> That said, Sabine has a certain amount of plot armor from being a recurring character - not as much as Nale, but some.


Ah, but she's a recurring character who is (I'm guessing) about to get some final characterization. This lovey-dovey stuff is new, and actually painting her as sympathetic is very new. I think she's going to fill a story purpose, like helping V out or stopping Nale from doing something, and then die. There's been foreshadowing in the manner of "Huh...Sabine's got emotions and wants?"

Remember Hilgya? (Durkon's female counterpart.) As soon as she revealed her full story, she left. I think it's gonna get a little messier with Sabine.

----------


## PandoricaJem

I either want to say Durkon, because he looks like he could be killed off by Nale or rekilled to be a human or something again, Haley, because she is currently being suffocated. However I think I will go with, the next person dying being.........Haley

----------


## Rui

Yeeeeees! He got what he deserved! And I got my point  :Small Tongue: 

Well, I'll go with *Tarquin.* I think the next death will be caused by Ian or Ian will be killed. But I can imagine him take his part in Haley's epilogue.

----------


## Warren Dew

> Ah, but she's a recurring character who is (I'm guessing) about to get some final characterization. This lovey-dovey stuff is new, and actually painting her as sympathetic is very new. I think she's going to fill a story purpose, like helping V out or stopping Nale from doing something, and then die. There's been foreshadowing in the manner of "Huh...Sabine's got emotions and wants?"
> 
> Remember Hilgya? (Durkon's female counterpart.) As soon as she revealed her full story, she left. I think it's gonna get a little messier with Sabine.


I think we've seen some affection from Sabine in previous appearances.  I do agree it's a little stronger recently.

----------


## Dr. Gamera

I had been fervently hoping that Belkar would die soon so that I could change my bet to Nale in time.  Instead, the Giant was way ahead of me all along.  No change from Belkar for the moment.

----------


## Rakoa

Put me down for Zz'dtri. Though I hope I'm wrong.

----------


## durron597

After reading this last one, I don't think that the Giant will let the linear guild get away with this one entirely. So I vote *Zz'dtri*

----------


## Dark Matter

My next bet is on Belkar.

----------


## BroomGuys

I'm gonna put in a bet on *Zzditri*.

----------


## TRH

You know, I lose nothing by switching my bet back to Zz'drti. I still don't expect any more death this arc, but if it ends, then I can go ahead and switch to Lien again without any problems. So yeah, put me down for Z.

----------


## Sniffnoy

> You know, I lose nothing by switching my bet back to Zz'drti. I still don't expect any more death this arc, but if it ends, then I can go ahead and switch to Lien again without any problems. So yeah, put me down for Z.


I hate to say this, but, uh, you've misread the rules pretty badly.  You can't switch your bet until another character dies.

----------


## TRH

> I hate to say this, but, uh, you've misread the rules pretty badly.  You can't switch your bet until another character dies.


Oh, never mind then.

----------


## Avangor

Well, that was unexpected. I'm holding on Nale for now, though more as a placeholder than an actual bet.

----------


## oppyu

I'd like to switch my bet to *Haley Starshine*.

----------


## Sabeki

'm putting my bet on Z. (Calling them Z cause I cannot spell that name.)

----------


## mhsmith

> Ok... but lets say that no one dies for a couple of comics and the High Priest appears and gets like... 5 or more comics of significance where he talks to Durkula or Redcloak and explains his importance on the comic... and then dies.
> I would just want everyone to remember that I said it first.


Yes, but WHICH High Priest?  The one that sent Durkon away is already dead, and the new high priest doesn't seem to be remotely important as a figure.

PS It seems pretty likely that ther'es going to be at least one more death in the pyramid area, so it's almost certainly going to be one of:
Durkula
Nale
Zzdriti
Tarquin
any of the OOTS (though a res spell might be possible if Durkula rejoins for whatever reason... Belkar as a vampire might be pretty interesting too)

----------


## Kish

androkguz said the high priest of Odin, not of Thor. A character strictly from OtOoPCs, who is still alive as far as we know.

----------


## mhsmith

ah, nevermind, misread  :Redface:

----------


## WastedTalent

Score! Good riddance, Malack. Didn't see it coming from Nale, though. Pretty awesome.

I think *Belkar Bitterleaf*'s time has almost run out now.

----------


## CRtwenty

Well my theory on how things with Malack would end up didn't come true at all. In light of his death and with my guess that we'll be changing locale soon I'm going to change my vote from Tarquin to *O-Chul*.

----------


## Kornaki

Z got his teeth smashed in, so he can't cast spells with verbal components (speculation).  I'm doubling down on my previous bet of *Zz'dtri*

----------


## Porthos

Bettors, now's the time to go to the cashier and collect your winnings.  :Small Wink:

----------


## Infinite

And the winning vote is... *Zz'dtri!* Congratulations to all who voted correctly!

And while I'm here, I guess I'll take a bet on *Haley Starshine.*

----------


## Rob Roy

Z died sooner than I expected. Nevertheless, I won't change my bet since it really is anyone's game now, and I'd like to keep my options open.

----------


## ti'esar

> I honestly think this book's pretty much over - if anyone's still going to die, it's the elemental and the fiends, and neither of them count. I'll place my bet once more on *Zz'dtri*, but I don't think any predictions made now are likely to pay off.


...Well, I'll be darned.

I'll hold off on placing another bet for the moment, though, because with Durkon having rejoined the Order I now _really_ think this book's pretty much over.

----------


## Gift Jeraff

Kilkil just refuses to die. And I refuse to stop betting on him.

----------


## WindStruck

Now is one of those times where I bet you say "I hate it when I'm right."

----------


## Rui

Ha. Still betting on *Tarquin*.

----------


## TRH

Well, bother. I'll hold on *Lien*, since this book is near enough over now.

----------


## prism6691

In light of how the story seems to be progressing, I am changing my vote to *Haley*

----------


## Dracarot

Despite having lost twice more now, I'll still hold my bet on Belkar...

----------


## genderlich

You know, very soon after betting on Belkar I became convinced by those voting for Z, but it was too late to change my vote and I paid the price. I doubt we'll see another death soon, so I'll stick with *Belkar* for now.

----------


## white lancer

Hrm. Well, you had to figure Z was the most endangered character still around simply by virtue of being the least important one, but I thought he might stick around for a little while longer to give Nale some much-needed firepower. Guess not.

It strikes me that Durkula still has a Resurrection handy, so a member of the Order could conceivably bite it here and still be around for the next book. Tempted to switch my bet to Haley, but...if I do that and she _doesn't_ die here, I may have to wait a long time to change my bet again and she's unlikely to die early in the next book. Sigh...I guess I'll leave my bet where it is.

----------


## ella ventic

Gah. Well, it's apparent that the Tarquin arc is nearly over; I just can't decide whether the Order will actually kill him (thus at least fulfilling his "live as a king until you die" story) or somehow leave him alive long-term but suffering in ignominy/anonymity (which would seem the more satisfying, storywise).

Oh, the heck with it. I'll just go for the kobold. *Kilkil*, if you'd be so kind.

----------


## Sniffnoy

Well, that certainly didn't go as expected!  I was sure we'd see a confrontation with Tarquin first.  Apparently not.

Well, the first post has been updated.  Several people have 2 points now -- none however yet have 3...

----------


## rs2excelsior

Nice. My bet on Z paid off. We've already had 2 dead members of the Order, one quite recently, so I doubt Haley or Belkar are going to go down. But do you know who has an epic Lich Sorcerer bearing down on them and no idea it's coming? O-Chul and Lien. (And Hinjo, too, perhaps? Crap.) So, in that case, I'll go with *O-Chul*. Longshot, perhaps, but I'll go for it.

----------


## oppyu

> I'd like to switch my bet to *Haley Starshine*.


You switched your bet from Zz'dtri to Haley the strip before Zz died? You idiot.

----------


## ti'esar

I'm not sure why _anyone_ expects Haley to die right now.

----------


## oppyu

> I'm not sure why _anyone_ expects Haley to die right now.


I thought that Durkon would only be able to rejoin the Order by Raise Deading a heroic teammate who tried to draw off the Elemental -_-

----------


## Gift Jeraff

> I'm not sure why _anyone_ expects Haley to die right now.


I guess that speaks to the writing quality of OOTS, if people can feel worried about a main character's survival even though them dying would be narratively off, despite the fact that the comic constantly references the fact that it follows traditional narrative rules.

----------


## Kornaki

Haley is getting killed by an elemental, and *Belkar* is right in the thick of things to put his newly learned ability to sacrifice his life for others to good use

----------


## Mollez

Aw, man. Zz'dtri? Really? Damn.

*sigh* 

I don't know...I guess I'm just going to stick with Sabine until the bitter end. It's either her or Nale next, for sure.

----------


## 137beth

I will once again be renewing my bet for *Kilkil*.

----------


## Demolator

I guess...*Kilkil*.

----------


## Sabeki

Going with *Haley Starshine* cause she's about to suffocate.

----------


## FlawedParadigm

*Empress of Blood* - Tarquin wants a figurehead that might not eat him in an off mood. Wait, does she even have ten appearances yet?

----------


## Aquillion

> Hrm. Well, you had to figure Z was the most endangered character still around simply by virtue of being the least important one, but I thought he might stick around for a little while longer to give Nale some much-needed firepower. Guess not.


I think that mostly, having a wizard around who can cast Teleport (even for the bad guys) is bad for the story.  Wizards capable of casting that spell seem to have a pretty short lifespan.

(Actually, if Sabine is a Succubus, then she has Greater Teleport at will, though she can't take anyone else with her.)

----------


## Silver Swift

Damn it, hesitated to long. Ok, guess I'll change my bet to *kilkil*.

----------


## declinator

Count me in among those hesitating too long.  :Sigh:  Now I'll just hold my bet and see where the story's going.

----------


## WastedTalent

Damn! Characters are really dropping like flies right now. Didn't think Zzdi'tri was going down this fast.

Anyway, sticking with *Belkar*, although I have a feeling the next death will be a little further off.

----------


## DeliaP

> Count me in among those hesitating too long.  Now I'll just hold my bet and see where the story's going.


So, I was reading this thread yesterday with the intention of laying my first bet... and then I thought "Nah, no-one else is going to die in this book.  I'll just hold my bet and see where the sto...  Wait, what just happened???"

Ah, whatever, I'll go for a first bet on:

*Lien*

on the basis that one of her or O'Chul is going to bite it after TE's imminent arrival at Kraagor's Gate.

----------


## Sunken Valley

2 points! One of 9!

Before I make a more human next bet, does the Devil count as a character? On the one hand, he has no name, no character, no dialogue and a short life expectancy as summons are quite powerful and the Order don't do it. On the other, he now rivals Amun-Zora in appearences and is likely to last 2 more comics. 

Sniffoy?

----------


## Bulldog Psion

I'll stick with *Geoff*.

----------


## Sniffnoy

> 2 points! One of 9!
> 
> Before I make a more human next bet, does the Devil count as a character? On the one hand, he has no name, no character, no dialogue and a short life expectancy as summons are quite powerful and the Order don't do it. On the other, he now rivals Amun-Zora in appearences and is likely to last 2 more comics.


If it actually lasts 2 more comics, I'll allow it.  Until then, no.

----------


## Sunken Valley

Are you able to change once it hits 10? It's fine if it's not.

As for my new bet, it was difficult deciding between Tarquin and Geoff.

I go with *Uncle Geoff*. Simply because he has to come back to the story with Ian and Tarquin soon because book 5 is about family. Of these 3 characters he has the shortest life span as he has no room for character development and is not a "side". Also he's hiding something.

----------


## Sniffnoy

> Are you able to change once it hits 10? It's fine if it's not.


Yeah I'm going to disallow that.

(Although since RSLee awarded GnomeGninjas 1/2 point for his illegal but correct bet, perhaps I could sort-of-follow that precedent here. :P  Similarly with androkguz if the High Priest of Odin really does die next.  Well or so it might have been had not Zz'ddtri died next instead.)

----------


## Warren Dew

> You know, very soon after betting on Belkar I became convinced by those voting for Z, but it was too late to change my vote and I paid the price.


Yes.  Those who held their bets did the smart thing in this case.

----------


## Rakoa

Well...its risky, because if I'm wrong I'll probably be out of the betting for quite some time...but put me down for *Belkar*

----------


## sam79

Hmm...this is getting tricky.  We're near the end of the book, and I think we're probably done with major deaths: the summoned creatures will bite it, but I don't reckon that anyone in the Order, the LG or Team Evil will die until the next book.  Belkar looks like the smart choice, as we know his number is up sooner rather than later.  But "sooner" could still be (say) halfway through the next book, and we could have more characters introduced in that time, as well as (potentially) a showdown with Tarquin and the LG before then.  Kilkil might be a good bet if that does happen.  On the other hand, those calling Lien (or, less likely IMO), O-Chul are playing decent longshots; if Team Evil show up at Kragor's Gate, this could be bad news for our favourite paladins.

In short, I don't know, so I'll defer my choice until the next arc.

----------


## Sniffnoy

I'm not sure whether the Silicon Elemental died or not, but it's irrelevant; according to the rules it doesn't count as a death for our purposes (since it doesn't have 10 appearances and nobody bet on it).

*Edit*: The Giant clarifies here that it was in fact killed, but like I said it's irrelevant for our purposes.  No changing bets yet.

----------


## oppyu

Ok, well the 'Haley is killed by the Elemental' train seems to have come to a screeching halt. Change my vote to *Blackwing*

----------


## Mike Havran

I'll try my luck with *Nale* now.

----------


## Sniffnoy

I'm thinking it's reasonable to allow bets on the barbed devil at this point, if people want.  It's only 1 short of 10 appearances, it'll certainly show up again, and it's supposed to stick around until midnight, so it has a little bit of permanence and thus significance.

----------


## Cuthalion

I shall enter... with.... Belkar.  :Small Frown:

----------


## David Argall

I'll switch from Belkar to open if I can, and will switch next death if no.  Belkar is now safe for a book.

----------


## martianmister

I guess Barbed Devil is no longer an option...

----------


## Sniffnoy

> I'll switch from Belkar to open if I can, and will switch next death if no.  Belkar is now safe for a book.


There isn't any need to switch to open (I'm just going to ignore this "switch").  You can just switch when you want, since your bet was made before Zz'dtri's death.  You don't lose any points for betting on the wrong one.




> I guess Barbed Devil is no longer an option...


No, we don't have any indication that the Barbed Devil is gone, and we've explicitly been told that (barring anything happening) he's sticking around till midnight, which seems to be a while away yet.  Indeed I just posted above that I'm now going to allow bets on the Barbed Devil.  (Probably should have done this after #909.  Oops.  Oh well.)

----------


## PhantomDennis

I remember not being able to able to find this thread right after Dukon bit it, er was bit.   Oddly enough my earlier prediction about Nale proactively double-crossing Malack came true even though the circumstances were very different.   

My guess is Tarquin does not have the juice to make it the next round.  His death would provide some angst for Elan.  Tarquin is used to having Malack to steady him.  Kilkil may be a surprise survivor.  So Tarquin is my next prediction.  The trouble with Belkar dying now is that the Order actually has a Cleric and Durkon's allignment change means he's might be more pragmatic bringing Belkar back if he's useful.

----------


## Warren Dew

Not making - technically, changing - a prediction yet, but from a narrative standpoint there's little reason for either Nale or Tarquin to survive to the next arc.  If they try to march into the rift, there's a good chance the first one will be destroyed by the snarl.

----------


## Coopenhagen21

I'd like to enter this, with a bet on Haley's father.

----------


## rgrekejin

I guess I'd like to change my bet to... Tarquin.

----------


## hopeful1212

I'll start with a bet on Tarquin.

He's been the main antagonist of this book and as of #910, he appears to have amassed a giant army for some sort of final showdown.  He's evil and he basically looks unbeatable and we need some sort of closing for this book.  IMO he's as good as dead.

Could very well be wrong, but I'll wait and see.   :Small Tongue:

----------


## WindStruck

I think I'd like to enter with *Nale*. Just got a gut feeling. So many people have been dropping like flies, and it would be so fitting and satisfying if Nale bit it next, once and for all getting rid of him.

Tarquin will not be happy he dusted Malack. Maybe impressed, but not happy nonetheless. Nale just got lucky. He also won't be happy he completely blew the gate plan, plus didn't even get a hold of the "ritual" from Xykon. Nothing says it better than:

*"You have failed me for the last time!!"*  :Small Furious: 

In fact I'd love it if a dinosaur ate Nale.

----------


## Silver Swift

Ok, dumb-nitpickey-rules-question-with-obvious-answer-time: Does a characters being unmade by the Snarl count as a death?

----------


## onionbreath

I'll switch my bet to *Nale*

----------


## Sniffnoy

> Ok, dumb-nitpickey-rules-question-with-obvious-answer-time: Does a characters being unmade by the Snarl count as a death?


Yes. I've added it to the rulings section.

----------


## mhsmith

Well, Giant has stated that the point of this book is to deal with the conflict with the Linear Guild.  It's unclear if Tarquin gets rolled into that or not, but it's certainly possible.  Tarquin, Nale and Belkar seem like the most obvious possibilities, but with Malack already dead and Tarquin leading a massive army, it seems like it'd be cheap for Tarquin to bit the bullet anytime soon (I mean, he IS supposed to be a near-epic level adventurer and strong enough to best, or at least equal the OOTS in combat single-handedly).

So I'd say that other than "random character x" (like spiked devil) it's probably down to Nale or Belkar.  Screw it, I'll stay with *Belkar*.

----------


## Sunken Valley

I put a theory in another thread which became wildly popular that Geoff is Miron in disguise. If Geoff is revealed as Miron, what happens to his bets?

----------


## Alabenson

I'm going to get in on this and put my bet on *Nale* as the next to bite the dust.

----------


## Sniffnoy

> I put a theory in another thread which became wildly popular that Geoff is Miron in disguise. If Geoff is revealed as Miron, what happens to his bets?


I guess they'd get combined, then?  I'll go add it to the rulings section...

*Edit*: Oh wait.  You mean not "What if Haley's uncle Geoff and Miron are actually the same person"; you mean "What if the character we know as Geoff is Miron in disguise, and Haley's real uncle Geoff is elsewhere".  That's trickier.  I think I would still count bets as Geoff as bets on Miron in that case; it seems reasonable to interpret bets on "Geoff" as bets on "the character we know as Geoff" rather than "whichever character happens to be named Geoff".  I mean, unless the bet had been placed before we ever met Geoff on-panel, but the thread has not been running that long...

----------


## Rakoa

A scenario: Belkar goes missing. Nale dies. Several people change votes after Nale dies from Belkar to Haley. Belkar is revealed to have died after he went missing, before Nale died. What happens?

----------


## Sniffnoy

> A scenario: Belkar goes missing. Nale dies. Several people change votes after Nale dies from Belkar to Haley. Belkar is revealed to have died after he went missing, before Nale died. What happens?


Fortunately, RSLee already thought of that; see rule 7.  Belkar's death will be counted when his death is revealed, after Nale's.

----------


## Rakoa

> Fortunately, RSLee already thought of that; see rule 7.  Belkar's death will be counted when his death is revealed, after Nale's.


Do you mean rule 8.a? Because I did read it, but assuming that a death occured before we knew about the initial death, who is it who gets points? I ask because many of the rules place importance on the in-comic chronology of the deaths. 

So using my example again, when Belkar is found to have died before Nale, do the points go to the voters who were betting on him chronologically when he died, or to those who were betting on him when his corpse was revealed and he was confirmed dead?

----------


## Sniffnoy

> Do you mean rule 8.a? Because I did read it, but assuming that a death occured before we knew about the initial death, who is it who gets points? I ask because many of the rules place importance on the in-comic chronology of the deaths. 
> 
> So using my example again, when Belkar is found to have died before Nale, do the points go to the voters who were betting on him chronologically when he died, or to those who were betting on him when his corpse was revealed and he was confirmed dead?


Sorry, yes, I meant rule 8, in particular part a.

...reading it again, I suppose it actually is ambiguous on the issue.  Still I'm pretty sure the intended meaning is that points would go to those who were beting on him when the corpse was revealed; and that's what I'm going to go with for logistical reasons if nothing else.  I'll go clarify that.  Thanks for pointing that out.

----------


## Rakoa

Hey, not a problem. I doubt it would ever come up, but just in case I figured I would bring it up. I also thought that the time of the corpse reveal made sense as well, but I didn't want to sway your opinion, just bring up the possible issue.

----------


## Oko and Qailee

*Kilki* is next I think

----------


## Dungeon_Crawler

Put me on Tarquin

----------


## ArnoudX

I'm thinking it's *Geoff* who is going down next.

----------


## sr123

My bet since the Pyramid began has been on Blackwing, who was a unique and safe kill at the time with minimal plot impact. Now I am honestly completely clueless. TE, LG, SG, OotS, and Tarquin's group have all lost one major player in this arc.

I will change my bet (first post since Z) to *Qarr*. IFCC is the only named team I can think of with no loss, I don't see Belkar "dying" just yet, and the liberation of EoB will probably just be in side strips a la The Resistance post-Haley.

----------


## davidbofinger

I'm thinking Tarquin has to be taken down next. But the mechanism I like is that Nale starts with eliminating those who know Tarquin best (Malack and Kilkil) so that when Sabine replaces Tarquin nobody is suspicious. So maybe my previous prediction of Kilkil has to stand. Aaargh. What's the point of a dilemma when you know both guesses will turn out wrong? *Tarquin*, then.

----------


## The Pilgrim

The more Tarquin feels in total control, the more I think he's going down next.

----------


## Sniffnoy

> The more Tarquin feels in total control, the more I think he's going down next.


Just to be clear, I'm assuming that is actually a bet?

----------


## Sniffnoy

Wow.  A third one in quick succession.  Lotta people getting points here.  I'll update the first post shortly.

(And it looks like I got lucky in waiting to change my bet...)

*Edit*: And, Pory pulls into the lead with 3 points!

----------


## Mollez

Well that's just great.  :Small Sigh:  

Can we bet on Laurin yet?

----------


## Sniffnoy

> Well that's just great.  
> 
> Can we bet on Laurin yet?


I think that's reasonable to allow.  She has few appearances, but she has a name, is significant as one of Tarquin's allies, and has been around for a long time.

----------


## Mollez

> I think that's reasonable to allow.  She has few appearances, but she has a name, is significant as one of Tarquin's allies, and has been around for a long time.


Alright, cool. I'm really torn now. I think it's going to be Sabine, Laurin, or Tarquin next.

Sabine: I like the idea of Sabine finding out what happened and coming to seek vengence on Tarquin. I don't know how likely that is, though. Since I voted for her last, I'm going to end up defaulting to her if I don't choose.

Laurin: We don't know much about her yet, but she's Tarquin's pal and...we don't know much about her yet. She hasn't been characterized, which would make her a great redshirt. 

Tarquin: He needs to die, and this is a very dramatic moment. Elan's face makes me think he's in for it. But he is surrounded by an entire army of guards, so I don't think this is going down right now. It's possible, though.

In the end, I think I'm going to have to go with *Laurin*. But god am I ever torn.

----------


## ChaosOS

Can I get in the game and say *Tarquin*?

----------


## ti'esar

Going to take a chance here and bet on *Tarquin.* I don't think it's that likely, but it's a lot more likely than it was last strip.

----------


## sparky9042

*Belkar Bitterleaf.* His time is limited...

----------


## oppyu

#877 - Malack kills Durkon
#906 - Nale/Zz'dtri kill Malack
#908 - Durkula kills Zz'dtri
#913 - Tarquin kills Nale

Put me down for... *Tarquin*. I figure at least one more shoe's going to drop here, and Durkula still has to spread death and destruction in his homeland.

----------


## Gift Jeraff

I want to vote for Laurin, but I think I'll wait. At least Kilkil doesn't seem to be in the canyon anymore, so I can stop voting for him...for now.

----------


## WindStruck

Move aside, everyone, I'm cashing in my brand new pile of chips!   :Small Big Grin: 

*Spoiler*
Show




> I think I'd like to enter with *Nale*. Just got a gut feeling. So many people have been dropping like flies, and it would be so fitting and satisfying if Nale bit it next, once and for all getting rid of him.
> 
> Tarquin will not be happy he dusted Malack. Maybe impressed, but not happy nonetheless. Nale just got lucky. He also won't be happy he completely blew the gate plan, plus didn't even get a hold of the "ritual" from Xykon. Nothing says it better than:
> 
> *"You have failed me for the last time!!"* 
> 
> In fact I'd love it if a dinosaur ate Nale.

----------


## Warren Dew

Darn, I thought I had another day to decide between Tarquin and Nale.  I'm going to bet in haste now on *Tarquin* and repent at leisure if Sabine or Thog shows up and gets killed.

I can't believe Tarquin was stupid enough not to have figured out that Nale killed Malack already - or at least to have asked after Malack while talking to Nale.  I suppose it can be rationalized as his being clueless about his sons.

----------


## Gift Jeraff

> I can't believe Tarquin was stupid enough not to have figured out that Nale killed Malack already - or at least to have asked after Malack while talking to Nale.  I suppose it can be rationalized as his being clueless about his sons.


Maybe he just assumed the OOTS steamrolled the Linear Guild.

----------


## blueblade

May I throw my hat into the ring as a first-timer?

I go with *Belkar*. might not be till the start of the next book now, i think the rampage is over..

----------


## Rui

Damn... A shock there :)

Betting...Hmm...Let's say *Tarquin.*

----------


## Sunken Valley

Damn it. I lose. I really thought Nale would live.

*Tarquin* will die. I think Geoff and Ian won't show up for a bit.

----------


## Heksefatter

I am going by intuition here, operating from the fact that he's going to die and Tarquin and Laurin would continue a particular killing round that has been going on for a bit now. Sooooo....

_50 qvumsels on Belkar's death!_

----------


## Ornithologist

You know, my next bet is O'Chul.

To Carify:

Since I took my last bet of Belkar, we have had three other die, and Belkar has been in a state of almost dead the whole time...

I'm Moving my bet because, if I'm going to be wrong, I'm going to be wrong because O'chul will never die

----------


## Bedinsis

I think Belkar is the next one to kick the bucket.

----------


## onionbreath

I think *Sabine* will have her number come up next.

----------


## Firemage

I'll bet on *Tarquin*, like many others before me. 

Either Elan will put his secret plan into action now, or at the end of the whole story. I bet now.

----------


## Ben Kenobi

*Belkar Bitterleaf*

----------


## rgrekejin

Well darn. I just don't know what this thread wants from me anymore. I guess I'll stick with *Tarquin* for now, because I have no idea who else might be due to snuff it soon.

----------


## Dracarot

I hereby withdraw from all betting in the death pool, I'm clearly either to stubborn or to foolish to stand a chance...

----------


## nohamotyo

Can I put e-money on *Ian Starshine*? I've got a half-baked theory going that's too good to ignore.

----------


## Infinite

I'll switch to *Belkar Bitterleaf*

----------


## dps

Since we've had another death, I want to change my pick from Uncle Geoff to Laurin Shattersmith.

----------


## ravenmeister

Is it legit to bet on *Nale*? (I know he is dead. :))

If so i bet on him.

----------


## Cuthalion

Tarquin. Unfortunately.

----------


## Alabenson

Hah, called it! 

Alright, I'm going to put my next bet on *Belkar*, at least for now.

----------


## Mike Havran

I'll go with the *Empress of Blood*.

----------


## SMEE

*The Rainbow Mod:* This game contains structured rules, and thus is more fitting at the Structured Games forum.  :Small Wink:

----------


## mhsmith

> Well, Giant has stated that the point of this book is to deal with the conflict with the Linear Guild.  It's unclear if Tarquin gets rolled into that or not, but it's certainly possible.  Tarquin, Nale and Belkar seem like the most obvious possibilities, but with Malack already dead and Tarquin leading a massive army, it seems like it'd be cheap for Tarquin to bit the bullet anytime soon (I mean, he IS supposed to be a near-epic level adventurer and strong enough to best, or at least equal the OOTS in combat single-handedly).
> 
> So I'd say that other than "random character x" (like spiked devil) it's probably down to Nale or Belkar.  Screw it, I'll stay with *Belkar*.




I can totally see more deaths coming, and something tells me that the end point resolution for Tarquin is that Sabine offs him in revenge for Nale (which would certainly qualify as "destructive, unnecessary conflict")... but I don't see that as happening immediately.  So I'm probably stuck with Belkar for the duration.  Now watch as he survives deep into the final book.  Jeez I suck at these.

----------


## Sniffnoy

> Is it legit to bet on *Nale*? (I know he is dead. :))
> 
> If so i bet on him.


Characters can come back to life, so, yes, it is.  And hell, we have someone betting on Miko.  (OK, so that one was meant as a joke, but I still counted it. :) )

----------


## Sir_Leorik

I'm going to switch my bet to *Belkar*.

----------


## Silverionmox

Since the chance of him dying here is one in a million (an army and an epic psion watching his back? Yeah, right), I'm going to bet *Tarquin*. Because I don't see who else is going to kick the bucket before the end of the book, and who knows what the next book brings. Sabine has a role to play yet, and it's unlikely that we'll revisit this desert or Tarquin abandons his long con to go crawl in filthy dungeons again.

----------


## Pory

Three points already! I'm good at guessing people being killed...not sure if I should be proud of it, though  :Small Tongue: 

My next bet is on *Uncle Geoff*...not really sure about this one but I think no one present in the recent comics is going to die soon.

----------


## EnragedFilia

I shall now bet on *Thog*, which as I understand the rules pays off whether he is confirmed dead or whether he is confirmed alive and subsequently dies on-panel in the traditional unambiguous fashion.

----------


## Sniffnoy

You understand correctly.

----------


## Sabeki

I am switching to Tarquin. Because Elan will probs try to kill him.

----------


## Tris

For my first bet on this thread I choose Tarquin.

----------


## Arkhosia

I bet Qarr.

----------


## DarrenLocke

I will bet on *Tarquin*.

----------


## WindStruck

Now my bet is on *Sabine*.

Why? Cause she's about to go apes**t and out of control. The IFCC guys will then realize she's completely unstable and no longer any use to them, and so... they'd rather have a (permanently) dead demon than a rogue demon who could potentially blab all their plans.

----------


## Gift Jeraff

Yeah, I'll go with *Laurin*. Laurin's death prevents Tarquin from having an active presence in the beginning of the next book as he is forced to regroup, allowing for the usual breather.

----------


## Sniffnoy

Since Gourntonk had less than 10 appearances and nobody had bet on him, his death does not count for the purposes of this thread.  So no, you can't go changing your bets now.

----------


## Ornithologist

I am moving my bet to *Tarquin*. I figure betting on Belkar when he is always at near death never works. Maybe I can reverse psychology it this way. Also, I'm ready for Tarquin to go. His narrative is over as he would put it.

----------


## Sniffnoy

> I am moving my bet to *Tarquin*. I figure betting on Belkar when he is always at near death never works. Maybe I can reverse psychology it this way. Also, I'm ready for Tarquin to go. His narrative is over as he would put it.


You can't change your bet yet, I'm afraid.  Since Gourntonk didn't have 10 appearances and nobody had bet on him, he doesn't count so far as this thread is concerned.

----------


## Ornithologist

I was more thinking of since Nale died. I don't hop into this thread very often, and I last bet on Belkar like before Durkon died even.





> Those of you who placed your bet before Nale's death and haven't since changed it still have the opportunity to do so, of course, should you want.

----------


## Sniffnoy

But you just changed it to O'Chul up above, after Nale's death.

----------


## Mollez

> But you just changed it to O'Chul up above, after Nale's death.


I thought from the wording that he was talking about his hypothetical next bet, not actually betting. He didn't bold.

----------


## Sniffnoy

> I thought from the wording that he was talking about his hypothetical next bet, not actually betting. He didn't bold.


Bolding isn't some rule that makes it official -- it's just a courtesy to me so I can spot bets more easily without having to read the whole post (sometimes people bury a bet in a longer post).  He stated "my next bet is O'Chul" and "I am moving my bet".  If he meant it as not an actual bet, well, he didn't do a good job being clear about it.  :-/

----------


## Ornithologist

Sorry, its been so long since I was here last. I forgot that I did change to O'Chul.

Keep it as O'Chul. 

That's what I get for foruming on sleep deprivation.

----------


## Sniffnoy

> Sorry, its been so long since I was here last. I forgot that I did change to O'Chul.
> 
> Keep it as O'Chul. 
> 
> That's what I get for foruming on sleep deprivation.


OK, good to know, thanks for clarifying!

----------


## Zjoot

Let's give this a try. As of 915, I've got a feeling the next death is gonna be *Uncle Geoff*. He seems just expendable enough.

----------


## TRH

With 916 out, I expect the usual Belkar death predictions to come out in full force, as usual. That said, I still have a prediction left over from Nale's death, and if *Tarquin* isn't getting set up to bite it, then I have gleaned no insight whatsoever from reading OOTS for years. So yeah, that's my guess, for sure.

That said, Kilkil actually being here when things go pear-shaped between Tarquin and the OOTS puts him at more risk than I expected. I'm not sure I expect him to walk away from this, either. Still, Tarquin first.

----------


## Rakoa

Put me down for Barbed Devil now, then. Another risky bet, but the likeliest one to die now, I think.

----------


## Sniffnoy

You know, with all the talk of betting on the Barbed Devil earlier (when I didn't think it should yet be allowed), I'm surprised you're the first one to actually do it.

EDIT: I think I'm going to go ahead and bet on the Barbed Devil as well.

----------


## Dark Matter

We've had two deaths since my last bet so I can switch.

It will be Tarquin.  Dude has to go.

----------


## trian

I'll jump on that train and bet on Tarquin.

----------


## Sniffnoy

Tarquin now has as many bets as Kilkil.

----------


## Klanos

Putting my bet on Tarquin. First time, wish me luck!

----------


## Sniffnoy

And, Tarquin now has more bets than Kilkil!

----------


## sam79

*Spiky* is my bet, now that he has a name.  To a certain value of 'name'.

Just to clarify; would a demon being dismissed count as 'dead' for this thread?

----------


## Sniffnoy

> *Spiky* is my bet, now that he has a name.  To a certain value of 'name'.
> 
> Just to clarify; would a demon being dismissed count as 'dead' for this thread?


It hasn't really come up but I don't think so, no.  Certainly being banished didn't...

----------


## Dr. Gamera

> No change from Belkar for the moment.


Still no change from Belkar, particularly in light of "one bolt away from dying" in OOTS #919 (I Went Down, Down, Down).

----------


## declinator

I did not re-bet after the last few deaths, but I think NOW is the time to put my vote for *Belkar Bitterleaf*.  :Belkar:  

His clock is running out.

----------


## Klanos

> I did not re-bet after the last few deaths, but I think NOW is the time to put my vote for *Belkar Bitterleaf*.  
> 
> His clock is running out.


He's having a major badass moment, and I'm pretty sure he's going Deus Ex Machina. Possibly.

----------


## zql

I'm putting my money on Miron.

----------


## Sniffnoy

> I'm putting my money on Miron.


Only 8 appearances, but I'll allow it -- he's clearly significant and has been known for a long time.

----------


## Thrillhouse

I'm throwing my money on Miron as well. SOMEONE on that team is going down, and it seems unlikely to be Tarquin first. Lauren needs to reveal the favour she's going to ask. So Miron it is.

----------


## TKoTD

My bet is on *Elan*.

----------


## Tris

> My bet is on *Elan*.


What about his happy ending?

----------


## ti'esar

> What about his happy ending?


They can rebuild raise him. They have the diamond dust.

Now, I don't actually expect this to happen. But Elan's temporary death has been suggested by some people as a means of getting Tarquin off the Order's backs. There's certainly wackier bets in here.

----------


## David Argall

Tarquin is going to buy it in the next few strips.

----------


## Psionic Dog

I don't seen anyone else on Team Tarquin going down this time, so put my bet on... *Roy*. 

I think Elan's due to cradle the dying body of his most accessible mentor figure while swearing revenge. He's also the perfect straight man for more frequent dying mile related puns.

----------


## Sniffnoy

A bold choice! That's the first bet to be placed on Roy since the thread began.

----------


## Gift Jeraff

If the allosaurus dies, can we change votes? In other words, does the allosaurus qualify for this thread?

----------


## Sniffnoy

...huh, it has 10 appearances, so, uh, I guess so.  That seems a bit weird, but I'm not going to go back and change that now.

----------


## ikosaeder

Too bad I'm not the first, but I bet on *Miron*
He has taken some hits already and now that they are all on foot, Belkar will stab him for polymorphing his animal companion.

----------


## ImperatorV

Betting on Miron.

----------


## Procyonpi

Betting on Julio Scoundrel.

----------


## Sniffnoy

> Betting on Julio Scoundrel.


He has only 5 appearances, but I'll count it -- he's old, he's named, and he's important to the plot.

One way or another, this promises to be interesting! :)

----------


## Zar Peter

I bet on Tarquin.

----------


## Hurkle

Betting on Tarquin.

----------


## SmaugTheYounger

I bet on Tarquin.

----------


## Aran nu tasar

I think I'll bet on *Scoundrél*.Let's see how this goes...

----------


## Dr. Gamera

Bump after OOTS #937 (Travel Time), in anticipation of Belkar's imminent demise.

----------


## DeliaP

Well, I haven't changed my bet since just after Durkon got vampirised (at which point I suggested that there wouldn't be any more deaths this book!  Shows how good at predicting I am!  :Small Smile:  )

But now I think the next plot resolution will be the Starshine family, so I'm changing my bet to:

*Uncle Geoff*

----------


## Sniffnoy

Well, I guess that wraps things up till April!  (And looks like my bet is certainly not paying off.)  Although if anyone wants to place them I will still process new bets in the meantime.

And before anyone asks: No, I'm not going to count vampire-Durkon as a separate character from actual-Durkon.  The number of appearances thread may argue over how to count it, but there's no need to distinguish here, since they'll never both be not-dead at the same time.

----------


## Dr. Gamera

> Bump after OOTS #937 (Travel Time), in anticipation of Belkar's imminent demise.


Great foresight, Dr. Gamera!  (Or not -- Belkar alive through OOTS #947 with no particular danger in sight.)

----------


## Aquillion

> Well, I guess that wraps things up till April!  (And looks like my bet is certainly not paying off.)  Although if anyone wants to place them I will still process new bets in the meantime.
> 
> And before anyone asks: No, I'm not going to count vampire-Durkon as a separate character from actual-Durkon.  The number of appearances thread may argue over how to count it, but there's no need to distinguish here, since they'll never both be not-dead at the same time.


I assume that this post is out-of-date and vampire-Durkon is now definitively a separate character (and can be named as a separate death pool option?)  Since reasonably-speaking it's likely to assume that the spirit possessing Durkon is going to die (in the sense of its undeath passing into nonexistence) at some point in the story, which may or may not coincide with Durkon's resurrection.

----------


## Sniffnoy

No, that still holds true.  Bets placed on Durkon were placed before we knew of vampire-Durkon as a separate character, so it makes sense to transfer them.  And it's still true that at most can be not-dead at one time; for Durkon to be resurrected, the vampire has to be destroyed first.  And as undead themselves cannot be raised/resurrected, this leaves no way for both to be not-dead at the same time.

I might relabel it from "Durkon Thundershield" to "High Priest of Hel" and change the appearance stats appropriately (in the betting/appearance stats box), but it's ultimately not that important.

----------


## Sniffnoy

Bumping this thread since it's fallen off the front page.  Not exactly the deadliest time right now...

----------


## Sniffnoy

Once again, bumping this thread since it's fallen off the front page. Still not exactly the deadliest time...

----------


## Rob Roy

Just popping in to find out what my current bet is. Tarquin, unfortunately. Seemed like easy money at the time, but I suppose his last appearance being him wailing impotently at the escaping protagonists after his entire world view was defied was more satisfying than any mere Dramatic Death.

----------


## Sniffnoy

Bumping thread again, since it's been 45 days with nobody betting.  But now the characters are back in a town.  Last time that happened they quickly got into a fight!  Nobody died, sure, but things may be about to heat up again.

(I've also updated the apperance counts; High Priest of Hel is quick racking up appearances.)

----------


## Sniffnoy

The bumping continues, as nobody dies and no new bets are placed.

----------


## braveheart

Might as well join the pool, I'm going to bet on the *High Priest of Hel*

----------


## Tris

Wow, it's been over a year since the last death! My bet's still stuck on Tarquin.

----------


## Sniffnoy

> Wow, it's been over a year since the last death! My bet's still stuck on Tarquin.


I don't see you listed?  I'm a little confused.  (Meanwhile, my bet's stuck on the Barbed Devil...)

----------


## Tris

Oh, that would be because my username changed. I was tman2nd before.

----------


## Sniffnoy

OK, thanks, I've updated it appropriately!

----------


## Jaxzan Proditor

I will place my money on *Belkar Bitterleaf*.

----------


## GM_3826

Placing my money on Bandana. She's the captain of a ship of "pirates", a relatively new character, is going up against an enemy who seems to be both stronger and more intelligent...
As you can see, she's first on the list of characters to get Worfed.

----------


## ReturnOfTheKing

I was considering Crystal based on the events of #971, but I doubt this fight's gonna involve any fatalities, though I imagine either kidnapping, serious injury or plot development will occur. I've suspected for a while Mr. Snuggles is going to tragically die and incite character development in Belkar, so I'll bet on him.

----------


## Sniffnoy

> I was considering Crystal based on the events of #971, but I doubt this fight's gonna involve any fatalities, though I imagine either kidnapping, serious injury or plot development will occur. I've suspected for a while Mr. Snuggles is going to tragically die and incite character development in Belkar, so I'll bet on him.


Just to be clear, I'm counting that as a bet on Mr. Scruffy.

----------


## Askthepizzaguy

*Haley Starshine.*

She _just_ defeated and killed Crystal. It serves no plot purpose to revive Crystal, send the zombie to a town they just arrived at, to kill her off again. So, odds of Crystal _surviving_ this encounter are high. If she survives the encounter, against at a minimum, these three good allies, then she has to inflict serious damage, meaning, enough to kill, most likely. She also has little interest in killing anyone but Haley Starshine, who is her rival and favored target, and she has a grudge against her and wants revenge.

Furthermore, killing off named Bandana, while a strong possibility regardless, accomplishes little for Crystal and leaves Haley and Elan alive. She's already inflicted massive damage on Elan the Bard, with a single punch, perhaps enough to knock him unconscious, which means Elan likely survives this encounter.

Bandana is also not strong enough to pose a serious threat to Crystal, from what we know of both of them. Ergo, if Crystal can slay Haley while Elan is down, she can also escape from the encounter without being killed by Bandana, which is what I figure is the most likely interpretation of what needs to be accomplished by this latest plot development- Haley goes down, and must be revived, so she can score one final victory over Crystal later on in the story.

Otherwise, Crystal gets killed here by Bandana, which will make little sense unless it involves the magic wands Haley just got. Perhaps one which contains the turn undead spell. Crystal falling to Bandana means that Haley wouldn't be the one to deliver the payback for attacking Haley. Crystal may also not be alone, which increases the odds she scores a lethal blow against Haley, who although has a useful ally in Bandana, won't have enough strength combined to fend off a more dangerous Crystal-and-accomplices.

While I think the odds of this analysis being incorrect are considerable, nothing that has transpired over the entire narrative thusfar has made me think of Haley as anything less than immortal, for the purposes of the story.

*Spoiler*
Show

Even when Tarquin attacked Haley, I predicted Haley would not only prevail, but be integral to defeating Tarquin. I actually called it that Tarquin would fall to Haley, and not Elan or Vaarsuvius or anyone else; although Tarquin did "fall" it wasn't a death as I thought it would be. And it wasn't by the method I thought it would be, meaning, by Tarquin's own blade or by the one Haley got from defeating Crystal.


All being said, I don't feel VERY confident in this wager, but I still think that if Haley is ever going to bite it, it's about to happen.

----------


## GM_3826

> *Haley Starshine.*
> 
> She _just_ defeated and killed Crystal. It serves no plot purpose to revive Crystal, send the zombie to a town they just arrived at, to kill her off again. So, odds of Crystal _surviving_ this encounter are high. If she survives the encounter, against at a minimum, these three good allies, then she has to inflict serious damage, meaning, enough to kill, most likely. She also has little interest in killing anyone but Haley Starshine, who is her rival and favored target, and she has a grudge against her and wants revenge.
> 
> Furthermore, killing off named Bandana, while a strong possibility regardless, accomplishes little for Crystal and leaves Haley and Elan alive. She's already inflicted massive damage on Elan the Bard, with a single punch, perhaps enough to knock him unconscious, which means Elan likely survives this encounter.
> 
> Bandana is also not strong enough to pose a serious threat to Crystal, from what we know of both of them. Ergo, if Crystal can slay Haley while Elan is down, she can also escape from the encounter without being killed by Bandana, which is what I figure is the most likely interpretation of what needs to be accomplished by this latest plot development- Haley goes down, and must be revived, so she can score one final victory over Crystal later on in the story.
> 
> Otherwise, Crystal gets killed here by Bandana, which will make little sense unless it involves the magic wands Haley just got. Perhaps one which contains the turn undead spell. Crystal falling to Bandana means that Haley wouldn't be the one to deliver the payback for attacking Haley. Crystal may also not be alone, which increases the odds she scores a lethal blow against Haley, who although has a useful ally in Bandana, won't have enough strength combined to fend off a more dangerous Crystal-and-accomplices.
> ...


Good bet.
We'll see which one of us, if any one of us, wins.

----------


## Askthepizzaguy

In fact, given the green-face pair of eyes from the previous panel, versus a purple-looking Crystal, I'd say there's little question Crystal brought others to assist in Haley's assassination.

----------


## ReturnOfTheKing

> In fact, given the green-face pair of eyes from the previous panel, versus a purple-looking Crystal, I'd say there's little question Crystal brought others to assist in Haley's assassination.


Or it could just be unrelated foreshadowing to a return by the Linear Guild? A thought - what if, after Nale's fate, the Linear Guild has switched sides and decided to assist the Order of the Stick, and the green dude is Thog preparing to ambush Crystal? Unlikely, of course, especially since Tarquin is out of the picture for now, but anything's possible.

----------


## Askthepizzaguy

> Or it could just be unrelated foreshadowing to a return by the Linear Guild? A thought - what if, after Nale's fate, the Linear Guild has switched sides and decided to assist the Order of the Stick, and the green dude is Thog preparing to ambush Crystal? Unlikely, of course, especially since Tarquin is out of the picture for now, but anything's possible.


I disagree that it is unrelated- however, I think you are on the right track in that Sabine is almost certainly more likely to assist the Order of the Stick (again) than side with Tarquin. And, I think you're also on the right track in that Thog's death was never confirmed, and deliberately so, by Tarquin himself. So green eyes can very well mean Thog is there.

I would not bet against the person with the green face being Thog. I wouldn't go so far as to say it's better than 50/50 odds, so no bet for or against, here. But Thog is absolutely a contender for the identity of that person.

I doubt Thog is smart enough to consider assisting Haley on his own- I rather think that Thog would only do so if Sabine were to ask him to do so, and tell him that Tarquin killed Nale. Then, Thog might wish to avenge Nale by helping Not-Nale nail Nale and Not Nale's père.

Thog is perhaps my favorite or second favorite character in the story, so, if he were to return, I would squee.

----------


## GM_3826

> I disagree that it is unrelated- however, I think you are on the right track in that Sabine is almost certainly more likely to assist the Order of the Stick (again) than side with Tarquin. And, I think you're also on the right track in that Thog's death was never confirmed, and deliberately so, by Tarquin himself. So green eyes can very well mean Thog is there.
> 
> I would not bet against the person with the green face being Thog. I wouldn't go so far as to say it's better than 50/50 odds, so no bet for or against, here. But Thog is absolutely a contender for the identity of that person.
> 
> I doubt Thog is smart enough to consider assisting Haley on his own- I rather think that Thog would only do so if Sabine were to ask him to do so, and tell him that Tarquin killed Nale. Then, Thog might wish to avenge Nale by helping Not-Nale nail Nale and Not Nale's père.
> 
> Thog is perhaps my favorite or second favorite character in the story, so, if he were to return, I would squee.


Fun fact: I _really_ don't get why everyone likes Thog.

----------


## Jaxzan Proditor

> Fun fact: I _really_ don't get why everyone likes Thog.


He's quite amusing. I find it understandable. I don't understand how people can find him to be not Evil, but that's a different matter.

----------


## Askthepizzaguy

> Fun fact: I _really_ don't get why everyone likes Thog.


I like Thog for the humor value- the Giant writes his lines, so the lines are written by an intelligent guy who is writing for an incredibly stupid character. But it isn't all "duh" and drooling, there are glimpses of the Giant's sense of humor plastered all over Thog's dialogue. Especially the parts where his vocabulary becomes temporarily polysyllabic for the sake of a joke.

Some excepts of stuff I laughed literally out loud at, so you can get what I'm referring to, with a  :Small Big Grin:  marking my absolute top favorites.

I first became a fan with this comic:

http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0051.html

(It featured non-traditional panel layout.)

*Spoiler*
Show

*"thog like puppies."*


Was quite a while until I was amused by thog again. But...

http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0367.html

*Spoiler*
Show

*"thog hears you!".*


http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0387.html

*Spoiler*
Show

*"how thog's pants turn purple?"*

*"yay! thog and not-nale on zany whirlwind adventure!"* 

*"thog wonders how thog will cope with life outside jailhouse walls. prison changed thog."* 

"We were only in there for 40 minutes." *

"prison changed thog quickly."*


http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0388.html

*Spoiler*
Show

*"*sigh* thog never get anything pretty."*

*"thog believe thog can fly."*


http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0392.html

*Spoiler*
Show

*"thog like costume. thog get in touch with inner greenness."*
*"thog get in touch with outer greenness too."*

*"thog brought breadcrumbs!"* 
(obviously, in case Nale got lost. Those breadcrumbs will help Nale get un-lost, somehow, in that sack that they are presently contained in.)


http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0787.html

*Spoiler*
Show

Thog singing _Queen_.


http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0788.html

*Spoiler*
Show

*"Thog will always treasure thog's adventure with talky-man. it featured non-traditional panel layout."* 


http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0791.html

*Spoiler*
Show

The *entire* last six panels of this comic.  :Small Big Grin: 


http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0808.html
*Spoiler*
Show


Thog's epic swan song. Not so much for anything funny he said, but it is essentially Roy's rebuttal to the previous reference. A memorable exit from the stage, for sure.

Roy: "I hate puppies! I think they're dumb!"


*Tarquin:* "It's weird, no matter how many people he kills, the audience still thinks he's lovable."


Thog was not always funny, he was fairly one-dimensional, especially at first. But he quickly becomes a parody of all dumb, bumbling evil sidekicks that are strong enough to threaten protagonists, but have the mind of a child.

Thog was the quintessential that character, we all know that character. It's been in a lot of different stories. That character is a trope. And, in my opinion, perhaps the best representation of that character in the format of panel-based storytelling.

With all humor, it either appeals or it doesn't. 

*thog amusing in thog's simplicity.*

----------


## GM_3826

I know why people find him funny, I just don't get WHY he's not funny, or more specifically, why I'm not laughing. Like, I'm not laughing at any of the jokes there. Must be my sense of humor.

----------


## Askthepizzaguy

> I know why people find him funny, I just don't get WHY he's not funny, or more specifically, why I'm not laughing. Like, I'm not laughing at any of the jokes there. Must be my sense of humor.


In much the same way some people will laugh their butts off at the Big Bang Theory, and others won't understand what the big deal is... humor is rarely universal.

It's like flavor.

I don't understand why people like most kinds of seafood. I don't understand why people eat cottage cheese, or most kinds of cheeses in general. I don't like anything cold, wet, and rubbery, other than perhaps jello. I don't like food that you have to heap a bunch of other flavors on top of to find palatable, such as baked potatoes. If it's bland, it's bland. Why do you like a big mass of flavorless starch that you then have to infuse with butter and sour cream and bacon bits? Why not just eat flavorful food instead?

Other people think I'm bleepin' crazy for not liking things like cheese or lobster. Well, I don't get the same mouth sensation others get, and to me, it tastes like the bottom of someone's foot. And no, I'm not into that.

Different sensations appeal to different folks, and most definitely are unappealing to others.

----------


## Askthepizzaguy

So we've established several things:

*Spoiler*
Show

1) Crystal can knock Elan unconscious with a single punch, at present.'

2) Crystal is immune to things which affect the undead because she is not undead. She's a flesh golem, which has different rules.

3) Crystal has spell resistance strong enough to deflect presumably the strongest spells that Haley can cast with her wands, because I'm pretty sure she would use her best wand first (or, at least, second) in a desperate situation.

4) Crystal is basically immune to Haley's normal arrows, and Haley missed with her more potent arrows.

5) Haley will stand absolutely no chance against Crystal in a straight up melee, even with Bandana helping.

6) Crystal so far outclasses Bandana that for all intents and purposes, Bandana isn't even there

7) Due to the imminent threat Crystal poses to the dwarven civilians all around, and Haley being good, Haley cannot simply escape from the battle. She can only attempt to evade.



The situation is therefore untenable for Haley. There are only a few outcomes remaining:

A) Haley is slain by Crystal

B) The order of the stick comes to her aid

C) Something similar to B happens, but not exactly B

Since the author has effectively cut off every means for Haley to win this encounter without assistance, and has removed escape as an option, I believe the author is justifying Haley's upcoming death to the audience, explaining why Haley won the previous battle, but will lose this one.

As such, I am feeling much better about my bet, and much worse for Haley.

I would drop a wager that Haley will live again, and would give long odds for Rich killing Haley off for good, but it's looking more and more... deathly.


Blah blah blah stuff.

Edit: Rather than bump the thread yet again, let me just say this:

Zap.

----------


## ella ventic

Well, it looks like a death might be imminent; I'm going to guess it'll be *Grubwiggler*!

----------


## Askthepizzaguy

Heh, didn't even need a philter of glibness this time.

I won't ever be happier to be wrong, and it _looks_ like I'm wrong!  :Small Big Grin: 

Barring some sort of command ability / magic word / spell, Crystal's rage seems to have been redirected.

But, it was really _not wise of Haley to follow Crystal back...._ should have gathered the Order of the Stick, and bandana, and left... This is unnecessary.... and if it goes pear-shaped....  :Small Eek:  there are no more tricks Haley can use, folks.

----------


## Sniffnoy

> Well, it looks like a death might be imminent; I'm going to guess it'll be *Grubwiggler*!


Only 6 appearances, but pretty significant, so sure, I see no reason to disallow that.  (I wish I could change my own bet to Grubwiggler...)

----------


## Tris

It will be nice to be able to change my bet soon if that happens.

----------


## ZidIles

I think *Bozzok* is going to die next

----------


## Sniffnoy

And, ZidIles gets it in just in time!  Nice going!  The only one, too.  I'll update the first post momentarily.

For everyone else, bets may be changed again now!

----------


## GM_3826

I'm putting my money into Haley now. It's either that she survives due to convincing Crystal or she dies. Chances of Bandana dying herself are looking pretty slim.

----------


## Askthepizzaguy

_Get out of there Haley, you've won, babe, just get the hell out of there......_

Oh. I understand.

She _can't_ just leave. Because she has to deal with Crystal, she has to help protect the dwarf villagers.

....

Things are looking better, but the underlying dynamics haven't changed a whole lot.

Reinforcements, something..... Crystal still unstoppable if she wants to kill Haley.


I'll leave my bet on Haley for now.

----------


## Sniffnoy

I'm going to bet on *Crystal*.  (Hopefully this doesn't turn out like my bet on Spiky...)

----------


## ZidIles

Yay!  :Small Big Grin: 

Okay, I will vote for *The High Priest of Hel* this time.

----------


## Sniffnoy

Hey, I got it right!  I'm a 2-pointer now! :D  (Unless anyone wants to claim that shouldn't count as a death.)  Too bad so few people here to gloat to now. :)

Anyway, *bets may now be changed once again*.

----------


## GM_3826

...Did Rich just pull a Diabolus Ex Machina?

...Now I know who's gonna die next. Voting for *Tarquin.*

----------


## Jaxzan Proditor

I was going to change my vote, but I figured I would have more time. Oh well.

----------


## Elenna

So I just found this game...I'm going to vote for the *HPoH*.

----------


## Sniffnoy

Bumping this since it'd fallen off.

----------


## ramakidin

I didn't see a place for her but I would like to place a bet on * Captain Bandana*.

----------


## Sniffnoy

> I didn't see a place for her but I would like to place a bet on * Captain Bandana*.


Yes, I only list ones that people have currently bet on.  If someone bets on someone new, I add them.

----------


## dmaxno

I just found the thread, and I am going to vote (despite my wishes) for *Belkar Bitterleaf*.

----------


## Sniffnoy

And with that, after being so close for so long, Belkar finally makes it to 50 bets.

----------


## Ulthwithian

I would like to bet on *Belkar Bitterleaf*.

----------


## Sniffnoy

OK, since nobody bet on Gontor and he's only appeared in 2 comics, his death doesn't count -- you still can't change bets yet if you've made a bet after Crystal's death.

----------


## Rorrik

I'm putting my money on Wrecan, but since he's only in 7 strips so far (counting a double long strip as two) I might be disqualified if he lasts less time than I expect.

----------


## ajp1011

Might I place a bet on one *Belkar Bitterleaf*?

----------


## Sniffnoy

> I'm putting my money on Wrecan, but since he's only in 7 strips so far (counting a double long strip as two) I might be disqualified if he lasts less time than I expect.


I'd say Wrecan "has some significance", I'll allow it. :)

Edit: Come to think of it, I'll bet on Wrecan as well.

----------


## Oudyn

Since Wrecan is a tribute character, I'm pretty sure he'll make it out alive. The Giant can't be that cruel (...right?). Likewise, I think (read:hope) Belkar will live to the end of this book at least. One bet on *Durkula*, if you please.

----------


## FlawedParadigm

*Belkar Bitterleaf.* Even if it's not soon, it's guaranteed. I'm getting at least one more point in this thread. :p

----------


## Rorrik

> Since Wrecan is a tribute character, I'm pretty sure he'll make it out alive. The Giant can't be that cruel (...right?). Likewise, I think (read:hope) Belkar will live to the end of this book at least. One bet on *Durkula*, if you please.


I thought about that. But personally, I think it would be a great tribute to have a character named after me die nobly, better than getting some snarky lines in and then departing to an unknown fate.

----------


## Rinazina

one Belkar for me, thanks

----------


## Pory

Long time since the last time I voted. I don't think it's his time yet but I'm going to bet on *Belkar*, just in case.

----------


## Sniffnoy

> *Belkar Bitterleaf.* Even if it's not soon, it's guaranteed. I'm getting at least one more point in this thread. :p


I don't currently have you as having any points.  Is that in error?

----------


## gadren

One bet on Belkar, please.

----------


## Arin

Put me down for The World, in two strips. :)

----------


## Elenna

If the world is destroyed, do we all win? :Small Big Grin:

----------


## Sniffnoy

Uh, yeah... kind of an unprecedented situation, that... I'm going to say yes, everyone who bet scores a point in that case.  (I mean, unless they bet on a god or something.)  And you can't bet on "The World" as per rule 11. :P

----------


## Gift Jeraff

A shame this thread got pushed over here. Only the thread curator got a point during the Crystal Golem scene...I would've gotten a point for Crystal if I remembered this existed back then.  :Small Tongue: 

Have you talked to a mod about allowing it back in the OOTS forum? I don't see how it's much more structured than the Trivia threads or the Stick Awards.

----------


## Sniffnoy

I hadn't asked, honestly!  It would certainly be nice to be moved back.

Edit: OK, I've asked about it now, we'll see what they say.

----------


## necrochicken

One bet on *Belkar*, please.

Oh well. Truly he was the best of us.

----------


## DeliaP

I'm going to be wildly optimistic, and change my bet to "High Priest of Hel"

I know the whole "death and destruction" prophecy is currently in HPoH's favour that he'll escape (while Hel not managing to win the vote, of course), but I still reckon it's more likely than my previous bet coming in!

----------


## Elenna

Bump. What happened to asking if this could be moved back to the OoTS section, by the way?

----------


## Sniffnoy

I don't know.  Mark Hall said he would ask the other mods about it some time ago.  Never seems to have happened; I bugged him about it once more after that, I could do so again.

*Edit*: Sorry, the answer seems to be no.  Oh well.

----------


## Sniffnoy

Bumping the thread since it had fallen off.  Unfortunately the thread is apparently stuck here in structured games.  But this seems like a pretty good time to place a bet...

----------


## Sniffnoy

I'm not sure whether Little Whiskers is dead, but regardless he doesn't count because he only has 5 appearances and nobody bet on him.

----------


## Aquillion

I doubt he is.  He's connected to a donor character (presumably part of her description), and it'd be a bit harsh to kill off her tiger like that.

----------


## GM_3826

I feel like they sort of confirmed in the comic that the vampire didn't suck enough of his blood for him to die.

----------


## Sniffnoy

Bumping for visibility.

----------


## Disc Lorde

Can we bet on the tiger? Little Whiskers, I think his name is?

----------


## Sniffnoy

Sure, I don't see why not.  He's got 7 appearances, a name, and seems generally significant enough.  RSLee, who originally wrote the rules, may have intended to be more restrictive about them, but I've generally been pretty permissive; I'll allow it.  Should I assume you are indeed placing such a bet?

----------


## Disc Lorde

I was thinking about it, but with that post I was just asking if we could. After some more thinking, put me down for *Durkon/Durkula*.

----------


## Sniffnoy

Bumping once again for visibility.

----------


## Moo, I'm Human

Hm. Dunno why I haven't seen this before...
I bet *O-chul*, the MITD needs motivation to turn against Team Evil.

----------


## Black Socks

I bet on *O-Chul*. I have a hunch that either he or Lien will die, and it would be more dramatic if Mr. Stiffly got killed....

Edit: by which I mean that O-Chul is a symbol of strength and resistance. He's the guy who survived Redcloak's torture, fought through Xykon's gladiatorial matches, busted out of prison, and took out Redcloak's eye with a metal pole! If he got killed it would be tragic, but also give the characters a new reason to fight. 
Plus, he's the MitD's best friend. If he got killed, it would give the MitD a reason to turn against Team Evil. I can see it now...
O-Chul falling to the floor
MitD yelling "MR. STIFFLY!!!"
A flashback to them playing Go together
The MitD roars and throws off his umbrella
And attacks!

----------


## anjxed

I bet on Lien then

----------


## Moo, I'm Human

> I bet on *O-Chul*. I have a hunch that either he or Lien will die, and it would be more dramatic if Mr. Stiffly got killed....
> 
> Edit: by which I mean that O-Chul is a symbol of strength and resistance. He's the guy who survived Redcloak's torture, fought through Xykon's gladiatorial matches, busted out of prison, and took out Redcloak's eye with a metal pole! If he got killed it would be tragic, but also give the characters a new reason to fight. 
> Plus, he's the MitD's best friend. If he got killed, it would give the MitD a reason to turn against Team Evil. I can see it now...
> O-Chul falling to the floor
> MitD yelling "MR. STIFFLY!!!"
> A flashback to them playing Go together
> The MitD roars and throws off his umbrella
> And attacks!


But just as he throws it off, one of two things happen:
1. He yells "*Insert whoever killed O-Chul here*! I will eat your broken corpse lightly seasoned with nutmeg!
or 2. Elan remins him to do something like that just before.

Then after, Elan cries at the amazing reveal.

----------


## Gift Jeraff

Changing to *Lien*



> I don't know.  Mark Hall said he would ask the other mods about it some time ago.  Never seems to have happened; I bugged him about it once more after that, I could do so again.
> 
> *Edit*: Sorry, the answer seems to be no.  Oh well.


Lame. It's not like the OOTS section is too fast/crowded to handle another recurring thread.

----------


## Sniffnoy

Yeah, I tried also suggesting that other similar game-like recurring threads (awards, trivia, etc) should be moved down here with us, but that seems to have gone nowhere...

----------


## keybounce

A bet cannot be changed once made?

... I don't want to bet against O'chill or Lien. I'll wait

----------


## Sniffnoy

> A bet cannot be changed once made?
> 
> ... I don't want to bet against O'chill or Lien. I'll wait


Right, not until a character dies.

----------


## Sniffnoy

Bumping for visibility.

----------


## Sniffnoy

And again.

----------


## DeliaP

A request: can the first post be updated to mention which had been the latest death, please?  It currently states Nale, but obviously Crystal and Bozzock are the most recent since then.

Many thanks.

(Ideally, there'd be some way of indicating which votes hadn't changed since the last death, and therefore were still eligible to change, but that's a lot of work for the thread maintainers, just because I keep forgetting if my vote had changed yet  :Small Smile:  )

----------


## Sniffnoy

OK, I can do that!

----------


## Sniffnoy

Bumping for visibility.

----------


## Markozeta

Can I call Bandana?  I didn't know this thing existed until now.

----------


## Sniffnoy

> Can I call Bandana?  I didn't know this thing existed until now.


Sure thing!  Yeah the thread got moved to here from the main forum and since then it's mostly died down. :-/  Oh well...

Since Bandana is clearly allowed (there's one bet on her already), I'll interpret that as an actual bet unless you say otherwise.

----------


## IDrankWHAT

I'd like to place a bet down on all three of the main Mechane characters that we've met: Andi, Bandana and poor Felix. Don't ask me why I'm mentioning Felix, it just seems he may get hurt somehow. Or will I need to put a response for each one?

----------


## Sniffnoy

> I'd like to place a bet down on all three of the main Mechane characters that we've met: Andi, Bandana and poor Felix. Don't ask me why I'm mentioning Felix, it just seems he may get hurt somehow. Or will I need to put a response for each one?


You can only bet on one character at a time.  Which one do you want to bet on?

----------


## Xihirli

I'm betting on Xykon.

----------


## Mister Tom

I shall start with a Felix Down.

----------


## Sniffnoy

None of the characters killed off in #1060 have 10 appearances or more (though I'll wait for the appearances thread to be certain), and nobody had bet on them (I doubt I'd have even allowed such a bet), so no, bets may still not be changed.

----------


## b_jonas

I bet on *Andi* aka Andromeda.

----------


## GM_3826

Still waiting for Tarquin to be killed off screen in a most ironic fashion.

----------


## Markozeta

No X's on the eyes, is there?

----------


## Sniffnoy

Nope.  Not counting Bandana out yet.

----------


## Generic-Guy

> Nope.  Not counting Bandana out yet.


I join in and say *Bandana*. I belive that the Giant only wants to keep the tension of the fight before he reveals her dead.

----------


## dadada

Put me down for Elan

----------


## Sniffnoy

And, bumping for visibility.

----------


## Celticbear

I'll put my money on *Belkar*! What, he was prophesied to die in book three by the end of the in story year. By my count, that's soon. Roy gone for let's say four months while he's dead. Moving through the desert takes another month, and by the end of the fifth book they're in a hot sweety desert but the start of the sixth book frosty mountains? That's another month. Now the oracle said the end of the year, not 365 days after the prophesy is given. Taking into account of the "Chinese New Year" situation at the beginning of the third book, we can say it's about two to three months into the year. Counting for a margin of error we'll add one more month. That's a total of seven or eight months into the year. Boom, math. :Small Cool:

----------


## GM_3826

> I'll put my money on *Belcar*! What, he was prophesied to die in book three by the end of the in story year. By my count, that's soon. Roy gone for let's say four months while he's dead. Moving through the desert takes another month, and by the end of the fifth book they're in a hot sweety desert but the start of the sixth book frosty mountains? That's another month. Now the oracle said the end of the year, not 365 days after the prophesy is given. Taking into account of the "Chinese New Year" situation at the beginning of the third book, we can say it's about two to three months into the year. Counting for a margin of error we'll add one more month. That's a total of seven or eight months into the year. Boom, math.


Good math. I still think that Tarquin will die before Belkar, likely without much fanfare (judging by how Crystal was dumped into a lava pit just to get that subplot out of the way). After all, July or August isn't exactly the end of the year. It's the middle.

----------


## Fin

I'll put my chips down on *Felix* he's just involved enough to create some sadness at his passing but not integral enough to live!

----------


## Insertmeme

My bet: *Belkar Bitterleaf*. More specifically, I think he will be vampirized by Durkon/HpoH and possibly killing V.

----------


## DeliaP

I was going to ask if the Ice Giantess was a candidate for betting, as she's been in a few comics and even had character development (of a sort), but I wasn't in a position to change my bet anyway, and now over the side she goes, which means we may never see if she gets X's in her eyes...

----------


## Sniffnoy

Bumping for visibility once again.

----------


## Bob_McSurly

I'm going to go with Greg/Durkula.

----------


## Ezeze

I'm putting my money on *Belkar Bitterleaf*.

The prophets been on point so far, and I think they are going to use him to Worf for Durkon.

----------


## Sniffnoy

Bumping for visibility.

And just in case there was any confusion on the matter (I don't think there was), none of the recent deaths of the dwarves at the hands of the vampires count.

----------


## Bob_McSurly

Does the vampire version of Brother Sandstone count?

----------


## Sniffnoy

> Does the vampire version of Brother Sandstone count?


Ooh, good question, I missed that, thanks!

Unfortunately by the rules I set forth earlier I have to say no.  Brother Sandstone only has a total of 8 appearances and nobody bet on him.  So he doesn't count, and bets still can't be changed.

----------


## Bob_McSurly

Thanks for the info!

----------


## b_jonas

In the first post of the thread, where you list the last significant death, I think it would be useful to list which strip the death has happened in, and the date of publication of that strip, so that it's easy for anyone to tell which votes can still be changed.  Currently (after #1107) the last significant character death is *Crystal* (reanimated as a Crystal golem) getting destroyed in *#981*, which was published near 2015-04-27T08:49Z.  

Since I voted later than that (on 2016-12-20), I can't change my vote now, even though now that Hilgya has joined the party to provide punchlines, it is finally possible to off Belkar.

----------


## Sniffnoy

Ah, I was assuming people would tell by checking post order relative to the post I made announcing it.  But I'll go edit in the date as well.

----------


## Sniffnoy

Bumping thread due to inactivity.

----------


## Magentamist

I would like to place my bet on  :Vaarsuvius:  Vaarsuivius, please. After all, we all know how deals with fiends inevitably end...

----------


## Sniffnoy

Bumping for visibility once again.

----------


## Sniffnoy

And, once more.

----------


## b_jonas

I think Belkar kills the Vampire Dwarf with Blue Beard and Balding Head in #1119 panel 5.  He should die permanently because Belkar used a stake and his eyes changed, and this death counts for this thread because the Wrecan thread says he's got 10 appearances (but I have my reservations, so I've asked them). Do I understand this correctly? Who gets points, and do we get to change our votes now?  If we can change, then

I bet that *Belkar* will die next.

Update: I can confirm the ten appearances:
#1101 splash panel very back;#1102 third panel bottom left corner;#1104 ninth panel, half of him is visible on the very left;#1105 first panel second from the left, and eleventh panel leftmost;#1109 eight panel bottom right corner, just barely visible;#1111 second and third panel middle, with dialog;#1116 third panel second from left climbing the wall with super spider powers;#1117 sixth panel second from right, with speech, then seventh and eighth panel attacking Vaarsuvius, then twelfth panel, slowed down by the chaos hammer;#1118 second panel right front;#1119 fifth panel, Belkar kills him with a stake.Sniffnoy, can you confirm that this counts as a significant death for the purposes of this thread?  

The fun part is that since he has exactly ten appearances, the tenth being his death, nobody could have cast a valid vote for him.  (Unless Sniffnoy rules that the intelligence he delivers in #1111 makes him significant.)  But that's what you get if you write lawyerable rules.

----------


## Sniffnoy

...huh. Yeah, that's an edge case I hadn't thought of.  I should've made the rule to require one more appearance for those purposes.  I didn't!  I'll change it in the future but this one counts.

*Nobody gets points, bets may now be changed!*

And I'll go update the initial one with your Belkar bet...

----------


## Elenna

To confirm, if a vampire is killed and resurrected, it counts as a death, right?

If so, I'll vote on the *Nameless Vampire* from the end of strip 1111.
In the Number of Character Appearances thread, they're listed as *CoTS Usher with Sandy Hair* and have 12 appearances.

(TBH I'm pretty sure most or all of the spawn in the current battle will die first, but I don't feel like figuring out which is which.)

----------


## Sniffnoy

I guess I'll change mine as well... to a different vampire. :)  I'm betting on the *Vampire Dwarf with Red Ponytail*.

----------


## b_jonas

> Most recent death (that counts for the purpose of changing bets): *Vampire Dwarf with Brown Beard* (in #1119 on 2018-04-30)


Wait what?  Where is that one shown as dying?

----------


## Elenna

> Wait what?  Where is that one shown as dying?


Very left of the second-last panel of 1119, he's got X's in his eyes.

----------


## Sniffnoy

> Wait what?  Where is that one shown as dying?


My mistake.  I wrote down the wrong anonymous vampire!

----------


## ti'esar

As my "it seemed like a good idea at the time" prior vote for Tarquin would indicate, I haven't been in this thread in _ages_, but I figured it can't hurt to get back into it. I'd like to change my bet to the nameless *Creed of Stone human vampire* ("CotS Usher with Long Hair" in the character appearances thread; also nicknamed 'Ponchula' by some). I think all of the vampires in this hall apart from Durkon* will not survive the fight.

----------


## Sniffnoy

OK, pretty sure at least one qualifying character died in #1122, give me a moment to figure out exactly who...

It looks like the deaths are: Vampire Dwarf with Red Ponytail, and... some other vampires who don't matter for these purposes because nobody bet on them.

One point for me, and *bets may now be changed again!*

----------


## Askthepizzaguy

Put my bet on the Greg the Vampire guy in Durkon's body.

----------


## FlawedParadigm

I think Ponchella's about due for a stake.

----------


## Dellis

Belkar. Unfortunately.

----------


## Askthepizzaguy

> I think Ponchella's about due for a stake.


That was probably a much wiser bet than mine. I forgot she was even in the room.

I am not so good at this game...

----------


## CircleOfTheRock

Ill put my bet on Ponchula (having just joined this thread).

----------


## Sniffnoy

So, just to be clear, #1126 does *not* contain any deaths that count.  (The one vampire shown to be killed in it has only 8 appearances.)

----------


## Sniffnoy

Well, geez.  Guess it's Minrah then. :(  Nobody gets points.  *Bets may now be changed...*

----------


## Sniccups

Ill bet on... lets say V, as the party member with the fewest HP.

----------


## b_jonas

> Well, geez.  Guess it's Minrah then. :(  Nobody gets points.  Bets may now be changed...


Heh heh heh. We're so bad at this game. There's a big fight between the high-level party of the Order of the Stick and the supernaturally tough vampires, plus a low-level character Minrah.  Minrah dies in #1128, and nobody foresees it.  

I'm not changing my vote though, for now.

----------


## Kish

I'll change my bet to Greg.

----------


## Elenna

> Heh heh heh. We're so bad at this game. There's a big fight between the high-level party of the Order of the Stick and the supernaturally tough vampires, plus a low-level character Minrah.  Minrah dies in #1128, and nobody foresees it.  
> 
> I'm not changing my vote though, for now.


Yeah, basically as soon as I saw the post about her death I was like "Hang on, she's a low level character in a fight too big for her, she's an easy target to kill off to show that things are serious, and her role as Cleric was taken over by Hilgya so she's not even important for party balance. How did I not see this coming?"  :Small Tongue: 

Granted, the last two things turned out to be irrelevant since the whole Order was knocked out at the same time. But they would have been good reasons to vote for her before #1128. I guess my excuse is that I forgot she existed...

----------


## GM_3826

I still feel like Tarquin is going to be announced to have been killed unceremoniously offscreen, so I'm not changing my vote.

----------


## b_jonas

And I think this time we actually have people who scored points, but I'll wait for Sniffnoy's announcement. Congrats to ti'esar if he manages to climb on top of the leaderboard, and congrats to everyone who got the point.

(Update: to explain, since Sniffnoy only spells it out in the volatile first post, Ponchula died.)

----------


## Sniffnoy

> And I think this time we actually have people who scored points, but I'll wait for Sniffnoy's announcement. Congrats to ti'esar if he manages to climb on top of the leaderboard, and congrats to everyone who got the point.


I have some trouble telling the vampire extras apart, but I'm pretty sure you're right.  I'll go update the first post momentarily.  *Bets may now be changed (again)*.

----------


## Elenna

Welp guess I shouldn't have bet on Ponchula escaping this room. (I suspect the audience liked her quite a bit more than the Giant anticipated.)

Changing my vote to *Greg/Durkula/HPoH* for obvious reasons.

----------


## Askthepizzaguy

I have to admit...

*Spoiler*
Show

I am sort of wondering if Durkula counts as being dead now.

I think he's _gone_.

I think Durkon's body may / may not be destroyed, but the distinct being that was 'Greg' might _be_ Durkon now. Destroying him as a negative energy spirit and just replacing him with Durkon's spirit.

----------


## Sniffnoy

> I have to admit...
> 
> *Spoiler*
> Show
> 
> I am sort of wondering if Durkula counts as being dead now.
> 
> I think he's _gone_.
> 
> I think Durkon's body may / may not be destroyed, but the distinct being that was 'Greg' might _be_ Durkon now. Destroying him as a negative energy spirit and just replacing him with Durkon's spirit.


I am not going to count that, particularly because they're still being shown as separate for now.

(Also I'm placing a bet of my own on *"Greg"*.)

----------


## Elenna

Forgot about the anti-life shell, I thought Belkar was literally right about to stab him. Oh well, I already changed my vote.

----------


## b_jonas

The first post should probably list the significant deaths and the strips they happen in, as the rules of the thread defines them, but it would give useful history even for regular users.  This would be useful especially for new users to see, so they can tell how rarely or how often significant characters die.

Let me try to collect the deaths while there's still only a few of them.  Is there anyone I missed, perhaps because nobody bet on them?  I've only been following theis thread recently, since later than Crystal's death.

#848 Yukyuk (dies from Zz'dtri's acid damage spell)#877 Durkon (Malack drains his blood to death; his last request is to spare the rest of the Order)#906 Malack (Nale and Zz'dtri kill him with the desert sun)#908 Zz'dtri (the newly created Greg snaps his neck)#913 Nale (Tarquin kills him with a dagger)#981 Crystal (was already reanimated as a Crystal golem with memories; Haley drops her into waste incinerator)#1119 Vampire Dwarf with Blue Beard and Balding Head (Belkar kills him in panel 5; they have exactly 10 appearances including this strip, so it was not allowed to bet on him)#1119 Vampire Dwarf with Brown Beard (killed by Hilgya's Flame Strike in eighth panel; nobody betted on him)#1122 Vampire Dwarf with Red Ponytail (Roy kills her with a thrown sword in panel 9)#1128 Minrah (killed by Hilgya's Flame Strike in second page fifth panel; nobody betted on her)#1130 Ponchula (CotS Usher with Long Hair; nickname for human vampire who had a notable dialog in #1112 about a poncho; Belkar decapitates her)#1131 Durkon#1149 Durkon#1166 Kandro (Durkon's uncle; nightcrawler worm eats him)#1174 Exarch Gontor Hammerfell the vampire (overwhelmed by Durkon's family)#1175 Sandy the unnamed vampire (Hel implies that he's dead)

Once initialized, the list won't be hard to update, since you have to figure out which deaths are significant to maintain the bets anyway.

Update 2018-08-24: fixed pronouns, thanks to DeliaP
Update 2019-02-25: added #1122.
Update 2019-08-18: Sniffnoy confirmed Sandy's death.

----------


## FlawedParadigm

Ha HA! Ponchula does get a point now!

Think I'll go for the Exarch/Gonetor next. His failure is pre-ordained by narrative convention, and while his failure may not require death, I think if I pick any of the three people I really want to, I'm going to find out they all survive for now. :p

----------


## Sniffnoy

And, points for everyone who bet on Durkon/HPoH/"Greg".  *Bets may now be changed (yet again)*.

First post is now updated.

----------


## Kish

Yay!

Yeah, I'll bet on the Vampire Exarch, too.

----------


## Jaxzan Proditor

Im going to change my vote to the Exarch (or whatever we want to call him) as well

----------


## ti'esar

Damn, I was reasonably certain Greg was a safe bet, but I wasn't in a hurry to _say_ so because I figured the comic would take longer.

I guess having learned my lesson about bandwagoning means I'm changing my vote to *the vampire Exarch.* (Or "Gontor Hammerhel" as I like to think of him).

----------


## Elenna

Woo! A point!  :Small Big Grin: 

Changing my vote back to the *nameless vampire* from strip 1111 because she's also narratively doomed to fail and I think she'll die before the Exarch.

----------


## heretic

> Woo! A point! 
> 
> Changing my vote back to the *nameless vampire* from strip 1111 because she's also narratively doomed to fail and I think she'll die before the Exarch.


I'll do the same.

----------


## jwhouk

I'm way behind in this thread, but I'm actually going to put my 5gp on *The Exarch* to be the next to die.

----------


## b_jonas

I for one *do not change* my bet from Belkar. 

Analysis.  I still think he's a pretty safe bet, avoiding risky bets.  But more importantly, this leaves me open to potentially change my bet later when I get more information from future comic strips.  Like, whether we see the Order actually catch up with wherever the Exarch is now, or we get our cut away to Team Evil and the MITD and O-Chul and Lien.  I think the most likely is that, possibly after a cut to Team Evil, we'll see the Order have a random encounter or other obstacle before even reaching the Exarch.  In this last case, the Belkar bet is probably still pretty safe, because anyone they meet will probably not be votable, I don't think Roy or Elan or Haley or Vaarsuvius or Blackwing will die yet.  There's some chance that Hilgya gets his well deserved end first, or that Mr. Scruffy or Bloodfeast the Extreme-inator has to die to enrage Belkar into vengeance again, but it will be very difficult to guess which of these happens.

*Spoiler: Pointless teasing of other players, don't read if you're sensitive and may take offense*
Show

You all _have_ read the rules, especially rule 3, before changing to the Exarch, because you actually think he'll die in the very next strip, before you get a chance to change your vote, right?  You're entitled to bet however you choose, but I won't do that.  





> I'm way behind in this thread, but I'm actually going to put my 5gp on The Exarch to be the next to die.


You're not behind, you only have to change your vote before the Exarch dies.

----------


## FlawedParadigm

> I for one *do not change* my bet from Belkar. 
> 
> Analysis.  I still think he's a pretty safe bet, avoiding risky bets.  But more importantly, this leaves me open to potentially change my bet later when I get more information from future comic strips.  Like, whether we see the Order actually catch up with wherever the Exarch is now, or we get our cut away to Team Evil and the MITD and O-Chul and Lien.  I think the most likely is that, possibly after a cut to Team Evil, we'll see the Order have a random encounter or other obstacle before even reaching the Exarch.  In this last case, the Belkar bet is probably still pretty safe, because anyone they meet will probably not be votable, I don't think Roy or Elan or Haley or Vaarsuvius or Blackwing will die yet.  There's some chance that Hilgya gets his well deserved end first, or that Mr. Scruffy or Bloodfeast the Extreme-inator has to die to enrage Belkar into vengeance again, but it will be very difficult to guess which of these happens.
> 
> *Spoiler: Pointless teasing of other players, don't read if you're sensitive and may take offense*
> Show
> 
> You all _have_ read the rules, especially rule 3, before changing to the Exarch, because you actually think he'll die in the very next strip, before you get a chance to change your vote, right?  You're entitled to bet however you choose, but I won't do that.


I made my bet because he's narratively doomed to fail. Now that failure may not involve dying, or we may switch away to Team Evil, Sabine, the IFCC, or Hinjo and someone else entirely may die next, but as we're in the denouement of the book, I don't think we'll see any more combat not related to Durkon's arc this book. Ergo, the Exarch seemed like the safest bet (my other three options I couldn't decide between were the curly-haired vampire that fled when Ponchula died, Durkula, and Belkar - who I don't think will die until the last 30 strips or so of the comic, but still looked to be in danger a moment being the only conscious one against three vampires.)

----------


## DeliaP

Did I get a point? I did! I got a point!!!  Woohoo!  Sure, I got it just because I'd been letting my vote ride since the Godsmoot, and each time I was thinking of changing it (Ice Giantess, Ponchula) they went and got killed before I managed... but it still counts! Yeah!  (And I'd even forgotten that it was Durkula I was voting for.... I thought I was still on Lien....)

OK, new vote.  Let's see.... let's see.... last time we were this close to the end of the book I decided there would be no more deaths likely, only for Malack, Zzdriti and Nale to die in quick succession, so no form there.  I would say the ex-Exarch, but if he doesn't escape (and with Ponchula already down) who is going to keep Hel's faction going in the multi-car pile up at the final gate??  _Someone_ has to be advancing a "Blow up the gate, force the Gods to remake the world" agenda.... Ah, what the Hel, he's a safe bet to be destroyed sooner or later (only Belkar and Xykon are safer bets, I'd say, but I doubt either will happen til much closer to the end of Book 7) so it's good enough for now!

I vote: the *ex-Exarch, Gontorkula Somethingorother Hammerfell.*

- - - Updated - - -




> #1128 Minrah (killed by Hilgya's Flame Strike in second page fifth panel; nobody betted on him)#1130 Ponchula (nickname for human vampire who had a notable dialog in #1112 about a poncho; Belkar decapitates him)


Um, btw, they should both be "her" not "him".

(But thanks for keeping this list updated!  It might be a nice addition to the posts at the start of the thread.)

----------


## Alabenson

I'm putting my (figurative) money on *nameless vampire* for the next to croak.

----------


## Askthepizzaguy

I also put my money on *nameless vampire girl* who was one of the original 4 to teleport to Firmament. I feel Gontor is going to outlive her, but surprise me.

I'd like to be right even once!  :Small Smile:

----------


## Samba Mentality

Im putting my money on Mr. Scruffy.

----------


## username1

I put my gp on *Hilgya*

----------


## Harrisonvinny

I vote the Vampire Exarch!

----------


## Son of A Lich!

Banjo needs souls to be a god, so I'm taking a LOOOOONG shot in the dark here.

*Elan*

----------


## Sniffnoy

Welp, it turns out that the correct answer was Durkon, again!  Nobody gets points!  *Bets may now be changed once again*.

----------


## FlawedParadigm

Sticking with the *Exarch.*

----------


## Sniccups

> I also put my money on *nameless vampire girl* who was one of the original 4 to teleport to Firmament. I feel Gontor is going to outlive her, but surprise me.
> 
> I'd like to be right even once!


I agree with this.

----------


## Sniffnoy

> I agree with this.


Sorry, is that you placing a new bet?  It's not clear.

Edit: To be clear, I'm not going to count this as a new bet unless you confirm fairly quickly that you intended it that way.

----------


## b_jonas

I was thinking a lot because either Hilgya or Belkar could die in the next strip.  I still don't know for sure, but I made up my mind now.  

*I change my bet to Hilgya.*

----------


## Alabenson

I'm going to stick with *Nameless Vampire*

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## Sniffnoy

(Bumping for visibility.)

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## Sniffnoy

Bumping for visibility again.

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## PopeLinus1

A million Quatloo's that every character in the comic dies next comic. (1162)

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## Aquillion

> A million Quatloo's that every character in the comic dies next comic. (1162)


Does that include characters that are already dead, like Roy's father?

(_Can_ we bet on characters that are already dead?  Notionally there are ways for them to "die" in the sense that their soul could be destroyed or somesuch.)

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## Sniffnoy

> A million Quatloo's that every character in the comic dies next comic. (1162)


Sorry, bets must be on individual characters!

- - - Updated - - -




> Does that include characters that are already dead, like Roy's father?
> 
> (_Can_ we bet on characters that are already dead?  Notionally there are ways for them to "die" in the sense that their soul could be destroyed or somesuch.)


Well, you certainly can bet on characters that are already dead -- it's been done before.  (There's a joke bet on Miko...)  I don't think "soul being destroyed counts as a death" is in the rules right now but, well, I'd count it, and I could add it if people think it really needs to be.

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## PopeLinus1

> Sorry, bets must be on individual characters!


Alright than. 

A million Quatloos that Roy dies next comic
A million Quatloos that Durkan dies next comic
A million Quatloos that Elan  dies next comic
A million Quatloos that Haley dies next comic
A million Quatloos that Belkar dies next comic
A million Quatloos that V dies next comic
A million Quatloos that Xykon dies next comic
A million Quatloos that Redcloak dies next comic
A million Quatloos that tMitD dies next comic
A million Quatloos that Hel dies next comic
A million Quatloos that Thor dies next comic
A million Quatloos that Odin dies next comic
A million Quatloos that O-Chul dies next comic
A million Quatloos that Lien dies next comic
A million Quatloos that Hinjo dies next comic
A million Quatloos that Miko dies next comic

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## Sniffnoy

> Alright than. 
> 
> A million Quatloos that Roy dies next comic
> A million Quatloos that Durkan dies next comic
> A million Quatloos that Elan  dies next comic
> A million Quatloos that Haley dies next comic
> A million Quatloos that Belkar dies next comic
> A million Quatloos that V dies next comic
> A million Quatloos that Xykon dies next comic
> ...


You can only bet on one character at a time.

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## PopeLinus1

> You can only bet on one character at a time.


God so many rules, fine, I bet an infinite amount of quatloos that Rich Burlew dies before the next book is finished, happy now?

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## Aquillion

Is Rich a character in his own comic?  I vaguely recall him appearing at one point, but I can't recall where - perhaps the aside when he cut his thumb?

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## Sniffnoy

Yup, the appearances thread list it as his sole appearance: http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0864.html

I think I have to rule that in-comic-Rich isn't a significant enough character to qualify for an exception to the "at least 10 appearances" rule, sorry.

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## PopeLinus1

> Yup, the appearances thread list it as his sole appearance: http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0864.html
> 
> I think I have to rule that in-comic-Rich isn't a significant enough character to qualify for an exception to the "at least 10 appearances" rule, sorry.


Oh my god! It's like you don't want me to bet in your betting pool.


You know what? Fine. 


I will bet every single possesion I have ever owned that _you_ die before the next comic comes out!

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## Aquillion

> Oh my god! It's like you don't want me to bet in your betting pool.
> 
> 
> You know what? Fine. 
> 
> 
> I will bet every single possesion I have ever owned that _you_ die before the next comic comes out!


You can only bet points, kinglinus!  And Sniffnoy isn't a character in the comic at all!

kinglinus, this is not 'nam, this is the OOTS Death Pool.  There are rules.

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## PopeLinus1

> You can only bet points, kinglinus!  And Sniffnoy isn't a character in the comic at all!
> 
> kinglinus, this is not 'nam, this is the OOTS Death Pool.  There are rules.


Merlin's beard, you all are lawful neutral. I could actually read the rules, but Sniffnoy was already bumping for visibility, and this is more fun. 

I bet -30 points that Roy overthrows Persia in the next 13 comics.

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## Aquillion

Persia isn't a character in the comic!

I'm not sure there's a _specific_ rule against negative bets, but generally speaking bets have to be framed in "bet on character X" - you can't just bet on them "for the next comic", since you're not allowed to change your bet until they or someone else dies.  Also, you don't lose your bet if you get it wrong, so you wouldn't gain anything from eg. a negative bet on Elan.

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## PopeLinus1

Fine, I bet π-30^2 points.

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## Sniffnoy

Welp, nobody bet on Kandro, but (to my surprise) he has enough appearances to count!  So, nobody gets points, but *bets may now be changed*.

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## b_jonas

It looks (as of #1167) like we're starting the sequence where Durkon will be heading to the council chamber and break the ceiling to let sunlight in and destroy all the vampires.  Now I have to decide which of the remaining four vampires will die first, to maximize my points.  Sandy is damaged here and is in the way of the fighters, but he also seems tough.

I change my bet to *the vampire dwarf with blue curly hair* and blue robe, whose unholy symbol has a yellow outline, aka Curly, who has speaking role in #1157.  She's had enough apparences according to the counting thread.

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## GM_3826

OK, so, for the longest time, I thought that Tarquin's death would be announced kind of offhandedly, as if he were a minor character in a Shakespeare play.

Now, I'm pretty much convinced that he won't even get that much closure. Call me impatient, but we're nearing the end of the story. It doesn't look like there will be an opportunity for that to be announced offhand.

I'm changing my vote to Sigdi Thundershield, aka Durkon's mother. She has the advantage of being a character who probably wouldn't want to be resurrected.

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## Caerulea

The Exarch is going to die. Like, soon. I will wager half a ball of yarn.

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## Sniffnoy

*The Exarch, who was once Gontor, is dead!*  Points have been awarded!  Bets may be changed!

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## b_jonas

Yep, Gontor as a vampire is destroyed in #1174.  Several people bet on him.  The other two vampires are still undead, but not for long I think.  I hope they won't just get destroyed off panel, with their body never seen.

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## FlawedParadigm

Risky bet because it may not be confirmed onscreen for awhile, if at all, but for at least ten strips from #1174, I'll vote on The *Frontarchess* (The vampire at the Godsmoot who became High Priestess on a technicality when Durkon needed to teleport out but Hel still required her High Priestess to be present for her vote to count.)

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## Sniffnoy

> Risky bet because it may not be confirmed onscreen for awhile, if at all, but for at least ten strips from #1174, I'll vote on The *Frontarchess* (The vampire at the Godsmoot who became High Priestess on a technicality when Durkon needed to teleport out but Hel still required her High Priestess to be present for her vote to count.)


The appearances thread lists her as having only 2 appearances; I suspect I probably shouldn't allow that...

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## FlawedParadigm

> The appearances thread lists her as having only 2 appearances; I suspect I probably shouldn't allow that...


Does *Curly* have ten yet, then? (The fleeing vampire in #1175)

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## b_jonas

*Sniffnoy:* I'll need a judgement from you here.  In #1175 last panel, Hel says I still have one left.  Does this mean that we've learned about the death of Sandy (the unnamed vampire) in this strip?  If so, that would be the death of another significant character, you'd have to award points, and people could change bets again.

Also, I think the Giant Death Worm had 9 apperances so far, so if he died here, that'd be two short of counting.

FlawedParadigm: yes, in fact I've already betted on her.

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## Sniffnoy

> Does *Curly* have ten yet, then? (The fleeing vampire in #1175)


Yup, that's a legal bet for sure.  Will go record it.

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## Sniffnoy

> *Sniffnoy:* I'll need a judgement from you here.  In #1175 last panel, Hel says I still have one left.  Does this mean that we've learned about the death of Sandy (the unnamed vampire) in this strip?  If so, that would be the death of another significant character, you'd have to award points, and people could change bets again.
> 
> Also, I think the Giant Death Worm had 9 apperances so far, so if he died here, that'd be two short of counting.
> 
> FlawedParadigm: yes, in fact I've already betted on her.


Oh, geez, hoo boy.  Good question, good catch; I didn't even think of this.  Honestly, I'm kind of wondering if I should have counted deaths back at #1122 (or #1123 or whatever), where it seems to have been implied that they killed all the remaining vampires present except the few shown still alive and the ones who were sent off earlier.  Well, it's too late to go back and do that now; fortunately I don't think it would have resulted in any points anyway.

Anyway, yeah, I'll count this as points for Sandy.  Good catch, I don't think I would've caught that on my own.

OK, *bets may now be changed*.  I'll go update the first post shortly.

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## b_jonas

> if I should have counted deaths back at #1122 (or #1123 or whatever), where it seems to have been implied that they killed all the remaining vampires present except the few shown still alive and the ones who were sent off earlier.


Weren't each of them shown to be destroyed on screen somehow?

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## Sniffnoy

> Weren't each of them shown to be destroyed on screen somehow?


A number of them were, but I think there are more that weren't that were implied.  I could be wrong about that, though.

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## b_jonas

Question.  If a character was turned to stone, and then the statue is shattered to pieces, then would that immediately count as the death of the character, or only later if the comic explicitly confirms that it can't be fixed?  In particular, do we know if the the Make Whole spell can fix a broken petrified person in principle, and whether a petrified dwarf is small enough to be in the size limit of that spell?  I don't think this is likely to come up in the comic, but it could, so it would be best to decide in advance.  Durkon is the third character who's turned to stone (though Celia may not count because she didn't have enough appearances yet when she was petrified.)

Background: in the ending a certain other fantasy movie that isn't based on D&D, a villain is turned to stone and then broken to small pieces, and I claimed that that just makes way for a sequel because an ally can fix the statue any time and revive him, whereas other viewers claimed that the villain is dead for good and can't be revived.  There need not be a definite answer for that movie, but in this case Sniffnoy can at least tell what he would score this thread if that happened in an OotS strip.

As a bonus question, if we found out that Girard was turned into stone before he died of old age, disguised as a monument on his coffin, and the coffin contained someone else's bones, so that Girard's relatives could revive him in an emergency, then would that mean that he died in the explosion at #899, and would this count as a death during the time of the main comic for the purposes of this thread, so that we could change votes when we learn about this?  Girard had more than 10 appearances according to the Wrecan thread.

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## Sniffnoy

I think I'd count that, yeah.  Not sure I want to bother putting that in the "rulings" section in the first post because this is entirely hypothetical so far.  Also, hopefully if this were to occur the comic might clarify... although it likely wouldn't do so within the same strip.  So, uh, I'd count it but might have to be prepared to revert if the comic made it clear that this is not "dead"?  I think that's the best answer I can give.

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## DeliaP

Wow, a second point!  Wa hey!

OK, now I'm really sure there won't be any more deaths before the end of the book (which will end with Team Evil finding the Gate, of course...)  So I could just leave it, but then I'll have no bets running at all, and if a random unexpected thing happens, I could lose out! 

So, take a wild shot in the dark - just in case the book ends with them all on the Mechane heading further north, and the cliffhanger is not the Gate, but the Mechane getting attacked by, I dunno, a surprise entry by a new faction of chaotic space monkeys led by Recloak's niece, I'm going to bet upon a known member of the Mechane's crew dieing in the sudden attack.  Not Andi or Bandana.... so another visually well known crew member to be killed to provide shock value?

*My new bet is on Felix!*

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## b_jonas

Re #1180.  I think Curly got away.  But an adventuring people should have no more than 6 adventurers, so 
*I'm changing my bet back to Belkar.*
I can change because I bet on Curly before #1175.

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## Sniffnoy

(Bumping this.)

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## Sniffnoy

(And, bumping...)

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## Sniffnoy

(Bumping...)

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## Rollin

I bet on the world-weary, risk-taking *Green Voice* from #1189.

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## Snowblaze

About time I joined in... I'm going to guess that *Minrah* will die again.

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## Sniffnoy

> I bet on the world-weary, risk-taking *Green Voice* from #1189.


I don't think I can record a bet on a mysterious voice with only one appearance...

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## Rollin

> I don't think I can record a bet on a mysterious voice with only one appearance...


You're right, of course. I'm especially embarrassed because I had just read the rules.

How about *Pompey*, then?

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## trtl

My vote is Lien.

If Lien is off the table at the moment (considering last time we saw her she was poisoned) then my vote is Minrah.

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## Sniffnoy

> My vote is Lien.
> 
> If Lien is off the table at the moment (considering last time we saw her she was poisoned) then my vote is Minrah.


No reason you can't bet on Lien!

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## b_jonas

(Pinging thread to unfreeze.)

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## Sniffnoy

And, bumping.

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## FlawedParadigm

Quickly and quietly changing my vote to *Durkon* even though he's 90% likely to survive somehow. Yeah, that locks me in for what, another ten strips? I don't expect any other fatalities any time soon.

(Actually I apparently haven't changed it since, uh, before it became pretty likely we'll never see Curly again. Figures I bet on the one vampire that didn't dust. So I can't legally change until there's another death. Elan is still due a happy ending, and I see no way that can happen while *Xykon* is still around, nor do I see him settling peacefully. So let's change to that after the next death.)

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## b_jonas

Just coming in to say that I can hear you even if you're quiet.  I thought of the Death Pool right after the end of the strip, though I can't change my vote.

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## Xihirli

Yeah, I'm feeling pretty good about my Xykon vote around now.

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## Vulsutyr

First time voting on this thread; I'm going with Minrah.

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## Caerulea

On my bowl, currently empty of water, Greywolf will die next!

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## Sniffnoy

And, bumping.

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## Sniffnoy

Bumping again!

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## b_jonas

I have an idea that's a bit silly.  It seems that Durkon manages to destroy Kraagor's animated statue in #1214.  The statue was magically animated, so it was a creature, just as much as a vampire is.  Kraagor's statue has had more than 10 appearances, though for all but the last 4 of those it wasn't yet animated.  Does this count as the death of a significant character for this thread?  I don't think we have a precedent for this.  Crystal as a golem comes close, but she appeared as a golem in 11 strips, so there's no question that destroying her counts.

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## Sniffnoy

Oh, hm.  Good question.  I think I'm going to not count it, due to it only appearing in 4, but I think if it had appeared in more I'd have to.

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## b_jonas

I don't want to count it as a death either. I just feel we have to justify that somehow, after Durkon was alive again for only one strip after he was killed.

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## georger0171

I wish to bet on Lien dying, preferably at a time when she gets to "out-paladin" O-Chul. In fact, those are likely to be her exact last words.

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## Aquillion

> Oh, hm.  Good question.  I think I'm going to not count it, due to it only appearing in 4, but I think if it had appeared in more I'd have to.


What about Elan's puppet?  If it were to get destroyed, would that count as a "death?"  Could we bet on it?

(Actually I doubt it has 10 appearances.)

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## b_jonas

> What about Elan's puppet?  If it were to get destroyed, would that count as a "death?"  Could we bet on it?


Banjo is a character, even if he's not alive, and has more than enough appearances.  I'm not completely sure it would count as a death if the puppet were destroyed, but #10 suggests that it would count.  If you want to bet on him, you might need a judgement from Sniffnoy.  I don't think he will die though, he will just slumber away forgotten for centuries, until dark priests seek to awaken his unholy power.

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## Sniffnoy

Oh, Banjo easily has 10 appearances.  I guess you could bet on him, if you really want? (And yeah, as b_jonas says, rule #10 applies here.)

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## Sniffnoy

Bumping this.

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## Xihirli

I'm feeling pretty good about my chances right about now.

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## Sniffnoy

Bumping this again.

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## Sniffnoy

Bumping this, it might be relevant again soon!

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## Sniffnoy

And again.

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## Sniffnoy

Bumping again!

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## Sniffnoy

Bumping this another time!

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## Sniffnoy

(Additional bump.)

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## Sniffnoy

(Bumping this again!)

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## Sniffnoy

(Bumping again as usual.)

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## Sniffnoy

(And again.)

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## Sniffnoy

(And yet again.)

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## Alexandrite

After Two Villages I'm placing my bet on *Oona*. I think things are going to hit the fan pretty soon for Team Evil, though maybe not before they have an inconclusive battle with the Order, and Redcloak feels the most likely to cause it.

As for Greyview, he either escapes or gets to drop a one-liner that bothers Redcloak more than he'd admit.

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## Sniffnoy

(Minimum bump!)

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## hustlertwo

I don't remember if its name was ever revealed, but I'd like to bet on the creature under the umbrella.  Just a hunch.

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## Persolus

Alright, I don't know if this 100% would count, but I bet on *Banjo*.

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## Sniffnoy

> Alright, I don't know if this 100% would count, but I bet on *Banjo*.


...yeah, I think I'm going to have to disallow that on the grounds that it's not clear how we would judge that.

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## Persolus

> ...yeah, I think I'm going to have to disallow that on the grounds that it's not clear how we would judge that.


Awwww  :Small Frown: 

Understandable, in that case I'm going to second *Monster In The Darkness*.
Edit - *Banjo* is valid, so this bet does not count.

[but if Banjo somehow ends up with a clear death scene then I get full bragging rights  :Small Big Grin: ]

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## b_jonas

> ...yeah, I think I'm going to have to disallow that on the grounds that it's not clear how we would judge that.


You can't disallow Banjo!  You already agreed to allow him, based on that he's a character, has enough appearances, and could presumably be destroyed just like the Crystal golem.  Also if you disallow him then he'll smite you.

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## Sniffnoy

> You can't disallow Banjo!  You already agreed to allow him, based on that he's a character, has enough appearances, and could presumably be destroyed just like the Crystal golem.  Also if you disallow him then he'll smite you.


Oops!  Thanks for catching that!  Sorry, this whole thing has been somewhat dormant for so long that I've forgotten these things.  I'll go correct that, then!

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## Persolus

All good! I didn't even know that such a ruling _existed_  :Small Big Grin: 
Thank you @b_jonas for finding that judgement in the thread!

[...now watch as MiTD dies first and I _should_ have bet on him]

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## yeetusmcgeetus

Wait did Miko get raised and I didn't know? Last I saw she was two half-corpses in the ruins of Azure City.

Also I'm betting on Banjo.

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## Sniffnoy

> Wait did Miko get raised and I didn't know? Last I saw she was two half-corpses in the ruins of Azure City.


Nope, someone just bet on her anyway. It's legal! <shrug>




> Also I'm betting on Banjo.


Then so shall it be recorded. :)

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## Kish

Huh I don't have an active bet.

Betting on Xykon.

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## Sniffnoy

Bumping this again.

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## b_jonas

My earlier question about stoning and shattering the statue is getting more relevant now that we have Sunny who can turn people to stone.  #1243 7th panel has the relevant dialog: Can't you turn her to stone? Mom! She'd shatter into a million pieces if she fell up from here. We have glue at home. _Mom._  This is new information about how stoning works in the Stickiverse, so you can change your preliminary judgement if you wish, though I don't think there's a need.  #1259 10th panel confirms that turning Elan to stone again can be dangerous.

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