Summer Updates - 048

[balder]

New One is up.

[CnSvnc]

I love it when Charlie's pissed.

[Prometheus]

Well, Charlie is still my favorite Erfworld character. I hope he plays a big role in Book 2.

[Grunthos]

Parson better enjoy this while he can. Charlie's in a bad spot, and Parson is living large on Gobwin Knob's new power; so the information flow in this conversation is quite one-sided.

I wonder if Twolls can make paper with quilted relief patterns that can then be layered in multy-ply sheets? I mean, why stop at generic toilet paper when you can have them make Charmin?

[k33g0rz]

my guess is they capture charlie so no tools die now

[DevilDan]

Parson is enjoying himself far too much.

[BLANDCorporatio]

Since Charlie is my most loathed Erfworld character, this update is music to my ears. Booping boop over and die, you smarmy boop.

On another note, it's interesting to see that the allies-for-GK discussion finds new food in this update. Looks like yes, GK has decided to try diplomatic approaches too and maybe that explains the Carpool incidents. Would be very smart for GK ...

... if only that Toolism thing was not quite so prominent. It's one thing to go around telling people "hey we're just like you, let's be friends" and another "hey, you should be like us and then let's be friends".

Time will tell if the second approach finds roots.

[Unclever title]

Parson seems to be making a habit of out "Charlie-ing" Charlie in their conversations lately. This I approve, but it's definitely making Parson begin to seem like a douche. Not necessarily a problem considering his attitude way back before he came to Erf, and how Charlie treated him earlier. Just saying.

[sheepfly]

These updates have been coming hard and fast! I love it. And the comic comes back tomorrow. Wooo!

Is it just me, or does every conversation Charlie and Parson have make Charlie look more and more like a smug, humorless jerk who only laughs at his own jokes? (A little bit like Stanley? *gasp*) Although that could also just be the effect that Parson has on overlords.

Ansom loves to talk, alive or decrypted, about how right he is and why everyone else should agree with him. And if they don't agree, he plans on killing them. Charmingly reminiscent of some real world boopholes in power, no?

[Welf von Ehrwald]

Parson is enjoying himself far too much.

Well, he finally can now. He got a lot of Kleenex.

[BLANDCorporatio]

Unclever title, I tend to a gree to a point. Don't know why I hate Charlie, really, but the douchery might be as close to an articulate reason as any, and Parson is going down that path too.

Still, there's more to Parson than that, and plus he's earned it and Charlie deserves it.

Is it just me, or does every conversation Charlie and Parson have make Charlie look more and more like a smug, humorless jerk who only laughs at his own jokes? (A little bit like Stanley? *gasp*)

No it's not only you.

But I kinda like Stanley.

---------------------------------

On a completely unrelated note, let the speculations begin on how will the titanic mandate be falsified.

Know what would truly be a shocker? If Wanda died*.

Since we all know that is not going to happen like never-ever-in-a-bajillion-years, and Charlie getting his/her/its/? just returns is also unlikely, this leaves ... Stanley. But how? What sneak attack is lurking on GK, which is reasonably well defended as far as we can see?

(Of course, no one said that a Tool wielder would die on page 1 of Book 2 or anything, so lots of room for lots to happen, and theories to throw out).

ADDED:

*: arguably, Wanda is the most vulnerable Tool right now, being as she is on the front lines protected only by adamantium Fan- and Plot-Armour. (And a large host of Decrypted, and the fortifications of whatever city she's in, but I digress)

Still, my pet theory has Charlie attempt to make a trap for her, maybe in collaboration with Jillian. The whole Jillian/Wanda/Ansom triangle is a drama keg waiting to blow, and surely a thinkamancer like Charlie is thinking of ways to use that to his/her/?? advantage.

[Anton Gaist]

Loved the update. As for Gotti coming across as smug, heck, he just got toilet paper! He's entitled!

The diminishing Schmuckers bit is also interesting. That's the problem with Blitzkrieg campaigns, they are rather expensive and hard to maintain.

[Scipion]

I wonder what "we're up against the diminishing Schmuckers point" means?

Perhaps they have built up so many infantry and tamed so many Dwagons that they're actually losing money now.

If that's the case though it doesn't make sense that they would want to stop and consolidate. Wouldn't you want to keep on rolling and get more cities to provide the schmucker's needed?

edit; Ninja'd by Anton!

[SteveMB]

Rather interesting how Charlie remains non-committal on the whole "mandate of the Titans" issue. And, really, his idea wouldn't "falsify" it, strictly speaking -- people in the real world have been known to believe that God is on their side regardless of misfortunes up to and including the moment of death -- though it would be more than a bit demoralizing.

[Vorteks]

By Charlie's logic, wouldn't the fact that royals have been croaked in the past also disprove their Titanic mandate?

[BLANDCorporatio]

The diminishing Schmuckers bit is also interesting. That's the problem with Blitzkrieg campaigns, they are rather expensive and hard to maintain.

I reject your interpretation and substitute my own.

For one, this is obviously a reference to the "diminishing returns" problem. The issue is that subsequent effort (not necessarily greater than what was exerted before) brings less and less gain. It's a big jump from one city to two. From eleven to twelve, not so much. Plus the sheer scale of an Empire and the length of the battle front involved makes managing it more difficult.

For the other, Wanda's decryption ability makes her singularly suited to blitzkrieg campaigns, as she can recoup losses very easily.

In fact, Wanda could do the following thing, which is a pure blitzkrieg. She doesn't really need schmuckers for maintenance, so she could raze most of the cities she has, conquer new ones, decrypt, raze the old ones etc all the while growing her army in a huge ball of doom- and keeping it in a tight area where its sheer size would discourage even 700 archons to oppose it.

But, Wanda does not operate on her own ...

[TheWombat]

Getting toilet paper after nearly 2 months without will make anyone much more chipper.

I think it's interesting that by out "Charlie-ing" Charlie, Charlie starts to see what other people have to deal when they deal with him. Though I'm willing to bet he'd just chalk it up to Parson's attitude and not the mirrored reflection of himself that we the outside observer see it is.

And Charlie can't be croaked. You can't croak an Arkentool, molten lava didn't kill the Arkenpliers. Yes, I'm still sticking to my theory.

[Megaduck]

I think Charlie is feeling the stress right now. Before he reminded me of a used car salesmen with a loud suit and a round face that always smiles to much. He was always relaxed and talked in circles.

Now he's being more straight forward and actually delivering threats. I also think he's getting pissed of that he can't read Parson. I Imagine Charlie has always been a little crazier then his business associates. He could read them but they can't read him. Now for the first time he'd encountering someone who he can't read and yet can read him and he isn't liking it, at all.


I'm trying to imagine the depth of shear hatred Charlie must feel for Parson right now. Parson refused his offer, dealt him a humiliating defeat, and is coming out ahead in their conversations.

[Dawn Falcon]

It seems very likely that the diminishing returns is about number of cities owned...

[BLANDCorporatio]

And Charlie can't be croaked. You can't croak an Arkentool, molten lava didn't kill the Arkenpliers. Yes, I'm still sticking to my theory.

Maybe if it's thrown back into the fiery chasm from whence it came? Let there still at least be a glimmer of hope?

It seems very likely that the diminishing returns is about number of cities owned...

Agreed, I think it's less about costs/expenses/upkeep and all that really, than it is about the gains (schmucker or otherwise) that aren't as impressive as they used to be.