Inner Peace (Through Superior Firepower) – Episode 030

[balder]

New One is up.

[querzis]

Man, Jack was just as awesome back then. Jillian changed though, I cant see her doing that to someone who tricked her now, even with good intents. That being said, I guess getting your kingdom destroyed would make anyone more brutal and touchy.

[Beeskee]

Nice one. I was fooled, and spent half the update wondering what the heck was up just like Jillian.

[fjolnir]

Interestingly, jack had a shot before wanda got there... and wow does faq have a lot of casters, a predictamancer, healomancer, signamancer, mathamancer, moneymancer, foolamancer, and shockamancer. it isn't one to represent all of the major disciplines, they have no spookism, stuffamancy, or stagemancy surprisingly...

[ScegfOd]

yay jack <3
be careful or you might accidentally cut yourself on that amazing wit...

Nice one. I was fooled, and spent half the update wondering what the heck was up just like Jillian.

me too xD

anyone know what the Abe Pagoda is from?

also, i hope the mathamancer wasn't put together at the last minute

[rlc]

anyone know what the Abe Pagoda is from?

Abe Vigoda. Who is alive.

[Morthe]

[Kaed]

.......

Eight casters? EIGHT CASTERS?

The titans see fit to give Faq EIGHT CASTERS - one of them with FLYING - and they spend all their time GAZING AT CLOUDS?

ARGMJDTGUPJDGMT4KMGM

WHAT IS WRONG WITH THESE PEOPLE.

They even have a shockamancer, arguably THE MOST USEFUL CASTER for their air access only side!

And they SHUN HIM.

*storms off to break things at this side management so sub optimal it makes one want to cry*

You all just wait till Bland gets here...

[fjolnir]

with bated breath, his reaction will be awesome.

[Lamech]

A side with 7 casters, and nothing to use their juice for except building up resources? I mean, I understand the value of hiding. I would do it too. Take my seven casters, hide, and build stuff. Maybe build up the tower some, similar to how things get built in the MK. Build my own farms like the MK does. Stash up a bunch of scrolls. A good set of items for every soldier. Maybe train some up to knight (depending on how the upkeep falls out.) Have the casters train endlessly. But I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that FAQ wastes its juice and doesn't train. In fact, I bet FAQ hasn't even built up its own farms like the hippiemancers.

Gah! Such a waste!

[Squishalot]

To all the people counting casters before me:

EIGHT casters, not seven.

In order of appearance:
1) Mathamancer - Add Hawk
2) Lookamancer - Brother Orwell
3) Predictamancer - Marie LaVraie
4) Healomancer - Betsy Murgatroyd
5) Signamancer - Brother Labeler
6) Foolamancer - Jack Snipe
7) Moneymancer - Moothfott
8) Shockamancer - Rusty Trombone

That being said, it seems no surprise that they're able to optimise their situation off 3 cities, given their combination of skills. All they really need is a Thinkamancer to optimise the casters.

[yuffiek]

To maintain a hidden bubble side of only 3 cities, you'd need most of those casters.

Marie and Brother Orwell to scan for / anticipate enemy forces.
Jack to distract and mislead them.
Add Hawk (Ad Hoc) and MoothFoot (Moot Thought) serve to manipulate the treasury so all the upkeep is paid for.

If you're never attacked, Betsy and Rusty are redundant, but you don't disband a caster because they're rare.

Not sure what Brother Labeler's job is for. Might be interesting.

Of course, King Banhammer is horribly naive. He's content at being the Side Hidden in the Mountains, which is why he doesn't bother using his resources better.

[the_tick_rules]

Yeah that is an awful lot of casters huh?

[badninja]

Wow that was a lot of casters old FAQ had. I can now better see how bad Jillian had it back then, why she made new FAQ so different. With this description why would they take Wanda? If the shockamancer is not liked how would they react to Wanda? Exactly how much power did Marie have to influence so much that she has apparently done.

[Lamech]

Well Wanda can do hatamancy, rhyme-o-mancy, and thinkamancy. That we know of, probably more. She probably found some sort of niche, even if she wasn't happy about it.

[cloudbreaker]

Like others have said before me, that is a lot of casters. It seems like a waste for a side that stays hidden to have so many casters. However, they probably have so many casters because they stay hidden. You don't lose casters in battle if there aren't battles to lose casters in.

[Lamech]

Like others have said before me, that is a lot of casters. It seems like a waste for a side that stays hidden to have so many casters. However, they probably have so many casters because they stay hidden. You don't lose casters in battle if there aren't battles to lose casters in.

I don't think its a waste. Casters normally work in the capital building up resources and doing support. If you can stay hidden and have a bunch of supply streams from casters, just build up your resources indefinitely and when found, then start a massive attack. Although I doubt FAQ does that. (For example, the mathamancer who meditates in the mountains.)

[cloudbreaker]

Like others have said before me, that is a lot of casters. It seems like a waste for a side that stays hidden to have so many casters. However, they probably have so many casters because they stay hidden. You don't lose casters in battle if there aren't battles to lose casters in.

I don't think its a waste. Casters normally work in the capital building up resources and doing support. If you can stay hidden and have a bunch of supply streams from casters, just build up your resources indefinitely and when found, then start a massive attack. Although I doubt FAQ does that. (For example, the mathamancer who meditates in the mountains.)

Oh, I agree. Having a lot of casters doesn't need to be a waste even if you never use them for war purposes. To most erfworlders though, it probably seems like the titans have squandered their casters on a side that won't make "proper" use of them. And from what few clues we have gotten thus far, it seems that even Faq doesn't fully appreciate how fortunate they are to have so many varieties of magic users. I get the impression that in Faq, a lot of potential is wasted (and not just regarding the casters).

[Saladman]

Not sure what Brother Labeler's job is for. Might be interesting.

The orderly streets fanned out below her in symmetrical patterns of curves and rays. Sides with a Signamancer always kept the tidiest cities in Erfworld.

Maybe there's some city or upkeep optimization going on with the tidiness and symmetry. Signamancers are all about exterior clues to interior function, though previously we've only seen it talked about in reference to units.

Even if that's the case it doesn't have to be his acknowledged function in the court. A signamancer could be influential in figuring out the philosophy and natural science of Erfworld, which is what Banhammer cares about. But if I'm right that's a side benefit a bubble side couldn't ignore. The upkeep on eight casters has got to be significant. It can't be an accident the moneymancer was placed at the king's right hand.

Separately, I've got to agree with this:

ARGMJDTGUPJDGMT4KMGM

WHAT IS WRONG WITH THESE PEOPLE.

Given air attacks are your most likely weakness, at a minimum upgrade that tower to a decent spell bonus and have your shockmancer fill it up with stored spells. There should be no downside to that. The lack of troops is almost understandable if they're spending everything they have to support all those casters (and we know they're relying on merc work to stay in the black), but even if you're committed to staying hidden there's no reason not to take precautions.

Maybe just more confirmation there (if any were needed) that relying on predictomancers comes with a downside.

[ftl]

Wow. That's a lot of casters. No wonder FAQ could survive as a bubble side.

On the other hand, it's so amazing that everyone's response is that they're "going to waste" if they're not being used to croak enemies and conquer the world. Wasn't there the whole flamewar about Jillian a while back, about how she's bloodthirsty and wants to do nothing but fight? And how even erfworlders should be above that? Well, now we have a side that IS above that - they have all the resources necessary to wage devastating wars, and they're deciding not to, they just want to be peaceful and chitchat about philosophy and not disturb anyone - and everyone immediately chimes in about how their power is "going to waste".