Not to mention the number of previously-loyal soldiers who may now side with the World’s Rebellion after, yknow, their boss just tried to drop a f*cking nuke on their head with no clear concern for same-side casualties.
While that might be nice to consider, Taro’s weapon is a secret project. Chances are the lay soldiers don’t know what the heck just fired that shot. They may even think it’s some new Savage superweapon.
That said, now would be a great time for Adriac to have a change of heart.
I would think at least some soldiers (if there are survivors) would have seen it trail in from Gasto- er, Iwaitania’s walls. They may not know what fired it, but they’d know it came from their side.
I wouldn’t call them inexperienced. They might be young (for elves), but they were still on the elven high council. Or at least regular petitioners to it.
As for it’s effectiveness, it probably didn’t blow up Syr’Nj and crew, but everybody else around them didn’t look like they got that lucky.
I think that shield prevented them from being blasted to death, but they might still be pretty shaken up or even out of combat. I don’t think the writer went for a party kill, but knocking them all out or costing someone a limb or similar injury might definitely be the result
That all depends on how reliably they can keep that shield up. We know the weapon has a near constant supply of arcane energy, but depending how much energy it took to put up and maintain the shield against that impact, a fair question might be “You got another one in you?”
Work Crew Blown Away Captain! Secondary Ley Lines non-operable! An’ me scotch broke!
We got a little juice offa’ the ‘lchemists, but she’s goin down rough sir!
High Druid says she’s got a way ta’man a tertiary vine channel, but she needs Scorpio and 10 minutes. Scorpio says he can manage it in 5, but the Druid started stammerin’ and blushin’…Please Advise!
Well there is no longer any doubt what the arms on that thing are good for. As for the saws, They went through those heavy ass doors like a hot knife goes through a cube of butter.
But the other half of that is recognizing when it’s a good moment to do so – As some have pointed out, the Gastonian survivors aren’t overly likely to just re-form ranks and go on the offensive again, knowing that “where the fighting is heaviest” just became a synonym for “target-rich environment and top aiming point.”
If doing something like shelling your dudes will win the battle, it may be forgiven. If the troops being shelled volunteered to be shelled (ie, they went out knowingly as bait to get enemy forces into position), all right. If you can get enough plausible deniability (“I didn’t blow us up, They blowed us up!”), cool.
This ain’t any of those, though. If he loses Silver Centurion on this bs, he’s got nothing left for his endgame.
This reminds me of a 50s (I think) sci-fi story where someone goes through the high-speed footage of a few of the atomic tests and finds that each and every one contains a few frames in which can clearly be seen a demonic face cackling madly.
Although, in this case, I suppose the face is arguably inside the launcher rather than the blast…
You’ve misinterpreted that. It’s not that it HAS one shot, it’s that the first shot either annihilates the enemy or comes close enough to it that the rest immediately lay down arms.
The only example of Stark having a one-shot weapon was the super-laser-y thing that was awesome but burned itself out (first seen at the end of Iron Man 2, but used a few other times, after he reloads it at the base), but even then, that’s more of a “I only brought one with me because of space requirements” kind of thing.
I didn’t misinterpret it, you’re just taking my comment more literally than I intended it. Yes, I know *Tony Stark* wasn’t talking about a weapon that only has one shot. It still stands to reason that *Taro* might have assumed he’d only need one shot because there wouldn’t be anyone left standing afterward.
Tsk. Now BOTH sides are cheating.
…
By the way, it looks a bit as if the thing exploded IN the shield bubble. That was not what happened, of course. Or was it? Anyway, those sky elves must be powerful. It’s a BIG shield bubble.
I close my eyes, tell us why must we suffer
Release your hands, for your will drags us under
My legs grow tired, tell us where must we wander
How can we carry on if redemption’s beyond us?
Eat your green beams!
Another vegetable allusion: the last panel isn’t exactly a mushroom cloud – more like a head of cauliflower cloud.
Brocollis fall, everybody dies.
Salad morghulis, all men must diet.
Lettuce pray for those soldiers.
Let’s hope there are no leeks in the shield
Even if there aren’t, it’ll get more and more cucumbersome to maintain it.
I’m not worried; something will turnip. Our champions cannot be beet!
Taro doesn’t carrot all for their well-being. He just wants to kale them all.
We’re stuck in a real nasty pickle here.
Bah. This is all junk science.
Everybody digs vegetable puns.
Huh. When you put it in that perspective you can say, “YouTube is for coach potatoes.”
If that was a T-shirt cannon, it dispensed only the red kind. (And no, you’re just colorblind.)
Fire and fury!
I was too slow! Wanted to write that one since last page :'(
At least Taro is not all rethoric!
AH! (Just had to post to make use of the perfect random avatar I got today. :-)
So… looks like two inexperienced sky elves were capable of generating a shield that withstood that blast pretty well, all things considered.
I don’t think that bodes well for this superweapon.
Not to mention the number of previously-loyal soldiers who may now side with the World’s Rebellion after, yknow, their boss just tried to drop a f*cking nuke on their head with no clear concern for same-side casualties.
While that might be nice to consider, Taro’s weapon is a secret project. Chances are the lay soldiers don’t know what the heck just fired that shot. They may even think it’s some new Savage superweapon.
That said, now would be a great time for Adriac to have a change of heart.
I would think at least some soldiers (if there are survivors) would have seen it trail in from Gasto- er, Iwaitania’s walls. They may not know what fired it, but they’d know it came from their side.
I wouldn’t call them inexperienced. They might be young (for elves), but they were still on the elven high council. Or at least regular petitioners to it.
As for it’s effectiveness, it probably didn’t blow up Syr’Nj and crew, but everybody else around them didn’t look like they got that lucky.
To me, it doesn’t look like they made it.
I think that shield prevented them from being blasted to death, but they might still be pretty shaken up or even out of combat. I don’t think the writer went for a party kill, but knocking them all out or costing someone a limb or similar injury might definitely be the result
Delurking to quote Sherlock Holmes: “The prospect of death concentrates the mind wonderfully.”
Delurking is a fantastic word. Thanks.
Oh, and nice quote!
That all depends on how reliably they can keep that shield up. We know the weapon has a near constant supply of arcane energy, but depending how much energy it took to put up and maintain the shield against that impact, a fair question might be “You got another one in you?”
That looks like a face. A green face. Is that thing using a corrupter beast as a power core?
PLEASE
PLEASE BE THIS
Let’s hope Taro subscribes to the Tony Stark school of arms manufacture, and built a gun that only has one shot.
Sorry, that wasn’t meant as a reply to Iarei’s comment.
Pareidolia
A pair o’ dolia?
I’m not seeing it.
I can, if I try, find a leonine profile in the panel where the shot goes off, but I can’t see a whole face anywhere.
Well, that’s just terrifying.
And those poor Gnome engineers got rail(gun)-roaded into doing this by a spoiled brat…
“Claire, Hollister! Status?”
“- That last blast took out our shield capacity, Cap’n. We cannae give ye more for probably another five minutes.”
Engage emergency mana. Reroute through secondary ley lines!
Work Crew Blown Away Captain! Secondary Ley Lines non-operable! An’ me scotch broke!
We got a little juice offa’ the ‘lchemists, but she’s goin down rough sir!
High Druid says she’s got a way ta’man a tertiary vine channel, but she needs Scorpio and 10 minutes. Scorpio says he can manage it in 5, but the Druid started stammerin’ and blushin’…Please Advise!
*Rolls eyes* Of course the “high” druid is working down in engineering with the alcoholic.
That’s what you get working with high elves. As opposed to withdrawal elves.
Not again! How long will it take them to re-spawn this time?
Well there is no longer any doubt what the arms on that thing are good for. As for the saws, They went through those heavy ass doors like a hot knife goes through a cube of butter.
Maxim 20- If you’re not willing to shell your own position, you’re not willing to win.
I mean- you’re not wrong.
Wars tend to do unfortunate things to conventions of morality.
But the other half of that is recognizing when it’s a good moment to do so – As some have pointed out, the Gastonian survivors aren’t overly likely to just re-form ranks and go on the offensive again, knowing that “where the fighting is heaviest” just became a synonym for “target-rich environment and top aiming point.”
If doing something like shelling your dudes will win the battle, it may be forgiven. If the troops being shelled volunteered to be shelled (ie, they went out knowingly as bait to get enemy forces into position), all right. If you can get enough plausible deniability (“I didn’t blow us up, They blowed us up!”), cool.
This ain’t any of those, though. If he loses Silver Centurion on this bs, he’s got nothing left for his endgame.
Greetings fellow Schlocker :)
If you’re leaving scorch marks, you need a bigger gun.
Pillage, then burn.
There is no overkill (merely open fire, or reload)
There is no such thing as overkill, simply because there IS such a thing as underkill.
– Won’t we hit our own troops?
– Yeeees, but we’ll hit theirs too. We’ve got reserves.
Braveheart reference? Nice
Auraugu? He wasn’t inside the shield. Have the fuzzy people lost their champion?
I actually think that very few people are “in” the shield – i think they put the “boom” in the shield and tried to contain it instead.
Hm, I hadn’t thought of that. That would explain the almost perfectly hemispherical shape, though that could just be magic.
Hynoooooooooooooooooooooooo!
next shot, have the sky elves use a portal to send the projectile back to where it came from
That’d be too easy. It’ll nev…… …
That would be an amazing counter-play, but I don’t think they thought of it.
GREEN FLAME! /Acquisitions Incorporated
This reminds me of a 50s (I think) sci-fi story where someone goes through the high-speed footage of a few of the atomic tests and finds that each and every one contains a few frames in which can clearly be seen a demonic face cackling madly.
Although, in this case, I suppose the face is arguably inside the launcher rather than the blast…
Let’s hope Taro subscribes to the Tony Stark school of arms manufacture, and built a gun that only has one shot.
I missed the reference on this one. When did Tony build a one shot gun?
“They say the best weapon is one you never have to fire. I respectfully disagree. I prefer the weapon you only have to fire once.”
You’ve misinterpreted that. It’s not that it HAS one shot, it’s that the first shot either annihilates the enemy or comes close enough to it that the rest immediately lay down arms.
The only example of Stark having a one-shot weapon was the super-laser-y thing that was awesome but burned itself out (first seen at the end of Iron Man 2, but used a few other times, after he reloads it at the base), but even then, that’s more of a “I only brought one with me because of space requirements” kind of thing.
/super-movie-nerd
Wow, that’s a great face for this comic! But… not so much for that comment I left. I’ll have to go back up the thread and make use of that face… :-)
I didn’t misinterpret it, you’re just taking my comment more literally than I intended it. Yes, I know *Tony Stark* wasn’t talking about a weapon that only has one shot. It still stands to reason that *Taro* might have assumed he’d only need one shot because there wouldn’t be anyone left standing afterward.
The coloring and how the blasts were drawn really does this for me.
Paired with an already interesting cannon design, and this looks sick as hell.
Like man I keep looking at the panels and love it
Tsk. Now BOTH sides are cheating.
…
By the way, it looks a bit as if the thing exploded IN the shield bubble. That was not what happened, of course. Or was it? Anyway, those sky elves must be powerful. It’s a BIG shield bubble.
I close my eyes, tell us why must we suffer
Release your hands, for your will drags us under
My legs grow tired, tell us where must we wander
How can we carry on if redemption’s beyond us?
I hope those two gnomes will finally find their resolve and start stabbing Taro with their wrenches.
“The dwarf has played his little trick, he can only play it once.”
https://youtu.be/bxKzT7AzK1c
Oh hey Look! They got the “Ultima” Spell!