Guild-itizations – Part 2
Happy Black Friday, everyone! It’s a terrible, terrible day in America. For those of you overseas who are not familiar with the concept, it’s the first day after Thanksgiving, before Christmas, where every retail store that exists has massive sales to drive the end-of-year profits in time for the holiday. People have come to rely on these savings to afford everything they want to gift out for the holiday, and stores have come to rely on the people buying them to stay afloat for the whole year. It’s gotten so bad that Black Friday, in many places, now begins Thursday at 8PM. Pretty soon Thanksgiving will be forgotten entirely, and Christmas sales will begin immediately after Labor Day.
That said, why not peruse the Guilded Age store for some gifts to give your friends and family this Axemas season?
Seasonal gripes aside, we’ve got more Guild-itizations for you, which are also a product of commerce. Again, these were submitted by backers who pledged at $125 or more with the Volume 2 FRIGGSTARTER, and we’ve got some backstory to go with them:
“The Blighted Clan Gothika were a lost clan of elves know for their paleness, moodiness, and all in all unmotivated. They were content to spend their days in the forests of Noirwood. A foundling, Ivy, was discovered on the outskirts of the village 6 months after Rob’r-smit known as The Dreamer (Village Idiot) went of to see the ‘pretty lights’. The elders whispered she was of an elf/sylvan mix and her small stature was a bit of a give away including her odd mood swings,her ‘second sight’ , and the note covered in pixie dust that said ‘She is destined for great things. We don’t want her – that’s a lot of pressure’. She was given into the care of the village shaman who would send her off on useless errands as some days she was far too chipper to have around. The Clan was wiped out one day by a raiding party of 3 kobolds as Ivy was dancing down by the river because she had a dream that the water was ‘sad’. She was gone about 20 minutes – her people – they were not fighters. Last of her clan she has set out to see what destiny wishes as she was told her secret past by the dying Shaman.
As a goth half-elf and sylvan mix Ivy is severely bi-polar and must roll at the start of each day to see what race personality is in the driver’s seat. High Ivy (The Sylvan half: Chaotic Good) is a perky little sociopath constantly overly chipper and somewhat naive (believing rivers can be sad and enchanted daggers can tell you jokes no one else hears ‘Mr. Stabbins! You are so funny!) but that doesn’t stop her from being an acrobatic killing machine screaming ‘Shiny!’ at the first sign of treasure and trying to kill everything in the room. She swaps her wisdom (low) for charisma (high) and uses the power of Sexterity (a dex based tumble seduction) to confuse libido’d opponents (Based on the philosophy that if you were Catwoman and you popped up in front of some mug in an outfit like that doing a head stand – your opponent would have a good solid 10 seconds of “”DUUUUUHHHHHH’ while you clobbered him over the head).
Low Ivy (The Half Elf Goth side: Chaotic *sigh* Whatever) flips wisdom (high) for charisma (low). She is a Misery Chick – prone to eye rolls, complaining about walking through muddy trails (while High Ivy must make Fort saves against screaming ‘SQUISHY’), and thinking her fellow party members are idiots. She sports the violet glasses so people know she is smarter than her ‘bag of boobs’ counterpart. She prefers the bow so she can stay at a proper anti-social distance from people and fights the curse of Snarkasm – the counter to Sexterity – where she can’t resist one-liners and sarcasm that enrages foes. She spends a lot of downtime in her room at the Inn and researching monsters and lore at the Scrollbrary.”
“Beckitt has always wanted to sail the skies. Since that wasn’t an option for the growing Gnomeling, he enlisted as a guard on a trading galley. That job led to more marine-based adventuring, and led Beckitt into his current life of high-seas hi-jinks. He’s never forgotten his sky sailing dream, though, and would definitely fanboy over anything to do with that subject. He’s generally a carefree guy, but feels a fierce loyalty for his crew mates. Others would consider him pretty goofy, eccentric, and comically dressed, but an effective illusionist. He’s a boundless optimist with a dream and a mischievous streak.”
Karmakat, our third Guild-itization on the docket here, pledged high enough for his backstory to play out in the comic itself, and we’d really rather let it go through there! Don’t want to spoil the surprise for you, as it’s going to be covered in Chapter 28! In the meantime, tune in Monday for the 2013 Axemas Special: T’was The Night After Axemas, starring a bigtime fan-favorite Guildie. WHO COULD IT BE??
We’ll also probably show a few more Guild-itizations after that in a desperate bid for time before the dreaded holiday season hits. There’s only 13 of them anyway, so we should probably show them all off for good measure, no?
I gotta say, it was pretty thrilling seeing all these backers’ interpretations of the GA Canon and concepts to add into our little universe, here. I mean, Hell, how often to you get to buy a slice of canon?
Have a good holiday. Don’t trample anyone on your way to a Furby.
Hmm, catfolk…this should be intriguing. Maybe an ancient enemy of the Gnolls?
Obviously it should be spelled “katfolk”.
Or “katfolc”. Or “ckatfolck”. But NEVER “catpholk”.
“Qatfolq” is also right out. So is “Këtvolk.”
And I doo my little tuuurn on the catfolk: http://youtu.be/39YUXIKrOFk?t=1m
Can’t be any worse than Khajiit. Damn the way they talk is annoying.
100% disagreement. Khajiit are awesome.
THAT thing up there is a bribe-funded abomination.
Actually… redact that statement.
I was just speaking relatively. I don’t know much about THAT yet… but it is no Khajiit.
Ooooh dear… you’re letting people buy plot. This will not end well.
More so when they add the furry’s standard “Catfolk” into the mix. Call me Jaded, but I have seen too many times people put their fetishes into them to be played out. Mr. Campbell and Mr. Kahn, I pray to what ever power you believe in or not that you have checked and cleared this character’s OC back story. I don’t want these cat folk to become either the Jar Jar Binks or the mary sues race of this comic.
oh boy… thanks for the compliment there…
Yeah, seriously. Thanks for the big vote of confidence for every party involved.
hate people like that that just ruin it for everyone…
so then, i can not express my concerns then? or must they always be positive to be put into the comment section? how have i ruined it for people? i am merely speaking what i thinking.
you should be more careful on how you voice them then.
because the way you did it it was right away accusations instead of wondering…
i don’t sugar coat my words. i say it as i see it. I’m getting too old to be diplomatic.
Oddly enough the reasons for hating this are well… invaild. The character could be a one time thing as well when it comes to the overall story. Truth told you don’t know till the story is released, so anything you do is nothing more then a guess.
Age before maturity, then?
everyone grows old, you don’t have to grow up completely. that’s what gets you to live longer son. that and a health dose of giving zero F—s of what others think about you. Too many people hold them selves back due to fear of what others think. damn shame that.
If you were born in the tail end of the 80’s or later, you’ve got no business calling me “son”.
You’re the one that tossed out the first pointless, yet inflammatory, complaint at the beginning of the conversation – the first stone, as it were.
Elsewhere, I believe you attempted to refer me to “the rules of the internet” – would those be the same rules in which complaining on the internet is stated to be a stupid idea?
Then leave.
We have literally one Goddamned rule to the comments section here on Guilded Age and it’s “Be Excellent to Each Other.” In case you need a translation, which you apparently do, this means “Be Respectful.”
All of you.
We have Dog People, Bird People, and freakin’ Shark People, but now that we’ve decided there could be Cat People, it’s time to cry “The Sky is Falling?”
I don’t even. You are voicing your opinions, it’s true, but you are not merely voicing your opinions, nor are you doing that in a way that would be considered “Respectful,” otherwise you wouldn’t have so many folks riled up (myself included). You are also imposing your own prejudices onto Karmakat, us, and every other commenter here.
And more the point, no one is literally “buying canon.” That was a freaking joke, that I really thought actually everyone could handle. But apparently I was wrong.
People who pledged a certain level got to submit a character, that we screen and adapt to fit the universe in a way that meets both T and my standards, at a CAMEO level, nothing more. You might not like everything we put in the script, but T and I would never put anything in the script that we didn’t think was good, no matter how much fucking money we’re handed, or how much you don’t think it’s got “Good Odds” of working.
We have no problems with people negatively criticizing the comic in the comments or anywhere else in the world but the least you could do is wait for us to finish fucking making it, much less just giving us the benefit of the fucking doubt.
I am so fucking unhappy that I am forced to deal with this. I am so unbelievably fucking unhappy that my hand has been forced to play the Bad Cop. I expect so much better out of our typically wonderful community, here. I don’t need lifelong fans e-mailing us directly to warn us about Flame Wars on the comments section (though we greatly appreciate their diligence on days that everyone, including they, are supposed to be spending on vacation). I don’t need the people who pledged their money to the Kickstarter to earn their rightfully promised cameos coming to me privately and offering that we simply do not include them because they might be causing “too much trouble.”
I don’t need to be spending my time worrying about this bullshit instead of working on actual Guilded Age material.
Taxil, you think what you are doing is innocent, but it’s not. I don’t give a shit how old you are, or how old you think you are, you’re showing a distinct lack of maturity, pissing a lot of people off, ruining a lot of people’s days, and discouraging God knows how many more simply because you have the audacity and naivety to think that we might be willing to let someone else ruin our life’s fucking work for $500. Your smugness in this matter is no better or worse than anyone else’s and “The Rules of the Internet” and “Lurking More” means fuckall on our own website. And as I said before… if you don’t like that, then you can see yourself out.
And Tachyon, I appreciate that you’re trying to help and defend here, but you’re only making things worse by continuing the flame war. With respect, let it the fuck go.
So here’s the bottom line:
We put the things in the comic that we think will be good. We’ve been doing it for four years, and we’re not going to stop.
This shitfest in the comments ends now.
If you wish to participate in our comments section from this point forward, you will Be Respectful, or Be Banned.
There will be no further warnings.
As I am just now seeing it: Message received and understood, Phil!
now seeing this as well. I am sorry Mr. Phill for the trouble here.
Thank you both. I’m happy to see that you have it within yourselves to be excellent to each other.
Thank you Mr. Phil. I am sorry for the mess.
when you get down to the nub of this, i got burned once in situation similar to what i read here. granted the stakes back then were less than what you are facing Mr. Phill, but my failure still is kinda raw to me. but what got me worked up is that i can’t see what you see, i don’t know what you know about this deal. that made me worry. i worried because i care. I care about you Mr. Phill and your crew. You all do great work and i will not fault you on that! This old man just saw myself in this too much. that was my fault, i should trust you more than this Mr. Phil.
Again, i’m getting old, but i am still man enough to admit my mistakes. I am sorry, and i ask for your forgiveness Mr. Phil.
It’s all right. I knew from the beginning that you spoke up because you cared. And we appreciate that.
You’ve owned up to your mistakes, and you are forgiven. If you disagree with people, the creators, or even feel like an upcoming event in the story isn’t going to work out, you are as free as always to voice that concern. We will never stop you or anyone else from using their free speech to this end.
But we keep a civil house, here. And you are welcome to stay in it for as long as you like for as long as you agree to be civil as well.
Go now, and be excellent to your fellows.
(Also, while the show of respect is surely appreciated, you don’t have to call me “Mr.” – my ego is big enough as it is, and I certainly don’t need the encouragement)
Mr. Phil, i call you Mr. Phil not just because you are the Owner/Operator/Boss Man/the closet to a living Thor with his hammer over this web comic. But you have EARNED that respect from me, not that many people get that, but you have EARNED it. that is why i call you Mr. Phil.
I’m not looking for forgiveness – to do so would be to assume I deserve it in the first place, and that would be inappropriate for a number of reasons – but I’d just like to state for the record that I’m sorry my comments on this page did not stop after I’d completed my initial rant.
Disregarding for the moment the attempts at clarification that I attempted to make elsewhere, I should’ve remembered that it’s generally a frustrating waste of time to try and provoke others into considering a rational counterpoint they’d no interest in reading in the first place, as it’s much easier for them to continue dismissing it out of hand than to admit they might have reason to consider it.
I’d like to pass that insight on to others, who, like me, might forget this sometimes, and I’d also like to echo Phil’s call for all readers to be excellent to one another. My initial frustration, after all, stemmed from the fact that that was not what was happening here.
Seconded. Y’know, for what it’s worth :D
As Mr. Phil forgiven me, I forgive you too Tachyon. let us go in peace and let this incident go between us.
It’s a big risk Phil. to clearify however, if this whole thing is more like how Weregeek does paid readers being put into the comic, then i will withdraw my concerns. I have been a follower of Weregeek as much as yours Mr. Phil. I think she did it right. If you and your partners follow her system more or less, again, i will have no complaints.
Did i say “No, don’t do this! don’t add him!”? no, i did not. fan provided OC characters have, in my view, often not mix well in someone else’s work. that is not to say it CAN’T work, but the odds are high.
Yeah sure, they’re gonna put him in the comic and not know the backstory beforehand.
I was more concerned that they thought about the full ramifactions of adding him. The rule of “unintended consequences” is in for front my mind here.
As a third party who gets annoyed when debbie downers like you start jumping to conclusions ahead of time and complaining about them in public (wasting everyone’s time, especially when complaining about furries), and as someone who’s sort of surprised this only warranted an annoyed response from the comic’s creators, let me say this:
“Call me Jaded, but I have seen too many times people put their fetishes into them to be played out,” does not come off as something being said by a jaded person – it comes off as something being said by someone who is prejudiced – regardless of whether it’s against a certain group of people who happen to have fetishes publicly – and who thinks he has a monopoly on the truth. But allow me to look deeper than that.
First of all: given your logic, it surprises me that I don’t see you complaining where you should have been, elsewhere in the comments section.
On the surface, you reasoning makes you seem like the type to complain that any of the previously-existing races such as Landsharks, or Avians, Gnolls, or whatever other not-just-a-magical-short-or-pointy-eared-human which already appear in the comic (which are admittedly just as anthropomorphic/furry/whatever as these Catfolk are) are the creators’ fetishes.
But oddly, your mind wasn’t screaming “automatic vote of no confidence” whenever you saw any other anthropomorphized mammal, bird, fish, or reptile previously.
For some reason, the only time your gut-level reaction to anthropomorphism was to scream “abandon ship!” was when you saw a cat-person. You’re being more than a little hypocritical, to say the least.
It would not surprise me to learn that you simply hate a very particular subgroup of so-called “furries,” (the “standard” you reference aside, I’m probably safe in assuming there are other, more specific reasons you hate them) and go out of your way to complain about them whenever they appear someplace you frequent.
I would question why you choose to spend your free time this way – especially when your opinion is likely to have no influence on the outcome of their presence – but I’ll wager that actual reasoning ability has nothing to do with it, or you’d be in the midst of pursuing your own interests right about now instead of complaining about something you hate and can’t change.
I’ll note that thus far in the comic, we’ve only seen “furry” races portrayed as being opposed to the main characters, making them the natural casualties/villains of the plot. Based on what you’ve said, it comes off as clear to me that your uncertainty as to the plot role of Catfolk in this comic has something to do with why you’re complaining: if they can’t be killed, beaten, or captured outright, you don’t necessarily want them in.
Let me now say something you may disagree with: not everyone who writes fiction is obsessed enough with sex to include their own fetishes in it.
But even if that were true, humans are the de-facto mary sue race in virtually every fictional work they’re included in, and I’d honestly be surprised if Jar Jar Binks were the result of George Lucas practicing the writing of his own fetishes into his fiction.
I mean, he already has humans in Star Wars, and there’s been more making out between any of them than between any of the Gungans; if anything, by your reasoning Lucas’ fetish is humans (oh, God!, please, anything but that!) And prior to Gungans, we had Chewbacca and Ewoks – both of which are, by your standards, way more furry than Jar Jar Binks, and not a single one of which ever once had a romantic/sexual role in the movies.
So it suffices to say that your reasoning is simply rife with logical fallacies, red herrings, and other philosophical malfeasances.
Thus, no offense, but your concerns are boring and border on intentional trolling.
i bet you feel better now that you got that out of your system. you alright bro?
Yeah, I’m just tired of seeing people like you in places meant for friendly conversation.
Grats on being a divisive waste of space.
Or in other words: more puns, less complaining.
doctor! heal thy self!
Kettle, that works a lot better when you’re not calling the fine china black.
ya, you’re a real unique snowflake.
Okay, totally ignoring the rest of your hysterical ranting, I’m laughing my ass off at the part where you accuse someone of being racist against CAT people.
Wow, your interpretation skills leave a lot to be desired.
What? Would you rather I mock him for calling humans “the de-facto Mary Sue race”? Because last I checked, Elves were a thing. A Mary Sue is specifically an over idealised character. Humans are BASIC. And, not to mention, we ARE all humans. There’s no fantasy involved at all. Humans, as a race, don’t even remotely count as Mary Sues.
I ignored his argument. Because it’s not relevant to me. There’s plenty wrong with it, but it’s not arguing against anything important either so who cares?
i am personally loving the fact that you getting all pissy when someone managed to shut you up hehe
But I haven’t shut up yet. Kinda cute how everyone’s trying to lump me in with Taxil when I’ve yet to agree with anything he’s said. The only one who’s posted anything that I’ve actually had to respond to on the grounds that it was relevant to what I said, is Moby. The rest is just for fun, and jumbling the reply-string further.
Okay, now that I have settled some other hash around here, on to this.
To be fair, Mr. Zeroes, I kind of wish you had just let things be after that first post of mine. I thought better of you, as I didn’t detect any head-up-rear reasoning in your initial comment.
And, though I question the complaint about “buying plot” – on grounds that I am pretty sure the comic’s creators were paid to create plot, and were not merely the recipients of Karmakat’s prefabricated plot (else, what would be the point of them being content creators themselves?) – I don’t personally have a problem with you. I thought I’d better not leave that unsaid, lest you get the wrong idea.
Leaving that aside, however, Benedikt is spot-on with the observation that your interpretation of my argument was flawed, as I have remarked elsewhere. So I thought I’d better address you directly, and did so two levels up in this thread.
I also took a bit of a cheap shot at you down below, with the Nixon remark, but it’s nothing out of the ordinary in comments sections and I’m assuming you’re probably used to it by now. What can I say, I was feeling feisty.
All in all, I’m hoping my argument makes more sense to you now, if you’re even seriously spending any time thinking about it (which, come to think of it, was never something you were obliged to do in the first place, since you weren’t really a party to the argument).
No worries about cheap shots. I’m a big boy. I hardly ever cry!
I suppose I never bothered to explain my stance on your argument, since, you know, not relevant to me. But I can I guess. While your argument itself IS flawed, from a logical point of view (going on a tangent trying to guess at his reasoning? Silly and pointless.), the main issue is that it’s arguing against something that already has no point.
Taxil’s opinion was apparently “lol furverts”. Which, while hilarious, is not really a valid argument. At all. So going off on it like that? Not really accomplishing a whole lot.
Other than giving me a lot of material to mock. Always fun. For me at least. SOME people don’t share my jovial jackassery.
My mockery by the way? Also not relevant. In this wayward threadline, we have already drowned beneath a sea of meaningless bickering. We have since passed on to a debate limbo, where stagnant opinions go to rot while pretending they’re still valid.
I’m curious why you think elves are more mary sues than humans. In all serious fiction I’ve read, at least one or more of their various racial attributes tend to play against them, whether it be longevity, enhanced senses, or the frequently-backwards thinking arising from aeons of reliance on magic.
Also: Elves do not feature in virtually all fiction. Humans do.
Humans are humans. We’re humans. In most incarnations, humans are played as “jack of all trades, masters of none.” They have few if any special skills beyond being flexible, and frequently they’re numerous, outnumbering the other races. Human are so common in fiction for one, very obvious reason. Namely WE ARE HUMANS. We relate better to characters that share the same race as us. It makes it easier for readers to empathise with the character. It’s not an always thing, but its common.
Elves on the other hand are basically humans, but “tall and fair”. Blond haired blue eyed aryan master race garbage. Thanks Tolkien. They’re basically EXACTLY the same as humans, but better. Often weaker in melee stats, but still wiser and more dextrous etc etc.
Human characters are only more likely to be Mary Sues because there are more human characters. Not because they’re human. No glaring faults, but no glaring strengths, where a Mary Sue has no faults but strengths in spades.
And if you’re going to poke at Elves sometimes being depicted as closed minded bigots, humans are often treated as just as racist, if not moreso. Whining about living a long time is pretty much the definition of a Mary Sue “flaw”. “Oh I’m so dumpy and boring” said Bella as all the hawt boiz fawned over her…
said like that you just make me think of a religious fanatic now…
I… huh? Wat? I don’t think I can adequately respond to this. It’s just… too… wat?
King of Zeros, that HAD to be the biggest rant in here i have ever seen. granted i have not poured over every comment, but still.
Maybe you should, before discarding it out of hand. Unlike most comments-section ranters, I actually bothered to think about what I was posting before I posted it.
your tl;dr rant isn’t worth my time. an important rule to remember in public speaking, if your response isn’t short, concise, and to the point, people will ignore all that you just said, like i have.
Brevity, then: Your argument never made sense from word one, and I’m merely calling you on it.
Brevity: what ever
Interpretation aside, I was specifically accusing him of being prejudiced against people who would prefer to believe they are cat-people.
But congratulations on taking offense at something that was not directed at you.
Also, humans are virtually always the de facto mary sue race: they always win, regardless of the level of absurdity of the story. That’s the whole point of most fiction.
My favorite part is where you know they can’t say anything to defend themselves because all they’re doing now is insulting you. :D
we don’t need to. he made a mockery out of himself with that insane rant. better to keep your mouth shut and leave them guessing than to open it and prove you are nuts.
I was, in all honesty, directing the bulk if not the entirety of that rant at Taxil, but it seems clear now that a whopping dose of perspective would be required for him to actually understand it.
Oh, i understand you just fine. you have an over inflated ego with hurt feelings that wants to win an argument on the internet. in other words you failed the moment you tried. go read the rules of the internet and lurk more.
I’d like to draw a comparison between you and Doctors who make a misdiagnosis simply because they fell back on 30 years of experience instead of approaching the situation as unique.
But then I’d be comparing you to a doctor, who at some point in his life actually bothered to study something before reaching a conclusion.
you are still proving my point that you have a case of the butt hurts. here is the treatment. close your computer off and walk away. it’ll be better for everyone involved.
Moreso if you do it too~ :D
Well, don’t forget, Chewbacca had a romantic relationship in the Star Wars Holiday Special. xD
Um… I’m sensing millions of voices, crying out in anguish, and that I’m about to be silenced.
You seem like a cool sort. I’m not one for self-censorship either.
Gotta say though anthro cats can be done right or wrong, like anything else (even puns). It ain’t a damned concept from the get-go… Heck, even furries can be alright sorts (used to be friends with a few) with a little suspended disbelief (put the inner biologist to sleep first).
But some… just some… Something about them just seems like a disaster in the making.
Bad signs are “xtreme” colour-schemes, fancy all-your-powers-combined weapons, self-aggrandising names (bonus points for kool zpelling)… and most of all… positions of authority.
JUST for example… of course.
It’s not ‘buying plot’. It’s creating characters who would fit in Arkerra, and adapting them to the story. The artists/writers work together to create each of them.
well i hope so. I have known of others who did just that and it did not end well. i just did not want that fate to befall Guilded age.
Yet I don’t recall “catfolk” ever being introduced in the comic. So already we have a “unique and beautiful snowflake” before we’ve even reached the meat and potatoes of the matter. The fact that we get to read the backstory of this fabulous fanfiction furry.
It’s very much buying plot. And selling plot. Doesn’t matter how you want to spin it, the whole bit was “give us so much money and we’ll put your character in.” It stops being that when they just give it to you for free. But that’s a different can of worms entirely.
Now, obviously, I can’t tell anyone what to do with their comic and their kickstarter. What I can do is say I have zero faith in the decision. Might work. I might end up pleasantly surprised. I am not an optimist. I’m washing my palms in preparation for all the facing they’re going to be doing. Hygiene is important.
so basically you are saying my character might ruin a webcomic i love?
well that’s sweet to see…
all i can tell you, even if you aren’t an optimist, is that we worked on it in a way that would fit the story without being a comple “breaker”
now your call to believe me or not
Yes. That is what I’m saying. You can get snarky about it all you want but the reality is that this isn’t the first time this sort of thing has happened on the internet. It does not have a good track record.
To be quite honest, even if I had faith in the authors, their Kickstarter tier was already set. They’ve promised to place any characters at that reward tier into the story. Even if your character was complete and utter garbage, what could they do about it? Refuse? My complaints about THAT would have already been buried by the hundreds of others.
So you’ll forgive me if I don’t believe in you based solely on the amount of money you spent supporting the comic. As I mentioned before, your “catfolk” is already a bad sign from my point of view.
It’s gonna happen regardless, so you might get the last laugh. And even if you don’t, you’re right about it not being gamebreaking (unless you exceed even my lack of expectations and also cause a schoolbus full of children to explode in the process). It’s merely my opinion that this probably won’t turn out well. Your good intentions and assurances do nothing to assuage the dread.
whatever big guy
I love how this rant here casually included the word “dread,” as if this were actually a serious issue being discussed and not merely the plot of a comic. If “dread” accurately describes the level of apprehension you feel about a fan-created cat-person being included in a comic you read, I’d suggest finding a new hobby – perhaps politicking?
I mean, I’m pretty sure Nixon was the one who popularized the combined tactics of publicly calling something bad over and over again until it stuck, and using overly-weighty words in casual discourse for emphasis, but I guess you’re not bad at it.
On second thought: if what you dreaded was the full sum of the furry fandom suffusing thoroughly into the GA fanbase and/or the inclusion of one cat-person single-handedly altering the plot’s course entirely for the worse, maaaaybe I could understand the depths of your apprehension.
You’re doing that “internet therapy” thing again.
As for whether or not I consider this super cereal or not, kinda sorta? I like this comic, and the thought that I might have to read through a week or two of terrible fan character backstory is a legitimate concern as a reader. But I read a LOT of webcomics. One of them having an off month isn’t going to bring me to tears. I’ll still keep coming back. At least until the miscarriage arc.
Besides, it’s still just a possibility, despite my no confidence vote. Pretty sure I’ve mentioned that my expectations have no effect on reality.
And I can’t go into politics. I’m not 85 yet. I have to be dying and out of touch with society before I can start passing laws against baggy jeans and that newfangled rap & roll music.
I, for one, can’t wait to see your character in the story.
I’m imagining Karmakat helping Frigg end her dry spell, and then Frigg making sure everyone knows she’s still straight, since the pussy in her box was male.
Then Frigg would freak out, when Bandit asked if they should be expecting to hear the pitter patter of little paws.
Now Karmakat has a two sentence long fanfic. :)
I don’t know, Phil – does Auraugu count as Catfolk, or a distant relative perhaps?
“avataraurauguhyes.jpg” would seem to say HYES!
On second thought, I seem to recall he’s a jackal, or something. But whatever, it’s all the same to me.
“…starring a bigtime fan-favorite Guildie…”
Could it be…?
WHAT IS BEST IN LIFE?
Can’t wait for axe-mass.
“What is best in life?” you ask? Why, to see all Shit Elves (specially shitty wannabe bards) flushed down the Eternal Toilet of Shit-flushing
Aw. Best was a jerkass, yeah, but I was sad to see him go, nonetheless. He was fun. And at least he allied himself–though for the wrong reasons–with folks like Syr’nj and Byron, rather than Harky or Iver. I hope he gets resurrected; he does have the potential not to be a jerkass, as he didn’t start out that way; he became a “huge douche” only after he let all the fawning over his (false) prophesied heroic destiny go to his head. And before he saw that bowl-vision that made him flip out and revert to type, he did try to make nice with the Peacemakers guild.
Actually, I don’t really wish death upon any character, regardless of affiliation or gender, even the vilest villains like Harky, Iver and H.R. Others’ mileage may vary.
I still hold hope. No body seen thanks to the rubble, regardless of Gravy’s confirmation of death. And after all, its Best we’re talking about….the “Best” Hero in the World ;D
I think HR’s commentary at one point confirmed that wherever best is, he’s not alive in Arkerra anymore. And Best’s fate/inevitable return in some fashion or other is one of the more massively dangling plot threads I’m curious to see unfold. As a person, yeah, self-important douchebag. But still a great part of the story.
Wonder if his Sepia World body is still alive though? Wouldn’t that speak volumes?;D
Also, although not in Arkerra, there are multiple other options that don’t rely on him being dead, just “buried”. alternate realm, training in secret, “divine” intervention to name a few potentials.
“the path taken to avoid our fate is often where we meet it”. isn’t he the chosen one? :D
His sepia world body is alive. And in the same comic where HR said he was dead, he said he was still showing strong brain activity, so Best is clearly still SOMEWHERE…just not anywhere HR can see him.
*insert inane fangirl screams here*
True. I’ve been wondering about that for a while. Interestingly, as soon as Best ‘died'(well, very soon after anyway) there was the introduction of that one orcish drummer who was literally the opposite of Best in personality. Remember, the one who was reccomended to the leader by the ….The commando whose name I cant recall either. So my train of thought is basically that he somehow became that orc. Musical talent is there, personality can be blamed on his final moments and revelation that lead up to them. Which means we might get to witness his progression to the top again. Assuming my crackpot theory is correct, anyway.
As I recall, there was quite a bit of speculation on that score at the time. I seem to recall either in that strip or some other, Phil or T Campbell said something to the effect of “really people, if Best was back, do you REALLY think he’d do anything less than make the grandest entrance possible?”
Of course, they could mean literally Best, that specific avatar of the guy in the tube. But that seems like a bit of a stretch.
True – about Best trying to be well… Best. But, well, another gigantic ego char acting exactly like Best would be pretty much announcing his return in a… Hm, dont want to say anti-climactic. Plenty of ways to do that – unsurprising, I suppose is the word. His last moments prior to his death were rather disenchanted with himself, no? Everything he believed in just collapsed. It wouodnt be a wonder if it took him a while to regain his old self back, to prove his worth. That could be quite a climactic moment.
I don’t think Gravy actually confirmed Best’s death. I think what he said was that Best would be dead by the time they could get to him.
well i do look good in there )
Yes. You do. Don’t listen to the nay-sayers.
thanks. just fed up of people 3 cents like that that actually should pay other’s to listen to them…
Yours is my favorit so far.Second the Landshark.
And in terms of “story breaking”.
They did that pretty much for me when they introducted the “real world” in this comic (Even though involving shanna made that alot better ^v^ .).
But i am sure your background story will be fine and it makes me curious so i can’t wait.
thanks for the compliment
and all i can say at this point is that we really worked a good way for it
If someone tells you not to listen to the nay-sayers, then only listen to them long enough to realise they’re trying to skew your perspective and introduce bias into your judgement.
DO listen to the nay-sayers… mostly because they probably have reasons for it. Some of the reasons might be bad… but some of them might be perfectly valid… and all have the potential to be informative.
If you limit yourself exclusively to praise and butt-licking, you’ll just end up pandering to the affirmation bias and you’ll never be able to improve yourself.
Dare I say, thag’s some really sexy hair. I bet you can get it to count for one and a half people in Duel Island.
hehe thanks
just don’t “blow a dart” on me hehe
I never said the art work is poor either. in fact i think it’s rather well done.
watch out you just made a compliment. might burn your throat
last batch was a helluva lot better, though the gnome has some potential
Call me a bit biased but i like gnomes. they just don’t get enough love altogether.
Damned gnome fetishists, always ruining everything they touch.
neko? that means cat in japanese!!! hidden forces at work here!!!;)
But seriously guys, everyone calm the Frigg down. We like this comic because the writers made the choices they did, both in regards to the character traits and story. Sure, a cat person may break YOUR PERSONAL expectations as to what this story is, but your opinion is irrelevant.
It’s not your story to dictate so just shut up, sit back and enjoy the ride until you lose interest..if that ever happens, you can go away and find something without cats or whatever the hell it is that you have a problem with XD
The wood elf sounds intriguing. Particularly the notion of her having to roll each day in order to determine which personality will be in charge. I see it as a reminder that, for all that Arkerra is now the only reality The Five in the tubes know, and that for the NPCs it’s the only reality they have ever known…there are players for whom it’s all “just a game.”
I like Ivy’s visual design, too. It’s appropriate that she go barefoot, not only because she’s a thief by class, but because, now I think of it, it’s odd that wood elves in general do wear shoes, given that–as we saw early on in Syr’nj’s dialogue–they think of their toes as “roots” and are generally presented as being “in tune” with the wood. Also, I LOLed at High Ivy’s personality having to roll to restrain herself from screaming “SQUISHY” as she feels the mud on her feet.
Was wondering if it was some sort of canon-law that all thives have to be barefoot, but, as you pointed out, it makes sense for a half-Sylvan to be barefoot regardless of class
There all good so far, can’t wait to see how this all works out.
I can’t believe that out of these 3, y’all are getting bent out of shape about the cat. Rather than the Wood Elf whose backstory reminds me of “My Immortal”. XD
I did kinda stop reading the backstory of the wood elf half-way through because it kinda felt like bad fanfiction. ._. I’m sorry! D:
I do find that the people going crazy – and YOU ARE, dozens of comments trying to defend your pointless remarks proves that, – about a freaking cat-folk character (which was probably already planned but Phil and T. got someone who had a good back-story/look for him to use) of all things.
I hope these comments get locked or wiped clean, nothing so far in past comment section comes close to this, not even the ancient comment-wars of ‘Is Byron a real Berserker or not/Should he be held responsible for his actions of killing Bandit’.
Now I’m gonna wait until the next page comes up so I can never look at this comment section again. :3
Of all the six… I think its the dwarf that interests me the most. Mostly, I admit, because of his weapon.
sincerely i think the bigger problem for those two is that i am a furry. so of course i fall into a “category” that is not welcomed because of “legends about us” or whatever you want to call it.
it’s like going against a minority in a way… but well… “whatever” right?
Welcome to being an acceptable target.
Don’t like it? Blame the yiff-tards and other-kin.
So. I am a bit conflicted about the cat guy. Looks super awesome, curious about the story…. But where do we put ’em geographically?
Yes guys. Among all the hating and complaining I ask about HABITAT.
Clearly they live under the sea.
They live on people’s laps.
I assumed they could be most commonly found on top of televisions.
No, no… they live in…
…catacombs.
But seriously, I’m very much looking forward to drawing Karmakat, and any other special guest characters that will be appearing in the comic.
karma… Karma… KARMA… KARMAKATS! HOOOOOOOOOOOOO!
Mr. John Waltrip…. that was painful.
That’s how you know he’s one of us.
Little disappointing to see people accusing Phil and the rest of ‘selling plot.’ Cat guy’s a side character who will star in a holiday special sideplot. SIDEPLOT. I doubt they would re-write the plot they no doubt already have planned out for anything less than a million dollars. I’ve read their stuff long enough to know they have more integrity than that.
So whether or not I’ll enjoy said sideplot, I’m cool with it. T, Phil, and the Waltrips make some cash to continue to producing strips, a fellow fan gets to enjoy a fan-character/self-avatar being in the limelight for a month, and everything will go on just as it has before. Anyone who is flipping out is either over-reacting or just doesn’t really know the integrity of the guys writing this thing.
Having read it before and come back to this page on a subsequent archive-run… it was moderately bad. Could have been worse. Would have been better off not being at all though.
[Insert joke about selling enough plot for personal use, not enough for redistribution.]