And he’s DOWN! Listen to the crowd go wild!
(I understand this is very bad for our heroes and also a lot of innocent civilians, but c’mon, Zuurith had it coming.)
I think this is too much of an anticlimax to leave zuurith on, although tynan will probably gain some valuable fear out of that little display. Probably he just wiped out his vessel.
image source: panic
To heck with Falst you’re my new favorite character! And I thought *I* was a savage (though I’m probably flattering myself) I’m stealing some of these one liners to use in real life sometimes!
Hm, this leads me to question: how does god building a body and incarnating work?
Do they use the materials present in the room or do they magically transfer them where they are needed?
So, when Zuurith incarnated for Kendal during their first meeting in his throne room, he used gold and all sorts of exotic materials.
When he incarnated in the arena, he used materials he found in the arena, which is dirt, water and oxygen?
Also, the first rule for the crowd in these types of situations: Do not listen to the villain, he doesn’t have your best interests at heart.
I now wonder about the process of incarnating and how does a god build a body. Do they just use what they got around?
During the first meeting, Zuurith used materials in his throne room, things like gold and silver and presumably something more exotic.
Does that mean that when he incarnated in the arena, he was forced to use things in the arena, like dirt, air, flecks of gold from his people’s jewelry etc? Or he somehow teleported his “throne room body”?
Hm, does Tynan know about Kendal, or will he have a nasty jumpscare?
Kendal should register as fairly unthreatening to him I guess. But he does have that sword…
I speculate Vash’s sword will require an energy source for any large-scale cloud-destroying pyrotechnics. Which Kendal doesn’t have *personally*, but his Primordial friends might contribute some oomph – or Zuurith might if he decides not to be useless…
Tynan: That’s what I call hitting the dirt!
(Everyone is completely silent. Tynan points his swords at the crowd)
Audience: (forced laughter)
Ok Kendal, now’s your cue; leap towards him and cut him lengthways. It won’t do any permanent damage but the spectacle and the moment of calm will bring the audience’s attention on you so you can order them to seek shelter.
As much damage and chaos a panic would cause to the people, I feel it would make for an apt metaphor of just how precarious Zuurith’s system is. All the laws, all the power Zuurith commands to keep oder, then when he goes it all falls apart; almost a case of “You can do anything with bayonets except sit on them.”
btw Hi guys, been away on a holiday break for the past few days in a no-internet house so I’ve missed some updates and comment opportunities, but I’m back now.
This is exactly when the villain proves themselves that they are a genuine menace and HOLY SH*T, WTF, Tynan is now an incredible villain. I wasn’t impressed by our lord of fear but NOW? Zurrith probably isn’t dead, just his avatar but the avatar should not go down like that and just *shatter*.
If the Arenamaster is Zuurith’s emissary, does he die too? I’m curious to see what happens with that, considering all they’ve done to be on the antagonist page was… oh right
Probably should’ve seen that one coming, Zuury. I bet *he’s* panicking now. At least Tynan is nice enough to tell the crowd when they can panic!
In all seriousness I’m joining the “Tynan fan club” here in the comments. That last line made me laugh pretty hard. He’s got that great Disney Villain energy and I can’t help but like villains with a sense of STYLE! I do still wanna see Kendal try to slice him like fruit ninja to see what happens, but while Tynan is here it’s gonna be quite a ride, and a fun one.
DANGIT!!! For so many reasons, DANGIT! Tynaan is awful, but the comments section seems to be in agreement that he’s kind of a badass and certainly has Red’s flair for the dramatic… Also, Kendal, psst that’s your cue to jump at him with the sword! Where tf is the rest of the floof squad when you need them??? Also, hiii, Im back and here to bombard your comments section!!!
ImuyanMangoCat: I think he already is…
Magic_Enyineer, that’s the understatement of the year!
HelloHaiku: *applause*
Elaborate, good question!
Geebi, your local idiot, I think that because it was just his vessel the Arenamaster will be okay unfortunately…
Somebody: Hooray!
@youngstormlord-My instant reaction, from having rewatched Hamilton (again) recently-
Heed not the villain,
Scream, start to panic,
He as not your interest at heart.
YES! HE GOT SMOTE! Of course, now everyone has another problem to deal with, buT ZUURITH GOT SMOTE!
It looks like Dainix’s transformation has stopped, or at least slowed. He hasn’t changed much, if at all, between our last few little glimpses of him and now; maybe since he’s not fighting Kendal anymore, he isn’t as distressed as he was. (Still no hint of what lies beneath the burnt bandage, though…)
Geebi, your local idiot:
Zuurith isn’t dead, his incarnation just dissolved. His soul is still completely intact. Plus, I’m pretty certain emissaries don’t die when their deity loses their domain, which is as close to death a deity can get (without being vivisected by The Collector, anyway), the emissaries’ connection might wane or change at most.
@WillCan’tSleep: As For the nearly completed to completed comics, Minna Sundberg has created not 1, but 3! Stand Still, Stay Silent, a Nordic post-apocalyptic adventure, is nearing it’s completion after nearly 10 years of pages. From the first page, you can find her earlier comic A Redtail’s Dream, and later on, if you pay attention to the page descriptions, you’ll be able to find her short story Lovely People! There’s also O Human Star, A futuristic mystery (Although, if you do read this, I must warn you there are some spicy scenes) and there’s Demon Street, a 7-year webcomic nearing it’s end I highly recommend. Lastly, Heroes of Thanatoplis recently came off hiatus, and that’s a good ongoing webcomic. I didn’t mention it until now because I thought it was still on hiatus.
@humanoid clay no 🙂 thank you. I read fast but I can’t keep up with that. Dang!
Also about the actual comic, this scene is amazing! God fight! I wonder what Kendal’s sword will do?
I’m beginning to wonder if the Floof Squad even can win here. Perhaps this might be the first (well, technically second) instance where the protagonists lose. They may only be able to destroy Tynan’s incarnation and slow him down a little while they evacuate the city and transport the populace somewhere safer. This would allow us to see more of characters like Shrike and the Junior Archivist without the plot stopping for too long. The party might even split with some members protecting the refugees of Zuurith and some continuing on to solve Erin’s passenger problem. Anyway, that’s just one way I can see this might be going.
Well, I can’t say I’m surprised, nor can I say that Zuurith didn’t have this coming–but I do feel bad for Kendal now. Given Tynan feeds on fear he’s about to get a massive power boost (moreso if Zuurith pops back in and gets blasted again), and with Dainix still not recognizing his as a friend he’s stuck between a rock and a hard place–the way he’s probably seeing things right now, he’s got to protect the people of Zuurith from Tynan (who would not surprise me if he decided to pull down a tornado next), protect Dainix from Tynan, protect Dainix from himself and keep his own body intact given that Dainix and Tynan both are probably going to try and kill him. That’s a tall order for an injured demigod…
Hahahahahahaha! “Feel free to panic now!” That arm-spread…
Panic? Damn skippy they will–they just their GOD.
And oh, Tynan’s gonna be so powerful by the time the FLOOF squad has to tackle him. I really hope Dainix’s powers are really strong, and really relevant to taking on a storm.
I just want to give story props for the subtle foreshadowing, when Zuurith tsk-tsked Vash making his own incarnation to strong. There’s no question why Tynan squashed Zuurith like a bug, while Vash he had to tear apart again and again.
No doubt Zuurith will be back in a much reduced form–as a god he isn’t just his incarnation. But with the loss of his people’s confidence, I don’t know what will be left of him. Will he be the size of a pebble? Will he have to go back to being some kind of mountain god?
@Elaborate
I thought he did at first but now I’m wondering if he calls everybody that’s not him/not a god a fragile thing. Then again he did say Vash is gone when we first see him for real??
I’m going to make a prediction here: Tynan is going to win this one. Right now, Zuurith is dust and the citizens are panicking. Next comic, the panic is going to explode out of the arena. I don’t know what our heroes will try, but based on established powersets and characterizations I’m pretty sure they’ll be completely unable to stop it, and any attempt to try will only make things worse. At best, they help evacuate the citizens to higher ground while Tynan runs riot and obliterates the city. Zuurith will probably re-manifest, but by the time he does his city will be caught between uncontrolled riots and Tynan’s gleeful murder-fest, and he won’t have the power to do anything about it. I think that’s where this arc is going.
And y’know what? I’m 100% on board with it. I actually want Tynan to win this one. Yes, Tynan is capital-E Evil, while Zuurith just has his head all the way up his Lawful Stupid, so theoretically we’re supposed to root for Zuurith as the lesser of two evils. But Our Heroes don’t have a way to resolve the problem that Zuurith presents – they don’t really have the political influence to make him reform, he seems resistant to asking nicely, and since he’s a city-god I don’t think they can really kill him without wiping out the city. Fortunately, here’s our Disc One Big Bad to carry on the time-honored tradition of Bad Guys Do The Dirty Work, by removing the problem that Zuurith presents and replacing it with something else. Either Zuurith ceases to exist with his city, or he has to reform in the refugee camps and gets a character arc about order not being the most important thing. All the other gods get a sharp wake-up call about “Tynan’s back” and “oh shit what happened to Vash,” which maybe prompts them to start taking the main plot seriously. And then Our Heroes can deal with Tynan the usual way (morally justified violence, yay!).
I’m drawing heavily on Red’s Trope Talks for this prediction. Not sure if that makes it more or less valid. But I’m excited to see this play out.
OMG! That was so astonishingly, satisfyingly epic! Zuurith deserved the smack-down, but at THIS point, I only see Tynan winning. Team Floof is -so- out-classed.
The REAL reason Tynan took a day or two to meet Zuurith in person was to come up with this absolute banger of a monologue (and the comebacks… seriously amazing)
This looks like around the right time of the story for end of act one hopeful victory. Defend the Northern Water tribe, destroy the Death Star, save the City. Leaves me really curious what act 2 Crushing Defeat might look like.
@Point: You just gave me a great idea for a PASTRIVIA I will use tomorrow! Thank you :-). As for your comment, he’s got the conscious body of the god who exiled him and a flaming warrior in front of him, there are plenty of theatrics to be had with them.
@youngstormlord: Are you sure you’re talking about Tynan and not Tahrain?
Well, we know Kendal’s gonna make an attempt to fight Tynan now, and might even manage a few clean hits, but I anticipate a sound loss due to him not having Vash’s instincts, not to mention it’d be anticlimactic to just have Tynan lose that fast. So, how do we think this is gonna shake out?
I’m betting either Alinua/Life will intervene and spook Tynan enough, or Erin will be compelled to save his friends in spite of the odds, and that will put Tynan within dark dragon striking range (giving Erin a taste of the “power that could be his”). Or- not that I expect it to happen, but it’d be a welcome curveball- the Collector will just show up, tank all of Tynan’s attacks, and scoop him up for study.
(Kudos to Red for building a large and interesting enough rogue’s gallery to have this many possibilities. As a worldbuilding fanatic, I very much appreciate it!)
@Humanoid Clay: Definitively Tynan. Tahrain is the smith, Tynan is the forge. Tahrain puts the weapons and heroes into the forge, they beat Tynan and get forged into something stronger.
@setras I don’t see Tynan feeling threatened by Life. He doesn’t seem to care for ‘higher powers’, and it’s not as if Life could really do anything to him. And i’m not sure if the Collector could even defeat him; she would need to destroy his storm first, and i’m not sure she could do that by ‘healing’ the Wind Primordial.
I did think about Erin’s recent string of losses pushing him to practise Void Magic, but i think it’s still too early for such a dire action. Rather, i think the protagonists will lose here, and that will be the tipping point for Erin to get into Void Magic. Sort of like: “if had control of this power i could have used it to save the people of Zuurith, etc.” Also, i think it’s time for the Floof Squad’s first major loss since the City of Vash. Tynan is a threat far greater than anything they’ve faced so far (at least, one that won’t just sort itself out), and it’s healthy to set limits for your protagonists early so that they don’t quickly evolve into Mary Sue territory.
Unless, of course, Dainix pulls out some sick storm-sundering powers, which is entirely possible
I know a lot of people are saying they think Floof Squad is gunna have their second act breakdown here. I could see that. HOWEVER, alternative view, wasn’t Vash’s sword made of some sort of substance that was the reason he was able to stop Tynan in the first place? Kendal still has that sword, PLUS he’s named after it. I wonder if this is going be Kendal’s moment, where he lives up to his true name as Vash’s “Weapon”. Maybe he’ll gain some confidence in himself finally, poor boi.
I know people are saying the FLOOF squad can’t win this one, and certainly Life can’t help them. But there’s an aspect we haven’t considered: the question Zuurith raised about Kendal: Does Kendal have any capacity at all to take on The Collector.
The gods support Kendal because either they were friendly with Vash or the hope Kendal can do something about The Collector. If he, Vash’s sword in hand, is helpless against Tynan, the doubts creep in… and the Gods’ support falls away.
That can help deal with how overpowered this group is (and brings in more self doubt and angst, Kendal’s specialty!). But it could rob them of help in the long-term, leaving the FLOOF squad open to every petty God-grudge against Vash.
And worst of all, proves Zuurith right. I hate that. I hope there’s something in that sword that can take a big bite out of Tynan.
hey just had this thought but do you guys think that tynans hair looks like thoughts giant wigs the Gorgens used to wear and his name sound like TYRANT like the oppressive rulers of their people
No one:
Nobody ever:
My brain: *sings* Baby, baby don’t panic! I know how to cook bannock! (Go look up the song Mountain Man By Dean Brody if you want to hear what my brain was singing)
Yooo Tynan is so EVIL but also so EPIC
also the alt text is hilarious
Tynan is actually the god of sick one liners
agreed, he’s giving like loki vibes
This page’s image source: panic
Well, that isn’t good…
We love to see kings getting a win
What an ASSHOLE i love him
And he’s DOWN! Listen to the crowd go wild!
(I understand this is very bad for our heroes and also a lot of innocent civilians, but c’mon, Zuurith had it coming.)
I must admit, while I understand Tynan is worse than Zuurith, it was also strangely satisfying to watch Zuurith be reduced to a literal pile of dust.
Let the bossfight begin.
The lightning crashes!
Zuurith turns into ashes.
Time to panic now.
(Bonus)
Who’s taller now, huh?
Tynan or Zuurith’s sand pile?
We all know which one.
His charisma here is awesome. We’ll probably get a badass Kendal scene Friday, and then chapter 16 Monday! WOOOOO!
dainix is still sitting on the ground with his giant f*cking fire claw. i hope he’s alright.
I think this is too much of an anticlimax to leave zuurith on, although tynan will probably gain some valuable fear out of that little display. Probably he just wiped out his vessel.
image source: panic
“This is the Scream Pit, right? SO START SCREAMING!”
Oof, so Zurith’s body wasn’t much more than a styled-up Earth golem…
‘Built it to last’, ouch XD
Vash’s incarnation is built so well it (he) is still running around WITHOUT Vash!
Next question:
Is Kendal durable enough to fight Tynan with friends?
That thunderous applause
To heck with Falst you’re my new favorite character! And I thought *I* was a savage (though I’m probably flattering myself) I’m stealing some of these one liners to use in real life sometimes!
@Ryan don’t we all now? Mark my words he’s gonna be that one non-protagonist character that steals the show and hearts of the fans.
Tynan sounds like an in between of the Colonel from KFC and Foghorn Leghorn in my head and I don’t know what to do with this information.
Hm, this leads me to question: how does god building a body and incarnating work?
Do they use the materials present in the room or do they magically transfer them where they are needed?
So, when Zuurith incarnated for Kendal during their first meeting in his throne room, he used gold and all sorts of exotic materials.
When he incarnated in the arena, he used materials he found in the arena, which is dirt, water and oxygen?
Also, the first rule for the crowd in these types of situations: Do not listen to the villain, he doesn’t have your best interests at heart.
uh zuurith you doing ok?
I now wonder about the process of incarnating and how does a god build a body. Do they just use what they got around?
During the first meeting, Zuurith used materials in his throne room, things like gold and silver and presumably something more exotic.
Does that mean that when he incarnated in the arena, he was forced to use things in the arena, like dirt, air, flecks of gold from his people’s jewelry etc? Or he somehow teleported his “throne room body”?
Also, a good rule of thumb for the crowd is: Don’t listen to the villain, he doesn’t have your best interests at heart.
So on the bright side the aturitrian asshole is gone. But on the other side now they are stuck with the evil storm god. Yay…
Hm, does Tynan know about Kendal, or will he have a nasty jumpscare?
Kendal should register as fairly unthreatening to him I guess. But he does have that sword…
I speculate Vash’s sword will require an energy source for any large-scale cloud-destroying pyrotechnics. Which Kendal doesn’t have *personally*, but his Primordial friends might contribute some oomph – or Zuurith might if he decides not to be useless…
PANIC!!!! AAAAAAH!!! xDD
oh my goD I LOVE HIM what a dramatic ass bitch <3
PRESENTATION!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Panic! At the Scream Pit
Early gang scream pit bois
Where’s a bounty hunter whose quarry is gods when you need one?
Alt text says “alternate cut where zuurith’s dust pile still has two cartoon eyes blinking angrily”
Someone make this happen, please.
Tynan: That’s what I call hitting the dirt!
(Everyone is completely silent. Tynan points his swords at the crowd)
Audience: (forced laughter)
Ok Kendal, now’s your cue; leap towards him and cut him lengthways. It won’t do any permanent damage but the spectacle and the moment of calm will bring the audience’s attention on you so you can order them to seek shelter.
As much damage and chaos a panic would cause to the people, I feel it would make for an apt metaphor of just how precarious Zuurith’s system is. All the laws, all the power Zuurith commands to keep oder, then when he goes it all falls apart; almost a case of “You can do anything with bayonets except sit on them.”
btw Hi guys, been away on a holiday break for the past few days in a no-internet house so I’ve missed some updates and comment opportunities, but I’m back now.
TL;DR: sometimes lightning does strike the same spot twice, and just happens to obliterate a smug loser of a god.
The next page should just be the alternate cut.
This is exactly when the villain proves themselves that they are a genuine menace and HOLY SH*T, WTF, Tynan is now an incredible villain. I wasn’t impressed by our lord of fear but NOW? Zurrith probably isn’t dead, just his avatar but the avatar should not go down like that and just *shatter*.
If the Arenamaster is Zuurith’s emissary, does he die too? I’m curious to see what happens with that, considering all they’ve done to be on the antagonist page was… oh right
Probably should’ve seen that one coming, Zuury. I bet *he’s* panicking now. At least Tynan is nice enough to tell the crowd when they can panic!
In all seriousness I’m joining the “Tynan fan club” here in the comments. That last line made me laugh pretty hard. He’s got that great Disney Villain energy and I can’t help but like villains with a sense of STYLE! I do still wanna see Kendal try to slice him like fruit ninja to see what happens, but while Tynan is here it’s gonna be quite a ride, and a fun one.
DANGIT!!! For so many reasons, DANGIT! Tynaan is awful, but the comments section seems to be in agreement that he’s kind of a badass and certainly has Red’s flair for the dramatic… Also, Kendal, psst that’s your cue to jump at him with the sword! Where tf is the rest of the floof squad when you need them??? Also, hiii, Im back and here to bombard your comments section!!!
ImuyanMangoCat: I think he already is…
Magic_Enyineer, that’s the understatement of the year!
HelloHaiku: *applause*
Elaborate, good question!
Geebi, your local idiot, I think that because it was just his vessel the Arenamaster will be okay unfortunately…
Somebody: Hooray!
@youngstormlord-My instant reaction, from having rewatched Hamilton (again) recently-
Heed not the villain,
Scream, start to panic,
He as not your interest at heart.
But really, tear this dude apart
Wait.
He just turned Zuurith to ashes?
Just like that?
Yeah, he’s absolutely an awesome villain.
and just “Feel free to panic now”?
This is where Kendal the rest of the Floof Gang (possibly joined by the Junior Archivist) come in and absolutely decimate him in Chapter 16.
This is a good time to be alive.
Annyyywwayyyy…
YES! HE GOT SMOTE! Of course, now everyone has another problem to deal with, buT ZUURITH GOT SMOTE!
It looks like Dainix’s transformation has stopped, or at least slowed. He hasn’t changed much, if at all, between our last few little glimpses of him and now; maybe since he’s not fighting Kendal anymore, he isn’t as distressed as he was. (Still no hint of what lies beneath the burnt bandage, though…)
Geebi, your local idiot:
Zuurith isn’t dead, his incarnation just dissolved. His soul is still completely intact. Plus, I’m pretty certain emissaries don’t die when their deity loses their domain, which is as close to death a deity can get (without being vivisected by The Collector, anyway), the emissaries’ connection might wane or change at most.
Zer0 W0lf:
Nice.
@WillCan’tSleep: As For the nearly completed to completed comics, Minna Sundberg has created not 1, but 3! Stand Still, Stay Silent, a Nordic post-apocalyptic adventure, is nearing it’s completion after nearly 10 years of pages. From the first page, you can find her earlier comic A Redtail’s Dream, and later on, if you pay attention to the page descriptions, you’ll be able to find her short story Lovely People! There’s also O Human Star, A futuristic mystery (Although, if you do read this, I must warn you there are some spicy scenes) and there’s Demon Street, a 7-year webcomic nearing it’s end I highly recommend. Lastly, Heroes of Thanatoplis recently came off hiatus, and that’s a good ongoing webcomic. I didn’t mention it until now because I thought it was still on hiatus.
(Pants) Anything else?
Stadium-full-of-packed-together-cooped-up-people-enjoying-bloodsports-on-an-emotional-rollercoster-as-their-city-god-is-turned-to-sand-by-back-by-unpopular-demand-reject-theater-kid-storm-god-going-full-panic-mode-say: “What.”
@humanoid clay no 🙂 thank you. I read fast but I can’t keep up with that. Dang!
Also about the actual comic, this scene is amazing! God fight! I wonder what Kendal’s sword will do?
alt text: alternate cut where zuurith’s dust pile still has two cartoon eyes blinking angrily
@DisastrousGoth WHAT
I’m beginning to wonder if the Floof Squad even can win here. Perhaps this might be the first (well, technically second) instance where the protagonists lose. They may only be able to destroy Tynan’s incarnation and slow him down a little while they evacuate the city and transport the populace somewhere safer. This would allow us to see more of characters like Shrike and the Junior Archivist without the plot stopping for too long. The party might even split with some members protecting the refugees of Zuurith and some continuing on to solve Erin’s passenger problem. Anyway, that’s just one way I can see this might be going.
Well, I can’t say I’m surprised, nor can I say that Zuurith didn’t have this coming–but I do feel bad for Kendal now. Given Tynan feeds on fear he’s about to get a massive power boost (moreso if Zuurith pops back in and gets blasted again), and with Dainix still not recognizing his as a friend he’s stuck between a rock and a hard place–the way he’s probably seeing things right now, he’s got to protect the people of Zuurith from Tynan (who would not surprise me if he decided to pull down a tornado next), protect Dainix from Tynan, protect Dainix from himself and keep his own body intact given that Dainix and Tynan both are probably going to try and kill him. That’s a tall order for an injured demigod…
To veggiesnake:
This does seem to be about that bit in the narrative where the heroes suffer their first major loss, doesn’t it…
everyone else: talking about Tynan
me: spending way too much time studing the first panel, trying to figure out how to draw lightning
Obligatory “Are you not entertained?” Tpose
Yeeeaahh Surrith didn’t deserve an epic final battle. He deserves a “skff” not a “KABOOM”
PRESENTATION!
The Characters: “Oh no! Tynan’s destroyed Zuurith’s avatar! We’re screwed!”
The Fans: “YES! *claps* SLAY, KING!”
(Also, I love how Red knew her readers well enough to predict this reaction in the alt text XD)
Hahahahahahaha! “Feel free to panic now!” That arm-spread…
Panic? Damn skippy they will–they just their GOD.
And oh, Tynan’s gonna be so powerful by the time the FLOOF squad has to tackle him. I really hope Dainix’s powers are really strong, and really relevant to taking on a storm.
I just want to give story props for the subtle foreshadowing, when Zuurith tsk-tsked Vash making his own incarnation to strong. There’s no question why Tynan squashed Zuurith like a bug, while Vash he had to tear apart again and again.
No doubt Zuurith will be back in a much reduced form–as a god he isn’t just his incarnation. But with the loss of his people’s confidence, I don’t know what will be left of him. Will he be the size of a pebble? Will he have to go back to being some kind of mountain god?
THIS MAN. HAS MY RESPECT.
@Elaborate
I thought he did at first but now I’m wondering if he calls everybody that’s not him/not a god a fragile thing. Then again he did say Vash is gone when we first see him for real??
Tynan has quickly become one of my fav characters in this comic
The theatricality is unparalleled
I’m going to make a prediction here: Tynan is going to win this one. Right now, Zuurith is dust and the citizens are panicking. Next comic, the panic is going to explode out of the arena. I don’t know what our heroes will try, but based on established powersets and characterizations I’m pretty sure they’ll be completely unable to stop it, and any attempt to try will only make things worse. At best, they help evacuate the citizens to higher ground while Tynan runs riot and obliterates the city. Zuurith will probably re-manifest, but by the time he does his city will be caught between uncontrolled riots and Tynan’s gleeful murder-fest, and he won’t have the power to do anything about it. I think that’s where this arc is going.
And y’know what? I’m 100% on board with it. I actually want Tynan to win this one. Yes, Tynan is capital-E Evil, while Zuurith just has his head all the way up his Lawful Stupid, so theoretically we’re supposed to root for Zuurith as the lesser of two evils. But Our Heroes don’t have a way to resolve the problem that Zuurith presents – they don’t really have the political influence to make him reform, he seems resistant to asking nicely, and since he’s a city-god I don’t think they can really kill him without wiping out the city. Fortunately, here’s our Disc One Big Bad to carry on the time-honored tradition of Bad Guys Do The Dirty Work, by removing the problem that Zuurith presents and replacing it with something else. Either Zuurith ceases to exist with his city, or he has to reform in the refugee camps and gets a character arc about order not being the most important thing. All the other gods get a sharp wake-up call about “Tynan’s back” and “oh shit what happened to Vash,” which maybe prompts them to start taking the main plot seriously. And then Our Heroes can deal with Tynan the usual way (morally justified violence, yay!).
I’m drawing heavily on Red’s Trope Talks for this prediction. Not sure if that makes it more or less valid. But I’m excited to see this play out.
ZUURITH NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
I actually liked Zuurith c’mon ;-;
I’m convinced that Tynan is an actual high school student
The applause is coming from the comments section!
OMG! That was so astonishingly, satisfyingly epic! Zuurith deserved the smack-down, but at THIS point, I only see Tynan winning. Team Floof is -so- out-classed.
The REAL reason Tynan took a day or two to meet Zuurith in person was to come up with this absolute banger of a monologue (and the comebacks… seriously amazing)
This looks like around the right time of the story for end of act one hopeful victory. Defend the Northern Water tribe, destroy the Death Star, save the City. Leaves me really curious what act 2 Crushing Defeat might look like.
I feel like this page ought to go on the TV tropes entry for “Asshole Victim.”
The people of Zuurith don’t deserve Tynan, but Zuurith the god sure does.
On one hand: Oh no, the evil god is winning!
On the other hand: Hooray, the evil god is fun!
@AKIDWHOMISTOOKMATHSKILLSFORERSONALITY
Hey the megamind lines are my thing! Kidding
I hate that I really like Tynan. He is having SO much fun being evil and dramatic.
On a side note–does anyone know where I could find a current Discord link for Aurora? The link(s?) on the Tumblr page appears to have expired…
So, now that Tynan is done clowning on Zuurith-the-god (well, his embodied form at any rate), how’s he going to keep up the theatrics?
Tynan, the forge of God-Weapons and God Champions. I feel that Tynan is going to get burned by Dainix pretty soon.
Ok, Tynan is officially my pet villain in this series
Oh gash and I just noticed him brushing off the lightning/dust as Zuurith disintegrates. What a king
I think Zuurith knows he can’t beat Tynan, but he thinks he can weather his attacks until Tynan leaves. He is a mountain, after all.
@Point: You just gave me a great idea for a PASTRIVIA I will use tomorrow! Thank you :-). As for your comment, he’s got the conscious body of the god who exiled him and a flaming warrior in front of him, there are plenty of theatrics to be had with them.
@youngstormlord: Are you sure you’re talking about Tynan and not Tahrain?
The “panik kalm panik” meme for these last two pages almost writes itself.
Tynan is a dramatic asshole and I love him. I also can’t wait to see him punched into next year. Villainous third-act breakdown, anybody? 😀
Well, we know Kendal’s gonna make an attempt to fight Tynan now, and might even manage a few clean hits, but I anticipate a sound loss due to him not having Vash’s instincts, not to mention it’d be anticlimactic to just have Tynan lose that fast. So, how do we think this is gonna shake out?
I’m betting either Alinua/Life will intervene and spook Tynan enough, or Erin will be compelled to save his friends in spite of the odds, and that will put Tynan within dark dragon striking range (giving Erin a taste of the “power that could be his”). Or- not that I expect it to happen, but it’d be a welcome curveball- the Collector will just show up, tank all of Tynan’s attacks, and scoop him up for study.
(Kudos to Red for building a large and interesting enough rogue’s gallery to have this many possibilities. As a worldbuilding fanatic, I very much appreciate it!)
@Humanoid Clay: Definitively Tynan. Tahrain is the smith, Tynan is the forge. Tahrain puts the weapons and heroes into the forge, they beat Tynan and get forged into something stronger.
time to fight a god?
@setras I don’t see Tynan feeling threatened by Life. He doesn’t seem to care for ‘higher powers’, and it’s not as if Life could really do anything to him. And i’m not sure if the Collector could even defeat him; she would need to destroy his storm first, and i’m not sure she could do that by ‘healing’ the Wind Primordial.
I did think about Erin’s recent string of losses pushing him to practise Void Magic, but i think it’s still too early for such a dire action. Rather, i think the protagonists will lose here, and that will be the tipping point for Erin to get into Void Magic. Sort of like: “if had control of this power i could have used it to save the people of Zuurith, etc.” Also, i think it’s time for the Floof Squad’s first major loss since the City of Vash. Tynan is a threat far greater than anything they’ve faced so far (at least, one that won’t just sort itself out), and it’s healthy to set limits for your protagonists early so that they don’t quickly evolve into Mary Sue territory.
Unless, of course, Dainix pulls out some sick storm-sundering powers, which is entirely possible
@just stopping by “watch closely everyone! i’m going to show you how to kill a god. a god of lightning and death; the trick is not to fear him”
@veggiesnake I get that reference! Lady Eboshi.
Tynan: You may be a villain but your no super-villain.
Zurrith: Oh yeah? What’s the difference?
Tynan: PRESENTATION
“build it to last” Does he mean the city, or his shell/avatar/whatyoucallit.
AH yes, the magnificent bastards.
I know a lot of people are saying they think Floof Squad is gunna have their second act breakdown here. I could see that. HOWEVER, alternative view, wasn’t Vash’s sword made of some sort of substance that was the reason he was able to stop Tynan in the first place? Kendal still has that sword, PLUS he’s named after it. I wonder if this is going be Kendal’s moment, where he lives up to his true name as Vash’s “Weapon”. Maybe he’ll gain some confidence in himself finally, poor boi.
Tynan is the Chaotic we need, but the Evil we really really don’t.
I know people are saying the FLOOF squad can’t win this one, and certainly Life can’t help them. But there’s an aspect we haven’t considered: the question Zuurith raised about Kendal: Does Kendal have any capacity at all to take on The Collector.
The gods support Kendal because either they were friendly with Vash or the hope Kendal can do something about The Collector. If he, Vash’s sword in hand, is helpless against Tynan, the doubts creep in… and the Gods’ support falls away.
That can help deal with how overpowered this group is (and brings in more self doubt and angst, Kendal’s specialty!). But it could rob them of help in the long-term, leaving the FLOOF squad open to every petty God-grudge against Vash.
And worst of all, proves Zuurith right. I hate that. I hope there’s something in that sword that can take a big bite out of Tynan.
hey just had this thought but do you guys think that tynans hair looks like thoughts giant wigs the Gorgens used to wear and his name sound like TYRANT like the oppressive rulers of their people
No one:
Nobody ever:
My brain: *sings* Baby, baby don’t panic! I know how to cook bannock! (Go look up the song Mountain Man By Dean Brody if you want to hear what my brain was singing)