“It’s not like I like or respect you or appreciate your company or anything!”
alternately
“Can’t a handsome catboy with handsomely angsty attitude angst in peace?!”
So I’m seeing that Dainix is smart. Like, really-good-at-deductive-reasoning smart. And since I previously categorised him as “The Big Guy” (alongside Tess), I’m starting to wonder if that’s really his archetype. Anyone have any opinions?
Leader – Kendal
Lancer – Falst
Heart – Alinua
Smart Guy – Erin
Big Guy – Tess
Is Dainix another lancer? Is he “The Sixth Ranger”? Bear in mind that the sketches and trope talks suggest that we should be meeting one more member of the Flood Squad yet, who looks like they could fill either of these roles too.
Auto-correct is evil!
I think of Dainix as the loyal scout and guide- professional and urban while Falst as the rebellious rogue antisocial but still loyal survivor (if sneaky loner by nature). To me these two clash like Ken and Joe argue in “Science Ninja Team Gathaman” (an older amine from the 1980s in the U,S,) Both commander Ken and sub-commander Joe had clashing views on how to best do there job but still had tremendous respect for each other despite holding such passionately different views- I would say very “American’ in outlook for a story about Ninjas…
Now I’m wondering: What would each of the Floof Squad do, if they lived together, a Flood came, and they ended up isolated from the rest of the World? I will ignore the fact, that Erin could just manipulate the water. Any suggestions?
Dainix is a good fighter, has a supernatural transformation which solves key issues, is very good at deduction, and carries useful equipment (of questionable quality).
What’s the trope type that covers all rounders that can cover most roles in a party/group/story?
Leader, Heart, Sixth Ranger are pretty versatile like that. But notably, Dainix started off as an antagonist before joining the protagonists, however briefly, which is especially indicative of the Sixth Ranger, which tends to get introduced as a super-powerful enemy that gets nerfed as soon as they join the squad. Not that Dainix has been nerfed too bad, but not that he’s really fighting like he did in the arena, either.
I vaguely recall it being mentioned at one point that Dainix has his own things going on and might therefore not be formally part of the core squad, but instead being an ally who’s sometimes with them and sometimes doing his own thing. Your assignments seem accurate, but having two characters fulfil the same broad archetype but in different ways can also happen. Considering Dainix as an alternate Smart Guy, for instance, Dainix seems to have a fair amount of wisdom when not going berserk, which contrasts to Erin’s high Int, low Wis characterisation. Mind you, not every spark of inspiration needs to come from a Smart Guy.
If there’s still one member we haven’t met yet, maybe we should use the”Magnificent Seven Samurai” trope instead of the five man band. Same roles, replacing the Heart with the Funny Guy, and adding the Old Guy and the Young Guy. Don’t know how well that fits, but at least we don’t have two Sixth Rangers.
I think of Dainix as a lancer to Falst (a “lancer ladder” as they say in the business), and both him and Tess are kind of foils to the rest of the party just by virtue of being somewhat emotionally healthy, which seems to be a rarity in this world. I do agree that he has some sixth ranger traits, though.
I think he’s a pretty classic Sixth Ranger. You have to remember that, functionally, your Sixth Ranger is often almost an auxiliary Leader. I mean, the trope namer is Tommy Oliver from Power Rangers, who went from the Green Sixth Ranger to the longest serving leader in the franchise’s history.
Falst- a cactus because he so prickly (yes not a tree but Falst does not play by the rules)
Dainix- a Yucca tree, tall desert survivor (with a bit of Burning Man vibe)
Kendal – a pine tree straight forward and evergreen (as in naïve and fresh)
Alinua- A sweet pomegranate tree since she provides sweetness, food and shade to her friends
Erin-I am torn between a yew since his so springy of mind or oak due to his determined resistance to Void Dragon
Tess-I have no clue, perhaps a gypsy wagon since she is a sturdy wanderer
Hey, maybe cool it on the use of “gypsy” to describe Tess (and, indeed, other nomadic peoples). It’s not always considered a slur, but the fact that is sometimes is is enough to be wary of the word.
Sorry, would Rom be more respectful? While the scams are not appreciated in the USA the image of the roaming romantic, handsome, daring and dangerous are still somewhat popular. I meant only to celebrate and remember the positive image not demonize anyone,
Well, the Romani people are a real-world culture. so referring to Tess as Romani is always going to be factually incorrect. But in real life, I really couldn’t say what the right word is. ‘Romani’ is the most accurate, and the most devoid of bias, euphemism, or subtext, so that’s probably the best one I know of.
Kendal – Oak – Tall, strong, classic.
Alinua – Willow – The way she leans across the water in 1.11.14, plus her HUGE hair.
Erin – Rowan – It’s a vibe. Also, rowan wood has strong magical connotations in several cultures.
Falst – Holly – Prickly (as cited by literally everyone else) but also short and shrub-like.
Tess – Aspen – Golden coloured and extremely tall.
Dainix – Firewood – everything burns 🙂
Group as a whole: Acacia for friendship! just as long as it’s not rose or white (elegance) or yellow (secret love)… unless ?
Kendal: box tree (stoicism)
Alinua: Jasmine (amiability); note there’s overlaps with other types (cape jasmine = transport of joy, carolina jasmine = separation, indian jasmine = I attach myself to you, Spanish Jasmine = sensuality, yellow jasmine = grace and elegance)
Alinua to Kendal specifically: Arbor Vitae, which means both “unchanging friendship” and “live for me”
Life Mum: Magnolia (Love of nature)
Erin: thinks he’s a plane tree (genius) or a Venice Sumach (splendor, intellectual excellence), is actually Sycamore (curiosity)
Falst: Barberry tree (sharpness) overlapping with the shrub barberry (sourness of temper), but with mistletoe growing in the branches (I surmount difficulties)
Dainix: French willow (bravery and humanity)
Tess: Larch (audacity, boldness) or Live Oak (liberty)
Dainix: A monster, the demon, has already eaten me. From within.
Falst: That’s it! You’re on your own now!
Once is an accident, twice is a coincidence, three times is a pattern. As Red said on the tumblr, Dainix has a keen eye for patterns in enemy behaviour. That could be very useful for the gang, mixing technical approach with survival sensibilities.
Oh Dainix, how you unintentionally push Falst’s buttons. However I think from the last few panels, he’s gotten the picture that now is not the time to dig further. He suspects something, but also respects Falst’s privacy.
Prediction for next week: Looking at the archives page there’s still six more pages before the next, Falst centred chapter. I reckon either next week, or the week after, we’ll cut back to camp, either to conclude Kendal’s dream sequence, continue Alinua’s sequence, or discover the boys are gone. Maybe a combination of the above.
Oh gee golly gosh gloriosky I sure hope Falst doesn’t have to…
Find his way with his ancestry in question.
He’s obviously never responded poorly to anything relating to that in the streets of Zuurith
Whoo! First comment! So Falst being seen as an Ancient does make sense and I have a theory as to why. In the lore tab on the three elder races it says that the Ancients never really went “extinct”, but rather assimilated into the elves and humans as history went on, and more importantly that some people inside this world were descended from those Ancients. I think either the Ferin or Falst specifically may have been descended from the ancients, and the robots somehow recognize that. However this leads to some interesting questions. How do they know? Why do they see humans and elves as a threat? What will Falst do with this information?
One theory that’s been thrown around is that since both Ferin and Ancients had magically inert souls the automatons recognise them on that. This would imply the Ancients could harness some pretty cool soul magic. But we already know that they knew way more about the Lady and her powers than the current scholars outside the Paladins.
Aw Falst! Now he’s getting nervous and PO’d because Dainix is showing him some respect & asking about his past. Makes me want to hug him – hug them ALL – and give them comfort food, wrap them in blankets and give them a chance to sleep for a week.
“I barely remember them” Press X to doubt. That reaction doesn’t seem like you “barely remember” them, or at least that you remember *something* that you don’t want to say.
The fact that Falst specified “people leave” puts “You will find your way if you are truly my son” in a bit of a new light; Falst wasn’t sent away, he was left behind. Perhaps one or more of his parents were running away from something, or someone, and determined that a child would be too much of a burden on the road ahead.
Based on how Falst worded it (“People die. People leave. It doesn’t mean anything.”) I feel like maybe one parent died and the other left? I like your theory.
Predictions for next page (let me know if I should do these as my Comment Thing cuz I feel like everyone else has a Comment Thing that they’re doing):
a ) Dainix: *tries to say something helpful or asks another question*
b ) Falst: “Did you just… try to psychoanalyze me?”
c ) Look at the bois. They are bonding. Seee, I told you dungeons are good for bonding
Falst, buddy, I think you misspoke. I’m fairly certain you didn’t actually mean “barely remember” maybe “don’t want to remember” or “don’t like talking about it” would be better.
This is all skipping over a much simpler explanation. We know Ferrin have high magic resistance and little if any ability to actually use it, and we know that the Ancients couldn’t use magic directly, while the “cave folk’s” ability to use magic was feared by the Ancients. It’s not scanning genetics, it’s scanning magical potential!
I feel like I’m missing something. If the ancients predate ferin, and the ancient tech reacts badly to humans and elves, what exactly were the ancients?
Go to Extra Lore and click on Three Elder races, but a relevant quote:
“The Ancients are not “extinct”, but they have long since been subsumed into the population of the other two Elder Races; some humans and elves share a small amount of Ancient blood. The original Ancients were taller than any elf, with soft tan skin and pale hair – powerful giants among men, sturdy and strong. Their descendants show subtle traces of their lineage, but the glory of the Ancients is long gone.”
Hence the confusion since Falst is not particularly ancient-y being short.
Ancient ancestry, huh? It’s nice that Falst gets to have a Thing of his own.
So far, he’s been reduced to ‘the token normal guy’, which must be confusing for him.
I see people hopping on the “Falst is an ancient“ bandwagon but I want to remind everyone there are two groups that are totally magically inert: Ferin and Ancients.
I just noticed that while Falst is officially a lion-based ferin, he has slit pupils while lions have round ones.
Not that he HAS TO BE 100% liony, it just hit me.
(Biologically, slit pupils are for twilight hunters who are likely to have to be looking up at their prey — cats, foxes, alligators, snakes, etc. Animals as tall as a lion or wolf go with round ones instead.)
For mobile readers.
Alt-text: you must be this tall to access my tragic backstory
Image source: no
I mean, Dainix is pretty tall
Certainly taller than Falst
It’s a height limit. No one taller than Falst.
Yes indeed, Falst seems to be Ancient enough
But getting him to open up might be too tough
Pushing the buttons
to unlock tragic story.
Good going Dainix!
(Bonus)
Was mom an ancient?
“I barely remember them”
Come on, that’s a lie.
Guys I don’t know why but I think he’s lying a little bit
you tell ‘im, Falst
The last line of panel nine is so like crabby Falst it puts a smile on my face…
“It’s not like I like or respect you or appreciate your company or anything!”
alternately
“Can’t a handsome catboy with handsomely angsty attitude angst in peace?!”
Baka!
You liar, Falst! He absolutely knows
“-this tall? But I AM-”
“Hang on” *scrambles up a wall, holds out his hand again* “I mean THIS tall.”
underappreciated comment, I can totally see Falst doing that
So I’m seeing that Dainix is smart. Like, really-good-at-deductive-reasoning smart. And since I previously categorised him as “The Big Guy” (alongside Tess), I’m starting to wonder if that’s really his archetype. Anyone have any opinions?
Leader – Kendal
Lancer – Falst
Heart – Alinua
Smart Guy – Erin
Big Guy – Tess
Is Dainix another lancer? Is he “The Sixth Ranger”? Bear in mind that the sketches and trope talks suggest that we should be meeting one more member of the Flood Squad yet, who looks like they could fill either of these roles too.
*Floof Squad, damnit autocorrect!
Although… considering the recent Boss Battle, I guess they could ALSO be called the Flood Squad?
Auto-correct is evil!
I think of Dainix as the loyal scout and guide- professional and urban while Falst as the rebellious rogue antisocial but still loyal survivor (if sneaky loner by nature). To me these two clash like Ken and Joe argue in “Science Ninja Team Gathaman” (an older amine from the 1980s in the U,S,) Both commander Ken and sub-commander Joe had clashing views on how to best do there job but still had tremendous respect for each other despite holding such passionately different views- I would say very “American’ in outlook for a story about Ninjas…
Now I’m wondering: What would each of the Floof Squad do, if they lived together, a Flood came, and they ended up isolated from the rest of the World? I will ignore the fact, that Erin could just manipulate the water. Any suggestions?
Dainix is a good fighter, has a supernatural transformation which solves key issues, is very good at deduction, and carries useful equipment (of questionable quality).
What’s the trope type that covers all rounders that can cover most roles in a party/group/story?
Leader, Heart, Sixth Ranger are pretty versatile like that. But notably, Dainix started off as an antagonist before joining the protagonists, however briefly, which is especially indicative of the Sixth Ranger, which tends to get introduced as a super-powerful enemy that gets nerfed as soon as they join the squad. Not that Dainix has been nerfed too bad, but not that he’s really fighting like he did in the arena, either.
The “Pro from Dover” comes to mind (Champion RPG/Superhero reference) or Sherlock Holmes of literary fame.
I vaguely recall it being mentioned at one point that Dainix has his own things going on and might therefore not be formally part of the core squad, but instead being an ally who’s sometimes with them and sometimes doing his own thing. Your assignments seem accurate, but having two characters fulfil the same broad archetype but in different ways can also happen. Considering Dainix as an alternate Smart Guy, for instance, Dainix seems to have a fair amount of wisdom when not going berserk, which contrasts to Erin’s high Int, low Wis characterisation. Mind you, not every spark of inspiration needs to come from a Smart Guy.
I think that might have been Tess actually??
If there’s still one member we haven’t met yet, maybe we should use the”Magnificent Seven Samurai” trope instead of the five man band. Same roles, replacing the Heart with the Funny Guy, and adding the Old Guy and the Young Guy. Don’t know how well that fits, but at least we don’t have two Sixth Rangers.
until we know that he sticks around for good we might as well classify him as a NPC companion/Plot NPC.
I think of Dainix as a lancer to Falst (a “lancer ladder” as they say in the business), and both him and Tess are kind of foils to the rest of the party just by virtue of being somewhat emotionally healthy, which seems to be a rarity in this world. I do agree that he has some sixth ranger traits, though.
I think he’s a pretty classic Sixth Ranger. You have to remember that, functionally, your Sixth Ranger is often almost an auxiliary Leader. I mean, the trope namer is Tommy Oliver from Power Rangers, who went from the Green Sixth Ranger to the longest serving leader in the franchise’s history.
Aurora Question #44: Odd question today, what trees would the characters be?
Technically not a tree, but Falst is definitely a juniper. He’s spiky as all hell, as well as small.
Alinua is a birch tree.
Don’t ask why.
She just is
I always thought of her as a willow but birch does work well
I would not question you intuition @story. Perhaps the answer will make itself clear over time and reflection!
Falst- a cactus because he so prickly (yes not a tree but Falst does not play by the rules)
Dainix- a Yucca tree, tall desert survivor (with a bit of Burning Man vibe)
Kendal – a pine tree straight forward and evergreen (as in naïve and fresh)
Alinua- A sweet pomegranate tree since she provides sweetness, food and shade to her friends
Erin-I am torn between a yew since his so springy of mind or oak due to his determined resistance to Void Dragon
Tess-I have no clue, perhaps a gypsy wagon since she is a sturdy wanderer
Hey, maybe cool it on the use of “gypsy” to describe Tess (and, indeed, other nomadic peoples). It’s not always considered a slur, but the fact that is sometimes is is enough to be wary of the word.
Sorry, would Rom be more respectful? While the scams are not appreciated in the USA the image of the roaming romantic, handsome, daring and dangerous are still somewhat popular. I meant only to celebrate and remember the positive image not demonize anyone,
Well, the Romani people are a real-world culture. so referring to Tess as Romani is always going to be factually incorrect. But in real life, I really couldn’t say what the right word is. ‘Romani’ is the most accurate, and the most devoid of bias, euphemism, or subtext, so that’s probably the best one I know of.
Kendal – Oak – Tall, strong, classic.
Alinua – Willow – The way she leans across the water in 1.11.14, plus her HUGE hair.
Erin – Rowan – It’s a vibe. Also, rowan wood has strong magical connotations in several cultures.
Falst – Holly – Prickly (as cited by literally everyone else) but also short and shrub-like.
Tess – Aspen – Golden coloured and extremely tall.
Dainix – Firewood – everything burns 🙂
*gasp* An excuse to do floriography!!!
Group as a whole: Acacia for friendship! just as long as it’s not rose or white (elegance) or yellow (secret love)… unless ?
Kendal: box tree (stoicism)
Alinua: Jasmine (amiability); note there’s overlaps with other types (cape jasmine = transport of joy, carolina jasmine = separation, indian jasmine = I attach myself to you, Spanish Jasmine = sensuality, yellow jasmine = grace and elegance)
Alinua to Kendal specifically: Arbor Vitae, which means both “unchanging friendship” and “live for me”
Life Mum: Magnolia (Love of nature)
Erin: thinks he’s a plane tree (genius) or a Venice Sumach (splendor, intellectual excellence), is actually Sycamore (curiosity)
Falst: Barberry tree (sharpness) overlapping with the shrub barberry (sourness of temper), but with mistletoe growing in the branches (I surmount difficulties)
Dainix: French willow (bravery and humanity)
Tess: Larch (audacity, boldness) or Live Oak (liberty)
Dainix: A monster, the demon, has already eaten me. From within.
Falst: That’s it! You’re on your own now!
Once is an accident, twice is a coincidence, three times is a pattern. As Red said on the tumblr, Dainix has a keen eye for patterns in enemy behaviour. That could be very useful for the gang, mixing technical approach with survival sensibilities.
Oh Dainix, how you unintentionally push Falst’s buttons. However I think from the last few panels, he’s gotten the picture that now is not the time to dig further. He suspects something, but also respects Falst’s privacy.
Prediction for next week: Looking at the archives page there’s still six more pages before the next, Falst centred chapter. I reckon either next week, or the week after, we’ll cut back to camp, either to conclude Kendal’s dream sequence, continue Alinua’s sequence, or discover the boys are gone. Maybe a combination of the above.
Calling it now, Falst is related to that immortal ancient that serves the light dragon
TL;DR: No, you’re not ready for my… Tragic backstory.
Oh gee golly gosh gloriosky I sure hope Falst doesn’t have to…
Find his way with his ancestry in question.
He’s obviously never responded poorly to anything relating to that in the streets of Zuurith
I want to hug both of these bois
Whoo! First comment! So Falst being seen as an Ancient does make sense and I have a theory as to why. In the lore tab on the three elder races it says that the Ancients never really went “extinct”, but rather assimilated into the elves and humans as history went on, and more importantly that some people inside this world were descended from those Ancients. I think either the Ferin or Falst specifically may have been descended from the ancients, and the robots somehow recognize that. However this leads to some interesting questions. How do they know? Why do they see humans and elves as a threat? What will Falst do with this information?
One theory that’s been thrown around is that since both Ferin and Ancients had magically inert souls the automatons recognise them on that. This would imply the Ancients could harness some pretty cool soul magic. But we already know that they knew way more about the Lady and her powers than the current scholars outside the Paladins.
There once was a prickly cat
Who’s always ready to bat
Concerns away,
And doesn’t play
Nice when talking ’bout THAT.
Aw Falst! Now he’s getting nervous and PO’d because Dainix is showing him some respect & asking about his past. Makes me want to hug him – hug them ALL – and give them comfort food, wrap them in blankets and give them a chance to sleep for a week.
…and medical care. LOTS of medical care!
“You must be this tall to access my tragic backstory”
HOW MUCH TALLER CAN DAINIX GET?!
I think it’s that he has to be below the threshold, since Falst is short.
“I barely remember them” Press X to doubt. That reaction doesn’t seem like you “barely remember” them, or at least that you remember *something* that you don’t want to say.
The fact that Falst specified “people leave” puts “You will find your way if you are truly my son” in a bit of a new light; Falst wasn’t sent away, he was left behind. Perhaps one or more of his parents were running away from something, or someone, and determined that a child would be too much of a burden on the road ahead.
Based on how Falst worded it (“People die. People leave. It doesn’t mean anything.”) I feel like maybe one parent died and the other left? I like your theory.
“You must be this tall to access my tragic backstory.” I don’t know Falst, Danix is pretty up there
ohhhh hes so normal <3333
Predictions for next page (let me know if I should do these as my Comment Thing cuz I feel like everyone else has a Comment Thing that they’re doing):
a ) Dainix: *tries to say something helpful or asks another question*
b ) Falst: “Did you just… try to psychoanalyze me?”
c ) Look at the bois. They are bonding. Seee, I told you dungeons are good for bonding
CRUSTABLES GO BRR
Falst, buddy, I think you misspoke. I’m fairly certain you didn’t actually mean “barely remember” maybe “don’t want to remember” or “don’t like talking about it” would be better.
This is all skipping over a much simpler explanation. We know Ferrin have high magic resistance and little if any ability to actually use it, and we know that the Ancients couldn’t use magic directly, while the “cave folk’s” ability to use magic was feared by the Ancients. It’s not scanning genetics, it’s scanning magical potential!
Ferin be attempts at recreating Ancients, me thinks.
Glad to have caught up to this, fun story, and great characters.
I feel like I’m missing something. If the ancients predate ferin, and the ancient tech reacts badly to humans and elves, what exactly were the ancients?
Go to Extra Lore and click on Three Elder races, but a relevant quote:
“The Ancients are not “extinct”, but they have long since been subsumed into the population of the other two Elder Races; some humans and elves share a small amount of Ancient blood. The original Ancients were taller than any elf, with soft tan skin and pale hair – powerful giants among men, sturdy and strong. Their descendants show subtle traces of their lineage, but the glory of the Ancients is long gone.”
Hence the confusion since Falst is not particularly ancient-y being short.
Ancient ancestry, huh? It’s nice that Falst gets to have a Thing of his own.
So far, he’s been reduced to ‘the token normal guy’, which must be confusing for him.
Picturing Falst with ancient tech doc ock arms, scuttling around like a BoTW guardian
ya Falst is definitely an ancient
I predict that DainFalst will be a canon ship later.
The ship name is Crustables, for some reason unknown to mankind.
Cru-ble, Crucible
The middle -st- is for Falst
Sounds like the sandwich.
Looking on discord,
it was from 3 years ago
and the name just stuck.
Neither had shown up
in the actual comic.
So, what did folks do?
Used the file names from
the sketches page for their names.
And the file names were…
…Falst (thirteenth image)
Crucible (sixteenth image)
And so, Crustables.
Ooohh
You are doing me an educate
Dang, you’re doing haikus for replies and such as well? I’m impressed
but have you considered: Falnix?
I see people hopping on the “Falst is an ancient“ bandwagon but I want to remind everyone there are two groups that are totally magically inert: Ferin and Ancients.
This page is very orange
what a productive ginger boys night out
Spiders burn, robots die, but real floof is forever.
I just noticed that while Falst is officially a lion-based ferin, he has slit pupils while lions have round ones.
Not that he HAS TO BE 100% liony, it just hit me.
(Biologically, slit pupils are for twilight hunters who are likely to have to be looking up at their prey — cats, foxes, alligators, snakes, etc. Animals as tall as a lion or wolf go with round ones instead.)
I mean falst is pretty short so it kinda makes sense
I just *adore* the dynamic developing between these two so much. Grumpy goblin and big ole softie, it’s fantastic.
smh, cant believe these robots are racist
“It doesn’t mean anything”, said the man burdened by meaning
I assume the machines think Falst is an Ancient because Ferin are magically inert, just like the Ancients were. Could of course be wrong though.
I can’t wait for them to be the cutest couple I’ve ever seen