LibrarianThe face of liberal fascismRegistered Userregular
If they want to explore the universe more, which they probably intend to do, they better explain why the Thornwatch got such a hilariously bad rep as the comic seems to imply.
As far as we know they are Lookouts who didn't meet the standards or deserted, but the comic shows that popular belief in that world is that they are some vile monsters and that it is better to die than to deal with them.
Also what does that say about the Lookouts? If you are not willing to die in a fight you can not possibly win(boy that looks like a preschooler vs. the wolfbatthing) you get kicked out?
And how do they instantsummon the watch with some twigs around a tree?
I have to wonder if the Thornwatch is so reviled because they're a threat to the Lookout society in one very important way: How valid is your lifestyle if others who flaunt it survive? Or worse, thrive?
I assume the comics are supposed to contrast the villages knowledge (the poem we get), so if thorn watch is so reviled and children are told boogeymen stories about them, why would they ever get desperate enough to call on them? I think they dropped the ball again on another lookouts run.
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MalReynoldsThe Hunter S Thompson of incredibly mild medicinesRegistered Userregular
I assume the comics are supposed to contrast the villages knowledge (the poem we get), so if thorn watch is so reviled and children are told boogeymen stories about them, why would they ever get desperate enough to call on them? I think they dropped the ball again on another lookouts run.
Because that kid's friend was gruesomely murdered in the first comic by a bat-dog-demon thing. I assume the kid used the Thornwatch call as a last resort.
"A new take on the epic fantasy genre... Darkly comic, relatable characters... twisted storyline."
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He's also aware that now he has run away from the monster, his prime dick village elders will probably cast him out anyway if he goes back. If not worse!
He can't hack the forest alone, he can't go home now, the Thornwatch is all he has left.
Yeah it seems like the people of the forest kill monsters only as a last resort. Hell it could be argued the lookouts are just sacrifices to keep the monsters happy the survivors being able bodied defenders is just a bonus.
One would venture the thorn watch is not a fan of that system.
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Backseat writing, the born and thorn rhyme was already used in part 1. It could be something like "to be in twain torn".
I think it was probably done intentionally, using the same rhyme to begin and end as bookends, sort of. It would be a bit more effective if the poem/series had four parts so there were two stanzas in between and born/thorn rhyme didn't come up again so quickly, but yeah, backseat writing.
Backseat writing, the born and thorn rhyme was already used in part 1. It could be something like "to be in twain torn".
But the comic is great and any game that comes out with this lore and those mechanics will be pre-ordered as soon as possible.
In order to facilitate passing down spoken lore, you want your rhymes to be simple and follow an easily learned pattern. The elder's aren't looking for a poetry prize, but for the survival of their cultural genes.
I'm still a bit confused about this whole storyline.
What do we *know*?
We don't know what the beast is, or what the circumstances of the first comic are. We see a fallen short sword or dagger. We see a shredded green garment, but there is no body and no blood. There's no indication that anybody died.
In the second comic we see the boy with an expression on his face that is a mix of fear and shame. The fear is understandable. There's a bat/dog monster back in the woods. But the shame isn't as easily understood. The boy ran from a bat/dog. That's not a shameful act. And we don't know that he abandoned anyone or anything.
The poem mentions oath-breakers, but we don't know what oath was broken.
We know that he summoned the Thornwatch, but for what? Safe passage out of the woods? To kill the bat/dog?
My take: the boy's job was to kill that monster. The boy chickened out and ran. He knows that the Thornwatch is made up of the oathbreakers, and that he has broken his oath ("may we die in the forest" or maybe just "I'll kill Batman's dog") so he summons the Thornwatch, knowing that they are the only ones who will accept him now. He becomes a member of the Thornwatch, because, like all the rest of their members, he is now a disgraced/outcast Lookout.
I'm still a bit confused about this whole storyline.
What do we *know*?
We don't know what the beast is, or what the circumstances of the first comic are. We see a fallen short sword or dagger. We see a shredded green garment, but there is no body and no blood. There's no indication that anybody died.
There is blood all over the beast's mouth and legs. The shredded green cloak clearly belonged to somebody else, as the boy's appears to be intact.
It seems very clear to me that the beast killed the boy's partner and he ran away in terror rather than fight.
The absence of a visible corpse is problematic, but the other evidence clearly points to the beast having already killed somebody and the boy not wanting to be next. Maybe Gabe just didn't want to draw a dead kid?
Yeah, I considered the "ate him whole" possibility and almost offered it, and we can't rule it out considering we're dealing with a ferocious fantasy batwolf. But it seems a little unlikely.
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SerukoFerocious Kittenof The Farthest NorthRegistered Userregular
If they want to explore the universe more, which they probably intend to do, they better explain why the Thornwatch got such a hilariously bad rep as the comic seems to imply.
As far as we know they are Lookouts who didn't meet the standards or deserted, but the comic shows that popular belief in that world is that they are some vile monsters and that it is better to die than to deal with them.
Also what does that say about the Lookouts? If you are not willing to die in a fight you can not possibly win(boy that looks like a preschooler vs. the wolfbatthing) you get kicked out?
And how do they instantsummon the watch with some twigs around a tree?
I got a feeling from look outs, that sometimes they were just tasty snacks to make the monsters go away happy.
"How are you going to play Dota if your fingers and bitten off? You can't. That's how" -> Carnarvon
"You can be yodeling bear without spending a dime if you get lucky." -> reVerse
"In the grim darkness of the future, we will all be nurses catering to the whims of terrible old people." -> Hacksaw
"In fact, our whole society will be oriented around caring for one very decrepit, very old man on total life support." -> SKFM
I mean, the first time I met a non-white person was when this Vietnamese kid tried to break my legs but that was entirely fair because he was a centreback, not because he was a subhuman beast in some zoo ->yotes
These comics are wholesome in an almost twisted Bernstein Bears kind of way. They seem obviously drawn in the style of "stories for children with an adult theme" (sort of in the vein of Neil Gaiman, though admittedly Gaiman does it better). I think wanting gruesome, bloody corpses as proof that someone died is an unreasonable request. The style isn't set up for it.
It's not obvious that there was anyone with the boy(the cloth and blood could of been old), or that they were out on a mission. I guess it makes sense that the boy ran, understood he broke his oath, and would have to join the watch instead. But were still in the same boat of "this comic didnt show or tell us anything, and were inferring everything we know literally on fluff explained a week in advance by the author"
edit: Seruko, we can assume someone died, but we dont know if they were sent to kill the beast, if both were playing in the forrest, discovered the beast and decided to attack, or if the boy was sent out alone all along and found the beast and his friends cloak, who had been missing for 3 days. All we know is " boy ran out of fear for the beast to the watch, because his people would hate him for running?"
Edit2: ok reading the wensday thread the comic makes this more clear. He didn't oathbreak, he witnessed his friends killed by the beast, no matter if they were sent or stumbled upon it. So he went and tied the wreath in order to call for the thornwatches help to kill the beast. Why the thornwatch is refered to in such a negative light when they are to be called upon in times of dire need, is never explained, just that they are in themselves oathbreakers. Maybe they are oathbreakers because they aren't all super "boot-straps mcgee" about the children.
This makes it shameful to ask for their help, and the community states that its better to die then say there right? It follows at least I guess? Even though there are multiple counts of the children getting help from adults and such in the other comics.
I wonder if calling the Thornwatch is in some ways "cheating"?
The Lookout universe seems to be pretty big on rules. If it wasn't, there'd probably be less preschoolers running through the woods trying to kill monsters.
Well, there'd be less preschoolers forced to run through the woods killing monsters.
I imagine it's sort of like calling the Mafia to solve a problem you have with your neighbor. People would look down on you for not calling the cops, even if calling the cops weren't as effective.
Yeah it seems like the people of the forest kill monsters only as a last resort. Hell it could be argued the lookouts are just sacrifices to keep the monsters happy the survivors being able bodied defenders is just a bonus.
One would venture the thorn watch is not a fan of that system.
That... makes a lot of sense.
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KalTorakOne way or another, they all end up inthe Undercity.Registered Userregular
Yeah it seems like the people of the forest kill monsters only as a last resort. Hell it could be argued the lookouts are just sacrifices to keep the monsters happy the survivors being able bodied defenders is just a bonus.
One would venture the thorn watch is not a fan of that system.
That... makes a lot of sense.
Wasn't this more or less stated to be the case in the first Lookouts story (the one with the basilisk that started the whole concept with the voting contest and finished by the guest artists)?
I get the impression that this Lookout is now as bound to answer when the next person calls. If that’s the case, only by fighting would he have had the chance to continue. In some lights, it’s just a different kind of death.
If this is the end of the story (one more would be nice), we're still uncertain on whether this kid has joined the Thornwatch or not. I mean, calling the A Team was illegal, but you didn't then join the A Team at the end. They just helped you and left with your thanks and maybe some compensation if you had something they needed/wanted. Same with the Three Amigos and various shows on USA (Burn Notice, White Collar, etc). Since the A Team was explicitly called out as a good comparison to make from one of the newsposts, we probably shouldn't assume this is how joining up happens unless they call it out to us in someway.
Since "before/after" the fight is Cardboard Tube Samurai's shtick, it'd be nice to see Gabe do an action scene here...
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Andy JoeWe claim the land for the highlord!The AdirondacksRegistered Userregular
Newspost is up.
"Make and tune human beings" is now my favorite way to say "raise a family."
This makes it shameful to ask for their help, and the community states that its better to die then say there right? It follows at least I guess? Even though there are multiple counts of the children getting help from adults and such in the other comics.
You've missed a major point here. There is one instance of an adult helping a child Lookout, and said adult was then chastised by the village elders for not letting him die.
Seriously folks. This comic is your reference for the most Lookouts lore we've ever received. Those elders and their pact with the forest are the hub of it.
Said pact being left a mystery because sometimes it's fun to be mysterious and watch people throw crazy theories around.
Those of you asking for hard details are doomed to be disappointed for now as vague and mysterious is clearly the thing they are going for currently.
And I personally love it.
Jam Warrior on
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KalTorakOne way or another, they all end up inthe Undercity.Registered Userregular
Agreed, the vagueness is a plus for me. It's making the medium work for them.
These are webcomics, not D&D lore- and rule-books.
You know, throwing around theories is fine for awhile, but eventually clarification somewhere is needed. Otherwise you reach a point you are no longer telling a story, just hinting about it.
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MalReynoldsThe Hunter S Thompson of incredibly mild medicinesRegistered Userregular
You know, throwing around theories is fine for awhile, but eventually clarification somewhere is needed. Otherwise you reach a point you are no longer telling a story, just hinting about it.
Agreed, but at this point, I'm more than happy with the scent instead of the entree.
"A new take on the epic fantasy genre... Darkly comic, relatable characters... twisted storyline."
"Readers who prefer tension and romance, Maledictions: The Offering, delivers... As serious YA fiction, I’ll give it five stars out of five. As a novel? Four and a half." - Liz Ellor My new novel: Maledictions: The Offering. Now in Paperback!
+1
FramlingFaceHeadGeebs has bad ideas.Registered Userregular
Buncha friggin' Ctrl-Alt-Del readers up ins.
you're = you are
your = belonging to you
their = belonging to them
there = not here
they're = they are
You know, throwing around theories is fine for awhile, but eventually clarification somewhere is needed. Otherwise you reach a point you are no longer telling a story, just hinting about it.
Hinting about a story can work towards a certain minimalism.
I'm sick of the HEY LOOK AT SETTING I BUILT COMPLETE WITH A SPOKEN LANGUAGE.
I see the Thornwatch as being a response to the troubling ambiguity of the Lookouts story as it was initially told, where failed children were condemned to death.
I think my big thing with Lookouts is that it doesn't make any sense as a society that wouldn't have collapsed. You can have the awful, corrupt, authoritarian culture of child sacrifice, but you have to show that it WORKS and that's why people accept it. All this crazy shennaniganry just calls for too much suspension of disbelief.
Posts
As far as we know they are Lookouts who didn't meet the standards or deserted, but the comic shows that popular belief in that world is that they are some vile monsters and that it is better to die than to deal with them.
Also what does that say about the Lookouts? If you are not willing to die in a fight you can not possibly win(boy that looks like a preschooler vs. the wolfbatthing) you get kicked out?
And how do they instantsummon the watch with some twigs around a tree?
http://www.zeldawiki.org/Groose
Because that kid's friend was gruesomely murdered in the first comic by a bat-dog-demon thing. I assume the kid used the Thornwatch call as a last resort.
"Readers who prefer tension and romance, Maledictions: The Offering, delivers... As serious YA fiction, I’ll give it five stars out of five. As a novel? Four and a half." - Liz Ellor
My new novel: Maledictions: The Offering. Now in Paperback!
He can't hack the forest alone, he can't go home now, the Thornwatch is all he has left.
One would venture the thorn watch is not a fan of that system.
But the comic is great and any game that comes out with this lore and those mechanics will be pre-ordered as soon as possible.
I think it was probably done intentionally, using the same rhyme to begin and end as bookends, sort of. It would be a bit more effective if the poem/series had four parts so there were two stanzas in between and born/thorn rhyme didn't come up again so quickly, but yeah, backseat writing.
In order to facilitate passing down spoken lore, you want your rhymes to be simple and follow an easily learned pattern. The elder's aren't looking for a poetry prize, but for the survival of their cultural genes.
STEAM
What do we *know*?
We don't know what the beast is, or what the circumstances of the first comic are. We see a fallen short sword or dagger. We see a shredded green garment, but there is no body and no blood. There's no indication that anybody died.
In the second comic we see the boy with an expression on his face that is a mix of fear and shame. The fear is understandable. There's a bat/dog monster back in the woods. But the shame isn't as easily understood. The boy ran from a bat/dog. That's not a shameful act. And we don't know that he abandoned anyone or anything.
The poem mentions oath-breakers, but we don't know what oath was broken.
We know that he summoned the Thornwatch, but for what? Safe passage out of the woods? To kill the bat/dog?
There is blood all over the beast's mouth and legs. The shredded green cloak clearly belonged to somebody else, as the boy's appears to be intact.
It seems very clear to me that the beast killed the boy's partner and he ran away in terror rather than fight.
The absence of a visible corpse is problematic, but the other evidence clearly points to the beast having already killed somebody and the boy not wanting to be next. Maybe Gabe just didn't want to draw a dead kid?
I got a feeling from look outs, that sometimes they were just tasty snacks to make the monsters go away happy.
"You can be yodeling bear without spending a dime if you get lucky." -> reVerse
"In the grim darkness of the future, we will all be nurses catering to the whims of terrible old people." -> Hacksaw
"In fact, our whole society will be oriented around caring for one very decrepit, very old man on total life support." -> SKFM
I mean, the first time I met a non-white person was when this Vietnamese kid tried to break my legs but that was entirely fair because he was a centreback, not because he was a subhuman beast in some zoo ->yotes
edit: Seruko, we can assume someone died, but we dont know if they were sent to kill the beast, if both were playing in the forrest, discovered the beast and decided to attack, or if the boy was sent out alone all along and found the beast and his friends cloak, who had been missing for 3 days. All we know is " boy ran out of fear for the beast to the watch, because his people would hate him for running?"
Edit2: ok reading the wensday thread the comic makes this more clear. He didn't oathbreak, he witnessed his friends killed by the beast, no matter if they were sent or stumbled upon it. So he went and tied the wreath in order to call for the thornwatches help to kill the beast. Why the thornwatch is refered to in such a negative light when they are to be called upon in times of dire need, is never explained, just that they are in themselves oathbreakers. Maybe they are oathbreakers because they aren't all super "boot-straps mcgee" about the children.
This makes it shameful to ask for their help, and the community states that its better to die then say there right? It follows at least I guess? Even though there are multiple counts of the children getting help from adults and such in the other comics.
The Lookout universe seems to be pretty big on rules. If it wasn't, there'd probably be less preschoolers running through the woods trying to kill monsters.
Well, there'd be less preschoolers forced to run through the woods killing monsters.
That... makes a lot of sense.
Wasn't this more or less stated to be the case in the first Lookouts story (the one with the basilisk that started the whole concept with the voting contest and finished by the guest artists)?
Since "before/after" the fight is Cardboard Tube Samurai's shtick, it'd be nice to see Gabe do an action scene here...
"Make and tune human beings" is now my favorite way to say "raise a family."
You've missed a major point here. There is one instance of an adult helping a child Lookout, and said adult was then chastised by the village elders for not letting him die.
Seriously folks. This comic is your reference for the most Lookouts lore we've ever received. Those elders and their pact with the forest are the hub of it.
Said pact being left a mystery because sometimes it's fun to be mysterious and watch people throw crazy theories around.
Those of you asking for hard details are doomed to be disappointed for now as vague and mysterious is clearly the thing they are going for currently.
And I personally love it.
These are webcomics, not D&D lore- and rule-books.
Agreed, but at this point, I'm more than happy with the scent instead of the entree.
"Readers who prefer tension and romance, Maledictions: The Offering, delivers... As serious YA fiction, I’ll give it five stars out of five. As a novel? Four and a half." - Liz Ellor
My new novel: Maledictions: The Offering. Now in Paperback!
your = belonging to you
their = belonging to them
there = not here
they're = they are
I'm sick of the HEY LOOK AT SETTING I BUILT COMPLETE WITH A SPOKEN LANGUAGE.
I see the Thornwatch as being a response to the troubling ambiguity of the Lookouts story as it was initially told, where failed children were condemned to death.
Also, technically, that's not child sacrifice. It's more like they send their kids to get hands-on experience fighting monsters.