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Penny Arcade - Comic - The Worsdman

DogDog Registered User, Administrator, Vanilla Staff admin
edited August 2017 in The Penny Arcade Hub

imagePenny Arcade - Comic - The Worsdman

Videogaming-related online strip by Mike Krahulik and Jerry Holkins. Includes news and commentary.

Read the full story here


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  • H3KnucklesH3Knuckles But we decide which is right and which is an illusion.Registered User regular
    edited August 2017
    I forget if I learned this from Dinosaur Comics (aka Qwantz) or XKCD, admittedly neither is exactly what one would call an authoritative source, but the "were" in "werewolf" comes from the fact that originally "man" was gender neutral (basically just a short form of "human") and when you wanted to refer specifically to a guy you said "wereman". "Woman" comes from "wifman" (which also shares a root with the word "wife"). So "were" basically just means "guy", or "man" in it's modern usage. Female lycanthropes ("wolf humans") should probably be referred to as "wifwolves" or "shewolves" or some-such term.

    Anyway, "werewolf" basically means "manwolf", and thus other werecreatures are things that involve a male human turning into something else. Note the order of the construction; the first part is the natural state of the thing, and the second is what it turns into.

    Canursine is pleasing to the ear, and being ungendered Latin serves as an analogue to lycanthrope (where the order is reversed from the werecreature construction). Though Canines would include coyotes, dingoes, dogs, & jackals (not just wolves).

    H3Knuckles on
    If you're curious about my icon; it's an update of the early Lego Castle theme's "Black Falcons" faction.
    camo_sig2-400.png
  • moosemaimermoosemaimer Registered User regular
    "Werebears? Where? Bears? Men that are bears?"

  • Jakk FrostJakk Frost Registered User regular
    Wouldn't it be "Lupursine"? Just to distinguish it from a dog-bear?

  • DistantlurkerDistantlurker Registered User regular
    A bear that can turn into a wolf is called a Walnut, obv ^^

  • Merle CoreyMerle Corey Registered User new member
    This entire bear-wolf thing is absolutely ursanine.

  • noxumbranoxumbra Registered User regular
    what about Man-Bear-Pig?

  • DarkewolfeDarkewolfe Registered User regular
    This for some reason dredges up memories of the wolfwere in D&D, which is a werewolf except it starts as a wolf instead of a man.

    What is this I don't even.
  • ShowsniShowsni Registered User regular
    noxumbra wrote: »
    what about Man-Bear-Pig?

    Werursus?

    Huh. I guess a Bear Pig would just be Ursus, which is no different to just being a bear...

    How about Porcurswer instead?

  • joshofalltradesjoshofalltrades Class Traitor Smoke-filled roomRegistered User regular
    Darkewolfe wrote: »
    This for some reason dredges up memories of the wolfwere in D&D, which is a werewolf except it starts as a wolf instead of a man.

    ...I have questions

  • RatherDashing89RatherDashing89 Registered User regular
    aware-wolf.png

    I'm trying to figure out under what circumstances a bear would want to turn into a wolf. Unless there were a pack of them. Five wolves is probably better than five bears.

    Of course, I also can't think of a whole lot of situations where a human who can wield weapons would want to turn into a wolf...

  • TofystedethTofystedeth Registered User regular
    Darkewolfe wrote: »
    This for some reason dredges up memories of the wolfwere in D&D, which is a werewolf except it starts as a wolf instead of a man.

    Old school D&D was absolutely rife with monsters that were just two things smooshed together.

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  • H3KnucklesH3Knuckles But we decide which is right and which is an illusion.Registered User regular
    edited August 2017
    I'm trying to figure out under what circumstances a bear would want to turn into a wolf.

    Coping with food scarcity?

    H3Knuckles on
    If you're curious about my icon; it's an update of the early Lego Castle theme's "Black Falcons" faction.
    camo_sig2-400.png
  • DelzhandDelzhand Hard to miss. Registered User regular
    berewolves

  • zepherinzepherin Russian warship, go fuck yourself Registered User regular
    edited August 2017
    H3Knuckles wrote: »
    I'm trying to figure out under what circumstances a bear would want to turn into a wolf.

    Coping with food scarcity?
    Also efficient travel. Bears are fast, and can be fast for a good distance 300 yards or so, but generally only travel 5-10 miles in a day, whereas wolf packs are known to travel 25-30 miles in a day.

    zepherin on
  • CovarrCovarr Registered User regular
    This drove me crazy in 2008 when Sonic Unleashed came out and everyone kept calling him a "werehog". That implies he's half-human/half-hedgehog... or maybe even just human and hog. Hedgewolf would've made a lot more sense.

  • zepherinzepherin Russian warship, go fuck yourself Registered User regular
    Covarr wrote: »
    This drove me crazy in 2008 when Sonic Unleashed came out and everyone kept calling him a "werehog". That implies he's half-human/half-hedgehog... or maybe even just human and hog. Hedgewolf would've made a lot more sense.
    But isn't sonic's default state a werehedgehog as a anthropomorphized hedgehog. So wouldn't it be more accurate to say he is a Werehedgehogwolf

  • RatherDashing89RatherDashing89 Registered User regular
    Covarr wrote: »
    This drove me crazy in 2008 when Sonic Unleashed came out and everyone kept calling him a "werehog". That implies he's half-human/half-hedgehog... or maybe even just human and hog. Hedgewolf would've made a lot more sense.

    So, like, a journeyman wolf?

  • wallywestwallywest Registered User regular
    noxumbra wrote: »
    what about Man-Bear-Pig?

    Werecanporc ?

  • fightinfilipinofightinfilipino Angry as Hell #BLMRegistered User regular
    Darkewolfe wrote: »
    This for some reason dredges up memories of the wolfwere in D&D, which is a werewolf except it starts as a wolf instead of a man.

    Old school D&D was absolutely rife with monsters that were just two things smooshed together.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D41SBcq1wYk

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    steam | Dokkan: 868846562
  • geekdgeekd Registered User new member
    "The Demon Accords" series by John Conroe has a wolf that can turn into a bear.

  • jwalkjwalk Registered User regular
    edited August 2017
    if a werewolf is a man that turns into a wolf, then a bear that turns into a wolf would be a bearwolf. and a wolf that turns into a bear would be a wolfbear..

    jwalk on
  • LostredneckLostredneck Registered User new member
    geekd wrote: »
    "The Demon Accords" series by John Conroe has a wolf that can turn into a bear.

    I logged in to say the same thing. Awasos is awesome.

  • V1mV1m Registered User regular
    Darkewolfe wrote: »
    This for some reason dredges up memories of the wolfwere in D&D, which is a werewolf except it starts as a wolf instead of a man.

    Old school D&D was absolutely rife with monsters that were just two things smooshed together.

    768760190_GscEE-2100x20000.jpg

  • PyrianPyrian Registered User regular
    Old school D&D was absolutely rife with monsters that were just two things smooshed together.
    In fairness, so was pre-existing mythology.

  • jwalkjwalk Registered User regular
    like Mountain Dew?

  • pyrodicepyrodice Registered User new member
    it's LUPursine, it's WOLFbear, not DOGbear! *eats doritos and mountin dew furiously*

  • BietolBietol Registered User new member
    edited August 2017
    I love the irony of the title bearing a misprint as well ("Worsdman").

    Bietol on
  • Golden YakGolden Yak Burnished Bovine The sunny beaches of CanadaRegistered User regular
    Haaah, here's what Tycho says
    technically (as I am being told on Twitter) it should be “lupursine.” I was trying to come up with something that sucked really bad, though, and being profoundly incorrect is certainly one way to suck.

    H9f4bVe.png
  • Anon von ZilchAnon von Zilch Registered User regular
    Going by the etymology of "werewolf," I'd just use "bearwolf." Unless there's a specific word for male bears, so I could continue the sexist trend set up by "werewolf."

  • benfinkelbenfinkel Registered User regular
    Can we get a pronunciation clarification on "Canursine" ? Emphasis on the 2nd syllable?

    -Ben
  • ApeAccountApeAccount Registered User regular
    Given that the "were" in werewolf is from Old English, I'd suggest we should use the Old English for bear. According to Wikipedia (and why would they lie), it's "bera". So the equivalent term would be a berawolf.

    Alternatively, the same article says the Ancient Greek term for bear is arktos. Since the anthrope part of lycanthrope means person, I suppose we could call them a lycarktos.

    Yes, I know I'm overthinking this but that's part of the fun.

  • TofystedethTofystedeth Registered User regular
    Pyrian wrote: »
    Old school D&D was absolutely rife with monsters that were just two things smooshed together.
    In fairness, so was pre-existing mythology.

    They at least went to the trouble of giving them fancy names instead of calling them lionbatscorpion.

    *this is where someone corrects me and says that manticore is just an ancient Greek portmanteau of those 3 words.

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  • dennisdennis aka bingley Registered User regular
    Pyrian wrote: »
    Old school D&D was absolutely rife with monsters that were just two things smooshed together.
    In fairness, so was pre-existing mythology.

    They at least went to the trouble of giving them fancy names instead of calling them lionbatscorpion.

    *this is where someone corrects me and says that manticore is just an ancient Greek portmanteau of those 3 words.

    manticore (n.)
    fabulous monster with the body of a lion, head of a man, porcupine quills, and tail or sting of a scorpion, c. 1300, from Latin manticora, from Greek mantikhoras, corruption of martikhoras, perhaps from Iranian compound *mar-tiya-khvara "man-eater." The first element is represented by Old Persian maritya- "man," from PIE *mar-t-yo-, from *mer- "to die," thus "mortal, human;" from PIE root *mer- "to rub away, harm" (also "to die" and forming words referring to death and to beings subject to death). The second element is represented by Old Persian kvar- "to eat," from PIE root *swel- (1) "to eat, drink" (see swallow (v.)).

    Now I want to look up more of those ancient monsters. I imagine a parade of names that when translated would be "ohhellno", "fuckthatshit", "sweetjesus", and "youvegottabekiddingme".

  • YoungFreyYoungFrey Registered User regular
    dennis wrote: »
    Pyrian wrote: »
    Old school D&D was absolutely rife with monsters that were just two things smooshed together.
    In fairness, so was pre-existing mythology.

    They at least went to the trouble of giving them fancy names instead of calling them lionbatscorpion.

    *this is where someone corrects me and says that manticore is just an ancient Greek portmanteau of those 3 words.

    manticore (n.)
    fabulous monster with the body of a lion, head of a man, porcupine quills, and tail or sting of a scorpion, c. 1300, from Latin manticora, from Greek mantikhoras, corruption of martikhoras, perhaps from Iranian compound *mar-tiya-khvara "man-eater." The first element is represented by Old Persian maritya- "man," from PIE *mar-t-yo-, from *mer- "to die," thus "mortal, human;" from PIE root *mer- "to rub away, harm" (also "to die" and forming words referring to death and to beings subject to death). The second element is represented by Old Persian kvar- "to eat," from PIE root *swel- (1) "to eat, drink" (see swallow (v.)).

    Now I want to look up more of those ancient monsters. I imagine a parade of names that when translated would be "ohhellno", "fuckthatshit", "sweetjesus", and "youvegottabekiddingme".

    I've heard the theory that griffins are based on triceratops fossils.

  • SmrtnikSmrtnik job boli zub Registered User regular
    Manbearpig

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  • Commander ZoomCommander Zoom Registered User regular
    edited August 2017
    The way I figure it, most of those wacky D&D monsters would have at least three names:

    a formal scientific/sage name, something that only shows up in dusty tomes, usually in Latin italics or their equivalent in the setting ("Psuedoarborealus croceus");
    the fancy-schmancy name that the same over-educated scholars use to show off their huge vocabulary in the local "Common" language ("Gygax's lesser ochre snaretree");
    and what everyone who actually has to fight or run from the damn things (i.e., peasants and/or adventurers) calls 'em ("yella fake tree fuckers").

    Commander Zoom on
  • Mr FuzzbuttMr Fuzzbutt Registered User regular
    I'm trying to figure out under what circumstances a bear would want to turn into a wolf.

    please don't kinkshame

    broken image link
  • shadowysea07shadowysea07 Registered User regular
  • Mike SelinkerMike Selinker Registered User regular
    How this story happened:
    Josh McIllwain interviewed me at Gen Con about the Apocrypha Adventure Card Game, which Tycho contributed to. He played a game which had a high school football team made up of werebears (and another that, sadly, wasn't). When Josh wrote this Polygon article, he accidentally wrote werewolves. Which led to this correction:
    Correction: An earlier version of this article misstated the lycanthropic condition of the teenagers in Candlepoint. The teenagers in question were werebears, not werewolves. Polygon regrets the error.
    Which is the best correction associated with one of my games since Betrayal at House on the Hill's Underground Lake was moved from the upper floor to the basement.

  • Mike SelinkerMike Selinker Registered User regular
    Also, it's obviously a beowulf.

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