# Order of the Stick - Book 5 Discussion Thread **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 31, 2009, 4:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323 "2009-08-31T04:09:26Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 121
**Author:** ![Maggie\_the\_Ocelot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/df705f/32.png) [@Maggie\_the\_Ocelot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maggie_the_Ocelot)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2011, 4:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/2401 "2011-08-08T04:31:59Z")
Wooooooo!!! Goooo V!!! Use that high INT of yours!!! ---
**Author:** ![Yllaria](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yllaria/32/3452_2.png) [@Yllaria](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yllaria)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2011, 4:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/2402 "2011-08-08T04:46:57Z")
> [@Grumman](#): > > Allow me to translate it another way: 200-odd strips into the comic, they just discovered that any time they’d ever relied on Belkar’s skills at anything but murder, he’d been winging it. . . . No, not anything but murder. > [@Lynn\_Bodoni](#): > > Belkar cares about sex and eating, and possibly cooking, as well as killing. And he cares about Mr. Scruffy. Possibly cooking? He’s a [great](http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0475.html)[cook!](http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0476.html) ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2011, 5:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/2403 "2011-08-08T05:54:07Z")
OK, now that is an epic display of wizardry-- Eliminating one enemy entirely, while severely damaging another. V’s definitely getting better at this, now that e’s not just blasting everything. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2011, 6:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/2404 "2011-08-08T06:25:01Z")
Yeah - he really seems to have taken Xykon’s lesson on power to heart. ---
**Author:** ![shantih](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f6c823/32.png) [@shantih](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shantih)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2011, 7:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/2405 "2011-08-08T07:28:08Z")
“Right tool for the job” – heh heh. Besides the cleverness of V’s idea, I can’t help but wonder if this is a setup for Yukyuk to replace Belkar after Belkar’s death, which should be soon, relatively speaking. I hope Mr. Scruffy is going to be okay, with that wolf still skulking about. ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2011, 7:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/2406 "2011-08-08T07:36:05Z")
> [@Yllaria](#): > > No, not anything but murder. > > Possibly cooking? He’s a [great](http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0475.html)[cook!](http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0476.html) Just because he’s a great cook doesn’t mean that he cares about it. I think that he does care about it, but he LOVES mayhem more than cooking. ---
**Author:** ![wolfman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a8b319/32.png) [@wolfman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfman)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2011, 8:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/2407 "2011-08-08T08:51:40Z")
I’m not too up on the current editions, but it seems that the “Pop-Pop” means he has magically rather than mechanically reloading crossbows? Reasonable for a high level NPC on his favored weapon. So 9 bolts from a small size-hand crossbow at 9 d4. Certainly not irrelevant on a squishy, but the animation doesn’t seem to indicate Z is in too bad shape yet. ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2011, 10:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/2408 "2011-08-08T10:07:40Z")
> [@wolfman](#): > > Reasonable for a high level NPC on his favored weapon. So 9 bolts from a small size-hand crossbow at 9 d4. Only 7 of them hit. Z probably has something like an Armor spell which absorbs the first hit or two. So he’s taken about 15 HP damage. From this we can deduce Z has a Constitution bonus. He’s likely 15th level so has 15d4 + 30 or 69 HP. 15 HP isn’t much. ---
**Author:** ![E-Sabbath](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e19adc/32.png) [@E-Sabbath](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/E-Sabbath)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2011, 10:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/2409 "2011-08-08T10:12:29Z")
I got the e-mail last week, but I won’t know if it showed till today. ---
**Author:** ![shantih](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f6c823/32.png) [@shantih](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shantih)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2011, 11:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/2410 "2011-08-08T11:18:15Z")
> [@wolfman](#): > > I’m not too up on the current editions, but it seems that the “Pop-Pop” means he has magically rather than mechanically reloading crossbows? Reasonable for a high level NPC on his favored weapon. So 9 bolts from a small size-hand crossbow at 9 d4. Certainly not irrelevant on a squishy, but the animation doesn’t seem to indicate Z is in too bad shape yet. Oh, I don’t know. He showed increasing signs of alarm and distress as the number of attacks on him went on. If he’s not incapacitated yet or close to it, he’s definitely worried about what could happen. ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2011, 11:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/2411 "2011-08-08T11:48:23Z")
> [@Quartz](#): > > Only 7 of them hit. Z probably has something like an Armor spell which absorbs the first hit or two. So he’s taken about 15 HP damage. From this we can deduce Z has a Constitution bonus. He’s likely 15th level so has 15d4 + 30 or 69 HP. 15 HP isn’t much. What about the sneak attack, bitch? ---
**Author:** ![hogarth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hogarth/32/1773_2.png) [@hogarth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hogarth)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2011, 11:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/2412 "2011-08-08T11:49:39Z")
Why is Vaarsuvius talking about the drow’s “current spell selection”? Sorcerers don’t really have a “current spell selection”. ---
**Author:** ![One\_And\_Only\_Wanderers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/838e76/32.png) [@One\_And\_Only\_Wanderers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/One_And_Only_Wanderers)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2011, 12:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/2413 "2011-08-08T12:05:24Z")
ZZ’dtri isn’t a sorcerer is he? ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2011, 12:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/2414 "2011-08-08T12:25:41Z")
> [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](#): > > What about the sneak attack, bitch? Does Yukyuk actually have a Sneak Attack? He’s a ranger like Belkar, isn’t he? ---
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2011, 12:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/2415 "2011-08-08T12:45:28Z")
> [@One\_And\_Only\_Wanderers](#): > > ZZ’dtri isn’t a sorcerer is he? No, he’s the “[team wizard](http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0044.html)”. ---
**Author:** ![Stanislaus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stanislaus/32/3391_2.png) [@Stanislaus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stanislaus)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2011, 1:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/2416 "2011-08-08T13:03:53Z")
> [@Alessan](#): > > Yeah - he really seems to have taken Xykon’s lesson on power to heart. Finally! I thought he’d already demonstrated that in the desert, but as soon as he was faced with a magic opponent, that all went out the window and he resorted to endless blasting before his brain finally kicked in. Not that it wasn’t an awesome pay-off, but he should have been thinking along those lines at the beginning of the fight, not backsliding and starting from square one. Otherwise what was the point of all that character development? ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2011, 1:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/2417 "2011-08-08T13:12:38Z")
> [@Quartz](#): > > Does Yukyuk actually have a Sneak Attack? He’s a ranger like Belkar, isn’t he? Ah, you’re probably right. It’s beneath V to know the mechanics of how mere weaponry works. Even so, I think it’s really improbable that those bolts are doing 1d4. Consider: -Favored Enemy. He probably has a lot of humanoids among his favored enemies as a ranger, and if elf is one of those, he’s got at least a +2 damage to each hit. -Point Blank Shot. There’s no way he lacks this feat; it’s +1 to hit. -Magic weapons. Assuming they’ve got someone with “Greater Magic Weapon” on their spell list, he’s almost certainly got +3 to all damage (possibly +4, depending on level). (Note that the ammo can be enchanted instead of the bows, meaning one GMW would cover 50 hits. Ammo/weapon bonuses don’t stack in 3.5). Assume the lowest favored enemy and GMW, and he’s still doing 1d4+6 with each hit. If Zz’dtri got hit 7 times, that’s 7d4+42, or 49-70 points of damage, av. 59.5 damage. If he has 69 HP, things are looking grim. Waiting for my big ole’ nerd badge. Edit: there’s a decent chance that he’s taken improved critical: hand crossbow somewhere along the line, too, which would mean 20% of hits are crits. ---
**Author:** ![Hypno-Toad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b2d939/32.png) [@Hypno-Toad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hypno-Toad)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2011, 1:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/2418 "2011-08-08T13:27:37Z")
Reviewing Haley’s petrification, I noticed that she still had a potion vial in her hand. I wonder if that will be important later. It might, if it was important enough to merit retrieving from the Bag O’ Holding before getting zapped. ---
**Author:** ![hogarth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hogarth/32/1773_2.png) [@hogarth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hogarth)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2011, 1:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/2419 "2011-08-08T13:33:18Z")
> [@One\_And\_Only\_Wanderers](#): > > ZZ’dtri isn’t a sorcerer is he? Whoops, I must have been mixing him up with the other “evil opposite”, the half-elf guy. ---
**Author:** ![Enderw24](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ba9def/32.png) [@Enderw24](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enderw24)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2011, 1:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/2420 "2011-08-08T13:36:44Z")
> [@Der\_Trihs](#): > > No, he’s the “[team wizard](http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0044.html)”. Yikyik? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323.md?page=120) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323.md?page=122)