# 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:** 144
**Author:** ![squeegee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/squeegee/32/14537_2.png) [@squeegee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/squeegee)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2011, 8:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/2862 "2011-12-17T08:54:21Z")
Hmm, rereading #821, it seems to me that neither Tarquin nor Nale knows how Tarquin’s latest ex died. Tarquin accuses Nale of doing the deed, Nale accuses him of the same thing. In the next panel the subject is dropped while Tarquin looks confused. Apparently neither of them killed her. Who did? ---
**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:** [December 17, 2011, 9:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/2863 "2011-12-17T09:28:50Z")
Xykon. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2011, 10:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/2864 "2011-12-17T10:41:55Z")
Or Girard Draketooth. He had a motive. Penelope was revealing information about him and we’ve seen how paranoid he is. ---
**Author:** ![cckerberos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f0a364/32.png) [@cckerberos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cckerberos)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2011, 12:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/2865 "2011-12-17T12:09:00Z")
> [@squeegee](#): > > Is it bad luck to comment that Berlew’s update rate is pretty awesome right now? If I were to maybe do so, will the comic not update for like a year? Not that I was going to do so. Not me. Nope. Honestly, I’d kind of prefer if he held back a bit and give himself a bit of a buffer. Rather than 3 strips in Week 1 and nothing in Weeks 2 and 3, I’d rather have one each week. ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2011, 1:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/2866 "2011-12-17T13:23:12Z")
I wouldn’t. One per week would be a substantial reduction. On average he does about 2 per week. Some of them are 2 days apart, some are 2 weeks apart, but averages to approximately 100 in each 12 months. Plus the occasional prequel book, and bonus strips for the collected editions. He’s also said that he can’t keep to a regular update schedule, or build up a buffer of strips. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2011, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/2867 "2011-12-17T14:46:31Z")
> [@Alessan](#): > > The problem is, by stating his plan out loud - and laughing about it - he’s guaranteed its failure. He might as well have said “Nothing can stop us now!”. Frankly, I’m disappointed in him. But we’ve already seen Tarquin state his _ **other** _ plan for Elan, back when the big guy patiently explained that he does everything for the sake of a great story and so plans to become a legend by dying at the hands of a hero – or, failing that, winning and getting to be king. But he pretty much lives to talk up narrative structure and lampshade ominous foreshadowing, right? [Tarquin]I mean, I thought I just made it, like, WAY too obvious, but I guess it all worked out, huh?[/Tarquin] Were you disappointed back when Tarquin, fresh from finding dramatic conflict to be equal parts exquisite and bracing, spelled out that (a) he got into this _ **accepting** _ that he’d live like a god for decades before the last ten minutes suck, and (b) he was willing to sign on for said deal even before realizing that, if anyone ever defeats and replaces him, it’ll be his son and heir, in an epic for the ages that just might be the best story ever? ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2011, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/2868 "2011-12-17T17:37:56Z")
> [@Peter\_Morris](#): > > I wouldn’t. One per week would be a substantial reduction. > > On average he does about 2 per week. Some of them are 2 days apart, some are 2 weeks apart, but averages to approximately 100 in each 12 months. Plus the occasional prequel book, and bonus strips for the collected editions. > > He’s also said that he can’t keep to a regular update schedule, or build up a buffer of strips. Is this frequency including his hiatuses between books? ---
**Author:** ![ultrafilter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/3d9bf3/32.png) [@ultrafilter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ultrafilter)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2011, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/2869 "2011-12-17T18:40:07Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > Is this frequency including his hiatuses between books? Yeah. It’s an average frequency, though–the number of strips per week is pretty highly variable. ---
**Author:** ![Agent\_Foxtrot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9fc29f/32.png) [@Agent\_Foxtrot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Agent_Foxtrot)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2011, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/2870 "2011-12-19T19:09:56Z")
Sorry for the non-update bump, but I just caught #821. Jesus H. Christ, for all that is good and holy, would _somebody_ please kill Nale already? He’s way too smart for his, or anyone’s, own good… never a situation he can’t talk himself out of. Obviously, INT and CHA weren’t dump stats for him. ---
**Author:** ![W0X0F](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/b77776/32.png) [@W0X0F](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/W0X0F)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2011, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/2871 "2011-12-20T21:03:17Z")
[822](http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0822.html) is up. ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2011, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/2872 "2011-12-20T21:16:23Z")
Run, little flying kobold! Your future is really short (no pun intended) if you’re going to be a Yi/a/uk-Yi/a/uk analog… ---
**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:** [December 20, 2011, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/2873 "2011-12-20T21:25:05Z")
No Thog. Interesting. But he’s not been explicitly ruled out as dead. ---
**Author:** ![Kobal2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kobal2/32/20_2.png) [@Kobal2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kobal2)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2011, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/2874 "2011-12-20T21:49:02Z")
My mind is boggled. How does Nale not see he’s getting a rapier up the kiester the second Tarquin’s got a hold of the gate ? Last I checked it was Elan who purposefully had a death grip on the idiot ball. ---
**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:** [December 20, 2011, 10:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/2875 "2011-12-20T22:21:18Z")
> [@Kobal2](#): > > My mind is boggled. How does Nale not see he’s getting a rapier up the kiester the second Tarquin’s got a hold of the gate ? Last I checked it was Elan who purposefully had a death grip on the idiot ball. He’s probably figuring that he has no choice in the matter. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if Nale tries to kill off Tarquin, and Tarquin will of course have anticipated that and taken some sort of precaution. Something like “Of course, if you kill me then you’ll never find the antidote to the slow poison I dosed you with last week, and will be dead within the year”. Tarquin’s biggest error I think is apparently thinking that Malack _will_ “let it go”. _If_ he really does think that… ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2011, 10:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/2876 "2011-12-20T22:36:21Z")
> [@Kobal2](#): > > My mind is boggled. How does Nale not see he’s getting a rapier up the kiester the second Tarquin’s got a hold of the gate ? Last I checked it was Elan who purposefully had a death grip on the idiot ball. Nale is probably already working on some over-complicated plan to betray Tarquin. Tarquin, meanwhile, will just kill Nale first simply and directly. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2011, 10:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/2877 "2011-12-20T22:49:33Z")
Has Burlew ever indicated a proposed end point to the strip? Like “3 years from now” or “at strip #1500” or anything like that? Malack will never “let it go.” He will act when the time is right, for a particular definition of “right.” ---
**Author:** ![shantih](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f6c823/32.png) [@shantih](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shantih)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2011, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/2878 "2011-12-20T22:57:48Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > Has Burlew ever indicated a proposed end point to the strip? Like “3 years from now” or “at strip #1500” or anything like that? > > Malack will never “let it go.” He will act when the time is right, for a particular definition of “right.” He stated at some point that we’re now more than halfway through the story. Crap, when was that again? Maybe after Roy was resurrected? And yeah, Malack is highly unlikely to get over his children’s murders just for business. Unless it’s all part of Tarquin’s misdirection. I wouldn’t want to call the circumstances, but I could see this part of the story ending with Tarquin killing Nale and being killed by Elan in his turn. ---
**Author:** ![Gray\_Ghost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c0e974/32.png) [@Gray\_Ghost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gray_Ghost)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2011, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/2879 "2011-12-21T01:07:45Z")
Well, how many Gates are left? This one and one other, right? Still a lot of story-telling left to do, including fleshing out Durkon’s backstory some more. I really can’t see Malack sucking it up. He’s going to shiv T, or try to, and T knows it. (For those steeped in 3.5, could Malack, given a few rounds to freshen up/buff, take out T, a wounded Nale, a spell-drained Z, and Sabine?) No, I think we’re going to see within the next 50 strips or so, some further development of the friendship vs duty themes with regards to Sabine choosing the Fiends or Nale, and Malack choosing between his longtime companion Tarquin and his new friend Durkon. Add Haley having to choose between saving Pops and letting him take the consequences of his life choices. Should be fun. I see Roy being a buttmonkey yet again in the upcoming fight with Tarquin, and maybe realizing that he needs to be something a touch more than an ordinary fighter in order to deal with Xykon. Of course, the big question is, when is Xykon going to show up? And will Xykon show what a badass he is by squashing Tarquin et al like a bug. How’s the Ritual coming along? Where is the damned phylactery? Be interesting to see when/how V gets back. Really happy that the update rate is back to normal +. ---
**Author:** ![John\_DiFool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_difool/32/19543_2.png) [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2011, 2:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/2880 "2011-12-21T02:08:16Z")
> [@jayjay](#): > > Run, little flying kobold! Your future is really short (no pun intended) if you’re going to be a Yi/a/uk-Yi/a/uk analog… Indeed. I think Belkar is about to get himself a new hat. ---
**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:** [December 21, 2011, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/2881 "2011-12-21T02:47:27Z")
I think this may be where Belkar dies. This Kobold’s got a brain on him. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323.md?page=143) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323.md?page=145)