# Order of the Stick book 7 discussion thread **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** comic-strips\ **Created:** [February 3, 2020, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-7-discussion-thread/847438 "2020-02-03T17:48:02Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 134
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2026, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-7-discussion-thread/847438/2664 "2026-07-07T13:40:49Z")
**[Hobbit Hole](https://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots1346.html)** ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2026, 1:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-7-discussion-thread/847438/2665 "2026-07-07T13:41:20Z")
You were right. I’m sad that our good guys just walk away again, without acknowledging the poor creatures who helped them. ---
**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:** [July 7, 2026, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-7-discussion-thread/847438/2666 "2026-07-07T13:57:15Z")
It would be funny if at the end, the gods gave the flumphs the greatest credit for saving the world. ---
**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:** [July 7, 2026, 2:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-7-discussion-thread/847438/2667 "2026-07-07T14:09:12Z")
That still leaves two paladins, Haley, a beholder, and (possibly) a mimic (if she somehow survived the Blasphemy) exposed. This is not a good plan. ---
**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:** [July 8, 2026, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-7-discussion-thread/847438/2668 "2026-07-08T18:28:01Z")
It’s also cool to see how interested Belker is in _helping others_. Without having a short-term vested interest or even noticing that he’s doing so. ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2026, 2:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-7-discussion-thread/847438/2669 "2026-07-09T02:46:37Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > That still leaves two paladins, Haley, a beholder, and (possibly) a mimic (if she somehow survived the Blasphemy) exposed. This is not a good plan. Well, Belkar says that they are stashing the incapacitated dwarves, not that they are fleeing. Stopping the ones with Raise Dead from being murdered is sound tactics. ---
**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:** [July 11, 2026, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-7-discussion-thread/847438/2670 "2026-07-11T22:35:44Z")
I just noticed that Serini deployed a “Tall Smoke” capsule. It blinds the big folks but the halflings are not hindered. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2026, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-7-discussion-thread/847438/2671 "2026-07-11T23:14:09Z")
And I’ve just realized that the first word is TALL, and not TAIL. ---
**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:** [July 11, 2026, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-7-discussion-thread/847438/2672 "2026-07-11T23:16:44Z")
Yeah, I’m surprised I’ve never seen that on any D&D equipment list. ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2026, 1:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-7-discussion-thread/847438/2673 "2026-07-12T01:16:38Z")
Re-reading the strip, I think Belkar has the right of it. Even if Belkar and Serini had the means to move all the incapacitated members out of combat, all it does it move the combat to a new spot. Nale was pretty casual about saying he’d pop down into the chasm. Even if they didn’t know that, Sabine can fly and carry people which she has done numerous times before. By hiding the dwarfs, Minrah can eventually heal Durkon and they’ll definitely be needing the clerics alive. They have the mass telepathy going on so it’s not like everyone is lost from one another. They can communicate to regroup. Minrah is awake as they stash her, so she knows where she is and what’s going on; they’re not just going to wake up in some stone hole. I don’t know if it gets them closer to “winning” but it seems to have more upsides than trying to drag three humans, two dwarfs and a beholder down a cliff while Nale, Sabine and Thog beat on them. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2026, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-7-discussion-thread/847438/2674 "2026-07-21T15:19:23Z")
> **[1347 Lowball Offer - Giant in the Playground Games](https://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots1347.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:** [July 21, 2026, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-7-discussion-thread/847438/2675 "2026-07-21T15:28:44Z")
It looks like he’s just trying to control her through physical intimidation, not through any sort of spell. On the one hand, a mind-control spell would be unlikely to work on an epic-level rogue… but on the other hand, intimidation means she’ll be highly motivated to find tricky ways to screw them over, and for an epic-level rogue on her home turf, that’s a lot. ---
**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:** [July 21, 2026, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-7-discussion-thread/847438/2676 "2026-07-21T15:59:37Z")
While Rich could conceivably get 20-21 out by the end the of the year (this is the 10th for this year), he’ll need to keep up the 2 week pace that this and the last strip represent. ---
**Author:** ![colinfred](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colinfred/32/21338_2.png) [@colinfred](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/colinfred)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2026, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-7-discussion-thread/847438/2677 "2026-07-21T16:45:39Z")
There’s a good chance that this is a deliberate trick by Serini, but assuming it isn’t: what exactly was her misapprehension and how was her sentence going to end? ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2026, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-7-discussion-thread/847438/2678 "2026-07-21T17:16:33Z")
I think her assumption was that Nale wanted to control the Gate, not destroy it and end the world. His whole original spiel when they met was some crap about how the Evil Gods want to save the world and he was here to join up with the Order and stop Xykon, etc. Even if Serini saw that as a lie, she probably assumes Nale wants to control the Gate for power. I wouldn’t think that “Help me end the world (and you) or else” is a great motivator. Sure, it might work on _me_, but I’m not an epic level RPG character who has previously saved the world. ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2026, 9:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-7-discussion-thread/847438/2679 "2026-07-22T09:57:16Z")
Is Nale just ignoring Thog hacking at him in the bottom left panel? ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2026, 11:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-7-discussion-thread/847438/2680 "2026-07-22T11:48:37Z")
“thog is unburdened by internal conflict because thog knows thog’s friends are invulnerable” I think Thog is enough less powerful than Nale that it’s easiest for Nale to just ignore him, yes. ---
**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:** [July 22, 2026, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-7-discussion-thread/847438/2681 "2026-07-22T14:00:02Z")
But Nale already said that he wanted to destroy the world, in his conversation with Elan. Apparently Serini just wasn’t paying attention. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2026, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-7-discussion-thread/847438/2682 "2026-07-22T15:57:50Z")
Or maybe she was, and she’s trying to infiltrate the group. ---
**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:** [July 22, 2026, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-7-discussion-thread/847438/2683 "2026-07-22T16:02:22Z")
OK, that’d also fit with an epic-level trickster. Yeah, that does seem more plausible. Wildcard here is still the two paladins, who not only have no reason to ally with the hornswagglers, but everyone involved knows it. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-7-discussion-thread/847438.md?page=133) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-7-discussion-thread/847438.md?page=135)