82 – Down the river
Hey everyone, Kalin here!
With this page we’re going to take a break from the comic until about the end of August. The reason for this is that Jeff has some more pressing projects for me to work on, so those are going to have to take priority for a while. But don’t worry, the comic will be back!
At last, one of the legendary Runequest ducks, holding a glowing greatsword that’s taller than he is. Although I can’t see his marks, he has mummy bandages on his arms. The lady facing the camera doesn’t have any marks either. And our heroes, off to the side and barely in scene. Those longspears sure are long.
Wasn’t a duck prominently featured on one of the very first Runequest sourcebooks? For a lot of people who never played, Runequest was “that RPG where you can be Donald Duck with a sword.” Even today people can’t get past the giggle factor. There’s a Runequest kickstarter going on right now and everyone was like, “yeah, that’s the one with the ducks.”
Personally, I always had a soft spot for The Ducks. I’ve always had a larger appetite for Camp than most people, and given the High Magic of the setting, they never broke my suspension of disbelief. I mean, when was the last time people complained and laughed at the Dragon Newts?
I have always thought that the Ducks were one of the real low points of Glorantha. I can’t think of a single way in which they add anything to the world or the game, and I don’t count comic relief, because they aren’t funny. There are still people I know who can’t be persuaded to play RQ because of ducks.
Ducks are just beastman, like a Minotaur, Satyr etc.
And about silly: If an RPG would have included small humanoids, with big bare feet, that eat 6 meals a day, etc. and Tolkien would have not existed would they be silly too?
Just because Disney has Ducks it doesn´t mean that gloranthan ducks are silly.
You get REMINDED of Disney ducks when you see a gloranthan duck, that MAKES it seem silly for you.
Just think about it.
apparently they are a race of cursed (with flightlessness) ducks, not beastmen at all. they worship Death (Humakt) and are the frontline in the fight against Delecti the Necromancer. i’d love to know more, if anyone can suggest a sourcebook
Mongoose did a second age sourcebook on them that you can order on Amazon: Ducks: Guide to the Durulz. Tales of the Reaching Moon, Issue 19 had a really nice treatment of the Upland Marsh including the ducks there. They claim to date back to the days of the Spike so they predate at least some of the beastmen, many of whom were created by EWF (including Delecti).
Is that Griselda?
Yes that is Griselda with Krogar. Matches exactly with the original Collected Griselda cover.
Griselda with Wolfhead, not Krogar Wolfhelm! http://www.griselda.co.uk
Argh! No way to edit one’s mistakes!?! Here is the correct link:
http://griselda.org.uk/
Glad to see people still taking an interest in my girl, and thanks to the strip’s creators for putting her and Wolfhead in. Yes, that should be him, quite a shot with the bow, cf. Wolfhead’s Story.
First off, YAY DUCKS
[if played right, a duck NPC is like Donald Duck and Minsc the Ranger had an unholy love child]
I also love the inclusion of trolls into the mix. My players over the years have loved the depth of troll culture, although you have to present it carefully.
I’m SO looking forward to seeing how Our Heroes handle the tidal wave of OFMG that’s coming their way. I’ve played The Giant’s Cradle three times… and only lived through it once. And I was unconscious for that much.
“A trollkin spotting the enemy” Heh heh.
And our recently-met heroes are waiting on the lower right bit of the scene… Surely aware that not all of them (and maybe none of them) will walk away from this venture…
Beautiful cliffhanger. Tune in next season!
Beware the Deadly Duck of Death!
Really love that top panel especially (which doesn’t mean I hate the others!!!). Such a good mood of quietness-while-in-headlong-motion!
And frankly, I didn’t give a hoot about who all the other figures were who were in the picture. We have a tough Duck, ready to kick ass(es) all the way down into the saltchuck.
The perspective/scale presentation is really interesting in that top panel. That Duck is _tiny_! At least, if the scale of the Cradle’s foredeck is to be relied on. Heroic scaling at work? I guess maybe. But I prefer not.
My proud enlo heritage aside, I think I’d rather believe that everyone in the foreground is typically exaggerated coolnesss at work, and the Duck is the sole trace of normalcy and realism — and it is s/he who will Get That Package Through(tm) — and the background players, well, they live only to wail and praise as ever. Enough of that.
All power to the enlo-durulz compact forever! To the bully oppressors, there is only this: kill, quill, krill!
Kim
When are we going to see the next thrilling enstallment?
Well, as I said in the comic post – not until the end of August, at the soonest. Both Jeff and I have a lot of other projects that can’t really wait like the comic can, so it’s going to take a break for a bit.
So, wave if you’re looking forward to seeing what happens to Argrath and the Cradle…
WAVE-WAVE-WAVE
I hope our Brave Heroes [aka sucker player characters] ride the Cradle all the way though
“I live in a cradle down by the river…”
Please come back Kalin and Jeff. You said you would be back in late August and it is now mid September.
Technically, it says right there “until about the end of August” and, while we haven’t uploaded anything yet, I *am* working on the comic once more! In fact I’m drawing the next page right now!
Sweet! Looking forward to the next comic!
Also keep in mind – this is art we’re talking about. I am personally amazed my schedule got wrecked with just a one month delay, and not more! It’s just how these things go, unfortunately.
Good luck! 😀