Eh, the cube is still wrapped up, if he acts really fast he could just push the whole package into the lava. Cube couldn’t escape that. But from his level of panic, I think he might be going for the retreat option. I don’t know about the others, but he should be able to outrun cube, Gelatinous Cubes have a move speed of 15ft a round, half that of the average humanoid.
Paraphrasing Mimic’s favorite’s strategy:
“We will disguise ourselves as unassuming pieces of furniture, hiding in plain sight, luring our foes into a false sense of superiority…”
Eh, it worked! Treasure chests are unassuming pieces of furniture, right?
I’m not so sure that the “grab the rope that has a falling gelatinous cube on the other end” strategy would’ve been such a good idea even if he’d caught the rope.
If there was any plan there at all (beyond panicked, desperate denial), it might’ve been:
“…the pulley, powered by the fact that the Cube weighs more than me, can fling me high-&-away, so that I can hit the ground running & escape.”
But he failed to grab the rope in time, so now even this option is lost.
Now we’ll see if he was arrogant enough to neglect preparing an escape contingency…
…& if not, will our heroes manage to foil it?
Wonder if the DM let Mimic’s player homebrew up some sort of quick-change feat. I don’t think it’s normally possible to shift forms as an immediate action, but it’d be an awesome treat to throw to a monster player.
No, Mimic doesn’t need a custom feat. “I’m going to ready an action to change form if Grinner attacks me.” Readied action interrupts and then the action it interrupted finishes, all per standard 3.5 rules. Honestly an immediate action change shape would be all kinds of broken.
Way I figure it would have played out if we were putting this into 3.5:
1. Mimic makes a grapple check (not with the mimic slam/adhesive combo, we’ve never seen him have that!). Succeeds on the touch attack, does the unarmed damage portion of the grapple check (Yipe!) but it isn’t terribly much in the way of hurt.
2. Grinner breaks the grapple. He then does a successful bull rush sending Mimic 5 feet away. (How he does both would have to be some sort of feat, or action points if that optional system is being used… which from the rapid match lighting+dynamite lighting+throw he pulled off earlier I’d almost go ahead and say the DM was indeed using them and had given a number to Grinner so that he could face the whole party).
3. Mimic readies an action to change shape if he’s attacked by Grinner.
4. Grinner attacks Mimic with a thrust. (We’ll assume the threat about knives to hearts was not an intimidate check but just talking as a free action.)
5. Mimic’s readied action triggers before Grinner’s attack resolves and he turns into a fence.
6. Grinner’s attack resolves, failing of course.
See: totally works within the rules. If anything’s needing houserules or custom feats, it’s how Grinner can light a “tindertwig” so darn quick, much less apply it to dynamite and then toss it, and all of that after getting up from prone! (Not going to touch the whole pack of dynamite toss, it only reinforces the action point mechanic in my mind.) Then again, Grinner as an NPC has a much easier time getting custom feats approved 😀
Lordy I hope not, Pathfinder is the biggest joke of a system since the Serenity RPG, and a huge reason for that is its complete inability to fix any of the caster/noncaster balance problems that it claimed to be designed to solve, with the developers literally banning people from their forums who tried to point this out during development.
Pathfinder wasn’t really designed to fix the caster/mundane discrepancy – it was designed to be very compatible and to fix the most painful abuses. And to play the same, powerful casters and all. If you want to fix the caster/mundane discrepancy, ban all the full list casters (wizard, cleric, druid, sorcerer, witch, oracle, artificer if you would have used it – I find that druids are balanced if you trade their spellcasting for Ranger Tricks) and the bottom tier mundanes (fighter, rogue, monk), and add the Path of War stuff. Alternately/in addition, use Epic 6 rules.
Warshaper is a prestige class I’ve always appreciated for being neat, but do note that at best you’re getting the change shape down to a move action by taking it–still something you’d need to have readied.
this already exist both as a feat and as a class feature in DD 3.5 (bellimorth, 4th level instamorthism)
for natural metamorth (lycantrope, mimics, but not doppelganger for eg) or druids /mages
As someone whose dialect does include “youse” – it’s a plural. From what I’ve seen of Mimic, he uses it correctly (I might’ve missed something though). Here he’s only addressing Grinner, so “you” is normal.
Question:
What do the expressions of Roxy and Presti say about them in panel 2?
Roxy’s first reaction is happy delight, presumably because Mimic was not stabbed.
Presto’s initial reaction is an expression I would call revengeful glee, either because Grinner failed or because the rope holding cube is cut, or perhaps both.
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Oh, that pun was glorious!
I’m starting to understand why mimic always wears that shit eating grin.
Looks like Mimic has been taking levels in dashing swordsman.
Mimic, Hero of the Hour!
and now, ladies and gentlemen, for my next trick… I make Cube reappear!
Grinner knows just how screwed he is
If you have an escape-plan, Grinner, (which you should, considering how well you planned the rest of this out) now would be the time to execute it…
Of course, his plan is TO DISSAPEAR INTO THE INSIDES OF CUBE, AND NEVER BE SEEN AGAIN!!
😀 Well done, Mimic. Let’s scrub that smile from his faceG2TK
The dwarf disappeared inside Cube. Twice. And reappeared.
Eh, the cube is still wrapped up, if he acts really fast he could just push the whole package into the lava. Cube couldn’t escape that. But from his level of panic, I think he might be going for the retreat option. I don’t know about the others, but he should be able to outrun cube, Gelatinous Cubes have a move speed of 15ft a round, half that of the average humanoid.
Ah, but we are not just talking about any cube. This is THE Cube.
The average gelatinous cube also weighs about fifteen thousand pounds. I wouldn’t want to try to push that anywhere.
You’d have better luck pushing a bus. At least They have wheels.
Only if the wrapping survives contact. And it looks like it would spill open.
Feces is preparing to undergo realization, yo
Indeed, the solid waste is on a collision course with the air circulation unit.
Many people called it, but it’s still awesome to see happening.
So, I’ve been reading for the last…. 3 days? And it’s been a great ride! Thanks for story 🙂
Also, that last panel: such regret 😛
Paraphrasing Mimic’s favorite’s strategy:
“We will disguise ourselves as unassuming pieces of furniture, hiding in plain sight, luring our foes into a false sense of superiority…”
Eh, it worked! Treasure chests are unassuming pieces of furniture, right?
Thank you, Mimic! Once again you prove you’re more than a set of nice teeth.
Well played, Mimic.
Be careful, Mimic. Someone could take a fence to that comment.
When it comes to choosing a pun, you know how to picket
It’d be nice if these comments could get a lawn!
Okay, okay, enough with these puns. Time to mow along now.
Now he’s in for it. Once Cube gets free there will be gnoll mercy.
If you combine this pun and the puns immediately above, you get a grassy gnoll.
As in his aft is grass.
Now all we need is a sniper…
I’m not so sure that the “grab the rope that has a falling gelatinous cube on the other end” strategy would’ve been such a good idea even if he’d caught the rope.
I dunno, it might have vaulted him out of the way…
If there was any plan there at all (beyond panicked, desperate denial), it might’ve been:
“…the pulley, powered by the fact that the Cube weighs more than me, can fling me high-&-away, so that I can hit the ground running & escape.”
But he failed to grab the rope in time, so now even this option is lost.
Now we’ll see if he was arrogant enough to neglect preparing an escape contingency…
…& if not, will our heroes manage to foil it?
D’OH!!!?!
😛
This was supposed to be a reply to [Matt W.] above, not a separate entry, sorry.
Oh look! A bag full of “Grinner’s going to die again.”
Here comes the …
Here comes the …
Here comes the
BOOM!
Y’all don’t really want it now
All Grinner needs now is a Wile E. Coyote sign that says, “YIPE!” Actually, something stronger would be more appropriate, but not printable here… 😀
so long as it is in pun form, this comic long ago decided it was not always going to be “family friendly” (for which I love it)
http://rustyandco.com/comic/level2/level-2-4/
Wonder if the DM let Mimic’s player homebrew up some sort of quick-change feat. I don’t think it’s normally possible to shift forms as an immediate action, but it’d be an awesome treat to throw to a monster player.
Combat is abstract in form and as such, Mimic could’ve used a “standard action” in the next “round” of combat.
No, Mimic doesn’t need a custom feat. “I’m going to ready an action to change form if Grinner attacks me.” Readied action interrupts and then the action it interrupted finishes, all per standard 3.5 rules. Honestly an immediate action change shape would be all kinds of broken.
Way I figure it would have played out if we were putting this into 3.5:
1. Mimic makes a grapple check (not with the mimic slam/adhesive combo, we’ve never seen him have that!). Succeeds on the touch attack, does the unarmed damage portion of the grapple check (Yipe!) but it isn’t terribly much in the way of hurt.
2. Grinner breaks the grapple. He then does a successful bull rush sending Mimic 5 feet away. (How he does both would have to be some sort of feat, or action points if that optional system is being used… which from the rapid match lighting+dynamite lighting+throw he pulled off earlier I’d almost go ahead and say the DM was indeed using them and had given a number to Grinner so that he could face the whole party).
3. Mimic readies an action to change shape if he’s attacked by Grinner.
4. Grinner attacks Mimic with a thrust. (We’ll assume the threat about knives to hearts was not an intimidate check but just talking as a free action.)
5. Mimic’s readied action triggers before Grinner’s attack resolves and he turns into a fence.
6. Grinner’s attack resolves, failing of course.
See: totally works within the rules. If anything’s needing houserules or custom feats, it’s how Grinner can light a “tindertwig” so darn quick, much less apply it to dynamite and then toss it, and all of that after getting up from prone! (Not going to touch the whole pack of dynamite toss, it only reinforces the action point mechanic in my mind.) Then again, Grinner as an NPC has a much easier time getting custom feats approved 😀
re: action points–I agree. See the alt text for this page. http://rustyandco.com/comic/level2/level-2-11/
Or the rules have been updated to Pathfinder – which has the Reposition maneuver.
Lordy I hope not, Pathfinder is the biggest joke of a system since the Serenity RPG, and a huge reason for that is its complete inability to fix any of the caster/noncaster balance problems that it claimed to be designed to solve, with the developers literally banning people from their forums who tried to point this out during development.
Pathfinder wasn’t really designed to fix the caster/mundane discrepancy – it was designed to be very compatible and to fix the most painful abuses. And to play the same, powerful casters and all. If you want to fix the caster/mundane discrepancy, ban all the full list casters (wizard, cleric, druid, sorcerer, witch, oracle, artificer if you would have used it – I find that druids are balanced if you trade their spellcasting for Ranger Tricks) and the bottom tier mundanes (fighter, rogue, monk), and add the Path of War stuff. Alternately/in addition, use Epic 6 rules.
Hmmm, the politest term that comes to mind is ‘piffle’.
4th edition D&D was the biggest joke, and the punchline was that it turned the most popular RPG into the second most popular.
What was the name of the most popular after that? Let me think… oh, yes… Pathfinder….
Now that’s a punchline!
Tell me, have you ever heard of the Warshaper Prestige class? it’s tremendous fun!
http://therafimrpg.wikidot.com/warshaper
Warshaper is a prestige class I’ve always appreciated for being neat, but do note that at best you’re getting the change shape down to a move action by taking it–still something you’d need to have readied.
this already exist both as a feat and as a class feature in DD 3.5 (bellimorth, 4th level instamorthism)
for natural metamorth (lycantrope, mimics, but not doppelganger for eg) or druids /mages
I would’ve expected Mimic to use “youse” here, to keep with his accent from the earliest comics! :O
“I might be a lil’ better’n youse at fencin’.”
As someone whose dialect does include “youse” – it’s a plural. From what I’ve seen of Mimic, he uses it correctly (I might’ve missed something though). Here he’s only addressing Grinner, so “you” is normal.
Get hype, that is definitely a cube shape!
Not as planned! Not as planned!
And we last saw Rusty right next to the magnet… While the gnoll was distracted…
The alt text pretty much encapsulated the one thing I was actually surprised about… but dang I miss that sound!
*ahem*
“You dun goofed.”
“How the blood-soaked monster hell did you do that?!”
F*** you, that’s how!
Grinner just got hoisted by his own petard
Looks like his carefully laid plans are about to come crashing down on him.
Very true.
No, no, just Cube.
Okay, everybody, now POSE LIKE A TEAM ‘CAUSE $#!& JUST GOT REAL!
I think I got stun from the pun.
I’ve decided that Mimic’s transformation sounds exactly the same as it does in the 80s Transformer cartoon.
observation: Grinner appears to be ambidextrous
Question:
What do the expressions of Roxy and Presti say about them in panel 2?
Roxy’s first reaction is happy delight, presumably because Mimic was not stabbed.
Presto’s initial reaction is an expression I would call revengeful glee, either because Grinner failed or because the rope holding cube is cut, or perhaps both.
Oh, by the way, we know mimic doesn’t need to make that noise since 1-35
Surprise, the sandbag is actually holding up nothing and it’s going to fall into the lava unceremoniously…
Sand bag? You mean the beige tent that cube is trapped in?
guys :(… the rusty runner is broken 🙁
edit : it just takes forever to load 🙁
The sharp eyed reader will notice the rope Mimic is cowering in front of is clearly seen in the 7-86 strip. Well done.