Eh, well, why not? These “noble” idiots are openly discussing treason in an empty bar. Yeah, empty because obviously the lower class help have no ears or intelligence or ambition.
Calculation incorrect: crowned or not, heads were removed so FAIL.
Notice he rushed here to this bar after overhearing the halflings, without, as far as we know, stopping anywhere else or talking to anyone besides Slobber in between. How could he have agents already in place for a plan he only decided to initiate just now? (Unless he was expecting the halflings prior and was gleaning information from their conversation, or maybe he’s lying about the agents?) It’s possible the barkeep is a contact for the agents and the viscount intended him to overhear the conversation with Sir Malevolus.
Yeah, you don’t overhear a royal assassination plot and decide on a whim “Yeah, I want in on that.” Odds are you already have a scheme in mind but just don’t have all the pieces you need to execute it.
Hmmm — is he trying to exploit the plan of the plotters who tried to hire Stabs’ brothers, or is he in on it and accelerating the schedule? (Having fathomed the cryptolect by some means.)
On the one hand, he might get killed, and that would be bad. But on the other hand, he might get crowned, and that would be really good. Crowned has the really, and thus weighs more.
So, I’m starting to worry that some part of this plan is actually going to work. This story started with discussion of the “Called Shot Heard ‘Round the World,” a reference to the “Shot Heard ‘Round the World” that is often credited with igniting the American Revolution. Depending on how closely the reference tracks to the source, that might not be good news for sitting royalty.
It’s two baseball references–Babe Ruth’s legendary and possibly apocryphal “called shot,” when he pointed to the stands before hitting a home run to that spot, and Bobby Thomson’s “shot heard ’round the world,” a home run in the bottom of the ninth inning that sent the Giants to a victory over the Dodgers in the NL tiebreaker series. (And named after the historical shot heard round the world–of the many things it refers to, it originally was used by Ralph Waldo Emerson in “concord Hymn” to refer to the Battle of Concord.)
Which, for Emerson, is rather overstating the opening of the American war of succession. At the time the rest of Europe (never mind the rest of “the world”) just thought it was one more episode in the long history of Britain’s moneyed landowners trying to claw a bit of the privilege from the traditional aristocracy. Few had the foresight to realise that the american colonies would eventually outgrow britain to be an even bigger and badder player in global great game…
I thought ‘the Shot heard around the world’ was the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, which was the casus beli that built and built into the First World War?
“The Shot Heard Round the World is a phrase referring to several historical incidents, including the opening of the American Revolutionary War in 1775 and the Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria in 1914.”
I feel confused about the royals and the nobility in this world.
Sir Malevolus we learn is inline for the succession to the throne , but his title is “Sir”, which makes him a knight. Not “Prince” or even been given a Dukedom as we might expect for a younger brother or uncle who is in the royal family but not an oldest child.
I think we need to see a family tree.
Can anybody think of a “Viscount” in literature or pop culture who was not a villain? Is the shared “v”? Why does this titel, orphaned between a Count/Earl and a more mundane “simple” Baron/Lord seem to so lend itself to the role of antihero in fiction?
Raoul de Chagny, in Phantom of the Opera, was a viscount. While die-hard Eric-Christine shippers might argue otherwise, he was not the villain of the piece.
I believe one of Sparhawk’s companions (from David Eddings’ books) is a viscount, and definitively not one of the villains, but since the heroes are local versions of “Templar” knights, their nobility titles are seldom mentioned and don”t really count.
More appropriately, the Viscount of Bragelonne is a non-villain Viscount. The name of this protagonist is the title of the sequel of the sequel of the “3 Musketeers” from Alexandre Dumas.
Steven Brust’s affectionate parody of Dumas’ books, set in the world of Dragaeria, has the Viscount of Adrilankha, (in the sequel of the sequel of the “Phoenix Guards”), who is also a non-vil…
Err, wait. Let’s just say the Blue Fox (don’t ask) is a nice guy, but not too overloaded with scruples.
Technically, a viscount, like a vicar, is a stand-in for the guy really in charge, the Count (or the Catholic church priest for the vicar). Usually also the count’s designated heir, although not always. That may or may not apply to our resident viscount.
This is a world with adventurers. The line of succession might have a well-hidden “kill them and take their stuff” clause. Or it might be something where, while other claimants are technically ahead of him in line, he expects to gain supporters to help deal with them for following through with this plan. There are plenty of real-world successions that got bollixed up to some degree by a little judicious cutting in the royal line.
Never forget the option of ‘bigger army diplomacy’. You don’t need legitimacy to GET a crown, and with big enough of an army the people are surely going to give you a chance to prove yourself as their legitimate ruler.
Unless you rule over a predominantly Catholic country in the Middle Ages. Any High priest in this world (similar to the pope) might still need to give his (or her) blessing. Of course, why he would give the blessing to the princess is beyond me.
Like, uhm, England, back when it was still Catholic? Invasions weren’t always blessed by the pope, sometimes he also just grudgingly accepted them when they had already occurred. But good point, it holds true on most occasions.
Also, really? You cannot think of one reason why a religious leader (neither strong nor fast because he needed to dump SOME stats for his glorious 10000 charisma, wisdom and intelligence) would want to be on good terms with the princess?
On the other hand, there might have been some religious leaders who opposed her. Like, on the very first day of her reign. None since then, though.
If your stats were high enough (and especially as a religious leader) one would think you could summon up a decent army to oppose the Princess. It is a good point though that the leader would probably still not be alive after this long, though.
This might be like ASOIAF where the children of lords don’t necessarily get their own title, and the Sir is earned. Or Malevolus might have a noble title but prefer to be called Sir — after all, in this universe Blackguards have real magical power and the patronage of dangerous godlike beings,. The nobility just needs to be descended from someone who actually earned their power. So knights and the like might, if anything, be more prestigious than your average noble. Or he might just be a distant cousin of some sort, and the royalty’s family line is in serious trouble.
I started an adventuring cleric, NPC to complete the party, who came from a kingdom with a lot of social maneuvering. He worshiped the god of rank and commerce. He would anoint the princess. He would have adventured with her any day. If she became Queen, he would probably be the next Pope.
Even granting that “sir Malevolus” still maintains some position in the royal succession after very obviously becoming a blackguard, how could he possibly claim the throne after executing the Princess? If even one person loyal to the old regime witnessed his regicide, he’d be disqualified instantly regardless of any other validity his claim might have had.
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Ahh, politics.
Uh oh, I wonder if his agents are halflings…
If you mean Stabs’ brothers, they said they turned the job down.
Yes, it’s probably them. They just don’t KNOW they still are his agents.
I wonder who the Duegar barkeep is sending info to… Wheels within wheels and all that….
Eh, well, why not? These “noble” idiots are openly discussing treason in an empty bar. Yeah, empty because obviously the lower class help have no ears or intelligence or ambition.
Calculation incorrect: crowned or not, heads were removed so FAIL.
Notice he rushed here to this bar after overhearing the halflings, without, as far as we know, stopping anywhere else or talking to anyone besides Slobber in between. How could he have agents already in place for a plan he only decided to initiate just now? (Unless he was expecting the halflings prior and was gleaning information from their conversation, or maybe he’s lying about the agents?) It’s possible the barkeep is a contact for the agents and the viscount intended him to overhear the conversation with Sir Malevolus.
Or perhaps the plan was already in place and he just hadn’t chosen a pawn yet.
Yeah, you don’t overhear a royal assassination plot and decide on a whim “Yeah, I want in on that.” Odds are you already have a scheme in mind but just don’t have all the pieces you need to execute it.
You might accelerate a plan you were considering.
any speculation on what race or sort of monster our all green eavesdropper is? And don’t say green goblin.
Okay…
Hobgoblin.
Doctor Octopus!
Not from the comics, from DnD;
http://www.worldsofimagination.co.uk/338px-Hobgoblin.jpg
Sorry for the confusion
Hmmm — is he trying to exploit the plan of the plotters who tried to hire Stabs’ brothers, or is he in on it and accelerating the schedule? (Having fathomed the cryptolect by some means.)
I’ve got the sneaking suspicion that the Viscount is setting up Sir Malevolus up to be the fall guy for his schemes.
I see one flaw in this plan: The Princess is *never* unable to defend herself.
That’s what I was going to say
I think the Princess is often…”incapacitated”… by mixing alcohol and a Night Wight. See 5-31.
Can anyone explain the little mental calculation, I can’t figure it out.
Being killed because you know too much < being crowned?
“Crown or death?!”
“… Uhm, crown, please?”
“Very well. Give him a crown.”
On the one hand, he might get killed, and that would be bad. But on the other hand, he might get crowned, and that would be really good. Crowned has the really, and thus weighs more.
And let us not forget that merely knowing of the plan might be dangerous
So, I’m starting to worry that some part of this plan is actually going to work. This story started with discussion of the “Called Shot Heard ‘Round the World,” a reference to the “Shot Heard ‘Round the World” that is often credited with igniting the American Revolution. Depending on how closely the reference tracks to the source, that might not be good news for sitting royalty.
I thought it was a baseball reference?
But man, this blackguard really is eager to scale the social ladder.
It is also a baseball reference, so it’s hard to be sure.
it is a baseball reference for sure
http://rustyandco.com/comic/level-8-title/
Not to say it could not have double meaning
It’s two baseball references–Babe Ruth’s legendary and possibly apocryphal “called shot,” when he pointed to the stands before hitting a home run to that spot, and Bobby Thomson’s “shot heard ’round the world,” a home run in the bottom of the ninth inning that sent the Giants to a victory over the Dodgers in the NL tiebreaker series. (And named after the historical shot heard round the world–of the many things it refers to, it originally was used by Ralph Waldo Emerson in “concord Hymn” to refer to the Battle of Concord.)
Which, for Emerson, is rather overstating the opening of the American war of succession. At the time the rest of Europe (never mind the rest of “the world”) just thought it was one more episode in the long history of Britain’s moneyed landowners trying to claw a bit of the privilege from the traditional aristocracy. Few had the foresight to realise that the american colonies would eventually outgrow britain to be an even bigger and badder player in global great game…
Well everyone involved was long dead by that point. It took America 150 years to finally eclipse Britain.
I thought ‘the Shot heard around the world’ was the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, which was the casus beli that built and built into the First World War?
“The Shot Heard Round the World is a phrase referring to several historical incidents, including the opening of the American Revolutionary War in 1775 and the Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria in 1914.”
It is both.
He’ll probably get the chance to kill the princess then chicken out…
I feel confused about the royals and the nobility in this world.
Sir Malevolus we learn is inline for the succession to the throne , but his title is “Sir”, which makes him a knight. Not “Prince” or even been given a Dukedom as we might expect for a younger brother or uncle who is in the royal family but not an oldest child.
I think we need to see a family tree.
Can anybody think of a “Viscount” in literature or pop culture who was not a villain? Is the shared “v”? Why does this titel, orphaned between a Count/Earl and a more mundane “simple” Baron/Lord seem to so lend itself to the role of antihero in fiction?
Raoul de Chagny, in Phantom of the Opera, was a viscount. While die-hard Eric-Christine shippers might argue otherwise, he was not the villain of the piece.
I believe one of Sparhawk’s companions (from David Eddings’ books) is a viscount, and definitively not one of the villains, but since the heroes are local versions of “Templar” knights, their nobility titles are seldom mentioned and don”t really count.
More appropriately, the Viscount of Bragelonne is a non-villain Viscount. The name of this protagonist is the title of the sequel of the sequel of the “3 Musketeers” from Alexandre Dumas.
Steven Brust’s affectionate parody of Dumas’ books, set in the world of Dragaeria, has the Viscount of Adrilankha, (in the sequel of the sequel of the “Phoenix Guards”), who is also a non-vil…
Err, wait. Let’s just say the Blue Fox (don’t ask) is a nice guy, but not too overloaded with scruples.
Technically, a viscount, like a vicar, is a stand-in for the guy really in charge, the Count (or the Catholic church priest for the vicar). Usually also the count’s designated heir, although not always. That may or may not apply to our resident viscount.
This is a world with adventurers. The line of succession might have a well-hidden “kill them and take their stuff” clause. Or it might be something where, while other claimants are technically ahead of him in line, he expects to gain supporters to help deal with them for following through with this plan. There are plenty of real-world successions that got bollixed up to some degree by a little judicious cutting in the royal line.
Never forget the option of ‘bigger army diplomacy’. You don’t need legitimacy to GET a crown, and with big enough of an army the people are surely going to give you a chance to prove yourself as their legitimate ruler.
Unless you rule over a predominantly Catholic country in the Middle Ages. Any High priest in this world (similar to the pope) might still need to give his (or her) blessing. Of course, why he would give the blessing to the princess is beyond me.
Like, uhm, England, back when it was still Catholic? Invasions weren’t always blessed by the pope, sometimes he also just grudgingly accepted them when they had already occurred. But good point, it holds true on most occasions.
Also, really? You cannot think of one reason why a religious leader (neither strong nor fast because he needed to dump SOME stats for his glorious 10000 charisma, wisdom and intelligence) would want to be on good terms with the princess?
On the other hand, there might have been some religious leaders who opposed her. Like, on the very first day of her reign. None since then, though.
If your stats were high enough (and especially as a religious leader) one would think you could summon up a decent army to oppose the Princess. It is a good point though that the leader would probably still not be alive after this long, though.
This might be like ASOIAF where the children of lords don’t necessarily get their own title, and the Sir is earned. Or Malevolus might have a noble title but prefer to be called Sir — after all, in this universe Blackguards have real magical power and the patronage of dangerous godlike beings,. The nobility just needs to be descended from someone who actually earned their power. So knights and the like might, if anything, be more prestigious than your average noble. Or he might just be a distant cousin of some sort, and the royalty’s family line is in serious trouble.
Reminds me of Girl Genius; “The Spark is what’s important; she’s just royalty.”
I started an adventuring cleric, NPC to complete the party, who came from a kingdom with a lot of social maneuvering. He worshiped the god of rank and commerce. He would anoint the princess. He would have adventured with her any day. If she became Queen, he would probably be the next Pope.
Even granting that “sir Malevolus” still maintains some position in the royal succession after very obviously becoming a blackguard, how could he possibly claim the throne after executing the Princess? If even one person loyal to the old regime witnessed his regicide, he’d be disqualified instantly regardless of any other validity his claim might have had.