Grrl Power #215 – Demonicus Revelio
I’m going to own up to it. I cannot draw butts. That literally may be only the 11th butt I’ve ever drawn. I need to work on that. Maybe the next vote incentive will just be an assload of butts. It probably won’t be. I just felt like typing “assload of butts.”
Dabbler is stronger than a human woman of the same weight. She’s actually about twice as strong as a human male of twice her weight. A proper succubus would usually downplay that most of the time – you know, guys and their egos – but Dabbler’s just as much adventurer and scrapper as she is seductress. This page is Dabbler’s first public reveal of her “Battle Form.” Whether or not people buy that explanation, Arianna will have her work cut out for her. If there was a superheroine with just little satyr horns on her forehead and no other demony characteristics, you know there would be someone freaking out about demons or gargoyles. In the first few drafts of the story, Dabbler never disguised herself, but after giving it more than a few seconds of though, I realized that the general public would have to casually accept the existence of demons and/or aliens, and that would make the Grrl Power world too different from ours. It’s supposed to be almost identical to ours, only certain historical events and people can be attributed to supers. Tech level’s the same, politics are the same. If there are super powered assassins, that means there are also super powered bodyguards. It’s mostly zero-sum. Now that all this super stuff has gone public, the world will probably begin to diverge from ours in more significant ways.
Dabbler’s sword has show up briefly in the comic before, but obviously will be more heavily featured this time around. Notice she’s not teleporting it to her hand like she did the railgun. It’s all part of her vast bag of tricks. I thought of the name Soul Reaver independently, then thought it sounded too cool not to have been used before, so I googled it and found there was a video game franchise of the same name. A third person hack and slash about, if google image search is any judge, a blue vampire with no lower jaw. I guess you could still bite people like that, though the actual sucking action would be considerably more challenging. Perhaps there was some sort of lapping motion involved. I’d like to think he hung out in the video game character’s after hours bar with Darth Malak and commiserated about beards. Anyway, I point that out because now in this scene, Dabbler is using Soul Reaver against Heavenly Sword, which was also a third person hack and slash. I’m just commenting on it so Sydney doesn’t have to.
Update: So apparently there were 2 games in a series of 5 with the name Soul Reaver in them, and across the 5 games there were two protagonists, and the one guy with no lower jaw sucked souls, not blood, which presumably did not involve biting anything. I obviously never played them, but it turns out Soul Reaver is actually a reference to a sword in the game called “The Soul Reaver” and now I’m considering renaming Dabbler’s sword. Although it’s not like Dabbler would have known about those video games and it could definitely lead to some funny discussions with Sydney who is supposed to be a nerd omnipedia, who would definitely know about those games.
Sydney and Dabbler are capable of this level of distraction in the middle of a grand scuffle, just imagine the first time they’re left alone together.
As always I will be at A-kon this year (June 6-8 in Dallas) and, I’ll be doing a panel on Friday. Humor-Based Webcomics 1: Humor in Story. Be sure to stop by!
In case you missed it, my fourth Gynostar Guest strip is up. The current arc starts here.
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So who’s thinking bubble is that?
HS, or Sydney?
Heavenly Sword’s.
I agree, you can see her shinai in frame, and the thought bubble is pointing to whoever is holding that. Which is Heavenly.
I’d guess HS, since it came from the shinai’s direction in panel 1.
That was going to be my question as well.
HS, most definitely, The thought bubbles are probably all from the same person – and Sydney already knows what lies beneath the glamour, so she wouldn’t be acting so surprised.
Oo good point.
Sydney shouldn’t be suprised, didn’t think of that
Ha, I love the little dangle charm off the pommel :D I totally missed it the first time around.
Me too! Sooo cute, and totally Dabbles :D
Isn’t that Gizmo from “Gremlins”?
There is a strong resemblance. But the eyes go all wonky. Although one of Gizmo’s children did have eyes like that, the rest of the look of the gremlins was different.
I’d call it “Derpkitty”.
Say what you want, at least Heavenly Sword is an honourable fighter. She didn’t stab Dabbler in the back while Sydney was distracting her.
And yay for Soul Reaver!
That’s why she’s not a ‘good guy’ :P
IT’S SPANKING TIME!
First thing I thought when I saw the last panel! ;)
Gratuitious Fan Service?
Hardly. It is an artistically framed picture that conveys both the comedy of Dabbler’s reaction with the relaxed pose that Heavenly Sword is maintaining. Contrast that to the panel above it, and you will see that the composition comes across much better. So it is not gratuitous.
Possibly fan service, but she is not posing unnaturally, so that detracts from the queried assertion. Plus I would offer the counter-argument to that, which is that the majority of frames in Grrl Power, are composed with a neutral, balanced, perspective. Even in the above page, although Dabbler’s assets are clearly visible, the framing is set to show her actions. Rather than zooming in, for the sake of it, by example.
So, with that in mind, doing the reverse of what you are querying, namely avoiding showing her bum, or the like, when there is a good (artistic or storyline) reason to do so, is Prude / Censor / Political Correctness Service. That I disapprove of intensely. So long as the scene remains natural, in context, I see no harm in choosing interesting angles. There is nothing wrong with seeing pretty bums.
Nice analysis. But I have a counter argument.
You see, there’s a meta-reason for ass framing, and cleavage framing: Dabbler’s feromones. So having the focus of the comic shift towards “fan-servicy” shots, would just emulate the effect of said power. This isn’t that much different to terry pratchett having the Death of the Universe using a whole page to say “NO”. It’s a meta-device
Solidly argued. If Sydney can step outside the fourth wall for comedic purposes, there is no reason why a similarly powerful technique cannot be used to emphasise Dabbler’s unique properties. Film can use cameras with special lenses, and other effects such as a dolly zoom to help convey an emotion, or some unseen feeling. There is no reason why DaveB should not use corresponding techniques to convey such here too.
Her attractiveness and visual sex appeal, Dave can draw. But the supernaturally induced succubus urges go beyond that. And he should feel free to use every tool in the box, to carry that impression. On one paw, it can be viewed as a comedic form of trademark. Like Tim the Toolman’s neighbour Wilson’s face always being hidden, when he is looking over the fence. Or, in the Big Bang Theory, the way Wolowiz’s mother is never seen on camera. But working the opposite way round. Showing something rather than avoiding it.
But, on the other paw, it allows Dave to have more control over the emotional impact a scene will have on the viewer. Again, going into a movie analogy, directors can use the musical score to help manipulate the emotions. And our society is very used to the immersive experiences that are created as a result of these cumulative effects. Making it much harder for a purely visual and static medium to compete.
What you are proposing is akin to Alfred Hitchcock’s use of shadows. A powerful tool that could be used to very great effect. A seriously good idea.
It particularly appeals to me, because it would subvert the decades long practice of needing to have some convenient obstacle blocking the view of any naughty bits, for example. Although, taking it to it’s logical conclusion, would require changing the rating. Which could impact reader numbers and potential revenues. But, even keeping it tasteful, it would still be a clever idea.
I do not know about everyone else, but I would strongly recommend running with that, myself. And it would allow DaveB to get in his practice drawing bums. I am sure we, the fans, could make the sacrifice. Call it artist’s service. ;-)
Just as long as we get to see plenty of guy butts too *grin*
I am sure Dabbler would insist on it!
Sydney (& quite a few other gals) got a good dose of male chest-service back at HQ, via Harem pulling a Half Monty on them. But for the sake of the female readership, I’d agree on this current point too.
I’m sorry, but all I could imagine while reading your posts were two guys in top hats and monocles.
:-D
One tries to give such monologues a veneer of respectability.
*polishes manacle, and rides off on unicycle*
Yorp why are you polishing a handcuff?
his date with syd. she needs some restraint in formal settings like the opera. it’s also how he will get her there.
Heh. I missed this yesterday. It is a typo that occurred because I am sitting in an armchair, of course. *
* Just in case the logic escapes you, fairly recently my chair broke. Given options like renew my ISP payments for another year, or get a new chair, I decided that there would not be much point sitting in front of a PC that had no internet access. So I did what everybody in Bulgaria gets used to doing, I improvised.
The armchair is very comfortable, but is not at the right height to sit at my PC station. And being too close would put me at a bad angle for long computer sessions. Sitting further back solves that, but makes it hard or even impossible to read things on default settings. Fortunately I do have a reasonable sized monitor, so simply set up everything to display larger.
Sadly some things are not compatible with the ease of access settings. So, in certain circumstances, and combinations of windows, I have to occasionally change the zoom scale on my browser. Or I can turn on the magnifier option. I am still experimenting with what works best. When I typed that I did not have the best of settings, so I must have not been able to make out the spell-check suggestion properly, when picking it from the list.
Hopefully I will optimise my set up before I accidentally fanglfaffle somebody with my typifflefes.
Monocles & monologues, eh? There just MAY be the beginnings of a meme there…or something.
Sounds about right for an RPG title as well.
Seconded, and I didn’t even read the whole of them *chuckles*
Dabbler just had to have that little fox charm dangling from the wildest sword I’ve seen in a long time.
I just looked at the first appearance of Dabbler’s sword. The charm was already hanging from it.
A veirhander?
Isn’t that Zhweihander? Probably spelt it wrong but sure it’s spelt with a ‘z’ not a ‘v’
Zwei is German for “two” – “fier” is German for “four”. Feirhander – four-hander.
(“Hand” is the German word for “hand”. German is the single larger contributor to the ridiculous mashup that we call English.)
Actually, 4 is “vier” in German, although in most cases the “v” sounds exactly like an “f” if it’s the first letter of the word.
Also, the plural of “Hand” is “Hände”. If finding the “ä” on your keyboard is too difficult, you can also use “ae”.
Thus the correct german words would be “Zweihänder” and “Vierhänder”, although the latter one doesn’t really exist as a weapon and is rather used as an obscure description for primates.
Yup. Zweihander is German for “two-hander”. Vierhander is German for “four-hander”.
Thank you both, I knew the spelling was off.
Didn’t change the outfit cause it works…. Barely contained succubus boobs is how Dabbler rolls…
One a separate note… since Halo says she cant transform, instantly means one of the two unknown orbs is a transformation orb….
Into what though.
A cube?
No, a pretzel
A loaf of bread that tries to twist fate is, in fact, a pretzel.
I thought that was money?
A Cuboctahedron. Sydney is actually a Kelvan from the Andromeda galaxy. She is just here visiting in order to gain knowledge for the upcoming invasion. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/By_Any_Other_Name
(Just don’t let her near any Saurian brandy)
Into a cute little bunny with firebreath
That’s not a transformation, that’s reverting to her true form.
I think you just cracked this case (comic) wide open! It explains everything. One of the ‘mystery’ orbs just allows Sydney to appear human.
If we knew why a rabbit was scuba diving off the keys (they’re islands…) we’d know much more about the universe than we do.
I like the way you think.
the orbs actualy where included in the treasure grail questing knights carried prior to miss reading the instructions for the holy hand grenade outside sydneys home.
If you could figure out why 42 is the answer to the Ultimate Question, then you would already know the universe, inside & out.
I do.
I’d be willing to bet that it took more than 7-1/2 million years of Deep Thought to figure it out…
8
You actually got that far without your doghouse being wiped out to build a hyperspace bypass?…
You just need to have a word with the mice and get them to pay the rent.
*Looks at Yorp with a mousetail sticking out of his mouth*
Hmm?
Bad Adamas! Spit out that mouse right now. He is a respected scientist conducting a large scale test and should not be eaten. He is probably peeing himself in fright right now.
*Makes Puppy dog eyes at Yorp* But they taste so good!
That’s easy. He’s looking for telemarketers to attack.
Note: while I was thinking of John Ringo’s Council War series, he evidently got the idea from from Sluggy Freelance.
very good!
why?
Maybe there’s some sort condition on being able to transform. Given her lack of patience, she probably gave up before she figured it out.
I get the impression Dabbler looks at Sydney like a little sister in some ways. She likes her even if she’s “a bit” annoying. Even the way she teases her is different than most people. I can help but think she thought this girl reminds me of me when I was younger during the meeting.
Maybe its me, but hasn’t Sydney let go of the shield orb ?
Sorry – I’d pretty much super glue that one to my hand if I could …
She still has it in her hands.
If you check the orbs above her head you will find it missing there.
It’s in her hand when she is making the air quotes in panel four. Sydney’s arms are folded in panel six so the orb is by her elbow out of sight.
O.o. Had to do a double-take. I thought Dabbler was pulling that sword out of her pants.
you’re not the only one
Wait? She didn’t? (squints) Oh, right.
Well magicians pull rabbits out of their hats all the time.
And look at Tom Baker’s version of the Doctor. After a while of watching him, you expected him to pull a starship out of his pocket after a while.
That incarnation of Doctor Who is the reason I’ve been obsessed with clothes with lots of functional pockets from childhood on. Cargo pants ftw!
He is the standard to whom all other incarnations should be compared. And most fall short of that lofty standard.
Agreed. As Leon correctly answered during his nerd test: Fezes and Bowties? Also cool. But improbably long scarves? 20% cooler.
“How did you get out?”
“Through the hole in the back.”
“There isn’t a hole in the back!”
*brandishes the sonic screwdriver* “There is now!”
No toolkit is complete if it lacks a sonic screwdriver. However, you might need to have some good woodworking tools to compliment your toolbox inventory…
yeah, that took a second look for me too.
Thought that as well at first. Wouldn’t have been out of character for her though.
Oh wait, that would be out of someone else’s pants. My bad.
Wouldn’t put it past her to actually play that one.
It certainly looked like it, at first glance. Rather disconcerting. I suspect that, viewed from Heavenly Sword’s angle, it looks even more like she is doing just that. And that Dabbler probably did it on purpose, as a tease.
“Is that my sword or are you just happy to see me?”
Dabbler sure looks like she’s happy to see her own sword…
What? Wait…
it doesn’t help that if it was suggested to her, she’d probably start doing it that way for laughs and lewdness
Sticking their tongues out at each other in panel six. Kids, play nice. And don’t forget you’re entertaining a guest.
Heh, I did not notice that Halo was reciprocating. She really need not have bothered. Humans just can’t compete with what Succubi can do with their tongues!
When it comes to being silly, nobody out does Sydney. But Dabbler is pretty close. Those two as BFFs could make the Multiverse tremble.
I thought I remembered these two goofing around earlier.
https://davebarrack.deviantart.com/art/Unrelated-siblings-328228435
Check out the title of the piece. I wonder if Maxima realises she is a mom now?
Soon enough, she missed that particular interaction at the interview, or just ignored it. When they start acting like that full-time (see this month’s incentive picture) she’s gonna be giving out time outs left and left and right and right. And left and right.
Everyone keeps forgetting “A + B”
Is that a Spinny reference? Whatever it is from, I am not getting it, I am afraid.
konami up up down down left right left right b a and if I put in the last the universe shatters from the power of dabs halo and the code.
I completely missed that. Oh well, accidental humor is still OK.
Oh console reference, thanks. I did have an X-Box, but I realised that it was cutting too much into time that I should be spending contemplating the universe. So I gave it away to a friend. Mind you I was awful with the more complex finishing moves and other combos. Typically I could only handle the full set for only one of the heroes, in fighting games.
Any of the other characters I would just have to make do with their basic moves and maybe one special. I just got frustrated with trying complex moves and not pulling them off. I have not missed those games from that day until now. But am getting a slight nostalgia twinge, now that I think back on it.
Yeah, was terrible at trying to figure out the special moves as well (even doing the special move from the orignal Street Fighter typically required switching arms around), mostly resorted to using the basic moves and not letting the AI have a chance to Special Move me
Ohh just noticed, Dabbler just hammer spaced from infront of herself….. is that allowed?? I though it was behind back of other object…. cant just drag it out in full view….
She has many different kinds of hammer space I guess
She is showing off. And the sword is either not teleported from her lab or she is using illusions to intimidate a bit.
her arm’s teleporter was used for the Railbow. Reaver was Magically Summoned
Agreed. Dabbler has multiple redundancy. Capable of doing her core powers in multiple different ways. If somebody uses an anti-magic field to stop her summoning the sword, she uses her cybernetic implant to teleport a gun. Or vice versa, in the event of a teleportation dampening effect (or if inside of Halo’s shield).
Unlike many heroes or villains, who can be incapacitated if you know how they activate their powers, she is very hard to counter.
actually I just figured Reaver was a magical construct. So it’d make sense to Summon it rather than use a Mat-Trans system.
Chance of Lil’ Miss 100% Pure Swordplay about to find that out the hard way?
Let’s get dangerous?
Dan-Ger-Ous
Now I want a close up off the sword
I just want the sword…
I’d like Dabbler.
Dibs on Sydney. With her permission.
The line forms behind me.
Well looks like I will be taking H.S.
Dat comment – with this avatar O.o
I would call dibs on Maxima, except I’m not suicidal. ;) So I’ll call them on Harem instead.
Which one?
Isn’t All of her pretty much the entire point? I’ll let you work out what her hero name implies in that context.
I call Peggy, Or Anvil if Peggy’s called for ;)
You need backup. I volunteer.
That brings up the question of what results you would have to suffer from actually `taking`Dabbler.
Referring to her being part succubus. I`d like to keep my sould in once piece and all that after all…
Fortunately, the only price for Sydney is sanity. And we live in close enough states of mind that it would be an acceptable sacrifice for me.
Oh. My. LORD!
Once again, I am reminded of why I love that woman/demon/succubus.
WOW!
How often have you loved her by now? And how much of your soul did you pay with?
HAHAHA, I love the little cat keychain thing on the sword.
Really cute.
Heavenly Sword didn’t press her attack while Dabbler transformed and said her spiel, allowing the latter to summon her sword. And how polite of her to break up the conversation rather than attacking while both D and Halo were distracted.
(But, to be fair, this is the first time she encountered D and didn’t know what she was up to, thus she was probably being cautious.)
DaveB explained how strong Dabbler is and we know she has sword fighting experience. However, I can’t shake the feeling that a sword fight favors HS and that D is letting her pride lead her into a disadvantageous situation.
If all Dabbler had was a sword, I’d agree. But she has magic and ultra-tech (if there’s an effective difference). So H.S. is liable to get hit out of left field by something extra.
That’s actually a good point. “Transforming” and drawing her sword could just be a distraction for what she really plans to do.
She is also quiet adept in magic, she may just dispel the energy sword.. but probably just beat HS fair n square then dispel HS’s sword just to hit home that she could have beaten her at any time…
If the energy sword is magical in origin. Which it probably is not. Whilst magic may be able to dispel super powers in this world, normally magic dispels magic. If so the super power would not be affected by that particular technique. But, doubtless, there are other magical options that she can use to counter the attack. For instance the spell ‘sticky air’ might stop Heavenly from swinging the shinai and invoking her power.
So I would certainly agree with your principle, that Dabbler can use magic, in addition to her sword fighting. Which I think would be a good idea, as she has already lost both an eye and an arm to superior sword fighters. Although she might have improved a lot since those losses.
Effectively Dabbler is 2 fighters (4 arms & 2x strength) add in magic and tech no contest really. Skill will only take you so far. A Samurai is a highly skilled warrior but not much of challenge to a recruit fresh out of boot-camp with a modern automatic weapon.
Or Billybob from the back woods
or Jamal from the hood and so on
Strength and number of attacks with a sword counts for nothing, if an opponent can strike you down from a distance. And Heavenly has already attempted that once. Even though, it does indeed now look like, she is patiently waiting for a sword fight. But she may have the superior speed, skill and defensive capability to avoid Dabbler’s blows. So I would not write her off just yet.
That’s actually not really a fair comparison, and you know it. Sure, a recruit straight out of boot camp can make mincemeat of the mighty samurai…but that’s only if the samurai fights on the recruit’s terms. If the samurai can catch the recruit in melee combat, the equation changes enormously. Sure, the recruit might still win, but that contest is skill against skill, so the recruit might not win.
Ultimately, combat is about developing ways to use your existing skill set while preventing your opponent from using theirs. An automatic rifle gives the user a new skill set to use, and can prevent aforesaid samurai from using theirs…but if the samurai CAN use theirs, the fight gets a lot more even. Technology has made that enormously difficult, but not impossible…and remember, Dabbler is fighting on her opponent’s chosen terms, so even with her superior strength and tech, she could be at something of a disadvantage here.
So…yeah, this could be fun times for Dabbler.
Tech does not always win a battle or a war. In the 1980s the Soviets were in Afghanistan fighting against troops armed with bolt action rifles and muzzle loaders. It wasn’t until arms were captured and the US finally started supplying arms that the tech battle was more even. Knowing your skills and your enemy is the most important in a battle.
Fir those wondering; those Mujaheddin are the ones now known as Al Qaeda. (The enemy of my enemy is my enemies enemy, nothing more nothing less).
We sent in agents to deliver lots of nifty weapons and the agents told them “Now go use these to kill all the infidels”. And they replied “Why thank you, Mr. infidel.”
Yep.
And that should have been for not fir. (Stupid typos).
Dave, the Blue vamp ate the souls of other Vamps. (Everything must have a predator after all) ;)
So who predatored the blue vampire without chin?
Everything else, but especially Kain and the Lord of Time.
The Legacy of Kain/ Soul Reaver series ran from 1996 – 2003 across five games. It may not be Mario, but that’s not a bad run. The trick with identifying them by name as a series is that it runs under two different sets of titles following two different protagonists, two games to each, and the fifth game follows both Kain and Raziel. I always thought it was a nice touch that Kain, the protagonist of the first game, was the big bad of the second.
Well yeah, Kain got pissy and ripped the bones out of Raziel’s wings out and threw him into a river because he didn’t get them first. And then broke his sword over Raziel’s head. (Talk about being hard headed.)
The games of the series are (as named on the spines of the packaging:
Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain (where Kain is a conventional vampire and the Soul Reaver is the game’s best sword)
Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver (thousands of years later with both Kain’s sword, and the blue guy, who ends up with the ghost of Kain’s sword when it “dies”)
Soul Reaver 2 (with the blue guy, the spirit sword, and the original physical sword thanks to taking place in the distant past)
Blood Omen 2 (Kain, in an alternate timeline, trying to get his sword back from the game’s villain)
Legacy of Kain – Defiance (Kain and the blue guy, armed with physical and spirit swords respectively working centuries apart from each other to empower their blade(s) and defeat an “elder god”)
It’s not exactly obvious from the titles that they’re all one series – particularly SR2 and BO2 – and, with the time-travel elements in three of the games (technically, the final cutscene of SR also involves time-travel to setup for SR2) the whole thing gets a bit timey-wimey, but, while the gameplay is a bit uninspired (pretty much a straight Metroidvania), the story and characters are better than average, and the blue guy’s switching between physical and spiritual realms (the latter being a twisted mirror of the physical) adds a twist to the puzzle solving and exploration in his games.
All but the first are available through Steam and GOG, though the PC version of Soul Reaver is plagued by bugs that make it more-or-less unplayable if they kick in – I’ve yet to beat the third(?) boss (the spider guy) on the PC version – the game crashed out on me rather than playing the victory cutscene and crashed out whenever I tried to reach the boss from my previous save…
And it’s also worthy of note that, in that series (of which I played and completed every entry, and enjoyed for the story and characters), the Soul Reaver is… a sword. Well, and a soul-devouring wraith. Who is… trapped in the sword. Oh.
Didn’t the end of Defiance show that the Wraith in the Soul Reaver sword was actually Raziel the “Reaver of Souls”, trapped in the form of a sword and sent back in time until Kain shattered it on Raziel?
Talk about your time mobius strips.
yeah, when I found that out I took my migraine medicine and went to bed for 2 days from the headache.
People always say that when referring to time-travel conundrums, but I never seem to have that problem…I grock it just fine. Might have something to do with how early I was watching Doctor Who.
Or like in Red Dwarf, don’t want to post spoilers of any kind, but look for the episode dealing with “Rob or Ross” and how Lister was found under a pool table
I like most time-travel stories. And love the Red Dwarf ones. The JFK one in particular. The beauty being that it holds together so consistently. You really could see it playing out that way. Which is comedy at it’s best.
See One Foot in the Grave for examples of what I mean about that. Take a normal every day circumstance, throw in some wild co-incidence, stir and let the natural results play out in a believable fashion.
The sword is a soul devouring wraith trapped in sword form? That is almost exactly what Stormbringer was. I wonder if Moorcock ever considered filing suit for that obvious ripoff of his work.
Even Moorcock wrote of more than ONE soul-devouring sword…I’d guess he could only sue if DaveB used Moorcock’s NAMES that he gave to his soul-devouring swords. This is why name-brands are always more expensive than than generic brands…The customer always winds up paying more simply because of a certain name being attached to a product, not because of the inherent value of the product itself.
Those two are gonna be the reason for Maxia’s first grey hair. A smart kid and an immortal demon both with low boredom thresholds and high drama quotients. Any time a boring day at Archon gets abruptly unboring, Max will know who to to yell for.
First thing to do is check if it is any of the five other suspects. Harem, Harem, Harem, Harem or possibly Harem.
Max is already coping with this problem.
But Sydney seems to put them all in one package.
That is quite the suspect list. I’d suggest we add some diversity to it but…
To quote the Portal Turret: “I’m different!”
Well, Harem COULD present herself in a single-package form, but is generally loathe to do so…
This also belongs here.
https://davebarrack.deviantart.com/art/Unrelated-siblings-328228435
I have an alarm set on my phone to remind me or wake me up when to come check for new comics.
It’s Our Lady Peace – “4am”. I wish it was a more upbeat or superhero-y based song, but the song title is just too apt.
You should use the Imperial March
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-bzWSJG93P8
LOVE the little charm attached on the hilt of the sword. even more with him being a derpy plushie lol
also “SORRY I FORGOT YOU” hehe
“Meet Soul Reaver. I’ll try not to sheath it in your heart.”
Something tells me she may not try very hard.
No shes gonna sheath it in the lung
How about once through the entire length? Starting up or down.
You mean like really `sticking it`to her? Akin to the medieval torture/punishment method?
That would be overdoing it, even for Dabs.
He he. Dabbler does have style.
Alright I finally have to comment. I just can’t believe how good your artwork has become. I mean the second and third panel are easily up to the standards of the Greats like Marvel and DC in all pencil, ink and coloring. Just unbelievable. Keep up the awesome.
Welcome out of the shadows. And I agree that there is a certain awesomeness to DaveB‘s art.
Thanks! I was pretty pleased with those panels as well. It’s too bad I can’t draw big like that all the time. :)
Yup. Bave is getting better and better. His art is catching up with his writing. Soon he will be Awesome!
Whoops. Misspelling! My bad! I would have to mess up the name. Duh!
Yup. Dave is getting better and better. His art is catching up with his writing. Soon he will be Awesome!
Of course Dabbler has a puppet charm on her sword… that’s adorable! This looks promising..
If Dabbler unhooks it and tosses it at someone, it will either be a Mega-Pookie, wrapping them in fuzzy hugs or a Barsoomian banth with a hangover.
I’d postulate something like a Forest Lord, from the school of Life wizardry in the MMO called “Wizard101.” Now, THAT’S a mega-pookie!
Ladies. Ladies! LADIES!!! A little battle decorum, please. Besides, you don’t want the lime jello to get cold, do you?
Um, if it wasn’t cold, wouldn’t jello just be a mass of collagen-laden, colored, sugar water?
The Sword (capitals intended), right from hammerspace, even with visuals.
Dabber sure has drama-talent and / – sense. At least if Syd doesn’t screw it up.
This begs the question, “is Dabbler wearing a corset, or is she just keeping the illusion of the corset, despite having dropped the rest of the illusion?” Personally I think it is the latter, because Dabbler is clever, and I would expect her to do that. She does it so that her cover story of ‘transforming into a battle form’ is not seen through as being a lie. If her clothing changed, it would weaken the impression of her shape-changing and imply illusion as being more likely.
It also remains consistent to my reply, about her popping out of her corset, on the previous issue.
Well it is possible that she’s wearing something other than her usual tiny pieces of fabric
But yea, I like your idea of an illusion over and illusion better
She sometimes wears fabric? Now that had not occurred to me. ;-)
I consider it to be a serious concession on Dabbler’s part that a succubus would even consider wearing ANY kind of clothing at all…
https://yousuckthecomic.com/go/1
**Notice*** Nudity & adult content depicted in artwork & text
I noticed, after panels 4-6, Dabby still has her head connected to her neck. Yep, everybody was right about Heavenly Sword being honorable when it comes to rules of engagement.
There is something that puzzles me. When Sydney first saw through Dabbler’s illusion spell, she yelled “Demon!” Now we have Heavenly Sword’s reaction, and she sees Dabbler as being “demony”. I don’t understand why people have that reaction.
When I look at Dabbler she looks like an alien to me. I don’t think “demon” would ever occur to me. She’s got four arms, her hands only have three fingers on them, and she’s got antenna sticking out from the side of her head at eyebrow level. Those are the features I notice.
She doesn’t look much like your classic middle-ages Demon. She’s got the horns, and she does have hooves, but without the ungulate legs to go with them, she’s missing the tail, and she’s the wrong color. Dabbler is also missing spikes, sharp edges, or anything that makes her look overtly menacing, which are the things I associate with less “classic” demons.
Compare her to the critter in the page where we first see her sword. He looks like a Demon!
Why do people see Dabbler as demonic when they first see her real form?
Cultural programming. Easier to believe in creatures banished to the core of the Earth (Talk about stupid prison design) than life on other worlds.
Her reaction may be tempered by her discipline as a fighter, or we may be drifting into the fan-fic first date situation instead of ‘An enemy!’ territory since, you know, Succubus.
She may be giving off some vibe that influences people aside from her succubi nature. Creeping them out at a distance instead of charming them.
I appreciate your point, and do agree. But there have only been two instances, so others might yet jump to a different conclusion. And there are more possibilities than just ‘demon’ or ‘alien’, for that matter. Although, once the media settles on a particular origin idea, and propagates it, that will probably contaminate the ‘first impressions’ that everyone has subsequently.
But compare the two most common stereotypes, and see which has the greatest likeness:
Alien – Big black eyes, grey skin and bulbous bald head.
Demon – Horns, hooves, red skin and barbed tail.
Stargate SG-1 made aliens grey instead of green… Now it is accepted as TRUTH. Never doubt the ability of the fandom to alter reality.
It is another instance of popularised, rather than created. They did nothing new with Greys, they were just using an already fairly common meme. Yes, the typical phrase to refer to aliens was “little green men”, but I can recall depictions of Greys going back at least a couple of decades before Stargate (1994).
And that was not niche appearances, but mainstream. For example, in Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977), if talking about the full package of associated features. But if just running with the grey colour you can go all the way back to H.G.Wells.
It’s the horns and cloven feet, which are obviously not pictured on this page, though you make a good point. It would be funny if Dabbler transformed and someone yelled out something like “Wendigo!” since there’s little consensus on what various fantasy monsters look like.
Always figured a Wendigo to be sort of like a Sasquatch (but then again, you also had a Wendigo in Exiern)
Antenna? Always took thos to be her ears! o_O
At least, they aren’t 2 foot long eyebrows, pointy enough to be used as weapons themselves
Her antennas extend from her ears. Dabbler used those to probe Dave’s mind in her first Science Corner after Harem asked about Sydney’s tube content reveal (and Dave said it is a canon ability).
Yeah, you can see the antenna at the tips of her eye-ears
soul reaver isn’t about a typical vampire, the character in that game is more about “sucking” in the souls of freshly defeated foes to maintain his physical form- he turned into his soul form should he run out of life and the area would change as the spirit realm and living realm were two different places in this game- and extending the time he could live as a spirit without a physical body before disappearing which made some of the later levels really annoying to actually get through.
Sword people always do that… name the sword (or other kind of weapon) something that’s supposed to invoke awe
how about going the other way?
think about it, a kanata, perfectly crafted by a master, beautifully decorated in the traditional style….
named “Nacho Bob” …. for no apparent reason…
You don’t think a sword named “Nacho Bob” would inspire awe? I don’t know about you, but any weapon known for making nachos out of people is pretty intimidating to me!
Katzbalger: “Another theory is that the word derives from balgen (brawling), and refers to intense, close-quarter combat like fights between feral cats. The most common translation is “cat-gutter”, with an allusion to cat fight.”
A class of swords not a name for a sword, but still fits your idea.
Is “Sting” downplayed enough?
Ever seen the Sting on a Tarantula Hawk?
Nope. Does a tarantula hawk taste like prawns or chicken?
Doubt it, but its sting is huge and it is the second-most painful insect sting/bite in the world, after the bullet ant.
Interesting. An extract from the Wikipedia entry:
“Justin O. Schmidt, a researcher from Arizona, developed a hymenopteran sting pain scale, now known as the Schmidt sting pain index. In this index, a 0 is given to a sting from an insect that can not break through human skin, a 2 is given for intermediate pain, and a 4 is given for intense pain
…tarantula hawks, have a sting rating of 4. The sting is described as “blinding, fierce, and shockingly electric. A running hair dryer has been dropped into your bubble bath.“
https://xkcd.com/883/
Yeah, that’s the problem with being told to “imagine the worst pain ever” as opposed to “compared to the worst pain you have ever experienced so far”
Trouble is, even if you do it properly objectively and scientifically, you can still get that kind of result.
what about the cow or yak killer wasps?
Probably a 4 as well. but worse, since even non-allergic humans can be killed by a few stings.
the sting on a Tarantula Hawk can reach about 1/3 of an inch long which is huge for insects in general but the most well known species of Tarantula Hawk reaches about 2 inches long, so it would be a foot long if the wasp was Human sized. (It’s what the Cazador in FO:NV is based on.)
Sting is a The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings ref. It’s the ‘short’ sword the hobbits (Bilbo Baggins and his heir Frodo Baggins) use. (ironic quotes around short because it’s only short/ a long knife for human/elf sized people. It’s a sword for hobbits)
One time I played ina D&D game where there was a samurai, and the names of his daisho set translated into “Look out banana-head!” and “the butcher of lawyers”.
point for you! xD +1
In River of the Dancing Gods by Jack Chalker the barbarian (Joe) is given the chance to name an unnamed magical sword, an act which will set the character of that sword from that time on.
He names it Irving. Because he always wanted a kid named Irving…
The person he’s fighting, who told him about the naming, is so stunned and appalled he immediately gets run through.
Wish I had seen you post before I made mine =) Jinx!
:)
Being a smart arse, I would have been tempted to name it Linnaeus. But if it did grant literal magical properties, based on it;s name, then I would have been more conventional. Say “Invincible” or “Granter of limitless numbers of benignly interpreted wishes of infinite power, to my wielder, once I have discussed the implications with him, and he has confirmed that he really want it. Also known as Jenny”.
Linneus.
No, he actually does have a kid named Irving.
Oops, quite right, Irving was his son, not just a name he liked. I read that book on first paperback release – it’s been a while…
I have to say, though, that a magic sword named ‘Irving’ just rocks.
Irving- means “White”, “Friend”, “Boar Friend” or “Green Water” depending.
So did the sword gain defensive ice powers?
No but the avatar of a boar deity danced through the white water and started humping his leg in an overly-friendly fashion.
How about the “Dancing Gods” series by Jack Chalker? The main character is given the last un-named elven sword and he names it Irving.
That should be “a buttload of butts”. While I don’t know how many butts will fit in a butt, I do know that a butt is half a tun. Google ’em.
Exactly one butt can fit in a butt and it forms the whole of the butt. Group theory.
But are you telling the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth? Word play.
Sort of puts another layer of meaning to the term, “two-tun butt.”
Holy space llama! It’s been a while since we last saw Dabbler in all her purpleness. I haven’t really thought about it before, but seeing a character (or…well, a form of a character) that hasn’t been seen for a while really drove home how much better your art has gotten lately. I used to be comparatively underwhelmed by your Dabbler drawings, but this is fantastic stuff. Best drawn webcomic I know of by a mile.
Almost good enough for me not to mention that panel 3 kinda makes it look like Dabbler is pulling her sword out of her pants, but that’s just too funny to keep to myself.
Max kept telling Dabbler to keep it in her pants. This was the inevitable result.
And now the ceiling falls on Dabbler.
HS is in for a pretty rude awakening.
out of the two of them, Heaven is the one with any real skill/talent with a sword
Quite the opposite. Dabble does not consider herself an expert. By her own admission she has lost an eye and a limb (in separate fights) to better swordsmen/swords-women/sword-users.
That by no means says that she is unskilled. She is still alive after all. And may or may not have studied the sword for a mere 100 years (time is relative based on your lifespan after all).
I hope so. All I have to do is blink and a decade has zipped by.
I’m gonna start improvising with matchsticks or something.
By the way, I assume that you meant to reply to nikolai60, rather than Guesticus? It does rather change the start of your comment, depending on which you actually were responding to. Given that they have opposing views.
“I hope so. All I have to do is blink and a decade has zipped by.”
You & Rip Van Winkle, dude…
Just because she is still around, does not mean she won using a sword
Realizing that supers have only been outed comparitively recently, and that the public is still coming to grips with the idea …
Since there are supers with illusory and/or shape-shifting abilities out and around, seems to me that most of the public will soon be accustomed to supers who look like pretty much anything they choose – literary characters, mythological beasts, etc., etc..
So a super who LOOKS demonic or alien (and there will be many who go for “that look” even if they aren’t), or even simply claims to be such, will probably not get that big a reaction.
“Eh, it’s just another super. I’ve seen the William Shatner look done much MUCH better than that …“
I’m curious. Is Dabbler left handed? In the last panel, she is holding the sword with both left hands and her upper right hand. In the last strip, she was holding a shield spell with her right hand and a smaller spell ready in her right hand.
“smaller spell ready in her left hand”
Given Dabbler’s , background, anatomy and her immense range of (known) er …. personal eccentricities, I suspect that handedness is (for her) “nothing but a thing”.
Probably multi-dexterous. But bear in mind that a good martial arts instructor will override your handedness preference. At the time that I started to receive my martial arts training, I had recently, badly, broken my left arm. Obviously it had healed enough for me to be certified fit to fight, but I still used it as an excuse for favouring my right hand.
My instructor would have none of it. And made me use left handed attacks in preference, until he had broken my habit. After which I used either, at will. Although some martial arts (say boxing) can be used effectively using just the one, there is advantage in being able to switch unexpectedly. And other styles require being able to use both equally, or you will be vulnerable to opponents who are properly trained.
To me, this is the most memorable swordfight in film.
Definitely agree.
Certainly has my vote as one of the greatest ever movie swordfights.
I’m imagining it, I’m imagining!
HS had her sword for a while in the fight, dabbler only drew hers after finding HS’s sword based power.
Which begs the question: what does Dabblers sword do?
It has to have at least either magic or tech aspects if not both.
It’s a 5 foot bar of steel for openers. That alone could wreck anything without substantial protection. Add in razor sharp edges and a pointy tip and you make armored knights nervous. Ultra-tech and would seem to be overkill. Of we all know what they say about overkill. Always room for one more sneaky trick.
Ultra-tech and magic…
“No, I’d say it’s just enough kill.”
–Spike in season 2 of Buffy the Vampire Slayer (can’t remember which episode).
A 5 foot bar of steel may look impressive, but it’s intended use is as a can opener. Cleavers were designed for the sole purpose of cutting through heavily armored opponents. Against a light and fast opponent, the mass makes them unwieldy and clumsy, you’d be lucky to land a hit.
Frankly, although it would look much less cool, dabbler would be more effective wielding daggers.
She could use up to 3 to catch and block the opponent, and still have a free blade for stabbing.
We are leaving out the magic/tech aspects of the sword. Inertial control letting Dabbler flick it around like a foil. Monomolecular edges for shaving electrons off atoms. Adding or subtracting mass held in a pocket of space-time. The possibility the sword is self-aware and can handle a fight with minimal input from the user. I doubt that last, those swords are worse than rabid weasels for bloodthirsty attitudes.
And tend to be crazier than a room full of sugared Sydneys
Hmmm. Honey-Dipped Halo… sweet and spicy. Unfortunately the side effect of getting your tongue yanked down to your knees makes it a little too spicy for most.
*being rolled away on a stretcher*
buh ith tathes soo gooh!!
“Totally worth it!”
Braver souls than I. I’ll mention your names at the doors of Valhalla, if I need to get by the bouncer.
Just as a side note, the Soul Reaver games are part of the Legacy of Kain series and while the game itself is a perfectly enjoyable, but basic Tomb Raider style game, the story is awesome and I would recommend it for anyone who enjoys a good plot.
Oh, and bizarrely, the reason he is blue is because he was killed and has now returned from limbo to exact his revenge on Kain, and now feeds on the souls of his victims, rather than their blood ;)
Soul Reaver https://img4.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20120707151220/legacyofkain/images/3/30/Defiance-Promotional-Morelok-F.jpg
“short lived video game franchise” Short lived? Over 5 games spanning 7 years https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Legacy_of_Kain and now (unfortunately) a F2P MMO https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nosgoth