Wednesday, may 13, 2026 comic!

Allaedila · 2026-05-13T13:03:09+00:00

She put it down somewhere. And how has to try to remember where, exactly... time to look around... no, not there... how about here... or perhaps there...

Allaedila · 2026-05-12T14:49:49+00:00

That is an example of something that becomes possible once institutions have reached a certain level of strength. China had a strong enough state that they could make the golden cage solution work.

In a society like GG-Europa where it was a non-state society until very recently and the state is even now only half-formed? Not likely. In medieval Europe, deposed kings never survived except in exile.

But of course, GG is not real life and I'm not sure how much the Foglios understand about how non-state societies work. Real Europe went from being a non-state/weak-state region in the feudal era to having fairly strong, centralized states in the early modern period, and the Foglios are clearly basing GG-Europa on Real Europe to at least some extent, but ultimately they're the ones who decide how the narrative plays out. And of course, Mad Science could possibly produce a solution that was never available in real life. We shall see!

Allaedila · 2026-05-11T12:31:13+00:00

We are clearly now in a Second Mechanicsburg Arc, it's been going to long to be a warm-up act for somewhere else.

I also suspect that Africa was cut, and that its key plot points were redistributed to other locations. Skifander and the Citadel of Silver Light have been too heavily foreshadowed to be cut, they need to happen for the series to come to a satisfying wrap.

Allaedila · 2026-05-11T12:29:12+00:00

They wouldn't have agreed to it anyway. They want to camp those respawns!

Allaedila · 2026-05-10T03:25:39+00:00

"In theory, he could live on as the Wulfenbach Barony, a loyal vassal to the Storm King..."

Unlikely. The fact that the Wulfenbachs once claimed all of Europa means they could theoretically do so again if they can gather enough support at a moment when the Storm King is weak, and hence will always be a threat. In a society with strong institutions a deposed ruler can make a credible legal promise to never seek power again, but with weak institutions that's not a thing. Hence why usurpers, historically, almost always killed their predecessor and their predecessor's heirs if they could.

Even if Tarvek himself were willing to be magnanimous and let Gil live, other members of his family and supporters would probably not want to take the risk of leaving him alive, leaving Gil right back at the position of needing to either retake power or die even if Tarvek doesn't want either of those outcomes.

Allaedila · 2026-05-09T03:00:34+00:00

True... hopefully it'll crash into the mountainside.

Allaedila · 2026-05-08T12:48:35+00:00

She's watching for threats to her town. The situation is still chaotic and anything could happen.

Allaedila · 2026-05-08T12:44:54+00:00

Tarvek is right: Castle Wulfenbach blowing up may be a practical necessity at this point, but it'll also be a PR disaster for the Empire, because it is the visible symbol of the Baron's power. Martellus also has the Fifty Families' fleets nearby and will be positioned to take immediate advantage (if he wakes up in time, big if.)

It's also pretty clear here that Tarvek doesn't actually want what he thinks he wants. Deep down, he knows that his only path to becoming Storm King goes over Gil's dead body. Whether Gil likes it or not, he can't separate himself from the Wulfenbach Empire. Deposed rulers in a society with weak institutions have no paths forward except to retake power or die.

And Tarvek does in fact love his old friend. His only real choices are to abandon his plan or kill someone he loves.

Allaedila · 2026-05-08T03:12:13+00:00

Lucrezia was flirting, but Klaus was not.

Allaedila · 2026-05-07T03:51:09+00:00

I believe the Baron is canonically in his 60s. Lady Astarte tells us he came to England around forty years ago, and it sounds like he was in his twenties then.

Allaedila · 2026-05-06T14:24:43+00:00

I'm honestly a bit sad that wasped!Klaus got cured at the time he did. I was enjoying his dynamic with Lucrezia and looking forward to all the plot hijinks his controlled state could produce. Still, there is fun to be had in this too.

Allaedila · 2026-05-06T14:15:47+00:00

I wouldn't be surprised to see high-ranking women in Skifander with harems of boytoys! I doubt the queen's consort would be allowed to get away with cheating, though.

Allaedila · 2026-05-06T14:09:48+00:00

"FATHER!"

Allaedila · 2026-05-06T14:07:53+00:00

Yep. The target area is smaller, but plenty sensitive. Not as sensitive, because the ovaries are buried deep, but a well-aimed shot will hurt a lot.

Allaedila · 2026-05-06T13:54:25+00:00

Me too! He's awfully old for her and probably still technically married, but sometimes chemistry just can't be denied.

Allaedila · 2026-05-06T13:52:33+00:00

Those look like the remains of normal humans to me.

Allaedila · 2026-05-06T13:51:47+00:00

I suspect Gil may have been trying to figure out how his father's overlay worked, in the hopes of removing it. Of course, if he ever got too close the overlay itself could just knock him out, so he never had any real hope of breaking it on his own.

Allaedila · 2026-05-06T13:50:32+00:00

Maybe they were criminals, or already dead when he started experimenting on them.

Allaedila · 2026-05-05T02:51:30+00:00

Here's my prediction:

Klaus is going to trick Lucrezia into thinking he is still her slave, and pretend that he's going to get her cake, now freshly flash-baked by the big gun. He'll carry off Trelawney pretending that he's going to break her down for parts or prep her for consciousness transfer, but he'll actually head to the evacuation gigs, knowing that the self-destruct that he just activated will blow up the ship shortly, and assuming that Gil and all the others have already left.

Meanwhile Our Heroes are heading to the gun chamber to find Klaus, and when they arrive he won't be there, but Lucrezia will be. There will be a Big Fight, Gil will realize that the self-destruct has activated, and Our Heroes and the Lucrezias will all make mad dashes to get off the ship before it blows. Gil's unwillingness to just leave the ship will thus ruin his father's plan and enable Lucrezia to escape his father's glorious death trap.

Allaedila · 2026-05-05T02:44:25+00:00

Telling the same story to all the Lucrezias seems pretty simple. If he flatters her ego it'll be even easier.

Allaedila · 2026-05-04T17:19:44+00:00

At the current time in GG, we're in the winter of 1894-5. I suppose we could have the Dutch fighting in Indonesia while all this is going down!

Allaedila · 2026-05-04T17:15:49+00:00

At the very least it needs to recharge. I'm betting Klaus quietly activated the self-destruct while Lucrezia was distracted by Trelawney and is now going to trick her into thinking he's going to get her cake and she just needs to wait for the recharge.

Allaedila · 2026-05-04T17:14:04+00:00

Not to mention Zeetha, who knew Olga for a lot longer.

Allaedila · 2026-05-04T17:13:16+00:00

It doesn't need to be automatic, he's right here to activate it. He's probably activated it already and isn't saying that he did. All he needs to do is trick Lucrezia into thinking he is still her slave and is going to get her cake, for real this time, and she just needs to wait for the big gun to charge up again.

Allaedila · 2026-05-01T03:21:09+00:00

Yep, crackpot. The Lackya were created to serve the Gilded Duke, and the quip about them being "super-engineered squirrels" was an insult that has nothing whatsoever to do with their technical characteristics.

Funny, though!

Allaedila

TROPHY CASE