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Re: READ THIS, NOT BELOW (I hit "POST" b
Posted By: David Wellington (dialup-209.245.4.117.Denver1.Level3.net)
Date: 1/10/2000 at 1:15 a.m.
In Response To: Re: READ THIS, NOT BELOW (I hit "POST" b (Dan Rudolph)
Just thought I'd throw my two cents into an already horribly snarled argument:
What evidence does anyone have for the Deceiver being able to take on Balor's form? His name doesn't count. As far as I can tell this is an ability that only appears in Chimera, and there is in the hands of a completely different character. The Deceiver's power is charming, not shapeshifting.
Another point: the army Alric and company fight getting out of the barrier is weak, yes, but I don't think intentionally.
A) gameplay would be sacrificed if you had to fight your way out through platoon after platoon of undead. Okay, call that a cop-out if you want, I have a B.
B) The whole point of sending five champions instead of a larger force (and I think this is pretty explicit) is that they can get in behind the lines, almost unnoticed, and strike before the Deceiver can bring his main force back. The rather paltry guard detail (which includes Shades who are, in terms of attack strength, as powerful as Alric himself!) is basically just a home guard. The Deceiver is smart but not infallible. He has his army waiting by the passes, expecting the Light to mount a massive push to free Alric. They don't expect a guerilla raid because the Light has never tried anything like that before (as always, if I'm wrong, tell me).
The point of this is that the Deceiver has his own agenda, yes, but it doesn't include helping Alric escape. They do not become buddies--the D calls Balor in to interrogate Alric in person and that's that. If anything, I'm willing to accept that during his captivity Alric developed a grudging respect for the Deceiver and their later alliance was based on this mutual admiration, but not friendship and not a secret agreement made sixty years before Soulblighter's return (which neither of them, as far as I can tell, could have foreseen).
Oh, one other thing--and this is a question. The link between Balor and the Fallen Lords--does it have to be magical? It's supposedly the source of their power. Maybe, just maybe, what's really being referred to is that Balor is supplying them materially--with troops, equipment, money, etc. This would explain why Soulblighter can still stand upright after Balor's death but also why he shows up on his own with only a random scattering of dark forces (who don't have to be under his control) at the Devoid.
Another possibility: the link is real, magical, a source of mana--but Balor isn't dead until the head is actually in the Devoid. Otherwise why bother throwing it in? Why not just burn it (I know, you don't just kill a Leveller, but is he dead or not? There's a suggestion that the head can still talk--though that might just be a joke referring to the bad advice heads tend to give)? The answer may just be that until the head is removed from play the link is still in force.
The above points aren't meant to be taken as some master theory and I won't defend them to the death, they're just thoughts, so don't flame me over suggestions. Please.
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