MS: Clans and Legions
Lore forum
Posted on Oct. 24, 2018, 12:23 p.m. by RicketyEng
In which a newly promoted Wojek stumbles upon a massive conspiracy.
I've really been enjoying the GRN Magic Stories ... getting small slices of life from the city is really neat, and a welcome change from just following the Legendairies and Gatewatch around.
Plus, we get lines like "Fight the Gruul, and you've got a problem for a day. Feed the Gruul, and you've got a problem for life." :-D
October 24, 2018 2:12 p.m.
I’m also really enjoying these short, fairly unimportant stories. Nothing worldbreaking, but nicely written. It seems that everyone on the plane basically knows the Dimir are basically everywhere, and all three stories so far have a protagonist mildly associated with one guild, and the Dimir meddling in everything in some way.
I agree that it is great that we get lines like that. If this was any major story, I think the opinions would be different, but this is the perfect place for these kind of jokes. All the guilds seem to kinda jab at each other, so I’d be interested to see the gateless’s perspective.
October 24, 2018 10:01 p.m.
DemonDragonJ says... #5
Another week, another great story; I must confess that I am surprised, but pleasantly so, that there have now been three consecutive stories of high quality; clearly, WotC has been making an effort recently to hire skilled writers for their stories.
I again wish that the writers were not using a first-person perspective, because I did not immediately realize that Osset was a minotaur until her horns were mentioned, or that she was female until someone called her a heifer, since her name sounds rather masculine.
For the third story in a row, Dimir spies have been infiltrating other guilds and wreaking havoc, so I have no doubt that they have some grand master plan that shall be unveiled as the story progresses. I would not be surprised if they prove to be unlikely, but vital allies in the battle against Bolas, similar to how Liliana was an unlikely ally against Emrakul on Innistrad.
I was glad that Aresaan was not the traitor, because that would have been too predictable; I noticed the similarities to Feather from the original Ravnica block in that she was disgraced and had her wings bound, but no explanation was given for how she was freed from her bondage.
I also noticed that Osset, despite being concerned about justice and honor, had no trouble bribing another member of her guild, and I also liked how she actually was aware of the fact that the Boros' emphasis on justice and honor is a great strength but can also be exploited as a weakness, as well, as few members of the guilds seem to be aware of their guilds' weaknesses.
October 24, 2018 10:04 p.m.
RicketyEng says... #6
I don't believe there was any Dimir action in this story. Osset may have suspected the Dimir at some point and she recalled learning about tracking them, but there wasn't actually a Dimir agent at work here. The culprits was a disgruntled and disgraced elemental and the soldier he hired for the dirty work part. Unless that soldier was a Dimir agent?
October 24, 2018 10:30 p.m.
I liked this story... a little annoyed that Aresaan's angel power just suddenly gets unleashed without explanation as to how, and just as quickly vanishes. Is she a nerfed angel or not?
Very glad Aresaan wasn't the antagonist of this tale. That would've definitely been too predictable and would have started us down the road to "bolas is manipulating all the guild elites" and such schtick. Very impressed that this wasn't the route that the author took.
I'm starting to wonder how the Dimir's opposition to Bolas is going to be handled. Manipulative personalities are often drawn to one another, believing that can outwit and "out-use" each other. Having the Dimir side with Bolas (and ultimately plan to betray him) seems like a shoe in, and yet "Bolas wins because Dimir got outplayed" seems way to predictable and "Bolas loses because Dimir out-smart him" seems... unlikely, especially considering Bolas' talent as a telepath.
I'm hoping the story gets handled more as "Bolas starts to manipulate the Azorius or w/e guild and the Dimir get pissed because that's THEIR gig. How dare that dragon manipulate a guild that was firmly under the Dimir's thumb."
What I really hope is that none of my theories are correct and this story gets artfully handled in a way I never considered. Time will tell if current quality holds up though.
October 25, 2018 9:41 p.m.
DemonDragonJ says... #8
RicketyEng, actually, you are correct; I re-read the story, and it seems that any mention of the Dimir was entirely in Osset's mind, but that does not explain why she saw the Boros emblem as being different on her invitation, when the Dimir is one of the few guilds that employs mind magic.
October 28, 2018 12:28 a.m.
RicketyEng says... #9
I thought the invitation was replaced with a correct one by the guard who planted the chess piece and coin purse.
RicketyEng says... #2
I wouldn't have believed the initial invitation was a secret message if it hadn't been for the modified Boros symbol.
October 24, 2018 12:25 p.m.