Chapter 2: Page 21
(Okay! Finally got the colors in! Enjoy the completed page! :)
Not a whole lot to say this week! We get to see a few familiar faces in the background, and quite a nice vista looking out over the mountains. Which will be a whole lot nicer once final color is in, of course. Rachel had a heap of outside work to do this week, which significantly limited comic time.
One of the things I appreciate the most about staging these scenes is how characters remain consistent. This isn’t so much specific to the Ermehn as it will be throughout Beyond the Western Deep, but well-realized background characters can be just as important as a well-realized main character. Sometimes a character in the background will resonate with readers, and sometimes that background character is destined for a larger role. In the real world, everybody in a crowd has their own backgrounds, pasts, motivations, etc. Bringing that into BWD has led to some fun crowd scenes, and readers discussing background characters in more detail than we ever would’ve expected. This of course includes our very first BWD fan-fiction tale, Ice Burn, by Saraa Luna, which was all about a Canid character who was in the background of a handful of panels in Chapter 1.
Also! Next week being American Thanksgiving, BWD will also be taking the weekend off. While there will be no new comic, Rachel intends to use the first half of the week to get rid of all the recent black and white pages, and update them to their proper colored form. We’ll be back with new stuff in December, and hope to see you all back then!
No one seems very fond of Bevan or the Sratha-Din here. Then again, seeing the fate of Broermehn, I cannot blame them. :P Even in inks, the whole Northern Waste landscape is ever striking. Hardin himself is looking a bit intimidating; seeing the map Ashtor has out in front of him, it’s fitting for the situation. The plot is about to thicken.
Happy early Thanksgiving, by the way! Eat plenty of turkey and pie. Or just food in general, really; whatever floats your boat.
Aw, there’s that kid from before, practicing on that pole.
I’m guessing Hardin’s going to say “Go to Deltrada and scout it out for us.” Cue him running into Quin and Company, they travel to Deltrada together, Bevan does his job and Quin and Co are captured.
That you have given background characters continuity and history is admirable and interesting. The only example of a true bit part character developing into a main cast member that I can think of off the top of my head is Damar from Star Trek Deep Space Nine. He had perhaps half a dozen lines in his first episode.
You should see Wookiepedia, then! I found out the six movies are just the tip of the iceberg, and some fans have gone so far as to write entire biographies of several backround characters from the movies, especially the cantina from a new hope.
It’s simply mind-blowing……….. And frightening!
Hey. I’m a big fan of Dust: An Elysian Tail and discovered this comic because of Alex’s involvement. I just got through all 101 pages thus far, and, damn, I’m impressed! You gotta consider transplanting this setting in a Noogy-made Metroidvania-style game. I would throw wads of hundred dollar bills at you to make this happen.
Man, I knew some games were expensive with the inflation and all, but THAT much?!
I just paid $130 for Battlefield 4, so anything is possible.
After re-reading the prologue, I realised: The robed narrator from the first few pages was an ermehn, wasn’t it?
I wonder how long after the main plot does the narration take place!
Augh, just found your earlier iteration of this comment in our spam filter. Sorry about that. :T
And yes, what could that be all about… >:]
I am one hundred percent convinced that Ermehn is Hardin.
Phew! I was afraid you purposely deleted it on accunt of “shush! No spoilers!” policy…. or that I made some kind of mistake during the posting process.
That one being Hardin? Doubtful, since the final prologue page has the narrator saying “yet despite all our progress a single life [etc. etc. etc] would destroy everything.” so the narrator blames Hardin for being a party-crasher.
No, I agree with Altairey; that Ermehn strikes me as most definitely being Hardin. Party-crasher he may be, but I believe he survives, and they go to retrieve the story from the person who crashed their whole party to start with.
Which would be too important to their history for a race of scholars to pass up.
If not Hardin, then surely it’s one of those five in his inner circle. Bevin seems to like wearing a hood…
The library guards did *not* look happy that he was there, and they would know who he was. The scholars of course were thrilled to be meeting with such an important historical figure, no matter what his actions may have been.
I have to say, I’ve never been one for comics (or webcomics for that matter), but I watch for this one every week. It’s fantastic- great storyline so far and awesome artistry. Kudos, you two!
Sorry, I haven’t commented before this- I’ve meant to, but its just never happened yet. Anyways…
I can see the plot is really starting to thicken here and have a feeling we are going to find out why Bevan has different markings than the others shortly as his ‘purpose’ is explained. As to his connection with the hooded character from the prologue, I think it is Bevan, but I’m torn as to the timing of it. I mean, it could be him on a mission to find out more ‘history’ on their enemies, but I thought since first read it was him visiting the capital to share his side of the story – the inner workings of Hardin’s Horde – and have them committed to the tomes of time. But hey, that’s just me and I could be completely off base with that… only time will tell!
Personally, I can’t wait to get back to Quin and Dak. They’re hilarious and even grumpy Kenosh makes me smirk. Especially at him rolling his eyes when the two ‘warriors’ were playing in the puddle. I could practically read his thoughts- “Idiots. I’m surrounded by idiots!”
Anyways, looking forward to the next page!
Cheers and sharp quills,
FT
Well ‘ello there, stranger. I haven’t seen you around these parts much. You’re as elusive as Bevan’s history. ;)
At any rate, I still think the Ermehn at the end is Hardin, serious face and all. But it could be Bevan. (I’m still going with Hardin.) But speaking of Dakkan and Kenosh, this felt appropriate.
The best view we get of the mysterious ermehn is on page 1, where we at least see the nose. If it’s Bevin, then he’s missing his tattoos. His face looks too narrow for Rathik. I can’t picture Rhosyn telling history somehow, even if she’s directly involved.
That leaves Eira, Ashtor, and of course Hardin. Eira doesn’t seem scowly enough to match the mystery ermehn, and besides, I have a feeling she wouldn’t go without Bevan.
So we have Ashtor and Hardin. Either would be a logical choice for the historians to call on, Hardin being the one ermehn who’s behind the whole thing, and Ashtor being old and wise enough to see the whole picture.
We don’t see any of Hardin’s tattoos in the picture, though the hood is just low enough that it might be able to hide them, if only barely. Also, I give Hardin a 50/50 chance of dying in a climatic battle at the end, although in that case, it would be harder for the status quo to change as implied.
The ermehn looks too young to be Ashtor, the chin looking too smooth, though that may be a trick of the light.
So…
I say if Hardin’s still alive at the end of everything, then it’s him, otherwise it’s Ashtor.
Aww, that Ermehn kid is so cute, slashing away at that pole, probably getting instructions from the adult next to him… It’s such a sad thing he’ll be sent into battle soon. Kids like him should be out playing and having fun, not forced to give their lives in a war he might not even understand the reasons for. But when you’re desperate…
Very good call on the background characters, especially how every face in a crowd has his/her own background, character, and motivations. Or, as it has also been put, how everyone is the hero of their own story. You do have a wonderful ability to create engaging background characters, which is one of the things I admire most about this comic.
So, it seems lil’ Bevan has made his way to what appears to be a small war council with Hardin. Let’s see what this is…
I can’t imagine that that would be good for the blade.