^ 41 Comments...

1. Maevrim
   July 17th, 2009 at 9:30 pm

   Woah, he gets identical sexy twins in fishnets? Do we get a poster of them?

2. LocalYokel
   July 17th, 2009 at 9:31 pm

   And now for something completely different:
   Testosterone charged “sword” waving anyone?

   Mentl: “So you like fire do you? Well letmeshowyousomething!”
   (Fire Marshall Bill voice)

3. The MacNut
   July 17th, 2009 at 9:47 pm

   Yep, just the kinda muscle-bound, masculine meatheads almost guaranteed to induce insecurities in Mentl. Especially when he finds out this Pontagar is one of her exes. And the guy seems like a dick already with his “little priestess” comment, said with a sneer.

4. Moox
   July 17th, 2009 at 9:54 pm

   Well, well, well…
   So we meet some other Erogenians at last. This guy looks like a real jackass, though: Check out the jackass/rapist ’stache! Was that an impression you were intentionally creating, JE?
   Also, all three of these guys are RIPPED. Come to think of it, almost every Erogenian we’ve seen (in and out of the comic) has been physically spectacular. Does every single member of their population look like an Olympic gymnast (+ extra boobage)?
   If they were a Human subrace in 3.5 D&D, they’d probably have +2 STR, +2 CHA at least. -2 INT for the lack of organized schools and so forth, I’d have to say. Probably lose the bonus feat and some of the bonus skills as well.
   Anyhow, I have to surmise (based on the ’stache) that he’s not going to be too pleased that the incredible Zona is dating someone as unimpressive as Mentl…

5. MaxBigfoot
   July 17th, 2009 at 10:17 pm

   It’s a law. As soon as Mentl said “If all Erogenians are as cool as you guys”, it was fated the next Erogenians they meet would be the opposite of cool.

6. Nytsky
   July 17th, 2009 at 11:24 pm

   Already I don’t like him…… a lot.
   I must wonder if the little princlings at his sides are “his”, or are they present for other reasons?

7. sentientcheese@gmail.com
   July 18th, 2009 at 12:50 am

   well thats that, i dont trust the man.

8. hans
   July 18th, 2009 at 12:54 am

   Excellent, and just after I finished reading the whole epic.

   Which BTW made me reevaluate Mentl again. He really went through some tough shit in a short period of time. And is dealing admirably with it. I guess reading a panel every couple of days makes one loose the big picture, as I was a bit overly critical of his freakouts.

   Awesome job JD, on keeping this thing so together over such a long period of time.

   I see now what Zona meant with the abundance of lantern-jawed suitors at home. This one even seems to have his very own bully sidekick-twins.

9. Jean
   July 18th, 2009 at 12:55 am

   First, Lolcatz ftw, lovely! *applauds*

   Second, if any of those new boys gives our hero and heroines trouble…I’d gladly take ‘em in hand and “raise ‘em up right”…*cough*

   JEan

10. Ligyron
    July 18th, 2009 at 2:18 am

    Well well well, now that Vercingetorix’ sonny has arrived with his swashbuckling twinsquad, I wonder if the whole tribal realm of Erogenia will be like the celtic fashion world of Gallia before Caesar… Nice panties, guys. Though the women, obviously, do not share the same fashion influence with the exception of the torque. Which is somehow… more interesting.

    However, JE, after this bloody battle with the Urtts, I wonder if the three heroes have found a nice little river where they took a bath and washed their clothes when we saw Mr. Shuach making his move on Mr. G. I think Zona and the others got several times in situations where they did not have the chance to wash off the dirt before but looked some panels after battles clean like freshly bathed babies. What do you think?

    BTW, I like the expression on the faces very much. Is it getting more sophisticated or is it only my impression?

11. Steve
    July 18th, 2009 at 2:55 am

    Fire tribe - isn’t that the one that treats women as second class - in fact isn’t Ponce-agar the champion that Zona defeated when his father challenged her Mother? Methinks sprks will fly!

12. Abeo
    July 18th, 2009 at 5:43 am

    Wait… are those plaid pants!? Damn, he just earned himself some respect. Reluctant respect to be sure, but still respect. Here’s to hoping he loses it soon!

13. Tricksterson
    July 18th, 2009 at 7:24 am

    Yes, I believe the Fire tribe are kind of the rednecks of Erogenia (while the Fox tribe, or at least their Queen are kind of the Dianics). When Zona said “Hello, Pontagar.” did anyone else hear Jerry Seinfeld’s “Hello, Newman.” in their head because that’s exactly the tone I got from it. And yeah, i can see Pontagar belittling Mentl and Mentl, probably having esteem problems about it.
    On another subject, Tula seemed seriously preoccupied. I wonder about what.

14. Sleepinin
    July 18th, 2009 at 7:36 am

    Fire tribe rednecks plus Zona’s tendency to punch things that irritate her?

    ^_^

15. Fatuncle
    July 18th, 2009 at 7:58 am

    Tricksterson

    I suspect Tula is thinking long and hard about her fight with Gorshash, and its implications. At the very least, she must be contemplating her report to those senior mage-priestesses of her school and tribe who must know that they will have to deal with a resurgent Shauch.

16. marylynne
    July 18th, 2009 at 8:50 am

    That’s what I was going to guess - Tula is preoccupied with the imminent return of Shuach.

    Did anyone else notice that 3 men on horseback got close enough to wander into camp before they noticed? They could have got the drop on them. Although maybe the sisters or the cats would hear sneaking sounds better than people-not-trying-to-hide sounds.

17. Ga'Tor
    July 18th, 2009 at 10:16 am

    Oh this is is good. Here come the boys after the actions over. Six pack abs, mighty thews of steel etc. One thing’s for sure neither Mentl or Pontigar can match each other at their own game. Pontagar would only need one blow whereas Mentl’s opening line of “SHOTGUN” would settle ‘P’s hash and is two buddies also. Ah, the eternal mismatch between barbarian and mage.

    Many questions here: Just how revered/feared/commonplace are “enchanters” in JED’s world. Aslo, is Mentl going to advertise the fact that he is an extremely powerful magick user? I mean his cover is blown with Gorshash but surprise is a major tactical advantage in any situation against anyone unaware of Mentl’s capabilities. Much more so for his subtler magicks such as his ‘love’ songs and charms. These would seem to be of lesser effect if one were aware of what was happening and could mentally fight against them. In any case, I’m sure we will find these things out in JED’s own good time and I’m, looking forward to the upcoming interaction ala Pontagar and crew.

18. Doc Alaska
    July 18th, 2009 at 11:29 am

    Man I wish you posted daily. I can not get enough of this comic.
    Looks up with large, hopeful, baby brown eyes, “Please sir? May I have some more?”

19. JE Draft
    July 18th, 2009 at 11:36 am

    Maevrim - I’ll be happy to do a graphic of them if I get the time. And they are not wearing fishnets. That’s the pattern on their wollen pants, just as Pontagar has one on his.

    LocalYokel - Fire is their tribal totem, and very fiery-tempered guys they are. And I, too, am loooking forward to seeing what sparks may fly and with whom …

    MacNut - Oh, Pontagar is an easy-going, fluffy-bunny kinda guy! Once you get to know him.

    Moox - Those who got the “Three Challenges Of Zona” will recognize Pontagar as the son of Arrogond the Fire King. His `stache was a part of his original design, which I’ve tried to translate to Poser. Actually, I like this vwersion better than my crappy art from the original. Erogenians are not all hypermuscular - check out poor Hentic on pages 221-225. These guys are young Erogenian warriors, which is the physical elite of a race that is taller, tougher and more physically beautiful as a rule.

    MaxBigFoot - *sigh* amd I so predictable in these instances?

    Nytsky - The answers to those questions will come after the formal introductions on Tuesday.

    Sentientcheese - “It is well you do not, sahib”

    hans - Thanks very much! This is a long-form, ongoing story, so sometimes I do require a bit of patience from the reader. I hope that it is always rewarded in the end.

    Jean - *bows* Theng-kyew! And I think that, in these types of tales, we can invariably count on our characters to get out of “hand” at some point …

    Ligyron - Fashion is definitely going to change from tribe to tribe and vary with individual. Colors, especially are going to be different. And some days have passed since the great battle. They have washed and healed while I diverted your attention to The Otherwhen. “Look! Over there!”

    Steve - Yep.

    Abeo - Wait - you want him to lose his pants? I’m shocked! This is a family strip! (listens in his ear, a la Jon Stewart) Oh - wait, I’ve just ben told that this is, in fact, not a family comic, and people get naked on a fairly regular basis. Okay.

    Tricksterson - Yep. That’s them. Zona’s less-than-enthusiastic “hello” is very much in that vein. And Tula’s deeply concerned about the implications of the last big come-all-ye with the Urtts.

    Sleepinin - A recipe for fun! =D

    Fatuncle - Bang on.

    marylynne - They’re not enemies, but friendlies, by the horses and the cats. And Pontagar hallooed a ways off. It’s the magic of time compression.

    Ga’Tor - Enchanters are common enough that they’d know what one is without being gob-smacked. Priests and priestesses in their world are not revered in the same way that priests are in ours. They’re respected professionals, not especially “godlike” or infallible.

20. Possum
    July 18th, 2009 at 12:50 pm

    Nah, they’re all three gay as hell. Mentl will play a love song and get invited to a sausage-fest foursome…

21. Hugh
    July 18th, 2009 at 3:34 pm

    Although I would expect Mentl to be very reticent in his use of offensive magic, I would not at all be surprised to see Zona bragging on him some, especially when (not if) Pontegar tries to intimidate him.

    Zona: “Have a care Pontegar, not three nights ago, Mentl single-handedly slew five bull Urt warriors, a Brown Forest Ogre, a mini T-Rex (or whatever that reptile was) and (whatever else he killed) all in the space a minute or two.”

    Pontegar - Disbelieving look but knows Zona would never lie: “But he does not even have a weapon!”

    Zona with smug look: “And he didn’t have one then either.”

    Hopefully, this encounter will start Mentl to thinking about what songs he needs for non-lethal offensive magic (if he has not already)….

22. AdamZero
    July 18th, 2009 at 4:21 pm

    We’re men MANLY MEN; we’re men in tights, YES!

23. hans
    July 18th, 2009 at 10:01 pm

    Hard to tell Hugh. The only thing that´s for sure, is that Zona won´t go on fucking around with other Erogenians, now she´s so focused on Mentl.

    Also balancing the cha isn´t just Zona´s favorite pastime. I can´t see even a spoiled princeling getting out of hand with threats to Mentl. In that vein it isn´t Zona´s place either, to fight Mentl´s status challenges for him IMHO.

    We´ll see.

24. Hugh
    July 18th, 2009 at 11:00 pm

    After Mentl passed on the Queen, I agree that Zona is likely to b pretty faithful. And I don’t see the Pontagar threatening Mentl at all, but threats are very different from intimidation. I figure Pontagar is going to notice (and question) those copper chains pretty quick.

25. AdamZero
    July 18th, 2009 at 11:32 pm

    We may all be jumping the gun here folks. It’s not right to assume something about a person just because of stance and words. We’re just reading the text, so we don’t know HOW these words are being said. He could be saying them in jest (sort of how people who’ve got silly titles attached to them sometimes refer to themselves by them sarcastically)

    He could be more friend/rival than challenger/lover to Zona and or Tula. And the twins may be as the quiet brooding, sort (till an Erogenian girl can get a good three dozen pints into them) Then they’re just bundle of joy.

    We don’t know yet.

26. Moox
    July 19th, 2009 at 2:54 am

    Sorry Adam. One does not question the jackass ’stache!

27. Ami
    July 19th, 2009 at 9:38 am

    Adam, you just made me snort coffee with the men in tights visual, thank you ever so much…

28. Tricksterson
    July 19th, 2009 at 9:50 am

    Sorry Adam but the “little priestess, Tula” remark sealed his assholedom in my eyes. This is obviously a guy who condescends to anyone who isn’t 6′+, male and carrying an overcompensatingly large sword.

29. Sleepinin
    July 19th, 2009 at 11:32 am

    Nice one, Hugh

    Seriously, yo, if those guys do try to do the whole “taunt the caster” thing, I see him breaking out a really big kaBOOM to scare the spit out of them

    On an unrelated note, I’m guessing this joker is one of the huge-thewed meatheads Zona was discussing earlier in the strip, in regards to past relationships?

30. Nytsky
    July 19th, 2009 at 1:06 pm

    Sorry Adam, I have to disagree with you. The way in which Pontagar addresses the party speaks volumes. Firstly he referenced himself as “the prince of the fire tribe” and thereby places himself as a representative of his tribe holding the power of an emissary for his people. Secondly he simply addresses Zona by her first (familiar) name disregarding her linage, her position, and her abilities in one fell swoop. Secondly he addresses Tula with complete disrespect (and contempt). Nope…. The slight was very intentional.

31. Dani
    July 19th, 2009 at 2:58 pm

    I stayed up until 4 am to read all of your comic, start to present.

    SO WORTH IT.

    I love the story, the characters, and your incredible artistic style. It’s so smooth and professional. Thanks for sharing this great comic with us, I’ll be looking forward to more updates!

32. Lora
    July 19th, 2009 at 5:47 pm

    Uh, nice! The twins… do they need to be distracted? *innocent smile*

    Zona doesn’t seem overjoyed to see Pontagar. Of course you never know whether they are gonna break out in smiles and hugs on the next page.

33. Moox
    July 19th, 2009 at 8:18 pm

    Good point, Lora. It would be pretty funny if we all turned out to be wrong and he’s actually a badass or a tree-hugger.

34. Sockpuppet
    July 19th, 2009 at 10:22 pm

    Welp, it’s my first post, but I’ve read the comic starting a few months ago (and by a few I think I mean a year lol). I love the story, and I had to post on this one.

    Pontagar and his uh…escort scream 70’s pornstar to me. And that jackass-stache is INSANE! I doubt Mentl will really feel any insecurities from these guys. He’s got to have expected their men to be Conan-esque after all. More than anything, I expect Prontegar (yes, he’s getting a nickname!) to insult Zona in some way in an attempt to get Mentl to prove he’s got what it takes by goading him.

35. Sage
    July 20th, 2009 at 12:50 am

    o/` We roam around the forest, looking for fights… We’re men, we’re men in tiiiii-ights, we pummel the Urtts and screw everyone else, that’s right! o/~

36. Steve
    July 20th, 2009 at 7:56 am

    You know, I just can’t imagine Zona doing the Main Marion bit! Though the idea of the Fire tribe doing a quick can-can does appeal!

37. Lachesis
    July 20th, 2009 at 9:37 am

    Hmm. It has been pointed out in the past that no all Erogenians are alike. These guys seem to have personalities almost like the old norse/celtic. Bragging (w/o exaggeration), bravado, and the need to make a person (especially outsiders!) prove they are worthy of respet before it is given. That’s certainly got to clash with Zona and Tula’s somewhat more accepting style. And yeah, I can definitely see fireworks, but I’m willing to be that it starts more with thinly-veiled snide remarks. The fire prince seems to be the type to test Mentl by trying to make him lose his temper first, then taking the excuse at the “insult” delivered to him to get into a fight.

38. Lachesis
    July 20th, 2009 at 9:37 am

    ahem type. *NOT* all erogenians are alike..

39. PairADice
    July 20th, 2009 at 8:02 pm

    oooh Tula in the upper right pael saying “yes yes”. I’m in love!
    How about a bigger picture?

40. AdamZero
    July 20th, 2009 at 11:04 pm

    *from sage*
    We may look like PA~nsies, but watch what you say or else we’ll put out your light *BIFF!*

41. Lora
    July 21st, 2009 at 11:06 am

    ROTFL *Has died from laughter*

    Oh, more Men in thights! Gotta love it. But there isn’t much maid over Zona, heh.

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