The Order is debating on what to do with their prisoners when Roy comes up with an idea that Belkar surprisingly loves.
Cast[]
- Roy Greenhilt ◀ ▶
- Haley Starshine ◀ ▶
- Elan ◀ ▶
- Belkar Bitterleaf ◀ ▶
- Samantha's Father (Bandit King) ◀ ▶
- Samantha ◀ ▶
Transcript[]
- Panel 1
The Order has Samantha and the Bandit King tied up.
Haley: So, anyone here have any thoughts on what we're going to do with this pair of jerks?
Haley: Anyone EXCEPT Belkar, since we all know what he's going to say?
Belkar: Hey! I resent that.
- Panel 2
Belkar: You don't know me, Miss I-have-ranks-in-Sense-Motive.
Haley: Yeah right. You were going to suggest that we cut both their throats.
- Panel 3
Belkar: Ah HA!
Belkar: I was only going to suggest we cut the old man's throat.
Belkar: The chick, we can sell into slavery. I know a guy who knows a guy.
- Panel 4
Haley: Ummm... no, I don't think so, Belkar.
Haley: She may be a dirty evil whore, but no one deserves that.
- Panel 5
Belkar: Are you sure? Seriously, you wouldn't believe the profit margins involved.
Haley: Really? Well, I suppose it's not THAT bad to—
- Panel 6
Roy looks angrily at Haley.
Haley: Um, I mean, no way. Nuh uh. No slavery, Belkar.
Belkar: So close.
- Panel 7
Elan: What about sending them to prison, like we did with my brother?
Roy: Won't work. Wooden Forest is not technically part of any kingdom, so there are no laws for them to have broken.
- Panel 8
Elan: Well, do you have an idea, Roy?
Roy: I say we just leave them here.
Haley: Are you nuts? They're going to wake up tomorrow and team up to track us down.
- Panel 9
Roy: Are they? The old guy sucker punched his daughter when the rest of us were beaten. I think she's going to have a few choice words for dear old dad when they wake up.
Roy: And Durkon disbanded the bandits, so they don't have any minions to push around. Just the two of them, stuck together, forced to work out their screwed up family issues.
- Panel 10
Belkar: Hmmm... so you're saying no killing, no indentured servitude, just physically compelling them to spend time with their family members?
Roy: Yeah, pretty much.
- Panel 11
Belkar: I love it!
Roy: You do?
Belkar: Sure! It's sick, twisted—Roy, I had no idea you were capable of devising such a cruel and unusual punishment!
- Panel 12
Belkar: There may yet be hope for you!
Roy: Your approval fills me with shame.
D&D Context[]
- Sense Motive is a skill that measures how good a character is at sensing lies or other character motives.
Trivia[]
- The Prisoner's Dilemma is a problem in game theory, which questions the rationality of co-operation.
- This strip gives name to the TV Trope "Your Approval Fills Me With Shame".
- It's noteworthy that in the typical D&D millieu, that the average person is a slave of some sort, with different names used for it, such as serfdom. Prior to the worldwide emancipations of the 1800s, such as the abolition of serfdom in eastern Europe and Japan, most people in the world were slaves and all people alive today are descended from slaves.