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The Dresden Files => DF Spoilers => Topic started by: groinkick on June 15, 2018, 07:14:21 PM
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Df_3c02lelg
"How would Harry do against members on the Senior Council as of Skin Game"
"Harry would get torn apart" lol
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Good to know. Unless, you know, he's standing on Demonreach.
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The one where he said Lord Raith's anti-magic protection was from the sorceresses covering him and Harry didn't realize it seems off to me. First, Ebenezar said he's tried to kill Lord Raith three times before in revenge for Maggie Sr., which would have been well before Raith recruited the sorceresses. And second, Lord Raith's protection was very much still in force when Harry tried to get at him during the fight in the Deeps in BR when two of the sorceresses were dead and Madge was entirely occupied trying to hold the summoning for the Walker together.
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Depending on how it works, possibly that the trio we saw in Blood Rites were not the first ones Raith has used. He is, after all, a user of people, he could be running through a new coven every decade or so.
And also, they may have cast the spell, made the arrangements, but not be always the ones operating things. They may just set it up and then let it ride until it needs to be refreshed.
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The way he put it was 'they were covering him at that point' which sounded more active, like a shield spell. But he seemed to be having trouble remembering what protection the question was about, so as you suggest, it might be better to take that not entirely word for word.
I guess interpreting it that his coven did the ritual leg-work to get a heavyweight to provide Lord Raith with his protection might still fit his answer, in the context of "No it wasn't Margaret who did that". It certainly makes more sense than one modestly talented but still less than Council-level sorceress and two barely more than vanilla helpers blocking strikes Ebenezar meant to kill someone with, and doing it so effectively that he attributed it to an old god.
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My theory that is entirely unsupported but mostly fits and seems to be consistent with the way he works is as such;
Lord Raith's protection is provided by HWWB.
But it is paid for by the women he manipulates to perform the ritual. Which is to say they are the ones who go on the hook for it, and ultimately are the ones who suffer/are consumed, much like Charity's cult leader and his sacrifices.
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46:23
Goodman Grey fights in the Oblivion War! "It'll probably show up in the spin-off series".
Also, further hinting that George Washington was a Knight of the Cross, and that the sword of Hope would have been a very handy thing to have a Valley Forge. Which is very cool to me.
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46:23
Goodman Grey fights in the Oblivion War! "It'll probably show up in the spin-off series".
Also, further hinting that George Washington was a Knight of the Cross, and that the sword of Hope would have been a very handy thing to have a Valley Forge. Which is very cool to me.
Maybe cool, but the KotC are such obvious good guys that it's probably a bad idea to clearly assign them to sides in anything but the most obvious good v bad conflicts (or explaining the "normal" conflict was just a cover for the supernatural destruction, as I imagine the efforts to bring down Kemmler during WW1).
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That is an awesome theory Peregrine. I like it.
He is using the sorceresses to make some deal to extend protection to Lord Raith. I'd allow though for other beings than just HWWB to be the ultimate shielder.
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Maybe cool, but the KotC are such obvious good guys that it's probably a bad idea to clearly assign them to sides in anything but the most obvious good v bad conflicts (or explaining the "normal" conflict was just a cover for the supernatural destruction, as I imagine the efforts to bring down Kemmler during WW1).
He was already toeing that line with Charlemagne (who, sure, was enormously significant in his time ... but also perpetrated his share of atrocities).
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He was already toeing that line with Charlemagne (who, sure, was enormously significant in his time ... but also perpetrated his share of atrocities).
I cringed a bit when reading that but I suppose he was badly informed. You have to dig into it a bit to break through the later layers of myth and propaganda to get to the horrible person he really was.
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I cringed a bit when reading that but I suppose he was badly informed. You have to dig into it a bit to break through the later layers of myth and propaganda to get to the horrible person he really was.
Mwhahaha AAAAHahahahaaha..... HA! That was his intention.
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Mwhahaha AAAAHahahahaaha..... HA! That was his intention.
Hm. I suspect the whole knights of the cross thing is actually a public relations scam and things like this are subtle hints that what is really going on is far more sinister.
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He was already toeing that line with Charlemagne (who, sure, was enormously significant in his time ... but also perpetrated his share of atrocities).
Is it confirmed that Charlemagne had a Sword? In the books, Molly just says that they're descended from him, not that he used to be a Knight of the Cross, unless I missed something.
I won't say much about George Washington's less savory qualities except to point out that applying 21st century values and science to 18th century people is an exercise in futility. DISCLAIMER: I do not want to start an argument about this. I understand the immorality of slavery and racism. I'm merely pointing out the values dissonance people often overlook when looking at historical figures.
On the flip side: there are countless stories about George Washington that defy logic, to the point that he was basically a folk hero. Riding up and down in front of his lines at the Battle of Princeton when he was 30 yards away from the enemy, then ordering a volley; a Native American Chief, years after the Seven Years War, tracked down Washington to pay his respects to the man "who could never die in battle," (during one battle in the French and Indian War, Washington, as an Aide, basically started giving orders himself, riding back and forth between officers; during that battle, his horse was shot out from under him twice, but he was untouched); the Ticonderoga raid, where a river that should have been frozen was miraculously unfrozen despite the cold, which let him execute an insane plan to float countless cannon and gunpowder down the river (it should be noted that the river needed to be unfrozen for the plan to work at all, and it was frozen at the time he authorized the raid); there are multiple times when weather conditions seemed to just happen precisely when he needed them (the escape from Manhattan Harbor, for instance, was only possible because of a sudden batch of fog)... the list goes on.
Basically what I'm saying is that being a Knight of the Cross neatly explains the feeling of Divine Providence that let him survive, let alone win the American Revolution. I don't know how long he had Esperacchius; it may be that he was a Knight of the Cross for the duration of the Revolution, or from Valley Forge through Yorktown, or that he picked it up during the French and Indian War/Seven Years War/Great War for Empire (it was actually nine years, and the F&I War was just the Western theater of the GWfE). The point is that his position as a Knight of the Cross may have been temporary, for a specific purpose (such as winning the Revolution). TWG probably had plans that required an independent USA.
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Thanks for posting the link.
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Is it confirmed that Charlemagne had a Sword? In the books, Molly just says that they're descended from him, not that he used to be a Knight of the Cross, unless I missed something.
I won't say much about George Washington's less savory qualities except to point out that applying 21st century values and science to 18th century people is an exercise in futility. DISCLAIMER: I do not want to start an argument about this. I understand the immorality of slavery and racism. I'm merely pointing out the values dissonance people often overlook when looking at historical figures.
On the flip side: there are countless stories about George Washington that defy logic, to the point that he was basically a folk hero. Riding up and down in front of his lines at the Battle of Princeton when he was 30 yards away from the enemy, then ordering a volley; a Native American Chief, years after the Seven Years War, tracked down Washington to pay his respects to the man "who could never die in battle," (during one battle in the French and Indian War, Washington, as an Aide, basically started giving orders himself, riding back and forth between officers; during that battle, his horse was shot out from under him twice, but he was untouched); the Ticonderoga raid, where a river that should have been frozen was miraculously unfrozen despite the cold, which let him execute an insane plan to float countless cannon and gunpowder down the river (it should be noted that the river needed to be unfrozen for the plan to work at all, and it was frozen at the time he authorized the raid); there are multiple times when weather conditions seemed to just happen precisely when he needed them (the escape from Manhattan Harbor, for instance, was only possible because of a sudden batch of fog)... the list goes on.
Basically what I'm saying is that being a Knight of the Cross neatly explains the feeling of Divine Providence that let him survive, let alone win the American Revolution. I don't know how long he had Esperacchius; it may be that he was a Knight of the Cross for the duration of the Revolution, or from Valley Forge through Yorktown, or that he picked it up during the French and Indian War/Seven Years War/Great War for Empire (it was actually nine years, and the F&I War was just the Western theater of the GWfE). The point is that his position as a Knight of the Cross may have been temporary, for a specific purpose (such as winning the Revolution). TWG probably had plans that required an independent USA.
Some interesting bits of history.
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Honestly, I barely scratched the surface. There are countless firsthand accounts of him doing things that should not have worked. Aside from all of that, he mastered the art of the Fighting Retreat, wherein he kept the Continental Army relatively intact, falling back in good order, and fighting every step of the way. He "lost" pretty much every pitched battle, in that he gave up ground, but successfully attritted (which is a word, Google; update your dictionary) the British over the course of several years.
Also, Jim's right about Valley Forge; it was arguably the most pivotal moment in the American Revolution. Not just because morale was low and the Continental Army was almost out of supplies, but because it gave the troops time to actually learn how to fight. Baron von Steuben (a Prussian Baron who had a score to settle with Britain after the Great War for Empire) took the opportunity to drill the Continentals, teaching them basic firing discipline. He used a very simple method; drill and instruct 120 soldiers, who then went and instructed the rest of the army.
He's one of the unsung heroes of the American Revolution, someone whose name everyone should know, but I don't think I've ever met someone who did except for my dad and my old professors. Anyway, when the Continental Army left Valley Forge, they were far more effective than they ever were before.
Final fun fact: Von Steuben Day is actually a holiday in the US. It's September 16th this year. Fire some muskets to honor his memory!