DM of the Rings CXLIV:
The Long-Expected Parting
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Friends! I will not keep you long. I am writing this to you for a purpose. Indeed, for three purposes. First of all, to tell you that I am immensely fond of you all, and that one year is far too short a time to write a webcomic for such excellent and admirable readers. I don’t know half of you half as well as I would like; and I like less than half of you half as well as you deserve.
Secondly, to celebrate the one-year anniversary of this strip. I should say, OUR strip, since the comments and suggestions you’ve given over the last year have been as entertaining as the strip itself. Together the strips score one hundred and forty-four. One gross, if I may use the expression.
This month is also, if I may be allowed to refer to ancient history, the two-year anniversary of the start of this site. Two years ago this site began in utter obscurity, with me posting a narrative of a D&D campaign to nobody in particular. But today the site is thriving and I can now say, “Thank you very much” to the thousands of you who read this.
Thirdly and finally, I wish to make an ANNOUNCEMENT. I regret to announce that, though, as I said, a year is for too short a time to spend on a webcomic, this is the END. It is over now. GOOD BYE.
Er, not quite. Oh dear. Bilbo seems to have painted me into a corner. Let’s start over.
This is indeed the end of DM of the Rings, but not the end as far as writing webcomics go. On this site, I have another couple of weeks of deleted strips and other bits I’ve come up with that didn’t fit into the DMotR continuity.
If you want to read more by me, then check out Stolen Pixels, a screencap comic I do for The Escapist. It’s on videogames, not D&D, but it might amuse you if you’re into that sort of thing.
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Thanks so much for reading. It’s been an honor.
The Best of 2013
My picks for what was important, awesome, or worth talking about in 2013.
Why Batman Can't Kill
His problem isn't that he's dumb, the problem is that he bends the world he inhabits.
Spoiler Warning:
Deus Ex:Human Revolution
Is this a masterful improvement on modern shooters, or a dumbed-down bastardization of its predecessor? Can it be both?
Games and the Fear of Death
Why killing you might be the least scary thing a game can do.
Why I Hated Resident Evil 4
Ever wonder how seemingly sane people can hate popular games? It can happen!
Game at the Bottom
Why spend millions on visuals that are just a distraction from the REAL game of hotbar-watching?
Here’s to a year of outstanding comments!
Wait, isn’t it cheating for the owner or ‘original post’ to call first post!
On a less of a whiny note, GREAT comic, I read the whole thing in two sittings, loved it! Well done!
So, if we know it will be like this, and it IS like this, for me every game has ALWAYS been like this…
Why do we keep doing it? Why are our memories of this so fond? It’s very disproportionate. The knowledge, that day, that you’re going to be running/playing a game, it’s so great, and then you leave the friend’s house so disappointed, but looking back, the game is so great.
Why?
I guess it’s just because maybe we didn’t have the best DM/PCs, and maybe we did argue constantly. Maybe we even suffered a horrible character death. But in the end, the thrill of the adventure is just amazingly cathartic.
To sum it up in a very fitting manner:
“I know. It’s all wrong. By rights we shouldn’t even be here. But we are. It’s like in the great stories, Mr. Frodo. The ones that really mattered. Full of darkness and danger they were. And sometimes you didn’t want to know the ending, because how could the ending be happy? How could the world go back to the way it was when so much bad happened? But in the end, it’s only a passing thing, this shadow. Even darkness must pass. A new day will come, and when the sun shines it’ll shine out the clearer. Those were the stories that stayed with you, that meant something, even if you were too small to understand why. But I think Mr. Frodo, I do understand. I know now. Folk in those stories had lots of chances at turning back only they didn’t. They kept going. Because they were holding onto something.”
I can’t think of a greater way to say it than that.
And what better way to do something like that than with friends? Even if you’re driving each other up the wall, you’re still friends (unless you take the game way too seriously when something bad happens). Even if you didn’t know each other prior to the game, you know everyone very well now.
Okay, this post is getting ridiculously sentimental, so I’ll cut it off after saying one more thing about the comic: I LOVED this campaign. :D
I read it in one sitting not counting bathroom breaks oh is it 10:30 already?
I discovered this comic yesterday and I just couldn’t stop reading. Only the sun shining in the sky took me out to gather some star energy, but I was back again to my PC soon. I’ve talk all my friends from Spain about this webcomic too.
It has passed much time since I didn’t laugh so hard, thank you Shamus!!
Also, I don’t want to look anxious or whatever, but I just tell you again that it would be great if you made the same work with other fantasy films. I’m sure you now got a legion of fans or whatever!
Do it! :)
I just read through it all and it was great, there were some parts that almost had me in tears with laughing so much.
Thanks for this :)
p.s. Hello from the future
This was just so immensely awesome!! Thanks for all your hard work!
Thank you Shamus. This was excellent. Now to read everything you’ve written that I can find :P
I came to this late – it’s been like a jewel hidden from me for years, but I’m uber-glad I found it. You’ve provided me with hours of laughter and enjoyment (and more than a few emails to my D&D group with quotes from your more hilarious comments). Thank you so much, man. You seriously ROCK! ~Michael E
Hi there, just came across this a few days ago, and I have now, of course, read the whole thing.
This is really great.
True old school internet when people were actually funny.
No idea how I missed you for so long.
Anyway, great work, top kek, many lels and such.
I just read through this comic. It was so very true and hilarious.
Thank you for your great work here! Read it all in a couple of days, and it’s the most I’ve laughed in a long time!
When can we expect the extended edition with outtakes?
First in wargames,
First in posts,
And Last of the episodes of DM of the Rings…
Loved the comic. Thanks for the entire series, Shamus!
2nd Post! WooHoo – sad to see it go!
Well top 10 anyway
May you cherish them forever…
I’ve been following this faithfully since last October, can’t believe it’s finished. Thanks for the good laughs. I have seen just about everyone I’ve ever gamed with in this strip somewhere.
Y’know, I was kind of expecting the DM to make the PCs bow to the NPC hobbits as a final humiliation…
That would have been awesome.
An excellent ending! And I think “Conan’s Well-Oiled Nipples” is by far the best epithet to come out of Gimli’s mouth.
Wait. Is it over?
What a long, strange, ride it’s been.
Thanks a million Shamus.
A good end to a good comic. Was it just me or did Legolas look seriously pissed off about being Aragorn’s gardener?
Wow, I’ve only been reading it since it got linked from User Friendly and it’s already over? Sheesh.
Seriously, it was awesome. Had some strange looks from my coworkers for laughing so hard, but it was a great way to waste time, er, I mean spend a couple of lunch hours. Yeah, that’s it.
Looking forward to Chainmail Bikini! It’s already in my iGoogle bookmark list. Woo.
Thanks Shamus.
It’s been great.
Thank you, thank you, thank you for DM of the Rings!
The imagined Gimli and Galadriel scene was one of the funniest moments in the series; a worthy way to close.
I’m really looking forward to Chainmail Bikini now.
Once again, thank you Shamus!
Here, here!
To a year’s worth of great screen captures and witty text overlays!
Cheers!
First, last and only post. Thanks for the laughs Shamus!!
Look forward to many more.
Regards.
First time posting, last time reading.
I’ll miss this website. Q.Q
To the DM of the Rings! *holds up a glass*
Thanks for the laughs, Shamus. It’s been a fun ride. I’ve introduced some other folks to this strip, and they’ve universally enjoyed it.
You’ve done something terrific here, and you should be awfully proud of it.
Indeed, it’s been lots of fun. Thanks for all the fish. Or something like that.
And I alway thought that Gimli liked the campaign. Now, he is just rubbing it in the DM’s face. Like an old, wise veteran, “Don’t worry, you’ll get better.”
Better source material ::gasp:: almost brings a tear to my eyes. Well done, it’s been amazingly fun. It does not effect my watching the movies (again and again). But the scenes are great.
First Toast = It comes in pints? Thanks for the webcomic, Shamus!
Beautiful!!
Loved the dissolve as well.
Theno
Thanks for the great effort, Shamus. I only found this comic a few weeks ago. It has made every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday since a torturous wait until the release of the strip. You have me pegged at so many angles in these strips. Good job.
And I agree about the comments. Often they made me laugh as much as the comic did.
I have found this comic only through the UF LOTD – just in time to see it end. Awesome work, Shamus, and I will definitely check out your new project!
Congratulations DM of the Rings!
I’ll miss the comic…
Thanks Shamus! You’re great!
Shamus. That was awesome. A job well done indeed.
You have one big LOL from me. :-)
Great job overall Shamus. I notice that overall, the story and comic flow really picked up after the ending of the FOTR section of DM of the Rings. And my favorite line ever: “I am altering the deal. Pray that I do not alter it any further.” *cracks up in evil laughter*
As an NWN player, someone who dabbles into RPGs and D&D, and a fan of LOTR and Star Wars, I heartily salute you!
Looking forward to the next project.
Thanks for the laughs, Shamus! Looking forward to the new strip.
Can’t wait for the next episode.
Steve.
Fitting that my first post to this site would come on the last day. Thanks for all the great work, Shamus. I’ve been reading for almost a year and it’s become part of my near-daily ritual. I might add that I’ve been impressed with the way you’ve handled the odd crackpot or agro comment. Good luck with the new comic!
Thank you for this really awesome comic. It kept funny until the very end, and it was a really nice ending.
GB
Thanks, Shamus, and I hope you do another one of these. It rocked.
I still happily throw your “Gimli, son of Groin” line into conversation with anyone I think might remotely get it.
Thanks for the laughs, this has been a fantastic strip.
Thank you for writing! I look forward to reading your next project!
As always, a fine effort full of chuckles and the occasional outright guffaw!
As a recidivist DM, I was particularly amused by the way the players complain about the game, but are willing to sign on for another one rather than get behind the screen themselves…
Thanks for all the enjoyment over the past year, Shamus!
This is the end. Sad.
Thanks for all your efforts to bring this wildly funny series to the internet, Shamus. It’s been fun. I’ll certainly be giving Chainmail Bikini a shot. In any case best wishen in ALL your future endeavors.
Thanks for a great adventure! It’s been fun. :)
Three cheers for the best Screen-Cap-Caption-Parody-Satire-Movie comic ever!
Shamus, you rock out loud :D
Wonderful comic all the way through, including the outstanding ending. You have the gift!
Thanks for the great comic!
What?! No dancing on the table, wantonly exposing your hairy, hobbitlike webcomic-writing feet? {pauses to reflect} Maybe there IS a doG.
Thank you for a great comic. It’s brought plenty of entertainment throughout the year for both me and my wife!
‘W00t. Very nice shamus. I’m looking forward to chainmail bikini.
Thanks for the great comics, kept me entertained when I needed a break from work!
Thanks Shamus – I’ve been reading this back since the thirties, and this has been one of the high points of every Mon/Thurs/Fri.
Many thanks, and I look forward to seeing what you hit us with in the new comic!
Shamus, thank you so much for such an excellent and admirable year of hilarious strips. I’ve been following the DMoTR series since a co-worker pointed it out to me when you were up to episode 10, and I’ve been reading it every M, W, and F ever since. Your humor and creativity really gave this web comic series a lot of style, and I look forward to seeing your work on your next web comic project. Thanks again, and good luck with new project!
Long time reader, first time poster. That was a great run of one of the funniest webcomics I’ve read in ages. I’m trying to incorporate a few of your one-liners into my own campaign, since I’ve gotten almost all the players hooked on DMotR.
Thanks for the awesome comic!
So long and thanks for all the fish! Erm…wait…wrong movie.
You are truly master of all geekery you survey. It’s been a fun ride.
Thank you, sir. Thank you very much. I intend to use the term “rocket horse” whenever possible.
I dunno, I think the perfect screencap is Galadriel’s speechless stare. How does she show anger or disgust without admitting how pompous and pretentious her ‘gift’ was?
Perfect ending, I only wish Gimli’s player had taken up the gauntlet.
I’ll miss this strip and this forum.
So…your next project will have the same players and DM? Or Gimli gave us false hope…?
Can’t wait to see my favorite players in action again.
I’ve followed this coming since June, and it’s been a great summer for me. Thanks Shamus, for all.
You have inspired a few d&d’ers, in my campaign they have started using your quotes from time to time. It’s quite refreshing instead of hearing monty python quotes.
Shamus good job!
Bravo!
I look forward to buying the book.
Excellent work, Shamus. And no doubt, it must have been a lot of work.
I’ll check out Chainmail Bikini, but I’m really hoping for another along this vein someday as well.
You have a gift (several, probably), for translating and interpreting well-loved scenes, characters, etc., into a new and utterly amusing context.
Thanks for all the chuckles.
~Craig
Shamus,
Thanks. Thanks for the laughs when I needed them and even when I didn’t. It may sound odd to you but… over last year my life has seen some upheaval and uncertainty and DM of the Rings has helped me maintain through it. A little bit of stable sunshine in some otherwise dark days made for a welcome respite – even if it was only for a minute or 3 a few days a week it was something to look forward to.
So again, thank-you for the laughs – they were invaluable to me.
OK, enough sap! Now onto “Chaimail Bikini”!
Cheers, Shamus! It’s been good pretending to know you. I’ll see you over at FtB.
Wow, can’t wait for Monday’s strip. Where’s the story going from here?
Thanks for a year of great comics, I look forward to seeing what you do next.
As many others this is my first and last post, just popping in to say thanks on a well-done webcomic. I also enjoyed your earlier campaign posts. Thank you.
*standing ovation*
Wonderfully done! Would be nice to see this in a graphic novel format some day ;) I imagine it’s covered under “Parody”. Regardless, thank you for the enjoyment. And at no charge no less.
Another long-time reader, and ironically first-time poster.
Thank you Thank you so much! It’s been a pleasure reading this ever since I saw a comment about it on a message board. You’ve amused me and my brother to no end.
I’m looking forward to Chainmail Bikini. Godspeed!
Thank you, Shamus. It’s been lovely. Now I have to read them all from the beginning.
I’m looking forward to Chainmail Bikini, and to yet more of your postings about whatever catches your fancy on this site.
Thank you very much.
*Standing Ovation*
Well done Shamus, though I am sad to see it finish, all good things must come to an end, especially when based on films. I’m sure your legion of fans will follow you to Chainmail Bikini, but I for one hope that someday we will get to see the next campaign they play, be it Star Wars or any other film based RP.
Bravo!