[Wilshire]

Not until they lost the NG, but even then they decided to hide in Golgotterath.

Maybe before they got sealed into the Arc, but even then they probably figured they had time. For some reason I always got the impression that preserving the world was almost holy to them in some way. After they saw what their pre/landing stunt did they probably didn't want to risk something that catastrophic.

Now though, they may be fearing for their lives. They may fear that someone like Kellhus might be able to defeat the labyrinth that is the Arc - especially after witnessing the years spent trying to hunt down Kellhus' kin... Or that he might otherwise succeed where all others before have failed.

Could have been a totally new thing, or could have been a one-off they had in a closet they were saving for a rainy day. Plenty of possibilities.

[H]

Not until they lost the NG, but even then they decided to hide in Golgotterath.

Maybe before they got sealed into the Arc, but even then they probably figured they had time. For some reason I always got the impression that preserving the world was almost holy to them in some way. After they saw what their pre/landing stunt did they probably didn't want to risk something that catastrophic.

Now though, they may be fearing for their lives. They may fear that someone like Kellhus might be able to defeat the labyrinth that is the Arc - especially after witnessing the years spent trying to hunt down Kellhus' kin... Or that he might otherwise succeed where all others before have failed.

Could have been a totally new thing, or could have been a one-off they had in a closet they were saving for a rainy day. Plenty of possibilities.

Yeah, I am definitely buying them being pretty desperate now.  Sure, the No-God being destroyed was a major loss, but not one they couldn't recover from, seemingly.

Kellhus though, he is something I literally do not think they can beat and I think they know it.  So, they are trying to throw everything and the kitchen sink at him in the hopes that maybe something catches him off-guard.

[Wilshire]

They could always rebuild the NG. The Consult knew that nothing but a unified army of the Three Seas entire would cross the North and their legions upon legions of sranc. This is likely a large part of why they employed skin spies, to prevent that eventuality. They probably started the scholastic wars as well, hoping to permanently separate the Sorcerous Schools, making even more difficult.

Kellhus was able to defeat hundreds of years of safeguards the Consult had been setting up in a mere 20 years. He even created a new gnostic school and made the Mandate holy, which would have vastly increased their numbers and power.

[H]

They could always rebuild the NG. The Consult knew that nothing but a unified army of the Three Seas entire would cross the North and their legions upon legions of sranc. This is likely a large part of why they employed skin spies, to prevent that eventuality. They probably started the scholastic wars as well, hoping to permanently separate the Sorcerous Schools, making even more difficult.

Kellhus was able to defeat hundreds of years of safeguards the Consult had been setting up in a mere 20 years. He even created a new gnostic school and made the Mandate holy, which would have vastly increased their numbers and power.

Yeah, my post was supposed to say "couldn't" that is, they could recover from losing the No-God, given enough time.

They know they can't actually kill Kellhus now, I think.  My feeling is that they are just trying to stop his plan (which is hard, because I am pretty sure they know about as much about it as we do).

[Wilshire]

I figured out your post , no worries.

Given that I think they were trying to kill kellhus and anyone around him (presumably his closest generals and some schoolmen), I wonder what they'll try once they notice Kellhus is nowhere to be seen.

Everyone knows that the ordeal is a meat shield for the schools, but they haven't had much luck destroying the men on foot or the sorcerers. They lost a small handful at Dagliash, the book names several, which I assume is because those were the only losses. Other than the idiocy early with the Vokalati and the Mandate, the rest seem mostly unscathed.

I see two possibility.
The Consult (Inchoroi and Shae&friends) vie directly against The Ordeal as they approach the Fields Appauling (or whatever the correct name is for the plains between the mountains and Golgotterath), using directed, precision strikes targeting cadre of magi during pitched battles then fleeing before they are fully engaged. In effect, slowly bleeding the sorcerous powers on their march.
Or, they see the risk of death is too great (more likely if they don't know where Kellhus is, ie not with the ordeal), and they hide until they Ordeal Approaches Golgotterath itself.

[H]

Thinking about it now though, in light of your points Wilshire, I had thought it almost certain that they would hide.

However, thinking back, doesn't Aurang show up himself?  Like, as in, not the Sythese?

Two things are possible here, either Aurang felt that the goad had to be good enough (I think that he was trying to lure Kellhus away from the Nuke, so it would catch more sorcerers) or it was a ruse, some sorcery he knows to only make it look like it was himself in person.  Not sure which is more probable.  I am thinking though it was not actually him, or if it was he had some kind of "fool proof" escape plan.

It's also curious that Kellhus didn't just teleport to him and kill he straight away...perhaps he knew it was a trap?

[Somnambulist]

Kellhus never saw Aurang.  He was busy excavating Dagliash/Viri.

[H]

Kellhus never saw Aurang.  He was busy excavating Dagliash/Viri.

Good point.  Which would perhaps lend itself to the theory that Aurang's appearance was to stop him from doing exactly that.  It wouldn't be worth the risk to bother to engage simply the Grandmaster of the Mandate (small fish) if that really was his own flesh and not a total ruse.

[Wilshire]

I think he was activating the nuke . I love his only few lines, what a great scene.

[profgrape]

That's an interesting thought, Wilshire.  His appearance was really surprising given the fact that the nuke was relatively close.  It seems like he'd want to have stayed away as his presence would  draw the Schools away from Dagliash instead of leaving them to be blowed up.

[Madness]

I think he was activating the nuke . I love his only few lines, what a great scene.

Indeed .

I honestly just think he came to see what's up - he's out above the Horde, he stays outside the distance of Saccarees's Cants. Probably just wanted to make sure that Kellhus fell for the trap.

And it hadn't occurred to me until now - because I see Kellhus taking the Tekne for himself as inevitable - but that is a really interesting thought, Wilshire, that the Consult might be lulled into the thought that the Tekne-Nuke got Kellhus (though, that they don't know about his Metagnostic Cant of Translocation seems suspicious to me).

EDIT:

As for the continuing Aorsi/Dagliash speculation, I've always been of the opinion that the Ordeal will lose this Investiture.

[Blackstone]

I think he was activating the nuke . I love his only few lines, what a great scene.

Indeed .

I honestly just think he came to see what's up - he's out above the Horde, he stays outside the distance of Saccarees's Cants. Probably just wanted to make sure that Kellhus fell for the trap.

I agree. The nuke seems to be on a timer, so I don't know that it needs someone to activate it.

And it hadn't occurred to me until now - because I see Kellhus taking the Tekne for himself as inevitable - but that is a really interesting thought, Wilshire, that the Consult might be lulled into the thought that the Tekne-Nuke got Kellhus (though, that they don't know about his Metagnostic Cant of Translocation seems suspicious to me).

I also think this is inevitable, but I don't think it's the main point of the GO.

[profgrape]

I think he was activating the nuke . I love his only few lines, what a great scene.

Indeed .

I honestly just think he came to see what's up - he's out above the Horde, he stays outside the distance of Saccarees's Cants. Probably just wanted to make sure that Kellhus fell for the trap.

And it hadn't occurred to me until now - because I see Kellhus taking the Tekne for himself as inevitable - but that is a really interesting thought, Wilshire, that the Consult might be lulled into the thought that the Tekne-Nuke got Kellhus (though, that they don't know about his Metagnostic Cant of Translocation seems suspicious to me).

EDIT:

As for the continuing Aorsi/Dagliash speculation, I've always been of the opinion that the Ordeal will lose this Investiture.

By the end, it seemed like they had, what, 100,000 troops and around 1000 sorcerers?  And they have a heck of a Vanguard with the Scalded.  The Cannibal Ordeal will surely thin those numbers.  As may the Scylvendi.  But even so, they should make it to Golgatterath with a sizable army.

[H]

But even so, they should make it to Golgatterath with a sizable army.

To what end though?  Knock on the soggomantic door?  Even if we imagine that the idea of the Great Ordeal's mundane members as a delivery system, what are all those sorcerers going to do when the reach the Ark?

That's a big mystery there...

[Blackstone]

I don't think there's that many sorcerers. I'd guess ~100 per school with 6 schools.