Aussie Crawl posted:

DontMockMySmock posted:

Don't put your trust in revolutions. They always come around again. That's why they're called revolutions. People die, and nothing changes.

Nigel Danvers posted:

I think the wizards use of magic is best shown in the way they pay tax in Ankh-Morpork. As citizens they should pay tax, and they would. But they have an understanding with the Patrician that they will pay tax under the informal agreement that they are never asked to actually pay tax.

quote:

The relationship between the University and the Patrician, absolute ruler and nearly benevolent dictator of Ankh-Morpork, was a complex and subtle one.

The wizards held that, as servants of a higher truth, they were not subject to the mundane laws of the city.

The Patrician said that, indeed, this was the case, but they would bloody well pay their taxes like everyone else.

The wizards said that, as followers of the light of wisdom, they owed allegiance to no mortal man.

The Patrician said that this may well be true but they also owed a city tax of two hundred dollars per head per annum, payable quarterly.

The wizards said that the University stood on magical ground and was therefore exempt from taxation and anyway you couldn't put a tax on knowledge.

The Patrician said you could. It was two hundred dollar per capita; if per capita was a problem, decapita could be arranged.

The wizards said that the University had never paid taxes to the civil authority.

The Patrician said he was not proposing to remain civil for long.

The wizards said, what about easy terms?

The Patrician said he was talking about easy terms. They wouldn't want to know about the hard terms.

The wizards said that there was a ruler in, oh, it would be the Century of the Dragonfly, who had tried to tell the University what to do. The Patrician could come and have a look at him if he liked.

The Patrician said he would. He truly would.

In the end it was agreed that while the wizards of course paid no taxes, they would nevertheless make an entirely voluntary donation of, oh, let's say two hundred dollars per head, without prejudice, mutatis mutandis, no strings attached, to be used strictly for non-militaristic and environmentally-acceptable purposes.

shadok posted:

Nope. Pteppic abdicates, leaving his half-sister Ptraci on the throne.

Ephebe qualifies, but it's really more of an aristocracy than a democracy.

Mokinokaro posted:

To be fair, Vetinari only turns to being a tyrant when he absolutely has to. He's content to let things run themselves when it's good for the city.

Alvie posted:

That quote has to be one of my favorite from the entire Discworld series. In fact, I know a lot of people like to diss on Soul Music as a book but I think it had some of the best one-liners like that in the entire series. I didn't even get the "He looks Elvish to me" running joke until I read about it on L Space Web. Elvish - H = Elvis

I enjoyed that book a lot. Especially the opening band that constantly changes names and is basically a Discworld Punk Rock band. Beautiful.

Gravitas Shortfall posted:

Odds on Granny dying....

LooseChanj posted:

Get a library card, or are you like me and absolutely loath letting a book out of your hands/shelf?

Lugubrious posted:

He might also be like me and have a library with only two Pratchett books.

Vengeance of Pandas posted:

Probably referring to the more in-depth look at dwarf religion and society in Fifth Elephant and Thud. Though whether they're a fantasy equivalent to Judaism, Islam or some hybrid is up for debate.

Mister Roboto posted:

It's a bit vague, but I suppose since Vimes is a teenager at the time and Sybil is described pretty much the same way that they can be close or even the same.

Darth Walrus posted:

Try West Side Story.

AlphaDog posted:

Some cards make you draw an Event Card, which is not skippable. Event cards might signify an earthquake, a flood, an invasion by trolls or demons, or something else even weirder.

AlphaDog posted:

Victory occurs at the end of the turn following the turn in which you won. So if I'm Vetinari, and I've placed my final agent and now there's enough that I win, the next player takes their turn before I can declare "I win". If someone else has figured out that I must be Vetinari, then they have to try very hard to remove one of my agents before their turn ends. You need a good poker face, or clueless friends. In a very discworld manner, people can wreck your victory without realising they've done so.