Haley's team runs into a group of ninjas. No one is able to spot them.
Cast
- Haley Starshine ◀ ▶
- Belkar Bitterleaf ◀ ▶
- Vaarsuvius ◀ ▶
- Blackwing ▶
- Ten goblin ninjas
Transcript
- Panel 1
Haley: ...so the Boots of Speed were totally powerful, but they were, like, lime green.
Vaarsuvius: Indeed. A most grave conundrum you faced.
Belkar: Wait.
- Panel 2
Belkar: I think I just failed a Spot check.
- Panel 3
The three characters are surrounded by goblin ninjas.
Haley: Really? I don't see anything.
Belkar: Exactly.
- Panel 4
Belkar: Hey, V, don't you have a familiar that grants Alertness?
- Panel 5
Vaarsuvius: Hmm? Oh, yes, yes of course. My raven is right here.
- Panel 6
A raven pops into existence above Vaarsuvius' head. "pop!"
- Panel 7
Belkar: See anything?
Vaarsuvius: I do not.
- Panel 8
The raven vanishes again with a "pop!".
- Panel 9
Haley: I didn't know you had a familiar...
One of the goblin ninja: Umm...we're like RIGHT here.
Belkar: Wait! I think I just failed a Listen check!
D&D Context
- The comic is based around occasions in roleplaying games where players are asked to roll dice to see if their characters detect something. In D&D this often takes the form of characters making a "Spot check." Players who roll badly may make their characters act cautiously anyway, in a form of metagaming.
- The raven's sudden appearance and disappearance is in reference to many players forgetting their character's followers or familiars until such time as they are needed. This aspect of Blackwing is a running gag throughout the comic.
- Boots of Speed are a magic item from D&D that allow the user to act as if they had a haste spell cast on them.
Trivia
- Title meaning: A play on "See Spot run", a common phrase from the Dick and Jane reading books.
- The boots of speed mentioned by Haley appear in a flashback in #608. She also mentions them to Celia in #573. They are ultimately dyed to match her desert outfit and incorporated into her kit in #675.
- First appearance of Blackwing (unnamed as of yet).