Philosophical Debate About Beauty and Romance

Summary

In Session 9, while preparing for reconnaissance on the foundry, the party becomes embroiled in an extended philosophical discussion about beauty standards, romantic relationships, and the adventuring life. The conversation begins when Sucks Benedict declares that "everyone is beautiful in their own way," prompting Cat to challenge this universal claim. The debate expands to questions about ideal romantic partners and whether they should share an adventurous spirit, revealing tensions about Greta's choice not to join the quest and the party's uncertain moral standing as self-described "miscreants."

Details

The philosophical debate begins when Sucks Benedict asserts, "Everyone is beautiful in their own way. You are." He defends having "low standards" in romance, stating "I will take whatever because everything."

Cat immediately challenges this universal beauty claim by pointing to the guard Terry as a counterexample, asking "Yeah, but what about that guard, Todd? The creepy Terry?" and arguing that Terry is only beautiful "Maybe if you're a bird with breasts." Sucks Benedict remains steadfast, insisting "That guy's beautiful in his own way" and noting "he's got a great voice."

The conversation shifts when Safia suggests Sucks Benedict could "set his sights higher" than Greta and proposes that ideal partners should enjoy adventures: "It would have been fun if she came with us." This position becomes muddled when Safia also suggests partners should "stay home with the children," prompting Sucks Benedict to criticize this as "not very forward thinking" and accuse Safia of not being "an ally."

Vasso voices confusion about the contradictory standards: "I'm confused now. Yeah, we want girlfriends that like adventures. Or do we want girlfriends that don't like adventures? Because I thought it was that we don't want them to like adventures so they stay home with the children."

The discussion also touches on the party's moral status. Sucks Benedict acknowledges they are "kind of miscreants to some degree." Cat counters by pointing out "We're the heroes of the pumpkin patch," but Sucks Benedict immediately responds with "I mean, yeah, we did do that, but then immediately after you tried to kill Nick Silver" with an arrow in the neck, an action only prevented by Sucks Benedict tackling Cat.

The conversation concludes with reflections on Greta's relationship with the party. Sucks Benedict defends her choice: "She seems to not want to be associated with us in public. Which fair." The party agrees that "Greta does want to miss us," acknowledging the distance between them.

Participants

Sucks Benedict — Defends universal beauty standards and low romantic standards; criticizes contradictory relationship advice as "not very forward thinking"
Cat — Challenges Sucks Benedict's universal beauty claim using Terry as a counterexample; reminds the party of their hero status
Safia — Suggests Sucks Benedict could aim higher than Greta; proposes contradictory standards for ideal partners
Vasso — Becomes confused by the contradictory relationship advice about adventurous versus domestic partners
Greta — Subject of discussion regarding her choice not to join the quest and her apparent reluctance to be publicly associated with the party
Terry — Used as a test case for the universal beauty claim
Nick Silver — Mentioned as the target of Cat's near-fatal arrow attack

Consequences

The party acknowledges their status as "miscreants" rather than straightforward heroes, despite their victory at the pumpkin patch
Tensions surface about Greta's relationship with the party and her choice to distance herself from their public activities
Sucks Benedict's romantic philosophy and relationship with Greta become subjects of party scrutiny
The group's moral ambiguity is established through the reminder of Cat's attempted killing of Nick Silver
No consensus emerges on what qualities the party should value in romantic partners