What if Mentor and Morcar (Zargon) are the same person?

[Count Von Bruno]

Well,err... I'm pretty sure I almost saw him the other day

Wait wait wait...Torilen, you mean they ARE'NT the same dude?

[torilen]

Well - I can't base my thoughts on any pictures, really...the only pics I've seen are simply from
downloads from here. I only have the base game, and not even the box it goes in. So, as far as
saying they are the same because a couple of pictures look the same...I can't comment.

As for the idea based on the game texts and other such information - I never gave it any thought
until it came up on here a good while ago (a year or two ago, perhaps). Never crossed my mind as
to why they would be the same person - would the designers really even put that much thought
into a backstory to make them the same person?? Did they have the intent to have that become
the ultimate goal of the heroes - to uncover the mysterious alter-ego?

I seriously doubt it.

In my mind, as the game is so simple, the story is fairly simple, it stands to reason...it is a
good vs evil thing going on, and nothing deeper than that. So, no, I disagree...I do not think
they are the same person.

[Goblin-King]

I'm with you here torilen, I agree 100% with your logic.

The thread IS named "what if..." though. It's simply a thought experiment.
We are taking the route of fundamentalism. Start with the fact, then finding evidence to support it. Then adding a huge dose of fan fiction.

[Sjeng]

Exactly. The game just wasn't that very well thought through, as you can conclude from the rules alone.
Some artist drew a wizard dude with an ominous red cape and a beard, hovering over the evil hordes on the GM screen, probably depicting him as the evil player (Morcar/Zargon). But then someone made the hero cards, and placed a picture of the same wizard with Loretome on the cards. And so started the confusion.
I like the Marvel winter special, but as the wizard is on the Evil Player's Screen ánd looks evil, and controls the evil hordes apparently, in my eyes, the red wizard is Morcar. The fact that he is also on the character cards is a mess-up.
But I do like the Mentor = Morcar speculation.

[el_flesh]

He turned out to be the same person in the Beernut version of HQ. He was getting the hero party stronger and stronger so that they would become his personal "Emperor's Hand" minions when converted to undead.
It really didn't suprise anyone.

[Daedalus]

My take is Mentor/Morcar is an allegory of the evil wizard player. That player takes on both roles in the game, presenting both the Quest notes of Mentor and the monster opposition marshalled by Morcar. The duality was ambiguously indicated by presenting the nearly-same portrait on components that represent the two different sides of the conflict at the table.

The main difference in roles is indicated by the tilt of the book in his hands. On the character boards the wording is revealed, suggesting Loretome and Mentor's direction from the Quest notes. However, the text is held back on the screen image. This is a visual reference to the role of Morcar, who necessarily witholds his plans to defeat the Heroes. The monsters below this book and contained/revealed under Morcar's cape reinforce this opposing role.

Games Workshop had no problem with presenting good-evil ambiguity where Ogres are concerned. Hey, they aren't evil--they only eat people because they're so darn hungry! I feel GW intentially included similar images for both Mentor and Morcar to visually define the role of the evil wizard player. Metagame, they are the same guy. In-game, they are seperate individuals detailed in the background of the introduction. That's good enough for me.

[bastianbux]

He turned out to be the same person in the Beernut version of HQ. He was getting the hero party stronger and stronger so that they would become his personal "Emperor's Hand" minions when converted to undead.
It really didn't suprise anyone.

What is the "Beernut version of HeroQuest"?

[Big Bene]

What is the "Beernut version of HeroQuest"?

Beernut is the gamemaster of the group El Flesh plays in. You can look it up in the Saturday night's Dungeon forum.

[knightkrawler]

I think Flesh and Beernut are one and the same person. Flesh is very peculiar about setting Beernut in italics as if he wanted to rub our noses in.

[Big Bene]

Don't think so.
Beernut definitely is the gamemaster. Flesh is a player, playing a necromancer hero.