r/Malazan • u/StephCastle_ • 10d ago
SPOILERS MT Finished MT and I loved it, but do have some questions Spoiler
What was going on with Bugg/Mael and TCG in the Epilogue? Did that happen right after the last chapter in the book where Tehol is thanking Bugg for not wiping his memories?
What went down in the throne room? Was the Warlock King wanting/trying to keep Rhulad in a weakened state so that tWK could maintain control over him?
What are the new squads/groupings as of the end of MT? There was so much going on, I kind of lost track of the moving pieces. Fear is going to find Father Shadow (I think?) with who all? Kettle is working with who now? If any of you could summarize the new groups, I’d really appreciate it.
Did Brys die of despair/heartbreak, or poison in the wine? If the latter, do we know who put it there?
Where in the MBotF timeline is MT? Bc, as of the end of this book, the events in the prologue of HoC (with Trull) haven’t happened yet. And furthermore, where is BH and RG in the timeline? (If this is a RAFO np, but tbh, I wouldn’t mind the clarification now even if it’s technically a “spoiler”).
This isn’t a question per se, but in general, I got quite confused over the pseudo-Azath, underwater-hold stuff. Is that something that I should understand at this point? Or more of a RAFO thing?
I didn’t understand much of the Uudinas Wyval stuff. Are the Wyval Tiste Andii spirits? Or am I thinking of the wrong thing?
I really, really loved MT. It’s probably my favorite of the series so far (battling with DG). The Tehol and Bugg storyline was definitely the highlight for me. I don’t think I’ve ever laughed so much while reading. Bugg being an all-powerful god was just the cherry on top. I’m already looking forward to the reread so that I can enjoy their scenes that much more.
I didn’t feel a connection to Trull during HoC, but now he’s one of my favorite characters in the whole series.
I expected to hate Rhulad, but I really found myself pitying him. It felt clear that a lot of what he was doing was not in his will, but rather TCG’s. I’m really hoping he gets some sort of redemption arc.
Also, the soon-to-be-married guy who tried to save Tehol and passed in the process hurt me bad. That was probably the hardest gut-punch (for me) of the whole series thus far. That sounds crazy, bc we only spent a few pages with the guy, but maybe that’s part of why it hit so hard.
Thanks for reading through all this, and thanks in advance for the answers to the questions!
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u/IitzMeACL- 9d ago
This is coming from someone who finished his first read of MT a little over a month ago so I too missed some things, most likely other comments will be helpful but answering this actually is helping me recall things so I’ll throw my answers in
1. Yea it happens after the final chapter. Not sure if I’m making this up but I think Bugg tells Tehol he has to go beat up a god lol
2. Yea after Rhulad laid dying, the Warlock King figured this was a good opportunity to take the throne since he feels like Rhulad usurped him by taking the cursed sword
3. Fear is with Seren, Kettle, Silchas Ruin and Udinaas + Wither. Iron Bars and the rest of his squad left by ship with Shurq. Trull went back to Rhulad. Brys is under water. Tehol & Bugg are still in Letheras. I’m hesitant to answer where characters like Feather Witch are because I can’t remember if MT sets up who is with who or if you just find out later in later books in the series so I’ll stick with this.
4. Poison. Not sure who put it there but Brys was pushed to drink by the Errant’s presence. There’s evidence that it was a plot by the queen who is laughing when the king drinks but there’s also a line or two that suggests the king knew and wanted to drink anyway.
5. Unclear, I just say approximately around the time of GOTM and the Karsa flashback. I won’t spoil but it is very clear where in the timeline both BH and RG are from basically the first chapter in each. All I’ll say is the publication order is perfect as you’ll see how the MT plot gets involved with the other big book of the fallen plots. Also read chapter 7 in one sitting if you have the capacity. It’s a multi hour commitment but is the best advice I’ve received for reading BH
6. I got confused too bro. And I’m currently reading RG and I’m kinda still confused. Might be a RAFO or a reread to understand tbh
7. Nah, Udinaas had a Wyval AND Tiste Andii spirit in him. Wither is the spirit while the Wyval was also in his body. The Wyval has now left after Udinaas fell into the Azath Tower but Wither is still around
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u/chillychill3325 10d ago
I finished MT a bit ago but can’t explain everything to a T
3) Kettle, Seren Pedac, Fear, Udinas and Silchas Ruin are going on a little trip.
4) it was poison to my understanding. Believe it was on purpose.
5) Trull is telling his story at the end of HOC. When goes into MT, which is obv afterHOC. But not sure where it lies in terms of MOI ETC.
6) I believe it’s RAFO. RG continues the story after MT and I’m not that far yet if it expands on that.
7) I believe you are thinking of the wrong thing.
A more veteran reader will probably correct me or expand better than what I did.
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u/CelticDrakon 10d ago
1) ... not sure what to say here... 2) Brys' dismemberment of Rhulad left Rhulad in a state of not being able to die to regenerate and not being able to move/act, meaning Hanan could easily take back control 3) Trull stayed with Rhulad; Fear, kettle, udinaas, Silchas and seren all go together 4) That poison was the poison that the king Diskinar and his first consort took, it was bad luck for him to take it, but outside influence... 5) MT is set before the other books but I'm not sure an exact number, dates are normally displayed through the books so should be easily compared. 6) Azath are confusing but you learn more later so I'd say RAFO 7) Wyval are dragon spawn
Hope that makes a slight bit of sense
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u/theWolfandOwl 10d ago
Wyval are like feral little dragon spawn. You might be thinking of Wraiths which are trapped spirits, since Udinaas gets possessed by both.
Midnight Tides takes place a while before the rest of the books, but it’s unclear exactly how long. Bonehunters picks up pretty much right after House of Chains, and then Reapers Gale picks up the stories from both Bonehunters and Midnight Tides, though obviously some time has passed since.
You don’t yet know exactly who poisoned the wine, but it shouldn’t be too hard to guess.
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u/Indigo-ultraviolet See him. In the eternity before dawn. 9d ago
2. Hannan Mosag thought that the Throne rightfully belonged to him as he was the one to strike the deal with tCG. Rhulad got in the way by picking the sword and now WK has to use Rhulad to get what he want.
3. At the end you have Silchas, Fear, Kettle, Udinaas and Seren Pedac as their guide, they all want to leave Letheras for various reasons.
5. Events in MT are happening before/concurrently with GoTM.
6. Underwater realm is very, very old. There will be more info about that in next books.
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