Sourcery Trivia

1. Unseen University was full of wizards. Sourcerers, however, were much more rare. How was a sourecerer created?

From Quiz #5 'Sourcery': Men of Magic

Answer: They were the eighth son of a wizard.

Wizards were powerful in that they could use magic, but sourcerers were much more powerful than that: a sourcerer was a source of magic. According to "Casplock's Compleet Lexicon of Majik with Precepts for the Wise", a sourcerer was a "doorway through which new majik may enterr the world". The definition also mentioned that if sourcerery returned to the Disc, the end of the world would follow.

From Quiz Terry Pratchett's "Sourcery"

Answer: A staff

Ipslore the Red was the eighth son of an eighth son, making him a wizard, but he didn't get along well at the Unseen University and left to start a family. Wizards are specifically forbidden from doing so to prevent them from having an eighth son, which would be a sourcerer. After his eighth son was born, Ipslore created a staff for him made of metal, claiming that, "I put a lot of myself into it" which turned out to be very true. When Death came for Ipslore, he told Death that he was setting his son's destiny to wear the Archchancellor's hat and rule over the world. Death informed him that he couldn't set the destiny without leaving a loophole, so Ipslore said that the loophole was that the destiny would be removed if Coin threw away his staff. Although Death stated that a wizard would never throw away his staff, he conceded that it was a possibility. Thus when Ipslore merged with the staff, Death couldn't take the staff from Coin without upsetting destiny. Death pointed out, "YOU'RE ONLY PUTTING OFF THE INEVITABLE", to which Ipslore replied, "That's what being alive is all about".

From Quiz 'Sourcery' Random Questions

Answer: Being the eighth son of an eighth son of an eighth son

Getting a staff from a dying wizard gives you his talent, but not at sourcerer level. See 'Equal Rites' for the problem that ensues when a wizard accidentally gives his staff to a baby girl. Being an eighth son is nothing special, but if you have eight sons, that eighth one will be able to be a wizard. But if he eschews the magical requirement of celibacy and fathers eight sons, watch out for that last one!

From Quiz #5 'Sourcery': Men of Magic

Answer: Coin

On the Disc (where eight was a magical number), the eighth son of an eighth son would usually become a wizard. Wizards were not allowed to marry or have children because the eighth son of a wizard would be a sourcerer. Although the thought of absolute power was appealing to most wizards, the arrival of a sourcerer would also mean the end of the world. One wizard, however, ran away from Unseen University. Ipslore got married and had children - eight sons to be precise. His eighth son was a wizard squared: a sourcerer named Coin. While Coin was still a baby, Death came for Ipslore. Ipslore cheated Death by putting his own soul inside his son's staff. Death couldn't damage the staff without harming Coin and altering the boy's destiny. Isplore was safe inside it and could influence his son from beyond the grave (or at least, from within the staff).

From Quiz 'Sourcery' Random Questions

Answer: He had it upside down

"All right," [Rincewind] conceded, "down. Very, very carefully. Down." This had also happened when he, Conina, Nijel and the Seriph first tried to get the carpet to fly. That time Rincewind thought it just responded opposite to any commands. Later he realizes that the carpet was in fact upside down.

From Quiz #5 'Sourcery': Men of Magic

Answer: An orang-utan

During a magical accident in "The Light Fantastic", the Librarian was turned from a wizard into an orang-utan. Being an orang-utan actually had benefits when working in a library (such as long arms to reach higher shelves), so the Librarian had refused to be changed back. He had a very special relationship with the University library and the books inside it. When a group of wizards under the authority of sourcery arrived to burn the building and the books it held, the Librarian hid all of the books in the Tower of Art.

From Quiz Terry Pratchett's "Sourcery"

Answer: A hairdresser

After noticing that Rincewind seemed a bit intimidated with her ability to dispatch several ruffians, Conina admitted to him that she couldn't help it because she took after her father. Rincewind joked, "Who was he, then? Cohen the Barbarian?" only to find out that indeed she was Cohen's daughter. Conina said that she inherited muscles and a desire to steal and kill things, but what she really wanted to be was a hairdresser. Rincewind pointed out that there wasn't really much of a call for a "shampoo and be-heading", but he knew how she felt because he really wanted to be a proper wizard.

From Quiz 'Sourcery' Random Questions

Answer: A Geas

It belonged to a species unique even among Disc fauna, in that their prime means of defence was to cause a predator to laugh so much that they could run away before it recovered.

From Quiz #5 'Sourcery': Men of Magic

Answer: He was tall, thin, and incredibly bad at magic.

In the story, Rincewind was described as tall and thin with a scrubby beard and tatty wizard robes. Throughout the Discworld series, he was notoriously bad at magic. According to "Sourcery", he was "incapable even of achieving level zero, which most people are born at". Although he was incompetent at magic, he owned an incredibly rare magical object. The Luggage looked like any other suitcase until it sprouted hundreds of legs and swallowed anyone who tried to attack it. "Sourcery" was dedicated to an American tourist who visited Bath in England. She was "towing a huge tartan suitcase very fast on little rattly wheels which caught the pavement cracks and generally gave it a life of its own". Her quirky bag gave Pratchett the idea for the Luggage.

From Quiz 'Sourcery' Random Questions

Answer: Hibernating on top of the wardrobe

It is still unsure why The Luggage consents to be "owned" by Rincewind.

From Quiz #5 'Sourcery': Men of Magic

Answer: Small God's Eve

As a general rule, wizards were attracted to power and would always keep an eye open for opportunities to move up the career ladder. It was forbidden for wizards to settle their differences using magic, but knives, poisons, and booby traps were not out of the question. In the Disc's distant past, during the Mage Wars, wizards built towers and fought each other. History did not say how the Mage Wars ended, but the return of sourcery brought about a similar Disc-wide catastrophe. Small God's Eve was a kind of feast day for wizards - like most other days really. It was generally accepted, however, that wizards wouldn't attempt to promote themselves up the ranks on that day.

From Quiz 'Sourcery' Random Questions

Answer: "Erm, excuse me?"

Nijel learned how to be a hero by reading Cohen the Barbarian's book, 'Inne Juste 7 Dayes I wille make You a Barbearian Hero!'.

From Quiz #5 'Sourcery': Men of Magic

Answer: Archchancellor

The Archchancellor's hat was an important symbol of wizardry on the Discworld. The Archchancellor was the top position in the magical career path and the hat that came with the position had a mind of its own. The hat knew a sourcerer was headed for the University so it made sure it was taken away. The hat told Conina (daughter of Cohen the Barbarian) to steal it and find a wizard. To his dismay, the wizard she found was Rincewind. The hat used Conina and Rincewind to get to Al Khali but then it negotiated with Abrim, the Grand Vizier. Abrim claimed to have a talent for magic but his application to Unseen University was rejected due to his mental instability.

From Quiz Terry Pratchett's "Sourcery"

Answer: A barbarian hero

The archchancellor's hat had decided to be worn by the Grand Vizier Abrim, so the hat told Abrim to get rid of Rincewind. Abrim told his guards to throw Rincewind in the spider tank but was told that they had run out of spiders. When he ordered Rincewind to be locked in the tiger cage, a guard informed Abrim that the tiger was ill. So they ended up putting Rincewind in the snake pit which turned out to be a fifteen-foot-deep pit containing only one snake and an extremely emaciated young man dressed in barbarian garb and woolly underwear (because he promised his mother he'd wear it). He went by the name of Nijel the Destroyer, son of Harebut the Provision Merchant, and he had studied to be a barbarian by reading a book supposedly written by Cohen the Barbarian called "Inne Juste 7 Days I wille make You a Barbearian Hero!" He was in the pit because he had an asthma attack while he was trying to steal the Seriph's treasure. Nijel's limited skills became apparent when Rincewind and he escaped from the pit and went to rescue Conina from the harem. As the guards approached Nijel, he pulled out his sword and gave the battle cry: "Erm, excuse me".

From Quiz 'Sourcery' Random Questions

Answer: The snake pit

"We've run out of spiders." "The tiger's been ill." "We'll need a bit of notice [...] to get it going again." "There's the snake pit, master." There was always the snake pit.

From Quiz #5 'Sourcery': Men of Magic

Answer: Ankh-Morpork

Ankh-Morpork was the largest city on the Discworld. It was home to the Unseen University and the Tower of Art, a huge 800 foot structure with 8,888 steps spiraling up inside it. When the sourcerer arrived in the city, the wizards made some improvements. They upgraded the buildings with white marble and red tiles, and replaced the sludge in the River Ankh with crystal clear water.

From Quiz Terry Pratchett's "Sourcery"

Answer: The Librarian

The Librarian had gone with Rincewind and the Luggage to the tavern before Coin arrived, but while Rincewind left with Conina for Al Khali, the Librarian returned to the university and was very troubled by the changes. He read up on sourcerers, and it was enough to make him crawl under his desk and hide under his blanket. He was curled up under his desk both when Spelter the bursar arrived to warn him that Coin wanted to shut down the university and when Spelter returned to tell him to leave because Coin was going to burn down the library. However, when Sconner led a group of wizards to set it afire, the Librarian was up in the rafters, and dropped on Sconner and tried to screw off his head. The other wizards tried to escape but the magical books in the library blocked their way. The Librarian tossed the wizards out the door. Sconner wasn't pleased and when he stood up, he said, "That monkey has eaten its last banana", to which one of the wizards pointed out that the orangutan Librarian was actually an ape. Sconner then ordered the wizards to get him oil and kindling because "That ape's gonna fry", but the Librarian was already escaping through the ceiling of the library, taking the books with him. When Rincewind returned to the university, he found the Librarian and the books in the Tower of Art. Apparently, books can fly, and most of them escaped before the library was attacked.

From Quiz 'Sourcery' Random Questions

Answer: The Library

The Librarian saves most of the books by breaking the glass in the skylight and getting the books to fly over to the Tower of Art, where they huddled in the tall stairway.

From Quiz #5 'Sourcery': Men of Magic

Answer: Conina and Nijel

Conina stole the Archchancellor's hat because it asked her to. She found a wizard as it had asked, though it probably wasn't expecting to be entrusted to a wizard as incompetent as Rincewind. The hat wanted to go to Klatch, but when they arrived there, it was stolen by pirates. The hat fell into Abrim's hands and Rincewind was pushed into a snake pit. He met Nijel, a wannabe barbarian hero, in the pit. Together, they managed to escape and find Conina. The two barbarians agreed to help the wizard reclaim the Archchancellor's hat.

From Quiz Terry Pratchett's "Sourcery"

Answer: Flying carpet

With Abrim the Grand Vizier wreaking havoc with his new found wizard skills, Rincewind, Conina, and Nijel decided to get away (well, Rincewind and Conina did - they had to drag Nijel away as he was determined to take on Abrim). They ran into Creosote the Seriph, and he offered them the use of his magic carpet. Rincewind refused initially, asserting that he was afraid of grounds ("It's the grounds that kill you"), but he eventually realized that they had to get away from the Battle of Al Khali so he went along with them to the Seriph's treasury. While most the treasure was gone, the magic carpet was hidden away, and after they located it, they sailed off after Rincewind said the magic word of "Down!" He was the only one who noticed that the carpet was upside down. They landed on a beach where they spent the night, but Rincewind got tired of the others bashing wizards, so he took off on the carpet alone and headed back to Ankh-Morpork.

From Quiz 'Sourcery' Random Questions

Answer: Cohen the Barbarian

She inherited all his barbarian skills and inclinations, but she really wanted to be a hairdresser.

From Quiz #5 'Sourcery': Men of Magic

Answer: A magic carpet

Under the influence of the hat, Abrim began to build his own tower. The problem was, he was using the bricks that were holding up Creosote's palace. Rincewind, Nijel, Conina, and Creosote were trapped inside the crumbling residence. Luckily, Creosote knew of a secret passage. At the end of the tunnel, there were three magical items: a ring, a lamp, and a carpet. The group struggled to make the carpet work at first. After they had finished shouting numerous synonyms for "up", Rincewind finally said "down". The carpet rose into the air; the rug had been placed upside down.

From Quiz Terry Pratchett's "Sourcery"

Answer: Ice Giants

After the wizards had conquered the Disc under Coin's guidance, Coin decided that they needed to conquer the gods also. He created a huge bubble that contained all of the gods: "The gods, imprisoned in a thought. Perhaps they were never more than a dream". This created a problem. The Ice Giants had been imprisoned at the Hub many years ago following a battle with the gods. According to the legend, the Ice Giants would break free at the end of time and cover the Disc with their glaciers. So with the gods removed, the Ice Giants started riding their glaciers across the Disc. Nijel and Conina tried reasoning with one of the giants, only to be told that it was the "inevitability of history and the triumph of thermodynamics".

From Quiz 'Sourcery' Random Questions

Answer: Virrid Wayzygoose

Coin (or rather Coin's staff) kills Virrid immediately upon arrival at UU so that he can assume that position. Billias is killed shortly after during a magical 'duel' with Coin. Billias produces Maligree's Wonderful Garden. Coin makes Billias disappear.

From Quiz #5 'Sourcery': Men of Magic

Answer: A genie

When Nijel rubbed the lamp, there was a small pop and a bit of smoke. Then the genie emerged out of the sand a few feet away from the smoke that was supposed to conceal his entrance. The genie had a number of lamps on the go and seemed incredibly busy. Creosote was irritated because he didn't say stereotypical genie phrases like "Your wish is my command". The genie helped the group on their way to Ankh-Morpork (to follow Rincewind, who had stolen the magic carpet and flown away).

From Quiz Terry Pratchett's "Sourcery"

Answer: Half a brick in a sock

After his conversation with the Librarian in the Tower of Art, Rincewind decided to do something about the sourcerer. Maybe it had something to do with the fact that the Librarian had threatened to cut up his "Wizzard" hat. Anyhow, the Librarian explained to Rincewind that it was Coin's staff that was causing all the problems and that those who had tried to take the staff away from him had met grizzly ends. At least, that was how Rincewind interpreted the Librarian's "Oook"s and "Eeek". So Rincewind took off one of his socks and stuffed half a brick in it that he had found in the rubble. Then he got on the magic carpet and again commanded the carpet: "Down!" He arrived at the tower where Coin was showing the rest of the wizards the bubble with the trapped gods. Rincewind started swinging the sock around and said, "I have come to challenge the sourcerer". "With a sock?" said Coin. His staff told Coin to kill Rincewind, but Coin was amused by Rincewind: "He looks so funny. He's got a sock". When Coin refused to kill Rincewind, a battle ensued between Coin and the staff. The wizards ran away, realizing that it wasn't going to end well, but Rincewind tried to help Coin, and the three of them (Rincewind, Coin and the staff) vanished with the tower. Death was there, and he finally got Ipslore the Red. Rincewind and Coin ended up on a beach in what Rincewind believed was the Dungeon Dimensions. Rincewind was able to send Coin back to Ankh-Morpork through some sort of wormhole, while he fought off some monstrous creatures with a sock full of sand.

From Quiz 'Sourcery' Random Questions

Answer: Coin

All this happened when Coin was just about ten years old. It was all done under the influence of his father, Ipslore the Red, who had a bit of a grudge against the wizards at Unseen University. At the time of his death, he put his soul into his staff, which allowed him to "consul" Coin and force him to do his bidding.

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