Moved a comment over to here where it can be discussed w/o spoiler tags.
In the Group Read for TIL, Cord Hurn wrote:I know it's been some time since anyone commented on this thread, but I want to comment that tonyz has identified the heart of Troy's problem: whether Troy was exaggerating his abilities as a strategist, or not, he could not have anticipated what he'd be up against. The Illearth Stone's ability to warp beings and apparently speed up their reproduction is beyond his ( or anyone else's comprehension.
This is one side of the coin. But there is another side of the coin to consider.
People like Troy will
ALWAYS be beaten by Foul. They always believe that they can beat Foul at his game, but Foul always picks the game and sets the terms of the game in his favor. He knows your weaknesses, and you can never guess his strengths.
So you can look at it this way: Foul created a huge army
because he knew it was the weak point in Troy's plan. He did this
because this would drive Troy to over-extend himself to seek that slim chance at victory. And he wanted that
because that would create the despair he needed to break him and thereby destroy them all.
If you accept that notion, then what follows is this: Had Troy been able to defeat a huge warped army with the resources at hand, the Foul would have known that, and would have
done something different. And that different thing would have led to a similar result.
In the end, Troy actually beat Foul in the only way possible: he entered the trap, let it spring on him, and then found a way out of it. What was necessary in the end was not his tactics or his power of command, but the extravagance of his desperation. That's the thing that Foul always understimates in people from our world -- what we're capable of when it's down to the wire.
.
for Hile Troy, forever exempt from berkdom.
