Why do the combine persist?

[morgs]

They've lost so many troops and resources fighting for earth, why don't they go and dominate another planet or two and build a bigger force?

 

[Avoidist]

Short answer: because we're smart.

 

[AciD]

maybe they dominated 50 other planets in time of HL2

 

[pistolero!]

Aslong they still have a chance to win, they won't give up.

 

[Avoidist]

They're far too systematic and methodical to care about keeping "combine morale" up or requiring a recapture for a sense of pride. They either want something from Earth or are scared of what could happen if they left humanity on it's own to retaliate. I'm guessing the latter, given that the standard of our portal technology is better than theirs, they may not be quite as strong as they appear (or have the classic "weak spot").

 

[Darkside55]

Why, Combine? Why, why, why? Why do you do it? Why, why get up? Why keep fighting? Do you believe you're fighting for something, for more than your survival? Can you tell me what it is, do you even know? Is it slavery, or power, perhaps control, could it be for order? Illusions, Combine, vagaries of perception. Temporary constructs of a feeble alien intellect trying desperately to justify an existence that is without meaning or purpose! And all of them as artificial as the citadel itself, although only a alien mind could invent something as insipid as synths. You must be able to see it Combine, you must know it by now. You can't win, it's pointless to keep fighting! Why, Combine, why? WHY DO YOU PERSIST?!


Because they choose to.

 

[nurizeko]

The pan universal dimensional galactic massive universal union, am empire that dwarfs all else loses a few piddly hundred or thousand locally raised garrison troops.

The Combine occupation of Earth has by our standards taken a heavy hit, but if the Earth based advisor's can just get in contact with the overworld, Earth is boned, and just as a habit, I don't think the Combine are into willingly abandoning an occupied world short of it completely being depleted of useful resources and almost if not all life wiped out.

Even then they'd probably leave an outpost.

 

[357]

Why, Combine? Why, why, why? Why do you do it? Why, why get up? Why keep fighting? Do you believe you're fighting for something, for more than your survival? Can you tell me what it is, do you even know? Is it slavery, or power, perhaps control, could it be for order? Illusions, Combine, vagaries of perception. Temporary constructs of a feeble alien intellect trying desperately to justify an existence that is without meaning or purpose! And all of them as artificial as the citadel itself, although only a alien mind could invent something as insipid as synths. You must be able to see it Combine, you must know it by now. You can't win, it's pointless to keep fighting! Why, Combine, why? WHY DO YOU PERSIST?!


Because they choose to.

Epic.

 

[Operational]

What would you have them do? It's not like they can go 'home'. Besides as far as we know it's just the one area in rebellion, for all intents and purposes the Combine are still in control of earth.

 

[Shift]

Heavy losses? No the Overwatch has taken heavy losses, and that is only in City 17 alone, there is still probably god knows how many Overwatch troops stationed across the globe. Not to mention if the Combine have a portal established, which is all they need, they would crush us within '7 minutes' as Eli quoted.

So they persist, because they have the power to.

 

[DEATH eVADER]

Why, Combine? Why, why, why? Why do you do it? Why, why get up? Why keep fighting? Do you believe you're fighting for something, for more than your survival? Can you tell me what it is, do you even know? Is it slavery, or power, perhaps control, could it be for order? Illusions, Combine, vagaries of perception. Temporary constructs of a feeble alien intellect trying desperately to justify an existence that is without meaning or purpose! And all of them as artificial as the citadel itself, although only a alien mind could invent something as insipid as synths. You must be able to see it Combine, you must know it by now. You can't win, it's pointless to keep fighting! Why, Combine, why? WHY DO YOU PERSIST?!


Because they choose to.

Hello Lawsuit :dozey:

 

[nurizeko]

Its like asking why the American revolutionaries persisted, or why the Taliban persist.

Because they can and believe they're right.

Also as a point, just as the prospect of a final defeat for the human rebels is not an option, somehow I don't think the advisors are in the belief that if they surrender they'll get a pleasant outcome.

Angry local suppressed population rises up and gets hold of the culprits who have caused the decay of everything humanity has ever held dear, killed off hundreds if not thousands, pushed them around, treated them less then human, worse then the worst human regimes.

I dare say murderous retribution killing of captives isn't entirely implausible

 

[Pesmerga]

DarkSide's writing has started to get a little annoying. It's like reading 9th grade dramatic poetry, and wanting to smack them in the face every time they finish a verse with a question mark.

 

[Darkside55]

Good thing I didn't actually write any of that. It's a movie quote with a few words changed here-and-there. Looks like you didn't get the reference.

 

[Ichanic Industry]

<<<---------------------------------------->>>>
I had the reference by the fifth word - "Why?">
I thought it was brilliant adaption, Darkside. >
I could see G-Man morph with Smith as I read. >
-------------->>> ichanic <<<----------------->

 

[nurizeko]

The quote looked familiar, but I couldn't place it.

 

[Rapstah]

Because they still know they can win, and they will. They have billions of billions of troops in other universes and if a couple of million of those could warp in humanity would be extinct and other planets would learn that you can't win.

 

[Acepilotf14]

They could likely just make earth asplode.
Easily.
Death Star anyone?

 

[PortalStormzzzz]

George Bush is their king, obviously.

 

[Shift]

George Bush is their king, obviously.

 

[Narvi]

Why should they give up? There's no hope for peace. The goals of the resistance and the Overwatch are incompatible.

 

[PortalStormzzzz]

Difference? I THINK NOT!

 

[McGooTheWise]

They've lost so many troops and resources fighting for earth, why don't they go and dominate another planet or two and build a bigger force?

Because they're a bunch of wild, persistent bitches. :bounce:

 

[Darkside55]

Did anyone ever think maybe the Combine just want waffles and they don't know how to ask? Like, they came to our planet because they heard about how f*cking good waffles are, but they didn't know how to ask for them so they just started blowing shit up?

And then they figured, "Let's strip these humans down to bare parts and raid their memories, and that will give us the secret ingredients to make waffles." But by some strange happenstance all the people they turned into stalkers only knew the recipe for cake.

They still want waffles, though, and they're not going to leave the planet until they get someone with the knowledge of how to make some good goddamn waffles.




Ironically, Gordon Freeman cooks a mean waffle.

 

[Llama]

DarkSide's writing has started to get a little annoying. It's like reading 9th grade dramatic poetry, and wanting to smack them in the face every time they finish a verse with a question mark.

EPIC FAIL
Matrix Revolutions, for those that didn't get the reference.

Darkside is win.

 

[Narvi]

Matrix Revolutions is fail.

Except for Smith. He should have won. That is why it is fail.

 

[Shift]

Yeh, Darkside, you're turning into Peter Kay, and thats not good

 

[Darkside55]

I says to myself, "Who the f*ck is Peter Kay? Shift's insulting me!"

But then I watched him on Youtube and some of the bits made me laugh, and now I don't know what to think. Frankly--hold on--

*takes a bite of cake*

--frankly, the only reason I posted that quote was because thread title reminded me of the line. I kept thinking the words looked familiar but I couldn't place it, and I was wracking my brain trying to think of it. And then I was like, "Ah ha!" so I wrote it. I'm not going to spend all that time thinking of something and not post it, yeah?

*plunges his fork into a bit of waffle*

And regardless of whether Matrix Revolutions was balls or not, the quote seemed relevant. I did enjoy the exosuits though, and the fight versus all the Smiths, but when they started flying around I really thought they were going to start throwing fireballs at each other. I can't even say whether I'm disappointed or not that they didn't.

*twirls the piece of waffle around in syrup*

But I digress.

 

[Operational]

I have no problem with the Revolutions re-quote, it's the recent waffle fettish that worries me

Did anyone ever think maybe the Combine just want waffles and they don't know how to ask?

And then I want her to meet up with the G-Man, who will pull a waffle iron out of his briefcase.

They are both trying to get their hands on the enemy's intel so they can make WAFFLE CAKE.

Hey, that's great. With all the money I'll save, I'll have more left over to spend on eggs, flour, chocolate, milk, and waffle mix.

They're here for the waffles.

Well they do, but they don't have waffles.

My 'brother' knows how to make waffles.

Or make waffles.

Plus the one above, all within the last five hours or so

 

[Darkside55]

What, you don't like waffles? What kind of person doesn't enjoy a good, perfectly-toasted, lightly-buttered, syruppy waffle? You can put fruit on it too, or chocolate chips, all kinds of things. And waffles go great with everything.

Especially cake.

And that is precisely why the Combine must be stopped.



Also, nice job compiling all those. You missed one though, but it's not your fault...it's in the staff forum.

 

[Rapstah]

If there's a staff forum you don't have acess to it, stfu

 

[Darkside55]

Who, me?

Uh...

 

[PortalStormzzzz]

Waffle Obsession, eh?

Spoiler

OMG WAFFLES!!!!!!


SCROLL DOWN!

anywho, back on topic, the combine or like an enlarge George Bush brain. When an idea comes in, it can't leave. Just like Bush is obsessed with Iraq, so to0 are the combine obsessed with Earth

 

[Tomu]

Waffles are sh*t, everyone knows that cake is the sole reason the combine persist to keep their control on earth. If anything the combine are really staying on earth in hopes of destroying all of the waffles recipes and turning the people who know how to make really sexy waffles into stalkers in order to sabotage the ingredients and make a waffle that tastes so bad, it will make every human on earth surrender to the Combine in disgust from eating the corrupted waffles. Only one will remain and that be the Great Darkside but the question remains what will become of the Darkside when he is the only one who still enjoys eating the Astringent, Dry, Rancid flavor of that which is known as waffles.

Pfft, Darkside your waffle eating days are over.:hmph:

 

[Operational]

What, you don't like waffles?

I'm going to say something that will probably shock you so sit down.




I've never had a single waffle. :O

 

[Avoidist]

I'm going to say something that will probably shock you so sit down.




I've never had a single waffle. :O

Of course not. There are no waffles in Australia. Only pancakes.

 

[morgs]

There are Waffles in NZ, not that nice really

 

[Van Kayne]

Right...back on topic. I think the combine persist because if earth revolted successfully, other worlds under Combine rule would think that they, too, could overthrow their masters.

And that would just be a right pain in the rear for them.