LearnedLeague 88 Match Day 13 Recap: The very model of a modern LearnedLeague LLama
A high-scoring day for lots of LLamas. Plus, a Gilbert and Sullivan parody about LearnedLeague.
Match Day 13
1. A wild goat found in Europe and Asia that lives in high altitudes, often above the snowline, and a long-legged bird with a down-curved bill of the family Threskiornithidae found in environments largely the opposite of the wild goat's (such as the campus of the University of Miami), both have names that begin with what two letters?
Pre-answer thoughts: The University of Miami campus clue is a big hint here. I’m a big college football fan, and I know well that The U’s mascot is an ibis named Sebastian. So if the question is looking for the first two letters, then the answer would have to be IB.
Correct answer: IB
How much of LL got it right? 52%
Points assigned to opponent: 3 - This was a tough decision because he is good at sports but bad at science, but I wasn’t really sure how to defend today and I thought there might be some easier questions in the bunch.
Was opponent correct? Yes.
Points assigned to me: 2
Was I correct? Yes.
Post-answer thoughts: I wasn’t as sure about the goat, but that turns out to be the Ibex, whereas the Ibis is indeed the bird. And assigning 3 points, in retrospect, was not the best idea.
2. A novel by Katherine Neville titled The Eight, Vladimir Nabokov's The Defense, The Lüneburg Variation by Paolo Maurensig, and The Royal Game by Stefan Zweig are all books of fiction that center on what game?
Pre-answer thoughts: With titles that includes the words “variation” and “defense,” I’m thinking this has to be chess, right? My fiancée and I flew through all the episodes of The Queen’s Gambit on Netflix last November, so chess is also fresh in my mind.
Correct answer: Chess
How much of LL got it right? 94%
Points assigned to opponent: 1 - I think this will be a high-percentage get rate question.
Was opponent correct? Yes.
Points assigned to me: 0
Was I correct? Yes.
Post-answer thoughts: Chess is definitely having a moment right now after the popularity of The Queen’s Gambit. My dad was always pretty good at it, and I have some friends who have gotten into it, but I never really had the patience for the game growing up.
3. A certain chocolate sponge cake (flavored with whipped cream and cherry filling) and a certain smoked ham (strongly seasoned with garlic, coriander, pepper, and other spices) are both named after what sylvan region?
Pre-answer thoughts: These both sound like Black Forest cake and Black Forest ham, respectively. I can’t think of anything else it could be.
Correct answer: Black Forest
How much of LL got it right? 79%
Points assigned to opponent: 1 - Food is a good category for him, even if geography is not.
Was opponent correct? Yes
Points assigned to me: 1
Was I correct? Yes.
Post-answer thoughts: All those seasons watching Great British Bakeoff have finally paid off! The Black Forest is in the southwest part of Germany, situated near France, Switzerland, and one of Europe’s smallest countries - Liechtenstein. I realize now that “sylvan” is an adjective for forest-like, and that word is in the question as well.
4. Imelda Staunton is scheduled to play the role begun by Claire Foy and continued by Olivia Colman on what drama series?
Pre-answer thoughts: What fortuitous timing after the Meghan and Harry interview with Oprah last weekend. The answer to this one is The Crown, another Netflix show we started to binge recently, as all three actresses portrayed Queen Elizabeth II throughout her long term as British monarch.
Correct answer: The Crown
How much of LL got it right? 73%
Points assigned to opponent: 0 - This show is very popular right now, and he’s good at TV questions.
Was opponent correct? No.
Points assigned to me: 3
Was I correct? Yes.
Post-answer thoughts: I’ve only seen season 1 of The Crown, but although the acting was great, I found the season tough to finish because of how horrible everyone in the Royal Family acted towards each other. And that was almost 70 years ago now!
This question is a prime example of how a question that may seem easy for one person might be hard for another - As you can see, I got it right away and assigned my opponent a zero. However, he didn’t get it right, perhaps thinking it might be a harder TV question, and assigned me a 3 on it.
5. What ancient term was considered, in its time, to represent the son of Osiris ruling on Earth, acting as an intermediary between gods and men?
Pre-answer thoughts: From what I remember about studying ancient Egypt in freshman year of high school, it was the Pharaohs who were basically thought of as Gods on Earth when they ruled Egypt, so that would make sense in the context here.
Correct answer: Pharaoh
How much of LL got it right? 50%
Points assigned to opponent: 2 - World history is not his strongest category I’m more certain he’ll get questions 2, 3, and 4; so 2 points it is here.
Was opponent correct? No.
Points assigned to me: 2
Was I correct? Yes.
Post-answer thoughts: The wording was a bit confusing on this question - I think I would’ve gone with “ancient ruler” instead of “ancient term.” In any case, this was the toughest question of the batch, but with half of LLamas getting it right, it was an easy match day overall.
6. One of the most iconic characters created by W.S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan was the very model of a modern Major-General, with information vegetable, animal, and what?
Pre-answer thoughts: I’m pretty sure this is “mineral,” as that word both rhymes with general, and is commonly paired with animal and vegetable when playing guessing games like 20 Questions.
Correct answer: Mineral
How much of LL got it right? 79%
Points assigned to opponent: 2 - Theatre is not one of his best subjects but I think it’s gettable from the animal/vegetable/mineral clue.
Was opponent correct? Yes.
Points assigned to me: 1
Was I correct? Yes.
Post-answer thoughts: Courtesy of my sister, who is also a LLama, here is a LearnedLeague inspired parody of “Modern Major-General:”
I am the very model of a modern Learned League Llama
I've information sportive and linguistic (go Oxford comma!),
I know the goats of Europe, and I quote the birds from I to B
I understand the regions of chocolate and charcuterie
My Netflix game is royal (though the royals are right now to blame)
I’ll never fail in lit’rature as long as it’s about a game
About the ancient Egyptians my knowledge comes from musicals--
But that’s enough for me to drink the beer, my favorite booze-ical!
In short, on math, and politics, and on drama --
I am the very model of a modern Learned League Llama.
Well done, RaphelA!
Result: Win over KhurginA, 9(6)-7(4)
Current Standings in Rundle B Midland: 7-3-3, 5th out of 26
Overall thoughts: There were quite a few allusions to Netflix shows on this Match Day - obviously The Crown, but also The Queen’s Gambit for the Chess question and Great British Bakeoff for the Black Forest question. And while the latter two shows weren’t explicitly mentioned, their subject matters deal with the answers here, so my mind immediately went to those shows.
With all questions at get-rates of 50% or better, this gave LLamas a great chance to get high scores on the day. In my rundle alone, 11 out of 26 LLamas got perfect scores, while no one got fewer than 4 right. Days that play easy like this can be very fun - my mom, sister, and I all got 9(6) yesterday - but I’m also glad that LL isn’t always like this. As I’ve said before, getting that balance of question difficulty is a tough act, and Thorsten does very well with it overall.
Really enjoying these wrap-ups! I most definitely knew The Crown and somehow managed to type in The Queen, losing 8(5) to the number one ranked in my rundle.