MisterShine
Member
OH MY GOD WHAT
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Critical Role: Voice Actors Playing D&D
- Thread starter Henchmen21
- Start date
Alpha Centauri
Member
Like he literally just ninja-looted all the gear and transferred servers.
LMAO
LMAO
HP_Wuvcraft
Banned
That was a wonderful Xanatos Gambit.
Kill a God, get their shit.
Kill a God, get their shit.
MisterShine
Member
One last episode for wrap up + epilogue + laying the ground for season 2.
I know they said it won't start right away though so we might have to wait until maybe Nov?
I know they said it won't start right away though so we might have to wait until maybe Nov?
HP_Wuvcraft
Banned
I hope Joe will be present at the next Talks Machina.
I doubt it.
He's not going to talk about his MO or anything.
So going into S2, we have:
1) The Faewyld portal.
2) Arkhan with the HAND OF VECNA.
3) Arkhan's boss.
Jest Chillin
Member
So... damn... good. Glad I had a nap earlier!
I saw a betrayal coming from a mile away knowing Joe's character outline. I mean A Tiamat worshiper should never be trusted by a Good party. I just didn't know when it happen. That was a clutch move on his part though.
HP_Wuvcraft
Banned
I hope they all realize how incredibly close they were to extending the season out another few games. Matt sure did.
Alpha Centauri
Member
8 hitpoints away
HP_Wuvcraft
Banned
That and that Titan arm would have come down the very next round, and also would have severely fucked them up.
Sam was legit crushed that he had to spent his Wish for a freakin' lvl 9 Counterspell (well, he could've used a lower lvl one, but they couldn't let Vecna escape so in that regards I think lvl 9 was the safest bet and they needed the safest bet at that point).
Buhbue Vax, next week is gonna be an emotional one. :'(
Buhbue Vax, next week is gonna be an emotional one. :'(
Pilgrimzero
Member
I was close, model is based on the Warhammer Fantasy Nagash model.
https://www.games-workshop.com/reso..._DeathLordsNagashSupremelordoftheUndead03.jpg
Here is a close up of Matts modified version into Vecna
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DLa9Q9MVAAAinAM?format=jpg&name=large
https://www.games-workshop.com/reso..._DeathLordsNagashSupremelordoftheUndead03.jpg
Here is a close up of Matts modified version into Vecna
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DLa9Q9MVAAAinAM?format=jpg&name=large
Pilgrimzero
Member
Finished watching it. Joes betrayal was amazing.
Sams luck made that fight a lot easier than I hoped it would be.
I'm curious how S2 and new character will use all the plot hooks dropped over the last few episodes.
Though, I kind of hope they play something like Shadowrun or World of Darkness, but I know its back to D&D.
Sams luck made that fight a lot easier than I hoped it would be.
I'm curious how S2 and new character will use all the plot hooks dropped over the last few episodes.
Though, I kind of hope they play something like Shadowrun or World of Darkness, but I know its back to D&D.
Rockin' Ranger
Member
It's amazing how close he was to death before Matt rolled all the 2s and 4s for the skeletons.
Hi, I just got interested in this because I enjoyed watching Harmonquest (I played D&D in junior high but otherwise no real interest in playing role playing games). I see there's over a hundred episodes on the website, do I have to start from no. 1? Is it all the same adventure or does it start from scratch at some point?
Jay Shadow
Member
There's a viewers guide on reddit to help new people. It's all one campaign but there are different arcs along the way that you could jump in on. Personally I'd say start at the beginning and just watch at your own pace and don't worry about catching up, but there are other options there.
If you do start at the beginning know that production will get much better over time.
Jest Chillin
Member
It's all the same adventure, which is just about to wrap up. So roughly 114 episodes.
However where the videos start isn't actually the start of the campaign. Essentially, this was a private game consisting entirely of professional voice actors. They would meet once a month or so and play all day and over the course of around 2 years, this game gained notoriety within the VA community. Felicia Day (then owner of Geek and Sundry) heard about it and approached them with the idea of making it a show on her companies twitch channel. Since their game was already in progress, they decided to convert it (they were playing Pathfinder previously) to D&D 5E and just continue it.
It would be best to start from the first video. Each session runs anywhere from 3 and 1/2 to 5 hours though, so it can be a bit of a task. They recently ripped the audio and have been uploading the episodes in Podcast form though, so that's also an option. Search Critical Role Podcast on your preferred podcast app if that's the way you want to go.
It's a long journey to catch up but I feel like it's absolutely worth it. Being actors, they're great with the improv aspect of the game and lean into the RP with amazing results. The fights are also often very entertaining as they tend to lean into creativity without trying to break the game.
I'd also suggest that you watch the "prologue" video they did sometime after they already started streaming. It goes through what went on in their home games before they started streaming. It should be on the Geekandsundry.com website, not sure if they uploaded it to Youtube.
The first episode starts from the middle of things. They just appear in some city, already having started a quest, so it takes a while before you are caught up with what's actually going on and who these characters are.
So yeah, watch the intro/prologue vid that goes through the storyline prior to the streams. A good primer on what has happened so far.
The first episode starts from the middle of things. They just appear in some city, already having started a quest, so it takes a while before you are caught up with what's actually going on and who these characters are.
So yeah, watch the intro/prologue vid that goes through the storyline prior to the streams. A good primer on what has happened so far.
MisterShine
Member
The show is divided into chapters (or arcs) and honestly the first one isn't that great. I bounced off the first few episodes pretty hard earlier this year when I started watching.
http://criticalrole.wikia.com/wiki/List_of_episodes
I'd recommend starting at Chapter 3 (Episode 24) if you have difficulty getting into it, as this is when the "main" plot kicks off, or at least the first major plot point.
http://criticalrole.wikia.com/wiki/List_of_episodes
I'd recommend starting at Chapter 3 (Episode 24) if you have difficulty getting into it, as this is when the "main" plot kicks off, or at least the first major plot point.
HP_Wuvcraft
Banned
Yeah, the first arc is really rough. They really don't acclimate to the "TV show" format for a bit. But once they do, it's great.
The first 2-3 episodes are the worst but I feel there's plenty of good stuff early on and prior to episode 23, especially the finale to the first quest but there are some fun and exciting things other than that too. I think that by the time Ashley joins in on the fun, that's when they start finding their groove.
Heckler456
Banned
If I had to start over again, I would skip everything containing Orion. Most of his episodes were very awkward, and some were absolutely unbearable to me.
Henchmen21
Banned
But episode 2 has Marisha's irish dwarf accent! "Oh Hello!"
Alpha Centauri
Member
But the first 16 episodes prior to the Orion awkwardness were great. The underdark hasn't been beaten in terms of storytelling and ambience. Orion was good up until the Beholder fight. After that... yeah
BrightLightLava
Unconfirmed Member
It was so uncomfortable at the end, there.
Pilgrimzero
Member
I miss Orion.
After you read about what sort of happened and why (drug use and HIV result, etc) I wish they could make amends and have him back.
After you read about what sort of happened and why (drug use and HIV result, etc) I wish they could make amends and have him back.
Almost certain there's a restraining order in place on him and a cast member. I also have to imagine Tiamat is going to play a large role in the next campaign. Too many hints dropped over the course of the game.
The Chroma Conclave is the biggest one I can think of. Thordak lived on an island that housed ancient, Necromantic spells and energy prior to being sealed in the
plane of fire. We don't really know the reason for the Chroma Conclave's attack other than Thordak going, "Fuck this in particular". Thordak was also creating a new breed of dragon and it was very reminiscent of some stuff from Dragonlance. Something got the chromatic dragons together and it wasn't the promise of more power. Chromatic dragons don't particularly care for that. In fact, a lot of the things that had to do with the Conclave was reminiscent of Dragonlance.
Matt also said the Raishan might have been an antagonist in a future campaign if she'd gotten away. The fact that Arkhan and his group was sent by Tiamat to overthrow Vecna and take his hand for her... Well. I think she clearly wanted the Hand of Vecna and has been trying to get a hold of it for a while now.
plane of fire. We don't really know the reason for the Chroma Conclave's attack other than Thordak going, "Fuck this in particular". Thordak was also creating a new breed of dragon and it was very reminiscent of some stuff from Dragonlance. Something got the chromatic dragons together and it wasn't the promise of more power. Chromatic dragons don't particularly care for that. In fact, a lot of the things that had to do with the Conclave was reminiscent of Dragonlance.
Matt also said the Raishan might have been an antagonist in a future campaign if she'd gotten away. The fact that Arkhan and his group was sent by Tiamat to overthrow Vecna and take his hand for her... Well. I think she clearly wanted the Hand of Vecna and has been trying to get a hold of it for a while now.
He made a lot of very inappropriate comments towards Laura many times throughout his tenure through the show. Travis looked like he was gonna outright murder him constantly. He's said he can't talk about everything due to "legal reasons". It sounds like Laura might've gotten a restraining order of some sort. Sam certainly makes sexual comments, but he manages to make them funny and immediately backs down when they aren't. Orion... not so much.
Pilgrimzero
Member
I think he likes Marisha nd that combined with drugs and facing his mortality it probably got bad.
Jest Chillin
Member
A restraining order doesn't legally preclude someone speaking about it.
Whatever the specifics may be behind everything that happened with Orion, speculation is unnecessary and uncalled for. Something happened and he's no longer on the show. That's all that needs to be said.
Whatever the specifics may be behind everything that happened with Orion, speculation is unnecessary and uncalled for. Something happened and he's no longer on the show. That's all that needs to be said.
SilentMike03
Neo Member
I know Orion had to deal with some tough things. I wish the guy nothing but the best for his future, but I never want to see him again.
The final battle was nuts. There's a joke about the show having writers, but sometimes it certainly feels like it. When Sam cast counterspell at level 3 and rolled that nat 20, hoooly shit. I will say I'm curious to see what a second campaign would look like if VM failed. That setting would have been sooo good.
The final battle was nuts. There's a joke about the show having writers, but sometimes it certainly feels like it. When Sam cast counterspell at level 3 and rolled that nat 20, hoooly shit. I will say I'm curious to see what a second campaign would look like if VM failed. That setting would have been sooo good.
We still don't really know exactly what happened, just that cancer + HIV + drugs put Orion in a bad place mentally and that's what lead to something happening that lead to him being kicked off from CR. There seem to be some kind of NDAs in place that prevent all parties from talking about it, so it doesn't sound like it's JUST that he was using drugs & in a bad mood or something, sounds a bit bigger than that. I'd imagine someone being a drug addict & depressed (maybe lashing out due to that) would be relatively easily forgiven if said person successfully dealt with his issues & apologized if he insulted someone, especially considering certain members of the whole CR crew & their close friends & family are certainly no strangers to drugs & drug addiction.
I can't really come up with anything but some kind of... assault that would lead to this level of disconnect between such close friends, though on the other hand I've seen pics where Orion, Matt & Sam are seemingly on friendly terms from last year or maybe a bit earlier and I'm not sure if that would be the case if something that serious had happened.
It would be cool if they could make up but it's hard to say how likely or possible that is considering we don't really know exactly what happened & how serious it was.
Pilgrimzero
Member
In related news, my Tal Dorei campaign book finally came in
Ayyy! It's a fun book. There's a lot of fun stuff to use. I'm appropriating the vestiges for my campaign. Not verbatim, or even the same weapons, but the same weapon family and the stats. Some of the feats are nuts (particular the spell barrage one).
HP_Wuvcraft
Banned
So, s2 is Tiamat and the Feywyld then?
Tiamat for sure. Just so Joe can be brought back. I wonder how heavily Vox Machina will feature in the new story, considering it's been implied they'll have new characters and the story is supposed to take place some decades later.
I don't really miss Orion as a player (to much meta, it's why I also don't really like Laura as player), but I wonder how much different the story would have been if Tiberius had been present the whole time.
With Travis and Laura going to Australia in November, I don't know if they will start the new campaign before december.
With Travis and Laura going to Australia in November, I don't know if they will start the new campaign before december.
Pilgrimzero
Member
Yeah after the next episode I expect one shots etc due to vacations and holidays and whatever.
Dont expect season 2 until Jan.
Dont expect season 2 until Jan.
Zod the Bear
Member
As far as one shots go, I'm excited to see them potentially run non-5e systems for a little bit before season 2, I'm looking forward to the Level 20 Battle Royale.
Seeing level 20 Scanlan and Keyleth fully unleashed will be ridiculous. I'm assuming Keyleth'll end up winning, which could be an a great canon moment (since so far the winner has woken up in the the real game...imagine Keyleth waking up 600 years or something later, still having dreams about her long dead friends.)
Seeing level 20 Scanlan and Keyleth fully unleashed will be ridiculous. I'm assuming Keyleth'll end up winning, which could be an a great canon moment (since so far the winner has woken up in the the real game...imagine Keyleth waking up 600 years or something later, still having dreams about her long dead friends.)
Jest Chillin
Member
Cross posting with the Pen and Paper RPG thread:
DnD 5e Roundtable discussion about ot go live on twitch.com/itmejp
With Adam Koebel (Co-Author of Dungeon World)
Matt Mercer (VA in like everything, DM/Creator of Critical Role)
Mike Mearls (Lead Designer on D&D)
Matt Colville (Lead Writer at TurtleRock / Great DM)
DnD 5e Roundtable discussion about ot go live on twitch.com/itmejp
With Adam Koebel (Co-Author of Dungeon World)
Matt Mercer (VA in like everything, DM/Creator of Critical Role)
Mike Mearls (Lead Designer on D&D)
Matt Colville (Lead Writer at TurtleRock / Great DM)
Heckler456
Banned
Wow, that's crazy. HIV? Drugs? I thought he was just a profoundly annoying, aggressive, self-centered type. Does explain his behavior though.
Henchmen21
Banned
Oh it's probably both. I won't begrudge him based on the whole drugs + HIV thing he went through, I don't think those affected the way he was as a player. I feel he would be the same as a player had he not gone through all of that stuff
Dam have to subscribe to watch the VOD.
HP_Wuvcraft
Banned
Considering they are all still alive somehow, minus Vax, I assume we'll see all of them.
Jay Shadow
Member
Looks like vods get posted on the Youtube channel in a few days. edit: They said it'll be on their youtube tomorrow.
The new campaign will take place in a completely new continent of the world. Although knowing the players, especially Laura's reaction to finding out the time jump isn't too big, they'll probably try and seek their characters out somehow.
I pretty much checked out of following critical role close some time after they dealt with Thordak and Raishan and even then I skimmed through questing for their artifacts. Dunno, something about the way they played stopped being engaging, as if they got too into their own characters and storytelling and drama. It made for less interesting DnD to listen to. I mean DnD is inherently a tricky thing to make watchable but this wasn't it for me. TAZ toes that line more for me mostly cause it doesn't take itself seriously and is more comedy than what Critical Role is. The whole under dark stuff was great and actually felt a bit tense but at a cerain point it just got boring. Basically I wish there were more shake ups and sounds like a final battle with no player death (ya I know about the Vax thing) just seems more playing in service of the story and not just playing DnD. But it gets difficult once you get to high level and can just true res like no one's business.
Well, first of all, they goof around aplenty (Percy & Vex in the bath after Vax left was some comedy gold, as was the whole Keyleth goldfish-splat scenario, then there's Vax screwing around with Grog & all kinds of in-game pranks, most of Scanlan's antics & his songs, giving the love potion to Scanlan who fell in love with Percy etc.), so it's not like they are just dead serious all the time. That's why it's so fun to watch Critical Role, these people have insanely good chemistry with each other that manifests in both the more drama-filled moments as well as the really fun lighter moments. And a lot of the best moments in their game are more dramatic moments that work so well because they have the capacity to really get into the characters, have put so much thought into them and have build this world & characters for the duration of hundreds of hours and done so while making the characters likable (in most situations, they all have their more annoying quirks). This is like a radio play of old, except it's mostly improvised + with the more game-y part of D&D with the combat/dice rolls bringing even more randomness into it.
Nothing wrong with getting really into the role-playing aspect of an RPG. This idea that it's wrong to take this kind of thing seriously and you need to be a clown who doesn't take anything seriously is dumb, really, and an issue with your mindset, not with their playing. Eventually I think it's the serious part that makes Critical Role worth listening to week after week. People just fucking around doesn't make for an engaging long-term listen. Even the less serious one-shots I've listened to from Matt & other CR peeps haven't really been all that interesting to listen to.
And Matt doesn't let people come back to life without any difficulty. Vox Machina peeps have just had a good enough luck with their dice rolls that no one has died yet, but apart from revivify if/when used right after death, he requires quite a lot from reviving PCs. A single <10 could've ended one of their lives but it so happens the dice has never rolled a low enough number at those moments.
No one died in the finale because Vox Machina had crazy good luck with rolls at the right moments (save rolls, counterspell rolls, healing rolls, critical rolls). It certainly wasn't for the lack of trying from Matt's part, as evident by 3 Meteor Swarms being used within, like, 5 turns, him trying to throw 5 skeletons at Scanlan when he was almost unconscious and Vecna even trying to use the Titan's hand to kill himself (and probably all/most of Vox Machina in the process). That's just the way D&D is sometimes. This fight could've gone very different. I mean, Vecna was left with 10HP by the end. Even a single more attack or a slightly more damaging attack earlier could've meant the game would go on for a few more episodes ending up with an even better prepared, more dangerous Vecna. Just that final attack roll of Grog was insane. It needed to do a lot of damage to get Scanlan back from Vecna's spell, but too much would've "killed" Vecna and lead to the scenario above. It ended up being a critical hit, so it could've easily have done 10 more damage had Travis just rolled +1-3 on a few dices.
Alpha Centauri
Member
Vox Machina stepped their strategy up for this final battle. Outside of clutch plays by Scanlan in previous fights, Vox Machina just bumbles their way through every encounter.
Not so with this one. They had strategy, they worked together, and they had a SHITload of luck. Easily could have been a TPK. They definitely were playing DnD last thurs, not just playing out a story using mechanics. Matt even retroactively ADDED like 40 damage to each of them because he forgot to calculate something several turns ago. It was as real (lol) as it could get.
But I will absolutely agree that I did not enjoy the most recent arc as much as the previous ones. Too much power, too many huge spells, and a lot of meandering in the meanwhile.
Level 8-12 is the sweetspot for cool shit while not being ridiculously powerful.
Not so with this one. They had strategy, they worked together, and they had a SHITload of luck. Easily could have been a TPK. They definitely were playing DnD last thurs, not just playing out a story using mechanics. Matt even retroactively ADDED like 40 damage to each of them because he forgot to calculate something several turns ago. It was as real (lol) as it could get.
But I will absolutely agree that I did not enjoy the most recent arc as much as the previous ones. Too much power, too many huge spells, and a lot of meandering in the meanwhile.
Level 8-12 is the sweetspot for cool shit while not being ridiculously powerful.