#I don't think it'll happen in C3

[mallevsmaleficarum]

the more we learn about the calamity across campaigns, the more it seems like Matt is eventually building up to a calamity 2.0

[pstelwitchcraft]

I love that everybody took my "who do you think will kiss next" poll as "who do you ship the most" just bc it means southerngothic hasn't left first place since like, 20 min in, and honestly? Good for them.

[danwhobrowses]

I'm not sure how much good this vent will do, I'm not even sure I want to post this vent after my last one, but I'm writing it just so it's out of my head and into words because it seems once again fandom has chosen to send vitriol Ashton Greymoore's way.

What for? They talked to a 'specter' of the primordial titan within them, through their connection to the earth, the natural flow of creation and destruction. They ask what will happen to the world, it responds that it'll endure, they ask what of the people, it responds that the strong will survive and the weak will be remade into something stronger, to which Ashton replies they think they understand. To fandom this means that Ashton is becoming a fascist, that they have a 'Make Exandria Great Again' attitude for wanting the Primordials back, that they need to be beaten up or 'get what's coming to them' in order to change their mind, and I can only sit here and stew and wonder if this hate is really well-founded? Ashton is among my favourite characters in C3, I get frustrated by them at times too but if I think about it a big percentage of my frustrations is more towards people disliking them than me disliking things they do, or Matt setting up scenarios that doesn't do them any favours towards the fandom that hates them. Some of these are knee-jerk reactions of course, but for others it does feel like they have it out for Ashton, and I don't wanna engage with that, which makes it quite lonely when most of the fandom hones in on it.

For the most part I can understand how the whole 'the weak will be remade' bit can be taken badly; it's definitely iffy, but every other plan we have is also very iffy. The Release Predathos option literally involves unleashing an entity that wants to genocide the gods, the Maintain Status Quo option ('option' the status quo imo is impossible, in my mind the Gods can stay but the dynamic will still have to change) maintains a relationship where the gods pick and choose who they feel deserves help, using their power to covet more power, strongarm and demand loyalty, and overall choose fellow gods over mortals when the chips are down and not owning up to it. We should also remember that entities can speak in riddles, 'remade into something stronger' doesn't necessarily mean death; it could mean to adapt and grow, to become strong enough to bear and overcome it as many of the PCs of Critical Role have done with their hardships and trauma. It's worth reminding that the sad truth is that people will die whatever outcome happens - the aim is always to lessen the amount but if the Gods leave it's a power vacuum, if we linger too long it's a Calamity, and if the Gods stay it's a holy war on a more wild and less organized scale - and that Ashton isn't saying they approve of such death, merely that they think they understand. The commune doesn't tell Ashton which way to go; it only tells them that the world will endure, there will be change and it will change people, trees will still grow, the wind will still blow, the waves will still flow along the coasts of the sea, and people will survive. I know the interpretation can differ from people thanks to Matt's patented vague or riddle-mounted choices in phrase, but I also think if it was the Wildmother who told Orym or some other follower that 'nature is a cycle, everything must adapt to change or else it'll die - this world will change, but it will also survive' nobody would be calling Orym a fascist, people would accept it because the Wildmother's domain is nature, and nature is not always kind.

While we're mentioning Orym - and because this is gonna come off as critical I must preface that I like and enjoy All of the Hells, that's not changed - I also gotta call it out here because it does very much feel like the people who hate Ashton hate them for the reasons they love Orym. Both are stubborn, they're diligent in their personal code, they care deeply for their friends and would give their whole being just to keep them safe, they believe in the Hells' power and greatness more than each member does and more than they believe in their own, but Ashton gets the hate mainly because these fans agree more with Orym on the god stuff. What confuses me though is how these same haters can despise Ashton for being consistent but love Braius, the literal Devil Worshipper who secretly is on board with the Chase Away plan only so he can help the Devil rule the world, the compulsive liar. Where's Braius' scrutiny? A world under Asmodeus will be a far worse 'survival of the fittest' scenario, why does Braius get a pass in all this stuff huh? Because he's funny? Seems people ignore the whole morality talk when they're discussing Braius' dedication to Exandrian Satan.

I find it irksome too that even the group seem to criticize Ashton reaching out to Primordials too - as if that wasn't what we wanted them and Fearne to do anyway. They don't dislike the gods simply because they're a 'great entity', it's because they're a great entity that holds power and doesn't use it equally or fairly; they pick and choose who to help, a lot of the time in Ashton's experience for their own self-service, but they won't prioritize mortals over another god no matter who cruel or heinous the god is being, and the following of these gods are so intertwined with politics that most religious motivation also ends up being political. Ashton has no connection to the gods, they reached out and got nothing, an Angel looked at them and made them feel like nothing, but they do have a connection to the Primordials; from the Earth Golem to the Titan Empress they're literally a vessel of, they experienced something significant in their connection to the Earth, so I don't like how that they're almost mocked for having it. In addition, Ashton's behaviour during this commune differs because of that connection, but also because the titans are a natural flow; they don't demand or test or politic or prejudice, and despite being a Great Entity in its own right it never made sure Ashton felt small for their own satisfaction, they asked a question and got an answer, it's the same reason Ashton has disdain for most political leaders but likes and respects Keyleth, Allura, Kima, Pike, and (eventually) Percy despite also being people in power. To call on Orym and the Wildmother as an example again; Orym's an Air Ashari, the Ashari are guardians of the Elemental Planes - made from the Primordials - not tied to a god, but nobody criticizes his connection to the Wildmother despite both not being a follower and his culture being more tethered to Primordials and their descendants. I'm not saying it's all correct for Ashton to want things to go back to how Primordials ruled, but we must remind ourselves also that we only know a story written by victors when it comes to the Schism - a story which could very easily have been altered and edited to make it feel more justified for the Primes and mortals to actively genocide all the Primordials, the native species and creators of this world, and desecrate their remains to make weapons, soul anchors, and cities - the specter didn't say 'fuck em, all mortals should die' after all, if they believe mortals would survive then they must be at the least tolerant of mortal existence. Why is it okay for god followers to say they wanna keep the world with the gods they have a connection to (and I'm not saying they aren't) but Ashton is out of line for wanting to have a world which has something active that they also have a connection to? It seems rather unfair to allow one side to have and the other to have not, picking and choosing because our audience's bias has spent more time with the gods, Ashton wanting something they can connect to doesn't feel all wrong either, the Eidolons still exist with faint worship hiding away so they're not smited by the gods, why can't faith exist so they're not in hiding? I sincerely doubt the Punk Rock that is Ashton is asking for the Primordials to fill the Gods' roles the same way the Gods have been running things either, they want to break the throne remember? There needs to be a balance in ideals and practice of course, and in an ideal world there could even be a more fluid and all-inclusive Exandria where gods and Eidolons live harmoniously with mortals without hierarchy and class systems, I think Ashton could happily live with something like that, they did say the world needs 'a little chaos' to call back to Matt hinting that the current world doesn't have enough.

Which leads us to those wishing violence upon Ashton - and I really don't like that. People who say 'hitting them over the head is the only language they understand' seem to misinterpret Ashton as if everyone around them have been on their hands and knees begging Ashton to reconsider and them ignoring valid points and pulling a Leroy Jenkins. In reality, nobody is actually talking to Ashton about it, a lot of the frustration with Bells Hells right now is that they aren't talking to each other, even about the end goal! Ashton has valid reasons for their thinking, so being violent isn't gonna change their mind; undermining, dehumanizing and trying to effectively bully anyone let alone someone with chronic pain and low self worth will never truly convince them to your way of thinking. All people understand the language of violence, but that language is not used justly, those who truly wish violence upon Ashton don't want it in hopes it'll force Ashton to change their mind, they want it for their own satisfaction of seeing them in pain; so they can further push them away from the rest of the group and go 'that guy's not one of us', make it so the people Ashton calls family after a lifetime of loneliness, confusion and abandonment - the people they promised they won't abandon, and have kept true on that promise even at their lowest - make them feel small and worthless, and force them into box where they can't be themselves, and I hate that people would want to treat them that way. Ashton IS capable of listening; they've stepped back and trusted the other Hells to do their own thing even when it's ridiculous like staging a play where they pretend to be Ludinus to trick Unseelie emissaries into thinking that he attacked them, they listened to the gods even when they didn't have to like they promised they would and despite it being very personal they held themselves back for the benefit of the group, and if the group talked to them calmly where they were all allowed to healthily discuss the pros and cons, the ideals and compromises, and the risk and reward of all plans that have been proposed then they would listen, and they would try - you don't need to slice bread with a broadsword.

Will Ashton 'get what's coming to them'? Maybe, but what is that exactly? We only assume to know the full vision of what Ashton wants to act on. All of Bells Hells are gonna face the consequences of the choice they make on Ruidus - when they finally make one that is - in and out of the world they live in, so won't that apply to everyone? So what for Ashton? do people want Fractures 2.0? Does everything Ashton wants in life have to blow up violently in their face? Family, Closure, their best friend's safety, why does 'what's coming to them' have to be something aggressive and harmful? People change through positive reinforcement and good experiences too! Caduceus Clay would remind you that it's love that makes people. Don't mistake this rant as me wanting Ashton to be exactly as they are now, I too want to see growth from Ashton and we ARE seeing it happen; I see it in small instances where they think twice about rash actions and try not to fly off the handle, when they sit just to listen or understand or to defuse tension, and that when they're going somewhere or doing something they let the group know in advance, those who think Ashton hasn't changed since ep. 1 aren't paying close attention, but that doesn't mean that they don't still have more ground to cover. I believe that Ashton grows the most through kindness; when they're treated like a person and not a blunt instrument or a nuisance, and I hope what's 'coming' for Ashton isn't rejection, bitterness, and isolation, but acceptance, empathy, and for someone - if you know me you'd know who I'd want it to be - to convince them that they are worthy of living, that they're special not because of their powers or blood or because they have died and been put back together again (honestly, it does irk me a little that both Keyleth and Imogen chose that for titles and to brag to the Matron, I know it isn't intended this way but sometimes it feels like saying 'your best defining quality is that you've died a lot') but because while they have every reason to hate everything they still chose to be kind to those who deserve kindness, they have a good heart and they mean well. Are they perfect? No! They're in their 20s very few people irl have their lives together at even twice that age, but I want them to have good things in their life; things that help them feel happy and safe and like they can still feel comfortable in their own skin without having to appear more 'palatable' for people who've already decided that they don't like them. I want them to know that they've always deserved to live and they still deserve it now, I want that not just for Ashton but for all the Hells, and hopefully they'll all live to have it.

And most of all I want the people who hate them to be wrong about Ashton Greymoore, and I want Taliesin to prove them wrong.

[thatfaerieprincess]

I don't usually blog directly abt CR I just reblog but uhhhhhhhhh I am STILL thinking about Ashton getting his head inspected by Essek. That was literally almost everything I wanted from that scene!! I have been dreaming about nearly exactly that scenario for MONTHS!!

Ever since we first saw Caleb in C3 I've been sitting on this fic idea I'll never write where Caleb and Essek get to sit Ashton down in their shared study and inspect them and ask them questions and answer questions for them!!! I wanted Ashton to be treated SO gently and so respectfully and yet completely depersonalized as just A Thing for them to study, but still being checked in on!! Caleb being SO careful to make sure Ashton doesn't feel uncomfortable bc of his own history Being An Experiment, the two of them getting Ashton's full story and just Making Eye Contact over their head!! Swapping notes and theories, Caleb filling Essek in on what he knows abt the potions of dunamis, teaching Ash abt what they know, Caleb keeps going into teacher mode, Ashton being somewhat zoned out when they aren't being spoken too, sitting in a comfortable chair just letting themself be moved and positioned! Caleb asking if they need any water or snacks or extra pillows !! Ashton is deeply uncomfortable but in a very comfortable way, not used to being treated with this kind of respect and care, especially not being studied by someone who isn't LEERING !! They give Ashton a full briefing at the end with all their conclusions!! Maybe some other time they run some tests on their abilities!!

And obviously the scene in c3e95 is entirely different by way of No Caleb, but with just Essek that was p much everything I could've wanted!! Being asked "may I touch?" And then taking their jaw and tilting their head?! Peering into the hole in their head and going "O.O Oh Boy!" Getting to teach Ash abt dunamancy and the Luxon!! The only thing that could've made it better was if Essek mentioned the need to confer with his partner about it!!

My only dearest hope rn is that Some DayTM when all this is over and they get that chance to study a little more in depth, that Caleb can be there too. Idk if it'll ever happen again like that in campaign and not just post-campaign fic but!!! I was at peace for like 10 whole minutes there! nevermind Everything Else that happened in this episode!!

[cassafrasscr]

Here's the thing... I don't feel particularly good about Fearne taking the shard.

Like, Ashley seems happy and excited about Fearne's new form and powers, and I am glad about that.

I really just can't shake the feeling that Fearne was ultimately pressured into taking the shard. They should have taken more time to discuss it and actually listened to Fearne's reasons for not wanting it. Chetney was the only one who asked her about it, and he still tried to persuade her to change her mind.

Laudna and Imogen didn't ask at all, only talked about how disappointed they were that she was hesitant to take the shard's power. I know they're leaning into the whole 'embracing their darkness and power' thing, but they of all people should be most sympathetic about Fearne being afraid of how doing that could change her for the worse.

I think at least part of this is the disconnect between IRL time and in-game time. Above-table, it's been over a month since Ashton’s failed attempt to take the shard. In-game, it's been no more than 2 days. It's only been a few hours since Fearne found out the truth about who her real father is. Most of that time has been spent on the team-building scavenger hunt. There hasn't actually been time to properly process all that.

There's also the issue of Fearne's bodily autonomy to consider. For any character, taking the shard would mean accepting permanent changes to both their physical body and their powers. Ashton didn't even get to keep the Shard of Rau'shan, and look what it did to him! He lost an arm; grew a new, completely different one; and very nearly died permanently. Putting that much pressure on Fearne to accept that level of risk and self-alteration when she'd already said no is not good friend behaviour.

I would be fine with Fearne taking the shard if (instead of everyone just continuously insisting she should take it) they had respected her initial decision and let her gain the confidence to change her mind on her own.

I also would also have liked to see Fearne learning to stand up for herself and her decisions as part of her 'embracing your power' character arc. Drawing boundaries with your friends and actually enforcing them is really hard, but it’s also necessary for building healthy relationships.

Trusting Fearne's judgement on what's best for her and respecting her decisions would have been better for rebuilding the broken relationships between Bell's Hells. As it is, I don't know how much is actually going to change between them after this retreat.

Not to mention how some of them - mainly Imogen and Laudna - have kind of been trying to force something to happen between Fearne and Ashton. Like, I make no secret of being an Ashrym shipper, but I wouldn’t be comfortable with it even if I did ship Callowmoore. Like I already said, it's been 2 days max since Ashton exploded. That experience really rattled their relationship and it'll take more time and work to rebuild. If Callowmoore is going to happen, let it happen naturally.

I'm glad Allura took the time to remind them that, while the moon mission is urgent, it is still just a recon mission. Once they gather and hand off the information, they'll have more time again to step back and take a breather, and potentially decide not to involve themselves any further if they don’t want to.

(Obviously they're not gonna ditch and leave the Ruby Vanguard to VM and the M9 to deal with - they're all too invested in the outcome to back out, and it's the central plot of C3. But knowing they have the option, and that they'll have some time to make that final decision is, I think, important for their character arcs going forward.)

I dunno. Maybe it's a hot take, but it just kinda leaves me with a bad taste in my mouth.

[tnbscans]

Hiroaki Hirata, Masakazu Morita, Masayuki Ozaki UStream Special Digest Interview Part 2 (Tiger & Bunny The Beginning)

Part 1 can be found here

The below is transcribed from the DVD release.

Hirata: What's the story about?

Ozaki: That's so sudden.

Morita: It's a secret?

Hirata: Who's the criminal?

Morita: Ignoring the special report all together.

Ozaki: "The Beginning."

Hirata: It's not about a criminal, is it?

Ozaki: It's about the beginning.

Hirata: What does he mean by it?

Morita: The beginning is the start?

Hirata: The start?

Ozaki: It has many different meanings. It's the start of Tiger & Bunny story. And it's the beginning of the relationship between Kotetsu and Barnaby. It's a beginning in many different ways.

Hirata: So it's their relationship at the beginning of the TV series…

Morita: Yeah. So back to the four different Barnabys…

Ozaki: Please use them.

Morita: I just managed to combine them into one…

Hirata: you finally combined them?

Morita: Yeah, I finally combined them. I need to split him back into four parts.

Hirata: It's a movie, so four might not be enough. You might need eight.

Morita: Eight? In that case, that would apply to Kotetsu too.

Hirata: Well then how about my old suit version? Does that appear?

Ozaki: I need a Kotetsu that you have never played before - a new version of Kotetsu.

Hirata: Then I'll go from two versions to three versions.

Morita: No, no no, it should be at least six.

Hirta: No way.

Ozaki: The face he shows Kaede, the face he shows to others, and the face he shows his wife…

Morita: That's deep.

Ozaki: This is something we've probably never shown… Something the fans have never seen…

Hirata: I was actually hoping for something like that. His wife, huh?

Morita: That was a pretty big piece of information.

Ozaki: We can talk about this, right?

Morita: Get your act together, Ozaki-san!

Ozaki: I got together with Nishida-san, the writer of the script, and we discussed what kind of story we watned to make for this movie.

Hirata: Sorry to sound impatient, but are these new events setting up a part two or something?

Ozaki: Part two… Umm…

Hirata: You really can't reveal it?

Ozaki: Umm…

Hirata: So you can't say whether or not it'll lead into anything?

Ozaki: Something like that. Umm…

Hirata: What was that?

Ozaki: It's probably going to be about something that you two, as well as the fans, would want to see.

Hirata: What do you want to see the most?

Morita: I kind of want to know what Ouroboros is.

Hirata: Ah…

Ozaki: Well, what about you?

Hirata: Me? The thing I want to see the most is… I want to know who gave Kaede the power to attract metal objects.

Ozaki: Shall I septn two hours showing how that happened?

Hirata: You don't need to spend two hours. I'd just like you to touch on that if you have the time.

Morita: Even while we were recording, we were wondering who she touched.

Hirata: What old man or woman in the middle of the countryside has that magnetic power? I've been…

Morita: We want to know!

Hirata: Yeah, we want to.

Ozaki: What do you think of this? (holds up palms)

Morita: He's sweating!

Hirata: The fans who are watching this are probably remembering that part.

Ozaki: Part 1 and Part 2 aren't connected. They're individual stories. Part 1 doesn't end with a cliffhanger and go on to Part 2.

Morita: I see.

Ozaki: People sure were excited in Hong Kong.

Morita: He did it!

Hirata: You dodge the topic.

Morita: He sure did.

Hirata: So how was it?

Morita: I went to a big event called C3 in Hong Kong… Tiger & Bunny is ridiculously popular.

Hirata: Hold on a second. The event was two days long or something, right?

Morita: It was three days long. I attended two days.

Hirata: How many people were there?

Morita: It was pretty big.

Ozaki: There were several hundred chairs, but there were standing sections as well. There were about 123,000 attendees over the three days. It was a pretty huge event.

Hirata: 120,000 people?

Ozaki: Over three days.

Hirata: 120,000 people by word of mouth?

Morita: Yeah.

Hirata: That's amazing.

Ozaki: The Tiger & Bunny talk show with Morita-san and myself attracted several hundred people. You couldn't fit a thousand people in that area.

Morita: It was too small for a thousand people.

Ozaki: But it was totally packed.

Morita: Yeah, it was.

Ozaki: I was a bit worried about doing this in Hong

Kong. I didn't know if they knew about the show.

Hirata: Right…

Ozaki: So until the day of the event, I was worried about whether people would come. How about you?

Morita: There were a lot of cosplayers.

Ozaki: Yeah, there were.

Morita: There was a Kotetsu, Sky High, and Bunny in their hero suits.

Hirata: Who makes those?

Morita: They were so well made!

Ozaki: They're handmade.

Morita: It's amazing. And we even got to talk about important things.

Ozaki: Yeah.

Hirata: What did you talk about?

Morita: This movie is going to be released in Hong Kong at the same time as Japan.

Ozaki: Yes.

Hirata: All at once?

Morita: They're going to get to see it on the same day as people in Japan. There's only an hour time difference.

Ozaki: That's right. It's about the same.

Morita: The same day.

Hirata: That's amazing.

Morita: They can see it.

Hirata: So you need to air the show before the release, then.

Morita: Ozaki-san is really amazing for setting this all up. It's set to air too.

Ozaki: Yeah.

Morita: Are they going to air it over there with the original audio?

Ozaki: No, they're going to dub it. They're probably going to make it Cantonese. Yeah, they're going to dub it.

Hirata: How are they going to translate my scream? I don't think it'll translate into Cantonese.

Morita: I wonder what it'll be…

Ozaki: I wonder. We were taught some Cantonese phrases. I already forgot what they were.

Morita: You forgot them?

Ozaki: Anyway, there's a Hong Kong dub in the works, and casting for the English version as well.

Hirata: Yeah?

Ozaki: Yes.

Hirata: What would my scream be in English?

Morita: What would it be? Wouldn't it just be the same?

Ozaki: It might be.

Morita: It's like a special attack.

Hirata: Yeah. "Wild" would just be "Wild" because it's English.

Ozaki: "Wild Roar"… Something like that.

Hirata: Wild Roar! It sounds like I'm really roaring.

Morita: It sure does.

Hirata: I look forward to it.

Morita: The previews might stay the same. They're in English, after all.

Hirata: The previews?

Morita: Barnaby goes, "Hi! Tiger and Bunny…" Is that all going to be in English?

Ozaki: Yes.

Morita: All in English?

Ozaki: Yes.

Morita: Why don't we just do it in Japanese? Make it reversed.

Ozaki: Well, Kotetsu doesn't speak good English. We're going to figure out how we can express that in English dub.

Morita: Ozaki-san will spill the beans one day.

Hirata: Please look out for his tweets.

Morita: The show is becoming global.

Ozaki: Yes. We're not just releasing it simultaneously in Hong Kong, but Taiwan and Singapore as well.

Hirata & Morita: Wow…

Ozaki: We're trying to do that with other countries as well.

Hirata: how many countries do you plan to do this with?

Ozaki: In the end, probably more than ten countries.

Hirata: Wow…

Morita: Amazing…

Ozaki: The movie is coming out in September. The staff working on it doesn't have any time to sleep.

Morita: They're already working on it?

Ozaki: Yes, they are. We've already gotten the storyboard. Now that we have that, we're working on animating it. We're just getting started. We're working really hard.

Hirata: I think I should beging practicing saying, "I'm going to let out a wild roar."

Morita: Yeah.

Hirata: I need to practice.

Morita: Yaeh.

Hirata: Maybe they don't use that line in the movie.

Morita: I'm going to practice saying "See you!"

Hirata: That's for the previews.

Ozaki: Please look forward to it.

Morita: Yeah. It would be nice if we could do another event.

Ozaki: Sounds good.

Morita: He's getting nervous.

Ozaki: It really sounds good. We'll see how that goes.

Morita: I think I understand now. When you're in the hot seat, you start fidgeting. Your eyes start drifting.

[sergeifyodorov]

Do you still think the oilers will make the playoffs? It feels like every team they need to beat for a wildcard spot is also doing well. What are your prediction for the west’s playoff spots?

OOOH. Love these sorts of questions skhdhsjdj

For one: yes, I do think the Oilers will make the playoffs. They're right in that nest of teams that are right in that WC bubble, and they have games in hand on everyone else -- that, and they've consistently and almost exclusively dominated play, both 5v5 and special teams, at a rate that's pretty much best in the league. Because of the fact that they don't have a lot of points banked they probably won't get a good seed unless someone above them goes on a really big losing streak, but I think they'll get in.

As for my predicted bracket:

P1 and P2 will be Vegas/LAK, probably but not certainly in that order. Vegas has nine points on LA right now but also five more GP; given five wins, LA will pass them. LA also is, like the Oilers, consistently dominating play, so I predict that if Vegas struggles they won't hesitate to hop up to the first spot.

P3 will be Vancouver.

C1/C2/C3 are going to be Jets, Avs, and Stars. If you made me pick it'd be that order, but I couldn't tell you for sure -- I think it'll be a lot closer than the Pacific, and we might even have to pop out a tiebreaker.

The wild-cards are where it gets interesting. As I just said, I think one of them will be Edmonton, probably WC1, but for the other there are, to me, three or four potential teams:

the preds: juuse saros is fucking GOOD. If the Preds decide to sell the house at the deadline then you can throw this prediction right in the garbage, because number one in the market will be Juuse Saros. God he's fucking everything. Carolina or Edmonton will probably be shopping him. Beyond that, they're thoroughly mid; ROR still has it, but they're not really good enough to contend nor are they bad enough to just go for high picks.

the coyotes: look. we all want it to happen. most of us want it to happen. i really want it to happen. the thing about the yotes is that they're getting really good finishing and goaltending but they're actually what you would consider "pretty bad" in terms of like. actual play? like not sharks territory but definitely not good. so this current Threatening To Make A Wild-Card Spot is mostly for show and with little substance but by god wouldn't it be fun. if i get to see leafs uncles complain about playoff games in the mullett i might jump for joy

the blues or flames: might just stumble into it frankly. i expect the flames to be sellers (they already shipped out zadorov) so they should get worse but they fully have as many points as the oilers rn so like. idk what's up with that. the blues are in a pretty similar situation but i, like everyone else here i think (sorry kia), knows nothing about them so idk even More what's up with that.

mwah thank u for asking about my standings opinions anon i love 2 talk about it

[pocketgalaxies]

follow up question to someone's recent imodna anon. i’m new to cr and bells hells are my first time watching and i’m quite taken with imodna. are the way laura and marisha are acting their characters similar to how the buds of critical role roleplay romance starts and builds, or am i deluding myself for believing it’s actually happening? thanks for your input!

hmmm i think it's hard to compare bc the character dynamics are always unique, uknow? honestly cr romances don't develop much differently from romances in any other media, so i think if you're picking up on hints, you'd have just as much of a chance being right with cr as you would with anything else

the main difference is probably that you need a lot more patience dfkjskdf the seeds are planted across dozens, sometimes hundreds, of hours and the interactions they have often ebb and flow because nothing is scripted. but every seed is always intentionally planted by the cast, so i think it's very realistically safe to say laura and marisha are definitely doing SOMETHING on purpose. it'll just take time to see where exactly they want to take that relationship

last thing i'll say is unfortunately late c2 was drenched in a lot of ship discourse because beau/jester were interpreted by a huge portion of the fandom to have romantic chemistry and endgame potential. i ofc wasn't in the fandom at that time and haven't gotten to that part of the campaign yet, but i wouldn't be surprised if that experience has affected how the cast chooses to signpost romantic relationships in c3. only time will tell!

all this to say you are not deluding yourself! but referring to romances in previous campaigns is probably not super informative because they've all developed quite differently, both in dynamic and pace

[spacelobsterm]

Cr C3 episode 69 spoilers

I'm actually not a huge fan of Ashton's new design, personally I would've liked it with a bit extra details, don't know what but I wanted a little more. Obviously it'll grow on me over time, so it might just be having to get used to the new.

But aside from that very minor personal nitpick. Ashton's new design is beautiful in their personal journey. They've grown so much from being a grumpy person with trust issues, to someone who loves their family. He's seen what the group of capable of and has become inspired to change, likely just for themself. He wants to be seen as a hero, as a person who can help make the world a better place on a global scale.

The group split did a lot to him and I think it really just solidified his thoughts on the group, he decided from then on that's not happening to him or any of them ever again.

[letmetellyouaboutmyfeels]

Hello!!!! I’ve been following you for ages and I know that you’re a big CritRole fan. I’ve never really been able to get into it, cuz the thought of going back and watching it all from scratch is supremely intimidating. However. I finished all of EXU Calamity in a weekend (and lost my entire fucking mind) and I’m really enjoying TLOVM show. Do you have any tips for watching any parts of C1, C2, or C3 in addition to that? Or would it be smarter to wait for C4 to start and go fresh from there?

Hello dear, lovely to hear from you. I hope you're doing well.

Critical Role is very intimidating to get into. I was fortunate that I got into it early on, roughly a year after they started filming, so it didn't take me as long to catch up. Anyone trying to get into it now is going to feel daunted, that's for sure. Unfortunately, D&D sessions do tend to run long, I know my group's average is 4 hours and we used to run for up to six when we had more open schedules.

Calamity is a fantastic place for any newbie to start. There are other oneshots and mini-campaigns they've done too, like Taliesin's eldtrich horror mini campaign, the Undeadwood campaign, and Marisha's Honey Heist and its sequel. Calamity introduces you to the world and is just. brilliant improv storytelling from all the players. but it's only six episodes for the complete story. So if anyone reading this ask wants to bite into a good tragedy and wants to know what the whole TTRPG craze is about, Calamity is a great one.

When it comes to the full campaigns... you kind of have to resign yourself to the fact that it'll take a while. Campaign four won't start for another year or two, and so you can wait until then, but that is a bit of time to hold out.

I would personally recommend you listen to campaign one. Campaign two seems to be the favorite for the majority of fans, but since you've already watched TLOVM, which is based on campaign one, that'll give you some background info and a baseline to help you get into the swing of things. The first few episodes will be a bit rough, since the cast is getting used to being filmed in a studio rather than hanging in a living room, but you'll be surprised by how fast you latch onto the characters.

Additionally, I think it's just fun to watch the cast journey from being in a spare room at the Geek & Sundry studios, to their own studio, slowly decorating that studio, then moving to a bigger studio, which is where they'll stay for campaign two. it's just nice, in my opinion, to see those little details as the show grows in real-time.

My friend recommends listening at 1.25 speed, and sometimes she speeds up the combat to 1.5 speed. You can also listen rather than watch, as some of my friends have done, so you can listen (either just put the video on and don't look, or they have created podcast versions of the episodes - nothing changed in content, just made it into an audio file to download) while doing other things like folding laundry. I prefer watching, to see facial expressions and nonverbal reactions, but given that this is a popular option among my friends, I don't think you'll miss anything too vital. And you can always supplement with YouTube compilation videos of reactions and favorite moments!

I can also say that it'll go faster than you think it will. You'll be surprised at how quickly you can blow through a few episodes.

So, yes, either wait a year or two, or resign yourself for a commitment, unfortunately that's kinda how it goes. You can't really skip episodes or only do "highlight" episodes since so much happens in each one, you can miss a lot of context. If that still intimidates you I'd really recommend diving into the other mini campaigns and oneshots they've done like Honey Heist, Undeadwood, etc.

Also, if you liked Calamity, then I recommend Dimension 20. Brennan Lee Mulligan is the game master for that crew, just as he was in Calamity, and their campaigns are a lot shorter. So that can also help you get into the TTRPG show groove. Their campaigns tend to run 15-20 episodes and the mini campaigns are around 6.

Again if you are going to dive into a full CR campaign I recommend the first campaign with Vox Machina since you already know the characters and a lot of the plot arcs - and it's fun to watch TLOVM when you've seen campaign one, since you can see how it's a truncated "this is the legend" version while the CR campaign is "now here's what really happened with these dumbasses." But campaign two is the more popular campaign so there's nothing wrong with starting there.

I hope that all this has been helpful! Good luck on your CR/TTRPG show journey!

[marcussour]

It feels kinda weird being like the only one not excited for the Mighty Nein reunion.

Thing is, when I started watching CR back in 2019, I began with, well, the beginning, campaign 1, and my idea was to go in chronological order. But when campaign 3 started, I thought "let's watch the first episode and then continue the rest later", but then I got hooked with C3, so I basically was watching both Vox Machina and Bell Hells at the same time.

And then when I finished watching everything Vox Machina (the campaign and the one shots) at the beginning of this year, my plan was to start watching campaign 2 around july, which of course hasn't happened yet even tough it's almost november. And it's not only that watching 2 campaigns (and Candela Obscura, and D20 from time to time) simultaneously it's tiresome, but also, I feel like, I dunno, less motivated to watch M9.

I don't have anything against campaign 2 (I cheered and freaked out when Beau and Caleb appeared in C3 for example, even though I have way less of an emotional connection to them that the rest of people), but I do suppose that the fact that it's the most popular one meant that spoilers were almost unavoidable (contrary to campaign 1, since it was older and less people watched it, I only got 1 spoiler before I finished it, which was when Matt made a tweet about Vecna in regards to Stranger Things and that's how I found out that Vecna was part of C1), so in a way, even though I haven't watched it properly, I feel that I almost got a full idea of every important thing and story beat that happened throughout the campaign, so I feel less urgency to watch it.

Also, back when I had a twitter account, I remember having a couple of bad interactions with people I can only describe as "Mighty Nein fans first, Critical Role fans second" (the kind of people that would go off against anyone celebrating, say, new Vox Machina merch because they were angry that it wasn't Mighty Nein merch), and of course I don't want to generalize, but it did left me like, with kind of a sour disposition towards C2 that I really wish will change once I properly watch the Mighty Nein.

Anyway, I wish the best for everyone watching the reunion right now. Really hope I could one day share your enthusiasm, tho I reckon it'll be a couple of years from now at the minimum, since I don't think I'll start with C2 at least until 2024 (or, you know, could be way sooner if there was something in the reunion that's more than meaningful for C3)

(also, gonna put the spoilers tag in this rant since there are a couple of spoilers for C1 and C3)

[scotblackbird]

Hey, hi. I don't talk about IRL much because meh, fandom and online is much more palatable these days, but this hit me today and I wanted to say something.

This is fifteen minutes away from me, or so. I'm in Boston MA suburbia.

I didn't even get a news alert.

Not that it's been fully safe anywhere in the US of A for a while now, because of federal court cases and such. There's a lot going on that continues to make it feel less and less safe. But if this can happen up here? In Massachusetts, widely recognized as one of the more solidly blue states, the more liberal states? (Despite it having a whole host of its own bigotry problems because haha we're in the north! we're not like the south! we're SUPPORTIVE!) It's going to start happening everywhere.

A friend of mine drew a comparison to the Institute of Sex Research. (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Institut_f%C3%BCr_Sexualwissenschaft) At this point, I think it's apt. When a threat finally becomes a reality, that's what it'll be. Trans people (especially black trans women) are the first warning signal, and we've been going off for a while now.

This shit is serious. Spread the word.

First they came for...

[primalspice]

caroline: A2, A10, A17, B1, B9, B13, C1, C3, D2, D3, E2, E6, F4, F8, G3, G5, H5, H9, I5, J2, J7, L5

.

A2: What alignment are they? Chaotic neutral, lawful evil, et cetera…

Lawful neutral I think??? I'm never good at assigning these but she does value rules and order (or at least her own interpretation of these things) above most other things. It's also kinda her main conflict though since her severe interpretations of how people should act Stifles her. My second choice would be chaotic neutral since she Is kinda in the process of twisting those rules to get to..wherever she needs to be. One may say she's using Bruno and his employment of her to do such a thing but I think it'd be too generous of an interpretation (theyre really just friends >w<)

A10: Does your OC compromise easily? Too easily?

Usually yeah but she's pissed off about it the whole time. And the resent she feels about it builds up with each time she compromises until she explodes and then repeats cycle.

A17: What’s one of your OC’s proudest moments of themselves?

Finishing her postgrad and getting a job in research at UCLA. then it's ALL DOWNHILL FROM THERE.

B1: Do they believe you have to give respect to get it, or get respect to give it?

She's trying really hard to live the get-respect-to-give-it lifestyle she's tired of being the worm.

B9: What kind of humor does your OC like the most? Slapstick, ironic, funny sounds, scare pranks, xD sO rAnDoM…

hurting him psychically and physically

B13: Do they have a large or small group of friends?

She has exactly one friend (Bruno). Maybe she has issues connecting with others due to how she has been burned in the past but more importantly she has a grating personality and no one wants to be around her for extended periods anyway <3

C1: Does your OC have a moral code? If not, how do they base their actions? If so, where does it come from, and how seriously do they take it?

She does but it's becoming more loose by the day. She lived half of her life very privileged and then had the midlife crisis that makes you gay and transgender against your will while already having established a life within your rather conservative circle... so she had to reassess a lot. I think her thoughts on what is taboo have changed extremely, but her thoughts on the type of work ethic one should have, how it's appropriate to act towards others, etc. have kinda remained strict. She'll recover one day <3

C3: Is it important for them to be with people (socially, intimately, whatever) whose major ideological tenets align with their own?

Yea I mean she tried for a long time to fit in with people who's values Don't align and she ended up quitting her lucrative and fulfilling job about it its very painful on her soul. Because of the emotional damage but also because she's right always and hates arguing with idiots.

D2: Do they believe in an afterlife?

No she's got to make the most of this while it lasts.

D3: How comfortable are they with the idea of death?

She doesn't want to die she barely feels as if shes started really living yet. She is definitely the most self-preserving of the bunch by far. Otherwise, though, she sees it through a pretty scientific/factual lens. It'll happen to everyone one day.

E2: Which of the nine types of intelligence is your OC strongest in? Weakest? (Linguistic, existential, naturalist, et cetera)

Best is Logical-Mathematical, worst is probably Interpersonal. SAD.

E6: Do they enjoy learning? Do they actively seek out sources of self-education?

Yes always. She loves research and reading and being an expert on topics that interest her. She takes pride in it.

F4: How clean are they overall with home upkeep?

Her home is very clean she doesnt live with anyone else so she doesnt have to worry about anyone elses mess :) i think she keeps it very modern (for the 2000s ofc) and kinda minimal. Prone to cat hair on furniture tho.

F8: How often are they home?

She's at home pretty much any time she's not working or doing necessary tasks or invited to go out by Bruno. She might occasionally go to the bar/other Vegas activities just because it's so near but it's not something she does regularly.

G3: Does your OC find their family supportive? If not, what would be an example why not?

No she is very disowned by her immediate family (parents, siblings??) for being A Queer but she might have a cool cousin or something maybe. Shes like 50 years old tho so shes over it she promises shes OVER IT she doesnt need them.

G5: Did they go through any typical phases growing up?

If being a precocious nerd and bringing that attitude into adulthood counts then Yes. Teacher's pet, star student, etc.

H5: Does your OC believe in marriage (or their culture’s equivalent)?

Maybe if the right person came along <3

H9: What are some things that your OC finds to be an instant turn-off in potential partners?

Being a slob :| or being someone who speaks over her or doesn't respect her opinions. Honestly probably a lot of other things too but thats just her being a hater.

I5: Are they a good cook?

I think she's sufficient at it. Probably doesn't have the greatest variety of recipes or techniques but she can make dinner.

J2: How politically aware are they?

She's not out protesting or anything but she's more aware than she ever has been before. Votes democrat but kinda thinks about it for a second too long.

J7: How much interest in environmental health do they have?

She finds it interesting to learn about and it somewhat concerned but I don't think she does more than the average person might. Recycle, stop using aerosols, drink from reusable bottles sometimes <3

L5: Which OC do you think is the most decent morally or behaviorally?  AKA, which is supposed to a “good guy”?

Out of my current four, she and Vic are the more reasonable of the bunch but theyre all just People. Vic might win over her tho because she's... not as willing to be outwardly mean and degrading towards others if angry LOL.

[kalianos]

A rant of the last two months.

So I looked at a lot of my draft posts. The ones for the last month and a half were kinda Venting about the new corp I joined in Eve Online.

To be fair, I learned a mutual friend who has a habit of starting things then just...not taking control as a leader and lets things die as a result was starting it.

soooo yeah. That happened. Only one logging in now. ~_~

"It'll be great Kali! Getting back into Eve Kali! We should try doing FW and small gang pvp! Hey isn't it weird how you are the only cis guy in this corp?" yeah sure, except one problem. You dragged a bunch of newbies who never played before into it. As all Newbies tend to do, they are for some reason scared of pvp and losing ships. HELL ONE OF THEM THINKS THAT DOING PVP WAS THE SAME AS HARMING SOMEONE AND COULDN'T BEAR IT!

So we ended up turning into a Mining and Industry Corp. Except I was one of the few paid accounts. So I was the only one who could reliably skill into to building things. Okay I still can't get over the lack of wanting to PVP in the game built on it.

...a bit fucked up way of thinking but there was always mining and industry I guess? no. I spent, hundreds of millions on BPO's and started doing research material and time development which takes ages. We do a mining op, they manage to...somehow not know how to read? "Oh the sleepers are back!" Well I already took care of them in an Orca. Do it again!

No they are Drifters. Webbed, scrammed, disrupted. Trapped and couldn't warp off in an extremely large bulky slow ship. -_- 2.5billion down the drain. It was cool seeing the explosion though. Then slowly everyone started petering off one by one.

Our scared to pvp person went exploring in the pvp areas and was shocked that..they were attacked and managed to escape with their pod. They felt sick at the idea of shooting at a player. V: like...no seriously wtf? This is EVE. Everyone Vs. Everyone. Market pvp, Industry pvp, MINING PVP. Yes Mining pvp is a thing. Its called putting on the highest yield risk mining crystal and just sneaking into enemy territory asteroid field and just going to town destroying their asteroid resources so they can't build ships!

The Hauler did two contracts for us, and dipped. ...best fifty mil wasted?

Two of our number thought it was weird that the game didn't just automatically played itself? Like auto-target and then auto-fire? ...those modules exist but thats too much.

the lead and their girlfriend don't show up anymore so. Its just me in this corp? AFter spending so many skill points and isk in industry since "You are now the industry lead!"

Back on track learning how to pilot Triglavian ships and Edencom stuff since thats what I wanted to begin with.

Now I am in a dead corp with nobody logging in and my isk and LP is being taxed heavily to a corporation that no longer even functionally exists. Except as a blackmark in my job history in the game as "Why were you in this Corp. for only a few months after leaving your starter corp after nearly 14 years?"

BEcauseI got tired of helping people out in the newbie corp and wanted to hang out with friends! ....who immediate flaked out and left. And my other MMO friends won't touch EVe with a ten foot pole. "We don't understand it." -_-; Game is so much easier now than it was back then.

I wish....I wish I could just clone myself and have mini-me's running around non-stop. ....actually thats a bad idea. I don't understand Reactions in industry too well and I've only just started doing PLanetary industry setup after years of having the skills trained.

MAybe it would just be nice if people logged the fuck in and we could hang out. "My new job doesn't fit in with the weekly group up so I won't log in at all" >:V oh fuck off.

Screw this, I'm going into Wormhole space and find a Wormhole crew living in that insane spaghetti mess of systems and run C3's to earn enough isk in a couple days to buy a month of game time in game.

Or Join Faction Warfare and do the same but also have constant pvp.

Viva la Caldari / Guristas

Or constantly run Abyssal dungeons solo.

I am tired. At least there are a lot of new players coming into the game now? Its refreshing.

[the-firebird69]

Custom 600HP Widebody De Tomaso Pantera Meets Ford GT

This guy sounds like he's full of s*** but it's not so that's the guy to go look at what he was taking it off and pictures and it says this doesn't look like it goes with this and this doesn't go with this and he reassembled a 1992 Pantera because we could not get one on the video and we force people to do that the guy's a Mac and he was mad because the guy is a complete fool it's not complete he just didn't know he was doing it not 100%. So yes the guy and the guy knelt down and said I can't figure it out and he said I made something wonderful and nothing and you're accusing me of a crime this is not accusing you of a crime is accusing me of a crime my son said he said why it's because I committed a crime I got you one of the first friends no it's the first run 1992 Pantera there's a proud owner of the real thing that company that my brother made and he's missing her gone and he started Pantera from the design it was so first of Ford and split into a GT and it started with the Bradley GT which you know about and he shot his pants and said I have the real thing and he didn't tell the guy I know he told the guy he said how much would you give me for it and he said you had me reassemble it and he said no I said good but he knows about it and it's the real thing and he's going to come and take it so the guy said we'll stick it out I said someone else will get it and he wants money which is easy and he doesn't know it's real he says so he caught onto something you don't know what's really the real thing and later they found notes of where the stuff was that he got from Dave's places and it still doesn't prove anything it proves they think they were doing it and he said this sucks really bad and so they can't find a horseshoe in a barn and it always when nailed up over the door and I know that and I'm like a 17 year old they say so he goes like this I don't believe I've ever heard someone that you say that s*** but that's where it is these days it'll onck you in the head. He started laughing I can't believe he knows that so the guy didn't notice talking about so ultimately he paid him a lot of money for it he gave him like 2 billion dollars and some stocks and some gold and some things you wanted and the guy was saying I can't believe this s*** why would he do that he said wow that's awesome I said it's not really good to hold on to those things people think your orders are cross or Jesus freak and he doesn't want to come back he doesn't want anyone to be here so he laughed and said oh yeah that kind of guy so you did yourself a great service by selling it and by putting it together to remind her and you got things you need and he said please help me and you drove in one of the in the fastest car so far in history that car go faster than any vehicle that's ever been made including Indy cars and he said I want it back right now so you're looking to build one that's faster but it's not my mega car that's a c3 and it is a GT but it's done right with the kit we're going to build it's like this it's a little bit more super carnish and he started getting a little squeamish I said why I said well you little profile you have less wind resistance and you don't need as much horsepower said screaming this we don't need to see this and that will go about 4,800 miles an hour and some people have it breaks up that way and they can't go that fast and some people pass out from the g-force when they're starting out and he said well that's interesting does it happen to him a few times it slows down immediately because the way his body is and saves his life since your head Bobby is probably saving you and he said that probably is true and he has film of it and said what I'm doing here they put a meter in cuz he says he's passing out to someone in the video and he fell asleep a little almost came back and is the meter was saying 8.5 the guy said wow you can pull a lot of G's but that car is ridiculous

And the guy in the white one was coming about 180 and he punched it and he went up to like 250 and he was how we doing so I think it's 2:50 mph not kilometers so it slows down immediately and says well that was weird second trip it's like a trip it's so easy and it's 500 horsepower if you put 1500 in you will be tripping the light fantastic and I recommend only writing it that fast with that motor on the Autobahn and putting in ejection systems and he went on the Autobahn and he had a 1500 horse motor and he's driving long and he punched it it's kind of racing some Ferraris and they're fast very fast and he's up to 800 and they're gone and he said I'm just barely touching it and so he said you have to be in the zone and so he went into the zone and the road is kind of clear and it's too fast for humans to react if there's a car unless he sees it miles away and there you can see it so he's going like 3000 miles an hour and he has the limit if you go any faster you're going to become a bird and he slowed down it says how do you know that since I designed the car and father and mother help me with some of the stuff too and my wife mostly who designed the super Bee and he said that's intense and it started to run around look at it and people saw him drive off and some people have it on video cuz they taped the road and our son said it's not a great car to have because JC is in trouble she might want to sell it for stuff and so he did he got a lot of stuff we're going to charge the battery for Freya Olympus and I said the whole thing practically Thor Hera Zeus and you should be next to me only and shut up Harris says Hera

[widogaspmauk]

Wild c3 episode 8 thoughts: (spoilers, obv)

*after Orym threatened Chetney, it sure seemed to me like Ashton backed him up. They didn't out right threaten Chetney, but let it be known they'd back up Orym's threat.

*I missed a whole ass dialogue and thought chetney said "I love working with wood" and Ashton replied "me too" and was like... Oh. Oh really Ashton? But they were talking about laughing... My bad.

*Dorian absolutely has a crush on Orym... But I'm not actually sure if it's reciprocated or if Orym is just very protective of Dorian and his naivety. I'm absolutely behind a dorym ship, I just don't think it'll happen since Robbie will likely be leaving after his arc is complete.

*Liam didn't specify that Orym waited up for Dorian to get back safely after walking his brother 'home' which is the main reason I think the point above.

*Ashton has bounties, not debt, exactly. So either the person who holds their bounty will hunt them down if they leave, or Ashton has a code that won't allow them to leave. Personally, I think J.H. holds one of their debts and they're not a person you fuck with, and Ashton knows this. That's why they hope that's not who Cyrus is tangled up with.

*I bet Dorian tells Orym about the sending stone eventually, but I don't think he'll tell anyone else unless it comes up.

*wild theory... I think Cyrus is going to die, likely soon, and after sorting through that, Dorian will go home to his family to take his brother's place.