#ZATHUDA is more interesting

[utilitycaster]

Look, I've long since stopped pretending that anything surrounding Otohan specifically makes sense but I am like. So just to be clear. Armand Treshi pawns his very important ring immediately upon entering Bassuras. Otohan Thull knows some weird shit happened to her up in that tower, kills half the party over it, and also somehow this ring haphazardly thrown at her remains on her person a week later.

[ludinusdaleth]

bouncing off of this wonderful post mentioning how zathuda expects to be the main character because he would be in many current stories, as well as my own thoughts about fearne & her family ive had for a while: i think it is interesting how fearne is representative of the different ways folk portray fae in modern media.

first off, id like to note how many fae in cr feel like they are an homage to fae stories embedded in our cultural consciousness. for example, artagan was most definitely based off of jareth in labyrinth, and his moniker of the traveler may be an homage to the fable of the satyr & the traveller. so, what is fearne?

one of the first 4-sided dives featured ashley & matt discussing how they based fearne's story off of a guillermo del toro flick - and this definitely clicked to me. morrigan, ira, & all her bizarre animal friends at morri's mansion would fit so easily into a del toro film you wouldn't even blink at them. in del toro's work (namely pan's labyrinth & hellboy 2: the golden army) faeries are fundamentally strange, offputting, & wonderfully weird. they are goblins with wagons as legs, and trolls with talking tumors, and terrifyingly skinny entities with eyes in their hands that eat children. you can practically see doug jones in an intricate suit & makeup to play ira like he did the pale man or the faun (i swear matt's hand usage as ira is an homage to jones's iconic hands in costume), see the puppet of morrigan that weighs over a ton controlled by five folk at once. del toro's work as well as matt & ashley's plays into a fae that is more complicated than a human imagines at face value, something you must work to imagine & understand (& create). something playful, integrally bound to oaths, ancient, mischievous. it is happy & natural to be gross & incomprehensible and that is part of what makes these films (as well as other bizarre puppeteered dreamscapes like the dark crystal, labyrinth) almost comforting even when sad. pan's labyrinth also features a young girl as a protagonist, ofelia, who sees these creatures as respite & destiny, who is a fae princess amidst mortal war. fearne couldn't be more ofelia if she tried. (side note - god does the scene of the pale man eating the pixies in front of ofelia feel like fearne learning what lud does to her people. someone even made a meme of it.)

on the other hand, zathuda & birdie's story is obviously based on a fae romance novel that populates shelves today - sarah j maas's or holly black's work comes to mind. zathuda is (or was - he seems a ghost of it) clearly a looker, a fierce & sexy hunter, a handsome & strong unseelie royal who somehow takes in & courts a random nobody girl, birdie. but cr notably frames the love story narrative as a classist manipulation, that leaves birdie running for the rest of her life, falling for a weirdo nobody like her over zathuda, and leaves fearne without parents that would show her this incredibly popular kind of romance as an answer. she cannot fall back on a family of kisses drawing blood, of hunter & hunted as a beautiful meet-cute, of a throne & power. she can only fall back on the strange, the grotesque, the raw. they are ugly compared to a promise of a masquerade ball or leading a wild hunt, what folk expect of fae in a barnes & noble book haul - but they promise a safety in the outcast. because a guillermo del toro film will always fundamentally be about the human condition. "monsters are the patron saints of our blissful imperfections." every monster in his stories is a person as much as you or me is.

fearne was born of a fae romance novel but raised in a puppeteer-and-vfx fairytale film. she holds not only exandria's fate in her hands, but the feywild's, too. fae see themselves as higher beings while squabbling in courts as much as mortals do. they refuse to accept their chaos and try to maintain order & royalty with courts and bloodlines against each other. try to keep fae out of exandria because they cant know they are alike to their mortal counterparts. they cant be wild like a party of puppets at the end of labyrinth dancing with the human girl sarah. they wish to be as mysterious as if they lived in a ya dystopia. and it is clearly leaving them worse. fearne is the literal unity of all the ways fae are potrayed in a modern landscape. what will that mean for her and her home in the end?

[shorthaltsjester]

oh temult family i will never not be insane about you. thank you laura bailey for my rights and the good fucking food this ep with imogen messaging both liliana and relvin. i will have more elaborate rot undoubtedly soon but , the love in those messages! the love!!!! the love and the fact that it isn't enough in either of her relationships to her parents (or their relationships to one another).

like. imogen has just come out of the realm of one of the gods that her mother at best really does not like and at worst is happy to slaughter where she chose to trust the image of her mother and got power word stunned and then watched one of her friends kill that same image. and then she sends a message saying "I don’t know where you are or how it’s going, but I love you and I trust you." and the ache of that message being kind, a reminder to her mother that even when she stands at the side of someone imogen has committed to fighting, imogen is also choosing to love and trust her. but the point that imogen not knowing where her mother is or how its going speaks to how little she actually knows of her mother due to liliana's choices -- ones made out of love perhaps, but ones that aren't rectified by the presence of that love. and liliana returns "Imogen, I’m glad you’re okay. I love you, too. I’ve kept him at bay so far and I think he believes me. I think." and between sending's limitations and the improv setting of cr, i'm not resting any arguments or ideas on this occurance, but I Do think it is interesting that liliana spends words saying she's glad imogen is alright but does not return that statement of trust the way she returns the i love you.

and then. much more life ruining to me because of just. less relvin appearances and general . laura bailey sure knows how to make a character that is a daughter to a father reasons. imogen messaging relvin is my superbowl actually. thinking about like 2 episodes ago imogen saying "he's her father, but he's not her daddy" about zathuda, and today, despite all the distance literal and emotional and temporal, imogen starts her message calling relvin daddy.

like i don't know if i can really encapsulate the way that exchance made me feel, just imagine me pointing at the words and gesticulating emphatically but Good God

IMOGEN: Daddy, things are crazy. I love you, no matter what. Thank you for doing your best. RELVIN: Imogen, I think about you a lot. I hope wherever you are, you’re happy. You always were a wanderin’ spirit. Horses miss you as much as I do.

"thank you for doing your best" in a message sent to her father hours after sending a message to her cult-indoctrinated mother who she is choosing to trust is working on her side. who she can't be sure is actually doing her best. do you get it. do you see what i see.

and the fact that one of the first things in the campaign we heard from imogen about her father was that he was probably better off now that she wasn't there, that she figured based on the distance that grew between them, he was probably relieved without her around. and relvin's message tonight rebuting that idea. because he's a reticent man who has probably uttered the words 'i love you' a maximum of 10 times in his life, but he tells her he misses her as much as the horses do, that he hopes she's happy (implies he imagines she is because she was always a wandering spirit -- me choosing not to think about relvin saying he always assumed liliana would leave gelvaan, he just thought he'd go with her) and that he thinks of her often. i can't take it. i can't.

[toaarcan]

C3E107 Thoughts

Okay first point of order, obligatory screaming about Abubakar flying an ocean to do a surprise return as the Arch Heart, you love to see it.

The Arch Heart's plan is interesting but I think they've either not telling the whole story or they're making a mistake. They assume that, in a moment of panic of Predathos being released early, their siblings will all flee. Except we know Melora would stand and fight, and we know that two of the gods are not Tengarian and therefore they have no past track record to base that thought on. They've got no clue what RQ and Vecna will do when the chips are down.

Of course, it's possible that the Arch Heart is hiding the truth. They said themselves that they are sneaky and that they were there without the knowledge of the other gods. They also kept stressing that they were being honest. Which could well be a lie. DC30 on the Insight check to see through any bullshit. The gods may have a different purpose for putting Predathos into a person.

The reality they've claimed is that the gods are currently in argument over what they should do about the Predathos situation, and the Arch Heart believes that if they have time to come to a conclusion, they will choose to fight. Whether that means war with Predathos or war on the people trying to release it, who can say. Either way, if they all come back, inevitably the Betrayers will try to kill mortals again, and the Primes will fight them. Calamity 2 will happen if mortals take too long to stop Predathos.

Ultimately the idea of cramming Predathos into Imogen or Fearne does not seem like a good one. We just spent the better part of 103 episodes watching Laudna struggle to keep Delilah under control. Delilah is the soul of a mortal fucking wizard. And Downfall illustrated the vast gulf between mortal mages and gods. It also showed max-level mortal bodies being disintegrated by the raw power of an unbound deity forcing its way out from within them. And the plan here is to cram a more-powerful entity into a Lv.13 Sorcerer or Druid and expect Predathos to not immediately escape or hollow them out and wear them like a cheap suit?

Then again, given the way it was being talked about maybe they are aware of this and recognise that whoever becomes Predathos' vessel is functionally or literally dead and doomed to chase the gods across reality for eternity, and that's a sacrifice that some have decided they are okay with. Either way, not a great plan.

The two members of BH that are most happy with the Arch Heart's idea are Dorian and Ashton, who are reacting to it like the perfect answer has finally been given to them. But it's not Dorian and Ashton who are going to be tasked with becoming the vessel. Imogen really does not want Predathos released. Fearne is more curious but Zathuda is actively trying to groom her into the perfect vessel and Shardgate was born out of Ashton convincing her to go with her gut and give him the Shard instead of taking it for herself, and I worry that with them on one shoulder and Zathuda on the other, Fearne may end up going with the plan and dying for it.

As for who the deity that agrees with the Arch Heart is... I don't think it's the Matron. The Arch Heart's words around her appearance are "You've heard my side," as if to imply that she represents the other. She was also one of the more reluctant gods when it came to leaving and building the gate, and she was consistently the "Stop doing hubris" one during Downfall.

The Arch Heart definitely did not have an answer for whether Predathos will harm mortals accidentally in pursuit of its meal. Also there's a probably-god chilling in the heart of the planet who isn't going to be running anywhere so that's not a great sign.

Zathuda and the Unseelie's dissatisfaction with Ludinus speaks to one of the bigger flaws in the Ruby Vanguard's plan. We've seen the gulf between mortal wizards and gods in Downfall, but Ludinus assumes that if he kills the gods then mortals will sit atop the food chain. Except they won't. There are a lot of entities that live in the gulf between mortal and divine, like powerful Fey, and also the Fiends the heroes keep running into. Zathuda evidently looks down on Ludinus and intends to betray him. To chase the gods away will open up the throne they've abdicated again, and it will not be a mortal wizard that sits it (nor should it be), it will be a devil or a demon or an archfey.

[renatogpadilla]

CritRole Fighting Game Masterpost:

I have this ideas for movesets for characters from Critical Role for a Fighting Game and I've made some movelists based on the fanart I've seen... I DO have to do a lot more characters so far, so I'm gonna put the ones already done here:

Grog and Yasha! (Art by @marie-claire-art)

Scanlan and Avantika!

Beau (and eventually Ashton!) (Art by @oddthesungod)

Characters I still have planned:

From Vox Machina:

- Grog

- Scanlan

- Vax

- Keyleth

- Pike

- Vex (w/ Trinket!)

- Percy

- Tary

- Tiberius (Fuck his player, but the character was fun.)

- Bertrand Bell (Obligatory joke character!)

- The Briarwoods (Delilah main w/ Sylas install!)

- Anna Ripley

- Raishan

From The Mighty Nein:

- Beau

- Yasha

- Fjord

- Jester

- Mollymauk / Kingsley / Lucien (It'll make sense, I swear!)

- Caduceus

- Nott (She'll get a drunk meter!)

- Veth (Essentially "Akuma Nott"!)

- Caleb

- Essek

- Lorenzo

- Avantika

- Obann

- Astrid (and Eadwulf)

- Trent Ikithon

Obligatory Wave 1 DLC - Friends of Vox Machina:

- Gilmore

- Kash

- Zahra

- Kerrek

- Allura & Kima

DLC Wave 2 - Friends of the Mighty Nein:

- Pumat Sol

- Calianna

- Shakaste

- Keg

- Twiggy

- Reani

DLC Wave 3 - The Crownkeepers:

- Opal (and Ted!)

- Fy'ra Rai

- Dariax

- Morrighan

- Dorian Storm

DLC Wave 4 - Bell's Hells:

- Imogen

- Laudna

- Orym

- Fearne

- Ashton

- Fresh Cut Grass

- Chetney

- Braius

DLC Wave 5 - Hellish Villains:

- Otohan Thull

- Sorrowlord Zathuda

- Ludinus Da'leth

- And Matt Mercer, as the Dungeon Master.

That's all! I was debating putting Yussa in there, but I realized bro just stayed on his tower and occasionally needed rescue...

Hopefully I don't take another YEAR to complete the next character on the list... Spoilers for the campaigns in the move lists, btw! Just in case!

If you're interested in hearing about any particualr one, lemme know!

[stay-funky-ponyboy]

Now that I've had time to calm down a little (lol) I want to really highlight how much story Fearne has gotten lately. It kinda feels right that after Dorian is back the exu trio can experience each other's back stories more fully?

Wonder if she's realized her curiosity seems to be getting her into trouble (which isn't exactly her fault). How does she feel about being tricked by such a cute animal?

She's probably realized she left Ashton behind, and while she did admit it could happen, how does she feel about it. Is she gonna avoid Ash or stay connected. (Looks like those two are gonna have to cuddle again to make up for it haha)

Will she feel more pulls to darkness and overcome it, or succumb, or perhaps, find more power to use and not fall into darkness? Anything is still possible, I feel.

Fighting dark Fearne was exciting on one hand, but I'm sure very frightening on another as we know seeing her in exu scared her. Not to mention she almost died! If her buddy wasn't there, things would have gone dire. Will dark Fearne return? Hmm.

She has learned about her friends (crown keepers) and their recent tragedies, she's worried for Opal. I imagine she wishes she could do something to help her out. But for now, as always, they gotta keep moving forward.

On that note, still hoping she gets to meet Morrighan. It's clear she was set up (backstory wise) to meet Fearne, so I would love to see it happen. Those two would get along nicely. Even if it has to be the finale or some one shot in the future, I will take it!

I'm also very interested in seeing more of Zathuda. I got a bad feeling he's got some nasty plans upcoming...

[arclundarchivist]

Spoilers C3E108

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Second half actually had a lot of good moments and lines.

Jesus what happened to Zathuda was nightmarish, and I that the “Selene Star” was eldritch.

Glad that Orym laid it down for them.

Glad for Chetney and Laudna deciding to push to see the Matron and continue to learn more.

I honestly think I would have given up on this campaign if it weren’t for Orym and Chet and honestly Laudna anymore. She had a real rough patch, but she’s come around in a very interesting way. I’m curious to see why the Matron wishes to speak with her in particular.

Still…. bothered by how Dorian and Ashton have this viewpoint of “Everyone wins!” when in reality it’s just they get what they want. And not really even acknowledging their asking Imogen, and Fearne to sacrifice themselves to accomplish that goal.

Of fucking course Asmo is still scheming for his own betterment.(But I suppose count him out as Corellon’s ally.)

Still find it funny everyone hates Ludinus.

I know some here think the Gloamglut situation was a bit rushed but I do think Fearne growing attached to this creature, as she has so many times before but wishing for it to be free because she truly isn’t ambitious as ol’sperm donor wallhanger thinks, was a good moment for a number of reasons.

We’ll see y’all in October, I suppose.

[wardensantoineandevka]

Listen, I was up writing emails at 3am last night, so I don't have a lot to say and unfortunately don't have the most interesting call list today—but also I have no clue what to expect! 33 words, grab your card over here at BingoBaker.

There is a small chance I'll add a couple more in the next fifteen to twenty minutes, however long it takes to get to the opening sequence. I will make a post stating what the added squares are.

Current notes are:

"new returning NPC" is any NPC from a prior campaign who has not previously appeared in Campaign 3.

"actual Liliana" is that the Liliana in this vision is like, actually her.

"second secret dragon identified" is for the second disguised dragon who was attending the larger meeting at the Sanctuary. We know that the other one is J'mon Sa Ord.

new Seedling details

Chet carves item

Ashton steals something

Fearne steals something

second secret dragon identified

Stormlord conversation

Archheart conversation

other god conversation

actual Liliana

another meeting

Ludinus appearance

Zathuda mention

new returning NPC

Lord of the Hells mention

Relvin mention

Nein PC named

Nein PC appearance

Keyleth appearance

non-Keyleth VM appearance

Sending

new spell cast

purchase supplies

given supplies

still in Vasselheim

left Vasselheim

Arcana check

Deception check

History check

Insight check

Religion check

Perception check

Persuasion check

Sleight of Hand check

[grigori77]

Critical Role, Campaign 3 Episode 108

Whoa ... tough names. Well done, Matt. Oh ... a PowerPoint Presentation? Hmmmm ... actully this looks quite professional ... ah ... yes ... guess I spoke too soon ... yeah, Sam, I don't think you REALLY thought this one through ... okay, the tattoot thing was kinda cool ... Matt: "This is a PIRATE book, Sam. Could you try and do it as a pirate?" Sam: "I am, Matthew. Because capitalists are the modern pirates." Oh ... I see. Okay ... yeah ...

"We get wet." Um ... okay, Marisha?

What's this? A GAG REEL? O.O Oh, this is kinda fun ... XD Just wish it was bigger ...

Shit, yeah ... that last episode got TRIPPY at the end ... where's THAT gonna play out here?

Unconscious prisoners? Oh ... yeah, we forgot about that shit ... now what?

Laura rolls ASS right at the start ... Laura: "I have 4 hit points!" Taliesin: "Stop hitting yourself!" XD

Double-team? Braius, they're really not thinking about THAT kind of party right now ...

The guardians? CRAP!!! Not good, not good ...

Mass Cure Wounds? Thank you, Dorian ...

Hunter's Bane? Hmmmm ... IS something going on? Oh, wait ... oh, is that IRA? Yeah, that wouldn't surprise me ... yeah, I was NOT surprised by that AT ALL ...

A mental Deception Check? Against the NIGHTMARE KING?!!! Oh, this'll have to be HIGH ...

Kashador? Hmmm ...

Wait ... Chetney can BANE?!!! Nice ... O.O

Modify Memory? Okay, then ... oh yeah, that's right, fae are naturally resistant to this stuff ...

Yeah, so ... THAT hasn't gone all that well ...

Psychic Lance? REALLY?!!! O.O At SEVENTH FUCKING LEVEL ... oh man, this is gonna be NASTY ... oh my fucking GODS ... Travis: "On this fucking guard?!" Laura: "Well that's all I have!" 34 points of Psychic damage? Oof ... shit ... oh no is he DEAD?!!! I am NOT surprised that happened the way this was going ...

It didn't work ... no shit ... this is about to go VERY BAD ...

Nice takedown, Fearne ... now here comes Ashton to potentially MASSIVELY overdo subduing him ... 44 points of damage on the FIRST attack? Fucking hell ... oh, so now he's RESIGNED to killing him ... okay, then, just PUREE this poor bastard ... 24 points this time ... so ... is he just knocked cold, or is he, like, PROPER DEAD?

Well that's it, then ... Dorian's just putting the Emissary under a sleeper hold then ... meanwhile Orym delivers the ultimate knockout hit with the Sending Stone? OOF ...

What, take everything back to Nana Mori's? You sure about that?

Gloamglut? Hmmmm ... is that old dragon lurking or just GONE? Which is more of a problem right now?

Imogen Messages Nana ... is it 11 or 12? Hmmmm ...

An hour? That sounds ... complicated ... a lot can happen in an hour ... but at least they got time for a Short Rest while they're at it ...

Orym Flea-jumps to the roof to keep an eye on the surrounds ... yeah ... still no sign of the dragon ...

Crap ... and Zathuda is now coming to ... great ... oh yeah, 25 EASILY knocks him out again. Nicely done, Braius ...

Spirit of Death? Interesting ... oh gods ... Laudna summons Bor'dor ... O.O ... she has him HAUNT Zathuda in the capacity of a BABYSITTER ... wow ...

Ashton (to Laudna): "You finally managed to creep me out."

Braius' convoluted plan to fool the Emissary ... yeah ... bizarrely, that might actually WORK ...

Dorian makes the already concoluted plan even MORE convoluted ... and possibly a bit GAY too ... XD

Continuous attempts at Bane ... oh, but FINALLY the Emissary FAILS his save ... YAY!!! About damn time ...

Phantasmal Force? Oh yeah, that could work ... but it IS pretty risky ...

What ... Laudna should just ASSUME the identity of the Emissary for the rest of her life? That is, like, a SUPREMELY DUMB idea, Braius ...

Oh okay ... so now they're putting their wildly overblown concoluted plan into action? This should be entertaining ...

Meanwhile Fearne is now STEALING ALL THE EMISSARY'S SHIT ... I mean OF COURSE she is ...

Fuck ... here we go, then ... O.O ... wow, and that wasover SO FAST ... almost an anticlimax ... XD ... you magnificent idiots ...

Born theatre kid Dorian offers his underwhelmed critique ... LOL

Take 2? Hmmmm ... best to get their shit WORKED OUT this time, people ... Ashton's being the forecful director of the scene ... cue MASSIVE overacting ... wow, that was such a mess ...

Final take? Dear gods help us ...

Balls ... Zathuda ESCAPED while they were working out their scene? Oh, that is SO BAD right now ... O.O Good thing he's Haunted, at least ...

Imogen is now GIVING CHASE ... this is getting SO COMPLICATED ...

Initiative? Crap ...

Chetney rushes outside and just CHUCKS HIS CHISEL AT HIM ... holy fuck, THAT HIT HIM?!!! Unbelievable ... 15 points of Piercing damage ... and he's DOWN again? Bloody hell ... that was a VERY SHORT bit of combat ...

FUCK!!! GLOAMGLUT'S BACK!!! AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!!!

Gloamglut takes a swipe at Imogen ... and misses ... so it grabs Zathuda and prepares to flee ...

Braius makes it to the outside entrance ... oh, Misty Step? Nice, do that ... Channel Divinity ... Nature's Wrath? Oh nice ... yeah, DEFINITELY do THAT ... grab that dragon! Oh no ... what mad shit is Riegel planning now? Oh VERY WELL DONE, you muppet ... you just outthought yourself ...

Orym runs under Braius' legs and attacks Zathuda head-on while he's still out ... first is a miss, but second hits ... a Pushing attack? Hmmmm ... nope, not with that massive Dragon strength ... meanwhile Zathuda is now making Death Saves ... oh shit, so he's just DEAD?!!! Wow ...

Crap ... Gloamglut is now SERIOUSLY angry ...

Ashton is in ATROCIOUS shape right now so he's gonna be USELESS for three rounds ... lovely ...

Imogen tries to mount the saddle again ... okay, then ... O.O ... Animal Handling? Ballsy ... oh, with a Psychic Connection? Interesting ... rolling a 19 or 20 will do it, otherwise it's a bust... 6? Holy fuck, Laura Bailey ... so she just tries to REASON with the dragon, ALSO telepathically ...

Dorian sprints outside ... and he's just SHOCKED by what's tranpiring ... yup ...

Laudna blasts it with a Ray of Frost from INSIDE THE BUILDING?!!! Wow ... thank fuck for Spell Sniper ... still a miss, though ... balls ...

Fearne joins the others outside ... oh yeah, this is just a TOTAL MESS, she's not gonna be too impressed with this ... oh, she's trying the family card on Gloamglut? an even BALLSIER plan ... O.O ... roll INSANELY well please, Ashley ... wow, Laura's reaction to that roll CRACKS ME UP ... XD ... 31? HOLY FUCK ... wow ... IS THIS gonna work? Please fuck let this shit work ...

Chetney holds Inflict Wounds to wait and see how this plays out ... O.O

Wait ... is Gloamglut CRYING?!!! Awwwwwwwwwww ...

Braius prepares Ensnaring Strike for JUST IN CASE ...

Orym joins the rest to hold his attack ...

Ashton uses the hammer to restrain the two unconscious fae ... and waits ...

Imogen's hoping tyhis is gonna work ... while using Mage Hands to stroke the dragon in a calming manner along with Fearne's soothing ... wow ... smart ...

Dorian back off back inside as discreetly as he can ... yeah ... "You're doing great. You're so strong ..." For Inspiration ...

Laudna Messages Nana Morri to inform her of the situation unfolding ... and holds her action, ALSO just in case ...

So IS THIS working? Fearne continues doing what she's doing ... then very carefully tries to MOUNT the dragon ... 27? Oh nice ... it lets her get up into the saddle behind Imogen ...

Oh ... now it REALLY wants to eat Chetney ... O.O ... is she going to have to establish dominance right now? And now it's clutching Braius ... wow ... and now Orym too? AND Chetney? Wow ... this is suddenly REALLY complicated ...

IS the dragon under control, Imogen? REALLY?!!!

And now they're flying ... oh boy ... this is all kinds of fucked again ... O.O

Oh, here comes Nana ... time to go, then ... the ones left on the ground are gathering, then ...

Yeah, this could just all kick off again in the air with Nana ... oh thank fuck for Imogen being a horse girl ...

Okay, back to Ligament Manor, then ... phew ... that worked out surprisingly well in the air ... oh, time for a break? Okay then ...

So right now Nana's basically like a nightmare fuel version of Bird Howl? Lovely ... O.O

Yeah, I think Zathuda's probably proper dead by now, guys ...

All right, we're back at Ligament Manor ... yeah, that's NOT topiary ... everybody coming to a landing in turn on the roof garden ... okay ... how's THIS gonna go, then?

Oh, so Gloamglut's all chill now? Okay ... that's gotta be a good sign, right?

Crap ... is Nana thinking about EATING the fae right now?

Laudna attempts to explain the situation to Nana ... in a really convoluted way ... I'm not sure if she REALLY gets the gyst of that ...

Wait ... she's TRAPPING Gloamglut? Hey, not cool ... Fearne just got it ... but yeah, she's got a point, she does owe it a little mistreatment right now ...

What about Zathuda? "Put him through the Loom?" Why does that sound really bad? O.O

So they really are doing this ... okay ... this is going to be interesting, then ...

So ... The Loom. Oh boy ... why is this making me think about that rack in Apostle? It looks REALLY horrible already ...

Oh fuck me ... it's FLAYING HIM?!!! Layer by layer? Holy fuck ... this is DEEPLY unsettling ... she's literally turning him into a flesh tapestry ... O.O ... yup, like I thought, pure nightmare fuel ... he is now a piece of SERIOUSLY macabre art ...

Nana: "It's good to have hobbies, isn't that right?" Sweet fuck that is awful ...

So they can question him now? Okay then ...

Primal Savagery? Go off, Fearne ... O.O

Whoa ... bleak shit to lay on a guy, Ashton ...

Matt describes the subtle horrors on display. Travis: "You okay, Matt?" Very true, very true ... we're ALL a little concerned about the DM right now ...

This ia all turning into a weird opportunity for Fearne to finally connect with Zathuda as her father ... it's all deeply weird ... I'm really not sure what to make of this right now ...

The key to the Ruidusborn? Oh, that's useful information ... spill, creepy living tapestry man ... O.O

He wants Fearne to be his last revenge on Ludinus ... well yeah, he's probably gonna get his wish eventually ... XD

Zathuda: "Now I'm furniture ..." Yeah ... he is that ...

Crap ... does this mean he can't offer up any real information about the new fortress at the Maleus Key? Balls ...

Yeah, let Fearne keep the dragon ... it's so COOL ...

A blood ritual? Oh yeah, that's the ticket ...

Yes! The skinny about the Unseelie ... good call, Imogen ... oh, so this likely hasn't really taken all that much off the board? Bugger ... the Ruidian forces are MASSIVE?!!! Great ... O.O

Ludinus' weakness? Smart, Orym ... hubris, yeah ...

Travis is HATING all of this ... well done, Matt ... you've creeped your boy out again ... XD

Whoa ... Braius, nice ... does Fearne have any siblings out there? No? Hmmmmmmmm ... I'm not convinced that's really true ...

No ... NOT THE TIME, people ... do not bring Foreigner into this ...

Birdie! Hey! Okay ... maybe not the best of timing for their arrival ...

Oh, Nana can make it go invisible? Yeah, probably for the best ... O.O

Yeah, Laudna and Nana bonding over twistd artistry is ENTIRELY to be expected ... XD

Fearne and Ashton continue to be adorable ... :3 Meanwhile Sorian and Imogen are DEEPLY unsettled by what they've just witnessed ...

Oh gods ... the porno ... don't invoke the porno again, guys ...

Nana Morri's fucking with the fae's heads ... yeah ... that's some more creepy disturbing unpleasantness ... aaaaah ... the cracking knuckles ... and OTHER joints ... yeesh ...

Nana: "If at first you don't succeed ..." Laudna: "Wait! I know this one! Shut the fuck up!" Nana: "Push until they stop moving." Ye gods ...

Fuck ... this poor bastard is just being TORTURED right now ...

Oh my gods ... HOW are you all rolling SO FUYCKING BAD right now? This is SO FUCKED ... NOW what are we gonna do?

O.O ... fucking hell ... THAT'S how they make the topiary things? That's just SO FUCKED UP ...

So we just have to rely on what the guard reveals to make this work? Oh boy ... I don't have a huge amount of faith in this plan ...

And so it's all down to Dorian, then ... okay ... Matthew, you BASTARD, that wasn't funny ... XD ...

Kamal? Awwww ... poor kid's really being used right now ... so here we go, then ... let's see if this finally fucking takes ... Bane! And more Bane! AND Silvery Barbs! SOMEHOW it finally fucking takes ... oh my FUCKING GODS ...

Awwww ... sweet Coriolus, MVP of the episode ... :3

"MISSION COMPLETE!!!" Yeah!

Wow, that's one QUICK maid service ... XD

Right ... what's the next step then?

Laudna: "He looked at me and said 'Spooky lady wants to talk to you'." Hmmmm ... maybe talking to the Matron could be the right call right now?

You're definitely selling yourself short there, Imogen. You really are something special ... you're some proper Seventh Son of a Seventh Son level of special ...

What, Nana might have an IN with the Matron? Interesting ...

So sleep, then back to Vesselheim, and then ... whatever's next? Or deal with Gloamglut first? Well, sleep on it first ...

Awwwwww ... Dorym sweetness ... just what we need right now ... :3

There's HOT SPRINGS?!!! Really?

Oooooooooh ... Ashton! You little shit! I love it! XD

Fearne's spending the night out with Gloamglut, then ... awwwwww ... :3

More Pate bizarreness ... XD

Oh, okay ... Braius and Asmodeus? How's this gonna go? HOLY SHIT he's getting an answer! O.O Is that Matt Mercer doing an impression of Brennan Lee Lulligan?

A vision of hell ... and the god of lies himself ... wow ... that'ssome crazy shit ...

Fuck me ... is Braius propositioning Nana Morri? O.O Holy fuck and she's INTO IT TOO ... oh my gods is that ACTUALLY HAPPENING?!!!

Chetney came SO CLOSE to being trapped in his fancy demonic armour forever there ...

Bompers! Hi! So cute and so unsettling in equal measure!

Fearne starts bonding with Gloamglut ... gods, they're so sweet together ... :3 Awww ... and it's accepting of Ashton too ... nice ... and they drift off into a nice, peaceful sleep ...

Yeah, that's EXACTLY where I expected Matt to call it a night this time. Good place for it, really ...

[hugahufflepuff1]

4 Sided Dice

On Four Sided Dice. When they were discussing two guest that they would like to see on the show.. as soon as they said Lou Wilson and Robbie Daymond I couldn't agree more. Just imagine Lou playing as Dorian's father or as Zenado or someone else who works for Zathuda or Ruby Vanguard and has gained the trust of Dorian and Dariax. Idk. Another person I'd love to see as a guest is Matthew Lillard 😍 or Ally Beardsly. Who is a guest star or guest star pair you'd be interested in seeing? I'd love to see you're thoughts. ❤️

[burr-ell]

paladin, monk, and druid!

paladin: what is your favorite friendship

I really enjoy Vex and Scanlan; Laura and Sam have never turned in a bad dynamic. The way they're both so adept at seeing through each other's masks, the way Scanlan worried the most about his daughter while Vex came to see him as a father figure, him making her wear the witch hat but also being the first one to whom she admitted having stolen the broom, Scanlan's last Wish being a gift more for Vex than anyone else...there's a lot going on there and I enjoy how TLOVM portrays it.

monk: what is your favorite canon relationship 

I mean. C'mon.

I joke ad nauseum about how horny Percy and Vex are—and I feel confident that their dreams have given Ruidians the best sex ed they've ever had—but it's not really about the sex! It's about how they both never thought they would get to have anything like true love, and their relationship is probably the most sappy fairytale ass love story in Critical Role's canon. It's about how they trust each other with their dark sides, knowing that the other person won't fear them or downplay them but simply accept them as part of who they are. It's about how they had opportunities to burn it all down and break the world for each other, but instead they rebuilt a city and the world for love. It's about how that love didn't just change them as individuals, but made them better leaders and advocates who fight for the vulnerable and show compassion to the downtrodden.

What's sexier than conviction NOTHING

druid: what is your favorite non-canon ship

A one-night stand with Grog could fix Percy—

Honestly, I don't really take much interest in non-canon ships; I generally accept the cast's choices as what's best for their respective characters because I usually think they're right. I would, however, be interested in the alternate universe where Imogen and Fearne fall in love and deal with this weird moon shit and fistfight Liliana and Zathuda together. Laura and Ashley have great chemistry, and I think their funky lil Ruidusborn tether and power-sharing would be even funkier if they kissed with tongue about it.

critical role ask game

[ludinusdaleth]

monk cleric barbarian for the meme :3

monk: what is your favorite canon relationship  - loveletters. fcg & frida are two of my favorite characters, i adore robots discovering how much they can love, i adore their puppy-love sheer joy in the face of a second calamity, when the first wiped their people off the map. i remember the way fcg lied and said avandra saw them together forever, and await the grief of frida when they learn what happened to fcg, and what they will do, alone as an aeormaton again, in the face of another aeorian war.

i have a soft spot for shadowgast, and it once meant a lot to me, something i deeply related to as a burgeoning gay boy. i still think on it fondly even if it's been a bit broken by my experience in its fandom.

cleric: what is your favorite battle - the cathedral and the malleus key far and away are my favorites. the cathedral is an ICONIC massive scale fight for yashas freedom and stopping tharizdun with the iconic church glass shattering, yasha almost killing beau and finally getting free, ending in yasha killing her abuser in the best hdywtdt of the entire 1500+ hour show. the malleus key is also a juggernaut in scale, and masterclass in a hopeless fight as ludinus's 1000 year plan comes to the fore in terrifying clarity and you can only watch in fear as he (honestly rightfully given his power level) treats everyone, even keyleth, as hardly a fly to swat. his turning literal time and mad laughter of relief at the end of it haunt my brain every second.

barbarian: who is your favorite villain - look at my url and guess

no but seriously. ever since c2 i knew lud would be The Problem. to see my theories proven right and yet realizing hes more compelling than i imagined, more than a lawful evil politician but a brutal mutated cannibal traumatized beyond belief by the calamity who toes this desperate-evil line over whether he can be fixed or not, as he manipulates those who think that undoubtedly. thats what it's about baby!!!!!! i also really, really love avantika, i find halas fun-evil. lucien is extremely compelling (ft. the somnovem), and i have a feeling if zathuda is expanded on i will end up very interested in him too.

thanks!

[utilitycaster]

i am nourished by your hatred; what did you dislike about yu??

Question is academic for now but: essentially, I'm already pretty heavily biased against the "secretly a changeling" trope and always have been; it's always struck me as just kind of a cheap twist and rarely engages with the handful of interesting things about the changeling as a player choice. But I think the bigger part is just that they weren't very good at their job as an assassin, and Erika and Matt both expected the encounter in Imahara Joe's to go to PvP but it didn't, so it led to a scene that dragged on forever in which Yu was just trying to goad people into PvP and they were all like "SHUT UP," which, mood. And then, in a MacGuffin-heavy campaign, during The MacGuffin Arc (Treshi, a man who was really just the bouncing ball to follow through the Apogee Solstice Exposition Sing-along and yet it took 34 episodes to get through) Yu's entire deal was "looking for vaguely related MacGuffin." And now? Ira has the Moontide Crown so going after Bells Hells is a useless choice, so if Yu showed up they'd just be like "where's the Moontide Crown" and Bells Hells would be like "Ira has it, sending is broken, we don't know where the Calloways are either" and Yu...did not really have like, enough of a backstory or personality beyond that mission to make them interesting to me, but also left on hostile enough terms that I don't see the party working with them. There is literally no point to them coming back in this scenario, and I do not give a shit where the Moontide Crown is. Zathuda probably just stuck Yu in a mirror for failure or whatever, and good riddance. As said, anything to do with the Feywild can better be explored imo through Fearne. I mean if Yu shows up at a later date as a guest it will be fine, but I'm truly not interested unless Fearne is there - showing up for this arc specifically is pointless on several levels - and if we never see them again I won't be disappointed at all.

Now here's where the secretly a changeling trope backfires: I'd love for Erika to come back and play another more interesting character, and Aimee's just set a precedent for playing multiple characters as a guest within the same timeline. But if you've played a changeling in the campaign already, people are just going to be like BUT IT'S SECRETLY YU, RIGHT, which will be annoying as hell, hence me saying a new EXU season or the next installment in the Candela Obscura anthology might be better.

[moisthalforcboy]

Maybe it’s the Gilear lover in me, but I do not understand why Fearne is (was?) so much more interested in pursuing a relationship with Zathuda than Birdie & Ollie?

This is not a criticism, I just feel like *I* am missing something here.

[mehoymalloy]

Thanks for giving me an excuse to update my transcript, not that there was all that much to add lol

I give you Otohan being dramatic af and saying shit no human being has ever said aloud, as well as some moments I personally find very satisfying for obvious reasons 😌

“A Race for the Prize” (3x27)

You choose your two finest champions. I choose two of mine. And we go until down or dead.

“Blood and Dust” (3x33)

(chuckles) You impress me with your brazen infiltration. Brash can have its merits over well-plotted. We who think too far ahead can miss what stands right before us, yes? Who sent you? Who is your employer?

(chuckles) Eshteross. Interesting. I'll have to pay him a visit. That old fool meddles far beyond his aspirations. What do you know of me? Of this? You can answer these questions, or I take the answers from you.

Well. Perhaps the rest of you are weak, like the sheep who bleat to be saved by some higher power. You are worthy of only ashes then.

{to Laudna} (tsk tsk tsk) Can't run from this, my dear.

Your friends are extremely, obnoxiously resilient. Perhaps I've been going about this the wrong way. I should be more complete with my job.

{to Imogen, or to herself} Good. Good. (drawn out): Good.

The more you run from it, the more you lose. There is greatness in you, and our fight is soon. Embrace it, or become (potential error: "be culled"?) like the rest.

(softly): You're not surrendering to me. But to your nature.

Come on. You're so close.

Ah, but you see, you don't just choose to give in, you let go when the moment's right.

“What Dreams May Come” (3x34)

You are a true predator. A gift in their image. If you can be as strong as we can. To deny your nature is to be consumed by it. To embrace it is to master your own fate. I am proud of you.

The bell tolls and looms soon enough. Come. Create something beautiful with us.

“The Fey Key” (3x47)

{to Sorrowlord Zathuda} I assume you are of sound enough intelligence to know what must be done, and that there is no place for pleasantries or ego stroking in the scale of what we are doing. (...) When you finally step down from the shadow of the Moonweaver, I guarantee you will be forgiving.

“An Exit Most Fraught” (3x48)

{to FCG, telepathically} How interesting. I know you. (...) Well, then, punishment it is.

“The Apogee Solstice” (3x50)

{to all, telepathically} Friends! Individuals who have come with us on this journey, our timetable is being accelerated. Please, gather at the Key." (Matt notes that her voice is in “an energized tone.”)

{when failing to speak into Imogen’s mind due to the circlet} (growls)

“Rush for the Bloody Bridge” (3x82)

Maintain the perimeter and double siege defenses! Foot soldiers regroup and do not abandon the Key! Fools!

“Intense Interrogations” (3x84)

I'm looking for some individuals. (…) They were a few Exandrians who were not invited here. Caused a ruckus. (…) They look…a little bit like you.

{re: Imogen} That's interesting because the whole reason I'm here is because I could feel where she was.

How wondrous, all these friendly reunions at once. This is a fortuitous day, is it not? Well, I cannot harm you (Fearne) because you're important to everything we're building. You (FCG), we can do without.

{to Fearne, re: Imogen} Where is she? (…) And what is she doing in Kreviri– whatever the fuck it's called?

when the campaign’s over I’m totally gonna make a compilation of Otohan talking because she’s so [incomprehensible sapphic squealing]

[myowndesertplaces]

I'm very interested in seeing what Dusk's actual plan is next episode, because, in reality, they have really botched this entire mission from an outside perspective.

(Disclaimer: Ishii is wonderful, and this is not an attack against their playing style or choices. This is about Dusk and where we are in the narrative)

According to Zathuda, Dusk's mission is to steal the Moontide Crown and "deal with the Calloways." Dusk did a fantastic job of infiltrating the Hells and earning Fearne's trust, which lead to her attending the meeting with Birdie.... and then they just fucked around for 2 days.

If you're Dusk (I will use this name until we know their real one), I would want to have Fearne and her parents isolated as much as possible. Dusk is only level 8, and knows what the Bell's Hells can do in battle. They know they can't fight 7 accomplished fighters on their own, therefore it would make sense to get her away from the group. However, outside of Dusk's conversation with Fearne about Chetney, Dusk never makes any attempt to try to isolate Fearne from the rest of the Bell's Hells. She never sows any doubt about their loyalty. Never recommends just the two of them meeting Birdie. Nothing.

If (and that is a big if) her flirting with Laudna and Orym was to create division within the group, it failed. At best, it was a temporary distraction that lead to half the group questioning Dusk's motives by the end of the last episode. It's just as likely that Dusk was simply bored, and felt like flirting or manipulating the group for shits-and-giggles. Zathuda has already suggested that Dusk is easily "distracted" by this realm.

The Run would have been a great opportunity to take out one or 2 members of the Bell's Hells without raising suspicion, but that opportunity never came. Instead, they choose to save Laudna's life. Why? Dusk cant possibly care for Laudna after knowing her for one day. Having the Hells at full strength the next day for your meeting only hurts you.

What happens next at Imahara Joe's will determine whether Dusk really has a plan at all. Not only have they failed to isolate Fearne and her parents, they're outnumbered in a building full of weapons that can be used against Dusk. Matt made it very clear that there are War Machines in Joe's shop. Does Dusk plan to use them? Has the secretive rolls and texts between Matt and Erika been more than just perception checks and ease dropping? Has Dusk been relaying information to her Patron off camera? Have they called for back-up? Or has Zathuda expected Dusk to fail, and sent more men to clean up their mess? There is no way this can be an 8-on-1 battle, especially since you cannot teleport with unwilling creatures.

Ultimately, either Dusk has been planning things off screen, or Zathuda is right that he may have made a mistake with trusting Dusk for this mission.