#c2e21

[its-your-mind]

sibling energy intensifies - c2e21

[stone-stars]

Transcript:

Murph: You guys have, um, there's a couple like-- (chuckles) Murphy beds-- [Caldwell cackles.] Jake: oooh. Murph: --that are like in the walls here, kind of tucked away. Emily (Fia voice): I don't get it. Jake: Bravo sir. Murph: Yes. Emily (Fia voice): What? Murph: They have (chuckles) glasses and they're super smart and cool. [Emily cackles. Jake and Caldwell laugh.] Emily: I go make love to one. Murph: (laughs) Oh my god. Jake (Henry voice): Oh my god! Caldwell: I shake one's hand. Jake: I lick one. [Murph and Caldwell laugh.] Murph: Henry drops. Jake (Henry voice): What the hell!

[staticrevelations]

got to the cali episode of c2 in my rewatch and mistakenly read the comments which are a minefield of people not understanding that characters being flawed and hypocritical and unaware of their own shortcomings and not magically fixing themselves when their flaws are pointed out aren't signs of bad characters and is actually very good rp

[beauregardlionett]

picking up the m9 rewatch again and i can’t remember if this is the first time beau’s gone down but the absolute panic on caleb’s face...i miss the empire kids sm

[moodsbytraviswillingham]

Campaign 2, Episode 21

[doctorloverboy]

hm no. fuck beau rn. there’s literally no reason to be acting like this right now. i’m fuming. he’s already learned the lesson dude, YOU haven’t. CONDESCENDING. shut the fuck up.

[mysterytwink]

every book that i have ever read about trolls, they do not make friends, they are bitter nasty…… things

[aryabunny]

He said yes!

[kirbyprompts]

𝐂𝐑𝐈𝐓𝐈𝐂𝐀𝐋 𝐑𝐎𝐋𝐄 𝐒𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐄𝐍𝐂𝐄 𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐑𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐒 𝐏𝐓 𝟏

content warnings: alcohol, drinking, killing, death, murder. feel free to change prompts as necessary!

❝i feel like it’s my responsibility to stop them.❞

❝i ask people if i can trust them, they say yes, and then they trick me! or they use me to do bad things.❞

❝this seems like a very large task for one person.❞

❝i almost died today, motherfuckers. i almost died.❞

❝well, only one place to go and that’s down.❞

❝stay put. don’t move.❞

❝hi! want some booze?❞

❝you seem to have such an affinity for cute things.❞

❝anyone else feel like going for a swim?❞

❝as long as you don’t mind dying, sure.❞

❝we are the worst people.❞

❝i respect you and your intentions, but your caution does not get to control other people’s destinies.❞

❝there’s only so many burdens we can bear before we’re just asking for failure.❞

❝you did check for traps, right?❞

❝no! i’m opening it. fuck off grandpa!❞

❝maybe you’re cursed.❞

❝how did you survive?❞

❝we solved the mystery.❞

❝light the damn sticks of dynamite, just do it!❞

❝i don’t know what i’m doing. just go with it.❞

❝should i burn it?❞

❝you faded away there for a second. are you good?❞

❝let's focus on the good things in our lives.❞

❝is there anything of use or value here at all?❞

❝things are looking up.❞

❝earlier you said i could talk to you whenever i want. and i thank you for that.❞

❝that’s a good name. names are important.❞

❝i’ll take out everyone!❞

❝wake up, there’s an ambush!❞

❝are you bullshitting me?❞

❝we’re doing what we need to survive.❞

❝if you’re going to do bad things, at least work for someone who’s rich and doing bad things! don’t just steal from people on the road, that’s stupid!❞

❝only steal from grumpy people!❞

❝i was trying to be jovial, i’m sorry. i shouldn’t have tried that.❞

❝there’s nothing better than waking up in the morning with no pants and flowers in your hair.❞

❝i’ve never been here, but i’ve heard stories.❞

❝where do the best parties happen?❞

❝laughter and music? i don’t trust laughter and music.❞

❝have you ever been dancing before?❞

❝is this your first time here?❞

❝sorry to interrupt your incessant flirting. can i please have a damn drink?❞

❝if you drink enough you won’t remember either way.❞

❝was it someone special?❞

❝i’ve never thought of you as an optimistic person, but that’s a very positive way of looking at things.❞

❝you are not going to pass out on the street.❞

❝what’s the thing you’re most proud of?❞

❝am i allowed to rob him?❞

❝you look like you’ve got an honest face.❞

❝it’s fine. you’re not in any danger.❞

❝hi, i’m here to take care of your spinny death problem.❞

❝i don’t think they’re going to let me in.❞

❝i’m quite sure. did i stutter?❞

❝can’t we just please go kill your damn death robot?❞

❝i can speak when i have to.❞

❝is that your blood or is that mine?❞

❝the only thing that’s magical here is you.❞

❝sometimes the people who help you are the least expected.❞

❝my entire life has been plans being made for me.❞

❝i don’t think you and i have the same plan, but they might overlap. i will be willing to help you.❞

❝let’s make a pact that if either one of us does something stupid, we’re each other’s failsafes.❞

❝i don’t think i want to hurt anymore people and i don’t think you want to either.❞

❝i think i can help you. i think you can help me. i think we can do some good here.❞

❝if i left, i would find my way back to you.❞

❝i do better with you around.❞

❝for all the visions, the darkness out there, it’s good to know that somehow we’re all putting a little bit of light out there too.❞

❝i have a question. does anyone have booze?❞

❝i’m trying this thing where i’m trying to be more polite.❞

❝i am the greatest detective of all time! i took one drink and solved the case!❞

❝you’re going to be a fucking piece of work.❞

❝i’m more than happy to kill something at this point. i have some aggression to work out.❞

❝do we want to stay in the haunted house?❞

❝that’s the most fucked up shit i’ve ever seen.❞

❝truly nothing escapes your astute observation.❞

❝i thought we were getting to know each other.❞

❝did you have a happy home life growing up?❞

❝i’ll help you try to get revenge on your vague past.❞

❝how about you tell me one fact about you and i tell you one about me?❞

❝what’s the best lie you’ve ever told?❞

❝you are a good friend to have and a terrible enemy to make.❞

❝i didn’t know! i’m sorry. i’m sorry. i didn’t know.❞

❝i’m not walking away from this.❞

❝it’s funny how the good people can make us assholes feel so small.❞

❝i think you’re supposed to say some stuff about how good they were and how many people loved them, and what a wonderful life they had, but i don’t think any of that is true.❞

❝i thought you were talking to yourself again.❞

❝are you willing to kill?❞

❝i have lost people before. i have found ways to find them in nature.❞

❝this is my first time trying to be more than i am.❞

❝you and i, we’re going to survive this.❞

❝i don’t have any family; you’re the closest thing i have.❞

❝you may be kind of weird but you’re also nice.❞

❝i am nauseous. let’s go kill a bunch of people.❞

❝i would like to hug you.❞

❝usually when people come here, it is because of some great tragedy. how can i alleviate your pain?❞

❝i’m gonna take a guess: you don’t leave here very much do you?❞

❝violence is extremely natural.❞

❝i’m canonically a coward!❞

❝oh this is going wonderful.❞

❝you don’t need to do this if you don’t want to.❞

❝brave. dead. it’s semantics, really.❞

❝they. are. going. to. die.❞

❝it’s not your fault.❞

❝this won’t happen again.❞

❝i would have laid down my life for you.❞

❝i’m sorry i wasn’t faster.❞

❝it looks better on you.❞

❝you can cook?❞

❝leave me alone. i’m reading.❞

❝i would feel a little safer if i knew a little bit more about you.❞

❝i’ll find you when i’m ready.❞

❝most people in my life leave.❞

❝there is always a cost.❞

❝i made the earth remember him.❞

❝congratulations on being alive.❞

❝you cannot blame yourself when you are taken advantage of.❞

❝i have people i want to find and things i want to remedy.❞

❝i feel like you should embrace the morbidity of life.❞

❝afraid? i’m not afraid of anything!❞

❝did you see what i did?❞

❝why didn’t you come?❞

❝you promise you won’t leave?❞

❝i don’t think i’ve ever come across magic like that.❞

❝things that are unknown are notably able to draw dangerous and inquiring eyes and minds.❞

❝just so you know, i think i can punch ghosts now.❞

❝i just know if i saw a ghost, i would want to punch it. ghosts are scary.❞

❝it’s easier to steal things when you can pay for them with money.❞

❝this is not where i am supposed to be.❞

❝i have no specific destination in mind.❞

❝i’ll go where you go.❞

❝what do you want to know?❞

❝well i can’t go home.❞

❝we stick together.❞

❝we have things we need to do and we don’t have forever to do them.❞

❝you know what i’ve done.❞

❝sometimes you have to take a big risk if it’s that important.❞

❝you can’t just sneak up on a person!❞

❝sorry, just figured you’d want some company.❞

❝i've always loved the water.❞

❝feels good to be back, yeah?❞

[pocketgalaxies]

every day jester casts a spell that is typically grounded in holy, powerfully divine magic and every day she totally indignifies it bc she has no idea what she's doing and her magic source is just some random weirdo guy

bonus top table reaction:

[its-your-mind]

Welcome to The Mighty Nein! -c2e20

The prophesy becomes true -c2e21

[lessattitudemorealtitude]

Caleb pointedly calling Nott “Bren” and then dissociating so obviously (literally everyone at the table is amused and moving around, and Liam is just sitting there staring at the table...) It’s pretty damn stark

[paramecrust]

Cali my precious girl. She held onto kindness after isolation and manipulation. She made it seem natural and easy only because she was so sincere. She was nervous as hell but she tried. She defended caleb for suspecting her and validated his fears. She has adhd this is the hill I’ll die on. She shook everyone’s hand in the end. She wrote letters. She said be kind to yourself. She is my girl with a heart of gold and I love her so much

[stone-stars]

a while ago i made a post about naddpod music and @metamagic-adept brought up kingshammer in the replies. and yeah, i can't resist. so. kingshammer essay, let's do this.

first of all: huge, huge thanks to @operationslipperypuppet for helping me with this; she found a bunch of uses (esp for c3) and contributed truly so much to the analysis as well.

now, the use of kingshammer differs by campaign. so! really quickly. here is every use of kingshammer in naddpod.*

*as of c3e53. obligatory spoiler warning for every naddpod episode up to that point.

(continued under the cut as i was not kidding about this being an essay-- i will leave a tl;dr of sorts towards the end)

c1e45: The Kings protect the Boobs from the avalanche (except Hardwon)

c1e54: Hardwon's death*

c1e54: Hardwon's visions while he's dead*

c1e54: Hardwon is revivified*

c1e55: Hardwon's dreamless sleep after dying*

c1e65: JV and Rosa in the fog, when he gives her his lantern*

c1e65: JV, the Duskmother, and Moradin*

c1e69: Hardwon seeing the day his father died while in Galad's sword

c1e75: Hardwon speaking up in the astral council: "You don't broker a deal with someone who calls themself a God"

c1e80: Hardwon's flashback in Hell: "Looks like a Dwarf to me"

c1e81: Hardwon fuses the Bronzebeard and Coldain hammers

c1e86: Hardwon throws King Coldain the Kingshammer in the Tarrasque fight

c1e86: Coldain returns the Kingshammer to Hardwon in the Tarrasque fight

c1e87: Hardwon and King Coldain talk about succession of the throne

c1e90: Hardwon dreams of Grimthor MacGannis in the fall of Irondeep

c1e91: Hardwon notices that the debris from Irondeep collapsing is gone

c1e93: Hardwon and King MacGannis talk about the Godshammer / MacGannis offers Hardwon the MacGannis Kingshammer

c1e98: Pestilence sends Bev and Bubbles to a Maze

c1e98: Bev in the maze, following Bubbles (instead of Erlin)

c1e99: Bev Sr. possesses Balnor so he can bless Bev's sword

-

c2e2: Fia and Zirk talk about their mentors and their books

c2e14: Jabari sees the past and is controlled to need to protect the King

c2e14: Jabari (still mind controlled) attacks Corbeau

c2e20: Bathilda retells the betrayal of the Blades / Cain and Moxora's attack on the Blades meeting

c2e21: Losgrar explains the Crux, and the cave in that killed hundreds

c2e22: The Third Mates plead with the Scrappers and Grez / The Scrappers and Grez stand off in the basement

c2e28: The Third Mates get through to Walder Lachnamoore (using Kenley's map and Remove Curse)

c2e40: The start of the ritual with the crown and Irina (that is ultimately corrupted by Moxora)

c2e41: Henry removing the crown

-

c3e21: Callie approaches and soothes the Silver Serpent

c3e27: Big Bev and Callie go down in the High King fight, the King tries to escape, Calder fails to finish him

c3e34: Murph talks about Moradin, the Kingshammer itself, and the blessings people seek at his statue

c3e38: Callie tries to soothe the Bronze Serpent (first attempt)

c3e38: Callie tries to soothe the Bronze Serpent (second attempt)

c3e39: Callie tries to soothe the Bronze Serpent (final attempt, after bean rat, which succeeds)

c3e45: Callie enters the helm ("I'm coming Calder")

c3e45: Hardwon summons the spirit guardians

(note: uses in c1 marked as a * are credited instead as "A Sight For Sore Eyes", and i'd also like to mention that i didn't exclude side campaigns or oneshots from this list. kingshammer just... isn't used outside of the main campaigns.)

now, looking at this list, there's something that's immediately obvious: you can't talk about kingshammer without talking about hardwon surefoot.

... and i say that, but i'm going to immediately do the opposite of that and talk about non-hardwon uses in c1 and c3, as well as all uses in c2. also, keep in mind that not every use 100% fits these categories, sometimes kingshammer is just the right song for the moment, and that's fine. let's get into it!

first: moradin. the man who created the hammer, so of course it would be used for him. i would place both of JV's scenes here (the first scene, though not featuring moradin directly, is tied to JV's afterlife), as well as the c3e34 moradin statue scene. (i also wouldn't be surprised if the JV scenes get kingshammer partially because of its link to jake like. on a meta level. but i digress)

second: once the godshammer is created in episode 93 (put a pin in that), kingshammer is no longer used for hardwon or the weapon itself. in the first campaign, the song shows up a few more times, all for beverly: when he's in the maze during the pestilence fight, and when bev sr. possesses balnor to speak to bev. these fall in line, to me, with the early uses of kingshammer for hardwon (post his death in ep54). being beyond the planes of the living, being trapped. hardwon sees lydia there and has to leave her behind for his friends; beverly sees erlin and does the same.

third: in eldermourne, kingshammer is largely used for rituals and betrayals, and is especially tied to the cycle of mistrust and betrayal that surrounds the children of the trickster; the final use being when henry goes to remove the crown from irina in the finale. it's seeded with the introduction of the guardians of the grove books in ep 2, and continues throughout. i'm not going to touch on every use here, some fit more obviously, but i want to call out a few things: 1. re; the use in e28, walder lachnamoore was specifically involved in the downfall of the summer and autumn children of the trickster after they had been manipulated by moxora/heredecia and 2. every other use comes in a pair (the use in 2 sets up bathilda's story in 28 / the two uses in 14 are both jabari getting controlled / 21 and 22 are the ghost dragon / 40 and 41 are both the crown)

fourth, i'm just going to quote emily on the c3e27 short rest: "kingshammer in [campaign 3] i'm trying to put under dragons and serpents, 'cause they're the weapons of this campaign." this covers the uses in eps 21, 27, 38, and 39. the use in 34 is for moradin, and the only other c3 use left is the one in episode 45. put a pin in that.

and with that we've covered all the other kingshammer uses. so, finally, let's talk about hardwon and kingshammer.

hardwon is definitely the strongest association the song has. especially in campaign 1, where it's almost exclusively used for hardwon and the kingshammer (the weapon, not the song) until the godshammer is created in episode 93.

i want to break these uses up real quick; first, let's look at the first handful of uses in campaign 1: 45, 54 (all of them), 55, 69. here, the song comes in as things get dire. the mountain collapses, and it looks like even as the kings save his friends hardwon is going to die. then, he dies and sees that lydia is trapped. he watches his father's last stand. kingshammer isn't a heroic theme for hardwon here, it's a theme he struggles against. it's not prompted by his actions, it's prompted by something happening to him. it's the weapon he wields, but in 69 it's even actively rejected him due to his vampiric nature.

and then, well, a few things happen. he's reborn, for one (literally). and then in episode 75, for the first time, hardwon prompts the song. he speaks up in the astral council, and says "you don't broker a deal with someone who calls herself a god." and his friends and allies stand with him.

after this, the uses in episodes 80-93 (keep that pin in episode 93) are pretty obviously tied to the weapon itself. the kingshammer. as it gets stronger, so does hardwon. the "looks like a dwarf to me" flashback is the first time he wields it. every other use concerns the hammers and the dwarven kings. the kingshammer isn't what makes hardwon a hero, not by a long shot. but the thing that's interesting to me is the turn here. it's no longer a song that happens to hardwon, not really. it's often a song prompted by hardwon's action, and it's more hopeful now. it represents the weapon and its legacy, which is a thing hardwon is coming to embrace.

now, about that pin. in episode 93, hardwon and macgannis talk about the godshammer. when macgannis offers hardwon his own hammer, hardwon says: "i don't necessarily have to be the guy, you know, if you wanna swing it--" and the song cuts off. they wrestle for the hammer, hardwon wins, and the godshammer is restored.

after this point, kingshammer is not used for hardwon again until campaign 3 episode 45, when he summons the spirit guardians at the 11th hour of the lord ultrus fight.

i just want to emphasize that; hardwon tells macgannis that he doesn't have to be the one who wields the kingshammer, and the song doesn't get used for him again until he accepts it back in campaign 3. when he says "hey boys, i think we have a friend to avenge," stands against ultrus, and his friends and allies stand with him. when he accepts himself as the wielder of the kingshammer again, and what that means to him (being a hero).

do you see-- i am talking directly to you, the single person who read this far-- do you see why the song use in this podcast is insane?? like! did murph know, back in the first campaign, that hardwon would return, be retired, and have given up the kingshammer? definitely not. does the use of kingshammer for hardwon mirror his arc in an insane way? yes.

so that's an overview of hardwon and kingshammer. however, we're not done. let's look at it all together: moradin, the kingshammer (the weapon), the uses for bev and jv in c1, betrayals and rituals in eldermourne, the serpents and dragons of c3, and hardwon's relationship to the hammer and the song.

kingshammer is a song for weapons. emily says it, when talking about campaign 3. and that is 100% a common theme here. but, going a bit further, it's also a song about the interaction of mortals and divine/otherworldly power.

often, it's mortals wielding that power. the kingshammer (the weapon) is a divine gift, given by moradin to the dwarven kings. a huge chunk of the uses, especially in c1, are directly tied to the weapon and hardwon's wielding of it. the spirit guardians is a huge example of this as well, as hardwon and his allies are touched by the kingshammer's magic and able to stand against ultrus. and also; bev sr uses the power of the shadowfell to bless bev's sword. and the serpents are oberon's weapon against the destruction of nature; glen uses the silver serpent for his own gains, gromdal does the same to the bronze. callie, meanwhile, doesn't use the serpents, not like glen or gromdal-- instead, kingshammer comes in when she attempts to soothe them. because ultimately, that's the way she wields their power. through connection.

sometimes, they're being pulled at by its influence instead. positively, or negatively. JV, when he's beyond death, meeting the gods. hardwon after his death, torn between lydia (who was put in this position by a god) and his friends. beverly, trapped by an avatar of thiala's magic, being guided by the ghost of erdan. the souls of irondeep being pulled from the prime material by lydia, the lord of shadowfell. callie, entering the helm where ultrus was trapped to save calder.

in eldermourne, this is less tangible. however; the betrayals and the children of the trickster. this cycle of betrayal is the biggest divine influence that remains in eldermourne. the blades are tied up in it, due to their ties to cerenysus and the betrayal by the blades who sided with moxora. walder is tied up in it, as i mentioned before, and he remains in his undead form because of the influence of moxora. jabari is influenced by the prophet-ed king into betraying his friends. the ghost dragon, an otherworldly being, is created by pain caused by mortal actions. and then the crown ritual, at the very end. when moxora, disguised, betrays them and shows irina the third mates "betraying" their ideals, out of context. and the last use, with henry, is as he steps up to end the cycle, one that he had been a part of before.

it's all mortals and the otherworldly, and the places they meet. it's hardwon and his mortal allies, standing together on the premise that you don't broker a deal with someone who says they're a god. and, at the same time, it's hardwon and his allies finding strength in the kingshammer's magic to stand against the avatar of one. it's the ways the two influence each other. an intervention by one onto the other. sometimes they draw strength from each other, other times they're opposed. it's a song that is dire, and also hopeful. oftentimes, which of those is the case is determined while the song is playing.

tl;dr: kingshammer has a lot of uses, but it's very consistently used to represent (divine) weapons, and the interactions between mortals and the divine/otherworldly. when applied to hardwon specifically, it has a lot to do with his journey as a hero and accepting that that's what he is.

(also, since i'm writing this before either happens: don't be surprised if it's used for the ice knife (the weapon) and/or the final serpent whenever we meet it. both of these have a high chance of getting kingshammer applied to them considering everything that's been set up about the ice knife and also, y'know, serpents.)

in conclusion: you can pay careful attention to the music in naddpod, but watch out. you might accidentally write 2.5 thousand words about a song. thank you for reading.

and go listen to kingshammer-- aside from all the meaning it also just kicks ass.

-

notes, disclaimers, etc:

for the purposes of this, if the song loops, it's part of the same use. if it is used later in the same episode, it's noted separately.

this is mentioned above, but not every use fits 100%. murph and emily very deliberately use music throughout the story to inform it, and also sometimes kingshammer is just the right song for a moment. both are true.

as a follow up to that, i'm not claiming that all of this was the specific intention. i'm just saying that when you look at kingshammer's uses as a song, there are some pretty strong themes, and it's fun to examine those.

i am not perfect. this is for fun. if i missed one, i'm sorry, feel free to point it out, and also i'll edit this post if that's the case

i would once again like to call out alli operationslipperypuppet for her help. she pointed out the divine connection first, and in general helped immensely. and, if naddpod music interests you, she's another person who often goes insane about it.

i am not above doing this for other songs, if you're interested let me know (few songs are as prolific as kingshammer, however)

[beauregardlionett]

i don’t have anything silly to say because these say it all...new meme format maybe idk

[moodsbytraviswillingham]

Campaign 2, Episode 21