#or are they mollymauk stans who think they have it hard? you get what I mean?

[revvethasmythh]

I'm really just thinking about the "which is better: loving a popular character with bad fan opinions or loving a less popular character with good fan opinions" poll because I don't think the experiences are that different. Like, if you go hard for a less popular character, you have the benefits of talking to a small group of like-minded folk who do share good opinions, that's true. But any time wider fandom tries to interpret said less popular character, it's sure to be a take just as vacuous and wrong as popular character meta can be (because they genuinely haven't put in the effort to understand the character) and usually whatever that take is is what's going to be popularized (so people can continue not putting in the effort to understand the character). So then you still have to deal with misinterpretation and bad opinions of the character, but without the added bonus of lots of cool art and literal pages upon pages of fic to choose from. From personal experience, I don't really think this is better. I'm not sure it's worse, either, but I wouldn't call it better

[drinkingdeadpeopletea]

OK, here's a question for when you wanna kill some time in quarantine: For each D&D class, who is your fave character of that class in any D&D actual play?

oh INCREDIBLE question. and VERY needed. let’s do this. in alphabetical order. under a cut because fun fact there are fourteen D&D classes and i’m incapable of just saying my opinions without explaining them.

Artificer: For a second I thought I’d have to put Taryon Darrington despite not actually being up to those Vox Machina episodes yet, but then I remembered–my sweet boy! Gorgug Thistlespring! brilliantly pulling off a late-game multiclass that feels in-character, develops a side of him that had been coming out throughout the whole season, and is clutch in those last couple episodes. and got us the Hangman back! stan artificer gorgug and gorgug in general. 

Barbarian: honestly, it feels like a little early to be making proclamations like this since it’s only been 3 episodes, but King Amethar of House Rocks is up there. an old solider who loves his troublemaker daughters and misses his sisters and hates being in charge? who’s going to need to learn who he can trust and what it really means to be king? yeah…….plus i like storm herald. 

Bard: Figueroth Faeth-the-Insatiable, baby!!! power of MUSIC power of REBELLION power of FRIENDSHIP power of BISEXUALITY power of LOVE and that is how you play a BARD!!!!

Blood Hunter: i only know one blood hunter so Mollymauk Tealeaf wins by default. i think it’s how he’d want to win. 

Cleric: there are so many clerics who i love so much, but….Kingston Brown from Uptown beats them all. the quiet leadership, the devotion, the love for other people. the responsibility and the taking of responsibility. the self-sacrifice, not in grand gestures but in little things every single day. don’t get me started or we’ll be here for hours. 

Druid: Moonshine Cybin!!!! the druid by which I measure all other druids. the character by which i measure all other characters. again we’ll be here for hours if I get started talking about Moonshine but anyway things that don’t belong find a way of belonging when she’s around......

Fighter: this made me realize what a varied class fighter is. Like, Percy de Rolo and Theobold Gumbar and Fabian Seacaster are all fighters. that said, my favorite is the most beautifully basic fighter of them all, Hardwon Surefoot, who I would not have expected to be my favorite based solely on character descriptions but who rolled up in Episode 1 drinking in the sound of the fiddle and caring deeply about the Green Teens no matter how much he tried to hide it and i was in love. The Tender Emotional Bullshit Of One Jacob Penn Cooper Hurwitz--

Monk: brief shout-out to loml sofie bikes, but it has to be Beauregard. I loved Beau from the second she stumbled into episode one as a rebellious, impulsive, self-described asshole and immediately started flirting with the first big strong woman she saw, and I have only loved her more and more the more she has grown and changed and developed. marisha ray KNOWS what she is DOING and it is a pleasure to watch her work. i love beau so much. 

Paladin: Beverly Toegold V. like, the “joke” description of Bev is “a very good boy” but like....[SPOILERS] this kid got thrown off a tower, watched his dad almost get executed, watched his home get destroyed, has been mind controlled multiple times, has almost died multiple times, saved his dad, killed his dad, watched his friends die in front of him, accidentally helped kill his own god, had to see his boyfriend dead in front of him and then watch him get kidnapped, and he is still good. he is still trying every moment to do the right thing. “what an honor. what an injustice.” 

Ranger: oh, no contest with this one, it’s Vex’ahlia. best and most underrated member of Vox Machina, lady of Whitestone, champion of the Dawnfather, glue that held Vox Machina together, good-aligned always, light of my life, queen of my heart,

Rogue: Riz!!! Gukgak!!!!!! a lawful good rogue, baby. i love detectives and i love kids who are trying so so so hard at everything all the time and i love protective characters and i love intelligent characters and i just love riz, okay? 

Sorcerer: I think it’s Pete the Plug, actually! I was high-key skeptical about Pete in the early episodes, because he really was slinging extreme power around like it was nothing, and also selling drugs to teenagers, two things which now that I type it out seem very connected. but watching his growth and development over the season, watching his relationships with Nod and Kingston and the rest of the Dream Team and the way they changed him…..yeah. Pete is very very good. 

Warlock: FJORD. i have loved this texblade from episode 1 and i love how far he has come and how many hidden depths there are to him and how he is flawed but still good and protective and loves his friends so much and is low-key holding the M9 together even if none of them realize it and. listen. i love Fjord so much. 

Wizard: and last but not least, my baby girl Adaine Abernant, who has come SO far over the past two seasons while also remaining exactly who she is. who has learned to channel her rage, how to extend forgiveness but also exact brutal revenge, how to be the Everyone Oracle. “maybe there’s hope for us yet,” indeed. (also I did seriously consider putting Alanis for this one even though she is....not a pc.....which should say something about how much i Love Her)

[aviatrickss]

Vox Machina episode 34!

Did they beg Ashley to Skype in to keep everyone from dying lmaooo (I’m glad they did tho 💜💜💜)

Love that Percy is like “may I please have a health potion Grog :)” and Grog is like “alright” and then Vax is like “may I please have a health potion Grog” and Grog is like “fuck you I get to kick you in the nuts as hard as I want”

I love that Vax is like “omg you guys, you would yell at Scanlan if he kept almost dying from running into shit too fast too right??” and everyone is immediately like “Scanlan would never do that u fuckwit ur the only one with depression”

“~MEAT SHIIEEEELD~” grog im love you

“Hi Pike” agghhhhhhhhhh

Grog bulldozing Vax to hug Pike 💜💜💜💜 team big and small is back in business babyyy

BEAR PERCY NOOOOOOOOO

Keyleth guiding Trinket around the traps and Vex being like “he listens to you :)” I’m crying that’s so fucking cute

Vax calling Trinket “my nephew”... the Trinket love this episode is unreal, 10/10

Taliesin saying like actual science things.... wtf.... don’t like that....

Also I can’t believe not one fucking person has had the thought “maybe we shouldn’t be trying to press the button in the middle of the room that’s obviously a trap”

“In the absence of good ideas, bad ideas are, I think, always reasonable.” God that explains so so so much of Percy’s character, always shdhdhe

Also ngl I’m super salty about everyone giving Vax shit for running into dangerous stuff but like.... no one else fuckin wants to be the first one into the Trap Room.

OH MY GODDD THEY GOT GOT

VAX DIMENSION DOOR???? VAX MAGIC????

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

CASS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Silas is just like “hey 😏” and Vax is like “l8r heteros”

Oh God but Keyleth trying to talk him out if the charm hrghhhh

“BREAK THE OUTSIDE GEM” “I think Percy wants us to kiss Pike! He said the power of love will inspire him?!” “FUCK THE POWER OF LOVE!”

They are. So fucking stupid. God bless.

They JUST got back from break and Matt is like “btw, your demon gun now wants to kill your sister :) anyways...”

Okay like.... I know that they haven’t found out about Vax being Fate-Touched and stuff yet... but if the Briarwoods were going to sacrifice him to wake up Vecna or whatever..... God, I just really want to see Matt’s notes for this

“I’m on top of a thing. Everyone’s very attractive up here.” Vax you are so stupid and so bi and you deserve to get fuckin sacrificed

“Roses are red, violets are blue, we’re both gnomes, and you are soooo foxy.” Jfc

“The darkness demands your soul Silas.” PERCYYY

Poor charmed Vax is just like “why my sister shoot me :(“

Omg Delilah Briarwood coming face-to-face with Trinket who looks like a really obese Percy walking around on all fours..... bet she’s sorry she murdered his family now huh

Vax using himself as a human shield for Delilah is.... weirdly appropriate

God Silas Briarwood was already a foxy vampire and now he has a fuckin life-stealing sword??? Why are Matt’s NPCs all proficient in being as sexy as possible????

Flying Vex SLAPS yo

VAMPIRES ARE SEXY!!!!!

“Did you say you SOLD your SOUL to a HAG?” “LET’S DEAL WITH ONE PROBLEM AT A TIME.” Percy n Vax soulless buddies and Vex is gonna kick both their asses

“I’ve got this cool new character I’ve been working on.” Mr. Mollymauk????

SCANLAN SAYS NO!!!!!!

Silas being afraid of Pike lmaooo

Percy absolutely DESTROYING Delilah..... boy’s working thru it

Keyleth getting Silas with the lamest line ever omg.... I love love love that she was like ‘i’ve seen Percy do lines so I just think that’s what badasses do’ we STAN best friends

“I BROKE THE WORLD FOR US”

Love that they’re just taking potshots at her and Delilah is just fuckin ignoring them to do her ritual ejfjdjxnw

Vax is so scared when Vex flies in :(

KEYLETH TRIES TO BLOODBEND DELILAH

Oh my God Vex falling through the air with one fucking hit point nooo

TRUE 👏👏👏 LOVE’S 👏👏👏👏 CRIT 👏👏👏

THE POTIONS DON’T WORK????

Omg they’re all so scared Vax is having a fucking stroke

PERCY THROWING HIMSELF OFF THE ZIGGURAUT TO GET VEX OUT!!! (oh my god just like Vax almost died trying to save Cass I’m)

I really can’t deal with it, like I know that she’s fine but they’re all so scared hghhhh

Oh my god everything about this has such bad energy it’s giving me massive anxiety

VAX RUNNING BACK TO STAY WITH KEYLETH

I cannot believe they’re just fucking leaving a black hole beneath Whitestone what the shitttt

[daturanerium]

okay kids storytime: let’s talk about the time i met mollymauk irl. (this got long so i’m putting it under a cut)

god i don’t even know where to start with this guy. this whole situation felt like a bit of a dream?

my friend and i are checking out books on wicca in barnes and noble because curiosity

the guy who helped us find the books downstairs isn’t at his register so we have to go back upstairs to check out

enter molly at the checkout. this guy. this guy, holy shit.

irl molly has this going for him:

short purple hair, spiked up a bit

some pretty nice eyes tbh

pretty sweet moon earrings

the most taliesin jaffe-esque all black outfit possible when working at barnes and noble

a rune necklace (i don’t remember which one off the top of my head which sucks)

a deathly hallows pin

an accent that was definitely fake, but didn’t bother me at all. you could only tell it was fake because you could never quite place it

a plus five charisma modifier

seriously, this guy was charming as hell

i’m the more charismatic between me and my friend, so i check out first

irl molly is training a new cashier, so he puts on a bit of an act during the ckeckout

this guy has got sales pitches down, you guys. talk fast, be charming and friendly, be helpful but don’t sound pushy, discounts

seriously. he talks rapid fire in his hybrid british/scottish accent. the whole time with this ridiculously charming smile on his face. so fast. i’m honestly surprised i caught what he said with my adhd lol

molly irl holds up my book of spells. “nice. i love this stuff. i wish i could’ve been downstairs to help you guys pick it out!” he raises his eyebrows at me. “is this for practice or curiosity?” i grin back. “a bit of both.”

(god this guy is so smart. he just established a bond with me so he can use it later when he wants me to sign up for this thing. we stan cashier performers)

so he rings me up, and then lets me know that before i pay, i can sign up for this membership with barnes and noble! it’s really great you get discounts on all your purchases for a year and you can use it online as well and if your family and friends are with you they can use it too, and you also get a free large coffee at the starbucks cafe in the store! and normally this fancy card is twenty four dollars but there’s this great discount so you’ll actually get it for seventeen fifty, i can promise you that discount. so what do you think?

okay. this is hard to describe in text. but this guy obviously knew exactly what to say and how to say it to get people to buy. he already established a bit of a bond with me, and when you pair that with rapid fire speech and a charming smile, it’s very difficult to say no as a customer.

“it’s tempting,” i say, “but--” he cuts me off with a reassuring smile, letting me know that it was one payment per year and not monthly!

i bought the damn card, smh

and, of course, i’m a man of my word, so i’ll make sure you get that discount.

as i’m ringing up, it asks for my pin and oh fuck i don’t know my pin because i always pay in cash--

molly irl, with a grin: press the green circle.

i press the okay button without putting anything in. it works.

me: that seems counterproductive.

molly irl, bagging my stuff: i know. it’s how thieves can use your card so easily when you lose it. they just press the green circle and it doesn’t ask for anything else. it’s really easy. not that [he glances up at me and there’s a wink in his voice] i’m the kind of person that would know that. i don’t do that.

me, with a laugh: no, of course not.

at this point, i had started to kind of put together why he was so familiar to me--he reminded me of molly

my friend pays for her stuff (he charmed her as well into getting the card. we both failed our wisdom saving throws. smh.) and i walk around the checkout area listening in and looking at magazines

whenever i talk with super charismatic people i get this wonderful adrenaline rush. it’s a bit addicting, but once i come down from it i’m pretty much done for the day. i become even more of a useless fool when it comes to talking. oh, and i blush like a motherfucker. it’s awful.

okay here’s the deal. it’s like i said. it’s so hard to put into words the aura this guy had. it’s legitimately like he cast friends on me with just his words, or rolled a nat 20 on his charisma/persuasion check. i didn’t even realize what i’d done until we both walked away.

me realizing this guy channeled molly wasn’t because of his hair, or his earrings, or his cool clothes, or his accent. those were all details that were counted, sure, but not deciding factors.

molly, as we saw throughout the 26 episodes he was in, could talk his way into and out of a lot of situations. he was a conman. he knew how people worked, and more importantly, he knew how to advertise. this is why he worked as a promoter for the carnival--he had the same charming energy that this guy had.

idk. i just read this back and it sounds like the ramblings of a teenager. which is true, i suppose, but still. i think you had to have been there. 

anyway i was in a full state of shock for the next hour and a half at least. i walked through bed bath and beyond in a perfumed haze. my friend, who was also a bit in shock despite never watching an episode of critical role in her life, made fun of me constantly for my after-banter blush. 

my mind was in a bit of a whirlwind. was that our universe’s molly? did he watch critical role and base his entire work aesthetic off molly? what if i had said “thanks, molly!” as we left, how would he have reacted? etc etc. it was wild.

alas, we passed through the jc penny exit and not the barnes and noble one, so i’ll never know the answers to those questions. although i have to go back there sometime to use that damn card, since i bought it in november and i’m pretty sure it expires at the end of the year. damn it.