#sam riegel has done it again

[ilanarose7]

Some outcomes of Critical Role episode 91 (that happened either because of or completely separate from the big thing)

SPOILERS!!!! YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!!!

Starting with the ones not due to FCG's sacrifice:

Liliana has some level of trust and attempts at redemption with her daughter (those 31's on deception and persuasion Laura you legend!), which means a major player (and VESSEL?? tf was that about) who was formerly (and maybe kind of still) on Ludinus's side is swapping over

Ashton and Fearne are about to be exhausted from being Titans (Ashton much sooner since they powered up in ep. 90)

Zathuda is both proud and angry towards Fearne which is both terrifying and a bit heartwarming(?)

Nana (I think/hope it was her bending fate) was able to help Team Infiltration escape the Weavemind after Orym reached out

Now for the other outcomes due to FCG's sacrifice:

Orym's deal with Nana should be void since the group cannot return as they were (VM Spoiler Note: Liam's PC was finally saved from a deal leading to a life of service by Sam's PC after he wasn't able to in C1)

Chetney is ALIVE! I'm counting this as part of the sacrifice bc due to weird leveling circumstances Sam sacrificed his one brand-new 7th-level spell slot to take Revivify, which is a major thing to give up

Otohan is DEAD! GONE! That is a MAJOR player off the board and another one of Ludinus's high-ranking members off the board

FCG is dead, seemingly unrevivable based on how Matt phrased it (asking to make sure Sam understood what it meant). That will have MAJOR implications going forward.

On a D&D technical level, there is no primary healer meaning that Fearne has to take some healing spells or the party can't heal at all (pretty sure they used up all their potions during that fight).

On a character level, this is going to be devastating. Ashton, who started this whole adventure with FCG and has been saying for a LONG time that FCG was going to get themself killed, was unconscious when FCG made the ultimate sacrifice. Sending works, which means when they get back to Exandria, Imogen will probably be the one to let FRIDA know what happened.

On a slightly lighter note, I feel like Travis is going to shine next week. It's been said before and I'll say it again, Chetney is the heart of Bells Hells. He knows how to be there for this family and I have a feeling that will come to the forefront as we see the aftermath

I'm sure there are more outcomes, but these are the ones on my mind after barely sleeping last night following that episode. Sam knows how to play this game well and cuts straight to the heart while doing so. It was masterfully played and while completely devastating to watch, was also incredibly heroic and beautiful.

Good game, great players, amazing DM, and of course thank you Fresh Cut Grass for being a Faithful Care-Giver until the end

[chromadrop]

[oddthesungod]

this moo man has barely been on screen and he has already bewitched me 😩

[we-fucked-up-evolution]

okay update i've just finished it and it was amazing and the best couple hours of rp i've seen in a while and i love tary already and actually sometimes trying to get closure is good even if it's hard and new beginnings can be awesome and all that

i've been watching the vox machina critical role campaign, trying to catch up before the next season of tlovm comes out

and the chroma conclave arc is over yayy defeated dragons and all

but now i'm at a bard's lament

and i know what happens and i know about the scene and i both really wanna watch it and am already so sad about it

i'm really gonna miss this lil dude

[grigori77]

Critical Role, Campaign 3 Episode 98 (THE LIVE SHOW!!!)

BRENNAN?!!! Hi! Mah boy! We're feeling so great, Bennan! Even those of us who AIN't in LA ... yes, we are excited. There's AUSSIES here? You mad bastards, that is COMMITMENT ... and he has NNOUNCEMENTS!!! Okay, then ... yeah, please don't jinx us, Brandan, we DO NOT want a live TPK right now ... oh the cosplays ... THE COSPLAYS!!! :3 Oooooh ... SOCKS?!!! Sweet ... ROLE!!! ROLE!!! YOU!!! YOU!!! DO THIS!!! DO THIS!!!

Oh, here they come ... ASHTON LIVES!!! Holy fuck, Travis! And the booty! Orym! LAUDNA!!! IMOGEN!!! My god Laura you're so CUTE!!! Nice suit, Rob! Awwww ... so Fearne! And then there's Matt ... so chill and casual ... I mean he COULD have cosplayed Essek at least ...

NordVPN? Oh dear gods ... what's it gonna be, then? oh, it's ALL the girls? Nice ... we're imaginary? Interesting ... yeah, we pretty. Yup! Happy Pride to YOU TOO ... boogie? Oh dear gods no ... a ZUNE? So early 2000s ... oh boy ... yeah, this is getting surreal now ... oh, now Marisha's getting in on the act ... of course she is ... I love how she's doing Laudna's Bane dance ... XD

LIVE recap this time ... okay ... ah yeah, the purple Hot Boi gets a cheer AS HE SHOULD ... oh, the howling ... that's so cute ... NOOOOOOOOOOO!!! NOT DORIAN!!!

No, that's not it, no, he DIDN'T do that, Cyrus WASN'T his fault ... wait, so ... that WASN'T an attempt to taunt him, then? What WAS that?

FIRST ROLL!!! OKay ... 24? Of course it is. How is it Liam ALWAYS rolls so well? It's almost uncanny, is he a halfling FOR REAL?

Laura: "Mmmmm ... I'm gonna make a mistake and ..." O.O Oh shit ... "... cast Detect Thoughts." Holy fuck, Imogen ...

A Wisdom save? Of course ... here we go, then ... PLEASE roll decent, Laura ... A NAT1?!!! Holy fuck ... O.O again ...

CRAP!!! That fucking Ruidian storm again ... her mother? Oh hell no, there's NO WAY she'd EVER say THAT to Imogen ... yeah, she doesn't believe that FOR A FUCKING SECOND ... seriously, Imogen don't trust ANYTHING this fake ass bitch has to say ... yeah, that's my girl ... "destroy the Pinion"? Hmmmmmm ...

CHetney: "You talked to your mom? That's what the demon showed YOU?!!! I'm going to hell." Ashton: "Probably pretty soon!"

Oh yeah ... Tevan is SEXY ... "Roleplay?" Oh boy ... REALLY, Laudna?

Gods yeah. Fearne really DIDN'T think this shit through, did she? Oh, she's so adorable in her cluelessness, I love it ... and now Dorian's trying to help "lawyer" her way out fo this ... XD

Tevan: "When it's done, I'll be waiting." Oh boy ... so she's, like ... BETROTHED now? Really? O.O

Which way to go? Yeah ... decisions decisions ... oh, split up? Really? Don't you know the Gold Rule?

To the left, then ... hmmmm ... oh ... that's not, like, OMINOUS or anything ...

Laura: "We're gonna DIE at the Greek!"

Matt: "Iogen sends her little balls into the room." Uh huh ...

Perception check! What do you smell, Chet? 17 ... okay, then ... a silver door? SILVER? Yeah, that's rather pointed ...

Burgandy scalemail? Interesting ... is that loot? Or is Taliesin right? "Chemical goop" ... Matt questions his good friend's past in knwogin what THAT smells like ... as he should ... O.O

Oh, it's a CLOAK? Interesting ... oh yeah, that's definitely loot ... IN THE BAG!!!

Orym hears something move VERY SUBTLY close by ... of course he does ...

"Read the Runes" ... Laudna uses Eyes of the Runekeeper ...

Travis really is rolling BALLS tonight ...

So what IS that breathing behind the door ... somebody's anxious and ready to run, apparently ... but they're definitely NOT a demon, interesting ...

Dorian just does "Shave & a Haircut" on the door ... and somebody finishes it? ALSO Interesing ...

A guest? Oh cool ... SAM RIEGEL?!!! Sam's back? SAM'S BACK!!! He's back! Oh my fucking GODS!!! Cute jacket, Sam! It'sd very loud ... not to mention the fucking HAIR ... Liam: "I do hope this doesn't awaken something within me ..." Yeah, you and the rest of us ...

He's a MINOTAUR?!!! Wow ... oh yeah, our boy's FINALLY playing to his ACTUAL height ... oh man ... he's had his throat cut? FUCK!!!

No, I don't think THIS is Dominox, somehow ...

His deception roll is a 4 ... so EIGHTEEN? Holy shit ... Divine Sense? Whoa ... okay, so is he a cleric or a paladin? Wait ... this guy KNOWS who Tevan is? Hmmmm ...

Who's his god, then?

Yeah, they already KNOW all this, new guy ... Ashton gives him a health potion ... so he's able to regain 4 HEALTH POINTS because Tal rolls balls ... XD

Dorian's Cure Wounds works a lot better ... 24 points back! Okay ... he Lays Hands on himself to cure himself the rest of the way ... Yeah, that's JUST as dierty sounding as you THINK it is ...

He's flirting with Fearne already ... oh boy ...

Oh, he infiltrated the Vanguard? With some friends? Oh, the rest of them died? Oof ... yeah, Dominox has been BUSY ...

While they talk Ashton gets a little needle from the evil demon ... 14 WITH advantage ... great ... oh no ... NO NO NO NO ... don't do this to him, PLEASE ... no, not FCG ... Matt Mercer you evil fucking bastard ...

Go off, Rock Boy ... you are SO awesome for this ...

Braius Doomseed ... oh, cute character art ... oh, the PLatinum Dragon? DID HE? Chetney Insight Checks ... wow, that is QUITE the fakeout cockblock, Riegel ... I mean who does he REALLY serve?

Something tells me Tevan's more invested in this "relationship" than Fearne is ... XD

Oh he is DEFINITELY the servant of some DARK GOD indeed ... yeah, Dorian's right, he's gonna fit RIGHT IN here ...

"Herald champion" ... oh yeah, definitely a paladin, then ...

Dorian's already trying to "mentor" him ... this is adorable ...

Oh, that is DEFINITELY the ancient Aeorian engine in question, isn't it? PURPLE CRYSTAL!!! Yup, that's definitely it ... the Pinion of Service, yes ...

Robbie: "I've literally never done this ... Insight check?"

Yeah, I DO NOT like the way those chains are moving AT ALL. That is just a nightmare waiting to happen ...

And now Braius is starting to flirt with ASHTON ... yup ...

The door was already open? Oh yeah ... that's great ...

Oh, Ludinus went TOWARDS the engine room? So he might already be ahead of them in this ... great ...

OF COURSE Ashton just wants to BREAK IT ...

A small girl? Oh great ... Travis is ALREADY noping out ...

Ah ... so she's a really CREEPY little girl ... yup, that's Dominox ... Imogen: "She's kind of cute." Laudna: "Yes! She's fun scary!" Orym: "But what's the ratio of that?"

Laudna really is tempted to just ADOPT this freakish little Japanese horror movie icon, isn't she?

Braius casts Bless on the group ... in a really cheesy way ...

Laudna: "We should've had him when we tried to do the porn." Dorian: "Some things are better off missed."

Fearne casts Locate Creature on Ludinus ...okay! Ah shit ... it's REPELLED? Oof ... bad sign ...

Chetney and Tevan are going into the chamber with their weapons at the ready ... okay, then ... Fearne and Ashton follow ... then Orym and Essek ... now Dorian's fluttering above for cover ...

This really doesn't feel like a smart place for a fight, people ... oh, and now they're clearly locked in ... Chet wolfs out ... MIrror Image for Laudna ...

Did Dorian just quote Hasbin Hotel? :3

Persuade the Grand Demon? Marisha rolls a Dirty 20 ... okay then ...

Matt makes Travis nope out again ... yeah ...

Fuck, Ashley ... INSANELY good roll there ...

Important door alert! Yeah ... oh, she doesn't like THAT at all ... oh, and now she's ATTACKING?!!! Fuck ... OUCH!!! That's nasty ... wait ... 21 FAILS?!!! Holy fuck ... NO!!! Chetney's been caught!

Wait ... Braius is climbing straight up for the Pinion? Hmmm ... this is going to be interesting ...

No, she's really NOT single ... O.O whoa ... Imogen WHAT?!!! Careful there ...

The TRUE form of Dominox ... oh yeah, no, REALLY don't set THAT SHIT free ... that's just HORRIBLE ...

Imogen casts Telekinesis to try and grab the crystal ... Laura: "Oh, there are so many dice in front of me!" Liam: "Who did that?" And he's FREE!!! Nice ... but now he has to follow through ... yeah, that didn't go well at alll, did it?

And now we got a massive demon thing in the middle of the room INSTEAD of the little girl from the Ring ...

CAREFUL, Orym ... crap, he's been rumbled ...

A|nimate Object ON THE DOOR?!!! That's SERIOUSLY bold, Laudna ... Robbie: "It's Doorie! Brother!" XD

Laura has to roll for repurcussions ... what did she get? How bad is it?

Roll Initiative! When we get back from the break ... O.O

BATTLEMAP!!! Sweet fuck that is an EPIC creation ... and it's moving an everything ... FUCK ME that bastard is TERRIFYING ... Robbie: "I always knew I'd die by furry!"

Time to roll Initiative, then ... cue Marish'a Wizzkids plug!

Sam: "I missed this!" The audience loses it ...

Tevan goes first ... oh, he's going RIGHT for the kill ... Divine Smite! 68 points of Radiant damage? Holy fuck ...

Orym holds his action for JUST IN CASE ...

A FUCKING LAIR ACTION?!!! Now EVERYBODY has to rolls dexterity? Fucking chains ... Oof ... Laudna, Ashton, Imogen and Fearne are now grappled with chains, but Braius' Aura of Protection saves Dorian, Orym, Essek AND Braius himself ...

Holy fuck Dominox is an EVIL fucker with this brutal attacks ... suddenly it's starting to look like a TPK may actual be genuinely IN THE CARDS for the night after all ...

Wait ... Dominox is SUCKED INTO A VOID by Ashton? Where the fuck did it just go? Oh, he drops the demon ON THE CRYSTAL ... which just BOUNCES IT RIGHT OFF some invisible forcefield ... right onto Fearne? Oof ...

Travis (chuckling): "A Grand Demon just fell on your ass!"

Dorian casts Shatter at the centre Spire ... 18 points of Thunder damage! Nice! Whoa ... this that ALREADY spring the crystal free? Holy shit, Flyboy! Bardic Inspiration!

TWO Legendary Actions? Holy shit ... he tries to BANISH Tevan but LAUDNA COUNTERSPELLS!!! Wow ... Perception Check to make sure she CAN ... 14 ... YES!!! It works! Fucking badass, Dead Girl!

Braius is the Herald of ASMODEUS?!!! They group go apeshit as their suspicions are confirmed! Poison Pen? Interesting ... so THWWACK with that massive flail thing ... oh, it's IMMUNE to poison damage? Balls ... so only 22 points of damage ... okay ... second strike WITH Inspiration ... Divine Smite means another 23 points! POW!!!

PAINT IT BLACK, RIEGEL!!!

The door is now Animate! NIce one, Laudna! The room beyond is now OPEN!!! In she goes with Orym in tow! Oh, there's somebody inside ... fuck, is it Ludinus? Perception check! 17 BOLLOCKS!!!

Laudna (screaming: "LET HIM OUT!!!" Tevan: "You will do NO SUCH THING!"

Form of Dread!

Fearne is free, at least ... she Wildshapes into a little mint-green wombat? Wow ... interesting choice ... she bolts to the crystal and stuffs it into her marsupial pouch ... bloody hell ... and when Dominox tries to swipe at her Matts CRIT FAILS THE HIT!!! Awesome ...

Chetney charges at Dominox ... Misty Step! He retrieves the crystal from Fearne and stuffs it in the Bag of Holding ... wow ... this is bizarre ... Dominox is now REALLY PISSED at Chetney and makes the post terifying threat possibel at him and the wolf starts to BRICK HIMSELF ...

Essek unleashes a Lightning Bolt right into Dominox ... 38 points of Lightning damage ... but it's HALVED due to resistance? Okay then ...

Ashton shifts into black and white as he charges and drops into the ground, books it towards the open door but attempts to destroy the engine on the way ... 19 hits! Phew ... 21 points of damage cracks it BADLY ...

Travis: "Does Dominox have an opinion?" LIam (as Dominox): "I'm big on crypto!"

Ahston makes another heavy slam into the engine ... another 16 points of damage! it's getting VERY messed up ...

Imogen gets as close as she can to Chetney and uses Telekinesis to pick him up and YEET HIM towards the door ... he barrels RIGHT THROUGH IT ...

Ludinus (almost REIGNED): "My goodness ..."

Yeah ... Ludinus almost CASUALLY baps him away from him with a Shield spell.

Oh fuck ... the tether yanks Domiox away and INTO Braius? Oof ...

Tevan attacks Dominox twice ... Smite away, Hot Boi! 22 damage from the first, then 36 for the second! Nice! And NOW the monster is FINALLY starting to look messed up ...

Orym chugs down his Speed potion and STREAKS back towards to Dominox to attack him ... 20 damage for a GOADING attack which he FAILS to resist ... second hit lands 9, then he hastes but the next THREE miss ... Action Surge! 19 points of damage and he trips it ... and then he Crit Fails ... oh shit ... so he skims away and BRAINS HIMSELF on the wall ... ricochets back and comes right back with another attack and SLICES AWAY at him again ...

Now Wee Man is just spinning like a dizzy top ...

OF COURSE Dominox IMMEDIATELY attacks him right back ... oh fuck ... 46 points of slashing damage ON THE FIRST HIT?!!! Dear fucking GODS ... MInd Feast? Sweet fuck ... this one's aimed at Ashton ... and he fails to resist ... 14 points of Psychic damage ... and he's drawn right towards him and HEALED?!!! Son of a BITCH!!!

Ludinus FUCKING Da'Leth swoops into the room right behind Dominox and casts Gate ... O.O ... wait, he's genuinely trying to HELP right now? Is this for real?

Dorian's turn ... oh, Robbie can't BELIEVE it's now up to HIM ... so he psyches Dorian up and casts Otto's Irresistable Dance on Dominox at SIXTH FUCKING LEVEL?!!! And Braius uses Sorrowful Fate to CHANGE DOMINOX'S SAVE so it's a FOURTEEN, which is a FAIL!!! Holy shit ... it FORGETS to use Legendary Resistance, so the Grand Demon starts to BOOGIE ... Matt has SO MUCH FUN describing what happens ... and even starts BOPPING HIMSELF ... I am IN AWE of the moment ... LOL

Braius turns his focus to Ludinus and casts Moonbeam at him ... oh my gods and Sam DOESN'T EVEN KNOW what that does ... O.O ... Dominox saves, but Braius still inflicts five points of Radiant damage ... so he Bonus Actions Hammering Horns to PUSH Dominox ten feet back ... which he ALSO fails to save against ... holy FUCK Samuel, HOW OP'd is your new character? Now the demon is IN HELL just inside the portal ...

Laudna tries to work out if this is THE Ludinus or just SNOWdinus ... no idea ... okay, she tries something COMPLETELY untested on him now ... she conjures up the spirit of Vess Dorogna as Spirit of Death to attack him ... only for him to Counterspell ... so she just Counterspells RIGHT BACK?!!! Holy shit ... so she succeeds in her plan ... HOLY SHIT ... so now, FOREVER he is permanently HAUNTED by this vengeful ghost? HOLY SHIT, Dead Girl! You're so awesome!

Fearne casts Polymorph on Ludinus ... SWEET FUCKING FUCK!!! This is BEAUTIFUL ... 25 on his save? BALLS ... that was almost SO awesome ...

Chetney turns back and turns Invisible, then holds his turn ...

Essek casts Gravity Fissure on the remaining spires, shatters them so they pierce into the portal and IMPALE Dominox ... damage is halved bu that's STILL 20 piercing! Holy fuck ...

Ashton takes a passing swipe at the engine ... 22 points of damage ... oh shit ... it just slowed to s stop! He takes one more swing ... 23 points and it is SHATTERED!!! Nice ...

Imogen runs as close as she can to the gate, tries to grab holdo of Ludinus with Telekinesis ... and he FAILS to save, but instead uses his Legendary Resistance to wipe it off instead! Asshole ... so she Lightning Bolts him at 7th Level instead ... most of the damage is deflected, but she still deals 12 points ... it's something, at least ...

Tevan charges in to attack Dominox, misses his first hit but catches the second ... oh, and it's the KILL hit? The live audience goes NUTS ... Matt: "How do I wanna do this?" He carves the demon in two and it just ASHES ...

Orym runs up the wall and then uses Grasping Vine to swing himself up behind Ludinus ... Pushing attack! 18 damage and he fails his save so Ludinus is SHOVED towards the gate! Ludinus drops the gate so Orym just attacks him hard with his sword instead ... come on, Wee Man! Kill this bitch!

Ludinus flies into the tunnel just past Chetney, then turns back to face them all ...

Wow ... fanboy Braius actually GETS HIS AUTOGRAPH from Tevan ... nice ...

Here we go ... cue arrogant self-important monologue from the supreme douchebag ...

Wait ... Imogen's goint to FOLLOW HIM?!!! Well OF COURSE Laudna's gonna follow her ... looks like they're ALL going, then ... I hope this isn't a problem ...

And now Braius is flirting with ORYM ... Orym: "Bro, you're HUGE." Braius: "It's okay." Wow ...

Heading deeper in, then ...

The Occultus Thalamus, then ... here we go ...

Here comes ANOTHER overblown monologue from Ludius, then ... he really does LOVE the sound of his own voice, doesn't he? At least we're getting some information while he's at it ...

Blah de-blah de-blah-de-blah ...

Okay, FINALLY something's happening ... hmmm ... "the memories of Aeor"? And now he's ACTIVATING this thing ... oh shit ... is this a BAD THING? Are we too late?

What the fuck ... BRENNAN LEE MULLIGAN IS TAKING OVER FROM MATT?!!! For real?

Brennan: "Light!" Yup ... here we go indeed ...

So ... are we setting up another Exandria Unlimited flashback game? "Is it Thursday yet?" Oh shit, yeah, I think we might be ... sweet ...

What an AMAZING way to end this most interesting Live Show ...

Oh ... so we gotta wait until SECOND WEEKEND in July for more? Makes sense after a LIVE show, I suppose ... I was already half prepared for the wait, really ...

[arcplaysgames]

IWATODAI TRIP CONTINUED

Teddie is the first King of the King's Game, because he is powered by Commercials and thus has batshit crazy luck.

/covers face with hand

(also, again: thank you Sam Riegel, I have no idea how I am enjoying this character instead of hating him, but it's happening. Fucking witchcraft.)

Please know that Teddie fucking BODIED kanji off the screen. I tried to screencap it but it was just too fucking fast. Imagine a kitten leaping on a stuffed toy and sliding across the floor. Also Kanji is like twice his size. I'm impressed.

Reverie draws the next King's lot out of the chopsticks.

i wonder if Yukiko and Rise are just those people who don't like each other until they are drunk and then they are like fucking BUDDIES.

Poor fucking Chie is sooooo not into this, bless her heart. Fistbump of solidarity.

(lmao kanji and teddie are still off-screen. teddie is gettin' his money's worth, I see.)

Yukiko decides she's the queen (shocker there) and demands Naoto tell the group something secret and embarrassing.

He, of course, plays it completely straight and uses the opportunity to tell his backstory, coming from a long ling of detectives from back when that kind of specialized expertise was more needed. Even though they are falling out of fashion in modern life, he's being raised as one by his grandfather.

Is Naoto capable of humor? Is there a humorous bone in his body? Naoto, I don't say this lightly but you should have a drink, buddy.

aaaaaaand she's asleep. yep. mmhm.

Yes. But not in the way you think. Naoto doesn't believe anyone about the TV world thing, which I guess isn't surprising. He'll figure it out soon I am certain. I wonder what his primary element is.... I wanna say ice but Chie and Teddie got that covered. Maybe Physical/Fire? No idea.

HEY. Only I'm allowed to call them dumbasses. Watch yourself, boyo.

But yeah these guys are fucking idiots, holy shit.

Oh of course we finish off at the ramen place. /sigh. How many nights did I spend here with Shinjiro, connecting over our mutual need to care for people. How many times did Akihiko bring us here to talk about quiet emotions. Junpei and I were regulars, speaking in conversations interwoven with sharp painful earnestness and the soft barrier of humor. Such was another life.

Ah. He's purposefully putting himself on TV.

That seems incredibly stupid.

OH SO HE IS JUST COUNTING ON US TO SAVE HIS DUMB ASS WHEN HE GETS GOT.

/grits teeth. FIIIIIIINE We'll pull your ass out of the fire, you stubborn fuck.

SUDDEN GEAR SHIFT, I'm almost done with Yukiko's SLink and it's really good! Back early in the SLink, she was openly hoping that the tabloidy news people would profile the Amagi Inn so it would go under so she could bounce without guilt.

Which, was very shitty.

Well, those news people returned to try and profile the Inn again and this time she went tf OFF on them and threatened them until they left.

I mean you did.

But Yukiko's decided that she wants to stay and help the inn after all. Now that she's set herself up to leave and had everything in order to bounce out, now that she finally understands her cage has no lock, she's more comfortable with it.

Which is a nice resolution for that dangling thread. I often say that gender is a prison until you understand you can stage a jailbreak at any time, and I guess it's similar for Yukiko.

SIGHS LOUDLY

I'M SORRY YUKIKO BUT I'M INTO GUYS THIS TIME. I'M SORRY YOU'RE REALLY NICE. maybe give Chie the time of day, she's crazy about you. okay bye love you gurl, you'll be okay.

[notaheathen]

nott is the best

I have chosen my blog name well

I have chosen my cosplay well

nott is my fave

nott is my bae

[eponymous-rose]

Talks Machina Highlights - Critical Role C2E131 (March 30, 2021)

Tonight’s guests are Liam O’Brien and Sam Riegel!

Brian points out that a lot of Caleb’s greatest fears have come to pass. Liam: “It’s funny, because he’d kind of believed for a while that those things weren’t going to happen. After a while, he got complacent.” He notes that it was extra wild because everything with Trent popped up again in the midst of that complacency. And how did it feel to be defiant toward Trent? “I think Trent successfully made Caleb question if Caleb really was in control“ at the dinner party. “I feel like anything that I do is part of his plans for me, or is that just gaslighting? I’m legitimately scared of that dude.” Sam: “Of Matt?” Liam: “Sure.” He highlights the disconnect between knowing that the M9 is mechanically powerful and could possibly defeat Trent in a dice-and-stats battle, versus fearing him in a story sense and being convinced he can do almost anything.

Sam, on Luc’s death: “That was brutal, man. Matt Mercer is a-- he hates children! Clearly. He actively sought to kill a child in the campaign in as brutal a way as possible. He hates children and wants them dead. Canon. No, but to RP, that was horrible.” He highlights that so much of Veth’s arc has been about trying to get back to her family. “We had to choose something and we thought we were making the right choice. It was all Veth’s fault, and it was pretty rotten. My heart was beating pretty fast, and I certainly didn’t want to have my son die live on the stream. I don’t know what Veth would have done. That’s the end, that’s over. It’s almost worse than when your own character would die. This is something that would also kill Veth.” After the episode was over: “just shaken. I also didn’t know what to do next! That felt like a turning-point moment for my character, weirdly so close to what we assume to be the end arc of this campaign. I texted Matt later that night and was like, that’s it, Veth’s out, I’m tapping out.”

There’s an interlude in which Sam discovers a new dream to record an episode of this show from his Peloton. Dani informs him that she will not be inviting him back.

On Astrid, Liam: “I literally don’t know what she’s doing. I know that she’s dangerous, she always was ambitious, and there’s not been a moment where Caleb let his guard down with her. He’s not trying to reestablish what they had. He cares for the both of them, for Astrid and Eodwulf. He thinks about it a lot, still. He can’t tell how much she buys into everything that she experienced and is now living as a full-grown adult. He suspects that she’s bought in and is not going to change things, because she believes in the system, as much as he’d like to peel her away. He does believe that they want what’s best for the Empire, and stopping whatever wants to come vomiting out of a hole in the frozen north is good for everyone. And they’re powerful. They’re not trustworthy, obviously. But there’s enough at stake to make it worth it. He could imagine a situation where they fight each other to the death.” He was convinced Astrid was going to stop them when they left the tower and was really shocked when she held back. Sam: “Not me! I’ve trusted Astrid since day one. She’s the greatest! I sent a letter to her, she’s very nice, I think you guys would be a nice couple. I believe every word she says.”

On having to decide on Veth deciding to go off and save the world after Luc’s death. “Like I said, I was ready to be done. And then I decided somewhere in there that that’s not very D&D. So I thought I’d leave it up to somebody else, so I asked Caduceus to decide for me, essentially. She knows she’s putting her other family in danger if she doesn’t go. It’s an impossible choice, you know?” Liam: “I love watching you grapple with it, because you’re a lovely father and love your kids.”

On the Sanatorium, Sam: “That was brutal, man. Matt lulls you into a sense of complacency. We’d forgotten that Caleb was a stone-cold killer! It had been a while since he went on a murder spree. Still got it!” Liam: “I never meant for this character to be perfect sunshine.” Brian: “You don’t say.” Liam: “He’s very not-perfect, and I think in his brain, he was going in with the impression that they needed to get in and get out as soon as possible. The place is crawling with people with magic ability, and I didn’t have faith that we wouldn’t be sussed out or something wasn’t going to blow an illusion.” Everything was about getting out of there as fast as possible.

Did the conversation with Yeza help with Veth’s decision? “First of all, every conversation with Yeza is a beautiful one. Every time she talks to Yeza, it makes her feel good. In some ways, she’s gotten to the point now where she knows Yeza’s going to be supportive, she knows he’s going to allow her to do what she wants, but maybe that’s too much. Maybe she needs to not listen to him, basically, and be like, no, you need to be selfish now, dude, you need to say ‘come home, I’m sick of you leaving’. At a certain point, being supportive can turn into being enabling.”

Cosplay of the Week: Jester in the snow! (liljerbear47, photography by kairiceleste on Instagram)

On Trent’s motivations for chasing Caleb: “I really don’t know. The simplest explanation is to just hammer down the nail that’s sticking up. It has crossed his mind that all high-level wizards are in danger of their own ambition and egos, so it’s occurred to him that Trent might have the same kind of ideas that Halas had in the past, and maybe Caleb was always meant to be another body to jump into. Maybe in some sick, disgusting, twisted way, he wants him to be his successor. I am thinking of the next campaign, without getting too deep in, trying to do something that is much more ride-along. Caleb is very, very specific, and I thought long and hard about all the different pieces on the chessboard for him. For campaign three, I’m looking forward to seeing what happens.”

Dani: “Do I need to be keeping lore on your fucking ads?”

On the cursed dagger: “It was a tricky one, because in campaign one, one of the characters was under the influence of a cursed weapon, but it interacted with him and he knew what it was and what it did. And it affected his gameplay as a character. For me, Veth didn’t know what it was, ever. I as a player knew what it was doing, but Veth didn’t know at all. So it was kind of like my dirty, dark secret for many months. I knew this thing was coming perilously close to killing me, but my character didn’t know enough to bring it up to her friends. Nobody ever asked! So I was like, well, I guess this thing’s just going to kill me one day, and it’s kind of going to be a surprise.” Liam: “Sam, you love danger and self-destruction so much, you might as well be Mollymauk.”

On the fight in Yasha’s sequence, Sam: “You gotta put a character in your storm giant creature. It was so fun! It was so great of Matt to involve us in this encounter. It would’ve been fun just to watch, because Matt would have made it amazing and Ashley was sweating bullets, which is always fun to watch.” Sam notes he felt guilty, but Liam was going for the kill. Liam: “Matt’s gotta be careful about giving me that kind of story beat. I do not fucking care, I just fucking flip, I’m like, well, I’m going to destroy you, and I have no qualms about it. It’s too much fun!”

The Beau/Yasha tower date was in part inspired by not being able to give gifts as easily this last year. “This thing that we do together is a gift, but I love finding these moments, like the book for Jester and the tower for Yasha and for Beau. I really just wanted to give both of them a little magic for a night. I wanted them to leave this-- we’re trying to be as entertaining as possible, but shit is having an effect on all of us too, and I wanted them to have an escape, a great place to escape to.”

Fan Art of the Week: an amazing group shot, plus Marion, Yeza, and Luc! (vocaz on Twitter)

On choosing Essek over Trent, Liam: “It would have been so interesting and awful and great! Essek and Astrid and Eodwulf are everything that Bren used to be attracted to that are terrible for him. Essek, hopefully he can with time find a way out of the hole that he dug himself into, but it was only two months ago where he was found out and his ambitions came crashing down around him. Long-term, I have high hopes for him, but I think it’s going to be hard.” In contrast, Astrid and Eodwulf are still “deep in the shit. It would have been really hard to navigate, but fun to play at the table. We made the right choice with what we went with. Essek’s just getting started, and Caleb doesn’t trust him entirely, because he was burned so hard not too long ago. He’s still more trustworthy than the other three. So it’s the better choice. While Caleb has all these ties on the other side, they’re really fucking dangerous. So if you have to choose, you choose Essek. But fuck that die.” Sam: “Veth, much like Sam Riegel, makes instant decisions about whether to trust someone or not and sticks to it forever. Astrid, 100% trust. Eodwulf, 100% distrust. Essek, completely distrust. I still don’t think he’s a good guy. Ikithon? Trust. 100%. Because you know where he’s coming forward, you know what he wants. I still want him dead, but I trust him.”

On Veth’s post-adventuring plans: “Veth is probably still too in it right now to think about what comes next. I, Sam Riegel, have a good idea of what I want Veth to do post-campaign.” Brian: “Maybe you shouldn’t tell us. Save it for the show!” Sam: “All she knows is she can’t do this anymore. It’s very unhealthy to be battle-wounded every other day. It’s fun for a while, but college has to end at some point, and she’s gotta go home.”

On Frumpkin changing appearance and returning to the Feywild: “I don’t know what I’m going to do, but the way it feels now for Caleb is that he feels too enmeshed in everything that has happened, and too much good has happened, and too much needs to happened, that that really narcissistic, selfish goal has the risk of harming everything else, which is more important. And that’s how he looks at it now. So he’s gearing towards letting everything from the beginning of the campaign, and where he started, go, and trying to figure out what use he’s going to be now and what he’s going to do if they’re not all dead. If Matt throws that shit down, I don’t know what I will do, I think about it a lot. But turning Frumpkin white and saying you’re free either way is him preparing to let go of everything he’s been holding on to for a really long time. He’s addicted to that idea that he can fix himself, and we’ll see if that hard choice gets presented, what he might do. But where he stands now, he doesn’t think that’s going to be reality, and he sees a way that he can be of use that he never really anticipated before, so he’s slowly shifting gears towards living with the pain he was trying to remove.”

On the last request scene and confidence heading into Aeor, Sam: “I feel like that’s a good request. I think all of us realized that if we die, that probably bodes badly for the world. I feel like all of us are at a point now as characters and as friends, that the first order of business would be to take care of everybody else’s shit, although we probably have different ideas of how to do that.” Liam: “I want the Empire to be healed, Caleb has all these memories of his parents and what they wanted for the world, and he wants that too. It’s clearly not in place now, the system needs to be broken and replaced. That could be a part of Caleb’s sunset. I don’t want Caleb to die, so maybe he can work on that after. As everything starts to shake out and we start heading towards our destiny, Caleb’s just free-floating. He’s not even going after the same thing he started for. So he’s looking at Veth’s family, and Luc specifically, and seeing that’s me, that’s a little boy in the Empire.”

[thessalian]

Thess vs TLoVM Ep 12

Okey-doke, here we go, finale time! I should note that the only reason I’m able to do this is that I finally have a halfway decent desk chair because this would be painful otherwise and I’d be over on the sofa, whimpering. (I have fibromyalgia and chronic sinusitis, and my neck of the woods has been hit with two back-to-back storms the last few days; the barometric pressure drop triggered both. Yay.) But I do have a halfway decent desk chair, so let’s do this.

Before we even start, who wrote this? Brandon Auman (more Marvel, TMNT, and ... ooh, Star Wars: Resistance!) ... and Sam Riegel. I may have to hug him too.

Oh for fuck’s sake, Percthax.

Go, Cassandra!

Oh, dear. Hello, Craven Edge.

Oh, cutting the intro sequence was a good move.

Ah, Scanlan. He tries. That’s as much levity as they could probably fit into there, what with the desperation and all.

Oh, the fucking GRIN as he puts the mask on is scarier than the fucking mask itself!

Well, it’s about time they figured out that Pike doesn’t talk about shit “clouding people’s souls” like it ain’t no thing. Next time? LISTEN TO THE SERVANT OF THE EVERLIGHT SO DETERMINED TO HELP YOU THAT SHE ASTRALLY PROJECTS TO YOUR LOCATION TO KICK VAMPIRE ASS! ...okay? Okay.

...HOOOOOOOOLY FUCK. I didn’t think “Take the mask off, darling” could get any better but HOOOOOOOOLY FUCK. Also, that takes that “Percy’s shadow pointing the gun to Percy’s head” thing to a whole new foreshadowing place - just not a place Orthax would want it to go. Nicely done, writing team.

And this would be Taliesin’s nat 20 to resist Orthax that ended up with Percy exorcising Orthax through sheer force of will. Which is nice that they did that.

(Also, quick aside for you FFXIV players - when I was first catching up with CR Campaign 1, I’d watched the Orthax thing a couple of months previous and @true0neutral was more or less right in the middle of it right as we were going through the endgame of the MSQ of ARR - so the base game where Taliesin was voicing Thancred. Whose name I struggle to remember because when we found out that Lahabrea was possessing Thancred, and was basically Black Smoke Dude, we remembered what Taliesin said during this whole sequence and said, in unison as we were approaching the Lahabrea boss fight, “...Therapy!” Thereafter, even though Taliesin wasn’t voicing Thancred anymore, we didn’t call him Thancred; we called him ‘Therapy’, in Taliesin’s honour. The fact that Thancred went Gunblade has done nothing to change my mind about that one, even though I don’t play FFXIV anymore.)

Oh, this whole mindscape thing is fucked up and I love it. Give me the symbolism mixed with flashback. If you ever wondered what angst I crave? This. This is it.

Holy HELL they did things with Orthax on the visual end that I hadn’t even considered. I may or may not have nightmares tonight. THANKS FOR THAT.

(No, seriously, thank you. If I worried about nightmares, I wouldn’t fall asleep on the sofa to creepy Korean horror at 3am. Nightmares are fine.)

So ... it’s Matt voicing Orthax, right? ‘Cos IMDB is failing me again. *checks X-Ray View* Yep. Matt. IMDB, GET. YOUR. SHIT. TOGETHER. Matt deserves every single kudos for this. Every last one. He refined that shit since Campaign 1. Seriously. Nightmares.

(My players are probably not thanking you. Nightmares are just another source of inspiration for campaigns for me. My players both like that and really don’t, because that’s the nature of torturing the people you made up inside your head, and then handing those tortured people you made up inside your head over to experts for more torture.)

And the barrel spins and ... ooooooooooooh fucking hell. This got darker than it was originally. And it was fucking dark to begin with. Just the thought of those empty barrels filling with names of his loved ones before anyone else, just because they ‘stood in his way’... AAAAAAAAAA.

Okay, I saw quasi-spoilers about the Desmond thing being a foreshadow but tried not to pay any attention and I see it now and also OWWWWWWWW FUCK. Do you know how many bones he just shattered?!? OW OW OW OW.

“Yes, well, thank you for not dying”. He’s had more arrows in him than a porcupine has quills and was still cracking heads; great line, exactly because of how ludicrous and yet heartfelt it is.

Yeah, they had a ‘violence and foul language’ warning on this. They ... do know that ‘gore’ is a category all its own, right? Just saying - ‘gore’ belongs there. I mean, that’s ... a throat wound. A big one. That only appropriately bled because she’d lost so much to bullet wounds already. I mean, deserved, but DAYUM.

...I wonder what would have happened if Percy had been able to feed Delilah to Orthax? To her various clones, I mean.

Oh, Cassandra, clean off your fucking blade.

Okay, Scanlan, yes - now is the time we need your antics, thank you. I needed that laugh so much.

“Do you know how much that cost? How long it will take me to make ano--” OH SHIT yeah thanks for that. I’m so glad I wasn’t taking a sip of coffee at that point it would have gone entirely down the wrong pipe and I’d have to clean caffeinated bean water with sugar off two monitors, a speaker and probably the carpet.

Oh good, Whitestone has survivors! Does someone want to cut Goliath-Minion down?

Thank you for showing us that Scanlan is an equal opportunity lover! We didn’t have confirmation of that from Sam until the Love Potion Incident! Also OUCH Vax; come on, don’t be a cock-blocker. Lesser Restoration exists for a reason, right?

Aww. “We live as long as Whitestone lives” in a new and ... very good context.

Awwwwwwwwwww. And they managed to get in a reference to “And I walk away”. Ow, though. I mean, ow. Then again, given what’s coming, that ain’t gonna last long.

Okay, we don’t have Keyleth nearly getting her hand ripped off; we have an added warning that didn’t make it to the warning screen. That would not just be ‘violence’ or even ‘gore’. That transcends into fucking ‘body horror’.

N’aww. Just a lot of n’aww.

Oop! I can kind of hear, “Sun-Tree, A-Okay!” in my head. Which is nice. It doesn’t have to be there for me to have it there when appropriate.

Hello, Diplomacy!

Yes, Jarrett. EXCELLENT TIMING. That was gonna get ... long.

Oh gods, GILMORE.

Oh. The proclamation. Oh shit. Oh shit.

Okay, I do like this speech better.

Oh, so they’ll ensure that Emon stands ‘forever’, hmm? Well, Vex’s reaction says you’ve got maybe two more minutes.

So that was an epic shot to end on. Hooooooboy. So clearly we’re going directly into the Chroma Conclave arc for Season 2, then. Like, right the fuck away. Like, immediately. I mean, I guess the Fall of Emon is the ultimate icebreaker. Literally, given Vorugal...

So when’s Season 2 coming out? Well, article on HITC (which lists TLoVM as “anime” which is weird and possibly appropriative but I do know that those genre news sites are a little weird about their categorisation sometimes) says it’s definitely confirmed but no one’s given a date yet. BOO.

So ... that’s the end of that. For now. I want more, but I can be patient. Animators and voice actors and post-production people need time to work. So when I whine that it’s not there yet, I don’t really think they should go faster than they can tolerate; I just ... want it.

And I might talk a little more about specific elements later. Like, in terms of narrative structures, voice acting, etc. But for now I’ll leave it at “thank you for coming to my liveblog, and be grateful that you’re not my neighbour because most of the block-capital HOLY FUCK etc was ... literal. Like, out loud”. Then again, it’s barely gone 8pm and my neighbours across the corridor can suck it up because they keep making our end of the corridor reek of weed so they can handle my profanity.

[larsisfrommars]

My Predictions for Campaign 3 Characters

Travis Willingham

Class: Cleric (Domain of War, Nature or Forge) OR Druid (probably Circle of The Shepherd) bonus if he finally gets his wish and is a werewolf! I could see him picking up a martial class again (probably Monk or Fighter) but I’d honestly be disappointed. We already have seen him play a martial class and a couple light spell casters and I honestly wanna see him play a high Wisdom character, we already saw what he could do with a high Charisma character! I wanna see the other side of that social/mental stat coin!

Race: I could see him playing a Human again, or maybe a Dwarf! It’s kinda hard to tell what his race preferences are other than Big & Strong sooo maybe one of the Monster races from Volo’s guide? Bugbear maybe? I also REALLY hope somebody plays a Warforged this campaign and a Warforged Forge Domain Cleric could be REALLY cool and On Brand for Travis I think.

Marisha Ray

Class: Marisha is SO freaking smart and kicked so much ass as both a monk and a druid, I want her to be able to play a character that really highlights her irl intelligence again so maybe a Wizard or Artificer? I don’t know Artificer subclasses aside from Armorer BUT School of Divination or a good-aligned Necromancer could be really cool! Battlemaster Fighter might also be a good choice for her!

Race: Something tells me she’s never going to fully abandon that Avatar The Last Airbender aesthetic she has going on so maybe an Fire or Earth Genasi (to keep the cycle going since Kiki had Airbender aesthetics and Beau had Water Tribe vibes) a Fire Genasi Necromancer would be metal AF. Speaking of metal, she’s also a good candidate for my Oh My God Someone PLEASE Play A Warforged self-indulgent desire lol.

Liam O’Brien

Class: Monk (if he’s not already playing one in EXU which I feel like he is) if he does it’d probably be Way of Shadow or Kensei, mostly because he’s already done the fire aesthetic thing (so no way of the four elements or sun soul) and we’ve already gotten Cobalt Soul from Beau. If not a Monk then a Bard, in true Tragic Character Obessed Fashion we know and love it’s gonna be College of Whispers or Glamor. Plus, knowing he’s a Shakespeare nerd I could see him leaning really hard into that for a Bard. He might surprise us and play something cheerier this time who knows?!

Race: Don’t ask me why I say this, it’s not even like I want anyone to play a Gnoll, but something tells me if ANYONE was gonna be a Gnoll it’d be Liam, there is a crackhead in the corner of my brain insisting it’ll be so. The RATIONAL side of my brain is thinking Elf or Tabaxi because Liam has shown us He Likes Cats A Normal Amount. I don’t know if he likes playing animals quite enough to endure playing a druid long term but I could see him embracing one of the anthro D&D races with no hesitation.

Sam Riegel

Class: I know Liam picked for Sam but my bet is, for maximum chaos, and because how much everyone enjoyed it in Aeor and Sam is alllll about inviting chaos to the table at all times so I’m willing to bet he’s going to play a Wild Magic Sorcerer, or maybe another subclass of Sorcerer like Divine Soul. I also think he’d have a lot of fun with a martial class like Way of The Drunken Master Monk or a Fighter of some variety.

Race: there’s literally just one non-home brew small race Sam hasn’t played let’s be real, I have no doubt in my mind Sam will be playing a Kobald.

Laura Bailey

Class: Laura is the hardest to pin down, she’s so versatile and brilliant but the best I can think of are the two classes her twin and her husband beat her to, Rogue or Warlock. I think she’d make an excellent pirate so I could definitely see her playing a Swashbuckler Rogue, it’d be a charming homage to both Liam & Travis’s previous characters but I feel like she’d make a point to be not at all like either of them personality wise. Regarding Warlock, anything not Pact of The Archfey (too close to Artagan) but no matter what DEFINETLY gift of the chain ‘cause we know how much Laura loves her creature companions.

Race: Again I’m not sure, I definitely don’t think she’d go for elf or Genasi or tiefling. I think she’d make an adorable Halfling or Gnome, Yuan-ti or Tabaxi could be fun and sexy. OH! She loved Kiri so much I think she could have a TON of fun roleplay wise with a Kenku!

Ashley Johnson

Class: Ashley has waaaay too much fun playing martial classes so my money is on Paladin or Fighter. So far as oath if she picks Paladin maybe Vengeance or even Conquest, something dark and dramatic that she can sink her roleplay teeth into now that she has time to play a campaign without getting whisked away for shooting. I could definitely see her going with Champion or Eldritch Knight! Just HITTING THINGS kind of fighter for sure.

Race: I could see her having a bit of an affinity for the more monstrous races, something big and scary maybe a Goliath (like her buddy Grog)? Or maybe a full blooded Orc or Hobgoblin, even a Drow (or half-drow)? If not one of the traditionally “evil” races I could see her going for Dwarf or Dragonborn for sure.

Taliesin Jaffe

Class: Again another insanely versatile and brilliant player where I have almost no idea where he’ll take a turn next. Idk what would be a sharp left turn from Cleric that he hasn’t already played (fighter, rogue, bloodhunter). I’d say druid but I feel like that’s too similar to Caduceus. Some people think he’s gonna play Kingsley but I highly doubt it, but I wouldn’t be shocked if he went for Bloodhunter again because he missed the opportunity to play it at higher levels because of how Campaign 2 went. It could be fun seeing him go for a charisma based class since we’ve already seen him go for high intelligence and high wisdom, maybe a Bard or Paladin? I know he played a dragonborn Paladin a long time ago in the home game and he didn’t seem to vibe with it, so maybe Bard then, I can’t imagine him picking anything other than College of Whispers lol. Sidenote: could totally see anyone Tal plays as being a Vampire, that’d be cool.

Race: Again, he’s done strange and fantastic combinations in the past but I like the potential of a Kenku Bard (functionally a jukebox!) plus Taliesin is great at realistic crow sounds so he’d have an opportunity to do that more which would be funny. Elf would feed into the pretentious stereotype that Taliesin is fantastic at playing into. I could also see him going for Changeling (if Matt allows it) or Tabaxi. He too is on my Please Somebody Anybody Play Warforged Please God, self indulgent wishlist.

[captainsspnanon]

C2E49 - A Game of Names - rewatch reaction

Retroactively added first comment – Marisha and Laura are rocking heavier makeup and Matt is still rocking his beard.  Tal has the Percy spiral in his hair from the one shot, the remainder of the guys are on point, we just have a lovely image to look at for the show. :)

I think the best thing for me right now is that as Nott is sharing her story, everyone is mostly keeping it together in character, and then Travis is just YO WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU SEEING THIS DM WHAT THE FUCK OMG WHAT THE FUCK  never change, Travis, never change

Okay, so there is the confirmation that Nott really was a torturer’s assistant.  I definitely didn’t remember the confirmation, just the initial telling, so I thought it was just a story she made up to hide her past.  But it sounds like that part is legit.  Also confirmation that she was only with the goblins for about six months, which makes sense in the timeline.

Okay, pausing at what I think is the end of the monologue, because I was just watching it.  So.  THOUGHTS.  First off, I’m super glad that Sam has said that the voice doesn’t hurt his throat, because man that speech sounded painful.  Nott’s voice has always been interesting to me in the fact that there’s a lot of the time where it feels natural like how the other voices feel, but there’s also a decent number of times where it actually takes me out of the RP a bit, and makes me just realize that Sam is putting on a voice. Unfortunately, this is one of the times where it takes me out.  And very unfortunately, it makes my emotional connection to this telling just a bit less than had it felt more natural.  NOW.  The story itself.  SAM.  RIEGEL.  SAMUEL BRENT OSCAR RIEGEL.  GodDAMN this was good.  

Well, I suppose I should actually start with the moment before Nott gets into her story, Caleb trying to push them to leave town.  It is completely in character, and it highlights that Caleb IS very selfish at times, which I appreciate.  Does he have very good reason to be scared of Vess and Ludinus?  Absolutely.  But the fact that he’s still asking about Nott’s ‘friend’ shows how much he’s been in his own head, to miss that this was her husband and child.  Or at the VERY least, her child and the father of her child.  It’d be a bad look on him regardless, and it’s an even worse look after Nott has already shouted at him.  You’re not even listening to her at this point??  Caleb was not joking on the ship when he told her that he was getting so close with the group that he was forgetting Nott. It’s been some small moments over a few episodes, but this right here is the worst of it.  The good thing is that this conversation seems to also kick Caleb in the ass.  Maybe he realizes how selfish he was being, maybe not, but he starts LISTENING to Nott again, maybe at a level he might not have before.

OKAY, now to SAM FUCKING RIEGEL.  I’m not quite sure how I feel about the whole story being dumped out at once.  I wasn’t particularly a fan of how it was done via Caleb either, something about it just feels unnatural.  However, just as it made sense in the circumstances for Caleb, it completely makes sense in the circumstances for Nott.  She’s kept this a secret for so long, even during the trip to Felderwin where she could have shared any of it, and now the entire group is looking at asking what the fuck is up with that.  Out of how she could have framed it, I do really enjoy that she reintroduced herself as Nott, and then Once Upon a Timed into Veth.  Not only a clean framing, but also a good way of highlighting the disconnect that she feels between herself and Veth. It wasn’t ‘one or two years ago, I was’, it’s Once Upon A Time.  It’s a magical indeterminate time in the Past, far enough away that it’s not close to Now.

For the record, I will be continuing to use Nott while she continues to identify that way.  As such, I’ll only be using Veth if I am specifically refering to later campaign events, or once she goes through her transformation back to herself.  I’m also not going to be touching on any of the trans subtext to her.  This has been discussed in such wonderful detail by many others who have more reason to touch it than me.  I am cis and do not experience any form of dysphoria or body dysmorphia, so I’m not going to start throwing out guesses of opinions for something I can’t speak to.  From a cis perspective, I don’t see it as a character that was created with the intention of having a trans parallel, but I think it works fantastically for it without hitting stereotypes.

Back to the story – Sam having decided that Veth would always feel and be told that she was ‘not’ is heartbreaking and sadly realistic, especially considering he designed Veth to be at a heavier weight.  She skims through the story and falling in love and having a child, and as she describes the escape from the goblins and how she used herself as a distraction, we know as the audience that she has already done this again – the run from the yuan-ti back at Urukayxl.  There are definitely moments where PCs see aspects of what they can relate to or feel bad for.  She got teased for buttons and collections?  Fjord looks guilty.  She still feels the experience of drowning?  Beau looks at Fjord because of the past month and a half at sea.  Her son?  Caleb’s face is going to fall of his face for how low it’s hanging.

I do 100% agree with her with the fact that the party got together because of deception though.  Cad doesn’t count because Molly was with them initially and he was nothing but deception.  Jester is the one real exception, but she’s also the one who (in my opinion) is the true glue who held the party together – so that works. :)

I do have to wonder though, while Nott is very sad with quavering voice, I wonder how much Sam was smirking on the inside going GOT YOU, FUCKERS.  It HAD to have felt good.

I reaaaalllly hope that Liam has a good way of furrowing his brow all the time.  Because he is IN it with Caleb, and if I do that for short periods of time, my head hurts!

I forgot that part of this conversation is due to the fact that they think the Assembly has Yeza.  It does make complete sense, what with the arcane locks, the interrogation chair, the notes they found, and Vess and Ludinus walking to the apothecary.  It just didn’t even register with me until they brought it up because I’m excited to go to Xhorhas.  (and I only just remembered that they don’t even get to the Bright Queen right away either, so I actually don’t know how many episodes away it is!)

……..i just accidentally disliked the video when trying to move to this document.  And a little popup came up saying ‘feedback shared with the creator’ nooooooooo.  It was an accident!!!!  I undid it instantly.  :(

WHAT I WAS COMING OVER HERE TO SAY is that this is the first time that Travis/Fjord is officially the Sending counter!  Before, Taliesin and Sam had been doing it kinda offhand, but there was no real holding up fingers to show her.

I love that the break between Nott’s story and Caleb’s story is Beau admitting that Dairon was her teacher not her roommate, but she’d totally still fuck her given the opportunity.  And Liam moving Sam’s flask so that he can role play face to face.  This happens a few times in the campaign and I love it every time.

The best thing about the Bren reveal is EVERYBODY except Liam and Sam break character at the reveal.  EVERYONE.  Even Matt is like “YUUUP”

I appreciate how Liam condenses Caleb’s story down for this reveal, sharing new things while not rehashing the old.  Because while the other PCs don’t know his shit, the other players do.  It was a smart decision not to essentially tell the same story twice, which could be very boring for an audience.  Plus it means we got the fun little individual reveals along the way, which I personally loved. Getting into Caleb’s mindset, being in a big group, if one person says they’re fine with you, others may agree not necessary BECAUSE they agree, but because they don’t want to cause an argument or be the odd man out.  So in a big group, you can’t really be certain that everyone is okay with everything.  Whereas one on one, the reactions can be truer.

Also, I wish Ashley could have been here for these reveals, both of them.  Yasha could relate in very unique ways, losing Zuala vs losing Yeza, her grief and guilt as compared to Caleb’s.

I do like that with the crystal reveal, Travis glances disbelievingly at Matt, and I’m like ‘don’t make that face.  Matt’s the one who decided that, not Liam!’ XD

Fjord asking Caleb what name he prefers, and Caleb responding that he doesn’t know.  My heart, my heart. :(

Beau telling Caleb ‘don’t run’.  MY HEART

Once again, I’m so happy that this group is this group, because if I picture this as a home game with just some random dudes, I can easily imagine the one playing Nott getting very upset because Caleb was getting attention when this was supposed to be Nott’s time. Look at how much they focus on him this session!!  and with this group, not only great friends but also professional actors, there’s no resentment for sharing the spotlight.

More Beau and Caleb squishy goodness!

It took SOOO LONG for them to realize they could send a message. Looks like Caduceus is going to do Commune for the first time, too!

I do like how Felderwin is basically a secret worshiping town of the Wildmother.

Holy crap, Jester asks about hair tonic EARLY!  Also I still kinda have no clue as to why she wanted it in the first place.  As far as we know, Jester hasn’t been losing any hair, and she does keep the tonic for herself, right?  OH WAIT DOESN’T SHE WANT TO HELP FJORD GROW A BEARD????  Is that a thing?  I have no clue if I’m making that up or if that’s what actually happened.  *waits like five more seconds of video* oh lol never mind she’s just using it to try to find out about Yeza.  I r a dum

I appreciate that the subtitles for this section is just (multiple Columbo impressions)

I love watching Beau do her Expositor stuff.  That’s all, no further comments.

Jeff confirms that the Kryn took Yeza, and Sam is just thoroughly engrossed in the paper he’s reading.  XD  I love the chaos gremlin nature of Sam and Laura next to each other, but sometimes it distracts them

I feel like Travis and Taliesin deserve some very serious kudos for their ability for out of the box thinking.  Travis’s tactics are super impressive and his ability to come up with very good questions to get information (from the DM, not in character) are chef’s kiss. Then you have Taliesin with incredibly creative choices, such as right here, using Thaumaturgy to cause an echo to see if there’s a gap in the tunnel.  His ability to come up with creative but logical ideas, whether or not they work in game or are maybe the stretching of his PC abilities sometimes, is absolutely commendable.

PAUSING FOR A MOMENT.  Nott just said that she was considering allying with the Kryn to go and attack Rexxentrum, had they been the ones to take Yeza.  (and then they are incredulous of the idea of allying with the Dynasty LOL that’ll change)  But with how seriously she took this, it reminds me of what many people thought was very out of character for her – offering to keep the war going for the hag in order to get her body back.  I hadn’t really thought about this in depth at all, I don’t even know if I had deep thoughts about her hag bit and was gonna have a fun time puzzling that out when the episode came around.  But this right here?  This makes the hag moment not a single instance, but a trend.  Nott (whether or not this continues into Veth will be fascinating to see) is willing to sacrifice others to help herself, and in a BIG way. This isn’t the petty level that she and Caleb were doing before the group, or even the level that the group do themselves sometimes. This is assisting with an attack in the capital of the Empire, allying with (at the time thought of) monsters and evil people, to get her husband.  This is sabotaging peace talks that they managed to assemble, dooming two lands to even more bloody war, in order to get her body back.  Part of this works with what Sam has always claimed with Nott, that her transformation has made her more extreme, tending to jump to the extremes in situations.  Like a drink becomes alcoholism.  Liking trinkets becomes thievery.  And perhaps here, a willingness to dabble in grey becomes a willingness to cause great harm for very personal gain.  Veth is completely against Caleb’s plan to travel back in time to save his family, I wonder if Nott was for it?  I don’t think we ever really find out, as by the time Caleb gets anywhere close to it, Nott has already returned to Veth.   SAM certainly was against it, but that doesn’t necessarily translate to that Nott was against it.  Because after all, Caleb was just considering great harm for very personal gain.

I’ve seen posts about Caduceus being secretly cagey and stuff like that, and I honestly disagree?  He’s always been very open about the corruption and what he wanted to do for it, and that his family left him to go searching for it, etc, but he doesn’t bring it up on his own.  If someone asks him a question, he answers.  Yes, he doesn’t just go around volunteering the information, but that honestly seems more of a Taliesin choice of not wanting to interrupt a narrative more than anything – not wanting to go the whole “ah yes, this flower.  It reminds me of my family who have left me for yaddayaddayadda”, aka the dnd trope of the main character syndrome. He’s not being fully passive either, he definitely references his quest, he wanted to ask Yussa about the grove, so he is actively pushing his story forwards.  It just happens that other stories ended up getting priority.

(Liam yoinking the candy right out of Sam’s hand)

Does anyone else feel like Laura is speaking slightly higher as Jester than usual this episode?  I cannot tell if it’s just me, if it’s been a slow change over a period of episodes, or if she is just in a slightly higher register this time.

Oh, it is Divination, not Commune.  I didn’t expect that.  I wonder when he’ll start using Commune instead?  Either way, the Wildmother has now started responding with breezes (yay!), and also refers to Yeza being in Ghor Dranas.  I wonder if her using that term rather than Rosohna.  One would think that a god would not use Empirical terms for other locations, but I suppose she could be using it in terms that she knows Caduceus would either understand or be able to get information on.  If only those in the Dynasty know it as Rosohna, then the Nein in the Empire would not be able to figure out where to go, at least not easily.  (Or Matt was just using terms that he know the group would know, rather than getting into the political aspect yet)

One of Jester’s rare serious Sendings.  Also YEZA HI YEZA YOU ARE WONDERFUL AND I MISS YOU

Timelines for here are always confusing to me.  The attack in Felderwin happened ‘weeks’ ago, two to three if we understand correctly.  The Kryn are still bringing Yeza to Rosohna, he has not arrived yet.  It takes the Nein four, ONLY FOUR, days to travel through the tunnels.  Then only another four days in Asarius until they are teleported to Rosohna.  Like, if the Kryn were traveling through the tunnels with a prisoner of war who they have reason to believe was experimenting with their stolen beacons, wouldn’t they book it and head to a teleportation circle ASAP?  Why would it not only take them a week at most to get the prisoner to Rosohna?  Why did it end up taking anywhere from 15 to 30 days?

I feel like this is the first and only time that they’ve actually leveled up in the middle of an episode.  Congrats guys, level 8!

For as much as Matt talks about how the tunnels made him have to completely start preparing new shit, he really helped them out to get there.  Jester was just going to Polymorph into a honey badger, but Matt’s the one who gave her the idea to do a dire honey badger instead.

I love the end of the episode where they are rolling their hit points and discussing feats and such.  :)

@suicidallyreckless (also if the notes tag didn’t work, I did post my C3 reaction earlier.  Sorry!)

[loquaciousquark]

Talks Machina Highlights - Critical Role C2E113 (Oct. 27, 2020)

Good evening and good night, lovely people of the world! We’re on the internet and ready to go. Tonight’s guests are Travis Willingham and Sam Riegel. This will be calm, controlled, and sane, I can feel it. Brian points out it’s been seven months since either of them were on Talks. Oof. (Sam asks if it’s been going the whole time without him. Bigger oof.) Travis keeps sneaking bites out of an acai bowl or something and tries to look sneaky about it, and I laugh every time because he’s just...so big. He’s such a big person.

(Brian is wearing a lobstrosity shirt. He and Travis talk about Dark Tower for a bit; then Sam tries to get into the conversation: “Is that the thing from It?” Brian: “Is what the thing from It?” Sam: “Is that lobster the clown from It? I’m not very literate. Is that a Langolier? Is that a Shawshank?”)

Announcements: none! Maybe they just forgot. We’ve been talking about Sam’s spooky skeleton decorations for like five minutes. Brian suggests taking them to Travis’s house. Travis: “That’s the fastest way to get to the smell of burning plastic.” Brian: “Speaking of your girlfriend...”

On Avantika: Fjord wouldn’t call it a relationship as much as a casual sexual interaction. Not official! Super not official!!

The first sea voyage wasn’t great for Fjord, but he tried to be thoughtful about preparing for this one before they left: praying, kneeling at the bow of the ship, etc. He’s a little disappointed the Wildmother didn’t even throw him a “yo, fam” heads up.

They weren’t sure how to resolve the conflict at first, since Avantika went for Fjord rather than the crystal. No one expected it to get exposed in that way. Travis thought the necklace was a pocket dimension and was alarmed to learn it wasn’t. Travis wants it destroyed along with the third gateway, so until they are he won’t rest easy.

Everyone enjoyed watching them all fail on the battlefield again. (Sam: “You used [Counterspell] so effectively!”) Travis thought he’d said Thunder Step, which would imply Avantika was running, rather than Thunder Wave. Sam says it’s fine since none of them have that spell and he wouldn’t know it anyway.

It’s very difficult for Veth to find reasons to stay with the M9. She loves the adventures and making a difference, but she also wants to come home and have weekends and have a husband and life. “She’s a career girl!” He’s very excited about the possibilities of Caleb’s transportation effectively creating an easy commute for her. He also, as a player, doesn’t want to be the person who’s always leaving the party. “My characters wanna roam!”

Travis was fully tilted that Avantika might have gotten away right before the break. He doesn’t think he could have focused on Vess DeRogna’s task knowing Avantika had gotten away; he was seriously working out how Fjord would leave the party to go make a last stand at the third gate if she’d escaped.

Sam looooves how Matt plays Yeza, but it honestly makes him feel a little worse at how encouraging he is for Veth to chase her dreams. “He’s always like - go shine! Go blossom!” He wants to have the conversation about Yeza feeling a little ignored. It’s fun to share the tales of adventures with Luc & Yeza. 

Travis says there’s no way it’s Molly--it’s all Lucien. They don’t know if it was a resurrection, if he’s undead, possessed, etc. Everyone--everyone--rags on Taliesin’s accent work. Brian surreptitiously claims Ashly was brought on to relieve him of the burden of the accent. Poor Ashly, ha!

Initially, Travis landed on the Oath of the Ancients, but it had more nature & pacifism in it than he felt fit Fjord very well. Many of them also had a focus on good & lawfulness, which also didn’t feel quite right; he also wasn’t that vengeful for some of the others. He & Matt got together and discussed options. Matt asked what Travis liked about Fjord; Fjord’s love for the ocean was a huge part of it, since Travis himself also loves the ocean & scuba diving, and so Matt created a custom oath for him. Travis does not plan to post its details, but he thinks Matt will at some point.

Cosplay of the Week! a lovely Scanlan by Air Bubbles Cosplay! Sam tells us the “canon” Scanlan cosplay was actually borrowed hodgepodge, and the boots were falling off all day.

It was really cool to see how Yeza & Luc have made a home in Nicodranas. Felderwin was okay, but kind of your basic D&D fishing village, and she likes the Nicodranas is much better. She’s confident & comfortable knowing her family is safe and sound.

Why is Fjord so interested in finding Sabian? To him, post-orphanage, his time with Vandren was the best of his life & the most love he’d ever received, because he mattered & had worth. It was taken by someone he’d known basically his whole life, so Fjord is not going to let that go. “That fuckin’ bill needs to be paid, my friend.”

Sam acknowledges that he should NOT have looked at his phone in re: the Vilya reveal, but it was pretty surprising! He can’t believe none of them recognized it! Travis points out the M9 had never met, heard of, or known anything about Vilya, so it’s not that surprising. Brian points out Matt has also done a really good job keeping the two campaigns separate, so any references were tasteful. Sam marvels that it was so well done: it was tasteful, had emotional and story impact... “That Matt. He’s getting better!”

Liam texted Sam back something like “oh SHIT.”

Knowing Veth had a chance to help someone else return to her child made Veth feel almost karmically forgiven for being away from her kid, but it also made Veth a little guilty--”this lady wants to desperately return home, shouldn’t I want to go home too?” Caleb’s teleportation spell couldn’t have come a better time.

Sam wants Caleb & Astrid to get back together (well, he says “hump each other”), and Dani’s eyebrows climb off her forehead. Veth/Nott really thinks Caleb needs to have a roll in ze hay, and feels like after meeting her that there is a kindness or vulnerability to her that could be worthwhile. Travis thinks she feels like someone tethered, that it feels like she has a bomb or something in her chest that’ll explode if she tries to leave. Sam thinks Eadwulf is super cool. None of these names are spelled like I think.

Travis found the dinner super frustrating, because he felt Caleb was trying to walk a diplomatic line and he just wanted to backhand Trent. 

Fjord is still coming to terms with his feelings for Jester, and the feelings are definitely real, but there’s a lot of timing that he’s considering and he also wants to figure out what the relationship is like outside of constant tension and battle. Fjord is also having trouble figuring out how to exercise the ability to display affection as well since he’s never received them, and is feeling out how to give and receive them. “It’s fine now, because he’s feeling it, but once you say it out loud, or once you come to a point where you make it known to the other side, then what happens? It might be ruined. It might be broken. Or it might not be!” The moment with the porcelain unicorn was too good not to try. Travis also sighs that he’s not a romance D&D guy, “but now I am! Fuckin’ Laura Bailey!” He’s definitely feeling it out and will see how it unfolds in the game.

If Jester hadn’t let go of the Traveler, Fjord would have either attacked the Traveler or the Moonweaver and tried to kick them both off.

Sam doesn’t think the Traveler’s realized yet what a dick he is. Brian thinks it may not happen in this campaign, but agrees the full weight of what he deserves hasn’t been felt yet. Travis: “Yeah, he came to the edge, but it didn’t cost him anything.” Brian: “Yeah, he’s a real edgelord.”

Fanart of the Week! a beautiful portrait of Molly in the snow by @claygryphon on twitter.

Veth acknowledges that they work for shady people with shady pasts, so Vess DeRogna isn’t her first rodeo, but this time it’s personal. It’s Jaws 2: Electric Boogaloo. Sam can’t commit to actual actions, since Vess is like level 20 or something, but “I will get some kinda revenge. Be it petty or significant, I will get revenge.”

How are they feeling about being in Eiselcross? They’ve only just landed, so not sure yet. The cold is intimidating. They’re excited to explore a new island that’s part of Wildemount, especially with the river of lava running through it. “It’s icy with lava? Sounds like a Dairy Queen.”

There’s still a ton of unknowns regarding the Tombtakers, Vess, the nature of their job, and who’s here on whose orders. They’re excited to see how it’s all going to play out. Travis laughs that he doesn’t take notes, he’s just here to fight things. It just washes over him when Matt starts talking about names and places. “It’ll reveal itself in time. [...] I don’t write those notes down. I don’t even know how to spell it off the bat.” I have never identified more with Travis. Sam actually does pay attention and take notes and was really impressed by Marisha’s dive.

Veth became interested in branding her own spellcraft as soon as she saw Caleb doing it. “That’s what the influencer agents are gonna be looking at. It would be nice to leave the world better than we found it, but also with some branded spells.”

What were Fjord’s thoughts on dropping so much money on the ring & the Ioun stone? It wasn’t about money for Fjord, it was about a cool thing to acquire. It’s why he saves money in his campaign. Caleb needs “as much of a flak jacket as he can get.” He also REJECTS the idea of buyer’s remorse on the ring and touts the effectiveness it’ll have on the lava river.

Travis talks about his old coins - a 340AD coin he bought at a ren faire and a 120BC coin that was a gift from a friend.

Sam marvels at the love and thought that Caleb put into the tower. Sam points out they forgot to go to the top two floors altogether. Travis: “Did the mansion get as much careful planning from Scanlan as the tower did from Caleb?” Sam: Absolutely not. But they were still thinking small in C1, figuring out how things went, and they didn’t have as much detail in their heads yet.

And that’s all the time we have for tonight! We end on everyone whispering way too close into their mics and tapping fingernails on mason jars. A fitting end to this crazy episode, I think.

Is it Thursday yet?

[plagueratchancy]

Reasons why I believe Sam Riegel is Baby Alien.

1. Reference to Broadway - He got his start in Les Mis 2. Song Reference from Friends* A. CR was a game between friend at first B. He worked on Lego Friends. 3. Reference to the #5 CR has been around as a stream for 5 years 4. The wooden Stake, The Animated Series is starting with the Briarwoods Arc, which has to do with Vampires. 5. The Horseshoe, Sam makes fun of Travis for being a Cowboys fan, even having a Colts (Horseshoe symbol) > Cowboys on his flask. 6. His main characters on CR are small, A Gnome and a Halfling. We know he likes sticking with a gag long term he'd stay as a small creature. 7.The Alien's Costume is the same color/look as his Gen Con outfit. 8. Spiked Soap "hair" Phoenix Wright a character he voiced has Iconic spiked hair. 9. His "Rebirth" Nott becoming Veth again was a major plot point in Campaign 2. 10. The Hexagon tiles, a D12 side's are hexagons, also the Luxon Beacon are D12 shaped (Major plot points in campaign 2) 11. "Stuck in second gear"* reference A, Transformers. B. "Stuck" in campaign 2. C. Has been in several game with Gear/Gears in the title. 12. Ninja turtle Balloon - Voiced Donatello from TMNT 13. The liberty bell balloon- He was born in a bicentennial year. 14. Destiny in his hands. CR/DnD is all about creating your destiny. 15. The Band. I don't think Sam was every in a "Band" but Music has always been a big part of his life. 16. City skyline - Sam lived in New York before moving to LA. 17. He's been a "second thought" He's not obvious famous person. 18. The calling out his name in the  "Classroom" A. CR's starting charity was 826LA an after school charity to help kids in creative writing. B. The running joke that Sam was always running late in the first campaign. C. A DM is sorta like a Teacher, making Sam a student of Matt's. 19. The vaguely Eastern European Voice is similar to Jesters (Laura's character on CR) 20. He's literally done an add for DnD Beyond as a Baby Alien (Baby Yoda) 21. It sounds like Him and something he'd totally do to mess with everyone. 22. Said he Liked Jenny as a teen. Sam would have been 17 when Jenny was first in Playboy, which would put him in the teenager category. 23. The 3 Fingers on the Baby's hand. He had 3 characters through both Campaigns, Scanlan, Tary, and Veth/Nott. 24. Baby Alien is the first costume with a moving mouth. Sam is known for his GIANT mouth. 25. Sam posted a odd tweet that quickly got deleted. 26. Sam got farther then He though he would so CR is on hold to he can return.

[sidras-tak]

Please write that Caleb/Veth friends with benefits meta, I would LOVE to read that!

I’ve talked about this before in the widobrave server, and it’s not so much “friends with benefits” as it is “not quite exes”, in my mind. So I’m basing this whole thing off two moments: Keg assuming Caleb and Nott are together, and how Caleb reacted when Nott kissed him right before the failed Widogast’s Transmorgification spell. Also, this is less meta and more speculation.

Let’s assume this: Nott and Caleb, in their time traveling together pre-stream, had a sexual relationship. At the very least, they cuddled and gave each other physical comfort (this part is canon actually). Sometime before the stream began, or shortly after it began, one of the two broke it off. Maybe Nott started falling for Caleb and felt guilty about Yeza. Maybe Caleb’s internalized guilt and shame about being worthy of love caused him to break it off. Either way, they decided to end it while still being friends, devoted to each other. This leaves them on a weird footing. When canon begins, they still are physically comfortable with each other (Nott climbs all over Caleb, he holds her frequently, they sleep in the same bed, hugs all the time) and this is untrue with any other member of the MN and Caleb, who is usually bad at receiving or giving affection. However, they are not romantically together. What are they? Exes? Taking a break? No longer friends with benefits? Pining? Who knows! Not them! Not us!

On to the canon.

Moment one: Keg assumes Caleb and Nott are together. Caleb rolls with her assumption, clearly unbothered by her thinking they might be together. In almost the same breath, Nott denies it, and Caleb looks confused and concerned. Nott berates herself (“he could do much better than a little freakshow like myself”), Caleb shushes her and gets an inn room specifically for the two of them, doubling down that he doesn’t care if people think they’re together. If you view this from the not-quite-exes perspective, it shows that Caleb isn’t ashamed of being with Nott and is willing to take it back up again at some point, while Nott is firmly trying to put it in the past. Given that she has a secret husband, not surprising. It also shows that Caleb isn’t convinced what they have is over. It’s a gray area for him. “Are you together?” Keg asks, and Caleb says, “Sure,” because fuck if he actually knows what they are. Anyway, “together” is close enough.

Moment two: the kiss. It’s hard to separate the actor and the character, especially with Liam, who tends to be in-character as much as possible. When Nott leans in and kisses him sweetly on the lips, Liam/Caleb moves back slightly in surprise and blinks rapidly for a second, then focuses all his attention on Nott while she speaks. He does not appear distressed or confused by the kiss, though he was taken off-guard by it initially. When she’s done speaking, he cups her face in his hand and says, “this will be our best trick yet.” No reference to the kiss, no question as to what she did or how she feels about him, and then they never fucking talk about it again. If one assumes this is their first kiss, that’s odd. Most people would react somehow if their best friend kissed them on the lips, no matter if their feelings were romantic or platonic. If you approach it with the idea that they used to be together and still care deeply about each other, it’s not a confession of feelings, it’s a callback to their shared past. Nott isn’t startling Caleb with the confession that she’s attracted to him, she’s simply reminding him where they started and who they are and were to each other. It fits in perfectly with her speech, thanking him for being devoted to her and spending all this time with her.

The meta angle: we know, almost certainly, that Sam and Liam did not plan for romantic widobrave since the beginning of the campaign. But as early as episode 25′s talks, Sam addresses that Nott’s feelings for Caleb are liable to change and morph as the show progresses (I direct you to this excellent video about nuance), so it’s possible this is around when he and Liam start considering pre-stream widobrave as a possibility--and it falls right before Keg’s assumption and all that it entails. Liam has said that during the course of the game, it’s not unusual for a player to come up with a bit of backstory that they hadn’t considered before and share it with Matt to be used later, so it’s entirely possible from a meta level. 

Caleb and Veth being in a former relationship would fit in with how they struggle to define their relationship in canon. (“he’s my boy and i protect him” “I don’t know what our family is” and “you’re not my....hmm....” all come to mind)

And really, wouldn’t it be exactly like Sam “no metagaming unless it’s funny” Riegel and Liam “this backstory is gonna hurt you so much” O’Brien to make widobrave retroactively canon and not tell anyone for as long as they can manage it.

(As a side note, I am not looking for a debate on the nature of Veth’s feelings towards Caleb. If you believe that Veth views Caleb as her son, you are free to do so, but please leave my post out of it, thanks).

[owner-of-wendys]

Me again. I wanted to let you know that even though the stuff I post is almost always related to SaveWOY, there are other properties that I wish would get the chance for true closure in addition to Wander Over Yonder.

Sonic the Hedgehog (SatAM) - What happened to it is basically similar to what happened to Wander. Like that downed space pod, Snively raring to take his uncle’s place and Naugus’s glowing eyes suggest one more season was planned out. Fortunately, a professional team of fans/artists, Team Sea3on, are taking care of it.

Sym-Bionic Titan - I saw somewhere that Genndy Tartakovsky had 10 more episodes planned out. I’m still wondering who rebooted Octus, what will become of Planet Galaluna, and if General Modula will ever be stopped.

Sly Cooper - The last game that was released, Thieves in Time, has the titular character winding up in ancient Egypt at the very end. It also featured the voices of Grey Griffin, Sam Riegel, and Fred Tatasciore - that makes 3 connections to Kid Cosmic. With Steve Blum, that makes 4 for WOY.

The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance. Need I say more?

That being said, if I were Gary Marsh, Bob Iger, or whomever was responsible for Wander’s misfortune, I would give Craig McCracken the perfect gift for his 50th B-day: a message that lets him know that he can work on S3 or a TV movie as soon as he’s done with Kid Cosmic, which I think will be late 2023, just in time for WOY’s 10th anniversary. One question remains. Does Disney even know why we want Wander back?

In closing, I recently made a Kid Cosmic micro-game with WarioWare: DIY.

Yeah, it’s sad that so many shows don’t get to resolve in a satisfactory way. But you’ll be glad to know Kid Cosmic won’t be one of them!

[grigori77]

Critical Role, Campaign 3 Episode 90

Nord VPN again ... so what this -- ah, I see ... Sam, you chaos gremlin ... yes, that's right, Samuel, you can't mess with these people ... Marisha: "I don't trust you, you piece of shit." Nor should you ...

Laura pronouncing EU as "ew" and Liam not quite getting it ... XD

Oh, so does this mean they really ARE splitting up for this part? Oof ... you know you're not supposed to DO THAT ...

Roll for which group goes first? Hmmm ... the bombers first, then ... okay ...

Ira you creepy fucker I swear I don't trust you as far as I can throw you ...

So ... it's a familiar familiarity then, Matthew?

Ashley sleight of hand Nat20? Awww ... and apparently she may just have given that old beggar a small fortune round here ...

The objective of the plan ... hmmm ... meanwhile it seems FCG may be grating on Ira's nerve some ...

Barking? Really? Probably not good ...

Perception check time ... hmmmm ... fancy insect skull ... viculch? Okay ... these things are MASSIVE ...

Oh crap ... Gloamglut? The fay dragon? Not a good sign ... Fearne's dad's close, clearly ...

Over to the other group? Okay ...

Sprawlgrotto? That is impossibly difficult to say, clearly ...

What to roll? Crap ...

Invisible shenanigans ... yup ...

Wow ... Marisha rolled SO SHIT for having advantage ... thank the gods for those Nat20s ...

Lots of myceit ... harvesting fungi? That's not, like, weirdly existentially odd for them?

Seriously, was Matt reading too much Dungeon Meshi when he came up with this stretch of the campaign?

Scry ball is pretty close now ... but still not EXACTLY where they're going ... O.O

Music? Interesting ... whoa! Street busking! Cool! A didgeridoo? Awesome ...

No way to know if they're under any casual observation ...

Awwwwww ... the twinsies continue to be so cute together ... :3

Con save for Chetney's flatulence ...

Okay, so ... are they close to their destination or what?

That is one HEAVILY GUARDED entrance ... any other ways in?

Awwww ... flirty witch girlfriend shenanigans ... I love them ... :3

Wow ... Matt's sexy pre campaign days on a t-shirt ... well done, Sam ... LOL

Already halfway though their invisibility? Not good ...

Whoa ... are they in the mad god's brain? Is this like Knowhere? Laura, your brain worries me sometimes ...

Ashley, what are you doing with that hood? :3

"Passing miners"? Congrats on dodging the Galaxy Quest ref there guys ...

So they're on high alert, then ... hmmmm ...

Uh-oh ... incoming ... and they're zeroing in on Ira ... great ...

"A dark armoured figure"? Crap ... shit! Zathuda? Balls ...

Weird ass Predator looking Hulk mofo ...

Sunder Lord? Interesting ... wait, so this might be the Sunder KING? Okay ... so this is Cruth, then ... the Reiloran big bad himself ...

Bollocks ... have then been sniffed out?

Everybody knows you don't give dogs chocolate! Even freaky alien ones!

Speak With Animals? Hmmmm ...

Oh for the love of the gods Sam, not again ... ewww ... and it's WET?!!! Come on Riegel!

Fearne is clearly DETERMINED for this thing to just be a GOOD BOY isn't she? I really DON'T think this is gonna work, Fearne!

I don't think that griffon meat's gonna work out, Ashton. It's WAY too old ...

Speak With Animals AND Command on the thing? Good luck with that, Letters ... or Fast Friends? Hmmm ... wow ... hope this is a good choice ... yeah, he Commands it to "GIT!!!!" And it works? Blimey ...

Wow, that was bloody close ... phew ...

HOLY FUCK did Ira just pull a Jedi mind trick on that guy? O.O

Flip flop, back and forth ... here we go ...

Cupped? Hmmm ... is that an "underboob" joke, perchance?

Yeah, I mean ... SURELY the rope itself would be invisible too since it was covered by the same spell ...

Spiderclimb PLUS Invisibility ... okay, here we go, then ...

Not NOTHER shite roll? Two 2s? Balls ... Marisha, WHY?!!!

Wow ... this has gone all kinds of Abbott & Costello ... oh thank the gods FINALLY a good roll ...

This plan keeps getting more and more convoluted and I love it ... LOL ...the stink of desperation is STRONG now ...

"Matt: "You're Batman-ing this! Like Adam West!" XD

I cannot believe that actually worked ... or did it? O.O

Oh yeah, OF COURSE they got spotted. That WAS a massive fuckup ...

Phew ... that was like SCARY close ... and NOW he checks for traps? Oof ... at least they're in ... so what now?

Aha! So Chetney could follow her scent? Cool ... oh WHAT?!!! A Cytaa? Is that HER Cytaa? Okay then ... Gona? Cute ... So yeah, this could work, then ...

Awww ... yeah, let her hide in Laudna's birdhous backpack! Yeah! Oh yeah ... yeah, better on their shoulders, rather than in there with Pate ... O.O

Time running out for Orym's Invisibility ... great ...

Back to the bombers, again ...

A new wall ... a "BLAST WALL?" Oh, that can't be good ...

Oh, so this is going to be a PROBLEM for them going forward?

Passwall? With the Staff? Would that actually WORK?

This shit is FIFTEEN FEET THICK?!!! Bloody hell ...

Oh, an Illusory spell? Yeah, that's best ... nice one, Ira. And now he's making will-o-the-wisp lights too ... FCG: "I don't know why I bother."

Some kind of seriously ugly drilling machine ... that thing is just NASTY ... 3 Reilorans and a Hulk? Hmmmm ... potentially risky ... is this gonna be a problem?

Oh, so THIS is gonna be the bombsite? Hmmmm ... good point, though ... they definitely need to deal with these guys too ... ah, so we're DEFINITELY doing this then ...

SIX big bombs ... of course ... why am I not surprised?

Time to fight, then ... AND THAT'S when we take a break? Of course it is ...

And we're back ... with the OTHERS again ... yeah, not really surprised ...

Chetney wolfs out in the dumbest possible way and I love it ... XD ... and somebody's coming ... great timing ...

"Wiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiinstoooonnnn ..." Yup ... way to creep Matt out, Travis ... XD

Now Matt's doing secret sneaky DM stuff ... O.O ... oh dear ...

Balls ... GUARDS ... and they're like TOTALLY blocking the way ... how to get through? Wait ... Chetney's going to use his TOYS to do this? How?

Wow ... the Master Toymaker did BEAUTIFULLY there ... way to go, Chet! And now they're through ... sweet!

Grim Psychometry ... ON THE CRYSTAL?!!! Really, Chet? This sounds like SUCH bad idea ...

Aha, so they're like ... Reiloran SCIENTISTS, then? Hmmm ...

Ah, so THIS is the Bay? OKay then ...

Organs? BABY organs? Eep ... O.O ... in general this is all REALLY CREEPY ...

Oh dear gods what the fuck is THAT THING?

Hunter's Bane? Yeah, do it, Chet ... no hits ... phew ...

A fucking JUDICATOR is being autopsied? Holy fuck ...

Ah ... so that's who they're looking for ... and she's IN THE VAT!!! Great ... still alive, but ... yeah, this is clearly pretty bad ...

And we're back in the dig ... AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!!!

CHARM!!! Yup ... and it WORKS!!! OKay ... oh, not on IRA though ... jump in front of him? Fearne, honey ... wow, I can't believe that worked ...

Okay, thats ONE down without a fight ...

Wow ... Ashton is, like, REALLY bad at Deception ... O.O

Wow ... Ira just set the timer while THIS SHIT'S going on ... oh fuck ... this is all going south SO FAST ...

Three minutes = one minute of game play ... oh boy ... rush it, guys!

Oh, so Ira is going to ABANDON ASHTON? Wow .., oh, no, THAT'S more like it ... the Juggernaut is now a SNAIL ... nice ...

And now they're running ... and having a jolly little convo while they're at it ...

BOOM ...

Dimension Door to the surface just as the bombs go off? Phew ... and now eveything is just CHAOS ... Fearne is FALLING!!! Shit! Oh, NICE SAVE, Ira! And now they're just BOOKING IT!!!

Fuck, this is gone all kinds of fucked ... wait, he wants to UNROLL THE HOLE, put Letters in it, roll it up again with him in it, and then RUN AWAY with it? That is one hell of a Hail Mary ... roll for Dexterity, then ... so that just HALVES THE DAMAGE ... oof ... and now he has to do a STRENGTH CHECK to see if he can HOLD ONTO THE HOLE?!!! Oh my fucking gods ... if this tanks they lose the Hole forever ... 16? Wow ...

That's a lot of dice for damage ... that is NEVER a good sign ... even half of THIS is gonna hurt ... and now he's SMILING ... 158 points of Force Damage? Holy shit ... even halved, that's stil 79 points each ... ouch ...

But at least they still have the Hole ...

And now 25 points of BLUDGEONING damage each ... oh boy ... is it over, at leaat?

Oh bollocks ... that FUCKING DRAGON again ...

Oh for fuck's sake ... flip flop AGAIN?

And the blast shakes the whole place EVEN HERE ... more chaos ... and the vat is CRACKED! Okay ... Orym goes for it, meanwhile Chetney just shouts out for an evacuation ... so that leaves just the Mystic AND the Shrike ... hmmm ...

Battlemap? Aha ... cue Wizzkids plug ...

Unsettling Presence? Cool ...

Invisibility definitely really helps with Stealth checks ...

Getting ready for a scrap ... and a timed attack ... okay, then ...

A SIXTH LEVEL Psychic Lance? Bloody hell, Imogen ... and now the Mystic is Incapacitated ... nice ... 29 points of SPsychi damage!

Orym Hexes the Mystic and goes for an attack ... it hits! Oh yeah, he is gonna FUCK THIS GUY UP ... 18 points! Action Surge! Yeah ... oh yeah, he just MURDERS that guy ... holy fuck ... and now he's going for the Shrike instead ... holy shit, tiny Battle Master is a BADASS ...

Laudna Banes the Shrike, then Chetney casts Blood Curse of Binding on it ... oh, the new Scythe! Sweet ... and it hits! 19 for the first hit, 17 damage for the second! Wow ...

And NOW it's time to roll Inititative ...

Nuts ... the Shrike's up first ... and it smashes the glass tank with the ... THING in it ...

Some kind of giant BUG ... OH MY FUCKING GODS what the hell IS THAT THING?!!!

Laura asks them to hold for a moment ... cue several folk singing Girl From Ipanema ... XD ... oh, sounds like a Hail Mary ... Synaptic Static? Whoa ... so that's both the Shrike AND that bug beast ... 25 points of Psychic damage each ... and it fucks 'em up for fighting, too ... PINK LIGHTNING? Awww ... that's cute! :3

Chetney casts Blood Curse of Bloated Agony on the beasty, then attacks with his Scythe ... and CRITS!!! Nice ... Double damage means 25 on each of the two hits! Yeah ... and then his scythe SHATTERS right away? Fuck ... unbelievable ... he just GOT THAT!!!

Orym jumps on the still prone Shrike and attacks again ... 10 damage, then 15 on the second, 13 on the third ... and he gets the HDYWTDT! Yeah ... ANOTHER murder!

Laudna skitters across the ceiling over it and casts Blight on the vidulch ... 8D8 of Necrotic damage? Nice ... 25 altogether? Pretty sweet ... then she Quickens and hits it with an Eldritch Blast ... first misses, but the next two hit! Yeah ...

The beasty's turn and it's GETTING UP ... oh this is UGLY ... but it's also HURT ... okay ... IT CAN MULTI-ATTACK?!!! I'm sorry? Oh yeah, this thing is just unleashing a big can of whoopass on EVERYBODY, innit? Wait, AND it has Corroding Spit? Seriously? Come ON Matthew! But apparently because it wasn't "done", it is also falling apart with each turn ...

Imogen blasts a Lightning Bolt right through it ... at 4TH LEVEL?!!! Wow ... 23 points of damage! Just send those dice to dice jail, Laura! She Quickens, then casts Shocking Grasp on it ... 21 more points! Yeah ...

CHetney RIPS HIS OWN EARS OFF to reveal flames as he casts Crimson Rite! Okay ... 26 points of damage, plus another 16 from the Rite ... HDYWTDT!!! Yes! He just tears the vidulch CLEAN OPEN and it just spills itself out all over him ... charming ... oh for the love of ... DON'T EAT THAT, Chet!

They break the vat open and release their intended rescuee ... yeah, get to healing, guys! So Evoroa is free, and awake, but definitely still HURT ...

Oh yeah, grab the Aeorian tech thingy, yeah ... into the Bag of Holding with it! And some fetus bottles for Laudna ... lovely ...

Oh wow ... so they just put the white hot masks DIRECTLY onto the Judicators' faces, huh? Charming ...

Checking in with the others ... back at the bomb site, then ...

Oh yeah, I would say that blast was a RESOUNDING success ... meanwhile Letters and Ashton are just DEAFENED right now ... great ... Fearn tries to getto them both now ...

Oh thank fuck they're back together again ...

Fuck ... the Red Glow? Not good ... and here comes the SCREAM!!! Fuck ... whatever that was it wasn't GOOD ...

Yeah, better beat a hasty retreat ...

Another explosion ... a PINK explosion? Great ... oh yeah, that was DEFINITELY LIliana ... and she's STILL ALIVE ...

Backtracking out through the builsing in a hurry ... thank fuck for Invisibility ... yeah, they BARELY make it out ...

Crap ... soldiers, just EVERYWHERE ... try another route, then ... yes, UP not down ... good thing for all the chaos, clearly ...

Boot the door! Yeah, here we go ... young half-elf? Hmmm ... just keep going! Yeah, balcony! Go! Oh ... well THAT'S a long way down ...

So apparently the scream was Liliana ... oof ...

DOWN!!! QUICK!!!

Phew ... they manage to make their escape into the city ...

Liliana (psychically): "Did she KNOW?!!!" Matt: "And THAT'S where we're gonna call it a night!" Cue CHAOS from the party ...

Fuck ... another exhausting session ...