#the way she loves Laudna y’all

[is-she-your-favorite]

Rewatching Laudna’s resurrection arc and when they were in that dark Whitestone dreamscape place, Imogen looked like she really wanted to try changing Laudna’s past if she could.

She would make sure the Sun Tree never happened to Laudna despite knowing the impact it would have on herself.

If Laudna never died at Whitestone, she would’ve never found her way to Gelvaan 30 years later and Imogen would’ve never used her powers to defend Laudna, thus never gaining confidence in her own powers.

Imogen would’ve resigned herself to a life where she’s alone with no Laudna, no Bells Hells. Where she’s still terrified of her own powers, her father keeps his distance from her and the townspeople treats her like shit.

She would willingly give it all up if it meant Laudna got to grow up and live a normal life…

[samcarter34]

Since people seem to once again be having trouble remembering the order of operations, let me just remind everyone:

The ability Laudna possesses to feed Delilah is Hunger of the Shadow. In the fight with Bor’dor, Laudna used that BEFORE Orym’s head nod. Bor’dor attacked them and her response was to do the thing she knew would give power to Delilah. Matt even makes the sound of Delilah’s heartbeat.

The spell she used after the head nod? Whither and Bloom. The same spell she later attacked Orym with, which isn’t even a warlock spell.

And speaking of the head nod, you want to know what’s it’s prefaced with? ‘Laudna you can do whatever you want.’ And Marisha responds by saying that Laudna is ‘barely present’ because she’s having ptsd flashbacks to all of the times something horrible happened to her and she couldn’t do anything about it. So she kills Bor’dor because it makes her feel in control of the situation.

And yeah, the 4SD where Liam says Orym thought Delilah might come back. Except y’all somehow took that and made it seem like he’s the one who shoved Laudna over the edge when what actually happened is that Laudna flung herself off it because betrayal is triggering to her.

And the sword. The sword which apparently wasn’t triggering enough that Imogen contemplating whether the Vanguard were good guys didn’t cause any reaction. Or for that matter, make her object to Ashton’s ‘this is permission statement.’ But she saw Orym wearing it, got uncomfortable and then all it took was one sentence from Delilah for her to decide to steal it. Delilah, who mutilated her, murdered her, has been possessing her for decades, and who basically held her soul hostage when BH wanted VM to resurrect Laudna. But what Delilah didn’t do? Tell Laudna to steal the sword.

I wasn’t around for campaign 1, but in campaign 2 I definitely noticed a trend that people who were all ‘I love women! Female characters rock!’ would, the second one of their alleged faves did something controversial (or just something they didn’t like) would find a way to shift the onus onto someone else so she could remain blameless. And that is definitely continuing this campaign, and if anything is getting worse (which, not to get into speculation, but I wonder if it’s because all of the female characters this go round are more traditionally feminine than last campaign.)

I think the reason Orym’s been getting raked across the coals so hard by certain parts of the fandom is actually because of this. Because Imogen’s repeatedly gone ‘what if the Vanguard have a point’ and Laudna agrees with everything she says, whereas Orym’s been pretty consistently ‘no, the murder cult that murdered my family are bad guys.’ And well, can’t go around admitting that our faves did something wrong.’

And so we have a situation where Laudna attacks Orym, but somehow that’s Orym’s fault because the possibility of Laudna doing something wrong ruins people’s lesbian cottegecore fantasy. But the thing is, that whole thing was all Laudna. She chose to listen to her first murderer when Delilah said ‘maybe it’s cursed’ and then she chose to blanket the room in magical darkness (sorcerer ability, not warlock) chose to cast an area of effect spell to destroy the thing Orym was using to sheath the sword (sorcerer spell, not warlock) and, upon hurting Orym, chose not to drop said darkness, which meant Orym couldn’t see who attacked him. And when she got caught, she tried to downplay what she did, tried to say that because she didn’t mean to hurt him it didn’t count, refused to apologize for actually hurting him, kept shifting her argument (and even low key got called out on it by Imogen when she asked Laudna why she’s want its power inside her if she thinks it’s so evil.)

There is an alternate universe where Laudna wakes Orym up and they have what probably would have been an intense discussion about the sword (and that might even have been what Marisha was aiming for before Delilah got involved) and THAT truly would have been the ‘both sides are equally right’ scenario, but that’s not what we got. And you can say Orym shouldn’t have taken the sword unilaterally (but somehow Laudna’s allowed to unilaterally steal and absorb it?) or that she’s being manipulated by Delilah, but the fact is that Laudna’s an adult and is responsible for her own decisions. Yes, Delilah is a powerful and malign presence that they all downplayed/ignored, but, to use Marisha’s addiction metaphor, making amends with those you’ve harmed is a part of recovery for a reason. Because ultimately, you are the one who did that. Yes, it does immensely suck for Laudna that she’s been handed the cards she has been, but it’s up to her to make the best play she can.

Wow this got long, but my overall point is that Laudna is a character with her own agency and makes her own decisions (well, Marisha makes them, but at this point y’all should know she’s not conflict averse and is willing to have her characters make controversial character choices). And really, take all that away, what’s left? How much onus can you take from a character before you might as well go look at a painting?

[quietblueriver]

Because I couldn’t get this out of my mind, some Southern Gothic fluff. Very minor spoilers for last night’s ep but this is almost entirely just them being soft witches in love.

-

Her hair is a tangled mess. It has been since that shitshow with the dead Paragon’s Call fuckers, but she’s had other things to worry about—ghost pirates and FCG and parleys and, if she’s honest, her girlfriend’s tits, which had caused her brain to stop in its tracks at least half a dozen times since Laudna had declared that she was “bringing out the girls” to help their cause.

Now, though, after an hour-long game of rollies she escaped only because Fearne flirted her way into the bony lap of her opponent, she’s staring at the results of Laudna’s attempt at braiding.

Her reflection winces back at her as she tries to untangle what she can with her fingers, turning her head side to side to take stock of the damage. She’s gonna need a comb.

“Shit. Fuck. Fuck it.”

“Alright, darling?”

Imogen looks up from where she has been wrestling with a knot to find Laudna in the doorway, crooked, concerned smile on her face as she hefts a small stack of blankets that they must have managed to scrounge up between the ship and their stock in the hole. Her top is still arranged for ghostly seduction, and Imogen lets her eyes wander appreciatively. Again.

She finds suddenly that she could give a shit about the comb stuck in her hair and pulls it, and a chunk of purple she doesn’t let herself think too hard about out (she’s been bald for fuck’s sake; what’s a little hair loss for love?), tossing them onto the small barrel by the mirror.

Three steps and she’s taking the blankets and cupping Laudna’s sharp jaw, kissing her softly in greeting. Laudna’s little sigh, the small, surprised noise she makes almost every time they do this, makes Imogen’s stomach flip as it always does, and she leans into the kiss, deepens it and then pulls away, drawing a whine.

“Hey there.” She lifts the pile of blankets. “Looks like y’all found some.”

“Yes.” Laudna clears her throat, face that deeper shade of purple Imogen tries to bring out as often as she can, and Imogen smirks, smug as can be, until Laudna rolls her eyes at her. “Oh, hush.”

“Don’t know what you mean, Laud. I didn’t say a word.”

“Your face said plenty, thank you.”

Imogen grins and kisses her again before turning to toss the blankets onto the bed.

“Can’t say I’m sorry ‘bout it.” She turns back and lets her eyes trail purposefully down Laudna’s neck, stopping at her chest and staying there. “It’s been real hard to focus today. Nice knowin’ I can fluster you a little, too.”

Laudna laughs disbelievingly, and Imogen raises an eyebrow.

“You sayin’ you wouldn’t have trouble focusin’ if I…” She undoes a button and Laudna’s dark eyes focus in on her fingers. “What did you call it? Bring out the girls?”

Her eyes are still pinned to Imogen’s hands, and she undoes another button, because she likes it when Laudna looks at her like this, wants Laudna to look at her like this, and there’s no reason now to pretend she doesn’t.

She offers a gloating, teasing, “Laud?”

Black eyes snap up, and she smirks again when Laudna pouts at her even as she flushes that pretty color. “Yes, well. There’s a bit more there to admire, dear, isn’t there?”

She’s working on this. On Laudna moving beyond a blustering veneer of self-confidence and learning to see herself at least a little bit like Imogen sees her. It’s not exactly a hardship, letting Laudna know how beautiful she is. The chiding voice inside her head had already shifted over the months before the market in Jrusar, moving from “she’s your best friend, Imogen” to “don’t ruin this, Imogen” to “it’s not the time, Imogen.” (She doesn’t think about the days when the voice had been nothing but a raging, screaming thing. She’d answered its call. She’d gotten her back.) Now, the voice says only, “Show her.”

So she does. She’s back in Laudna’s space quickly, hands gentle but sure as they make a home on her waist, and she catches her eye seriously, holds it.

“No, baby, I don’t think there is.” When Laudna’s smile wobbles into place, the quirk of her lips small but genuine, Imogen flexes her fingers and presses her own lips to the skin of Laudna’s neck, letting her tongue tease skin as she says, “Wanna show you how much I admire you later, if you want.” She pulls back with a graze of her teeth, and Laudna brings her hands around Imogen’s shoulders and kisses her with purpose, mumbling, “Yes, please,” as she winds her hands up into Imogen’s hair.

It’s then that she remembers the state of it, hissing as Laudna’s fingers get caught in a tangle. They’re gone instantly, as is the heat of the moment, Laudna’s cool palms cupping her cheeks as she apologizes and checks for injury, eyes roaming over Imogen’s scalp.

“I’m sorry, darling. Are you…” Fingers move back to her hair then, gently exploring, and Laudna bites her lip. “Oh dear. It’s my fault.”

Imogen doesn’t shake her head, doesn’t want to dislodge the hand still on her cheek, but she says, dismissive, “Nah. Just a long day. Quick comb and I’ll be right as rain.”

The purse of her lips tells Imogen exactly what she thinks of that explanation.

“It really is no big deal.” She turns her head to kiss gray skin, the smallest tang of ichor on her lips as she licks them distractedly and fights the urge to go back for more.

“Can I…would you mind if I…” Gentle black nails trace the skin of her temple as she tucks a lock of hair, blessedly free of knots, behind her ear. “Would you like help brushing it out?” She adds hastily, before Imogen even has a chance to breathe out her obvious and immediate yes. “I understand if not. After all, it is my fault it’s like this in the first place.” Her mouth is pulled tight at the corners, eyes squinted in worry, and Imogen places a kiss at the corner of one, stretched onto her toes to reach.

“Thanks. That would be great.”

Laudna is, of course, gentler than Imogen would ever be with herself. She produces some herbs from somewhere, busying herself at the basin before she returns. They’re far enough away from the others that she doesn’t think much before she takes off the circlet, sitting it gently on the table near the bed and sighing into the sound of Laudna’s thoughts, the musical hum of them.

“I could work around it, darling.”

It’s nice, hearing you. If you don’t mind.

Laudna’s smile reaches across her face, delighted, and Imogen feels it, stomach flipping at the surge of affection. I love having you here. Stay as long as you’d like.

She kisses her then, chaste with the barrier of their smiles, before situating herself on the floor. As it turns out, it’s too fucking cold, so Imogen reclines, propped between Laudna’s knees on the bed, which is much better anyway. The angle is a little awkward but they mess around with a few pillows and blankets until it works, and then Laudna’s hands are in her hair, gently working whatever she made through tangles.

“Smells good.”

Laudna hums, pleased. “Rosemary.”

“Mmm.”

She gets lost for a bit, in the feel of Laudna’s fingers on her scalp, the rhythm of the brush, the lilt of her thoughts. She lets them wash over her, beautiful but fleeting, and avoids processing details as much as she can.

Laudna is so gentle with Imogen, whispered apologies with every knot, occasional internal rebukes loud enough to break through the general flow of her thoughts. Imogen soothes those as best she can, stopping the brush to plant a kiss on Laudna’s wrist, a none of that, darlin’ paired with the press of her lips. It seems to work, mostly, thoughts of gratitude that Imogen doesn’t deserve but doesn’t challenge for the moment replacing the self-criticism.

Imogen wonders, not for the first time, what Laudna’s life would’ve been like if she’d been given all the love she deserved right from the start. She thinks of a little girl who never learned to braid, lonely and strange and kinder than anyone deserved. Beautiful and familiar.

Imogen can’t help her, but she can love Laudna. She will love Laudna.

“You know,” she says, eyes closed and as casually as she can, “I could teach you how to braid. If you’re interested.”

The rhythm of the brush stops just for a moment before it continues, Laudna’s voice, small, answering, “I think I’d like that. Thank you.”

She reaches back for a hand, kisses knuckles and fingertips until Laudna is giggling and then she presses her mouth to palm, to deep purple veins on a fragile and perfect inner wrist.

“My pleasure, darlin’,” she says as she tilts her head back to catch deep black eyes. “I think you’ll look real pretty with a braid.”

Laudna blushes, catches Imogen’s fingers and brings them to her own mouth, drops a cool kiss to the back of her hand. Imogen closes her eyes again as Laudna resumes brushing and relaxes into the bed beneath her.

[lexmakeshit]

To anyone saying that Orym has the more trauma than Laudna I just want to say you’re wrong. Yeah Ludinus’ cult attacked his home and otohan murdered his father and husband then killed him and his friends but I’m sorry Laudna was tricked by Delilah then beaten to death and hung from a tree as a warning and then spent 30 years alone with in the woods with the disembodied spirit of her murderer living in her head. Was Murdered by Otohan as a threat to Imogen then forced to relive her trauma and then woke up in the same place as when she was first killed and now Otohan is the reason her friend is dead. If we are gonna play trauma olympics she is by far the winner

Girly has been constantly going through shit the entire campaign and has been in and out of a downward spiral since the airship fight of course she is starting to lose it. Y’all could get how Liliana was brain washed by years under ludinus but can’t understand how Delilah has so deeply fucked up Laudna sense of reality that her actions are in her mind perfectly logical because all she cares about is Imogen and Delilah who is both a master manipulator and been in her head for 30+ years is using that to gain power.

I also want to point out that laudna is the last member of the group other than Dorian to have given in to a potentially corrupting influence for more power in this fight and to protect the people they love. Imogen gave in partially to predathos and got exhalted, Chet got training from the gorgenyi and gave into his inner wolf and made a deal with nanna morri, fearne and Ashton both absorbed a part of a titan and fearne made a deal with champion of asmodeous, orym made a deal with nanna morri and FCG literally gave into his inner rage and blew himself up to save them. So Laudna has spent the last few weeks watching all her friends make deals and give in for power and now that she is doing the same to protect the person she loves most in the world after watching them barely win and lose someone despite everything they have done to get more powerful she is getting shit for it.

I totally agree that laudna shouldn’t have have done what she did but orym shouldn’t have made a unilateral claim on any of the Otohan stuff so close to FCGs death especially without the group having had a chance to talk or process at all and I can totally understand how Delilah has manipulated laudna to the point that she believes that what she is saying is true.

I wanna say I am by no means hating on Orym I am just really not a fan of the way Laudna is be treated like some evil manipulative abuser when she actually a very traumatised person who is struggling in a manner very similar to someone fighting a addiction while being constantly re-traumatised which is being essentially ignored.

I genuinely love all of the characters in C3 and actually have a lot of thoughts about them particularly as allegories for the spectrum of disability and how poetic and heartbreakingly beautiful and complex they all are as characters and a group. I just have been getting really frustrated at the lack of nuance being used by some folks for a group that is deeply morally grey and some folks seeming lack of ability to assess multiple perspectives in a campaign that is all about multiple perspectives and what makes someone the good or bad guys.

Sorry for the rant I might delete this later and make what might be a more coherent post when I am more calm and it’s not so late at night but I just needed to get my thoughts out.

[dragonflame36]

I love the CR community but my god y’all take shit way to seriously. The whole Laudna being worried about Imogen thing was clearly just a joke, Laudna wasn’t acting like serious Laudna she was acting like old chaotic Laudna. The amount of people I’ve seen be oh my god this is unhealthy, she doesn’t trust Ashton who’s next. If you rewatch last nights episode you’d see Marisha didn’t know they left and didn’t know where they were going or what they were doing.

To me Marisha was role playing herself missing all that information that’s it. So from Laudna’s POV Ashton and Imogen just disappeared and she doesn’t know where they went or even knew they were leaving. Genuinely it’s not that serious, I’d like to remind all you this is is a game and this is IMPROV not everything is some elaborate scene with tons of subtext some of it is just comedy and stuff they do for fun.

Also Laudna isn’t being any different towards Imogen, she’s always been extremely protective flash back to her threatening Ashton if anything happened to her and flash back again when she said she’d murder literally everyone if something happened to Imogen. Their relationship is really no different at all and some of y’all are just being weird and trying to find weird things where there is none.

There is only so much time and the amount of people going OMG no one’s talking, like yes not everything will be talked about, having a 5 hour session of nothing but 1-1’s would be fun for us the cast not so much. They’ve only been reunited for really like 5 episodes and 3 of those have had 2 hour long combat encounters there has been no time really for insanely long conversations. We’ll get some conversations eventually but y’all got to be fucking patient.

Lastly Marisha didn’t get this relationship sprung on her Matt confirmed on talks that Marisha and Laura have discussed Imogen and Laudna’s relationship. Matt said Marisha was shocked it happened then and there because she didn’t know it was coming but Matt even said Marisha probably knew about Imogen’s feelings so can we please also put that to bed that Marisha has had zero idea about a possible Imogen/Laudna romance.

[brakken]

it’s 3 am and I need to talk about critical role

spoilers for campaign 3, episode 65 below the cut

So I haven’t been keeping up with the latest campaign as much lately (and still have to watch the second half of this ep, even) - but, y’all, I can’t sleep and I gotta talk about that kiss.

I loved how... simple it was, compared to other moments in the show of this type of affection. There’s Imogen & Laudna, doing grocery shopping - just a homely good deed for someone else - such a domestic and safe moment despite the world in the state it’s in, and that’s where Imogen is able to properly reunite with Laudna. To acknowledge that she’s hurting, yes - and also, in this crowded place where Imogen’s now free of all the outside thoughts, to express an inner feeling in a simple, wordless way. 

That kiss was so filled with reassurance, commitment, and unshakeable love - but it was also as if for Imogen it was just the natural course of action. An emotion so impossible to express by just talking. A universal confirmation for the both of them - ‘we’re together again’.

And there was no ceremony, there was no... acknowledgment in that moment that what they’ve had uptil now had changed at all - they just kept communicating, and untangling. And Laudna follows up with another kiss, almost midway through a sentence - with that same reassuring truth that they were together.

This was so perfect for my experience with them - they’d made such an easy pairing from the get-go, but in the ‘pacing’ that the story had set out, I was beginning to think that it wasn’t going to unfold romantically. I’d made my peace with that, but was still so very appreciative of the bond they had - beyond any classification of friendship or family or whatever - they were so committed to each other. And then this kiss was almost like.... part of that? As if it was never really missing - like they’ve just skipped the ‘romance’, you know? Already on that soul-mate stuff that was so present from the start.

These are the kinds of pairings that really stay with me - the ones I aspire to write about myself. The undying, unquestioning truth of ‘I’ll never leave you’, expressed so purely.

And I say they skipped the romance, but I still want to acknowledge Marisha’s little jokey aside about her intention to create an unromanceable PC this campaign. A cold, creepy witch woman. And how despite that, everyone - the audience, the cast, and the characters - have all so readily and easily fallen in love with her in some way or another. It speaks to how well she performs Laudna, and also how much Laudna deserves that love. Because while it was an out-of-character comment, the idea of Laudna feeling the same - of having created this haunting idea of herself over the years, of having experienced such pain and exclusion, and still shining through despite herself, to inspire others to give back all the love she puts forward. For all the ways that she sees herself as broken, and undeserving, there’s Imogen, to show her that isn’t so.

Then on Imogen’s side, again, that desire to communicate what she’s feeling without words - without thoughts. Imogen doesn’t fully know, can’t know, can’t hear what Laudna has been through, and to have that be both frightening but also freeing - to be separate from everyone and everything, even someone you love, and then to actively and mutually reconnect - to remake that bond.

And there wasn’t need for flowery descriptions, or have it as the ending note of the episode - there wasn’t this intent to focus on ‘oh Laudna’s lips feel clammy at first but then warm to Imogen’s touch,’ or anything. Because it wasn’t what they were focusing on, either. It wasn’t about how it made them feel on that physical level - it was everything else. The kiss was simple, and with its simplicity it brought a million complex feelings into momentary order.

Anyway, it’s late, or early, but just had to write a bit - get some of my own thoughts out of my head.

As I’ve been typing this, I’m reminded of a song - ‘Signal Fire’ by Snow Patrol - it feels right for Imogen & Laudna, I think.

[critter-genfic-events]

Laudna: A Critical Role Gen-fic Rec List

Well hello friends! Please enjoy these six amazing fics that are all about our favorite Sorlock, Laudna! Oh, and don't forget to show the authors some love if you liked their work!

i let it turn me 'round by pigflight (1724,General) Content Notes: none Pairings: Laudna & Imogen Temult

Imogen hasn’t known Laudna for that long, but even with her limited experience she can tell that Laudna’s been jumpy. Well. Jumpier than usual.

Reccer says: It's extremely cute and does a very good job with Laudna's fun-scary voice

weigh me down by Zofiecfield (1664,General) Content Notes: none Pairings: Ashton Greymoore & Laudna, Laudna/Imogen Temult, Laudna & Imogen Temult

When Laudna comes back from the dead, she is unmoored. Too light, too empty, too far from her own skin.

Reccer says: It's tender and poetic

may the gods help us by Zofiecfield (1959,Teen) Content Notes: None Pairings: Laudna & Imogen & Ashton, background Laudna/Imogen

Laudna and Imogen go to Ashton for some strength training

Reccer says: It's cute and funny!

if I can keep faith with you (we might make it through the night) by SeaWitchDreams (21750,Teen) Content Notes: Emotional manipulation Pairings: Cassandra de Rolo & Laudna, Delilah Briarwood & Laudna

An AU where Delilah raises Laudna as her daughter

Reccer says: I love the way it puts Laudna's characterization in a different, chilling concept - especially when paired with Cassandra's more grounded personality.

The raven and the corpse by PumpkinPieTimb (4133,Teen) Content Notes: None Pairings:Laudna & Vax'ildan (Critical Role), The Raven Queen & Vax'ildan (Critical Role)

In which the champion of the raven queen finds a living corpse that looks a lot like his sister

Reccer says: I liked it

don't leave me now, don't leave me now by pigflight (2521,Teen) Content Notes: Canon-typical Laudna meanness to Pate Pairings: Pâté de Rolo & Laudna

Bells Hells get Launda and Pate to talk it out amongst themselves

Reccer says: It starts off laugh out loud funny and then gets deep into Laudna's underlying issues in a very satisfying and cathartic way.

If you liked this rec list, follow along for more! We'll be posting a new list with a new theme each Monday. And if you would like to make a rec yourself, feel free to reach out to @professor-rye to request access to the submission form! 

Next week, we'll be presenting gen fics focusing on Worldbuilding! I hope y’all are as hyped about that as I am!

[alloutofgoddesses]

C3 E50 - It’s the middle of the semester so I have no free time ever and I’m reconsidering all of my life choices leading to this moment

Gale!

Fun fact I tried watching this last night and only got about an hour and half in when I realised I was way too tired and distracted so I turned it off

Jester I miss you

NOPE vibes

Why is Liam so little

Off topic but anybody else have a grey cat? I have a nearly 11 month old grey feline and I would love to know if they’re all Like This or if mines a special (basket) case

Aahhhhhhhh oh my god I’m so happy for Imogen

Planning is an essential part of DND but guess what. I am not paying attention to a whole lot of it unless I myself am planning

RIP Silver Sun? I don’t understand why this is necessary oops

Travis bud when was the last time you got your eyes checked

Fly in studio AGAIN (why are there so many flies in the Critical Role studio)

Miss your merk

…and I guess I’m done with my tea now thanks Hermes

Gnome sinkholes

Also there’s no way they’re coming back with a better ship lol

Laura please don’t do math problems

Keyleth I love you

Nothing bad is going to happen, this plan will go as expected

Awww Fearne gave Ashton a forehead kiss

Shout out to Travis for continuing to wear the sweat bands

Oh boy oh boy

I love seeing Travis “Aabria was only scared of me” Willingham in his element

My tummy feels weird lol… idk why this isn’t very high stakes at all

Hello who are you

Scary Laura scary Laura

Okay but how “high up” is Lilliana for that to work

Oof buddies

Oh hey I own those sweatpants

Just filibuster, that’ll stop the apocalypse from happening

Don’t look at your wife like that Matt

Oh no - I feel like it’s a bad idea to run

Does Travis need the sweatbands because I think I do

WEREWOLF TIMEEEW

OH THAT’S VERY BIG

Get em Laudna

How much attention do we think this combat is drawing. Also who’s hiding in the tent

Casual Lizzo ref

Bye Ashton

The warder is gonna die via electrocution!

Is it Otohan or her mom

AH SHIT I WAS RIGHT ABOUT SOMEONE BEING IN THE TENT

Wait a minute wait a minute wait a minute

Fingers crossed fingers crossed this is a blorbo from our shows

This has to be someone very dexterous

That’s monk shit right that has to be monk shit

THATS EXPOSITOR BEAUREGARD LIONETT

Me too Liam

Ashley I love you - try your absolute damndest please

That’s my second favourite Critical Role lesbian!!!!!!

ASHLEY SHE IS SO HOT

That’s Beau!!

THAT’S MY BABYGIRL

ME TOO LIAM!!!!!!

Multi-campaign crossover!!!!!!!!!

ME TOO DANI

In the words of Liam AND Aabria, what’s sexier than wizards? NOTHING

Oh Caleb is so respectful I love hims

Yeah you have baby

Probably Beau 😬

I would love to see Beau and Caleb in Vasselheim

Hey it’s her!

Very excited for the people who woke up Devexian to meet FCG honestly

Awww where’s the rest of the Mighty Nein

- Who didn’t make it out? I would like to know Caleb

When is Chet gonna become small again. I feel like it’s gonna make Beau laugh

Ashton has been silent the entire time 🧐

Ashton bby speak up ask questionssss

Which of his romantic partners is he referring to

Oh shit third wizard?

Yeah Travis the meta levels are out of this world

There’s Ashton hi buddy

Ajshshsjaj BEAU

I want Ashton and Beau to be passive aggressive together PLEASE

Be careful with that fourth wall it doesn’t look super stable right now

Okay but I would prefer if we move forward with the full team here

Desperately want Beau and Caleb to meet FCG

[THEY] XANDIS IS THEY REMEMBER PRONOUNS MARISHA

Ah goddammit. See y’all next week

[essie-s]

YES! i’m gonna get into unpopular opinion territory here so apologies, but i’ve been marinating this in my head for a bit.

in my opinion, the BEST thing for both their stories would be for imogen’s affections to be unrequited, leading to the two of them achieving a more balanced friendship. this isn’t to stamp on imodna shippers, i have no problems with y’all or the ship. but the reality is that laudna is imogen’s everything. imogen has been so lonely and so neglected her whole life, and suddenly, here’s laudna! the perfect best friend and surrogate sister, auntie, and dare i say, mother figure. imogen gets her safety and her confidence from laudna. laudna is a protector and a caretaker, she showers imogen in love and affirmations and she knows when imogen needs support. this is what imogen has been denied for as long as she can remember, ever since lilliana left. of course she’s going to be dependent on laudna; anyone would be. and of course she’s going to fall deeply in love with laudna; who wouldn’t.

but laudna can’t be everything. she shouldn’t be. laudna has lost her whole world multiple times over. she’s hanging on by a thread, scared of her own existence. so is imogen, in her own fucked up way. they’re both balanced precariously on their own cliffs…and if one of them falls, the other has nothing left to stop them from falling too.

imogen needs to have a support system, not a support person. she deserves to have people in her life who can all help her differently…who can all love her differently. she’s always put her worth into one basket; first her mother, then laudna. the greatest growth she can have is to learn to stand on her own two feet, with many people around her to fall back on should she need it. laudna: her best friend, her sister from another mister. bell’s hells: her family, her crew. and someday down the road, a lover to call her own.

let these two witches heal and grow together, but not as one.

After getting to watch Imogen and Laudna exist as characters without each other, I’m not really looking forward to potentially going back to their codependency sideshow.

[mockingmolly]

I adore the “I deeply love imogen” clarification and the whole conversation leading up to it so much y’all. Love is so damn complicated and the more people try to neatly divide platonic and romantic love into two different categories (especially when the definition is judged between arguably neutral acts of affection and dedication,) the blurrier those lines get. Neither is worth more than the other, but our very allonormative society tries to push that it is. The fact that Laudna took an answer initially about romance and immediately clarified “I don’t think I’ve ever been in love, but I do deeply love imogen” as if they were equal things in her mind was so refreshing to see in my opinion.

And as an aspec, the answer also felt so much like a question of “wait, what is romance anyway? Could I love imogen romantically? What’s the difference, if my dedication-to and adoration of her is the same regardless? Does it matter?” Like, maybe I’m just projecting, but I know I’ve faced those questions so many damn times growing up, and rarely do I have a clear-cut answer. The narrative society pushes is usually that unless a love is definitively romantic (or familial, to a lesser extent) then it doesn’t get a seat at the table. Two people can’t truly be dedicated to each other unless it’s a romance; there’s no possible way that physical or vocal affection can mean anything but romantic attraction if you’re not related to the other person, nor can it be anywhere near as meaningful. And if a love blurs between the lines of romantic and platonic? Well, you better pick a side and stick with it, because “both” doesn’t exist.

The whole conversation about romance and what laudna contributed to it was meaningful to me because it wholly acknowledged that the line is blurry. Maybe there is romance between them and maybe there isn’t. It seems to be a question that is at least being considered. But regardless, Laudna says “I’ve never been in love” and corrects herself, because maybe it isn’t strictly romance  but she does love imogen, and their love for each other is no less profound for not fitting a neat cookie-cutter category. They question romance, and the conclusion that they reach is “I don’t know, but it’s okay because they’re equal regardless.”

[spookydicks]

We already know that this cast is SUPER talented, but the last two weeks REALLY SHOWS THAT.

Just last week, the cast were portraying a completely different set of characters. And this week, they easily reverted back to their old character from c2. Not only are is the energy different, but the physicality is different as well. LETS LOOK CLOSER SHALL WE???

Marisha:

Of course we’re starting with my current gorl. It’s me, we’re talking about here. Now Laudna, laudna laudna laudna. She’s kind, theatrical, eccentric, is definitely a theatre kid, a creative outcast, easygoing and excitable. “Fun scary” of you will. Marisha is a genius at truly becoming her character. Laudna’s wide eyes, creepy yet cute smiles, witchy hands, playing with her hair, crafting, etc…. only adds to that. Of course there’s the voice. The transatlantic accent that plays in my head rent free. The voice that changes pitch based on her mood and of course who can forget the sing songy way she says things…….. BEAU on the other hand is blunt, sarcastic, “a simple girl with simple needs”, cynical, and a self professed “asshole.” Her deeper voice, the way she sits, and her mannerisms emphasize this personality.

Laura:

Next up, everyone’s favorite anxious southern horse girl and sugar loving leetle bloo tiefling. Imogen is always holding herself back. She’s introverted, sold spoken, and considerate (as in not wanting to hear anyone’s thoughts without consent). This shows in her body language. She slouches (??) into herself, making herself smaller, but isn’t afraid to let it all out. Her southern accent links with this as well. On the other, jester is the embodiment of chaotic cuteness. Her Eastern European accent varies in pitch as she speaks, emphasizing this. Her body language is bright to go along with what she says, same thing with using her hands.

Travis:

From having the party braincell to being part of the shenanigans. Our favorite captain is direct, cool, and rational, uses his leadership qualities in his body language and voice (both southern and the irl voice), as in when he stopped the fluffernutter plan. Then, CHETNEY, our favorite semi horny werewolf man, is a bit of a grumpy and stubborn old man who’s also a wild card. His voice is just like a gnome version of Carl Fredrickson from Up. And we love that.

Sam:

Now onto Sam’s characters: Veth and FCG. Veth is extremely motherly to her party and ti her family, but is also one third of the chaos crew and is incredibly eccentric. That shoes in her body language, such as being all jumpy when she first met Twiggy amongst other things, and in the voice, being higher pitched and semi British(??). FCG on the other hand, is kinda like a complete 180. He’s overly kind, helpful and a therapist, even if he’s still learning how to be said therapist. They’re trying y’all. Voice wise, of course he’s got that Jack Mcbrsyer southern accent. Like, to someone he doesn’t like, they’d definitely be like “bless your heart” passive aggressively you can’t tell me otherwise

Ashley:

Oh Ashley. Ashley, Ashley, Ashley. You finally get to show the chaos. For Yasha, she’s way more into herself and thinks before she says anything. Also having half of the parties new cell doesn’t hurt either. The voice Ashley uses for Yasha is deep but also soft to show the softer, more domestic and calmer parts of her. While Fearne is no thoughts, head empty only chaos. She says what she wants, no matter how awkward it may be. She has no filter. “Sleep if for the dead. Oops.”, anyone? Fearne’s voice is as if a Disney princess wasn’t so Disney.

Liam: Now onto Caleb and Orym. Our favorite little guy has the braincells in the group. He’s responsible, level headed and the defacto “straight man”. Orym’s voice is pretty similar to Liam’s own, but the character still comes across in the acting. The most obvious examples are all the times where he acts out that he’s a little guy. (Breaking the sandwiches into quarters, curling up on fearne’s legs, etc).

Caleb, is the opposite. He’s withdrawn, has a whole lot of mental health issues, self loathing, etc), reserved, and the definition of an introvert. This goes into his voice and mannerisms. He speaks very quietly in a German accent and fades into the background in some scenes, for lack of a better word.

Taliesin: Now Ashton and Cadences. *We don’t really know a lot about Kingsley’s personality but my point still stands using Cad* Out of These two are TOTAL OPPOSITES. Ashton’s “cranky “ and “unpleasant”. They care for the rest of the hells in his own way. That comes across in the body language and voice as it to say “I don’t really give a shit”. that’s probably phrased weirdly but you get what I mean. Our favorite firbolg uncle on the other hand, is kind, laid back, blunt, dedicated, and is indeed the “mom” friend of the group. This comes through in the mannurisms Voice wise, Taliesin adds a bit of a gravel(?) to the voice that I can’t help but love.

This might just my theatre kid/actor brain but this cast is just. so talented omg

[demigoddessqueens]

(This request is based loosely on some family drama of mine. I hope this is okay!! Totally get it if you are not comfortable with this,) Maybe like Caleb, Essek , Fjord, Dariax, Kingsley , Vexahlia, Pike, Keyleth, Vax, Percy, Grog, Scanlan, Chetney, Imogen, Dorian, Ashton, Laudna, Jester, Beau, Yasha, FCG , Fearne, Opal, and Orym with a S/O who has a scummy family member trying to reach out to them. Something bad happened to another family member maybe. Like they find them and try to make a scene and have a very two-faced personality (narcissist big time.) The S/O is defiantly just done with their bull shit and tired of the shit their completely spewing. Honestly drained with the situation, how would they stand up for their s/o?? How would they tell that asshat to fuck off???

Oh anon I’m so sorry you’ve been having a bad time. Fuck all to those, and curse em too if they give you shit!

Caleb - he’s disgusted and ashamed for you especially since he would give anything to have his parents back; not afraid to threaten or intimidate with his fire

Essek - not impressed in the slightest and feels bad for you, will not hesitate to verbally scathe someone

Fjord - that sometimes flustered and shy exterior just melts away, your warlock isn’t afraid to call someone out and the intimidating presence only adds to his words

Dariax - oh this will not stand!! Will not hesitate to yell at a bitch while having his hand on your waist

Kingsley - completely put off by the act and lets a bit of his Mollymauk slip through

Pike - tries to get you away from the drama while yelling at them “what are you looking at???!!!… dick”

Vex’ahlia - snarky and scathing with her arrows pointing back, “step off bitch”

Vax’ildan - ticked off and escorts you away, while sending a flying dagger and Simon as a warning

Grog - takes him a moment to realize but is more upset for you, keeps his axe more in plain sight

Percy - simmering anger with cutting remarks, while keeping the pepperbox more in open sight

Keyleth - casts a pesky swarm that relentlessly pesters them

Chetney - morphs into werewolf form to knock, and scare, some sense into the others

Imogen - has a whole “fuck around and find out” mentality with her magic and getting into their head

Yasha - her intimidating presence and stare down scares them enough and they just don’t mess with you at all; later she gives you a comforting hug

Opal - is just blunt as heck, “me and my sister have our issues BUT AT LEAST we work them out!!”

FCG - is so put off by the rudeness he loses his cool for a minute; “I do NOT wish you a smiley day! Ought to be ashamed of yaself”

Beau - sarcastic but gets her point across; “all that steam you blew up their ass…y/n deserves better than you”

Orym - taken aback and insulted, a loved one treats you this way?? That he couldn’t fathom

Dorian - he’s had his fair share of issues with his brother but this is a new low; is exasperated and passive aggressive with family member but constantly checks up on you later

Ashton - blunt as heck and DGAF; “what the fuck is up with y’all??!”

Laudna - contorts herself into a horror spectacle that has them shaking, but only gives the most passive aggressive remark

Jester - will not hesitate to yell at them and then tries to get you away from that mess; “MY mom will treat y/n better than you 😠”

[arclundarchivist]

SPOILERS FOR EPISODE 19 OF CRITICAL ROLE.

Turn, ye back from whence you Came! If of course the latest episode has escaped ye!

Sho!

Final Warning!

Episode 19 or How I’m gonna call it…

“Hey…what da Moon doin?”

So…Ruidus, Roody, Little Red…what the FUCK are you?!

It’s got an Atmosphere? It might be more similar to a gas giant in form?

It’s behind Imogen’s powers, it’s covered in storms!

What IS IT?!

Estani’s description and info dumb got me thinking about so much now like.

It causes children to be born before their actual due date??? That’s a lot more active in the world than previous information has implied!

Drassig being a “Ruidis-Born”, a curious thing but a tyrant centuries dead ain’t what I’m worried about right now. Got more recent tyrants to keep an eye on!

*Glares at Delilah and Lucien*

Then you’ve got Alyxian, but eh, we already got that story in Netherdeep. Not gonna go hunting into him.

The Raven Queen though….you mean the goddess most focused on the threads of fate and was deeply intrigued by Vax “Fate-Touched” ‘ildan? The one who recently had a Planar Refugee shatter a remnant of her former identity? She’s tied to the “Moon of Ill Omen”? Supposedly, get outta here with maybes old man!

But what is Ruidus actually, like if it plays it’s hand in the birth of “important” not cursed or ill-fated, but people that *have* to be born what is it truly.

Ryn and Estani remark on it not fitting properly into the Planar net, that it acts as if it had a Will of its own. It likely does have a Will of its own.

But then Estani mentioned it being a Way-station and that peaked a whole other level of interest in me.

Like was he referring to other Prime Materials or visitors from other planets in Matt’s verse?!

And then…then the figures emerging within the Storm. Malevolent figures, shadowy figures in a realm of red, black and screams.

My conspiracy brain is still shouting about the Somnovem, but you say there were Nine you say, and Matt spoke in intervals of 8 and 10!

Well! A creature named Ira, calling themselves the Nightmare king is galavanting around the Feywild. And the Somnovem Ira talked about being killed to be born anew…*So*

And if there are Ten, well…doesn’t Lucien make Ten?

In truth it is likely a different entity, what I don’t know yet. But I’m intrigued. I’m also curious to know what would have happened if Imogen used the Gnarlstone?

She’s changing…her markings are growing and have been. And the Stone, it helps growth, it inspires change. So what…would it do to Imogen???

Excited for the heist, Orym, Fearne and Laudna comforting Imogen was very sweet.

Orym talking about not running anymore while staring at the moons, the implication he’s acknowledging his own flight. His own ties to misfortune. His own, though much less metaphysical ties to the Little Moon.

BUT. Laudna! Miss “I would murder everyone around me if someone hurt you!”

You need to come to terms with the depth of love you have for Ms. Imogen! Cause I ain’t having this “What a good friend” thing for much longer!

But also…maybe tone down on the slaughter for love thing cause you’re starting to sound like the crazy bitch in your skull.

PS: Any of y’all remember when folks thought Fjord was from the Moon??? Don’t know if that still holds up XD

[kingofterrors]

Imogen in CR 3 Episode 2

So to preface...

I love Imogen a normal amount. Yup. Nothing to see here.

With that out of the way, let me shower upon you some of my favourite moments and dialogue snippets from Ep 2 that I think show us some interesting stuff about our favourite pastel sorcerer.

Timestamps are for the Twitch VOD.

01:24:05 - How to keep secrets, Laudna-style LAUDNA: Imogen and I don’t talk to anyone. IMOGEN: [wistfully] No…, not really. ASHTON: You two seem like you have a really good thing going on. You should… you should keep that up. It seems nice. LAUDNA: [wide grin] It’s pleasant.

In this exchange, Laudna shows no signs that she minds ‘not talking to anyone’. The loneliness that she mentions a little later isn’t a factor, it seems, when she has Imogen in her life. Imogen, on the other hand... seems less happy about it. She and Laudna have clearly been keeping their distance from people for a while, and that’s a painful thing.

01:25:35 - The Morality of Working for Lord Eshteross IMOGEN: So we’d be the good guys?

This is interesting to me, because Imogen doesn’t seem to be asking this for reassurance. Her tone comes across as just looking for clarification. She just needs to know what they’re getting into. If Eshteross had said no, they would need to be the bad guys every once in a while, would she have turned down his offer? I’m not convinced she would have...

 01:27:26 - Public Spaces         In response to ‘talking things over’ immediately being equated by Ashton to ‘more drink’ IMOGEN: [shifts uncomfortably] Taverns, huh?

We know Imogen’s not happy being in crowds or busy places, and this is just more evidence to back that up. Nor is this only an issue when she’s overreached with her powers either. This was before she opened herself up a little too much at the warehouse. Imogen just doesn’t like the busyness and loudness of your average tavern, full stop.

01:35:11 - Bertrand’s ‘Betrayal’ IMOGEN: You all right, Dorian? DORIAN: Hm? IMOGEN: Y’all right? DORIAN: A little… still a little… He was, uh… Right? And then with the… boom! IMOGEN: [to Bertrand, sharply now] So that was all just a test – you, you brought us in there just to… to have him fuck with us? And you didn’t warn us that he was gonna fuck with us?

Imogen has been pretty mild-mannered up to this point, with the exception of the moments when Laudna’s been at risk, or when she’s been particularly frustrated. Now, though, we see some real sharpness from her. Bertrand treated the whole group in a very shitty way, and she’s absolutely willing to pull him up for it. Her body language whenever Bertrand talks says a lot too. She simply doesn’t trust a word that comes out of his mouth. She watches him like a hawk.

I’m fascinated to see how she works with Bertrand next episode on this basis...

01:46:19 - Pate de Rolo IMOGEN: I never get used to it. I never get used to it. Two years, and I never get used to it. ORYM: How often does it happen? IMOGEN: [a long beat] Too often.

Imogen has been consistently supportive of everything Laudna’s said or done up to this point - even the weird moments greeted with an affectionate smile. This, though, is a step too far. Two years of Pate de Rolo being in her life, and it still creeps her out. Why is it this, especially?

01:56:32 - Dorian’s Advice DORIAN: These, ah, aristocratic types… Might I offer a small suggestion? IMOGEN: [visibly sits up and focuses] DORIAN: If he does contract us… IMOGEN: Mm hm? DORIAN: Let’s ensure that whatever you need as far as connections to get into the library, to find this book… We’ll make sure it’s in the contract. Yes? IMOGEN: [wide-eyed] That’s brilliant! DORIAN: Put it in writing. IMOGEN: I wouldn’t have thought of that. Thank you. DORIAN: Well, he had a big desk, and if the contract isn’t on fire then I think we should ask to include it. IMOGEN: Yeah, uh, Dorian? That was your name? DORIAN: Yes. IMOGEN: All right. Thank you. DORIAN: Of course. IMOGEN: [looks thoughtful]

Look at her face!

Until now, Imogen’s been gently floating along with this group. There’s been an opportunity waved in front of her, and she’s been willing to work with this strange mix of folk if it gets her closer to her goal. She’s been perfectly friendly and polite, of course. But from her reaction here, she’s never considered that any of them might be looking out for her in any way. This is a wake-up call, but in the nicest of ways. Could it be that Dorian actually cares about what she wants or needs? Beyond pure politeness or convenience? Look at the shock! And her response is to check his name. Suddenly he’s someone worth remembering.

Outside of Laudna, nobody’s done much to help Imogen lately, I’d bet.

02:55:53 - Failing that Wisdom Save MATT: The load of whispers is becoming difficult to keep at bay. And so for the remainder of the day any concentration checks are made with disadvantage until you take a long rest, as the oppressive thoughts of the world around you continue to push deeper and deeper into your mind against your will.

So here’s what it’s like. Even outside of Imogen actually trying to use her ability, her daily life is full of the experience of the constant presence of ‘the oppressive thoughts of the world’. No wonder she doesn’t like taverns.

03:43:29 - Do Crimes ASHTON: How many of you have actually crimed before? [Laudna puts her hand up cheerily] IMOGEN: Well… sort of… it… LAUDNA: Mine was kind of survival though… IMOGEN: Yeah, we don’t do on a… habit…

So they have definitely done crimes, but because they had to, not because they wanted to. Imogen feels guilty about it too - unlike Laudna, who seems absolutely chill about being less than lawful. I wonder what crimes ‘survival’ pushed them to?

03:56:28 - ‘You Just Hear Everything?’ IMOGEN: We can go in tonight. I’m just a little… distracted. FCG: Are you having some anxiety? Do you wanna talk about it? IMOGEN: You could call it that. No, I would not like to, but I… yeah… FEARNE: You just hear everything? IMOGEN: [sighs deeply and pauses for a moment] Sometimes, Fearne. Yeah. FEARNE: That’s a lot. IMOGEN: [smiles gently and pauses for a beat] Yeah.

This exchange says so much. Imogen treats FCG’s questions and expressed concerns throughout this episode as politeness - just the way they are, rather than any kind of genuine deep interest in her. And then, in the midst of her battling against the voices that are, lest we forget, ‘continuing to push deeper and deeper into your mind against your will’, here comes Fearne.

And Fearne... just... says it. Out loud. Ridiculously simply. ‘You just hear everything?’ And you can see Imogen wrestling with how to respond. Because there’s a sense there that she has been seen, perhaps the first time outside of Laudna, for a very long time. Someone has listened to what she’s saying, and understands, if only on a very superficial level, what she’s going through. And she’s not sure how to deal with that. The sigh, the long pause, as she decides how to move forward. And her decision is to assume that Fearne’s understanding is superficial. She decides not to reveal more about herself, or to go deeper. She lets this moment be as simple as she possibly can. ‘Sometimes, Fearne. Yeah.’

But then Fearne takes that next step. She has not only seen Imogen, but she empathises with her. ‘That’s a lot.’ And again, Imogen is taken aback. How does she deal with this? ‘A lot’ is a massive understatement! This is the battle she fights every day, to exhaustion, to pain! Yes, it’s a lot! But here, now, with her relationship with Fearne as new as it is, she can’t show any of that. Look at the pain on her face when she finally responds. She almost seems close to tears, and she looks away, breaking eye contact. It’s too much, but it seems that, even if only for a minute, she was grateful that someone has seen through her facade even if only to the smallest degree.

Someone give this woman a hug.

[willowbirds]

Okay! So y’all know I love Laudna and Imogen. So when Laudna was rushing over to Imogen in her form of dread to protect her near the beginning of the giant fight, obviously my little hyperfixated brain was screaming happily.

But, now that I have slept and now thinking about the episode the day after, I have a small little sad thought that entered my brain.

So we already know that Laudna and Imogen care very deeply for one another. Either because they are in an existing relationship, are a couple, and are in love, or they have a relationship like Yasha and Molly where they are just two outcasts and love each other like family. (Either way I love them and they need to stay by each other’s side ‘till the end of time.) So obviously they would look out for one another and make sure the other is safe and okay. We obviously see this through many interactions like Laudna comforting Imogen after her nightmare, Imogen protecting Laudna after she was hurt in a fight, both of them combining their spells, etc.

So. Let’s go look at the giant fight that happened in the second half of the episode. Everyone was having trouble fighting Dugger, but it was made more difficult because of the shade creepers popping up and all of the sticky stuff on the floor. Closer to the end of the fight, Imogen was attacked by another shade creeper and ended up falling unconscious. Because she was venerable, the shade creepers started to tear into her body. Seeing this, Laudna immediately rushes to her rescue. However, Laudna fails her strength save and becomes stuck to floor. She began clawing, growling, and screaming, desperately trying to get to Imogen as Marisha (or maybe Laudna) quietly whispers ‘No’ over and over.

Knowing that Laudna was probably alone for a long time, the only things she had to keep her company was the voice in her head and Pâté. Imogen was the first living being that stayed by her side and is the only person she truly cares about. So seeing the only person that actually cares about her get torn into by monsters was probably the most difficult thing to witness.

I can only imagine the relief that went through her when Orym gave Imogen his healing potion. When the group left Dugger’s house and they celebrated avenging Bertrand at the Spire by Fire, Laudna looking over to Imogen and telling herself that Imogen is safe. She isn’t dead. She’s okay. Everything is fine now.

TL;DR, Laudna probably cares so much for Imogen because Imogen is probably the only person who truly cares so deeply about her. I just know that these two are going to have some sad moments that are definitely going to make me cry. And with Imogen’s really low hit points, we’ll probably get more ultra protective Laudna.

[amihyperfixatingagain]

C3 Ep4 break thoughts:

Y’all… I think the main overarching villain/betrayer god of this campaign is Torog, aka The Crawling King.

Now hear me out. He’s the god of torture and imprisonment/enslavement and is associated with blood, death, and trickery. He’s also known for the deep ass, winding pathways under the world.

Now, where are we seeing elements of him already? Well I’ll tell you.

Quite literally we just saw some deep af tunnels under the Weary Way Tavern. Is this too literal? Maybe.. but it almost makes it seem more real too.

Next, our lovely dwarf friend, “Duggar” has that pale ass Pazuzu face, which is quite reminiscent of Torog himself. Plus the whole wasting away thing and his seemingly undead shade creepers. Plus that quick trick of the magical darkness allowing him to slip out of the room. Oof.

Also let’s talk about the PCs. So far at least three of them seem to be suffering from some kind of (self imposed or not?) imprisonment or torture.

Laudna, for starters is most likely a hollowed one, based on her abilities etc. Does this mean a fragment of her soul is imprisoned in her not quite undead body? Is she tortured by her previous life in Whitestone? Who the fuck knows.

Imogen, next seems to be tortured by this repeating nightmare (now premonition delivery system?) hmmmmm

Lastly, let’s talk about Fresh Cut Grass. Something struck a cord with me this episode that I’ve been thinking about since the start of the campaign. That little light up coin. The way FCG told Orym from the start that he could use the coin and drop it if need be, but then reacted almost heartbroken when it was revealed Orym did end up losing it down the hole. His face said it was fine, but his voice said otherwise. Plus he is asked many times about the rest of the group being sad and if how they’re reacting is normal, as if he’s trying to learn how to feel? Or does he already know how, and is trying to hide it? What kind of soul imprisoned in a metal body is this?

As for the other PCs, well, Bertrand has died (quite early), and Ashton seems to be held down by debts and favors. Orym, Fearne, and Dorian are kinda oddballs though. Orym is here on a mission from Keyleth. Fearne is just along for the ride it seems. And Dorian is back in town after having left his home in Marquet pre-stream. Lots to think about.

We’ve also seen elements of Torog in both Vox Machina and the Mighty Nein. It would make sense for Torog to have been stirring in the background of those campaigns and now pushing his way to the front.

It’s still way too early to confirm but ahhhhh.