Critical Role
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"Is it Thursday Yet?"
Community to discuss anything Critical Role related.
Drop by our welcome post and share any feedback/suggestions if you have any. The FAQ post is also a thing.
What is Critical Role?
Critical Role is a group of nerdy-ass voice actors who sit around and play Dungeons & Dragons.
Streams every Thursday at 7pm PT and then rebroadcasts the following Friday at 12am and 9am PT on Twitch.
trigger warning
Due to the improv nature of Critical Role and other RPG content on our channels, some themes and situations that occur in-game may be difficult for some to handle. If certain episodes or scenes become uncomfortable, we strongly suggest taking a break or skipping that particular episode.
Your health and well-being is important to us and Psycom has a great list of international mental health resources, in case it’s useful: http://bit.ly/PsycomResources
Current shows
- Critical Role Campaign 3: Main D&D 5e campaign, streamed every Thursday at 7pm PT, except last Thursday of each month
- Candela Obscura: Horror drama campaign using their own game system, live streamed every last Thursday of each month at 7pm PT
- 4-Sided Dive: Talkshow with a roundtable discussion of 4 guests, to talk about recent episodes and answer fan questions. Streams every first Tuesday of the month at 7pm PT
- Midst: Sci-fi fantasy radio drama, airs every Wednesday on Midst.co
- Re-Slayer's Take: podcast about a lesser-known band of heroes updates Mondays 5am PST
Basic Rules
- Follow server Code of Conduct
- Be kind to others
- No spoilers in titles
- For spoiler posts, mention the episode number in the title (e.g.
[Spoiler C3E61]) - The post body can contain any spoiler up to the episode in title
- Comments should not spoil any episode after the tagged episode
- For spoiler posts, mention the episode number in the title (e.g.
Links
- Critical Role's official website
- Critical Role on Twitch
- Critical Role on YouTube
- Critical Role Podcast C1E0 - C2E19
Resources
- Interactive Map of Exandria
- Interactive Timeline
- Episode Transcripts
- Encyclopedia Exandria
- When is Critical Role: (Countdown to the next episode)
- Critical Role wiki (fandom)
- Critical Role Stats
- The Omen Archive
- Other Live Play TTRPGs
founded 1 year ago
MODERATORS
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Watch the episode live on Twitch and YouTube at 7pm PST. Restreams on Twitch at midnight and the next day at 9am PST
Runtime Break start 3h 54m 2h 5m
Episode 98: The Nox Engine
In the long wake of the Solstice, Bell's Hells find Exandria and their world turned topsy-turvy as Ludinus Da'leth and his cadre of followers (known as the Ruby Vanguard) plan to unleash the god-eating entity Predathos that was long sealed in the red moon Ruidus. After travelling to this very moon, interacting with its people and returning with intel on hopes to stop what they're doing, they discover that they've been sourcing ancient, long-buried Aeorian magical technology as part of their plan. And not just that. Ludinus Da'leth is there right now dealing with a strange wrinkle in his plot with the name Dominox.
Bell's Hells, escorted by a figure with some experience in the ruins of Aeor, one Essek Thelyss (crowd shouts 'Hot Boi') on loan from his 'partner', brought them to the strange, northern, frozen realm of Eiselcross where the very fabric of magic is strange and prone to unexpected apparation subforces. They went to these ruins, delved beneath, discovered that the Ruby Vanguard that had been delving within, scattered, killed (not by the terrifying denizens of these ancient dark ruins, but by eachother in strange fits of almost religious madness, carving glyphs into their flesh).
Going towards the darkest depths of the basements of the ruins in the center of the Genesis Ward at Essek's guidance, they come upon a strange chamber where upon the ancient bodies mingling with the new freshly dead (now dangling by blackened hooks from long chains that seem to have apparated from nowhere, almost grown from the surrounding stone of the crumbled rock and ruin). They heard some of these long forgotten corpses asking them questions through magic: hearing things of a Nox Engine, hearing that Dominox was once (or may still be) a grand demon of ancient times sealed away and harnessed for nefarious magical purpose within this Nox Engine by the mage lords of Aeor long ago now recently running rampant upon the Ruby Vanguard.
Right as they discovered this, strange visions began to come to them. First Chetney Pock O'Pea being overcome with a mystical vision of a familiar darkened wood of the past and the bloodied faces of the children, seemingly called from dark, maybe buried, memories asking why he hurt them, why he killed them. Uncertain if this was real or not, he had to pull himself from the vision before attacking his friends. Right as they began to collect themselves, searching for the source of this strange dark magic, hoping to either find Ludinus or perhaps this Dominox and figure out what or who is the right villain in this instance, poor Dorian Storm fell to his own vision. As they pass between these hanging chains looking upon one of these hung corpses, he sees the face of his recently deceased brother Cyrus, who looks up at him with dead sunken eyes saying,
"Why have you done this to me brother?"
It's here in these shadows. Dorian Storm, the blood pouring from his blackened sockets here in the shattered expanse, the rest of it just a shadowy dark blur around you, Cyrus looks towards you from that shadow.
"Why? Why, brother?"
As you glance up towards his face to try and make eye contact, his now-somewhat-shriveled corpse arms reach out and grab your lapel and pull you close (where you can smell the early decay on him) his lips curl back with the gums in the early stage of decomposition.
"Not all is lost, brother. I'm not beyond saving. My spirit lingers, haunts this realm now without peace, and I am not alone."
You see these little sparks glow on the horizon around him, these other souls lost in the limbo, now in the post-Solstice era. The hands no longer grasping you; now just touching your cheek with a sadness and a hopeful longing.
"Within this engine, a curse keeps us, brother. Free us. Let us rest, brother."
As the body begins to fade, the last thing you see in his shadow are a sparkin flash of a spinning purple crystal before you blink, and the body hanging before you is a long-dead skeleton, withered and armored in that of the ancient Aeorian guard.
Previous Episode: "Ancient Sins"
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Daggerheart Nexus
joins your adventuring party right from the start of the playtest from Darrington Press and Critical Role.
NEXUS digital tools focus on making every part of play sessions better, with features such as a digital reader, rules and lore compendium, character builder, and interactive digital character sheet, as well as a way to make your voice heard by providing feedback during the playtest period.
Our updated v1.3 Playtest Packet is 661MB. We recommend downloading this file on a dedicated internet connection.
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Campaign 3: Bell's Hells
- C3E62 A Long Walk of Reflection
- C3E63 A Haunted Past
- C3E64 Reunited
- C3E65 A Path of Vengeance
- C3E66 Aid of the Tempest
- C3E67 Bloody Flowers
- C3E68 For the Tempest
- C3E69 Nice
- C3E70 Embattled in Bassuras
- C3E71 Mist and Whimsy
- C3E72 Phantasmal Parley
- C3E73 Kindling the Spirits
- C3E74 Roots Between Worlds
- C3E75 An Ancient Flame
- C3E76 A Gathering of Heroes
- C3E77 The Promise and the Price
- C3E78 Fractures
- C3E79 To Hurt is to Heal
- C3E80 A Test of Trust
- C3E81 The Eve of the Red Moon
- C3E82 Rush for the Bloody Bridge
- C3E83 Ruidus
- C3E84 Red Rural Revelations
- C3E85 Intense Interrogations
- C3E86 Doorways to Darker Depths
- C3E87 Arrival at Kreviris
- C3E88 Seeking Sedition
- C3E89 Divisive Portents
- C3E90 Mission: Improbable
- C3E91 True Heroism
- C3E92 Broken Roads
- C3E93 Bittersweet Reunions
- C3E94 Where the Red Fearne Glows
- C3E95 Gathering of Needs
- C3E96 Shadows New and Old
- C3E97 Ancient Sins
- C3E98 The Nox Engine
Campaign 1: Vox Machina
- C1E1 Arrival at Kraghammer
- C1E2 Into the Greyspine Mines
- C1E3 Strange Bedfellows
- C1E4 Attack on the Duergar Warcamp
- C1E5 The Trick About Falling
- C1E6 Breaching the Emberhold
- C1E7 The Throne Room
- C1E8 Glass and Bone
- C1E9 Yug'voril uncovered
- C1E10 K'Varn Revealed
Campaign 2: The Mighty Nein
- C2E1 Curious Beginnings
- C2E2 A Show of Scrutiny
- C2E3 The Midnight Chase
- C2E4 Disparate Pieces
- C2E5 The Open Road
- C2E6 The Howling Mines
- C2E7 Hush
- C2E8 The Gates of Zadash
- C2E9 Steam and Conversation
- C2E10 Waste and Webs
Exandria Unlimited: Prime
Team Name: The Crown Keepers, The Glitter Shitters, The Odd Lot, or Hot Cross Buns
- Episode 1 The Nameless Ones
- Episode 2 The "Oh No" Plateau
- Episode 3 A Glorious Return
- Episode 4 By the Road
- Episode 5 A Test of Worth
- Episode 6 A Gift Among the Green
- Episode 7 Beyond the Heart City
- Episode 8 What Comes Next
- Episode 9 Wrap-Up
Exandria Unlimited: Kymal
Team Name: The Crown Keepers
Exandria Unlimited: Calamity
Team name: The Brass Ring
- Episode 1 Excelsior
- Episode 2 Bitterness and Dread
- Episode 3 Blood and Shadow
- Episode 4 Fire and Ruin
- Episode 5 Calamity Wrap-Up
The Lost Wendy's Episode
Feast of Legends: Rise from the Deep Freeze
Artists!
Tattoos!
Animation!
Audio
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Saw this on the critrole site and (rather than just being a cute pic with a cat clearly craving compliments) I want to dedicate this thread to fan crafts, and even better if you can find instructions/patterns to share. Often you might need to modify the pattern to fit the imagined appearance, so no worries if it's not exactly the same.
KnitHacker has a free standing ferret pattern listed in this article and even a little ferret neck sleeve (i think?). Don't miss out on the hidden gems like Emo Meerkat in the Snow pattern.
AmigurumiToday has a pretty cool meerkat available to try out.
Edit: I think I found it on Son's Popkes!
What fan crafts have you seen that you'd want to make for yourself or a friend?
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Record of every art piece published with CR Abridged. Managed by u/taly_slayer. Yes, I also read the url as Crab Ridge Dart.
Artist Index
(click to reveal artist list)
- Hannah Friederichs (@agarthanguide)
- Shaun Ellis (@shmaba)
- Bree Williams (@larkspurns)
- Lap Pun Cheung (@lappuncheung)
- Wesley Griffith (@wesley_griffith)
- Deven Rue (@devenrue)
- Cris Trinci (@galaxybandit)
- Hampus Viklander (@spookystirfry)
- Azraelion (@azraelion)
- Mike Pape (@wingbuffet)
- Elisa Serio (@ellinainthesky)
- Clara Daly (@eldritchblep)
- Nikki Dawes (@nikkidawes)
- Ian MacDonald (@ian_macdonald_art)
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What We Know So Far
- Critical Role's new campaign arc, "Downfall," will be helmed by "Dimension 20's" Brennan Lee Mulligan.
- Regular cast members Laura Bailey, Taliesin Jaffe, and Ashley Johnson.
- New Blood
Abubakar Salim
Noshir Dalal
and Nick Marini. - The episodes, part of the CR crew's third campaign, will air on July 11, 18, and 25.
- The three-chapter series is all about the fall of Aeor, an ancient civilization.
- "There's only one known time, throughout all of Exandrian history, that the "good" and the "bad" gods ever said 'game off' (implying a temporary truce out of necessity) and that was when they destroyed this city (Aeor)." -MFMM
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ScreenRant Plus Interview: Taliesin Jaffe On Bells Hells Live, Ashton's Origin & Sword-Gate Inter-Party Conflict
Taliesin Jaffe discusses the Critical Role's Bells Hells live show, exploring Ashton's origins, feelings about FCG, and the aftermath of Sword-gate. Critical Role's Bells Hells Live Show will take place on June 15th at The Greek Theatre. The livestream will be available on Thursday, June 20th, with the VOD on Monday, June 24th. Read our full interview and article here
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Watch the episode live on Twitch and YouTube at 7pm PST. Restreams on Twitch at midnight and the next day at 9am PST
Runtime Break start 3h 42m 1h 53m
Episode 97: Ancient Sins
Upon hearing that Ludinus Da'leth was indeed not on Ruidus, but was dealing with another important factor in Exandria that had been noted to be towards Eiselcross (specifically in the long-buried and frozen ruins of Aeor) to the far north of Wildemount.
After gathering yourselves, Dorian Storm was returned to the troop. Gathering some materials in Zadash after an interrogation, after making some orders and setting yourselves up for a dangerous and chilly journey, and a number of failed teleports, you managed to finally arrive on the outskirts of the ruins of Aeor.
Your guide (revealed to be Essek Thelyss, a fugitive from the Kryn Dynasty) had previously had experience wandering through these ruins a number of times. Guiding you through, you began to traverse the subterranean ice-covered layers; the strange and oddly magical, and magic-altering auras that occasionally flow through this space. You found the shattered, broken (and in some cases, still locked in time) memory of this ancient mage city.
As you began to delve towards the central portion of the Genesis Ward (in which, looking for information on this locale that came up in the interrogation; The Occultus Thalamus seemed to be tied to what Ludinus has been doing down here and where he likely will be) you investigated a Vanguard tent that had been built in one of these city streets that still remained. Investigating, you found the people within had all been slaughtered, Vanguard members, bloodily. Looking into its history and the scene of the crime, it looked like one of their own had done the deed before killing themselves, after carving an odd symbol into their chest with a blade.
During this investigation, some heavy thuds were heard nearby and as you all gathered yourselves, and darted off into the nearby shadows, some strange creature began to lumber around. This massive, elongated, gray-and-black-fleshed entity (with these sunken jowls seemingly-faceless, and this odd, bug mouth of teeth in the center of its torso) began to (seemingly stirred by the sounds and conversation you were making) look about the space. One of you, unfortunately, had a rough time hiding and caught its attention, where a number of these translucent, armored, chitinous, insectoid creatures began to emerge from its mouth and crawl across the ground in your direction.
Previous Episode: "Shadows New and Old"
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Game Masters: Nick Williams and George Primavera
- Farah Vallari (Jasmine Chiong) Level 5 Half-Elf Blood Hunter, Order of the Ghostslayer
A half-elven woman with silver hair. She sits tall and proud, her worn, studded-leather armor (that she no longer fills out) suggests a life of adventure she has long left behind.
- Frog (Caroline Lux) Level 5 Aeormaton Monk, Way of the Cobalt Soul
Frog stands about six feet ten inches tall. Her body is humanoid in shape, but metallic in nature. She is copper gilded with ornate accents that now have taken on a greenish patina over time. To cover this up and blend in more, she wears a hooded poncho and belted, high-waisted corduroy trousers. When she's active, her eyes glow a dull blue, so she wears large round spectacles to dim them. Across her back she has a worn leather knapsack, which holds her most prized possession: a beat up looking journal where she jots down all her notes and discoveries.
- Heera Agneheart (Jasmine Bhullar) Level 5 Tiefling Rogue, Inquisitive
Heera is a tiefling with an ochre complextion. She wears leather armor embossed with henna designs, strapped over green, emerald green, and Prussian blue silks. She has water buffalo-style horns that she ties with ribbons and peacock feathers.
- Idrin Shadowstep (Jasper Cartwright) Level 5 Uniya (Elf-Orc) Wizard, Chronurgy Magic
On the back of his left hand is a tattoo of the moon. On the back of his right hand, there is a corresponding tattoo of the sun. He wears matching gold earrings in both ears. He's wearing flowing robes in tones of reds and browns and golds with a pattern that looks like fragments of a starry sky. Then he moves his hand to his satchel that sits on his left hip next to a dagger. He reaches in and finds a silver coin that rests between his clay-toned fingers and his painted black nails.
- Timpani Guff (Nick Williams) Level 11 Firbolg Druid, Circle of the Shepherd NPC
A shorter-than-average, more-portly-than-average firbolg. With a shock of red hair on top of his head, coming out of his ears, and in the form of a large bristly moustache on his face. He wears canvassy pants that have been patched over many times, a simple tunic, and a barn coat that is in similarly bad repair.
- Poogs (George Primavera) Level 3 Goblin Fighter NPC
The first thing you notice about this goblin are his perfectly straight white teeth (upon his release from The Curse of Strife, his first free action was to remove all his teeth and found a wizard to replace them).
S1E1 The Carnivorous Cube
Four adventurers journey to the humble town of Himblewood in hopes of joining the legendary Slayer’s Take. But when their goal seems just within reach, mayhem breaks loose at the market.
We open on a chilly, misty morning in the Vesper Timberland. As the citizens of the humble town of Himblewood begin preparing for their festive montly market. The vibrant, lush woodland of the Vesper Timberland frames the town in a truly picturesque embrace and soon, colorful tents and awnings are erected all along Himblewood's uneven cobblestone streets. The plain hodgepodge of houses and shops are quickly accented with decorative streamers, gawdy signage, and flamboyant displays and as noon rolls around, the market gets into full swing. The air is filled with a variety of dazzling aromas. The smells of fruity frosted cakes, pungent stinky cheeses, and briney slimey fish mix in the air. At the edge of a street band's captive crowd, we see a tall hooded figure looking shyly on. A figure we know as Frog...
The band's song ends. There's a polite applause from the surrounding crowd, and then the crowd begins to disperse. As you wander on, Frog, you reach a small eatery with barrels stacked up behind a small counter with a couple of chairs and tables spread out on the cobblestone main road. At a countertop, there is a hunched figure that seems to repel everyone else's presence. Even the shopkeep behind the counter mixing colorful beverages, seems to avoid her gaze. Frog, it strikes you just how lonely this must be for someone to sit all alone on such a joyful day. Turning to see who just sat next to her, we see Farah...
Frog, as you stare joyfully ahead, Farah scrutinizes your person. Farah, you notice sticking out of the pocket of this enormous figure's corduroys, is a familiar red-hued piece of parchment. One that you happen to have in your own pocket...
At the fishmongers at the other side of the market, standing in front of an enormous and bizarrely-colored swordfish on a bed of ice, we see Idrin Shadowstep...
S1E2 The Bog House
The party is assailed by sinister snowmen in the forest. After one of their rank is taken, they must venture further into the ghostly light for answers.
S1E3 The Frozen Puppet
Finding themselves in a spectral tundra, the party delves deeper into caves once explored by the legendary adventurers, Vox Machina.
S1E4 The Voiceless Village
Following a lead about travelers disappearing in swampland far to the west, the newly-formed Re-Slayer’s Take travel to the backwater town of Josgren’s Hollow where nothing is as it seems.
S1E5 The Whispers (featuring Dominic Monaghan)
The Will-O’-Whispers descend upon our heroes, forcing them to look for allies in unlikely places.
Podcast Addict RSS Links
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Candela Obscura is 1 Year Old!
We recorded our Candela Obscura Live Show from our Los Angeles event on May 25th! Come check out this special one-shot with players Matthew Mercer, Laura Bailey, Marisha Ray, and Khary Payton with a story led by led by Game Master Spenser Starke. The inimitable Taliesin Jaffe also joined us as our Master of Ceremonies!
Candela Obscura is a tabletop roleplaying game that places you in the roles of investigators working for an esoteric order.
In this game of investigative horror, individuals of varied talents are brought together under the organization Candela Obscura. You’ll pursue strange occurrences and encounter dangerous magicks, fighting back against a mysterious source of corruption and bleed.
Candela Obscura is the first to use the Illuminated Worlds System, a system that uses 6-sided dice and lends itself to narrative, arc-driven play.
The Circle of the Silver Screen
Alternate Front End VoD
Credits
- Lead Game Design: Spenser Starke and Rowan Hall
- Written By: Rowan Hall and Spenser Starke
- Editor: Karen Twelves
- Managing Editor: Matthew Key
- Production: Ivan Van Norman and Alex Uboldi
- Proofreading: Jacky Leung
- Additional Game Design: Christopher Grey, Tracey Harrison, and Taliesin Jaffe
- Layout: De La Rosa Design
- Cultural Consultants: Basheer Ghouse, Pam Punzalan, Erin Roberts, Christine Sandquist, Liam Stevens
- Military & Political Consultant: Anthony Joyce-Rivera
- Game Development Consultant: Mike Underwood
- Additional Editing: Jared Deiro, Darcy Ross
- Additional Writing: Carlos Cisco, Tracey Harrison, Anthony Joyce-Rivera, Sam Maggs, Mike Underwood
- Graphic Design: Aaron Monroy, Bryan Weiss
- Artists: Shaun Ellis, Jamie Harrison, Allie Irwin, Amelia Leonards, Lily McDonnell, Justin O’Neal, Sunga Park, Gustavo Rodrigues Pelissari, Doug Telford
- Map Design: Marc Moureau
- Cover Artist: John Harper (Limited Edition), De La Rosa Design (Standard)
- Artist / Ancient Languages / Spell Design: Stevie Morley
- Original Concept Created By: Taliesin Jaffe and Chris Lockey
- Illuminated Worlds System Design: Stras Acimovic and Layla Adelman
- Illuminated Worlds Preliminary Design: Daniel Kwan, Eloy Lasanta, Matthew Mercer
Purchase Available in:
- Critical Role shops (US, UK, CA, AU, and EU, standard & limited, bundled with a PDF)
- Darrington Press Guild stores (standard & limited)
- Other friendly local game stores (standard only)
- Demiplane’s Candela Obscura Nexus
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Flashback to Campaign 2
In the yuan-ti (snek ppl) temple on Urukayxl, the Mighty Nein saw three murals:
- one showing a gigantic sea serpent emerging from the water with many small eyes of amber and three large eyes
- one of a worm-like creature with three eyes of ivory inside its mouth, plowing through the earth
- and one depicting a giant purple bird with fire-like wings and three eyes of onyx
The three lesser idols have a pact: if one escapes, it will help the others.
Uk'otoa, The Great Leviathan
Uk'otoa is a creation of Zehir, the Cloaked Serpent, and lived in Lucidian Ocean south of Wildemount. When Zehir was sealed beyond the Divine Gate at the end of The Calamity, Uk'otoa was left masterless and without purpose. He claimed the domain of his master, the Lucidian Ocean, for himself.
Zehir, enraged, ordered a secret sect of his Marquesian worshipers to seal Uk'otoa in the seafloor of the Lucidian Ocean. With the help of a cult leader in the Allegiance of Allsight, Zehir's worshipers defaced and corrupted a series of Uk'otoa's temples with Zehir's influence and used them to successfully imprison Uk'otoa with three seals.
Uk'otoa typically reaches out to sailors, particularly those shipwrecked.
Mighty Nein London
In Misuthar 837 PD, a storm giant follower of Uk'otoa named Thoonum and seven deep scions, including a mage, attacked the Nein Heroez and successfully retrieved the last Cloven Crystal to free Uk'otoa from his bonds. Uk'otoa sent Fjord a vision just prior to the attack, telling him "I found you."
The scions were able to unleash Uk'otoa by breaking the seal in the final temple in the Cyrios End Forest. This awakened a statue of Zehir, who initially blamed the Mighty Nein for unleashing his creation, then tasked them with going after Uk'otoa and demanded a pact and Fjord obliged.
Uk'otoa created a massive storm in the southern Lucidian Ocean, near Brokenbank. The Mighty Nein chartered the Drensala Vis to take them there so they could fight Uk'otoa. They ultimately defeated Uk'otoa, and Fjord, using the runes put upon him by Zehir, re-sealed the leviathan. When he did so, Uk'otoa vanished, leaving three new Cloven Crystals, which Fjord collected and hid.
Quajath, The Undermaw
Quajath was either created or birthed by Torog, and acted as his scout during the battles of the Calamity. It was presumed dead when a sizable chunk of its body was left on the final battlefield, but a small piece was able to crawl to Eiselcross and burrow beneath the icy surface to rest and regrow. When Quajath attempted to rise again, it found itself trapped beneath the thick ice of Eiselcross, where it still remains as of 835 PD.
- Quajath exerts telepathic control over those who eat of its perpetually regenerating flesh; the influence is stronger if the flesh is eaten sooner. Eating is not necessary, though: by mere proximity, a cryogenically preserved sample of Quajath's tissue telepathically influences a clan of kobolds in Blightshore
Desirat, The Twilight Phoenix
Desirat was the companion and mount of Asmodeus during the wars of the Calamity. She was captured and imprisoned beneath Mount Mentiri by the original pre-Divergence Cerberus Assembly and remains there, contributing to the geothermal activity in the area.
In the 843 PD Apogee Solstice, the wards that bound Desirat to Mount Mentiri were dispelled. Desirat passed over Zadash, damaging several buildings before moving on.
The Julous Dominion
The Julous Dominion was established "numerous decades" after the Divergence, when the nomadic peoples who struggled for survival, battling hunger among barren, rocky lands of the Marrow Valley, defending themselves against wild beasts, and fighting with each other over fertile land. Among the chaos, small civilizations started to emerge, eventually united around the central township of Zadash. The town built in the center of the valley around 435 PD or about four hundred years before 835 PD, and ruled by the Julous family (by some accounts, a family of noble blood taking its roots before the Calamity).
The discovery of Herathis mine, a rich platinum mine within the Julous Dominion, further increased the appeal for empire's expansion.
Religious uprisings swept the Dwendalian Empire but were swiftly scattered, and the rebellious priests executed by Emperor Manfried Dwendal in the event that would be called the Admonition. To distract the public's outrage from this event, the emperor proclaimed the Julous Dominion an enemy of the empire, and later that year, declared a diversion war on the neighboring nation, called the Marrow War.
Baron Inock Julous and Baroness Tessandra Julous attempted to hold a peace negotiation, but were executed on Emperor Manfried's order at the event. Their bodies were displayed publicly along with the narrative that they had attempted an assassination on the emperor during the peace talks. Left without both of their rulers, the Julous Dominion ceased to exist and was subsumed into the Dwendalian Empire.
How much you wanna bet that there were two surviving members of the Julous family named Cyrus and
Brontë?
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Watch the episode live on Twitch and YouTube at 7pm PST. Restreams on Twitch at midnight and the next day at 9am PST
Runtime Break start 4h 06m 1h 45m
Episode 96: Shadows New and Old
After speaking with Keyleth (about the next leg of their ability to aid the coming dangers and the Ruby Vanguard's plots upon Ruidus), with a thread of information that Ludinus Da'leth seems to be entwined in a place called the Ruins of Aeor to the far northeast in a land called Eiselcross. You were granted (from an ally to the Exandrian Accord here, an individual who has some experience here, a stealth mage who was revealed at some point during an interrogation in the city of Zadash to be a figure really called Essek Thelyss of the Kryn Dynasty) discovering a little bit of information about where Ludinus might be within these ruins after interrogating a member of the Cerberus Assembly here in the city of Zadash within Wildemount, you began to do your preparation for a journey to a very chilly place to the far north.
After doing a little bit of shopping (picking up some new acquisitions, and making some orders for some wardrobe that'll help you in many ways, but as well some cloaks to stay warm in such a cold area) you went to the Lodge of the Eclipse, watched a show, drank a bit, and all of you went to rest for a night before you went on this odd and dangerous leg of your journey into the unknown.
In the middle of the night while everyone was asleep, Laudna, seeing the very blade that had speared her and many friends on the back of Orym, attempted to take it while he rested. However, he awoke, and a scuffle began to ensue, fighting over control of this blade and arguing amongst what should be done with it. When the rest of the team had awoken and the argument had not resolved, Imogen and Laudna escaped out the window to the rooftop, where it seems there is still quite a bit of tension about what has transpired and what is going on between this group of friends.
Here, as Laudna and Imogen hold each other, trying to understand what is to come, we return.
Previous Episode: "Gathering of Needs"
Thumbnail origin (click)
There was an unscheduled testing of the live stream before the fireside chat on Tuesday and an impromptu Beyblade tournament was displayed with backdoor gambling, brackets and fights. Just some mad goofin.
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Watch the episode live on Twitch and YouTube at 7pm PST. Restreams on Twitch at midnight and the next day at 9am PST
Runtime Break start 4h 39m 2h 10m
Episode 95: Gathering of Needs
Bell's Hells, after returning from Ruidus (and reuniting with their old friend, Dorian Storm), are in the final throes of gathering what information, power and allies they (and the rest of Exandria) can before trying to stop Ludinas Da'leth and the Ruby Vanguard through their alliance with the entities that control Kreviris on the surface of Ruidus from releasing Predathos, the god eater.
As such, you've learned a little bit of information about Ludinus not being on Ruidus at the moment, and it seems he's had some dealings with an ancient ruin of one of the many fallen cities from the realm of history known as the Age of Arcanum, particularly a place called Aeor.
Some of you may have heard this a little bit in passing history, but more information can be gleaned. What you do know is it apparently contains some ancient magical technology (that is both dangerous as it's being understood and is seemingly being funneled and repurposed through a lot of what the Ruby Vanguard is doing both here on Exandria and on the moon above. So, Ludinus is apparently present and having dealings within these ruins, last you heard.
After speaking with Keyleth and the Exandrian Accord (the alliance of all those who ae wanting to stop those who are wanting to stop those responsible for this) you were given, through a series of connections, an escort who had some experience with these ruins. A mage of somewhat schlubby persona, but seemed to be somewhat knowledgeable in their connection with the Cobalt Soul. They had a lead on someone who is a member of the Cerberus Assembly who might know exactly where in these ruins (or at least lead you in the direction of these ruins) where Ludinus might be.
Then, you headed towards the city, through teleportation, the city of Zadash in the Dwendalian Empire. These streets seemed to have sustained some recent damage and there was a sense of tension in the air of some recent dangers that seemed to have swept through.
As you plug through the streets, getting to the exterior of an interesting little bookshop and a trinket shop known as Chastity's Nook, selling all sorts of knickknacks, decor, and very wonderful smutty romantic books. You were led to the back room, where one of the more recently-hired employees, Erma, had been sitting and reading a book. As this escort mage had spoke a phrase that
"Bren sends his regards,"
immediately tension in the room built into what seemed to be a rapid-paced wizard battle, all of you rushing in and throwing whatever you can to subdue this figure. In the midst of this fray, your escort, this mage, threw down an anti-magic shell, which dispelled the illusion on your target and themself, revealing themself to be a dark elf mage of some esteem, and your target being an individual known as Astrid Becke, a member of the Cerberus Assembly and the Archmage of Civil Influence. Here in this tense moment, as you hold the Archmage back, and this dark elf (who named themselves Essek Thelyss, an enemy of Ludinus Da'leth) you are in the right place to commence an interrogation and discover where you are to tread next.
Here as Astrid is held somewhat tense (and realizing in the moment) at your disposal. Essek looks amongst the people in the room around him.
"Well, friends, what do we need to know beyond where he may be doing his dealings? Astrid, do you know where Ludinus is? Do you know what he's up to? Do you know how we can find him?"
As she sits there, held at bay by a number of you, she grits her teeth for a bit.
"I know Ludinus and his cohorts have been working on something in private, reallocating resources and dealing directly with foreign factions in secret. Now, I kept my nose mostly clean of the entire affair and would never have expected his plotting to be so universally disastrous. Knowing the world's sight now falls squarely upon the Assembly following the Solstice, that is why I went into hiding. I am not in league with him. I am not part of his plan. I just do not wish to be imprisoned for something I was not a part of. So, it seems I now join you living as a fugitive, am I not?"
Essek just clenches his jaw for a moment.
"I will ask you again. What do you know of Ludinus' plot and where his dealings are within the ruins?"
She eyes across all of you.
"I was not part of his plan, so I do not know specifically, but I know his research is burrowed deep within Eiselcross. Imperial control of the side has been nearly absolute as of late, causing tensions with the Dynasty, and those relations go sour once again. But it seems little care was given when compared to the scope of his plot. My place within the Assembly allowed me a little clearance to inquire to his work, but I do know that he had spent the better part of the last five years within and around the Genesis Ward and beyond. I managed to get a name once from an associate who took a shine to me within his project's outskirts. He mentioned something called the Occultus Thalamus. I am uncertain what that means directly. This individual seemed spooked he had even let it slip. If you're going to look for him (or those that work with him) that might be the place to start."
Previous Episode: "Where the Red Fearne Glows"
- CritRole Recap
- Episode Discussion
- YouTube VoD
- Alternate Front End VoD
Bonus Glasses pics (click)
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In this episode, they've leveled up to 4 and Daggerheart is version 1.4.
[The VoD for this show will be available on Thursday, May 30th.]
Matt - Dungeon Master
Taliesin - Sir Danté Terrapin, Call of the Brave warrior (Wildborne galapa)
Liam - Xarlo Grandall, Divine Wielder seraph (Wanderborne simiah)
Laura - Sweetpea Betabean, Nightwalker rogue (Seaborne fungril)
Ashley - Oppenheimer "Oppie" Betabean, Primal Origin sorcerer (Seaborne ribbet)
Travis - Kexon Peros, School of War wizard (Loreborne faerie)
Marisha - Bunnie, Troubadour bard (Ridgeborne faun)
Not Present in this episode (click)
Sam - Pango Small, Stalwart guardian (Underborne giant)
Here we return to the realm of Lockspire. Where we had left off, the Menagerie, this gathered crew of heroes from within the Grimwarden's faction (and our protagonist party at this table) had encountered fleeing fae protectors from a rapidly corrupting forest's fane(sp?) within the vast verdant space known as the Emerald Sky. Trekking towards the core of a location called The Velvet Grove, warnings from various indigenous spirits of this forest began to warn you of the spreading corruption from within as well as seeing more signs of other denizens of the forest growing dark and violent.
Approaching this grove and witnessing signs of (a variation to the legendary curse known as) The Seep seemingly spreading from within, our heroes, you, managed to destroy the source of this corruption and cleansed Boko (the guardian of the grove). Also learning of a man who wandered through not long before these events who is likely tied to the source of this recent Seep corruption within the woods.
A man named Dyson Broche, recognized only by Bunnie, as a conman and a patron of her home venue known as the Lily Locket Lounge in Lullevale.
With this refreshed information, the possible seed of mystery and coming danger as to who this Dyson figure is and what he wants with spreading such terrible sickness across the realm.
Leaving the Emerald Sky and trekking across the central continent of Lockspire to head towards the home abode of Bunnie, towards Lullevale.
Pango splinters off towards his own Seep-fallen, subterranean home of Oobi, in search of possible information about the Seep's beginnings and see if there's a connection here.
Now you walk throughout the Aether Thul mountains. Pushing through the mist-shrouded mountain passes that wind between the daunting peaks of the Aether Thul. Numerous waterfalls carve down the sides of the range and pool in small ponds and lakes that dot throughout the craggy landscape the occasional moss-covered cabin or crumbled wagon peeks from the mists beyond the well-worn roadway that you follow.
As the sun begins to set, a wooden sign comes into view with pointed markers labeled in different directions with different distances. One is the Builder's Bridge, another says Sermenters (sp?). You also see
Lullevale 2 miles
So you continue to hike along this road as the sky darkens. Small dots of glowing red peaking through the surrounding stone like tiny sparse lamps. You cross a creaky wooden bridge that crosses one of the smaller ravines to be revealed before you a breathtaking view of a multi-leveled cliffside city enveloped in dusky red glow from hundreds of exposed red crystals and veins of crystal that emerge from the eroded gorge face. Entangled throughout the city streets.
You see tumbling waterfalls framing the city, plunging into the ravine floor below. Hanging colorful lanterns sway along the street arches and banners. You can hear the echo of mingling music filling the air as you approach the outskirts of the city just as the final light of day begins to fade.
This is Lullevale. The Crimson City of Sin.
Runtime Break start 4h 4m 2h 20m
Previous Episode: Critical Role plays Daggerheart VoD
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