donteatthefishtacos

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I’m not usually one to post much actual meta analysis of things I watch but, in the time since Critical Role campaign three ended, I’ve seen this touted as a negative to the overall narrative. So I wanted to organize my thoughts about it, and present why, to me, it definitely does not feel like a drawback.

Namely, the fact that the player characters in Bells Hells weren’t “relevant enough” to the story. Not enough people had connections to the gods. That this was an oversight that they should have made sure was addressed in session zeroes. Since February, Matt has said more than once that this overarching story connecting the campaigns has been something he’s wanted to do since campaign two, so my take on this is he didn’t interfere and try to steer the players to a certain type of character because he didn’t want to. He let the players go ham with the kinds of characters they wanted to play, connections to past characters and all.

They made their characters and he drew a few connecting threads out of their backstories. Their connection to the plot came from finding themselves in the middle of it with the weight of each of their backstories behind them. Imogen was pretty clearly pure wish fulfillment for Laura, because her first two characters needed to be adjusted for being too similar to what other players were doing, and her dreams connected her to Ruidus. Same thing with Fearne, when Ashley finally got to be at the table for a full campaign.

My personal favorite type of stories aren’t “chosen one” narratives, it’s when the protagonists are in it simply because they’re there. Someone has to do it, and that was Bells Hells. Imogen was one of dozens of people that could have been the vessel of Predathos, but she was one of only two thinking about the consequences of all the groups involved. She and Fearne were both conflicted, but Fearne was paralyzingly so. So it was Imogen, not because it “had to be” but because anyone else that could would have simply released Predathos, carnage and devastation from a second Calamity be damned.

And to me, that was compelling.

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I’m aware this is going to 1000% be the most millennial thing to say about this but here goes. This picture has “must see tv Thursdays” ad energy to it.

Back in the day when it was Mad About You followed by Seinfeld and Friends.

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“Hey, I love you.”

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“Hello there!”

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I am home after a mere hour of sleep post-Indy-liveshow before jumping on a flight, followed by a nap on @overnighttosunflowers' couch, and several hours of driving, so forgive me for my wild-eyed and manic babbling, but MAN I GOT THOUGHTS ABOUT THAT C4 ANNOUNCEMENT (also the show was fantastic, y'all gonna have fuuuun).

This is gonna be fucking interesting as HELL.

I feel like since it's Brennan, I actually have swung back from expecting C4 to be in Daggerheart to thinking it's going to be 5e. They're changing so much else about the show that keeping that as a through line makes sense to me to keep like, a certain level of comfort for the fans and a certain amount of brand identity. If they were going Daggerheart I would expect it to be Matt or Spenser or someone more intimately familiar with the system in the GM seat than Brennan; he might be not just a DnD guy but I don't know that he's the one to be Daggerheart Ambassador, you know? I'd bet that what we'll end up seeing once C4 is established is 5e main campaign most Thursdays and then DH on the last Thursday of the month, possibly with Matt DMing short run series in Exandria for some of them. My deeply, deeply indulgent desire for a Hells mini series feels so much more realistic than it did last week, haha. But certainly there will be more Age of Umbra in there as well. I reckon that's a good way to get more people to watch the Daggerheart content without taking the risk of leaving 5e fully behind, too; we'll be missing Matt as regular GM and if the short run stuff is Exandria, we'll be missing that world. Might see an Exandrian timeskip C5 in Daggerheart eventually once people get more used to it? But to me at least that makes sense as a middle ground.

Regardless of system I am really looking forward to Brennan doing a more serious, longform campaign; obviously the excellent Worlds Beyond Number is that, but as a tightly edited, scored audio story with a small party, that's a different animal than a more decompressed CR-style video AP. Brennan's other CR GMing forays have always had a very specific story in mind to tell; I will be interested to see how that translates to something longer running, particularly in contrast to how sandboxy CR has tended to be. Maybe it will be more modular? I'm assuming we're going heroic fantasy since that's CR's main vibe.

Since Matt's insta confirms the OG cast will still be there, PLUS other folks, I gotta assume it's going to be the sort of story where party members dip in and out, otherwise that table would be just unmanageably large. Honestly I'm kinda relieved about the idea of not everyone being there all the time. As much as I love CR as what it has been, I think that continuing that kind of pace is just unsustainable and physically unhealthy for another 10 years. Please god, someone explain to Matt and Marisha in particular the concept of a full night's sleep. Blah blah parasocial but whenever they make jokes about their sleep schedules I just start thinking about that couple of manga pages from Mizuki Shigeru about Tezuka and Ishinomori scoffing at sleep before dying relatively young and I wince very hard. This seems a good way to keep Matt from burning completely out and give the OG cast a bit of a breather without any of them retiring. It also paves the way for those retirements in the however many years future to happen without destroying the company/show, since it will get folks more attached to the new regulars. They have been talking about that idea a lot the past couple years.

And while I was looking forward to seeing the fallout in Exandria to the gods becoming mortal, I reckon since that was a curve ball the players threw that Matt was not expecting, it is also good to give him time to figure out how that's going to affect the Exandrian religious cosmology going forward. Ultimately for the best for whatever the next Exandrian story is, I reckon, and we'll get oneshots and the like in the meantime.

VERY interested to see who they end up putting at the table in additional to the OG cast too; I would guess we should expect at least one person who collabs with Brennan often. I doubt the "new faces" will be fully new; putting somebody on a full campaign without knowing how they bounce off the other people who will be at the table just seems waaaay too much of a gamble. My slightly wishful bet is either Lou or Aabria, who would both be rad af, but I would kill for @quiddie in particular because she is a fucking scalpel as a player, just cutting to the heart of other players' stories and the GM's themes with a precision and clarity that is just fucking beautiful to witness. God, I would have committed so many crimes for Deanna to stay with Bells Hells full time, I would have LOVED to see her and Ashton bouncing off each other more in particular. Which, to that point also, I feel like Brennan GMing for Taliesin long term will make for some JUICY shit interrogating power structures and the like. Throw Aabria in that mix? Oh I will personally be feasting. But man who else and how fucking many? Not a clue who it could be because I feel like everyone is already so BUSY. I'd love any combination of folks like Luis and Christian and Jasmine and Noshir and Anjali and Aimee and—fuck, the list is so long. And Robbie! Of course Robbie.

MAN. Losing hella steam here and about to crash the fuck into bed but. While I understand and sympathize with folks who are real upset about the changes I think it's rad that they're willing to take that kinda risk, and my brain is just whirring about it.

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i’ve been thinking a lot about emily axford recently (as one does) and this maybe just because i’ve also been relistening to naddpod constantly (and falling asleep to it which has definitely caused some emily related stress dreams??).

she is so concerned and considerate of the way she presents herself as a character (ex. apologizing for the beautiful emotional moment in clo ho) while also being the most party focused player at any table. then assholes on the internet have the gaul to sit on their screens and type about how she is too “chaotic” or “takes focus” or whatever. izzy was so right, it’s just exhausting to exist and excel as a woman. she’s so genuinely good at this game, she adapts in every environment genuinely cares about the story and her party. not to mention how well timed and deeply funny she is as an improviser. emily axford succeeds with such force it continues to knock murph and brennan back in ways they both consistently say they deeply admire. it’s wild to be at the top of your field while being told you’re climbing too high…

also she’s beautiful and impeccably dressed always.

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Nobody will do it like them again

*big sigh*

We were really blessed to have these 2 queen of improv

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God I know that Dimension 20 has never made a sourcebook out of one of their settings before but I feel like Cloudward, Ho! should be published. This was, as they say on NADDPOD’s Short Rest™️… a thicc ‘sode.

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I appreciate the matching promotional screenshots from the first season of each CR show, this implies there is one (1) face card, and Laura Bailey holds it for time eternal.

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🙏🕯️prayer circle for Darrington Brigade in the Echoes of Exandria tour🕯️🙏

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FEARNE X BRAIUS ENTHUSIASTS HOW ARE WE DOING?

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the unsung benefits of telekinesis: your 5 STR sorta undead maybe wife can still sweep you off your feet. results may vary

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that one time yasha ate a spider and now this lmaoooo oversized critters HATE to see her coming. i so wish braius was here he's the only other xhorhasian here i need to see if he'd have the same palate.

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Why do every single one of Emily Axford’s DnD characters make me cry

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-Critical Role Campaign 3, Episode 38, "A Dark Balance"