I love the duality between Travis knowing Orym's character art well enough to know that he has a tattoo and even knows exactly what it looks like, and Sam not knowing that Fearne even wears clothes
Also the contrast of Sam playing the character that sort of herding the party and keep them on track this campaign, while Travis was the one with ADHD and would zone in and out from time to time.
I really appreciate that Ashley rolled a whole entire character, printed out the character sheet, turned it upside down, and just wrote "YES, AND" on the back and that's the only face of the paper she stares at as they play.
When Fearne told them she was going to make rounds around the party, Ashley really announced "i'm not done romancing Marisha's character" and i think it's hilarious
For the people who didn't catch it, Orym's late husband Will was possibly the son of Derrig, a character Liam played in the Dalen's Closet oneshot who was Keyleth's personal bodyguard during Vex and Percy's marriage.
In addition to this orym is a character, backstory race and class, that was going to be his backup for C1. In a talks he talked about how is backup would have been a halfling fighter who got sent to VM to help overcome the lose of Vax since he has lost his husband
Chetney mellowing up and being so soft spoken and gentle while talking to Orym was the stand out for me here.. even with how amazing Marisha's reveal was. That side of Chetney is something we haven't seen.. hinting at so much experience and also care behind his crazy exterior. The feels!!
I know you're talking about the game, but you can't help but feel the parallels between Liam and Travis themselves when you watch that scene. What good lads these two are... They were very in tune.
im super enjoying this middle ground between genuine roleplay and red-button-pushing sillyness travis seems to have found with chetney! it's real cool to watch him be able to flex both of those sides in his rp, and this whole episode was a really good example i think :]
Orym: you are the happiest person in this bunch Laudna: Of course, the worst thing that could have ever happened to me has already happened That ladies and gentlemen is the quote of the fucken century
@@hcdhcdhcd41 What Rugan wolf wrote is what we all heard and is what I think she meant to say, but it isn't what she actually said. She fumbled the verb tenses to instead say something rather inane. If there were a way to dub her voice I'd be all for it, because the line we think she said is an incredible bit of character motivation.
Of all of Bells Hells, Orym was the perfect person to hear Laudna’s story. Because he had what the others lacked: context. Because he heard the story from the Tempest and Vox Machina’s discussions. And, above all, he’s just like Laudna: a victim of collateral damage from an act intended for someone else. For Laudna, it was intended to be a warning for Vox Machina. For Orym, it was a consequence of the attack on Keyleth specifically. I love that Orym and Laudna have that connection. They lost so much, yet chose to continue living for their own sakes. And even when she tried to brush it off, saying it was so long ago… Orym still said, “Respectfully… SO FUCKING WHAT?!” That got to Laudna. And you can tell, even when she still tried to convince him to pay her no mind. He still couldn’t let it go. Perhaps that is also why she opened up about her ears. Because she knew he would understand, even without words. And it was the EARS that made him embrace her, that stoked his anger towards the cruelty she had to suffer… and it no doubt gave him another purpose. Another reason to protect. “Nobody should have had to face anything like that. I AM sorry, and I’m impressed with you.” “Thank you. It’s very kind. It is strange, I don’t think anyone’s ever really apologized for it, it’s not really your place but… it means a lot.” Overall, I love that she allowed herself to feel that vulnerable, to drop the smile and feel remorse for her death for the first time in over 30 years. I bet she even allowed herself to cry genuine tears. Her voice even cracked when she thanked him. And for her part, Laudna seemed to know how much Orym understood, she saw that same trauma and sense of loss in his eyes. Thus why she said, “I think it’s clear that you empathize because you understand.” Even without knowing everything about his story. Hell, she seemed to understand when he vaguely mentioned losing someone close in the attack once he truly started opening up earlier in the campaign. That he also willingly took a level of exhaustion shows that he’s not going to just let this slide… and I bet that when they woke up, Laudna noticed it. Maybe even gave him a look that said, “thank you” and he gives a nod in response. And then one little hand holding before mounting their horses. One final note… it hurts even more that we SAW her there in the castle in LOVM. And now the Sun Tree moment will never be the same again. Because she was there, all along.
Marisha's performance during her reveal gave me actual chills when I first saw it live. It was so unexpected and watching her slowly but surely piece together the full picture of Laudna's backstory was absolute perfection
These are some of the most prominent figures in the story of Vox Machina, and we know nothing about them. I love that she's humanizing them by giving one of them a backstory & character.
I'd love to see this scene animated. Even just as a one off animated short. The party sound asleep in the middle of this foreboding wilderness as Laudna quietly dances Pate by the embers of a flickering fire. The only sounds that of the soft rain, smoldering wood and whatever lives beyond the veil of the intimately darkened forest surrounding them. The shadows playing over their figures, Orym sits across from this persistently cheerful, lively and kind woman he's come to know. On an intellectual level he knows that she's "dead" but the true reality of that almost certainly hadn't really clicked for him. It's such a strange, esoteric thing to even contemplate. He asks about her end out of gentle curiosity in her, and I imagine also likely prompted by the morbid curiosity with death that often comes to those grieving a loved one, and we slowly see the dawning horror and sorrow of understanding finally fall into place for him piece by piece as she tells him her story. A tale eerily familiar to him which she imparts not with anger or resentment, but with an unnerving mix of quiet ruefulness and subdued reverie. And then she punctuates the whole scene with a gentle but pointed acknowledgement that, while she won't prod, she knows without him even needing to say it that he's grieving someone. As if she could see right into him. It's just a hauntingly effective set up for a somber little ghost story vignette.
I'm thinking Laudna names things after foods she had before she died, like patê and escargot. She'll probably name something filet or purée in the future
Only so much you can do really... I have a buddy who has basically given up on rolling, he builds characters that make other people roll because he's a statistical anomaly who rarely rolls above a ten.
@@cosmoly299 "Recognise The Alpha" Travis is playing Chetney as the type of fella who's like "Yeah I'm an alpha male", that stupid "social standing" bullshit thing that's dumb, which derived from the old idea that wolves have an "alpha" of the pack, which was found by this one dude who I'll be damned if I can remember his name, but that same guy later learned that alpha wolves didn't really exist and the "leader" of a wolf pack was often just the parent wolves looking after their children. He tried to get that knowledge out to the public but the damage was already done, the term "alpha" took on a whole new meaning and dumbasses today use it to justify being dumbasses. Chetney is one of said dumbasses, albeit a way more likable version of one
@@antonymilne1346 Well the study elaborated on the matter specified the difference. Wild wolves do not have an alpha like described but usually domesticated wolves have for human intervention based reason. Its superficial authority usually seen in packs within zoos and or in breeder homes.
@@MrGoomakoo Laudna’s tone fit the situation tho imo. She’s had decades to process and get over the whole situation - and she was super isolated/is nonchalant abt being dead - so it’s not too much a big deal for her.
It was a bit of a throwaway comment that Fearne made, and only a couple of the cast reacted.... but if Fearne's grandma was straight up The Morrigan and her parents are visiting AEOR we are going to get into some deep shit when we pull that sweater thread. I mean we /know/ Fearne's family is interesting coming from the Feywild, but the only way she could have been any more direct is if she had an Aunt named Mab.
Wait, can you help we out here? I inly assumed the looks around the table regarding "Morrigan" were either because Morrigan is a prominent in various different mythologies, or because one of the cast had voiced a Morrigan before.
@@Jackie_Tikki_Tavi Your assumption may well be the extent of it, we'll just have to wait and see. What I think Megs PositiveOutlook is referring to, because they specified "The" Morrigan, is the Irish goddess of war and battle: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Morr%C3%ADgan . Obviously Fey aren't literal gods, yet (see last campaign), but Ashley could be going for some kind of approximation.
@@benf9531 she’s also considered the queen of death, magic, sovereignty, and justice. Since Fearne has dropped that she’s “royalty”, it wouldn’t surprise me that Ashley is using the mythology along these terms. There is a lot of depth that could come from this one.
I haven't been a critter for long, but even so, big moon little moon is the closest I've come to full on crying. It also immediately made Orym one of my favorites.
I already really fucking love roleplay centered episodes and this one was one of the best. Characters got to fleshbthemselves out so far, Matt's NPC's got a tiny bit of spotlight, there was some amazing laughs and heart wrenching moments. It's awesome to watch.
@@NafenX I also noticed you can see it when he's talking to Laudna earlier in the episode too. When he asks her if she remembers what death is like, I bet he was thinking about Will and when Marisha says "its not worth being sad about things you can't change".
25:15 "it's been 6 years, still miss _him_ " if you watched campaign 1, you know why this moment is so powerful. I wish to everyone to be as loved and loving as Liam (and Travis, too, holy shit).
@@blackbetty8566 Travis lost his father in his teens, and Liam's mom passed away around the time the Briarwood arc started, so around 2016. Liam almost left the game, and Matt wove a narrative that not only convinced Liam to stay, but helped him work through some of that pain while surrounded by his friends. It's something else if you ask me.
Thank you so much for editing their faces together into one cascade during Marisha's reveal. Watching them all realize what was she was about to reveal and look around at each other was so damn magical. Absolutely pulling a fast one on all of them, that legend.
The admission from Ashton they get beat up so people would watch and maybe care, though... Such a little moment, but saying a lot. Also can't stop thinking about Ashton going through ruberty (rock puberty) alone with no one to explain the changes and probably getting scared he has some kind of sickness. But truly, what an episode. Hyped out and nervous about next one... What if next cliffhanger is them meeting Nobodies in Heartmoore Hamlet as their opposing group?!
If everyone had listened to Ferne....there wouldn't have been the cliffhanger at the end. lol. She tried to tell them to leave it alone...but no, everyone's curiosity threw caution out the window. lol
I mean this is D&D, you gotta push the button lol. Push the button, and you get either a reward or a battle (or both). If nobody pushed the button ever, usually the DM would be a sad DM.
I love Pike and Yasha so much…but Fearne is my favorite character of Ashley’s. Fun, chaotic, and scary af while wearing a calm, unsettling yet placid smile. She can creep everyone out, scare them, and make them laugh hysterically- all within the 10 seconds.
You know that feeling, where you want to SCREAM, but they're not done talking and you can't interrupt them and they KEEP GOING and the NEED TO SCREAM keeps INCREASING
@@Michael_Raymond I was there in the theater when it happened. We were in a room filled with hundreds of people, all experiencing that feeling at once. Everyone had their hands over their mouths, and sat bolt upright on the edge of their seats. It was electrifying.
There's a spell called dream, i think it is a 5 lvl spell? And can let a character enter another's mind in dream, Laudna amd Imogen will maybe able to do that
@@cryofpaine Yeah but they get access to 5th level spells at level 9 which would but it at character level 12 at the earliest. Plus it would be Laudna that controlled the dream and not Imogen. So I think that homebrew will be the likelier solution here.
@@drewvehmeier5658 - I'm willing to speculate that Matt has personally been on the receiving end of "you need to be more like an alpha" or "I'm an alpha, which is why I get to do what I want even though you hate it"
gotta love Liam's reaction at 6:58, because after Orym's backstory reveal it's either Liam's shock at the statement, or him in character thinking "uuuuuhhhh, about that..."
I love that during the RTA moment Matt was like "FUCK THIS SHIT. FUCK YOU. FUCK EVERYTHING. IM OUT." Edit: Now knowing the ACTUAL meaning of RTA, it makes this moment absolutely fucking hilarious.
It makes too much sense for this will to be the same, I mean Derrig and Orym have very similar tattoos, served in the same guard, have a similar fighting style, etc. I feel like Derrig became Orym's father figure, Will probably followed in his fathers footstep to protect kiki and Orym tagged along
These theater experiences have been so amazing. The reactions of the theater and the environment is so pure, Got to meet critters and their cosplays. And the Laudna reveal is just mind blowing, knowing how far back it goes and even in animation. I wanna pinpoint when she chose the character knowing full well the cast was animating the Sun Tree part.
you're the real alpha here marisharaygun such a fantastic episode! great edit and man did i need this laugh thanks for adding the photorealistic drawing of fearne on a horse from their twitter post!
He definitely has the INT stat for it, plus, unlike the Barbarian's rage, the lycan's hybrid form doesn't prevent you from being able to cast spells or maintain concentration.
That cute lil interaction Between Taliesin and Marisha was so sweet and reminded me of the old Keyleth Percy dynamic that I miss and love so much. And boy was that just about the biggest reveal. I’ve watched it several times already and I still hold my breath during the entire scene. As always thank you so much for making these recaps.
21:11 was Ashley getting chills from the performance because I think it was the same for all of us at the time. Also great acting from Liam that had to keep a straight face through this entire interaction.
The little background piano playing during Lauda's moment was absolutely perfect. I don't know if Matt understood what Marisha was going for and changed the mood or if it came on randomly, but it was fantastic nonetheless.
Hey, real quick, I want to say something in gratitude... I just happened across a campaign two highlight vid you posted, where you wrote a comment talking about how (for totally understandable IRL reasons) you weren't certain you would be able to keep making these videos. I don't know what if anything changed since then, but I just want to thank you for still doing these. You do a really, REALLY great job, and I love to play the same game I do with Flando's weekly timestamps where I see which of my own highlights match up with yours. Point is, TL;DR, thanks for making these; I'm grateful for each one you do. 🙂
I love the fact. That absolutely none of them. Knew laudna's full backstory. Plus she times this perfectly since season one just aired a month or two earlier on amazon. Which makes people who just saw the show. Immediately know who she is. Then to see them cast realize it. Awesome
I think Ashley is watching C2 again because when she said Aeor I immediatly said "Oh my god she wants to free the woman in the blue orb" I'd be stoked if they went back to Aeor there is so much potential there. More to uncover.
So your hypothesis is based on and supported by your own reaction instead of by anything Ashley said or did? She could very well be rewatching campaign 2 (although she's a busy person, so that's doubtful), but I don't think the name Aeor and your reaction really point in that direction
This let me see Liam's face in much more detail than when I watched the episode and he put the perfect emotion on it and I felt a lot of heartache for him.
Love your work, I usually watch your video before the full episode but…a few seconds int watching Laura Bailey acting off Matt’s prompts I knew I did not want to miss a second. 🤩
I love how despite all of Chet's bravado and swagger, he turns serious the second he learns about Orym's dead husband. There's genuine care for the Halfling in front of him.
Thanks so much for continuing to make these recaps! I love watching them and you always choose moments that are my personal favourites, too! It’s such a great way to catch up and almost as essential as watching the episodes themselves, since you get everything important too.
22:00, can I just remark how chilling it is for the piano background music to just *stop* at the 8 second mark of this time stamp? Like, right as Marisha finished her sentence about hanging from the tree. Like, idk if that was timed by matt or simply part of the music but GOD DAMN. Shivers!~
Thanks for noticing and highlighting so many jokes and facial emotions shown by cast, watching your video just proved me again how much of everything i miss by watching or listening VOD.
So, is anyone else anticipating that the 'letters' from Fearn's parents are really like when your parents tell you they got a letter from your bunny at 'bunny camp' and all the fun they're having.
I love the duality between Travis knowing Orym's character art well enough to know that he has a tattoo and even knows exactly what it looks like, and Sam not knowing that Fearne even wears clothes
Also not knowing that two of the party members were sorcerers
gonna be real this is exactly what i love about both of them lmao
It fits very well with their personalities, Sam never watches anything from the channel and Travis being CEO is on the know of the full beat.
Also the contrast of Sam playing the character that sort of herding the party and keep them on track this campaign, while Travis was the one with ADHD and would zone in and out from time to time.
What's slightly more impressive to me is that Orym's tattoo isn't visible in the C3 artwork, only in the ExU artwork.
The "Does Fearne wear clothes?" And "You're a sorcerer?" Moments remind me of "Lucien has swords?"
Sam is playing a different game and I love that for him
Reminds me of "We don't even know where Raishan is."
@@Maybonics “where’s Larkin?!”
To Vax: You're really good at tracking and Rangery things, right?
we need a compilation of Sam Himbo moments lmao
I really appreciate that Ashley rolled a whole entire character, printed out the character sheet, turned it upside down, and just wrote "YES, AND" on the back and that's the only face of the paper she stares at as they play.
Headcanon accepted.
When Fearne told them she was going to make rounds around the party, Ashley really announced "i'm not done romancing Marisha's character" and i think it's hilarious
Well Sam and Marisha have both romanced Ashley in game, and Travis is doing... something. So the top table is on their way
Idk why do I feel like fearne is drawn to Ashton. I mean he keeps trying to steal from her and has stolen from her
What other episode was fearne romancing laudna?
@@grandohuckabee She probably sees it as flirting...
@@Thinkingmakesitso. fearne flirted with her a little and called her gorgeous a few times but that’s been about the extent of it
Orym: *telling Chetney about his husband.
Chetney: It’s a terrible day for rain.
It’s not raining…
Not cool, but I appreciate the reference, well done
NO! YOU MAY NOT DO THAT!
@@thehellfirewolf13 Travis actually voiced Mustang in FMAB, little extra connection there lol
@@dawson4218 Oh, i know. I understood the refrence and who said it, bro. XD
The fact that Sam has spent the last 17 episodes thinking fearne has been naked the whole time is endlessly funny
He just thought she was completely covered in fur.
@@deansheets still naked
@@deansheets so like a Minotaur
@@zeusdemi6858 even minotaurs often wear at least a loin cloth, or like the sunbreaker last campaign had full plate armor
can we appreciate liam saying "soup" in return to travis saying "times a wierd thing" in refrence to the " time is a weird soup" line
Can't believe it took 17 episodes to get the first soup reference.
@@TheyCallMeCarg Continuity
*sobbing profusely* ...or a chowder...
Well actually time is more of a… big ball of… wibbly wobbly… timey whimey… stuff
For the people who didn't catch it, Orym's late husband Will was possibly the son of Derrig, a character Liam played in the Dalen's Closet oneshot who was Keyleth's personal bodyguard during Vex and Percy's marriage.
In addition to this orym is a character, backstory race and class, that was going to be his backup for C1. In a talks he talked about how is backup would have been a halfling fighter who got sent to VM to help overcome the lose of Vax since he has lost his husband
wait keyleth, as in the C1 druid? she's dead?
@@brendanhart517 Nope! I’m pretty sure she was mentioned in EXU as still being alive
@@brendanhart517 if you are not sure, the voice of the tempest Keyleth is still alive and actively being talked about.
@@brendanhart517 a lvl 20 moon druid is basically impossible to kill
Chetney mellowing up and being so soft spoken and gentle while talking to Orym was the stand out for me here.. even with how amazing Marisha's reveal was. That side of Chetney is something we haven't seen.. hinting at so much experience and also care behind his crazy exterior. The feels!!
I know you're talking about the game, but you can't help but feel the parallels between Liam and Travis themselves when you watch that scene. What good lads these two are... They were very in tune.
@@Jackie_Tikki_Tavi oh absolutely. The acting, the emotional connection... especially between to males makes it so wonderful to see 😊
I'm wondering if he's lying about RTA. If he just said that to keep up the facade, but it really means someone else.
im super enjoying this middle ground between genuine roleplay and red-button-pushing sillyness travis seems to have found with chetney! it's real cool to watch him be able to flex both of those sides in his rp, and this whole episode was a really good example i think :]
@@cryofpaine i;m almost positive it means something else
Orym: you are the happiest person in this bunch
Laudna: Of course, the worst thing that could have ever happened to me has already happened
That ladies and gentlemen is the quote of the fucken century
If only she hadn't fumbled it in the moment; she ought to get to dub over the line she clearly intended to say.
@@abydosianchulac2 what?
@@hcdhcdhcd41 What Rugan wolf wrote is what we all heard and is what I think she meant to say, but it isn't what she actually said. She fumbled the verb tenses to instead say something rather inane. If there were a way to dub her voice I'd be all for it, because the line we think she said is an incredible bit of character motivation.
@@abydosianchulac2 oh ok, so you're just pedantic when it comes to grammar? Understood.
@@abydosianchulac2 noone cares, everyone understood the message completely fine, including cast as you can see from the reactions :)
Of all of Bells Hells, Orym was the perfect person to hear Laudna’s story. Because he had what the others lacked: context. Because he heard the story from the Tempest and Vox Machina’s discussions. And, above all, he’s just like Laudna: a victim of collateral damage from an act intended for someone else. For Laudna, it was intended to be a warning for Vox Machina. For Orym, it was a consequence of the attack on Keyleth specifically.
I love that Orym and Laudna have that connection. They lost so much, yet chose to continue living for their own sakes.
And even when she tried to brush it off, saying it was so long ago… Orym still said, “Respectfully… SO FUCKING WHAT?!” That got to Laudna. And you can tell, even when she still tried to convince him to pay her no mind. He still couldn’t let it go.
Perhaps that is also why she opened up about her ears. Because she knew he would understand, even without words. And it was the EARS that made him embrace her, that stoked his anger towards the cruelty she had to suffer… and it no doubt gave him another purpose. Another reason to protect.
“Nobody should have had to face anything like that. I AM sorry, and I’m impressed with you.”
“Thank you. It’s very kind. It is strange, I don’t think anyone’s ever really apologized for it, it’s not really your place but… it means a lot.”
Overall, I love that she allowed herself to feel that vulnerable, to drop the smile and feel remorse for her death for the first time in over 30 years. I bet she even allowed herself to cry genuine tears. Her voice even cracked when she thanked him.
And for her part, Laudna seemed to know how much Orym understood, she saw that same trauma and sense of loss in his eyes. Thus why she said, “I think it’s clear that you empathize because you understand.” Even without knowing everything about his story. Hell, she seemed to understand when he vaguely mentioned losing someone close in the attack once he truly started opening up earlier in the campaign.
That he also willingly took a level of exhaustion shows that he’s not going to just let this slide… and I bet that when they woke up, Laudna noticed it. Maybe even gave him a look that said, “thank you” and he gives a nod in response. And then one little hand holding before mounting their horses.
One final note… it hurts even more that we SAW her there in the castle in LOVM. And now the Sun Tree moment will never be the same again.
Because she was there, all along.
Geek
All that's left to think is who she was supposed to be: Keyleth or Vex. I'm more into the Keyleth camp myself but I can see how it could be Vex.
My heart...
@@Rais-Codex She was a child, too small to be Keyleth or Vex, gnomes also have pointed ears. She was Pike
@@lordbaemon1467 She's the same age she was when she died, couldn't be Pike.
Marisha's performance during her reveal gave me actual chills when I first saw it live. It was so unexpected and watching her slowly but surely piece together the full picture of Laudna's backstory was absolute perfection
These are some of the most prominent figures in the story of Vox Machina, and we know nothing about them. I love that she's humanizing them by giving one of them a backstory & character.
Absolute masterclass in RP and storytelling. I’ve watched it several times now and I still get chills and hold my breath every time
I'd love to see this scene animated. Even just as a one off animated short. The party sound asleep in the middle of this foreboding wilderness as Laudna quietly dances Pate by the embers of a flickering fire. The only sounds that of the soft rain, smoldering wood and whatever lives beyond the veil of the intimately darkened forest surrounding them. The shadows playing over their figures, Orym sits across from this persistently cheerful, lively and kind woman he's come to know. On an intellectual level he knows that she's "dead" but the true reality of that almost certainly hadn't really clicked for him. It's such a strange, esoteric thing to even contemplate. He asks about her end out of gentle curiosity in her, and I imagine also likely prompted by the morbid curiosity with death that often comes to those grieving a loved one, and we slowly see the dawning horror and sorrow of understanding finally fall into place for him piece by piece as she tells him her story. A tale eerily familiar to him which she imparts not with anger or resentment, but with an unnerving mix of quiet ruefulness and subdued reverie. And then she punctuates the whole scene with a gentle but pointed acknowledgement that, while she won't prod, she knows without him even needing to say it that he's grieving someone. As if she could see right into him. It's just a hauntingly effective set up for a somber little ghost story vignette.
I'm thinking Laudna names things after foods she had before she died, like patê and escargot. She'll probably name something filet or purée in the future
Pâté’s last name is de rolo the name of the former rulers to whitestone and where she had her final meal. The former de rolo mansion
She explained she named him pâté, because he looked like a dead piece of flesh
@@Plague-speaker So therefore if any fan art is done of her horse Escargot it needs to somehow resemble cooked snail meat?
This is my eagle: Beef Wellington!
OMG imagine if this is true, you are a genius!!!
9:42 remembering that this ep was in theaters makes Sam looking directly into the camera and saying "go get some popcorn" infinitely funnier
If The CR cast had stats like in Skyrim, it'd be
Horses Owned:13
Horses lost: 42
“Don’t fuck with me, Matt Mercer!”
I hope Matt has his pillow and a blanket ready to go to the couch.
Ashley: plays a character with a +7 Wisdom save
Also Ashley: fails Wisdom saves anyways
AND she has magic resistance!
(which she constantly forgets to roll lol)
Only so much you can do really...
I have a buddy who has basically given up on rolling, he builds characters that make other people roll because he's a statistical anomaly who rarely rolls above a ten.
When Matt left the video after Chetney's RTA I fucking died
I like to imagine him just reappearing back into reality wasn't video editing and was just in fact Matt's secret powers
what is it referring to? I’m not familiar with the acronym
@@cosmoly299 "Recognise The Alpha" Travis is playing Chetney as the type of fella who's like "Yeah I'm an alpha male", that stupid "social standing" bullshit thing that's dumb, which derived from the old idea that wolves have an "alpha" of the pack, which was found by this one dude who I'll be damned if I can remember his name, but that same guy later learned that alpha wolves didn't really exist and the "leader" of a wolf pack was often just the parent wolves looking after their children. He tried to get that knowledge out to the public but the damage was already done, the term "alpha" took on a whole new meaning and dumbasses today use it to justify being dumbasses.
Chetney is one of said dumbasses, albeit a way more likable version of one
i was surprised Matt doesn't have a desk chair with casters
@@antonymilne1346 Well the study elaborated on the matter specified the difference. Wild wolves do not have an alpha like described but usually domesticated wolves have for human intervention based reason. Its superficial authority usually seen in packs within zoos and or in breeder homes.
Laudna really didn’t leave us Hanging with her backstory, don’tcha know
She didn't let us twist in the wind, did she?
I hate you
I wasnt a big fan if her deadpan delivery tbh. Kinda killed the hype of the wholething 🤷🏻
at least she had a killer dinner before.
truly a meal to die for.
@@MrGoomakoo Laudna’s tone fit the situation tho imo. She’s had decades to process and get over the whole situation - and she was super isolated/is nonchalant abt being dead - so it’s not too much a big deal for her.
Matt when the group is an innuendo machine: I sleep
Matt when he hears someone mention alphas: I'm out
One is harmless fun, the other is toxic.
Nah, both are toxic. One is just a low enough toxicity to be tolerated.
@@HSuper_Lee Nothing toxic about adults referencing sex.
neither is toxic lol making jokes about being “the alpha” isn’t toxic
@@villi872 Making jokes *about* being the alpha isn't toxic. The very concept of "being the alpha" is what's toxic.
Matt looks so proud/awestruck by his wife and I love that for them
It was a bit of a throwaway comment that Fearne made, and only a couple of the cast reacted.... but if Fearne's grandma was straight up The Morrigan and her parents are visiting AEOR we are going to get into some deep shit when we pull that sweater thread.
I mean we /know/ Fearne's family is interesting coming from the Feywild, but the only way she could have been any more direct is if she had an Aunt named Mab.
Im 90% sure that Ashley was trolling when she said her parents went to Aeor
Wait, can you help we out here? I inly assumed the looks around the table regarding "Morrigan" were either because Morrigan is a prominent in various different mythologies, or because one of the cast had voiced a Morrigan before.
@@Jackie_Tikki_Tavi Your assumption may well be the extent of it, we'll just have to wait and see. What I think Megs PositiveOutlook is referring to, because they specified "The" Morrigan, is the Irish goddess of war and battle: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Morr%C3%ADgan . Obviously Fey aren't literal gods, yet (see last campaign), but Ashley could be going for some kind of approximation.
@@benf9531 yes, there's a lot of things that could be under the surface there. Exciting.
@@benf9531 she’s also considered the queen of death, magic, sovereignty, and justice. Since Fearne has dropped that she’s “royalty”, it wouldn’t surprise me that Ashley is using the mythology along these terms. There is a lot of depth that could come from this one.
Imogen, Laudna and Orym really fucked me up this episode i loved it.
I haven't been a critter for long, but even so, big moon little moon is the closest I've come to full on crying. It also immediately made Orym one of my favorites.
Big Moon Little Moon is the absolute sweetest thing ive heard in a long while, we must protect Orym.
They really killed this episode. Definitely the best one so far! Between Marisha absolutely killing it more delicious Liam sad boi. I love dnd!
I already really fucking love roleplay centered episodes and this one was one of the best. Characters got to fleshbthemselves out so far, Matt's NPC's got a tiny bit of spotlight, there was some amazing laughs and heart wrenching moments. It's awesome to watch.
His whole demeanor changing when talking about his husband's memory
100% and it was nice to finally hit the road, i feel like being stuck in one place didn't help this campaign's pacing this early on
@@NafenX I also noticed you can see it when he's talking to Laudna earlier in the episode too. When he asks her if she remembers what death is like, I bet he was thinking about Will and when Marisha says "its not worth being sad about things you can't change".
@@darkroselight3835 Your notification just made me realise that I made a typo and it looked I was calling him a d hole 😹 So thank you for that.
25:15 "it's been 6 years, still miss _him_ " if you watched campaign 1, you know why this moment is so powerful. I wish to everyone to be as loved and loving as Liam (and Travis, too, holy shit).
What do you mean? I've just started watching Critical Role so could you fill me in?
@@blackbetty8566 Travis lost his father in his teens, and Liam's mom passed away around the time the Briarwood arc started, so around 2016. Liam almost left the game, and Matt wove a narrative that not only convinced Liam to stay, but helped him work through some of that pain while surrounded by his friends.
It's something else if you ask me.
@@Jackie_Tikki_Tavi That's sounds amazing, I'm glad they're all so good friends. 😢👍🏻
27:43 the fact that she almost squashed this encounter from the start :D and now it's the big cliffhanger for the next episode
That fleeting moment when the chaos monster of the group is the only voice of the reason…until she says “ah fuck it” and joins in anyway 😂😂😂
Thank you so much for editing their faces together into one cascade during Marisha's reveal. Watching them all realize what was she was about to reveal and look around at each other was so damn magical. Absolutely pulling a fast one on all of them, that legend.
Campaign 1: anger
Campaign 2: depression
Campaign 3: horniness
As if Vox "Poly Machina" weren't horny? Nah, This is just the natural progression of this friend group lol.
Campaign 1: Angry horniness
Campaign 2: Depressed horniness
Campaign 3: Horny horniness
@@deffdefying4803 Now we have a working theory lol
The strangest stages of grief
Because of Pate and now Escargot, I'm wondering if she's naming her "friends" after foods she ate at dinner with the Briarwoods.
nice
Awful. We need to make it canon.
also paté and escargot are both french foods, might mean something (?)
The admission from Ashton they get beat up so people would watch and maybe care, though... Such a little moment, but saying a lot. Also can't stop thinking about Ashton going through ruberty (rock puberty) alone with no one to explain the changes and probably getting scared he has some kind of sickness. But truly, what an episode. Hyped out and nervous about next one... What if next cliffhanger is them meeting Nobodies in Heartmoore Hamlet as their opposing group?!
I love that we get camera stares from both Sam and Matt this episode and for totally different reasons
I need Talesin edit with war memories behind him while Laudna's talking about her past. XD Bonus internal screams too...
I absolutely adore that "Mother's name" continues to be a running gag
If everyone had listened to Ferne....there wouldn't have been the cliffhanger at the end. lol. She tried to tell them to leave it alone...but no, everyone's curiosity threw caution out the window. lol
I mean, even Fearne didn't listen to herself soo... 🤣🤣
@@alittleantidote5852 only because she was pushed. lol.
I mean this is D&D, you gotta push the button lol. Push the button, and you get either a reward or a battle (or both). If nobody pushed the button ever, usually the DM would be a sad DM.
✊Let chaos reign! ✊
@@benjaminandrew9057 not really. She could've actually gone back to sleep if she wanted too 😆
Sam's reaction to "Fresh... Grass..." is hilarious😂😂😂
I love Pike and Yasha so much…but Fearne is my favorite character of Ashley’s. Fun, chaotic, and scary af while wearing a calm, unsettling yet placid smile.
She can creep everyone out, scare them, and make them laugh hysterically- all within the 10 seconds.
Bailey and O’Brien both going “ooooh” after the Morrigan name drop hahahah
Also I never realized that Taliesin threw in that little Lore Dump joke right before the “pixie” encounter
Travis fucking with Matt with that hogwash alpha thing was just peak comedy. I loved that so much, hahaha. xD
He knows how to push his friends' buttons to make the most enjoyable moments. He's a good friend.
The "horse with two names" segment is killer!
the edits are fantastic
21:48 when this whole reveal occurred, I damn near dropped my drink.
You know that feeling, where you want to SCREAM, but they're not done talking and you can't interrupt them and they KEEP GOING and the NEED TO SCREAM keeps INCREASING
She's that fucking kid in the legend of vox machina
@@Michael_Raymond I was there in the theater when it happened. We were in a room filled with hundreds of people, all experiencing that feeling at once. Everyone had their hands over their mouths, and sat bolt upright on the edge of their seats. It was electrifying.
@@Anonymous-xx3rn i’m sure u know this now, but she was Vex’s double, not pikes, so she wasn’t the kid
"I don't know how this turned on me, but if you carried Silgoats we wouldn't be in this situation" encapsulates Chetney to me
There's a spell called dream, i think it is a 5 lvl spell? And can let a character enter another's mind in dream, Laudna amd Imogen will maybe able to do that
Sadly Dream is not available for Sorcerers. Though wouldn't surprise me if Matt homebrew something there
@@eternal_magician4810 it is for warlocks though, so Laudna could get it if she keeps putting levels in warlock.
@@cryofpaine Yeah but they get access to 5th level spells at level 9 which would but it at character level 12 at the earliest. Plus it would be Laudna that controlled the dream and not Imogen. So I think that homebrew will be the likelier solution here.
@@eternal_magician4810 I think it would be lovely if Laudna visited Imogen's dreams to keep them under control for her.
I love how Sam is usually the quietest and lets people RP, and Chetney's "RTA" got the vocal "Oh god..." twice lol.
I'm still super lost as to what this is and why Mercer hates it so much. Is it related to the "men's hierarchy: alpha, sigma, beta male" joke?
@@drewvehmeier5658 - I'm willing to speculate that Matt has personally been on the receiving end of "you need to be more like an alpha" or "I'm an alpha, which is why I get to do what I want even though you hate it"
"Focuse your brain forward, It's not worth being sad by what can't be changed," Fucking hell Marisha dropping a life quote there.
This forever will be my favorite episode since I watched in the cinema with the boyz here in Brazil!!!!
gotta love Liam's reaction at 6:58, because after Orym's backstory reveal it's either Liam's shock at the statement, or him in character thinking "uuuuuhhhh, about that..."
I think the alpha discussion is the legit angriest I’ve seen Matt, he is seething with rage.
You obviously haven't seen his guest appearance on Game Grumps.
@@mitchellcarter5514 Capitalism!
Every now and then his SJW side comes out.
What does RTA mean
@@kingofroses302 His logical side yeah
I love that during the RTA moment Matt was like "FUCK THIS SHIT. FUCK YOU. FUCK EVERYTHING. IM OUT."
Edit: Now knowing the ACTUAL meaning of RTA, it makes this moment absolutely fucking hilarious.
Ironically, he immediately pulled an Alpha move to try and disprove Alpha.
The only “Alpha” I recognize is that old streaming service.
I like the philosophy behind it though. That anyone can be the alpha, you just have to recognize it.
@@Uhdksurvhunter and that he needs to be the alpha to beat the lycan inside chetney
@@AdamEspersona 😭 I miss Alpha. So many great shows just gone.
so we all wearing the tin foil hat that Orym's husband Will is also Derrig's son?
(raises hand) I'm wearing my clown shoes as well.
It makes too much sense for this will to be the same, I mean Derrig and Orym have very similar tattoos, served in the same guard, have a similar fighting style, etc.
I feel like Derrig became Orym's father figure, Will probably followed in his fathers footstep to protect kiki and Orym tagged along
These theater experiences have been so amazing. The reactions of the theater and the environment is so pure, Got to meet critters and their cosplays. And the Laudna reveal is just mind blowing, knowing how far back it goes and even in animation. I wanna pinpoint when she chose the character knowing full well the cast was animating the Sun Tree part.
you're the real alpha here marisharaygun
such a fantastic episode! great edit and man did i need this laugh
thanks for adding the photorealistic drawing of fearne on a horse from their twitter post!
Big moon, little moon nearly had me in tears. Orym was my favorite from the very beginning of EXU.
I wonder if Chetney will end up dipping into the blood magic wizard from the new tal’dorei reborn book.
He definitely has the INT stat for it, plus, unlike the Barbarian's rage, the lycan's hybrid form doesn't prevent you from being able to cast spells or maintain concentration.
@@liminalsoup Oooh. That's actually a very important nuance! I'm sure that'll come in handy for powergamers.
The acting from Marisha, Laura and Liam blew my mind this episode
Omfg Sam looking up as Matt says “fresh… grass” fucking killed me I hadn’t noticed that! Gosh I love these videos thanks for existing haha
21:41 Watch Matts face. You can already see the gears turning after she said “The worst thing to ever happen to me has already happened.”
That cute lil interaction Between Taliesin and Marisha was so sweet and reminded me of the old Keyleth Percy dynamic that I miss and love so much. And boy was that just about the biggest reveal. I’ve watched it several times already and I still hold my breath during the entire scene. As always thank you so much for making these recaps.
The acting in this episode, oh my goodness it's amazing! Laura in the beginning wow
21:11 was Ashley getting chills from the performance because I think it was the same for all of us at the time. Also great acting from Liam that had to keep a straight face through this entire interaction.
Matts face at Marisha saying "The worst thing that can happen, has already happened" is the face of true DM power
thanks for pointing that out, I would have missed it. so lovely
Marisha’s acting here is amazing
6:54 - I just can't handle Ashley as Fearne, man. Hahaha. Luv her.
The time stamps ask the right questions: where is Laura's Oscar?
Laudna and Fearne can tell a story in a way that makes me not want to hear a story ever again
The little background piano playing during Lauda's moment was absolutely perfect. I don't know if Matt understood what Marisha was going for and changed the mood or if it came on randomly, but it was fantastic nonetheless.
I love that the reference to Stephanie Beatriz' line in Brooklyn 99 also comes with the added layer that she also voices Lady Kima in TLOVM.
hands down my favorite episode this campaign so far. i can't wait for more lore drops in the future
Laura's acting at the start of episode as Imogen was unnecessarily great
Hey, real quick, I want to say something in gratitude...
I just happened across a campaign two highlight vid you posted, where you wrote a comment talking about how (for totally understandable IRL reasons) you weren't certain you would be able to keep making these videos.
I don't know what if anything changed since then, but I just want to thank you for still doing these. You do a really, REALLY great job, and I love to play the same game I do with Flando's weekly timestamps where I see which of my own highlights match up with yours.
Point is, TL;DR, thanks for making these; I'm grateful for each one you do. 🙂
Matt's defense of opera and subtle Monty Python's Holy Grail (at 7:48) reference are also fantastic. YEAH BOOOIIII
Fearne: are you all rock hard?
LMAO
I love Fearne, Laudna, and Chetney for such different reasons. They are going to make one bizarre triple.
I love the fact. That absolutely none of them. Knew laudna's full backstory. Plus she times this perfectly since season one just aired a month or two earlier on amazon. Which makes people who just saw the show. Immediately know who she is. Then to see them cast realize it. Awesome
I think Ashley is watching C2 again because when she said Aeor I immediatly said "Oh my god she wants to free the woman in the blue orb" I'd be stoked if they went back to Aeor there is so much potential there. More to uncover.
So your hypothesis is based on and supported by your own reaction instead of by anything Ashley said or did?
She could very well be rewatching campaign 2 (although she's a busy person, so that's doubtful), but I don't think the name Aeor and your reaction really point in that direction
The gentleness of Chet's voice when he says "oh...I'm sorry..." kills me EVERY TIME
There is something about Travis lightly tapping Marisha's finger while quietly saying "Bitch" in the CashApp ad that never fails to make me laugh
and then the way she just **SLAM**
Love the horse with no name reference.
Chetney in red robes would kind of look like the Dungeon Master from the D&D cartoon...
This let me see Liam's face in much more detail than when I watched the episode and he put the perfect emotion on it and I felt a lot of heartache for him.
Your chapter captions are half the joy. Thank you for another great video! Love the editing and your attention to detail
Every time I see one of these, I think, "No way to top this video" and then you come out with one that does. Every single week. Excellent stuff!
Love your work, I usually watch your video before the full episode but…a few seconds int watching Laura Bailey acting off Matt’s prompts I knew I did not want to miss a second. 🤩
I love how despite all of Chet's bravado and swagger, he turns serious the second he learns about Orym's dead husband. There's genuine care for the Halfling in front of him.
"Dear Marisha: What the hell man" is the best-named timestamp of all time.
Thanks so much for continuing to make these recaps! I love watching them and you always choose moments that are my personal favourites, too! It’s such a great way to catch up and almost as essential as watching the episodes themselves, since you get everything important too.
24:57 Travis' reaction is so genuine and compassionate, I started to get blurry-eyed 🥺🥺🥺
22:00, can I just remark how chilling it is for the piano background music to just *stop* at the 8 second mark of this time stamp? Like, right as Marisha finished her sentence about hanging from the tree. Like, idk if that was timed by matt or simply part of the music but GOD DAMN. Shivers!~
The lore drops in this episode made my mind haywire. I can’t process it all
Well Ashley totally regrets saying that thing about tentacles now
“Fae-nal leakage”
Sam just out here turning puns into warcrimes
Thanks for noticing and highlighting so many jokes and facial emotions shown by cast, watching your video just proved me again how much of everything i miss by watching or listening VOD.
So, is anyone else anticipating that the 'letters' from Fearn's parents are really like when your parents tell you they got a letter from your bunny at 'bunny camp' and all the fun they're having.
Orym's "Oh yes" when Chetney remarked "oh this is personal to you" gave me chills.
i kiss the ground you walk upon marisharaygun
Ashley is fucking crushing it this season
This is one of Travis, Liam, and Marisha’s best episodes over three campaigns. The way that all three of them wove this narrative as been masterful.
literally the moment Sam asked about Fearne's parents I knew where it was going lmfao
Orym: Some days it feels like yesterday, sometimes it feels farther away.
Chutney: Time's weird like that.
Orym: Yeah. Soup.
MY HEART. FUCK.