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f--e-u-e-r-t-r-u-n-k-e--n · 7 months

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Brief analysis of the encounter at the Vergesson Sanatorium, from episode 88 of campaign 2 of Critical Role.

This is based on my first experience of campaign 2, everything I explain here is having seen no further than chapter 90, and of course having read comments from different members of the fandom up to this point. *Consider this a spoiler alert.* ¿Por qué perdiste tu primera serenidad? ¿Qué ángel malo se paró en la puerta de tu sonrisa Con la espada en la mano? -Vicente Huidobro, Altazor I'll remember it Every restless night We were so young then We thought that everything we could possibly do was right (...) Tell me, when did the light die? - Sinéad O'Connor, Troy Let's get started! We come to ask ourselves: What makes the meeting with Ikithon in chapter 88 so special and especially disturbing? It is not just the setting, the circumstances and those involved, or not these aspects alone but how these factors come together in such a way that they create a deep sense of vulnerability. The first determining factor, then, is Vulnerability. We are faced with two figures of authority and power (political and arcane): Trent Ikithon and Ludinus Da'leth, which in itself is already intimidating, but the tone of the scene transports us to another, more… tense environment. This scene completely shifts the focus from the conflict between conspirators in nations at war to the personal effects that violence has on people. We go from strategies and diplomacy to traumas and phobias. It is one thing to feel vulnerable before the power of a king, as in the previous chapter, it is quite another for a subject to use manipulation tactics to take advantage of a deeply traumatized person who is struggling to regain his autonomy thanks to the support of those who care about them. (Theme that crosses the arc of all M9, especially in these chapters to Caleb, but also to Yasha.) We go from the portrait of a fanatic professor to an authority figure who simply enjoys making people suffer, beyond any ideology or position he tries to defend. We know that Trent Ikithon is one of the most powerful sorcerers in the Empire. But it is not his status within the Cerberus Assembly or his position in the Soltryce Academy that makes us viewers feel unsafe entering his workshop. What happens then? To ensure the feeling of vulnerability, the meeting takes place in the sanatorium. Vergessen. [The name of the Sanatorium is possibly derived from the German word "Vergessen" which means "forgotten".] The meeting does not take place in a politically or psychologically neutral space. From diplomacy we went directly to psychological warfare, that is the brilliance of this scene. (And what makes the entire fandom want to transform into a hand that hangs Ikithon.) We understand that Ikithon not only knows who Caleb is since he entered, but he knows who he is since they entered Rexxentrum, in fact, he knows when TM9 exactly arrived at Rexxentrum. Which leads us to speculate that he even knew who he was at the first meeting in Zadash. Was it in Zadash? It's important to note that the biggest factor in Caleb's sanity is staying under the radar and making it impossible for him to be tracked. It is this feeling of security that allows him to remain stable, grow, and deal with the deep trauma and PTSD he suffers from. And heal, as much as possible. Generating this feeling of security is what makes Caleb feel free and what unites him to the group. Violating that security and generating a constant feeling of guilt in his victim is what makes Ikithon (and any textbook manipulator) maintain his dominance over his victims. Here the double metaphor operates: Trent Ikithon represents a military apparatus that through violence of all kinds forces the subject to lose his individuality to sacrifice himself as a pawn for high command who maintain his status; while it is also a manual to identify manipulators and domestic violence. Does propaganda operate like a jealous husband who hurts his partner's self-esteem? Is it a cult? Is he an abusive father? Is it the far right operating out of fear? All of the above at the same time?

[When studying the military metaphor, his German accent provokes the obvious comparison to the Nazis. And it is always appropriate, but it also deserves comparison with the joy in torture that the United States taught to the dictatorships they imposed throughout Latin America during Operation Condor. But Wildemount's macropolitics deserve their own analysis.] We know of the torture and brutal experiments carried out on Soltryce Academy's most promising students, which brings us to the second determining factor: Manipulation. Ikithon brutally tortures the most promising students, one of his goals is to achieve absolute loyalty through trauma. Part of the “training” is forcing them to carry out horrifically violent acts to prove their loyalty to both the empire and Ikithon himself. Messianism, the cult of personality and domestic violence blur their lines, which makes them complex to analyze separately. But we will advance our analysis based on the following assertion: Ikithon is a perfect example of a manipulator.

Brief analysis of Trent Ikithon, Archmage of Civil Influence on the Cerberus Assembly or How to recognize a manipulator. Ikithon is proud, he raises an image of being unattainable, perfect and others are ignorant or full of defects. On every occasion he can he points out to his most faithful students that they have made a mistake or have not met his expectations. Or with the minimum standards they should meet. No one is at his level, thereby generating not only insecurity and low self-esteem in his students, but also generating and nurturing dependency. “A manipulator will often use some biased emotional reasoning to manipulate you. For example, they might say something like:) “You’re a failure.” (Devaluing you)”

“Humiliation and bullying are self-esteem attacks designed to make victims think low of themselves. When a person is made to think low of themselves, they’re put in a submissive position. When someone is placed in a submissive position, they’re likely to comply.” These tactics resonate throughout the meeting, echoing with viewers, especially survivors of various types of abuse or those who fled violent homes or kicked violent family members out of their homes. That is the disturbing and perverse atmosphere of the meeting at the sanatorium. It puts the audience into Survival Mode. (Macro war strategies are the same as micro war strategies. Psychological warfare in private spaces.)

Factor 3: Boundaries or The Mighty Nein and why we love them. “Manipulators are constantly pushing their victims’ boundaries. They want to know what they can and cannot get away with. This helps them manipulate more efficiently and prevent backlash. If the victim doesn’t assertively maintain their boundaries, they’ll see them getting violated one by one”.

With this in mind we understand what is at stake in the meeting. Ikithon wants to make Caleb feel like he knows everything, that he controls everything, that he sees everything, and that everyone obeys him sooner or later. He calls Caleb by his previous name (I find it problematic to refer to his previous name as “true” in a subject who constructs his new identity to recover from trauma and survive), he summons him to an institution where he was interned and was probably tortured, to revive his trauma, has Eodwulf present, as a faithful squire, representative of what he is not, of what could have been, of what “should be” while Eodwulf himself is manipulated, too, by seeing what happens when you rebel. . Keep in mind that while we see Caleb enter reinvented with his new family, Eoudwulf probably sees a traitor who must have lived in hiding. He probably asks himself: Why would a prodigy of the arcane have to live in poverty, when it is easier to endure Ikithon and succeed him? (Or is that what Astrid thinks?) But Caleb doesn't go to the meeting alone. That is the strange beauty of the scene. At the moment when Caleb is willing, in response to trauma, to ignore his own boundaries and prepares to collaborate with his manipulator, it is Yasha who replies “I'm not comfortable with that.” Remembering the entire journey the team goes through to free Yasha from a painfully similar situation. It is The Mighy Nein, as a team, who are constantly attentive to taking care of Caleb's mental health, guarding his boundaries and ensuring that the situation does not make him go into crisis. It is Fjord, who before the meeting asks him if he is feeling well and if he agrees to go. However, of the entire team, it is Caduceus who makes the team's position clear and the limit to which they are willing to go: “If he looks at you sideways we will not leave enough of him to be found.” All the team is on board, of course! Jester adds: “Yeah! “We could chop him up into little tiny pieces and then flee to Xhorhas and never come back!” Beau, the recently promoted Expositor: “That is an option.” We are reaching a point of resolution of several plots and points important to the entire team and everyone is willing to drop everything if the meeting goes wrong. (We can only imagine what mental gymnastics Matt was doing when he overheard a threat to one of the empire's most powerful wizards.) What moves me is the immediate alertness and protectiveness over Caleb, the team´s guard is up, even if Caleb lowers it. They will protect him no matter the consequences. They're going to be paying attention to all sides, starting with Jester and Beau referring to Trent by his first name. Just telling Trent (It's not just a sign of Beau's disdain for authority or Jester's for social norms) is a way to level the playing field. Disavow this unattainable figure. It's just Trent, a perverted old man, nothing more. It can't hurt you. They disrespect him and get away with it, telling Trent himself “We don't fear you, your authority means nothing to us.” All as a great show of mutual support and love. That makes this scene so strangely beautiful, we see such a sincere demonstration of love exposing itself to danger in such a dangerous setting. Finally, manipulators know what they are doing, it is not a coincidence and it is part of a strategy to generate dependency and sever significant ties in their victims. Trent, has coordinated countless events and relationships to create deep trauma and dependency based on abuse. People like this use lies intelligently and can sometimes even deny things they have said, confusing us. Both a manipulator and a dictator do not usually free their victims, but will take full advantage by asking for increasingly greater sacrifices.

—Caleb: His previous poking about in the Dynasty did not end well. —Trent: You… misunderstand, I have not myself travelled to Dynasty. —Caleb: No, you don’t do that, you don’t need to. You have help for that. Always help, for that.

#Critical Role #the mighty nein #Critical Role c2e88 #I didnt got to talk about how good was everyones acting #My gender is: Characters written by Taliesin Jaffe #campaign 2 #caleb widogast #trent ikithon #critters #critical role campaign 2 #caduceus clay #jester lavorre #fjord #beauregard lionett #Trent Ickythong

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xnervouscircus · 1 year

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ngl i am right now wishing i'd watched the vm campaign not just so it would mean i'd watched the vm campaign but also so it'd give me realistic insight into how much from the campaign actually makes it into the animated show

bc i know i should temper my expectations for what will make it into tm9 animated series but i don't know how low i should keep those expectations

like i'm seeing a lot of excitement about seeing molly dress his dick up with eggs but since it didn't really wind up being plot-relevant, will the hospital heist even be included? (i'd like to think it will be just bc it's a fan favorite moment, but they do have FIVE HUNDRED AND FIFTY HOURS of content to streamline so idk)

just. thinking about swoleregard putting catatonic caleb on her shoulder. (and then immediately shrinking down to normal size.)

thinking about fjord rolling three natural ones in a row and completely failing at a carnival game.

thinking about jester painting a parasol for essek.

thinking about beau and nott's tree climbing race.

thinking about caleb casting seeming to force fjord to look like he's wearing a bathrobe like the rest of them--while also making the rest of the nein look like they're wearing normal clothes so suddenly fjord's the only one in a bathrobe.

just so many amazing little moments that would be gifts to see animated.

#come on amazon just go ahead and promise them they can animate all 550 hours #ahahaahahajrfhghg no it's fine it's okay i'll make my peace with streamlining #the mighty nein

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neinofthem · 1 year

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I posted 290 times in 2022

That's 263 more posts than 2021!

208 posts created (72%)

82 posts reblogged (28%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@neinofthem

@viciousmollymaukery

@quinn-of-aebradore

@essektheylyss

@andgently

I tagged 166 of my posts in 2022

Only 43% of my posts had no tags

#essek thelyss - 99 posts

#critical role - 98 posts

#the mighty nein - 89 posts

#cr - 88 posts

#mighty nein - 83 posts

#tm9 - 81 posts

#cr2 - 74 posts

#shadowgast - 68 posts

#cr shitpost - 53 posts

#critical role essek - 50 posts

Longest Tag: 137 characters

#imagine waking up one day and remembering that the disgraced former shadowhand is a. 4’10 on a good day and b. definitely without a doubt

My Top Posts in 2022:

literally the best thing about essek is that it’s so hard to have a bad take about him because he is so many things. yes he is a virgin librarian yes he is a suave sexy politician yes he is a brilliant wizard prodigy yes he has the warcaster feat no he has never seen conflict. it’s literally yes he’s world weary and has lived for over a hundred years yes he’s said the word ‘fuck’ once and once only. yes he carries around a frilly pink parasol yes he was the head of arcane intelligence for the fucking queen of the kryn dynasty and no one has asked his favorite food before. what is WITH this guy I LOVE him.

2,493 notes - Posted February 28, 2022

as much as essek is a genius wizard and schemer and intimidating and aloof he is also Just Some Guy. he stole the most important items in his country’s culture not because of a desire to start war but because he’s a huge nerd. he’s being chased by assassins and the people who exposed his crimes led the worst man of all existence to his doorstep and he wants to get drunk off of boozy hot chocolate. he tried to fistfight a giant with his twink wizard noodle arms. he gardens. he can crush a man with one hand. he has little teefies. his dad got so angry at him he died. he’s dating the worlds most traumatized man. he’s my best friend. he’s gay. easily the most character of all time.

2,535 notes - Posted February 21, 2022

essek: caleb did you fight a demigod. caleb answer me did you fight the fucking ocean.

caleb, tenderly cradling his face: you’re so hot.

2,577 notes - Posted December 2, 2022

bells hells merrily traipsing their way into aeor sometime in the near future: who are you guys lmao. anyways we think we’re swinging by that little bitch moon next to take care of the Moon Haunting that has been Plaguing us with Visions.

caleb and essek on their fifth aeorian honeymoon: what are the words that you are saying. why does that stalactite have a beacon in his head. what do you mean you ran into ludinus da’leth. why do you have a fucking robot. what was that about the fucking moon.

2,899 notes - Posted September 2, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

imagine you are the director of the magic cia and you betrayed your home country because they denied your grad thesis and you thought everything was chill but then a group of people in bdsm gear burst into the room holding the god that you stole and you now have to babysit them and watch while they ruin the house your family gave them and you are also in a honeypot4honeypot situationship with their resident ginger and you teach him forbidden magics because he has nice eyes and you keep having to ferry them to fight dragons or some shit and they keep fucking inviting you to dinner so you go to dinner and they trap you, the traitor they’re looking for, in a truth spell and instead of asking any damning question they want to know which of them you find the hottest and what your moms name is and then they disappear for like two months and then you’re in disguise at the negotiation which undermines your past decades work and they fucking show up and they find out about your crimes so they paralyze you and drag you to their ship and instead of killing you the ginger kisses you on the forehead and they tell you that you’re family now and then they disappear for a long fucking time so you leave and go chill in the north and then they show up chased by a purple man with horns and a dead member of the fucking cerberus assembly and then they fucking dip and when you come back they take you to a flesh city to fight the purple man but they get really sad when they murder him so they revive him? and also you find evidence that the god that you stole is not a god and is some kind of hyper advanced magic computer maybe and then you just sort of fucking go home? and chill in a garden? every day essek thelyss wakes up.

4,733 notes - Posted March 24, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

#tumblr2022 #year in review #my 2022 tumblr year in review #your tumblr year in review

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samuraiko · 1 year

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My CRITICAL ROLE-inspired NaNoWriMo novel’s playlist

Screw it, I’m going to share this. It doesn’t matter I’m terrified to do this because I think the Critter community will hate it (or me, or both). I’m doing it anyway.

Behold, the entirety of the playlist for my NaNoWriMo 2022 project, the Critical Role-inspired novel THE WIZARD AND THE WEAVER.

(For those not in the know, NaNoWriMo = National Novel Writing Month (aka November), where you have to write a 50,000+ word novel in 30 days. By no means does this mean your novel is *DONE*, it just means you’ve banged out 50k+ words for it. This year, I hit 65k+ in 30 days!)

The prologue is set in 819 PD, the first third-ish of the novel taking place about six months after the end of C2 (not long after TM9:Reunited) in 837 PD, and the last two-thirds taking place five years after that in 842 PD. And as you can guess by the title, it’s a Caleb-centric novel.

Force of habit, I love writing ‘back cover blurbs.’

And I had art done for it, too, courtesy of the awesomesauce @cvleart!

As well as this gorgeousness by @cynicalstith...

Anyway, I promised myself that once I was done, I would post the full track list and a bit about each song (a la the official playlists).

(Full disclosure: as I get into editing this book in 2023, I will likely be adding to the playlist, moving tracks around, etc.)

---

Vault of Glass - Ursine Vulpine, Will Post One of what I call my ‘trailer’ songs, where my mind spins a trailer about one of my books, if I could actually animate it and have voiceover and all that. The clockwork beat and constant repeat of "Again... again... again..." emphasizes the nature of Caleb and Malastra’s journey.

Dust and Light - Twelve Titans Music Another of my "trailer" pieces... I used this for a RIFT trailer I made ages ago for the Nightmare Tide expansion, and Raelskye’s traumatic quest (and Cyril’s role in it) reminds me a bit of Malastra’s here.

Welcome to Wildemount - Critical Role, Colm R. McGuinness My primary researching music.

The Labyrinth - Poets of the Fall The song that was very much the inspiration for Malastra. And I absolutely love, love, LOVE Poets of the Fall.

Firedancer - Poets of the Fall This is Caleb’s theme song and NOTHING anyone says will ever convince me otherwise. THIS IS MY HILL AND I WILL DIE ON IT.

It's the Fear - Within Temptation Malastra has spent so much of her young life running from her fears, but it’s hard to escape them when she carries them within her, and what she fears most is herself.

Arsonist's Lullabye - Hozier Caleb. Full stop. A nod to dear Liam and the original playlists for Caleb.

Let Me Out - Hidden Citizens, Ranya Another of my absolutely favorite groups. In this case, this song has SO many layers of meaning for Malastra.

A New Machine, Pt. 1 - Pink Floyd Eleven lost years... and Caleb's own worst nightmare.

Damascus - Conjure One, Rhys Fulber The thirteenth of Cuersaar, the Night of Ascension, 819 PD - there is blood on the moon as flames leap into the sky in Blumenthal, and the doom of Sevnochiner is born.

I See Fire - Zyrah Kasian's vision, and the fate of Sevnochiner.

Lady of Worlds - Miracle of Sound “We all have a destiny. Whether we want one or not.”

Born In Flames - In This Moment Caleb's not the only one whose life was transformed and traumatized by fire...

Don't Let Me Go (Acoustic) - RAIGN This is Kasian's song.

Gone Away - Noctura Kasian is gone, but Malastra still remembers.

Throw Away - Blue Stahli Eleven years in an asylum for him. Thirteen years on the run for her. The song that sums up those lost, torturous years for both of them.

Unbroken - Really Slow Motion Another song that describes those painful years of self-searching for both Caleb and Malastra.

Once In My Life - The Decemberists Another nod to dearest Liam here, since it wouldn’t be a Caleb playlist without the Decemberists on it. And this is for both Caleb and Malastra.

Wait for Sleep - Dream Theater Exhausted, starving, alone, and afraid, Malastra dreads every sundown...

Whisper - Evanescence ... because when the sun goes down, the nightmares come out to play.

The Mystic's Dream - Loreena McKennitt From Issylra to Tal'Dorei to Wildemount, a glowing thread of destiny leads a girl onward to the flame that will light her future.

Love Theme from The Dark Crystal - Trevor Jones A half-mad, half-dead girl arrives on a wizard's doorstep... and their lives are forever changed.

Deliver Me - Sarah Brightman The very first meeting between Malastra and Caleb. Another scene I want to commission art for.

I Love the Way You Say My Name - Scarlet Dorn, Chris Harms "'Freundin'... Zemnian. It means 'friend.'"

Someone Like You - Jekyll & Hyde This is 100% Malastra’s feelings toward Caleb. Unfortunately, her feelings are a naïve tangled mess and not nearly as simple as she’d like to think they are. Never mind his feelings for her...

Jesus to a Child - George Michael Caleb’s feelings toward Malastra... sort of. I had also considered using "Father Figure" (also by George Michael), but that song takes their relationship a little TOO close to a line neither they nor I think they should cross. For Caleb, the problem is that he feels several different conflicting things.

Haunting Me - Stabbing Westward The dysfunctional side of Malastra and Caleb’s relationship. And it also works for how their pasts won’t leave them alone.

Lune - Notre-Dame de Paris This version’s in French, and I’m still not even sure I’ll keep this one, but this is the Essek song on the list. Here we have Essek singing about Caleb, but unlike in the original show where Gringoire is a neutral observer, I imagine Essek is painfully aware of what Caleb is going through because he cares for Caleb.

Towers Of The Void - Brian Reitzell The story behind a name.

When All is Lost - Timothy Robert Shortell The music behind several touching conversations between the Empire kids. The dynamic between Beauregard and Caleb was just pure pleasure to write, and seeing how their friendship has just deepened over the years.

Until It Sleeps - Metallica Considering that Malastra’s nightmares can KILL people, "It" in this song is Malastra herself.

A Sacrifice to Save You - Effsio Cross If I could set the montage of Caleb's research and study about Malastra and her magic to music, it'd be this. Day after day, night after night, chasing down the truth of what haunts this strange girl.

I Bleed for You - Peter Gundry The Wizard at work in the chamber of endless possibility atop the Tower.

Walking in the Air - Nightwish Caleb showing off his magic to Malastra, showing her just how beautiful the world can be when you let it.

As the World Falls Down - David Bowie The ballroom scene in LABYRINTH very much informed a certain aspect of Malastra and Caleb's perceptions of each other at one point...

Malleus Maleficarum - Hans Zimmer The crafting of the Pendant of Dreamless Rest.

Carry Me - Eurielle If the pendant that Caleb crafts for Malastra has a theme song, this is it.

Lullaby (Goodnight, My Angel) - Billy Joel Caleb to Malastra as she sleeps, safe and truly at peace for the first time in her life. And yes, I want art for this too. I want art for a LOT of the scenes I imagine in this book, okay?

Of These Chains - Red Malastra as she's preparing to leave Caleb for the first time and go in search of her destiny.

Prayer - The Scarlet Pimpernel Caleb after Malastra leaves. He knows that her leaving is the right thing for her to do... but the human heart is a complicated thing.

Recover - Globus, Anneke Van Giersbergen Malastra’s journey during the five-year time skip.

Spell of the Heart - Isabella LeVan "Gute nacht, Caleb. I miss you." "Gute nacht, freundin. Ich vermisse dich auch." This song was a deliciously unexpected discovery (thanks to a friend of mine for pointing me at Isabella’s work), and was SUCH a perfect representation of the five-year time skip between Act 1 and Act 2 as far as Caleb and Malastra’s relationship was concerned.

Sleep Well, My Angel - We Are The Fallen Malastra and Caleb talking about each other, not realizing that they are both making the exact same mistake.

Hurt - Christina Aguilera Caleb and Malastra about their respective parents, and in a melancholic fashion, about each other during the time skip.

Witch Hunt - Abney Park Don't stop running, Malastra...

Only Us - Miracle of Sound Once lovers, then enemies, now uneasy allies - Astrid leads Caleb ever closer to temptation... all he has to do is hand over Malastra.

Back to the Blooming Grove - Critical Role, Steven Grove Reunited after five years, and in serious need of divinely-inspired insight, Caleb takes Malastra to the Savalirwood to consult with Caduceus.

The Rite of Destiny - Chance Thomas Malastra's musical offering at the Blooming Grove, and a blessing woven upon the temple.

Journey to the Abyss - Daniel Health Caleb, Beau, and Malastra journey to Vasselheim in search of answers.

Coda - Matt Uelmen "Once there was, and was not, in ancient Issylra..."

Raven - Melissa VanFleet Within the blood pool of communion of Raven's Crest, Malastra and Caleb each have their own soul-rending encounter with the Matron of Ravens, but not surprisingly, they are left with more questions than answers.

Helix - Soul Extract The darker, dysfunctional side of Malastra’s relationship with Caleb, while the latter half’s instrumental is very much Caleb, Malastra, et al bringing the fire.

Behind the mind - Zero-Project Searching for answers and guidance at the behest of the Raven Queen, Malastra's soul reaches beyond the veil and encounters the Champion of the Matron of Ravens... Vax'ildan.

Until Eternity (Orchestral Version) - Blackbriar Malastra sees through Vax'ildan's eyes, and learns of the doomed love that saved Tal'Dorei...

Taken by Storm - Christian Reindl Malastra's first experience with the Tapestry.

Eternal Flame - Randall Jermain, Alexa Ray, Atom Music Audio The anthem of the Mighty Nein.

The Volstruckers - Critical Role, Colm R. McGuinness The Empire will do anything to protect its secrets, and it trusts only a very, very few to safeguard those secrets at any cost.

Burn - I Will Never Be The Same When the Volstrucker get their hands on Caleb, hoping to lure in Malastra. Fick ihr alle.

Crimson Blaze - 2WEI I love 2WEI's music so much - and this was an immediate choice for the Volstrucker vs Caleb fight.

I Remember - Les Friction, Emily Valentine I love this band so much. This one is Caleb, and the bitter, broken, warped role that love has played in his life, courtesy of Trent, Astrid, and Eadwulf. Here is Caleb reaching out to Malastra and the Nein, his heart screaming for their help.

Destiny of Mankind (Choir) - Two Steps From Hell Malastra and the Nein arrive to take back their friend, and the gods help whoever stands in their way.

Magic Fortuna (New Version) - Highland Caleb being a badass.

Torsion - Mark Petrie “We’re not going to run, freundin... we’re going to fly.” It's Caleb and Malastra vs the Volstrucker in a desperate airborne battle over the towers of Rexxentrum.

Nightfall - J2, Elvor After fleeing Rexxentrum, Caleb and Malastra escape and hide in the Tower, but separated from the Nein, injured, and hunted, Caleb wonders how long they can evade the Volstrucker.

Requiem of the Night - Audiomachine The nine chambers of memory.

In Your Arms - Ryan Louder, Ashley Serena A theme that keeps showing up over and over is Caleb holding Malastra. For a girl who has never known kindness, it's small wonder that this is the safest place for her.

Kill Or Be Killed (No Vocals) - Epic Score Someone wants Malastra dead, but the Nein aren't going to just stand by and let that happen.

Freedom Fighters - Two Steps From Hell Another one of my 'trailer' pieces, this would absolutely be the montage of the Mighty Nein encouraging, training, and helping Malastra discover her true power, as well as her true self.

Wargirl - Sybrid, Tatiana Shishkova The paladin, the clerics, the wizard, the rogue, the monk, the blood hunter, and the barbarian team up to train the weaver.

Boat On The River - Styx Kingsley and Malastra sharing a moment as the tiefling takes her under his wing.

Peace Like a River - Dean Evenson A shared love of music leads to a tender moment of friendship and understanding between Yasha and Malastra.

The Grey Havens - Chance Thomas A bittersweet moment between Malastra and Marion, the Ruby of the Sea.

Tairitsu - Yuki Hayashi "By the light of the Luxon..." Malastra’s first glimpse of just how much damage was done to the Tapestry thanks to Essek’s actions, and a very hard, very painful conversation between Essek and Malastra.

Prime Directive - Mark Petrie First the Volstrucker, then the Lens - and it's dunamancy vs Weaving.

No One But You - Erutan While the song itself is so perfect for Malastra’s simplest, heartfelt feelings for Caleb, the music behind this one became the basis for the song "Oror, Oror" that Malastra sings while soul-weaving. It was heartbreaking to write a lullaby for Malastra, and I tear up every time I listen to it. (It’s also canon that Malastra cries every time she sings the last chorus.)

Influence - Elephant Music Until now, all of Malastra's nightmares have been reliving her past... but when that changes.,,

Darkness Falls - UNSECRET, Cece and the Dark Hearts The Nein are trapped in Malastra's nightmarish vision of the destruction of Exandria. GODS, I want so badly to commission art of this scene, but it’d cost me a FORTUNE. (And this song, by the way, was the one that absolutely crystallized the plot of THE WIZARD AND THE WEAVER.)

End of an Empire - Celldweller The Dwendalian Empire and the Kryn Dynasty. 'Nuff said.

Oblivion Awaits - Neal Acree With some help from Caduceus, the Nein and Malastra learn the dark secret about Sevnochiner.

Fade to Black - Les Friction The fate of the Weavers.

I'm Not Okay (I Promise) (cover) - Chase Holfelder, Tom Evans Malastra and Caleb - broken, stumbling, praying for deliverance. I hear this song and I imagine them dancing quietly together in the salon of Widogast’s Nascent Nein-Sided Tower, almost afraid to even look at each other but still clinging to each other, and then at various times through the book, sobbing in the other’s arms.

Neo-Somnovem Incarnate - Critical Role, Colm R. McGuinness No plan survives contact with the enemy, but if anyone is at their best when everything goes wrong and the chips are down, it's the Mighty Nein.

Sanctity of Sorrow - Damned Anthem The Mighty Nein vs the Empire and the Dynasty.

Bound by Purpose - Twelve Titans Music Sometimes you have to take a stand, even knowing you're doomed to fail.

Eine Kleine Nachtmusik (Epic Trailer Version) - Hidden Citizens If I could animate a video of Caleb pulling out ALL the stops with his magic, it'd be to this song.

Sonera - Thomas Bergersen The Weaver coming into her own at last, with the Wizard by her side.

Survivor - 2WEI, Edda Hayes A cover of the Destiny's Child song, this is absolutely the anthem for both Caleb and Malastra at the climax of the book. For all that their pasts have broken them, still they rise up from the ashes to emerge "bloodied, bold, and resolute." And for the second half, we have the Wizard and the Weaver REALLY bringing their powers to bear, fully in control and absolutely ready to WRECK someone’s shit.

Unusual Way - Linda Eder For all the heartache and confusion and pain they put each other through...

Let It Be Me (Epic Trailer Version) - J2, Miranda Dianne When you finally find someone worth fighting for... and living for.

Vengeance Is Mine 2.0 - Epica A new Hall of Destinies to build, a new Dzayny to serve it, and a new Weaver to guard it.

The Stars Are Out - Dexter Britain "Wilkommen zuhause, liebchen."

#critical role #campaign 2 #the mighty nein #caleb widogast #malastra #fanfiction #writing #nanowrimo #the wizard and the weaver

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youngbloodbuzz · 2 years

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Buzzy hi, I'm here with a crit role question if you are okay with it. So the last couple of episodes a Lot has happened, a lot of lore was dropped, especially the last two episodes and I didn't see Fearne's connection to Rudius coming. And I've seen a lot of posts lately about how people are feeling about the pacing of this campaign in comparison with the VM and MN and that it is different in more than one way, for examples more characters with well established relationships pre campaign, also they all seemed to click with each other faster and the backstories were revealed earlier and there was a clear goal for most of them. So first I wanted to ask you what is your take on that? Because to me it doesn't feel like they are speedrunning, I think they are setting the stage for something bigger. Secondly, there is no denying that Imogen has the greatest main character vibes. And I love it, I mean I love her very much, Laura is really killing with this role. Also when they came to Bassuras all that had connections to this place, their stories moved forward which is what was expected to happen of course and Matt's storytelling is brilliant. But that leaves out Laudna and Chetney. And more than anything I'm worried about Laudna and her story. Worried is a strong word probably but yeah. I don't want her to be in the background and the supportive character because I know how much she loves Imogen and that they came to Jrusar because she wanted to help Imogen find out more about herself. But I have so many question about Laudna and things that I'd like to ask Marisha. For example I'm pretty sure Imogen is in love with Laudna because of all the hints Laura's been dropping but I don't know about Laudna I see it I see that she loves her but also it feels like Laudna herself has never thought about it?? I don't know what I'm talking about but like with Dusk Marisha had her suspicions, she and Travis were sharing glances and stuff but Laudna had no suspicions, she was the most open and welcoming towards Dusk so I'm just here like miss Ray I'd like to have a word with you? Sorry this ask got a lot longer than I intended it to be. If you want to share your thoughts/feelings on any of this, thank you!

oof yea that's a lot so much is happening I don't even know where to start.

i think...people underestimate just how much meandering goes on in a sandbox campaign at the early levels. it happens in every game but with BH it feels like matt's been building up to something big since day one with everyone's backstories and the political backdrop in jrusar (and now bassuras). and yea i don't think matt's speedrunning, it only feels like it is only because matt's dumping a Lot of lore, and that's because like....there's just...So much fucking lore with what they're dealing with regarding backstories (and I bet matt's been dying to go on about it since cr1). plus, this arc is almost piggybacking off of exu calamity because of the upcoming apogee solstice and we all know how well that went in calamity lol what the fuck.gif

i was telling a friend that this ruidis arc feels almost exactly like the briarwood arc and molly/lucien's arc, it's a stepping stone to something bigger much much later down the road. defeat delilah/lose molly, and find out a year later that delilah's ritual was successful/lucien rose from the dead almost a year later and is bringing basically the apocalypse. this arc here feels kinda like that. a small pebble in a lake with ripple effects that'll influence the rest of the campaign. i have no clue what to expect or just how much BH will have to do to prevent......whatever is happening cause god knows we still don't know shit for all the lore we got lmao.

so yea, i don't mind the pacing. it's dnd. things can be slow for ages and then suddenly crank up the gears to 11 without warning. vm went through it and so did tm9. and besides like, the crew did say that all bets were off in this campaign. expect everything and nothing.

oh god yea imogen's main character vibes is off the fucking charts, I'm so glad laura gets to show off her acting chops even more this campaign she's nailing it. and imogen is so fucking fascinating, it feels like how percy and fjord had main character vibes with arcs that lasted throughout the entire campaign, I'm so excited.

as for laudna though, i'm...i understand the worry. she is very much personally disconnected from this arc but I think we're all forgetting the little friend that lives inside her brain who still clearly craves power and vored a gnarlrock which did....Something. and guess what they're surrounded by right now? lol everything is fine. delilah isn't getting a front row seat to all this potential worldbreaking shit and thoughtfully steepling her evil fingers. she's not buying her time to absorb more power and take over laudna's body as her own at all. (yall I wonder if she knows that sylas is Dead lmao). honestly....i'd say not to worry about laudna getting a centerstage arc but also lmao I'm shaking in my fucking boots matt pls don't hurt me or my dead girl

and, we can't predict how relationships will pan out on cr but...i think laudna will figure it out. this is a slow burn to end all slow burns, but either way I just...want them to have a happy ending together so bad.

#asks #anonymous #critical role #cr3 #cr spoilers #long post

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mapleandgingeroatmeal · 1 year

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For the fic ask meme, 17, 26, 42?

17. What highly specific AU do you want to read or write even though you might be the only person to appreciate it? Oh man no spoilers but I am actually currently picking back up an Animorph's au that is for me and exactly *1* other person that I know of (winks at @demenior) and I'm having so much fun with it. I actually think tm9 and the Animorphs fit together in a fun way tone-wise. They act as pretty good opposites of each other, because if you reverse their worlds, you get an older moe jaded Animorph crew who get a happy ending, or you get a younger happier m9 who go on a tragic unavoidable spiral into war and violence. Fun Stuff!

26. Would you rather write a fic that had no dialogue or one that was only dialogue? Oh man I'm literally listening to a homestuck podcast rn while I type this so I gotta go with all dialogue. I love the puzzle of big group scenes where you have to figure out who will contribute what and when.

42. Have you ever received a comment that particularly stood out to you for whatever reason? This isn't one comment in particular, but I have a fic about Yussa and Wensforth (cr campaign 2 if it needs to be said) that's one of only 2 fics in their relationship tag. It's super niche, So whenever anyone comments on it I know they really had to go on some kind of journey to find it. That's always very gratifying to me in particular, especially because it also means I'm shaping the only fanon version of that character.

#fic writer's ask meme #my writing #personal

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professorthaddeus · 2 years

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hi! :D the episode today reminded me of your post about ashton and jiana hexum from when we first met her , and i was curious if you had any more thoughts now? now worries if not ^^

(here's the post anon is referencing if anyone's curious!)

i feel like we didn’t get too much new information about her in this episode—she was pompous, aloof, and a little dismissive, which was very in line with her position in that scene as a wealthy and reclusive person sending out minions to carry out a bet she made with another wealthy person. honestly, this interaction being so transactional made me more comfortable than when she and ashton spoke in private; the expectations were clear, and while she was using the hells as pawns, at least it was for something harmless (and man if that isn’t a sign that i’m paranoid after all the horribly manipulative authority figures tm9 had to deal with 😂)

wrt ashton’s relationship with jiana, i’m still a little worried that they think they understand her intentions more than they actually do—which means they might be less careful than they should be and endanger dorian—but aside from that, i don’t really have much to say except that the way they interact with her is very very intriguing.

it’s clear ashton has no reverence for jiana (or anyone/anything high society), but he had sort of like... an attitude of being very familiar with her? that’s not exactly the right way to put it but i thought it was interesting that he kept having little side-quips with her (such as “he doesn’t know you yet” when chetney said it was a “pleasure” to meet her & “I swear they’re competent” when fearne and chetney were fucking w the shapeshifting bust thing). and then there was the reference to the break-in—jiana didn’t really get into it but she gave ashton a look, and he looked almost contrite, and again, i was kinda getting ser davos & stannis baratheon (from game of thrones) vibes

orrr maybe ashton acting this way was just a combination of their personality and them taking on an intermediary role (since they were the one introducing the hells & jiana to each other) and i’m reading too much into everything lol

regardless, i’m hoping we’ll get more insight on what jiana’s deal is through seeing the other side of this wager, and if not then, the next time she and ashton have a one-on-one

#tysm for reaching out <3 (and giving me a space to ramble haha)#i'm new enough at this that it's wild to me that anyone actually remembers my posts and wants to hear my opinions :p #critical role #ashton greymoore #jiana hexum #cr spoilers #c3e17 #cr meta #kind of? really I'm just very 👀 about jiana rn and I don't have much to say besides I don't trust her #especially since she has a bounty on cyrus' head #my meta #my ramblings

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cadykeus-clay · 4 years

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i would low key love to hear your tangent about the differences there are between how VM and TM9 react with the world

ah, the perfect excuse for me to put off my 30 page reading, thank you :3

(i’m also going to preface this by saying most of this is stuff i’ve picked from other people’s various metas and i absolutely do not remember who those authors might be so i apologize jsdlkfsd)

....

but uh ... basically i feel like vox machina and the nein have a completely opposite standard for how they interact with the people the consider to be their “inner circle” vs. everyone who doesn’t qualify as that.

vm is a group of individuals who, overall, had one cruel person that slighted them but didn’t really destroy their faith in humanity. (their faith in themselves is a whole different horse. that ones .... woof. looking at you percy scanlan tary keyleth.) Percy had the briarwoods, Grog had Kevdak, the twins and tary had their father. so, the way that they interact with just random people that they meet is - with exceptions of course - amicable, or at the very least, respectably polite.

they’re the saviours of emon, the freers of whitestone. they have festivals held in their honor. they have kid fans and random farmers knocking on their doorstep for aid because they’ve heard tales of the kindness. sure, vex can be a hassle when she’s haggling down a price, and keyleth tends to poke buttons in way that gets her arrested a fair amount of the time, but at the end of the day they’re the people’s heroes, and they’re happy to be that!

their inner circle, however, is much more closely guarded. they have a few chosen allies (gilmore, allura, kima, kash and zahra, cassandra) and that’s it. They’re hesitant with anyone else trying to creep into their personal fold. Hell, it took beating up tary and him breaking down sobbing for them to even consider liking him. they’ve been burned by raishan and clarota and hotis, by individuals they let in and who then stabbed them in the back. they’ll do almost any favor for a stranger who asks, but they’ll be damned if they trust anyone to actually join their midst. vox machina is vox machina is vox machina and that’s incredibly hard to change.

the nein, on the other hand, are fundamentally a group of rejects. some of them have specific people they can point a finger at and say “i hate you”, but those problems stem from a greater societal rejection. beau has daddy issues, but she also felt rejected by the entire cobalt soul until dairon found her. caleb has trent’s fucked up shit, but he also has this constant pressure of having failed his entire country, not to mention the faceless hate piled up on him from living homeless for a year. jester’s whole deal is that she had to hide from LITERALLY ALL OF SOCIETY for her entire childhood because she wasn’t supposed to exist.

and so, the nein are shitheads to society right back. they’re mean to random barkeeps, they trash their inns and don’t say sorry, they mock most NPCs behind their back (or sometimes right to their face. @ marius). Every favor asked of them comes with a ton of deliberation and arguing about whether its bait or not (ie bowlgate, the giants in the mine outside rosohna, essiks “favors”).

but, on the flip side, they’re willing to tug just about anyone into their ranks. if society already hates them by default, what’s there to lose if they get close to someone? nothing, there’s only more love to be found! so it’s adopting random bird girls on the road, its sending cupcakes to a hag that cursed your friend, its sending messages to everyone you’ve ever met just to check in, it’s making someone sit in the hot tub with you and share trauma and then when you find out he started a war you say “we get it bro” and kiss him on the forehead. it’s “welcome to the mighty nein”.

and it’s also very interesting, i think, to talk about the ways in which the party interacts with themselves. vox machina was a family, undoubtedly, as is the nein now. but vox machina ... had a lack of desperation to their attachment. i mean for one, they took a full year off from adventuring together and scattered cross continent. even if the nein gets down time like they did, i expect they’ll just trail each other around like lemmings. (its kind of what they’ve been doing from hiatus until now with the eiselcross arc starting).

but vox machina just ... went. and scanlan walked away from the party and (after the heat of the moment), they agreed to just let him be. and pike would spend weeks on quests for sarenrae without much of a complaint. even at the end - and this will be a controversial take, i know - but they let vax go pretty easily. (sure, mechanically they were wiped from fighting, but besides tears the only attempt to defy trq was from percy, which even he gave up on with minimal struggle because vax said to stop it). that’s not to say they don’t miss each other when they’re gone! of course they do!!! but they trust each other to go off into the world, because the world as whole is a place they trust.

(the one exception to this might be vex, who fought every one of these situations adamantly, but that’s a whole separate essay about her issues stemming from an innate sense of ‘failed family’ that she’s desperate to not repeat, and less about a mistrust of everyone until proven otherwise)

the nein on the other hand. hoo boy. they’ve been hot glued to each other’s hips since day one. So many quotes (many from beau, which could be worked into my previous vex essay, as they’re very much cross-campaign foils. getting sidetracked again) are about their inability to separate. “You don’t get to choose who cares about you”; “No one goes”; “If one of us is gone for more than 7 days assume we’re dead and have a funeral”; “Do we have co-dependecy issues?” Jester’s cool personal vacation to her god’s get together turned into a party with everyone because why would she go anywhere without the nein? Veth’s time with Luc and/or Yeza is constantly overrun with the rest of the nein dropping in for fun. Even small things like shopping trips are so much more “oh well if you’re going then i’ll go” snowballs than they ever were with vm.

Also, ashley’s absences had to be much more forceful than in c1. Post episode 11, the only time yasha left the group (rather than someone else piloting her) of her own free will was when she ran in grief from molly’s grave. And yes, there’s something to be said about “oh they were on a boat for a long time she had nowhere to go” but if Matt can justify astral projection pike, i feel like he could justify ‘the stormlord teleports yasha away for a bit’ and he chose not to.

Because!!!!!!!!! of the dynamic that the nein has!!!!!!!! Because of this idea that the world is bad and cold and full of hate and in here in our little hut (soon to be mansion??????) it’s safe and good and full of love and no one can leave because then you’d be going somewhere much more dangerous and we can’t have that, now can we?

.....

well uh. that’s a lot of words. i hope they made some sense??? and were at all what you were expecting???? thank u for sending the ask tho this was very fun to write!!

tldr: vox machina is a group of people who were betrayed by one bad figure, so they trust the world and are wary of the individual; whereas the nein is a group of people who were failed by the world at large so they welcome the loner and fear the pack.

#critical role #vox machina #the mighty nein #critical role meta #hey the actual essay bit turned out be 1200 words On The Nose

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americankimchi · 3 years

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i feel the same way about cr2, i think vm had a more structured plot while tm9 were reluctant to commit to the narrative, especially in the earlier episodes

vm had ur more classical hero roles than tm9 did which meant that they had an easier time structuring stories and villains around that. it also had very clear cut arcs that cr2 just didn't have. like i can say underdark -> slayer's take mini arc -> whitestone (arguably the most story heavy and the introduction of cr into more Narrative heavy and less Game heavy playstyles) -> chroma conclave (which in itself contained multiple splinter arcs that all wove seamlessly back into the narrative like the feywild arc, the rakshasa subplot, THE CLIMAX OF THE GROG ARC AKA MF KILL BOX) -> etc but if you asked me to name cr2's arcs like.... they had the avantika arc....... and travelercon??? i guess

cr2 had more "grey morality" in the party which can work great in stories!! could've been an exploration of what it means to be a 'hero' vs. random guys thrust into the world stage and told to Make A Choice that affects the fate of [x]. but that only works if the characters lean hard one way or another and cr2 made it so the party literally made it their Mission to Avoid Plots that didn't physically haul them into it by the collar. (gestures wildly at caleb "i evade harder than endgame vax" widogast.)

this is more the party's fault than matt's but i feel like he went too hard on the sandbox aspect of dnd in the early arcs and that weakened the overall narrative enough where everything had a harder time sticking since he let the party take the reins. i don't like railroading either but some level of that is needed for the party to like. Do anything. e.g.: that whole bit with the betrayer king that literally could've turned into being like cr2's vecna but ended around.... what episode 89ish? and was pretty much used as an in game reason for yasha's absence instead of the potential world-ending catastrophe it could've been.

aaaaaaaanyways. cr2 was just a disappointment is all. the stakes were so nonexistent not only bc of the team comp but also because of the team's choices too so like eeehhhhhh

#cr critical #there was a potential bounty hunt they could've done WAYY early on #also cad being a grave cleric neatly cut off like 80% of any possible tension during combat #like when was the last time you were actually worried someone would stay permadead lol #god a permadeath would've injected so much juice into this campaign #as i understand not even molly stayed dead bc i think tm9 brought him out of lucien's consciousness or smth? idk #there were no staaaaakkkkkkeeeeeeeeesssssss #i hope cr3's better. honestly idk if i'll even watch cr3 since cr2 was such a massive disappointment but i'll peep in at the start #out of curiosity if nothing else

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linerwriter · 3 years

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There’s something I’ve been stuck on recently concerning Lucien and TM9 with regards to how he treats the group. I don’t know if anyone else has felt this way, but Lucien feels oddly protective/possessive of the Nein to me, which makes me think Mollymauk is a far bigger part of his subconscious than we think, which is quite worrying.

Something is off with how Lucien treats them. Look at how he treated Cree vs how he treats the Nein: as soon as she is dying, calling out for her friend to save her, he sacrifices her into a flesh monster to delay them. She is dedicated to their cause, loyal above all else to him; yet, the multiple times he has allowed the Nein to catch up to him, he spares them! This isn’t even like a one time thing, this has happened at least three times. Now, this doesn’t mean he hasn’t threatened to kill them, he has done that just as much, but he always gives them the option to run away. ??!!

If he is as power-hungry and maniacal as the end of episode 138 suggests, you’d think he’d have killed them by now, no? And yet he doesn’t. Even Cree is confused by this behavior. Why hasn’t Lucien tried to kill them? Why is he willing to give them pass after pass, despite how much they have interrupted their plans? Was it so they could be a distraction so he could kill the Somnovum? I’m not sure; he hid himself pretty well in Cognouza, I feel like it wouldn’t have been that hard to trick the Somnovum without the Nein.

This attitude makes me worried. If he values the Nein far more than his most loyal subject, to the point he tells them to run away from several psychic bombs, what does he plan to do to them? Why does he value the Nein over the Tomb Takers?

And then, there’s Molly’s influence. Lucien remembers something from Molly, what with the twitches when they bring up familiar things to him. I can’t help but feel Molly’s loyalty and love towards the Nein is a much bigger presence in Lucien than anyone suspects, but what if this has been warped? Does he love them so much he wants to own them? What happens when he finally realizes they reject him? I fear this outcome.

This next episode is gonna be wild. I hope they can figure out some way to stop him.

#critical role #cr spoilers #I got another theory #in the midst of ap week #this is just me rambling and connecting plot threads #making jump after unrealistic jump

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noassallclass · 3 years

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go give us the unchecked salt! i am all for it i am so over people sucking up to cr

Dude cr sucks! They're just a bunch of liberals who see how their business can make the most money while pretending to keep their virginal status of the nicest company you'll ever know.

They literally Gane of thrones themselves so hard and like at least the GoT Fandom agreed the ending was shit but CR doing the same note for note.

Like they have so many other projects on tbe go they are letting the flagship content sink because of that. They got TLOVM coming out, they got TM9 origins comics coming out, they got board games and merch and they like selling loke hot cakes. They got famous enough to coast on their own clout and get rich so they stopped caring about their quality.

We are literally watching people that were progressive 10 years ago have their reality deteriorate before our eyes because they're spiteful that ppl don't see them as progressive anymore even though they haven't adapted to the times we live in now.

Honestly the second they signed the deal for tm9 origin comics was when the nail hit the coffin in terms of quality of the show, which assume all that was organized during the hiatus before being announced some time ago.

Because now they have safety nets left and right where they can catch dropped plots while making more money because the audience is unsatisfied.

There decisions are based on how it betters their business above respecting any of their story or the audience that has engaged with it. They want money from you, that is the bottom line.

That's why they're ending the show so soon, why they let burn out take the better of them. Because taking a mental break from the show in order to improve it would mean losing money, would mean the dates not lining up for the releases of their upcoming products to string them along.

It's purely business, they are not our friends no matter how much they say they are or pretend to care.

They are entitled and have no gratitude towards the fans free labour which ultimately boosts the show/company and earns them more money with 0 outreach

The art reel is a scam. They barely even ask permission to use people's art and then profit off of it because it adds more run time to their show and stream which adds more mid rolls, more watch time, and more money in their pockets.

Talks machina is a joke, it literally has been a crutch for the entire show so they can just say whatever they failed to or didn't care to bring up in Canon and act like word of God is just as satisfying as it being actually in Canon.

Brian is also a horrible host who cares more about derailing with bad jokes than letting people answer genuine questions. Like a good talk show host can tell jokes and still keep the conversation going BWF just can't do either and his sense of humor is second only to Sam and Liam.

They are rich white liberals with a company and a bottom line of making money, nothing makes me think anything they do from here on out will ever be in the interest of genuinely connect with or representing people they claim to care about

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callioope · 3 years

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Thoughts on Critical Role Campaign 2 Episode 133 below the cut!

Post-Battle Capeleb Scene

Me to spouse as I was pressing play: “I apologize ahead of time for any squealing this episode may cause.”

Cut to Capeleb picking up Essek after the battle! All King Kong style!!! Shoving him in front of the two clerics like “Heal him!!!” ahhhh that definitely got a squeal ... incidentally just as my husband was starting a call... oops.

Bonus: Caduceus being like “dude I wanna heal you too”

Bonus 2: everyone like “Caleb you can put him down” Caleb: nO *puts Essek on his back* i mean caleb knows better than anyone you gotta protect the squishy wizard

Bonus 3!: Jester’s comment about “He doesn’t think clearly when he’s an animal.” and Essek’s “Evidently!” lol

Let the Cleric Rest!

Okay earlier in the episode, when Laura was insistent on “guys we need to start our long rest ASAP,” I felt that in my bones. I play a cleric in the Tomb of Annihilation campaign I’m in, and we spent 3 or 4 sessions stuck in a dungeon filled with poison gas where we took 1d6 poison damage every hour. So no long rests there. Top that off with the fact that we’ve been in the Chultan jungle even longer, and we don’t get long rests unless we can find and secure a very safe location, and the pain of being a spellcaster and not getting a long rest is REAL.

And then no one was acknowledging her at first! Yeah later Fjord and Beau were like “yeah yeah we agree” but she had to say it so many times!!! And I kept shouting at my screen “listen to Laura Bailey!!!” thinking “my dudes you can do ALL of this talking and planning while you rest pleeeeze get that rest it” because I play a cleric too and running out of a spells is a thing.

Of course, having finished the episode/in hindsight, I’m actually not sure if the even had a full 8 hours from the moment Jester finished her Commune with Artagan to the moment the Tomb Takers arrived, but still. I feel so bad for Laura right now knowing she only has ONE SPELL SLOT left and they’re going up against the Lucien and Cree. She’s clever so I’m sure she’ll think of something but that just is a really sucky feeling going into any battle knowing you don’t have a lot of slots left, let alone The Super Scary Big Battle ahead. soo. yeah. Gonna be worrying about that all week through the end of the next episode.

Also side note but jeez poor Laura rolling two one’s on that Heroes Feast. She needs to cleanse her dice or buy new ones altogether. she has the WORST luck with rolls.

TOWER TALK & TOUR!!!!!

IT!!! FINALY!!! HAPPENED!!!! I have been longing for Essek to see the Tower since episode 124 if not longer and at last! It was wonderful. AND CALEB SHOWED HIM THE NINTH FLOOR!!! amazing. fantastic. and what a talk. what a talk. ughh yes. they didn’t really have much time in the Tower outside of the Heroes Feast and the long rest but i’m sooooo glad Caleb got the chance to give the tour and they could talk. YAY!

Pursuing Lucien & Cree

Does anyone have any ideas of what they can do here? UGHH i wanna speculate on the best strategy for them (just because I find it to be a fun thought exercise). Like digging through the collapsed tunnel might take too long? Although we have no idea how long Lucien and Cree need. Hopefully the lack of the rest of the 3 Tomb Takers slows them down somewhat but who even knows at this point. I’ve been wondering if there are any teleportation spells that might work -- but Essek’s teleport is way too high to risk in Aeor right? Wonder if there’s any spells to magically clear the rubble? I’m stumped on this one. Super excited to see what they do but in the meantime while I have to wait would love to ponder this puzzle.

Fjord & the Rangers

not super wanting to like dive into intense discourse about this but like. I did have thoughts so here goes. I don’t blame Fjord for making the decision that he did, he had to make a spilt second decision and it seemed very in character for him to choose what he did. It did seem like he was trying to stall to help his party members get more rest, and it makes sense that he’d want to do that, BUT. here’s the thing. Battles in DND only take a minute or so TOPS. There’ s no way the battle itself would slow down the TT. If you’re hoping to delay the TT, you gotta hope the rangers can do enough damage to force them to at least take a short rest if not a long one. That’d only give an hour and that’s still not enough for the long rest the M9 need.

ALL THAT SAID!!! I think there’s a very good chance that whatever that battle did helped lower the TT’s HP enough so that the traps the M9 laid could finish off the three members it did. So I don’t think it was in vain. Worth it as a delay tactic? Ehh not really. Worth it to hurt the TT? Yes.

And while I do think that Fjord and Essek knew the chances were high they were sending the rangers to their Doom (a) I think the rangers being here in Aeor know that’s an everyday possibility to begin with, and (b) I still think there’s a chance they might have been able to survive/flee. Maybe the TT decided to push past them and fled from the skirmish themselves? Yes it’s possible everyone (including Dagen T_T) fell during that battle, but I don’t think that’s set in stone.

Also I don’t think the TT would think it’s weird to come across the rangers, they likely already knew they were there. And another thing -- even if they were like “Hmm rangers coincidentally by the entrance we were going to use?” Look they know the M9 became unscryable AND were trying to stop them. I honestly think the TT knew to be on the lookout for TM9 no matter what. And in hindsight -- which obvs Fjord did not have but we know now -- Lucien way underestimated them bc hey, despite everything, the trap still worked. Like, very much of what the M9 was trying to do during this whole arc was keep their cards close to their chest so Lucien would underestimate them. They really did lay the groundwork for that when they were traveling with them. Yeah technically they sort of revealed some of their hand during the Gelidon fight buuut they also ran from the TT limping later that day. So. Yeah. Anyways.

I’m rambling now and gotta go start dinner. But those are my initial thoughts!!!! Happy to engage in polite discourse. Main things I love talking about are theories for what happens next!!! and also hello, this is my first like, big post in the tag although I’ve already posted a few times in the shadowgast tag.

#critical role #critrole c2 #critrole spoilers #shadowgast

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