Thread by @aimeecarrero

Exandria Unlimited Finale thread⁣ (LONG)
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Opal thoughts, tea, and what I learned: ❤️‍🔥⚔️🌛🥀⁣
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#ExandriaUnlimitedSpoilers⁣
#CriticalRoleSpoilers 1/19

It doesn’t go without saying that I never expected a TTRPG to be my favorite work experience in an over decade-long career.⁣
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It really has been a dream job. This is due, in large part, to storytelling in community.
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#ExandriaUnlimitedSpoilers⁣
#CriticalRoleSpoilers 2/19

It feels like the oldest thing in the world—sitting around a table weaving narratives with your friends—and yet, so new. ⁣
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#ExandriaUnlimitedSpoilers⁣
#CriticalRoleSpoilers 3/19

Here’s a peak behind the curtain: first, a disclaimer.I approached EXU like an acting job. It never once crossed my mind that some viewers would assume Opal was an extension of my real personality. (More on this later)⁣
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#ExandriaUnlimitedSpoilers⁣
#CriticalRoleSpoilers 4/19

For an actor, building a character not written by someone else poses a unique challenge. The best path was to embrace what I *didn’t* know and rely on what I *did* know.I knew character/story; I didn’t know D&D mechanics.
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#ExandriaUnlimitedSpoilers⁣
#CriticalRoleSpoilers 5/19

Writing a young character, at the beginning of her life journey, seemed like a smart work-around for my own inexperience with the game. Opal and I could learn as we went.⁣
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#ExandriaUnlimitedSpoilers⁣
#CriticalRoleSpoilers 6/19

Originally, I wanted to play both Opal and Ted as estranged sisters stuck in one body, their father as patron.God bless the CR team—they were so excited by this.But after a few play tests, I realized this was not the move
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#ExandriaUnlimitedSpoilers⁣
#CriticalRoleSpoilers 7/19

We reworked Opal and Ted to what you saw in EXU. I think it worked *much better* this way. @quiddie brought such a softness and openness to Ted.⁣
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#ExandriaUnlimitedSpoilers⁣
#CriticalRoleSpoilers 8/19

As an actor, conflict is where growth is. So, I tried to complicate Opal’s intentions/actions as much as possible. I didn’t consider anything *but* character in Opal’s build—this would sort of bite me in the ass later.⁣
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#ExandriaUnlimitedSpoilers⁣
#CriticalRoleSpoilers 9/19

I prioritized story over game mechanics at every single juncture. Turns out, a lot of viewers hated this and it is a valid criticism.⁣
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That said, I regret nothing! Just observations i made throughout the process!

#ExandriaUnlimitedSpoilers⁣
#CriticalRoleSpoilers 10/19

My objective was to have Opal end somewhere different than where she began. Not rocket-science but basic storytelling: characters must through a transformation (good or bad). The path from point A to point B is the story
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#ExandriaUnlimitedSpoilers⁣
#CriticalRoleSpoilers 11/19

Considering Opal’s arc as we witnessed it, I’d say mission accomplished! I left the experience feeling like I’d done a good acting job and delivered a pretty cool character in Opal. ⁣
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#ExandriaUnlimitedSpoilers⁣
#CriticalRoleSpoilers 12/19

Then I entered the chat. ⁣
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I get why some folks were left wanting: Opal is the opposite of an optimized game-winning machine. She can be a bad teammate & isn’t that useful in a tactical sense. That’s how I built her!⁣
#ExandriaUnlimitedSpoilers⁣
#CriticalRoleSpoilers 13/19

Had I understood the TTRPG culture coming in,I would have known the objective is story *and* mission. I brought pizza to the bbq. Most folks were like “cool I like pizza,” while some were like “um, we ordered potato salad.”
#ExandriaUnlimitedSpoilers⁣
#CriticalRoleSpoilers 14/19

I also never considered that most people playing D&D are not professional actors. So, when they build characters, they often draw from personal experience or do so as a way to play a super-charged version of themselves. ⁣

#ExandriaUnlimitedSpoilers⁣
#CriticalRoleSpoilers 15/19

That’s why I was so surprised to see people calling me a self absorbed bitch when Opal did something bitchy or self absorbed. It never occurred to me that some TTRPG viewers don’t care for this kind of character conflict.⁣
#ExandriaUnlimitedSpoilers⁣
#CriticalRoleSpoilers 16/19

There was also plenty of misogyny and gate-keeping but that nonsense is worthless.Any BIPOC will tell you there are always vitriolic voices in the crowd,especially when taking up space in traditionally white male arenas.
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#ExandriaUnlimitedSpoilers⁣
#CriticalRoleSpoilers 17/19

All of this is say, I’ve learned a lot and I’m so grateful to the gentle (and sometimes not-so-gentle) feedback as it will inform my rp characters moving forward.⁣
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#ExandriaUnlimitedSpoilers⁣
#CriticalRoleSpoilers 18/19

I am so proud of this story and of Opal. Thank you for letting me explore her with delight and abandon! Who knows where she will go, but I hope to revisit her sometime soon.⁣
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❤️‍🔥⚔️⁣
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#ExandriaUnlimitedSpoilers⁣
#CriticalRoleSpoilers 19/19

Anyway I found a picture of Ted post-finale. She’s tired but holding down the fort