Thread by @friede

It's Thursday! Welcome to the #CR7Years #CriticalRoleSpoilers -- now with... garlands? And whatever Sam is wearing.

(sequins. it's sequins)

The set is dressed with flowers, cloth, and at the moment, a bunch of fake cash. #CriticalRoleSpoilers

The finger-er-ing-er.

(lest you wonder why CR was discussed in a book called Representing Kink, I give you... this)

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Sam's making cliffhangers his thing, apparently.
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Aside from Sam and Travis, the dress code was apparently "floral"

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(correction: Sam has a subtle floral shirt. Hard to notice with, you know, the sequin situation)

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Are the cast allowed to read Netherdeep? Yes.

"He knows I won't."
"Called your bluff"

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(you can read my thread on Netherdeep here:

https://twitter.com/friede/status/1503717329603080201?s=20&t=gMy1xqparnfwdFIoZy1atQ

)

I suspect that we will see later uploads of theatres singing along to this intro, though it's a little trickier...

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Bloody Bloody Imogen Vision.

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For those of us reading Netherdeep, we are VERY relieved this stone she's holding is purple and not, you know, red.
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This dialogue is full of spectacular lines.
"You shouldn't have to run into the storm alone."
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The party is still unclear on How Fearne's Legs Work.
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Citation:

https://twitter.com/Marisha_Ray/status/1504524360228368414?s=20&t=f8279M2ocRCY1ep4J4LsLA

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As Marisha rolls, Sam's brings out his thematically-appropriate can language: her dice apologizing for sucking.
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"You sleep with a belt on?"
"Who doesn't?"

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The biggest fantasy of the night: a long rest of 10-12 hours.
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FCG's been up for a while, staring at Ashton.

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FCG promises to explain if he figures out what happened yesterday.

(over/under on Sam revealing a character detail like that any time soon?)
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"I can get up very quietly. Be aware of that."
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Fearne: Exciting Handful.

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Like Imogen, I think of so many things.

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FCG feels... the exact same.

(uh oh)

Welcome to the mildest intervention, deflected.
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FCG Identifies the rock: very small shard of the Gnarl Rock, a mythological stone deep in the Fae Realm.

(I'm starting to realize Matt really, really likes magical rocks that mess with shit)

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(No two are the same, but at least one other Magic Rock ... corrupts)

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But of course these moral relativists/grey campaigns all day long players (aint' mad, just observing) don't have an Evil Sense.

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It's a rock that smells like mineral.

Ashton notes the party has access to an academy, and rich people, who presumably have access to smart people (insert my snarky professor joke here)

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Fearne and Orym are not mentioning AT ALL that they've had prior contact with, y'know, corrupting items that need to be carried in a box and not touched.

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Opinions are like opera, you could listen to them, but ... why really.

(ouch, I hear @TheOperaGeek's pain)

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More discussion of the nature of life, sentience, and everything.

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Fearne is looking for her parents?!?!?

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Parents went on a secret mission. Letters have come back to her in the decades since. Last postcard was from... a place with an A?

Not Ank'harel.
Not A-mon.
Not Astral Sea.

Possibly Aeor?
(none of them know where that is)
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Punctuated by Chetney's grief.
"I slept in... on that ass."

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"People get really horny on the road."
"Should I play aloof?"
"I think that's.... never been good advice."
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"You doin' all right? Hear you fucked it all up."
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"Took care of yourself, didja?"

ORYM.

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"Anybody get invaded by holes?"
"No. Unfortunately."
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The first true thing Fearne's ever said: "I'll probably make my way through everyone eventually."

PolyBells: Canon.

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Orym: Fucking Adorable.
"I'm just a weeee boy."
"You can grow flowers anytime?"
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Oh God, is this gonna be a whole Return to Oz thing?

OH NO IT'S KIND OF A RETURN TO OZ THING.

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Except Fearne is the one interested in face stealing.

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Fearne and Chetney use it to find out what their offspring might look like.

It's a very unique blend.

Ashton: "I swear they're competent."

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Wait, Ashton's the leader?
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Oh fuck a duck, it's a war of antiquarians.

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Competitive heists.
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Every person with any kind of connection to valuable stuff wants to know how FCG was made... reiterating how odd/advanced his autonomy is.

FCG lies and says Ashton had a role. 19.

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A less-advanced automaton sold for 20,000 GP.
FCG is worth more.
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(that automaton was a commissioned guardian, then stolen. There's a hefty bounty for its return)
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Laudna and Fearne doing a recap give Nott & Jester a run for the Chaos Crew Crown, y'all.

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TheatreProf just died at "big sluggy ass"
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Sam & Liam break the fourth wall: "now is a good time to go get some popcorn."
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"OK bye I love you."
"Why limit yourself to the player characters?"
"Always has to be one PC/NPC romance, you've already shown you're not ageist..."
"Eshteross has to die now."
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Oh my God are they gonna be all THE Ohio State about THE Bell's Hells vs. Bell's Hells...
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"you seem to be in the shit with everyone."
"I'm bad at saying no, so I end up in bed with everybody."
"Literally or figuratively?"
(I confess I can't decide if this is fan service for theatres or not)
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Meanwhile, FCG seems to have "pent up energy"

"Where?"

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"Do I have to have sex to get rid of it?"
"Self care, self care."
"So many options"
"I have one regular hand and one buzzsaw hand..."
...
"It was only a matter of time before it became a dating simulator at this table."
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It might not be able to be "splooged," it might just need time.

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OH GREAT FCG is a ticking time bomb.
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Ashton tells Milo to tell Anni, "it's not about talent, it's about tenacity. And she has tenacity."
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Orym again rides FCG like a Segway
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"What do you mean I can't get a cheesecake at my Forever21?"
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Does FCG fold?

Important questions.
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"note to self: horse with CLAWS"
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No brands -- just temporary tattoos.
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Chetney dreams of multiclassing into a Red Wizard and nobody tell Travis about Forgotten Realms lore.
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Also, do we think Travis is familiar with fannish usage of alphas?

(Matt is literally backing out of frame)
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"You know alpha is based on entire falsehoods..."

THANK YOU MATTHEW MERCER.

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"Travis, get your third character ready..."
"This one's lasted much longer than I thought!"
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"His next character is an elven grandfather..."
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"He just has Levitate"
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Sam laments he is now the component-seeker of this campaign.

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Fast forward through the shopping and ON THE ROAD... after break!

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Plants outside the windows!
Green lanterns!
(Marisha is psyched that this is finally deploying)
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More olfactory details -- cool, earthy -- and y'know, filled with bugs.
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"I got instantly itchy just thinking about it"

"yayyyyy. that's called immersion"

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Once again, I don't think the party is clear on how Fearne works... now, on horseback.
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Laudna is indeed on the "most goth looking horse"

Orym: "is one a pony?" (no)
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Apparently Marisha's tweet about Sam's drawings of Fearne were a Sekrit Spoiler, I guess?
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Orym was horse-surfing, and now he pings off after a Giant Rabbit. Because of course.
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"Can I try to do a rabbit call?"
"ONLY IF YOU DO IT FOR US"
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More magic rocks, fucking fuckamafuck.
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Orym tries to lure with druidcrafted lettuce.

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This campaign's mounts are getting a much better deal on names.
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Escargot. Heart. Rabbit. Sir Floppers. Looch.
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And OneWay.

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"I don't like to get attached to things that are clearly gonna die."
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"We only have five horses, how do we have six names?!"
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"If you take Rabbit away from me I'll kill you."

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Ruidus is still a month or more away from ... whatever creepyass thing it's gonna do. (Chekhov's Gun, meet Mercer's Moon)
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Orym does "some Ashari shit" -- bedecking FCG with yellow flowers.
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FCG keeping watch: spinning his head 360 like a lighthouse.
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"IS THE JUNGLE RECLAIMING ME?"
"Maybe you ARE alive. Maybe you're a tree!"

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Fearne's parents are Ollie and...

"What was your mother's name?"
"Was it Whitestone Andy? A really well-thought-out name?"

Bertie. Her name is Bertie. And Ollie is Oleander.
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The rock Orym got from the Giant Bunny FCG now identifies as a Faewild Shard. It's attunable, can be used as a spellcasting focus by a sorcerer.

FCG: "Maybe I AM one."
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"you're a Sorcerer? I thought you were something homebrewed"

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When Imogen attuned to it, she can choose once a day to roll on the Wild Magic Table.

Will Laura Bailey choose chaos... again.

"It's like graduating from the Deck of Many Things to the Deck of EVERYTHING."

"Everyone turns into sheep"
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To choose chaos/Wild Magic, IF a spell is cast, it doesn't require concentration.

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"What's with all the Fae stuff around here?"
"What the fuck is up with that?"
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Confirmation that Fearne's presence in Exandria is another ripple effect from the end of C1 and the Gate made into the Fae. Every campaign now feels the touch of Vox Machina.
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"I think if you're inviting us to another plane of existence the answer is yes"

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"Maybe the Gate is leaking"

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Finally, the cast realizes that Fearne is Peak Jennifer Coolidge.

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"Are you all... rock... hard?"
"The outside yes, and the little inside I've seen, yes. This wasn't how I started. I was soft, once."
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Ashton gets the shit kicked out of him so people will notice. Only the fact that Fearne uses those moments to pickpockets makes up for the hurt that she didn't notice.
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Ashton shifted, slowly -- not sure why, but he's got some theories.

"Can I touch it?"

"I might try to steal it one day."

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This episode has been the launching of a thousand new pieces of fanart, a billion new AO3 tags, and the imploding of more than a few fanons.

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"Laudna, what was it like in Whitestone? I don't know a ton, but what I do know sounds... hard."

Laudna was naive, thought all towns were like Whitestone. Lovely childhood in farmland, running in forest, digging up worms... long before Them.

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It wasn't an immediate shift when They came. Political coups don't come immediately to the lives of farmers.

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Laudna has some blank spots around... The End The End.

OH FUCK FAN THEORY CONFIRMED.

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(Laura Bailey covers her face with her hands)

Orym rolls History to see if he recalls. 23.

He realizes Laudna was one of the Sun Tree victims.

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"You're the happiest person in this bunch."

"Of course. The worst thing that's ever happened to me has already happened."

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Still unclear who she was an effigy of -- presumably either Vex or Keyleth. Either is horribly terribly amazing.

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"Don't you pay no mind to me or my past. Focus your brain forward."
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An interesting reversal from C2, when Beau had to be the first to absorb Caleb's horrifying backstory.
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They cut Laudna's ears to make them pointy. (That doesn't clarify who she was an effigy was, but it DOES make it clear she's not natively half-elven)
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"Nobody should have to face... anything like that. I am sorry, and I'm impressed, with you."
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"You empathize because you understand. I'm sure you've had many a bad day. But we'll talk more about that next watch"

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3 AM running gag
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One has to admire @VoiceOfOBrien's willingness to take the mechanical knee-capping for the sake of roleplay. Poor exhausted little traumatized dude.

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There light rain and heavy rain effect options. NICE.
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What's fascinating is that the fandom has a better than average ability to anticipate revelations, and nevertheless the revelations are still satisfying & delivered in ways that surprise. It's like going all the way back to Greek theatrical structures.
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Orym getting slammed by metaphorical and literal lightning tonight.
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Blue Chromatic Rose. Resistance to Lightning Damage.
Blowing its petals creates a cone of lightning.
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"They say stay to the path but everything cool is off the path"

(This is some Into the Woods worldview)
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Simultaneous Detect Thoughts.

"Roll for Freaky Friday"

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Conversation with emotions & memories. Imogen's horse-girl childhood, her recurring dream. FCG's memories of traveling with Dancer & the automatons, the sense of belonging. A flash of them scattered, unmoving, bloody. A figure darting off into the night.
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More there, but not accessible yet. This is still new, odd.

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"I feel like we are the same person now."

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[Liam sotto voce about Burning Man here as they hug it out]

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(The Hug Count for this episode MUST be setting a record)
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Apparently Orym's next on the Chetney checklist.

And he's also looking for some tattoo talk.

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Chetney got his recently, after he was changed months ago.

Orym's is to help him remember his late husband.
(OH HEY MORE CONFIRMATION)

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His name was Will. (not Riegel -- change from the known backup character). He's been missing six years.
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As suspected, he was lost in the attack.

"Oh God this is personal for you."

But it's also his -- theirs -- all of their -- duty.

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For those looking for the reason why many folks *knew* Orym was a widower:

https://twitter.com/VoiceOfOBrien/status/931647680895508480

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Liam O'Brien: an actor whose smile can manage to be the most heartbreaking gesture in his arsenal.
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(he smiled through this whole damn exchange)
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Will was half-elven. Big moon, little moon.

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Is Chetney losing his shit or is it Travis? It's not entirely clear at this moment.

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Now it's Chetney taking the emotional damage. But he feels inspired to carve.

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We're rounding near the end of the broadcast, and we've gotten emotional lore drops from every party member -- I suspect by mutual design. (Overland travel and watches of course make for a natural setup for these kinds of moments)
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Hard to know for sure, but I suspect an encounter table that's built to support the narrative goals of a Milestone Episode.

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What we've seen pop up (when it hasn't just been weather) is Weird Fae Shit -- this feels very indebted to both Wild Beyond The Witchlight's fae stuff (some are direct Witchlight pulls) *but also* Witchlight's low/no combat encounter tables & scenarios.

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We're watching Laudna literally ask a small glowing thing if it wants to eat her face, and nada.

It's perhaps all the more uncanny for its non-response.

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And I think "uncanny" is a good word for the back half of this episode: the goal isn't about combat, or even menace, so much about navigating a strange (even for D&D) terrain that teases the broader campaign themes, while learning more about each other.
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This also has allowed the whole episode to show Bell's Hells as deeply compassionate -- arguably FAR more than any prior party. They've had showcases to demonstrate care for NPCs, creatures, and each other.
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In light of the narrative construction of Netherdeep, it's less surprising to see this emotional structure.

"All the 20s we've EVER HAD" -- to successfully fail to communicate with a small fae creature.

And Fearne yells "BITCHES" and goes back to sleep.
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"I feel like we're supposed to have learned something, but I'm not sure what."

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The Pizza Rats of the Faewild.
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Meanwhile SON OF A BITCH O'BRIEN

https://twitter.com/shrugsinchinese/status/1504698317522890752?s=20&t=jiwkdfvu6kl1vQNgi8dT8Q

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And here, at the end of the episode, we're getting a button with a nineteen-foot, plant-like creature, complete with beak AND tentacles. GREAT.
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"I like that on closer inspection, it had all the specificity of a floating gummy bear."

"I would wander into a forest for a flying gummy bear"

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Going into tonight, I’d speculated that this Event Episode would be treated like a live show (spectacle, guests).

In retrospect it was right to strip the stage narratively bare to show why folks watch this show: intimate moments of character work. #criticalrolespoilers

While live reactions from a theatre would have been interesting, I’m in a way glad that my own experience allowed me to absorb this episode in the intimacy of the smaller screen(s).

And boy, is TheatreProf gonna be bummed he went to bed at the half. (He’ll catch up Monday, unless I pull an Essek and yank his face to the screen earlier)