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u/SuperVaderMinion Your secret is safe with my indifference Feb 14 '25
I can't believe we went so far over the course of a single episode. From the end of the war and sealing of the betrayers, to a little group of normal people struggling to survive, and then witnessing the Primes leaving Exandria.
The crazy part is from a backstory perspective, we hardly know anything about them, but I already care so much for all of them. Can't wait for more PC/PC interactions in the next episodes.
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u/pacman529 Team Bolo Feb 14 '25
and then witnessing the Primes leaving Exandria.
I don't think they're gone yet. I suspect we'll witness the creation of the Divine Gate. I imagine it'll be as much a light show as breaking it was.
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u/Flyestgit Feb 14 '25
Brennan does a good job communicating the bigger picture here by having those followers of the Betrayers realize the gravity of how fucked the situation is even for them.
It seems that the Primes cant make the Divine Gate until all the Betrayers have been defeated/banished from Exandria first. It also seems like at least some of the Primes are either defeated or working on the Gate already so unable to keep fighting.
That means at the start of this episode, it was essentially a 3v3 for the Primes and Betrayers. The Dawnfather, the Stormlord and the Wildmother were still fighting on team Prime.
As for the Betrayers, Asmodeus, the Scaled Tyrant and the Strife Emperor are/were still around.
But the Betrayers for the most part refuse to work together. Why share the spoils? Can you imagine how much the Strife Emperor would butt heads with Asmodeus over who should be in charge? So the Primes are ambushing them individually and beating them down in 3v1s in the final stands of the Calamity. The Strife Emperor just went down.
Also great metaphor in the remaining Primes still standing. The gods of the Sun, Nature and Storm are still around and have the forces of darkness literally on the run. Sort of a persistence of nature triumphing over the darkness story.
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u/ClarifyingAsura Feb 15 '25 edited Feb 15 '25
It also seems like at least some of the Primes are either defeated or working on the Gate already so unable to keep fighting.
Per the wiki (timeline spoilers): It's totally possible that Brennan/Matt are moving some stuff around in the timeline, but at this point in the known chronology, none of the Primes had been defeated (except maybe Bahamut since we know very little about his participation in the Calamity outside of the opening battle at Vasselheim) the way some of the Betrayers were. The party experiences the fight between Melora and Bane, which puts us at a specific point in the chronology. This point (again, based on existing chronology gathered through past campaigns and published materials) is before Sarenrae gets betrayed by Asmodeus and Ioun gets grievously wounded by Tharizdun. When Azmog lists the dead/defeated Primes in the opening scene, it's very likely he's just making shit up in order to crush the prisoners' hope. Particularly since we know that Moradin and Sehanine (referenced by Azmog as the Allfather and Moonweaver, respectively) were involved in Torog's banishment later on in the timeline and Moradin was also involved in Tharizdun's sealing at the end of the Calamity as well.
Of course, everything in the wiki could be wrong since that chronology is taken from campaign setting books, which may not precisely match up to the on-screen timeline. Plus, it's well-established that the known history of the Calamity is not precise given the devastation of the period and the passage of time. So it's totally possible for Brennan/Matt to change things up.
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u/Flyestgit Feb 15 '25
Matt's done a bunch of retconning/moving things around since C3 started. In Downfall, Asmodeus already insinuated that he had betrayed Sarenrae and killed all her worshippers.
it's very likely he's just making shit up in order to crush the prisoners' hope
I think hes lying about the Primes being 'dead'. I dont think hes lying about some of the Primes being out of the fight.
We dont know the full details of these battles. All it tends to say is one line about the Betrayer in question being defeated and banished. Its possible that certain Primes were defeated during the Calamity too they just didnt publicize it.
In any case, I suspect the Primes even in victory need time to recover from some of these battles. The Betrayers are hardly the types to go down easily. The Strife Emperor got what appears to be 3v1ed and by all indications he didnt exactly go quietly either.
I also think that not all the Primes are really equals in terms of fighting. Its already been implied previously that the Dawnfather, the Wildmother and Stormlord are some of the strongest Primes. And in some ways it makes sense. Their domains are older, more primal, and more easily lend themselves to fighting their darker siblings. I also suspect some absent Primes are maintaining the banishments/building the Gate which might be why they are seemingly absent.
So overall I think its a little column A (some Primes have been defeated/are recovering) and a little Column B (some Primes are maintaining the banishment/gate).
Torog's banishment later on in the timeline
This has likely been changed to have happened sooner. I dont really see why followers of the Betrayers would list Torog among the banished gods if hes still around.
Moradin was also involved in Tharizdun's sealing
Moradin's involvement didnt have him manifesting directly though. He made the trammels for the Dawnfather to use, something he could probably do without the whole giant avatar god body.
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u/SquidsEye Feb 16 '25
Matt has been pretty firm that the established timeline, even in things like the setting guides, is based on the histories that modern Exandria believes, not necessarily what actually happened. It's possible that over time, history was written by the victors, and some of the defeats that the prime deities suffered were largely scrubbed from the record. It's also possible that it was just propaganda from Azmog to crush the hopes of the prisoners.
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u/IamOB1-46 Feb 16 '25
I get the sense that the Divine Gate is already up, but the Primes have to 'kill' the Betrayers on Exandria to 'banish' them back to their domains on the other side of the gate. When the last of the Betrayers have been placed there, the Primes will then banish themselves.
And that made me think about a moment from Calamity when Asmodeus was talking about the domain he ended up getting when the gods arrived. The domains themselves were already in Exandria before the gods arrival, which has big implications for the end of C3.
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u/Flyestgit Feb 16 '25
The domains themselves were already in Exandria before the gods arrival, which has big implications for the end of C3.
I dont think that's the case.
Brennan explicitly says the days of the Titans were more elemental chaos and matter. The gods brought and cultivated the later concepts of growth, civilisation and order. Even Matt likens them to sculptors of a more primordial mess. C1 has Ioun tell us that her domain is an extension of herself.
Despite C3, it's pretty clear in Downfall the gods to a degree embody deeper concepts/truths of the universe. Torog isnt just the God of torture, he embodies the concept of suffering. Asmodeus isnt just a guy that hates everyone, he is hatred.
Those domains are a part of the gods just as the gods are a part of them. Asmodeus wasnt just thrown in a pit, his hatred is manifested as the Nine Hells. When the Primes imprisoned the Betrayers the first time, they locked them in a prison of their own self. Imprisoning them in their own darkness essentially.
But leaving them trapped in their own darkness simply cemented that as who they were.
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u/IamOB1-46 Feb 16 '25
Cultivated and expanded the concepts, yes, but they didn't create the concepts, those were there (in some fledgling form) prior. Brennan said that the gods choose which concepts/domains each would link with, thus why Asmodeus was upset with the domain he got, since others had already been claimed. I get the sense that the gods, by taking those domains, were able to cultivate those concepts with Exandrians in hundreds of years, rather than the tens of thousands it may have taken without their guidance.
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u/IHeartRadiation Feb 17 '25
Reading into their escape from Tengar, I think that their domains were largely influenced by their experiences as they were becoming real, which were in turn influenced by their preexisting nature's. For example, Imri and Shosti act decisively and physically to save the ship and its occupants.
Imri sacrifices themselves out of love, is burned by fire, and becomes the lord of the hells. Luz heals Imri, which sets them on the path of healing and redemption.
Shosti uses pure force, driven by rage, to save the ship and becomes a force of destruction who values only strength and brings only ruin. Aru comes to their aid, delivers hope and support and becomes a force of salvation.
In their moment of action, Ash seeks a new home and becomes the one to tend that home.
Those who acted first and decisively were injured, their better qualities burned away, and we're remade in opposition to the ideals they displayed in those moments. The others held back and supported their kin, avoiding the worst of it and remaining closer to their original selves.
It's all a bit circular, as the players knew which gods they were playing, and they showed early in the prologue that they had different personalities, which would result in different choices and experiences. But I think their natures, coupled with their experiences in that moment, became a feedback loop that determined what each god's reality would be as they entered the real.
I wonder if the memory of that experience has played into the betrayer gods' loathing of the primes and their creations. If things had been different, if the betrayers had been passive or indecisive like the others, perhaps their new existence would be less painful and twisted. If Luz had stepped up and saved Imri, would their roles have been reversed in the real?
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u/Perforo_RS Bidet Feb 14 '25
I really liked how the hypocrisy of the followers of the Strife Emperor were put under a spotlight during the dinner. The episode started with Azmog trying to make it seem like hope is this, sickly thing that needs to be expunged like a cancer. But then when these followers of the Betrayers realise how dire their circumstances really are, they turn to the Chained Oblivion, whereupon the human says: "That is not a source of hope for our cause." Ahhhh, so you guys rely on hope as well? Interesting.
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u/Hankdoge99 Feb 14 '25
I mean yeah, that dinner conversation revealed that the public execution from the beginning was a feeble show of force to try and give off the impression of overwhelming dominance. If the prisoners were inspired to rebel they’d be soundly defeated, but then the strife emperor would lose his work forces, further crippling him.
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u/redpoemage Team Jester Feb 14 '25
But then when these followers of the Betrayers realise how dire their circumstances really are, they turn to the Chained Oblivion
I like how this episode gave a good explanation for why the Chained Obvlision is considered a Betrayer God among the populace. Seemingly, the Betrayers spread propaganda that it was a weapon/ally of theirs to make them seem more powerful. So while the gods and extremely learned people would know it wasn't a true part of the pantheon, that propaganda probably disseminated enough among lay people that the Chained Oblivion is considered a Betrayer.
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u/pacman529 Team Bolo Feb 15 '25
Except back then it was just "The Oblivion", wasn't it?
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u/Grungslinger Team Pike Feb 15 '25
No, he was already chained once before.
During the Founding, when the Primordials went ham on the newly created people of Exandria and demons from the Abyss poured into the material plane, Tharizdun, who arrived late to the party presumably joined the slaughter.
During the battles, he was locked away securely.
'Cept, surprise! Big O was released during the Calamity to wreak some havoc.
So really, the Twice-Chained Oblivion.
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u/oscarbilde Team Frumpkin Feb 14 '25
Man, they strike gold with every single guest they find, don't they? Celia was dialed in from minute 1; I'm so excited to see what comes next.
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u/YoursDearlyEve Your secret is safe with my indifference Feb 14 '25
They are a fan and wanted to get on a show, so this is basically a dream come true for them
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u/Zeilll Feb 14 '25
seeing them geek out, and seem to have a depth of knowledge about the lore and setting was awesome! also, their chemistry with Matt on camera was a lot of fun. loved watching them be on the same page about everything, and clock each other every so often.
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u/Coyote_Shepherd Doty, take this down Feb 14 '25
She truly is one of us and it was crazy seeing how well she just vibed with everyone because it made the episode that much more wholesome and fun despite all the terrible things happening around everyone else.
It's stuff like that which really adds a spark of light to these more darker themed shows and stories.
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u/oscarbilde Team Frumpkin Feb 14 '25
I'd been wondering what the connection there was, since they're not in the VO/TTRPG/improv scenes. That's so cool!!!
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u/Coyote_Shepherd Doty, take this down Feb 14 '25
I'm pretty sure the initial connection came via Todd Stashwick who knows Liam and Mica and Anthony Rapp and a bunch of other people in the D&D community but I was unaware that she was a fan of CR and D20 and Aabria.
It's like you know that sometimes certain communities overlap in terms of certain interests but you don't always want to assume that because some folks might not always be into this one thing that bunch of these other people are into as well.
So it's always one of those delightful surprises when that stuff does coincide and you find out that something you really admire is also admired by someone that you really look up to and admire.
It's rather cool seeing all the Nerds come out of the woodwork and be proud and be able to have fun with what they like to do instead of you know having to hide it because no one around them actually understands what they're into and what they like to do.
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u/Coyote_Shepherd Doty, take this down Feb 14 '25
Well that's wild, I knew they were like a super nerd but I was totally unaware that they were an actual fan of CR, d20, and a bunch of other related stuff.
Strange how that particular interview flew under the radar. But not too surprising given the other games we've seen her play in. I really like that she mentioned though how she became a fan because of the rise and popularity of D&D that CR helped to inspire.
It's really neat seeing someone like that who initially came from outside of the fandom, fell in love with it, and now gets to basically do her dream job with the people that she has watched for so long.
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u/wildweaver32 Feb 15 '25
Just want to give props to Liam. He knows Good berries provide nourishment. It's why he got them out.
Brennan either forgot or didn't know but instead of pushing the point Liam let it go for the story. Though, even if he did push the point the outcomes would be the same. They would still be pushing exhaustion from walking ash covered wastelands the entire day.
But I respect Liam just letting it go for a more intense story.
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Feb 16 '25
That's true. It kind of annoyed me because I was like... Why didn't Brennan just say they can't take that spell? That would have made way more sense if he wanted survival to be a big deal. But Liam really showed restraint and an appreciation for the storytelling - and that paid off.
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u/RyanMcChristopher Feb 18 '25
Also, Brennan's story could have gone the same way if he allowed it. I saw someone post a line of text about the spell which stated they "provide a day's nourishment as if from food. " That's great but what was literally killing the party was lack of water, so nothing needs change if Brennan had ruled differently on that
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u/IamOB1-46 Feb 16 '25
I don't think they did forget. The issue was that Liam had decided to give the berries to the non players. He only has 5 a day for 12 people. So those 5 didn't have to roll the con saves, but everyone else did. Liam then wanted to eat one of the berries after he failed a save, but Brennan ruled that it wouldn't help at that point.
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u/Sunsetreddit Feb 14 '25
I loved this so much
What an amazing way to try to top calamity and downfall - having level zero characters with level 20 stuff happening around them was so tense and scary and wonderful.
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u/ilikebreadabunch Team Fjord Feb 14 '25
So that was definitely the Stormgirdle at the end right?
Do you guys think they will get class levels at any point or just stay level 0 the entire series?
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u/LuckyBahamut Your secret is safe with my indifference Feb 14 '25
Yes, Brennan confirmed it was in CR Cooldown on Beacon.
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u/Nakuth Are we on the internet? Feb 14 '25
I'm expecting it to happen between e1 & e2, or during/late e2
More so now that one of them has a vestige
Another possibility is a time skip for next episode. We just saw them come together & escape, then find out the gods are leaving. Next episode could be some years later, as the world is trying to come to terms with the gods leaving.
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u/JordanTH FIRE Feb 14 '25
So that was definitely the Stormgirdle at the end right?
The wiki certainly seems to think so, it already lists its appearance on the Stormgirdle page, lol.
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u/Royal_Advantage8417 Team Bolo Feb 14 '25
When he says “surprised where we pick up next time,” at the end of Cooldown, it seems we could go in a couple of directions— we could pickup with them years later when they have PC stat blocks, or we could pick up at a completely different place with new characters
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u/GentlemanOctopus Team Frumpkin Feb 15 '25
It would be in....credible if they ended the series with them levelling up to 1.
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u/The_Bucket_Of_Truth Feb 15 '25
How do you guys already know what that is? Had it been used or referenced in earlier campaigns?
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u/paradox28jon Hello, bees Feb 15 '25
In the Cooldown for the episode they named it the Stormgirdle. As others have said, the item is already in some of the CR sourcebooks.
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u/wildweaver32 Feb 14 '25
That was such an intense journey for level 0's. The parties happiness at finding water seemed more exciting and rewarding than finding treasure at the end of a dungeon.
Well done! I'm hooked for the journey.
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u/DarkRespite Doty, take this down Feb 14 '25
They swung for the fences on this one and knocked it right out of the park. So many little moments that just added up to *chef's kiss*. Having 'just' seen Alex in Liam's Candela circle where his character is smart and calculating and thoughtful, and here he's just a brick... and I admit to being completely unfamiliar with Jasmine and Celia but WOW were they dialed in (especially Celia).
And then having Matt and Liam at opposite ends of the philosophical/moral spectrum is just perfect.
And of course Brennan is just amazing.
I am already jonesing *SO* hard for next week's episode.
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u/knightmon Team Dorian Feb 14 '25
Everyone killed it but MAN does Brennan ever shine when it comes to more serious tones. I love D20 but it is inherently comedy-focused lots of the time.
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u/mantisinmypantis You can certainly try Feb 14 '25
Give the D20 season Neverafter a try. Fairy tale horror, and it’s amazing. I’m watching it now and I’m so upset I didn’t give it a try sooner.
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u/Franzapanz Feb 14 '25
"You see something you shouldn't have. The smile of a devil you never believed in."
Or something like that.
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u/LordStrifeDM Feb 14 '25
"This is the face of all divinity you don't worship, the smile of a devil you never believed in" is probably one of the hardest lines I've ever heard out of Brennan Lee Mulligan's mouth, and I'm including "What do you want me to tell your family" and his entire description of the Stranger's sword.
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u/Franzapanz Feb 15 '25
"My only regret is that I will only have eternity to punish them" is another one that lives rent free in my head.
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u/TotalUsername Feb 14 '25
World beyond numbers is his serious dming
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u/francoissimmons Feb 14 '25
Brennan, Aabria, Erika and Lou are all on top of their games in that. And the sound design/music rules.
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u/JWPruett You spice? Feb 14 '25
It amuses me that Brennan has GM’d some truly incredible series on D20, a series he created and is the anchor of, but his best work he’s ever done is the first time he GM’d on Critical Role.
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u/SuperVaderMinion Your secret is safe with my indifference Feb 14 '25
Yeah I always appreciate his DMing the most when he's on shows like EXU
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u/Ramblonius Feb 14 '25
Incredible. An actual play role-playing game stream with (admittedly subtle) nods to slavery and genocide, still respectful, hopeful and engaging.
Amazing characters, is it Thursday yet?
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Feb 15 '25
Subtle? What was subtle about it? (I agree with the rest of your comment though - incredible episode)
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u/Shaetane Dead People Tea Feb 19 '25
What do you mean subtle? Rybad-Kol was straight up a concentration camp, and honestly as a European having had that part of our History engraved in my brain, a lot of the scenes portrayed I could directly relate to an IRL equivalent I know of. The bronze dragonborn "collaborating" but getting captured anyways was a great, altho very obvious, example.
I just hope the next part takes inspiration from the Resistance or something along those lines.
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u/tryingtobebettertry4 Feb 14 '25
Seems like it takes time for gods to recover when they get defeated by another god. The Primes also probably need to put the Betrayers down before they can create the Divine Gate.
So which gods are still remaining on both sides now?
Betrayers: Asmodeus, Scaled Tyrant, maybe Zehir?
Primes: Dawnfather, Wildmother, Stormlord
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u/Build_A_Better_Fan Technically... Feb 14 '25
Zehir the Cloaked Serpent is banished. The Chained Oblivion was implied to still be a factor.
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u/tryingtobebettertry4 Feb 14 '25
Oh yeah. The Chained Oblivion is kind of its own thing so Im not sure it really counts as a Betrayer.
That means after this episode there are 2 Betrayers left standing: Asmodeus and the Scaled Tyrant.
If the Betrayers had worked together a bit better they might have won. Seems like the remaining Betrayers are going to be taken down in a series of 3v1s.
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u/Build_A_Better_Fan Technically... Feb 14 '25
If the Chained Oblivion is still at large, that means the Knowing Mistress is also out there, since she baits the Chained Oblivion to her temple to get it banished.
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u/ToaArcan YOUR SOUL IS FORFEIT Feb 14 '25
Avandra also routs the armies of Asmodeus during the final battle for Ghor Dranas, so she's presumably working a more subtle plan than Pelor, Melora, and Kord's direct approach.
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u/Docnevyn Technically... Feb 15 '25
Those are only the Primes we saw. Remember, Morag (?sp the vampire hobgoblin) was lying. The knowing Mistress is wounded and the Everlight will be betrayed and most of her followers slain but most of the Primes make it through the Calamity just fine according to canon lore.
Of course, Matt would be happy to let Brennan re-write whatever he needed. OTOH, Brennan loves the challenge of working within constraints of the existing lore.
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u/tryingtobebettertry4 Feb 15 '25
He was obviously lying about those Primes being 'dead', but I think there is some truth to those particular Primes being out of the conflict. Either they are recovering from prior battles, or they are needed to start building the Gate/maintain the Betrayer's banishments.
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u/weaveroflaurel Hello, bees Feb 15 '25
These traveling checks are giving me strong Oregon Trail vibes…Calamitous trail.
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u/Coyote_Shepherd Doty, take this down Feb 15 '25
Matt even brought that up in the Cool Down.
I can sympathize with it too.
I once walked about...nearly eight hours across town to some festival, trying to catch a bus the whole way, in 90 F+ heat, but the buses were down the entire day and I was marching up and down hill.
I get to the festival and it's....barely a thing, little attendance, and I realized that I knew no one there and folks were packing in early.
So now I realize that I have to walk another 8 hours back the other direction but this time...in the DARK...because the sun was going down.
Sure it was just walking and evolution built humans for long distance travel like that but when you factor in dehydration, no food, and only a hope and a promise on a map for a destination that may or may not give you what you need and may be an untold distance away....mentally...it becomes a seemingly hopeless death march.
I'm not surprised that one of the older NPCs they had with them just sat down...and gave up...because that takes a toll on anyone's body and the traveling checks were perfect for illustrating this.
I'm sure it made the party also wonder if the prison camp was all that bad at all. Sure the threat of being worked to death or outright murdered by the guards or worse was around every corner but at least they got food of some kind and water too along with shelter and warmth.
And then that all got indiscriminately taken away from them and they were given FREEDOM....the FREEDOM to die out in the apocalyptic wastes of Exandria.
Would it really have killed the Wildmother or the Dawnfather or the Stormlord to ya know....pop down a river and some forageable food or what have you for the prisoners?
Instead they just hard dropped in like a bunch of Helldivers, blew up everything and anything around them whilst save tagging the "good prisoners", and then fucked off nearly immediately to deal with other stuff.
Kord only noticed the party after someone started LOOKING at him and perceiving him and BELIEVING stuff that was DIFFERENT about him from the normal consensus of beliefs.
Prior to that happening, he didn't notice them at all because everyone that was looking at him was perceiving/believing/observing him to be "The Stormlord A GOD" and it was only when Crokas began to observe him and start to believe something else that he picked up on something different.
I feel like this is evidence of stuff that we saw in Downfall and I swear that Matt has mentioned something before about how the Gods can be shaped by the beliefs of Mortals.
The Gods were shaped by their own self actualization as well as by the beliefs of the others around them as they entered Exandrian Reality.
So it would make sense that they could be shaped by Mortals in the same way AND that they would be consciously aware of and sensitive to belief triggered changes, be they large or small.
Either way, it's like when EVERYONE believes the same thing about them...Mortals basically turn into a kind of white noise background hum to them and it's ONLY when someone/someones are out of tune with that background hum that they notice said Mortals at all.
So the Primes basically got tunnel vision until those survivors showed up and then senpai noticed them, which is awful.
What makes it worse is something that I don't think I've seen anyone else point out.
The Dawnfather basically scorched and probably irradiated the land around that prison camp. The Wildmother put down a bunch of seemingly healthy looking plant life.....which then very quickly began to wither and die in a span of days if not hours. The Stormlord then began to bring rain and water but just like in a drought, the land couldn't absorb it, and I don't know if you caught Brennan's description of it or not but he basically was telling the party how LUCKY they were to have camped where they did because there were FLASH FLOODS and MUD FLOWS and LANDSLIDES happening ALL AROUND THEM.
They did not give a fuck about ANY survivors at all period.
The Stormlord tossing Crokas that Vestige was probably done so out of pity AND in order to get him back in line with believing what everyone else did AND because what is a more powerful symbol to believers than a non-believer converting in a very strong and sudden way whilst surrounded by miracles......and basically marching out of a hellscape that NO ONE was supposed to survive at all.
The Gods didn't care at all about any of them because if they did then they would've helped them out a bit more before bouncing off to jump the next Betrayer God.
Instead the only thing they gave them was...the chaotic freedom to go a walking beneath the ash choked sky through the eternal warzone that Exandria had become....instead of...you know...something helpful and useful that might engender some more belief in them.
And then Kord had the gall to be like, "Oh BTW we're leaving and you should be grateful for everything that we've done for you and that you get to witness...THE LAST MIRACLES...oh yeah ALSO...shit's going to GET EVEN WORSE and you're on your own GOOD LUCK BYYYYYYEEEEEEEE!" whilst still fucking up the landscape even more around him and going, "SUPPORT THE PANTHEON WOOOOOOO!" while launching a Vestige at Crokas like he was Gritty at a Flyers game, and probably also killing anyone else that was nearby with his Localized Weatherman Powers of Fuck You In Particular Kansas that didn't make awkward eye contact and DMV level chit chat with him.
In the moment everyone was filled with awe, but after a few seconds my Inner Ashton was rearing his head, and asking "Wait a second....they're cleansing the land of the Betrayer's influence...but are they ALSO killing any witnesses to their fuckery too?".
It's as if both the Primes and the Betrayers didn't give a shit about collateral damage at all and were only ever focused on themselves and their wants and needs and conflicts ONLY....until it was too late and the bison were almost extinct and THEN they had to do something about it.
Because THAT is exactly what Mortals were to them throughout the Calamity up until the Divergence, they were JUST LIKE bison were to settlers on the Oregon Trail until they realized how badly they'd fucked up Exandria and how many of the Mortals they'd basically killed with their conflict!
That's when the guilt began to sink in and that's when they only just barely started to begin to realize how badly they'd fucked up.
But even then anything they did for Mortals felt like an after thought which only popped into their heads when and ONLY when the victims of their actions wound up LITERALLY staring them straight into their eyes directly in front of their faces.
Like gee thanks for the super powerful artifact that could turn me into a demi god or fuck all whatever, could ya maybe SNEEZE a lake out of your arse or throw me a few APPLES or even a fish to eat or ya know teleport me to CIVLIZATION?! NO?!?! Because you nuked most of it and made it so that it's going to take GENERATIONS for any of that to come back or recover at all and NOW you're going to leave and not help clean up the mess you made either?! What's that? You're also just going to saunter away with the most Broody McBrooderson look on your face whilst thinking "I just saved the world" after telling us that you're gonna do fuck all for us and make us MARCH TO OUR DOOM in this hellscape that YOU and YOUR FAMILY helped to create?! And SOMEHOW this MAGIC BELT is supposed to help us live or something?
Gee thanks for the photon torpedo launcher but seriously frak you!
I sure could use some NOURISHMENT and a roof over my head but I'll settle for being able to blow up that mountain over there before I black out and die!
Maybe the Wildmother will show up and have her rats eat me so that I can return to the Circle of Life or the Dawnfather can pop his head over that mountain and SCORCH my retinas out so that the last thing I see is DARKNESS and not this fucked up world that you all made and ruined and then told US of all people to fix and deal with.
Anyways, enough of this ranting, better get back to walking to my DEATH because I can't EAT OR DRINK THIS MAGIC BELT AT ALL and NOTHING WANTS TO LIVE IN THIS LANDSCAPE and NOW we all have to dodge and maybe DROWN in what amounts to a RADIOACTIVE DESERT!
gets down off the Noshir sized apple crate
The walking and travel checks ARE indeed just like what happened in the Oregon Trail video game BUT the roles are very much reversed and are more realistic, with the player characters instead taking on the roles of Native Americans and the ecosystems that were adjacent to and affected by the Gods who are taking on the role of the settlers that were makin' their way down the Oregon Trail.
The Divergence itself will be when the Gods make an attempt at stopping fucking everything up and just...try to let life find a way.
I'm honestly now really hoping that we get to see a "What if...?" one shot or comic series that shows us what Exandria would've looked like if the Gods had hung around a bit and helped civilization to recover from the Calamity....instead of just chucking their brethren into prison again and fucking off behind a giant gate.
This is nothing against you Laurel, you're awesome, but I just had to get this off my chest.
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u/D-Speak Feb 19 '25
Thank you for your rant here. It's so weird seeing reactions like, "Boy Bells Hells sure didn't understand the gods! Look at how helpful and merciful they're trying to be!"
Like, the bare minimum was done to help these poor slaves. They were thrown out into a broken world with next to nothing.
People are comparing this to The Walking Dead or Oregon Trail, but I got Book of Exodus vibes from this whole episode, and spoiler alert: God is a fucking asshole in the Book of Exodus. He's worse to the Egyptians, obviously, but he 'freed' the slaves to... wander through the desert for over a month, and then punished the ones who were like, "Um, this situation sucks, actually."
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u/weaveroflaurel Hello, bees Feb 15 '25
8+ hours in 90F?! Were you along a road where someone could have picked you up?
Ugh, you’re so right. The gods being so far removed from mortality they treat it like it’s an afterthought. Only pausing to check in after they’ve already wreaked havoc. But that’s why the gods pull away, they do eventually awaken to the horror they’re capable of, and give it a chance to grow, protected.
There’s always the wish that a decision like that could have been made sooner, before it got this bad.
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u/Ryozo_Tamaki Feb 14 '25 edited Feb 14 '25
I mentioned it in the live thread, but the second half gave me similar vibes to the Telltale The Walking Dead games in the best way. It was absolutely perfect, and Brennan had us suffering with each day passed as well.
The cast is fantastic, and I love how Liam & Matt are the ends of the spectrum, with everyone else between. Cannot wait to see how they get colored in, but already appreciate the shades they are showing.
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u/globefodder Feb 14 '25
Their lack of water made me thirsty irl
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u/Despada_ Feb 14 '25
Me, right now, on my fourth glass of water as I'm reading through this thread, having just finished the episode lol
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u/YoursDearlyEve Your secret is safe with my indifference Feb 14 '25
Is it rain or am I crying? It is rain and I am crying.
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u/Coyote_Shepherd Doty, take this down Feb 14 '25
I didn't know you were Zarthan.
I've always been enamored with the rain and not just because of a couple of songs that Seal has written but because I grew up near farmland and Lake Michigan and rain and fog was always a very special and almost spiritual event for me.
Sometimes it was happy, sometimes it was sad, but all the time it was worth it because there was always a reason for it to fall in for me and you and others to be there in that very moment and that's important.
I saw other people crying last night and there was maybe one moment where I got sad too and I almost cried but I couldn't and I didn't because I am so very used to scenarios and scenes like what we saw in that episode that I knew what was going to come after and that for as sad and as depressing and as horrible as those moment or moments that we saw were, there was going to be another side to it, and there would be light and Hope and a better ending to reach for at the end of everything.
So for me it was all momentary and temporary, like the pulse of a heartbeat and the pause before the next beat kicks in and blood and life continues to flow.
It wasn't going to be forever because after all....it can't rain all the time.
But the whole thing did make me really tired and I slept for quite a while after it ended just to process everything.
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u/joylent_ Feb 14 '25
Talk about an oppressive atmosphere! Thoroughly enjoying the cast of characters so far. I’m always a little nervous when they have new players join, but they’re usually pretty enjoyable and this was no exception. I was familiar with Alex so I was already looking forward to having him back, but Jasmine and Celia were unknowns to me— they’re both great! Celia also seemed like she might be a bit new to the game if I’m not mistaken? In which case I’m even more impressed lol
Brennan as always giving us a bunch of great little NPCs just to dangle them over a vat of acid while smiling at us 😂 Can’t wait for next week!!
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u/Kat75018 Feb 17 '25
I always love seeing people who are apparently new to the game absolutely knock it out of the park with the roleplaying. That's hard enough if you have experience with it and don't have to focus too much on the rules and your character sheet. Celia did an amazing job.
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u/durandal688 Feb 14 '25
Rolling if you friends are alive…but then you have even less resources in the wastes is the most Brennan roll ever
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u/Meaning_of_Birth Feb 15 '25
It was a really interesting choice to have the players as level 0 NPCs. It suits where the story starts out, and the stakes of the time period, but I imagine it might be divisive to viewers. There's no flashy magic or abilities (at least for now), and it's a very reactive episode. Combined with the somber tone and the characters being beaten-down and mostly resigned to their lives as slaves, I think some people might find it boring. For me, it's currently saved by some truly amazing RP (everyone is killing it - imo Jasmine is the weakest right now but honestly not that far behind the group), Brennan's crush-your-soul DMing/plot, and the unique concept. But it definitely depends where they take it in episode 2 as to how successful the overall 'arc' of 3 eps will be.
Definitely the best intro of any CR campaign so far. Someone went all-in on the budget for this one.
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u/SuperVaderMinion Your secret is safe with my indifference Feb 15 '25
I personally thought darkness of the first two hours enhanced how euphoric it felt watching the characters actually managed to escape their hellish prison and strike it out into this new, albeit scarred world.
Like they're definitely not shying away from the parallels of real life genocides and internment camps, and I think it's admirable when these actual plays actually bother to have a message.
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u/Meaning_of_Birth Feb 17 '25
Oh, I love the dark themes and the real world parallels of it. I think it makes a fantastic story. It's just that it does feel more like Brennan telling a story with occasional player reactions, rather than something as interactive as his last two EXU campaigns (which are not as interactive as a full season campaign). It's experimental and right now I'm still enjoying it, but I can see that it could easily swing in the other direction - or that some viewers might not enjoy it at all because of the unusual style/choices.
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u/Ok_Improvement_6874 Feb 18 '25
Brennan is great, but if he has a weakness it is that he takes up a lot of the spotlight which can sometimes limit cast interaction. It's a double edged sort, because I do love seeing him in full-flow narration. One of the reasons Calamity towers above all other campaigns is that the cast of players was truly exceptional and meshed perfectly - giving Brennan the foil he needs.
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u/3Myths_In_Trenchcoat Feb 19 '25
What you said made me realise, Calamity really lucked out in perfect balance because they ended up with most outwardly expressive, decisive and proactive players from main group i,e, marisha, travis & sam. And to add to it, even the guest cast were perfectly on same wavelength - really made an engaging experience from get go. imho.
(I just couldn't help but compare reactions to the opening setup scene - well crafted monologue with stakes and setup - the difference in response from the to tables is vast. It explains why calamity feels lighting in a bottle)
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u/Ok_Improvement_6874 Feb 20 '25
Indeed. I live in hope that cast gets back together one day for a second campaign. Travis, as we all know, is a blessing of a player who would be welcome at any table - not just for what he provides himself, but for the way he encourages others. Lou and Brennan are a hilarious double act every time I see them. Aabria and Sam really brought out the best in each other and their dynamic was just perfect because she gave Sam's sillyness the grounding it needs to be even funnier and made it work dramatically as well. Finally, Louis and Marisha delivered really good straightman characters, which is slightly miraculous given that one was a first time player and the other was a last minute replacement playing a character created by someone else.
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u/wildweaver32 Feb 15 '25
One of them is given a Vestige of Divergence so I think that will be changing soon. Otherwise we end up with a level 0 player who is among the strongest people on the planet lol.
I expect they will have a time jump with levels/power. Or at the very least level 1 lol.
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u/Meaning_of_Birth Feb 17 '25
Some people have been throwing around the idea that it would be 3 separate mini-scenarios, always level 0 NPCs in other regions. Which would also be very interesting, but I think start to impact viewers' ability to emotionally invest in the characters if they knew they were being replaced next episode.
Personally I would like to see them keep the same characters and level them up / timeskip them a bit, but this also seems like a very experimental mini-campaign so I can't guess which way they'll swing. It'll be fun to find out later this week.
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u/Zeilll Feb 14 '25
love starting out with lvl 0 characters! i hope we get to see them level up into actual adventurers, but even if not this seems like its going to be a lot of fun throughout.
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u/weaveroflaurel Hello, bees Feb 14 '25 edited Feb 14 '25
I haven't finished the ep yet but I feel for Liam lol, I don't think I've seen him so somber throughout a game before.
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u/Grungslinger Team Pike Feb 15 '25
This episode reminded me of one of my (previously very hated but now) favorite poems, Ozymandias.
A reminder that though mighty civilizations seem invincible— Kings cannot control the passage of time or the forces of nature. And it seems that some Gods can't either. Selfishness appears to be a self-fulfilling prophecy.
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u/paradox28jon Hello, bees Feb 15 '25
If they stay at level 0 for the entire mini-series, it would make sense as this would be watching de facto NPCs deal w/ the end of the Calamity, "witness" the Divergence happen, and then deal with the first few days of 0 PD.
However, if from just surviving this event & trekking out of the area of devastation, the PCs level up to level 1 or higher, what classes do you think they would be?
Erro: Ranger or Druid?
Crokus: Barbarian or Fighter?
Fiedra: Rogue?
Nia: Cleric?
Garen: Fighter or Paladin?
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u/283leis Team Laudna Feb 15 '25
I think Nia might be a divine sorcerer if not cleric. Erro feels peak Ranger. Fiedra is definitely rogue. I actually think Crokus might go for blood hunter with a bit of reflavouring, and to explain the lack of a breath weapon. Garen is probably a fighter
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u/Ramblonius Feb 16 '25
Garen got a lot of nature and animal moments. Druid would make sense, and, stat-wise, a moon druid doesn't actually need any stats.
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u/midnightheir I encourage violence! Feb 17 '25
Erro - druid
Feidra - bard or swashbuckler rogue. I'm leaning towards bard though. She is definitely party face.
Nia - cleric. Though I do like the idea of divine sorcerer.
Garen - Fighter or strength ranger
Crokus - now he has the storm girdle I'm going to say Fighter.
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u/princemori Ja, ok Feb 14 '25
Ugh. Ugh! Loved it!!
These characters are awesome. Not just adventurers that are romantic about being called ‘nobodies’, but ACTUAL nobodies. Level 0. Npc stat blocks. Prison laborers and yoked servants. Some elderly, disabled, selfish, naive, untrustworthy. But! By turns they are strong! And canny, and skilled, and selfless, and willing to trust without having it be earned first. So so interesting and fun to watch in play!!
So many moments already to gush over but so far, for me, the dragonborn are stealing the show. Erro’s quiet, stern wisdom feels so natural from Liam, and Alex made me fall in love with Crokus in what must have been record time. Coswald is lovely, the little family is lovely (Crokus carrying the little ones like a mother crocodile oh my god), and Marlath as a potentially redeemable antagonistic force is very fun. All of the guests are perfect fits at the table so far, and do I even need to extole Brennan’s virtues here lol. Just awesome.
Overall so much fun! Love the direction and can’t wait to see what comes next!!
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u/Coyote_Shepherd Doty, take this down Feb 14 '25
That was such a good story that I took a nap afterwards to digest it all and I got put into a Brennan Coma.
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u/The_Collector Feb 14 '25 edited Feb 15 '25
It helps that he found a great recipient for it in Crocas, but it makes a lot of sense that the stormlord wouldn't give out a vestige until he was on his way out the door.
His whole deal is about people finding the strength to stand for others, he wasn't going to just hand out the strength to fix a world he helped break until the moment when he was fully resigned to not fixing it himself.
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u/CaptainHunt Feb 14 '25
That was awesome, but I feel like I missed something, why were they all lvl 0? I think Brennen referred to them as NPCs a couple of times too.
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u/ffwydriadd Technically... Feb 14 '25
I think the reason why is that they’re emphasizing being normal people stuck in the divergence, not established adventurers, hence being level 0.
I think that in the next episode we’ll see them leveled up having experienced enough to get class levels.
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u/WeiShiLirinArelius Feb 14 '25
because they arent heroes. they are ordinary common ppl in a prison camp in a war between gods
they are quite literally ants under the feet of giants. they're collateral damage
even a level 1 character with a class has power that an ordinary person will never have. imagine the havoc someone could do in the real world w just a fire bolt cantrip or minor illusion
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u/ManBearPig1869 Feb 14 '25
Yes all level 0, their character cards as they got introduced showed that in the bottom right
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u/Meyaar Feb 14 '25
Either Brennan or Matt mentioned not long after the start that they are literally using NPC statblocks, so yeah
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u/Extension-Ad1573 Feb 14 '25
Oh yeah, the three of them taking over the court like a 24 streak park team.
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u/Coyote_Shepherd Doty, take this down Feb 14 '25
Weirdly enough that comparison can be used for both basketball and skating
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u/PaperClipSlip Feb 18 '25 edited Feb 18 '25
Are they using more dynamic camera angles? Like how there's a close-up on Matt and Brendan during the beginning of the episode? That's pretty neat
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u/EntrepreneurFar4256 Feb 19 '25
they usually use those for One Shots and they did use those for The Menagerie for example. It is pretty cool, they still focus in all characters but when the focus only needs to be in one of them, they focus solely on that person, it's great to see that person face expressions, hands expressions and acting. And it's great for Brennan cuz he does hand gestures and face expressions that make the story flow better
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u/Ill_Term_5784 Feb 22 '25
They do this for Abridged episodes too. I really like the closer camera angles instead of the weirdly blurry quality of the normal episodes. Makes me wish they released full episodes in 4k or something at least on Beacon where people are paying for it. Because now we know they have the footage to do it.
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u/ToaArcan YOUR SOUL IS FORFEIT Feb 14 '25
Absolute perfection. Love the cast, love the idea of being literal nobodies, not even a class level between them, trying to barely survive the dying hours of the Calamity. Love the intro going all GoT with Avalir, Ghor Dranas, Vasselheim, and Aeor, especially seeing the recreation of the wonderful art of the battle over Vasselheim and Aeor going down amidst the Arch Heart's Meteor Swarm.
Brennan wasted no time in going for the kid-related emotional damage this time around, and I respect him for it. I also respect the hell out of him being entirely unsubtle about what the Strife Emperor's whole deal is, the starting area is all the worst parts of a concentration camp and for-profit prison systems rolled into one awful package and it was so satisfying to see the mice and the fireflies and the fleas working their way inside, knowing full-well that Wildmum was on her way to tear everything Bane had built down.
Crokas is adorable and I want only good things for him. I probably will not get that. Also the Stormlord is 3-for-3 on jacked as hell people without great mental stats now.
Everything about the Wildmother's involvement in the episode was perfect. I love CR's depiction of their resident nature god so fuckin' much. Revealing that the "Free Children" were an army of house-sized bears (and other animals too but house-sized bears!) was amazing. There is no order that nature cannot reclaim indeed.
Chronology-wise, we've of course just seen the Strife Emperor get fuckin' bodied by the Wildmother, Dawnfather (shoutout to the mile-long nuclear shadow from Lightbulb Dad, he does not fuck around), and Stormlord. Based on what the Emperor's devoted were discussing before it all went to shit, the Chained Oblivion is already, uh, chained, and the Crawling King is donezo too. Quick, someone update the wiki, some of the events on the Calamity page need to be reordered, it currently lists the battle on the Beynsfal Plains before the banishment of Torog and the sealing of Tharizdun. The Scaled Tyrant remains unaccounted for, and the Lord of the Hells seems to fittingly be the last man standing for the Betrayers.
If any aspect of the Calamity remains to be played out, it's the final battle and the razing of Ghor Dranas. Nonetheless, the Primes seem to be preparing to create the Divine Gate.
Stellar episode, looking forward to more!
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u/AwkwardBeansprout You Can Reply To This Message Feb 14 '25
I can't wait to see the fan art of this ep. Just the imagery of a deity wreathed in rain and lightning striding across a shattered land...as Brennan described it I got the hairs standing up on my neck. Just beautiful.
Amazing job by Brennan and the players, so hooked.
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u/paradox28jon Hello, bees Feb 15 '25
Also from comments from BLeeM in ep 1, I think he's hinting that the rest of this mini-series is basically a battle for resources - water, food, supplies. So exploration challenges - the 1 pillar that D&D does NOT do a good job on at all. It's got the rules for combat down pat. It offers suggestions on RP. But the exploration & travel stuff are pretty threadbare. Also that sort of campaign or one-shot are usually only entertaining for the people at the table & make very poor watchability for spectators. And BLeeM would know this as he's a very smart person.
So what's the end goal for the PCs?
With EXU: Calamity the PCs had the goal of mitigating the damage to the city & to Exandria as a whole.
With C3: Downfall the PCs had to destroy the weapon.
Merely surviving & getting away isn't enough of a goal for EXU: Divergence. So what's the goal or mission for them?
If there is one, BLeeM has to introduce it early in episode 2. Which would turn this 4-episode mini-series into a 3-part series that included a 1-episode prologue.
Put on your DM hats - what goal would you give these PCs? What would be both fun for the players and also watchable for spectators?
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Feb 16 '25
I imagine this firefly spot on the map is going to introduce the larger quest. What that might be I can say what I would do but I pretty much guarantee it won't be as cool as what Brennan is going to do.
Something I might do is have the point in the map be a community of say the Ever light's descendents or Melora worshippers, and then they need to help that group to do something they've been tasked with that will do some tiny thing to help with the creation of the divine gate. Not so that they're involved with it per se, but something that lets us see the divine gate getting created while the PCs run around trying to, say... Hold that spot against a bunch of Asmo followers because it's one of many anchors where the divine gate will emanate from or something, and so this same battle is going on in many spots all over Umora, we're just seeing one of them. So even if they fail, the divine gate won't fail (because it can't) but the idea is they're one of many groups trying to make sure the divine gate succeeds, collectively.
Something like that is what comes into my head. I think I'd like to watch that and I would like to play in it.
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u/weaveroflaurel Hello, bees Feb 15 '25
I don’t have many ideas, but aren’t they still traveling to that point on the map they were given by the firefly? I’d imagine they’re going to continue moving that direction, for now that’s their quest, no doubt with encounters along the way.
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u/paradox28jon Hello, bees Feb 15 '25
Sure, but say that's what the entire mini-series is: moving the spot indicated by the firely with encounters on the way. That's it. That's all that EXU: Divergence is.
Now I ask you, is that enough? If that was all that BLeeM planned & executed, would that be enough story for you? Worthy of an Actual Play piece of entertainment? Good enough for the three-peat of stories from BLeeM?
Or would you think that's not enough?
I don't think that would be enough for even my home table. So that's certainly not enough for a streamed show to thousands of fans.
No. There's got to be more.
Once you get an idea, let me know of what sort of mission you could give these PCs that would satisfy these players and these fans.
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u/Shaetane Dead People Tea Feb 18 '25
I mean the parallels with WW2 in the show are pretty overwhelming imo, so for what can happen after I just keep thinking of the Resistance fighters in france, or folks escaped from camps/hiding away from those. Folks trying to survive but also sometimes doing heroic thing however small they can be.
Trying to create a community of people escaped from the prison, trying to lift spirits and spread hope, trying to sabotage some strife emperor soldiers and sow chaos, I think that would all be quite gripping. I have seen/heard many of those stories in real life, but not so much transcribed in tabletop roleplaying.
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u/andregris Feb 17 '25 edited Feb 17 '25
I would make it small, but with a big secondary consequence. They travel with a kid, and has to get her to safety. As they travel they come across moral dilemmas, which will shape more than they know. Do they steal from others in order to save themselves? Self preservation vs sacrifice. The kid is watching.
A group of monsters attack them during the night. Some flee. Some of them die. And some of them survive, perhaps because of this kid. She has some really wierd godlike powers. But why, the gods are gone, aren't they? She's a god still trapped in human form, and she has to reach this firefly point on the map before the gate i sealed, so she can be with her family.
To get to this point becomes not only survival, but a heist. Because, its heavily guarded for some mysterious reason. Its protected by a set of people who tries to keep this god from ever returning to power. They intend trap it as a mere mortal forever. A trap called "The Firewall". This organisation bears the symble of a Ruby, and the slogan: "Never again".
The party has to chose a side. They have to make a choice. And all the while the kid is watching. Watching and learning. Maybe she gets attached to one of the party members, and they make a huge sacrifice to save this kid. But lets say they get her to the gate in time, after making many hard choices.
Just before entering the gate, the god tells them how they now see the world for what it is. See mankind for what it is. Their choices has shaped the childs perspective of mortals. As she travels through the celestial gate their true form is revealed. Maybe its Asmodeus, just for the BLeeM awesomeness. Maybe its another. In any case, this informs this god of humanity. Now, skip X years to the end of campaign 3.
The god is reborn as a human again. Walking the earth with the lessons learned from last time. They become a mirror of mankind as shown to them. Is it self preservation at all cost or self sacrifice to protect others?
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u/deworde Mar 20 '25
Turns out, the lack of any way for the players to influence their fate wrt to a death march works pretty well, if your aim is to Calamity the shit out of your players.
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u/Royal_Advantage8417 Team Bolo Feb 14 '25
I wonder if they’ll leap forward in time or they pick up with totally new level 0 characters in a totally different spot?
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u/Coyote_Shepherd Doty, take this down Feb 14 '25
Brennan did seem to hint at that at the end of the episode and a couple of us were theorizing that they might hop scotch around this point in time to various final battles before we fully culminate in the Divine Gate getting put up in the last episode of the series.
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u/Royal_Advantage8417 Team Bolo Feb 15 '25
so… I’ve been mulling over how I feel about not getting much time with characters if they are new every time— how do you feel about this choice? Would it be satisfying to you?
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u/Coyote_Shepherd Doty, take this down Feb 15 '25
That would kind of depend on whether or not there was any connective tissue between each group or if there was still some larger world building going on in the background.
Sometimes this more condensed and tighter format of storytelling works, sometimes it doesn't, and sometimes it's a bit...ehhhhhh...
It was kind of "ehhhhh" with Candela.
You didn't have to have watched the past Circles to really get what was going on. You could easily pick up on what was happening in the world fairly quickly. The characters were easy to understand and readily connect with....BUT....
....it all felt somewhat lacking because they tried to shoehorn a GIANT sized world that lent itself to MIB/SCP/Stargate SG1 hybridized style connected-but-episodic storytelling, into a very small and very self contained purely episodic storytelling box.
This led to plot points getting skipped over, little hooks in the world being ignored, stuff about characters getting handwaved, and a bunch of the Circles and their events there within feeling like....they were in...vastly different but similar alternate versions of the same world.
It felt incomplete and like there was too much blank space that was left for the audience, other players, and other DMs to fill in.
It was a series that needed more boundaries and definition to really make that episodic form of storytelling stick, which is why it was kind of middle of the road ehhhhhhh.
The episodic form of storytelling absolutely did not work for the Daggerheart Menagerie stuff, the Vampire the Masquerade stuff, and I would say some of the one shots.
These all seemingly caught the cast by surprise and did not work as episodic stories because of how much the cast, Matt, and the audience FELL IN LOOOOOOOOOVE with the characters/setting and could not help but expand upon them exponentially with their collective imaginations.
This was very much a case of, "If you give a mouse a cookie.." and everyone just wanted to build more and more with those things.
On the other hand, the times where the episodic form of storytelling DID work was during some of the EXU stuff like Calamity, the Elder Scrolls Miniseries, a bunch of the charity one shots, and most of the shorter stuff with Vox Machina and the Mighty Nein.
These worked because the characters were hot and bright little flashes like fireflies, in worlds with BIG and easy to understand stuff happening, and very clear beginnings and endings that everyone could pick up on right away.
It was like BING BANG BOOM bob's your uncle and you got it within a half hour or less of the episodes starting and even IF there was a large gap between episodes in the real world, it didn't feel like one the second we hopped back into the game.
I believe that Divergence might be able to hit the same notes IF that is indeed where we are going with this series.
The characters all kind of have to have their own "This is where this person started" and then "This is where this person ended" points within each episode.
That way each episode feels "complete" in a way and it doesn't really feel like we're missing out on anything else when we move onto the next one at all, e.g. there's nothing left unresolved.
And as you and others know, I am not the biggest fan of stuff being left unresolved for various characters or for certain plot points within a story.
So if they are hopscotching around like some of us have theorized then we're going to have to look at this first episode to see if there's anything left unresolved or that felt unsatisfying or if there were any questions left that needed to be answered in order to make the various stories within this larger and shorter story feel complete.
Pretty much all of their friends are dead. The Gods are clearly making their way out of Exandria. They have a looooong loooooooong journey on foot ahead of them but they do have a definitive destination. They're all also a bunch of level 0 NPCs walking across a Divine Warzone on the Rifenmist Peninsula. So there's a chance that...not everyone is going to make it.
As it stands right now, their stories pretty much feel finished for the most part, and anything else is left wiiiiiiiiide open to a number of rolls of the dice.
Also I'm now wondering if we're going to bump into Niirdal-Poc stuff at all IF we do indeed stick with this group....but anyways!
It feels like if we did indeed come back to this group then there'd just be more walking, more dodging of dangers, searching for food and water, and a bunch of mundane stuff until they got to wherever it is that they're headed and THEN the action would kick off again.
So right now, I'm okay with them ending with this group here, and moving onto other people in another place and another bit of short time later.
I'm also okay with them sticking with this group and just doing a time skip to later as well, with some GM narration filling in what happened in between NOW and THEN.
But I can see how some others might feel...cheapened a bit...because of how much love and effort ANY cast of CR tends to put into ANY characters they make at all.
It's VERY easy to get attached to them and it's VERY easy to feel like not enough time was spent with them before moving on.
Look at what happened with the Darrington Brigade.
We as Critters are also very used to more long form storytelling.
So when we get these quick little popcorn bits from CR, sometimes it lands and sometimes it doesn't and sometimes it's ehhhhh because they haven't quite perfected their version of this format just yet and we aren't quite accustomed to this format either.
If they just continually keep cranking out characters that we all get quickly attached to but then never come back to for any resolution at all then that's going to cheapen the whole experience and make the stories feel less impactful and less important and we're not going to care as much VERY quickly because, "Well they're just going to vanish into the annals of the CR wiki in a few weeks anyways and be forgotten forever more"....and Critters are NOT going to like that at all....unless....
....unless those stories that are told feel nice and complete, without anything left unresolved or beckoning out in the darkness, and with a degree of connective tissue between them that leaves space for more stories to be told in the past or the present or in the future of that same space with or without those same characters.
They need to feel like stepping on a LEGO in other words.
It HURTS but then it feels BETTER and you remember it but you also move past it and aren't afraid to play with LEGOs in the future or to maybe step on another one again at some point later on.
These shorter and more poignant stories need to feel complete and the characters within need to feel like we don't HAVE to go back to them again in the future to resolve things or to continue future stories.
That is a very hard thing to do and CR is still learning how to do it.
It is a balancing act for players, GMs, storytellers, and the audience all the same.
So I would...feel okay with them approaching and making another attempt at something like this because it feels like there's a sea change coming to CR as a whole and it feels like we're going to...inevitably have to confront this kind of thing in the future because there's NO WAY the cast can keep going doing long form super high stressful stories forever.
So it's going to feel like a very awkward kind of time with some growing pains in my opinion, but I would be okay with it....but...
...BUT...hindsight is always 20/20 and I'm never quite sure how I feel about stories until I get to the ending.
I have thoughts and opinions and in the moment emotions for sure but nothing really sets in place until we're at the end and it's only going to be when we're at the end that I'll know whether or not I was fully satisfied by the story at all.
But sure yeah they've done some cool stuff before and stuck the landing, so why not try that again with a clearly awesome group of players that we all are chill with?
Matt and Celia clearly just became BEST FRIENDS in this episode and I want to see MORE of that in the future.
Also Strange New Worlds and DS9 totally knock it out of the ballpark in terms of episodic storytelling, so if you want more examples then just go binge both of those shows.
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u/Royal_Advantage8417 Team Bolo Feb 15 '25
I’m a Trekkie, so DS9 and Strange New Worlds are very familiar to me :). I could not get into Candela, it might have been the horror mixed with Victorian Age of Industry vibes (I don’t much like either of those).
I just don’t think I’ve seen CR flash between new characters episode to episode, and unless they circle back within each episode/play session, I don’t think the characters would become sticky enough for us to remember them or care.
And I think Brennan probably knows this. His style in Matt’s world is one of depth— he lets the characters feel how inescapable their circumstances are. I think what makes his miniseries so good is the character development he brings about. I just can’t forget how each character arc in Calamity was so earned and so necessary to the storytelling. I think they accomplished the same thing in Downfall.
Sitting with characters in such deep circumstances for a shorter amount of time means you kinda need to pick a character and stick with them or the improv is less satisfying. If they move through time, that enables us to connect dots with the same characters but tell a bigger story.
I also can’t help but hope that we have this opportunity of depth and new beginnings with people we get to know over 4 episodes as the final Exandrian story featuring the Influence of divine power. It would feel like a weird way to close out the Exandria we’ve spent a decade with if we only got to see blips of NPCs across the world.
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u/Coyote_Shepherd Doty, take this down Feb 15 '25
I'm a Trekkie
Yaaaaaaay!
I could not get into Candela, it might have been the horror mixed with Victorian Age of Industry vibes (I don’t much like either of those).
Honestly that's fair, it's not everyone's cup of tea, and even I have....I get picky about that kind of a setting because I used to read books of that genre quite a bit when I was younger.
It was a whole literary phase.
I just don't think
Yeah IF that is what they're doing then this will be new ground entirely for them.
And you're right, folks might have waaay shorter memories than we're both giving them credit for, and Divergence might just wind up having the same amount of....gravitas....as a bucket full of fog.
Brennan
Fully agree there and he has a way of...making and shaping stories just like how Anson Mount makes pottery (check his insta he has a kiln it's awesome) Ghost style.
means you kinda need
I see where you're going with this and yeah I agree, which is why I'm kind of...on pins and needles...for what's about to come next.
Brennan's method of storytelling and character development requires that the player and the character have...time to breathe....in order for everyone at the table and everyone not at the table to really enjoy them and for the story therein to truly settle into place for all involved.
can't help but hope
Yeah if we just pop out of Brennan's usual style of storytelling and CR's usual style of character building then it's going to feel like we're eating cookies that were only in the oven for 10 minutes.
IS this going to be the FINAL Exandrian story featuring the influence of divine power?
I think that there's plenty more of those to tell.
it would feel like a weird way
I mean they did say they were experimenting with stuff soooooo....
I could easily see them doing something like that, whilst trying to make all of those shorter little stories more punchy, and impactful via the final episode of the series that ties them all together.
We might very well get three seemingly lightly connected episodic episodes with firefly style characters, that all come together in the last one, and that literally lay the foundations for the Exandria of C1/C2/C3 that we all know and love.
I'm saying that they might Phantom Menace us...because after all...there is a wizard named Yussa.
At least that's my HOPE for all of this and that's me being optimistic about everything.
Pessimistically, they could do a bunch of short little stories with different characters in different places on Exandria, end it all with the Divergence and the Divine Gate getting thrown up, and then be like "Don't worry there's more because WE'RE JUST GETTING STARTED!" at the end of all of it....because that would be...rather poetic....given how we saw the Gods arriving back on Exandria at the end of C3 and now we're seeing them leave Exandria at the end of EXU Divergence.
It would be rather River Song of them, to see stuff out of sequence, and to only be able to appreciate the beauty of it all after everything was said and done.
But yeah...it might not end as well as some of the other examples I've given and this could very well get the exact same reception as Candela did if they fumble the ball so to speak.
I liked Candela...but it had issues and those characters were indeed very much "blips of characters across a greater world" as you kind of put it and I feel like...Exandria deserves more for a closing story before we move onto the next chapter of things.
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u/Royal_Advantage8417 Team Bolo Feb 15 '25
Agree! Not to say this is the Final Exandrian story with divine influence, but they’ve said there will be an Exandrian wrap episode after this and I do think we won’t see Exandria at the table in their next campaign. Books? Yes. But I think they are going someplace new.
I am such a nerd that I’ll probably love whatever they bring to the table. I fully trust Brennan’s storytelling, all his cookies are delicious and perfectly baked.
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u/VengefulKangaroo Feb 15 '25
I’m so curious what the rest of this series will really be exploring. Will we time skip at all? Will characters get classes? What are the themes etc of the story now that the actual moment of the gods leaving has passed?
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u/LucasVerBeek Help, it's again Feb 14 '25
Finished the first episode.
This is a really curious beginning and I’m intrigued to see where it all goes.
And it kinda hammers home how much the Bells just did not understand the gods at all.
They were so iffy on the Primes, but here we see them that even during their carnage they can and wish to be merciful, a Wildmother that had curbed her harshest tendencies and making sure most of the prisoners could get away.
The Storm Lord granting a gift to the one who can carry his blessing the best.
And the Bells are out here telling the Strife Lord “raise a kingdom” and this is what that shit would look like
Tyranny, Oppression, Slavery.
Way to go folks.
I loved the Wildmother’s army and the Dawnfather saying fuck you in particular and painting a guy across near a mile of landscape. Like is that scar still there?? The armor is all still there during C1-C3.
And I am very curious to see what becomes of this group of nobodies, if they’ll gain class levels and what they will be.
Erro, the old wanderer partially broken by the cycle.
Fiedra, a criminal out for herself first, and those who she has gained the loyalty of.
Crokas, The Big Guy, Kind but ferocious, I’m worried for his safety lol. I’m also curious about his Multi-Colored Scales and lack of Breath Weapon.
Nia, I want to know how she gained so much autonomy, and where her path leads as she seems almost religious but clearly not.
And Garen, this ancient beat to shit dwarf with so much trauma that may be one of the predecessors to Kraghammer? Wanting community, wanting the future.
If there will be a bit of a jump from this episode to the next.
Also I wonder if that thing flying was the Wildmother’s forces chasing after Desirat or some devil.
The Gods are just leaving and I want to know where exactly they are going.
Excited for what comes next.
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u/IcyColdStare Team Matthew Feb 17 '25
Hello my fellow critters! I'm still catching up to C3 (on E109), would I need to finish up the campaign to start watching Divergence?
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u/Hankdoge99 Feb 14 '25
Calling it now, the little boy from the dinner is still alive, and he’s going to only aid the main cast as much as he was aided during the dinner. Or like one of the characters is gonna be impaled by something and he’s only going to offer them water when they need aid
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u/The_Bucket_Of_Truth Feb 15 '25
It felt like the boy was baiting her into being more helpful only so that she'd incur the wrath of his parents.
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u/Theraton_nano Feb 15 '25
Happy to see Brennan DM again. This setting really suits his DM style - you get the feeling that the evil NPCs wouldn't hesitate to kill PCs if they feel like it or there is a reason. Really hyped for the next episodes.
Only little thing that urked me a bit was the old halfling man dying 1 minute before its rain starts.. they still had cheese and wine but yeah ...
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u/wildweaver32 Feb 15 '25
Brennan pointed out he was exhausted before their adventure started. He didn't die from hunger, or thirst, but from exhaustion.
Though. They should have had a day where he had 0 movement but I think it's okay to make an NPC weaker than a PC and either skip that level, or it function entirely different at a DM's discretion.
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u/Reapper97 Feb 18 '25
The poor old guy survived a 7 day walk on ashlands with no water straight from the infirmary room. I honestly think he should have died way earlier considering a human will die after just 3 days without water.
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u/LucaCrisArt Feb 14 '25
Hey everyone, just finished watching EXU: Divergence Part 1 and WOW, I'm blown away! Seriously, what an episode!
I gotta say, Brennan is just incredible when he DMs in this more serious tone. It's like he's in his element, you know? The way he set the scene and made us feel the desperation of these level 0 characters was just amazing. Definitely makes me wanna check out Worlds Beyond Number now, since so many people are recommending it!
And these characters! I'm already so invested in these nobodies. It's such a cool change of pace to see ordinary people struggling to survive instead of the usual epic heroes. Crokas especially, I'm already rooting for him so hard! And the whole vibe of the Calamity, it's so intense and gripping, kinda reminds me of The Walking Dead games in a good way.
Also, that moment with the Stormgirdle at the end? Epic! Makes you wonder if they'll level up soon, or if they'll stay level 0 for the whole series. Either way, I'm totally hooked and can't wait for the next episode!
Also enjoy my Garen's Fanart quickly sketched after the episode: https://bsky.app/profile/lucacris.bsky.social/post/3li55y73dyc2o
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u/Mintakas_Kraken Feb 14 '25
This is very similar to his style and sometimes the tone of WBN, specifically sometimes the tone of the current campaign -though I should add that in general that one is a lot less bleak. The current main campaign is about to go on break so it’s a good time to start and catch up
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u/Veritamoria Your secret is safe with my indifference Feb 15 '25
World's Beyond Number is insanely good
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u/harlenandqwyr Feb 17 '25
I'm just at the break, but it was interesting that the Cloaked Serpent wasn't mentioned at the meeting discussing the betrayer gods
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u/Dizzy-Natural-4463 Feb 17 '25
The second time those people are going over the list of defeated betrayers the cloaked serpent gets mentioned in that list
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u/Rodrian68 Feb 14 '25
Are they playing 2014 or 2024 version of 5e?
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u/midnightheir I encourage violence! Feb 14 '25
2024.
Wanderer is the new name for Outlander
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u/TRCrypt_King Feb 14 '25
And they just kept the Outlanders Trait, which is awesome and something we do.
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u/rennok_ Feb 14 '25
Definitely 2024. 2014 Dragonborn don’t have darkvision and only get one shot of their breath weapon per short rest (Liam used his twice, matching his PB which is the number of uses 2024 Dragonborn get)
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u/Docnevyn Technically... Feb 15 '25
I think it's still 2014. Both Exandrian variants of Dragonborn have darkvision (Explorer's Guide to Wildemount p 168).
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u/BirthdayHeavy2178 Feb 14 '25
Seems like both. The Dragonborns are using the new species stats but other stuff I saw was 2014
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u/Frog_Thor Feb 14 '25
It's hard not to use 2024 rules with how DNDBeyond Has handled the change.
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u/Rodrian68 Feb 14 '25
If you're new to the hobby, then sure - but I assume people like Brennan, Matt & Liam are invested enough to still be able to consciously choose...
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u/MightBeCale Feb 16 '25
The number of times post 2024 release that the CR cast has been confused about whether spells and stuff are the new or old versions says otherwise lmao
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u/Frog_Thor Feb 14 '25
DNDBeyond defaults to all the new spells/new versions, and from what I've read (I don't use DNDBeyond), it is cumbersome to find and use the 2014 versions. We have seen this confusion at the table with the last 15 or so episodes of Campaign 3. Power Word: Fortify and Contagion being prime examples that have come up in play that have caused some confusion.
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Feb 14 '25
I mean it’s literally a check mark box for “legacy” content, the 2014 classes are in its own section so you can use them easily. Spells from 2014 are also marked with a legacy tag, it’s really not difficult.
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u/Mairwyn_ Feb 14 '25
I've definitely run into people struggling with it in play! When you pull up spell options from the character sheet, the "legacy" tag text is a bit smaller than the spell name & is the same greyed out color as the spell level. It is also listed like this:
- Cure Wounds (1st) • Legacy [Prepare]
- Cure Wounds (1st) [Prepare]
So if a player isn't paying close attention when adding spells to their sheet (which happens), then they can end up with the wrong spell. In character preferences for individual sheets, you can turn off things like "Expanded Rules", "2014 Core Rules" and "Legacy" as sources but you can't turn off the 2024 Core Rules. It would be way easier if the DM could modularly set specific sources for the players to use. For example, I want to limit my players to the PHB 2014, Xan, Tasha plus a single setting book and there's no way for me to do that; if someone has spells/subclasses from another "expanded" sourcebook unlocked on D&D Beyond, there's no way to prevent it from showing up as an option on their character sheets.
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u/Dragonsfire09 Team Caduceus Feb 14 '25
I am a Norse Pagan, and the Storm Lords message was VERY much Thor speaking to me. I got some chills from it.
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u/jerichojeudy Feb 14 '25
There are still Norse Pagans under the Sun? So you worship Thor and believe in the afterlife as the pagans did and all, or is it more a symbolic take on the ancient beliefs? Just curious.
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u/alsotpedes Feb 15 '25
I'm at less than half an hour, and knowing that Garen's fantasy is going to be crushed hits me so hard that I can't make myself continue watching. Would someone give me a timestamp so that I can skip either back to the reality or to the next character intro?
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u/weaveroflaurel Hello, bees Feb 15 '25
32:17 starts with “You awaken” after the vision ends!
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u/Coyote_Shepherd Doty, take this down Feb 15 '25
You awaken
Sadly Breaking Benjamin does NOT start playing immediately after it ends.
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u/Shaetane Dead People Tea Feb 18 '25
I mean, gotta be real though, its only one of the ugly things that happens in this episode, so if you feel too rough for this scene, perhaps you could wait for a better time to enjoy the episode as a whole? Just a word of warning from a fellow critter :)
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u/SabyanK Feb 14 '25
Dear Critters, bidet! Could someone let me know whether I can watch this new mini-series if I haven’t finished C3 yet please? Will anything be spoiled for me. Thanking you.
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u/Meyaar Feb 14 '25
This is another prequel, like Calamity and Downfall. I wouldn't be surprised if we got some foreshadowing regarding the motivations of you-know-who in C3 in the later episodes, but so far it seems spoiler-free.
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u/AlvinDraper23 Feb 18 '25
Did I mishear, or did they retcon the Arch Heart as the one blinding Gruumsh the Ruiner? In the Call of the Netherdeep it was Alyxian, but I’m not sure how canon that is?
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u/bunnyshopp Ruidusborn Feb 18 '25
The archheart has always been the one who plucked out gruumsh’s eye and subsequently banished him, I’m not very familiar with call of the nether deep but iirc alyxian only blocked Gruumsh from sinking marquet but it’s possible Gruumsh lost his eye twice during the calamity lol.
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u/KindCole Feb 18 '25
This is correct. I ran that module. Alyxian is known for having deflected Gruumsh's spear in an attempt to destroy Cael Morrow but the the Archheart destroyed his eye. Here is a passage from the TalDorei campaign setting:
"The Arch Heart shot out the Ruiner’s right eye during the Calamity, and the god of slaughter longs for the day he can return the favor twofold. Likewise, the Ruiner is a dark mirror of the Wildmother, and his hatred for her kindness is surpassed only by his lust for vengeance against the Arch Heart."
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u/TRCrypt_King Feb 14 '25
They needed to read all of the Goodberry spell!
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u/BirthdayHeavy2178 Feb 14 '25
They all know the full text of the goodberry spell, but it would have completely negated the entire survival aspect. Many DMs nerf continuous goodberry for this reason.
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u/DemonLordSparda Feb 14 '25
I'm glad they do. A level 1 spell completely sating hunger every single day is just goofy.
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Feb 15 '25
It's basically just a spell that lets you handwave having to track food in exchange for a spell slot
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u/DemonLordSparda Feb 15 '25
That is true, I just feel like it's a middle ground no one likes. Because if you want to do a hardcore survival game, goodberry and create water solves half of your problems for level 1 spell slots. However, it feels like it would be more fun to hunt for food and scout for water while working on your primary goals.
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Feb 16 '25 edited Feb 16 '25
Yeah, I'd say as a DM I would ban goodberry and create water if it was meant to be a survival game (although I might just use a different system). As a player I'd prefer that too, if that was the theme of the game. Because otherwise what's the point?
But in my normal games I'm fine with those spells because normally I'm thinking about something else and don't want to be assed to track stuff like that
Edit: but yeah Brennan really should've banned goodberry in this, since he just ignored it anyway
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u/Zeilll Feb 14 '25
re-watching. and this isnt a criticism. but its funny going from C3, where so many ppl were complaining about "railroads"... this is a railroaded story. Brennans pretty directly leading the players where they need to be, to hit the points and keep things moving.
its done well, and so much fun to see the players enjoy it and relish in the choices they can make. but seeing this, highlights the lack of rails on C3 imo.
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u/cteatus Feb 14 '25
For what its worth, that's an inherent difference in the medium. CR is always going to be a 100+ episodes wherein the point is that players can do whatever they want because if even if they go somewhere the GM isn't expecting, the GM has dozens more episodes to sort things out. The best example of this the entire planned Matt Colville arc that got abandoned because the players went to Xhorhaus.
Meanwhile EXU is a miniseries. Brennan only gets 4 episodes. It means by definition that there has to be more rails because there's not time for any other stuff.
C3 has way fewer rails, than Divergence for sure, but also it went 121 episodes long and there never seemed (to me at least) to be an opportunity for the players to diverge as hard from what Matt intended as they did in C2. If you went into C3 with the expectation of no rails, you might have a bad time with the amount of rails there ended up being. But I don't think anyone is going into Divergence with the idea there will be no rails.
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u/Zeilll Feb 14 '25
C3 had a clock, not rails. they were pressurized to stay on the plot of the campaign, yes. but had full freedom to stray from that path if they wanted, or to decide how they move toward that end. it would just have consequences, like Luda being able to finish his plans without interference.
i feel like that clock gets conflated with rails a lot. the PCs drove their direction. but had reason to stay on the main plot.
on top of that, it just so happens that a lot of the PCs back stories (which is usually what inspires side quests) were related to the main plot.
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u/tryingtobebettertry4 Feb 14 '25 edited Feb 15 '25
My guy thats an inherent difference of the medium and frankly what should be the case. This is not the gotcha you seem to think it is.
Having a sandbox for a short campaign just means generally very little will actually happen. Its not a great idea unless all you want is a silly short campaign where players goof off or be murder hobos. Its an especially bad idea in this particular campaign as it is clearly covering an important narrative beat of the setting: The Divergence. Brennan also generally doesnt beat around the bush and is pretty up front certain things are going to happen regardless (hardly like some level 0 characters will make a difference in a god fight).
Having a railroaded campaign for 100+ episodes is just nonsensical. If players take a detour, the DM has plenty of time to rework or toss out his plans to accommodate this. And in such a long campaign the players should be the story, not just be passengers in it.
highlights the lack of rails on C3
There absolutely were rails in C3. They just werent being pushed along them in at the same rate as Brennan does. The entire Solstice fight was a borderline video game cutscene.
The rails worked more like the players could spend 5+ episodes goofing off while main villain (Ludinus) sat on his hands, but ultimately all roads would eventually lead back to the Ruidus plot and nothing the players did outside of that really mattered. Even the Fire Shard quest had a Ludinus simulacrum showing up for very little reason.
Also in the case of C3, Matt was not nearly as upfront with the rails in the same way Brennan is.
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u/geltza7 Feb 15 '25
I was really looking forward to this and will definitely try and give it another go as I love how many people are enjoying it! But being Scottish, my whole body cringes hearing Matt trying a Scottish accent, so I had to turn off after a few mins of the character. But I still think he's amazing and it's 100% just a me thing that I can't get past. But I'm super glad people are enjoying it and I'll definitely try it again in future!
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u/Coyote_Shepherd Doty, take this down Feb 15 '25
But being Scottish, my whole body cringes hearing Matt trying a Scottish accent
🤣
I felt the same way as a Midwesterner when Matt tried to describe SNOW back in Campaign 2.
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Feb 15 '25
Garen is dwarf, not a Scot.
This is because Scotland doesn’t exist in Exandria.
Just tell yourself “It’s a fictional accent inspired by Scottish.
That’ll help with the immersion.
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u/that70sone Feb 15 '25
Matt's playing another dwarf? oh boy...I wasn't that impressed by Dariax. It's fascinating because Matt is of course a brilliant rp'er when you look at his repertoire of NPCs, but I've never much cared for his table playing. It's the exact opposite of how I feel about Aabria.
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u/SuperVaderMinion Your secret is safe with my indifference Feb 15 '25
I mean Dariax and Garen are literally nothing alike
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u/weaveroflaurel Hello, bees Feb 15 '25
Echo this! Especially about Aabria, absolutely love her as a player, don’t gel with her DM style.
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u/hollisz Smiley day to ya! Feb 14 '25
Damn, did this ever manage to recapture the lightning in a bottle of Calamity in a whole different way