Critical Role - D&D Brothers for life *SPOILERS EP 114* 

kenny B. I said the same thing to my wife last night.

kenny B. We'll said.

Well said. Well said! The best pithy saying to sum up the end of Critical Role, next to the pithy saying that Matt uses to start Critical Role.

That's a great analogy.

Nahuel sam didnt play against vecna he was playing against raven queen, Vecna was just a figure on the board as far as Scanlan was concerned. Which is really fucking befitting lvl 19-20 character.

Oh god that isn't even fair. Now I'm crying again.

Ow

This was so long ago but it still stings

So true, sadly.

Oh, so we're just being rude now.... *cries*

The True climax of Season One. Scanlan accepts that he has to lose his best friend to save the world. On the Flip side, imagine what Season Two would be like if Vecna won and their new characters had to basically "rematch" vecna

@@danieldosso2455 Knowing Mercer as the "dice fall where they may" DM he is, I imagine Campaign 1 would have continued on until Vox Machina defeated Vecna, though the next fight would likely have been even tougher somehow. Though C2 being set with the backdrop that an evil necromancer god is eventually going to come would be interesting, but I like how C2 is playing out thus far. I'm curious to see how Fjord plays out, being the character with the closest tie to a probable late game boss. If he severs his connection to Uk'otoa, or if he begins to neglect it, will he just multiclass into Fighter or would Fjord start leaning into his magical gifts in a different way? It'd be interesting to see if Fjord chooses to forsake his connection to Uk'otoa, he starts classing into a Sorcerer with the Sea Sorcery Origin, sort of taking his connection to Uk'otoa and the powers therein and making them his own.

And then watching Sam is what made Liam emotional

Daniel Dosso and then it was reverse with Caleb trying to save Nott, oh no the heart break 😭😭

Sorry i do Not habe the content Van someone explain what Happend? Did someone die?

Oh my god, that new campaign detail completely went over my head

Avatar Roku: "Some bonds are strong enough to last life times."

...oh my god..."nine"

I hadn't caught that, Silver. I don't know if that's coincidence or deliberate, but if the former, that is one HELL of a coincidence!

Terrible J I don't think this is a coincidence either. Because Nott wears, of all things, a porcelain mask to hide her goblin features. Just like the Raven Queen

THANK YOU!

"You must know true love in your life." "Ohh, Yeah, guys gals anyone in between.. so much love in.. my life. uh actually. *sigh* I have noone, and and the thing is I really, I want it I just can't seem to get it right." "Perhaps you need to stop looking for love, and let love find you." "Huh, never thought about that." Because all that love he couldn't find was allways right there next to him, just barely hidden away . He just had to give it a little time and sincerity.

I am pretty sure Matt knows this or is at least suspecting it, because his reaction at 1:10 is just one of true disbelief (and not in a "Oh no, my big bad guy is going to get rekt"-way, that looks different)

Couldn't he use long rest, regain the spell slot, and then use wish?

@@MrEndogamesunfortunately no, he knows that as soon as Vecna dies, the Raven Queen would come claim Vax. That was their deal.

Taryan Darrington Lol

Vox Machina walked into a fight, trying to stop one God. Scanlan Shorthalt walked in, determined to stop TWO Gods.

from humble beginnings

@@Omega1867 Easily the best quote for the endgame of Campaign 1.

The way he phrased it, he asked liam what is the worst class and he said probably a bard and he asked for the weakest race and he said a gnome.

I never thought of it like that! So true

Yeah. It's like they both decided to never let this happen again and wrote their characters as duo protecting eachother with their lives. This is... friendship goals and so fucking cute.

WHY WOULD YOU SAY THIS?! WHY?!!! IT ONLY HURTS MORE!!!!!!

Sam has done this for each subsequent campaign. When he couldn't save Molly, he became Ashton's protector.

@@ShadowyFox_86 Oh man I didn't even notice that! So interesting

Matt tried to cover that 'Oh no....' look with a look of shock but you can see it coming through.

Matt talked about it recently but that look of shock on his face was because he didn't realize that Scanlan hadn't used his 9th level spell, but he knew that Sam had asked about what he could realistically expect to do with it, so in that moment the truth of what Sam was planning to do and what he had given up hit him all at once.

Jason Shortt what does that actually mean?

Ben Stone It means he cant Wish (9th lvl spell) Vax'es deal away. Because he used it vs Vecnas teleport.

Ben Stone I think the idea was that if Scanlan used his wish at the right time before Vax was taken the deal could be broken but after he was taken it was impossible to undo it.

He tried everything. It hurts every time

And she knew what he wanted to do. That's why they weren't getting one more night. She may not be kind, but she can understand a magic user doing what they thought was best. I always have thought that the reason Dalen's Closet goes the way it does is because she's allowing it, as a sign of respect for someone who tried to bend the rules when he learned he couldn't break them.

To be fair, I think it’s pretty clear that Sam really really cares about the game, from how much work he puts into the sponsor segments, all the songs he’s sang as Scanlan, the synergy he has with all the other members and the award-worthy speeches Scanlan has had with his daughter I think it’s clear that when this man sits on that table, he makes sure to bring in his A game. Having said that, yes, it is truly impactful to see Sam, the one who is always smiling, making jokes and trying to make everyone laugh start crying at the table.

I could be remembering wrong, but I think in a talks machina Sam said that this was where it became more than a game to him.

arguably he probably cares the most

I think I never see him cry before in Vox Machina campaign

Kieran Desmond it's because Matt and Sam had discussed his plan, most likely Sam checking if it would work, Liam figured it out after he said sorry, quoting "he was going to use wish to save me, smart boy"

Kieran Desmond What does this mean? What happened?

Scanlan had the ability to use Wish, an infamously versatile 9th-level spell, to do any number of effects. Safe usage of Wish replicates any spell in the game, unsafe usage can do anything at all. Scanlan was thinking he would use his singular 9th-level spell slot to cast Wish, and in so doing prevent Vax from needing to die (as he would without interference, once Vecna was dealt with). And this clip is the one where he needs to relinquish that (again, singular) 9th-level spell slot to make sure their quarry doesn't escape. And therefore relinquishes that one chance to save his friend from an untimely demise.

I didn't see it until I watched it a second time Matt had a look where he realized multiple things at one time what would happen aka the players won and what it cost.

@@Landis963 It gets worse. In 5th Edition, casting Wish to do anything except replicate a lower level spell has several nasty drawbacks. It reduces a character's Strength to 3 for several days (making them useless in battle) and there is a solid chance they can never cast it again. Scanlan had to wait until after Vecna was defeated to cast it or take himself out of the final fight.

Sadder still, if Sam had played DnD before this campaign he might have known that if he had picked up the bard spell Glibness (8th level - make any charisma roll on a d20 a 15), his counter spells would've automatically worked at any level (15 on a d20 + 4 from CHA), and he could've saved the 9th level slot for Wish anyway.

Mateo Barrett he didn't have time to cast it, and even of he did before the battle he would have never been able to maintain it. Too much going on and too many meteors

JustCallMeTommy Glibness lasts for 8 hours and is non-concentration ;)

That’s the beauty of him not knowing. He made a mistake and it cost him his friend’s life... and made for a better story.

@@mateobarrett6829 Glibness only lasts 1 hour

This is a nice sentiment but Travis isn't asking about Sam, Grog was attempting to cut off Vecna's Hand and was confirming if the hand stayed on. He didn't say "Sam" in that moment he asked "Hand stay on him?" to Matt. Taliesin was more likely referring to Marisha and Laura, who are next to Liam as he's having a cross-table emotional exchange with Sam and they're asking what they're talking about.

And the response Liam gives shows Liam is thinking of defeating Vecna, not saving Vax. Sam looks a little more sad when Liam says this because it's not the answer he was looking for

Seeing Sam be completely torn from making this decision and how defeated he sounds when he tells Matt "9" shows how much he truly wanted to save Vax for Liam

In that one moment, as much as Sam wants to save the world...he's shown many times in the campaign that he just wants to save Liam. In this one moment, you can see he wants his best friend to be selfish, even if his best friend doesn't know what Sam is asking.

The fact that Sam walked in to that insane of a fight with the self-imposed limitation of having to not use his 9th lvl spell-slot so he could save his friend is amazing. Sam was almost willing to risk losing the fight, and the fate of the world if it meant saving Vax

How dare you make me start sobbing all over again.

I'm a noob and didn't watch c1. Wouldn't 9th slot recuperate after a long rest? So just wish him back. Ma I missing something?

@@TheHighborn Vax was being taken by the goddess of death the day they defeated vecna I assumed Sam asked Matt how wish would react to a god too

@@TheHighborn the raven queen took Vax away the same day they defeated Vecna, Sam/Scanlan even asked "we can't have him even for one night?" Trying to see if he could get back that 9th level slot

I mean, they were best friends before the group ever got together, and they frequently refer to one another as 'husbands' - I can't imagine how much this must have hurt for Sam, failing to save Liam's character in the end, when none of this would ever have happened if it weren't for Liam in the first place.

There was a clip at the end where Vax should how much he appreciated the move.

maybe it is just me having played too much and so many characters... but i wonder why sam was crying... to take liams words "just a game people !" i too am very affectionnate of my characters and how he evolved and all... but seriously, those characters aren't real and they are expected to die or win. its not as if he had truly sacrificed liam, its not as if he had lost him for real. i did not cry, i truly loved that moment. but crying ?!! nope !

That level of emotional investment comes from a couple of places I think. Primarily, it comes from playing these same characters for roughly five years, with about 2.5 of them consisting of 3-5 hour games every week. When you spend about 400 hours of game time in a character's head, surrounded by a group of equally invested people, that bond grows in a way that can only be imagined (and that hour count isn't even including the prestream duration). Additionally, one has to consider that these people are professional actors that are trained with the sole purpose of pouring a little bit of themselves into every character they play, and of breathing life and reality into the fictional world. When playing characters this long, there's bound to be a LOT of life and a LOT of themselves within them. In many cases it forms a kind of intrinsic bond between the real and the fictional. I was heavily involved in theatre throughout high school and part of college, and I can tell you that even those relatively minor experiences left me with ticks and habits I picked up from the characters I played that have stayed with me to this day. A certain inflection when I ask some questions from one, some hand gestures from another - things that got picked up from just a few months of getting in someone else's head. I can only imagine how much more much have rubbed off on these players, who have been in these characters' heads for far, far longer than I could ever imagine. To them, even if it is just a game, it feels real. And that, I think, is what makes it so beautiful for the audience, and why it's so believable. We aren't watching them act anymore. We're just watching them be. That, I think, is the greatest art anyone could ever ask to witness.

The only reason they cryed so much is that they created their first character. remember this is their first character. every players go thru that one. i understand that much. but look at liam, you get your answer, he was not crying for his characters death, he thought it was ok. because it was fine for him moving on that way. but the others felt like it was not just vax dieing, they acted as if liam was gonna die too. as in the actor in real life is dieing. that's not something that should happen. that is not something you should let happen. this is just a game, not real life ! the fantasy helps bolster your mind, it shouldn't be softening it. I understand the feeling of loving a charcater, i created a few that i just dont want to see die, and i keep playing them and remaking them in different games. now think about it, if i was gonna cry every single games because of something hapenning, those games would of really brought me to the 7th floor of the hospital and fast. getting into character is one thing, becoming the character is another. the later is very very dangerous in itself. as for your last part... sorry but all DMs in the last 30+ years have seen that happen with many games. this is why i love DMing, because i love seeing characters develops and become. dont need to be an actor to have that art. i been seeing it and loving it even before matt was born ! the only reason they acted so much... is because its their first character. take matt for exemple... he didn't cry because its their characters... he cryed because it was the end of the campaign. something he never was able to do before. again, first time i understand. this is why i give them benefit of the doubt. but honestly... liams right, tis just a game. not real life ! don't mix them up, because that is messed up in real life.

You only watched it twice?

watching it for the 7th time, still crying.

I’m the kind of guy who gets emotional backed up... sometimes I need to just have a good cry... anytime I need a good sobbing catharsis... yep... I’ve got this book marked and it gets me every damn time. Thnx for the clip and thnx #critrole for the memories.

At first time I just yelled and cheered for the nice placed 9th level spell. After that, every time I watch this I just... cry.

Yeah, I hadn't watched it sonce i saw the episode cause it's sad, but watching it like that hurts so much more cause the first time I Los track in the battle and didn't see all that pain, the way to the decision and the aftermath, I was probably watching Taliesin and this has now broken my shoul

NEIN

I just now realized that! 0_0

I was today years old when I realized that. DAMMIT.

That and Liam's "I love you" break me everytime I watch this

@@stormrider7235That “I love you” is what broke Sam too.

Dave Magario what did he sacrifice?

his best friend's life to save the world. Scanlan was saving his 9th level spell slot to cockblock the Raven Queen from taking vax's soul, no matter what that would have entailed.

Ben Stone Matt knew ahead of time that Sam was going to use Scanlan's 9th level spell go wish away Vax's contract. So he knew immediately what he was giving up.

That was probably the hardest thing. Sam is usually the most detached from the game. Not that he doesn't get into it, but there's usually a bit of separation. So to see him so distraught over this, it was really heartbreaking.

Yeah, absolutely. While most everyone in the group has cried on stream, some more than others, Sam and Travis are usually more detached and they keep their humour. I think they both get caught up in how GOOD the story is; you can see Travis grinning at almost all of the worst reveals (Ripley's betrayal and Percy's subsequent death, the Briarwoods revelation, the rise and ascension of Vecna), and it's not because he's not fighting for Vox Machina; it's just that he can tell, even from his viewpoint, that this horrible moment makes for a damn good story. Sam's usually right there with him. This is the first moment that Sam hasn't been able to take that step back as usual, and as heartbreaking as it is to watch, it's also beautiful.

MsCunningLinguistic I think he also teared up when Pike was talking at an absent Scanlan late at night when he had left the party.

Evija3000 He did, but that was more him getting teary eyed. SPOILERS that also happens the last episode. But he was never full on crying and sobbing like he was here.

Lieke Bes True. I didn't hear the sobbing though. Btw, do you know when the last episode will be available on the geek and sundry site? I've just caught up so I don't know how that timing works :D

This moment needs to have pure energy and emotion from scanlan. He hid something beautiful from the table. The animation can bring this to us all!

Woefully appropriate.

Legend of vox machina

@@gaymerwolf4596 I think that’s what I meant. If I remember correctly, I posted this shortly after season 1 came out.

Two? Vecna and.....?

@@RickBomhof the raven queen, god this comment is so old.

I'd never thought about it that way, fucking tears 😭

Well put...

How dare you make me feel like this

Oh come on. I managed to hold my tears back until now and yet, this one Comment breaks me.

bairdrew it can't rain all the time...

Didn't travis say that exact line?

@@runedoom I think when he voiced Col. Mustang in FMA he did

@@WhatMikeisEvolving1 yes, that is the joke.

Chris Meade you and me both. Fellow 29 year old man

me too 29 this past week damn...

It hurt when Liam said that. It really hurt.

Yep! I'm a 36yo Aussie tradie and I don't cry...except for brotherly affection like this!

I am STILL waiting for a video of this moment somewhere. I need my cries on, goddammit. They are such husbands ;__;

I agree wholeheartedly this new medium of entertainment is the future, we were lucky we can say we were there to see it start.

Sam has a much different way of showing his emotions.

when you go back through the series and watch it all again, you really see all the subtle moments that show how invested he is

I love this too, I actually rewatched Percy's resurrection recently and Sam is actually crying or at least tearing up during Vex's plea. Although what surprised me also is that before that, Travis is low-key tearing up which was crazy to me since Grog is normally the rock of the group with the exception of when Scanlan died.

Sam started off that way, but he really started to care alot more around the briarwood arc- then much more when his character got attachments in the world

Scanlan, sobbing and shouting it at the same time... would it add or take from the scene?

@@texteel it would've added another layer of pain personally, the fact that even though hes sacrificing the life of his best friend, he knows he's doing it to save the world and in saying that he would be telling Vax "No worries bud. I'll take care of everything."

@@TenzinBeifongIII it'd be Scanlan trying to stick to his old tricks, hide the pain behind a smile and a joke, and failing because it's just too much

Hey, they've been using that word as a pun the entire time, so your point is entirely valid.

I'd say it works on another level to as a sort of meta nod to the first campaign. Nein means no. It's a term of negation. It is also deemed "mighty," powerful. It is a tremendous negation of... well, whatever you want it to be really. Sam's level 9 counterspell is a mighty "nein" to Vecna attempting to escape. Sam's desire to use wish to rewrite Vax's fate is a mighty nein to the Raven Queen. They all understand that the Raven Queen made a deal with Vax and he with her so that he could live long enough to stop Vecna, but that doesn't matter. It doesn't matter how "fair" the deal would be in the eyes of a Goddess, what matters is that Sam and Scanlan said no... or sadly, that he had the intention to say no, but never got the chance. Sam was close to his own powerful negation of Vax's fate through his use of Wish. It was, in a very meta way, a "mighty nein." The pun was just about them rolling 9s, but I'd say that "nein" meaning "no" actually ends up meaning a lot more than the pun they first got the group name from.

@@Valiant_Requiem wow thanks for makeing me cry about my own language and CR...

Same here

they're officially 9 memebers now, now that a certain someone joined

Michael Tanner a wish that when it happened he asked "what's the worst character?". Yeah... some character..

From the future: he’s amazing in campaign two( if HE COULD JUST ROLL BETTER ON PICKING LOCKS AND DETECTING TRAPS

Seriously that ended up being one HELL of a birthday wish....

he has once before during vex's confession/offering at percy's resurrection

I think he had a little bit of tear during the Percy Resurrection when Vex was doing her part.

Yeah, when u see the comedian cry, u know it's deep!

And he got teary eyed when Pike was rambling to an absent Scanlan late at night after he had left the party I think.

Sam and Liam are married

"He's just a happy little man playing happy little songs"

The mightiest 9.

In that single moment, the fight was both won and lost.

And now the number 9 has a happier meaning in campaign 2

Well, Scanlan could always come back. Vax... *sobs quietly*

+MsCunningLinguistic NO! DONT SAY IT! *sobs even more*

G

Right?! I always watched a week late via RU-vid (avoiding spoilers like the plague!) and the whole moment was so intense I missed it too. Then I was like aw why is Sam crying? *rewind* OMG heart shattered...

heh...explains why he left so quickly

Super late but, what happened with Joe? I have not seen C1

@@tristan7494 is say just watch the episode or the campaign I don't want to spoil anything

​@@tristan7494 Spoiler... He took the hand of Vecna.

@@tristan7494 he betrayed them

Yup.

Just thinking the same thing...

I still hate what he did. It was funny for like 1 second until you go.. oh let's do 4 actions in one second. Attack Hand Attach Hand Use Lay on Hands Use Magic item Yep ... Pretty sure grog and sword of Kas would have smoked him. I was surprised how into Kas Matt got that he didn't use Kas's sentient intelligence to see that coming.

I think you can't count actions if they were not in combat. Everybody was surprised and could not act. Of course the DM may say they could roll Initiative or whatever, but it was a story decision and I liked it.

In a game stand point if he was a regular pc It’s a huge dick move But dammit joe did it so well and he played them like a paladin of Tiamat would So I can’t really blame him for them not knowing he already served an evil god Still loved the moment though and it made me bust out laughing

that doesn't even compare to what grog had in mind for this week's episode !

The Raven Queen: "Did you do it?" Scanlan: "Yes..." The RQ: "What did it cost you?" Scanlan: "My best friend..."

I always imagine that the words for the wish are playing in his head. As the word "counterspell" comes out of his mouth, his eyes grow wide from shock. As if his words betrayed his heart. The shocked expression fades to sad acceptance as the spell activates.

HOw can I not love this comment:) Love you x

Mollymauk fan are we? ^^

The feels

the whole thing had me laughing, with tears, because it was bittersweet, especially with Liam’s reaction and acceptance to it.

@Bystander232 I think, while it’s a beautiful interpretation, it’s pretty romanticized. Taliesin, while a fabulous friend, isn’t quite that deft, socially. He’s a lovely person and has a billion other strengths, but that kind of social awareness doesn’t really track with his personality.

​@perspicuousenigma311 he's trying to give Sam a moment. This gutted him so he needed a moment to regain his composure which Taliesin helped him get

If you ever do watch it you are in for a treat

Spacedflipper I do want to watch it now, but I'm not sure I can endure the whole 400+ hours of it from the beginning. I was thinking about maybe start watching it from the middle, but I'm not sure.

André Bogaz e Souza you can find guides that tell you what to watch if you don't have time, such as just watching one arc. They also have converted the old episodes to podcast format. My advice is tune in as they start their new campaign, and watch old episodes at your own pace

wittymoniker thanks! That's actually great advice! I'll watch only this last arc or so then, and listen from episode 1 in podcast format with no haste.

André Bogaz e Souza it may seem like a lot But truly From beginning to end it’s worth it 100% of the time

samtrue3 he lost the battle to him saving vax was the battle the war was saving the world.

Spot on. He sacrificed the battle to win the war. Sam let slip glimpses of his depth before, but this... there are no words for this! And to think he'd never played D&D before this crew!? It's mind boggling...

Radu Brezeanu WORD!

I would argue the other way around. He lost the battle (saving Vax) to win the war (Killing Vecna)

I have since been appraised how skilled Joe is at dnd.

Szorrin well i play rpgs for years and never experienced smth like that. And i know a lot who havent either. While others play once and hit it. Your generalization makes absolut no sense

No, what he is saying is that because Joe plays DnD he understands how it would "get so intense".

Joe also just helped release a line of DnD Based clothing (instagram.com/p/BjnlgY-huCN/). I'd imagine he's been at tables that have this kind of intensity and dedication to the game.

Yeah Joe knows and understands just how intense it can get. He just hadn't caught on yet WHAT had happened exactly. WHAT Scanlan had sacrificed and everything behind it.