The WORST Side of Critical Role 

Ashton was absolutely in character and completely telegraphed what he was going to do…he has nothing to lose as a character and everything to try to gain, especially after Fearne said she didn’t want it. The most surprising thing was Matt saying he didn’t see this coming, Tal said several times that he would.

The best part of the episode for me was Ashton crying over the doll. I don’t think Marisha and the rest of the cast knew it was gonna go there and it immediately broke them.

When I saw the Twitch Chat pop up on the screen, I noticed someone said that "Tal is a selfish player and has Main Character Syndrome." I facepalmed hard at that. Tal, literally, played background and support for the entirety of The Mighty Nein. He, literally, spent the entire campaign, both in and out of character, repeating: "We don't have to do my backstory. I'm not important. You guys are. If parts of my backstory come up, great. If not, oh well." That doesn't sound like someone with "Main Character Syndrome" to me. If Tal really was selfish, he wouldn't have cast that final "Divine Intervention" of the campaign. He didn't do it for himself. He did it for his friends. That doesn't sound like a selfish person to me. I'm not going to go into details about that moment here. You can ask if you want to know. I will, the, post it. Be forewarned: It's A Massive Spoiler For Campaign 2.

I loved last nights episode. They talked about Ashton taking both shardes on 4 sided Dive. Why were people surprised. Ashley and Tal discussed it.

Ashton reminds me of some of the guys I served with in the Army. They would be suffering from some mental health issues and they would act out by doing dangerous and stupid stuff. Sort of like they had a death wish. Let's look at what Ashton has done in the past few games. Jumped into a pool of lava. And there are other suicidal actions by Ashton. I can only guess Ashton is so angry at himself he feels like he wants to die but, he can't just kill himself so he goes out of his way to try to get killed.

I was distressed seeing so many people rag on Taliesin. And it’s fine that the players were mad at Ashton but hooo man how they were all 100% upset at Ashton and not at Fern. It gave the vibe of a bad break up where suddenly everyone is kinda villianizing one person when both are sort of at fault.

It was a little strange how none of the party seemed to realize that Fearne never wanted the shard and Ashton was the only one who listened to her. Most of the fans, including the ones in Twitch chat, are overwhelming positive at the end of the day.

The only thing I didn't like overall was the extreme lack of issue the party had with Fearne and her part she played. It's all on Ashton, but Fearne has had no party backlash

Did anyone consider it's called "role-playing", and that these are actors? Perhaps this is an acknowledgement of every player that says, "It's what my character would do." And the revelation of the consequences that follow.

Here is a Matt Mercer quote: "" It’s all about taking risks. D&D and role playing games are a great way to teach yourself that failure isn’t the end. Often it can be a wonderful experience. Failure can lead to so much personal growth. Failure can lead to learning things in a way that in the long run are so much more useful than success would have been in that moment. I think that’s one of the major things that I’ve gotten out of role playing games, to understand that taking risks, calculated risks, can be a very wonderful learning experience. And failure, often is as rewarding if not more so. "" This was a huge character growth for the group and more character building from this action. Plus people are hating on Tal and his character Ashton, YET are forgetting that Fearne/Ashley was the one who didn't want to take the shard. She even said that she feared that it would turn her evil or whatever from those multipuple versions of visions she's seen of herself. Also I remember on a 4-Sided Dive that Travis and Tal wants to make a deal with Morri. Honestly, I think Chetney is going to make a deal to be young again which I hope happens cause that'll be funny.

There were consequences, fanbase - BH went to the Feywild to have a bonding session and check in on each other, when they should have started the journey to Ruidus. And bad things will happen because they are "wasting time". Let's be honest - maybe the angriest people were Ashton/Fearne shippers and couldn't handle Ashton taking drastic action rather than letting Fearne have the fire shard. This ignores the fact that Ashley said in character she didn't want it!

I love Tal's choice I'm not mad at him. Now I'm mad with his character. Things like this happen in stories, characters do something and mess up. It makes them more believable. If dices had succeeded most people would not care this. If it only affected him he would have just gambled and lost. Now we get to see how the other characters will react to this. All of them had a selfish moment.

Absolutely loved this episode, you could really tell that these people are also professional actors because the emotions ran DEEP. It was so good, I was a little sad because Liam is such a good roleplayer but honestly, he'll get his moment next game. Another great video!

I was just surprised at the amount of berating Ashton got the whole episode. I was expecting him to gain a new super power and the team to be relived he was still alive and understand he was trying to get stronger to aid their mission 🤷🏻‍♀️. Felt sad how selfish the others reacted focusing on how it made them feel and turning on Ashton rather than reach out to him who went to such self destruction to help them. Maybe they were angry because they love him and didn’t want him to die but that wasn’t communicated to Ashton. But I think that’s the point, each member is so fucked up that they can’t fully be there for each other and this will force them to face there personal problems so they can work as a team. Just felt sad Ashton didn’t get support he was just left alone. Really amazing role play Talisen is wonderful, but upsetting to watch. And that’s brilliant story telling ups and downs.

I didn't think Taliesin was being selfish, I assumed Ashton was being selfish. Taliesin is roleplaying a character after all.

I don't know, what bothers me about this is that Matt let Ashton go through all of this only for his body to reject the shard and him to lose 2 con and not even gain anything. Feel like at the very least it could have stirred Ashtons dormant titan power (Mechanically and not just narratively) feels like Matt got cold feet cause I don't see why they couldn't have ended last episode on Ashton coughing up Raushans shard instead of leaving to to the start of this episode. But hey maybe this way we get a Fearne focused arc focusing on getting over her fears and accepting the power so clearly meant for her (although I rather ship Fearne/Chetney over Fearne/Ashton). I did love all the character drama that came from this but I just wish we'd gotten to see something more come from this than just a narrative progress on Ashtons dorman powers and a bunch of character dramas.

I dont understand the hate that ashton was getting from the party and ferne gets off with an its ok its not your fault. She didnt want the shard even though everyone was pushing it on her. Ashton was offering her an out and got punished for it. And now hes a piece of crap. Maybe im missing something in the story, but he just feels like a scapegoat for ferne’s poor decision making and her inability to bring her reservations to the party completely. Regardless, nice episode overall.

I have no problem with the drama , just had a problem with them creating it out of thin air. Ashton legitimately did nothing wrong and Laudna said he betrayed them…. How did he betray anyone…. Fearne offered the shard to him. It’s just all so confusing

You have a very different definition of punishment than I do…. Vastly different.

I loved how Ashton played that out. I feel like he feels like a nobody and wanted to take the risk himself because if it fails again he’s a nobody and nothings lost. I thought it was beautifully done and was completely in character with his growth and love toward the group

That speech Chet gave Ashton when he told him he should leave was so good!

Ashton's rash decision changed the dynamic and direction of the story for campaign 3. Caleb made a similar rash decision in campaign 2 when he handed over the beacon to the Bright Queen, and changed the dynamic and direction of that story. People forget that Matt and the crew play the game for them, not for us, and we have the priviledge of being able to watch them play. So please, honor their choices, whether you agree with them or not. And don't forget to love each other ❤

I'm so confused by the reactions by people, like the entire theme of the campaign has literally been 'Faith', Ashton had just been given a whole lore dump by Matt of the past few sessions about his lineage and the whole importance of believing in yourself, so he goes ahead and believes in himself, he tries to do something no one had ever succeeded at before and did. Only it basically got ripped away by Matt and he was punished for it severely, I honestly don't know what Ashton was expected to do after Fearne decided to not take the orb herself. I think they're all forgetting they have a god-eater they need to deal with, pretty sure Ashton had the train of thought that 'if I can take the power of titans we might have a chance' so he did it when everyone else is meandering about doing very little to take the fight to the enemy.

People who say he had main character syndrome don’t understand the difference between seizing an opportunity for your character that’s being presented to you and constantly injecting yourself into the spotlight when it doesn’t make sense and overshadows everything else.

I think it would of been more satisfying if Matt had just committed to one fate, rather than damage control. If combining the stones is a death sentence, then let it be. If you make Ashton role 10 con saves and they succeed, let them have it. If you don't want your player to have a power, don't let them go down that path, then course correct. I feel like it just a worse out come then if Ashton just melted.

There is no problem with the Critical Role fandom. There’s a problem with people. Some of them are just gonna suck. Again, this isn’t exclusive to the Critical Role fans, but people in general.

That fact that some people can't tell the difference between ashton and Taliesin is disturbing

Taliesan had his Con stat reduced. Seems pretty punishing to me. The emotional investment the crit rollers have in their characters is straight up beautiful and makes the experience of the show so much more immersive. Everything you seem to hate about this show I personally love.

I always find these types of videos interesting, because I intentionally watch the episodes without chat, and only find out people had a problem the next day when people are reacting to it. Helps keep me informed on what the community is thinking and doing without letting it spoil my enjoyment of the game the cast is playing.

I haven't been a fan of campaign 3 for a while. I'll still watch to support, but the majority of the characters I don't enjoy. Personalities I wouldn't enjoy in real life, and choices that don't seem earned or make sense.

I genuinely don't understand the hate towards the actual cast. It is okay to not like events or characters but please don't target the people making the show for our consumption. I am sure we all have our opinions but please let's just get along for once.

I feel a little conflicted by Ashtons decision. The tree guy totally said that don't do it, and he still tried it. However, it was constantly implied that this fire shard is designed for Fearne, so Ashton trying to get the fire shard was unexpected development, and isn't that what creates interesting story telling? It's not very interesting story where "The plan was to go to the cave and Kill the dragon. So we went to the cave, found the dragon and killed it" There is a lot of talk about separating yourself from your RP character, and I think almost everyone were initially like "Dade, Taliesen, What?" but later on realized, yeah that's what Ashton would do.

Tal has always been like that. He plays the same character every time, and acts the same way every time. Outside of minor personal differences, he has never stopped playing "self-entitled punk" at any point across the campaigns.

Ngl I actually cried while watching the episode and I haven't cried while watching CR since the ending of C2. I think its an amazing turn point/development of the characters and I can't wait to see more. That being said I'm a little disappointed that we didn't get to see Ashton as a whole new genasi race/entity. I was super excited for it, but I guess it just wasn't meant to be. Also Ashton is slowly but surely becoming my new favorite character of C3. They're basically tied with Fearne atm.

The twitch chat was crazy. I was a little surprised at how the other characters all beat up on Ashton. I think I’m missing some of the reasoning for Laudna being so upset. Ashley’s acting tho. Wow. Terrific. Laura seemed bored some tho. I think it would have played completely differently if Liam had been at the table. I do think some of the characters aren’t very self aware since they’ve all endangered the party before. 😂

I was genuinely confused at how angry the rest of the party was that Ashton was going to absorb the shard. Saying that Ashton was selfish and that he had betrayed them really made no sense to me. Laudna is her own ball of fun with Delilah so I can understand in a small way why she would say he betrayed them, but as for the rest of them, painting him as selfish seems a bit odd. I wonder if they knew that Liam would be out for that episode the week before and involved a small aside to fill in the gap. Obviously a DM wouldn’t want to, if possible, have a HUGE moment with a player missing. Idk, that’s what it felt like to me.

It's no different in any other fandom. Whenever you put something out on the internet for people to watch you will always get the crazy fans who get way too attached and can't emotionally handle anything that doesn't go they way they want.

Just to play Devil’s Advocate just a bit, I think some of the anger stems from the main storyline taking backseat once again from this decision after they took that morning of the shard transfer to do some R&R and now we’re getting another one, adding to the existing problem of Campaign 3 story is aimless at times. That being said I loved the RP last night but I do get where some of the Critters are coming from but still no excuse to harass the cast

If there is a problem, the problem is that Ashton's situation demonstrates one of the limits and problems of D&D as a TTRPG system. The main problem with healing and dying rules in D&D 5e is that dropping to 0 HitPoints or taking damage that would put the character way under 0 has little to no consequence for the character. What doesn't help the situation is that HitPoint damage and death are practically the only consequences that are mechanically supported by the game system. Outside of narrative or DM-introduced consequence methods, meaning homebrewed specific to the D&D group, there really isn't any way in the system to determine consequences for character action. Additionally, the death of a character in D&D is more of a momentary inconvenience than actual serious consequences, at least after early levels. Rules as written, Ashton would have suffered no permanent consequences at all.

Maybe it's just me getting things mixed up, or that I dreamed this, but wasn't there some discussion about Ashton being half Titan and something about the Hishari incident being affected by the combination of the Titans Emporer RauShan and Empress KaMort ding the destruction of Avalir? I was fully assuming that it was intended that these two power shards were the key to harnessing and locking down the internal struggle within Ashton because of it was echoing that moment when the two were banished from Exandria. Am I way off base here? I figured it was all part of Ashton lore.

What a perfect take. Honestly, I think the folks bagging on this event, or series of events, don't understand the level of trust it takes for players to navigate complex in-party conflict. My group has been playing since March 2020 (I DM for my two adult sons and four of their close friends.) In our current Eberron campaign, about 15 months along, we've recently navigated a similar betrayal, that in our case, ended up with the PC leaving the party. Without a history of trust and care for each other, it could have really blown up the IRL group. Instead, everyone was so jazzed on how intense and realistic it was. I loved this whole Ashton f'd up mini-arc, and what everyone did with it.

This is no different than what happens in any other fandom, like you said. Take sports - those people that get too angry/upset/distraught over how their team performs, or whether or not they win. They are way too invested in "their team", and even tie their own sense of self and identity to it. The armchair quarterbacking, the toddler-like fits of rage - combine that with either copious amounts of alcohol or internet anonymity, and you have the foundation for what we see in the stands/parking lot/twitch chat. It is good that folks are so invested and passionate for this game/hobby. Of course it's not so good when people gotta people and take things to the extreme. Humans being, and all that. And God forbid you call it out...that just paints a target on yourself, even if you're totally in the right. Folks need to remember these are actors acting. They read wwwaaayyy too much into things, and often use stretches of imagination and parasocial behavior to justify their positions/beliefs. I wish people would just be better. I think you said it right, though - just turn off the twitch chat, and don't bother engaging with certain segments of the community.

Matt undoing what he did, I can understand as a DM myself. But at the same time the ISSUE is that he should have just kilde the charecter. I tell my players if they are about to do somthing that is just suicide. I'll say you "have a high enough intelegence or wisdom to know that doing this is going to result in death." Matt's refusal to put up the road sign one last time and then not killing him is 100% on him. As a result he should live with his mistakes as a DM you now have a OP charecter in the group, you let him do it that means he gets to keep the power you gave him. Undoing your mistake is stupid.

They were just acting in character. That was RP at its finest. As someone who has been abandoned and wants to protect their found family, I can relate. They made a choice that they felt would protect that same family. In the same vein, Laudna acted the way she did because she was essentially being "Gollum." Marisha was RP'ing the role like the shit. Remember, we are not on the table. They are. Imogen and Fearne were just acting their part, you would be upset too if your friend made bad choices. It's just RP. Jesus. These are the most real characters they have ever played. TBH. The most human and most flawed. And I love it.

Players role playing conflict amongst a party is such a tight rope walk, but when it is done well (like this was), it is absolutely enthralling. Marisha's performance alongside Matt's portrayal of the re-emerging Delilah was so juicy to watch. Ashley's performance was also really a wonderful side of Ferne we haven't seen yet. We got wonderful internal and external conflict with clear reactions and ramifications from Matt. But all that being said, it is still a performance. That's why I generally have chat hidden and watch the broadcast purely as presented. It's not chat's game. It's not some optimized playthrough of a video game. It's potent because it's flawed and relatable. I love having my expectations subverted not just by Matt but by everyone in the cast. It reminds me that this truly is a real DnD game and not even the game master with all the control in the world can influence the final result.

I think people don't fully understand that this campaign isn't the adventuring heroes like Vox Machina or the awkward underdogs of the mighty Nien. These characters are morally grey, they do things for selfish and yet selfless reasons. There are hints of both teams being a part of it, but these are completely different characters compared to the previous two campaigns. I've also noticed that a lot of people are rather harsh to this campaign in general and unfortunately, it's a mix of them either being nostalgic about how CR started or they came in during C2. Ultimately it's a case of people not understanding these are characters with large traumas coming together and sharing a space. We can't keep treating these characters like they aren't bruised, bent, and scared. It just does a disservice to the characters when they get upset with how the cast plays their own characters. Ones they know far better than us.

Ashton acted in-character. 🤷 I'm kind of loving how controversial it is. Although, I'd been hearing people compare it to Keyfish. And whenever that comes up, I remember that Keyleth was just trying to help Vex find something, and I don't think it was sufficiently clear that she didn't have room to dive safely, especially not that she couldn't have found a spot to dive safely in as a fish. Point being, Marisha got way too much shit for what was essentially a theater of the mind undercommunication. KIND OF LIKE THE SHARD WITH THE PUNK CHARACTER WHO IS KNOWN TO BE RECKLESS.

The people conflating Tal’s characters with his style of gameplay was really out of line. People got to invested in their emotions for a game they’re not playing.

Ashton has a crazy moment with Fearne... Laudna most effected. Lol.

Honestly, I thought that Matt's consequences for Ashton were pretty steep. It was kind of a miracle that Tal's saving throws were as good as they were. If not for that ring, Ashton would be dead - DEAD.

I just hope there is consequences for them wasting time in the feywild, cuz ya know.... The world is about to end and they wanna just dick around lol

I look at the chat the same way people will get mad about an episode of TV. Fans want to see something good, and when they see something that they think is "wrong' or 'not how it should be' They freak out. And sadly due to the internet they will yell and scream into the void knowing that someone will hear it and because the vocal minority is so loud, someone will hear it. Its rather sad.

I didn't find it surprising if you heard any of the conversation on Four Sided Dive. Nobody seemed keen on wanting to take it, even Fearne was afraid it'd be the turning point for the "evil" Fearne timeline. Ashton would of course figure, well someone needs to take it for best chances of winning the coming war. So he tried it to see what happened. Some fans need to let go what they think the CR cast and Matt should be doing in CR's game. It's Critical Roles' story, let them tell it and relax lol

If I, as a DM would lower one PCs Constituion by 2, it would seem a really harsh, mechanical penalty. If I'd decide something like this it would be a sign for "you really did something stupid, but I will not kill your character". Our fellow players doesn't even like the exhaustion mechanics, which are temporary setbacks - they would definitely not like a -2 CON penalty either. The CR "fans" who demands more harsh penalties are out of their minds - or doesn't really DM-ed real D&D session with their friends.

People getting upset are basing it on Tal and not Ashton. Ash has always been impulsive and has serious trust/faith in friends issues. It fits the character, not the player.

I had no idea what bowlgate was so I had to google it. I didn't realize that that was a problem.

I love CR but yeah, some of the fans take this shit SO personal. Like they're apart of the cast and story. It's a live action TV show. Sit back, watch, and enjoy the story and drama. It's not that serious people. lol

The episode felt weird but at the end of the day man did it hit hard. However it felt weird everyone (in-game) dogging on Ashton sense it just felt like he was trying to get stronger, like the rest, but failed. Was it stupid yes but to dog on him and call him a traitor felt weird. HOWEVER that doll moment felt epic

I love marisha shes a wonderful person but ill be damned I was so mad he acting is so good because she made me legit wanna dislike launda with the ash hate while also kinda hypocritically making moves with Briarwood as a whole though good episode

Yup, totally agreed, had a blast, and keeping chat off from here on out

Disclaimer: I'm a big Ashton fan, but I won't talk about them and their actions. I think that there's a strange phenomenon in big nerdy Fandom, such as GoT or Star Wars, where some people cannot separate the actor from the character, therefore they tend to confuse their actions in character with their actions as a real person. It happened to Anna Gunn (Skyler White in Breaking Bad) and Jack Gleeson (Joffrey Baratheon in GoT) and many many others. It's weird to think that children are absolutely capable to tell the difference between character and player and grown adults forget everything about it. I'm sure that the cast didn't really know the extent of what Taliesin had planned for Ashton and they were upset in the moment (i.e.: when Liam said: "please, don't Molly yourself again"), because a character death at that moment meant introducing another level 10 character who would be willing to follow BH in their mission, new role play from scratch to bond with said character, new branding, new art, new merch, etc. Taliesin is a reckless player, and I'm sure Matt had to patch things up (for example with the rejection of the shard), but it's what makes Critical Role entertaining. If I had to watch a show where everything was optimized and all the characters behaved logically trying to "win" the game, I'd find something less boring to do, lol.

"Make sure you turn the chat off" Oof. I have heard that so many times. I struggle with online chats period, so hearing things like that really make me glad I watch the stream here on RU-vid instead of Twitch. I don't even have to worry about chat being an option... The consequences of Ashton puking up the shard feels like what I called all last week: There would be a power-up, but with a massive caveat. I just don't think we have seen what the power-up is yet. Matt hinted that the primordial shard in Ashton could be (I think it is) awakening from what happened. The Constitution drop, especially for a Barbarian, is pretty bad. Like was said in episode (I think by Sam), That's HP and a whole bunch of other stuff along with it. There may be even more consequences we don't know of either. We don't know what happened to Fearne after the skeleton captain "took some of her warmth",. There is some part of that we have not seen. Matt has said many a time, he DMs for his friends at the table, and as long as they are happy with the game, then he's good with it. If the audience likes it, great. If not, Oh well. Sorry in advance for the following being so long. My best friend is not caught up and I need to share my thoughts and theories about the incident and the anger with SOMEONE. Last episode (the one with the... incident), I saw Ashton taking the shard not as selfish, but more as a protective measure. Everyone was insisting that the absorption happen, and that Fearne should do it. But Fearne admitted that she didn't want it. She told Ashton she thought they should have it. That part is... debatable, to say the least, but Ashton absorbed the shard so Fearne would not have to. This is why I feel like the group as a whole is partly responsible for what happened. They kept pressing that they had to get the shard absorbed before the moon, but didn't notice how evasive Fearne was about the topic, how uncomfortable it made her. How did none of them notice that? And as Ashton themself said, people would miss Fearne. They (incorrectly) assumed that no one would miss them. Bells Hells would, of course, but most likely Fearne would have been distraught. She admitted to Chetney that, as I understood from the conversation, that she was upset at least partly because she had helped Ashton do the thing that nearly destroyed them, and the rage at least partly fueled by feelings for the barbarian. If Ashton had not survived, Fearne would have probably lost it completely. As angry as she was in the episode, I cannot help feel like it would have been MUCH worse if Ashton had died. This is pure speculation, but I feel like Fearne would blame herself, go on a destructive path. She might use that audience with Asmodeus, try and get Ashton back in exchange for her soul or for defeating Predathos. Maybe she takes Ashton's Hammer and Multi-classes again into Barbarian, her rage and self-loathing leading her to lash out and as a way of honoring Ashton (Her trying to destroy the hammer may have sparked that idea). Thank the dice gods and Aabria that we don't have to know what would have happened in that dark timeline. Edit: Spelling and Grammar ~ Additions

I think the punishment was a little light, but being at the level they are it's actually a good punishment as it nerfs Ashton pretty heavily from here on. However, I forsee a bit of reward as well here at some point. Although right now the risk wasn't worth it maybe in the future it will be somewhat rewarding. I keep the chat off usually because I'm watching on a bigger screen and chat can be a bit distracting. I usually only pull it up to check how close it is to break or the end as it does go a bit late. The whole Ashton business did go a little longer than expected, but I can see why he tried it. I was kind of with the party in thinking Ferne would get it, but then Ashton pulls a fast one and takes it on. I loved that Ash was taking HEAVY damage and generally did go down quite a bit. I know the Con nerf will be long lasting which makes sense. This more recent episode was absolutely great in the RP though giving Ash more of a psychological payment and ultimately having the group question their motives. AlsoTalisen playing into where the emotional impact really hit especially concerning Laudna and Ferne his two more connected allies within the group. I loved the interaction of Ash and Ferne because it highlited where everyone was at. Also the Chetney speech was awesome. I know Talisen was thinking ahead and got a little ahead of the game, but to make a play at going for massive strength and possible addidtional resistence I get why he went the way he did. Also Ashton would have taken that bullet 1000 times over making or forcing Ferne to. Ashton has major damage and a lot of cleaning up to do, but I feel he'll get some additional redemption ontop of whatever is going on in the fey realm moving forward. I see a fight involving the Unseely Courts and them being emboldened now that Ferne is there. In some way I think this will be a force play to make her decide to go down the dark path or stay on target leaning heavy into the darkness. There will be a lot that needs to be handled soon and will come out in the wash.

I thought Tal was going to die.(SPOILER) (In a stupider way then Molly) The look in Matt Face is like "plz plz plz dont do this" VIP Fearne and FCG for heals tho. I liked the role play and the actor reactions i watched it like 2 times. Great summary I love your videos. Plz dont stop making great content

Critical role streams here at RU-vid too, completely chat free.

There’s been lots of things in C3 that have gone in a direction that are not what I would have wanted or expected, but I also understand that this is someone else’s game and ultimately what matters is that THEY are having fun. I have my opinions, but I don’t want my opinions to ruin the experience for myself or anyone else. I think it was interesting for things to go this way, and I look forward to seeing where it leads

Some decisions made no sense to me. Fearne was there when it was said that the shard would be catastrophic for Ashton.. he told her what he was doing.. and she acted like she was not involved? Even like she was betrayed? And why is Percy being played as a bumbling fool. He’s an extremely paranoid, protective, master engineer.. and as everyone sneaks and crashes his home, hes like ‘do-di-do, my silly kids..’

Why they don't forge the shard into a form they can use, take Grog's titan stone knuckles.

Let's not forget this is a show, as in merchandise and marketing. If Ashton had died, all the merch and designs would have to change as he creates a new character. Probably something they had to deal with when Molly died.

Lmao i truly believe the only reason matt didnt straight up obliterate ashton and fearne in the most glorious of explosions was due to the whole rest of the party entering the protective bubble Allura had put up. Once they entered he knew he couldnt do the incr3dible explosion from all that energy escaping ashtons body cause everyone wouldve died. And that wouldve been a tpk, and nothing is worse then a tpk caused by one players actions.

You mention multiple times Ashton making a dumb decision but that’s not a decision he made alone, tal knew there could have been a cool dynamic between Ashton and fern as holders of the shards and he actively chose to make it an intimate plot point between him and fern, and let it be said I for one was exited about the double dragon teamup of the two characters.however when Ashley decided that her character was going to get cold feet on the eve of there expedition to the moon with non of the other characters a willing host for the shard what was he as a player supposed to do?say yes we just spent many episodes of risking life and limb to obtain this power to defeat evil but nobody wants it and I can’t have it so just toss the plot line?no, it made sense from a story prospective and from his characters motivation to do exactly what he did.the outrage from the characters I felt was necessary at first but was taken too far.in watching it began to feel less like fantasy roleplaying and more like a group therapy session with players using both Ashton and tal as the beating cushion.with mat and Travis playing there parts but trying to do damage control.i feel the fans outrage was also unfounded as tal had literally just spent years playing the most thoughtful, heartfelt, selfless cleric ever, is he as a person not entitled roleplay all aspects of the human condition? On the whole this episode felt forcefed and tals reaction and Matt simply retconing the shard from ashton feels like it’s less about story and more about keeping a biased audience happy.

On point 👏 And a reminder why I don't look into the twitch chat anymore.

I loved it. Ashton wanted to help thre friends even at the cost of there own lives... Yeah not a great idea however it worked out so could be one of the beat decisions. Tally showed everyone what the plan was through the episode. He asked Ash/Fearn and and she didn't want it he then took it upon himself. Ashtons time to be a hero. Then matt played it perfectly and really let tally get away with it but set a high challenge that tally had little chance of foing however it did. Then dealt with the consequences in a clever and unique way... Some fookin awsome gameplay by expert players and playing at a higher rp level than most of us mortals can imagine... Loved loved loved

I think Ashley was playing into Fearne's vision of the crown from EXU. The fear of becoming something evil scares her to the point of refusing any power given to her. The episode also came across like any family drama does. Fearne being so angry at Ashton that she literally wanted to kill him, Laudna felt betrayed and Chetney acted like a father ostracizing a child from the family. Try comparing the episode to a family dealing with an addict member. You may be surprised at the similarities. But the role play , mwah chef's kiss. And yes I watch with chat turned off. I find it more enjoyable that way.

I only feel that if Ashton did the dumb thing that he and his player were warned against doing, then that should lead to failure. No help, no outs. It was a really dumb choice and shouldn't have been rewarded. I don't think every consequence needs to lead to PC's dying but the risk for this situation was obviously death and that's what I feel should have happened. I am all for conflict in a group, but there is such a thing as unnecessary conflict. This felt like that especially when they were on the cusp of another story beat going to the moon. This Feywild detour just feels out of place when the party is quite literally on time limit before bad things happen.

Yeah Reddit went insane, people commenting Matt being ”that DM” to Tal breaking the team. Made my move and left the sub-reddit thread for good. As my teafling said to our paladin: you guys are all honour and no humour

You say that some of the audience members are "out of touch" and "dumb asses" to question if the cast members are actually angry with one another above board. This is a highly unfair statement considering the fact the cast (above board) were genuinely distraught. I felt so bad for Tal for the way he was being treated. It reminded me of the way the energy felt when everyone was pissed at Orion.

Problem is not Tal as a person, but to me he resembles alot of qualities of players that have been huge problem at my tables. Now this is important, he only RESEMBLES them, maybe thats not actually what he is about(i dont know the guy and cr has good habbit to get rid of troublemakers). His newest character as "sad loner" amplifies those qualities and i think many people like me are reflecting our negative experiences with other players to Tal because of this. I truly believe he is fun and good guy and he is great roleplayer, but this season makes it really hard to root for him

Ok so did they try to put the shard into Fearne after Ashton vomited It?

Save or die isn't really a thing in 5E, so I don't know what they were expecting.

My grandfather new pro wrestling was scripted, and that the wrestlers would all get drinks afterwards together (at least the non-egotistical ones that could actually make meaningful relationships in that industry) and still swore in Portuguese when he was watching it, fully invested and immersed. As silly as it is, I can understand how these people get this invested. It's not necessarily bad, but if it gets too toxic than re-evaluation on your grip of reality definitely needs to be addressed.

I haven't watched the episode yet(only a few episodes behind) I should have skipped this video due to spoilers but i couldn't. I fully expected a hate rant due to thumbnail and title. I couldn't have been more wrong. Great insights about the game/players. More importantly I love hearing you take swings at the entitlement of the fan base. Of course we all yave theories and angles we'd prefer they take, but its their game. We're just going for the ride.

I totally agree with you opinions. I personally never watch chat. I don’t care at all what people have to think about it. It’s great entertainment and I often don’t agree with consequences and sometimes the characters just need to get on with things but still entertaining

I'm not mad at Talesin for what he did. I still think it was dumb of him to do it. Ashton was told in game don't do this. You'll die. Matt made it clear out of game that this was a bad idea and Talesin did it anyway. Matt was incredibly lenient in letting him survive. On an unrelated note what is bowlgate from campaign 2?

You can't have redemption stories without flaws and failures. In this story the consequences of failure are grave. And the team set to task are broken in ways that make Shakespear drama's seem comedies. I think people are upset because it hits too close to home and isn't fairy fantasy enough for them

I think last week, they were mad. Taliesin made a decision that impacted the entire group without asking or discussing it with anyone. They weren't in their characters (Chetney wasn't even up there, but Travis still had upset comments). AND THAT'S OK! They're friends, and sometimes friends get mad at each other. And then they work through it. I'd bet there was a discussion afterwards. And this last episode was the result. Obviously they're not mad anymore, and this has resulted in one of the best episodes of the series. This party has been a powder keg for a long long time, and Ashton's actions threw a lit match onto it. They needed this to work through all the issues simmering below the surface. Everyone brought their A game for this (except Liam, just making Orym do pushups all episode, sheesh 😜).

This is why I don’t watch critical roll with chat on.

Bruh, all I was seeing was people being nuts in chat. It aint that serious. With that being said, I loved this episode. Never have I been terrified for Ashton, especially with Fearne going off the deep end

Oh man the comments section for this episode are, eh. The subreddit has some solid views and agreeable people despite the take, I appreciate you breaking it down in a video too.

I watch the replays on RU-vid (cuz timezones and stuff) and honest, I really loved the latest episodes. I really enjoy roleplay and it’s something I want in my home games. It's obvious that the critical role cast thinks the same way. Now, this kind of playstyle isn't something that everyone will enjoy of course, but everyone isn't playing that game. If you as a player or dm prefer a more gritty, deadly game then go and play it and if you as a spectator don't like the style then don't watch it. You can of course still criticize, but remember that in the end it is their game, and they can play it however they want. Ok, that was my two cents on the situation. Ok, bye!

A troll will troll. But everyone knows that trolls are useless, cowardly human being and a waste of space so just ignore them.

SOMEHOW YOUR FOREHEAD IS BIGGER THAN TALEISins

One of the steps in a fandom is "This is mine."

Did people really forget that every member of critical role are professional actors? Like this is their job

Yeah, agreed. The worst part of CR is the viewers :)

It’s weird that you suggest that people shouldn’t have negative opinions about how Game of Thrones ended. That was a lot of artist’s work, including actors, set designers, props, music, George RR Martin… flushed down the drain because two writers were unwilling to finish a project, or let someone else take the reigns. I find that decision by those show runners to be fairly immoral by real life standards, personally. And it’s an entirely different situation and medium than a D&D game. As you point out.

I’m probably alone, but they’re where some strong over reactions. No way Fearne could’ve survived that

I mean.. -2 constitution is very heavy for a barbarian tbh and is a perfectly suitable punishment. It doesn't make the character unplayable or kills him off, yet it stings enough for it to be a real consequence. Who knows, maybe death was even on the table and it was randomly rolled. We for sure don't. Also I don't agree with every decision Matt does but that is mostly on rules interpetations, and more so who cares?

TAL IS NOT SELFISH! HIS CHARACTER IS! now ima watch the video and post thoughts after.

Dead on. I always shut off the chat.