RIGHT?? I stopped watching at the Break and went to bed, because I was like "Well, shit. Kinda doubt anything REAL major is gonna happen after that, might as well catch the rest tomorrow." LOL - WAH-WAAAAAAAAH! 😉
I dozed off right after the sweet Orym Fearne scene and just awoke to "ashton make another constitution save" and everyone looking like there a bomb under the table and was like " yeah this tracks"
@@kendalldesouza4595 I think Matt once said that their first pre-stream DnD session which was at a party (Sam's Christmas party probably) started off fun with everyone laughing and having a good time and ended with everyone screaming and crying and holding on to one another. Just as it should be.
Aabria as DM: Gives Fearne random vision of her dark future, making her hesitate to accept power of the shard, which leads to Ashton’s gambit Aabria as guest player: Gives Ring of Temporal to Chetney, which ends up with Ashton and its the only thing preventing his disintegration. Aabria is Changebringer in disguise, no less
"Who knows...what that means." - Matt Mercer, while internally screaming at the fact that he now has to shuffle to figure out what the fuck it is going to mean.
@@alvintollahWell, as Matt said, he's now a completely new, unknown before creature. There's never been a person with 2 shards or even a titan of 2 elements, so basically Matt has to make rules for new kind of creature.
Given that there is demiplanes between the 4 main elemental planes, its possible for similar creatures to exist but Ashton problaby got the most busted buff. Honestly i kinda expect him to somehow ascend or to be somehow eligible to become the equivelant of a Elemental lord.
Only time i saw him this stressed when M9 were in Eiselcross and that giant worm showed up and stunned everyone for 1 minute. And only Jester managed to save the day with polymorph.
Matt is quiet quite often. I've never seen him quiet in a concerning way like in this episode. And I don't think I've ever seen his jaw go that tense either.
yeah because matt was put in the unfortunate situation of killing Taliesin's character again do to the pcs mistake. Ashton was pretty heavily warned about doing this and something tells me he should have died a couple of times but Matt kept him alive
@@Dickard667I would like to point out that everyone knew that Talisen would probably do it especially Travis, Ashley, and Matt because they discussed it in 4sd
I would say the Kraken, Lorenzo (far too many similarities), and the Tomb Taker fight after they fought Geladon. Also maybe when Caleb cast Disintegrate on Vokodo. And the Ottahan fight.
He was frantically trying to figure out how to make Ashton’s death be cinematic and satisfying. Last thing he wanted was from Tal to roll bad and then just say “Ashton is dead, goodbye :).”
I was thinking that too!!! Especially when Imogen went to the Dawnfather, I feel like her plea was incredibly similar to Delilah’s, just to a more know deity
The strength it must have taken you to sit through this episode and pick it apart and edit it down is off the charts. I took 3 days to watch the whole thing because I was too stressed out. Thank you for your service and enjoy some well deserved rest! ❤
I had to pause this episode on a Friday during the last half hour cause of the stress. I didn't have the courage to continue until the following Sunday evening. At that point I had the HP tracker (app extension) updated, which helped. The visual of his HP going up when he healed was encouraging. But even then, I was pacing my apartment, and screaming into a pillow.
The table’s reaction reminds me of when Scanlan did his heartbreaking drama in Bard’s Lament and the crew attacked him with nerf darts after the session ended
I love this episode. gonna lose my mind if i hear one more "HE TOOK ASHLEYS AGENCY" post though, he literally talked to her about it before the game and also during, in character. Fearnie didn't want it because of fear of corruption. They talked about it on 4SD. Calm down, people.
i cannot understand the tal/ashton hate when there is literally a WHOLE conversation they had w ashley/fearne abt how fearne didnt want the shard and thought it was meant for ashton + communicated the plan with her fully, giving her multiple chances to say no. like,,, do i want to also hoof-kick ashton in the face? YEAH he's an IDIOT but he's not evil or manipulative idk where those arguments are cming from
Let me explain in detail. It's more on the lines of Ashton, the guy who doesn't really do hero stuff, does a martyrdom action and risk. Yes, he talked it out with Fearne, but he didn't talk it out with the rest of them. He took a risk that didn't need to happen, when they are a group trying their best together. They all know each of them is a powder keg ready to happen, and promise to work together to make sure nothing extremely crazy happened. Ashton himself made that a big deal after FCG snapped in episode 31. So to see him doing that, while not talking to the rest of the group hurts their trust. That idiot move could have caused more damage to them if he died. How would FCG would feel with the constant reminder that Ashton died, and he couldn't save him? How would Laudna feel knowing that the strong man who helped her died doing that? How would Fearne feel knowing that she may have caused Ashton's death? Even if she didn't want the shard, if Ashton died, she would blame herself for not taking it.
@@Evilshadow529not only that, but tactically, this was a no-win situation. Ashton dies, the team has lost their biggest tank and 3 sources of power - two titan shards and a shard of dunemancy in them. They're at square minus one. But him living isn't much better. They have to wait a day for everyone to recover. And Ashton now has all 3 of their power sources while the rest of the team have nothing but themselves. That's a problem in terms of team balance for the game, and makes them vulnerable if they lose Ashton. It was a bad call. If Fearne didn't want it, they should have talked next steps with the team.
@@jonathanhibberd9983 that's another way to look at it. Eventually, when they reach to the main stage of enemies, Ashton is going to have a gigantic target on his back. Especially for the high level legendary people. Those people main focus is Imogen, but Ashton's titan power and dunamancy is going to be a big, shining beacon as well.
Not to mention for the people saying they should have talked with the party about who else to give it to , the party has been saying that it should go to them or Fearne ever since they got it. The rest of the party had heard the same warnings from the tree and keep saying the only two people they thought should take it was Ashton and Fearne
The community on the subreddit has been going crazy because they are under the assumption that everyone hates Taliesin. Some people need to calm down. Obviously, it's stressful, I don't think anyone was angry with him. Also, they've been friends for years, I doubt one Dnd character choice is gonna split them up
@@marisharaygun - I mean, out of the entire campaign 3, Marisha's bloody bridge reference is probably in the top 10 most awfully hilarious moments that have happened. Possibly top 10 for all 3 campaigns combined.
@Stingra87 Oh I see.... you're just a PoS troll That's why you keep doing this. Question: What're gonna do once everyone's dirt from online surfaces? You know that's coming right?
6:09 oooh i missed it before but Matt 100% pauses in anticipation of someone yelling "Insight check!" after Laudna's "YOu're LYing!" Only after he doesn't get one does he move on and continue the scene... God, if only someone had...
After this episode, I could vaguely hear Aabria’s sassy remark for providing the Ring of Temporal Salvation from another dimension. “You’re f*cking welcome.” - Aabria Iyengar.
Time is a flat circle and Aabria controls it Though if she didn't create Dark Fearne in the first place Fearne probably would've taken the shard without fear
Even though I personally wanted Fearne to have it-- everyone needs to watch the last 4-sided die; literally Taliesin and Ashley's intention were explained (without giving anything away) during that episode. Good work Marisharaygun!
Honestly, feels like the reverse what happened with the other episode. Ashton reveals he was not always made from stone. Laudna: “the worst thing has already happened to me”
Thank you for focusing on Matt’s expressions! I’ve never seen him look so grim but it wasn’t easy to pay attention to him since I was trying to see everyone’s reaction at once.
29:34 Matt with a big smile and a chuckle: "Hey man. Hey, if you pull this off, f-ing... POWER to ya." This is why I think Matt may actually reward the efforts of not just Ashton, but the whole squad in making sure this power absorption happened. He even describes that Ashton has anew volcanic arm to replace the one that snapped off. Who knows what that will entail? Do I think there will be a MASSIVE caveat to this power boost? Hells yes. But is Matt the kind of DM that rewards the efforts of his players, even when (and sometimes especially when) they derail his plans? Also yes. [Looks at Essek] But Matt will also back up that warning of "Don't put them both in one person" *somehow*.
The numbers were ran - there were 5 different DCs, 11 for roll 1 and 2, 12 for 3 and 4, etc, up to 15 for 9 and 10. Any fail was instant death. Then there was the fire damage. He had about a 12% chance of success, if you ignore the fire damage completely. Matt "let it happen" by not making it impossible - but it was the dice that came in clutch. 9-ish times out of 10, Aston would be dead unressurectable.
@@BlueRadium Lets not forget - as you said - 12% of success BEFORE the fire damage was applied. This was a once in a campaign Hail Mary and he got it. Fucking awesome.
I saw a whole lot of hate on reddit about how matt went easy or fudged rolls, and even read that talisan was getting special treatment. Where the *bleep* did they see any of that? This scene is exactly gow id do it at my table, it genuinely is insane and from a dm perspective harsh
Matt already has got strong paternal instincts. Liked how he recognized all the kids were up past their bedtime and starting to get feisty with each other, and then made the parental decision and sent them all to bed. 👍
Honestly, it cracks me up that out of all these crazy loons hellbent on saving the world in the most batshit way possible, the two shadiest fucking, picking-pocketing, absolute craziest agents of chaos who probably wouldn't be trusted by anyone else outside of the group have each other's back to an insane degree. Way more hearts than brains. Ashton and Fearne are my absolute favorite dynamic and I love them.
Ashley wearing a Bill the Cat shirt is somehow so very appropriate to this episode. Ack! Also, the irony is not lost on me that Tal/Ashton has said in the past his biggest fear of the campaign so far was Sam/FCG potentially martyring themselves trying to save the whole crew.
Anyone who is still mad at Talisan obviously hasn't been paying attention to Ashton. The majority of his character is the "Fuck it" mentality. It was a dumb move for sure, but it was definitely in character.
1000% He also literally jumped into a lava lake to just yank the shard out of there with his bare hands. I imagine the cast was more nervous about him dying rather than actually mad that he took the shard. I mean, they talked at length about and agreed that either him or Fearne should take it anyway..
Also don't forget, Ashton is a hypocrite, and he said it himself multiple times. He warned FCG to not be a martyr and look where he is now. All the signs were there, but HB decided not to look at them or dismiss them as a "fuck it" mentality, while Ashton is selfless to a fault. It's amazing how Ashton recognizes all these tendencies of behavior, but I think it is exactly because they are a mirror to his behavior.
Problem is, "that's what my character would do" is often used as an excuse to try and justify all kinds of questionable behavior. In this case, certainly it was an interesting in-game decision, but it was also a stressful one, in game AND off-game.
11:00 when laudna says shes willing to die and imogen says "i wont accept that" is a callback to when vax has to go with the raven queen and keyleth says she doesnt accept it. ouch.
The fact that this is at an insanely pivotal time in Exandria's history and one if its saviors decides to gamble his entire life, I get the table's stress. But this is entirely in character for Ashton. He's willing to put it all on the line for the family he never had. To him, it's worth it more to burn, crumble away and disintegrate in order to become the weapon he needs to be than it is to die or fail. Regardless of how risky it was and how recklessly stupid (again, totally in character), you can't deny that Ashton just massively leveled up in terms of power and it will be an edge over the adversary
If they're anything like me, it just feels like knives ripping through your guts for a couple of seconds and then you have to spend the 30+ minutes just recovering from it.
Honestly, I do think it was an absolutely stupid move and Ashton would have been dead if they didn't have Fearne and FCG... But... Taliesin played his character, he didn't play the meta. Ashton is a self-absorbed, punk rock, asshole; and now they have a god-complex. The only thing that is separating them, for now, from being like the people they are fighting is the love for the group. But, I did think Taliesin played it appropriately for the RP portion. Ashton would do the exact opposite of anyone seen as "wise" or as "godly" because they hate anything that has power over people.
Ok imma try not to get too cheesy but I have some things I wanna say I’ve been watching your compilations since campaign 2 and to this day they’re still my favorite thing ever. Like every time I travel I download a bunch of them because I know they bring me a sense of comfort and happiness if I ever feel uncomfortable or stressed. This may have resulted in me rewatching your compilation of the “Ashley rolled an 8” episode…I can’t even tell you how many times lmao I love how you not only highlight the funniest/saddest/most dramatic moments, but also the minor ones that we might’ve missed during our first watch. Whether they be moments that make us understand a character a little more, or where the cast is just goofing around, they are all so appreciated. The fact that your videos are also the perfect length for people who might not have the time to watch a whole episode and just wants a summary with the most important (and memorable) moments is yet another W What I’m trying to say is this: Thank you ❤ thank you for the time and dedication you’ve put into creating these amazing videos. Your editing is always (Ashley voice) Top Notch, and your chapter titles (thank you for those as well!!) never fail to make me laugh. Overall just a wonderful experience. Thank you again
On one hand, I'm fully aware the cast are fine, no ones actually mad or upset and I'm positive they've all spoken about the ep off camera and its no where near the end of the world. On the other hand, ASHTON WHEN I CATCH YOU, WHEN I CATCH YOU ASHTON, YOU STUPID MARTYR MOTHERFU-
18:20 Laura: "Things are gonna happen." Matt: Head Shake and Expression says, "I didn't think it will." Laura: Nod and Expression says, "Oh, it will." Me: May I remind the court that Laura Bailey is the player behind Vex, the wife of Taliesin's character Percy? (And whose castle we were just in, and parents of Gwendolyn...) If anyone can see the signs of Taliesin in a D&D romance, it would be Laura, the only person (until this episode) to have a D&D romance with a Taliesin character. Watching live, this scene of Fearne and Ashton at the clock tower, in the SNOW, gave me serious Vex and Percy first kiss in the SNOWY woods vibes. We did eventually get a kiss between them, just not in this scene, so I was not completely wrong. Laura probably noticed the vibes too, having the experience playing Vex. Also snowy settings seem to be Taliesin's favorite spot to start a D&D romance, so that probably didn't hurt. Edit: Spelling
Matt was stressed beyond belief. The table was yelling at Tal. And yet, he pulled it off and this might be the most badass thing someone has done on Crit Role. This scene was INSANE. Where tf does the next episode go from here??
“Everyone is MAD” best title ever! I love this so much. You did an amazing moment catching every intense moment! Now watching this, knowing the outcome you can see that everything they did actually did match their character choices pretty well. Ashton is very self destructive even though he wants to save everyone. I love that the EXU throwback kinda explains why Fearne didn’t want the shard. And I totally missed her trying to tell the group the truth. And all the Deliliah stuff too! So much. One of my fave episodes!❤
Deanna was the one who gave the team that ring that saved Ashton. The same Deanna who was said the be "built like a Pixar Mom". In other words, Thicc Thighs really do Save Lives.
my blood pressure was so high during this episode i thought i was actually going to pass away. thank you for your weekly compilations, you are the bravest soldier of them all 🫡
As some have mentioned in other videos, I really hope Imogen doesn’t end up treading the same path to save Laudna like Delilah did for Silas. Among other things, Imogen could actually break the world for real if she does.
Another intense episode for campaign 3. Ashton thinking a scenario that either A. They're getting new powers or B. They might get burned to smithereens but screw it while not realizing they got friends that are extremely worried about them.
i can only describe it this way but I absolutely love it when marishas voice gets a bit rhaspy and cronchy when she does any exhertions as laudna. like at 6:10 the "YOU'RE LYING!". so fuckin good
this video highlight really hammers home Matt's expressions during the last 20 minutes of the episode cause even when i tired to focus on them during the scene, everything else happening all at once always distracted me from feeling the full impact of his facial expression, which i can't ignore here cause you've given them full screen attention. damn. DAMN. ASHTON/TALIESIN REALLY PULLED OFF A MIRACLE, WITH AABRIA, SAM, AND ASHLEY'S HELP Holy shit
I was reading the comments and, people are mad at Tali? Are you shitting me? He just made me stop breathing, the whole scene was so breath taking that I couldn't cry from anxiety. It was metal AF, and it make cense the "chronic pain" character would take the risk to himself even if it killed him. And he know those people at the table better than any idiot who think otherwise. In fact, he managing to survive that will probably grant him a major benefit, because Matt say it himself, that was unprecedent. And players who survive hell deserve rewards. Sorry, is just that... GOD, i can't imagine how boring the game of those people who complain about shit like that is.
I keep seeing comments (not necessarily here) about the shard not being "meant" for Ashton. That's not up to anyone but the players. Matt can introduce an item into the story, and can hint all he wants at who the intended recipient is, but that's the most Ashton thing Ashton could have done. And he seems to have the blessing of who it was intended for, so aside from Aston being abrasive in general I'm not sure what all the anger is about.
it happened, and it had a REAL LOW chance of happening. so, it definitely meant to happen. if it wasn't "meant" to be, he could have died any of those nine times and been done for, but he pulled it off, the lucky bastard. power to him!
Yeah, and I get why he did it, both in and out of character. "Oo woo, this is really dangerous but powerful, it could kill you... unless it doesn't!" is like catnip to old-school DnD players.
I got spoiled for the last half of this episode because I had to finish it the next day and dude I'm so glad I was. Idk if I could've handled the stress of not knowing if Ashton survived. Ashton and Mollymauk are my two favorite CR characters, idk what I would've done if I had lost Ashton too.
Dude, my husband and I were FULLY CONVINCED he was going to die. The slowest death ever 😭 then yelling at the screen when Ashton was just like 🤷🏻 cool I lived. UGH.
I have never been so stressed watching something ever!!! I thought of you during the episode and wondered what it would be like to make the highlights. I haven't watched yet, but I know it's perfect!
Seems to me he pulled a Riegel in terms of making everybody mad. At least the crew did not start a riot backstage, or maybe they did, who knows! Thanks to Marisha for yet another great video.
The episode is much more poignant when it is distilled down to these moments. The time between allowed us to catch our breath and calm our nerves. This just keeps hitting and tugging, the tension winding up. Such a wonderful way to prepare for tonight's stream!!! Thank you for this.
That was so freakin good. I understand why people are baby going off on Ashton/Tal because that was stressful af definately not for the weak of heart. But that's what makes this game so great. At the table I made a deal with a Devil and leveled a whole city we've been dealing with the aftermath of that choice for the last year in our dnd campaing in the best way possible, it wasn't the wrong choice to make but it also wasnt' the smartest. But it was a choice the character would've made and sometimes you gotta recognize that.
Not gonna lie, the only thing that could have made the end of the episode crazier is if that kick from Fearne’s hoof killed Ashton, like what happened with Bor’dor and Prism.
Reddit aside, i feel like the table was way too mad about this. Big moves are soo fun, ya gotta take risks like that! And the shards are part of HIS backstory, not Ferns. Sure Matt said he could die, but it was not like an explicit DONT DO THIS type of warning yknow? TLDR everyone needs to calm down there was nothing wrong about what happened here.
You know it's a wild episode when Delilah Briarwood showing up is the LEAST interesting thing that happens.
RIGHT?? I stopped watching at the Break and went to bed, because I was like "Well, shit. Kinda doubt anything REAL major is gonna happen after that, might as well catch the rest tomorrow."
LOL - WAH-WAAAAAAAAH! 😉
Oh right that happened. MY brain was smoldering too! I haven't held my breath like that since we were resurrecting Molly.
I dozed off right after the sweet Orym Fearne scene and just awoke to "ashton make another constitution save" and everyone looking like there a bomb under the table and was like " yeah this tracks"
@@kendalldesouza4595 I think Matt once said that their first pre-stream DnD session which was at a party (Sam's Christmas party probably) started off fun with everyone laughing and having a good time and ended with everyone screaming and crying and holding on to one another. Just as it should be.
Aabria as DM: Gives Fearne random vision of her dark future, making her hesitate to accept power of the shard, which leads to Ashton’s gambit
Aabria as guest player: Gives Ring of Temporal to Chetney, which ends up with Ashton and its the only thing preventing his disintegration.
Aabria is Changebringer in disguise, no less
yeah, and making fun of „Sunny D“ 😂 Another D by the way.
Aabria is absolute trash
I accept this and only this as an explanation
I think we're now indebt to Dimension 20!
@@thegriffin88 Aabria is a free agent, she is no more Dimension20 than Critical Role
"Who knows...what that means." - Matt Mercer, while internally screaming at the fact that he now has to shuffle to figure out what the fuck it is going to mean.
What DOES it mean? The only speculation I could gather is Ashton's a demi-God now. 2 Titan essence AND a piece of Dunamis.
Ahhh, the art of the Silent DM Panic.
"the shuffle to figure out what it's going to mean" = being a DM
@@alvintollahWell, as Matt said, he's now a completely new, unknown before creature. There's never been a person with 2 shards or even a titan of 2 elements, so basically Matt has to make rules for new kind of creature.
Given that there is demiplanes between the 4 main elemental planes, its possible for similar creatures to exist but Ashton problaby got the most busted buff.
Honestly i kinda expect him to somehow ascend or to be somehow eligible to become the equivelant of a Elemental lord.
Matt's stress was the worst part of this. I've never seen him look visibly concerned for that long before
Only time i saw him this stressed when M9 were in Eiselcross and that giant worm showed up and stunned everyone for 1 minute. And only Jester managed to save the day with polymorph.
Matt is quiet quite often. I've never seen him quiet in a concerning way like in this episode. And I don't think I've ever seen his jaw go that tense either.
yeah because matt was put in the unfortunate situation of killing Taliesin's character again do to the pcs mistake. Ashton was pretty heavily warned about doing this and something tells me he should have died a couple of times but Matt kept him alive
@@Dickard667I would like to point out that everyone knew that Talisen would probably do it especially Travis, Ashley, and Matt because they discussed it in 4sd
@@Bobbytree-rt3nt and he rewarned him during it. just because the dm knows a player is gonna try something doesnt mean the dm has to cater.
This is literally the personification of that “I’M ALIVE! I’M DEAD! I’M ALIVE AGAIN!”
Ashton, the fantasy Jesus
It's like Liam's earlier cock-ring of revivification joke, "GLEEEEEEGH!! I'm back, baby!"
I’M LOOKIN AT YOU. FUCK YOU. I’M DEAD AGAIN.
@@gonzobliter8or992PFFFFFT You win the comment section! 🤣
That motherfucking temporal ring coming in clutch as I had to literally take a booster dose of my anxiety meds.
Liam defending Laura’s “fart” then immediately feeding into making fun of her is why they will forever be the twins 😭
It's totally "I'm the only one who gets to make fun of her" and I fucking love that. Siblings for life.
It’s the everyone yells at Tal episode
There's always one... Except with cadaeusus (I can never spell it right), he was chill.
Just wait until the next 4 Sided Dive. The first hour is Taliesin bound to a wall while the rest of the cast throw the Tower of Inquiry blocks at him.
I dont think ive ever seen Matt get that nervous before
I think he was more nervous during the first tombtakers fight but this is very close 😅
During campaign one in the sunken tomb: "Wait that brought you to 0?"
I think they were all having flashbacks of Molly dying.
I would say the Kraken, Lorenzo (far too many similarities), and the Tomb Taker fight after they fought Geladon. Also maybe when Caleb cast Disintegrate on Vokodo. And the Ottahan fight.
He was frantically trying to figure out how to make Ashton’s death be cinematic and satisfying. Last thing he wanted was from Tal to roll bad and then just say “Ashton is dead, goodbye :).”
Only Ashton could ignore all the red signals flashing at 1000 lumens in his front of him and say in the face of fate, "but hear me out..."
*The entire group having a major anxiety attack*
Taliesin: never look when you wanna win 😎
im very glad that they're all mates so i dont feel as shit saying all of them telling him off after that was REAL cathartic.
He's a freakin legend. For better or worse.
@@Lynch2507 yeah, Laura was hands down PISSED
douchebag comment
@@Coffemore63 honestly? same
I love how Marisha reacts to Fearne and Ashton's form of flirting.
Her 'wtf' face is sublime.
Meanwhile Laura looks like she's shipping them the entire time
@MammalianCreature I've been shipping them since Ashton stole the earring back
@@MammalianCreatureshe has been their biggest shipper for a while now
Imogen is willing to do anything for Laudna is really a parallel Delilah was willing to do anything for Sylas
i was literally thinking last night that delilah is probably going to ask at least one of them “i broke the world for love. are you?”
I was thinking that too!!! Especially when Imogen went to the Dawnfather, I feel like her plea was incredibly similar to Delilah’s, just to a more know deity
So now Ashton has Earth and Fire. Now's he's gotta absorb Air and Water and become the Avatar!
nah, he needs to absorb wind and start singing "In the Stone"
Meanwhile, Taliesin the person is self absorbed. Douchebag player. Wish Matt wouldn't have given that jerkoff plot armor.
Both wrong, he needs to destroy those potential versions of himself so he can become The One.
The strength it must have taken you to sit through this episode and pick it apart and edit it down is off the charts. I took 3 days to watch the whole thing because I was too stressed out. Thank you for your service and enjoy some well deserved rest! ❤
I had to pause this episode on a Friday during the last half hour cause of the stress. I didn't have the courage to continue until the following Sunday evening. At that point I had the HP tracker (app extension) updated, which helped. The visual of his HP going up when he healed was encouraging. But even then, I was pacing my apartment, and screaming into a pillow.
The table’s reaction reminds me of when Scanlan did his heartbreaking drama in Bard’s Lament and the crew attacked him with nerf darts after the session ended
I love this episode. gonna lose my mind if i hear one more "HE TOOK ASHLEYS AGENCY" post though, he literally talked to her about it before the game and also during, in character. Fearnie didn't want it because of fear of corruption. They talked about it on 4SD. Calm down, people.
It’s funny coz all of the people screaming that are literally taking agency away from Ashley/Fearne by acting like she had zero say in any of this
Yeah, really happy about the comment section here, we don't get much (if any) of that.
i cannot understand the tal/ashton hate when there is literally a WHOLE conversation they had w ashley/fearne abt how fearne didnt want the shard and thought it was meant for ashton + communicated the plan with her fully, giving her multiple chances to say no. like,,, do i want to also hoof-kick ashton in the face? YEAH he's an IDIOT but he's not evil or manipulative idk where those arguments are cming from
Let me explain in detail. It's more on the lines of Ashton, the guy who doesn't really do hero stuff, does a martyrdom action and risk. Yes, he talked it out with Fearne, but he didn't talk it out with the rest of them. He took a risk that didn't need to happen, when they are a group trying their best together.
They all know each of them is a powder keg ready to happen, and promise to work together to make sure nothing extremely crazy happened. Ashton himself made that a big deal after FCG snapped in episode 31. So to see him doing that, while not talking to the rest of the group hurts their trust.
That idiot move could have caused more damage to them if he died. How would FCG would feel with the constant reminder that Ashton died, and he couldn't save him? How would Laudna feel knowing that the strong man who helped her died doing that? How would Fearne feel knowing that she may have caused Ashton's death? Even if she didn't want the shard, if Ashton died, she would blame herself for not taking it.
@@Evilshadow529not only that, but tactically, this was a no-win situation. Ashton dies, the team has lost their biggest tank and 3 sources of power - two titan shards and a shard of dunemancy in them. They're at square minus one. But him living isn't much better. They have to wait a day for everyone to recover. And Ashton now has all 3 of their power sources while the rest of the team have nothing but themselves. That's a problem in terms of team balance for the game, and makes them vulnerable if they lose Ashton. It was a bad call. If Fearne didn't want it, they should have talked next steps with the team.
@@jonathanhibberd9983 that's another way to look at it. Eventually, when they reach to the main stage of enemies, Ashton is going to have a gigantic target on his back. Especially for the high level legendary people. Those people main focus is Imogen, but Ashton's titan power and dunamancy is going to be a big, shining beacon as well.
@@Evilshadow529 That all sounds like it would have been awesome to roleplay out.
Not to mention for the people saying they should have talked with the party about who else to give it to , the party has been saying that it should go to them or Fearne ever since they got it. The rest of the party had heard the same warnings from the tree and keep saying the only two people they thought should take it was Ashton and Fearne
The community on the subreddit has been going crazy because they are under the assumption that everyone hates Taliesin. Some people need to calm down. Obviously, it's stressful, I don't think anyone was angry with him. Also, they've been friends for years, I doubt one Dnd character choice is gonna split them up
god yeah I had to unsub from the CR subreddit because everyone was just hating on taliesin way too much
Yeah I had to walk away when people started comparing his action to that of a dragonborn. That's where I draw the line.
@@Redman-2490 What??? That is....not comparable.
For me the worry is people trying something like this with a table that does not have as much love and trust as the CR table
@@Redman-2490 THANK YOU. I keep seeing this bullshit posted everywhere. This is nowhere near the same.
I actually spit out my Gatorade when Laura repeated “I saw forms of flora” back to Travis it really killed me
Timestamp?
15:12, About…here.
that's honestly one of my favorite parts of the whole episode lmao
@@marisharaygun - I mean, out of the entire campaign 3, Marisha's bloody bridge reference is probably in the top 10 most awfully hilarious moments that have happened. Possibly top 10 for all 3 campaigns combined.
3:29 Sam. Samuel. "I am FCG-nough" was RIGHT THERE.
time to watch trauma unfold again
I was waiting for this channel to put this out. I've seen the reddit-heads toiling over it at length
Fake-trauma.
@@Stingra87shut the fuck up my god you have 7 comments on this video alone
I just finished the episode 10 minutes ago, and now I am torturing myself again. My headache hasn’t disappeared yet.
@Stingra87
Oh I see.... you're just a PoS troll
That's why you keep doing this.
Question:
What're gonna do once everyone's dirt from online surfaces? You know that's coming right?
6:09 oooh i missed it before but Matt 100% pauses in anticipation of someone yelling "Insight check!" after Laudna's "YOu're LYing!"
Only after he doesn't get one does he move on and continue the scene... God, if only someone had...
After this episode, I could vaguely hear Aabria’s sassy remark for providing the Ring of Temporal Salvation from another dimension.
“You’re f*cking welcome.”
- Aabria Iyengar.
duuuude i can hear exactly how she'd say it
Time is a flat circle and Aabria controls it
Though if she didn't create Dark Fearne in the first place Fearne probably would've taken the shard without fear
I read this in Aabria's voice and it was EPIC
I bet Aabria was screaming watching that unfold
Even though I personally wanted Fearne to have it-- everyone needs to watch the last 4-sided die; literally Taliesin and Ashley's intention were explained (without giving anything away) during that episode. Good work Marisharaygun!
Marisha: Watch me unpack my character’s trauma and existential dread as a possible bad guy
Taliesin: Bet 🌋
Honestly, feels like the reverse what happened with the other episode.
Ashton reveals he was not always made from stone.
Laudna: “the worst thing has already happened to me”
Thank you for focusing on Matt’s expressions! I’ve never seen him look so grim but it wasn’t easy to pay attention to him since I was trying to see everyone’s reaction at once.
If this ever gets animated this scene is going to be the most intense and epic scene of whole series
29:34 Matt with a big smile and a chuckle: "Hey man. Hey, if you pull this off, f-ing... POWER to ya."
This is why I think Matt may actually reward the efforts of not just Ashton, but the whole squad in making sure this power absorption happened. He even describes that Ashton has anew volcanic arm to replace the one that snapped off. Who knows what that will entail?
Do I think there will be a MASSIVE caveat to this power boost? Hells yes. But is Matt the kind of DM that rewards the efforts of his players, even when (and sometimes especially when) they derail his plans? Also yes. [Looks at Essek] But Matt will also back up that warning of "Don't put them both in one person" *somehow*.
The numbers were ran - there were 5 different DCs, 11 for roll 1 and 2, 12 for 3 and 4, etc, up to 15 for 9 and 10. Any fail was instant death. Then there was the fire damage. He had about a 12% chance of success, if you ignore the fire damage completely. Matt "let it happen" by not making it impossible - but it was the dice that came in clutch. 9-ish times out of 10, Aston would be dead unressurectable.
i think it'd be interesting for him to be OP
@@BlueRadium Lets not forget - as you said - 12% of success BEFORE the fire damage was applied. This was a once in a campaign Hail Mary and he got it. Fucking awesome.
@@moistnugget141 metal as hell dude this is why I lovvve the decision
lmao
I saw a whole lot of hate on reddit about how matt went easy or fudged rolls, and even read that talisan was getting special treatment. Where the *bleep* did they see any of that? This scene is exactly gow id do it at my table, it genuinely is insane and from a dm perspective harsh
Talisen got MOLLYwhoped.
Matt: Ashton is an unprecedented creature
Taliesin: Again
Taliesin knew exactly what he was doing.
did he 💀
God Orym and Fearne’s talk really had me sobbing. Once Liam puts on a tender voice I just know my heart is gonna ache
i mean, if Marisha learned to Cliff Dive with Slow fall on S2 after the "Goldfish Incident", Tal learned to hurt himself... around Healing Spell users
Matt already has got strong paternal instincts. Liked how he recognized all the kids were up past their bedtime and starting to get feisty with each other, and then made the parental decision and sent them all to bed. 👍
Talisin has always been an unprecedented creature....
18:01 Marisha perfected “I smell some bullshit coming up” face
Honestly, it cracks me up that out of all these crazy loons hellbent on saving the world in the most batshit way possible, the two shadiest fucking, picking-pocketing, absolute craziest agents of chaos who probably wouldn't be trusted by anyone else outside of the group have each other's back to an insane degree. Way more hearts than brains. Ashton and Fearne are my absolute favorite dynamic and I love them.
Ashley wearing a Bill the Cat shirt is somehow so very appropriate to this episode. Ack!
Also, the irony is not lost on me that Tal/Ashton has said in the past his biggest fear of the campaign so far was Sam/FCG potentially martyring themselves trying to save the whole crew.
Anyone who is still mad at Talisan obviously hasn't been paying attention to Ashton. The majority of his character is the "Fuck it" mentality. It was a dumb move for sure, but it was definitely in character.
1000%
He also literally jumped into a lava lake to just yank the shard out of there with his bare hands.
I imagine the cast was more nervous about him dying rather than actually mad that he took the shard. I mean, they talked at length about and agreed that either him or Fearne should take it anyway..
Also don't forget, Ashton is a hypocrite, and he said it himself multiple times. He warned FCG to not be a martyr and look where he is now. All the signs were there, but HB decided not to look at them or dismiss them as a "fuck it" mentality, while Ashton is selfless to a fault. It's amazing how Ashton recognizes all these tendencies of behavior, but I think it is exactly because they are a mirror to his behavior.
Problem is, "that's what my character would do" is often used as an excuse to try and justify all kinds of questionable behavior. In this case, certainly it was an interesting in-game decision, but it was also a stressful one, in game AND off-game.
I feel like Ashton and Chet are both gonna have to roll constitution every in-game day lol
Talisen showing that he's still playing good ole fashioned DND. Make the crazy choice and hope for the best. Loved this episode
When this gets animated, I want Orym to keep Liam's "Gonna kick you in your ballsack, goddamn!" line after Ashton's epic fuck around, almost find out
He's got the boots, he can jump high enough to nail him first in the nads and then in the head on his way back down.
who's doing animations on CR stuff nowadays? Any good ones you'd recommend?
11:00 when laudna says shes willing to die and imogen says "i wont accept that" is a callback to when vax has to go with the raven queen and keyleth says she doesnt accept it. ouch.
Also Vex says it in Dalen's Closet
The fact that this is at an insanely pivotal time in Exandria's history and one if its saviors decides to gamble his entire life, I get the table's stress. But this is entirely in character for Ashton. He's willing to put it all on the line for the family he never had. To him, it's worth it more to burn, crumble away and disintegrate in order to become the weapon he needs to be than it is to die or fail. Regardless of how risky it was and how recklessly stupid (again, totally in character), you can't deny that Ashton just massively leveled up in terms of power and it will be an edge over the adversary
My evening constitutional is gonna be ❤️🔥 with this video LOL
A 30+ minute constitutional! Damn you need to eat some fibre
If they're anything like me, it just feels like knives ripping through your guts for a couple of seconds and then you have to spend the 30+ minutes just recovering from it.
And wiping. Don't forget wiping.
29:13 Liam not even able to LOOK at Taliesin
There's all this crazy stuff happening this episode, but my favourite moment was the little Fearne & Orym section with the spyglass!
Honestly, I do think it was an absolutely stupid move and Ashton would have been dead if they didn't have Fearne and FCG... But... Taliesin played his character, he didn't play the meta. Ashton is a self-absorbed, punk rock, asshole; and now they have a god-complex. The only thing that is separating them, for now, from being like the people they are fighting is the love for the group. But, I did think Taliesin played it appropriately for the RP portion. Ashton would do the exact opposite of anyone seen as "wise" or as "godly" because they hate anything that has power over people.
TALISIEN YOU ABSOLUTE MAD LAD!!!
From the Taliesin, Of the Taliesin, To the Taliesin!
This episode was rad af!
I was SO HYPED for this drop you have no idea. Thank you MRG!
I like that Sam spends an hour practicing his uwu face before finding out from Marisha what it is.
i have no idea what uwu means and... i think i want to keep it that way.
@@oldfrend Probably for the best. I think it's an anime thing.
Question is... uWu or UwU?
@@PeTTs0n88 Those are different things?
Tal stirred the pot and I’m so happy he did
Ok imma try not to get too cheesy but I have some things I wanna say
I’ve been watching your compilations since campaign 2 and to this day they’re still my favorite thing ever. Like every time I travel I download a bunch of them because I know they bring me a sense of comfort and happiness if I ever feel uncomfortable or stressed. This may have resulted in me rewatching your compilation of the “Ashley rolled an 8” episode…I can’t even tell you how many times lmao
I love how you not only highlight the funniest/saddest/most dramatic moments, but also the minor ones that we might’ve missed during our first watch. Whether they be moments that make us understand a character a little more, or where the cast is just goofing around, they are all so appreciated. The fact that your videos are also the perfect length for people who might not have the time to watch a whole episode and just wants a summary with the most important (and memorable) moments is yet another W
What I’m trying to say is this: Thank you ❤ thank you for the time and dedication you’ve put into creating these amazing videos. Your editing is always (Ashley voice) Top Notch, and your chapter titles (thank you for those as well!!) never fail to make me laugh. Overall just a wonderful experience.
Thank you again
thank you for such a kind comment! i'm glad you enjoy the videos so much
Ashton “Fuck around and find out” Greymoore
On one hand, I'm fully aware the cast are fine, no ones actually mad or upset and I'm positive they've all spoken about the ep off camera and its no where near the end of the world.
On the other hand, ASHTON WHEN I CATCH YOU, WHEN I CATCH YOU ASHTON, YOU STUPID MARTYR MOTHERFU-
Oh no they were mad, but they're good friends/family now. They'll chew him out similar to a certain bards lament
@@DotexclamationmarkI mean long-term, in the moment absolutely
I completely forgot about Misty Step. But honestly, it was worth it.
18:20 Laura: "Things are gonna happen."
Matt: Head Shake and Expression says, "I didn't think it will."
Laura: Nod and Expression says, "Oh, it will."
Me: May I remind the court that Laura Bailey is the player behind Vex, the wife of Taliesin's character Percy? (And whose castle we were just in, and parents of Gwendolyn...) If anyone can see the signs of Taliesin in a D&D romance, it would be Laura, the only person (until this episode) to have a D&D romance with a Taliesin character.
Watching live, this scene of Fearne and Ashton at the clock tower, in the SNOW, gave me serious Vex and Percy first kiss in the SNOWY woods vibes. We did eventually get a kiss between them, just not in this scene, so I was not completely wrong. Laura probably noticed the vibes too, having the experience playing Vex. Also snowy settings seem to be Taliesin's favorite spot to start a D&D romance, so that probably didn't hurt.
Edit: Spelling
Matt was stressed beyond belief. The table was yelling at Tal. And yet, he pulled it off and this might be the most badass thing someone has done on Crit Role. This scene was INSANE. Where tf does the next episode go from here??
“Everyone is MAD” best title ever! I love this so much. You did an amazing moment catching every intense moment! Now watching this, knowing the outcome you can see that everything they did actually did match their character choices pretty well. Ashton is very self destructive even though he wants to save everyone. I love that the EXU throwback kinda explains why Fearne didn’t want the shard. And I totally missed her trying to tell the group the truth. And all the Deliliah stuff too! So much. One of my fave episodes!❤
The complete 100% dead seriousness of “yeah we heard that from a fucking tree” is the bit of levity I needed after all that.
Deanna was the one who gave the team that ring that saved Ashton.
The same Deanna who was said the be "built like a Pixar Mom".
In other words, Thicc Thighs really do Save Lives.
my blood pressure was so high during this episode i thought i was actually going to pass away. thank you for your weekly compilations, you are the bravest soldier of them all 🫡
Gm: HEY LOOK AT THIS BIG RED BUTTON. DO NOT PRESS IT.
My character who’s int is 5: *pulls the button off*
The last time I have been so stressed by a C3 episode was the almost TPK by Otohan.
As some have mentioned in other videos, I really hope Imogen doesn’t end up treading the same path to save Laudna like Delilah did for Silas. Among other things, Imogen could actually break the world for real if she does.
I kind loved how Sam kinda embraced the madness of taliesin and was doing hes best to keep him alive and kinda enjoyed the moment...i fucking loved it
I think I speak for a few of us when I say, "Motherfucker". God damn, Taliesin that was a -rockless- reckless move.
17:15 Gunny, have you given up asking where Laura's Oscar is?
32:02 “
love you all”
“DO YOU???”
And also.
T: “Things r gonna happen”
L: “Things ARE gonna happen”
M: nah no way
18:18
Another intense episode for campaign 3. Ashton thinking a scenario that either A. They're getting new powers or B. They might get burned to smithereens but screw it while not realizing they got friends that are extremely worried about them.
i can only describe it this way but I absolutely love it when marishas voice gets a bit rhaspy and cronchy when she does any exhertions as laudna. like at 6:10 the "YOU'RE LYING!". so fuckin good
if i had a nickel every time dunamis saved ashtons life id have two nickels
Lol secret Paladin of The Luxon
this video highlight really hammers home Matt's expressions during the last 20 minutes of the episode cause even when i tired to focus on them during the scene, everything else happening all at once always distracted me from feeling the full impact of his facial expression, which i can't ignore here cause you've given them full screen attention. damn. DAMN. ASHTON/TALIESIN REALLY PULLED OFF A MIRACLE, WITH AABRIA, SAM, AND ASHLEY'S HELP Holy shit
Liam and Laura being siblings again when he defends her by pointing out it was, indeed, her shoe on the floor. 😆 Love these two.❤
"Never fuckin look when you wanna win!"
Never change Taliesin 🤣
I was reading the comments and, people are mad at Tali? Are you shitting me? He just made me stop breathing, the whole scene was so breath taking that I couldn't cry from anxiety. It was metal AF, and it make cense the "chronic pain" character would take the risk to himself even if it killed him.
And he know those people at the table better than any idiot who think otherwise. In fact, he managing to survive that will probably grant him a major benefit, because Matt say it himself, that was unprecedent. And players who survive hell deserve rewards.
Sorry, is just that... GOD, i can't imagine how boring the game of those people who complain about shit like that is.
Are people really out there trying to say that Ashton wouldn't try doing some shit like this, because that seems pretty on brand haha
My anxiety was through the roof watching this stream, not knowing if Ashton was going to survive or not. This episode was intense.
I keep seeing comments (not necessarily here) about the shard not being "meant" for Ashton. That's not up to anyone but the players. Matt can introduce an item into the story, and can hint all he wants at who the intended recipient is, but that's the most Ashton thing Ashton could have done. And he seems to have the blessing of who it was intended for, so aside from Aston being abrasive in general I'm not sure what all the anger is about.
it happened, and it had a REAL LOW chance of happening. so, it definitely meant to happen. if it wasn't "meant" to be, he could have died any of those nine times and been done for, but he pulled it off, the lucky bastard. power to him!
Yeah, and I get why he did it, both in and out of character. "Oo woo, this is really dangerous but powerful, it could kill you... unless it doesn't!" is like catnip to old-school DnD players.
Ashley almost crying from the stress at 29:05 broke my heart. Damn it Tal why you gotta scare us like this 😮💨
I got spoiled for the last half of this episode because I had to finish it the next day and dude I'm so glad I was. Idk if I could've handled the stress of not knowing if Ashton survived. Ashton and Mollymauk are my two favorite CR characters, idk what I would've done if I had lost Ashton too.
Dude, my husband and I were FULLY CONVINCED he was going to die. The slowest death ever 😭 then yelling at the screen when Ashton was just like 🤷🏻 cool I lived. UGH.
YES SAME, I was not mentally prepared to mourn Ashton like i had Molly. I was there live and i was just curled in a ball almost the entire time. 🤣
Ashley was so stressed. Was she crying? Her expressions, tho, I think she really thought that Ashton were gonna die and was blaming herself.
Matt's "yup that's my wife" faces are the best
I have never been so stressed watching something ever!!! I thought of you during the episode and wondered what it would be like to make the highlights. I haven't watched yet, but I know it's perfect!
They've been thwarted by doors so much in the past they feel they have to get serious with their methods now.
Seems to me he pulled a Riegel in terms of making everybody mad. At least the crew did not start a riot backstage, or maybe they did, who knows! Thanks to Marisha for yet another great video.
Yea I was getting "bards lament" from c1 anger vibes from the table
i wish i could have as much fun as travis does whenever someone makes an incredibly risky decision
MY CALLOMOORE HOPES AND DREAMS HAVE BEEN SATISFIED THIS DAY
The episode is much more poignant when it is distilled down to these moments. The time between allowed us to catch our breath and calm our nerves. This just keeps hitting and tugging, the tension winding up. Such a wonderful way to prepare for tonight's stream!!! Thank you for this.
I have seen this episode 3 times already and the recap 4 times and still get the stress like the first time.
Man, Fearne with a molten fire arm will now only exist in my imagination. Fire goddess fearne will have to wait
Thank you for also including the Ad read bits every week too, i feel like those are essential viewing and its fun to rewatch them in these highlights
It still makes me chuckle every time I go to your page and read the giant "i am not marisha ray" haha
That was so freakin good. I understand why people are baby going off on Ashton/Tal because that was stressful af definately not for the weak of heart. But that's what makes this game so great. At the table I made a deal with a Devil and leveled a whole city we've been dealing with the aftermath of that choice for the last year in our dnd campaing in the best way possible, it wasn't the wrong choice to make but it also wasnt' the smartest. But it was a choice the character would've made and sometimes you gotta recognize that.
Not gonna lie, the only thing that could have made the end of the episode crazier is if that kick from Fearne’s hoof killed Ashton, like what happened with Bor’dor and Prism.
Reddit aside, i feel like the table was way too mad about this. Big moves are soo fun, ya gotta take risks like that! And the shards are part of HIS backstory, not Ferns. Sure Matt said he could die, but it was not like an explicit DONT DO THIS type of warning yknow? TLDR everyone needs to calm down there was nothing wrong about what happened here.
Ahahhahsjd losing it over 'she has misty step by the way'
I love your captions as usual.
Ok i know this episode was insane but honestly Fearne's little "I can tell" was SO cute.