Critical Role (campaign two)

The second campaign of the Dungeons & Dragons web series Critical Role began on January 11, 2018; shortly after the conclusion of the first campaign. It follows The Mighty Nein, a party of around seven adventurers, in their travels across the continent of Wildemount. Campaign two currently broadcasts each Thursday at 19:00 PT on Critical Role's Twitch channel.[1][2]

Critical Role
Season 2
Campaign poster art by Matteo Scalera
and Moreno Dinisio.
Country of originUnited States
No. of episodes120
Release
Original networkTwitch, YouTube,
Alpha (until 2019)
Original releaseJanuary 11, 2018 (2018-01-11) –
present (present)
Season chronology

Cast

Main
  • Matthew Mercer as the Dungeon Master
  • Laura Bailey as Jester Lavorre, a tiefling cleric who follows an obscure entity known as the Traveller.
  • Liam O'Brien as Caleb Widogast, a human wizard who was training at the Soltryce Academy until extra-curricular studies left him traumatized.
  • Taliesin Jaffe as Mollymauk Tealeaf, a tiefling blood hunter (ep 1-26) and con artist working in a travelling circus; and as Caduceus Clay, a firbolg cleric (from ep 28) in service of the Wildmother, goddess of wilderness and the sea, who is searching for a way to save his home.
  • Ashley Johnson as Yasha Nydoorin, an aasimar barbarian exiled from her homeland for breaking the strict code of her clan.
  • Marisha Ray as Beauregard "Beau" Lionett, a human monk working for the Order of the Cobalt Soul to root out corruption.
  • Sam Riegel as Nott the Brave, a goblin rogue (ep 1-96) who escaped a jail with Caleb and wishes to support the wizard's growing magical potential for personal reasons; and as Veth Brenatto, a halfling rogue (from ep 97) who struggles to balance her desire to both continue adventuring with The Mighty Nein and stay with her husband and child.
  • Travis Willingham as Fjord Stone, a half-orc warlock / paladin who unwittingly made a pact with a malevolent leviathan named Uk'otoa when his life was in danger. After a period of self discovery, he switches his allegiance to the Wildmother.

Guest

Synopsis

Setting

The campaign is set in Exandria, a fictional world created by Matthew Mercer for the game.[4] Most of the story takes place on the continent of Wildemount, which is located to the east of Tal'Dorei, the setting of Critical Role's first campaign. The continent itself is roughly the size of Australia. The events of the campaign take place twenty years after the first campaign, and eight hundred years after "the Calamity", a war between the races of Exandria and the gods.

Wildemount is dominated by two competing nations. The Dwendalian Empire consists of the central landmass of Wildemount and is ruled by the House of Dwendal. A council of powerful archmages called the Cerberus Assembly act as advisors to the House of Dwendal. The other nation is Xhorhas, which occupies the eastern side of the continent and is regarded as an inhospitable wasteland by the Empire. Xhorhas is governed by the Kryn Dynasty and is home to drow and beastmen. The Menagerie Coast is a third, smaller political bloc that sits on the south-western coastline which is made up of independent cities including Nicodranas and Port Damali. The western side of Wildemount and the southern regions of Xhorhas are isolated and largely unpopulated. Some parts of the story take place on the Lucidian Ocean south of Nicodranas and on Eiselcross, a frozen continent north of Wildemount.

Plot

The Trostenwald to Alfield story arc (7 episodes, 1–7) begins when seven adventurers—Fjord Stone, Jester Lavorre, Caleb Widogast, Nott the Brave, Yasha Nyoordin, Mollymauk Tealeaf and Beauregard Lionett—meet in the town of Trostenwald in the Dwendalian Empire. They form an adventuring party after they are wrongly accused of a crime. Once they clear their names, the party makes their way to Zadash and stops a cult of gnolls threatening the town of Alfield on their way.

In the Zadash story arc (10 episodes, 8–18), the party adopts the name "The Mighty Nein". In Zadash, they become involved with a local rebellion, make the acquaintance of a crime lord named the Gentleman, encounter a covert drow raiding party from the neighboring nation of Xhorhas, which is ruled by the Kryn Dynasty, and come into possession of a magical artifact called the "Beacon of Luxon" that the raiding party was stealing from the Empire.

The Northward story arc (12 episodes, 19–31) begins when the Empire declares war on the Dynasty and the Mighty Nein avoid the fighting by continuing their journey northwards outside the Empire. Along the way they complete several tasks for the Gentleman, one of which sees them come into possession of a relic linked to Fjord's shadowy patron Uk'otoa. During their travels Fjord, Jester and Yasha are captured by a slaver group known as the Iron Shepherds. During their first rescue attempt, Mollymauk dies. After recruiting more allies, including the firbolg Caduceus Clay, the Mighty Nein succeed in their second rescue attempt and destroy the Iron Shepherds.

The False Serpent story arc (15 episodes, 32–47) finds Caduceus joining the Mighty Nein and the party heads south to the port city of Nicodranas on the Menagerie Coast as Fjord wishes to learn more about Uk'otoa. During a tense encounter at the docks, they are forced to steal a ship and flee as inadvertent pirates. On the open water they meet Avantika, a pirate captain who shares the patronage of Uk'otoa. Avantika joins the party on an expedition to unlock a shrine to Uk'otoa, but relations turn sour when the Mighty Nein realize that Avantika plans to overthrow the pirate leader, the Plank King, and rule the oceans of Exandria. Avantika is executed by the Plank King when the Mighty Nein expose her treachery.

In the Xhorhas story arc (21 episodes, 48–69), the Mighty Nein return to land to discover that Felderwin, Nott's home town, was attacked by Xhorhas. During their investigation, they learn that Nott's husband Yeza was abducted by the Kryn Dynasty so they secretly cross into Xhorhas to search for him. After completing a job for the den mother of Asarius, the Mighty Nein are granted an audience with Leylas Kryn, the Bright Queen, in the capital of Rosohna. During this meeting, the party's Empire origins are exposed, however, Caleb earns the party the favor of the queen by handing over the Beacon of Luxon, which is central to the Kryn society. As a result, the party makes acquaintance with Shadowhand Essek Thelyss who releases Yeza to them and grants them a house in Rosohna courtesy of his den. While carrying out mercenary work in Xhorhas, the Mighty Nein uncover a conspiracy to break down the barriers between the Prime Material Plane and the Abyssal Plane. The Mighty Nein identify Obann as a key figure in this conspiracy and discover he intends to awaken the champions of the Betrayer Gods. Although Obann is defeated during their confrontation, he turns Yasha against the party and releases one champion. The party flees and Yasha revives Obann.

The Angel of Irons story arc (16 episodes, 70–86), finds the Mighty Nein returning to the Empire to research Obann and his cult, the Angel of Irons, as the Kryn Dynasty are unwilling to take the threat seriously. Their pursuit of Obann leads them to the Imperial capital Rexxentrum where they prevent him from releasing Tharizdûn, the god of uncontrolled madness, from his prison. Yasha rejoins the party when Obann's control over her is broken.

The Peace story arc (12 episodes, 87–99), leads the Mighty Nein to an audience with King Bertrand Dwendal which allows them to broker a peace agreement to end the war as they have connections with both the Empire and the Dynasty. During their downtime before the official negotiations, the Mighty Nein spend time with Essek, Jester tricks a hag into releasing the curse on Nott that keeps her in goblin form, the party frees the Clay family from petrification in the Whitedawn Lagoon, and Caleb's second attempt at the transmogrification of Nott succeeds returning her to her original halfling form. Before leaving Nicodranas for the peace negotiations, the party discovers and confronts Essek on his role in stealing the beacons for the Empire. On the way to the negotiation on the open sea, the party is attacked by minions of Uk'otoa and they make acquaintance with Lady Vess DeRogna of the Cerberus Assembly.

In the Rumblecusp story arc (8 episodes, 100–108), they then carry on to Rumblecusp, a remote island where they plan to host a gathering of followers of Jester's god, the Traveller. However, the Traveller had previously revealed to himself as a fraud since he actually the archfey Artagan; the Mighty Nein agree to use the gathering to end the fledgling religion building up around him. Upon arriving on Rumblecusp, they find the island is already home to a false deity named Vokodo, who is controlling the people living on Rumblecusp. The party defeats Vokodo whereupon they receive visions of a sentient city in the Astral Sea that has been driven insane. They carry on with their plans for the Traveller's gathering where they narrowly avoid incurring the wrath of the Moonweaver, an actual god.

In the Eiselcross story arc (ongoing, 109–present), the Mighty Nein, now adventurers of some renown, are hired by Lady DeRogna to support a dangerous archaeology project investigating the crashed floating city of Aeor. Before they depart, the party learn that Mollymauk is alive, having been resurrected. En route to Eiselcross, the party is once again attacked by minions of Uk'otoa including an undead Avantika. At the Empire's base of operations, Lady DeRogna is murdered by the resurrected Mollymauk, who now goes by the name Lucien. The Mighty Nein pursue Lucien and his party, the Tombtakers, as Lucien is planning to summon the last remaining survivors of Aeor from the Astral Plane. Realizing that these survivors hail from the insane city in their visions, the Mighty Nein enter into an uneasy alliance with the Tombtakers in the hopes of stopping them.

Production and format

The format is largely unchanged from the later episodes of the first campaign; with videos of the cast and any battlemaps presented in 3-5 hour episodes. Technical changes however were introduced during the run of the second campaign, regarding subtitles and character information. Since February 28, 2019, a D&D Beyond Twitch overlay has been "available to view while watching live in a web browser" which displays character status information and allows viewers to access digital character sheets. It is not available on the Twitch or YouTube VOD.[5] Episodes 1 through 53 were captioned by the same fan group who transcribed campaign one. From Episode 54 onward, episodes were transcribed live on Twitch by a professional transcription service. The YouTube VOD relies on YouTube's auto-generated captions until the broadcast transcription is reviewed and added "within a week or so of upload".[6]

Episodes 1 through 51 were distributed in much the same way as the previous campaign, airing live on the Geek & Sundry Twitch and YouTube channels and on the Legendary Digital Networks Alpha service.[2][7] Critical Role split off from Geek & Sundry and Legendary Digital Networks in February 2019. The show ceased to distribute on Alpha with live broadcasts and VODs distributed from then exclusively on Critical Role's YouTube and Twitch channels. Alpha shut down several weeks after the split.[8][9]

Ashley Johnson was absent for several lengthy periods over the first 86 episodes, due to her filming schedule for the NBC drama Blindspot, which ran from 2015 to 2020.[10]

A hiatus due to concerns around the COVID-19 pandemic was announced on March 17, 2020.[11][12] On June 25, 2020, it was announced that the show would return on July 2, 2020 with a modified production plan. Following the guidelines of the Hollywood White Paper, cast will be seated at separate tables at least seven feet apart with individual cameras, the show will be produced with a skeleton crew and the show will be pre-recorded rather than airing live.[13][14] A video was released explaining the adjusted set up and from Episode 100 onward, these social distancing requirements have been followed.[14][15]

Episodes
No. in
season		TitleGuestsOriginal air dateNotes
Trostenwald to Alfield arc
1"Curious Beginnings"-January 11, 2018 (2018-01-11)-
A group of seven adventurers—Fjord, Beauregard, Caleb, Nott, Jester, Mollymauk and Yasha—meet in a tavern in Trostenwald before making their way to a carnival. During a performance involving a strange toad, an elderly audience member is transfigured into an undead creature. While the party are able to take it down, the guards are suspicious of them, and urge them not to leave town until an investigation has been carried out.
2"A Show of Scrutiny"-January 18, 2018 (2018-01-18)Ashley Johnson is absent this episode.
The group investigate the incident at the carnival while getting acquainted with one another. They speak with various town residents over the course of the following day, and return to the carnival grounds at night where they witness two guards affected by a similar undead transformation. The toad creature flees into the night.
3"The Midnight Chase"-January 25, 2018 (2018-01-25)-
The party defeat the undead guards and give chase to the toad creature, which they now known to be a Nergaliid. The party barter for passage to an island in the local lake where it had fled, and are able to defeat it.
4"Disparate Pieces"-February 1, 2018 (2018-02-01)-
Returning to town with the head of the Nergaliid, the party are able to explain what happened to the officials. Gustav, the owner of the ruined carnival, takes responsibility for the incident and gives the party a cart in thanks. The party put their affairs in order and leave the town in good standing, and begin to head north.
5"The Open Road"-February 8, 2018 (2018-02-08)-
Traveling north, the party comes across the village of Alfield, which is under attack by gnolls. With Watchmaster Bryce offering a bounty for gnoll ears, the party aids the village's defense, and rest up at the local tavern.
6"The Howling Mines"-February 15, 2018 (2018-02-15)-
Following direction from Watchmaster Bryce, the party track the gnolls to an abandoned mine. They discover some sort of strange ritual that is underway, and fight a number of gnolls.
7"Hush"Khary PaytonFebruary 22, 2018 (2018-02-22)-
During their investigation of the gnoll-infested mine, the party discover that the gnolls have been feeding the abducted townsfolk to a manticore. With the help of a cleric named Shakäste, they slay the manticore and the remaining gnolls. They loot the cave and return to Alfield where they receive rewards and thanks from the villagers.
Zadash arc
8"The Gates of Zadash"-March 1, 2018 (2018-03-01)-
While collecting payment from Watchmaster Bryce, the party need to establish a name for their group for the village's ledger. They settle on "The Mighty Nein" and head northwards towards Zadash. When a group of bandits approach, they pretend to have "extreme syphilis" in order to bluff their way out of a potential attack. In Zadash, they shop at the Pentamarket and discover a magic store named The Invulnerable Vagrant, run by the firbolg Pumat Sol.
9"Steam and Conversation"-March 8, 2018 (2018-03-08)-
Beau and Fjord attend a meeting of unhappy Empire residents who are plotting an uprising, but are bothered by the zeal of one member named Ulog. Caleb and Jester make their way to the Tri-Spire, an expensive part of town. The party takes on a contract to investigate some sort of sewer creature that recently killed a few guards.
10"Waste and Webs"-March 15, 2018 (2018-03-15)-
Descending into the sewers, the party encounter an enormous spider. During their exploration, they uncover a secret route into the Tri-Spire, which could present a means of entering the expensive part of town with more ease. They save a man who was trapped in the spider's webs, and learn from him the password needed to meet with "The Gentleman", a local crime boss.
11"Zemnian Nights"-March 22, 2018 (2018-03-22)-
A storm passes over Zadash and Yasha leaves during the night. Caleb peruses a local bookstore in search of "historical romances" as he had previously found useful spells written in them. Fjord, Beau and Caleb attend another meeting of rebels, and take on a job for the group. The plan requires them to infiltrate the houses of city officials with Ulog to find evidence of corruption between city officials and the nobles.
12"Midnight Espionage"-March 29, 2018 (2018-03-29)-
The Mighty Nein use a city-wide festival as cover to infiltrate Lord Sutan's house and steal his wax seal. This in hand, they go to the High Richter's house hoping to frame him. In disguise, the party discover papers that prove the High Richter imprisoned Ulog's wife despite knowing she was innocent. When confronted by the High Richter, Ulog triggers an explosion, killing himself as well in the process. The party flees, and witness Xhorhasian assassins in a magical battle at the Zauberspire. They retreat into the sewer and are confronted by another Xhorasian, a drow.
13"Lost & Found"-April 5, 2018 (2018-04-05)-
The party subdue the drow and discover that it was carrying a "Beacon", a device shaped like a strange dodecahedron. After some debate the party return the item to drow and let them leave, but the drow is soon killed by a guard, and the party steal the item back. Dolan and Horris, two of the rebels, are concerned about being connected to the night's events, and so Fjord agrees to find a way to smuggle them out of the city. The party rejoin with Yasha and head to the secret hideout of the Gentleman, and one of his attendants recognises Mollymauk.
14"Fleeting Memories"-April 12, 2018 (2018-04-12)-
The party meet with the Gentleman in his secret basement. The crime boss suggests an exchange of favours; that he will smuggle the rebels out of the city in exchange for a job being done. The party are hired to investigate a subterranean ruin, accessed via an underground river.
15"Where The River Goes"-April 19, 2018 (2018-04-19)-
The party follow the river, dealing with traps and local fauna in the ruins. They discover a research chamber dating to the Age of Arcanum. The ruins also contain a magical sword, and they meet a strange ghostly figure.
16"A Favor in Kind"-April 26, 2018 (2018-04-26)-
The ghostly figure, Siff Duthar, attacks the party with mental abilities. The Mighty Nein destroys it, and examine a nook containing jewellery. The magic sword in the ruin is identified by Caleb as the Magician's Judge. Fjord receives a strange vision from his patron, and the party give the loot from the ruin to the Gentleman, but do not hand over the sword. They complete several errands in town, and learn more about the Beacon.
17"Harvest Close"-May 3, 2018 (2018-05-03)-
The Harvest Close festival is held in Zadash, and the Mighty Nein take part in several of the games that are being held. The party discover that the Empire has declared war on Xhorhas, though this is not yet widely known. They take part in a fighting ring known as the Victory Pit.
18"Whispers of War"-May 10, 2018 (2018-05-10)-
The Mighty Nein are victorious in the final battle of the Victory Pit. They debate their next actions, with the clouds of war on the horizon. They unwind at their hotel in the Tri-Spire, and Caleb explains his dark past to Nott and Beau: his magical talent was recognised by Trent Ikithon, a member of the Cerberus Assembly, while he was training at the Soltryce Academy. He was given extra training that would see him become an assassin for the Empire, but was manipulated into murdering his family as a final test of devotion. The realiastion of what he had done caused a mental breakdown.
Northward arc
19"The Gentleman's Path"-May 17, 2018 (2018-05-17)-
The Mighty Nein decide to keep away from the war, and leave Zadash to deal with two important missions for the Gentleman: first, to reconnect with an old friend named Ophelia Mardun 350 miles northwest on the outskirts of Shadycreek Run, who has requested his aid in stabilizing her situation. Second, they are to investigate a safe house in the Labenda Swamp to see why it had recently gone dark.
20"Labenda Awaits"-May 24, 2018 (2018-05-24)-
On their way to the Labenda Swamp, Yasha has a notable dream. Jester saves a kenku child named Kiri who they take with them to the swamp village of Berleben. The Mighty Nein meet the Gentleman's contact in the Keystone Pub. In the evening, Caleb and Nott discuss Trent Ikithon.
21"Stalker in the Swamp"Mark HulmesMay 31, 2018 (2018-05-31)-
The party is approached by Calianna, a half-elf who is one-tenth dragon. She wishes to find and destroy a ritual bowl which is being sought by the Cult of the Caustic Heart. On the way to the safe house, they fight a troll and find that the safe house has been overrun by merrow. Caleb finds the bowl, Yasha shatters it, and Ford hears the voice of Uk'otoa, his patron and the source of his power. Calianna heads out to Port Damali.
22"Lost Treasures"-June 7, 2018 (2018-06-07)-
The next day, the party have a tough fight with more merrow. Jester discovers a mysterious orb, a Cloven Crystal, which is suddenly sucked into Fjord's body. With no immediate answers to this development available, the party secure the safe house by using dynamite to blow up the merrow's nexus room and then take up their second errand by traveling north.
23"Have Bird, Will Travel"-June 14, 2018 (2018-06-14)-
The party discuss routes to Shadycreek Run. Caleb suggests they avoid the route through Rexxentrum given their timetable. They decide to take the second route through the gnomish city of Hupperdook. After several days of travel, they arrive in Hupperdook.
24"The Hour of Honor"-June 21, 2018 (2018-06-21)-
Every night is a party in Hupperdook, so the Mighty Nein partake in festivities. They spend the next day tracking down Beau's stolen coin purse and discover gnomish children took it. Their parents were arrested for worshiping the Changebringer, an outlawed god. Although the party is on a timetable, they decide to take time to help the children by finding a way to free their parents.
25"Divergent Paths"-June 28, 2018 (2018-06-28)-
The party agrees to take care of the Hupperdook prison's out-of-control clockwork warden in exchange for the freedom of the gnomish children's parents. After their success, the Mighty Nein reunites the family and leave Kiri in their care. On their way to Shadycreek Run, the party is ambushed by a dangerous group of slavers known as the "Iron Shepherds" and Fjord, Jester, and Yasha are kidnapped.
26"Found & Lost"Ashly BurchJuly 13, 2018 (2018-07-13)Travis Willingham, Ashley Johnson, and Laura Bailey are absent this episode.
During the search for their missing friends, the party meets a dwarven woman named Keg who agrees to lead the party to their friends if they agree to help her kill the Shepherds. A desperate rescue attempt from the rest of the Nein leads to Molly's death at the hands of Lorenzo, the leader of the slavers.
27"Converging Fury"Ashly Burch, Sumalee MontanoJuly 20, 2018 (2018-07-20)Travis Willingham, Ashley Johnson, Laura Bailey, and Taliesin Jaffe are absent this episode.
Caleb, Beau, and Nott grieve as they continue towards Shady Creek Run with Keg. They meet the firbolg Nila who is heading north to find her son who was stolen by slavers. The party meets with Ophelia Mardun who wants retribution on the Shepherds for killing her most trusted smuggler team.
28"Within the Nest"Ashly Burch, Sumalee MontanoJuly 27, 2018 (2018-07-27)Travis Willingham, Ashley Johnson, and Laura Bailey are absent this episode.
Nila leads the party through the Savalirwood where they meet the firbolg Caduceus Clay, the last keeper of a holy graveyard in the forest outside of Shadycreek Run. Caduceus decides to join the group. They infiltrate the Shepherds' stronghold and rescue Nila's family. Nila and her family escape while the rest of the party venture deeper into the stronghold.
29"The Stalking Nightmare"Ashly Burch, Khary PaytonAugust 3, 2018 (2018-08-03)Travis Willingham, Ashley Johnson, and Laura Bailey are absent this episode. Live show was broadcast from Gen Con.[16]
Deeper in the stronghold, the party discover and free their friend Shakäste. They manage to kill all the slavers, including Lorenzo, and rescue Fjord, Jester, and Yasha. Shakäste agrees to lead the other prisoners to safety outside of the Empire.
30"The Journey Home"-August 9, 2018 (2018-08-09)-
Fjord and Jester are informed of Molly's death but Yasha is still unconscious. They loot the stronghold, and discover a letter which mentions a contact named Marius LePual at the Wayfarer's Cove. Beau spends the night with Keg and the next day the party begins to escort Ophelia Mardun to Zadash. However, on the road, Yasha recovers and learns of Molly's death at his grave. She then leaves the party temporarily to grieve. In Zadash, the party speak with the Gentleman and raise a glass to Mollymauk Tealeaf.
31"Commerce & Chaos"-August 16, 2018 (2018-08-16)-
The party takes two weeks of downtime to pursue individual goals before regrouping. Fjord wants to head towards the Menagerie Coast to investigate an explosion on his ship that started a sequence of events which culminated in his bargain with Uk'otoa; it is implied that Fjord unconsciously entered the pact to avoid drowning. The party agrees to head to Nicodranas on the Menagerie Coast, where Jester's mother, a prostitute and entertainer, lives. Jester uses the spell Sending to inform Yasha of their destination before the party heads southward.
False Serpent arc
32"Beyond the Boundaries"-August 23, 2018 (2018-08-23)-
The party travels southward through Alfield, and stops to drink with Watchmaster Bryce. In Trostenwald, the party pay off the debt of Gustav, former owner of the carnival that had been in town. They also inform him of Molly's death. The party encounter two Ettins in the Wuyun Gorge, and purchase several pets from a merchant.
33"The Ruby and the Sapphire"-September 6, 2018 (2018-09-06)Debut of Orly, a character generated through audience votes during a special Fireside Chat episode.
The party visit Jester's mother Marion, the Ruby of the Sea, in the coastal city of Nicodranas. Jester has not seen her mother in a long time and is welcomed at her establishment the "Lavish Chateau". The Mighty Nein learn that Marion has a client named Algar who is making trouble by claiming their relationship is exclusive. The Mighty Nein decide to try and help by seeking him out. The group visit the lighthouse, and a tavern named the Wayfarer's Cove.
34"Encroaching Waters"-September 13, 2018 (2018-09-13)TBA
The Mighty Nein spend some time in the tavern. They meet a captain who could potentially offer them passage, as well as a grizzled old tortle named Orly. They learn of a network of waterways under the city called the Sluice Weave. Navigating the waterways surreptitiously, they encounter an elemental bound to the location by Algar. The party battle Algar and his men, and Fjord severs Algar's left hand to separate him from the device controlling the elemental.
35"Dockside Diplomacy"-September 21, 2018 (2018-09-21)-
The Mighty Nein coerce Algar into leaving the city for good. They head to the docks that night, looking to meet with Marius. A failed attempt at eavesdropping on a conversation between him and the crew of The Mist results in a confrontation that turns violent. The guards become involved, and the party are drawn into a running battle as they retreat onto The Mist. Caleb hurls a fireball back at the shore as they make their escape. Most of the crew are killed by the Mighty Nein in the fight, though Marius and the ship's carpenter Gallan survive.
36"O Captain, Who's Captain?"-September 27, 2018 (2018-09-27)-
The party sails The Mist back to Nicodranas the following day, having prepared false papers and disguises so that they may resupply and hire additional crew. Fjord takes on the alias of "Captain Tusktooth", and the boat is renamed The Mistake. They take on the tortle Orly as a navigator, and led by visions Fjord has received, sail for the island of Urukayxl. They are intercepted by a much larger vessel before they arrive.
37"Dangerous Liaisons"-October 4, 2018 (2018-10-04)Live show was broadcast from the United Palace Theater. Technical difficulties delayed availability of the VOD.[17]
After standing down, the Mighty Nein are taken aboard the Squall-Eater, and are strong-armed into serving under Captain Avantika. However, Fjord discovers that she is also connected to his patron Uk'otoa and that their interests may align. A subordinate of Avantika, Jamedi Cosko, returns to the ship with information about Urukayxl. As Fjord had suspected, it may well be the resting place of another one of the Cloven Crystals and perhaps a temple to Uk'otoa. Avantika joins the group and they head to shore.
38"Welcome to the Jungle"-October 11, 2018 (2018-10-11)The first episode of several where Ashley Johnson is absent and her character is portrayed by Mercer. Johnson returns in Episode 46.
The group avoid lizardmen and yuan-ti as they head into a dense jungle. They infiltrate a village at the base of the temple, but are discovered and a battle ensues. The party race up the slope of the pyramidal temple, climb into a hatch and bar it behind them. The party trigger a trap and a staircase turns into a slide, which deposits them into a chamber filled with more yuan-ti.
39"Temple of the False Serpent"-October 18, 2018 (2018-10-18)-
The group kill the yuan-ti, and navigate a series of puzzles and traps in the temple. They discover a strange orchard in a deeper chamber, one that may be fed with sacrificial blood. They are attacked by vines, a group of yuan-ti abominations, and finally a hydra.
40"Dubious Pursuits"-November 1, 2018 (2018-11-01)-
Avantika and Fjord race into a submerged chamber, both attempting to break the seal on Uk'otoa. Avantika reaches it first, and receives a boon from her patron. The water level rises and the temple begins to collapse, so the party flees back up through the structure. They are attacked in a flooded chamber by more yuan-ti, and the delay causes Jester and Caduceus to begin to drown. Fjord kisses Jester and forces air into her lungs before they swim on, while Caduceus is dragged to the surface by his companions. They are pursued by the locals as they escape the temple and run for hours through the jungle to reach the shore. The Squall-Eater provides covering fire for their retreat. The group, short on supplies, begin sailing for the pirate-ruled island of Darktow. Fjord and Avantika share stories of their pasts, and realise that they were both involved with Fjord's former captain Vandran, who was seemingly connected to Uk'otoa. Fjord theorises that the Tide's Breath, a shipwreck he was involved in may be the resting place of the third and final Cloven Crystal. Fjord and Avantika spend the night together.
41"A Pirate's Life for Me"-November 8, 2018 (2018-11-08)-
Avantika and the Mighty Nein encounter a Clovis Concord ship, and threaten the crew into submission. They loot the ship, and Jester gives one of the crew members a tattoo of a googly-eyed Captain Tusktooth. A brief scuffle with a guard yields a box of magic paints. Squall-Eater and The Mistake arrive at Darktow. They meet with the Plank King, ruler of the island and in some respects all piracy in the eastern Lucidean Ocean. Avantika pays tribute, but the King whispers to Beau that there will be a significant reward if she brings him information of any underhand dealings by Avantika.
42"A Hole In the Plan"-November 15, 2018 (2018-11-15)-
The Mighty Nein break into the Squall-Eater at night and retrieve Avantika's encrypted journal. Caleb is able to break the cipher and write a key so that any may read it, given enough time. They learn that Avantika is planning to ursurp the Plank King as ruler of Darktow. The Squall-Eater's crew notice the disturbance, and in the morning all are gathered together on the deck. When it becomes apparent that Avantika has tracked the journal with magic, Caleb casts Wall of Fire in a line across the deck.
43"In Hot Water"-November 29, 2018 (2018-11-29)-
The ship erupts into a messy combat, in which Avantika's first mate Vera uses Mass Suggestion to draw in the guards from the docks. Jester and Beau grab the journal and teleport into the middle of the city, and begin sprinting up to the hall of the Plank King. Fjord summons a demon on the deck of the ship as a distraction. Caleb obliterates most of the crew along with Vera using a Fireball, and then all sides stand down to await the Plank King's judgement. The King is persuaded by the contents of the journal, and executes Avantika immediately. As the Mighty Nein have also broken his law, they are banished from Darktow. They are given the fire-damaged Squall-Eater, and quickly flee. They make what repairs they can while on the move. They sail to the location of Fjord's shipwreck, and dive to the bottom under the effect of an Underwater Breathing spell.
44"The Diver's Grave"-December 6, 2018 (2018-12-06)-
The Mighty Nein dive down to find the wreck of Tide's Breath. They enter the lair of Dashilla the Dreadful, and are faced with spirits of dead sailors. Dashilla flees during combat, and while the party recover the third Cloven Crystal a storm appears on the surface as if from nowhere. The ship successfully flees from the storm.
45"The Stowaway"Deborah Ann WollDecember 13, 2018 (2018-12-13)-
The Mighty Nein rename the Squall-Eater to the Ball Eater. They sail to Bisaft Isle to have the ship repaired, and find a stowaway who had been aboard since Darktow. A small gnome named Twiggy makes friends with the party, and reveals a bizarre clockwork magical sphere in her possession. The party experiment and discover that it contains an extra-dimensional dungeon, constructed before the Calamity. They examine a library within and tumble accidentally into the lair of a blue dragon. With the Mighty Nein arriving in the chamber at different times through a magical window, the fight quickly turns dangerous and they are forced into a retreat. They re-emerge back on their ship, and discover they have been missing for six days. Twiggy leaves the magic item, the "happy fun ball" in their care.
46"A Storm of Memories"-December 20, 2018 (2018-12-20)Ashley Johnson returns for a single episode.
The Mighty Nein settle their debts, and reunite with Yasha before setting sail. Caleb examines the items recovered from the "happy fun ball", including several books. Yasha has an encounter with the Storm Lord, and faces a figure made of lightning on the deck. The party arrive in the Gravid Archipelago, and Caleb locates a submerged tower guarded by sea spawn. They dive and engage the creatures.
47"The Second Seal"-January 10, 2019 (2019-01-10)Ashley Johnson is absent for a block of episodes and her character is portrayed by Mercer. Johnson returns in Episode 58.
The party fight their way through several chuul. Fjord discusses his plans with the party: that he intends to break this seal to achieve power, but suspecting that Uk'otoa is dangerous, he refuse to unlock the final seal which will release Uk'otoa into the world. After everyone leaves the room, he gives up his Cloven Crystal, and the party escape. A second ship approaches, clearly intent on attacking. Caduceus is able to use magic to capsize it from a distance. They rescue the crew—with Jester giving one of their number a Tusktooth tattoo—and they sail back to Nicodranas.
Xhorhas arc
48"Homeward Bound"-January 17, 2019 (2019-01-17)-
The group make an appointment at Tidepeak Tower in Nicodranas. The tower's owner, the mage Yussa Errenis, discusses recent events in the war with Beau. Caduceus has Yussa examine both the "happy fun ball" and the dodecahedron. Yussa deduces that the ball is extremely dangerous, but offers to trade it for access to his teleportation sigil. The group learn that Nott's home town, Felderwin, was recently attacked by Xhorhas and decide to check on it On their way into town, Caleb recognizes the Archmage of Domestic Protection, Martinet Ludinus Da'leth, and the Archmage of Antiquity, Vess DeRogna, with Righteous Brand soldiers. Nott leads the investigation of the burned down Brenatto Apothecary and finds that Yeza, the owner, is missing but his son Luc survived the Xhorhasian attack. Breaking into the basement, they discover notes on a previously-unknown branch of magic called Dunamancy and that the Cerberus Assembly used Yeza to conduct experiments. It is revealed that Nott is Luc's mother.
49"A Game of Names"-January 24, 2019 (2019-01-24)-
The party must move quickly to a safe location to avoid detection from the Archmages. Nott reveals herself as a halfling named Veth who was once married to Yeza. Her family was kidnapped by goblins, but were separated when they escaped. Veth killed a goblin leader before being re-captured, and the goblins drowned her and had a witch forcefully turned her into Nott. Caleb confesses that his name was Bren Aldric Ermendrud, and reveals his past to the party. He reveals scars from the experiments Trent Ikithon performed on him and that he has been on the run for a long time. Caduceus, via Divination, discovers that Yeza is being brought to Ghor Dranas, the capital of the Kryn Dynasty in Xhorhas. The group hires an escort for Luc and his guardian to take them to Alfield while they head to Xhorhas.
50"The Endless Burrows"Chris PerkinsJanuary 31, 2019 (2019-01-31)-
The Mighty Nein reopen the tunnels used by the Kryn Dynasty to attack Felderwin. They follow the tunnels to avoid crossing the Ashkeeper Peaks, and along the way meet a dim-witted kobold inventor named Spurt. Spurt is killed almost as soon as he joins the party. Using cunning and distraction, the party cross a bridge over lava being guarded by fire giants and escape further into the tunnel system.
51"Xhorhas"-February 14, 2019 (2019-02-14)Last episode aired on the Legendary Digital Networks Alpha service and on the Geek & Sundry Twitch and YouTube channels.
The group has stealthily crossed the border into Xhorhas, avoiding the frontlines of the war, and they emerge on the eastern side of the Ashkeeper Peaks. However, they are caught in a skirmish between Empire scouts and Kyrn soliders. The Kryn soldiers use incredibly powerful dunamantic magic. Both sides take heavy losses before the Kryn withdraw. The party recovers and head towards Asarius, the City of Beasts.
52"Feral Business"-February 21, 2019 (2019-02-21)First episode available only through the Critical Role Twitch and YouTube channels.
The Mighty Nein enter Asarius and agree to take care of a problem for a beast owner in exchange for a discount on his moorbounders, large panther-like creatures used as mounts. They fight demons and seal a strange rift to the Abyss, the demonic plane. They then meet with Lady Zethris Olios, a den mother, to take on mercenary work. She gives them two possible jobs: bring her the Empire spy working near the Four Corners or find the cause of several locals going mad and committing murders recently, which she suspects is demonic. In exchange she offers 10,000 gold pieces or a favor to the Bright Queen.
53"Cornered"-February 28, 2019 (2019-02-28)First episode where during live broadcast, D&D Beyond Twitch overlay is available when viewed in a web browser.
After a punishing dream from Uk'otoa, Fjord discusses with Caduceus how this dream is different due to Uk'otoa's anger. He learns more about Caduceus's connection with Melora, the Wildmother. The party decides to take the time to pursue Lady Olios's jobs before continuing after Yeza. Beau and Jester participate in a pit fight with a mysterious female drow and others at the Four Corners tavern. After winning the fight, the drow approaches Beau and leads her, Caleb, and Jester to a deserted storage shack. The drow then drops their disguise revealing they are Beau's mentor, Dairon of the Cobalt Soul.
54"Well Beneath"-March 7, 2019 (2019-03-07)First episode where during live broadcast on Twitch, closed captions are available when viewed in a web browser.
Dairon reveals she is in Asarius investigating a possible connection between the Assembly and the Kryn Dynasty. Dairon exchanges information with the group and Beau warns her that Lady Olios is looking for a spy. The party investigate a haunted well and divert attention from themselves. The next evening, they follow up with a bugbear who lives near the well and fight two fiends in his home. The fiends retreat to the tunnels beneath the well and the group gives chase.
55"Duplicity"-March 14, 2019 (2019-03-14)-
The party engages in a brutal fight with fiends including an incubus and a succubus which use devastating charm abilities against them. A minotaur-armanite enters the fight via an abysal rift. While they manage to defeat all the fiends, Caduceus dies. Jester raises him, with the help of the Traveler and the Wildmother, using the Revivify spell. They close the rift and find the device used to punch holes between the Abyss and the Prime Material Plane.
56"The Favor"-March 21, 2019 (2019-03-21)Taliesin Jaffe is absent.
The party returns to Lady Olios and show her their evidence of the abyssal rift. This is verified by a male drow wizard, Lythir VaSuun, who breaks the device. As their reward, the group are granted an audience with Leylas Kryn, the Bright Queen. Lady Olios brings VaSuun and the group to Rosohna, the capital, via teleportation. Lady Olios speaks with the Bright Queen before they are brought into her throne room. During the audience, the party are accused of espionage by VaSuun who was in skirmish on the Ashkeeper Peaks. In a last-ditch effort to save their lives, Caleb pulls out the dodecahedron the party acquired in Zadash. The Mighty Nein are declared heroes for returning one of the Beacons of the Luxon.
57"In Love and War"-April 4, 2019 (2019-04-04)-
The Bright Queen takes the beacon from the party and reveals its nature. The beacon is a key component in a cycle of reincarnation among her people. The Mighty Nein are granted symbols of the dynasty, and are allowed to meet Yeza in prison. Nott is troubled about being seen by her husband in her goblin form but Yeza still accepts her. The party are granted rooms in the Dim's Inn, and discuss future plans.
58"Wood and Steel"-April 11, 2019 (2019-04-11)Ashley Johnson returns.
The party split into two groups to complete some errands, with Fjord, Nott, Jester, Yasha and Cadeuceus seeking out a blacksmith to examine a broken sword that Cadeuceus purchased in Zadash. Beau and Caleb organise work for the party, with Kryn weapons engineer Tuss Waccoh requesting that they clear a mining camp of giants. She specifies that the foreman Bodo must not get the credit for it and offers a bonus if they can embarrass him in some way. The group reunite and head to the work camp, where Bodo offers to beat Waccoh's reward by 25% after being intimidated. The party scouts out the giants.
59"Perspective"-April 18, 2019 (2019-04-18)-
A fight breaks out, but the party are able to make use of Charm Monster to stop the violence. The giants tell them a story about how they were forced out of their original home by creatures that turned some of their number undead. The party rest overnight, and ride for the mountains. They encounter chasme, strange insectoid demons which are extremely dangerous. Jester and Fjord narrowly avoid death, and they are able to seal a portal to the abyss, but a giant is possessed at the last moment.
60"A Turtle By Any Other Name"-April 25, 2019 (2019-04-25)-
Yasha slays the giant, but the dybbuk possessing it escapes through use of Dimension Door. They encounter a second rift upstairs and a chasme flies out to attack them. A possessed giant is polymorphed into a snapping turtle which is still remarkably dangerous and so Caleb is forced to polymorph it again into a less dangerous turtle, before it is tossed into the rift. Another giant is possessed, but the party are able to destroy the anchor and seal the rift. Beau locates a small piece of blue fabric, and suspects that it is a clue to uncovering whoever is creating these rifts. Yasha has a vision of the Storm Lord, and sees herself in shackles.
61"Agreements"-May 2, 2019 (2019-05-02)-
Jester attempts to scry using the blue fabric piece, and is able to witness a blond man in the midst of conversation, and is able to pick up a few pieces of key information about a meeting at "Overcrow", though not his identity. Yasha explains her past as an exile among her people. The party tell the giants it is safe to return home and use a love letter written by Bodo to ridicule him in front of his men. Fjord has issue with his powers disappearing due to his neglect of Uk'otoa's wishes and his refusal to place the final Cloven Crystal in its temple. The party does some shopping, and discover that they have been allocated a house as a reward for their actions.
62"Domestic Respite"-May 9, 2019 (2019-05-09)-
The Mighty Nein explore their new lodgings, "The Xhorhaus" and organise some security along with a hot tub and alchemical laboratory. Essek, their liasion with the Kryn Dynasty, visits and teaches Caleb two dunamancy spells. The party investigates the Overcrow Apothecary, and Jester again attempts to scry on the blond man and learns of an impending attack on the Ashguard Garrison.
63"Intervention"-May 16, 2019 (2019-05-16)-
The Mighty Nein take the information from their scrying attempts to the Bright Queen, and warn of the coming attack. The queen asks them to act on this information and intercept this oncoming meeting at the Overcrow Apothecary. They observe the building, and a drow who approaches. A fight breaks out, but a drow named Obann escapes, and they are encouraged to pursue him north via a message.
64"A Dangerous Chase"-May 23, 2019 (2019-05-23)-
The party questions Mauro, owner of the apothecary. They head north, into the Barbed Fields, and are attacked by several twisted creatures. The Lost of the Sorrowsworn are extremely resistant to damage when in dim light or darkness, and so Caleb casts Daylight over their surroundings which turns the tide. The party spend the night in Leoman's Tiny Hut, a protective dome.
65"Chases and Trees"-May 30, 2019 (2019-05-30)-
The Mighty Nein discover a map of the region inside the remains of a giant tortoise shell, and make for a giant tree in the distance. They are attacked by three gloomstalkers, but manage to distract and outrun them. They reach the tree and camp, and Caduceus communes with the Wildmother. Fjord is again confronted in a vision by Uk'otoa, but is offered a degree of sanctuary by the Wildmother. They climb the tree and disturb a massive roc.
66"Beneath Bazzoxan"-June 6, 2019 (2019-06-06)-
The party use Feather Fall to jump out of the tree and Jester turns the roc into a bat with Polymorph. They examine the treasure they recovered from the nest, which includes a trapped box containing a ring of protection. Jester hides Nott's flask, which results in a panic later as she is dependent on its endless supply of liquor. They make their way to the outpost of Bazzoxan, and magically contact Obann. He has them travel into the depths of the mountain where they discover a chamber filled with statues of weeping angels.
67"Beyond the Eyes of Angels"-June 13, 2019 (2019-06-13)-
Jester retrieves a skull from the chamber, after debating if doing so is disrespectful. The party are attacked by a group of spiders, and pass through several trapped rooms including an ancient torture chamber. They face a horde of undead, who are part of an elaborate puzzle which involves pushing their hearts into a pedestal. They reluctantly camp, disturbed by a strange presence discovered at the bottom of a chasm.
68"Reflections"-June 20, 2019 (2019-06-20)Laura Bailey is absent in this episode.
The Mighty Nein use a bridge to cross the chasm, tied together in a long line with rope. A roper attacks the party from above but is banished by Jester. Caduceus casts Speak with Dead on the skull that Jester retrieved, and learns that the person had sacrificed themselves to contain an entity known as "The Laughing Hand". The party encounters a strange set of mirrored hallways, which discharge twisted versions of the party. Some of their number are trapped within a strange mirror realm for a time. They complete a musical puzzle and reveal an exit.
69"The King's Cage"-June 27, 2019 (2019-06-27)-
During a short rest, Jester reveals that she has the flask and begins a conversation about Nott's alcoholism. Obann approaches, and greets Yasha. He refers to her as the Orphanmaker, and shows his true form as a demon. He seems to be connected to Yasha's past in some way, but Yasha has suppressed the memory. He starts reading out an incantation from a stone tablet, and a fight ensues. The party are not able to stop him from completing the ritual, which opens a sarcophagus in the chamber and releases the Laughing Hand. Each time the party wound it, it simply creates another mouth on the surface of the creature, adding to the cacophonous laughter emerging from it. Obann is slain, but some magical effect causes Yasha to turn on the party. The Mighty Nein are forced to flee, leaving Yasha behind and sealing her into the chamber with the Laughing Hand. The party leave, devastated at their loss.
Angel of Irons arc
70"Causatum"-July 11, 2019 (2019-07-11)Ashley Johnson is absent for a block of episodes. Johnson returns in Episode 86.
The Mighty Nein return to Bazzoxan and debate their next actions. Jester informs the Bright Queen of the release of the Laughing Hand, and scries on Yasha. They discover that Obann has been resurrected. They return to the Bright Queen at the Lucid Bastion, and they divulge their information on the Laughing Hand. Cadeuceus suggests searching for "the Kiln", a temple to the Wildmother, as he believes that it could forge a weapon capable of fighting the Laughing Hand. Caleb confronts an Empire assassin locked in the dungeon, and has Essek delay their execution so they can interrogate her further at a later date. Caduceus explains more about the Kiln, and the broken sword Dwueth'var.
71"Family Gathering"-July 18, 2019 (2019-07-18)-
Beau meets with Dairon at the Xhorhaus, and learns that there are traitors within both the Empire and Xhorhas, as the Empire is in possession of another stolen beacon. They surmise that someone within the Kryn Dynasty had to give the beacons to the Empire and that they are intent on keeping the war going. After a discussion with the rest of the party, Dairon assumes a disguise as a housekeeper for the Xhorhaus. They teleport to Nicodranas, reunite Nott and Yeza with their son Luc, and speak with Yussa at the Tidepeak Tower. Nott discusses the difficult issue of returning to her halfling form with Caleb; a process that may involve necromancy. Leaving her family in Nicodranas with a generous stipend, Nott returns to Xhorhas with the rest of the party. From there Essek brings them to the Kravaraad volcano, home of the Kiln.
72"Clay and Dust"-July 25, 2019 (2019-07-25)-
Essek leaves the party at the volcano and returns to Rosohna, while Jester and Caleb Polymorph into eagles to try and find an entrance to the volcano. They find one, and meet a dwarf named Jeramess Dust, a distant associate of Caduceus who knows his family. Cadeuceus communes with the Wildmother, and learns that they need to locate a blacksmith in Uthodurn in order to reforge the blade. Jester and Fjord contact Vandran via Sending. Fjord attempts to break his connection with Uk'otoa by impaling himself with the falchion almost until it kills him. When this does not work he hurls the sword into the lava. He drops his false accent and comes clean with the party about his loss of powers, concerned about being useless now to them. The rest of the Mighty Nein support him regardless.
73"Uthodurn"-August 2, 2019 (2019-08-02)Live show was broadcast from the Murat Theatre in Indianapolis. This episode features a post-show announcement with the results of the D&D Beyond presidential election, part of a promotional drive.[18]
The party begin the hike to Uthodurn. They are attacked by wolves and two remorhaz. While they are victorious, they take some injuries and are forced to camp when it begins to get dark. Beau and Nott climb a tree the following day to get a vantage of the path ahead, and become increasingly competitive to the point that Nott shoots her with a pistol. The group are pursued by wolves, but arrive at the perimeter of Uthodurn in time to be saved by the guards. They visit the Broken Stool Tavern for room and board, contact Essek and rest. At the Anvil of Smeltborne, they meet the craftsman Umagorn, but indicates that he will need iceflex to fix it: a material created by having a white dragon breathe on mythril.
74"Manifold Morals"Mica BurtonAugust 8, 2019 (2019-08-08)-
The Mighty Nein meet the aasimar Reani and are invited into her house for tea. She accompanies them into town, starting with the Plexus Post where they buy numerous knick-knacks made of mythril. Ava, the owner of the Plexus Post, asks them to retrieve a magic ring that was stolen from her by the Tumblecarves, a noble family with criminal ties. The party head on to the Vellum Steeple Archive, where they are able to do some research into various fields. Nott shoots Caleb as a distraction for Jester to rip out and pocket a critical page, and the group are kicked out. They have their mythril melted down into an ingot at the forge, and are able to gain access to the teleportation circle at the Archive by giving them money and an apology. They return to Rosohna and speak with Essek before he transports them to Mythburrow, where a white dragon is believed to reside.
75"Rime and Reason"Mica BurtonAugust 15, 2019 (2019-08-15)-
Essek returns to Rosohna, leaving the party just outside the cave of Mythburrow, which is home to an ancient white dragon named Gelidon, the Nightmare in Ivory. They attack some of the yetis who are out wandering the snow. They kill four of them before retreating and camping for the night. Outside the dome Caduceus and Fjord discuss their beliefs. Proceeding carefully into the cave the following morning, they tie the mythril ingot to a shield on the end of a piece of rope. Reani has a summoned spider sit on the shield and ingot, while Jester lures the dragon forward with Thaumaturgy. The dragon breathes on the ingot and converts it to iceflex, but carries it off and the party are forced to cut the ropes. They create a diversion, while Nott and Jester use Dimension Door to retrieve the fragment and flee back to their dome. While the dragon attempts to attack them, it cannot enter the dome and so they escape via Teleportation Circle.
76"Refjorged"Mica BurtonAugust 22, 2019 (2019-08-22)-
Safely back in Uthodurn, the Mighty Nein head to the Tumbled Tankards for some bar games to unwind. They give Umagorn the iceflex, and are told they must return Cinderrest Sanctum in Kravaraad to reforge the blade. The party decide to break into the Tumblecarve house in order to return Ava's ring. Reani, Jester and Caleb scout it in bat form, only to be distracted by the promise of bread. They burgle the estate the following morning, through use of Jester's magical paints. Fleeing back to Reani's house, they return the ring to Ava in exchange for some residuum. At the Cinderrest Sanctum Cadeuceus discovers the residuum can be transformed into crystals that could save his home. The party have some downtime, and Caleb has a discussion with Nott about her alcohol problem. Fjord goes out alone to commune with the Wildmother and is encased in a cocoon of seaweed, while Umagorn reforges the blade. Fjord is pulled free by the party, and discovers his magic powers have returned, with some changes.
77"A Tangled Web"-September 5, 2019 (2019-09-05)-
Fjord bonds with the new sword, and the party journey with Essek to the dungeon with the captive assassin. During a close conversation, the prisoner stabs Caleb and she is quickly executed by the guards. After healing Caleb the group retreat and have some downtime including shopping. Beau is promoted by Dairon to the rank of Expositor, and given the task of discovering corruption among Cerberus Assembly members. Dairon is also able to identify the assassin when Jester disguises herself as the late prisoner. The Mighty Nein return to Nicodranas via Yussa's tower, and Jester scries on Yasha.
78"Between the Lines"-September 19, 2019 (2019-09-19)-
The party head back to the Empire via the Wuyun Gorge, and are forced to use magic to charm the guards into letting them pass. They visit Trostenwald and Alfield again, before stopping at Zadash. At the Valley Archive, they research Obann, the Laughing Hand and the mysterious "Angel of Irons", a cult that Obann leads. They believe Obann is trying to resurrect Jourrael, the Inevitable End, an assassin from the Calamity. Additionally, Caleb looks into time manipulation, and learns more of the inherent dangers associated with it. They gain access to the Zadash Archive's teleportation circles, but are then banned after attempting to abuse this by rotating through the archives of the other cities to memorise additional circles. They eventually return to Rosohna.
79"Through the Trees"-September 26, 2019 (2019-09-26)-
The Might Nein meet with Essek, and teleport into the Lotusden Greenwood in an attempt to intercept Obann's party before they reach the Wraithroot Tree as the tree contains the heart of Jourrael. An unlucky scouting trip nearly gives away their group, and they hide in the forest while Obann and Yasha search for them. They follow at a distance, but Nott is spotted and a fight ensues. It goes poorly as Obann and Yasha escape with Jourrael's heart, and the party is left too weakened to take on the nigh-invincible Laughing Hand. They are forced to retreat back to Rosohna via teleportation.
80"The Folding Halls"-October 10, 2019 (2019-10-10)-
Back at the Xhorhaus, the Mighty Nein discuss their need for allies. Dairon arrives and they are able to speak with Essek about the current threat. They return to Yussa's tower in Nicodranas, but find that Yussa has been missing for weeks. Thet speak with Allura Vysoren, a sorcerer from Tal'Dorei who is able to tell them more about the "happy fun ball". Allura knows it as the Folding Halls of Halas, an extra-dimensional space created by a powerful wizard from antiquity. The party determines that a chamber within the ball may contain the heart of the Laughing Hand and that Yussa may also be trapped within. They enter it once more where face a Froghemoth, return the study from their first journey, and encounter a large golem.
81"From Door to Door"-October 17, 2019 (2019-10-17)-
The party explore a chamber within the ball, containing a clockwork tower. Caduceus manages to use Command to disable the golem, but it later pursues them to the armory. Eventually Nott is able to bring it down with a ballista. They discover a few magical items, and use a magic mirror to contact Allura and learn more about the events in the war as from the Mighty Nein's perspective time is moving faster outside the ball. They use the workshop to construct a golem of their own named Little Willi, and discover a laboratory containing twisted monsters.
82"The Beat of the Permaheart"-October 24, 2019 (2019-10-24)-
The Mighty Nein slay the failed experimental monster. They discover that the ball's creator, Halas, had been experimenting with the construction of replacement bodies in lieu of immortality. They locate and destroy the heart of the Laughing Hand. Jester scries on the Laughing Hand and learns that it has been weakened. Pushing onwards, they explore a chamber containing an Astral Dreadnought that has been chained up.
83"Dark Bargains"-October 31, 2019 (2019-10-31)-
In the interior of the Astral Dreadnought they uncover a laboratory of Halas, which contains the soul of the ancient wizard trapped in a ruby. They converse with the wizard, informing him of the long centuries that have passed and contact Allura as they are unsure about whether to release him. Continuing to explore the various chambers outside, they encounter an insane horned devil, and a magical trap which instantly kills Nott. Jester revives her, and their group are able to rescue Yussa from his prison. Yussa goes back to his tower, while Allura performs a ritual to learn more about the Angel of Irons. They discover that the Angel of Irons is a cult of Tharizdûn, the Chained Oblivion, a god of madness that will reduce the world to nothingness.
84"Titles and Tattoos"-November 7, 2019 (2019-11-07)-
Yussa, Allura and the party discuss what they know about the cult of the Angel of Irons, and Yussa reimburses them for his rescue. They are given a contact in the Zadash to ask about it further, and Jester, Beau and Nott receive magical tattoos from Orly. They are forgiven by the Cobalt Soul for their earlier transgressions, perform some research and talk with Yussa's contact. They discuss a theory that the war may simply be a diversion, orchestrated by the cult to allow them to free the Chained Oblivion. At the Invulnerable Vagrant, Jourrael attacks Caduceus.
85"The Threads Converge"-November 14, 2019 (2019-11-14)-
Pumat Sol and the Mighty Nein fight Jourrael, who is forced to retreat. The party meet with the Gentleman, who admits that he is Jester's father. She learns a little more of her father's past and why he was absent during her childhood. Pumat scries on Yasha as she approaches the gates of Rexxentrum, and the group teleport there. They arrive as the city comes under attack from the Kryn Dynasty. The party intervene as they head to the Chantry of Dawn to intercept Yasha's group.
86"The Cathedral"-November 21, 2019 (2019-11-21)Ashley Johnson returns.
The group rush to the cathedral, bluff their way past an attacking Kryn force, and enter the building by means of Jester's magical paints. Caleb smashes in through the stained glass window, and a fight with the cult ensues, in which the debilitated Laughing Hand is slain and Yasha is freed. Obann retreats and the Nein pursue, with Pumat holding off the cultists behind them. They fight in the Fane room, which contains an artefact known as the Shackle, which keeps Tharizdûn bound and unable to affect the Prime Material Plane. At the moment of his defeat Obann is cursed by Tharizdûn and transformed into a grotesque monster.
Peace arc
87"Punishment and Politics"-December 5, 2019 (2019-12-05)-
The party battle against Obann the Punished. In the end it is his own assassin Jourrael who lands the killing blow. The party learn that Pumat is severely injured though alive, and speak with the Righteous Brand investigators to explain what happened. The party talk with Yasha, and are swiftly escorted to the throne room to explain their findings to King Bertrand Dwendal. Beau explains and suggests that the Mighty Nein could act as mediators and help to end the conflict between the Empire and the Dynasty.
88"Unwanted Reunions"-December 12, 2019 (2019-12-12)-
The party retreat to their lodgings to discuss the events of the day, and the king's offer. The following day they are escorted by Ludinus Da'leth to see the beacon at their request. Trent Ikithon informs them that it was recovered in an archaeological dig in Pride's Call, though Caduceus doubts him. The party conclude that the Empire intends to return the stolen beacon to make peace with Xhorhas, but continue their research with the newly-discovered beacon. They spend some time in Rexxentrum and shop at the Cryptic Collection.
89"Lingering Wounds"-December 19, 2019 (2019-12-19)-
The Mighty Nein have some downtime in Rexxentrum, and all but Caleb attend The King's Cut, a clandestine fighting pit under a butcher's shop. Caleb meets with Astrid, a woman her loved while at the Soltryce Academy, who is now an assassin. The following morning the entire party goes to the fighting pit. Beau easily defeats her combatant Ovo, Fjord is knocked out by a man named Darrow, while Yasha throws her fight against Kal Dimmins, allowing herself to be severely beaten as a form of "physical therapy".
90"Bathhouses and Bastions"-January 9, 2020 (2020-01-09)-
The party do some research and pick up their goods from the Cryptic Collection. They visit the Xhorhaus, contact Essek and update him on the death of Obann and the events of the past few days. They converse with the Bright Queen, and after a tense moment are able to organise an international meeting at sea, and a continuation of the ceasefire.
91"Stone to Clay"-January 16, 2020 (2020-01-16)-
Essek joins the Mighty Nein for dinner at the Xhorhaus, and Caduceus shares some of his family mythology. Jester purchases some materials for Travelercon, an upcoming event celebrating her god. Caleb and Essek are able to develop a transmogrification spell that could return Nott to her true form. Nott is hesitant but eventually agrees to the process, but the spell fails as there is still a curse in effect upon her.
92"Home is Where the Heart Is"-January 23, 2020 (2020-01-23)-
Nott shares more details about her past and the old woman who turned her into a goblin, and Beau connects this to an old fortuneteller who dealt with her father in the past. Beau believed the story of her family's prosperity to be a nothing more than a story, but now believes it might be true. Their research leads them to discover her name, Isharnai. In Kamordah, Beau has an awkward reunion with her family, but learns more about the hag that cursed Nott.
93"Misery Loves Company"-January 30, 2020 (2020-01-30)-
Jester communes with the Traveler to determine if they need to kill the hag Isharnai, but the Traveler indicates that there are other means of lifting the curse as well. Three of their horses are killed by acid geysers as they advance towards the Ishrani's hut. The Mighty Nein take it in turns to enter the hut one by one to talk with Ishrani. Fjord, Nott, Yasha and Jester enter and learn that Isharnai feeds on suffering. She offers deals to the party involving various sacrifices in exchange for lifting Nott's curse. Jester out-wits the hag by offering her a cupcake infused with the magical item called that Dust of Deliciousness and then modifying the hag's memory. Isharnai believed that she had just agreed to end the curse because she had such a nice time talking with Jester, and follows through. The party leave quickly, concerned that she may work out their ruse.
94"With Great Power..."-February 6, 2020 (2020-02-06)-
Jester explains what happened while they flee. Unable to escape with teleportation that day, they decide to spend the night in the forest, but are attacked by husk zombies. Caleb completes the ritual for Leonman's Tiny Hut and the group rest. They return to the Xhorhaus for a short time, and Essek teleports them to the Whitedawn Lagoon where they might continue Caduceus' journey to find his distant relatives. During the night, the Traveler reveals himself to Jester as the archfey Artagan. He is not truly a god, but a fraud who needs her help.
95"Blessing in Disguise"-February 13, 2020 (2020-02-13)-
Jester introduces the Traveler to the party in person. Artagan shares his difficulties: although he initially enjoyed posing as a god, he quickly grew tired of dealing with demanding followers. The group debate what should happen to the religion around him and Jester suggests using Travelercon to deal with the followers, perhaps to disband them. As they continuing their journey the party are attacked by Bladerakes, but defeat the creatures and eventually they find a pool of water ringed by strange statues. Upon closer examination, the statues appear to include the petrified bodies of Cadeuceus' family. A gorgon approaches the Mighty Nein.
96"Family Shatters"-February 20, 2020 (2020-02-20)-
The party fight the gorgon, and Fjord narrowly avoids death and Beau escapes petrification. Caduceus frees several of his family members using Greater Restoration and has a strange reunion with them. Eremis Stone, when restored, informs the party that the gorgon came from Blightshore. Cadeuceus places the crystals he forged in Kravaraad into the waters of the lagoon, and they transform. He entrusts them to his sister Calliope as the crystals will save their home from destruction. The party camp for the night and free the remaining petrified victims in the morning. They and the Clay family teleport to Uthodurn where Jester arranges for Reani to escort the Clays back home. The party then heads to Nicodranas to prepare for the upcoming peace negotiations.
97"The Fancy and the Fooled"-February 27, 2020 (2020-02-27)Live show was broadcast from the Auditorium Theatre during C2E2.[19]
The Mighty Nein are invited to a party in Nicodranas by Athesius and Thain of the Cerberus Assembly. Caleb spies using his cat Frumpkin and determines that Thain is a guise of Essek. At the Lavish Chateau, the party make a second attempt at the transmogrification of Nott. As the curse was lifted earlier, the spell takes hold, and Nott returns to her halfling form, Veth. Marion's bathtub is completely destroyed in the ritual. The Mighty Nein organise outfits and attend the party where thay confront Essek. He admits that he was the one who gave the beacons to the Empire because he was convinced that the beacons could yield greater secrets of dunamancy, but their religious significance meant that this would go unexplored. Essek now regrets his actions as they led to war. Caleb recognises similarities to his own journey, and stands by Essek regardless.
98"Dark Waters"-March 5, 2020 (2020-03-05)-
The party debate further action with their information, potentially bringing corrupt empire officials to justice, but Caduceus is concerned it would reignite the war. They escort the Ruby of the Sea, an agoraphobe, back to the Lavish Chateau, and Jester then goes on to purchase some supplies for Travelercon. Veth talks with Yeza and agrees to continue her adventuring, leaving him a small fortune to live on in the meantime. Boarding the Ball Eater, the party joins the fleet heading to the peace negotiations. A storm arrives on the third night and minions of Uk'otoa attack, and manage to kill Fjord and Orly. The remainder of the party prevent the creatures escaping with Fjord's body and kill the remainder.
99"High Seas, High Stakes"-March 12, 2020 (2020-03-12)A hiatus due to concerns around the COVID-19 pandemic was announced on March 17, 2020.[20]
Caduceus and Jester revive Fjord and Orly. The commotion has been noticed by other ships in the fleet, and the Mighty Nein are soon explaining themselves to Lady Vess DeRogna of the Cerberus Assembly. The bodies of the creatures that attacked them have changed into that of dead fishermen, which deprives them of evidence, but their story is believed. Caduceus is able to use Greater Restoration to free Fjord of the remaining Cloven Crystal of Uk'otoa he is carrying, and this is hidden with Caleb's Vault of Amber spell. Later, the fleet meets with that of the Dynasty, and negotiations begin. The talks are successful, and so with the war over, the Mighty Nein set sail for Rumblecusp, the future venue of Travelercon.
Rumblecusp arc
100"Hunted at Sea"-July 2, 2020 (2020-07-02)The show returned in a pre-recorded format with production following social distancing requirements during the pandemic.[21]
The Mighty Nein journey southwest to the volcanic island Rumblecusp. Along the way the Ball Eater is attacked by a dragon turtle. On making landfall, the party discover the island is inhabited. Heading inland into the jungle, to make sure it will be safe to host Travelercon on Rumblecusp; the cast bump into a displacer beast, and a hunting party. They learn of Vokodo, the deity of the island, and meet a half-elf named Viridian.
101"Mysteries, Memories, and Music"-July 9, 2020 (2020-07-09)-
The party learn more about the island from Viridian, and spend some time at the village of Vo. They learn of the tradition of giving gifts to Vokodo at the mountain, and spend the night in town. Jester communes with the Traveller, and learns that Vokodo is not a true god, and may be wiping the memories of island residents. In the morning, some of their belongings have been moved around strangely, though Frumpkin did not sense any intruders. They travel deeper into the island along with Viridian, and are attacked by a Bodak.
102"Ghosts, Dinosaurs, and Stuff"-July 16, 2020 (2020-07-16)Concludes with a 5 minute post-game discussion about Vilya's backstory.
The party face the Bodak, and its accompanying will-o'-wisps and then press on deeper into the island. Caduceus communes with the Wildmother, and learns that the memory-wiping effect of Vokodo can be reversed with magic. They witness more of the strange fauna of Rumblecusp from a distance, seeing a Tyrannosaurs rex eat a dreagloth. They stop for the night, and in the morning journey through a passage that leads into the mountain. It is submerged in warm water which is oddly breathable. They meet with Vokodo, a bizarre creature who demands "gifts" of them. Among the treasures they proffer, Fjord leaves his sword behind, knowing tha the can recall it to his hand at any time. These are added to the vast horde of valuables atop Vokodo's back. The party retreat and camp back on the surface, and Caduceus uses Greater Restoration to fix Viridian's memory. She reveals her name was in fact once Vilya, and that she has been trapped on the island for twenty-five years.
103"Maritime Mysteries"-July 23, 2020 (2020-07-23)-
Vilya speaks of her past with the Ashari, and her failed Aramenté twenty-five years previously which left her stranded on Rumblecusp. It seems that shards of other planes are intersecting at the island, perhaps due to the influence of Vokodo. Fjord recalls the sword, and the volcano begins to pick up in activity in the distance. Jester and Beau scout out to sea a little to see if Vokodo's magical effects fade out with distance, but if this is the case the edge is beyond their reach. Jester and Caduceus speak with their divine patrons, and Caleb creates a series of illusions to remind everyone of their pasts before they sleep. Investigating the strange reverse-waterfall in the morning they discover a cave filled with old ships that had belonged to island residents. Caduceus is drawn into a submerged tunnel by some magic effect.
104"The Ruined Sliver"-July 30, 2020 (2020-07-30)-
The party pursue Caduceus and drag him back to the surface. The group explore some of the old ships, and Caduceus is able to use Divine Intervention to see a vision of Vokodo's flight from the Astral Sea and arrival on Rumblecusp. He broke through the barrier between the planes, causing fragments of the Astral Sea to crash into the Prime Material Plane. The effect also pulled Vilya out of her Aramenté and left her stranded on Rumblecusp. The party leave the hidden cave and are confronted by a series of strange wraith-like creatures in the ruins. They defeat the creatures and hike back up towards Vokodo's lair.
105"Rumble at Rumblecusp"-August 6, 2020 (2020-08-06)-
Jester contacts the Dragon Turtle in an attempt to lure it to Rumblecusp, and Yasha has a vision in which her wings return. They destroy some of the hidden ships in an attempt to draw out Vokodo, and certainly anger the creature, though they still need to swim into its lair to fight. Vokodo heats the water around the party to a dangerous temperature, and is able to use a spell reflection ability to complicate the fight. Both Beau and Caduceus are briefly banished to the Astral Sea. Caleb strikes at Vokodo with a Disintegrate spell at considerable risk, but Vokodo fails to reflect it. The party sees a vision as Vokodo dies, in which Vokodo flees some sort of sentient city in the Astral Sea. They are left with an image of something called the "Eyes of Nine".
106"A Fog Lifted"-August 13, 2020 (2020-08-13)-
Despite the scalding water, the party delay their escape to search through Vokodo's lair for treasure, and the items they lost earlier to the creature. Reaching the cave full of ships, they put out the remaining fires. Beau falls prey to the water spout and is hurled high into the air, but Yasha is able to use her newly restored wings to catch her. Back in the village, the locals' memories are restored, and there is some frustration from them. Some intend to stay, while others are making arrangements to leave Rumblecusp. The party meet with the first arrivals for Travelercon, including a very obnoxious woman named Celia. They divide up the loot and hold a village meeting in which Vilya offers to transport locals back to Wildemount and Tal'dorei with magic.
107"Devoutness and Dicks"-August 27, 2020 (2020-08-27)-
The party organise gifts of gold for the departing villagers so that they may rebuild their lives back in the world. The party workshop various possibilities for Travelercon with Artagan, and decide to imply that Artagan was merely an avatar or emissary of the Moonweaver, with followers encouraged to worship her instead. They design festivities and activities for the event, including a dick-sculpting workshop, a dick hunt, and an event where the dick sculptures are thrown into the volcano at the summit of the island. The Mighty Nein then hunt and slay a Tyrannosaurus rex to provide food for the event. Vilya uses her magic to return home to Zephrah, and meets her daughter Keyleth.
108"Traveler Con"-September 3, 2020 (2020-09-03)-
The Mighty Nein have discussions about what to do after Rumblecusp. Travelercon takes place the following day, with Jester speaking to the crowd atop a stage and sends them on the dick hunt. She indicates that there is one golden dick out there on the island somewhere, which will grant a special prize. Celia is the one to find it, but Veth glues it irrevocably to her hand with Sovereign Glue. After hurling the dick sculptures into the volcano, Artagan reveals himself in an illusory Moonweaver form, and begins to speak to the crowd. The event is interrupted by an actual angelic emissary of the Moonweaver, who is angry at their misuse of the Moonweaver's name. He reveals their ruse and wraps Artagan in chains. Jester grabs hold of him; she pleads with the celestial to let him go, but is also willing to share his punishment. Artagan kicks her free to spare her, which convinces the celestial to release him. Over a round of drinks later that night, Artagan apologises to the group, saying that he never intended them to come to harm on his part; the party threaten to kill him if he endangers Jester again. The Traveler followers leave, disillusioned about their former patron. The party discuss a few different courses to take for their next quest, and decide to teleport to Nicodranas to investigate the Eyes of Nine.
Eiselcross arc
109"Frigid Propositions"-September 10, 2020 (2020-09-10)-
The party do some shopping and spend some time at the Lavish Chateau, while Veth reunites with her family. Beau has the Cobalt Soul investigate Vokodo and the Eyes of Nine, but they are unable to find anything. The Mighty Nein head to Rexxentrum to meet with Cerberus Assembly member Lady Vess DeRogna. She offers them involvement in her expedition to the ruins of Aeor, a pre-Calamity floating city that crashed into what is now the frozen archipelago of Eiselcross. DeRogna offers significant pay for the project, which the party accepts. On the way out, Caleb receives a letter from his former master Trent Ikithon, inviting him to a reunion over dinner.
110"Dinner with the Devil"-September 17, 2020 (2020-09-17)-
Caleb tells the Mighty Nein that he intends to go to the dinner, despite his conflict with Trent, in order to know if Astrid and Eadwulf can be redeemed. Cadueceus and Jester create sanctuaries using Word of Recall. Beauregard gets some information about their future expedition from the Rexxentrum Archive, while the Nein goes shopping and purchase custom cold weather gear. Dressing formally, they attend Trent's manor in the Shimmer Ward. The dinner is remarkably tense, owing to Caleb and Trent's history. Trent expresses pride in Caleb, further claiming that the trauma Caleb went through made him who he is. The party accuse him of attempting to take credit for Caleb's recent successes and Caduceus confronts him directly. At a dive bar afterwards, Beau theorizes on connections between Vess DeRogna and Mollymauk. The party rent some rooms in Rexxentrum, and Caleb casts Magnificent Mansion.
111"New Homes and Old Friends"-September 24, 2020 (2020-09-24)-
Caleb gives the party a tour of his finely crafted Magnificent Mansion, entitled "Widogast's Nascent Nein-Sided Tower", with rooms for everyone in the party customised to their needs. At the Invulnerable Vagrant, Veth reintroduces herself to Pumat in her new form, and the party purchase some magical items. The party is able to meet with the Gentleman and discuss what he knows about his former associate Cree—who knew Mollymauk—the Tombtakers and the Eyes of Nine. Beauregard has some theories, and knows that the late Mollymauk had nine tattoos of eyes and may have been in some way connected to all of this. Jester scries on Cree, and sees her in some distant land, walking through snow. She speculates that Cree already ahead of them in Eiselcross. After some discussion, the party teleport to Mollymauk's grave, and find it empty. Jester attempts to scry on him, and sees that Mollymauk is alive, and is also walking through snow.
112"The Chase Begins"-October 15, 2020 (2020-10-15)This episode was released after a short hiatus in October.[22][23]
Jester tells the others of her vision, and speaks with the grass using Charm of Plant Command, learning that Mollymauk was dug up around fifty days earlier. They speak with Vess DeRogna about the Tombtakers, though she denies knowing anything. Beau and Yasha have an awkward encounter when organising sleeping arrangements as they try to process their feelings for each other. The Mighty Nein join DeRogna at the docks in Palebank Village, book passage on the Midnight Hammer and begin to sail into the frozen north. They encounter a shipwreck and salvage some spell scrolls from it and later are attacked by minions of Uk'otoa, including an undead Avantika.
113"A Heart Grown Cold"-October 22, 2020 (2020-10-22)-
The fight on the deck continues, and Avantika is able to grab the Cloven Crystal and flee. The Mighty Nein pursue her, with several of their number Polymorphed into orcas, and they are able to run her down. As Fjord bisects her, his sword glows with additional runes. He recovers the crystal along with a few other items, and the party return to their ship. As the journey continues they meet a small cetus family, and otherwise arrive at the small harbour town of Balenpost without issue. Their ship flies the colors of the Cerberus Assembly as they begin their final approach.
114"An Open Window"-October 29, 2020 (2020-10-29)-
The Mighty Nein meet their guide Dagen, and DeRogna indicates that they have forty hours before their next departure. They go shopping, ask if Mollymauk has been seen, and share dinner with DeRogna in the evening. As they head to bed, Jester scries on Mollymauk, and sees him searching through a room. He seems to be aware he is being watched, and states "To Alpha and Alpha, we trek till homeward bound we be." The group connect this to the archeological sites on their map, marked A1, A2 and the like. When DeRogna does not appear the next mornimg, the party break into her rooms and discover her looted corpse. They realise that this was the room Mollymauk was searching just hours earlier. Additionally, DeRogna had nine tattoos of eyes under her robes, in a manner similar to Mollymauk. Cadeuceus uses Speak with Dead to interrogate DeRogna, who admits that she subjected Mollymauk to a ritual that left him with his tattoos. She confirms a connection between Aeor and the Eyes of Nine, and that she wishes to claim the Eyes of Nine's power as the Nonagon. Fjord uses an illusion to hide DeRogna's death from her men, and they tell Dagen that she has gone on ahead and will meet her at site A5. They pay him his advance and depart.
115"Fetching Fables & Frosty Friends"-November 5, 2020 (2020-11-05)-
The party camp through the first night without magical shelter, and have difficulty sleeping. Fjord sees a scrying orb which is following Jester, and he and Caleb attempt to mislead their watcher. The following day they uncover an old column embedded with an emerald. The party repeatedly trigger a magical trap on it from greater and greater distances in an attempt to take the gem through various magical means. Unsuccessful, they leave and spend the night in the Nein Sided Mansion, not wanting to sleep in the cold again. Caleb reads Jester an old Zemnian story called Der Katzenprinz. The next day they are attacked by yetis, but manage to negotiate a peaceful resolution, and the yetis provide escorts to A5. At the site, they speak with Mollymauk remotely and debate joining his expedition before entering the cave.
116"Under Timeless Ice"-November 12, 2020 (2020-11-12)-
The party find the body of a drow from the Kryn Dynasty inside the ruins, and investigate a sloping chamber. The Mighty Nein avoid a giant spider, but are attacked by a series of ice creatures. During the confrontation Veth slips across the sloping floors, plummets into an enormous pit in the next chamber, and is attacked by two black oozes. The party rescue her in a variety of eagle forms, discover more Kryn bodies, and finally encounter Mollymauk, who has just finished killing a group of adventurers.
117"The Tortise and The Dare"-November 19, 2020 (2020-11-19)-
Mollymauk, now going by the name Lucien, does not recognise the Mighty Nein. He explains that Vess DeRogna subjected him to a ritual to usurp him as the Nonagon, which tore his soul apart and scattered it across the planes of existence. Only a fragment remained, which became Mollymauk and who Lucien claims no longer exists. The party witness the Tombtakers remove a large gemstone from the ruins, which Caleb recognises as a Threshold Crest, a powerful magical item used to teleport large objects. The Mighty Nein realise that although the floating city of Aeor crashed during the Calamity, a district called Cognouza was actually sent to the Astral Plane and that Lucien intends to summon it back to Exandria. Lucien poses no immediate threat, and even encourages the party to give chase. They formulate a plan to race the Tombtakers to excavation site A2 and recover a Threshold Crest before Lucien can.
118"Solace Between the Secrets"-December 3, 2020 (2020-12-03)-
The Mighty Nein use Polymorph to build a lead over the Tombtakers, but must contend with difficult weather that slows them down. They find a bizarre circle of statues that can grant them knowledge at an unspecified cost. Jester uses it to confirm Lucien's plan, but the statues age her by five years. Cadeuceus questions DeRogna's spirit again and learns that she planned to restore Cognouza in the hopes of joining the Somnovem, the city's leaders, to gain access to powerful and long-forgotten magic. The Mighty Nein realise that neither Lucien nor DeRogna know that the city's escape to the Astral Sea drove its residents insane. They beat the Tombtakers to site A2, where they find a biological weapons laboratory and a hideously mutated creature.
119"Malice and Mystery Below"-December 15, 2020 (2020-12-15)-
The fight with the creature is complicated by the unstable magic of Aeor, which creates odd effects. After a lengthy fight, the Mighty Nein kill the creature and explore deeper into the ruins of the laboratory where they find another two mutated monsters inert in their holding chambers. Further investigation uncovers a passage to an arboretum filled with corrupted trees which Cadeuceus finds unsettling as the corruption is similar to the one threatening the forests around his home. Jester uses a spell to locate the Threshold Crest and the party evade a trapped corridor to enter the vault holding the gemstone.
120"Contentious Company"-December 22, 2020 (2020-12-22)-
Despite being tired from the battle in the laboratory, the Mighty Nein are drawn into another fight in the vault, this time with an automaton. They recover the Threshold Crest and escape site A5, pausing only long enough for Jester to burn the corrupted forest in the arboretum. Caleb casts Leoman's Tiny Hut to create a campsite that is protected from the elements, but the party wakes to find themselves surrounded by Lucien and the Tombtakers, who have timed their arrival so that the Mighty Nein have not fully rested and thus have not recovered their health or spells. Lucien asks the party to hand over the Threshold Crest, but Fjord persuades him to let the Mighty Nein join him on the final leg of the journey to Aeor.
121"Ice and Fire"-January 14, 2021 (2021-01-14)-
The alliance between the Mighty Nein and the Tombtakers begins poorly as both sides try to put the other at a disadvantage. When Fjord and Caleb probe him for more information about their quest, Lucien admits that he does not fully understand his role as the Nonagon. Things come to a head when the combined party tries to cross an icy bridge over a river of lava; the attempt goes poorly when they inadvertently awaken a group of fire elementals. Jester and Veth try to sabotage the Tombtakers during the escape with mixed results. Jester tries to drop a Threshold Crest into the lava, but misses while Veth is caught trying to cast a spell on Otis, one of the Tombtakers. Lucien's patience with the Mighty Nein begin to wear thin until Jester offers to tell his fortune using Mollymauk's tarot cards. While he is initially enthusiastic, he finds her predictions unsettling.
122"Nothing Ventured, Nothing Gained"-January 21, 2021 (2021-01-21)-
Lucien gives Caleb and Beau the book, which recounts an early expedition to the ruins of Aeor. The author, a mage, enters the Astral Plane to visit Cognouza, and on his return the tone of the book changes to rambling nonsense and disturbing half-finished magical glyphs. Lucien describes the Somnovem as the collective consciousness of powerful mages and tries to tempt the Mighty Nein with the promise of harnessing their power to bend reality to their will. Veth speculates that Lucien plans to kill them and use their bodies as vessels for the Somnovem, convincing Fjord that they should kill Lucien and the Tombtakers first. Jester and Yasha refuse as they believe that Mollymauk can be saved. With one day left on their journey to Aeor, Caleb invites Lucien and the Tombtakers into the tower as a show of good faith. That night, he and Beau are pulled into the Astral Plane while dreaming. They are confronted by a vision of the Somnovem and wake to find their bodies marked with a single eye tattoo like the markings shared by Lucien and DeRogna.
123"Fair-weather Faith"-January 28, 2021 (2021-01-28)-
The Mighty Nein experiment with the markings on Beau and Caleb, but are unable to determine their nature or remove them. They resolve to keep the markings hidden from Lucien for as long as possible. The final day's journey to Aeor is clear, but the combined party comes under attack from Gelidon, the Nightmare in Ivory, an ancient white dragon that the Mighty Nein encountered outside Uthodurn and who has been tracking them ever since. Gelidon retreats when the party proves more capable than she expected, and the Mighty Nein decide to make camp one last time. During the night they realise that the Tombtakers stole the Threshold Crest during the battle with Gelidon and decide to give chase. At Jester's insistence they try to intercept the Tombtakers before they reach Aeor, but with Lucien's ability to negate all magic, the Mighty Nein are very nearly wiped out. It takes their combined efforts to regroup and flee into the dead of night.

Reception

The show's length has been emphasized as a potential viewer barrier to entry by multiple critics. Alexandria Turney, for Screen Rant, highlighted that starting Critical Role can be a "little daunting" and that campaign one's "quality is noticeably lacking compared to future episodes which can be off-putting for those not already invested",[24] while campaign two is "highly recommended for new Critters to watch, as it makes it easier to fall in love with the cast, which then makes it easier to go back and watch some of the lower-quality sessions of the first campaign".[25] Turney wrote that viewers "should not stress about completing all episodes in a certain amount of time and just enjoy it at their own pace";[24] "there are also multiple Critical Role summaries and recaps that can be found online for Critters who want to quickly catch up to a certain arc".[25] Dais Johnston, for Inverse, included campaign two on their list of "8 Shows with Hundreds of Hours of Content for Your Quarantine Stream"; the total runtime of episodes 1-99 is "623 hours (25 days, 23 hours)".[26] Johnston wrote, "that hefty episode length is daunting, but there's a perfect starting place in the middle: halfway through, a new campaign started, featuring all-new characters and storylines. It's only just now nearing 100 episodes".[26] Brie Mihele, for TheGamer, wrote, "It can be a huge barrier to starting a show where catching up seems like an uphill battle due to the sheer enormity of content that is produced every week and has been for the past two years".[27] She highlighted three ways to catchup: Critical Role's official Critical Recap videos, the fan run website "CritRoleStats", and traditional binge-watching.[27]

In December 2018, Chey Scott, for Inlander, wrote: "one of the most popular live-play Dungeons & Dragons web series is Critical Role [...]. The first episode of the series' current season, which debuted in January 2018, has more than 3.1 million views".[28] In February 2019, Jeremy Thomas, for 411Mania, wrote that "the cast of voice actors regularly garners viewership in the tens of thousands each Thursday night. It and its Tuesday discussion show Talks Machina are Geek & Sundry’s most popular shows by far, both on Twitch and Legendary’s Project Alpha".[2]

Tyler Wilde, for PC Gamer, wrote on the impact of Molly's death on both the community and the cast: "Twitch chat was inconsolable. A scripted show would probably not have casually rolled Jaffe's character, a carnival performer named Mollymauk and a favorite subject of cosplayers and fan artists, into a shallow grave just 26 episodes in. And neither would that show include a scene in which the actor is told they've been written off. [...] It was heartbreaking, but chance is partly what makes Critical Role and other tabletop gaming shows alluring. [...] Molly's death changed how the players play, too, as well as how their play is interpreted. Recklessness now indicates that a player is dead certain their character would behave recklessly in a given situation, whereas when mortality hadn't been directly experienced, risky playfulness didn't feel nearly as bold".[29]

Christian Hoffer, for ComicBook, has highlighted multiple reveals in campaign two such as Keyleth's mother being alive[30] and that "Mollymauk's body seems to be once again among the living".[31] The reveal of Keyleth's mother was "the first time that one of the unanswered questions from Campaign 1 has been answered in the current campaign".[30] On Molly, Hoffer wrote, "Molly's seeming resurrection is one of the biggest twists of the series and seems to be pushing the game towards even bigger threats and adventures. With the Eyes of Nine looming in the background, we could be heading towards another an epic storyline centered around the only Critical Role PC who died in the middle of a campaign and wasn't brought back to finish his story".[31]

Andy Wilson, for Bleeding Cool, called Critical Role "the best show I've watched all year" in 2020 and highlighted their COVID-19 safety filming protocol that allowed their show to continue "in a safe way where no one has gotten sick". He wrote, "But even more important is what they did this year. They are, weekly, one of the most-watched streams on Twitch. [...] They gave fans something to look forward to every week– an incredible feat given the endless monotony and despair of socially distant quarantine life. [...] We cheered for characters in their growth and development. We got gigantic payoffs for story seeds planted literally years earlier, mysteries uncovered, and romances finally consummated. There is more heart, more pain and glory, more comedy, more tension on Critical Role every week than any other show on television. And they do it all with the most basic of methods".[32]

Adaptations

References
  1. Hoffer, Christian (January 18, 2020). "How to Watch Critical Role". ComicBook.com. Retrieved 2020-02-22.
  2. Thomas, Jeremy (February 19, 2019). "D&D Streaming Series Critical Role Leaves Geek & Sundry, Moves to Its Own Channel". 411MANIA. Archived from the original on 2019-02-20. Retrieved 2020-02-22.
  3. Peplinski, Jack (2020-06-25). "Critical Role: Guest Stars' Characters, Explained". CBR. Retrieved 2020-11-09.
  4. "Explorer's Guide to Wildemount | Dungeons & Dragons". dnd.wizards.com. Retrieved 14 January 2020.
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