The Kill Box | Critical Role: VOX MACHINA | Episode 52
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- čas přidán 21. 06. 2016
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Grog Vs. Kevdak! Vox Machina Vs. The Herd! It's an all out battle with the fate of Westrunn! And watch the next episode now at geekandsundry.com/critical-rol...
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Fight lasted :54 seconds in game time but took three hours to complete real time.
Am I watching anime?
GOG ALMIGHTY no, you aren’t. I only know because the fight finished in one episode
@@mitchelldeines6413 two if you count Grogs opening fight with kevdak
last Saturday there was a chase at my table which lasted for 1m54s, but it took 1h real time. D&D is so funny and time relative.
You're not watching the anime....
Yet.
@@NecRomant1c Hyped for that one thou!
Liam: *first attack does 72 damage*
Liam: *second attack does 10 damage*
I freaking love rogues
James Martin i play at school and in our last campaign our "rouge" ignored sneak attacks and stuff and just went out in front of everyone for some reason
@@supercool1312 Cause they were playing a Rouge, and not a Rogue. Makes perfect sense.
Rogues were way more powerful before 5th Edition. They nerfed them hard by taking away the sneak attacks.
Before 5th you think they were more powerful? I'm confused, because they still have Sneak Attack in 5e, and definitely also did in 3.5. And they're insanely better in 5e than they were back in the 3.5/PF days, where Rogues were fun jokes that Wizards and Druids talked about at parties.
@@Anduril74871 Rogues were garbage in 3.5. They became pretty good in 4e and continue to be so in 5e. They used to have garbage hp, garbage BAB, no way to half melee damage every round (ala 5e), got their sneak attack shut down by constructs + undead, and their sneak attack was ridiculously outclasses by any 2-handed Str build with a few good feats. Now, their damage is pretty good compared to other classes and, more importantly, compared to monster hp scaling.
Grog is surprisingly eloquent among his peers.
I like to imagine he speaks Common as a second language, but when speaking to his herd he's speaking fluent Giant.
As someone that's speaks English as a second language, this makes total sense to me! That's genius!
That's probably it. With his low int score, he fumbles the words of his secondary language, but among his peers, using his primary language, he's rather eloquent, that's what I think too.
That, and he grew up with the herd. The culture, the way you talk, the way you walk and so much more.
I hadn't thought of this but YES! It sounds so right.
Reminds me of one of Geoff Robinson's characters in RollPlay that made that joke. An (half?)orc that spoke in 2-3 word sentences, but when they came across some other orcs, he spoke to them in a highly sophisticated upper-class manner.
2:00:20
He heals 70% of his hit points?
No, just 70 hit points.
Oh so 17 hit points.
Yes, 7 hit points.
Exactly, a hit point.
That drove me up the wall lol
Ik don't know why but this is the funniest comment I have seen hahaha
@@Th3M4k40n what does that mean?
@@HelloThere..... It's a phrase for "that was incredibly annoying"
@hellothere436
It means he's a Monk because he can go up walls
They're so lucky Matt cut his hair. If he was still at full power, it would've been a TPK in the first round.
Ha ha ha ha ha! I laughed too much at this. :)
Or the fact will wheaton (dice curse extrodinare) touched all of matts dice and stuff 😂
It was Wheaton... He makes himself have bad luck and everyone else gets super high roles at critical moments. Combined with the percy factor and you get and extreme 1/20 Coin produce from a 20 sided dice
He's like Samson, but nerdier.
6 years later and it's still the best comment for this episode.
55:12 Ashley: "I'm a barbarian too!"
This comment aged well
What's the context of this? I don't follow CR and I'm just making my way through the series.
@@scylax7669 Ashley's character in Campaign 2 is a Barbarian
Scylax Yasha the Aasimar Barbarian!
untill it didnt anymore TT_TT
Its fine she is eventually coming back
Percy saying "I cast Hex on the asshole" is very dangerous given Scanlan was currently mooning Kevdak
I would have asked what asshole he meant under those circumstances.
Spits out my drink and coughing
Hahaha , please specify which asshole
I down voted this. Not because I didn't Ike it, but to try to get the number of likes to an appropriate level 😉
After 1000 likes, I rescinded my thumbs down the dream is gone.
Everyone remember throughout this entire vicious, bloody, and desperate fight...Scanlan is singing a completely different song almost every six to twelve seconds.
*That* is musical talent.
He's playing the D&D equivalent of the Axis of Awesome Four Chord Song.
Scanlan played that SOOOOO perfectly. Knew his turn was coming up, used cutting words on a tiny amount of damage to Grog just to give Kevdak disadvantage on wisdom saves, then the hold person while he was disadvantaged to it. Scanlan is the real MVP.
He doesn't get new gear a lot, but he takes full advantage of the effects.
Sam's a really good player.
Oh shiiiiiit I didn't realize that part
Straight after he did it they talked about how they have spent all week texting and planning so I think the opening moves had been pretty planned and thought out. Still a really good move.
That's bards for you. Controlling the battlefield.
fun fact from critrolestats: the fight lasted nine rounds, equating to 54 seconds in-game.
+Rune Schwarz most intense 54 seconds ever
+Rune Schwarz Thank you!! I love stats like this! 54 Seconds, that's crazy! knowing that now almost makes this more intense and awesome for me!
Not quite, each person is 6 seconds; so multiply 9 rounds x the number of people x 6 seconds per person
No, each round is 6 seconds, everyone has 6 seconds to do their stuff because the whole round lasts that long, everything happens almost at the same time (no one would wait for everyone else to do their thing before doing anything), the initiative shows which begin first, but the next one begins while the first is still in motion (if not, in a 1v1 you character would act once every 6 seconds, but in a fight with 11 people you would be waiting a minute before moving again? why would you character do that)
The official turn system for 5e is six seconds for a round, one minute is ten rounds
Matt: “I’ve had like 1 natural 20.”
Taliesin: “No no no you’ve had more than one. *evil eyes* We’ve been counting”
XD I freakin love Taliesin
And Critrole stats was born....
He looks like golum
Travis: Natural 20
Matt: Stay tuned next week as Critical Role implements dice cam.
Taliesin: Stay tuned as we fail to open this door for an hour and a half.
And thus several years later the box of doom was born
1:36:48
Vex " I am putting Grog in the f****** locket"
Matt " ........Oooh"
When Matt understands the plan, his face is fantastic.
damn, grog was in a locket for an hour, or 12 seconds, whichever you would like
for similar vibe see : campaign 2 episode 93 ;)
(which im sure you've already seen haha)
Semi-spoiler for a 1 shot battle royal
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.
.
.
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That necklace makes a pretty fun appearance ;)
Grog is now a pokemon
@@Companion92 The one who would make Ash wins all the leagues
Way too little mention of Travis in the comments! He was truly amazing. It's really a shame that his character's intelligence limits his roleplaying normally, but when he shines, he really shines. Grog is life.
In what way was he amazing? Roleplaying his low intelligence properly? Well, he seemed to help a lot with the planning and clever plays, so no. Showing the bravery and honour of his character? No. He went in boasting hard and then cried for mummy as soon as the fight got hard. In front of his whole herd. Then he died as well, but somehow got to be the big brave leader. Its all Mercer not Travis.
+chipping
Well, keep in mind that while he does have abysmal intelligence, his wisdom isn't quite as bad. There is a difference between crying for mother and knowing when you're beat. While Grog has probably been a bit too smart in the last couple of battles for his intelligence mod to play out properly, you have to at least concede that poor intelligence is probably the hardest stats to portray when you genuinely care about the outcome (It's a huge handicap, especially for a personality like Travis).
I would say that in all ways besides intelligence, it's a more mature version of the same Grog we have always known. I would also say that Grog would have advantage in manner of the Herd, not to mention that Kevdak had a legendary ancient armament bolstering him. Even Grog would have been aware that he was going to die (6 INT is still twice that of what a beast can attain, and beast can be intelligent in their own way.)
I think saying that it's all Mercer is a bit harsh (Mercer is fantastic, don't get me wrong). Travis is a very talented actor who showed up to the table and performed well, not MVP more then likely, but I doubt you'd be singing Travis praises if he'd thrown Grog Headlong into his demise within the first 30 minutes essentially forcing the party into a TPK situation attempting to save him.
I believe Travis played Grog honestly here.
+AJ Shirley Mostly good points. Though everybody should realise that a 6 INT in this game is equivalent to an ape and common people have an INT of 10. So Grog is at the level of having difficulty stringing sentences together. This low intelligence should never be allowed for a player character because its going to be a useless character for any adventuring. The player would have nothing to do and everyone else would have to nurse maid - just like playing Trinket. No, in fact its worse because villains can easily dupe him. The only reason Grog's int is that low is because Travis was metagaming (wanted to make other stats higher) at the time. A good GM would never have allowed it, but Matt panders to his players' every whim under the guise of 'making it more fun'. Now in Crit Role everyone basically ignores the roleplaying of character stats - all they are there for is the die rolls - -i.e. rule-playing.
Regarding your point about wisdom and intelligence, the thing you are ignoring is the world (game world). Everyone seems so wrapped up in the characters. The GM alters events and world social and physical laws to suit the party. It shouldn't be like that. The world is supposed to present the party with challenges, if it keeps being changed to suit, the challenges are a lot less. The case in point - its not about his int or wisdom or any other such thing. Its that his actions lost him any honour had in front of the tribe. Anyone that turns up with big words and makes big challenges then screams for mummy, when he wasn't even hurt, is goign to be seen as a joke - according to their moral code, according to the world. But here, we just conveniently brush failure under the carpet and pretend it was a win...because failure isn't fun. Is it fun to play a game where its very difficult for you to lose?
Well anyway they are entertaining to watch. I like Travis, he is actually quite funny and a pretty smart player (would have been better off playing a better character).
+chipping You made some good points there as well. Especially about the part where Grog should be struggling with stringing sentences together. I know little of their Meta-gaming decisions prior to Episode 1, but I do now that meta-gaming is hard to avoid sometimes when you're putting together a party of first timers. However, the DnD ruleset does allow for stat assignment or a roll best 3 of 4d6, which could result in a score as low as 3.
As for Grog doing what he did... he broke the rules of the Tribe in a big way, but there are a few things to keep in mind. First is that with the portrayal of this specific herd, might always makes right. (Grog was beaten and left for dead simply because he tried to protect an innocent. This was accepted by the herd as fair play.) Second, the moment Kevdak was defeated there was a power vacuum in the leadership. This doesn't mean that the Herd would have accepted Grog, but it does mean that Grog was in a position to bargain. And Thirdly, Grog rolled a nat 20 which flipped the tables further. As for the basis of whether or not Grog could have pulled this off, I'd look at charisma and Wisdom over intelligence (He probably should have retarded the speeches a bit though.)
So from the perspective of world rationality, I cannot say I disagree with what happened although it did catch me by surprise. Another thing to note is that a party of 7 has an inordinately high probability of success by default, so programming encounters that are challenging can be very difficult. I also got the feeling that Grog had abandoned his connection to the Herd a while ago and that had been building up to a sharper edge recently.
P.S. I agree that Travis probably deserves a better character.
+chipping I'm not saying you're wrong, at least not completely. If you read my first post, we actually agree on the intelligence is hard thing. I simply think that in the context of this episode, there was margin for error I don't feel that you're recognizing.
I don't think that Intelligence is the sole stat that reflects thinking capacity. Wisdom, as an asset, involves intuition. Sometimes people can guess an answer that is correct, and if backed up by solid charisma, carry that solution to a meaningful conclusion. Intelligence is about knowing the answer, solving a problem with analytical ability and academic knowledge. As both being abstract stats, I feel that under certain circumstances they can be interchanged, as here.
Even in real life, Intelligence and Wisdom are often confused since they often tackle similar subject matter. Like touching poison Oak. INT defines your ability to correctly identify it and avoid it (or remedy it if you accidentally touched it). At the same time you could come to the same conclusion via a gut feeling that something probably isn't a good idea (WIS).
Perhaps in order to help Travis correctly identify what Grogs INT should play out as, Matt should set a precedent of forcing an INT check every time Travis pushes the boundaries of Grog's intellectual capacity. On the other hand, Travis definitely needs to stop with the back seat driving, since Grog probably couldn't process information on that level. However on the point of tribal speechcraft, I don't think Grog play entirely out of the realm of believability, I just think he should have been more simplistic with it.
As for how Matt treated it, based on how things played out, I will say that I think that could of happened. What is more unbelievable for me is their entire sequence of rolls at the exact right moment (this seems to happen to them a lot.) My main annoyance with Matt is that he seems to treat anything below a 15 as a fail, and a natural 20 as god mode activated much of the time. I know there is probably more to it then that, but I feel like there are a wide range of actions that would fall under easy-very easy that get passed over in favor of an on-off switch. I'm not sure if this relates to what your saying or not, but perhaps it'll add some clarity to my side of the table.
In short, I think you are right about a lot of things, but perhaps a little abrasive in your application of the ruleset.
P.S. I don't think animals are stupid, they are generally just treated that way. In fact, I think that many types of Dogs could easily have pulled off the dog version of what grog did here. And they are auto-relegated to INT=3. Perhaps our difference of opinion here is driven by the fact we have a different idea of what an INT of 6 actually represents.
trying to get the gauntlet off and keeping it away from Kevdak -- Can't believe they predicted Avengers: Endgame
OMG UR RIGHT
Cept Kevdak has two of them
Good thing Grog went for the head
And they win, because even Grog is smarter than Starlord. (To be fair, Dr. Strange should have used hold person. Then Starlord could have hit Thanos without breaking the spell)
Travis has played thooor!!
Anyone else upset that through this whole fight not a single goliath remarked on Grog's majestic new beard while they've been stated by Matt to be hairless?
There are too many other details Matt nails for me to be upset about something so ridiculously insignificant
I know right. Grog went through so much to grow that f...ing beard. The beard alone should have an intimidating presence.
I am now
@@jgamer2228 calling Grog's beard insignificant is why you got stabbed Ceasar.
@@michelvanderlinden8363 bro that was elite comedy 😂
The "...Oh!" as Matt catches on to Vex's plan with the locket is still one of my favorite reaction moments from him.
Haha didn't expect this did ya!
Tell me that wasn't one of Vex's best moments. And I did love Matt's reaction when he saw it as well.
1:36:50
@@SupaBass1793 Thank You
Those attacks should have been at a disadvantage for being a fast moving target, and surprised...
"while the entire square sets on fire vax quietly and quickly falls a little deeper." -liam
"wait what do you do?" -laura
"falls a little deeper?" -ashley
"... In love ;)" -Liam
2:13:25
Everyone: "Aaawwwwwwwwwwwwwwww"
Yes! I had to rewatch that a couple of times to understand what he was saying
And then Caleb happened 😂
@@isaacstevens1912 oh
Pike and Percy harmonizing a celestial chant to bring a child back to life is a beautiful image.
Taliesin going full fanboy mode when anyone else does badass shit is the best
Thus is why I love Taliesin. He's such a team player.
The look on everyone's face at 51:00 when Matt said "her feet actually break, from the weight of the armor and the angle that you hit, break some of the shingles..." was priceless. He could have worded that better because I'm sure they all thought that Pike broke both of her ankles.
I made a percy comment/reaction irl when that happened haha
Here even more than in all the previous episodes Laura Bailey is living the game in the moment. "What if we all DIE and the DRAGONS just take over EVERYTHING???"
I was a bit too much for me. At some point she was just complaining about everything and anything and her constant yelling kind of got onto my nerves watching it.
Agreed
@@achimsinn7782 Jesus, god forbid your free content does something not to your utmost liking.
I think it was more of she was either drunk or high and reverted to a 12 yearold.
@@robertthompson5701 I just want to preface this by saying that I love Laura Bailey. She's a saint. But that doesn't mean that having to listen to her saying "We're all going to die" every episode in Campaign 1. doesn't grate on me. I was half joking when I said on another episode that if I took a drink every time she did that, I'd have no liver left.
Taliesin - "What am I gonna do tInKer him back to life?"
Sam - * makes FCG out of spite *
This is an UNDERRATED comment 🤣🤣🤣
What’s that acronym?
@@ALJ9000 It's a name for a character in C3.
@@TheWordN3rd So nothing I’m familiar with, got it
“He’s a robutt!”
I’m about 5 years late on this but when Laura says that a fan said she looks stupid in the new intro and Travis says “I just need a name”.. that is relationship goals. They are such a wonderful couple.
Do you have a time frame???!
@@LadyLier17 7:22, it was somewhere around here I think!
No one looked stupid in this, this inteo was pure marvel and bliss.
@@DeCode343 Ehhh, I think most of them looked goofy af. But I also wouldn't be disrespectful about it. Just bite my tongue and cringe.
@@a.m.4049 bro let them have their fun who tf cares haha
Alternate title: Hi, who wants a 3 hour long heart attack?
Seriously though.
MyRYNOrunsHot greeaattttt..... I'm just starting the episode...
And how did that work out for you?
Scarlett Kara Seems they didn't make it
Nope. A shame really. Didn't even get to the kraken yet.
Holy shit Sam! Brilliant cutting words / hold person combo. Passing multiple concentration saves, dispelling, inspirations, spot heals, tactical moves AND calming the nervous cast with jokes and banter. He's been playing well consistently since day 1 but I think this was the birth of Scanlan MVP. The little gnome that could is the stylish glue that binds Vox Machina together :D
Agreed. He's the kind of player that realizes that 'wasting' a 6th level spell just to lift up Grog isn't just cute but is actually Important.
The Kill Box set the standard for his future Clutch Moves.
I feel like Scanlan's real change where he became more of a role model was after he met Keylee. His character now has someone to protect, and that changed how Sam played him.
Indeed. And all of it is building up to his brilliant performance in the final boss fight of the campaign. :)
The few times he wields his Vestige, he uses the advantages gained from it in an extremely well planned manner. He's brilliant
What about fireballing civilians?
The theater of the mind of Scanlan paralyzing a goliath with the force of his butthole and relentlessly holding that pose while being stabbed is incredible
3:03:46 Keyleth rolling a nat 1 for her part in helping to resurrect a child is so on brand
It's so sad. 😂 She tries so hard to do the right thing.
In the 2-week end-of-month drought after she shows up again in the 3rd campaign, I’m anxiously looking forward to her showing us how much she’s improved at this!
I like to think of it as the result of her hypocritical self-righteousness and how naive she is... it feels like karma and makes me laugh.
That said, obviously Marisha as a person doesn't deserve the hate she gets/got about how she played her character. Before anybody gets the wrong idea, I obviously don't condone that.
@@bschneidez called her hypocritical self-righteous and naive but claim to be against the hate the player receives immediately afterwards? Pick a line buddy
@@claire3614 He called Keyleth naive and hypocritical, not Marisha, and even defended the player right after. The character can be a total piece of shit while the player who plays it a total saint of a person. Chill out.
This was the day that Sam started making the t-shirts. And the rest is history...
You think Sam is the loveable fool, but really, when he says he's the de facto leader of Vox Machina.. That ain't no joke.
You think Sam is the lovable fool, when really he's a heartless monster who'll throw anyone under the bus as long as it's not Pike. THAT ain't no joke.
@@xFlareLeon But... he helps his friends by giving advice like when Vex stole the broom and is willing to go on his on in missions to try helping people
What at the table id say scanlan is the most caring character in vox mochina second only to keylith.
@@thomasweir2213 Yeah except for him straight up murdering two villagers this episode. Scanlan cares about the other members of vox machina and Kaylie.
@@thomasweir2213 id actually say vax is probably the most caring member, at least in regards to the party
Can I just point out that they disarmed kevdack and then de-armed him
0:00:57 - Multipass, cause who doesn’t love the fifth Element
0:11:31 - Game begins
0:13:45 - Sam's Secret Weapon
0:24:05 - Scanlan's Cutting Words
0:26:55 - MVP Play
0:29:45 - Did somebody say High Noon?
0:36:51 - Grog's One Liner
0:41:45 - No Mercy Percy…. Guns
0:49:12 - Saren Rae is pissed off
1:03:10 - Quick Peek
1:04:08 - Well hello there Maintenance man
1:05:00 - Percy the Badass!
1:08:38 - You Can't Break Those Cuffs
1:12:35 - Scanlan Heals Pike
1:24:40 - "what does your dice say?"
1:28:26 - When you're about to beat the gym leader and they pull out a full restore
1:28:50 - Scanlan, MVP
1:31:55 - stop it mercer
1:35:45 - MedeVex
1:49:24 - sixxxxxx
1:57:00 - Scanlan Inspires Pike (Oh the harmonies!)
2:03:35 - No Fucking Mercy!
2:08:20 - Sam Breaks the Tension
2:09:42 - let us all be reminded that Keyleth speaks for the trees
2:30:09 - Desperate Measures
2:31:25 - Grog does some critical damage..
2:37:20 - WITNESS!
2:37:25 - Vex’s Intimidation
2:44:00 - Grogs speech.
2:54:34 - Ultimate Whoa
3:12:26 - Game ends
Thabk you
Thanks :)
BOOST
Boost
Boosting
I like how Matt is in disbelief of the total 5 or 6 crits the party rolled when he himself seemed to be rolling critical strikes against the party multiple times every round
I believe the total count according to critrole stats is 9 for Matt, 7 for the party, though I might be wrong
with the obscene number of attacks that Matt is actually rolling it kind of makes sense that he would be getting more than the entire party put together
@@BrentDnD A pussy? Really? The whole party are freaking out the whole fight and you're going to call Matt that because he was mystified by the number of crits they got? They're rolling whole hell of a lot less dice than he is, so it's pretty reasonable to be surprised by their obscene luck.
36:54
"I do hope you have a necromancer in your group, cause I'm looking at a fucking dead man."
Best line from a member of VM so far.
Followed by not adding his brutal crit damage and not immediately severing the arm
@@Ryanais420 yeah. Some dick ripping was happening when I watched this live for that reason.😂
I am so happy I met Travis!
@@Ryanais420sooooo frustrating!
Me yelling four years into the past: "Brutal Critical, Grog! Don't forget your extra 2d12 on the Crit!"
Probably the best episode they ever did. And Grog relying on his friends instead of his ego is just the perfect way to show his growth.
"Where does your strength come from?"
"My Friends!"
Grog's arc is genius, in an anime setting he would have taken his nemesis by himself all badass and cool. So when he shouted out for Vox Machina I was a bit disappointed thinking someone would take his glory.
But the fact that All of Vox Machina contributed in the fight with Kefdak and with Grog dealing the final blow harkens back to the line "I find my strength in my friends." in ep 43.
This episode is one of the greatest and most satisfying.
I agree, although the way it's played out is good. My only frustration was Grog not pulling out the Tiefling-forged Moon Hammer after losing Craven, and then AGAIN after being disarmed of the Firebrand. I love Travis and think he's one of the most brilliant at truly occupying his character rather than just powergaming. But I think he forgot he had it, and I wanna see what it does!
@@Bboyoriginalsin I think that it's just a regular hammer, but a cool looking one. IIRC, Matt said the he got no additional bonuses when he swung it when he got it.
This is not an anime. In one Grog would get some ridiculous unexplained power-up during the fight and win relying solely on it. It's much better this way, as DnD simply acknowledges that characters have limitations and there are bridges they can't cross alone.
I don't know about that... Depends on which anime we're talking about. Many of them would have him take on Kevdak himself, sure, but others would revel in the "power of friendship" trope.
@@Bboyoriginalsin It doesn't *do* anything. Pay closer attention in the episode he got it in. It's just a nice looking hammer. More of sentimental value because of who forged it than of actual combat value. Definitely something to use as a last resort if magical weapons aren't available.
I love that the lecherous gnome bard comes closer and closer to being the most useful party member with each battle.
5E Bards, yo. The power is real.
let's be real, he's the de facto leader. You can tell that Sam takes the time between each session to look through his spells and make at least minor plans to start the next session. let alone all the song parodies he contemplates.
MrTingles
Though personally I've started to like that Merisha doesn't check her spells. Only half knowing them really suits Keyleth's personality of klutzy naivete.
What about the fact that she was 100% useless that whole fight, and even her fire damage she rolled terrible and hardly did any damage.
***** 22 wisdom and you're not expected to be wise? Lmao.
"I've got a Scrooge McDuck-sized pit of Xanax at my house I'm just going to dive into" is a MOOD.
... STABILIZER
@@williammattes1991 ...Nice
1:44:10
Matt was sooooooo pissed that Kevdak spent the majority of the fight paralyzed and then the Cure Wounds was Counterspelled.
I think he was a little disappointed for sure, but I think he also genuinely enjoys being outplayed fair and square. They make for great in-game moments and are the cause of much joy, excitement, and celebration among his friends. I think he also likes that it helps him grow as a DM, and as the DM, he knows that there's always next time.
He was making some weird calls this fight. Like making sure Grog only got resistance on physical damage, not necrotic, as per rage rules. But then letting all of HIS barbarians resist fire damage multiple times?? Not saying he did it consciously, but he definitely seemed a bit defensive after such a big upset to his plans right off the bat (shoulda had legendary resistances if he didn't want that to happen). This is my first watch through, so hopefully his refereeing improves with time. It just felt very skewed, beyond the already difficult circumstances themselves. Like he didn't want to reward their creativity.
@@KooblyK All of his barbarians were bear totem barbarians that get resistance to everything except psychic damage
@KooblyK if you had watched the last episode*, even if you don't know how barbarians work, Matt literally explained it at the end. He was confidently correct in his rulings.
Holy crap, Travis is an amazing actor. I don't know how he comes up with this stuff off the cuff like that. That was movie quality material right there.
Agreed! I gave you your 200th like for that comment. *high five*
It’s now a personal quest to find an Abelhawk comment on every episode. Love ur channel
Wasn't Wil on set before the game began?
The dice kept going between 1 and 20
Wil and Taliesin dice
The 2 dice Gods were at war tonight.
Very true
What an epic thought :D so true
He actually was lol. There’s a vid on CZcams of Liam and Travis getting him to come in and touch Matt‘s dice and table and even gave him a hug. It’s great.
the dice giveth but also taketh
@@creidy2018 do you have a title or link?
Sam - hey we killed something guys!
Matt - yeah the first thing you've killed in this fight is an innocent peasant...
Laura - *sad eyes intensify*
This episode, determined by dice rolls, improv, and role playing, was better than anything I saw in the last season of GOT.
Almost; I was a fan of Arya stealthing through the castle after the walkers got in.
Not a high bar to clear.
That being said, this had Way less budget than GoT so it's even more embarrassing.
@@kaneo1 Would have been way better had she gotten to assassinate Cersei, or actually attempt to.
Similarly dumb choices by all the characters but yeah
I would argue….. any and all seasons of GOT
I like how all the players thought Scanlan was wasting his Cutting Words spell on Grog's very low damage; little did they know he actually had a plan in place...
He was definitely the MVP of the fight, so many things went perfectly for him. Percy was also clutch by nearly single handedly shooting off one of Kevdak's arms in one round.
In retrospect every move made played out perfectly. Vex had two perfect (though unplanned) actions as well-Pokéballing Grog (who would have died and been dismembered in the next round) and releasing him to get the killing blow. Even with hold person there could have easily been a TPK without that sequence of events!
Scanlan's were the only brilliant moves in the whole thing, the rest were just a catalogue of blunders and desperate gambles.
chipping Blunders and desperate gambles that ended up saving their lives!
chipping Laura popping Grog into the necklace literally saved the entire party this fight. If Grog had fallen, even if they killed Kevdak the other goliaths would have kept fighting and it would have been a TPK for sure. Vex is MVP this game
As much as I love (love) and miss (MISS) Sam’s ads starting of each episode in unimaginable ways, I’m also really a fan of seeing Liam’s wyrmwood ads slowly spiralling into bizarreness..
Also, is CRITROLE the original WEPLAYDUNGEONSANDDRAGOOONS?
@@pagenein it is 100%
"You guys, D & D Beyond..."
There was a moment about two episodes ago that vax missed a perfect opportunity for saying "CRITROLL" that's a CRITROLL...
Prepare for the loot crate shenanigans
2:08:28 laura is genuinely about to start sobbing and then sam makes a joke and they all cackle with laughter, god bless sam, this man is not who we deserve but who we need
Sam has saved my mind from many dark headspaces.
Sam is the human antidepressant
Natural born bard.
@@roboticd he really is a real life bard. His comedic timing and the shit he says is genius.
Grog, digging the Blood Axe into Kevdak's arm: _FIRMLY GRASP IT_
you made me spit all my water against my monitor, thank you, haven't laughed this hard in a while
Would like, but you're at 69
....nice
@@mrmoosetachio respect
Ancient joke
Dammit, I just snorfed my drink reading that!
Grog: "How many do you number?"
Goliath Chief: "What's a number bigger than five?"
Man, I was hoping he would say "Six."
That would have been so great.
It's a shame Matt didn't play them as at least a LITTLE stupid. 😂
@@cpt.awesome7281 I think it's cause Grog is really the stupid one among them, the others have at least an average intelligence. Kevdak certainly seemed pretty smart at least.
@@shypup5675 I like to imagine Kevdak beat the intelligence out of him with a really bad concussion
"What'm I gonna do, TINKER him back to life?" Underappreciated line, Percy. Nice work.
Dammit Jim, I'm a tinker not a doctor!
@@kaizen5023 I hate how much I laughed at this.
"Daddy, there's an electrical engineer on the roof!"
Time stamp?
But then!! Percy's nerdery actually came in handy. So good
So fitting of Scanlan to use the Mythcarver against the wielder of the Titanstone Knuckles instantly. Clutch moment.
i see your vestige and raise you mine... I WIN!
I love How Scalan has on multiple bosses just crippled them with the shenanigans support spells he can pull out of his literal butt.
1:40:11 Imagine being paralysed and seeing this blur of black and feathers come out of the shadows, running at you with unnaturally fast movement, faster than any humanoid creature should be able to move, something metallic glinting and suddenly he’s up in your face, and you can’t look down at the dagger but you feel it stabbing further into your body than a weapon of its size should go, before its viciously yanked out, then *again* thrust into your flesh, this time close to the neck, and the shadow of a man who’s face you only saw clearly for a brief second darts out of your peripheral again. That’s fucking terrifying tbh.
It's just too bad he didn't pick up the arm/gauntlet while he was there.
@@lianehargrove2440 I don't think he would be able to as it's probably another action
The imagery is so vivid. Vax dives off the roof, swoops down past a barbarian who can't even spot him as he is little more than a black smear of motion before he bolts right into Kevdak's space, plunges the points of his daggers into his flesh before he spins on his heels and leaves him to bleed and think on his final remark, "Your fate is sealed here today, my friend"
Keiran Roberts I know riiiight freaking love it. True dark dramatic rogue mood there.
@@hahmann yeees omg that was crazy
I love how throughout both campaigns whenever combat goes south for the party Laura just goes straight to “We’re all gonna die.”
i guess if you go in expecting the worst you'll never be disappointed lol
And in this encounter there was a 99% chance they would have died if they didn't just run away immediately
Every time! It’s hilarious
And the scream. "Aaaaaaaahhhhhh!!" Laura's a gem
Followed by "It's a sneak attack" or "do I get advantage?" 😂
I love sams commitment when he says hes done something he sticks to it even if he realises it was bad half way through. He is really playing the game like he is making split second decisions in the heat of battle.
Every time Vax clicks his boots. I instantly start thinking about Dorothy from the wizard of Oz. And Vax just going "There's no place like home."
Best “How do you wanna do this?” reaction so far.
I rewatched it like 3 times out of joy lol
I ... might have shed a tear.
2:32:58 is the timestamp for those who want to know.
Ashley is spoiling us with her being here for three episodes in a row
The exchange at 1:52:55 is one of my favorite moments from this campaign so far.
Laura/Vex: (high-pitched & desperate) "Scanlan! Don't hurt the innocents!"
Sam/Scanlan: (matter-of-factly) "I said it already; it's too late."
RIP those two innocents
"VOX MACHINA; F*CK SH*T UP!"
Best opening battle cry every.
(and yes I realize that was from last episode but dun wanna spoil it)
1:36:53 you can see the realization of what Laura is doing and the pride in the clever item usage in Mercer's face hit him all at once
And then he proceed to punish her, making 5 AdOs by enemies without reach weapons against a flying target. I love this show and Matt's DM style, but this fight was unfair.
@@grazianogiacobone4321 Seriously, also concentrates a lot of attacks on Scanlan because he held the hold person. And then the heal spell which does not return limbs (I know it wasn't fully dismembered but still). Maybe if he had healed him for over half of his maximum, but he healed only 70, which for Kevdak isn't that much.
They are sentient creatures they would attack weak links and those being smart, I always roll perception checks on the bad guys if they are semi intelligent to see if they notice things like the concentration of spells or people healing, it’s tactics, the games no fun if there’s no challenge, and being the dms attacks the not having reach doesn’t matter as much, he even said they are tall ass Goliath’s with great swords
@@juraj1998 His other broken arm got healed, not the one that got cut off.
@@grazianogiacobone4321 She has to touch Grog to get him into the crystal, so she would have technically been within five feet of all the barbarians. It's not punishing her, it's playing the game as it's written and as it would happen.
As a dm: ...god damn counterspell...
As a fan: GOD DAMN COUTERSPELL!! WOOOO!
He shouldn't be giving that much information before casting a spell, because it gives the players an unfair advantage. He should just say "someone runs over to Kevdak and seems to be casting a spell".
@kiekebe Not only a talented one, somatic and verbal components are a thing, after all.
@kiekebe Yeah, i agree. Identify which spell is being used requires a lot of experience, but to notice that a spell is being used is easier. I think that's the diference between only using a counterspell and using a counterspell of the right level. When i DM, when a player asks me if they know what magic is being cast, if they are the same class of the enemy caster, they know. If they are different classes, they can make a arcana check.
Here's a fun trick for DM's:
Counterspell the player's healing.
@@knutandersson4606 Oh yeah I've done that plenty of times lol.
2:26:00 and beyond: Travis and Laura come up with THE PLAN. Love to see those moments being discussed in secret
Yea. And you can see that Laura was still hesitant about it. But it worked out better than anyone could have imagined.
I will argue that Grog was raging: he was raging when he was put into the sphere, in the pokeball the creature is stopped in time, and also he didnt take any turn in between, so, he should still be raging out of the pokeball.
IIRC, The occupant of the necklace doesn't *feel* time pass, but time does pass for them. That might be a DM choice if used in another game.
Man Sam's a genius. Using Cutting Words to give Kevdak disadvantage and THEN casting a spell on him was an amazing plan. This is so fun to watch now I know what sports fans must feel like :D
And so many good quotes. "Daggers out, hasted, Raven Queen armor, f-k y'all" should be a bumper sticker.
I agree that it was a great play. I just don't see how cutting words gave Kevdak disadvantage on a wisdom save ? Cutting words reduces the enemies die roll. Confused here.
Longstreet 01 it’s an effect of mythcarver, scanlans vestige sword. I’m not quite sure Matt realised how powerful this ability would end up being when Sam played it so smart
@@insertcoolwordhere but like, Vestiges are artifacts from Gods so it makes sense if it were OP. And Mythcarver are pretty tailormade for Scanlan anyways. Also for his current level he only have 5 Bardic Inspirations per long rest, so imo it's pretty balanced.
@@czarLanay Really liked when they found it and Matt is reading the description.
Sam: its a sword, whatever.
Matt: weapon of Master bards
Sam: Oh Really?
Matt: "Everyone roll intiative"
Matt: *notes everyone's rolls and establishes the turn order*
Everyone else: "I would like to hold my action and ignore the entire turn order."
Well they said they planned for the fight a lot, so I guess that makes sense
Is holding your action even a third in d&d? Because I know that for ready attack it says if the trigger doesn’t happen you’ve lost your turn,but nowhere in the combat section of the player’s handbook did I see anything on delaying your action. Wondering for my campaign
@@wolverinehobbit1 Is not a rule in 5e as far as I'm aware, so it's probably a homebrew done by Matt.
"Readying an Action" in 5e not only makes you loose your turn if your trigger never happens but it also uses your reaction, forcing players to only use them if they are trying to do something really cool. As you can see in the game, Matt's homebrew makes for more dinamic fights, but also it's really hard to keep track of.
@@at5203 thanks I wanted to know for my game
Lol I thought that too
I understand why Travis was so scared to do this fight. Truly a badass fight and Travis delivering the final blow and going down with it. Somewhat poetic
I think as Matt said in one of his wrap up interviews or somewhere it had to be Grog to kill Kevdak or the rest of the Herd would just have kept fighting and probably killed the whole party. Only having one of there own deliver the death prevented the total party kill. It was that close.
@@Dunybrook I'm not gonna be like that one guy that has years-long arguments that "these two coincidences are DEFINITE, IRREVOCABLE PROOF that CR is scripted" but between this and Percy getting basically all relevant kills in Briarwood arc I think Matt's not beyond shaving off a couple hit points here and there if the right player for the narration gets close enough. Then again, both guys in question are well capable of dealing three digits worth of damage in a turn.
@@IRQ17 first time watch CR through, but I've heard mat on some stuff here and there say "the fun comes first and foremost" (even though Matt has been getting a bit ruley sometimes, but I think he's just trying to stop things getting out of hand with people taking liberties, maybe) or something like that anyway, and it's no fun to have someone's character not get closure because someone else got the kill, unless you're gonna turn that into a story line, basically what I'm saying, I agree with you, but I also don't mind matt doing it.
@@IRQ17I think Matt is just very conscientious of the game and the players and drops them hints about the game so that the players can play accordingly. At one point Matt stated that Kevdak only had 70 HP left; that's enough information for them to go on to adjust their plans to give Grog a good chance at the killing blow.
Basically, I don't think he needs to fudge the numbers because the players are good enough as a whole and he trusts their abilities enough for it to not be necessary (not that I think he would anyway).
He very much puts a lot of focus on fun but he also puts a lot of focus on the integrity of the game and on creating and delivering a fair and organic experience for the players and audience alike, far above any particular or "ideal" outcomes I think.
@@IRQ17 Right? That's not "scripted", that's good DMing. Seeing the joy and exhilaration on your players faces when an epic plan/move goes through is the point of being a DM.
Just imagine how lame it would have been for Grog to do his helmbreaker into a sacrifice, if it left Kevdak with like 3 HP and a random spiritual weapon or an arrow poked him to death after that. Sure, the party would still cheer because a big threat was eliminated, but this way it was FUCKING EPIC!
Laura: You put your deck in the box.
Matt: Thats deck. With an E.
9:10
Here's the first of the Sam's ridiculous shirts
hell yeah! im ready for the escalation
I mean there was the Redskins shirt from way earlier
I love that Percy can go from no mercy Percy to harmonizing in celestial to help a child. My favourite character
I love Percy as a PC and Taliesin as a person! He's so supportive of the team, genuinely thankful (and sometimes overwhelmed!) By the love from the Critters. I had such joy watching him lose his shit at Grogs speeches.
Then he talks about how he takes his unwanted stuff from his Loot Boxes and makes like Santa Claus with the kids in his neighborhood...my heart.
BTW. That scene made me cry imagining it. Percy, battered, bloodstained, smelling of black powder, gently singing in Celestial to save a child, the aftermath of the batte smoudlering around them as the light of Sarenrae descends.
@Dean Forrester hahaha percy cares about the innocent... oh man, now thats humour!
@@Darksnakemrniceguy who hurt you?
All of Taliesin's characters are my favorite to the point that leading up to C3 I was saying "I wonder who Taliesin has picked as my C3 favorite character?"
@@tiph3802 apparently Taliesin Jeffe.
Grog shouts strong jaw and the falling death blow exposes Kevdak's jaw. That's a great improvised detail.
This battle and the Solo mansion are when Scanlan starts to become a combat MVP. His clutch creativity and decision making set him apart from Grog Vax and Percy who are DPS machines.
I mean he also has a much wider array of abilities/spells to choose from. Thats just the nature of being a caster vs a martial class.
Travis: *looks over to Laura’s dice* Good job babe- I mean Vex. *takes long drink*
Time stamp?
@@Grayhammer I know this is late but 17:01
Matt Mercer: "It's Hiiiiigh ---"
Sam Reigel: "MOON!!!"
i wish i could like this comment more
sam is and always has been the best, keeping the cast calm, and always cracking a joke right when needed. love him
Vex: 30 to hit? What's his attack bonus?!
Also Vex: 19+12 hits...
Also...
3 individual crits in one round from Vox Machina
Matt: You guys....
Matt proceeds to crit at least once in every group of attacks, often twice.
With as many 20 that were rolled in this game, it was probably the universe compensating for all the rolls Will Wheaton was making somewhere else at the same time.
I want to believe that Will was at home watching and rolling every time they did and every time he rolled a 1 they rolled a 20 and then had a "THAT ONE WAS FOR YOU" moment every time.
ZhinZhaw Gourneau He was actually there. Travis and Liam had him go up and touch all of Matt's stuff.
That's the one flaw with D&D. The odds of a critical failure and a critical hit are always the same regardless of level or bonuses. You could be a 20000th level god and still trip and fall with the same likely hood as a 1st level child. I always hated that aspect because it doesn't make sense although it does make the game far more hilarious.
Bill Kennedy Regardless of crits, the likelihood for success generally increases with level, but if a level 20 character fails it’ll be the same as if a level 1 character fails. That’s not a flaw with the game. Also, with improved critical, it does increase the chance of scoring a crit for certain classes
@@goldflame3390 as well as halfling luck decreases crit fail chance.
Thanks to Phalinx for compiling this and making it easier to re-watch the episode.
0:11:31 - Game begins
0:13:45 - Sam's Secret Weapon
0:24:05 - Scanlan's Cutting Words
0:26:55 - MVP Play
0:29:45 - Did somebody say High Noon?
0:36:51 - Grog's One Liner
1:03:10 - Quick Peek
1:05:00 - Percy the Badass!
1:08:38 - You Can't Break Those Cuffs
1:12:35 - Scanlan Heals Pike
1:28:50 - Scanlan, MVP
1:35:45 - MedeVex
1:57:00 - Scanlan Inspires Pike (Oh the harmonies!)
2:03:35 - No Fucking Mercy!
2:08:20 - Sam Breaks the Tension
2:30:09 - Desperate Measures
2:37:20 - WITNESS!
3:12:26 - Game ends
That harmony was impressive! especially considering there was no planning
Love you!
Replied to see if it moves to top And thanks a lot from the future.
Thanks
Thanks! Also 3:16:57 - “Sorry About Last Week”
Summary starts at 11:30; game starts at 15:14. Again, no break; game ends at 3:12:25.
[I've been doing this for every episode. If you find them useful, or think others might, please comment so they stay near the top where people can find them. Thank you.]
Thank you for your service
Boost
Bbbbbbooooooossssssdt!!!!!!!!!
"Percy man..." - the sound of the Gunslinger getting nerfed lol
Really hope not, let's not forget they barely won that fight.
@@usasoldiern nerfs already occurred before both your comments
Sam is the psychologist for everyone in tense moments. Everyone else is terrified and he just says one thing and they all just unclench.
You guessed his character concept 5 years later
@@Now_Its_Orange it is fucking crazy that you fund this comment 5 years later lmao
the random harmony from the entire cast as scanlan sang im a believer was magnificent and hit my soul
Laura Bailey does NOT look stupid in the intro.
And that's the absolute truth.
Damn right
Okay but Taliesin mentioning all of his unwanted Lootcrate merch going to the neighborhood kids is the cutest fucking thing.
Lol, I love how when Percy crit on his trick shot Matt looked like he wanted to scream profanities
You got a timestamp for that?
@@SomeKindaSpy Might be the one at 41:45
NO MERCY PERCY
I LOVE THIS SO FUCXING MUCH
THIS was a boss. What a war! Hearing Matt saying what could happened was even scarier than the battle. So intense and Grog just got ressurected befoore in the same day.
I think he was ressurected a day before because it was in the frostwheald then they came to the outside of westruun and waited a night for the dragon to pass and then they did this. But semantics 😅
I'm years late making my way through C1. It's such a testament to Matt's storytelling and the players' ingenuity that watching this for the first time, even though I know from spoilers and such who lives and dies by the end of this campaign, that I was on the edge of my seat this entire episode wondering how on earth they'd make it out of this alive. I didn't even realize until the end of the episode that they didn't take a break. What a battle!! And this was probably the most satisfying HDYWTDT I've seen just from watching how visibly stressed the players were through the whole thing to their screams of excitement and relief at the killing blow. I can't wait until we get to see this animated!!!
That Grog-killing-blow on Kevdak really is cinematically goddamn perfect. 🙏
Looked good animated too.
On rewatching, this episode was essentially the Endgame Thanos fight.
"Bring me the other!"
The moments when they all sing together with one of the songs Sam comes up with warms my heart every time
It's the thing that i miss the most in the C2
i love that when scanlan sings something the rest of the group join in. so wholesome
"The shadow of craven edge lives behind those eyes" I saw that shit lol
Greenbeard running up to Kevdak to heal played out in my head like the torch-bearer Orc at Helm's Deep
YES!
Who else is here post episode 10 of Legend of Vox Machina because they so perfectly captured the insane energy of this 3+ hour combat?
Gentle reminder for all the new D&D players and DM's. You don't need to build magnificent models and use epic mini's when playing. In our campaign with 8 players, we use pictionary tokens to mark players,chess pieces for monsters, inch-square grid paper, and jenga blocks to build the layout of battles.
My point is, use whatever you need to but you don't have to stress about it being expensive. Matt has probably spent years building his collection of mini's and maps.
... & fans send him minis. Plus, the show is sponsored by game related co. that provide examples of their wares for use. Finally, accoutrements are supplied by the producers as needed to improve the show.
I love how Sam can take this game so seriously and not take it serious at all... at the same exact time
A true talent.
And the fact that’s he’s is so great and being anti-meta/un-meta whichever way you prefer, the moment that always comes to mind is back in that dinner scene with the first encounter with the briarwoods and matts like sam what you doing, and he’s just like I don’t know what’s going on so I’m having a drink 🤣
That's the perfect description! He's like the Victor Borge of D&D. (Pianist, look him up, he's skilled.)
@@jamesdelaneywhelan9255that was the moment he became my favorite player. Absolutely fantastic lol
Travis: "I know, look at that face, you saw it too, didn't you? The shadow of a man that wished he could have butchered somebody and didn't quite get to."
Every DM gets that look at least once a campaign. Usually it's because of either the damage sponge that just won't fall down, or the guy dropping everything in one or two hits.
Kevdak was channeling his inner Thanos with those power gauntlets. Truly frightening.
That was exhausting just to watch, I can't even imagine being a player, damn.
Also Scanlan is so criminally underrated in a fight, that Cutting Words/Hold Person combo was CLUTCH. This could've been a TPK at any number of points without that one move. Sam is actually an incredibly creative & tactical player.
so fucking many clutch moments, were they to fail a single one of those would very likely result in tpk, butt clenced throughout this fight
7:43 Travis saying "I just need a name" when Laura says someone made fun of her, that is a relationship goal. ♥
I thought she looked pretty cute in the video! They only thing I thought was strange was that two-eyed 'wink' she did. Either she was afraid we'd not see her in close-up, or she doesn't know how...
But that's not a critique of her looks!😁
Hell I thought she looked the best out of all of them! If anything, her wink at her brother made me cringe and chuckle.
@Ursula Cabrera, FYI the timestamp about people commenting about Laura's character *starts* at 7:20.
I had to go back and catch that part when I saw this. I have to admit that her elf ears did look strange and I would of made them less accentuated if I had time to you know try making multiple types of elf ears and testing to see which ones look good. She also had a lot of dark make up on which I think added to the quirky effect and made her over all look slightly less gorgeous and attractive than she actually is (and Laura is super beautiful)but is not bad by any means.
No, of course not... Unless he has too! 😉