Caleb Widogast's backstory hints Eps 1-7
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- čas přidán 24. 06. 2024
- All the subtext/hints I could find about Caleb Widogast's backstory from Critical Role Campaign 2 - Episodes 1-7.
Spoilers for Critical Role Campaign 2 Episode 18.
There will be another vid of the hints in episodes 8-18 later.
This post on tumblr was a huge help: princessamericachavez.tumblr.c...
Let me know if you have suggestions of moments that hint at Caleb's backstory in episodes 8-18. Especially if they could be easily missed.
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All footage is from Critical Role Campaign 2 - Episodes 1-7
All Critical Role episodes can be watched on Geek and Sundry's youtube channel.
New episodes air on Thursdays at 7:00 PM PDT. It can be watched live on Geek and Sundry's twitch, project alpha, or on youtube. - Zábava
Beau: “omigod you killed your whole family”
Caleb: *freezes*
Holy shit. I don't even know what to say about that one.
My theory is that he was possibly a prodigy at one point? But he lost control of his abilities and possibly killed his family. Which is why he stopped using magic for sometime. Fire magic does have a tendency to be a bit... unpredictable.
@@thebushchicken2638 oh buddy you probably know that it is so much worse
I can't tell whether you used "freezing" on purpose but either way I'm pleased
Dino Joe *caleb.exe has stopped responding*
Best part about Liam is that he's always in character, except for when jokes go around.
And even then he snaps back almost immediately. He's so good, it's a bit scary!
Its the little things like him describing his use of material components, or acting differently when he's out of spell slots... He's definitely got the "serious" character role down!
It’s interesting cause you can see it in his eyes (literally they become unseeing and way too wide)
Sometimes he still is like when they were joking about how he “looked hopeful”.
sebastianwillows I think Liam has been a DM before, only thing that would explain his ability to describe his magic spells
Matt: The villain dies of fire.
Caleb: *triggered*
"Caleb absent-mindedly holds Nott's hand" is the most amazing thing I've ever heard.
“You guys aren’t any sort of trouble, are you? No one’s after you?”
I can almost feel him say, “No one’s after her, no.”
Apparently, when Orna the Fire Fairy does her performance in Episode 1, Caleb is the only one not clapping.
For obvious reasons. Dude, Liam’s so good at playing Caleb. He’s thought him through so much. It’s amazing!
Yup that’s true
@@tenacityxl he just legit, embodies his character in every way but appearance wise when he plays, it's honestly really goddamn impressive.
Caleb: shoots fire at the enemy
Also Caleb: I regret everything
7:48 Mollymauk kissing Caleb on the forehead! I FORGOT HOW MUCH I LOVED HIM! T-T
"he doesn't look at Nott but he just holds her hand" MY POOR BOY HE JUST NEEDS TO BE HELD
Seeing how much Liam has interwoven and hinted at his backstory prior to the full reveal is amazing, because it shows just how good of a player and actor he is.
Thank you so much for making this!
Exactly my thought
Props to Marisha she pet that fake cat for a long time lol
Yeah it reminds me of when Grog was Paralyzed and travis held a dumb fucking position for around 10 minutes straight, the dedication on these madlads
“That’s rough I hear”
Understatement of the century
Hahaha yeah...
watch the latest episode where beau and yasha get introduced to Icithon, liam freezes for about 45 seconds, its this seasons "get this letter to the Briarwoods...." moment
It really is. And just like the with the Briarwoods, I didn't notice this moment at first either until it was pointed out to me.
Holy shit your right. I’m just getting through s1 and didn’t make connections. This is very good. Thank you
Mind explaining about this? Very interested.
@@daycaster2 SPOILER
Ikithong was his abusive piece of shit teacher from when he went to Soltryce
*anything that has to do with fire*
Caleb: you are doing me a discomfort.
Oh my god it's so dark but 6:10 beau accidentally stepping in it had me cracking up
"That's rough buddy" -Zuko
You I like you for that
Nott: I made you a nice sandwich
Caleb: thanks
Nott: I roasted the bread
Caleb: r...roasted...? *cue the flashbacks*
Fjord: “Hey, Caleb. Mind to make us a fire?”
*_pitter patter_*
Beau: “Wait where did Caleb go?”
*_Fjord Shrugs, not knowing where he is._*
Campaign 2 is where Liam really shines. Vax was just the run-of-the-mill half-elf rogue. Too archetypical. In Campaign Two with this heavy backstory, Liam can show how much he is in character and how well he has internalised Caleb's trauma.
Plus it is a nod to all those who suffer from PTSD.
And as for Caleb, imagine when he reaches lvl 20; how powerful he will be. I played RM, not D&D but I did play Baldur's Gate series, and both there and in RM, at high levels; Mages are behemoths of destruction.
Edit; Molly's "treatment" of his catatonic friend is exactly how soldiers in both World Wars treated it. Taleisin reads books ;-)
Man, Ep 1 alone had so much foreshadowing in hindsight it's crazy. But besides that, the moment with Toya "Sometimes people aren't who we think they are"... that insight seemed very, i dunno, assumptive of him the first time I watched, but with the new context context, hooo boy
Yeah, it makes it even more tragic as the fiend was innocent but it makes even more sense now why Caleb would be ready to believe it was all an act...
It was surprisingly emotional seeing Talisan play Molly again.
"These are family heirlooms, I don't share those"
My god Liam... that's a goddamned long game, my utmost respect
Liam is so amazing. Method acting meets method playing. I'm always so worried about him.
He really knows how to play someone with PTSD. I recognize myself so much in his behaviour
poofballoon TM right? It’s so odd. He’s a fantastic actor
Same…
Liam is so! Good! At! Roleplaying! It astounds me every week, it's the subtle little things with his face, it's so beautiful, he's just so method
My problem is that i just listen to the podcasts so i don’t see him acting!
He gets really nervous whenever fire os involved. Interesting that he didn't break sooner.
fAmiLy hEirLoOms?? ugh my heart, imagining how he feels about those presh tomes.
*Whispers* Backstory
I love how Liam is always on character and how he acts Caleb mannerisms
I should really pay more attention when i watch this. Usually I have it on in the background of something but I'm now realizing just how much you can miss by the actual acting of these guys. Amazing stuff.
His accent has improved so much...
Ep 8
Where he’s passed out and yells “GET THEM OUT” I’d like to think he wasn’t talking about the bolts. It was about his parents
Beau: one day we’re going to have a talk about your issues
Ep 10-
“I have a checkered past with fire”
When he was trading the glove with fjord I think
There was that moment in ep 12 when the tower fell and he see the mages. He recognizes one of them and gets all uncomfortable and walks away
Ep 13
Caleb with the skeleton head talking to it in the basement.
Later Caleb tells Nott about him going to the academy
Ep 16-
After fjord’s tusk story Caleb says something like “our early days are always with us so I understand ” somewhere along those lines
+
with the dodecahedron with jester and Nott
I have a bunch of Caleb notes saved for every episode. I know there’s a few I missed but I forgot to mark down the ep number
Ep 9 is somewhere about jester not having any money and Caleb saying 50 gold is all his parents made
I think he said take them out, referring to the crystals that got jammed into his arms
The first time I saw all these moments I thought I was seeing an abused and terrified young man of the world around him. Now I realize it was fear and shame of himself.
I love how Liam reacts to fire, he seems like he's actually being triggered by this horrible thing that's taken over his mindset
Beau "This academy place kinda keeps getting brought up"
Caleb *yeah, it fucking does >.>*
6:17 - Straight-up lie from Molly? Cool.
Molly is MADE of bs xD
I feel like the cat is his emotional support animal.
That's why he is so protective of it.
He also had a cat named Frumpkin when he was a child, that one was female and an actual cat.
Beau joking about someone killing their whole family right next to someone who killed his whole family 💀
Can Liam just become an actor- in a show or something like- honey you’re amazing
..............that’s..........what he does for a living........
I love Liam as a player, because he’s not only good at dialogue and writing backstories, but it’s his silent acting too
You are a true hero. I was about to comb through all the past episodes and you saved me the trouble. Please continue making these! :D
When Nott says "we were in a prison before" is she referring to the asylum? I'm so intrigued to find out how they really met.
Spoilers for ep 18! In Talks Machina Liam confirmed that Nott and Caleb met years after Caleb fled the asylum. They met in a podunk jail.
Here's a really good timeline someone made of confirmed detailss. the-slayers-cakes.tumblr.com/post/173959607128/for-anybody-that-doesnt-watch-talks-machina
Ah, I missed Talks this week. Thanks for the link! I love how detailed this world and these characters are. The amount of dedication that goes into it all is incredible.
Liam is insanely talented. He stays in character almost all the time and his mannerisms and expressions really convey Caleb's inner turmoil.
I'd love to see something like this for Fjord! Maybe after we get some more info on him. Cause he's hinted at his history a few times!
Dawe fjord is probably the most mysterious character on the show, but he's so damn amicable and friendly that he hides it.
yeah I mean he is a half orc that is as pretty as a half elf with no tusks and is a warlock with a pact to a deity that is pretty much evil from the information we know
I love that if we did this for Molly it would just be lie after outrageous lie with only a little bit of looking bewhildered at his swords for like 2 seconds before getting over it.
I just wanna know Caleb's real name... this has to be a name he's given himself to be able to hide
Ikr! I've been thinking that too! Otherwise he wouldn't be so ready to use his real name when the party give their names to people, such as high ranking Empire officials (since he's usually one of the ones who sticks with his 'real' name, while people like Nott & Jester come up with random names nearly every time) and if Caleb was his real name then wouldn't that expose him to Trent if the Mighty Nine ever got super well known.
Also (and this is spoilers for around episode 40-50 odd), with all the new info on Fjord and how weird he's been acting, beeing too forthright with his past & sometimes accidentally switching to an English accent, I'm starting to doubt that Fjord's his real name aswell....
Man everyone in the Mighty Nine has so many secrets being hidden from each other it's building so much hype and tension towards the moment when secrets like Caleb's past are revealed to the party at large. I really want to know how everyone'll react to knowing who everyone else in the party truly is and whether or not they'll still be able to act the same as before they knew.
yanrodrigue boy are you in for a wild ride
I’m pretty sure you know already but his name is Bren, which is pretty fitting for him
Everyone just whispering backstory after Caleb’s first wisdom saving throw makes more mysterious but also kinda funny.😅
Why they are all equally my favourite
Because you're indecisive?
They're all equally amazing?
You are a a member of the hive and the scan have no favorites?
The reasons are as inumerable as the Stars.
I started this series thinking Caleb hasn't ever been in a fight before and that's why he gets nervous and such. But my was I wrong
Caleb’s backstory is the one I want to find out the most, next to Notts
Awesome! Thanks for making this. I look forward to part two.
halfway through and i have to just thank you for this. brilliant. it's brilliantly done and excellent and liked and favourited.
How did you do this so quickly?? This is awesome, thanks for taking the time to make it !
I love that they naturally hinted us
Everything make sense now.
First episode like just keep hammering that spike into that mans chest.
*someone or something catches on fire*
Liam: *thousand yard stare*
7:30 I love Liam so much. The way he locks in after joking “I was going to do this on my own”
MY BABY
"Family heirlooms" - wait, are those the collections of letters he's written for his parents?
aw caleb...
The chants of ‘backstory’
Liam played Caleb perfectly
First watch: Ha, cowardly squishy wizard, I wonder what's up with that fire phobia?
Second watch: Oh, oh no, how did I miss that?
Had my wizard kill his mentor with fireball during a session (the mentor being played by another one of my friends. We talked a lot about it before hand, like planned from the start that my friend’s character was secretly evil and all of that, but when the moment finally came it was still intense). He’s getting better but he was not ok for a while. Caleb was a really big inspiration for how I played my character after that happened. Liam is amazing. His portrayal of trauma is so spot on. I hope he’s ok irl.
“ i f i t a i n t b r o k e d o n t f i x i t “
It’s about the FACE JOURNEYS!!!
Shit, Sam made the Soul Train Academy joke all the way back then?
"all I know is how hard it is to get into the academy" oOF
Man. I can only imagine how amazing Liam would have been, in EXU:Calamity…
Liam is great!
Top Nottch :)
b a c k s t o r y
Loving serious Caleb with Marisha stroking an imaginary Frumpkin next to him.
i fucking LOVE LIAM
3:46
Ow
Spoilers
Yo so what if the person that took away his madness was his past classmate (and possible previous lover)????
Spoilers here, as well
I wondered about that, too, but I think it would be a great use of story tension if Caleb has to face off against the classmate later in the story. Maybe he'd try to save them, try to uncloud the fake memories like what happened for him? (ohh, but maybe the other person didn't have fake memories and killed their family just because they could?) Unleash hell on them in anger for them being successful while he broke? Maybe he tries to give them the benefit of the doubt only to learn that the person he loved was genuinely a horrible person... that would make him face the part of himself that allowed him to love someone who is evil. SO, so many ways the story could go!
Whatever happens, I trust Matt to make it one helluva good ride :D
Nev Las I think it was probably just some crazy cleric who had a moment of sanity and managed to cast greater restoration but that would be interesting. Maybe they also knows the truth but is working from the inside?
SO MANY POSSIBILITIES
God I miss Mollymauk so much
Back when Nott was British and Fjord was Texan.
This video pains me so much because I can see how much he would love to play a different game. I just wonder if he knows that he could get more of this in different systems.
Crazy part is I'd equally watch it if everyone was dedicated to it.
What do you mean?
You can see he wants to play a deeper RP character driven game and less adventure plot driven one. The thing is since he is so new to RPGs I think he just doesn't know the other game system that support the style he would like to try better.
I feel like you're making some pretty big assumptions there. He's been playing tabletop RPGs for decades.
You must be new to CR