Critical Role Releases New Campaign 4 Trailer

Critical Role has released a new trailer for their upcoming fourth campaign. The trailer, embedded below, lays out the overarching premise of the plot, as well as a look at the full 13-player table that will participate in the early parts of the campaign. The trailer not only explains the background of Araman, a world whose people overthrew the gods 70 years ago, but also hints at more recent conflicts.


A description of the show notes that the show opens with the planned execution of a person named Thjazi Fang. His scheduled execution leads to three groups coming together to seek the truth behind his grim fate, spinning off into its own series.

As announced earlier this year, Campaign 4 will feature three groups of players simultaneously exploring the world of Araman in what's described as a West Marches-style campaign. Early episodes will feature all thirteen players, but the show will eventually break the groups out into smaller tables, although there will still be some crossover between the groups.

Critical Role's fourth campaign starts on October 2nd.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

I'm not too familiar with WBN, but isn't D20 heavily edited? Maybe all the "boring" parts got cut out in the editing room.

Yes and no. The rolls stay in there and most of the table talk about rules does as well. They do level up between sessions and buy gear the same way.

Critical Role makes the choice to roleplay shopping -- you can tell the main cast are actors who want to act -- which isn't true for many tables, actual play or no.

 

[overgeeked]

Critical Role makes the choice to roleplay shopping -- you can tell the man cast are actors who want to act -- which isn't true for many tables, actual play or no.

Despite being an actor, Travis visibly checks out every time there's a shopping episode.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

Despite being an actor, Travis visibly checks out every time there's a shopping episode.

This is why Travis the best.

 

[billd91]

Critical Role makes the choice to roleplay shopping -- you can tell the main cast are actors who want to act -- which isn't true for many tables, actual play or no.

Some groups like the style role playing out major shopping events - mainly magic items and other unique stuff - others don't. But my experience is also that shopping role play is very different with 3-4 players compared to a table with 6-8 players.

I think role playing out shopping has come in and out of vogue over the years. In early AD&D modules, it seems an expectation - otherwise, why would the module have gone to the trouble of saying that the guys running the Adventurer's A&P are secretly agents of the Evil Cult? Ye Olde Magic Shoppes are often detailed in Volo's guides or on the streets of Cauldron. But then 3e came along and regularized a magic item economy where you had a good chance of just picking up the item you wanted off the rack - and so I think a lot of people dispensed with the role playing of the process in order to just get the bookkeeping done and "get to the fun".

All that said, I think Matt does a reasonably good job of keeping things interesting - Pumat Sol was a particularly interesting example of him injecting a bit of humor and fun. And Travis is patient enough for it as a good player should be... but then, they haven't had Orion buying up a bunch of mirrors in some weird, grandiose plan in a long time.

 

[nyvinter]

Worse than that, AD&D 2e also had Aurora's Whole Realms Catalogue, an in-world Sears's catalogue for the Forgotten Realms.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

Worse than that, AD&D 2e also had Aurora's Whole Realms Catalogue, an in-world Sears's catalogue for the Forgotten Realms.

I think it's a fair assumption that Ed Greenwood's games go really into detail. (I believe he has information on regional roofing styles in Ed Greenwood Presents Elminster's Forgotten Realms.)

 

[billd91]

Worse than that, AD&D 2e also had Aurora's Whole Realms Catalogue, an in-world Sears's catalogue for the Forgotten Realms.

I actually tote that in my game bag for the FR game I'm running now. I'm running 5e, but everything's compatible enough. It's a fun and evocative little supplement, particularly for the food.