Anxiety Game Gauntlet

Thumbnail from "*4-Sided Dive*: Previously On…" (4SDx11).

"***4-Sided Dive*: Anxiety Game Gauntlet**" (4SDx18) is the eighteenth episode of *4-Sided Dive*, discussing episodes of the third campaign up through "A Gathering of Heroes" (3x76) with guests Taliesin Jaffe, Ashley Johnson, Matthew Mercer, and Travis Willingham.

## **Synopsis**

Taliesin Jaffe is the Tavern Keeper for the night.

### **What the Fuck is up with That?**

* They've met a new tree! Evontra'vir has forgotten most of his former name, and the cast didn't come close to spelling the part he *does* remember correctly. There are a lot of great and powerful trees in Exandria, but this one's creation and development was definitely influenced by Exandria Unlimited: Calamity.
* Everyone loved the Shattered Teeth and wants to go back.
* They keep finding little pockets of pre-Calamity lore. Matt's impetus for creating that world backstory myth was to have gods who could influence the world but were not present to be able to fix problems. In the process, Exandria in a sense became a post-Apocalyptic world, but one where there's been enough time for society to mostly recover.
* Anyone living around Whitestone during the Calamity was wiped out by the battle between the Dawnfather, the Knowing Mistress, and the Chained Oblivion that occurred there.
* Per Taliesin, Ashton has decided "to befriend everything that doesn't seem like it should be befriended and piss off everything that seems like it should be taken care of." Using the Pipe of Remembrance on the tree seemed like a way to help it remember things it had forgotten.
* Fearne jumped into the lava after Ashton because she panicked, but she wasn't sure if he was supposed to die in there. Matt says he had no particular solution to that puzzle in mind, but in tabletop games you rarely regret taking action. You more often regret not acting.
* In the battle against Ludinus Da'leth & Co., Matt knew their intent was to get the shard and escape, and he was trying to muck that up. They were all pretty proud of their teamwork in the fight. It also helped that Matt rolled really badly against the *Counterspell*.
* Ludinus wasn't even really paying attention to them at the Malleus Key.
* They've been told Ashton is the bearer of one shard, a Titan blood. Ashley still thinks maybe he's supposed to take the second one, too, even though they've been warned otherwise. Taliesin thinks the warnings may be wrong, but it should be either Ashton or Fearne.
* Taliesin thinks Fearne and Chetney may be the closest to sane of the party. Ashley suggests Orym seems stable, and Dani jumps in to warn them Orym really, really needs a hug right now.
* They all enjoyed Matt not interrupting to tell them "You don't have to roll to *Scry*."
* Travis compliments Ashley on her creative use of Fearne's spells. Ashley loves being able to play every episode.
* Taliesin points out that Vox Machina were classically heroic, the Mighty Nein were classic villains that made a hard turn, and this group is backstory NPCs for other main characters. They're basically *Star Trek: Lower Decks*. Matt calls them the "B Team".
* There is much discussion of spelunking and haunted houses. Matt sometimes brings things he finds horrifying into Critical Role to torment them.

### **Tower of Inquiry**

* **Describe your character's dream holiday if money was no limit.** For Chetney, an all-inclusive nudist colony resort, on the beach, surrounded by redwoods, and when the moon is full, everyone dies. Fearne was also thinking nudist colony, but changes to Coachella, then to OG Woodstock. Captain Novos would go to Dalen's Closet where it's warm. Ashton would go somewhere with the equivalent of the Berlin art-and-nightclub scene, a little brutalist with a lot of cigarette smoking. They settle on Rexxentrum.
* **What are some of your top tips on improvisation when role-playing?** Listen to each and pay attention. Make an ass of yourself. Use "Yes-and" to redirect and build on ideas.

### **The Deep Dive**

* **Matt**: "What spell was Ludinus going to cast on the group and what would it have done to them?" It was a 9th level spell called *Weird* where potentially their deepest fears are manifested as an implacable threat along with 4d10 psychic damage each round. The fun part would have been asking each failed party member what their greatest fear was so he could potentially use it against them in the future. Matt really expected they'd have to flee that fight, but things went in their favor. Ludinus wanted to hurt the other party members enough that Fearne would become a willing hostage in order to save them.
* **Ashley**: "What does Fearne think about all these potential connections she has been making with various entities? She is the granddaughter of a hag, has a connection to a champion of the Hells, a boon from a ghost pirate, and the potential of a Primordial shard." Well, Ashley/Fearne is in the mode of saying yes to everything. If Fearne survives this campaign, she could become that one canonic lore character who knows everybody, the favor broker of Exandria. Like, say, a hag...
* **Travis**: "You are so delighted to get a new map. What is it about the maps that appeal to you?" First: the appreciation of all the energy that goes into them (different textures, edges frayed differently, stained, burned, sometimes blood drizzle on them). Then the map itself, sometimes very detailed and sometimes roughly made. The names change. The Aeor map was the apex, with all the question marks and riddles plus the link with the Tombtakers. Having a tactile thing helps a lot too.
* **Taliesin**: "There is a profound difference between how Ashton interacts with Percy and with Allura. What is his opinion on this arcanist ally and how does she compare to Lord de Rolo in their esteem?" Ashton and Percy don't get along because they are extremely similar people. A lot of family trauma, ego and personal grievance, undealt-with emotional issues and problems maintaining emotional issues. The difference is that Percy has monstrous amounts of money and privilege but Ashton does not and thinks these things are terrible. It's like a dark mirror. Ashton thinks that Allura deserves their respect for actually getting shit done.
* **Matt**: "This is the third campaign that Allura has showed up in to be an ally to the main party. What is it like to bring her in once more? Do you still think of her as your own avatar within the world?" Yes. The reason why Allura showed up in this campaign is because she is Matt's chance to play along with the others. Matt spent a lot of time developing Allura and Kima and their history with Thordak.
* **Ashley**: "Fearne was used as a hostage by Ludinus. How did she feel being in this position? What was going through your mind while talking to Ludinus one on one?" It was a little hot. Ashley doesn't know if Fearne actually wants the shard, but that's not the question. Fearne wanted to go with Ludinus so that he would stop hurting everyone but she was too scared to do so. Fearne is very scared of Ludinus but also wants to figure out on what is making this man tick, and maybe by doing so, she can fix all this.
* **Travis**: "Grog is one of the few VM members to not have made an appearance yet. What do you think Grog is up to right now?" He could be in jail for normal everyday shit. He hosts a tournament. He's probably gone searching for love but like Joey from *Friends*, he will never find it. If not properly supervised, he could have been swayed by parties unknown into nefarious activities and with that, Grog could be on Ruidus too.
* **Taliesin**: "How does Ashton feel about fate taking notice of him after all this time?" It doesn't feel like fate necessarily to them, it feels like history. "The idea that they were more or less a mighty prince banished from the kingdom who has now come to reclaim the throne is a lot more romantic in their eyes, the notion of being given, if not a fated path, an esteemed path forward back to claim what is rightfully theirs.... Oh no, I have shit that matters now, and it's not about other people, it's about me."
* **Matt**: "The war room scene was quite impressive in terms of talking to yourself. How was that for you as a DM?" It was nerve-racking. He didn't want to mess that up or turn it into the "Me Show" while still conveying the different viewpoints of events from across the world.
* **Ashley**: "How does Fearne feel about possibly taking on the shard? Does she even want to wield its power? How does she feel about her fire abilities coming up in this way?" It's complicated. In Exandria Unlimited Fearne saw a version of herself that had gone down a very bad path, and she isn't sure what timeline that Fearne was in or what caused it. She badly wants to put on the harness just to see what it does and wants to go full steam ahead with being the button pusher. But the shard is complicated and doesn't feel like hers. Ashley and Taliesin will have a private conversation about that before the next show.
* **Travis**: "Chetney has now received two visions from the Matron of Ravens. Does this goddess appeal to him in any way or does this feel more like a sign that his time is soon up especially with how close the long rest d100 rolls have been?" Travis has done test rolls for the d100 50 or 60 times and never hit triple zeros, but if he does, he and Matt have agreed Chetney is 100% dead. The Matron really doesn't appeal to him in terms of a deity, but it's the first time that anything beyond the realms has reached out and given a gift or shown anything. But also, Chetney's ego thinks that she's attracted to him because of his hotness. Travis is convinced triple zeros will never happen.
* **Taliesin**: "What is it like for you to explore Whitestone as a different character? How does it feel getting to meet Percy's children?" Tal loves it so much. Gwen is Tal's favorite. She is going to be Percy one day but both better and worse. He's turning one of his kids into a nightmare. Dani wants a de Rolo kids one-shot so bad. Also, maybe a spooky Whitestone one-shot because Whitestone is a spooky town and would be perfect for that. Matt thinks it's a fun idea.

### **Tower of Inquiry**

* **If you were an old wizard's familiar, what type of familiar would you be?** Ashley would be a golden retriever, Travis a kodiak bear, Taliesin an armadillo, Matt a duck-billed platypus because they're amphibious and weird. Dani would be a fucked up bird that can only fly a little bit but can type with its beak.

### **Anxiety Game Gauntlet**

#### ***Don't Wake Liam***

* **Travis**: "How did you enjoy sailing on the ghost ship? What was Chetney's favorite part?" He loved it. Love people trying to hook up with the Captain. For a second he thought they were weighing a mutiny. Travis didn't mind giving Graz'tchar away, since he didn't have nefarious plans other than to kill the Tempest.
* **Matt**: "Talk to us about Evontra'vir. What was the inspiration for the Great Tree of Atrophy and how does he relate to the Matron of Ravens?" He was meant to be a great power within Exandria that is outside of the gods. There's definitely overlap with the Matron, it can be respect, alliances or frustration but it depends on the circumstances of the world. But right now, who knows?
* **Ashley**: "How did Fearne feel about Evontra'vir since her own grandmother is known as the Fate Stitcher?" There are a lot of questions that Fearne would've asked Evontra'vir and wants to go back for that. Fearne wants to mess it all up if there's a fated path. She knows, through Nana Morri, that maybe you can bend the threads of fate a little.
* **Taliesin**: "Ashton seems to be embracing their designation as a member of the Hishari. What do they think of the cult after learning more about it, particularly from the Ashari and now Evontra'vir?" It feels like they're a little biased and ignoring most of the problematic issues, but he likes that it's opening up and mired in controversy.
* **Matt**: "Any link between Evontra'vir and the Matron of Ravens?" There's definitely overlap, with the accompanying respect, alliances, or frustration. Probably begrudging respect. The Matron weaves the threads that Evontra'vir rides between.
* **Travis and Taliesin**: "What did you think of the vision you received from the Matron?" **Matt**: "What is your goal with visions like that in regards to the character and story?" Tal loves getting shoved in different directions by the gods and also the Matron is one of the only gods that Ashton respects. Matt appreciates the occasional opportunities when the players poke around in the realm of god visions and the pantheon. Sometimes it's the gods showing them what they think they need to see, sometimes it's just reaching out to fate, sometimes it's to lure whoever is useful in the moment. Even the gods are dubious. The Matron is a fun one because she was mortal and has a different perspective from the other gods.

#### ***Croco-Riegel Dentist***

* **Travis**: "Why did Chetney give away the ring he got from Deanna for the Boots of Speed? Are you afraid of Aabria/Deanna's wrath?" No, he thought it was a good trade, it keeps things lively. He also loves incurring wrath.

#### ***Marisha's Calendar***

* No more leftover questions were asked during this game.

Broomy comes back in a NordVPN costume. Taliesin grabs him and starts to clean the set.

## **Quotations**

* **Travis**: Eight years later, there's a little bit of teamwork.
* **Matt**: The whole basis of [Taliesin's] subclass was him looking at the Wild Magic Barbarian and he went, "Nah, this isn't weird enough."

## **Trivia**

* This episode marks the end of them showing the pre-show dice rollies to determine who will be the Tavern Keeper for the night, as explain by Taliesin Jaffe in the beginning of the episode.

## **References**

1. ↑ See "***4-Sided Dive*: Anxiety Game Gauntlet**" (4SDx18) at 0:17:33.
2. ↑ See "***4-Sided Dive*: Anxiety Game Gauntlet**" (4SDx18) at 0:23:14.

**Art:**

1. ↑ Thumbnail from "*4-Sided Dive*: Previously On…" (4SDx11). This file is a copyrighted work. Its use in this article is asserted to qualify as fair use of the material under United States copyright law.