Critical Role episodes split by campaign and then by year, as well as one-shot episodes.
In June 2021, the cast of Critical Role finished their second Dungeons & Dragons campaign. The third campaign premiered on October 21, 2021. [1]
Campaign | Party | Episodes | Originally released | |||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
First released | Last released | Network | ||||||||||
Main series | ||||||||||||
1 | Vox Machina | 115 | March 12, 2015 | October 12, 2017 | Twitch, YouTube, Alpha (2016–2019) | |||||||
2 | The Mighty Nein | 141 | January 11, 2018 | June 3, 2021 | ||||||||
3 | Bells Hells | 119 | October 21, 2021 | TBA | Twitch, YouTube, Beacon (2024–present) | |||||||
Anthology series | ||||||||||||
Exandria Unlimited | The Crown Keepers | 10 [a] | June 24, 2021 | April 1, 2022 | Twitch, YouTube | |||||||
Exandria Unlimited: Calamity | The Ring of Brass | 4 | May 26, 2022 | June 16, 2022 | Twitch, YouTube | |||||||
Limited series | ||||||||||||
One-shots | Various | 57 | February 25, 2016 | TBA | Twitch, YouTube, Alpha (2016–2019) [2] |
The Vox Machina campaign originated as the home game of the cast, played from 2012 to 2017; the show begins in medias res with the characters regrouping in the city of Emon after approximately 6 months apart and the streamed campaign picks up where the cast's original home game left off. While the adventures prior to the Kraghammer arc (2015) were not formally recorded, some shorter recordings have been released by the cast. This includes audio from the first session of the campaign, which was released as a segment in the third episode of the podcast All Work No Play. [3] Additionally, Liam O'Brien released a recording of the magic carpet being discovered by the party. [4] Episode 36 features a summary of the pre-series history, [5] with artwork created by Wendy Sullivan Green and voice-overs provided by the cast. [6] The comic book, Critical Role: Vox Machina Origins , is an adaptation of the group's game before the show. [7] The animated series, The Legend of Vox Machina , also adapts a canonic story that took place within the pre-stream time frame. [8] [9]
Campaign one originally broadcast live on the Geek & Sundry Twitch and YouTube channels between March 12, 2015, and October 12, 2017, for a total of 115 episodes. [10] [11] Starting in November 2016, it was also broadcast live on the Alpha streaming service from Legendary Digital Networks. The show on Alpha had a unique overlay that included "real-time character sheets, damage and heal animations, and visualizations". [12] Campaign one's closed captions were transcribed by a fan group who submitted them to Geek & Sundry. Geek & Sundry then added these to the YouTube copies of episodes. [13] The VODs have since been uploaded to Critical Role's own YouTube channel. [14] : 0:41
The episodes of campaign one spilt by year:
Year | Episodes | Originally released | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
First released | Last released | |||
2015 | 1–36 | March 12, 2015 | December 17, 2015 | |
2016 | 37–79 | January 14, 2016 | December 15, 2016 | |
2017 | 80–115 | January 5, 2017 | October 12, 2017 |
The second campaign began on January 11, 2018, and follows the adventuring party known as The Mighty Nein. The story is set on the continent of Wildemount, which was briefly visited during the Vox Machina campaign. The Mighty Nein campaign is set about 20 years after Vox Machina's final battle against Vecna; [15] [16] it takes place at a time where tensions are very high between the Dwendalian Empire and the Kryn Dynasty, two of Wildemount's major powers. [17]
Prior to a hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the show had broadcast live, but has been pre-recorded since its return for episode 100 of Campaign Two. [18] In May 2021, the cast announced that campaign two would end shortly, however, "the Mighty Nein's story wasn't finished". [19] Collider reported that "Campaign 2 has spanned 100 hours of battle, 440 slain villains, and 530 total hours of dice-roll-driven adventuring. And that's not even counting the upcoming 7-hour finale". [20] The finale aired on June 3, 2021; [21] [22] it was the longest episode at just over seven hours. [22]
The episodes of campaign two split by year:
Year | Episodes | Originally released | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
First released | Last released | |||
2018 | 1–46 | January 11, 2018 | December 20, 2018 | |
2019 | 47–89 | January 10, 2019 | December 19, 2019 | |
2020 | 90–120 | January 9, 2020 | December 17, 2020 | |
2021 | 121–141 | January 14, 2021 | June 3, 2021 |
The third campaign premiered on October 21, 2021 with a simulcast live in Cinemark Theatres along with the regular Twitch and YouTube livestream. [1] [23] Critical Role will continue to be pre-recorded for the third campaign. [24] [25] Starting with the third campaign, the main campaign of Critical Role will not air new episodes on the last Thursday of every month; instead, other content by the studio will air in its time slot. [24] [25] [26]
The story is set immediately after Exandria Unlimited which took place 10 years after the events of the second campaign. [27] [23] [24] Several cast members reprise their roles from Exandria Unlimited. [28] The campaign is set on the continent of Marquet, which was briefly visited during the Vox Machina campaign. SyFy Wire highlighted that Marquet is "home to massive deserts, mountains, and even a volcano" and that it is "uncharted territory for the series". [24]
The episodes of campaign three split by year:
Year | Episodes | Originally released | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
First released | Last released | |||
2021 | 1–8 | October 21, 2021 | December 16, 2021 | |
2022 | 9–43 | January 6, 2022 | December 22, 2022 | |
2023 | 44–81 | January 5, 2023 | December 21, 2023 | |
2024 | 82–117 | January 11, 2024 | December 12, 2024 | |
2025 | 118–119 | January 2, 2025 | TBA |
Exandria Unlimited (ExU) is an anthology series and is a spin-off of the main Critical Role series. The first season was originally broadcast from June 24 to August 12, 2021. That season is set in the city of Emon on the continent of Tal'Dorei 30 years after Campaign One and 10 years after Campaign Two. [29] [30] The players in this season are Ashley Johnson, Robbie Daymond, Liam O'Brien, Aimee Carrero, and Matthew Mercer. [31] [32] The season's game master is Aabria Iyengar (known for other streaming shows such as Happy Jacks RPG, Dimension 20 , and Saving Throw). [33] [30] Anjali Bhimani guest stars in episodes four through six. [34] [35] [36] In March 2022, a two-part adventure sequel, Exandria Unlimited: Kymal, was released. It followed Dorian Storm returning to his friends after his time in Campaign Three. Daymond, Mercer, Carrero, Bhimani and Iyengar reprised their roles; Erica Lindbeck also joined the cast. [37] [38] [39]
IGN reported that "Exandria Unlimited will be considered canon within the wider Critical Role story, and 'will affect future environments and timelines across the overall lore of Critical Role.' So as fans await what may come from Campaign 3 of the core CR cast, Unlimited looks to offer a new vantage point into the world of Exandria". [40] IGN also highlighted that "it's likely not the only such story planned; the announcement for the series teases that 'Within the world of Exandria, there are an unlimited amount of stories to be told - and we have only just begun'." [40]
The second season, titled Exandria Unlimited: Calamity, was broadcast from May 26 to June 16, 2022. It follows a group of heroes from the Age of Arcanum – an age 1,500 years before the Critical Role series [41] – who attempt to prevent the Calamity. [42] [43]
Title | Episodes | Originally released |
---|---|---|
Exandria Unlimited | 8 | June 24 – August 12, 2021 |
Exandria Unlimited: Kymal | 2 | March 31 – April 1, 2022 |
Exandria Unlimited: Calamity | 4 | May 26 – June 16, 2022 |
In addition to their main campaign series, Critical Role has also broadcast many one-shots – short adventures that take place within a single session of play. [44] [45] [46] [47] As of October 2023, [update] seven of these one-shots are considered canonical; with four listed on the show's official timeline published in June 2021. [48] [47] Most of the seven are epilogue episodes to one of the first two campaigns. The Search for Grog and The Search for Bob, however, cover events within the storyline of the last episode of Campaign 1 that required telling outside the time frame of the main show. Other one-shots have only a tangential relationship to the campaigns. These are set in the world of Exandria or feature established canon characters but are not considered canonical themselves. [47] [49] Still other one-shots have no connection at all with the campaigns or the world of Exandria. [44] [47] Some one-shots promote other intellectual properties commissioned by sponsors. [47] [50]
Academics Lisa Horton and David Beard, in the book The Routledge Handbook of Remix Studies and Digital Humanities, explained that Critical Role's one-shots "use pastiche, parody, and other forms of obvious remix", highlighting that Critical Role has "mashed-up Harry Potter with The Breakfast Club and Peter Pan with the Wizard of Oz , and the results are entertaining, but they live and die within a single evening". They argued while these one-shots are fun and "achieve positive fan response", the one-shots are also "unchallenging" and "uncomplicated" as "creative dead ends" in comparison to Critical Role's campaigns. [51]
The following one-shots are listed as canonical parts of the official timeline. [48] [47]
Title | Dungeon master | Cast players | Original release date | |
---|---|---|---|---|
"The Search for Grog" | Matthew Mercer | All main cast present | February 22, 2019 | |
Set during the final episode of the series, Vox Machina head to Pandemonium to recover Grog's soul after his use of the Deck of Many Things. This episode was recorded live on January 19, 2019 at The Theatre at the Ace Hotel and premiered on Twitch on February 22, 2019 before being released via YouTube and Twitch VOD the following day. [52] [53] Travis Willingham's character for this one-shot episode—Sir Bertrand Bell—returned in the opening episodes of Campaign 3. [54] [55] | ||||
"The Search for Bob" | Matthew Mercer | All main cast present | June 23, 2019 | |
After reuniting Grog's soul with his body, Vox Machina must now find Bob to recover the items he took as they need these items to be able to leave Pandemonium. | ||||
"Dalen's Closet" | Matthew Mercer | All main cast present | August 29, 2019 | |
In 813 PD, a year after the defeat of Vecna, the surviving members of Vox Machina reunite with the intent of celebrating Vex and Percy's wedding renewal. However, this destination event is interrupted by Sylas Briarwood who is seeking revenge. | ||||
"The Adventures of the Darrington Brigade" | Matthew Mercer | All main cast present | November 29, 2019 | |
In the year 826 P.D, set roughly a decade after the first campaign and a decade before the second campaign, Taryon Darrington recruits a new batch of adventurers for his non-profit Darrington Brigade to join him on a new adventure in Wildemount. This episode was recorded live on November 23, 2019 at the Bass Concert Hall and premiered on Twitch on November 29, 2019, with the YouTube VOD being made available on December 1, 2019. [56] | ||||
"The Mighty Nein Reunited Part 1 – Unfinished Business" | Matthew Mercer | All main cast present | November 17, 2022 | |
In 837 PD, six months after the destruction of Lucien, the Mighty Nein are scattered across Wildemount. Uk'otoa's minions steal the last Cloven Crystal after attacking Fjord, Jester, and Kingsley at sea. The Mighty Nein reunite to recover the crystal. In addition to being streamed on Twitch and YouTube, both parts of The Mighty Nein Reunited were simulcast in Cinemark Theatres in both the United States and South America. [57] [58] | ||||
"The Mighty Nein Reunited Part 2 – Uk'otoa Unleashed" | Matthew Mercer | All main cast present | December 1, 2022 | |
The Mighty Nein engage in an epic battle against the multi-eyed leviathan Uk'otoa in order to re-seal and imprison him. | ||||
"The Mighty Nein Reunion: Echoes of the Solstice" | Matthew Mercer | All main cast present | October 26, 2023 | |
The Mighty Nein must regroup after the events of the Apogee Solstice [b] in 843 PD and deal with emerging dangers as magical chaos unfolds. They discover that Trent Ikithon has escaped and seeks revenge against Caleb and The Mighty Nein for his imprisonment. This episode was recorded live on October 25, 2023, at the OVO Arena Wembley. [61] [62] It was then broadcast on October 26, 2023 at 7 p.m. PT on Twitch and YouTube; additionally, it was shown in Cinemark Theatres in the United States and in Cineplex Theatres in Canada at 7 p.m. local time the same evening as the premiere. [63] [64] | ||||
TBA | Matthew Mercer | All main cast present | TBA | |
The next great adventure: the marriage of Jester and Fjord. [65] [66] This episode will be recorded live on October 7, 2025 at the Radio City Music Hall as part of Critical Role's tenth anniversary live show tour. [65] [66] |
These one-shots are set within the world of Exandria or feature established characters from the main campaigns. They are not, however, deemed canonical—having no impact on the main storyline.
Title | Dungeon master | Cast players | Guest players | Original release date | RPG system | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
"Critical Role Q&A and Battle Royale!" | Matthew Mercer | Marisha Ray, Travis Willingham | Will Friedle, Wendy Sullivan Green, Mary Elizabeth McGlynn | February 25, 2016 | D&D | |
In the first half, the cast and guests answer questions sent in by the audience. In the second half, they use their Vox Machina characters in a Battle Royale-style player versus player game. | ||||||
"Critical Role Q&A and Battle Royale: Take II" | Matthew Mercer | Taliesin Jaffe, Ashley Johnson, Liam O'Brien, Marisha Ray | – | May 26, 2016 | D&D | |
In the first half, the cast answer questions sent in by the audience. In the second half, they use their Vox Machina characters in a Battle Royale-style player versus player game. | ||||||
"The Return of Liam" | Liam O'Brien | Travis Willingham, Sam Riegel, Laura Bailey | Mary Elizabeth McGlynn, Ashly Burch | September 1, 2016 | D&D | |
Also titled as: "The Screw Job". | ||||||
"Bar Room Blitz" | Sam Riegel | Liam O'Brien | Eric Bauza, Ashly Burch, Brian Wayne Foster, Mary Elizbeth McGylnn | August 31, 2017 | D&D | |
A group of misfits find themselves swept up in a bar room brawl in a tavern on the outskirts of Jorenn Village near the Umbra Hills. This episode was pulled from Critical Role's official channels in July 2023. [67] | ||||||
"Grog's One-shot" | Travis Willingham | Laura Bailey, Taliesin Jaffe, Liam O'Brien, Sam Riegel | – | November 2, 2017 | D&D | |
Grog runs some of the members of Vox Machina through a game of "Bunions and Flagons" (an in-world version of Dungeons & Dragons). | ||||||
"Marisha's Honey Heist" | Marisha Ray | Sam Riegel, Matthew Mercer, Taliesin Jaffe, Liam O'Brien | Brian W. Foster | November 9, 2017 | Honey Heist | |
Titled on Geek and Sundry as Trinket's Honey Heist. Uses the one-page RPG system called Honey Heist . This episode was pulled from Critical Role's official channels in July 2023. [67] | ||||||
"Epic Level Battle Royale One-shot" | Matthew Mercer | Taliesin Jaffe, Liam O'Brien, Marisha Ray, Sam Riegel, Travis Willingham | – | December 7, 2017 | D&D | |
The cast use their Vox Machina characters at level 20 in a Battle Royale-style player versus player game. | ||||||
"Honey Heist 2: Electric Beargaloo" | Marisha Ray | Sam Riegel, Matthew Mercer, Taliesin Jaffe, Liam O'Brien | Brian W. Foster | August 10, 2018 | Honey Heist | |
Uses the one-page RPG system called Honey Heist. This episode was pulled from Critical Role's official channels in July 2023. [67] | ||||||
"Liam's One-shot: The Song of the Lorelei" | Liam O'Brien | Laura Bailey, Sam Riegel, Travis Willingham | Erica Luttrell, TJ Storm | August 31, 2018 | D&D | |
A werewolf adventure in Wildemount. | ||||||
"Honey Heist 3: Tova's Honeys" | Marisha Ray | Laura Bailey | Krystina Arielle, Dani Carr, Mary Elizabeth McGlynn, ND Stevenson, Brittany Walloch-Key | November 23, 2018 | Honey Heist | |
Uses the one-page RPG system called Honey Heist. | ||||||
"Stephen Colbert's D&D Adventure" | Matthew Mercer | – | Stephen Colbert | May 23, 2019 | D&D | |
A Red Nose Day one-shot where Mercer runs a special one-on-one D&D adventure for Stephen Colbert. Colbert plays Capo, a half-elven bard, who sets out to solve mystery on the Menagerie Coast in Wildemount. | ||||||
"Vox Machina x Mighty Nein" | Matthew Mercer | All main cast present | – | June 18, 2021 | D&D | |
A 4x4 Battle Royale between Vox Machina (represented by Pike, Scanlan, Vax'ildan, and Percy) and the Mighty Nein (represented by Beauregard, Jester, Fjord and Mollymauk). The cast reprised their characters at level 15. This episode was a stretch goal reward from Critical Role's 2019 Kickstarter. [68] | ||||||
"Guest Battle Royale" | Sam Riegel | – | Anjali Bhimani, Darin De Paul, Will Friedle, Sumalee Montano, ND Stevenson | January 27, 2022 | D&D | |
Five warriors are pulled from different points of Exandria’s timeline to fight on Garyon Garrington’s Plunder Games – an alternate reality TV show. Various guests will reprise their characters in this Battle Royale-style player versus player game: Darin De Paul as Sprigg, Will Friedle as Kashaw Vesh, and ND Stevenson as Tova from Campaign One, Sumalee Montano as Nila from Campaign Two, and Anjali Bhimani as Fy’ra Rai from Exandria Unlimited. This one-shot episode was a stretch goal reward from Critical Role's 2019 Kickstarter. | ||||||
"Dignity: An Adventure with Stephen Colbert" | Matthew Mercer | Ashley Johnson, Marisha Ray, Sam Riegel | Stephen Colbert | April 28, 2022 | D&D | |
A Red Nose Day one-shot where Mercer runs a D&D adventure for Stephen Colbert; Colbert plays as Lucky Jack, a human fighter, seeking his temple's reliquary Dignity which was stolen during an attack on his temple which left his mentor dead. He was joined by several Critical Role cast members reprising their Mighty Nein roles at level 5. Red Nose Day donors had the ability to choose various aspects of the game between March 23 to April 1. [69] [70] [71] This Red Nose Day campaign won two 2022 Shorty Impact Awards – the Gold Honor in "Best Fundraising Campaign" and the Audience Honor in "Best Influencer & Celebrity Partnership". [72] | ||||||
"A Familiar Problem: Sprinkle’s Incredible Journey" | Marisha Ray | Laura Bailey, Matthew Mercer, Travis Willingham | Heidi N Closet, Isabella Roland | June 23, 2022 | A Familiar Problem | |
A one-shot following a group of animal familiars in Exandria. It showcased A Familiar Problem, the new one-page RPG created by Marisha Ray and Grant Howitt. [73] [74] | ||||||
"Red Nose Day 2023 One-Shot: Choose Their Adventure… Again!" | Matthew Mercer | Sam Riegel, Laura Bailey, Taliesin Jaffe | Tony Hale, Sam Richardson | November 28, 2023 | D&D | |
A Red Nose Day one-shot where Mercer runs a D&D adventure for Tony Hale and Sam Richardson who are joined by several Critical Role cast members. The adventure was set in the Shattered Teeth. Red Nose Day donors had the ability to choose various aspects of the game. While O'Brien was originally announced as a player, he later withdrew and was replaced by Riegel. [75] [76] | ||||||
"Chicago Live Show" | Matthew Mercer | All main cast present | – | TBA | D&D | |
The audience will vote on which main Critical Role campaign characters the cast will play in this one-shot. This episode will be recorded live on April 10, 2025 at the Wintrust Arena as part of Critical Role's tenth anniversary live show tour. [65] [66] | ||||||
"Sydney Live Show" | Matthew Mercer | All main cast present | – | TBA | D&D | |
The cast will play as main Critical Role campaign characters in interconnected one-shots facing a common threat, starting in Sydney, Australia. This episode will be recorded live on June 19, 2025 at the ICC Sydney Theatre as part of Critical Role's tenth anniversary live show tour. [65] [66] | ||||||
"Melbourne Live Show" | Matthew Mercer | All main cast present | – | TBA | D&D | |
The cast will play as main Critical Role campaign characters in interconnected one-shots facing a common threat, finishing in Melbourne, Australia. This episode will be recorded live on June 25, 2025 at the Rod Laver Arena as part of Critical Role's tenth anniversary live show tour. [65] [66] |
These one-shots were made as promotions for other properties or groups.
Title | Game master | Cast players | Guest players | Original release date | RPG system | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
"Shadow of War Part 1" | Matthew Mercer | Laura Bailey, Sam Riegel, Travis Willingham | Darin De Paul | October 3, 2017 | D&D | |
First part of a sponsored one-shot to promote Middle-earth: Shadow of War . | ||||||
"Shadow of War Part 2" | Matthew Mercer | Laura Bailey, Sam Riegel, Travis Willingham | Darin De Paul | October 9, 2017 | D&D | |
Second part of a sponsored one-shot to promote Middle-earth: Shadow of War. | ||||||
"Hearthstone One-shot" | Matthew Mercer | Liam O'Brien, Travis Willingham, Laura Bailey, Taliesin Jaffe | Jennifer Hale | November 30, 2017 | D&D | |
Sponsored one-shot for the Hearthstone game. Titled on Geek & Sundry as Kobolds, Catacombs and Dragons (Oh My!) | ||||||
"Call of Cthulhu: Shadow of the Crystal Palace" | Taliesin Jaffe | Marisha Ray, Travis Willingham, and Liam O'Brien | Erika Ishii, Ashly Burch, and Phil LaMarr | July 29, 2019 | Call of Cthulhu | |
Promotional one-shot for Call of Cthulhu. | ||||||
"Feast of Legends" | Sam Riegel | Marisha Ray, Matthew Mercer, and Liam O'Brien | Ify Nwadiwe | October 3, 2019 | Feast of Legends | |
"Doom Eternal One-Shot" | Matthew Mercer | Sam Riegel, Laura Bailey, Taliesin Jaffe | Anjali Bhimani, Jasmine Bhullar | March 16, 2020 | D&D | |
Game Master Matthew Mercer leads a horde of demons on an adventure based on the first-person shooter DOOM Eternal . | ||||||
"Diablo One-Shot" | Matthew Mercer | Laura Bailey, Liam O'Brien, Marisha Ray | Mica Burton, Carlos Luna | February 20, 2021 | Homebrew | |
"Elder Scrolls Online: Blackwood Part 1 – Death & Taxes" | Matthew Mercer | Laura Bailey, Sam Riegel, Taliesin Jaffe | Aabria Iyengar, Michelle Nguyen Bradley | May 24, 2021 | D&D | |
The first Elder Scrolls Online: Blackwood themed one-shot sponsored by Bethesda Softworks and ZeniMax Online Studios. [84] [85] | ||||||
"Elder Scrolls Online: Blackwood Part 2 – A Faulty Foundation" | Marisha Ray | Laura Bailey, Sam Riegel, Taliesin Jaffe | Aabria Iyengar, Michelle Nguyen Bradley | August 19, 2021 | D&D | |
The second Elder Scrolls Online: Blackwood themed one-shot sponsored by Bethesda Softworks and ZeniMax Online Studios. | ||||||
"Elder Scrolls Online: Blackwood Part 3 – The Golden Goose" | Liam O'Brien | Laura Bailey, Sam Riegel, Taliesin Jaffe | Aabria Iyengar, Michelle Nguyen Bradley | October 28, 2021 | D&D | |
The third Elder Scrolls Online: Blackwood themed one-shot sponsored by Bethesda Softworks and ZeniMax Online Studios. | ||||||
"Elden Ring One-Shot: O Ye of Little Faith" | Matthew Mercer | Marisha Ray, Sam Riegel | Krystina Arielle, Brennan Lee Mulligan, Alexander Ward | March 1, 2022 | D&D | |
An Elden Ring themed one-shot sponsored by Bandai Namco Entertainment. [86] [87] Mercer used a modified version of the D&D ruleset. [88] | ||||||
"Tiny Tina's Wonderlands One-Shot" | Ashly Burch | Laura Bailey, Ashley Johnson, Travis Willingham | Robbie Daymond, Ify Nwadiwe | March 28, 2022 | Bunkers & Badasses | |
"Generation Nord" | Sam Riegel | Laura Bailey, Liam O'Brien | Aimee Carrero, Christian Navarro, Lou Wilson | November 8, 2022 | 8-Bit | |
"The Legend of Zelda One-Shot: Lookout, Here We Come!" | Matthew Mercer | Liam O’Brien, Marisha Ray | Robbie Daymond, Omar Najam, Emily Axford | May 30, 2023 | PbtA | |
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom themed one-shot set in the world of Hyrule, sponsored by Nintendo of America. [92] [93] | ||||||
"Mortal Kombat 1 One-Shot: Sindel Vs. The Realms" | Marisha Ray | Sam Riegel, Travis Willingham | Noshir Dalal, Gina Darling | September 19, 2023 | Till The Last Gasp | |
"Persona 5 Tactica One-Shot" | Liam O'Brien | Matthew Mercer | Robbie Daymond, Xanthe Huynh, Krystina Arielle, Jared Goldstein | November 17, 2023 | TBA | |
"Assassin's Creed Shadows One-Shot" | Matthew Mercer | Liam O'Brien | Emily Piggford, Robbie Daymond, Peter Shinkoda | January 14, 2025 | Homebrew | |
These are one-shots which feature the Daggerheart system published by Darrington Press, the tabletop game imprint for Critical Role Productions. [99] [100] [101] Cheryl Teh of Business Insider noted that the Critical Role cast "appears to be embracing, once again, the funhouse chaos of its early-day Twitch streams" by returning to the livestream format for the Daggerheart episodes. [100] Tara McCauley of The Escapist described the three episodes featuring The Menagerie adventuring party as a "one-shot-turned-short-campaign" which allowed Critical Role to "demonstrate Daggerheart and its open beta evolution with their signature actual play antics". [101]
Title | Game master | Cast players | Original release date | |
---|---|---|---|---|
"Critical Role plays Daggerheart" | Matthew Mercer | All main cast present | March 12, 2024 | |
A group of adventurers called The Menagerie, in the realm of Lochspire, investigate the corruption within the Velvet Grove and cleansed Boko, the guardian of the Grove. The one-shot showcases the beta version of Daggerheart. Features Bailey as Sweetpea Betabean, Jaffe as Sir Danté Terrapin, Johnson as Oppenheimer Betabean, O'Brien as Xarlo Grandall, Ray as Bunnie, Riegel as Pango Small and Willingham as Kexon Peros. [99] [102] | ||||
"The Menagerie Returns!" | Matthew Mercer | All main cast present | May 14, 2024 | |
The Menagerie trace the source of the corruption to the town of Lolvale and the Kroatona family. While infiltrating a hideout, the party battled members of the Kroatona family and were forced to flee into the sewers when backup was called. However, Bunnie and Sweetpea were captured during this escape. The one-shot showcases the beta version of Daggerheart. [103] [100] | ||||
"Ménagerie a Trois" | Matthew Mercer | All main cast present | June 13, 2024 | |
During Mortimer Kroatona's interrogation, Sweetpea and Bunnie manage to escape and regroup with the rest of the Menagerie. The party investigate nearby mines which were closed by the local baron on behalf of the Kroatona family and eliminate a source of corruption there. The one-shot showcases the beta version of Daggerheart. [104] | ||||
"A Daggerheart Critmas Story LIVE" | Matthew Mercer | All main cast present | December 19, 2024 | |
This episode was recorded live on December 7, 2024 at the Freedom Mortgage Pavilion and will premiere on Twitch, YouTube, and Beacon on December 19, 2024, with the YouTube VOD being made available on December 23, 2024. [101] [105] [106] | ||||
"Indianapolis Live Show" | Matthew Mercer | All main cast present | TBA | |
The first Daggerheart one-shot set in Exandria. This episode will be recorded live on August 2, 2025 at the Fishers Event Center as part of Critical Role's tenth anniversary live show tour. [65] [66] |
These one-shots are not set within Exandria, nor are they promotional.
Title | Game master | Cast players | Guest players | Original release date | RPG system | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
"Critical Role at GameSpot livestream" | Matthew Mercer | Travis Willingham, Laura Bailey, Marisha Ray | Alexa Ray Corriea, Danny O'Dwyer | March 22, 2016 | D&D | |
Although not canon, this game features an early version of Jester – Laura Bailey's character for Campaign two. [107] | ||||||
"To The Poop! - The Goblins" | Matthew Mercer | Taliesin Jaffe, Marisha Ray | Ashly Burch, Phil LaMarr, Ivan Van Norman | April 18, 2016 | Pathfinder | |
A one-shot using the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game system. | ||||||
"Deadlands One-Shot for MDA Charity!" | Matthew Mercer | Marisha Ray, Liam O'Brien, Laura Bailey, Travis Willingham | – | June 25, 2016 | Deadlands Reloaded | |
A charity one-shot for the Muscular Dystrophy Association. [108] | ||||||
"Critical Role EXTRA – Liam's Quest!" | Liam O'Brien | Laura Bailey, Taliesin Jaffe, Sam Riegel, Travis Willingham | – | June 30, 2016 | D&D | |
The cast, playing as themselves, start in a mundane voice acting session when extraordinary events leave them struggling to survive in a Lovecraftian horror adventure based on popular movies and video games. | ||||||
"Liam's Quest: Full Circle" | Liam O'Brien | All main cast present | – | April 20, 2017 | D&D | |
Sequel to "Critical Role EXTRA – Liam's Quest!" | ||||||
"Thursday by Night Part 1" | Taliesin Jaffe | Laura Bailey, Matthew Mercer, Liam O'Brien, Marisha Ray, Sam Riegel, Travis Willingham | – | October 19, 2017 | Vampire: The Masquerade | |
Taliesin acts as a Game Master for the first time, leading the cast (playing as themselves) through a Vampire: The Masquerade game set in the Geek & Sundry offices. | ||||||
"Thursday by Night Part 2" | Taliesin Jaffe | Laura Bailey, Liam O'Brien, Sam Riegel, Travis Willingham | – | October 26, 2017 | Vampire: The Masquerade | |
The Vampire: The Masquerade campaign concludes as the surviving cast members find their way through the outside world. | ||||||
"Sam's One-shot" | Sam Riegel | – | H. Michael Croner, Yuri Lowenthal, Molly Ostertag, ND Stevenson, Amy Vorpahl, Stefanie Woodburn | November 16, 2017 | D&D | |
Titled on Geek & Sundry as Once Upon a Fairytale Cruise. [109] | ||||||
"Sam Riegel's Crash Pandas One-shot" | Sam Riegel | Matthew Mercer, Marisha Ray, Liam O'Brien, Laura Bailey, Travis Willingham | Blair Herter | September 21, 2018 | Crash Pandas | |
Also titled: Crash Panda's Too Trashed Too Curious | ||||||
"Critical Role and the Club of Misfits" | Laura Bailey | Travis Willingham, Taliesin Jaffe, Liam O'Brien, Sam Riegel | Brian W. Foster | October 25, 2018 | D&D | |
"The Night Before Critmas" | Liam O'Brien | Taliesin Jaffe, Ashley Johnson, Matthew Mercer, Marisha Ray, Sam Riegel, Travis Willingham | Julie Nathanson | December 21, 2018 | D&D | |
A one-shot following elves in Santa's Village in the North Pole. | ||||||
"Tails of Equestria" | Mark Hulmes | Ashley Johnson, Liam O'Brien | Markeia McCarty, Julie Nathanson, Roger Craig Smith | May 31, 2019 | My Little Pony: Tails of Equestria | |
Mark Hulmes, Dungeon Master of the web series High Rollers, acts as Game Master for a special My Little Pony: Tails of Equestria adventure. | ||||||
"Cinderbrush: A Monsterhearts Story" | Matthew Mercer | Ashley Johnson, Taliesin Jaffe | Erika Ishii, Ally Beardsley | February 14, 2020 | Monsterhearts | |
Four teenagers take on the horrors of high school – hormones, social cliques, teen angst and supernatural monsters. | ||||||
"The Nautilus Ark: A Johnson Corp Odyssey" | Ashley Johnson | Laura Bailey, Taliesin Jaffe, Liam O'Brien, Marisha Ray, Travis Willingham | – | September 9, 2021 | Homebrew | |
Ashley Suzanne Johnson is an American actress. She became known as a child actress for her role as Chrissy Seaver on the sitcom Growing Pains (1990–1992). As an adult, her television roles include Amber Ahmed on The Killing (2011–2012) and Patterson on Blindspot (2015–2020). She has appeared in films such as What Women Want (2000), Fast Food Nation (2006), The Help (2011), and Much Ado About Nothing (2012), and is a cast member on the Dungeons & Dragons web series Critical Role (2015–present). She became the president of the show's charity branch, the Critical Role Foundation, upon its launch in 2020.
Travis Willingham is an American voice actor known for his character portrayals in video games and English anime dubs. His notable roles include Roy Mustang in the Fullmetal Alchemist franchise, Cleo in Glass Fleet, Ginko in Mushishi, Portgas D. Ace in One Piece, Takashi "Mori" Morinozuka in Ouran High School Host Club, Yu Kanda in D. Gray-man, and Cameron Campbell in Camp Camp.
Liam Christopher O'Brien is an American voice actor, writer, and director. He is a regular cast member of the Dungeons & Dragons actual play series Critical Role, playing Vax'ildan ("Vax"), Caleb Widogast, and Orym. He has been involved in many video games, cartoons, and English-language adaptations of Japanese anime. His major anime roles include Gaara in Naruto, Naruto Shippuden, and Boruto, Vincent Law in Ergo Proxy, Captain Jushiro Ukitake in Bleach, Lloyd in Code Geass, Kenzo Tenma in Monster, Akihiko Sanada in Persona 3, and Nephrite in the Viz Media dub of Sailor Moon.
Samuel Brent Oscar Riegel is an American voice actor. He is best known for his voice roles as Donatello in the 2003 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles series and Phoenix Wright in the Ace Attorney games. He has also worked for Nickelodeon as the voice director for Fresh Beat Band of Spies and Sanjay and Craig, as well as the voice of Riven in the revival of Winx Club. Since 2015, he has been a regular cast member of the web series Critical Role, in which he and other voice actors play Dungeons & Dragons. In 2022, the show's first campaign was adapted into the animated series The Legend of Vox Machina.
Taliesin Jaffe is an American voice actor, voice director, and screenwriter. He has worked on English-dubbing roles for anime and video games. He is a cast member on Critical Role, a web series in which he plays Dungeons & Dragons with other voice actors. Jaffe has also frequently voiced the Flash in various video games.
Matthew Christopher Miller, better known as Matthew Mercer, is an American actor and game designer. He has provided voice work for cartoons, animations, video games, and English dubs of anime.
Robert Daymond Howard is an American voice actor who is mostly known for his roles in video games, animation, anime and audiobooks. Some of his best known roles include Spider-Man in Marvel's Spider-Man and various Marvel media, Mike, Orbulon and Young Cricket in WarioWare Gold, Megumi Fushiguro in Jujutsu Kaisen, Jesse Cosay in the second season of Infinity Train, Goro Akechi in Persona 5, Hubert von Vestra in Fire Emblem: Three Houses and Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes, Lloyd Bannings in Trails series, Prompto Argentum in Final Fantasy XV, River Ward in Cyberpunk 2077, and on-camera as Dorian Storm in the Dungeons & Dragons actual play web series Critical Role and its spinoff Exandria Unlimited.
Critical Role is an American web series in which a group of professional voice actors play Dungeons & Dragons. The show started streaming partway through the cast's first campaign in March 2015. Campaign one ended in October 2017 after 115 episodes, and campaign two started in January 2018 and ended in June 2021 after 141 episodes. A number of one-shots were aired in the hiatus between the two campaigns. After campaign two was completed, the spin-off limited series Exandria Unlimited aired from June 2021 to August 2021. The third campaign premiered on October 21, 2021.
Marisha Ray Huber is an American voice actress, host, producer, and creative director. She is best known for portraying herself and characters Keyleth, Beauregard, and Laudna on the Dungeons & Dragons web series Critical Role. Her video game voice roles include Margaret in Persona 4 Arena Ultimax and Persona Q, Laura S. Arseid in The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel series, Miranda in Metal Gear: Survive, and Effie in Fire Emblem Heroes.
Critical Role Productions, LLC is a multimedia production company incorporated in 2015 by the members of the creator-owned streaming show Critical Role. The company's first two shows, Critical Role and Talks Machina, originally premiered on Geek & Sundry. The company moved to its own studio space in 2018 and began producing new shows on its Twitch and YouTube channels. A split from Legendary Digital Networks was completed in early 2019, at which point Critical Role Productions took over production responsibility. Since then, the company has continued to launch new shows independently.
Critical Role: Vox Machina Origins is a comic series, published by Dark Horse Comics, based on the American Dungeons & Dragons web series Critical Role. The comics act as a prequel story and covers how the characters became the adventuring party known as Vox Machina before the events of the web series. Matthew Colville was the writer on the first volume with Jody Houser becoming the writer on the subsequent three volumes. Olivia Samson was the artist on the first three volumes with Noah Hayes becoming the artist on the fourth volume.
The second campaign of the Dungeons & Dragons web series Critical Role premiered on January 11, 2018—four months after the conclusion of the first campaign—and concluded on June 3, 2021. The series starred Travis Willingham, Marisha Ray, Taliesin Jaffe, Ashley Johnson, Sam Riegel, Liam O'Brien, and Laura Bailey as the players with Matthew Mercer as the Dungeon Master.
The first campaign of the Dungeons & Dragons web series Critical Role premiered on March 12, 2015; it consisted of 115 episodes and concluded on October 12, 2017. It followed Vox Machina, a party of seven to eight adventurers, in their travels across the continent of Tal'Dorei. Campaign one broadcast live each Thursday at 19:00 PT on Geek & Sundry's Twitch channel, with the video on demand (VOD) being available to Twitch subscribers immediately after the broadcast. On the Monday following the live stream, the VODs were made available for the public on the Geek & Sundry YouTube channel.
The Legend of Vox Machina is an American adult animated fantasy action television series produced by Metapigeon, Titmouse, Inc., and Amazon Studios, which premiered on Amazon Prime Video on January 28, 2022. The series is based on the first campaign of the Dungeons & Dragons web series Critical Role. It stars Laura Bailey, Taliesin Jaffe, Ashley Johnson, Matthew Mercer, Liam O'Brien, Marisha Ray, Sam Riegel, and Travis Willingham, reprising their roles from the campaign.
Critical Role: Tal'Dorei Campaign Setting is a sourcebook that details the continent of Tal'Dorei from the Critical Role campaign setting for the 5th edition of the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game. It was published by Green Ronin Publishing and released on August 17, 2017; however, it is not considered "official" Dungeons & Dragons material. A revised edition, titled Tal'Dorei Campaign Setting Reborn, was published by Darrington Press and released on January 18, 2022.
Critical Role, an American web series in which a group of professional voice actors play Dungeons & Dragons, has spawned many related products, including books, comics and an animated series, which are produced by Critical Role Productions. Various third-party, licensed works have also been released since Critical Role began in 2015.
The third campaign of the Dungeons & Dragons web series Critical Role premiered on October 21, 2021; it is set after the conclusion of the second campaign and Exandria Unlimited. The series stars Marisha Ray, Ashley Johnson, Laura Bailey, Travis Willingham, Liam O'Brien, Taliesin Jaffe, and Sam Riegel as the players with Matthew Mercer as the Dungeon Master. Campaign three airs each Thursday at 7 p.m. PT on Critical Role Productions' Twitch and YouTube channels and the Beacon streaming service except for the last Thursday of each month.
Exandria Unlimited (ExU) is an American actual play anthology web series where the cast plays Dungeons & Dragons using the fifth edition ruleset. It is set in the Exandria campaign setting and is a spin-off of the web series Critical Role.
Darrington Press is the tabletop game imprint for Critical Role Productions which launched in October 2020. It is led by Ivan Van Norman with Matthew Mercer as the creative advisor. The publishing label primarily produces board and card games along with role-playing games. It won two ENNIE Awards in 2022 – "Fan Award for Best Publisher" and "Best Setting Gold Award" for Tal'Dorei Campaign Setting Reborn.
... the first few episodes of our animation will focus on a brand new Vox Machina adventure, which takes place before our show began streaming live on Twitch.
the episode has since been taken down
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