Campaign Three: Bells Hells is the third campaign of Critical Role, which began airing on October 21, 2021. It is set on the continent of Marquet[1] and begins in 843 PD, within a year after the events of Exandria Unlimited Prime.[2]
Cast[]
Main[]
Actor | Character | Race | Class |
---|---|---|---|
Laura Bailey | Imogen Temult | Human | Sorcerer (Aberrant Mind) |
Nahal/Emhira | Human | Warlock | |
Jester Lavorre | Tiefling | Cleric (Trickery Domain) | |
Vex'ahlia | Half-elf | Ranger (Beast Master)/Rogue (Inquisitive, formerly Assassin) | |
Taliesin Jaffe | Ashton Greymoore | Earth Genasi | Barbarian (Path of Fundamental Chaos) |
Ash/Asha | Wolf/Elf | Monk (Way of the Long Death) | |
Caduceus Clay | Firbolg | Cleric (Grave Domain) | |
Percival de Rolo | Human | Fighter (Gunslinger) | |
Ashley Johnson | Fearne Calloway | Faun | Druid (Circle of Wildfire)/Rogue (Arcane Trickster) |
Luz/Trist | Human | Paladin (Oath of Redemption)/Cleric (Light Domain) | |
Yasha Nydoorin | Aasimar (Protector) | Barbarian (Path of the Zealot) | |
Pike Trickfoot | Gnome | Cleric (War Domain) | |
Liam O'Brien | Orym | Halfling | Fighter (Battle Master) |
Caleb Widogast | Human (Variant) | Wizard (School of Transmutation) | |
Lieve'tel Toluse | Elf | Cleric (Grave Domain) | |
Vax'ildan | Half-elf | Rogue (Assassin)/Paladin (Oath of Vengeance)/Druid | |
Marisha Ray | Laudna | Human (Hollow One) | Sorcerer (Shadow Magic)/Warlock (The Undead, Pact of the Chain) |
Beauregard Lionett | Human (Variant) | Monk (Way of the Cobalt Soul) | |
Keyleth | Half-elf | Druid (Circle of the Moon) | |
Sam Riegel | Fresh Cut Grass | Aeormaton | Cleric (Empathy Domain) |
Braius Doomseed | Minotaur | Paladin (Oath of the Ancients)/Bard (College of Tragedy) | |
Veth Brenatto | Halfling (Lightfoot) | Rogue (Arcane Trickster)/Wizard | |
Scanlan Shorthalt | Gnome/Centaur | Bard (College of Lore) | |
Travis Willingham | Bertrand Bell | Human | Fighter |
Chetney Pock O'Pea | Gnome | Blood Hunter (Order of the Lycan)/Rogue | |
Fjord | Half-orc | Warlock (The Hexblade, Pact of the Blade)/Paladin (Oath of the Open Sea) | |
Grog Strongjaw | Goliath | Barbarian (Path of the Berserker)/Fighter (Battle Master) | |
Matthew Mercer | The Dungeon Master |
Guests[]
Actor | Character | Race | Class |
---|---|---|---|
Robbie Daymond[3] | Dorian Storm | Air Genasi | Bard (College of Swords) |
Cerkonos | Human | Druid (Circle of the Moon) | |
Erika Ishii[4] | Dusk | Changeling | Warlock (The Hexblade)/Paladin (Oath of Conquest) |
Aabria Iyengar | Deanna Leimert | Gnome | Cleric (Life Domain) |
Guest Dungeon Master | |||
Christian Navarro | F.R.I.D.A. | Aeormaton | Fighter (Gunslinger)/Rogue/Cleric (Life Domain) |
Aimee Carrero | Deni$e Bembachula | Dwarf | Barbarian (Path of the Juggernaut)/Rogue (Thief) |
Opal | Human | Warlock (The Hexblade, Pact of the Tome) | |
Utkarsh Ambudkar | Bor'Dor Dog'Son | Half-elf | Sorcerer (Divine Soul) |
Emily Axford | Prism Grimpoppy | Elf | Wizard (Order of the Scribes) |
Anjali Bhimani | Fy'ra Rai | Fire Genasi | Monk (Way of the Four Elements) |
Erica Lindbeck | Morrighan Ferus | Lagomore | Paladin (Oath of Vengeance) |
Matthew Mercer | Dariax Zaveon | Dwarf | Sorcerer (Divine Soul)/Bard |
Noshir Dalal[5] | Edam/The Emmisary | Earth Genasi | Barbarian (Path of the Juggernaut) |
Nick Marini[5] | Aru/Ayden | Human | Barbarian/Cleric (Peace Domain)/Druid (Circle of Stars)/Paladin (Oath of the Ancients) |
Abubakar Salim[5] | Coru/S.I.L.A.H.A. | Aeormaton | Sorcerer (Clockwork Soul)/Warlock |
Guest Dungeon Master | |||
Brennan Lee Mulligan | Guest Dungeon Master[5] |
Story arc summaries[]
- → For a summary of the events of the campaign to date, see Bells Hells (Adventures).
Story arc | First episode | Last episode |
---|---|---|
Arc 1: Jrusar | "The Draw of Destiny" (3x01) | "To The Skies" (3x23) |
Three groups of adventurers, some familiar and some new, meet in the five-spired city of Jrusar and form an alliance initially born of convenience and the desire for knowledge and coin. Quickly, however, they find themselves digging into the city's shadowy mysteries and increasingly fraught tensions. | ||
Arc 2: Ruidus Rising | "The Hellcatch Valley" (3x24) | "The Apogee Solstice" (3x51) |
Bells Hells leaves Jrusar and the memories of the friends no longer with them to explore the further reaches of Marquet and meet new potential friends and enemies. The Apogee Solstice approaches, bringing with it both new threats and the culmination of ancient plans. | ||
Arc 3: Separations and Explorations | "Far From The Others" (3x52) | "An Ancient Flame" (3x75) |
The Apogee Solstice and the execution of a plan thousands of years in the making to annihilate the gods creates new challenges and separations for Bells Hells. To learn more, they must travel to the most distant reaches of Exandria, gaining new potentials for power along the way. | ||
Arc 4: Ruidus to Aeor | "A Gathering of Heroes" (3x76) | "The Nox Engine" (3x98) |
Back together after seeing some of the farthest corners of Exandria, Bells Hells moves toward thwarting the plans of Ludinus Da'leth and the Ruby Vanguard by traveling to the red moon Ruidus on an intelligence-gathering mission, then following the trail to the frozen ruins of Aeor. | ||
Arc 5: Downfall | "Downfall: Part One" (3x99) | "Downfall: Part Three" (3x101) |
The Occultus Thalamus reveals the thoughts and memories of those who witnessed the Downfall of the flying city of Aeor, including the gods who were its cause. | ||
Campaign Three Arc 6 | "Reconciliation" (3x102) | continuing |
Bells Hells deal with the aftermath of viewing the downfall of Aeor via the Occultus Thalamus and the plans of the Exandrian Accord to thwart Ludinus Da'leth's machinations to release the god-eater Predathos. Old allies and heroes are called in to stand against the forces that threaten the stability of the world. |
Production[]
The fact that a third campaign would happen was first confirmed in an announcement on June 10, 2021.[6] The premiere date was confirmed in an announcement on September 30, 2021,[1] and it was announced that it would also air live in select theaters in the United States.[7] The campaign is prerecorded. Unlike previous campaigns, the series does not air on the last Thursday of the month (starting in 2022) to give the cast and crew time to rest and prepare for upcoming episodes and to give viewers time to catch up with the show.[1]
A brand new set was built for the campaign under Marisha Ray's project direction. Matt Mercer stated that the idea of a campaign room that had windows fitted with LCD screens for effects comes from a high school art project that became a "white whale" for him. Projection effects were initially "dabbled" with in "Call of Cthulhu: Shadow of the Crystal Palace" (Sx46), many requested by Taliesin Jaffe, and the new set was designed from the start to support using them more significantly. Named by the production team as the Tavern of Tales, the set's concept art was developed by Shaun Ellis and its lighting and projection design work was developed by Holly Hodges, who both worked in theme park development. It was built by Flip This Bitch, who built sets for Critical Role in the past. Marisha Ray described the set as "a tool, and it's meant to enhance the expression of the story", and she felt that it not only had to look good for the audience but also for the players at the table.[8] All lighting, screens, projections, music, and other atmospheric details are controlled directly by Matt.[9]
In an open letter published a few days before the campaign premiere, Matthew Mercer confirmed that he was working with cultural and sensitivity consultants "throughout the worldbuilding and presentation of Marquet" to ensure that aspects of the continent of Marquet, the main setting for the campaign, would be "lending a familiarity and celebrating aspects of those same languages and cultures without appropriating them".[10] Matthew outlined the general information of each region and let his collaborators choose the ones they felt most closely connected with. He himself worked mainly on the Oderan Wilds, while Basheer Ghouse fleshed out the Hellcatch Valley.[11] In a December 2018 episode of Talks at Google, he spoke about his desire to revisit Marquet in greater depth:
Liam O'Brien and Ashley Johnson were given the chance to playtest their characters, Orym and Fearne Calloway, through the miniseries Exandria Unlimited Prime. They both decided to reuse them in Campaign Three. They were given the option to re-roll their character stats for the new campaign, which Ashley took for Fearne. Guest player Robbie Daymond also chose to re-roll Dorian Storm's stats.[13]
According to Matt, Travis Willingham wanted to join the campaign a bit later than the others. To allow him to sit at the table from the first episode, Bertrand Bell, who had previously appeared in "The Search For Grog" (Sx42) and "The Search For Bob" (Sx45) , was brought back as a temporary player character. Travis suggested that Bertrand be killed to allow him to introduce his new character, but didn't know when or how his death would occur.[14]
The character art was created by Hannah Friederichs, who was also the official artist of Exandria Unlimited. The animations on the stat cards were created by Max Schapiro.[15]
Trivia[]
- Between Campaign Two and Campaign Three, the Critical Role timeslot was filled by Exandria Unlimited Prime and various special episodes.
- The race and class of Fresh Cut Grass were decided by Liam O'Brien.[16] Sam Riegel's previous characters Scanlan Shorthalt and Nott the Brave had a race and class suggested, but not decided, by Liam, although Sam took his suggestions both times.
- To help promote the campaign, Critical Role sponsored three videos from Quincy's Tavern featuring fictional foods and drinks with real accompanying recipes, in a series called "Taste of Marquet" posted to TikTok and Twitter.[17][18] They feature "Mage's Cloak", a drink made of the Marquesian mahika flower often used in potions, drinks and desserts with a recipe for a mocktail of butterfly pea tea; "kip kebabs", skewered meat dry rubbed with the fusaka often sold by street vendors, with a recipe for baked dry rub chicken kebabs; and "sandberry pies" made from sweet sand crystals, mined from mountain caves throughout Marquet and used as an ingredient in various desserts and drinks, with a recipe for peach mango hand pies.
- Campaign Three featured a guest earlier than any previous campaign, with Robbie Daymond as Dorian Storm appearing in the first episode.
- Campaign Three is the first campaign to feature player characters from previous Critical Role games. Bertrand Bell previously appeared in "The Search For Grog" (Sx42) and its sequel; Fearne Calloway, Orym and Dorian Storm previously appeared in Exandria Unlimited Prime.
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 See State of the Role: Campaign 3 Announcement | Fall 2021 at 5:33.
- ↑ Critical Role (@CriticalRole) on Twitter: "Check out our updated timeline featuring ALL of our epic adventures throughout Exandria -- including Campaign 3!" (2021-10-28).
- ↑ Critical Role (@CriticalRole) on Twitter: "Familiar travelers also make their journey to Jrusar with special guest @robbiedaymond leading the charge as Dorian!" (10-21-2021).
- ↑ Critical Role (@CriticalRole) on Twitter: "A fae-touched friend?? Welcome Dusk played by the wonderfully talented @erikaishii!" (5-19-2022).
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 Critical Role (@CriticalRole) on Twitter: "🔥DOWNFALL🔥 Episodes 99-101 of #CriticalRole will explore the 3-part story of a memory from an arcane relic within the ruins of Aeor. @BrennanLM leads Ashley Johnson, @executivegoth, @Abzybabzy, @NoshirDalal, Nick Marini & @LauraBaileyVO on this tragic tale on 7/11 at 7PM PT! [Video]" (2024-06-21).
- ↑ See the June 10th episode of State of the Role.
- ↑ See State of the Role: Campaign 3 Announcement | Fall 2021 at 6:06.
- ↑ See "Campaign 3: Behind the Set"
- ↑ Matthew Mercer (@matthewmercer) on Twitter: "I get to control it ALL. Lights, screens, projections, music, atmosphere... my villain lair is nearly complete." (2021-10-19).
- ↑ See A Warm Welcome to Marquet and Campaign 3! on critrole.com
- ↑ See "4-Sided Dive: Fly Into The Danger Zone" (4SDx03) at 56:05.
- ↑ See "Critical Role | Matthew Mercer + More | Talks at Google" at 40:22
- ↑ See Matt's tweet on returning player characters.
- ↑ See Matt's Tweet about Bertrand's death.
- ↑ Max Schapiro (@JewOnYourFloor) on Twitter: "been sitting on this meme since E10 since I animated the card months ago and knew shoutouts to @WillingBlam for keeping a straight face and @VoiceOfOBrien for having the gift of prophecy" (2022-01-20).
- ↑ See "Critical Role Campaign 2 Wrap Up" (Sx56) at 28:39.
- ↑ See @quincystavern on Twitter: the Mage's Cloak, Kip Kebabs, and Sandberry Pies.
- ↑ Enjoy a Taste of Marquet with Quincy’s Tavern! on CritRole.com
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