"4-Sided Dive: Shard Candy" (4SDx19) is the nineteenth episode of 4-Sided Dive, discussing episodes of the third campaign up through "Fractures" (3x78), as well as "The Mighty Nein Reunion: Echoes of the Solstice" (Sx79), with guests Taliesin Jaffe, Matthew Mercer, Marisha Ray, and Travis Willingham.
Synopsis[]
Matthew Mercer is the 19th Tavern Keeper for the night, as the cast dons their comfy pajamas for the evening. P.S. There's a creepy plastic Santa hidden somewhere on the set.
What the Fuck is up with That?[]
- Ashton decided to put another shard in them. Yeah, that happened. Taliesin compares it to a broken puzzle in an escape room: the thing that is supposed to come off the wall is stuck but you pull the thing anyway. In Taliesin's head, it made perfect sense at the time and Ashley came on that journey with him. He started realizing it was bad at when Matt said there would be 10 rolls to succeed.
- It became clear to Travis during the conversation between Ashton and Fearne at the Clocktower that there was some attraction between them. Taliesin says it's usually a bad sign, finding a gremlin partner and also some character hubris happening.
- For Matt as the DM, Ashton taking the shard was definitely a bad idea and a really "don't touch it" thing. Matt wasn't prepared for that moment and didn't see it coming. In Taliesin's defense, the shard was like the missing Lego piece in Ashton's broken life.
- In reality, the shard should go to Chetney. Roll 10 times. 10 on the first one, game over. His little heart couldn't take it.
- Everyone noticed Matt's meltdown journey during the shard moment. Half of the Botox in Los Angeles was probably needed to stop that.
- Sam and Liam asked Travis and Marisha to do something to help Ashton but what can a Blood Hunter and a dead girl with no healing spells can do? Nothing.
- Taliesin says he has a backup character. You have a kitchen fire, you buy a fire extinguisher. Travis should probably have one too at this point.
- After a major event like this, there's some broken trust in the group right now and everyone kind of need a group therapy session to relearn how everyone deals with the loss of trust.
- Dani says that the cast constantly refers to Bells Hells as a powder keg waiting to explode, and sometimes all it takes is a little spark.
- Marisha enjoys the chaos with Delilah. Having Fearne and Imogen see her along with Laudna in the basement of Whitestone Castle felt like a validation moment. "Look what I have in my head!"
- Dealing with inner-party conflict. It's important to know where the very clear line is that is understood between the character and yourself. For Travis, it's a combination of doing things that are button-pushy to see what Matt made; it can also be doing things because they're story related, like a challenge, and other times he thinks it's going to make the story better, regardless of the outcome. Basically, Travis is driven by intrusive thoughts at the table.
- Taliesin found the "you should go" moment of Chetney amazing. It's what Ashton needed. No one in the group went that hard on Ashton and it was necessary.
- The whole Ashton/Fearne conflict was talked through previously between Taliesin and Ashley. It's important, even after 10 years of playing and a lot of trust in each other, to check in on the other player about this kind of conflict.
- Marisha says that, after the game, the emotions were real but you need to be aware of separating reality from fiction and look at it from that objective standpoint.
- If you want to do this type of game at home, obviously open communication is very important between the players.
- The Mighty Nein Reunion live at Wembley! It was bonkers, still processing what happened that night. Matt was so nervous at the start, it took him 5-10 minutes to recover from the noise of the stage entrance. The cast were shell-shocked. The audience were with them all the time, for every word, for 4 hours, their presence was insane. Let's do it again![1]
- Storywise, the Mighty Nein were back together for a Cobalt Soul break-in. Daniel Sloss was amazing from the warm-up at the beginning and his time as Aggy who beats Chris Perkins/Spurt's record for the shortest character time on CR by a few seconds. Aggy wasn't supposed to stay for the whole show anyway. Matt made those traps to affect level 20 characters; of course Aggy wasn't going to last long. Daniel got the full Mighty Nein experience, with a Nat 1, a Nat 20 and a 9.
- Fjord's proposal to Jester when Matt was about to wrap up the show was because Travis says it's hard to catch Laura on her heels but in that moment, she looked pretty surprised. It was also far more dramatic this time to propose to his wife than the first time.
- The Trent Ikithon narrative came about because Matt was thinking about the live show tying in things that were both Mighty Nein-related but tangential to things that were happening in C3 without affecting the current campaign too much. Matt teased a bit in C3 about a prison break in Rexxentrum.
- Matt intended for Trent to take the ancient sealed egg and toss it in the middle of Blumenthal to give the Nein a choice: come after him and get vengeance or save the lives of these people and let him get away. Thanks to Jester's Antimagic Field followed by the Sentinel twins (aka Beau and Yasha), that never happened. Instead Trent took the egg and bound himself to Omentis, who was just supposed to be a distraction.
Travis said the secret word "T-Rex"![]
And therefore has to pull from the Tower of Inquiry:
- There have been a lot of callbacks and connections this campaign for both the players and the characters, from past PC cameos to guests choosing to come on as characters with surprising connections to the current PCs. Has there been a specific guest or cameo that stuck out to each player? Hard to top Keyleth for Marisha; Taliesin was impressed with Percy; Travis found Vex very contained/dignified. Seeing Vilya again was cool too.
Matthew interviews his players[]
- How are you doing? Pretty good. Taliesin's a bit tired.
- What surprised you the most so far this campaign? Ludinus was in the background the entire time, possibly as old as The Calamity. Travis has conspiracy theories about the Matron and the Prime Deities. For Marisha, the moment when Vax turned into a marble and the whole thing was a trap and the master plan of Ludinus. For Taliesin, it was all the Whitestone lore with Laudna.
- What do you still want to explore in Exandria and why? More Shattered Teeth for everyone because there are so many moving islands; the rest of Issylra; the underwater nations; there's still so much stuff to see around Aeor and also on Eiselcross in general.
- If you were in the DM's chair when Otohan cornered Bells Hells, what would you have done? Travis would have killed one of them just to prove a point. Matt points out he killed three.
Tower of Inquiry[]
- If your character was on Rumblecusp pre-Mighty Nein, what would they sacrifice to Vokodo? Ashton would sacrifice his jacket; Laudna would give Pâté then bamf him back to her; Chetney would give his scythe; Allura would give up her second flying carpet.
- As an artist, what fulfills you the most creatively? What sorts of stories, plots, or big choices are you passionate about? Matt is passionate about big choices in general; Taliesin likes asking questions that don't have answers and figuring it out later; Marisha is more on the production side of things, when the pre-production chaos eventually leads to a satisfying final product; Travis loves goosebumps moments that are emotionally satisfying; Matt also loves good occult horror.
- What if anything do you have at the table from a previous campaign? Is it a superstitious item or a sentimental one? Marisha still has her "Don't-fuck-me-Gil" die; Travis has his metal d20 from the Grog live show; Matt has his underwater mine dice for special rolls and a couple dice from the first set of dice he bought during high school; Taliesin has a pen that Travis and Laura got him for Christmas long time ago.
The Deep Dive[]
- Matt: "You've introduced two other characters who have their eyes on fate (Morri and Evontra'vir) - how do the two of them differ from each other and from the Matron? What do all three think of each other?" Fate is in all the campaigns to a certain degree. The three know each other: Evontra'vir might have encountered the Matron before she ascended. The Matron is the weaver of the threads, the keeper of the whole skein of fate; Evontra'vir is a tree that's grown in the middle of the threads and doesn't have an influence on them directly but has a keen view of the entire skein. Morri is just a fucking voyeur, she peeks in every now and then and tugs on a string and fucks it up a bit. The three don't all see eye to eye.
- Taliesin: "Ashton got some advice from Percy about making amends after mistakes. Did you expect to talk to Percy? What was it like getting advice from your own character?" He did not expect to talk to him, he thought maybe a lecture from Vex was on the way. It was surreal for Taliesin to talk to Percy. He would have given the same advice if he were on the other end of it too.
- Travis: "Chetney knows what it is to lose control and endanger others. Does he truly believe that he can control himself at all times, despite having fought Orym and Fearne in the past and bitten FRIDA recently?" Chetney does not think he can control himself at all times. It wasn't about Chetney in that moment. Two things: 1) hearing Fearne going "I kind of like him, Chet," and 2) Chetney sees himself in Ashton, a little bit of a button-pusher. It was more, "If I push on you, is it going to be to just cut and run? But if you can take it and own your shit, you'll stay." As Chetney said in the game, Ashton was there in the morning, and that means something.
- Marisha: "Laudna has seemingly reverted to who she was just after waking up, even calling herself Matilda. What can you tell us about her mindset right now? Are you worried about how this might affect her relationship with Imogen?" Laudna is not someone who's really mentally or emotionally equipped to have a mature way on how to deal with something like this, she basically went offline. Laudna has arrested development and stopped maturing in her youth, then was alone for 30 years. She got better the past 2-3 years with Imogen, but that doesn't mean when big monumental, emotional moments happen she will be able to overcome it, especially this close to Whitestone and Delilah's influence at her peak. She went back to what's comfortable, in a childlike state. The Laudna moment with the Sun Tree was not enough, it takes time. Healing is not linear.
- Matt: "Did Pike lie when she said that she couldn't feel anyone else but Laudna after her resurrection? Or was Delilah so diminished that Pike truly couldn't feel her?" She couldn't sense her. There's a difference between saying there's two beings that occupy this body that are in the forefront and one that has receded so deeply into the soul of the other that you don't see a difference between the two. You see salt and water but if you dissolve the salt in the water it just looks like water. As to how much truth there is to what Pike said, it's yet to be seen. Laudna and Delilah are attached to and reliant on each other.
- Taliesin: "Did you/Ashton have any inkling that Fearne had a crush on Ashton before she revealed those feelings to Chetney? What went through your mind when you heard that?" You'd have to be insane to have a thing for Ashton. They know that they're unlovable. Ashton doesn't like himself, why would anybody else? Taliesin/Ashton saw nothing, not at all. So no, Ashton didn't use that to his advantage to take the shard.
- Travis: "Chetney was very gentle with Fearne, trying to make sure she was okay. What was going through your mind while comforting her and what would Chetney have done if she hadn't been amenable to his words?" He would have bitten her ass. Getting the harness back from her was the important part. Chet wanted just to check in and go with her if she had decided to do shit.
- Marisha: "How did Laudna feel meeting Gwendolyn de Rolo? What was going through your mind throughout that interaction?" Gwen was awesome. "Spooky Girl of Whitestone" is going to love other spooky girl of Whitestone but, "Oh no, she's afraid of me". Since episode one of the campaign, we knew that Laudna loves children but she knows she's a monster. Gwen felt Delilah's hatred in Laudna and, for Laudna, it was a confirmation of her worst fears.
- Matt: "What was it like having Nana and Allura meet? They both know each other - what has Nana heard about Allura?" It was very fun. Allura knows Nana from her work in both the Arcana Pansophical and the Tal'Dorei Council. They are two very different individuals. Nana is less about knowing everything, but when she sees a person, she understands them upon seeing them.
- Taliesin: "Ashton told Laudna that he has never had a doll before. How do they feel having received such a personal gift from Laudna? What does he think about her suggestion to embrace his inner child?" Ashton was very discouraged to have toys in his childhood because that's how fights start in an orphanage. There isn't really an inner child in there, so that will be a tough thing to embrace.
- Travis: "It's been some time since Chetney trained with the Gorgynei. What exactly was the boon that you received from that experience? Did anything change for him mechanically?" Yes. He can go into a crazy blood frenzy while in wolf form but can cause collateral damage to allies. To use it optimally, Chetney needs to be one-on-one with a foe. He has to be around a certain hit point level and if he misses on an attack, the next attack will have advantage.
- Marisha: "Why does betrayal hurt Laudna so much? Is it because of how Delilah has linked betrayal to being alone again?" It's part of her "immature" way of dealing with these conflicts. Anytime those things backfire on her, she takes it extremely personally because she doesn't really know other way of taking those things. Betrayal is a big deal for her, since she trusted her parents and the Briarwoods to provide this experience in order for her to become a great mage, and we know what happened next.
Tower of Inquiry#2[]
- If your character found themself in a Freaky Friday situation with another character (current or past, PC or NPC), whose life would they most enjoy trying on for a while, and what do you think would ultimately make them want to go back? Chetney would want to switch with Planerider Ryn, to feel what's like to be a lesser qualified planerider; for Laudna it would be Lady Vex'ahlia or Lady Allura, because they are the epitome of the person that she dreamed of being; for Ashton, Keyleth because she has power, immortality, health, and a healthy social life; for Essek it would be anybody that can keep him out of trouble with the Bright Queen and the Dynasty.
- Throughout your characters' adventures as a group, what event granted them the most insight to what it means to act as/be on a team? For Taliesin it's Caduceus with Fjord in the volcano Kravaraad, the feeling of getting out and doing work in the world; for Marisha, Bells Hells retrieving the fire spark of Rau'shan on Igthuldus and fighting the Ludinus Simulacrum; for Travis it's the relationship between Chetney and Dorian, telling him he's a part of the group too.
Candy Land[]
- Taliesin: "How is Ashton feeling about their parents and repeating the mistakes of their father?" Real bad. During the explody times, they had flashes about the notion that maybe if Ashton's parents had stayed alive he would be an even bigger asshole.
- Travis: "Chetney bonded with Gwendolyn over breaking windows and sticking it to the man. How much does Chetney's love for children influence him, considering his main joy in life comes from making toys for kids." It's that childhood joy, wonder of things and exploration. He sees kids and thinks back 400 years ago to a simpler and happier time. Also, Percy is a real ponce with a lot of rules and Gwen has an appetite for deviousness that has to be fostered.
- Matt: "Why did you choose those specific people to appear at the war meeting? Did you consider bringing in Vex, Pike, Gilmore, Scanlan, or anyone else?" Cassandra is an important part of Whitestone. She wasn't there the first time and she's important for such meetings; Vex was in Emon with the Tal'Dorei Council; Pike might not be interested in the political side of things and probably worked as a support or help to make things happen; Scanlan was not on Matt's radar for plotting sessions; Kima prefers to let Allura do these things.
- Taliesin: "Did Ashton consider leaving? Or were they determined to stay no matter what?" Ashton considered seeing if the others would leave him, like the Nobodies did. So no, no more of that.
- Marisha: "What was it like to be in Delilah's old lab and encounter the ghosts of Delilah's evil? Laudna even allowed the ghosts to attack her to vent their frustration." It was so dark. Laudna thought it would be her parents in that lab.
- Marisha: "Why did Laudna want to make a doll OF Ashton FOR Ashton? What would you have done with it if you hadn't given it to them?" Marisha didn't know what she was going to do in that moment. She really listened to Matt/Delilah.
- Marisha: "if you could play Keyleth right now, what would be your first order of business?" She would be very fixated on trying to figure out how to fix Vax. Resisting the urge to talk to the gods and telling them to fix this.
- Matt: "How well did Delilah know Ludinus, considering she was once part of the Cerberus Assembly? What does she think of him toying with the gods?" Not going to answer, that might come up in the game.
- Travis: "FCG is going to have the group do a scavenger hunt as part of their bonding time. Is Chetney intrigued by the group activities? Could woodworking be a group bonding activity? Maybe painting wooden toys?" This will be the time where Chetney will shine. He would help people hold their tools.
Matt grabs Moppo and starts cleaning the set, but Matt-as-Scrooge promises that next episode, there will be no more bits on 4-Sided Dive, just submitted questions for the Tower of Inquiry from viewers.
Quotations[]
Trivia[]
- This episode is the special 4-Sided Dive for Christmas 2023.
References[]
Art: