"4-Sided Dive: Suddenly Samuel" (4SDx25) is the twenty-fifth episode of 4-Sided Dive, discussing episodes of the third campaign up through "The Nox Engine" (3x98) with guests Taliesin Jaffe, Matthew Mercer, Sam Riegel, and Travis Willingham.
Synopsis[]
Travis Willingham is the 25th Tavern Keeper in a definitely not Robbie Daymond fashion.
What the Fuck is up with That?[]
- Sam Riegel is back! Talking about Fresh Cut Grass' sacrifice.
- Sam asked Matt months prior what would happen if FCG blew themselves up because it was something that Sam was interested in doing ever since they discovered in game that they were essentially a bomb. Sam was waiting for a good opportunity to do it, then he found out he was ill and thought of taking a break, so that was the right time to do it.
- Before "True Heroism" (3x91), Matt had an idea about taking FCG out of commission for a while by a Ruidus flare while they were exiting the chaos on the moon.
- It was smarter for Sam to sacrifice FCG, but also because Bells Hells were losing against Otohan Thull. Travis had no clue that he was going to do that. In fact, Sam didn't know he was going to do that until late in the fight. For Sam it was a good way to go.
- Matt said there were many options to stop Otohan in the tunnels, and also Bells Hells were close to defeating her, but who knew how many more kills she could have done in the meantime, considering that Bells Hells had a lot of bad dice rolls and Matt was rolling very well for Otohan. FCG's move was the right one for the character story and for the group, and it ensured that the battle was over.
- Tangent: Have you rolled less, more, or about the same in this campaign? For Taliesin and Travis it's way less. Percival de Rolo is a fighter built so Taliesin rolled a lot of dice, however he didn't roll a lot of criticals with Ashton Greymoore.
- Back to FCG. It was a very emotional night for many reasons. That caught Matt off guard harder that he would've anticipated, so many emotions on a public and private level. Sam didn't know how long he would be gone with his surgery and he didn't want Marisha Ray to be mad at him because he messed up the production calendar.
- Sam's new character for the Greek Theatre live show, Braius Doomseed, has the first name that came into Sam's head.
- Sam had an idea of being a brain in a jar because it sounded fun. He knew he should probably pick a class that does healing but didn't want to be a cleric again, so the paladin seemed good.
- Sam thought a lot about what everybody's character is going through romantically, their progression in the story, and how Bells Hells relates to gods. He knew he would want somebody with knowledge of gods.
- He wanted to choose a character that could interact with different members of Bells Hells and thought they would be more likely to interact with Braius if he was super hot.
- Sam was at the Greek Theatre but nobody in the cast saw him get into makeup, hair, or his outfit. He was basically sequestered.
- Sam wanted to come in with a pretty distinct British accent, but Sam can't speak very well right now and is still relearning how to speak correctly. The next time we see Braius, he might sound totally different which tracks because Braius' throat was damaged at the beginning. That choice was also because Sam didn't know if he would be able to talk during the show.
- Matt had a scenario where if Sam wasn't feeling up to go, he could have Braius not be there. Originally, Sam asked Matt if he could bring him in 5 minutes before the end. Matt thought about it then decided to bring Braius in 20 minutes into the game. Also, bringing Braius for the battle with Dominox and Ludinus Da'leth could have been weird.
- Braius has a cool backstory; unfortunately, half of it got spoiled during the live show. When Sam was holding his notes, someone was able to make a screenshot, enhance it, and post it online. Now Sam will have to go back and rewrite half of Braius' backstory. Thanks internet!
- It was overwhelming when Sam came out on stage. Laura Bailey and Ashley Johnson were even crying then hearing the audience cheering for him was incredible. The cast have been present with Sam all along in a support role. It was very healing for Sam to do it, to be back with his friends. But also, Sam was in so much of pain that night and was on a lot of drugs.
- About Braius' obsession with Teven Klask, he just has mad respect for him. Braius is pretty horny; it's quite a change from FCG.
- Sam's wife Quyen Tran was at the show and watched an episode for the first time. She loved it and was very supportive with all the positive feedback they received afterwards.
- Summoning Teven was a boss move, except for Matt who had to include another ally NPC in addition to Essek Thelyss who was already escorting Bells Hells. Matt even got a How do I want to do this? with Teven.
- The creepy girl imagery was very horrible for Travis. A lot was going on. Teven didn't want to help Dominox but Bells Hells were mostly on board to help him, then Ludinus showed up saying don't help the demon. It was a great tug of war.
- Matt said that the fight could've gone different ways and all of them would have at least ended at the same point, but all would have had different reverberations as to how things went. So Matt wasn't sure how it was going to play out.
- The cast were confused by Ludinus showing up and being "gentle" to them. They wanted to fight him but also wanted to know what he was doing.
- Dominox was in a weakened state when they fought him. He hd only fed on the Ruby Vanguard members that were escorting Ludinus. The fact that Dominox hangs bodies on hooks was not to outright kill them but to keep their insecurities battery going to feed the demon. Once he gets enough out of their emotional state then he's just feeding on their souls. If Dominox had been released, he would have been let out in Exandria to get to full power again.
- Taliesin's outfit for Ashton was custom made, especially the two different sets of pants put together. The RTA letters on the butt of Travis' outfit for Chetney Pock O'Pea were sewed onto the pants moments before the show began.
- The visions Dominox gave to some members of the party depended on the individual. The plan was using their insecurities from their immediate concerns, except Chetney doesn't have those, so Matt had the idea of him making toys for children but also what if he had killed these children. That worked on Travis-- he started to doubt himself about if it was true or not.
- The Occultus Thalamus is more or less an arcane black box. Although it's damaged and isn't completely there, what remains is the final moments of Aeor. But it was originally designed for surveillance, it tracks and records peoples' essences. It was also created towards the end of Aeor, when they had a lot of that kind of technology; they were essentially the "Project Manhattan" of the Age of Arcanum.
- Travis and Taliesin were not expecting Ludinus to reason and talk with them. Sam thought he was a totally normal guy and Taliesin thought he was going to do a snatch and grab. Taliesin has some theories but he saves it for the game.
- Brennan Lee Mulligan is back for Downfall!. He and Matt were cooking that since January and the idea came out during a casual lunch between the two. Matt always wanted to explore more about the fall of Aeor, ever since Campaign One: Vox Machina.
Tower of Inquiry[]
- You're a powerful magic user in the Age of Arcanum living in Aeor - what experiments or monstrosities would you be creating, AND would they survive in the ruins? What would they look like in the present time?: Travis would make a giant toad that spit blue globules of time-preserving energy. Sam would make Netflix. Taliesin would create magic Soylent. Matt would make a creature that could negate arcane tracking, even True Seeing, and could emanate an Antimagic Field as part of that.
- Being an adventurer can be stressful and traumatizing. When making characters, how do you make sure your characters have (and keep) enough motivation to start/keep going. Have you ever had a character that's been close to just saying nope and quit? For Sam it's all the time, it's the hardest thing to justify. Especially when the character had a life before adventuring, they will want to get back to it. Scanlan Shorthalt wanted to leave, Taryon Darrington resolved his things, Veth Brenatto wanted to go back to her family, and FCG wanted to make amends with Dancer or if the Changebringer was more available, FCG could've left and joined a temple. You have to be a broken person to want to adventure for a living. Travis' early built for campaign three was a character that was in a happy marriage, had healthy kids and had left the roost, had everything he wanted, and was not troubled or damaged in any way. Travis hated him really quickly. Matt said that Caleb Widogast almost left the Mighty Nein; Liam O'Brien talked to Matt and was told that he was totally free to leave and make another character.
The Deep Dive[]
- Taliesin: What went through Ashton's mind upon seeing FCG in their vision from Dominox? Is there any truth to the insecurity around that death that Dominox foisted upon him? Ashton has some guilt about knowing this was a very real possibility the entire time, and saying it out loud several times. During his vision, Ashton started to relate to the demon and ignore the vision, but 1/3 of the way through stopped and started to talk to FCG instead.
- Travis & Taliesin: What do Chetney and Ashton think of Laudna's battle with Delilah Briarwood and her taking the sword from Orym? Do they trust their friend and do they see parallels with their own stories? Yes for Chetney, but also yes for Fjord because the Warlock patron is hard to ignore and juicy to play as a player. For Chetney it's a pursuit of power he never had in his previous 400 years, no way he's giving it up or saying no. The fact that it came at the expense of the group in such a public way, Travis still don't know. Only Marisha could say who had the most control over it. Ashton wants to trust her with all his heart and will actively do it with effort, but also sees a lot of their own struggles in there and knows how easy it is to fall for it. He will probably side with her more often. It's complicated though.
- Matt: What was it like to perform at the Greek Theatre, especially at this crux in the story, and to get the HDYWTDT at a live show? That was wild. He has been there to see a number of concerts over the years and now being on stage is really crazy to see the other side of the spectrum. The audience was very excited even with the heat of the mid-afternoon. Also, finally doing a Bells Hells live show for this campaign, Sam being back, and bringing Robbie to the experience.
- Sam: What was the inspiration for Braius Doomseed? Sam considered bringing back Taryon, or Scanlan, or Kaylie, or somebody else, but it didn't feel right. They never have had a PC who is truly evil, although the alignment of Braius is not established yet.
- Taliesin: How does Ashton feel after interacting with Essek and knowing that he might have answers about the Dunamancy in Ashton's head? Really excited. It's like having healthcare. Finally Ashton have some long-awaited answers with who he is, great steps in self-discovery. Essek is very interested too because he's an anomaly. Per Matt, Ashton is a being of volatility, an ancient Primordial titan element dunamancy. Taliesin said it's Fearne Calloway without the charm.
- Travis: As a lore hound, what is it like to be back in Aeor? It's real good. Very intrigued by the giant creature with the big hammer. Very excited when they discovered they will face a "grand demon" which Travis never heard of before. And Ludinus talking to Bells Hells for whatever reasons is spicy.
- Matt: Did you expect the party to summon Teven Klask? What was it like to portray him, Essek, Dominox, and Ludinus in the same game? Wasn't expected as much as Fearne making a deal with him in the first place. Matt forgot about the deal.
- Sam: Braius is very interested in romance, judging by his flirtation with nearly everyone in the group. What does Braius look for in a partner? What would he write on his dating profile? He's into any and everyone. He's into art and painting. He's tall and furry. He's looking for someone who is into devil worship and who doesn't mind hot places. He's sensitive. He prefers black and white, the Mollymauk Tealeaf coat is too much for him.
- Taliesin: Ashton has utilized their new rock form a few times now. What is it like for him to explore that form? Is it worth the exhaustion? It's a bit awful in the sense that he's basically useless for two games because of the two points of exhaustion. It's expensive but it's pretty great too. Taliesin likes Ashton having mixed feelings about the whole thing.
- Travis: What does Chetney think of having Dorian Storm back, as well as this new Braius individual? He loves it. Dorian makes everything better and seeing Braius flirting with everybody including Dorian makes Chetney supremely happy.
- Mattt: Dominox, while impersonating Cyrus Wyvernwind and FCG, mentioned trapped and lost souls in the post-[[Celestial solstice]|Solstice]] chaos. Was that just a twist of the vision, or are the souls truly in Limbo right now? No, that was just him trying to force them to help him free himself. Pure manipulation.
- Sam: Why did Braius appear to the group heavily wounded, despite his own healing abilities? His wound happened recently but also Sam thought appearing injured to the group might endear him to them more.
- Taliesin & Travis: What did Ashton & Chetney think of the Reilora? What are their thoughts about everything going on in the moon? It's gnarly and they have so many questions.
- Travis: The Weave Mind seemed to reconnect with Chetney on Ruidus. What do you think happened there and what do you think it means that they have begun to weave back into him? They clearly sensed power and leadership amongst the group, classic Weave mind tactic (not really).
- Matt: So much of the story has been building to Downfall! What is it like to finally hand over the reigns to Aeor's past? Is there anything you can tell the audience as we prepare for Downfall? Super excited, there's nobody else that he trust more with the story. The Occultus Thalamus uniquely stores more information from powers that are attuned to its arcane technology that Matt thinks it anticipated, and allows some perspectives during this series that maybe weren't anticipated.
- Sam: What was it been like to see the outpouring of love for FCG? Bells Hells have even adopted his color scheme and some of his metal frame - what would FCG think of that memorial? He would love it. The love for FCG was amazing.
- Taliesin: Ashton asked Fearne to start cuddling with him and she agreed. What does this new intimacy meet to him? How did Ashton feel the first night, when they awoke and she was missing? Ashton is not precious about these things and doesn't have a lot of relationship experience. He also knows who she is, the first thought was she should have woken him up if she wanted to do something stupid. Adventure partners with benefits. Ashton's theory of what love is is love is wanting to trust somebody, not trusting them though, just wanting to.
Tower of Inquiry[]
- What is a theme you never expected to take stage in your character's journey so far? Sam didn't set out to make FCG a weird conspiracy theorist. Ashton was integrating lost parts of you. Chetney's legacy was him making toys, but now he explores a bigger version of that big trying to save the world.
- Many of the previous player characters have returned as NPCs in campaign 3, but if you could take over any NPC to revive as a player character, who would it be? Sam almost picked Darrow Allocke from the Stubborn Stock from campaign two for his new character. Travis would've picked Bolo. Taliesin would be Calliope Clay. Sam briefly thought coming back as Percival de Rolo, but Taliesin wasn't fully on board. Although he wanted to see Sam's take on Percy.
- If you could adapt any game/book/movie/franchise/etc into a tabletop RPG, which one would you pick and why? "Encyclopedia Brown" for Travis. Matt is the "Fate" anime because you have mages and power and historical powerful entities. "The Wicked + The Divine" for Taliesin because he likes music into RPGs.
Gaming[]
The cast is playing Roll For It!.
Quotations[]
- Sam: His [Braius] ideal date would probably be getting some food from a trough, going to see the movie "Eight Seconds".
Trivia[]
External Links[]
- The gaming portion of this episode is in a separate video "Roll For It! | More-Sided Dive | 4SDE25".
References[]
Art: