New Critical Role Dungeon Master Brennan Lee Mulligan has been laying the foundations for a truly epic and complex Campaign 4, sowing the seeds of an ambitious plot set in a godless world, sparked by the tragedy of hero and scoundrel Thjazi Fang’s execution. In the first four episodes, we’ve traipsed through the deliciously intricate playground of Dol-Makjar, a city full of political intrigue and dodgy dealings. However, last Thursday night we got to see the first non-Overture episode of Critical Role Campaign 4, and with it the first good look at the world outside Dol-Makjar.
Fans followed the Soldiers table this time around: Teor Pridesire (Travis Willingham), Thimble (Laura Bailey), Wicander Halovar (Sam Riegel), Kattigan Vale (Robbie Daymond), and Tyranny (Whitney Moore) as they headed north to Timmony in search of Cyd Pridesire, Teor’s brother. While this episode was on the shorter side, it quickly established something crucial to the lifeblood of the campaign: there are good people worth fighting for in the world of Aramán.
This might not be a huge surprise for long-time watchers of Critical Role. In each past campaign, even amid moments of defeat and utter despair, good always triumphs over evil, and hope and love are key themes. Then again, Campaign 4 gives a very different vibe. Previous campaigns did not begin with such a hopeless opening: the execution and then the funeral of an NPC beloved by most of the characters. It’s a dour note, and one that surprised me when I watched the premiere.
Moreover, the Overture episodes have established a world ravaged by the aftermath of the conflict that brought down the gods. The city of Dol-Makjar is currently entangled in the machinations of the Sundered Houses, which are trying to strip the Revolutionary Council of its powers using the dreaded and way-too-real weapon of privatization. And that’s when they’re not trying to establish a fraudulent religion or using the undead to massacre an entire household. Is it any wonder one might consider whether Aramán is even worth saving? This setup felt familiar to me, having been a player in D&D campaigns so dystopian that playing them became depressing.
However, episode 5 quickly changed my mind after the introduction of two NPCs: Brookmeadow and Ulbid. The first is a faerie like Thimble, who mistakenly thinks Thimble has been captured by the ‘big people’ in the group and offers her help to reach a faerie settlement called Hawthorn’s Glade. Brookmeadow does this by dragging Thimble away into a stream, using an air bubble to communicate and offer her protection. It’s only when Thimble makes it clear that she and the rest of the group are allies that Brookmeadow feels safe in letting Thimble leave and continue her journey, also warning Thimble of the dead, dangerous things within the woods and out on the road.
It’s a small interaction in the grand scheme of things, but its value is undeniable. Brookmeadow reveals that the faeries left behind after the door to their world shut have had no choice but to band together and form communities. Even with so much violence, death, and abandonment, people are coming together to help one another. This is a great way to deliver more information and lore about the world in a way that doesn’t rely too much on exposition, but on interaction instead.
The other NPC, Ulbid, is an ancient-looking gnome whom the group encounters within the woods after stumbling upon his observatory. It’s a place that resembles a junkyard more than a home, and his eccentric nature (such as his confession to spying on people, for one) makes some of the group, like Kattigan and Teor, feel uneasy. Considering that the Soldier’s task is to deal with the traitor Casimir, whose debts caused him to sell out Thjazito the Sundered Houses, I too was waiting for Mulligan to reveal something sinister about the gnome as time went on.
However, it turned out to be a red herring, and the only reveal was that Ulbid’s eccentricity comes from a deep sadness. His three daughters left home 15 years ago to go fight in an unnamed war (I assume it to be The War of Axe and Vine due to the timeline) and never came back. He keeps a lookout for them on the roads, waiting for their return with foolish but heart-wrenching hope.
Mulligan is known for twisting the knife when it comes to NPCs (I can’t watch Mulligan’s Wanderhome DM session without tearing up), but I wasn’t the only one fooled by this reveal. Speaking on Cooldown straight after the episode, the players of the Soldiers table revealed that they expected Ulbid to have some sort of dark, twisted backstory Mulligan was waiting to spring on everyone.
But for Mulligan, Ulbid, and Brookmeadow were key components in reminding the audience that the world of Aramán isn’t just full of nefarious individuals.
“I pulled Matt’s character’s dad’s skull out of his head.” Mulligan said, referring to one of Campaign 4’s darker moments, happening in the climax of episode #3. “I was like, we need to show that the reason that it sucks that bad things are happening is that there are some good people in the world. If everyone’s like, “I’m a fucking skull ghost, bleh!” We’d be like, “Why are we fighting for this world?””
It’s a vital reminder, both narratively and mechanically, that there is beauty and goodness to be found in even the darkest of settings. Brookmeadow could have easily abandoned Thimble to her fate of being ‘captured,’ but was willing to risk her life instead. Ulbid’s willingness to help the group stems from his care of the people around him, and his longing for his daughters to return home from a war that they may never have even survived.
It’s difficult to describe an entire world, even with the years of expertise under Mulligan’s belt. It’s even harder to craft that world and make it feel real for your players. You could have the most clever, fascinating lore, but if your players are unable to relate or care about it, then what’s the point? That’s why having well-crafted NPCs, ones that pull at your heartstrings, or you can relate to in some way, is so important. That’s why the introduction of Ulbid and Brookmeadow works.
Ulbid is a father who has lost so much due to the constant wars after the loss of the gods in the Shapers’ War, and his grief is as much a prison as it is meant to represent hope for a better tomorrow, a tomorrow where his daughters come back home. As for Brookmeadow, the faeries have been displaced, trapped in a world so unlike their own, and all they want is to go home. Through these NPCs, Critical Role delivered not just some emotional story beat, but also important lore about Aramán and what lies outside Dol-Makjar. It’s a great worldbuilding approach, and one that makes me even eager to find out more about the world of Aramán.
