Critical Role

Critical Role grew from a home Dungeons and Dragons campaign played by a group of Los Angeles voice actors. The game was adapted into a live actual play program for Geek and Sundry in 2015, with Matthew Mercer as Dungeon Master. Its original core cast included Ashley Johnson, Travis Willingham, Laura Bailey, Liam O'Brien, Marisha Ray, Taliesin Jaffe, Sam Riegel, and Orion Acaba. After Acaba's departure, the group continued its first campaign with recurring players and guests. The broadcasts presented longform collaborative storytelling using the fifth edition rules of Dungeons and Dragons, while Mercer built the setting of Exandria around them. Campaign One followed the adventuring party Vox Machina, whose members included Vex'ahlia, Vax'ildan, Percy, Keyleth, Grog, Scanlan, Pike, and later Taryon Darrington. Their story began after earlier home play and eventually centered on conflicts with the Briarwoods, the Chroma Conclave, and Vecna. Critical Role left Geek and Sundry in 2019, becoming an independent company and broadcasting through its own Twitch and YouTube channels. The company subsequently launched Campaign Two, The Mighty Nein, set two decades after Vox Machina. This campaign followed characters including Jester Lavorre, Caleb Widogast, Fjord, Beauregard Lionett, Nott the Brave, Yasha Nydoorin, Caduceus Clay, and Mollymauk Tealeaf. In 2019, Critical Role turned to Kickstarter to finance an animated special about Vox Machina. The campaign rapidly exceeded its initial goal and raised more than eleven million dollars, funding a full series instead of a single special. The resulting show, The Legend of Vox Machina, premiered on Amazon Prime Video in 2022. It adapts storylines from the first campaign, including the Briarwood arc, in an animated format. Critical Role also created the charitable nonprofit Critical Role Foundation, which has organized fundraising efforts and grants for organizations chosen in connection with its community. Live events feature cast performances before audiences. In October 2021, Critical Role began Campaign Three, centered on Bells Hells in Exandria's continent of Marquet. The party includes Imogen Temult, Laudna, Ashton Greymoore, Fearne Calloway, Orym of the Air Ashari, Fresh Cut Grass, and Chetney Pock O'Pea; later episodes added new companions. Alongside streamed campaigns, Critical Role operates Darrington Press, its publishing arm. Darrington Press has released tabletop roleplaying products, including Tal'Dorei Campaign Setting Reborn and Candela Obscura. The latter is a horror focused game developed with the Illuminated Worlds system. Through these productions, the organization has further expanded Exandria from a stream into books, animation, and games.