Call of Cthulhu: Shadow of the Crystal Palace
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- Опубликовано: 6 сен 2024
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Brought to you by our friends at Chaosium, this special Call of Cthulhu one-shot features Keeper of Arcane Lore Taliesin Jaffe guiding investigators Marisha Ray, Erika Ishii, Phil LaMarr, Travis Willingham, Ashly Burch, and Liam O'Brien through a horrifying adventure.
Check out the cast:
Taliesin: / executivegoth
Marisha: / marisha_ray
Erika: / erikaishii
Phil: / phillamarr
Travis: / willingblam
Ashly: / ashly_burch
Liam: / voiceofobrien
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HEY, there might be some SPOILERS under the thing
2:30 Glad Sam could make it
5:10 Traumatizing Travis
5:55 Intro cinematic
7:30 Episode Starts
8:35 Jonathan Lansey gives a fantastic speech
11:35 The latest in cats
12:20 Laying out the heist
17:10 Ida Cogswell
17:25 Septimus Goodfellow
19:10 Hanako Hayashi
20:00 Alexandra Elise O’Neil
20:20 Dr.Mason Pocket
22:45 Cpt. Bentley Badger
23:40 Naming cats
25:10 Septimus raises the stakes
30:05 Premature lantern
32:25 Scooby Doo/Cthulu crossover
37:30 Nigel Peesee
41:40 Edison took credit for other people’s designs? How surprising!
52:25 What spirits do
53:20 Cat react
57:25 Show me what you’ve got
1:02:05 1890 alarm system
1:04:35 Taliesin does not actually own historical Japanese tech
1:06:35 Sam Riegel’s signature move
1:11:05 Current wars
1:14:35 Taliesin knows what you look like dead
1:18:20 Taliesin is not King Arthur
1:22:55 Totally not evil crystal
1:27:05 Thanks for the update, Septimus
1:28:55 Keep the bag closed
1:30:50 Taliesin provided actual secret compartments
1:33:00 Bentley knows keys
1:35:05 Human hair, or humans FOR hair
1:44:00 Lifting Doctor Pocket
1:54:30 Good pun Taliesin
1:57:30 That’s DOCTOR Pockets to you
2:00:05 Figuring out sanity
2:01:45 Hanako and Bentley
2:06:10 Sanity panic
2:09:05 Alexandra and Dr.Mason
2:13:00 Break Starts
2:18:00 Break Ends
2:25:15 Freaking out together
2:28:40 Septimus sees Them
2:38:30 Taliesin makes a curious suggestion
2:40:20 The centipede defense
2:41:25 The shadows cling
2:45:50 Septimus drops the act
2:48:35 These props are amazing
2:51:25 Alexandra loves the adventure
2:59:40 The wheel slows to a stop
3:02:15 Never open that door if there’s no warrant
3:02:35 Ruby vision doesn’t help
3:14:20 Catastrophe
3:22:15 Surrounded by shadow
3:33:45 Ida goes under
3:36:55 A good poker
3:40:40 Septimus loses his head
3:44:15 Dr.Pocket’s curiosity is satisfied
3:46:55 Septimus has turned
3:47:55 Light
3:49:25 Maryweather begins to fight
3:53:45 Debriefing
3:59:45 Goodbyes
4:04:45 Episode Ends
Twitch live viewership of this episode peaked around 21,000 people. The in-game start date for the episode was some time in the 1890’s.
I’m not sure this timestamp thing really lends itself to a horror game, but personally I really liked this. Congratulations Taliesin, Lovecraft would have found this truly horrifying.
Any moments I missed? Feel free to post them here. Is it Halloween yet?
YES THE GODS HAVE SPOKEN
MATE IT'S NOT EVEN BEEN A MINUTE
Damn dis dood is fast
Your highlights are impressive, you must be very proud
Literally Celestial.
I don't know if anyone else has noticed this, but the Crystal Palace DID host a cat show in the late 19th century, and Harrison Weir really WAS the chief judge who resigned in 1890. The secretary's rambling monologue is Taliesin cramming all his research notes into the game to prove he's done his homework.
Underrated comment
He didn't do any homework he was at the cat show in the Crystal Palace in the 19th century duuuh
Yeah, Tal and Keanu Bae are both immortal vampire lords. It is known.
thanks, dude! i love comments like yours :D i didn't think of looking that up. instead i found information about the _elekiter_ (エレキテル) which was used for electric experiments at that time. the japanese version is derived from a similar dutch invention. wikipedia link:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elekiter
Taliesin's box, that he gives to Hanako ( 1:02:07 ), matches the box on the picture in the article (even though that's just a replica) - i think it's the same pic that Taliesin himself shows. it's wonderful how much detail and effort was put into this :D
Elekiters made it possible to start true research with electricity and creation of electrical devices because for the first time we were able to produce electricity (through friction) and combined with things like the Layden jar (first condenser) store it for further usage. no more hunting thunderstorms needed ^^ Ben Franklin joined four Leyden jars together and seemingly coined the term _electrical battery_ as a name for that setup. That all happened in the 1740s and onwards - over 250 years ago. it's amazing how far we've come.
Solarzuka In his true form?
If you're bad at spotting things in this game, you miss stuff and get killed.
If you're good at spotting things, you notice stuff and are driven insane by it...
It's a lose-lose situation!
@@Lore-se8fh As a lot of Lovecraft-esque horror is.
So the only winning move is, NOT to play.
@@WeAreTheBentusi and then your just on one side of the glass, tapping and barely influencing the world.
So basically real life…?
Travis: is easily scared and allergic to cats
Taliesin: makes him play a horror one shot that starts at a cat show
Can't wait till they send Travis through the haunted house they promised for meeting the kickstarter milestone. He gets so scared so easy. I mean he may have a heart attack or a stroke by the end of it, but it will still be hilarious to see how much he freaks out when scared, alone, and in the dark of a creepy haunted house.
"roll for cats"
@@Annarki2000 You think this was the test run to see if Travis has enough courage for the haunted house? He knows it's better than facing Kickstarter backers who go "You're not going through with it?!? YOU BIG CHICKEN!!"
@@theodorehsu5023 They wouldn't make a promise they wouldn't fulfill. You think too little of Travis
Agreed
Travis: Scared shitless
His character: heroic, resourceful
Liam: Intrigued and having fun
His character: cowardly liar
👋Rollplay👋
I love it.
I LOVE Liam sliding out of his accent and catching it by shifting into a different accent. Whether it was intentional to the character or not, brilliant move.
Septimus (nee Archie) is essentially if Caleb Widogast didn't have a drop of arcane talent.
The realization that when Taliesin tells Liam “You sense the thing that’s in your notes,” Liam’s notes must actually say, “You don’t know a damn thing; just bullshit.”
Watching it for the second time and it makes it so funny. The poker face of them both...
when is this?
i would also like to know when this is
it's around the 45:30 mark
They say it multiple times, the first time around I was loke "Wow, He prepares more than Mercer, he has everytihng in his nothes" lmao
I also realized that Liam never says anything useful at all, its always like "the air is turnin"
He also makes some comments about his roll numbers, wich let you know that he doesnt know shit
I want this to be a regular series just so it can end with Mr. Merryweather accidentally revealing his eldritch form, fleeing to California, and changing his name to taliesin jaffe.
Or somehow attaining immortality, or becoming an eldritch being and continuing to fight for humanity, and becoming Taliesin Jaffe.
Or just getting *really* good air-conditioning.
@@scouttyra Nice reference!
@@scouttyra I think he should get more cows
He's Nyarlathotep, I'm calling it now.
The only reason taliesin stutters is because he’s converting his first language (ancient Phoenician) into our boring modern english
He's not that old. He became immortal during Alexander's conquest of Egypt.
@@Fetch26291 I mean, that's what they want us to think.
Now I just need to see Taliesin march an army of elephants over the alps and I'll be happy
its cos he was there lol
You guys all had him pegged far ealier than I did. I thought his first language was R'lyehian
"Let's capitalize on this opportunity to name our cats!"
Every Lovecraft fan: "Oh noooo..."
I... forgot about that
@@LadyGameshine Me too. Until now, me too...
Looks like I missed something. Whats the Story you're reffering to?
@@Deppability not a story. Lovecraft once had a cat with a super racist slur for a name.
@@MrNeodylliphan Ok, just looked it up 😐
in the immortal words of taliesin jaffe:
"We're running. Its bad."
In the words of the immortal taliesin jaffe we're running its bad
*emerges from wall*
3:38:13
Old video I keep coming back to but I have to say another old saying eternalized by our lovely eldritch horror...
"Help, it's again"
I'm so disappointed that the players all dressed up and got in character, but Taliesin just wore his backup pajamas. It's also really weird that they recorded this in his guest bathroom.
I mean, dming can be stressful, so a little bit of comfort is always nice, especially when you are telling a story about your little pet.
What is the joke here
@@sextwister Taliesin, in real life, is an eldritch warlock and arcane scholar. He is believed to be over 3,000 years old, but this cannot be confirmed as all records of his existence before the Tunguska Event are severely damaged and unverifiable. It is, however, common knowledge that his holdings, abilities, titles, and estates in the present day surpass even the most well-established arcane practitioners across the globe. His day-to-day sees him bedecked in erudite fineries and in his free time he is known to wander the halls of his labyrinthine towers, with his arms outstretched (WITHHISARMSOUTSTRETCHED---can you see him? No? Shoot...) pondering the mysteries of the Beyond.
@@sextwister some say that he absorbs the knowledge of the books his fingers touch, as if by osmosis. Makes you wonder why the Vatican has that locked away library.
Really think that this outfit was probably hanging in T's closet already and was perfect for the event. I dare say they *all* look good in a steampunk/victorian age dress.
Taliesin: I love Cosmic Horror
Me: Now you're just being narcissistic
This right here.
A little self-love is healthy.
DBZA reference?
@@RadiantJo mr. Popo?
The Emo Knight
Pecking order!
Eldritch God: About to begin the game
Travis (Un)Willingham: Can I leave?
Eldritch God: I told your wife to lock the door.
That (Un)Willingham was perfect 🤣
@Isrel156 Noice. Thanks man
@@incomingbear1334 the Eldritch God was masquerading as his wife.
I've hidden your keys. Your wife knows to lock the door.
Why is Taliesin the only one not in a costume? He's just wearing his every-day clothes.
Well, you see, every evening when Taliesin rolls out of his crypt, he dresses to impress. One of the downsides of his ageless form is that there must be a particular emphasis on his choice in attire
Those weren't even special effects behind him, that's just how his shadow usually works.
@@lucasm.3864 they actually had to get him to turn it off because they couldnt figure out how to hide it during episodes. And noone was willing to try after the last intern went missing
@@wabschall he's not missing, unless you don't have vision of the shadowrealm?
@@johnrankin7135 I, unfortunately, do not have eyes. Met Talison at a coffee shop and his form accidentally slipped. Noone was mortally wounded, but my eyes were unrecoverable
I envy how supportive Taliesin's friends are. His first time running CoC and a naturally anxious person the cast threw themselves fully into this to make him more at ease. Costume, mannerisms, and listening without rushing.
I could sense Taliesin’s anxiety and, high key, the support of the party helped me overcome my fear of DMing and now I’ve made some of the best friends I’ve ever had :,)
I do think that there is an element of that, but let's not forget that for the most part Taliesin Jaffe is just brilliant and great.
They are professionals.
It's hard not to get a crush on him ngl
I agree, you could see his hands literally shaking as he flawlessly introduced the game and everyone at the table. Props to him for being that nervous yet not stumbling over his words and guiding everyone forward :)
Dr Pocket: Works at British Museum
Group: Discovers strange red artifact stone
Dr Pocket: "I call dibs"
10/10 historically accurate roleplay
Underrated comment
Well he is Doctor “Pocket”
@@AnInkStick Well he is "british"
Name checks out.
Where can you find the largest collection of stolen property???
The British museum.
"Bless your ignorance child." reminded me so much of Percy's "Your secret is safe with my indifference." Taliesin is a gem
I think that Percy is still my favorite character in all of the campaigns so far. The way Taliesin played him was marvelous. You can't forget "Your Soul is Forfeit!" such a good taunt.
It was so nice of Taliesin to let them stream from his summer home's dinning room.
That’s a flex
Dining room? You insult him, that place is not nearly good enough for his Dining. Its obviously his guest bathroom
@@dextergoodman6446 To much carpet for a bathroom, probably just a small closet in the left wing of his summer home estate.
@@kairos4484 a small closet? You underestimate what an eldritch entity can hoard after thousands of years of living. This was shot in Taliesin’s junk drawer. We have McDonald’s sauce packets and loose take out napkins, Taliesin has occult objects.
Vox Machina couldn't get through doors...
Mighty Nein has issues with chairs...
These people can't find a light switch
The Cthulhu Crew?
@@obbadooba3453
The Crew-thulhu.
oh my god
The Bad Kids from Fantasy High can’t go over tables
@@MinersLoveGames you've made my night, thank you
I will always be in love with the fact that somehow everyone has agreed and accepted the fact that Taliesin himself is a cosmic horror in human form
It is a fact, kinda hard to dispute it
In human form? More disguised than anything
Not everyone. There was one guy who tried to argue and it didn't end well. Wil Wheaton, I think his name was?
@@troodontalon5990 he did? Got a link? I wanna see/read.
As the story goes, in ages past, there once was an entity called Wil that challenged Taliesin’s role as ultimate omnipresent horror being. Taliesin, being beyond emotion, was at first dismissive of this finite consciousness, but Wil continued in his provocation of the eldritch being. Eventually, Taliesin found Wil’s annoyance too much, and cursed him across a his forms with terrible dice luck. Yet, in that moment, Taliesin found that his experience of frustration had created a mortal form, that could experience all emotions. Taliesin was intrigued, and thus to this day, is able to contain (somewhat) his consciousness in the form we see, enjoying his time amongst mortals while this form manages to not decay.
Little detail:
I adore the subtle creepiness that the _entire_ time Taliesin is narrating he's sitting in front of a Black Sun Disc (from which shadow tendrils begin to emanate at the appropriate point in the story) 😳
Wow, didn't even notice that. They really knocked the art and such out of the park with this one shot.
Legitimately thought he was wearing a witch hat for the first hour or so
@@zenxiety6461 lol i see it now
Think about this : all the cats get possessed... and then theres this one rat with cat ears glued to its head who is Very Confused
And by confused, we mean traumatized. First trapped in a cage surrounded by huge numbers of natural predators, and then it got worse.
That's how barkham horror got unleashed
@@Barrdian The Cry of Bast
and the winner is... the only "cat" who survived
Disclaimer: Events in this Oneshot are entirely based on historical events and the personal recollections of the Being From Beyond The Stars known commonly as Talesin Jaffe.
Liam's accents are so good that others can tell when he deliberately lets it slip. That's some amazing acting talent right there.
I just came here to see if someone pointed this out. The man is a legend
I was getting some serious Vax'ildan vibes from the voice he was doing initially. Such incredible ability
Hana's were more on point. Liam's was good, but it was a great mix with great pronounciation and american 'over' and other smaller words mixed in :)
Pretty good Northern Ireland accent. Can't quite place what region he was going for. I would say it sounds closer to a Derry accent than say a Belfast accent.
@@jakobwichmann6013 sorry but although hanna was good, Liam is on an whole other lvl when it comes to accents in my opinion.
I love the horrifying, unsaid, implications of Taliesin’s lore: that being that the Crystal Palace contains all of the eldritch artifact that have been collected over the centuries, and it existence is what keeps the horrors contained and the world safe(ish). Yet the Crystal Palace burned down in 1936, several decades after the story.
Ohh by that thread, if people hadn't stolen these artefacts and collected them in one easy place to destroy them all then their world would be safe still. I love that :D
Much of what was in the Crystal Palace is now in the Victoria and Albert Museum, which is a mind blowing place. At some point, people went around plaster-casting great works of sculpture and architecture. These were in the original Crystal Palace. So there is a life sized version of Trajan's Column in the V&A, in a room full of equally (or more) impressive pieces.
@@thanesgames9685 Would have been amazing to see.
Well, the back half of the 1930s went just fine! Nothing to worry about, go about your business..........
Don't worry, there's infinite amounts of eldritch artifacts that never got to the Crystal Palace! So, no harm done!
Taliesin: You have all entered cats in the cat show.
Travis: *horrified gasp from off camera*
"Goodnight poor mortals, i hope your cats survived the night." Is a phrase i didnt know i would shake me a little bit inside.
The cats made out okay right? 😿
Matt: "You could certainly try"
Taliesin after a minute of talking to himself: "Thats interesting"
I love it!!
"You see in the distance an old, decrepit, small, square castle...
Its 5 flags flying from minarets atop each of its corners."
"But, if its square... How could there be 5 flags in the corners?"
"Good question, roll for sanity."
Dont remember where I read this from but absolutely loved it and this reminded me of it.
Want more of this!!!
Having run a few games of Call of Cthulhu... My goodness, these classy gentlemen and ladies showed just how quickly things can go from "Hmmm, this is quite intriguing" to "AND ANOTHER ONE BITES THE DUST"
Yeah lpvec4wft is like that.
everything is just a very gradual slow burn until it isn't.
in which case things all run like a speed train in a hurricane xD
my first lovecraft book was actually boring me for the start until I reached the better parts where It all payed out wonderfully
Well, when push comes to shove, the posh start shoving.
I played a few, and yep. it went from "hmmm fun mystery, I feel like poirot" to "OH FUCK RUN HELP" in like five seconds midway through session 3
The Critical Role crew truly outdid themselves. The music, set design, costumes, props, and frickin' light effects?! Amazing!! Not to mention the fantastic players and our one and only keeper of arcane lore. This is easily my favorite one shot. Please, Taliesin (& Marisha) more Call of Cthulhu!!
What lighting effects? Those were just tals shadow
These "props" were just old relics found in Taliesin's attic.
@@hazama0634 oh shit you're right, my bad
All jokes aside, I admired all of the production and set design quality as well! From the intro, to the backdrop details, to the FANTASTIC light show. Man oh man, the hands grabbing out of the shadowed sun at Tal's back when the shadow people attacked?? I was SQUEALING with fear and excitement.
And continue thisss!
Has nobody mentioned yet that Marisha plays a character who works
with/for monks who keep obscure/occult secrets, and wears blue?
Alexandra is with the Cobalt Soul.
HOLY SHIT
And is most definitely attracted to girls?
Exandria has a way of leaking into other realms.
And Travis played a captain.
A former captain with a british accent at that :)
I wonder if that character was finished before Clay and Dust.
Also, wait a second, I just noticed. At around 1:24:13 Liam fully says "I don't have a good Occult, but my Intelligence and Psychology are high." And nobody questions how the supposed spiritualist and medium has a low Occult ability score.
That is the 1st thing I thought and was like, how did none of the other players catch that?!?
@@Mr.Despair. Well, he IS a "celebrity occultist" 😁
@@chuckn4851LMAO! Touché!
That's called meta-gaming.
@@mitchellwilliam95 Meta-gaming is when you take advantage of out of game information as if your character knew of it in-game. Questioning how the fuck your buddy made his Occultist character with a low Occult and high Psychology is a part of game banter.
Taliesin’s one shots are always filled with the players dying and I love it, it’s such a change of pace and they know they are actually at risk of being taken out and he gives little to no leeway and wants them all dead. It’s beautiful.
*a hush and fear falls through the room as they realise that taliesin will dm, and death will follow*
It's something nice about the One Shots. People won't be heartbroken if they die, so the DM has a lot more leeway with being punishing.
I want him to dm more! I love every dark moment!
Ummm
Dark
I think it's hilarious that he keeps gunning for a TPK, and keeps failing somehow.
The Name "Call of Cthulhu" actually refers to Taliesin calling his pet in for dinner.
That's clever
“Pspspsps! Cthulhu!”
'Call of Cthulhu' is the ritual Taliesin cast to convince everyone to do this episode. And soon, he shall chant the words again... and the next herd of poor souls shall be corrupted by the Outer Gods.
"Cthulhu! Cthulhu! Hey....wake up buddy...the stars ar right...wake up sleepyhead"
Hahahahaaa
"Well, goodnight poor mortals ".A bead of sweat rolled down my forehead. The characters did not notice it. I almost screamed at my monitor.
Don't scream. It is listening.
True player solidarity is Taliesin telling Phil that when he starts talking about shadow people he can't stop until stopped by someone else, and everyone else immediately jumping to stop him and calm him down when he starts rambling so he doesn't have to exhaust himself riffing
Now that Fjord feels comfortable with his real accent, he's begun playing Call of Cthulhu with a different Eldritch god.
I like how everyone starts off being super flirty with each other and then by the end its just panicking
Classic Call od Cuthulu.
This is pretty much how every call of cthulhu game goes lol.
@@automaton1740 can confirm, every mixed gender (character or player) game has in-character flirting. Everybody loves to do it, and who am I as a Keeper to say no!
All in good time for a little banter 😏
That's... essentially every teen horror XD
Liam should have just played Caleb who was entering Frumpkin into the contest and accidentally walked in on this shenanigans
Huh, how did this octopus get in here?
Yesssssssss
Hahahahaha this right here!
He would've kicked the shadows ass xD
" I cast wall of fire....everywhere.... "
Cast Wall of fire on everything
Honestly it comforts me so much to see Taliesin reading from notes as he is dming. I do the same thing since I can’t trust myself to share all the information my players need off the top of my head and I always feel bad watching critical role and seeing Matt able to narrate everything while looking the players in the eyes. But Taliesin was able to pull off an amazing session while reading off of notes which means that I can to!
Matt is literally a DM God, don’t feel bad babe reading from your notes is so sexy
Matt does a lot without reading, but he also just reads stuff at times, he just is so good at it sounding natural that it is hard to tell. But I totally get it, I get super intimidated by him too.
Every good DM (or GM, Keeper, or whatever a game calls the referee) has to have notes. Some like Matt Mercer just have them memorized but still handy just off screen. You can time to time see him glancing while the players make jokes about drinking, etc. Taliesin did a wonderful job here and had a lot going on at once, with SO many ways the players could run into trouble. 10/10 would watch Taliesin run another CoC game again.
Matt's improv game is next level. Taliesin doesn't give a rat's patootie and just wants to get it right.
When my players see me look at my notes, t's 50/50 on whether I'm actually looking at my notes, or improvising. 😁 😎
Taliesin: "Good evening, children..."
Me: "Yes I'm listening take me to these strange new worlds teacher"
Anyone else desperately want Taliesin Jaffe to make videos just reading out old horror novels and creepy stories and whatever
Because I want it
+
I want him to read hp lovecraft tales
This RIGHT NOW!!
nah man, fuck hp lovecraft. taliesin's beautiful voice deserves better.
@@phi7534 Real cosmic horror
I think we have a new Halloween tradition that could be started off the back of this one shot. On the closest Thursday night to Halloween Taliesin runs a one shot Call of Cthulhu instead of the usual Critical Role.
I second this, we need more Taliesin horror One-Shots
Yes please.
I concur, we must get this comment to the top so they might see it
He needs to do classic CHILL next. CHILL was cool. Dark Conspiracy is more action-oriented but you can make it more horror with a little work.
You mean call of CAThulhu!
I can't believe Tal did a one-shot to present his family to his friends
The cats?
@@kendrajade6688 the Eldritch entities. He's related to the great old ones. And distantly related to the outer gods.
The lighting effects behind Taliesin were so subtle, but absolutely incredible. No spoilers or anything, but spare an eye for the background, viewers!
I couldn't. I was fully engaged. I even took a moment to take note of some shadows as i was heading to the pisser. I take that back I was able to occasionally catch a glimpse of the background. It was pretty cool.
Huh. I just assumed it was Taliesin's natural aura.
You can see everyone's reaction to the lighting effects at 2:41:06.
It's amazing!
So. Travis, Liam and Marisha were just playing their D&D characters in Cthuluverse... a pleasant guy with a secret sword, a magic-man with a secret and love for cats, and an adventurer who spends time with Tibetan monks?
I need this fan art.
And then Liam's true self ended up kind of being a rogueish, thief sort.
@@zacharydunn6577 actually more or less just con man / actor
I would love so much for this to become an at least semi-regular series in addition to the normal series. Especially if Matt was a player since we rarely get to see him on the player's side of the table.
This is everything I want. AMAZING.
I just finished undeadwood, it was great
matt plays amazingly
Goddamnit Marisha, creative director for Critical Role, quit keeping Matt off the PC list, fulfill his final form, make Tal reckon with a Demigod that can rival his understanding of the netherworld that churns our CR butter for our amusement. It is within your upcomance, fellow ginger content overlord.
5:30
Tal: "I'm getting a taste for it, it's like tasting human flesh"
Careful Taliesin, your Taliesin is showing...
I get the feeling Liam really enjoys this kind of roleplay. I would watch the hell out of a Cthulu series with this cast.
He probably does, instead of making a dark depressing character, the setting is dark and depressing
I felt Talisen was in his element too. Much better than Vampire. Very good at setting the atmosphere too.
Over on Alpha, G&S did a series where Ivan Van Norman ran a big Dread game using a huge wood block tower in like... an actual set. Liam was one of the players/actors in that and it was AMAZING. Should deffo check it out! (Edit: It was called Madness, iirc.)
Liam is a master at role play. An absolute master. His character is perfect. And Travis' skeptical reactions are spot on as well.
when Tal said "it's 1890s Britain, you probably have some shit on you" he was speaking from EXPERIENCE
there's no way there's content on daily pocket carry and yet he was VERY SPECIFIC that it was a common thing in 1890's britain
The sanity rolls here are fascinating here. Especially Ashley’s after opening the chest. “You hear a faint knocking, just on the edge of your hearing” leads to “Oh, it must be some young hooligans outside throwing stones.” I feel it really lends to an overarching theme in most Lovecraftian works, that being humanity’s overriding desire to understand or explain every phenomenon it encounters and the shutdowns when there simply is no understanding or explaining such eldritch occurrences that the staples of cosmic horror
Honestly everything I can't explain, I try to explain. Half the time I do, the other half I'm just like, probably demons or somthing. Or God if it's more of a good thing.
LOL I remember playing a Limping WW1 Aussie Veteran in the US in COC. Everyone ran into a house to investigate while I limped in. They all got to the Library and found a horror Chess Set. The GM then stated I'd reached the library and asked me what I was going to do. I decided that they had the library well covered and started knocking on the walls trying to find secret doors, whereupon the GM required Everyone in the Library to make San checks :D
Different Game same GM, We went into a different library and one of the other players picked out a book, said "This is intersting" then read out a passage whereupon the GM made everyone roll 3d6 san damage except for the reader who had to roll a d100. The Reader rolled 1, everone else rolled more than 10.
Is it just me, or is Tali's voice just... Perfect for this Genre? Getting real Vincent Price vibes
There is a reason most people think he is an ancient one in disguise.
I think he's where Vincent Price got it from
Taliesin: "It's got just enough give to irritate a child for hours. I speak definitely NOT from experience."
Me: Well of course not. Taliesin was never a child. He was birthed from the void fully formed and glorious.
Taliesin wasn't some void creature. He a an immortal and his experience was with the actual Sword in the Stone from proto-medieval England.
LONG LIVE THE GOTH KING
@@steffaniee2292 LONG MAY HE RAIN!
@@corinnebloom7005 Let's be reasonable. Tal was obviously Merlin
@@corinnebloom7005 indeed!
The idea that in all the cages is now a single rat with cat ears sitting there, alone, right between 300 cat carcasses is somehow great but also disturbing.
Kevin wins by default
Plot twist...the murderer was in fact...a dog XD
So the first to die, wins.
Kevin !!! Shit...
The Cry of Bast
Travis be out here playing Sir Bertrand Bell in every form and era possible. Love it! Haha
Not quite noble enough, more Fjord after his reveal
Of course Talisien is a fan of cosmic horror, what else would an elder god enjoy?
Well, considering the stories are his past...
Well why wouldn't he be?
keep the likes at 69 pleaseeeeee
I imagine he also is a fan of cosmic humor!
I keep hearing this what's the elder god thing about?
I love how Taliesin dms this with the background of someone who obviously loves and appreciates museums and anything antique and other-timely. As a fellow old stuff lover it brings so much joy to my heart.
He was around when the stuff in museums were made. He doesn't love old-timey stuff. He's feeling nostalgic.
Matthew Bowles Taliesin is basically a non-evil Vandal Savage
I mean, taliesin is thousands of years old
@@jurassicbread4279 He has 4,000 years of knowledge.
Marisha wearing sleeves? This really IS going to be terrifying!
I want that blouse though
... crit role closet please come through for me ♡♡
Part of me was thinking she was gonna rip the sleeves off at some point and go full Beauregard on this game
@@wingedyera She makes that outfit *work*.
It was the first hint that that was a slanted, off-quilter world, where nothing could ever really end well...
She probably ripped them off as soon as the cameras stopped rolling.
I'm just now realising that Liam would play an amazing Gilderoy Lockhart.
Travis played an Exandrian version of Gilderoy in The Search for Grog. It was a delight.
Oh my god yes
I think he’d be a pretty good fit for Lupin as well
OMG YES. I would love to see Liam as any character in Harry Potter tbh.
@@Nargon46 Dobby....
Best line
Ashley Birch "Could you try to enjoy this a little less?" Speaking to Taliesin with his grin.
That part came on JUST as I read this
I thought she was referring to Alexandra (Marishas character) ?
I mean, he did get to kill her character after she killed his :P
I hate to be this guy, but it's ashly burch 🙂
Only Talisen would write a FOUR PAGE SPEECH for a cat show only not to use the full thing.
He did prepare for them to listen to the whole thing tho
I reckon it was probably a news article from the time adapted into a speech, or such. But id totally be down to listen to it XD
Well, he just remembered it from when he attended the actual cat show.
Who better to introduce Cthulu than the person who had the entity as his childhood pet?
Bravo Taliesen.
You mean cthulhu
Edit sorry I mean kthughllghu
Yooooo! Tal is genius. When he made Phil's character get stuck rambling on and on about shadow people. Phil is SO GOOD at going on and on and making you feel awkward. HERE FOR THIS
It‘s incredible how they all are so professional that they converse in character and react accordingly and even improvise seamlessly
I loved the reveal with Septimus. I was like "Aaaahhh that's why the occult guy only had 5 points in occult" xD
the fact that we got it blows
I did find it weird how the wind was always "turning" but he never said anything specific from his "notes", the reveal was amazing
@@DoKumaStarlight Yeah. As soon as I heard Liam say his Occult wasn't one of his good rolls, I started looking at his act a bit more closely, and noticed how everything he asked of Taelesin was very specific. He wouldn't say, specifically, what he was doing. Just that he was, more or less, doing "his thing".
I think the plan was basically Taelesin saying "I'll keep letting you bullshit your way through checks, by being vague, to make everyone think you're actually a mystic... but there will be a time when it's all gonna fall flat." and so when Liam tried to activate the stones, he realized... oh fuck. He's letting it fall flat right now.
If you're attentive, on his first "read" Liam mutters that he does a Psychology check, and samewise when he announced to the table he only has 05 in Occult. When you consider there aren't Deception or Lie skills among the Investigator Skills, Psychology (or Persuasion, but that would be kinda flag) WOULD be a logical stat for a player faking a medium to use, both in-game and out of to mess with the rest of the table.
Taliesin was once afraid of what may have been in the mist.
He is now the that which the things within the mist cower from
Why is this comment so cursed yet so fitting?
Also known as Talesin Jaffe introduces his family
'you're not gonna mind if my kids are there right?'
24:16 I can't believe no one has brought up Erika's cat "Nyan", and the fact that "she's very well *bread*".
Oh god I only now got that. Thanks.... I think????
It's a coincidence, i don't think it was an Indian food pun
nyan = meow in Japanese
@@lachlank.8270 The pun is that the nyan cat is a piece of bread.
"I know what you look like when you're dead" is the most terrifying thing to hear be casually said by Tal.
I'm late a bit, but I think it because he was on many funerals and seen dead people, it's kinda sad, imho
@@kuroinokitsune I'm pretty sure he was referring to the fact that their heads will be on backwards
It's weird that Taliesin brought his black halo with him. Usually that only comes out at the full moon
I thought it was a clap on
WiseSageBum no it’s skin
It’s the Isis mirror..
Underrated comment, mam
It comes out naturally when he DM's, alot of times its just really faint
When this started up, and Talisen said: "This is a more Horror based game" i instantly thought, "Kay, so Travis will want nothing to do with this."
So imagine my surprise and delight when i saw Travis, sitting there. And then face palmed when Talisen said he picked him especially; of course Tal would. He's as sadistic as the rest of us, poor Travis. XD
Come on, horror and cats? With Taliesin? Of course he had to make Travis a player
@@sillyjellyfish2421 wow people are still watching this, I thought I was the only one
@@them_that_loudly quarantene round 3 does this to people
"It was certainly someone who looked like her... could've been anybody."
@@sillyjellyfish2421 I watched this soooo many times, from round 3 to round...huuuum, 11, I think.
lmao i’ve just realised that this is in england and the crystal palace was around when this was set. THATS RIGHT BY MY HOUSE! THERES A CAMPAIGN SET BY MY HOUSE
Awesome!
Congratulations! You'll never be able to sleep in the dark again!
@@ped3752 So very true.
The next time you have family in town you can add a new stop on the tourist tour...
@@charleshayes1700 "and this was where Liam O'brien's character lost his head.
Are we just going to pretend Mr Merryweather didnt call them all mortals on his way out?
He dies in the starterset anyways
That was just Taliesin slipping. It was his first time in the CR Chair: let him be! Even Demigods slip a bit from time to time...
@@d.k.t.3380 he did a vampire masquerade game
I really hope this becomes a series on the channel, I want more Taliesin hosted horror in my life!!!
HARD AGREE
@the gender koala Oh! Are they on the geek and sundry channel?
@@danielmoore1678 look for "LA by night", they should be on the gs channel
Taliesin is a bomb dm!
I hardcore fuk with the vision
3:20:20 Travis is legitimately scared
Also Tal's slow burn and control of the tension was so well done. Each ratchet up was enough to be scary but not so much as to be unbelievable. I'm so impressed.
I know this is old, but the "the speech is still going on in the other room" joke at the end was legit hilarious. I laughed out loud.
This game was exhilarating to watch. It makes me want a series of one-shots or short adventures with this system from Taliesin. They would be deliciously creepy!
Glad I'm not the only one. Taliesin is an absolute fucking gem and no one will ever convince me otherwise.
I'd love a full blown series! But I'd settle for the occasional one shot 🤔
Now I'd like to see Taliesin running super creepy oneshots in happy and innocent settings, while Marisha runs funny games like Honey Heist in originally creepy settings. xD
Reminds me of an of the geatric shows they'd play on the radio. Id also like them to do a episodic episode
@@Stefan-xt5sk Talesin's previous one-shot was a "Vampire" game that went wicked really quickly. Marisha's "Honey Heist" sessions went from simple honey theft to spy-level situations (an explosive honey derivative known as Baloo-tonium would do that), which explains why Tova had to personally lead her team that time (she'd handled Trinket and the others twice before). Liam did the two-part "Liam's Quest" where that was super-creepy. Sam is mostly humor. Travis had Grog do a session of "Bunions and Flagons" with Vax, Vex, Percy and Scanlan for his one shot. Laura blended D&D, Harry Potter and "The Breakfast Club" in her one-shot. Liam brought "The Nightmare Before Christmas" to the North Pole to let Santa's Elves in the mission to Save Christmas in the Holiday special. You only hope Ashley can rise to the task for hers.
Taliesin: How will I get Liam to play in my Cthulhu one shot... Cats.
Vanessa Colquhoun
Taliesin: how will I keep Travis from running away from my call of cthulhu one-shot with cats.... fuck it I'll just lock all the doors
@@hazama0634 plot twist: he has a lockpick!
I was about to like but didn't want to ruin the 666 likes, here have a hypothetical like
@@eldritchwizardkeawe8850 respectable
Cats are a recurring thing in the Cthulhu mythos, though. Most notably in Lovecraft's "Cats of ulthar".
Basically the premise is that the Ancient Egyptian belief that cats were protector spirits is kind of true in Lovecraft's stories. He liked Cats.
Taliesin is the only person who could make me willingly tune in to anything of the horror genre.
I am ready to be terrified and filled with joy and adventure.
Lead me into the darkness Executive Goth
big same. never before have i been excited to be scared, but here we are!
Call of Cthulhu is often ranked as the greatest tabletop RPG in the market; if you’ve never played it you really should.
He's like this generation's Vincent Price.
Most of my CoC games goes like this. Everyone is calm, thinking they're gonna solve a mystery and kill some cultists, but by the end of it they're fleeing for their lives from some abomination of flesh and bones.
G O D S O F B O N E S A N D S I N E W
Can we PLEASE get this game as a regular series on this channel?
Not weekly, but ya they definetly gotta revisit this!
Please, second part!!
Yes please I want more! Taliesin just run it!
There are so many great ones out there.. I love it that Vampire: The Masquerade and the Cypher System already got their own regular show.. I would like to see some Starfinder or Coriolis campaign with a Firefly vibe on it, maybe something in FATE Core (how about something Cyberpunk?), also some Mutant Year Zero could be interesting.
no
Liam: "I don't like to toot my own horn"
Liam: *proceeds to toot his own horn*
To be fair, if I were Liam, I too would toot my own horn.
@@alleycat2297 Amen.
I feel the phrase "I don't like to toot my own horn, but..." is always followed with some mastur-tootin.
@@jellafella6957 Mas-toot-bation?
@@danielcastillo591 clever
I was so engrossed with what was happening by the end, when I finally REALLY looked at Taliesin's screen again, the fucking shadow tendrils behind him caught me SO off-guard
He was so engrossed with retelling his past stories that he let a portion of his true form leak by accident
Talesin chuckling over his plans going well is just so wholesome. Also, pay attention to the background behind Talesin at interesting points
That background "halo of darkness" was one of the best parts of the game. I noticed it right off, but paid no special attention to it. Then the creepy began and the cast began freaking out, that was awesome!
I would not at all mind seeing Taliesin doing more CoC games. Even if it’s just a couple of times a year, or once a month, I would be fine with that. Well done Mr. Jaffe on creeping the bejeezus out of me!!
And they could continue this! I feel it was a nice set up to what could be an overarching (if slow moving due to the frequency) call of cthullu campaign! A lot of characters survived so it is not out of the question. I think even like 1-3 times a year would be awesome
Agreed! I really hope that CoC one-shots become a part of the usual content lineup :)
Halloween special!
I DESPERATELY want a part 2 to this one shot! Or at least another Cthulhu adventure run by Taliesen. PLEEEEAAASEEE 🙏🏻🥺
YES
Yesssss!!!
That'd be epic!!
Yessss!!!
This was soo cool! I definitely want a part two as well!
I don't think Marisha has ever worn so much sleeve before on Critical Role
She tore them off the second they stopped streaming
Can I just say that to me personally, this might actually be my favourite CR episode ever? I keep coming back to it, over and over again. Just absolutely love Taliesin as a GM, love cosmic horror, and love this story!
There’s just something so irresistible about cosmic horror, or being scared in general, I couldn’t agree more.
I couldn't agree more, still waiting for another Taliesin DM'd episode
Travis’ scared voice is the most endearing thing ever. I’ve heard it in brief moments plenty of times in CR, but it played center stage here.
I'm digging the fact that the set design makes it look like Taliesin has a black halo lol
I wonder if that makes him a dark saint.
Taliesin: What set design?
A black, pulsing halo with tendrils and shadow hands?
... yeah, no, that’s still on point
Yea, "set design"..... sure.
Now I cannot unsee it
"i have spared no expense"
that's when you know bad things gonna happen
I loved the John Hammond line so much. And yes, I knew this was going to go horribly awry. God this was amazing. ^_^
Welcome... to Critical Role!
I was expecting dinosaurs after he said that
Talisen dming a game based on mythology writen by hp.Lovecraft: *C* *A* *T*
Me: *oh no*
Lmao
Forbidden knowledge
Say the name, say it lmfao
No Taliesin! You can't say that! it's forbidden knowledge!
Taliesin: I will say the n wor
kgkggkjjgjgjh oh no
When taliesin said "i hid your keys" i imagined the players legs chained to the table... he meant car keys
I mean... can we really be sure?
Marisha did get up to get the map. But since she is the production designer maybe she is the only one not chained in 0_0
No one was chained to the table, that is just silly. He just used leg irons to keep them hobbled.
like travis couldnt break the table out of fear
The table? I'm not entirely sure he couldn't break actual leg irons.
I've said it before and I'll say it again...
I could listen to Taliesin reading the dictionary and be perfectly content. What a wonderful voice that man has.
No homo lol
Ok this is a joke, I'm gay, I jist find this type of humor funny.
Nathan Raimi ok
@@gremlinwc8996 gay here too. hes definitely snoggable ;)
@@omega311888 I'm in the hazy mist between gay and straight, and I agree
I didn't realize he could use the cooler, deeper voice he displays here. Just a touch of creep. I'm impressed.
Liam OWNED his role.
KyleLee Bowers isn’t Liam of Irish descent?
Settlerking His last name is O’Brien. Definitely Irish.
"I'm a dude, playin' a dude, playin' another dude."
As he always does.
He never disappoints
this is like the fourth time i've watched this and I only now realised that dark halo around Taliesin is background VFX and not some sort of massive mariachi hat
No it's actually just just the dark halo that's followed Taliesin since birth. They normally use VFX to hide it.
Clair de Lune is a really spectacular choice for the intro, particularly the specific rendition chosen. Not only is it perfectly period-appropriate, it also captures the sense of simultaneous innocence and tremendous depth that cosmic horror can carry. In addition it feels like a memorial for the characters who have most certainly died for one reason or another, which is certainly apropos. Extremely well done, Critical Role.
Since it's an RP show I expected something with a lot more energy, so the dissonance my expectation (and perhaps others?) and reality also added to the creep factor.
i was just about to come down here and say the same thing - you summed up my thoughts beautifully. It couldn’t have been more perfect.
The production value of the intro is truly excellent. It really goes to show how much more successful Critical Role has become as a company and how much care and time go into the creation of their content.
Very well said. This was a high quality production. That's why I highly recommend checking out the Relics & Rarities show on Geek & Sundry. So good. Super high quality production, unique concept, gorgeous sets, Deborah Ann Woll is an amazing DM, and the recurring cast are great. They have a new celebrity guest each episode. Super excited for a season 2.
I fully expected Taliesin to just shed his mortal skin and show us his True eldritch form
Not while he's in the role of DM, that'd be rude.
no spoilers
No no. The camera wouldn't be able to properly record it. Have you necer seen marble hornets? Everyman Hybrid? Tribe Twelve? You cant just record eldritch horrors on cameras
@@drsatanrx To be fair, all three of those series refer to the same eldritch being. And they do capture it on camera, albeit in a limited way.
@@SamSphinx 2 of the 3 are the same. Id say the operator isnt exactly the same. But he does still heavily distort the footage so we never get a truely good shot of him.
Taliesin's wiggle of DM happiness when they figure things out brings me joy
Yes! He was sooo encouraging and full of positive reinforcement. He wants his players to succeed just as much as he wants them to fail.