Discover Critical Role Campaign 3’s Wild New Party of D&D Adventurers

October 28, 2021

Dungeons & Dragons/ Exandria/ Roleplaying

Critical Role just began Campaign 3 of its fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons game. The continent where the campaign takes place this time is Marquet and the southern accents, which we were previously introduced to via Fjord of Campaign 2, are in full swing . Before we delve into this post please know there might be some spoilers ahead for the first session of Critical Role Campaign 3 as well as spoilers for all episodes leading up to this point. If you’re not into those maybe come back and read this after catching up.

Draw of Destiny pulls Critical Role adventurers together

Nerditor Doug and I are huge Critters. We have a tradition of messaging one another as we watch Critical Role from our respective homes every Thursday. And yes, that means I go straight from Quill & Sword to my L-couch for some CR.

With Campaign 3 only just beginning, now’s the perfect time to jump into Critical Role and see what it’s like to watch a bunch of nerdy ass voice actors sit around and play Dungeons & Dragons. The hype is real, and it shows no signs of slowing with the upcoming Critical Role: Call of the Netherdeep from Wizards of the Coast.

If you missed out on Campaign 3’s debut this post is a great way to catch up quick, as we’ll be discussing the new party for Critical Role, as well as my personal thoughts and opinions about each.

Imogen Temult

Imogen Temult is played by Laura Bailey. She’s a human sorcerer, and along with her friend Laudna she’s one of the first characters we meet.

Imogen comes off as a strong personality (likely a manifestation of her Charisma), yet she struggles to temper her directness with tact, often swinging from forceful eagerness to hesitancy upon realizing how she may have come off. Imogen seems to care for decorum and social grace, though she fumbles a bit with the finer details of such.

She strikes me as both loyal and earnest, qualities shown through her interactions with her friend Laudna.

Laudna

Laudna is a multiclass warlock/sorcerer and the first we’ve seen a multiclass character from the outset in a main campaign for Critical Role. Laudna’s race is unknown, with revenant and aasimar being contenders. I also suspect that Marisha Ray, who plays Laudna, may have used the rules from Van Richten’s Guide to Ravenloft for a dhampir, a hexblood or possibly a reborn.

Laudna seems to value refinement and class though she lacks certain social knowledge, perhaps evidence of a cloistered life or a time of being out of touch with the world? Regardless, she brings all the Halloween vibes and I’m here for it.

I’m not going to lie, Laudna absolutely stole the show for me. The overeager interaction she had with the dwarf children had me snort-laughing.

Ashton Greymoore

Ashton Greymoore is portrayed by Taliesin Jaffe. An earth genasi barbarian, Ashton is crass, direct and uncouth. They know who they are and how things work on the lower rungs of society and they seem quite comfortable with all of the above.

Ashton immediately evoked the images of a more boisterous Caduceus Clay. Their irreverent confidence and brazen directness are as refreshing as those same qualities more subtly portrayed in our favorite firbolg cleric.

With both characters having a similar vocal quality, it’s difficult to separate the two. Ashton – probably more than any other of the new cast – feels like a hearkening back to a previous character and we stan.

Jrusar, the city within Exandria’s continent of Marquet where the destinies of Campaign 3’s adventurers collided in Episode 1 wonderfully showcasing the city’s layout amongst its interconnected spires. [Illustration by Clara Daly]

Fresh Cut Grass

Yes, you read the name right. Sam Riegel’s character is an automaton cleric named Fresh Cut Grass, because it’s Sam Riegel and of course he did.

Despite the character’s apparently comical nature, Fresh Cut Grass is a delight. If ever there were a cinnamon roll cleric, Fresh Cut Grass is all that and more.

Their sincerity is overshadowed only by their kindness. With Sam having portrayed two separate characters of a more selfish nature (Scanlan, Terry and Nott/Veth), it’s a bit surprising to see his portrayal of Fresh Cut Grass. However, while watching the character’s interactions, this robo-cleric has all the heart of the aforementioned characters and it’s clear the kindness of this particular character is a natural extension of the player presenting them to us.

Orym

Liam O’Brein’s character is a halfling fighter named Orym. A protector at heart, Orym often takes a role of leadership and responsibility — a role put to the test often by his companions, especially Fearne. Orym embodies how a serious, lawful and good character can be nuanced.

Often playing the role of the straight man as we seen him so far in Campaign 3, his serious demeanor and no-nonsense attitude make a good foil for the rest of the characters. I look forward to seeing how his role as a cat herder evolves into possibly the first party leader type we’ve really seen in Critical Role, as a designated or inherent party leader is often omitted from the cast in favor of sharing leadership at different times.

Fearne Calloway

Fearne embodies nature in a variety of contexts. While beautiful, seemingly placid and a bit soft-spoken, wild caprice and reckless abandon lurk beneath the surface. Ever a force of chaos, Fearne’s actions can be shortsighted and a bit selfish and she seems unwittingly intent on testing Orym specifically.

That being said this foray into a whole new character archetype is still uniquely fitting of her player, Ashley Johnson. Ashley’s characters Pike and Yasha from CR’s previous two campaigns are both truly distinct, both from one another and the party at large, while still feeling like natural extensions of Ashley’s own personality. Fearne is no different.

Specifically, it feels like Fearne’s love of caprice and freedom truly resonate from Ashley’s inner self and I look forward to watching this character grow with the party.

Dorian Storm

The second genasi we get to meet in Campaign 3, Dorian Storm is an air genasi played by Robbie Daymond. Like Fearne and Orym, Dorian debuted in Exandria Unlimited.

This bard might initially give hints at leaning into the class’s more well-known stereotypes, specifically as they relate to being quirky but lovable while holding a quick, passionate flame before extinguishing to burn for something new and exciting. However, he also possesses foreshadows of more.

Despite a clearly well-developed sense of confidence (the third Charisma-based spellcaster in this party), Dorian often plays off many of his strengths, opting to present more humbly. This dichotomy teases a potential history of being something more than he appears.

Sir Bertrand Bell

Sire Bertrand Bell first debuted in The Search for Grog, in which Grog Strongjaw of Critical Role disappeared into the plane of Pandemonium. Seeing as Travis Willingham’s famous goliath barbarian was placed out of commission by the very nature of the adventure, Travis made Bertrand Bell as a stand-in character.

Interestingly, he was a much higher level during his introduction, being 18th level among a party of 20th-level characters in The Search for Grog. This, coupled with the time skips of the setting, have me personally feeling there’s more to this character than meets the eye, and while I could be totally off-base here, I wouldn’t dismiss the idea of a shapechanger such as a changeling possibly using this persona to their advantage.

Between the level difference, the time skips and the way he didn’t quite seem to act in character when introducing the party to their potential patron, I think this silver fox may be more clever than initially implied.

Are you caught up with Critical Role Campaign 3?

Have you been watching, and what are your thoughts on the characters? Be sure to let us know what you think by tweeting @Nerdarchy and connecting with us on Facebook. If you enjoyed this post please give it a like and share. Leave a comment if you want to see more CR content like this and join us as we eagerly anticipate Thursday night. Stay nerdy!

*Featured image — Critical Role Campaign 3’s characters, from left to right: Dorian played by Robbie Daymond, Orym played by Liam O’Brien, Ashton played by Taliesin Jaffe, Fearne played by Ashley Johnson, Imogen played by Laura Bailey, Laudna played by Marisha Ray, Fresh Cut Grass played by Sam Riegel, and Sir Bertrand Bell played by Travis Willingham. [Illustration by Hannah Friederichs]