Angel's Report, Campaign Diary

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[@Xsuh]

"They can't keep every plate spinning. If they could, I would add more plates." This is a fantastic line.

[@Simon-ow6td]

It is, and it is an interesting philosophy with a lot of merit. But it is also kind of exhausting in the long run when you constantly feel like you are off balance or are struggling just to stay afloat. When almost all choices feels like bad choices, and almost all options feels bitter-sweet. I personally prefer there to be more ebb and flow to the nature of the game. This is of course super early in the campaign so no problems as of yet with over exhaustion, but I would be stressed out if I would play in a campaign with this kind of intensity for dozens and dozens of sessions on end.

[@Unelith]

Based on my own experiences, I think it could still be a better approach than having a set of options that could possibly be completed 100%. If it seems possible to do everything, the players will always attempt to do that, it's almost guaranteed. If you cannot solve every problem anyway and the options are clearly exclusive, it may seem more attractive to just pick one and focus on it. A bigger disavdantage, in my opinion, is that it may seem (erronously) too much like missing big chunks of content, especially if one's group mostly comes from video games.

[@Fulgmr]

"... Yeah, that's why we don't sell calendars." I don't know why, but that tickled me.

[@adamspina9164]

Especially after "That's why we don't sell intelligent swords". Good joke construction.

[@jonathonm6613]

I busted out laughing right after he said that, lol.

[@stevenneiman9789]

I think it's because he's talking about causing damage to the space-time continuum and the thing he focuses on is why he can't sell an unimportant nonmagic item.

[@bardoftherunekeepers6601]

I love how Matt is still playing Sumat Pol even when he’s just doing a campaign diary

[@StabbySideways]

Not a lot of blue sky between the two voices....

[@bardoftherunekeepers6601]

Sophia Bogard haha so true

[@OrionTaltos]

Imagine a random one-shot with Sumat Pol and Pumat Sol haha

[@danieltgrissani]

From Minnesota, ya.

[@etepeteseat7424]

Matt: I love playing these world-weary cop characters. Also Matt: Forget it Jake, it's Chinatown.

[@noahdavis7847]

I’m really waiting for the dramatic moment when someone pays for a flying carpet, gets a special coin and is immediately shuttled off somewhere they weren’t expecting

[@nickwilliams8302]

Pfft. As if Matt would do such a thing ...

[@maxbohnson1]

The law of unintended concequesences. I have to admit, I did not think of the possibility of kidnapping by carpet.

[@mcolville]

Fuck that's a good idea...

[@RPanda3S]

@@mcolville lmao I knew you'd love this.

[@tennesseeponderer3146]

You’d have to make sure the character didn’t have flying or enough hit points to jump

[@zenoking5958]

I actually really like having campaign diaries day of the stream, gets me hyped to stay up to midnight.

[@BrianKoppers]

100% agree

[@McKazzer94]

See, in the UK, this is early afternoon. It really brightens my day cause I can’t ever watch the stream live on Twitch :)

[@awlafferty]

Yes, this!

[@LogistiQbunnik]

A bit like the "what happened last episode" you get at many TV shows right!

[@trvrlsn]

Just wanted you to know that I love these diaries, as a learning GM I love to see the mindset you have. Mostlyas I dont have the time to watch the stream but more because of the behind the scenes vibe. TYVM Matt keep up the fantastic work.

[@Aloemancer]

Angel's semi-frantic mostly frustrated description of Capital's political landscape was my favorite part of the episode. It reminded me a lot of the Pepe Silvia scene from It's Always Sunny.

[@Kazhrei]

MANY MANY mentions of Pepe Silvia during the stream while that was going down.

[@Apollo9898LP]

it was very Pepe Silvia, yeah

[@danaholland6686]

It was actually my least favorite part of the stream. I love almost all of what Matt does but I found it boring and hard to follow. I think it would have been better if he focused in on one or two parts of Capital, then do an other report

[@craigbainton4173]

I don’t get the reference but yes. It was amazing

[@PhileasLiebmann]

@@danaholland6686 It was kind of hard to follow and if you're not the kind of guy who watches the Worldbuilding Streams then there's no way you're going to like that scene. But for the people that did participate in the stream or watched the recording this must have been a super cathartic experience seeing all the stuff they created together or watched them create with Matt become relevant.

[@adammetc]

Matt starts with a recap of part 1 (Broadsheets ask about the shadows attack, cop asks about shadows attack, Angel's report) 15:25 Behind the scenes insight on Matt's plans for the spy network 17:45 Recap of part 2 (shopping at Sumat Pol's) 23:05 Behind the scenes insight on homage 25:35 Back into recounting the shopping 31:52 Overall Reflection on how the session went There are a lot of interesting little reflections throughout the recaps too.

[@MuninnFPV]

How about a cantrip called ubers transport that summons a tapestry, material component 10gp

[@Ruxinator]

I could listen to Matt fantasy technobabble in Sumat's voice for hours. It's so fun

[@Crow.Author]

Ruxinator I’m so sad the players missed the opportunity to ask them to define and convert an oovah. 🤣

[@nathaniellahman]

I think going forward, we should refer to the Shadow attack on the Footstool as the “Inn-cident”.

[@nathaniellahman]

But here is where this kind of high-class humor belongs!

[@quasisummoningdark]

Nero's description of Boots ("apparently acting as the Chain's intelligence officer") has come true!

[@timpind.8237]

“The Incident at the Inn” Do you mean: The *INN*-cident?

[@timpind.8237]

Sophia Bogard *yeets self out the window*

[@gogozipray]

Moving out of my college dorm today for the summer. This is a great video to listen to while i pack up. Thank you matt.

[@bradman4399]

On this edition of the best content on youtube: more awesome content! I love how easy it is to follow along with your rich plot in an episodic format. Sure, you lose the immersive player element, but as a DM with a job and not enough time to watch the full stream... this video format is a GODSEND.

[@JaeLim1121]

If they're treants, maybe you could have named them Sumac Pol

[@mandodelorian4668]

That's actually what they're called in the next multiverse over. These trees, their groots run deep.

[@orsolyafekete7485]

"Magic resistance is very powerful and hard to come by." Yeah, right... *laughs in yuan-ti*

[@DavydAtkins]

I mean, having to be born a specific ancestry to get the resistance does sound kind of hard to come by. Jeff the gnome isn't exactly gonna be able to acquire that

[@johndevlin9225]

Jeff the gnome gets gnome cunning, which is 1/2 of the way there

[@Tbrekke]

I love these diaries; it's lovely to see an experienced DM show their work and how they think. This combined with me not having time to watch the actual stream it's a great inspiration for my own campaigns and sessions.

[@ianmielke6754]

I loved this last session.

[@cmckee42]

You can tell how much Matt likes roleplaying the character when he keeps dropping into character in the middle of the recap.

[@steveharrison76]

I got accused of being derivative on Saturday, derivative of game of thrones. I don’t watch game of thrones. Hurts, man.

[@mcolville]

Yeah nothing's new, but many things remain undiscovered by someone.

[@nickwilliams8302]

I remember showing my brother (who's a pretty good guitar player) this vid ... kzbin.info/www/bejne/a6HMlaKhltCIaqs ... a while back. He just shrugged and said, "Hey, there's only so many chord structures that work." Same deal.

[@All4Tanuki]

@@mcolville This is some big wisdom tucked inside such a hidden comment

[@phatman9762]

I LOVED Sumat Pol. I loved when you were playing Angel. Your acting chops are tops! YES!

[@MascottDeepfriar]

i feel like Sumat Pol sounded like Bob and Doug Mckenzie on energy drinks

[@injinii4336]

I'm going to rip off the Treant character and name mine after you: Kumat Col :D I love the idea of a million campaigns each with their own version of Pumat Sol!

[@RyanKassel]

Dont always have time to watch the whole session every week. Your weekly synopsis is priceless!

[@nickovergaauw7893]

I love the campaign and players! You're doing a great job, Matt!

[@jaredatkinson1071]

My favorite part of the behind-the-screen episodes, is watching the campaign and then hearing what you though when well and what didn't. Then remembering how watching those looked to me and how I thought they players felt about them. It really helps me realize how hard we are on are selfs as dms and how the players are having fun. Not realizing how I messed up and they BB was supposed to do this or that

[@Suixcide]

Matt I really enjoy the recap and your insight into the sessions. Thank you for taking the time to make these videos.

[@sophiescott143]

Hey Matt, I finally got through Priest. Left a review via Amazon. Solid 8 out of 10, one of the most enjoyable reading experiences I've had. Will be purchasing Thief when I get paid.

[@thedreambag8610]

Sophie Ripley x

[@jpenhall]

Thanks for taking the time to do these videos. I watch the adventure on Twitch, usually on Thursday since my AL DnD game is Wed night, but these are very informative and help me catch things I may have missed. Really enjoying the campaign so far. Keep up the great work.

[@DuonDRaven]

11:00 missed opportunity for a monty python "Bring out your Dead!" clip

[@dillanporterfield9926]

Speaking of "ripping things off" I totally used the "You are not the changeling" cards in my campaign, and man it was one of the best sessions we had in a long time! Brilliant stuff! It's so cool to have other DMs to look to and employ masterful things they've done in their campaigns. Thanks for the grand idea Matt!

[@darthnoduo44]

I'm I crazy that I got really excited when I clicked on this and saw a 40 minute run time??

[@chrisbergman4377]

I loved the lore - I listened to that section 3 times just to make sure I got everything down! And the curator was hilarious! Thanks for doing the campaign diaries, Matt!

[@cl0udbear]

I loved this episode and didn't begrudge at all both sequences being smusched into one session. Bravo.

[@CheshireMadd]

I think the way that Matt played both Angel and the Sumat Pols was very well done! I realized on some level that it was a lot of DM talking and players not doing a whole lot, but I was super interested in what Angel had to say and the way that Matt played him kept me hooked. And Sumat Pol had me cracking up. I loved that he started arguing with himself to the point that the party had to keep him on subject! I honestly could have sat there and listened to the Sumat Pols argue.

[@zemiron]

I just wanted to let you know that while I've enjoyed every episode of The Chain so far, this was probably my favorite episode yet because I really enjoyed Angel's actual report. I thought you did a great job of laying the report out in character and Angel is one of my favorite Chain junior officers. I really like Angel's attitude.

[@AlpacasWithScarves]

Don't know exactly what it is but Matt is looking pretty fresh today

[@nestorskip9410]

Justhatguy combed hair, distinct goatee

[@gengar1187]

Hair is on point, but also chill attitude

[@HBShanks16]

Are Brass Men made of Sin Metal? Also Matt... I was in love with the Teeth Of The Dragon... BUT WHAT IN THE WARDS OF THE EMPEROR.

[@nickwilliams8302]

I suspect that they're made of brass ...

[@johncameron1935]

@@nickwilliams8302 Brass plated sin?

[@jaminius]

“The players remember, I don’t know if the characters know this though.” ... Sumat literally explained the properties of Sin Metal to the party.

[@jaminius]

Ah, gotcha. Shows you how much I can remember.

[@late_privktorian_era]

Thanks for still doing a steady stream of these, it's been hard to keep up with the stream at times and I genuinely like to know your top line takeaways

[@andlerom]

Gee thanks, Matt. Now I have to make mine a bugbear and call him Pumal Sot.

[@nickwilliams8302]

A Bugbear? You can do better than that. An Ilithid, a Sphinx, a Thri-Kreen, a whole tribe of Pixies ...

[@andlerom]

@@nickwilliams8302 well now I feel like I have to protect the honor of the noble bugbear.

[@nickwilliams8302]

@@andlerom First you'd have to _find_ a noble bugbear. Why don't you ask the Rakshasa? He owns the magic shop down the street ...

[@landshark760]

Thanks again for making these! Commenting to help boost vid

[@zionich]

I really enjoyed the world building and RP'ing that happened in this session.

[@praeton]

Ok, I really like you describing the Su Mat Poll stuff. Great voices

[@awlafferty]

This was one of my favorite episodes! I love some good solid role play! This episode was full of that.

[@daveschrumpf8261]

I can't wait to unveil my new shopkeepers, the Tumat Gols!

[@j0nasbs]

Many anagram possibilities there... Sam Pluto, Postal Mu, Oat Lumps(Tabaxi name, probably), Maul Tops, Lam Pouts, Pam Lotus.

[@Jimbo5900]

Not sure what it is but Matt is looking particularly dapper in this video.

[@knudsenmj]

"if they don't take this other job something crazy is going to happen and there is never a right answer" - you gotta be careful with that as a DM, I've had players disengage because they didn't think they were ever getting clear wins. Love these diaries btw, thanks for putting them out.

[@ShayneRawls]

I loved the Pumat Sol homage. It was similar but different from Matt Merecers. And that's what Matt Colville has been telling us:rip off the things you like and make them your own. And he did really great last Wednesday

[@cosmichobo4614]

I hope Matt Colevil is behind the stretch goal battle royal!

[@daniellavoy4689]

As a Wisconsinite, the Sumat Pol accent is hilarious. It's just like going back home and talking to the locals.

[@giacomocappellari328]

Campaign diaries are the best!

[@nortonroughley1890]

I love the Matt version as it is a different perspective/ interpretation to what I may have seen

[@Kyle120212XD]

Can confirm if you label an opera house on your map a player will check it out, not sure why but hey it works!

[@Atrianpaul]

I enjoy the episode of the chain, I love the introduction of Sumat Pol, is like his inspiration but it also has his diference that make him unique and enjoyable...

[@taigness]

I loved angel. Personally I like the RP heavy episodes, combat is combat (although there are tricks to learn) but the grand-strategy feel of your campaigns are what get me hooked.

[@paulwestreicher9795]

Make a Video with Mercer where Pumat sol and Sumat pol meet! Would be hillarious i think!

[@dillonshafer3895]

I work in insurance restoration, I feel like that makes me a gnoll...

[@violetsapphire952]

In a lighthearted context, people use "trolling" to just mean "messing with", even in quite a friendly way sometimes.

[@nickwilliams8302]

Hey Matt. Loved the episode. Couple points concerning Leech's requests to Sumat Pol (nice job there BTW). 1. There _is_ in fact a magic item that makes Warlocks better at being Warlocks. The Rod of the Pact Keeper. Available in handy +1, +2 and +3 versions for the relevant tiers of play. 2. A Tome of Leadership and Influence would have also met OD's _very specific and clear_ request to you for an item that would make Leech a better Warlock. 3. "SInmetal" is an awesome idea (memories of playing a Drow yourself?), but Leech can't wear metal armor (even the lightest is Medium). You're not allowing feats (I think?), so he can't get the proficiency that way (and wouldn't qualify for one for another three levels anyway). He doesn't meet the prerequisites for multiclassing into a class that would grant the proficiency, so no luck there. Possibly your best bet is your observation that it takes the same amount of Sinmetal to make weapon as it does a suit of armor. This implies that there is some way to refine the Sinmetal into a more concentrated form, which allows for the possibility of it being used as the studs on a suit of studded leather (the heaviest armor a Warlock can wear). Sounds kind of plausible to me anyway. Sorry. Played a Warlock a little while back. As for Angel's report, I really can't see what more you can do to emphasise the importance of the broadsheets in Capital short of outright grabbing your players by the shoulders, shaking them and screaming in their faces, "Hey, people! You need to be able to control people's perceptions of The Chain! I've been telling you about the broadsheets since Sweet was the Commander!" Given that some of the players are your employees, I think there's probably a law prohibiting this particular method of exposition anyway. And Lars might punch you. Also, it should be "In order to _effect_ the death of ..." not "affect". Because that still bothers me 14 episodes in. I just can't unsee it.

[@mandodelorian4668]

re: Sinmetal " Possibly your best bet is your observation that it takes the same amount of Sinmetal to make weapon as it does a suit of armor. This implies that there is some way to refine the Sinmetal into a more concentrated form, which allows for the possibility of it being used as the studs on a suit of studded leather (the heaviest armor a Warlock can wear). Sounds kind of plausible to me anyway. " - Basically, if Sinmetal is an alloy, which would be highly likely, this would work perfectly well. So you take (some metal) add in the Sin and voila, good to go.

[@roondar6141]

I like the idea of 3 ents that may or may not be from minnesota running a magic club where you can buy demon hearts and magic swords.

[@alexitosworld]

I would totally tune in for short solo episodes of a single character enjoying the city. Obviously is hard to pull of because adult time is limited, but just for you to know, you would have a watcher that would enjoy that FOR SURE! So tell the players that it's okey!

[@theemichael1]

I love these videos it is very inspiring. Thank you for your time.

[@ghostbirdofprey]

The whole not able to do everything at once bugged me a bit at the start, because of how the players were doing things. They haven't really utilized their assets much in Capitol. When they took the underdark Job, the other jobs sounded like something the junior officers might have been able to take care of off screen. Now, with some of The Chain employed as guards and others working with Angel to set up a spy network, the non PC members of the Chain are finally, actually doing something, and I think that's great.

[@MedievalDragoon]

The Adventures of Big Cat in the Big City

[@jacksonparham2576]

I just hope leech makes some cool sunglasses with the sin metal

[@jacksonparham2576]

@@SophiaAphrodite That'd be really cute but I think leech wants O'D as far away and as quiet as possible XD

[@happyishanuman]

I see where you got the gnolls there. Now you just need some enterprising fellow to show up and start selling sausages, inna bun!

[@MnemonicNex]

I really miss the campaign diaries, a great way to sum up episodes for someone not able to watch the stream

[@LogicalCake]

Any chance we could get a PDF of the list of fantasy techno-babble? I'd love to use some of that.

[@SuperCROivan]

Hey matt great video as always! I want to know more about the ancient ores you mentioned. Can you give us rest of the info on them or where we can find them?

[@dubCanuck1]

Probably late to the party on the comments, but it might be cool for the officers to dispatch some of their underlings to take on some of the lesser jobs. Might be a good opportunity to break from the regular game and do a quick side quest to augment the drama and enrich (enrichen?) the immersion into your world.

[@dfw_sleepypillz1007]

Sumat Pol - this brings me joy - now I have a great name for my version - Pumat was already taken lol . Rock on, sir.

[@carlosmonjas5703]

Because every campaing can always have MORE Discworld references! XDD

[@xatatatau]

Great content as allways, Matt!

[@Sporadicus1976]

I see no problems with ripping characters and ideas off in games you plan to run just for friends. I say kudos to you for giving them references that some folks can connect with.

[@theAV8R]

I never knew CR's Pumat Sol, and I assure you Sumat Pol was a campaign highlight for me so far. Such a memorable NPC!

[@clanmcstump]

I really keep hoping they'll decide to try to take over one of the murdered Prince's districts. Especially now that they're starting up Angel as a master spy. Start feeling out some of those districts and see what those people need or want and slowly start making yourselves important to those people!

[@newbluedisk]

My word, the fact that the world moves in real time like this really must require some stage keeping elements like a time line and the sort.

[@dirigoallagash3464]

Is anyone else singing in their head, 'Angel's report, Angel's report...'? A la 'Creature report' from Octonauts. Just me?

[@Daiqatana]

I'm gonna need a cameo from the Radenwights, my man. I'm reading Thief and I love them!

[@taylorcrowley5075]

Can you upload the audio of these to your podcasts? I love hearing your soothing voice while I drive, but I go into withdrawals between Chain episodes.

[@gus554]

Appreciate the 1440p resolution!

[@Israelmadruga]

Sumat pol, "Get the things you love, stick into your game"

[@dirk_gently]

I don't think anyone would mind watching idiosyncratic, single person trips on screen. Though, I get that the PCs probably think it's not okay. They're all interesting. I think all their individual trips would be awesome.The plight of Judge's people, King's trip to see his God, Boots performing at Ford's theater, etc. All sound good!

[@killazaawl]

mix a sword + demon heart + wizard to get a demon blade. got it. there were magic missiles flying out out of the cauldron for a while, but it's ok now. the blacksmith is exhausted from stirring now, i recommend getting two blacksmiths to work in shifts. so... how long do I cook it?

[@Evilboberful]

The only RPs I've known are pretty much original campaigns made up by the GMs/DMs. It was the poor man's way of playing since we couldn't afford to buy all the extra books for campaigns, lol. It was great for the GM in that there were no constraints, but it definitely did require a lot more work. It was also fun in that the players actively helped the GM build the world. After the game the players would often just talk about the session and speculate about possibilities that could happen next and the GM often borrowed from that to launch multiple plot threads or build the world further, lol. The downside was that there were definite times it moved slowly or came off unpolished, lol.

[@kalemas1]

Please do let the players know we want to see them do the single activities also. I love seeing character progression and the little bits for them

[@flyrefi]

I thought Sumat Pol was a troll myself, but not in a mean sense! I think people were interpreting it as what might be called a good-natured troll (i.e., a prank), as in, you were trying to make Matt Mercer laugh. No one knew you had already told him you were gonna rip it off!

[@danvocals123]

Matt you are so good man

[@Tysto]

In a real Medieval (English) city, the justice of the peace would be demanding the city constable get to the bottom of the disturbance. Men of the watch (a rotating, unpaid duty you could pay someone else to do for you) would be the "cops", but the constable is the guy who would be doing the investigating.

[@hitomisalazar4073]

It's an interesting Magick Shoppe there. And one that makes sense with how Capital is framed up. I admit I've always been leery in games I ran of having "Ye Olde Magick Shoppe". Mostly because I felt like it detracted from the themes of the game I was playing. Why are you risking your life for some +2 Axe of the Dwarven Lords or something that you heard was lost in this undead infested nightmare tomb that no one returns from... when someone can just take a sack of gold and turn it into whatever magic swag they want inside a relatively safe town? It makes sense however for The Chain as a mercenary company getting contracts for massive amounts of gold. And just how Capital is laid out. It's an interesting perspective. I'm not sure if I'll do something like that myself anytime soon. But it's something to mull over. A simple, elegant solution to a problem I've had at tables before where players kinda grouse that instead of the specific item that they always wanted (but never told me) they found the treasure at the end of the dungeon was some theoretically equivalent but not at all what they wanted item. Instead of that +3 Flaming Burst Heavy Crossbow or something they found a several Javelins of Thunder and Lightning. Which I thought was cool but they never told me they wanted that Crossbow but kind of groused when they found out that they can't just sell one to get the other.

[@RyanKassel]

Peace, out!!! :) feels like home

[@dhaonrisemlan]

Thanks for making these videos for us Matt!

[@DennerBob]

Loving what you're doing with Sumat Pol, but I feel just a touch sad that your treant isn't named "Sumac Pole"

[@devennasso7022]

I think this is the first time Matt has dropped an f-bomb outside of the livestreams.

[@nicksiegrist378]

@Matt, love the diaries, don't stop. Anyone know a resource for all of Matt's cool metals?

[@androsh9039]

There's an RPG called Burning Wheel that has an abstract money system, which includes a chart. (great RPG system btw)

[@Mistrogers]

Missed the opportunity to call your treants Sumac Pole

[@michaelmrozek7206]

I loved angels report mostly cause I love angel

[@druidgrif]

May the Timerider bleep on without us!

[@funa2865]

MatSue Pol, at least from what I have seen of Pumat sol, isn't really the same character. Pumat sol is more clear cut and very obviously just a series of conjuered replications where as MatSue Pol is interesting in that he isn't entirely sure of himself he disagrees with himself and is a little blatant and unaware of how he appears to other people.