Critical Role - Forgotten Gem "Deck of Fortunate things"

[@chrishaven479]

"I'm just afraid you'll pick a card and be all alone" If only Pike knew...

[@Curls_Cards]

Right!!

[@TonTonTheBard]

She did know. She saw Grog pick the card.

[@elusivegamergirl]

This makes me sad, and the fact that they didn’t remember this promise when they did the Search For Grog makes me sadder

[@DaltonHBrown]

@@TonTonTheBard He meant that she accidentally foreshadowed that happening.

[@DarkAngelCookie]

@@TonTonTheBard she didn't. Her Skype crashed when it happened 🥲

[@AAARRRGGGHHHHHH]

"Ourgh. That was like watching an 8yr old juggle a gun." Taliesin has so obviously witnessed The Deck obliterate games in his past. It looked like he was having PTSD flashbacks.

[@Chigen_Atomic]

I love Patrick Rothfuss' reaction when Grog first finds it. Covers his face and rapid fires, "Nononono"

[@kereminde]

The only two people at the table who didn't react was Sam and Travis, as Liam was more of a "is this what I think it is?". I do love Grog's immediate: "who the heck uses cards, I throw it in the lava" bit.

[@Trojianmaru]

And then when he wasn't looking, Travis was trying to flip the coin, n failed 😂 if he really had been juggling a gun, he just dropped it. You couldn't ask for better Ironic timing

[@Temuldjin]

stuff gets fucked up real fast when a character in a year 1+ campaign draws the: never existed card.

[@blackthrone6976]

@@kereminde Imagine, if matt noticed and he didn't get interupted, all the shenanigans wouldn't have happened...

[@evanmorrison3232]

"I dont know if we should test fate" "Let's flip a coin" Deal. Well.... that went smoothly

[@elbruces]

They asked fate whether they should test it. Seems reasonable. Fate said no.

[@pa7764]

They halved the risk that the deck would destroy the universe! 50% chance not to open the deck.

[@kayleigh0711]

Changebringer

[@lyianx]

@@elbruces lol fate said "No" like 3 or 4 times haha.

[@hfar_in_the_sky]

Matt is literally the only GM I know who is mad enough to not only allow the Deck of Many Things to exist in his campaign but to encourage its use.

[@JoeKeyes]

CHAOS! ENTROPY! MAYHEM!

[@TheJerbol]

I don't think he's _encouraged_ its use

[@chriswilder9719]

Not to mention give it to the Goliath barbarian who isn't the sharpest tool in the shed

[@elgatochurro]

You don't know many GMs then I outright want my players to make bad decisions, that's what gives the game some drama is the risk

[@donashcroft93]

Any competent DM will happily give out the deck, the main reason people don't give it is they fear it will ruin games but if you know what you are doing its not so bad and you can work around or with every possible outcome.

[@kendallstauffer689]

"Come in!" "H... What?..." "Okay," *opens door* I can't not laugh every time XD

[@javierpatag3609]

I just realized that even with the knowledge of how *NASTY* a Deck of Many Things can be, even the most experienced players are gonna be tempted to pull a card.

[@j.d.3597]

I've watched a TPK from it and I STILL would struggle on the decision!

[@Conzor563]

Fortune favours the brave

[@donashcroft93]

Because it's fun, yes you might have something horrible happen but you also might have fantastic things happen

[@asherandai1000]

Do we not play D&D to take insane risks in the name of fun? Do not the most epic and memorable of moments come from the crazy shit we do? I say the Deck embodies what it means to play D&D. Always draw at least one card (Note: I've never had the opportunity to draw a card)

[@thecamelftw1381]

I would draw a card 90% of the time unless it would go against the characters nature

[@rotimiabiona3234]

I just realized that this explains what happens with his final card pull. It's because he broke his promise.

[@AlexPerez-tt9ru]

Oh my God your right lol

[@Sircreepington9th]

That makes it all the more tragic.

[@highrofellos6721]

Love this comment, but I refuse to push it off of 911 likes since I feel half the team needed to dial 911 after the card got pulled :D

[@gabrielbjornursidae]

He wasn't really alone though, Pike was watching him. Just a little bit away.

[@EthalaRide]

The universe noped their deck pulling SO HARD. Like I feel like The Dice Gods and Card Gods are separate entities, and the Card Gods were just ringing their hands in malicious anticipation, and the Dice Gods were just side-eyeing them and trying to protect their bbs.

[@DCdabest]

Good thing the Coin Gods are decent people. Well..... half of the time.

[@cheeselord3655]

@@DCdabest Hahaha, I see what you did there

[@cookie856]

@@DCdabest All of the times if you know how to talk to them

[@SharkyShocker]

With how Laura was acting I kind of like to imagine Vex was listening in next door through the wall XD

[@PurpleSteff127]

I view it more as I feel a disturbance in the force.

[@shannononeill482]

LOLOL the look she gave Travis when he started imitating her...oh boy...

[@GhostShip94]

Laura enjoys interfering in things that her character has no knowledge of on a pretty consistent basis.

[@gabrielbjornursidae]

@@GhostShip94 Absolute FACTS. She metagamed herself into the treasure horde where Grog found the cards AFTER saying she was going to take a short rest with the others. Laura metagames so dang much.

[@swordude40]

"I've made this pRomISE BeFoOorRe" 7:48

[@GuiltyOne438]

"How could it kill you, just outright kill you?"

[@GuiltyOne438]

And he drew that card when he was alone, too.

[@MetaKaios]

@Manakuuchiha * sigh * That would've been a cool thing to have seen for myself. -_-

[@fleentstones117]

@@MetaKaios Thennnn don't watch highlight videos before watching the campaign?

[@yourvenparianen5390]

I love how Travis stayed in character while egging her on so naturally without using any meta knowledge or listening to anyone but to what Grog's mind would do. stellar performance

[@erickknight1239]

you can see Matt either have strong doubts or die a little inside when she rolled the crit

[@athibi9461]

3:21 An expression of existential crisis right there.

[@NinjaSushi2]

3:18 LOL MATT'S FACE CHANGE WHEN ASHLEY TELLS HIM SHE ROLLED A 20.

[@CED99]

Yes, I'm surprised Mat didn't giver her more on a Nat20, her normally give out lots for great rolls.

[@kingskelett6265]

CED99 well it was still a 21, which is not always enough, especially for something so rare. NAT 20 are only auto-success für attacks I think

[@ladaboy3507]

It probably had a DC of like 25, so she only got as much as she did because it was a natural 20

[@Blackwind_Legacy]

I can't help but think Travis was trolling the group the whole time once he learned what the deck actually did.

[@giraffedragon6110]

7:40 I’m afraid you’re going to pick it and be all alone (Thinks back to when Grog pulled his last card from the deck of many things) *PROCEEDS TO INTERNALLY SCREAM AND CRY*

[@Hellscrap3r]

"I might-..."

[@ConversationBomb]

I can't decide of Pike or Grog is the enabler in this scene.

[@GZilla311]

ConversationBomb Yes.

[@giraffedragon6110]

Grog: what could be so bad? *Avatar of Death appears* : greetings fellow mortals

[@jonsimpson6240]

Meh. Death avatar ain't so bad, especially for Grog.

[@Ekkaisara]

Grog would TRUCK that avatar lmfao

[@straus53]

i love how travis says fuck when ashley gets the nat 20 arcana check

[@Boggllez]

Travis reaction when Ashley rolls a natural 20 is the best part of this whole interaction

[@justadummy8076]

“…fuck…🤦🏻‍♂️”

[@sapphirescythe4711]

"I'm afraid youre going to pick it & be alone" fast forward to when his soul gets sent to a gemstone in another plane of existence all bcus he was alone & she watched him pull a card from the distance

[@sirskinny]

8:32 "its like watching an 8 year old juggle a gun" as Travis fumbles the coin...perfect...

[@davidwilliss5555]

I found a Deck of Many Things in one of my first D&D campaigns. While the party was taking a long rest, the DM and the rogue went off to another room for about half an hour. When they came back, the DM tells us that we wake up and the rogue is missing. It turns out he had stolen the deck from me and played solitaire. Ended up summoning a demon or something --- and mooned it.

[@charlotteberry7980]

I did the same (the rouges deal thing!) but i drew 3… i got my soul banished, i lost my 1k gold. And i cursed my blood line so i couldn’t be healed by magic. We had someone with a use of wishes so they rescued my soul thank gods.

[@bigjuan87]

5:46 the table going apeshit after that statement...

[@EthalaRide]

This just reminds me of the Vox Machina Finale with what Grog chooses to do and Pike seeing it...

[@Valiant_Requiem]

Update to anyone seeing this! They brought Vox Machina back to do one last session that deals with... Whatever spoiler thing is being referred to here that I won't be spoiling! But it's apparently fantastic. We're waiting on the VOD still, but once it releases, there will be one last episode of C1 to watch!

[@johndiez9288]

@@Valiant_Requiem Watched it live, can say, one of the best episodes yet xD

[@nucleardrake9981]

@@johndiez9288 #NoMercyPercyReturns

[@insanelyarsenic7130]

I love how Liam is helping Laura with her glasses. The best of friends right there!

[@avrilslittlesis]

Twins, man

[@Obstreperous_Octopus]

Travis is so upset by the lack of card taking.

[@jumanjicostco3248]

Travis still flipped a 20 even after the RP! The fates had a back up plan xD

[@jamesperez988]

Little did they know that after YEARS of not hearing anything about the Lord of the Crossroads, Matt brought him back. That sneaky man him

[@VegetaLF7]

I mean, by that time we'd already gotten the reveal about Keyleth's mother, something that Matt had been sitting on since late 2012/early 2013 when Marisha turned in her backstory for Keyleth for their initial home game. Matt truly is the master of the Long Con.

[@TheWilyx]

Matt's face when she says "Natural 20" Pure Gold!

[@bplup6419]

"How could it kill you? Like, outright kill you?" I feel like this is foreshadowing.

[@DragonaxFilms]

1:10 LAURA'S FACE OH MY GOSH

[@rainycake]

She says something there like "something something doesn't know" but i can's fully read it.

[@kevinlacombe2868]

think she said, "She wasn't here for that sessions, so she genuinely doesn't know." could be off a bit in the middle.

[@shannononeill482]

@@rainycake yes it was something about, "Ashley wasn't here for that, she really doesn't know"

[@rainycake]

@@shannononeill482 Did you just seriously reply to a comment from 2 years ago?

[@shannononeill482]

@@rainycake yes...I'm just getting around to my backlog of videos...

[@crispyrice9442]

I love how grog is sooooo innocent

[@crestfallensunbro6001]

grog and pike are the best X3

[@Obstreperous_Octopus]

They really are

[@Vitukexe]

Dear Lord. You let HIM have THIS?

[@MaDmOnStErQr]

how would you make a story good? give the most game breaking item to the guy with the lowest INT.

[@chainer8686]

To be fair, it was his find, and outside of character the others were trying to keep him from using it lmfao

[@Dakuu75]

"I've made this promise before." LOL XD I love Grog. XD Bless his heart.

[@jarbasomena]

2:28 most natural "no" ever.

[@CabageBeans]

If Pike didn't roll high enough to know the danger, they both would've picked a card each in that room. When you think about it, this was a pretty pivotal moment.

[@davinator225]

this is where you choose if you do the logical idea or if you follow your character

[@sodapopmermaid7897]

Travis was so disappointed when she rolled high to know what it was lmao

[@itsraventm]

7:35 The foreshadowing here is amazing.

[@returnosf5043]

The cut to Laura sitting right the fuck next to them is genius

[@Benjackalope]

3:20 Matts reaction to the natural 20 XD

[@Logical_magic19]

It's like telling someone a coin has two sides but it just keeps coming up heads

[@elminsters]

7:34 Pike knows Grog so well!

[@Traegor]

i remember one time when we just finish a quest the npc let us pull one card each if we want, all of my teammates want to do it but i'm hesitant but still do it, all of them pull a terrible one only i pull a great one which is the sun and the character i am using is not even my favorite character. such fun times

[@xenio_m]

This is absolute gold. Is amazing how can you indentify both charachters just from this scene.

[@SPACEHARICE]

Never played before and guessing watching matt as a DM is going to have my expectations far higher then they need to be

[@TPBurrow]

No two DnD games are ever the same, even games by the same GM can have a different feel and atmosphere to them all dependant on player choices and dice rolls. I have been a GM for over 20 years and I still learn things from Matt. He is superb and his ability to hide his emotions until the hammer drops on the Players is impressive beyond measure. However welcome to D&D Brave Adventurer:)

[@SPACEHARICE]

@@TPBurrow since my comment I've been watching Campaign 2 currently up to ep45 I'm so obsessed I cant even use it to sleep as I'll miss an important plot point. Crtical roll is my breaking bad

[@germfreepizzawi1839]

At least Matthew Mercer’s initials also double for Mad Man, because you have to be insane to encourage the use of “The Deck”, it is literally attempting campaign suicide. I don’t know how they survived.

[@benjaminoechsli1941]

It's okay, they're gods!

[@asdrugrohl]

The deck's main thing isn't how dangerous and random it is but how tempting it is and Matt knew this. Grog is the perfect character to be tempted lol

[@bethdorny7744]

Their both so adorable 😂

[@Cipher655]

They're

[@KanuckStreams]

"That was like watching an eight year old juggle a gun." Oh DAMN

[@Not_An_EV]

"It wouldn't open so I smashed it, naturally" _"As you do"_

[@Gunther6565]

The 1 time I had a character interact with a Deck, I got 'Charmed' into pulling 3 cards. Ended up gaining a Frostbrand Bastardsword, the 4th level fighter sidekick, and gaining enough XP to go up to the next level. Then the person who charmed me pulled 1 card and got soul-stolen. The look on his face was priceless.

[@benjaminoechsli1941]

Fate was not pleased with his ploy that day. 😂

[@FrumpybutSuperSmart]

A few weeks ago my friend picked four cards. Euryale, Knight, Fates, Sun. Lucky bastard.

[@chrisschoenthaler5184]

Caer Ibormeith Noah Antwiler of Counter Monkey has told the story of one player who had a deck of many things with 21 cards. 10 good, and 11 bad. He drew ten cards. The results? Good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good... “It’s The Void. He dies.”

[@jarbuthn]

In the second campaign Jester and Nott will be the ones having this conversation... Oh boy!

[@pitterpatter4303]

I feel like the best in-universe explanation they could give as to why Matt misinterpreted the first card Grog pulled would be to say that Grog pulled from the middle of the deck. That the card he pulled was the magic item one, and for a second it worked, but then the universe realized that this wasn’t right, and instead gave him the effect of the card that was on the top of the deck. The card he should have pulled was the one that cursed him, and the universe took away the magic item he got. Thus he “didn’t use it right”.

[@VegetaLF7]

You know, I'm willing to buy that. It's entirely fitting that Grog would somehow manage to break reality while pulling out a card from the Deck and do it wrong to the point that the universe itself had to make a correction. If anyone managed to confuse the Deck of Many Things into giving him the effects of a card he didn't pull, it'd be Grog.

[@kisekhan2818]

Always listen to your shoulder Grog

[@loganw5971]

*15 seconds in* "HOLY SHIT THIS COULD BE A SITCOM!"

[@chirwin818]

“I might” hahahahah damn grog is the best

[@Troommate]

That could of gone so wrong XD

[@Chigen_Atomic]

Knowing their luck, it would have instakilled or seriously hurt Pike.

[@michaeladams3762]

" *could of* " stop that right now

[@wilcovandersluis9652]

The 20 crit and everyone going YES! and Travis: Fuck, seeing his chance to get Ashley to join in dwindle.

[@DisasterAuntie]

These little button-pushers. 😂 I love them so much!

[@magicalfungi3206]

pulling a card was just not in the cards that day...

[@e-linamarie]

that second coin flip was so satisfying

[@CritScratch]

I was expecting him to pull one out at the end anyway

[@firewomandixon8943]

I LOVED this part of this episode!!! GROG is so cool!! 🥰

[@Golden-ek2ku]

The deck of many things is one of my favorite items in all of dnd, usually having a DM that's lenient is nice too, but some just like to watch the world burn.

[@travellertori6972]

the first time one of my characters picked one, and she gets warped into the void.... her fortune with fate is not the best....

[@NinjaSushi2]

I want Grog to have the deck of many colors.

[@goodhunter9791]

Hope next campaign features the deck, or even a bag of beans.

[@uselessmitten7836]

It's like 2 middle school kids who found a joint.

[@coollionboy3887]

This is just too much for me 🤣🤣🤣🤣from travis he's just too much love the guy

[@criticalfumble1981]

Talk about an emotional rollercoaster am I right?😂😂

[@lordkira9791]

Ashley after coming out of character: What do you think? Liam after coming out of character: 20 sensible and 1 being ridiculous (aka don't fucking do it it's not worth it) Ashley: you are not here. Liam: THIS IS LIAM TALKING. Me: DO IT.

[@aliezz7253]

If I was playing,I would’ve rolled will to see if I pull one or not...

[@starcrafter13terran]

I get the feeling this item was created by a wild magic wizard.

[@itsraventm]

God I love these two so much

[@mjentertaintment2706]

You could see how disappointed Travis was in the coin toss lmao

[@jennessabeckett3949]

In my first game I played, I was 11 or so and the elf found a deck of many things and they wouldn't give it to me, the halfling priest that was super curious all the time. Did she save the party or not?

[@NoName13Thirteen]

... Prrrrrrrobably...? Generally a Deck of Many Things is more of a chaotic neutral type deal. That deck could have given you amazing gifts or literally DESTROYED THE WORLD

[@Zenju__]

25% chance of that scene playing out that way :)

[@blkhwk1321]

I wanted them to draw cards so bad 🤣

[@a21101984r]

I love Travis as Grog so much!!

[@toonezon4836]

DM's, I need an answer to this question: what would happen if you drew all of the cards from the Deck of Many Things all at once, say 52 pickup style?

[@TPBurrow]

It entirely depends on the order you get them, There are so many combinations and so many creative uses for them for both DM and player. No two card drops would be ever the same or simular.

[@toonezon4836]

@@TPBurrow oh no, I'm not just talking about picking 3 or 4, I'm talking about taking the whole deck & letting all the cards loose on the world at once

[@TPBurrow]

@@toonezon4836 You can certainly try:)

[@toonezon4836]

@@TPBurrow sure, if I ever get the chance in a one-shot, I wouldn't be willing nessessarily to risk a long running pc, for the most part. Though there was that split decision my monk made to toss a bottle of alchemist fire at a butt ton of black powder to dispatch some kobalds and a half dragon. Let's just say they were hoisted by their own pitards, & itnearly collapsed a mountain on the rest of the party, and sent the adult red dragon deep within to go all Smaug meets Lake Town on the near by Dwarven city. It was a laps in judgement on my part too. I was thinking fast, not smart. Thankfully the party survived to fight another day

[@mickeyboy90]

You’d survive maybe 5-10 then die. Or have a situation that you’d have to deal with immediately.

[@JustinLong1989]

I loved this show so much it was just so pure lol

[@Chigen_Atomic]

No=I'm not making it that easy.

[@sonnentausnest]

I love Grog's test to know if a weapon is evil: "I tried talking to it, it didn't talk back." 🤣

[@DragonFireStrike]

I really hope Matt gives Fjord another Deck

[@benjaminoechsli1941]

I would _love_ to see how Fjord would react. Would he be tempted at all, if he knew the danger? Or would the glorious possibilities entice him?

[@colinz226]

3:15 it looks like you just took away Matt's favorite toy.

[@dandini0698]

Can anyone tell me whats the outro song? It sounds very similar to witcher 3 soundtrack but i dont remember the melody.

[@TPBurrow]

Its by this guy: kzbin.info

[@dandini0698]

@@TPBurrow thanks man, i found it out. For others its Welcome to Wildemount by Colm McGuinness

[@Darkhorde]

Ok, so 0:54. Have you ever had coke shoot up through your nose and then suddenly get sucked down into your lungs in one motion? Yea, thats what happened to me at this point of this video.

[@dodobean7620]

question: what happens if one "inspects" a deck in an effort to ID it? what happens if you simply turn the entire deck over and view the bottom card? or hold the deck up to a reflective surface and see it?

[@TPBurrow]

You get to debate with your GM and probably roll a d20 once or twice. Good luck:)

[@ikanhazw1n]

I've always hated that Matt abides by nat1 = autofail but doesn't take nat20 as autopass

[@RaskaTheFurry]

is there actually a way to see the top card without drawing it ?

[@chrisschoenthaler5184]

Raska The Furry Maybe, if you have someone else drop the deck? That probably won’t work, though. It’s a magical artifact, so it is entirely possible that the nature of each card is not set until that card is drawn.

[@eddiemate]

There's nothing in the official rules about it so maybe you can find a loophole. Though all the ways I'm thinking of would either be drawing, or just dropping the deck and hoping for the cards to spill everywhere. Personally though, I imagine that the cards ignores basic logic. You drop the deck? The deck stays together. I also like to imagine that because of it being a magical artifact, even if you know the exact order the cards are in... it's not guaranteed to be the card you expect since it shuffles. That's just how I imagine it anyway

[@lanzlagman3511]

I think I saw somewhere that says that you have to declare how many cards you're gonna draw, and if you pull more cards than you declare, it doesn't activate it's effect. That's why some cards say "You don't draw more cards" in case you pull that card first, but declared more.

[@instantnoob]

if you decide or declare not to draw any cards but do anyway, you can look at them all and theyll do nothing. You could even reorder them. but I imagine when you decide to draw a card, no matter if it was reordered or not, the card you get is random, as if it switches places with a random other card as its drawn.

[@dig8634]

You can't force a card. Matt said that when the stranger (now lord of the quadroads) drew the card, that he put it back in the deck (though Grog later claimed the card disappeared in the stranger's hand). Even of Grog had just picked the same card that the stranger just put into the deck (he must first declare that he pulls a card), the deck would have randomized what card Grog had ended up with. If you look at them without declaring, nothing happens. If you organize them before drawing, the deck reorganizes itself. You cannot know what you are gonna draw, unless the dm homebrews a way to allow it. Designers have said that divination would just give cryptic clues about great risk, with great rewards or consequences.

[@EvanFarshadow]

I wish there was a class based around using this deck xD

[@Emerald_Solace]

Evan Scott Farshadow wild mages?

[@EvanFarshadow]

@@Emerald_Solace not sure what the class was called, but it's in Pathfinder ik that for sure

[@geordiekimbo2]

Wasn't there a Jester character class who could control the wand of wonder and the deck of many things.

[@marlettohemmingsen2828]

Wild Magic Sorcerer. (5e)

[@battlesevengames9479]

Why are all the timestamps in the comments wrong?

[@lootedgravel3283]

Lol deck of many..... don't forget when you find this deck you have to determine how many cards you will draw in total, then after a predetermined time any remaining cards automaticly draw themselves.

[@KarlPHorse]

Why is everyone on this show so attractive? Like even the guys very from big handsome dude to lil twink. Is Matt planning something? Is he the bbeg in real life?

[@TheRealMichaelH]

"Why is everyone on this show so attractive?" I don't know if that was a serious question, but I'm going to answer it as if it was, regardless. And the answer is: they're all professional voice actors. Which really means they were all aspiring actors who found less fame but more security in doing voice-over work, so they made their careers doing that. And even aspiring actors tend to be attractive; Los Angeles is full of "beautiful people".

[@wcthesecret]

@@TheRealMichaelH ...so you’re saying that they’re shit real life actors.

[@TheRealMichaelH]

@@wcthesecret No, you're the one who is saying that.

[@wcthesecret]

@@TheRealMichaelH but you just said they weren’t good enough for real life acting.

[@TheRealMichaelH]

@@wcthesecret Please stop putting words in my mouth. I said exactly what I meant.

[@Yeshalot]

what ep???

[@jharrell23867]

Its not 50/50 ive seen the numbers broken down and the chance of it being something good is slightly higher than the chance of something bad.

[@babygoblingamer]

Can't do that deck some of the Trask that end game Boss that can't be killed?

[@TheRealMichaelH]

Tarrasque. And maybe.