Curse of Strahd | Episode #1 | Dungeons & Dragons Campaign [DnD 5e]

[@MerchantTV]

UPDATE: The D&D Show has continued as a new Campaign! Link is here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/o5eQdWCrj8psasU

[@mitchellslate1249]

Why! Why is this series not complete! Sad...So good.The music, atmosphere, the subtlety of the DM, the horror. Best done still out of others we have seen. Good work.

[@Winterheart786]

Just a warning to everybody, this is a really good version of a playthrough of curse of strahd. Very entertaining. Unfortunately they don't finish and this playthrough gets cancelled...I think by episode 7

[@LemonLimeSkull]

Well now I'm not gunna watch it thanks for saving me the trouble

[@kingrepoman]

Why did they stop?

[@RMGamer31O]

Looks more like episode 9.

[@Architechtus]

Criminally underrated DM. Craig's ability to pull you into the narrative is fantastic.

[@UCFElCarnicero]

I agree. Just stumbled upon this. Really good!

[@Cattani1982]

I'm not sure how he is underrated... But he's a fantastic DM, for sure.

[@nuru666]

Came here for a D&D fix while waiting for more CR, so obviously I have biased expectations for a DM... So yea, I will humbly check those at the door, because his opening was fantastic! I love how he pieced together getting the group to Barovia in one clean, fluid motion that made actual thematic sense.

[@blindrabbit6165]

The only thing I didn't like was all the 'uhmm'ing he did.

[@slowsavage5522]

@@blindrabbit6165 thanks for that... now I can't unhear it

[@zaldeon3530]

As a DM running Curse of Strahd (probably not as intended), I am excited to watch a more experienced DM DM it.

[@cycleinthesun]

How'd it go? Im about to start running it

[@Metalhammer1993]

@@cycleinthesun it's q good campaign but I'd be interested at the "not as intended" as i managed to turn a horror campaign into comedy and it's bloody hilarious

[@cycleinthesun]

@@Metalhammer1993 I've got the book and will be going through and working out how I'm going to run it. Knowing my PCs it'll end up comedic

[@cainanfletcher7452]

It is definitely worth it the funniest campaign I've done

[@NumdegasedUHC]

“Hey, hows it going down there, buddy?” “I cAn SmElL yOuR bLoOd” “Right, let’s go back!”

[@dmliddicoatify]

😂😂😂😂😂 great stuff

[@jacobford7831]

I died at this part....too bad it’s 1am and my laughing woke up my wife.😂😅

[@joakim2437]

I'm a DM as well, I am running CoS as well. So I decided to watch these videos for inspiration, and at 1:39:45 "We can just go talk to whoever is in charge at the castle". That look of Craig's face haha.

[@angelagrace8499]

"I don't have any distinguishing features" Merchant, you have the voice of a real-life D&D character, lol

[@JS-uk7du]

Thats his real voice?

[@Sonluth]

Merchants a Evocation Wizard? *grabs popcorn and waits for the explosions to happen*

[@CoolVictor2002]

FIREBALL!

[@ImKindOfPerplexed]

I DIDNT ASK HOW BIG THE ROOM WAS, I SAID I CAST FIREBALL!

[@russby3554]

This sounds like my mage

[@sonata7076]

One time, one of my friends cast fireball on himself

[@frasercake]

@@sonata7076 its effective if your surrounded and have a fire resistance and good save.

[@jacobcornia1764]

Oh goodness. This video had me ready to watch after 4 minutes and hearing not shit audio. You're all at similar levels and most of your have really good audio quality (VMG is the only exception, but it's tolerable). FAR better than Dice, Camera, Action. I wanted to watch a Curse of Strahd video to see and compare how I'm doing in my own, but couldn't find a KZbin series with good audio to get through it, but I think I finally did.

[@dittmar104]

arcane arcade played curse of strahd they play in house and have pretty good audio but they're kind of casual in play and some of their characters feel more like high school drama class then real people but hey give em a look

[@Winterheart786]

So rare to find a great COS run. The only sad part was they never fineshed this module..

[@DRouwnt]

As a DM I have to say the DM is outstanding.

[@joseolmeda1334]

incredible job by the entire crew, Love how well it's run by the DM.

[@NumdegasedUHC]

“Do you know what’s up with this fog” “Oh it’s this cursed weather” lmao

[@shnerped3549]

im ur 69th like

[@stevencooper1103]

Im starting Curse of Strahd in a couple weeks. Excited to see how someone else runs it, hoping to get some good ideas.

[@davidventura660]

i ran CoS for my group .. took about a year and a half and it was epic

[@forrestkey9132]

Is this pie surrounded by a particular school of magic? THE SCHOOL OF FLAVORTOWN!

[@peinoftheakatsukiXx]

brillant

[@codyhastings5514]

This was the first time I have ever listened to something like this I like it a lot

[@rettwoods]

6:36 - Session Begins

[@Firefly-mb6pl]

much appreciated!

[@funnybusiness6491]

Area A. Old Svalich Rd: 46:00 and 56:41 Area B. Gates of Barovia: 58:47 Area C. Svalich Woods: 1:02:15 Area E. Village of Barovia: 1:38:09 Dream Pastries (1st encounter): 1:42:17 Blood on the Vine Tavern: 2:05:20 Burgomaster’s Mansion: 2:19:08 Church: 2:33:24 1st Strahd encounter: 2:52:18

[@travalino009]

Wow, he got through a lot in 2 hours!

[@kakashifuijin]

man Im 33 y/o never played DnD it seems super fun and craig is such a good dungeon master!!, the punctuation and the way of reading it really drags you in into the story ( along with the rest of the crew of course) and Im saying this despite english is not my native language

[@iandriver9803]

I m 52 y/o and I'm right there with you

[@m2karateman]

If you've never played, how do you know Craig is a good DM? He is, but how do you know? I've been playing for years. You should find a group in your area and take it up. It's much more fun playing face to face than over a video feed.

[@OscillateDarkly]

"Dew clings with cold tenacity to the rust bars"... Craig... You're an amazing story teller.

[@maxs.6517]

Sashweed that sentence is in the dm guide for the adventure, but the delivery was good none the less

[@illistensmith2718]

it really hurt to learn that this series will not continue. This is the very best play through of Curse of Strahd I have seen yet. Perfect mood and atmosphere. perfect role play. Perfect chemistry.

[@Dyanosis]

"perfect role play". Could have been better. They're level 3 and only half of them are actually trying.

[@WilliamSlayer]

Ismark : Doru... the less you know the better. Godfrey : Oh, I STRONGLY disagree with THAT! LOL

[@inskeeprulerable]

This has helped me so much with planning for my campaign. I have ideas for what to do once my party arrives in Barovia, but I could not think of a way to get the group to Barovia. I thought about having them meet at an inn of some sort for some reason. But now, I know that I will personalize each character's story of entering the mist. This will be a more natural way for each character to end up in Barovia than to force a 10 year old (one of my 5 PC's) to end up in a tavern. Thank you so much!

[@smartkaboose3806]

Just watched your Theros dnd first episode and I craved more, so here i am.

[@theidrir155]

I am going to be running this campaign soon, and it will be my first time DMing. I was reading through the model, and have been been having a hard time finding a way to take what I was reading, and translating it into a tale for my players. I found this video super helpful, and has given me a lot of good ideas on what ways I can take my players on this journey. I am excited to get started!

[@chadwarden7977]

Theidrir how’d it turn out?

[@letstalkfiction5187]

Thank you for making this :). As a new and learning dm it helps to see real dnd campaigns played

[@kennyyoung591]

I see Strahd I click Like.

[@shnerped3549]

There was the name Strahd in this comment so I liked, and I just so happened to be the 130th like

[@badmaninc.536]

Objective: get Ireena out of Barovia. Possible destinations: east will lead you to Hazlan, South to Kartakass, west to either Gundarak or Borca. Honestly the safest bet for her would probably be Borca. From there, one could access Richemulot or Mordent. Or if you’re feeling truly brave, from Borca through Falkovnia, into Darkon. There’s a Darklord there who is nothing less than Strahd’s most powerful enemy, I’m sure she would be safe there.

[@lycanrocx1121]

Good on you guys for not having shit audio! I started watching about 4 different CoS playthroughs and had to quit because the ear cancer. Love it so far, the way you introduced the charcters and brought them together was genius. I'll be DMing thing in a couple of weeks, thanks for the inspiration.

[@MrDadeadone]

I've not seen the first campaign but a mostly human party is a breath of fresh air nowadays

[@Joemantler]

The fog reminds me of a line from Ninja Scroll (Eng version). Dakuan: "Heaven must have sent this mist to help us." Falls down a hill. "Stinking, god forsaken mist."

[@timodermatt5100]

amazing new start to the second campaign! keep on producing more quality content!

[@GeorgeBrown-lw9zk]

Craig is a awesome DM he is helping me get better with my current campaign

[@NumdegasedUHC]

“I am Count von Strahd” ...wait a minute.

[@Ironwyrm]

Oh my god, my favorite D&D campaign. YES!

[@joshuatungate7169]

Love the beginning of the campaign! I will be watching the first campaign! You guys are all awesome. Glad I have something else to watch when I'm not watching critical role

[@Joemantler]

Well, this is clearly a lie. No golden retriever would ever lead anyone into Barovia. In fact, I'm almost certain that their inherent Goodness would prevent them from going there, entirely.

[@trigojon]

This is my next campaign. I've DMed exactly once, the Stranger Things starter set. This is helping me a lot because, frankly, this module was kinda overwhelming me.

[@KinzQuest]

Just started DMing this. Thanks for the inspiration. Will be following along for ideas and wrapping my head around the world.

[@jamesvandevender7975]

Man, you guys awesome! I'm about to run CoS as a newer DM and this is amazing.

[@zendikarisparkmage2938]

In case you were wondering: Character Name Card Art Layson Pelta Highspire Artisan Lok'Kai Grand Warlord Radha Godfrey Goldspark Gaddock Teeg Aramil Davol Mentor of the Meek Nirolos Gressa Loyal Cathar Rosalyn Grey Soldier Token (Modern Masters 2017)

[@letstalkfiction5187]

I like the fact that the second the lawful good characters leave, everyone else we're just like " Alright, let's break ALL the rules."

[@Taint-Bruiser]

I DMd this with my group. Such a fun fun fun D&D campaign.

[@alexanderzhmurov9624]

Finally, finally catching up to all of this goodness!! I guess some good points to this Strahd-level "quarantining!"

[@carlosdevoto798]

This is still my favorite playthrough series. It inspires me to play D&D much more than Critical Role or any of the other overhyped shows consisting of comedians and voice actors and sideshow carnies. These are just regular folks having a good time and setting an achievable standard. I hope you start doing these again @Merchant!

[@MerchantTV]

Descent into Avernus is continuing and I just started a new campaign on 983 Media channel go check it out!

[@kingrepoman]

​@@MerchantTVwhats the music used here?

[@12321evan]

Wasn't interested in guild gates since I'm not particularly interested in the MTG lore but really stoked for curse of strahd. Ran this campaign a few years back and it was awesome.

[@SwCreators]

I was pleasantly surprised with this group so far. Both the DM and players are a compliment to this series.

[@lemonadeqt2072]

I've been looking for a good Curse of Straud to watch because I'm about to campaign this and none of us have played It before. This was the best one , you guys are awesome! I came for tips and I'm now here to stay haha

[@antoniomontez5796]

@35:52 I took a sip of coffee and thus in a burst of laughter promptly sit it all over my lap. First time watching this group and thoroughly enjoying it so far!

[@russby3554]

I just played my first D&D game last night and this was the modual I played. Loving it already

[@anthonydembitsky3178]

This is my first video of yours. I found you after my not-so-recent interest in D&D ran out of videos to watch.

[@jaysw9585]

I have run this a couple of times. My last run, i had the players all show up in the streets of Barovia naked, having arrived in their sleep. It ramped up suspense a lot and the opening adventure provided just enough to equip the party and keep this cautious. Great way to introduce the players to Ravenloft...Naked and Afraid. In my own game, the priest committed suicide after his son's death and then the party drew him as their companion and so had to find a way to resurrect him.

[@brendanfligger1669]

I remember my first time playing this with friends. We all died terribly, but I remember that in the first session in Barovia we spent at least 5 minutes throwing things through the fog and playing catch with it (DM allowed it for the laughs)

[@iambecomejeff]

I LOVE that intro I just spent 2 hours writing a narrative like this for each of my PC’s I’m DMing for

[@M0nkeybomber]

Great intro connecting the players! I'm excited to watch the rest of this campaign.

[@demonblood8841]

"Is that my father craig" for some reason this was very funny to me

[@XenialShotYT]

Craig is a absolute unit of a DM, can't wait to run this my self.

[@Dyanosis]

an absolute*

[@21pm]

First time with Greg as DM. He's really tight. Light touch but strict good job my Dude. I was impressed that he did not let the players make an insite check before speaking with the NPC.

[@dylanmorris5352]

Ah, I see im not the only dm that had Strahd crash the funeral. Of course the events in my campaign were drastically different from this campaign, but that's what's fun about d&d, the variety of stories.

[@diavoloinc]

I love how they play, I will continue to watch the next chapters.

[@santiproductions9318]

YESSS finally we have a bard join the group

[@thelovebat]

Amazingly enough, it felt like the Bard player was the player talking the least during the session.

[@cjd2889]

No one: Craig: *You notice a low mist start to form*

[@cloudstone123]

So many martial classes. I see so many groups full of spellcasters lately so that is refreshing. And no cleric? What an interesting time you will all have in Barovia.

[@sylvnfox]

at least they have 3 characters with cure wounds on their spell list so they may... could... probably be okay

[@brianstepnowski5775]

Love it I am been playing role playing games for over 20 years wish I had group like this play

[@devonmarcus101]

Favorite campaign. CoS was amazing. Thanks for taking me through this again.

[@bombzdeep4475]

New to D&D and I’m definitely glad this was the first ever example I’ve seen. Definitely awesome! Can’t wait to get involved!

[@albert_wesker3615]

I have tried different approaches to start this up for mine. But I like how you did the Creeping Fog Hook

[@ariannaomine2534]

Craig’s smile what Merchant says to ask the person in the castle has me laughing. (I am a DM running this same campaign)

[@Lmgeddes]

completely distracted by the dog in the background of alwaysturtle haha

[@ThomasNelsonStandup]

Poor Rosalyn getting cut-off around the 40 min mark. I wanted to hear her prayer!

[@tacnomel2591]

The ways they are brought into the fog remind me of those don’t starve together animations

[@kutaru1389]

I know I am a year late but omg this is amazing. Also Names in Barovia follow Easter European patterns. So, While the old Burgermaster was Called Kolyan Indirovich, His children would take his first name as their second name, so the DM was correct: Ismark is called Ismark Kolyanovich. (Kolyan+ male suffix ovich) and Ireena is Ireena Kolyan-a (female suffix "a"). His notes were correct (;

[@TheWeekendGeek]

Had to come back to where it all began

[@seferinoquiroz3873]

Just finished being introduced to the characters and I am already hooked!

[@GuitarGuyNick]

1:32:00 you can do a defensive stance giving disadvantage on attacks. or taking the dodge action.

[@ravengreen8739]

I actually found this channel because of Guildgates & Goblins so I'm stoked! You guys are up there with Critical Role for me.

[@jessehunter362]

Yes! They are glorious designers of story and really put it into the worldview.

[@lockin4683]

A hefty compliment, thank you! Critical Role is definitely someone we'd love to be in league with some day

[@irenehouward7434]

that "narcotics" on the dream cookies are amazing XDD

[@stebles219]

I searched up Curse of Strahd play through and the last thing I expected was to find the KZbinr I know who makes MTG standard decks! Nice

[@HollowIchigo4243]

*Merchant* : "And don't forget to hit the subscribe button to catch the show every week" *Me* : Yeah, roll manipulation and advertisement checks for me.

[@codyhastings5514]

1:07:49 Syx’s reaction

[@irontusk5027]

Interesting, I've been listening to DnD campaigns while I drive lately. I'm pretty excited to have a new campaign to listen to. Can't wait to hear more of this campaign!

[@zacharybosley1935]

"I wanna have a look! I really wanna have a look!" The best way to play a campaign

[@mitchellslate1249]

That is it...I demand the music and ambience and everything of intro and intermission either reincluded or linked. Something about...pheww...Chillingly serene...

[@otakuchic161]

I played this campaign! can't wait to see how this goes for y'all

[@darkasp1]

Really good. It's like listening to a choose your own adventure audio book. Definitely subbing and listening to the rest.

[@blyteplays9748]

Craig is a master DM, I just wish I hadn't tuned into his habit of saying "ehh" every other sentence. Its killing me.

[@wycoffsart]

Same... I can't unhear either the 'ehs' and the 'seemingly'

[@mnrbrt]

I was looking for this comment. 😂

[@MagpieManny]

Yeah... same for me. It also a very nasal ehh. Very good otherwise! See if I can ignore it. Now 28 min in.

[@davidrioshoyos2218]

I hadn't noticed it until I read this comment. God, now I can't stand it either and my suffering is entirely your doing.😅

[@ivanshubin7231]

You son of a .......

[@Grimlore82]

Long time D&D gamer started in 89 with AD&D skipped 3rd, 3.5, and 4th. Love the 5th ed and am told by the 5e group I run they are buying me this module to run for them. 'Game life' long consumer of Ravenloft AD&D 2e products. I am stoked to see lots of positive comments, looking for an immersive playthrough of the whole campaign as I prep to run it.

[@MerchantTV]

Well we certainly focus on narrative and immersion so you're in the right place!

[@lovecraftminusthexenophobi4128]

Have always tried to watch people play dnd (critical role and others), but have never been able to sit through and enjoy one. I started watching this because I'm running CoS soon and wanted to see the intro for inspiration, but suprisingly I was able to watch and enjoy all of at least the first episode (never been able to make it past 10 minutes of critical role). Don't know what it is but you guys are doing it amazingly.

[@maxs.6517]

Shady Bear woah, what’s your issue with critical role?

[@lovecraftminusthexenophobi4128]

@@maxs.6517 was just never able to pay attention to it for the most part

[@vikashv1]

Evocation Wizard = Mono Red :O

[@MrVidau]

Merchant's voice is unbelievable.

[@Metalhammer1993]

For Craig Dnd Vampire´s work somewhat like shadows. if you die from a shadows strength drain (to be exact if the strength drain is what kills you) you become a shadow. if a vampire´s bite kills you, you become a vampire spawn. the rest i need to look up in the monser manual. i think you go from vampire spawn to full vampire by drinkng your master´s blood but i´m not sure about that one.

[@emilyg1239]

I was looking for a new ttrpg podcast or series to listen to/watch and I really love this start.

[@jasongriffin1517]

I'm disappointed that you're not doing another Ravnica campaign, but excited for Curse of Strahd. It's going to be awesome! Hopefully Turtle got some new dice for this one. 😁 Edit: 1:03:06 She did! She rolled a nat 20 on her new die. Hope she keeps rolling well.

[@timelytim]

I'm going back in time, just caught up on Black Blades and now I'm here.

[@angelaoneal5169]

Excellent! I'm excited to watch more. I bought Curse of Strahd a while back and have been dying to play it. Finally convinced my son to play it with me, so I'm excited to see how others DM it so I can get some ideas. I think I'm in love with the Gnome, btw.

[@maxkrueger1922]

My friends and I are just about to complete this campaign and I think it is a ton of fun

[@Winterheart786]

finally a COS play through that is not boring !

[@Afrancis1968]

Yes!!! I love your MTG stuff and I did not know you did D&D stuff!!! And playing my favorite 5th e game? Ah! Christmas came early!

[@kronosDking]

DM is fantastic, and Merchant is a great role-player :)

[@MrFrikkenfrakken]

This is effin delightful - well done to all involved.

[@thijsjoosten6709]

Nice discworld reference