On an ADVENTURE!!! | Reaction | Vox Machina | S1 EP1

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Patreon: / mattables
Outro: Rustage - Outside the Airlock - • Outside the Airlock

[@thomasdahlberg5920]

Percy is the first one in this world to invent a gun.

[@InkyPetrel]

* On Tal'Dorei. Weapons of a similar design may also have been invented, or at least attempted, concurrently on other continents in Exandria, pretty sure Matt confirmed that somewhere, (but it was ages ago now, so I don't know where to look for it, apologies). But yeah, definitely for all intents and purposes in the show, Percy was the first. Nobody they face has ever seen a gun, which is why they all look kind of bewildered instead of concerned when he points it at them.

[@Nitrinoxus]

​@InkyPetrel Having said that, black powder seems to have a more widespread use in Tal'Dorei -- Percy managed to find a black powder merchant in one of the towns they passed through, which suggests that there's a market for the stuff. (Explosives seem like a plausible candidate, but it's possible that regional alchemists use it as a catalyst, and the sulfur and saltpeter in black powder could feasibly be used by mages as an alternative material component for Fireball spells -- the only reason bat guano would be a material is because it was a historical source for harvesting crystallized saltpeter.)

[@InkyPetrel]

@@Nitrinoxus Yeah for sure, black powder was definitely in use elsewhere, and things like cannons and explosives for mining existed. It was just the idea of a miniature cannon that you hold IN YOUR HAND while the black powder explodes that was frankly an unhinged idea 🤣

[@Nitrinoxus]

@InkyPetrel It's also an engineering _nightmare._ We see later in the season that Percy went through several iterations before he got to a design that didn't explosively fail, and even then, it's still prone to misfires and requires constant maintenance -- and as Anna Ripley showed, Percy was _lucky_ with his failed attempts at making The List.

[@InkyPetrel]

@@Nitrinoxus Exactly! A literal nightmare creation.

[@spiritkit]

Rule 1: this is based on actual play. No one has plot armor.

[@SilverScribe85]

The show was proudly crowdfunded during said actual play

[@ViperVixen420_69]

@@SilverScribe85 oh yes, I remember... raised, crushed and DEMOLISHED all their goals in like 2 or 3 days, right?

[@Ozgarthefighter]

​@ViperVixen420_69 and then they kept adding goals, which get crushed 😂

[@scott4092]

Oh man, for real. I'm getting choked up just thinking of some deaths in fact....

[@SilverScribe85]

@@ViperVixen420_69 And when they advertised their "limited number" of t-shirts during a livestream...I'm not kidding; two minutes later, they sold out. The crew didn't even finish talking about them yet. One of them simply showed off one of the shirts on camera and then, POOF!

[@PristineTX]

Answering your question at the end of the video: While there are no extra scenes post-credits, I would highly recommend listening to the music during the credits if it is different from the regular theme. The special end-credit music is VERY special. The music overall for this series is one of the “secret weapons” of this show. The orchestral score is a true labor of love by Neil Acree (composer of over 30 feature film, and some of the most massive video games ever, like Overwatch, World of Warcraft, StarCraft III and Diablo III) who isn’t just a composer here, he’s a CRITTER. When he found out they were making this show, he contacted Travis Willingham (Grog) personally, and sent him a special version of the Critical Role theme “Your Turn to Roll.” He personally hired an entire orchestra to record it, and sent the audio file to Travis. Scanlan’s songs in this series were mostly written by the actor that plays Scanlan, two-time Emmy Award-winning voice director, Sam Riegel, and his brother-in-law. Percy is the inventor of the first gun in the world of Exandria. There are a few people, mostly alchemists, who know about black powder and are interested in its curious properties, but Percival DeRollo III is the first to make and use a firearm successfully. Concerning the first part of the video: As someone who has watched a lot of reactors, I’d MUCH rather watch someone who is watching because they find the show exciting, than someone who is just watching something popular for views. Good on you for following what makes you happy first. People can see and appreciate the difference.

[@dm_dude]

And in season 2 we can see some story board art that looks so good

[@canadiankazz]

I agree 100%

[@mintchocotaco]

you dropped this, 👑

[@theanyktos]

Seconding all of that

[@samuraiko]

Cheers for giving Neal Acree some love -- his talent just absolutely BLAZES through on TLoVM, and his music has made me weep more times than I could count.

[@fanofstuff1607]

Since I didn't see anyone mention it, Vox Machina means Voice Machine, and all the players are voice actors.

[@Ozgarthefighter]

In addition, when the group played at home, the party was called The S.H.I.T. (The Super High-Intensity Team)

[@Kurta-5]

The purple hand Scanlan uses is the spell "Bigbys Hand" but renamed to "Scanlan's Hand" to avoid copyright for the series

[@pontiffsulyvahn3898]

LMFAO, a literal dungeons and dragons show having to avoid copyrights from dungeons and dragons 😭

[@vashias]

Thats Wizards of the Coast for you 😂 ​@pontiffsulyvahn3898

[@JirkaKunst]

I would assume that WotC would be fine with the free advertisement. Hasbro is the real culprit here.

[@Nic_S.]

@@pontiffsulyvahn3898 Well, it's not made in affiliation with either WotC or Hasbro. Critical Role is a DnD show, but they don't own the rights to DnD.

[@pontiffsulyvahn3898]

@@Nic_S. then they're losing out on literal free money lol

[@Shadow46510]

Fun little fact, the two kids were voiced by children of the voice actors. The girl is Liam O'Brien's daughter (he's Vax) and the boy is Sam Riegal's son (he's Scanlan)

[@purplelikefire]

This is my favourite fact about the series! Also later on there is a kid who is Sam's as well

[@katyharford5175]

here's a list of the characters for their race and classes Percy: human gunslinger fighter (who was the first man in this world to invent guns which is why he's the only one with guns) Grog: Goliath Barbarian Vexalia: half-elf beast tamer ranger (female twin) Vaxildan: half-elf assassin rogue (male twin) Pike: gnome cleric Scanlan: gnome bard Keylith: half-elf druid

[@katyharford5175]

this campaign actually started out as a PATHFINDER game but then one of their friends who doesn't play suggested to stream it, they switched it over to dnd to make it more simpler for watchers to fallow along

[@santiagolopez-fg6ws]

I'm pretty sure Keylith is a full elf?

[@katyharford5175]

@@santiagolopez-fg6ws nope, half-elf, if you watch the original campaigns, they show the characters stats, class, and race on the screen every now and then

[@santiagolopez-fg6ws]

@@katyharford5175 oh I only watched the series and assumed she was an elf because her mum and dad look like elves, unless I'm misremembering her mum's ears

[@katyharford5175]

@@santiagolopez-fg6ws both of her parents were half-elves as well, race rules in dnd can be a little weird so I can see why you would be confused

[@AllieKitaguchi]

Welcome to the critter community! To answer some of your questions: - Matt voices MULTIPLE character through the series. You hear him first in the tavern (the "watch it, bitch!" guy who starts the bar fight with Vax), and then the guard that Scanlan pisses on is modeled after him and voiced by him. You also hear him later in this episode when he asks Pike "are you sure you're a holy person?" after she lazily "blesses" his house. In this season, he predominantly voices Sylas Briarwood, who you'll meet at the end of episode 2! - Fun fact: the blonde man in the council, General Kreig, is voiced by David Tennant, Lady Kima is voiced by Stephanie Beatriz (Rosa from Brooklyn 99), and one of the guards (the one who tells them the bear has to wait outside) is voiced by the rapper Logic. - Someone did mention that the two children are voiced by Liam (Vax) and Sam (Scanlan)'s children, but I also love noting that the young girl asks Vax, "Are you a wizard?" which is a reference to the fact that Liam plays a wizard in the Mighty Nein campaign. - Vex and Grog are married in real life (Laura Bailey & Travis Willingham), and so are Keyleth (Marisha Ray) and Matt Mercer. Sam and Liam aren't married, but they've been best friends for over 20 years, so they might as well be. - The first two episodes feature a mini-arc that happened pre-stream. The first major arc of the campaign, known as the Briarwood Arc, picks up on episode 3. When the Vox Machina campaign began airing, the party was already level 7 (I believe). So, in this, they're at least before level 7.

[@bludfyre]

Vax (the rogue) has a magic item called a "Blink back belt." Basically, any object taken off of it and thrown (like a dagger) magically returns to it as soon as it stops moving. He has a second belt that becomes a snake once it is placed in the ground, that turns back into a belt when he puts it back on. It's name is Simon.

[@Nitrinoxus]

There's an Artificer infusion that has a similar effect to the Blink-Back Belt, but when lacking a gearhead on the team, homebrew always delivers!

[@gazriddell9493]

I love Simon because he's there functionally but he is of course a rude pun, as I think he wears a patch in one episode... Making him a one-eyed trousers snake (I'll see myself out)

[@troikas3353]

​@@Nitrinoxus The official Artificer didn't actually exist yet when this part of the campaign was going on. Shame as it would probably have suited Percy better than their pretty wonky homebrewed gunslinger.

[@Nitrinoxus]

@troikas3353 It's definitely not as fluidly badass as Percy makes it look, but the Gunslinger subclass still works well once you've gotten the hang of its mechanics -- and because it's a Fighter subclass, it works for multiclassing with an Artillerist Artificer to make the most of its midrange combat style.

[@theirishviking9278]

​@troikas3353 comsidering they are all ported characters from pathfinder they are all pretty wonky Especially when you facor in the differences in power between each level

[@ten5h1]

Welcome to the critter fam! One of their mottos is “don’t forget to love each other.” You’ve joined a huge and supportive community that loves to see new critters.

[@sybariticcupboardrat3763]

Fun Fact: the dungeon master Matt voiced the guy in the bar who says 'Watch it, bitch," before they cut off his hand. He happens to be MARRIED to the voice actor who plays Keyleth, so he was talking to his wife.

[@JnEricsonx]

And then you got Grog married to Vex IRL.

[@theanyktos]

5:24 All of the above! They got a lot of very talented voice actors for a lot of the major NPCs (like Sovereign Uriel, Lady Allura, Lady Kima, General Krieg, Sir Fince etc.). Being prolific voice actors and/or directors themselves, they know a lot of people in the biz (like for example Sam Riegel, who made and plays Scanlan, voice directed David Tennant on Ducktales and then asked him if he'd be down to play someone on their show) and there are a lot of friends of the show (Bobby Hall aka Logic as a guard), people who played with them for an episode or two (like for example Khary Payton as Sovereign Uriel), or are just straight up related to the main cast (Sam and Liam's kids voice the kids in this episode) show up in this series. Matt does voice a good number of people too. He does a few major villains, Trinket the bear, and (like the rest of the main cast) a shitton of random background voices. For example that party that got obliterated in the very beginning of the episode was all voiced by different members of the main cast. If you're interested in more BTS kind of stuff, I'd hugely recommend checking out (maybe even reacting to?) the 'The Legend of The Legend of Vox Machina' videos they did in the leadup to season one. They're on Critical Role's KZbin channel and go into everything from the character design to the music and the casting.

[@bookwormwithwings]

Yeah, every time you see a beleaguered npc with your haircut... they're probably voiced by Matt Mercer.

[@ghurcbghurcb]

I think what a lot of reaction channels kinda misunderstand about Vox Machina is that it's not one-to-one D&D campaign. There are 400+ hours of content in the Campaign One (the one this show is based on) and ~90% of it has to be cut. And then they need to make the other 10% make sense and look cool. This means the animated show is very different. Most of the things you see are not "rolls" players made at the table. Of course, there are some LEGENDARY moments from the game that had to be left untouched, and the general direction of the story has been set by player choice and dice rolls. So there are a lot of changes that came with adaptation, just so you know.

[@JnEricsonx]

Yeah, Im on 106 of campaign 2. Jesus the amount they'll have to cut down.....

[@bryanmacklem2654]

That's why it's called the "Legend" of Vox Machina, since over time myths and legends can be broadened/changed.

[@melissanotthewebsbusiness7272]

There is nothing that Critters love more than brand new blind reactions: Except for brand new, blind, enthusiastic reactions! And you're so lucky, you don't have to wait through the long dry spells between seasons: Season 3 begins October 3rd, almost a year past its last January date. Welcome! You've landed in an awesome community, who will give you tons of background lore, but wholly avoid spoilers.

[@rebazyoutube]

I found your channel because of your LOVM trailer reaction and immediately binged your hazbin hotel series. I am beyond excited that you're watching the show and *especially* excited that *you're* so excited. This animated series is legitimately one of the best adaptations I've ever seen and its so incredibly clear that the cast was involved in every step. It's actually pretty different from the game itself, but the core-- the *heart*-- is perfectly preserved and all the changes truly enhance the way the story can be told through this medium. Fun fact: the first campaign of Critical Role (following Vox Machina) started as a home game that grew from a one-shot that Sam (Scanlan) pulled together for Liam's (Vax) birthday. Then people in their circle (voice actors) caught wind of it and they started playing it live on Geek and Sundry. It just grew from there and now they all own and run a company together. This show exists because of a Kickstarter that blew radically past all expectations -- i think it raised like 11 million dollars or something like that. The initial plan was for just a short little animated thing and maybe one arc if they were lucky, but no. Not only does it look like we're getting the whole campaign, but we're also getting the Mighty Nein (their second campaign) too!!! The beginning of this season actually covers a portion of these characters' stories that has never been seen before because it occurred when the game was still a home game. Then it leaps straight into one of the best story arcs of the live game that started around their 20th episode-- which, keep in mind, these episodes are like 3-4 hours each. So! Big changes, especially as we're getting to watch them establish themselves as a group rather than meeting them after they've known each other and all their secrets for ages. Anyway -- I'm incredibly thrilled to watch you react to all (soon to be) three seasons! I adore these characters with my heart and soul.

[@Mattables]

Thank you for giving my content a chance

[@davidphilpott2487]

Dragons usually DO have a lot of control over magic. The creature you were guessing was a manticore.

[@kyleaj7414]

Fun fact, Grog has an intelligence score of 6. Which means any roll he makes for intelligence has a -2.

[@thecivilmerc9898]

I think It should also be noted that Apes also have an INT of 6 😂

[@JirkaKunst]

Trinket the bear has an intelligence score of 5. A giant eagle has an intelligence score of 8. So there are animals smarter than Grog.

[@lichking410]

Vox Machina is Latin for "voice machine", because they're all voice actors. In the second campaign they're called the Mighty Nein, which is German for "no". (also the Scanlan's hand thing is called Bigby's Hand in the spell list)

[@omegagilgamesh]

Fun little fact: Grog's window shaking belch in the Sovereign's palace was the product of a belching contest between the actors. The winner, and thus the belch we hear, was from Laura (Vex), who is also married to Travis (Grog). Yeah, he is one lucky man.

[@paulastevens70]

Since Matt voices all the NPCs in the campaign at the table, yes, MANY of the NPCs all around look like Matt and he voices a few. It's fun picking them out. I hope to see more of your reaction to Vox Machina on KZbin....

[@tehrickles1447]

Not sure why KZbin didn't let me know this video dropped, but here I am in time for episode 2! Looking forward to joining ya for this one too.

[@tenassidy3483]

Just commenting really quick about the intro, specifically the part where you are warning us that you like to pause quite a bit to express yourself and analyze the show/movie. I LOVE THIS. I think it shows so much care and I also feel it means you are one of the few reactors who is like, WHOLE HEARTEDLY paying attention and absorbing the material. Even if something doesn't come off quite right you want to try and understand which I adore. Plus I appreciate that you do pause to have your discussions. So many reaction videos will try to analyze or discuss while the video is still playing, often missing an answer to something they were confused about because of this. You doing what you do is awesome and thank you. Edit after watching: Aww you are so excited the whole time!! I am so happy you like it and I'm so dang excited for the next episode! I'll throw in some of my Knowledge of dnd and critical role here but also check the rest of the comments for more, I wont do spoilers though. -Matt Mercer does voice all the characters that aren't player characters at the table, but he only voices a few here in the show, like the guard you clocked as looking like him. -I liked your monster guess, I believe you were trying to name a Manticore. But yea, Dragons come in all kinds of elements, and some do actually have a considerable amount of magic while others rely on strength. But all of them are creatures of elemental power and are closely associated with specific ones. -on table, this part of the game happened before they started recording, but I believe they were somewhere between levels 5-10 for this arc, so they have a considerable amount of power but still have a lot of room for improvement. -Enough changed in translation from table to animation that some rules, timeline, and characters arent 1-1 reflections of how it was on stream. Some stuff you see will have reflections of the mechanics of the game, and some will just be for storytelling purposes. Don't worry if not everything lines up with the dnd knowledge you do have, BUT they still do a pretty good job (also you know a lot more about dnd then many other reactor's do so dont sell yourself short!) . I'll sit and talk dnd all day don't tempt me, but that means that I and many others are MORE then happy to explain stuff to you, without spoiling the show hopefully!

[@samuraiko]

As an OG Critter, it makes me so happy to see how much you love the series right out of the gate. A lot of the comments are filling you in on the deets, but I would ABSOLUTELY recommend that you watch the official CR playlist of videos called The Legend of the SOMETHING of the Legend of Vox Machina (SOMETHING being either Voices or Music or Story or whatever) -- it's all about the making of the series, and was shown during the run-up to the show so no need to worry about it spoiling you on anything. It just whets your appetite for more. :D

[@ethantaliaferro9857]

Out-of-story: Critical Role originally were playing a home game before they started streaming the game. They continued the same story they were playing with the same characters, but their home game was using the Pathfinder TTRPG system. When they started streaming, they rebuilt their characters in the DnD TTRPG system. A lot was very similar except Pathfinder had a Gunslinger class and DnD did not so Matt Mercer wrote his own gunslinger class from scratch for the character of Percy to play as for the stream. DnD later added a Gunslinger subclass under the fighter class (built differently than Matt’s)

[@worland102688]

This

[@nmcnea771]

Critters are always happy to see a new reaction, and we're all watching again for s3

[@Thinkingmakesitso.]

Episode 3 is when it really takes off! Keep going

[@lillyarnold907]

I love how matt doesn't care too much about the views. Such a wholesome creater really trying to make people happy.❤

[@jrm48220]

Vox Machina is great. It really captures the spirit of what goes on for the characters of Critical Role. They made some changes to make things move along quicker and make more sense, but I feel like all the changes have been for the better. The only thing the show doesn't capture is the around the table shennangans, so watching the streams is still great if you can find the time. I know some people complain about pausing, but I'd rather you pause and get your thoughts out without missing anything than just talk over the show. Also, Vox Machina and Critical Role saved my life. After my father passed I was in a deep suicial depression and the only thing that got me through each day was Critical Role. It took me several months to claw my way out of it, but Critical Role kept me distracted at a time when my mind was a very dangerous place for me to be alone.

[@studioimart]

Yes! Do this series! It just gets better... and heartbreaking... but SO GOOD.

[@JnEricsonx]

::cough Mighty Nein cough::

[@lissalyn2003]

Bigby hand is a level 5 and can do many things it’s very useful. And was used often in the campaign because of that. The daggers return because of his belt, it’s a magic item. saves having to go back and retrieve thrown objects

[@JnEricsonx]

Dagger dagger dagger,.

[@dhamon45]

They got tons of big names to cover NPC voices. For example, General Krieg was voiced by David Tennant with him using his natural accent. Honestly fun to watch the credits and see who stepped up to help.

[@kyokonightstorm5844]

Most people don't understand where Vex's "feeling" comes from, so I'll just drop this in case. Vex is a ranger, and they have an ability that lets them sense where their favored enemies are within a certain distance of the ranger. Dragons are Vex's favored enemy, so she can sense the presence of dragons. The feedback and headache are how the show translated that ability into the show.

[@hailiedrescher]

Fun Fact: Actually the 1st two episodes on season 1 were things that happened in their home game before they started streaming :)

[@camerynaaron8287]

After the first season, I would recommend watching the Legend of the making of the Legend of Vox Machina series. It gives behind the scenes of how the show came to be.

[@almas4663]

I love this show for how it's structured. The fact that there's a living person behind each of the main characters makes the story so alive and easy to invest in

[@InkyPetrel]

So much this! This is something I always say as well, there's something special about the entire party being voiced by the people who essentially wrote them in real-time, as they reacted to the story unfolding. They grew and changed like real people, and even reacted in ways the players didn't entirely expect, but that felt right at the table. I think its almost impossible for a single author, no matter how careful, to write an ensemble cast of characters without filtering them through that one person's lens. You can only write from your own head. But these characters are literally different people, it makes them feel so much more organic and "real". Um. Short version: I agree with you, this is all just enthusiastic rambling :p

[@almas4663]

@@InkyPetrel Exactly! When you're a writer, there's always a road you have prepared for your characters. You're the one behind their choices, you know where the story goes. So every time something goes wrong or something goes well - it's going as planned... But with Vox Machina.....Each character is an individual, that can take the story somewhere not even the "author" himself expected

[@calibadgerdude6082]

23:54 if you’re thinking of playing a charismatic televangelist type character, then you should look into playing a Divine Soul sorcerer or Celestial Warlock. They’re both charisma based healer/support type builds with a lot of “divine” flavored skills and spell lists, but far less “holy” than a pure cleric build. Would be great for that type of character.

[@xhopsalong]

Woooo yeah!! I was hoping for this but didn't expect it so soon, welcome welcome! Your style of reaction's gonna be perfect for this, and having D&D knowledge will give you some extra enjoyment, no doubt. Real excited to watch you watch the show keep getting better :D

[@laughterlightchats5133]

23:25 Paladin. You'd probably like playing one of the good/neutral paladin oaths. Paladins are like a cross between a fighter and a cleric, and their casting stat is Charisma. You'd be able to use your auras to buff and Lay on Hands to heal, plus you could unload some serious SMITE onto enemies.😊

[@alexconnor6456]

When he said a charismatic healer sounded fun I couldn't help but chuckle. Paladins are fantastic. Seriously a whole lot of fun.

[@sybariticcupboardrat3763]

Came looking for this.

[@KodaKitten333]

Yes theres.a mat mercer cameo in SOME episodes

[@corvacks8924]

They are not in every episode but there are a lot confirmed by Matt himself.

[@KodaKitten333]

@@corvacks8924 oh ok

[@hailiedrescher]

OH also fun fact. That Bartender (changeling) was Designed in a series of polls and a short "everything is content" BY fans xD

[@theanyktos]

15:37 if you don't mind grammar, Vox Machina _loosely_ translates as voice machine from Latin. Which they picked because they're a bunch of voice actors.

[@IndomitableAde]

If you give a mouse a cookie...Critters are the mouse, and LOVM reactions are that cookie. We'll always want more! 😊

[@mikebecker2626]

So excited to watch this with you my son added your channel because of your poppy playtime videos and now I'm watching you because you actually enjoy a show I think is incredible I can't wait to watch your reactions to every episode!

[@georgerobins4110]

Can I just say, I LOVE the way you break things down you think are interesting. I’m so glad you’ll be doing that with one of my favourite shows!!

[@steventaylor546]

I think you're going to enjoy this series. Been looking forward to this!

[@Nic_S.]

Most of these Scenes aren't one to one adaptations of what happened in their Game. They changed some stuff so it works in the context of a show.

[@JnEricsonx]

Not including..cough...removing a char all together. But I was told to start on ep 27 as is.

[@Nitrinoxus]

Running responses as we go, one fledgling D&D nerd to another: - As you said, Matt Mercer voiced most of the male NPCs in the campaign as the DM, and still does voice several named and unnamed characters -- but the voice cast was also bolstered with talents like Grey DeLisle Griffin, Cree Summer, Troy Baker, Khary Payton, Stephanie Beatriz, Billy Boyd, David Tennant, Gina Torres, and the late Lance Reddick in what may be his final posthumous role. And that's just the names off the top of my head! - I haven't actually had time to go back and watch the original _Critical Role_ campaign this is based on (probably _should,_ I just didn't want to spoil myself for the series), but I feel like Vax's quip of "Oh, are you offering to help?" was just in-character sass to an aggressive NPC. Liam O'Brien is a bit of a quick-witted smartarse, and the Level 1 Tavern Brawl is practically a rite of passage for D&D campaigns -- like the bottle of champagne against a new ship, except it's not a ship and the booze isn't as fancy. - To quickly run down the party: Vax'ildan (Vax) and Vex'ahlia (Vex) Vessar are half-elf twins, a Rogue and Ranger respectively; Grog Strongjaw is a Goliath (think half-giant) Barbarian; Pike Trickfoot (Cleric) and Scanlan Shorthalt (Bard and troublemaker, but I repeat myself!) are both Lightfoot gnomes; Keyleth is an Air Ashari, a tribe of half-elves native to Tal'Dorei, and a Druid; and Percival Fredrickstein Von Musel Klossowski de Rolo III, mercifully shortened to Percy, is a human Gunslinger, a homebrew version of the _Pathfinder_ class created for the campaign (and later adopted by Wizards of the Coast as a proper Fighter subclass -- I've got a Gunslinger Artillerist character in the works, so it's one I've read up on). There's a lot of homebrew and house rules in use for this campaign, so it's worth keeping in mind that the _Player's Handbook_ won't always be a reliable reference point here. - Firearms tend to be a 'Consult Your DM' thing. Medieval fantasy settings with access to black-powder explosives and cannons could feasibly have flintlock weapons like Percy's pepperbox ('The List', it's called, and you'll find out why in a bit) -- it's just a question of figuring out how best to finagle them in. (I run several Artificer characters, so developing alternative firearm designs is something I've spent a lot of time on.) - You can always tell the D&D novices apart by the way they assume _Rogues_ are the biggest troublemakers of the party. In my experience, if it's not the Fighter or the Barbarian, it's the _Bard_ causing problems -- and Scanlan is the quintessential Bard. - 'Vox Machina' is Latin -- literally 'voice of the machine'. I'm not sure what the play on words is, but again, I haven't seen the original campaign. - 'Scanlan's Hand' is Scanlan's own personalized version of Bigby's Hand, a vanilla spell. Personalizing spells without altering their effects is pretty standard fare, ever since _Tasha's Cauldron of Everything_ established the fundamentals. - If support characters are your style, maybe consider a Battle Smith Artificer. They get a big metal buddy that can punch people back to full health! (Mine's looks like a giant rabbit, because Harengon.) - Throwing an Adult Blue Dragon at a party fresh from their first bar brawl is a pretty cruel play on Mercer's part -- I don't imagine they were above Level 5, which is the earliest Keyleth could've learned Call Lightning. (Scanlan's reaction was pretty much the appropriate response.) Sure, it was a supposed-to-lose fight, but _still._ - If you think this show started on a strong note, just wait 'til Episode 3 when the plot _really_ starts rolling. (You'll see the first glimpses of it in Episode 2's closing moments, including the debut of the first two major antagonists of the larger story -- trust me, you're not gonna be disappointed!)

[@canadiankazz]

The dragon wasn't the first monster Matt ever threw at them. They went on several adventures before the blue dragon happened. It's just for the sake of the story the animated show is telling, it makes sense to start there. And if you ever do watch the old Campegin 1 episodes, keep in mind that all the blue dragon stuff was from their home game before they started streaming, but I'm sure you knew that already. 😉

[@Nitrinoxus]

​@@canadiankazz Yeah, I had a feeling that the show skipped over a few levels' worth of material for the sake of time, likely starting a little ways into the campaign -- like I said, Keyleth would've been at least Level 5 at this point if she could cast a 3rd-level spell. Even so, that feels like _way_ too low a level to go head-to-head with an Adult Dragon of any color -- a Young Dragon, _maybe,_ but that still seems like a tough fight. (Granted, I'm an over-preparer when it comes to combat encounters, so maybe I'm underestimating the team's chances.)

[@Fairburne69]

​@@Nitrinoxus"Voice of the Machine" They are all professional voice actors in real life.

[@Nitrinoxus]

​@@Fairburne69 'Vox _Ex_ Machina' would feel like the more accurate term to reference that ('Voice _From_ The Machine'), but that might've been the idea!

[@TWil-f7o]

In medieval settings, historically, there shouldn't be anything stopping guns from existing. Guns existed in China for centuries before they were adopted in Europe.

[@PepsimusPrimus]

Tbh they were just gunpowder and were used as position breakers or scare tactics in china

[@PristineTX]

The firearms that appeared in China “centuries before” Europe, weren’t “guns.” By the time actual guns (objects whose main objective in battle was to propel an aimed projectile with a controlled powder explosion) were a thing, they were at the very least known to exist in Europe within 100 years or so. Specifically, most firearm historians suggest the spread of the knowledge of guns used in battle followed Kublai Khan’s failure to capture Vietnam. The knowledge and use of firearms then spread through Southeast Asia and to the Mongols, through normal trading/raiding routes in the region. The Mongols subsequently invaded the Middle East and Turkey using firearms and everybody in Europe found out - although the interest was limited by both reports of the limited effectiveness of the weapons, limited availability of consumable supplies in the arsenals, and especially the notion that it was a dishonorable weapon for untrained soldiers, similar to the stigma that hurt the development of the comparatively more effective armor-piercing heavy crossbow for decades in prior century.

[@Fairburne69]

I've always preferred my fantasy without Gun Powder. Lord of the Rings style. But it works for the show. In the live stream it kept me from liking Percy more than I did.

[@AugustoEL]

Hell close to the 1200 there were """guns""" in Europe, the first were literal hand cannons like a (small) cannon on a big stick that you,lighted up, but still there were. So a setting that advance them a little more is not imposible, as long as you don't make a 1911 it can be easily balanced and make sense why it is not more used that all the rest.

[@misteryman526]

If you didn't notice, when the dragon was checking if they were alive and smelled that hand sticking out, it was the hand that Grog cut off in the tavern fight and which he asked if he could keep

[@flameborn5347]

Guns exist because originally they played the game with the pathfinder1e ttrpg that had the gunslinger class then they moved over to dnd where Matthew Mercer had to homebrew guns because the character Percy was the gunslinger class from pathfinder

[@LorinBooks]

Vox Machina is a play on words for the group, voice machine, as they are all voice actors.

[@Tpm12luv]

21:14 *Side Eye Puppet Meme*

[@kieranobrien4247]

Welcome to The Legend of Vox Machina!! So fun to see how excited and into it you already are! It just gets better from here, enjoy!!

[@scott4092]

Oh man, this is so much fun re-discovering the show with you. And yeah I think they're level 5 in this; Keyleth casted Call Lightning, and a blue dragon would be an almost-deadly encounter for them. (If memory serves. I could be wrong.) Definitely do more!

[@kjj26k]

This is now the Legend of Vox Machina reaction series i am looking forward the most, you are gonna love this shiw and i wanna see it.

[@Ashley-1090]

Wooo! Watching these is so much better with you than just watching it straight by myself. I love these

[@curtisd5864]

Bidet! And welcome - with season 3 dropping in about a month you picked a fantastic time to jump into the show. Glad to see you running with it because you liked the glimpses you got 🙂

[@555smo]

So excited for the adventure you're about to embark on... :-)

[@Mattables]

about to?!

[@JRDickens20]

Bidet and welcome to the Critter fandom. We are so happy you are checking out our nerdy ass voice actors passion project, you’re starting at just about the right time as season 3 drops in October. Buckle your seatbelt because if you like this episode it only gets better from here.

[@AAAndrew]

Looks like pretty much everything I was going to say has already been said, so I'll just add my pleasure that you're reacting to this show, and that I'm positive you will love it, just from the reaction of the first episode. The first two episodes are from pre-streaming, and were what they were going to originally make when they ran the Kickstarter. (originally asked for $750k, and ended up with $11.3 million, which turned into 10 episodes, until Amazon said they would pick it up and turn it into a 12 episode season, which turned into a second season, and now they have an exclusive, first look contract with Amazon for future film and television projects, and their second campaign, The Mighty Nein, which takes place 20 years after the end of Vox Machina, but in the same world and with completely different characters, is now in production. There are 1000s of hours of content and they keep making more. They are already over 100 episodes of Campaign 3. Cheers!

[@brianewing5778]

Welcome to the world of Vox Machina!!! You're an official 'Critter' now!

[@faithjolley6034]

These reactions are gonna make me so HYPED for Season 3.

[@apathicmiko6546]

Welcome to the Vox Machina fandom, you are going to stay for a while, I already made my home here lmao You are going to have a wild ride this season, from laughs to tears to rage, and I like watching your videos, it feels like watching a show you love with a friend that is new to it, so you kind of revive the excitement of the first watch, I'm looking forward to ep2 and all the rest ❤️

[@jonathanblyth1463]

Critter hug. Welcome. If you pick up us peeps panting for S3 upcoming then there will be a lot. Just get through 24 episodes quick.

[@SecondclassKid]

Joined Patreon for this series !!

[@TheFashionablyDepressedBard]

Tgings I learned about you: 1: You like to talk a lot. (Not that much by my count, to me it's just fine). You like to pause, and talk about the things you appretiate. You like to speculate, and give your thoughts on the story. 2: You have EXCELLENT nails!

[@dylanjohnston4388]

As first intro's go; this was a solid 10/10. My favorite character is the bear of course, my second favorite it might be the Bard. Definitely looking forward to this series, and the next 2 seasons after this.

[@wildkitty317]

I saw your trailer video randomly and immediately followed so I could see you watch these. They are awesome and this will be fun.

[@purplelikefire]

I love how much you pause and talk about your thoughts! Its my favourite style of reaction video. You probably already have been told there is a series of videos about making the first season which explains a lot! Not very spoiler heavy, but does mention some of the characters you will see. On the other hand us Critters will just tell you most of the facts as you go because we love to share our favourite things!

[@novissstatic]

If you're curious to know "what'd they roll here?", I definitely recommend reacting to some mashups showing what happened at the table vs the show. There are some really good moments throughout the campaign/show, and if you're into DnD, you'll enjoy them.

[@houseofsledge6891]

I have been so hoping you'd react to the full show, all seasons... so stoked. Taking a break during my vacation to watch this reaction. Liked, shared, and subscribed.

[@cleosan8150]

Most of everything has already been said by others, but yes, in every episode there is at least one Matt Mercer cameo, voiced by the very same XD Also, background trivia: Before they started streaming this live as a campaign, Vox Machina had a different team name: They were the Super High Intensity Team - in short: The SHITs. Which may or may not explain some things you just saw 🤣 Also yeah, the campaign was an emotional rollercoaster and so is the series, even if you know what is to come it hits HARD sometimes. The dragon thing was actually also a thing that happened before the livestreams, they started the kickstarter to bring the backstory out into the open - and yeah, every stretch goal was wrecked within days XD It was such a joy to see your reactions, so vivid, and honest - it made me feel like I was watching VM again for the first time, so thank you for that! =) I'm looking forward to the next one!

[@LookMyMoonEyes]

Lets go!! I hope youlove this show as much as we criters do!

[@Autumnvoir]

I'm actually so happy that this is getting more attention, especially that youre reacting to it! Woot!

[@frisbeedude4217]

The critter fan base is renowned for being wholesome and accepting, you’ll be a welcome addition :)

[@joolzian2510]

I’m so happy you’re watching this! I absolutely love this series and seeing people experience it! You’re in for a ride

[@tejottt]

Love the reaction! Keep this up my man, I can see you're enjoying watching the show.

[@theanyktos]

Absolutely watch the credits. There aren't post credit scenes as such, but the music is usually different (appropriate to however the episode ended) and sometimes even a song. And in season 2 you get to see some colour scripts (basically images they used in the production process as reference for the lighting in different scenes) that are gorgeous.

[@therandomshow_]

Found you through my love of Hazbin Hotel and Hellava Boss. Now another love of mine crosses paths with you! ❤ 😊 As a Critter, hold on tight! Your about to get alot of love from us, and Bidet as a new fan! ( It's how we greet each other in the fandom. 😅 ) I'm so happy you are having a blast from episode one, but grab some tissues for later; it gets emotional.

[@KadurOrdo]

Im so glad youre not cutting any scenes like others did! Some scenes live from the duration of a moment and im happy youre fully committing :) 21:25 Like a Manticore f.e.? I love, in case you know Heroes of Might and Magic (3), these kind of mythological creatures and im always excited to see them within Pen&Paper universes.

[@InkyPetrel]

YESSS! SO excited for your reaction! The voice cast is absolutely stacked, but to answer your question, the NPCs that Matt voiced for the campaign were not all voiced by him here. He does a few of them though, and one bigger role that you haven't met yet. The main characters however are all voiced by their original players!(Who are all voice actors) It's one of the things that makes this series so cool. The characters are being voiced by people who played them for years at the DnD table, so they know them almost as though they were real people at this point. And they can use all of the emotion they felt at the table in the voice acting. The "Why guns are in this" will be explained in more depth, it's a whole ...thing. At this point you only need to know that nobody in that tavern, or anywhere else on the continent, has seen one before, unless they've seen it in Percy's hands. Yes, that's Matt Mercer Scanlan is peeing on, he makes some "cameos" throughout the series. The first few were a prank/gift from the animators, who didn't show him the characters he was voicing beforehand. It's usually literally just Matt with half-elf ears 🤣 "Vox Machina" just means voice machine, and it's a reference to all of the players being voice actors. Percy actually couldn't have explained it without breaking the 4th wall, so it's probably for the best that Sir Fince cut him off. The party was already around level 9 at this point, I think? (I would need to check). The first couple of years of the campaign weren't streamed, it was a home game that turned into a stream a fair way in. This episode and the next are part of the story that happened not long before the stream started. The details aren't a 1-1 match to things in the game, because there simply isn't enough time. The story is the same, and a lot of pivotal moments that were based on dice rolls have been included. But things have been tweaked or streamlined so they could condense 4+ hour episodes into 23 minute blocks. So while you can see where some things look like a bad/good roll, a lot of them are there as like, representation of rolls, rather than being a specific roll from the table? (Does that sentence even make sense? Gods I'm tired.) That said, there are also some moments lifted almost directly from the table, down to the improvised dialogue, they've really done their best to keep the spirit of the story they told at the table, and the characters are definitely the same, because these people lived in them for like 5 years, even if some of the details have shifted. I like to think of the animated series as a retelling, like the title, it's the "Legend" of Vox Machina. Perhaps the bard who wrote it down embellished a little, or got some of the events switched around, but it's the same story, about the same people. ...I'm waffling. I just hate to think that folks might be disappointed that everything isn't like, a direct animated version of the dice rolls. Your reaction was a delight as always :) Looking forward to the next episode! Scanlan isn't always appropriate, but his heart is in the right place. He'll grow on you.

[@ClarePflaum]

I'd heard the name of the show around but had no idea what is was. Now that you've started, I'm all here for it! Let's do this thing!

[@MomokaViixiv]

YAY how the HECK did i miss this!?!?!? im SO EXCITED FOR YOU TO SEE THIS JOURNEY!!!!

[@tonisallerasquintana5905]

Oh, we are in for a journey, specially with season 3 releasing soon this is gonna be fire. Btw I love the idea of your warforged druid character, it's very cool and unique.

[@InkyPetrel]

Right? That has my brain going BRRRRR about how that would work, roleplay wise. *gnaws on delicious ideas *

[@wasitum]

Don't you ever apologize for stopping often to react, this is the best part of the process, following the train of thoughts, getting your instant reaction, chef's kiss

[@meowchan2915]

24:00 You could always try making a Cleric bard! Those are super fun :3 Annnnd just finished watching the vid! Amazing, I loved seeing the reaction! You're definitely gonna have a good time, the story is amazing and has a lot of ups and downs and twists and turns!

[@miranda4073]

28:35 The party members were at level 9 when they started streaming the campaign; this takes place a bit before they started streaming, so maybe level 7 or 8. Call Lightning is a 3rd level Druid spell, so definitely in Keyleth's repertoire at this point :)

[@canadiankazz]

"Vox Machnia" is latin for "voice from the machine." They’re voice acors. That's the clever word play. 😀

[@jenniferharvey2617]

You will love this show. The cast is fantastic. And not just the main cast of anime voice actors. You can never go wrong with David Tennant, Stephanie Beatriz, and Tony Hale.

[@StevenS757]

In this world, black powder and ship canons were invented by someone else previously, but Percy invented the first handgun, which he called the Pepperbox. IRL, his character's "Gunslinger" class was ported over from Pathfinder to DND 5E when the party switched from their home game to doing the livestream. Also, Scanlan's Hand spell is a rename of Bigby's Hand from DND. They can't use DND Trademarks in the series.

[@nativewhispers960]

Glad you decided to watch regardless of "initial" interest. It's going to be a fun ride

[@beccazach]

I'm so happy you're reacting to the show! I love reactors who actually talk about the characters, animation, plot, and basically geek out over the same things I do. I'm new to DnD too so we're in the same boat! Can't wait to see you get more into the story :)

[@vincentlefur4490]

Vox Machina? You're in for a glorious ride, mate, trust me!

[@70C00K]

you're in for an amazing journey and it's only getting better from here!!

[@mintchocotaco]

YASSSSSS omg so here for this. And YES. PAUSE ALL THE TIME. MAKE ALL THE COMMENTS. Ahahaha this show is so jam-packed with references I feel like you will have a field day. I know I’m here for all of it

[@owertymltu6456]

'I like to pause and talk a lot, give my thoughts and ideas...' - Enough said, I'm in :D

[@bouboulroz]

If you want to play a charismatic character with support and utility spells, then Paladin is the class for you. They have heals, buffs, auras that buff nearby allies, and their spells and abilities are charisma based.

[@Moon-Goddess]

Matt Mercer still voice acts in LOVM but not as much as in their D&D sessions of course. He will do some NPC's here and there but he also does some big voices, mainly villains. The Half Orc Grog cut the hand off of in the beginning is Matt for example. Oh and Trinket, he also voices Trinket. He will have one other big character that he voices in season 1 but that would be a spoiler if I told you that now. Also some NPC's are specifically made to look like Matt, like you suspected.

[@theanyktos]

14:07 Yep, good catch! And it's also voiced by him! He did a bunch of lines for random background extras and Titmouse (the animation studio) surprised him by making a bunch of them actually look like him. Spot-the-Matt-NPC (the MPC if you will) is a fun side game to play while watching this show.

[@KestralWolfe]

Thing 1: Your nails are /gorgeous/. 2: Matt is several voices and NPCs throughout the show. He didn't know where they'd put him, but that it would be fun. 3: The burps throughout the show are over half done by Marisha Ray, and Laura Bailey. =D 4: Yes, the guy in the beginning that gets peed on is Matt. 5: The first two episodes are a summary of some of the events of the home game before it began to be streamed. 6: I don't know why I'm doing a numbered list, but I'm too far in, now, to change it.