Critical Role Confirms Major Change to Campaign 2 in Latest Adventure

Since Critical Role began adapting its actual-play Dungeons & Dragons campaigns into animated TV series, comics, and novels, questions have naturally arisen about what changes might be made and how these modifications might influence the canon of these Campaigns over time.

Will it be like Star Wars, where the two different tellings are split into what is Canon, and what is now considered Legends material that, while no longer Canon, still influences future material? Critical Role’s latest story, Critical Role: The Mighty Nein – Stories Untold, has the answers.

An anthology novel that follows the tales of The Mighty Nein’s many allies and enemies, The Mighty Nein – Stories Untold is fairly innocuous in its place within Critical Role’s sprawling universe of Exandria. Both Campaign-watchers and fans who have only seen The Mighty Nein animated adaptation will find plenty to like, particularly if you enjoy Exandria as much as the characters that inhabit it.

The anthology also subtly hints at where the wind is blowing regarding how Critical Role will handle future material. This is especially evident in “The Fall Will Kill You” by Dani Carr, which follows drow wizard Essek Thelyss as he wrestles with his past sins and the possibility of a future relationship with The Mighty Nein. In this chapter, Essek laments his own ambitions, particularly his work teaming up with Trent Ikithon to help find a cure for his mother’s neurodegenerative condition, typhros.

While it may not seem particularly noteworthy to mention, especially since Essek grappling with his mother’s condition was a large part of his arc in The Mighty Nein, Essek’s motivation in Campaign 2 is largely rooted in his own ambition and the belief in his own superiority. That’s to say, Carr having the wizard acknowledge typhros at all does quietly confirm that, going forward, Critical Role will be looking to the TV series’ canon for future material.

That isn’t too surprising, as the flexible and flowing nature of Dungeons & Dragons campaigns means that sometimes how things are handled may not perfectly fit the story you want to tell. For example, both The Legend of Vox Machina and The Mighty Nein handle Ashley Johnson’s frequent absences very differently in the show than they did in the campaign, namely by giving her characters Pike Trickfoot and Yasha Nydoorin more to do, and inserting her into storylines that she wasn’t previously involved in.

Even so, this is unlikely to be welcome news for Critters who aren’t so fond of some of the changes made to Campaign 2 in the TV series. While some fans enjoy Essek having an additional motive rooted in his family, others preferred the actual-play Essek, who leaned far more toward being an actual antagonist rather than an anti-hero.

Regardless of how welcome these changes are, they ultimately make sense for Critical Role’s future. As enjoyable as the actual-play Dungeons & Dragons campaigns are, they aren’t quite as accessible as a regular TV series. When push comes to shove, it’s far easier to watch 12 episodes than 100+ episodes, each over 3 hours long, on YouTube. While certainly doable, the longevity of Critical Role depends on getting these stories in front of people, no matter the format chosen.

Source: Polygon