It is well-established that Critical Role is aggressively diversifying its creative portfolio. From the superhero-themed video game Dispatch developed with AdHoc Studios to an unannounced project set in Exandria, the brand is expanding rapidly. However, a playful blunder by co-founder Travis Willingham during a recent digital after-show suggests that even more ambitious surprises are waiting in the wings.
Cooldown serves as the post-game debrief for Critical Role’s weekly sessions, offering fans a glimpse into the cast’s immediate reactions. During the ninth episode of Campaign 4, the discussion centered on a grueling cliffhanger. Yet, the highlight for many viewers was a comedic moment where Willingham seemingly let slip a secret regarding one of the high-profile industry veterans who recently joined Darrington Press, Critical Role’s publishing house.
The moment arose when Dungeon Master Brennan Lee Mulligan joked about the cast’s habit of checking in with Jeremy Crawford—the former lead rules designer for Dungeons & Dragons—to clarify mechanics. “Normally, but they’re probably too busy doing other…” Willingham began, before being abruptly cut off. In a stylized edit, a “Critical Role Secrets & Spoiler Detector” graphic flashed across the screen accompanied by a rewinding tape effect, effectively scrubbing the rest of his sentence from the broadcast.
Last June, it was confirmed that Crawford and fellow D&D luminary Chris Perkins had migrated to Darrington Press following their departure from Wizards of the Coast. Their primary objective is the development of Daggerheart, Critical Role’s proprietary TTRPG system. While news from GenCon 2025 hinted at a “hellishly terrifying” new setting for the game, specific details have remained scarce.
While a new expansion featuring monsters like vampires and werewolves was recently unveiled, the Cooldown stunt implies something of a much larger scale. This has led to speculation that the upcoming project might transcend simple Daggerheart updates.
Some fans wonder if the world of Aramán is being prepped as a standalone setting for public release. Others speculate that Crawford or Perkins might soon take the screen as guest DMs for Campaign 4, providing Mulligan a well-deserved breather. Whether it’s a revolutionary new product or a major narrative crossover, the fact that Critical Role went to such lengths to edit the footage suggests that an official announcement is looming on the horizon.
Source: Polygon
