Visions of Shadow & Stone | Critical Role | Campaign 4, Episode 16 Part 2

Hello again, it's Brennan Lee Mulligan, and you're listening to part two of this episode of Critical Role. If you haven't checked out part one yet, pause this now and head over there first. What are you doing? Otherwise, let's jump right back into this adventure and the world of Ahriman. We come back from the break to this moment I'm describing right now. It's like the beginning of a wedding. We got that in here. Marriage is what, wait, marriage is what brings us together. Oh, Peter Cook. Peter Cook, we return to the Shadowlight Waypoint where a tiny halfling woman has just collapsed in Taisha's arms. You see she looks out and her eyes return to a normal shade. Are you okay? Tanisar? Mm-hmm. Where'd you go just now? I had a vision. A vision. Okay. Of the wings, the place of wings. Where you're going to Tanisar? On purpose. That means you know where Tanisar is. Above game, is it not? That's a thing? Extremely known. A lot of people here at the camp have been talking about. Yeah. Yes, why? What do you think of when you think of that name? You see, Obzaz is not far away from you in this moment and turns around just goes. Oh, I immediately snap him over. He comes over and says, Dr. Talter, some almost 200 soldiers that came in here a few days ago were headed to Tanisar. They were all, we were making, readying their packs to journey to Tinnett, and she goes, I'm not very good at this. It's okay, Bree. I thought I was focused on the stupid fucking sword. I was focused on the sword and on Clive, and you see that. Clive, give me the apple. You see he rolls it up a hand and elbow, pops it over to him. She's like, there you go. Which is full. Pops and locks an apple. Yeah, 100%. Just Arlem Globetrotters an apple into a doctor's mouth. She says, I'm going to have to explain. I've missed a couple weeks of work. And you see that the... Obsess looks over and says, she says, I, the Tanisar, well, I didn't hear that that's where they were going or I would have remarked on it. Okay. She looks at you and says, Tanisar, well, she's like, It's not, it's not. Lock in. It's a place of deep interest to me. I should calm down. It's not a place that the entirety of the totality has been searching for with all of its might as the key to all of the world's problems. It is a very interesting place to me because, and just a moment, I had a vision of some kind. a vision of some kind. I saw the wings and a warrior, a barrow guard warrior, defending against undead. Okay. Ah, not here. You see, she says, Uh-huh, uh-huh. What did the guard look like? The vision I had was the back of him, But he's a tall, orcish man. Okay, keep going. Javelins, he had some javelins. Nope, okay. Don't lose the plot, keep going. Sorry. Ah. The vision I had didn't have a lot more than that, but I'm grateful for the vision, just because it didn't have more, that's fine. Hi, I received a vision from my divine cardinal direction, which is... Up? No, that's, stop it. That's not up, there's nothing up. I am a cleric of truth and knowledge. Some of us want it to be knowledge. I like truth. But the... When your divine cardinal direction is not personified or granted a personal agency, there is no reason or cause for it to take decisive action, even as an object of dedication. So people get visions from gods because gods want to send them visions, and when the thing you revere isn't a person, why would it send you a message? But some of us think that sometimes it does, and I just got a vision. Is this your first vision? Yep. Doing great. You saw the back of an orc. Guarding against undead in what looked like sunken holy site. Tanisar is a place that I had studied because there's a... It is of extreme significance to someone in my line of study because Tanisar was a rumored oracular location associated in some texts in which it's... Well, it's referenced by both the Halovar and the Taconis as being a site associated with their houses. I don't know if it's possible, because the texts are across a couple different centuries, so it's possible that it changed hands, or it's possible that both houses had a role to play, as they were the two priestly houses of the Arbidumian Empire. But fundamentally, it was called the Place of Wings because it was a place to summon celestial aid, the Place of Wings, and it was a promise made to Tansul, to his followers. Now what's fascinating is Tansul, the writings of the priests of the houses of Halavar and Toconus that received this missive from the Shaper of the Sun, indicated that there would never be a cause to require celestial aid without requesting the aid from your Shaper. In other words, why would you make a request to anything other than your Shaper and assume that Celestial Aid would be imparted from him. Some of the texts, in terms of summoning the aid, actually use a separate word, which is crafting aid. In which case, Tanisar, as the place of wings, would have been a place where, for whatever reason, Tansul would have gifted his followers the ability, should something happen, because there's actually, in one of the missives. To make their own. Celestial. You're brilliant. Really? Yes, thank you. I'll go to Venatus if you want, but do you want me to come to T- Yeah. Great. Yeah, you're ours now. Come here. Do you have your own horse? Do you want to be on my horse? Lovely. And you see that she goes up on your horse and says, and what's your name? Oh, we did do this. We did. Tasha, yes. Sorry, I forgot. No, you're good. I was very focused on the. You were very focused on a sword. Oh, do you have that sword? Clive, get the sword. You see that Clive brings the sword over and says, I raise a lot of, sorry. Okay, calm down. And you see that she takes this. It's a great sword for most of your level. This sword is a letter opener. This is a very small, this even, it looks archaically small, even for halfling or gnomish hands. A knife? And you see, yeah, she comes over and says, yeah, everything before Lord Taconus ruined this is gone from me. But, so I momentarily forgot your name and the names of your companions. Oh, it's okay. We'll do that on the way. Great. Do you need to grab any of your other things? I had already packed because I couldn't bear to be here. so everything is packed and I'm ready to go. All right. Clive, goodbye. And you see that... Oh, shit. Well, I miss Clive. Me too. What a weird week he's had. Yeah! Just on a ship being like, explain exactly what you think I can do for you. You see that Amri walks up, Gaia's on a horse, you guys just see this halfling woman walk up again, lovely little white and blue scholar's gown and vest, spectacles, a mousy face and some brown hair, looking out. Hello? Coming with us. Did you know Tanassar is a place where, back in the time of the Shapers, you could craft your own celestial? Where you were promised to craft your own celestial. The secret was inscribed in words of the divine tongue, but the thing is that... And you speak that tongue? Well, no one can. Or I speak, we are working on unlocking a word in that language. You are aware of some of this. This is the work of the Pentaforol as well. That's what the Pentaforol's doing. These are words that if you can... We were wondering. Sorry? You were wondering maybe why your family sent 180 soldiers to Tanisar. Yes, we have been wondering. To clear out the undead to summon their own celestial. Mm. Maybe, yeah. Hence, the good doctor. Right. Yeah. It's very funny because, again, I struggle with mysticism, but isn't it so interesting that I'm here from a mistake, a wrong turn? Stories are good. Do you know how they would achieve such a thing? No. Got it. But, she looks over at Julian, and you see Gaia looks over at you and says, my lord, we should make our way. We can talk while we rise. Son of a fleek slowly up, looking down at the doctor. Draw my rapier and hold it right under her chin. She goes, Do you fear us? Yes. We'll be all right. Don't worry about that. You're good. You're good. Well, that vomit's hard, just hard vomit. Good, let her get it out now. That's what you're doing. You know how we're taking her, right? This is the least of our worries. Yeah, fair. Stay by me. Hurry up. You guys ride off. Donkey-wacky, donkey-wacky, donkey-wacky. Love a doody-farty. This donkey's falling ass. Yeah. As all of you make your way further, as you of all people. Look, I'm going to do it from this side of the table now. Betrayal. Betrayal. As you make your way from the Shadowlight Waypoint down the path, The road simply ends. You move through the field, and finally the sun vanishes into the northwestern sky. You ride and watch barren Badlands The barren, badlands suddenly just birthed themselves from land that has not known the touch of the sun in 70 years. There are some ossified carcasses of trees that look almost like shattered finger bones of some ancient Earth deity as the wind has ripped the branches from them over 70 years, dried and desiccated. You approach on horseback up a wide open plain, following a road that is literally only made of footfalls, right, the worn into the path ahead of you, going up towards where you have passed before, a place called the Titan's Bench, which is the saddle between two massive peaks right here as the night begins. Riding through this area, all of this is essentially the area that is the most policed by the Barrow Guard. You look out and see on some of those tree carcasses, there are rations or water skins hung up in caches for traveling rangers. There are some watchtowers built out in the ruins of the night out here in this place. This area between the edge of the Eternal Night, that Shadowlight Waypoint, all the way to the Titan's Bench is a wide strip of foothills that you can see are basically maintained by the Barrow Guard. You see there are some valleys that actually have palisades across them. There are things here, defenses built out into the edge of the Wasteland here by the Barrow Guard. Approaching the Titan's Bench, you ride up for about maybe two hours of riding, eventually getting up to that crest, and as you crest it, you look down and see falling away on the other side, down to the deeper lowlands of the ancient valleys of the Opridemian Empire, vast as the horizon, rolling silver white sand, stretching into the level distance. As the mountains of Helvar fall down towards the ancient borders of old Obradimia, you behold the beginning of the Tyria Via, an elevated stone highway built into the might and mass of an ancient aqueduct. Columns some 150 feet tall raise this road like a skyscraper over the desert sands below. As the columns advance, winding into the desert far away, this elevated highway providing you a bird's eye view of the shifting sands beneath. The yawning faces of stone colossi partially buried in the sand, themselves that towered over this elevated highway, some of them 200 feet tall, these enormous constructions of the ancient sorceress empire of the house, which commanded the loyalty of the Tyconis and Halovar in ages past. You see Dr. Talter looks and goes, Oh. You've never been here before. No. No. This is exceptional. Okay. What was this ancient aqueduct is partially widened out. This highway is about 60 feet wide, but built into this stone basin. So as you ride, you are literally riding your horses on ancient masonry stone, out and over into the distance. There are large blocks of stone set on either edge to provide a sort of railing or guard, but those are only about three and a half feet tall. These are sort of three and a half foot slabs of stone. So riding on horses, you actually kind of have to fight a feeling of vertigo almost raised this high up above the desert, heading towards. How are the winds? Like, is it just up here? Like, are we just being? Briette, that's a great question. Would you be kind enough to roll a luck check? Oh no. You really don't want a one and you don't want a six or lower. Nine. Nine. Ooh! I'm never going to ask a clarifying question again. Absolutely not. We're going to ask all of them. Yeah, yeah, we're going to ask all of them. On a nine, you look in the distance and see these skies are so clear here. The frigid air, it is as freezing as being in the far north during mid-winter. It is far below freezing up here right now. But looking out into the distance, you see, though the stars are as crisp and clean as can be, due to the fact that basically all of the water has just frozen out of the air. You can see in the distance what looked like clouds moving until you recognize that it is maybe 100 miles away, but a sandstorm that itself dwarfs even these sunken colossi in terms of its size that might well be over a quarter of a mile tall, is whipping across the distant desert, burying more of these colossi in their hands. Anyone who wants to give me a perception check. 21. Nine. Nine. 21. 15. 15. Nine. Nine. 21, the sandstorm's moving a different direction from you. You've traveled on the Tyria Via before. This aqueduct brought, essentially diverted a river from the eastern mountains of Helvar all the way to the core to irrigate the vast farms of the Obradimian Empire. These people were so good at stealing that they stole a river. Respect. Some ancient sorcerer emperor was, you know, snapped his fingers, the Taconus and the Helovar, and said, bring me a river, and they did. Y'all are the worst. I'm in the last hell of a river. You see on that 21, usually every five or so miles there will be either a long low incline ramp that will come down following the columns down to the ground level or there will be an actual, even more frequently than that, many of the columns actually have ladders or staircases in them to help service them, to help someone come up and cast Mending. Think of an empire full of first-level sorcerers that can't fly but can take a ladder 180 feet up to cast Mending on a bunch of big stone columns. So you perceive those on the horizon there. I think, Octus, on a 15, you just look over and see the colossi in the sand. As you are riding down the Tyria Via, you see far distant, away from the Tyria Via, there start to be colossi, kind of small, you know, they're like way in the distance. But there are colossi that you can see are standing looking towards Helvar in the west with massive stone spears, and their faces are totally neutral. The colossi sunken in the sands around here seem to have expressions of horror or rage on their face, and their limbs are at odd angles, as though they moved as they fell. This is so fucking rad and my favorite poem. Come on my works, you mighty. You mighty. Fucking despair. Fucking freak out. We all know that poem. I wonder what could have animated these in the past, these colossals. Well, you were Death, Halevar was Light, was another family construct. I mean, you all kind of picked a specialty. True, but that, I don't know why. I don't know who that would be. When you were a little lordling, didn't they make you recite all the names? Give me a history check, if you like. Ooh. 24. The House of Obra Dye also held dominion over two houses equal in station to the Hale of Vars and the Taconuses, which were the warrior houses of Menemnari and Calistra, all of whom fought to the very last. They did not wish to walk away from the Shapers' War. And you believe that, looking at some of the colossi, that it may have been that the House of Calistra knew to speak the words that would give life to these stone warriors. Well. There were houses. Didn't make it out of the Shapers' War. Some of them didn't want to give up on the Shapers. Well, you get what you get. House Callistra was one of the ones that might have been able to do something like this. I don't know for sure. It's just... kind of waste. I mean, try something. Say the first word that comes to mind. See if we can wake one up. Do that one. He looks... bad. You, get up. Oh. I think you could try a magic word. Do they teach you nothing in school? It's not really a school. It's like... I'm going to call you a professor. Hurry. I have to speak the statue's language. Turgeon! Didn't work? I don't speak stone. You see that Dame Saramiya looks at you and says, the warrior houses, they died in legend. Yes. In the history of the Shapers' War, they stood to the last. But I suppose it's interesting looking at it from this vantage point that our houses did not. I wonder, when you see just looks down at the colossi staring out of the sand, the priestly houses of Halovar and Toconis change their minds. Dr. Talzer says, it's funny to think that warriors might know more about faith than priests. It is funny. Not ha-ha funny, necessarily, I don't know. Are we... What brings you're us here to Tanisar. What are you, we are finding your son. Yes. How did, did you? I would have caught everyone up on vision. Sorry. Do I know they had a vision? Yeah, I fully came over, yeah. At some point when we were writing, I think I would have sidled up. Yes. Finding the target of vision. Might not be my son, but probably is. The javelins. Makes you feel any better. I also had a vision about the same person or same picture, image. Oh, are you? No. You're not a person of faith? No. It has always been my understanding that, oh, this is going to sound terrible. A person of faith. You have time to not say it. Oh, sorry. Yeah. A person of faith, I always assumed, lacked a certain degree of intelligence. And that just might be the way I was raised. I, in my experience, have not found it to be the case that the presence or absence of faith is a predictor for the presence or absence of intellect. Good. I would agree. Yes, I believe. I was meant to insult anybody, I just. Yes, I believe that. Well, I'll wait until we spend more time before I talk about what I believe together. Believe, we'll spend more time together and then I'll talk about it. That's fair. Tanisar, well, it's just very extraordinary. Before I had meant to mention that Tansul, in the writings exchanged between the Halavar, the Taconises, and their vassals speaking of this place, it was a place that was promised. And in one of the texts, one of the high priests that had communed with Tansul directly, that it had been crafted such that Tonsul's death could be avenged should he ever be slain by Asgra, his brother, which apparently for some period of time was a deep concern of the God of the Sun and one of the few Shaper of the Sun, one of the few Shapers to speak openly of a possible end. Though he feared it more from his sibling than he did from the hands that held the Stavs of Night. Interesting. So, but the point being that... He wasn't really wrong in the end, was he? The hands that Asgra shaped. Oh, I suppose he was right. But yes, the greatest weapon that Asgra ever forged was the one that destroyed him. My point being that the power to summon or create a celestial was not given prematurely in the text that I have studied to the houses. That essentially, it was in the event of Tonsul's destruction that they would not be left unarmed. Right, it was an insurance policy. Yes, so to speak. Right. I would like to know. I want some more rolls like the one Abrea just did for weather. Yeah. I want some more rolls like that. Let's die of exposure. Ashley, would you roll a d20 for me? No. Damn. That was the realest shit. Okay, Vayles. Looking to avoid a six or lower, definitely don't want a one. Okay. Get a 20. Oh, 18. Love that. Great, great. As you guys travel, this section of the Tyria Via is well-maintained. You find no structures within it or anything like that, that would give you any pause and arrive all the way, riding for a few more hours, you will probably have to stop before you get to Tanisar. The question is, you have more riding time available to you. Do you want to camp up on the Tyria Via and lose more time, or do you want to press on but have to camp out in the wilderness? Both of those options. It's bad in both directions. It's bad in both of them. Yeah. I mean wilderness for me. Hmm? The wilderness is more interesting. Why, why, why? What do you mean when you say interesting? Maybe. I'm fascinated by plants. It's, you've traveled here quite often. What dangers do we think will besiege us on the road versus in the wilds? If we want a guarantee of a good, but much colder night's sleep, we stay up here where it's safe. If we stay in the wilderness, then the things that crawl through the endless dark will have a chance to seek warmth. You're very warm, Sir Julian. Not emotionally, like your blood. I got what you were laying down. Yeah. So? Nothing wants my blood anymore, so I'm good. It's whatever. You're fine. The road then, or? I mean, I would be fine to press on, but... I don't know what we should do. All right. Should've determined which number I'm taking. I do that so much. All right, flip a coin. Heads, fuck. Yeah. What does heads mean? Yeah, should we flip? All right, high is press on, low is stay on here. Okay. 18, press on. So we're pressing on. We feel good about this? Of course, there is no time to waste. And you know what? Maybe in the wilderness, we'll find a place to stay out of sight to keep our warmth hidden, and at least prepare should something try and find its way to where we keep rest. As also, I'm awake the whole time. Same. All right. Up here, and I look off on the horizon of that distant dust storm. Who's to say they won't come our direction mid-sleep? And I would... The dust storm? It's not going to. It's nice to know a druid. I pick up a little bit of stone. This is a stone that will keep the dust storm away, as long as you keep it in your pocket and believe. I can roll a foot. Do I believe her? You put it in your pocket, okay? Go ahead, give me an insight check. DC five. Deception! Yeah, you got deception. 10. 10! What'd you get in your deception, Rolla Preeta? I got a 12 plus 15. I take the rock and look at my... Your protection is appreciated. and I put the rock in my pocket. You've now got a little flower and a little rock in there. Druids just handing you weird shit. It's possible I could figure out that rock's name. Interesting. I'm sorry, what? I have a book. What book? David. You very specifically didn't. Wasn't specific, I didn't mean to keep. One of the things that your druid friends gave us, I have a book. Oh god. Yeah, come on. Yeah, let's pronounce his name. The Kibbenimgataz. Huh. It is, I'll pull it out of my bag. It's a book of, from what I can work out, the names of stones. Yeah, that does seem like something. Okay. Have you found it enlightening? Yeah, I read a little bit of it. It seems that I could use it to identify particularly interesting stones and their lineages. What language is it in? Stone. It's in druidic, right? It's in druidic, but I can comprehend the language if I concentrate. Yeah, you can keep it. Interesting. It's just, just one of the things. We press on. That was the only other thing that we were given besides the charms. As we press on, something I would like to do. I don't know if they're already in there, but I would love to prepare and put some of the Embers of Arask Yes. Yes. Into my censer. Hell yes. For a little bit of light. I'm just having it in there for funsies. You place them in. As they are now before any word is spoken, they simply glow with a deep warmth and your sensor fills your body with a feeling of resilience and comfort here in the freezing cold. As you ride down this way, I will need one last roll from Matt as you press further into the wilderness. Roll like you're a DM. Clutching that tiny rock of storm protection to my side. That's a 10. A 10, great. Woo! The rock works! You press on. You guys get down here, I think, for you guys are basically having to put those blankets or other warm clothes over yourself, riding, shivering in the cold. That's why you were in layers. Octus is totally fine. Totally fine. Totally fine. As you move through the space, you- Ice crystals on my eyes. Oh my god! You're going to look crunchy. You come all the way down this sort of like a little bit too steep ramp that comes all the way down off the Tyria Via. Ride for a while. It's really slow going through the shifting sands, but eventually get to a little higher elevation where it moves from sand to a rockier area. And as you arrive at a series of gorges and other areas that would have been a little bit more hilly or mountainous, you see even some worked stone, like places that were quarried here in ancient times. You arrive at an area that you can see the Barrowguard has been to. You see the footprints through the sand of, that the shifting sand, too much wind, their tracks would have immediately vanished. But here you see some of the Barrow Guard were here, and also see them doing something that the Barrow Guard often does here in the Eternal Night, which is there is a higher elevation lake up here that is an ancient frozen lake, and there is a water quarry here. So there's them hacking away at the ice to fill up their canteens and refresh water and move on. move on, so you see a partially mined lake up at this higher elevation. Moving further in, you eventually get to a point, time is not changing around you, so you're beginning to feel a bit dizzy trying to read the day based on your own level of exhaustion. Everybody go ahead and give me a wisdom, Actually, you two are exempt, but I need Taisha and Julian to give me wisdom saving throws. Oh, not sleeping ass bitches. Bitches. Bitches. We'll save. Dirty 20. Dirty 20, great. Natural one for zero. Baby! Good night night. He got that head right here. As you guys are riding and pressing further on, I'm going to roll some saves for our NPCs. as well. Save the donkey. Vaelus, you're fairly normal. You know how to listen to your body when it is time to stop. Octus, you're in a different set of circumstances. Taisha. Somehow the shadiest thing you've ever said. I'm having my own problems. Taisha, even without the sun being present here, you just see where the stars are in the sky and know that this is when you would normally be bedding down. Like the time has come, essentially, that you should begin to look for shelter. Julian, on that wisdom save of a zero, you look out at the horizon, And it's, you've been traveling mostly by starlight, the sand is sort of bright enough. But now that you've gotten to these darker, stonier areas, it's just a little bit more shadowy here. And you can hear Dr. Talter say, shadows are possible to see. Can someone light a torch? I will say I want to get just Julian's reaction to that. Okay. I'd say given the bleariness of the space, the readiness of preparation, the mind already preoccupied with six other things hears that and absentmindedly grabs a torch from his side pack and goes to ignite it. As you go to light it you see Dr Talter looks at you and says is everything all right You ask for a torch Dr. Talter looks at you. She did not ask for a torch. Julian, blow out your mind. Yes. Get rid of that. I snuff it with prestidigitation. As you go to snuff it, I'm going to need everybody here to roll initiative. What? We have fun. We could have slept on the cold highway. That's my favorite place. That's better than a warm. Cold as a highway! Ooh! It's a six or eight. I'm so on it today. That's a six. Ooh! It's sandy. It's bad. Sandy! It's fine. It's fine. Sandy! Pleasure being friends with you. Thank you, thank you. That was a natural 20 initiative check. Let's fuck you! Let's fuck you! So 23, because that's really bad. Okay. It counts, it counts. Da-da-da. I'm going to need you to look up the text of Prestidigitation for me, if you'd be so kind. No. Can I snuff a small flame? Do I not know how duty works? I feel like Prestidigitation, Druidcraft, and... Instantly light or snuff out a candle, torch, or small campfire. Great. Perfect. Look at these horses, they're beautiful. Beautiful horsies. Everyone's got these lovely horses. I have to look them up. We just check in? How does your guys marching order look to you? Who would be in front, who's where? You'd probably be closer to the front since you have the most experience in this space. Yeah, and darkvision. But I wouldn't be too far from you. Same. Okay. I feel like I like where I'm at. Feels good, that's a good point. Yeah, I feel like if you were in the middle, you would also be throwing out a bit of heat with your embers. With the embers. Hell yes. What did we get for initiative? We got a nat 20 here. Yeah, 23 total. For 23 for Octus. 17 for Julian. 17 for Julian. 17 for Taisha. You go, all birds. Want to release for it? Oh my god, yeah! Let's go. What do we get for Vaelus? Natural blood. 13. 13 for Vaelus. Okay, so Julien, Taisha. We're in the best places. We're there, yeah, 100%. Good job, wait till then. Yes. It wanted to remind me, it's like, just don't forget, I love rolling ones. Sometimes don't like you. Sometimes fuck you a little bit. Joke's on you. I don't know what I'm going to do yet. I need more time. Hell yes. 13 for Vaelus, that's great. Octus, you are going to be first to go, my friend. We're all killing Julien. Action, Prestidation snuffs the torch, correct? Yes. So the torch is lit, you snuff it. Julian, that is going to be you, sorry, you or Taisha who would act first. That'd be me acting before you. Yeah. Oh, that's why you want to know if it was an action or if I catch you. He's like, what do you mean? You want to test? Yeah, between the two of you, who would actually, I know who's going to ask first. Julian, what are you doing this moment as the torch is suddenly snuffed out? Immediately go to repocket, like, sorry, I was distracted. And then looking at their reactions, just glance around to see if, as I realized what I was doing absentmindedly, to see if anything nearby is moving. Looking around to see if you can see anything moving nearby. Go ahead and give me a perception check. The disadvantage because of the darkness? Yes, disadvantage because of darkness. Oh. All right. I rolled two 17s in a row, so 18 total. Hot. Let's go. What's disadvantage? He sees everything. Disadvantage, you see everything. Looking around. That's for your Kyle. Looking around on that, there is something under, this is a strange thing to say, you could swear that there was something under your horse. I instinctually roll off my horse to the side and just get my blade ready at the side and just glance underneath it. Are you on the ground? Yes. You see Julian gets off his horse. Julian! Over here. I need something faster. What does your mom yell when she's mad at you? It takes too long to say duly. I've asked the full name, so it's much longer. Yeah, you look there on the ground, looking for what's there. On 18, there's nothing. You heard something's going on. Something's... You're ready for any danger, But something in your mind is betraying you right now. Sorry, and I'll take the rest of my movement to get back up onto my horse and just try and shake it out of my head. Taisha, do you do anything on the same initiative count? Detect magic on Julian. I mean, in general, but it's just laser-focused on me. Detect magic. As you bring up the magic, you look. Julian is surrounded by death everywhere, all around him, pushing in from all sides. You remember the feeling in the Palazzo Divinos, the shades. As you go to get up on your horse, I'm going to need a dexterity saving throw with disadvantage. Okay. 13. On a 13, you look and see behind you over here, looking under, everything's okay. behind you, you hear Gaia go, of course, lights a torch. As Julian is suddenly wreathing torchlight, stretching off into the sand, you see is his shadow that spreads on the sand behind him. As you go up onto your horse, there is a moment where your hand goes in front of you. Your hand goes in between the torch and your own throat, casting your shadow on yourself. You are dragged off your horse and dragged 20 feet into the nighttime desert, and you take 19 points of damage. Oh my god! We move further in initiative. That is going to- It's my full movement to leave Julian to die. What the fuck is that? Julian, the experience you have is your arm goes tight with rigor mortis, casting a shadow from Gaia's torch on your own throat, and you feel yourself being choked and crushed by your own shadow on your skin, dragging you off into the desert. Baylis, it's going to be your turn. Fuck! Okay. Fix it, okay. Fix it, Baylis. Okay, okay. Fix it, fix it. Zaramay's torchlight is still burning bright. Yeah, she looks confused as she's looking at you disappear. She's holding the torch. So, so, so! Put it out! That is going to be, oh, yeah, Vaelus, that is your turn. Okay. The whole combat's going to be prestidigiation, torches out this whole time. The worst can be whack-a-mole. Well, let's sit here. 30 feet, okay, so. Everyone that has a torch, buddy, Val! Is Julian currently being dragged? Yes. Okay. So I would like to, do I see him? Or has he gone into darkness? The torchlight, I believe, is 20 bright, 20 dim. 20 dim. Yeah, 20-foot radius and dim light for an additional 20. So he might be getting towards the very edge of the radius of light here. Okay, I do have darkvision for 120 feet. Yes, you see it has dragged him exactly to the edge of the torch's radius. Okay, so what I would like to do, if I can, Yes. For flavor. I would love to try. I want to get on top of my horse so my feet are on the top of my saddle. Yeah. Try to jump across to Julian's horse. Yeah. Try to get as close enough as I can within 10 feet so I can wrap my censer around his ankle. Hell yes. Oh yeah, let's go. Go for it. So you use your movement, rush over to Julian's horse, leap from one horse back to the other, and you can move this horse up to be within 10 feet of Julian to wrap around his ankle. As you do so, I'm going to need an attack roll. Okay. If Julian's not trying to stop this, you would roll with advantage. Okay. I am not, unless I'm trying to . Okay. Oh, that's pretty good. Pretty good. Okay, okay. That's good, guys. That's super cocked. Okay, we'll go with the first one. Okay, that's worse. All right, so this would be an attack roll with the Censor Whip? Yes. Okay, that is a 23. 23 hits Julian's armor class, I believe. Yes. And you whip the censer around his ankle in that. And I don't have the embers. I didn't light it up yet. You have not. It's a bonus action to light them up. Yeah, that's still out, but they're in there. So yeah, I'm just trying to wrap it around. But I still am doing damage to him? No, you don't have to. Okay, great, I don't want to do damage. You just are on horseback, lasso his foot to prevent him from going any further into the desert. Yeah. Great. That is your action. Any other bonus action from you? I would love to heal him, but I don't know if I, Do I know that you took damage? I mean, I got dragged a bit. You got screamed, yeah. I'm fine. I'm like . But I have to be able to touch you. That was crazy. I have to be able to touch you. Yeah, that's my turn. That's my turn. You see that Dr. Talter, she's going to roll. All she can do is scream. She just starts screaming. Shush. Ah! That's her turn. Octus, that is you. Turning and seeing, what's her name, fucking light up a torch. I use my action again to snuff out her torch. Oh, uh-huh. Do not do anything unless I specifically tell you to. A tear forms in her eye. You did, my lord. Something's going on here. Keep your eyes open unless you see my lips move. Do not do anything. She keeps her eyes focused on your lips. The torch is snuffed. As the torch snuffs, Julian, you feel the grip diminish. Oh. There's something here that exists in shadow. A bunch of shades. You're surrounded by them. What? I look around. Yeah, keep looking. Your shadow just ch... Nope, Julian. Nope. You rise up and you see that Dame Saramai looks at you and says, you didn't just say that. You didn't just say that. Didn't say what? What are you hearing? Something is putting words in our minds. Looking at her, do I see the same? Does she have a posse? With Detect Magic on, you do see that the spirits of the dead are congregating around her. nowhere near as full as around Julian. I don't know what to do with that. What are you saying? Some, but fewer. That spirit? So many. Do we see that, right? Can you tell them to stop? Me? No. She's almost there. Oh yeah, sorry, I'm checking. Yes. Any around them? Detect Magic on Octus gives you nothing. The Walker's Ward is working. See it? Fuck. and detect magic on, I mean, I think you can see some loose magic of him being a wizard, but nothing that's about him as a person. And then for Vaelus, nothing other than the magic objects that she carries. The Stone of Night Song is palpitating on her. But you sense that the dead are moving away from her, if anything. Huh. Okay, the two of you are surrounded by spirits. Yeah. Okay. Should we mount our beasts and just continue quickly? Yes. Yes. Are you good? You good to go? I'm fine. If you hear any orders, double check out loud before you act on them. Already ahead of you, Tasha. I am going to lay on hands, help him back up on the horse. How much are you healing for? Let me heal you for. You took my team. I will kill you. I can heal you for 15 points. That's my max. That's all I got. You sure don't want to save that for later? Give me five. Five will be plenty. Save the others. Look, it's a great helpful defibrillator, if need be. Yes, it's a little something. Yes, I'll take it. Are you hurt? Do you need help, buddy? You touch me, I cut off your head. If you hear anyone tell you to light any light source, double check with them before you do. I agree. If you hear something, say something. If you say something, scream. You, stop screaming. She's just back there screaming. Yeah. You see, as you are mounting up again, do you stay in the same riding order? I will look to Veilus and be like, Perhaps it's best that I stay close, maybe behind you. I think the two of you in the center, I'll take the rear. If you are driving a wedge, maybe best I stay in your wake. I can stay on the outside, too. It's, yeah. Riding out from here, Julian, that feeling of your arm going stiff and being dragged off into the night, wondering what might have been waiting for you out there. You hear behind you Dame Saramai going, what are the voices speaking to you? All that I've heard so far is to undertake actions that have proven to be against our best interests. Why? I look over my shoulder towards Saramai. What do they whisper to you? As you look over your shoulder, you see her face look confused. As once again, she did not ask that question. You see that she literally buries her face in her hand and says, I'm not doing anything other than riding until we're there. I'm not going to listen to anyone. No instructions, nothing. I'm just going to ride. That's the safest. Look over towards Taisha. There's a twitch in my left eye. and just continue on. The moment I hear you pick up speed, I'm tearing, tearing off. You guys ride off as far and fast as you can. Are you going to make camp for the night in this area? You have pushed through deeper into the Barrow Dell. I'm fine. Two of our friends are going crazy. They also tend to be the ones that respond to problems with violence. So I don't like where their heads are at right now. Maybe we should camp? We have to. I mean, or, or? How about we have the two other NPCs? Do we have time for a camp and an exorcism? What are we going to do about the shades surrounding them? How far are we from the Build-A-Serif workshop? Goddamn it. Fucker. If we push through, maybe we can? Arrive there exhausted? What if... What if one of you rides with each of us and you can rest? You two, I don't know what to tell you, but I don't know. We have to rest. Yes. We are walking into a fight against Yeah. Armies of Undead. That's the closest thing we have to a windshield. glanced out on the horizon to see if there's any sort of, That place we fought. I mean, anything similar to that where there is an alcove or a piece of terrain that we could use to block most of the wind. Give me a survival check. Remember that any place that causes a shadow is dangerous. 17. On a 17, looking out into the rocky areas throughout here, you see that there are a number of the beginnings of promontories, little canyons or gulches, the wind is often moving in a pretty stable or fixed direction out here. So finding just a big wall will do the trick. On a 17, you see a little bit more distant, there is actually a canyon that looks almost so geometrically perfect as to be partially artificial. And I think on a 17, looking out, you see that your, whatever this hilly, rocky area is, the terrain is starting to take the shape of an ancient city. Looking at that canyon, you realize that's petrified or sand caked ancient temple walls. How far does that move? Probably another hour of riding. That looks like at least one of the safer beds we can look for. Yeah. Can you make it? I can make it. As I reach under my pouch and grab the little druid stone and rub it with my thumb. One! Yeah, okay, yeah, let's go. You guys ride on. I would like a very low DC, but a DC eight constitution save from everybody. Okay. Fine. Great. Natural one. Natural one. Natural one. Literally exactly eight. Exactly. I was like, oh, that's a four. Okay. Taisha, I think that as you are traveling through, the cold gets to you. It is not even painful, it just happens over the course of an hour of rioting with you taking the lead. And specifically, I think Dr. Talter is with you and you covering her You get the brunt of riding into the headwinds and it been a long day and you take five points of cold damage as you essentially just feel your body internal vitality just withering under the onslaught of this freezing wind. The Eternal Night is one of the Barrow Dells that is less... It is incredibly vulgar in terms of what it has wrought here magically on the world, But everyone has walked in the night before. It doesn't seem that too terrible, but there's more at work here than just the night. There is a remnant of cold and malice here and a promise for no living thing to grow again. And I think you feel, as you often have in this space before, the spite resting in this place. I think she just, you guys notice that she is just slowing down and isn't intending to do it. Hey, you good? Yeah, we're almost there. We're almost there, it's okay, just hold on. I'm at a pull-up pace next to her. Just sort of, just making sure she's not going to fall off the horse from exhaustion. Just not so she notices. Yeah. Because she's in charge. Yeah. But I'm just going to be there, support just in case. We have this right up alongside Taisha. You guys enter into this gully and look and see the perfectly right-angled canyon between these two massive temple walls, huge flat stone on either side, worn smooth by the sand. Dr. Talter rubs a finger over it and the stone here worn by the wind is smoother than silk here in this place that seeks to rob all roughness or texture from anything, grinding the world down to sand in this place. You are protected at a certain point as you venture further in and find a small corner and itself almost like an alcove in the stone. The horses will have to just huddle up for warmth, but there's enough space in here for you humanoids to be able to sleep in this small, protected area. Do you guys rest here in this place? Of course. Tex is the first to dismount. Go ahead and give me a, give me a survival, I want a DC five survival check from everybody. Incredibly low, but the stakes are high. 13. 13. 22. Survival. 13. 13. Sorry? 12. 12, great. All of you are able to take a long rest here. There's not a guarantee within the eternal night that you're able to actually find rest in sleep. So those of you that need sleep can go ahead and mark a long rest right now and re-prepare spells and do whatever else you need to do. Does anybody take first watch? I'll take it. Cool. Tisha, you'll take first watch. As you take the first watch, you see Dr. Talger sleeping. Gaia leans her head, sitting up. You begin to, I think you both begin to trance, probably, using this opportunity to do so. I'm going to skip. Skip, okay. I'm going to skip tonight. Okay. Yeah. I... Will I have any problems if I do that? If you skip, you won't regain spell slots or lay on hands. So some of your abilities, you will not regain if you do that. Okay. These stones, you said, are partially magical in nature as far as their construction? Yeah. Can I use the tome? Yes, you can. I'll expend the charge of legend lore to learn about this place that we're in. This structure, this canyon that you are moving through. Hell yes. Moving through this space, you read the names of stones, looking deep within. You find these stones here, carved deep from the flat mesas of an ancient expanse, moved here magically. You look out and see a robed ancient sorcerer, a laurel of green leaves around his brow, a sorceress emperor, holding out a hand and watching as slabs of stone, some hundreds of feet long, float through the sky as though floats in a parade. You see it looks out as people clap and applaud, and with this sustained magical effort, an act of telekinesis carrying some thousands of tons of stone across the horizon towards this end, you see them placed here. Consumed by the sand, this is the ancient homeland of the fallen, or what would be called the sundered and broken House of Callistra, the last members of which either have been in hiding for 70 years or, indeed, are all dead. Looking at this holy site here, you see the stones placed in a massive temple to Tansul that are commemorating his beneficence, the glory of the sun in this place, looking towards the west where the sun ever sets, and you see Stone regards you, speaking this word of power, the arcane, a memory of the stone when young comes to you. You see a young priest of the House of Halavar of our looking out, a massive brazier filled with shimmering oil, unlit, a wide golden pan suspended over an image of the god of the sun. The fire lights, and within it, the stone remembers the face of a living god. You speak to stone that saw the shaper of humankind, a category you no longer belong to, though you once held that title. Ever sets the sun into the west, land of shadow. the word shadow moves through, and the stone feels it and remembers it. My lord, this place you have given us, there can be no use for it. There can be no use. We will never be without you. Why would you give us tools to use in an age without you. I cannot understand it, Father, please. Tansil speaks. Does the sun not vanish with the coming of each and every night? Ages like days come and go in the long march of time. Know that a day may come where I am gone. but a day will come where I return. Stone calls back out. You see this final memory here. To make a servant in your image. What will we make it from? Nothing can be made without sacrifice. Nothing can be made that is of worth without my dearest materials. What would be a sacrifice worthy of this weapon? Sacrifice that thing which which is most precious, and what could be more precious to me? Tancil extends a finger towards the heart of this priest. Then you. The light vanishes from this memory of the stone of the temple as you finish casting your spell, and the stone tells you its story. What? Shit. Huh? Oh, sorry, I'm not used to you being up at this time anymore. Yeah. I'm good, you good? This is my nighttime time. Do I need to turn around? No, it's fine, I just... Oh, sorry. I was using the book. Amazing. It's the first time I've done it. I was, honestly, I was, I don't mean this to be insulting, I was a little dismissive of a book that was like, we have the names of rocks. Oh, yeah. Yeah. There's so many interesting druid things. No, I just. No, I feel you. Anything interesting? Yeah, yeah, yeah, I saw his face. I saw the... The rock's face? No, it was the human shaper's face. Tonsul? Yeah. While reading the book? Yeah, it showed me a vision. That's a good book. To be more accurate, the stone spoke to you and showed you what it had to be. The stone spoke to me. Weirder, but useful? Way, way more useful than I thought this book was going to be. I'm just going to pat the wall. Good stone. But I think it gave me a really big puzzle piece. Do you want to share or do you want to sit on it? No, no, I can share. It's, um. That wasn't, I just. No, I. We've been a little edgy, I'm sorry. It's fine, I'm just processing what I saw. Yeah. Tan-Sul gave human beings the ability, as we know, to create this thing upon their death. Sure. To create Celestials. But that's not how he said it. There was different intonations in his voice. It wasn't like, I'm giving you a gift for when I die. It was the sun always sets, and then it comes back. Rises, okay. So he said he will go away and then return. But also, it requires sacrifice to create one of these things and what is more precious to him than us. In the general? Human sacrifices, specifically pointed at a heart. Like the heart your brother took out of your body? Very same. So your family killed you as the sacrifice needed to make a celestial, possibly. I'm so sorry. Well, you know, maybe that one will have sorcerer's ability. Yeah. Is it okay if I hug you? You can say no. Yeah. And she just gives you a big hug. I'm sorry. Seems like the most likely explanation. I don't know if it's, I mean, we'll find out, I think. But at least there was a reason to why I died. You have your rest here. The Book of the Names of Stones has given you the ability to speak with a part of your world very old that has seen much. Questions of what the past has to offer, if anything. You take your rest here, Julian, on that successful constitution save, the whispers eventually cease as you take your rest. The next day you emerge from the gully, riding forth. Hours upon hours, through ancient, crumbling stones. Here, the sands do not shift. Instead, they attack. Walking out from between corners, a sudden spray of wind will lacerate the face and eyes with sand moving across the wind. On top of you, it's almost hard to see the stars as the sand whips over the raised edges of the canyons. You now travel through these ancient stone structures. until eventually it opens up once again. Before you, a massive excavation. A place that was sunken long before the Shapers' War. A place that had been buried in a time where gods still walked the world of Ahriman. Enormous obsidian obelisks. a temple made of volcanic glass at the base of an ancient quarry, unearthed by means both mundane and to Konis, to your sight, sorceress as well. Looking down a switchback road that lowers some hundred feet into the earth, You ride down, and only at arriving at the bottom do you look out and see some structures not of stone or glass here. Under the stars and the shifting sands, there are banners fallen to the ground of the Barrow Guard, the grounds of the temple before its massive gate, littered with bodies. You do not know what state they are in, but you see them collapse to the ground, the figures of fallen warriors here. What do you do as you approach? It's not even a thought, just a natural reaction. My son is a Fang, but he is a Loy too, and I put a little spike through his ear. I want to find him, I'm here to save him. I cast Locate Object on the spike of metal I gave him as a baby. I am finding my fucking son. You rush forward as fast as you can. It is possible that it is here, but it is not within a thousand feet. His body is not one of the ones that lies on the temple grounds here. There are less than two dozen, but close to that number in this space. Anyone who wants to give me a perception check. Yes. Nice. 19. 19, three. I rolled a 19, too. Oh my god! 12. 24. 24. Vaelia, something, 24. Something is wrong with these bodies. You're looking at them. They look... Tysha. Mm. I'm pushing past them. Don't touch them. The closest one to you is about 30 feet away, and as you're looking at it, you haven't gotten close enough to actually get a good look at any of them, slumped over and prone, but you see one about 30 feet away. It's moving. I want to walk to her. Soldier. Soldier, do you yet live? As you approach Julian, do you approach as well? Of course. You both walk over. That's my betterment. Helm face down, long sleeves, long breeches, hands are crumpled under, there's some blood, there are some arrows that look like they should have pierced the body, but they've fallen to the side, weirdly, and you see twitching in some weird way. What do you do standing over the body? I'm going to lean down and try to find his eyes. I'm going to draw my blade just carefully. Yes. You lean down. Eyes more than a dozen look at you. The front of the helm, there's something twitching there. And suddenly, song, nightingale song. The clothes empty until there is nothing but bare white bones as a hundred nightingales fly through the opening of the helmet, surrounding your body, Vaelus, and lifting you five feet up off the ground. That's where we're going to end our episode. Nuh-uh. Cool. No. No way! No. No! Just tell us what happens. Just tell us what happens. No, we have time. We have time. We don't have time. Nah, I think we're good. I don't have time. I don't have anywhere to go. I don't think we've got nothing to do. Oh my god. He's got be-birded. What about be-birded? You got be-birded. Too many birds. Too many. Too many birds. Well, you got sparrows, nightingales, maggrows, falcons. I love it. Hey, we'll find out what next episode's bird is next time. As always, is it Thursday yet? Hey! Thanks for listening to this episode Critical Role. If you're enjoying this story, consider leaving a review on your podcast platform of choice. We're always looking for new critters to share our adventures with, and your review may help a new batch of wayward souls find their way to Ahriman, Exandria, and beyond. Or, if you want to hear what the cast discussed after the episode, head to beacon.tv and check out our exclusive show, Critical Role Cooldown. You'll be right there at the table immediately after we say, Is it Thursday yet? And experience our cast's post-show reactions. We'll see you next time.