Encounter Party: Fate is Inevitable

August 7, 2024 3:19 PM - Season 1, Episode 21

The party discovers the source of their shared vision and race off to confront *SPOILER*. A harrowing battle ensues and the players learn *SPOILER*. (full description inside)

The party discovers the source of their shared vision and race off to confront Almori at the ruined sanctum of Sindrik Olamarr. A harrowing battle ensues and the players learn harshly that the future cannot be changed.

posted by Saxon Kane (2 comments total)

The Big Reveal in this episode was INTENSE. This is technically a rewatch for me, but I still got legit chills when the creature emerged from Vinh.

And wow, did the energy change in the room. Sarah seemed for reals pissed, and when David/Thane started going after Olred... I can only imagine how awkward it felt to be there at that moment, because I thought she might take somebody's eye out. But hey, that happens sometimes in a game, and also on a set -- emotions run high!

To step outside of the show to talk about gaming for a moment:
Earlier in these posts I linked to a thread on Metafilter's front page about lying to/deceiving/misleading players in TTRPGs. It is a tricky issue. Obviously, a DM has to deceive the players to some extent to keep the game going. But then there's outright lying just to force the story in certain directions or to mess with the players.

So there are two different potentially sticky "deceptions" at this point. One is the Medaji turning out to be the Big Bads. The other is David/Vinh being a mole for the majority of the season. The first is one that I could see being a bit frustrating, from a player's perspective, because it could be argued that the DM is nudging the storyline by giving false info about the NPCs. For example: Almori. If he has been capable of horrendous cruelty in pursuit of power (even for what he thinks is "the greater good"), would there have been some signs that the players could have identified earlier? In other words, if the kindly old man routine was a ruse, it would seem fair to give the players some opportunity to figure out something, even if it were only a longshot. Otherwise, it risks being a case of "the DM says the world is this way, but haha! No it isn't, it's actually this way" -- and there's no in-game reason, just the DM's desire to tell a particular story.

The second deception (David/Vinh) is touchy in another way, since it interferes with player dynamics. And I think again a player could be upset by it, because it's not just the in-game character deceiving the other in-game characters -- like Asher keeping the monocle, or Flik not sharing info about his curse -- but it is also one player and the DM deceiving the other players.

But on top of that, there's the issue that this isn't a regular game session, it's also a TV series, and thus the story (and the characters) need to be pointed in certain directions... I guess in conclusion, D&D is a land of contrasts.

And back to the show, part of me wonders if it was that which triggered Sarah, because I think from the moment David turned, she was not very happy.

Still, despite the drama, some funny moments, like the Brian/David Dance Experience, and this little interchange:

Landree (staring daggers at Brian): "It does 13 points of damage!"
Brian: "What are you looking at me for?!"
Landree (staring daggers at David): "It does 13 points of damage!"

Tolo transported away?! What the heck?

Up to this point, all of these episodes have been a re-watch for me, with the finale the only episode I haven't seen. I am nervous and excited to see the end of the journey!
posted by Saxon Kane at 4:28 PM on August 7

Aaaaaaahhhhhh *insert incoherent noises* I almost couldn't handle David stepping behind the GM screen with Brian!

Okay, now I need to rewatch again to see if I can pick up anything from Vinh's behavior. It really is heart-breaking to think about Cardabelle, or the time when Vinh followed Tolo to quietly support him -- just all the trust poured into him from this group... Did David know all this time? Was he chosen because the first episode had his character dead in the dream? I should've known that the possessing creature on the ship was not just a mini mystery for the group to bond during.

(I did love how Dryddian tried to persuade him into not fighting anymore. Always true to character.)

The Medaji reveal felt less wrenching to me, I think because Almori did continue to act as though he had some twisted noble stance, and because we glimpsed how Asher had been tempted by the same power, so it was almost understandable. Also, I was impressed by how the future scrying/eyes/beholder/surgery stuff all tied together.

But yeah, interesting thoughts about player deception in D&D. You're right, I think Sarah did take it particularly hard. And Ulavina had already demonstrated that she wasn't that naive (from the way she acted around Corralai), so she could legit feel that she should've gotten a clue.

I'm so afraid that Tolo's been sent to another time or something. But I don't think my heart can take the finale episode tonight. What a wild, wonderful story.
posted by thataway at 9:22 PM on August 8