‘Critical Role’ Takes ‘Daggerheart’ for a Spin In 4 Hour Live-Play
Come watch the cast of Critical Role take their new game, Daggerheart, for a spin with talking frogs, sexy deer ladies, and more.
With Critical Role’s new RPG, Daggerheart, out in the wild for open playtesting, the cast of Critical Role took the game for a spin in a four-hour live-play one-shot adventure that showcases the system’s highlights.
Of course, for a game meant for campaign play, this is only scratching the surface. But if you’ve been curious as to how the game works when being played, or if you just can’t get enough of the Critical Role gang making dick jokes, you can see it all as Critical Role plays Daggerheart.
Critical Role Plays Daggerheart
Daggerheart, not to be confused with The Elder Scrolls II: Daggerfall, is a new RPG still in open beta from Darrington Press, Critical Role’s publishing imprint. Hailing itself as a fantasy RPG with a strong focus on narrative and character expression over the course of longer, campaign-focused gameplay, the game borrows a bit of the mechanics from both Powered by the Apocalypse and Forged in the Dark rulesets, putting its own unique spin on the idea of advancing as a character.
Create a character in Daggerfall, and you’ll find yourself pulling abilities from your class and two different Domains. But, more importantly, you’ll also find yourself with a swath of interesting fantasy folk to choose from. Whether the frog-like Ribbet, the deer-like Faun, or the turtle-like Galapa, there are plenty of new things to play with.
Of particular note, these three names also appear in Campaign 3 of Critical Role as renamed races from WotC. Followers of the stream will also note how the world of Tal’Dorei has taken steps away from more strongly D&D associated names, like Vecna and Pelor, replaced with titles. Does this mean that one day, Critical Role will replace D&D with Daggerheart entirely on their live stream? Probably not.
The appeal of D&D runs deep. But it is interesting to see the stakes being laid in the ground to mark off material that might be copyrightable. As Darrington Press moves forward with the release, they come at an important inflection point for D&D. With the 2024 ruleset coming, many players may be looking to jump ship.
For now, though, Daggerheart is still in development. And while it may have its roots in D&D, it’s interesting to see where it branches out away from that.
Daggerheart releases in 2025!
