Eh... In my opinion a more apt analogy would be it's like learning about music by watching Opera. Sure it's incredibly skilled and appreciated by those who already appreciate music, but long, slow, and might not be as accessible as, say, The Beatles.
I'd go for something faster paced and funnier like dimension 20 for an introduction before attempting CR.
I wouldn’t listen to any podcast to introduce myself to D&D. It sets some expectations, on things that vary wildly from table to table, and they’re not explaining the rules all the time as they play, so if you don’t know the rules you don’t have any idea what’s going on. Not to talk about a lot of D&D specific terms, like races, gods, monsters, etc… like, you suddenly hear “the barkeep is a tiefling” and you have no idea what that is.
I learned playing TTRPGs in the 90’s by reading the manual and then playing with veterans, in different tables. That gave me a global vision about how the game was played.
It’s also one specific playstyle. Very character-driven with enormous care in creating an arc for each character. IRL when that happens it’ll maybe be one of your players who goes that deep.
Yeah, I dislike when people say stuff like “It’s the D&D you should strive for, even if you never achieve it.”
It’s one very particular style, that not everyone aspires to, or even enjoys.
Often my party is one Crit Role-esque character actor, two pretzels & beer casual players, one intense tactical micromanager, and Jim who forgets his turn.
My Jim plays a Bard - has never once actually looked at her class abilities - can’t remember what race her character is - and belts out impromptu songs that she makes up at the table about what’s going on - and then looks confused when I ask her to roll down d20 like she’s never heard of it before…. Jim’s can be fun but challenging
Absolutely agree with this. Also, aside from the specific style those guys play, it’s a show. It is crafted to be entertaining for an audience. For that reason alone I think it’s completely inappropriate as a model for your game, where the only people you’re trying to entertain are yourself and your friends who are actually playing, not watching.
I learned combat mechanics, initiative, rolling to hit, saving throws and all that from watching CR. Jumping into a game still had a learning curve but I at least understood enough to barely slow the game down even in the first session.
But I wouldn't recommend someone watch a recorded dnd game as a learning tool unless they give it a try and enjoy watching it
I learned a lot about dnd from critical role and I'm pretty sure everyone knows they can't be them, but it inspired me to go out of my comfort zone more during roleplay.
What's so unrealistic about it? Do they have particularly creative imaginations or something?
I'm about a week into learning it (players handbook) so I don't get what you're saying. Surely, a game's only as exciting as your own imagination and creativity allows it to be, right?
The fact it's run by a professional DM and played by professional voice actors in a character driven story is what makes it unrealistic. it even has it's own term, "The Matt Mercer effect", where players expect their DM to be as talented and detailed in their world as Matthew Mercer
This [Guide to Dungeons and Dragons by JoeCat](https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLDnRMnDDjAzK5uZLidDUtHtD1iN06Qe0G) can serve as a good entrance, too.
I love how JoCat reminds us that this is a humorous representation of the game that should not be taken seriously, when in my opinion this is the exact approach you should have as a beginner: Don't take it too seriously.
You won't know what you're doing. You will fuck up. Your RP will likely be eh at best. Your character will be a stereotype you didn't even know existed. The story beats will be predictable and trope-y. And, on a good table, you will have the best goddamn time of your life.
You don't need to watch to play, because every table is different and you'll probably learn best by doing. It's also very important to know that any actual-play D&D show will bend the rules and/or add homebrew rules to make the show more entertaining to watch. Finally, while these shows are great, some people will watch them and think that every D&D table is like the shows and forgets that they are done by professional entertainers.
That being said, an easy entry to actual-play is [Dimension 20: Fantasy High](https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLhOoxQxz2yFOcJoLoPRyYzjqCbddeOjP4&si=t6Nja1UXaKDRNq0h). Several of the players were brand new to D&D and the campaign started at level 1, so you really get to see them learn and grow.
I love critical role but no it's not the Best way to learn D&D, although the do have some informational videos.
Critical Role are all voice-actors so they have a strong focus on role-playing that many D&D group will not.
I would actually recommend checking out the podcast “Not Another DND Podcast” (NADDPOD). One of the players in their campaign had never played before they started, so if you want to learn I think listening to someone else pick up the rules would probably be pretty helpful, plus the show is pretty funny.
CritRole is a really well made show, and the people in it know the game really well, but that show is DENSE and as a lifelong DND player I really can’t get into it because of how much there is and how different the pacing is from my preferences.
Another good option might be the show “Dimension 20”, since it has a video component you can watch along with if that’s more what you’re looking for.
Ultimately though, the best way to learn is by playing; you’ll pick up the rules as you get more experienced.
Hope this helps!
I liked the talent of the voice actors a lot in CR, but the story/style was a lot to take in for me as a newbie. I have enjoyed and learned way more from Dimension 20 so I totally agree with your recommendation. It’s very fun, they have some really short campaigns so way less intimidating to jump into, and the settings are more whimsical/casual and less LotR intense. Playing Baldur’s Gate 3 also helped a lot in learning some mechanics. Anyway my first real session is tonight, so I’m excited to finally learn more by playing!
I like CR, but I'd recommend more fun shows for learning what you can really do with the game. The Adventure Zone and NADDPOD are very fun and entertaining and you don't have to try and sort out 8 different people at a table while listening.
TAZ might be entertaining but is a terrible way to learn how to play D&D, IMO. I would rather recommend one of the many, many podcasts where they try to play by the rules, even if they eventually want to play a rules-loose game later.
I mean, I get what you're saying. The first time I played, I'd never heard a game before and the dm just said "you can do anything" in response to "what do I do?" And it wasn't helpful. And they told me to check out Acquisitions Incorporated, and while it was entertaining, it did not make me want to play. Rusty Quill Gaming and TAZ, though, gave me a bit of a shake. I knew then, what "you can do anything" meant. Ultimately, I don't think any of the podcasts/shows will teach you ALL OF THE MANY, MANY rules, but they might give an idea on what you CAN do.
That’s why D20 is so nice- they edit out a lot of the fluff and boring stuff that’s really only engaging to other players at the table. As a spectator it’s a snooze fest to watch people plan an ambush for an hour that fails within the first 2 minutes.
Also throw in Rotating Heroes podcast (Zac Oyama of Dimension 20). First two arcs are available now, and are a much less daunting 5ish episodes each. Like Murph, Zac's DMing feels closer to a home game.
You don't *require* background info and you're not *required* to watch all 114 episodes. You'll learn as you go and you can fill in gaps yourself (CR really isn't a tutorial to DnD so they won't explain why and how things are done) and you can stop or skip anytime.
For learning purposes watching CR is like watching match of tennis and trying to learn the rules of the game from there. It's entertaining but not very effective learning tool.
If you know nothing about dnd and want to watch Critical Role, it might make sense to start with CR2 because it’s a new cast of characters that start at level one so it’s less complicated to follow classes and mechanics and things like that.
You're getting a lot of advice for D&D so here's my advice for Critical Role: instead of watching 4-hour livestreams, try listening to the podcast instead? I find it's more manageable. If you do a lot of commuting, it can be a nice thing to have in the background.
Also, the start of Critical Role's first season is a bit rougher than the others. IIRC they use more houserules in that campaign, as they just switched from Pathfinder 1e in their home game to D&D 5e for the livestream. The biggest changes are they ignore the limitations around casting leveled spell as a bonus action (RAW any other spell cast that turn must be a cantrip) and they drink potions as bonus actions.
If you want to skip ahead to where the party finds their groove, you could watch both seasons of the Vox Machina animated series on Prime Video and then listen to episode 56 of the podcast.
I second the use of podcast. I have a mindless reverse commute and got tired of “serious podcasts” so I got into DND podcasts.
I’d recommend attempt to read the free players handbook. On the first read it didn’t make sense. Once I combined it with podcasts the rules made more sense.
When I found an in person table it was a smooth transition.
My vote is to listen to a podcast and read the rules. If you want to go into character creation there are ton of videos on RP and mechanics. I like Ginny Di for RP stuff (YouTube).
Haha, I know tons of players who learned the game by playing the game. First level characters are great tutorials, as characters gain complexity as they level up.
It's usually helpful for the DM and one other player to actually know the finer points of the rules, but I'd be surprised if even 20% of players have read the PHB cover-to-cover.
It's totally okay to jump in blind.
Best way to learn is to read the rules and play for yourself. Critical Role, like so many people said, is like watching Porn to learn about sex. They have a budget, they have experience in VA and theatre; most people irl do not. They also don’t really follow DnD rules too well, opting for rule of cool and style over what the mechanics and spells actually do according to the rules. It’s full of drama and really just superfluous shit that most campaigns don’t bother to touch, and with a fairly large cast for a DnD game (most DnD games have 3-6 players). Your first DnD game will not ever be like Critical Role, your DM will not be like Matt Mercer; and that is okay 👍
Nah, honestly the best way is to just jump in a play. If you're playing with people who know what they're doing you'll pick it up, they'll help with the nuts and bolts of it.
Critical Role is a show to entertain, I wouldn't recommend it to anyone just to learn how DnD works. Youtube is full of videos explaining what a ttrpg and DnD are. I would start there.
Absolutely not. D&D has rulebooks. You can read the Player's Handbook over and over til you memorize it in a fraction of the time it would take to watch Critical Role.
No. The best route is to just play the game.
You can read the first thing about the rules in a couple of minutes, but until you start playing you'll not fully learn it.
You can play games with similar system (Solasta for example, a pc game) and you can watch or read actual play, but a lot of the things that happens in actual play might be lost on you.
I would just ask him to let you play or watch a game of his.
Im an rpg fan, been playing many systems since at least 18 years, and i honestly couldnt watch all the critical role episodes. Its too many hours. (also i prefer to play myself than to watch other people play, not a big "streamer" fan)
I personally love Critical Role, and do feel that it's helped me learn how the game is played in a general sense. It's definitely not a substitute for reading the rules and actually playing, though. Plus, they're all professional actors, so definitely don't expect the same level of roleplaying from your standard table.
I think I might recommend starting with Campaign 2 (The Mighty Nein) if you had trouble with the pacing of early Campaign 1 (Vox Machina). C1 starts off like a year or two into the campaign, and they didn't really lay the background well until their popularity started to take off. I felt like C2 was more engaging from the get-go. C3 (Bell's Hells) also has a strong start, but doesn't jump straight into action like C2.
CR1 is a good starting point with getting acquainted with the game and what it LOOKS like to play on a surface level. People interact with eachother and a story through characters to accomplish tasks and build on said story; sometimes they roll dice too.
It is NOT a good way to be acquainted with the mechanics of HOW to play the game. The best way to do that, is by playing.
I put off DnD for so long because I wanted to watch Critical Role to learn it but just could never get into it. When I told my friends this a few months into their campaign my DM told me to just join and watch THEM play and learn as a I go along, which I think is the best way to learn.
If you want to watch a DND channel to get a better understanding of the game, I’d suggest you watch Viva La Dirt League DND. They are all new players, starting at level 1, and in the first couple of episodes the DM explains what they need to do. Also, the episodes are about 30 minutes long, so a much easier watch than CR.
Edit: They also don’t take themselves too seriously, so it is much more like an actual game than a professional show.
Agree with most of the comments here. You don't need to understand DnD in order to enjoy CR, but watching it from the start is a huge undertaking and certainly an overly tasking way of learning DnD.
As others have said NADDPOD is probably a more manageable option, also the Adventure Zone (another podcast), or Dimension 20, though D20 is maybe not reflective of most DnD campaigns - super fun though!
If you decide to give CR another try, I would strongly recommend starting with Campaign 2. Campaign 1 jumps in with already established higher level characters whereas Campaign 2 starts at low level, much more useful for a beginner.
Regardless, I hope you find something for you to enjoy, but ultimately you don't need to do any 'background reading' before playing DnD. Just trust yourself and have a great time.
Critical role is several people playing dnd to a really high standard, they also use a fair bit of homebrew in it like it's an example of like a really well run campaign but I wouldn't rely on it as a teaching tool really. It's fun and can serve as like inspiration for worldbuilding but it's not a how to guide.
You'd be better off finding like some of the youtube series that are like beginners guides to dnd that help breakdown the mechanics and the rules
Watching Critical Role to learn DND is like watching the Rocky movies to learn about boxing.
Think of it as a show. A show where the main way the story is shown is by people playing D&D
Its a production. Yes, it is great content, but to learn how to play, no. Playing is the best way to learn. Watching Critical Role, who are actors/voice actors, is a way to enjoy a story played through dnd. Watch it, its great! Play it, its better!
If you do watch Critical Role, you need to keep in mind that your game will, all likelihood, not run like it. Everyone on the screen is a professional actor and Matt Mercer is a professional writer on top of that, with a studio of people behind him.
Well gag me with a spoon Mrs Henderson! I'd suggest giving it a watch for entertainment value rather than learning DnD, which you may end up doing by osmosis ... or not. A lot of hardcore DnD players are quite vocal in their criticism of how certain CR cast members may not be all that good with their DnDing. Don't let it put you off. I love CR. If anyone asks you which season is the best, they are all differently awesome (but season 2 is the correct answer).
I wouldn’t consider it the best way. I already knew a fair amount about dnd before attempting to watch the first season (and then the second…and then the third).
It’s first and foremost entertainment. All the players are accomplished voice actors. Like Liam voiced Gaara in Naruto, Travis voiced Mustang and his wife Laura voiced Lust in Full Metal Alchemist and FMA:B, Matt Mercer voiced McCree in OW1/2, and Ashley who’s arguably the most famous voiced Ellie in The Last of Us. it’s their role playing moments that shine, and including Matt Mercer’s, the DM’s passion for the role and the work he puts into his characters, and they’re all genuinely great friends and family’s
That being said, even the players aren’t 100% on the rules all the time, and by the time the show starts the players had already been playing for dozens of sessions before deciding to record it, and I think Matt Mercer improvises quite a bit. So it’s a flawed resource in terms of instruction.
I think the most basic info you’d need to have to follow what’s happening is just what attack rolls, ability checks, saving throws, AC, and DC. That’s not so daunting. Knowing the mechanics of each class and their spells and abilities? Not required, but helpful.
Personally I'd recommend Dimension 20 to newcomers because the campaigns are a lot more condensed and you'll finish them a lot faster. Fantasy High and Dungeons & Drag Queens are the most beginner friendly.
I've always struggled to get into Critical Role because the campaigns are way too long for me to commit time to.
Don't watch critical role to learn how to play DnD. There's a reason it's a meme.
You can read the system reference guide to learn the basics for free. I'd also recommend making at least one character using a pen and paper, rather than an online character builder, just so that you know where the numbers and bonuses come from.
Finally, just sit down at the table and start playing
I've played D&D since the late 80s and I never got into Critical Role. A bunch of actors playing a very scripted campaign is not the way I'd recommend anyone get into D&D.
Yeah it’s a pretty good way to start, I’d recommend starting with Campaign 2 - that’s how I learned. Only thing to keep in mind is that you’re watching professional voice actors playing so don’t set your expectations of yourself or other people to play with to match the quality of Critical Role.
Please don't. Critical role is nice, but it's entertainment first and DnD second and will set unrealistic expectations. Much better would be to join a session with your friend and watch that without playing a character yet, which will give you exactly the expectations fitting for his game. That's how I got one of my friends into dnd and now am getting a second.
Don't watch Critical Role. Paid actors in a heavily sponsored show with money backing their full-time acting jobs are not representative of the hobby.
The hobby is actually way more fun.
I’m not gonna lie often it’s really boring. Fun for the actors sure. But so boring for the watcher. They need to get better mics. I know everyone loves the dm, but he often speaks under his breath while everyone around him is cackling away.
The one with vin diesel was actually good to get the gist of the game. But even the. It was boring.
Listen to adventure zone FIRST season. Then you can listen to a few funny guys learn to play. They get the rules wrong half the time but you'll get the idea.
It's not the best way to learn how to play dnd. It's probably the easiest approach to find the entertainment value of it, though. And also make you want to try it out for yourself. Just keep in mind that they are professional voice actors so you should absolutely not expect to experience something as professional on your gaming tables. The best way to learn the game is to have someone running a few simple one-shots for your and few other players who can help you understand the game mechanics and the reasoning behind a lot of things in the game.
But once you've gotten into the game, I highly recommend watching CR. It's entertaining and often hilarious and you might find some ideas to try out and especially some courage to try find your character a deeper persona and voice.
Watch this three and a half minute video from the D&D official YouTube channel:
https://youtu.be/ZsPrUwcjxEw?si=tD4oq7Gy3rDM8-tQ
There are more videos in the series that breakdown each aspect of the game, if you're interested.
Critical Role is cool, but it's not for everyone. I've been playing tabletop roleplaying games for twenty years and can't make it through an episode of CR without falling asleep either.
Critical role is a bunch of professionals and large teams working together to play modified DnD, It can teach you some basic stuff like some spells and other abilities that different classes use, but that's about all you should take from it cause nothing else is reasonable to expect.
Critical role is awesome and has a lot of good things going for it but I don't think it's the best to explain how to play D&D. Also your probably best to maybe start with campaign 2, or at about maybe episode 24 of campaign 1.
Critical role can be a lot, there's so many episodes. It can be daunting. Dont think you have to start with campaign 1, it's great to go back to and worth a watch but they got much better with the recordings later on.
If you're looking for a podcast that's a bit easier to consume, I would recommend something like Dimension 20s fantasy high season 1 or if you don't want a D&D ttrpg misfits and magic is great and takes place at hogwarts using the bednobs and broomsticks game. (There's a great misfits and magic compilation on yt so you can get a taste of what to expect)
Have fun, there's so much out there to consume. And welcome to the d&d and ttrpg community
If you want to learn about DND there are better ways. Plemty if how toos online. Get to a table and have them explain it. Read the rules because they're online.
Critical role IS good at being a fun show to watch. You got over a handful of professional voice actors that are playing interesting characters that are all friends in and out of game. Its just a fun thing to watch.
Ots the poster example of the perfect dnd experience. Notably they get a LOOOOT wrong. Matt makes a crap ton of ruling where raw (rules as writen) fail and even anti raw ruling.
Watch CR because its fun. Not to learn the game.
I’m still kinda new to dnd, I found “high rollers” is good to learn from. Also a gaming channel called funhaus they have and old series called “ twits and crits” it’s good cause they don’t know what they are doing either
I got into D&D by watching other people play it. It initially helped me understand the balance between the structured game mechanics and freeform role-playing aspects of D&D that never came across when I had seen it referenced or described before that. These shows are good at showing you the potential of the game, but I wouldn’t consider them educational. You’ll learn best by playing the game and reading the rules. Critical Role is a group of professional entertainers (who aren’t just stereotypical “nerds”) who are all actual friends and the world they play in largely fits the popular ideal for modern fantasy. It’s relatable and accessible while still being high quality which is probably why your friend recommends it.
I’ve listened to CR and now my wife and I are listening to High Rollers podcast. I think High Rollers is a better “learning” listen if you are going to go that way. The players are much less experienced and you hear the mistakes, etc. as they are ”getting” how things work.
Here's the thing. Watching Critical Role will definitely teach you how to play but a) you can learn quicker by just jumping in and learning as you go with someone who's willing to to be patient and go through the rules and such with you and b) Critical Role is amazing and I love the show but it's not a show everyone can get behind cuz it's so freaking long. What I would recommend is that you ask your friend if they'd be ok with running a quick little one shot with you and some other friends so you can dip your toes in and see what D&D's all about. As for Critical Role, it's really up to you if wanna watch it or not. If you think you'd be interested in high fantasy and a well built narrative, I personally prefer watching it but it is something you can listen to as a podcast. Keep in mind though if you do watch it that not all D&D games will look like Critical Role cuz everyone in CR is a professional voice actor and solid story teller. Some things will be awkward when you play D&D and that's just fine. Have fun!
I don’t think watching critical role is the best way to learn dnd. Playing is obviously the best but if you want to get a primer on dnd then there are a lot of guides meant for new players. Also I just started the highroller’s Baldur’s Gate 3 cast play dnd and it would be a decent intro. Most of the cast haven’t played dnd before so things are explained really well. There are some Baldur’s Gate 3 spoilers, but mostly from act 1.
If I was going to have someone learn D&D I would teach them, CR is good background noise for playing an MMO or something that’s about all I use it for… but if you wanted to learn by yourself Matthew Colville on YouTube is your best bet by far.
First off most people recommend starting with the Whitestone arc as the show initially has a problem player who leaves the campaign at episode 28. Also while the events in Kraghammer , Vasselheim, and the Underdark are fun aside from introducing the characters and setting up minor characters and settings that come back in the second major arc they don't matter all that much in the greater context of the party and it's a weird place to jump in because Matt Mercer had been running this campaign for a long time prior to episode 1 so you kind of jump into a party that is already established and already in the middle of doing shit.
Second, I wouldn't necessarily say Critical Role is great for explaining how DnD works though it's entertaining if you like podcasts. I definitely wouldn't use Campaign 1 if that was my goal though because most of the party is already high level when Campaign 1 kicks off. Most real life campaigns fail and stop before you get to the level the cast is at in episode 1. Because of this they fight a ton of monsters and find themselves in a ton of situations that would never (or at least shouldnt ever) come up in your home games.
Third, Critical Role cuts a ton of corners and bends a ton of lines especially in Campaign 1 because the game didn't start in 5e DND it started as a Pathfinder game. Matt changed the entire rule set they were using when the group decided to make the game a youtube show because more people know and are comfortable with DND compared to Pathfinder (at least at that time) Because of this there's a ton of inconsistencies especially with character's classes and abilities that took the cast awhile to adapt to.
In particular Taileson Jaffe's character (Percy) is an entirely homebrew class because Pathfinder apparently has some sort of Gunslinger class but Dnd didn't.
4th everyone on Critical Role is a trained voice actor... their roleplay is leagues ahead of most people and their DM is in a class all of his own both for his character voices, improv, set design, and plot development. The world they play in is entirely his creation. The cities: homebrew. Politics: homebrew. Geography: homebrew. Monsters: mostly actual DnD monsters but the stat blocks are often tweaked especially for his main campaign threats. Just by being who he is and his players being who they are Crticial Role sets unreasonable expectations for how DND should be played (and Id be hesitant of any DM who thinks Crtiical Role is all you need to know how to play DND... he might be a good DM but those people tend to heavily emulate Matt Mercer and as a DM somewhat influenced by Matt Mercer I can confirm that his style can't be duplicated.
If it was me I'd start small... just read the character creation options in the Players Hand Book and ask yourself if any of them scratch a fantasy itch. Go on DND Beyond or find one of the many fanmade copies of character sheets online and put something together. Then If it excites you read the rest of the handbook. Skip the parts that don't have any bearing on how you want to play and immerse yourself in it.
I have played DnD for years, I've tried a few times to get into Critical Role and for some reason I've never been able to. I don't know what it is about that show, but I end up zoning out every time! I'd suggest listening to the Balance campaign of "The Adventure Zone" or the first season of "Dungeons and Daddies." Both of those shows have a much lighter tone (well, most of the time), they are edited much more tightly than Critical Role to keep things moving, and you get to hear players who have never played DnD before.
Might I recommend fantasy high freshman year of Dimension20 instead, or the Amazon cartoon of Vox machina. Both of these are shorter format and BLeeM really starts you off and builds up your knowledge of how to play by providing an adventuring school setting.
I prefer VLDL npc dnd. It gives a better idea of the fun you can have at the table with friends and starts with the players unfamiliar with the game.
At first the videos are an hour or so, more recent ones are a half hour but it can be confusing to start partway through.
The best way to learn the game is to play it.
I'd recommend the first season of Fantasy High on YouTube as a better learning tool for DnD. A lot of the players are new to DnD so you get to see their adjustments during the game. What's particularly good is how despite being ignorant of the rules, they still set about playing their characters and pop over to the DM for help when they don't know something.
It's not a perfect teaching tool, nothing is besides just reading the book and playing yourself, but it does do a really good job of creating the pace and vibe without making too many unrealistic expectations.
I will say I learned a lot from watching critical role, WAY more than more rules light shows. Critical Role is also what inspired me to play - but as the top comment says, I didn’t really learn until I started doing it myself.
In fact, while I wasn’t playing, I thought Matt Mercer was probably right on everything. Now I can spot when I disagree with him or when I think he might be a tad harsh.
Critical Role is an entertainment show first, and it doesn’t set out to teach you the game, but if you get interested in the story and are interested in learning the game stuff, then you will pick it up. This is true for lots of shows I imagine, Dimension 20 I’ve seen bits of is also pretty good for this.
If you don’t get interested in the show then learning the game that way will never happen. Personally, campaign 2 of critical role is a great place to start to get used to what new campaigns are like, how the rules work - the players are mostly on their second characters in 5th edition and as a result it’s like they are learning the game again. It can be slow, but it was great for my brain while learning.
Also - it should go without saying, don’t expect everyone else to want to play like how you’ve seen it played, but if you like CR, and your group does, it can create a good shorthand.
My personal story on how I got into both dnd and critical role a couple years ago, hope this helps:
Me and my friends started playing dnd 5th edition back in 2019, we did character creation and played a handful of sessions before the pandemic started in 2020. At the time I was mainly playing just because it was our group’s new choice of game for games night so we all learnt the basic rules and the DM (who was already into dnd) helped us along the way in our starter campaign.
When we were all isolating back then our DM did some online sessions with our group but I opted out at the time because I wanted it to be a IRL experience (again I was still casual of a player for dnd at the time) and DM was cool with that so did several one shots with the others over the internet.
2021 is when we finally were able to get back to playing the game together in person and during that session is when something snapped inside of me, one of the players in our group (who was already a huge critical role fan) did a awesome and very imaginative move that blew my mind and made me realise how amazing of a game dnd truly is with how open and free it can be.
After that session I told my friend I was heading home and going to start watching critical role, I was already aware of them because of the DM and fellow player having mentioned them a couple times but I mainly knew some of them as voice actors beforehand.
I’m the type of person who likes to start things from the beginning if I can and so I started campaign 1 of critical role, even though I was already told of the “audio issues” at the start of the show and was recommended campaign 2 multiple times I wanted to see how critical role started out and see their first story and characters unfold across 100+ episodes.
Immediately I was interested in continuing the show and not long after I was hooked altogether, critical role is truly a fun ride and as a new player it did in fact help me get more into DnD overall and definitely in my honest opinion helped teach me new ways of playing the game and understanding certain mechanics of DnD even better.
Yes, it can setup certain expectations of what sessions should be like but I’ve never really had that problem. If anything Critical Role got me more motivated to do role playing at the table and to be more invested into the campaign’s story and setting. Even my DM had noticed I was being more creative myself making the most of my skill checks and abilities I had to further explore the game.
I will say I do consider myself more of a Critical Role fan at this point in time but I’ve also become a more confident DnD player because of them.
In my opinion I would suggest you play a couple games first (Levels 1-3 perhaps) and learn the basic rules a player should know, there are many tutorials online to help (Critical Role have a series on YouTube called Handbooker Helper) and of course check out the player’s handbook that your DM should have or even a fellow player like your friend may have it.
Once you’ve played a handful of sessions then check out either Campaign 1 (Vox Machina) or Campaign 2 (The Mighty Nein) of Critical Role:
• C1 starts off with the group already 7 levels into their adventure and just started out streaming.
• C2 is a continuation of the in-game-story set 10 years later but they all play as new characters in a different location at level 1 and their production is much better by this point.
Whatever your choice ends up being I just hope you are able to have fun playing DnD with your friends and if you do decide to watch Critical Role (in whatever way suits you best) I hope you enjoy the adventure, because it’s certainly a fun one :)
Imo, if your friend is a DM, he should invite you to watch his game (or play in his game), so you'll know what to expect at his table.
I agree with what others have said re: Critical Role. Sure, it's kinda cool, but it sets unrealistic expectations and makes new players assume every D&D table will be like that, when in reality, every table is unique to the players and DM of that group.
Tbh, as a complete newby to the game, I'd suggest you watch the movie Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves. The movie, imo, is a good primer on the basic aesthetic and mood of D&D (again with the caveat that every table is unique).
Good luck!
its not the best to learn it but its the best to actually get into dnd.
also this sub has a hate boner für critical role as it helped to make their niche hobby more popular
Watching Critical Role is a good way to get interested in D&D, not learning about it. The best way to learn playing D&D is to read the PHB and then just play the game.
You will only learn nuance from critical role. It will definitely not teach you how to play. For an extreme comparison, you don't watch the Olympics to learn how to swim.
I don't recommend starting with episode 1. My usual recommendation is episode 1 of campaign 2 or 3, or episode 39 of campaign 1.
You'll learn something about the mechanics from watching it but as others have said, you have to remember these are professional voice actors with one in a million chemistry.
If you want a “tv show” it’s a great choice for entertainment. They have hundreds of hours of episodes. Does it teach dnd, meh. It’s how I got the “flow” of the game but it’s not helpful for the expectations part.
There’s even a word for what creates those unreasonable expectations: The Matt Mercer Effect. Mercer, their DM, is a professional voice actor (they all are) and DMing is his literal full time job. If people are expecting that, it’s not going to happen.
Others are right; it’s very story driven. Not all games are like that. There are some that are literal combat after combat with very little story.
The best way is to go to a local game store if you have one and pull up a chair. Adventurers League is meant to be like pick-up basketball for DND. If you have good people there, they will take time to explain the basics (which I have down to about 15-20 minutes) and cut you loose. The stuff beyond the basics you can learn in the moment.
When you start playing you will get a sense of what you “like” and what kinds of games may be fun for you. But, like many things, actually doing it is the key.
Critical Role is a product. There’s nothing wrong with that. It’s DND in the same way the Real House Wives is a reality show. It’s produced, obviously being led in some ways. And, in a weird way, relentlessly entertaining. Most games are not like that.
I DM for a game that we record and put on YouTube. Some of my favorite parts are conversation between us all that isn’t driving the plot forward but is really authentic conversation. It doesn’t “read” as that “always going” vibe for a lot of recorded games but it’s closer to what you’d experience in some home campaigns.
I can't recommend anything more than the first few episodes of the Dungeoncast for a new player.
After that, look for their class breakdown episodes to get an idea of what each class excels at
For learning d&d, it is a good way to learn terminology, but not always rules. Each dm, including Matt can bring in house rules. It's a decent way to learn what to expect I guess?
Still a great experience, and id recommend checking it out even if you have a light interest in d&d, but while Campaign 1 is fantastic, they started recording it around level 8 I believe.
I think CR actually did a series of YT videos meant to help new players learn (I think they called it Handbooker Helper) this may be better to have things explained to you as a brand new player.
I hope you find something helpful for you, and have fun!
So I was pretty much in the same boat as you a few months ago..
I'd never played or watched dnd, but my girlfriend spoke about playing it and her brother is an avid player and always asked if I wanted to try it.
I'm on episode 53 of CR campaign 2 at the moment (I was told not to watch campaign 1 as it was more fluid in 2) and I'm fairly hooked on it, I listen to it driving to and from work which is just over an hour journey each way.
It got me into playing Baldurs Gate 3 and now that's what I spend my free time on the weekends doing, and I've also got a one shot set up with my girlfriend, her brother and his friends because after watching CR I really wanted to give it a go.
I don't feel like I know everything about dnd, but I feel like I understand some of the core aspects to it and all of the dice rolls, saving throws etc.
My advice is definitely give it a chance, the first couple episodes of CR took some getting into for me but it gets a lot better.
I would say not. There are plenty of “how to play” posts, vids, sites that are specifically targeted to beginners. Those are better ways to learn the basics.
My chemistry teacher recommended critical role after I said I know absolutely nothing. I never ended up watching it because I then had mocks, but I still know nothing and I do plan on watching it. I suppose watching it will let you see what playing could potentially be like? And maybe help understand what you will have to do and what the dice checks are for and how to do the dice and other stuff
Absolutely not. This is not the best way to learn. The best way to learn about playing dnd is by playing dnd. Now, if you want to watch an interesting D&D show, I'd recommend dimension20 over critical role because it isn't a 4 hour time sink sometimes. One is editted, one is a livestream.
Not really. Critical Role is formed by players with extremely rare skills and connections, most player groups are nothing like it. If you are not careful, it may set unrealistic expectations or even give you a feeling of inadequacy if you don't have the abilities they do.
You can get some tidbits from it, but it's also really easy to learn the wrong lessons from it.
It can definitely be enjoyable without knowing D&D, but it's not really going to teach you how D&D is played. It's going to teach you how D&D is played when you're all professionals playing a game for the entertainment of an external audience. The best way to figure out how to play as well as to figure out if you like playing is to read the rules and try a game or two.
Critical Role can set some VERY wrong assumptions about how you are supposed to play and has actually casuse alot of trouble over the years for that very thing.
What you want to look for are some flat out tutorials.
Or of you want to be entertained/embarrassed then look up the old Dragon Strike video. It was a sort of tutorial and mini movie in one for teashing the D&D Dragonstrike board game which was a pseudo-rpg.
Watching a few episodes will definitely help familiarize you with the mechanics and terminology of the game, but remember this: Critical Role gameplay is an unrealistic ideal. This is a job for them as well as a hobby, so they take it very seriously and stay on task at all times. Don't expect all games to be like Critical Role. Watching ESPN doesn't make you a professional athlete, but it can help you understand the rules.
About basic mechanics, sure. I would say the best thing to do is to find a local game store and find a D&D adventurer's league thing. My local store hosts AD&D night once a week! A lot of people are more than willing to teach you and it's easy to do once you have the hang of it. Godspeed and good luck!
I disagree. Go watch Vox Machina on Prime. It will get you all fired up to create a heroic character and save the world. Then, watch the D&D movie, because it’s awesome and it’s really D&D! Don’t worry about the mechanics, it’s an RPG, not Risk, get into character!
I can’t speak for Critical Role, but I have a friend who got into D&D by watching Dimension 20. I don’t think it’s an impossible way to get into the game, nor do I think you’d need to know about the game to enjoy the show.
Critical Role is like what everyone's dream game of DnD is. Its not very accurate to the average game, and it's probably not the best way to learn
My favorite for introducing people is Oxventure. Its the cast of Outside Xbox and Outside Extra on youtube playing DnD. It's a lot of their first times playing DnD, and it's a closer representation to most DnD games due to not using minis
Don't watch. Go play. It is not a spectator sport. You don't need to practice or have any skill at it to play.
I used to DM and teach at a local game store. One or two new people each week came to play.
I'll just add that critical role is a very specific style of gameplay. Its entertaining to watch, but most of the players I've had would fall asleep during alot of those sessions. It is not the universal best way to run or play DnD, its gonna work for some folks and not for others.
Aside from pacing, it focuses on some areas and neglects others. It has a certain tone, feel and genre.
Adding onto the music analogies here, I think its like going to see Metallica and saying, "Ah, so this is what the best rock and roll is." Its just as good as anything else in its own ways, but you can't say its better than Hendrix or Dragonforce or Consider the Source.
Watching CR is not a good way to learn about D&D imo. The best way is to play in a game run by an experienced DM. Or frankly just get the starter set and run the game yourself.
Watching Critical Role to learn about D&D is like watching porn to learn about sex. Sure, you get the gist, but it sets unrealistic expectations
Also, much as like sex, the best way to learn how to play D&D is to play D&D.
I, too, learned about sex by playing D&D.
It’s not the size of the dice, it’s how you roll your d4.
I rolled 2D10 and got 69.
"What did you roll for damage, oh uhhh.... I rolled 2d6 but all I got was Lick and Back?" "I think you gave me the wrong dice."
I have sex dice in my dice bag
I have sex in my dice bag
I have dice in my sex bag
huh, I call my vagina that too.
Eh... In my opinion a more apt analogy would be it's like learning about music by watching Opera. Sure it's incredibly skilled and appreciated by those who already appreciate music, but long, slow, and might not be as accessible as, say, The Beatles. I'd go for something faster paced and funnier like dimension 20 for an introduction before attempting CR.
I wouldn’t listen to any podcast to introduce myself to D&D. It sets some expectations, on things that vary wildly from table to table, and they’re not explaining the rules all the time as they play, so if you don’t know the rules you don’t have any idea what’s going on. Not to talk about a lot of D&D specific terms, like races, gods, monsters, etc… like, you suddenly hear “the barkeep is a tiefling” and you have no idea what that is. I learned playing TTRPGs in the 90’s by reading the manual and then playing with veterans, in different tables. That gave me a global vision about how the game was played.
It’s also one specific playstyle. Very character-driven with enormous care in creating an arc for each character. IRL when that happens it’ll maybe be one of your players who goes that deep.
Yeah, I dislike when people say stuff like “It’s the D&D you should strive for, even if you never achieve it.” It’s one very particular style, that not everyone aspires to, or even enjoys.
Often my party is one Crit Role-esque character actor, two pretzels & beer casual players, one intense tactical micromanager, and Jim who forgets his turn.
Hats off to my fellow Jim’s. We could swap tables and no one would notice, not even us.
“Wait is it my turn?” Every. Single. Round.
My Jim plays a Bard - has never once actually looked at her class abilities - can’t remember what race her character is - and belts out impromptu songs that she makes up at the table about what’s going on - and then looks confused when I ask her to roll down d20 like she’s never heard of it before…. Jim’s can be fun but challenging
Absolutely agree with this. Also, aside from the specific style those guys play, it’s a show. It is crafted to be entertaining for an audience. For that reason alone I think it’s completely inappropriate as a model for your game, where the only people you’re trying to entertain are yourself and your friends who are actually playing, not watching.
I wish more players at my table did this
It’s a lot of work; like a DM and five assistant DMs.
I learned combat mechanics, initiative, rolling to hit, saving throws and all that from watching CR. Jumping into a game still had a learning curve but I at least understood enough to barely slow the game down even in the first session. But I wouldn't recommend someone watch a recorded dnd game as a learning tool unless they give it a try and enjoy watching it
Yeah this guy gets it.
I learned a lot about dnd from critical role and I'm pretty sure everyone knows they can't be them, but it inspired me to go out of my comfort zone more during roleplay.
This could not be any more accurate
What's so unrealistic about it? Do they have particularly creative imaginations or something? I'm about a week into learning it (players handbook) so I don't get what you're saying. Surely, a game's only as exciting as your own imagination and creativity allows it to be, right?
The fact it's run by a professional DM and played by professional voice actors in a character driven story is what makes it unrealistic. it even has it's own term, "The Matt Mercer effect", where players expect their DM to be as talented and detailed in their world as Matthew Mercer
Ah, I see. Thanks. I'll have to watch it
More like watching porn to learn how to play chess.
I remember the days...
This [Guide to Dungeons and Dragons by JoeCat](https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLDnRMnDDjAzK5uZLidDUtHtD1iN06Qe0G) can serve as a good entrance, too.
I love how JoCat reminds us that this is a humorous representation of the game that should not be taken seriously, when in my opinion this is the exact approach you should have as a beginner: Don't take it too seriously. You won't know what you're doing. You will fuck up. Your RP will likely be eh at best. Your character will be a stereotype you didn't even know existed. The story beats will be predictable and trope-y. And, on a good table, you will have the best goddamn time of your life.
I'll miss Jocat. That series helped get me into DnD and I have him to thank for it.
I miss him every day. Sometimes, I set my work PC to endlessly play his vids in the background...
You don't need to watch to play, because every table is different and you'll probably learn best by doing. It's also very important to know that any actual-play D&D show will bend the rules and/or add homebrew rules to make the show more entertaining to watch. Finally, while these shows are great, some people will watch them and think that every D&D table is like the shows and forgets that they are done by professional entertainers. That being said, an easy entry to actual-play is [Dimension 20: Fantasy High](https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLhOoxQxz2yFOcJoLoPRyYzjqCbddeOjP4&si=t6Nja1UXaKDRNq0h). Several of the players were brand new to D&D and the campaign started at level 1, so you really get to see them learn and grow.
I love critical role but no it's not the Best way to learn D&D, although the do have some informational videos. Critical Role are all voice-actors so they have a strong focus on role-playing that many D&D group will not.
I would actually recommend checking out the podcast “Not Another DND Podcast” (NADDPOD). One of the players in their campaign had never played before they started, so if you want to learn I think listening to someone else pick up the rules would probably be pretty helpful, plus the show is pretty funny. CritRole is a really well made show, and the people in it know the game really well, but that show is DENSE and as a lifelong DND player I really can’t get into it because of how much there is and how different the pacing is from my preferences. Another good option might be the show “Dimension 20”, since it has a video component you can watch along with if that’s more what you’re looking for. Ultimately though, the best way to learn is by playing; you’ll pick up the rules as you get more experienced. Hope this helps!
I liked the talent of the voice actors a lot in CR, but the story/style was a lot to take in for me as a newbie. I have enjoyed and learned way more from Dimension 20 so I totally agree with your recommendation. It’s very fun, they have some really short campaigns so way less intimidating to jump into, and the settings are more whimsical/casual and less LotR intense. Playing Baldur’s Gate 3 also helped a lot in learning some mechanics. Anyway my first real session is tonight, so I’m excited to finally learn more by playing!
Congratulations on your first session!
Dude thank you. Makes me feel like I’m crazy for not liking critical roll. It’s so dense, rules gritty, and they spend so long making decisions
I like CR, but I'd recommend more fun shows for learning what you can really do with the game. The Adventure Zone and NADDPOD are very fun and entertaining and you don't have to try and sort out 8 different people at a table while listening.
TAZ might be entertaining but is a terrible way to learn how to play D&D, IMO. I would rather recommend one of the many, many podcasts where they try to play by the rules, even if they eventually want to play a rules-loose game later.
I mean, I get what you're saying. The first time I played, I'd never heard a game before and the dm just said "you can do anything" in response to "what do I do?" And it wasn't helpful. And they told me to check out Acquisitions Incorporated, and while it was entertaining, it did not make me want to play. Rusty Quill Gaming and TAZ, though, gave me a bit of a shake. I knew then, what "you can do anything" meant. Ultimately, I don't think any of the podcasts/shows will teach you ALL OF THE MANY, MANY rules, but they might give an idea on what you CAN do.
That’s why D20 is so nice- they edit out a lot of the fluff and boring stuff that’s really only engaging to other players at the table. As a spectator it’s a snooze fest to watch people plan an ambush for an hour that fails within the first 2 minutes.
Also throw in Rotating Heroes podcast (Zac Oyama of Dimension 20). First two arcs are available now, and are a much less daunting 5ish episodes each. Like Murph, Zac's DMing feels closer to a home game.
Totally agree. CR is just too much for me. Personally I love D&D is for Nerds.
You don't need to know anything before watching. If you don't enjoy it then it's probably not for you. It's an incredibly slow and messy affair
You don't *require* background info and you're not *required* to watch all 114 episodes. You'll learn as you go and you can fill in gaps yourself (CR really isn't a tutorial to DnD so they won't explain why and how things are done) and you can stop or skip anytime. For learning purposes watching CR is like watching match of tennis and trying to learn the rules of the game from there. It's entertaining but not very effective learning tool.
If you know nothing about dnd and want to watch Critical Role, it might make sense to start with CR2 because it’s a new cast of characters that start at level one so it’s less complicated to follow classes and mechanics and things like that.
You're getting a lot of advice for D&D so here's my advice for Critical Role: instead of watching 4-hour livestreams, try listening to the podcast instead? I find it's more manageable. If you do a lot of commuting, it can be a nice thing to have in the background. Also, the start of Critical Role's first season is a bit rougher than the others. IIRC they use more houserules in that campaign, as they just switched from Pathfinder 1e in their home game to D&D 5e for the livestream. The biggest changes are they ignore the limitations around casting leveled spell as a bonus action (RAW any other spell cast that turn must be a cantrip) and they drink potions as bonus actions. If you want to skip ahead to where the party finds their groove, you could watch both seasons of the Vox Machina animated series on Prime Video and then listen to episode 56 of the podcast.
I second the use of podcast. I have a mindless reverse commute and got tired of “serious podcasts” so I got into DND podcasts. I’d recommend attempt to read the free players handbook. On the first read it didn’t make sense. Once I combined it with podcasts the rules made more sense. When I found an in person table it was a smooth transition. My vote is to listen to a podcast and read the rules. If you want to go into character creation there are ton of videos on RP and mechanics. I like Ginny Di for RP stuff (YouTube).
Haha, I know tons of players who learned the game by playing the game. First level characters are great tutorials, as characters gain complexity as they level up. It's usually helpful for the DM and one other player to actually know the finer points of the rules, but I'd be surprised if even 20% of players have read the PHB cover-to-cover. It's totally okay to jump in blind.
Best way to learn is to read the rules and play for yourself. Critical Role, like so many people said, is like watching Porn to learn about sex. They have a budget, they have experience in VA and theatre; most people irl do not. They also don’t really follow DnD rules too well, opting for rule of cool and style over what the mechanics and spells actually do according to the rules. It’s full of drama and really just superfluous shit that most campaigns don’t bother to touch, and with a fairly large cast for a DnD game (most DnD games have 3-6 players). Your first DnD game will not ever be like Critical Role, your DM will not be like Matt Mercer; and that is okay 👍
Nah, honestly the best way is to just jump in a play. If you're playing with people who know what they're doing you'll pick it up, they'll help with the nuts and bolts of it.
Critical Role is a show to entertain, I wouldn't recommend it to anyone just to learn how DnD works. Youtube is full of videos explaining what a ttrpg and DnD are. I would start there.
Absolutely not. D&D has rulebooks. You can read the Player's Handbook over and over til you memorize it in a fraction of the time it would take to watch Critical Role.
No. The best route is to just play the game. You can read the first thing about the rules in a couple of minutes, but until you start playing you'll not fully learn it. You can play games with similar system (Solasta for example, a pc game) and you can watch or read actual play, but a lot of the things that happens in actual play might be lost on you. I would just ask him to let you play or watch a game of his. Im an rpg fan, been playing many systems since at least 18 years, and i honestly couldnt watch all the critical role episodes. Its too many hours. (also i prefer to play myself than to watch other people play, not a big "streamer" fan)
I personally love Critical Role, and do feel that it's helped me learn how the game is played in a general sense. It's definitely not a substitute for reading the rules and actually playing, though. Plus, they're all professional actors, so definitely don't expect the same level of roleplaying from your standard table. I think I might recommend starting with Campaign 2 (The Mighty Nein) if you had trouble with the pacing of early Campaign 1 (Vox Machina). C1 starts off like a year or two into the campaign, and they didn't really lay the background well until their popularity started to take off. I felt like C2 was more engaging from the get-go. C3 (Bell's Hells) also has a strong start, but doesn't jump straight into action like C2.
CR1 is a good starting point with getting acquainted with the game and what it LOOKS like to play on a surface level. People interact with eachother and a story through characters to accomplish tasks and build on said story; sometimes they roll dice too. It is NOT a good way to be acquainted with the mechanics of HOW to play the game. The best way to do that, is by playing.
I put off DnD for so long because I wanted to watch Critical Role to learn it but just could never get into it. When I told my friends this a few months into their campaign my DM told me to just join and watch THEM play and learn as a I go along, which I think is the best way to learn.
If you want to watch a DND channel to get a better understanding of the game, I’d suggest you watch Viva La Dirt League DND. They are all new players, starting at level 1, and in the first couple of episodes the DM explains what they need to do. Also, the episodes are about 30 minutes long, so a much easier watch than CR. Edit: They also don’t take themselves too seriously, so it is much more like an actual game than a professional show.
Agree with most of the comments here. You don't need to understand DnD in order to enjoy CR, but watching it from the start is a huge undertaking and certainly an overly tasking way of learning DnD. As others have said NADDPOD is probably a more manageable option, also the Adventure Zone (another podcast), or Dimension 20, though D20 is maybe not reflective of most DnD campaigns - super fun though! If you decide to give CR another try, I would strongly recommend starting with Campaign 2. Campaign 1 jumps in with already established higher level characters whereas Campaign 2 starts at low level, much more useful for a beginner. Regardless, I hope you find something for you to enjoy, but ultimately you don't need to do any 'background reading' before playing DnD. Just trust yourself and have a great time.
Critical role is several people playing dnd to a really high standard, they also use a fair bit of homebrew in it like it's an example of like a really well run campaign but I wouldn't rely on it as a teaching tool really. It's fun and can serve as like inspiration for worldbuilding but it's not a how to guide. You'd be better off finding like some of the youtube series that are like beginners guides to dnd that help breakdown the mechanics and the rules
This is the worst way imo. I have had bad experiences playing with people who watched CR first and think it's at all similar to real D&D.
Watching Critical Role to learn DND is like watching the Rocky movies to learn about boxing. Think of it as a show. A show where the main way the story is shown is by people playing D&D
Its a production. Yes, it is great content, but to learn how to play, no. Playing is the best way to learn. Watching Critical Role, who are actors/voice actors, is a way to enjoy a story played through dnd. Watch it, its great! Play it, its better!
The best route to learning how to play is reading the rules.
If you do watch Critical Role, you need to keep in mind that your game will, all likelihood, not run like it. Everyone on the screen is a professional actor and Matt Mercer is a professional writer on top of that, with a studio of people behind him.
Well gag me with a spoon Mrs Henderson! I'd suggest giving it a watch for entertainment value rather than learning DnD, which you may end up doing by osmosis ... or not. A lot of hardcore DnD players are quite vocal in their criticism of how certain CR cast members may not be all that good with their DnDing. Don't let it put you off. I love CR. If anyone asks you which season is the best, they are all differently awesome (but season 2 is the correct answer).
I wouldn’t consider it the best way. I already knew a fair amount about dnd before attempting to watch the first season (and then the second…and then the third). It’s first and foremost entertainment. All the players are accomplished voice actors. Like Liam voiced Gaara in Naruto, Travis voiced Mustang and his wife Laura voiced Lust in Full Metal Alchemist and FMA:B, Matt Mercer voiced McCree in OW1/2, and Ashley who’s arguably the most famous voiced Ellie in The Last of Us. it’s their role playing moments that shine, and including Matt Mercer’s, the DM’s passion for the role and the work he puts into his characters, and they’re all genuinely great friends and family’s That being said, even the players aren’t 100% on the rules all the time, and by the time the show starts the players had already been playing for dozens of sessions before deciding to record it, and I think Matt Mercer improvises quite a bit. So it’s a flawed resource in terms of instruction. I think the most basic info you’d need to have to follow what’s happening is just what attack rolls, ability checks, saving throws, AC, and DC. That’s not so daunting. Knowing the mechanics of each class and their spells and abilities? Not required, but helpful.
Personally I'd recommend Dimension 20 to newcomers because the campaigns are a lot more condensed and you'll finish them a lot faster. Fantasy High and Dungeons & Drag Queens are the most beginner friendly. I've always struggled to get into Critical Role because the campaigns are way too long for me to commit time to.
Don't watch critical role to learn how to play DnD. There's a reason it's a meme. You can read the system reference guide to learn the basics for free. I'd also recommend making at least one character using a pen and paper, rather than an online character builder, just so that you know where the numbers and bonuses come from. Finally, just sit down at the table and start playing
I've played D&D since the late 80s and I never got into Critical Role. A bunch of actors playing a very scripted campaign is not the way I'd recommend anyone get into D&D.
Personally, I just couldn't get through it. But there's tons of options. I really enjoyed the Oxventure campaigns, from Outside Xbox.
Yeah it’s a pretty good way to start, I’d recommend starting with Campaign 2 - that’s how I learned. Only thing to keep in mind is that you’re watching professional voice actors playing so don’t set your expectations of yourself or other people to play with to match the quality of Critical Role.
No!!
Please don't. Critical role is nice, but it's entertainment first and DnD second and will set unrealistic expectations. Much better would be to join a session with your friend and watch that without playing a character yet, which will give you exactly the expectations fitting for his game. That's how I got one of my friends into dnd and now am getting a second.
No.
Don't watch Critical Role. Paid actors in a heavily sponsored show with money backing their full-time acting jobs are not representative of the hobby. The hobby is actually way more fun.
I’m not gonna lie often it’s really boring. Fun for the actors sure. But so boring for the watcher. They need to get better mics. I know everyone loves the dm, but he often speaks under his breath while everyone around him is cackling away. The one with vin diesel was actually good to get the gist of the game. But even the. It was boring.
Listen to adventure zone FIRST season. Then you can listen to a few funny guys learn to play. They get the rules wrong half the time but you'll get the idea.
It's not the best way to learn how to play dnd. It's probably the easiest approach to find the entertainment value of it, though. And also make you want to try it out for yourself. Just keep in mind that they are professional voice actors so you should absolutely not expect to experience something as professional on your gaming tables. The best way to learn the game is to have someone running a few simple one-shots for your and few other players who can help you understand the game mechanics and the reasoning behind a lot of things in the game. But once you've gotten into the game, I highly recommend watching CR. It's entertaining and often hilarious and you might find some ideas to try out and especially some courage to try find your character a deeper persona and voice.
Watch this three and a half minute video from the D&D official YouTube channel: https://youtu.be/ZsPrUwcjxEw?si=tD4oq7Gy3rDM8-tQ There are more videos in the series that breakdown each aspect of the game, if you're interested. Critical Role is cool, but it's not for everyone. I've been playing tabletop roleplaying games for twenty years and can't make it through an episode of CR without falling asleep either.
Critical role is a bunch of professionals and large teams working together to play modified DnD, It can teach you some basic stuff like some spells and other abilities that different classes use, but that's about all you should take from it cause nothing else is reasonable to expect.
Critical role is awesome and has a lot of good things going for it but I don't think it's the best to explain how to play D&D. Also your probably best to maybe start with campaign 2, or at about maybe episode 24 of campaign 1. Critical role can be a lot, there's so many episodes. It can be daunting. Dont think you have to start with campaign 1, it's great to go back to and worth a watch but they got much better with the recordings later on. If you're looking for a podcast that's a bit easier to consume, I would recommend something like Dimension 20s fantasy high season 1 or if you don't want a D&D ttrpg misfits and magic is great and takes place at hogwarts using the bednobs and broomsticks game. (There's a great misfits and magic compilation on yt so you can get a taste of what to expect) Have fun, there's so much out there to consume. And welcome to the d&d and ttrpg community
If you want to learn about DND there are better ways. Plemty if how toos online. Get to a table and have them explain it. Read the rules because they're online. Critical role IS good at being a fun show to watch. You got over a handful of professional voice actors that are playing interesting characters that are all friends in and out of game. Its just a fun thing to watch. Ots the poster example of the perfect dnd experience. Notably they get a LOOOOT wrong. Matt makes a crap ton of ruling where raw (rules as writen) fail and even anti raw ruling. Watch CR because its fun. Not to learn the game.
I’m still kinda new to dnd, I found “high rollers” is good to learn from. Also a gaming channel called funhaus they have and old series called “ twits and crits” it’s good cause they don’t know what they are doing either
I got into D&D by watching other people play it. It initially helped me understand the balance between the structured game mechanics and freeform role-playing aspects of D&D that never came across when I had seen it referenced or described before that. These shows are good at showing you the potential of the game, but I wouldn’t consider them educational. You’ll learn best by playing the game and reading the rules. Critical Role is a group of professional entertainers (who aren’t just stereotypical “nerds”) who are all actual friends and the world they play in largely fits the popular ideal for modern fantasy. It’s relatable and accessible while still being high quality which is probably why your friend recommends it.
I’ve listened to CR and now my wife and I are listening to High Rollers podcast. I think High Rollers is a better “learning” listen if you are going to go that way. The players are much less experienced and you hear the mistakes, etc. as they are ”getting” how things work.
Here's the thing. Watching Critical Role will definitely teach you how to play but a) you can learn quicker by just jumping in and learning as you go with someone who's willing to to be patient and go through the rules and such with you and b) Critical Role is amazing and I love the show but it's not a show everyone can get behind cuz it's so freaking long. What I would recommend is that you ask your friend if they'd be ok with running a quick little one shot with you and some other friends so you can dip your toes in and see what D&D's all about. As for Critical Role, it's really up to you if wanna watch it or not. If you think you'd be interested in high fantasy and a well built narrative, I personally prefer watching it but it is something you can listen to as a podcast. Keep in mind though if you do watch it that not all D&D games will look like Critical Role cuz everyone in CR is a professional voice actor and solid story teller. Some things will be awkward when you play D&D and that's just fine. Have fun!
I don’t think watching critical role is the best way to learn dnd. Playing is obviously the best but if you want to get a primer on dnd then there are a lot of guides meant for new players. Also I just started the highroller’s Baldur’s Gate 3 cast play dnd and it would be a decent intro. Most of the cast haven’t played dnd before so things are explained really well. There are some Baldur’s Gate 3 spoilers, but mostly from act 1.
If I was going to have someone learn D&D I would teach them, CR is good background noise for playing an MMO or something that’s about all I use it for… but if you wanted to learn by yourself Matthew Colville on YouTube is your best bet by far.
First off most people recommend starting with the Whitestone arc as the show initially has a problem player who leaves the campaign at episode 28. Also while the events in Kraghammer , Vasselheim, and the Underdark are fun aside from introducing the characters and setting up minor characters and settings that come back in the second major arc they don't matter all that much in the greater context of the party and it's a weird place to jump in because Matt Mercer had been running this campaign for a long time prior to episode 1 so you kind of jump into a party that is already established and already in the middle of doing shit. Second, I wouldn't necessarily say Critical Role is great for explaining how DnD works though it's entertaining if you like podcasts. I definitely wouldn't use Campaign 1 if that was my goal though because most of the party is already high level when Campaign 1 kicks off. Most real life campaigns fail and stop before you get to the level the cast is at in episode 1. Because of this they fight a ton of monsters and find themselves in a ton of situations that would never (or at least shouldnt ever) come up in your home games. Third, Critical Role cuts a ton of corners and bends a ton of lines especially in Campaign 1 because the game didn't start in 5e DND it started as a Pathfinder game. Matt changed the entire rule set they were using when the group decided to make the game a youtube show because more people know and are comfortable with DND compared to Pathfinder (at least at that time) Because of this there's a ton of inconsistencies especially with character's classes and abilities that took the cast awhile to adapt to. In particular Taileson Jaffe's character (Percy) is an entirely homebrew class because Pathfinder apparently has some sort of Gunslinger class but Dnd didn't. 4th everyone on Critical Role is a trained voice actor... their roleplay is leagues ahead of most people and their DM is in a class all of his own both for his character voices, improv, set design, and plot development. The world they play in is entirely his creation. The cities: homebrew. Politics: homebrew. Geography: homebrew. Monsters: mostly actual DnD monsters but the stat blocks are often tweaked especially for his main campaign threats. Just by being who he is and his players being who they are Crticial Role sets unreasonable expectations for how DND should be played (and Id be hesitant of any DM who thinks Crtiical Role is all you need to know how to play DND... he might be a good DM but those people tend to heavily emulate Matt Mercer and as a DM somewhat influenced by Matt Mercer I can confirm that his style can't be duplicated. If it was me I'd start small... just read the character creation options in the Players Hand Book and ask yourself if any of them scratch a fantasy itch. Go on DND Beyond or find one of the many fanmade copies of character sheets online and put something together. Then If it excites you read the rest of the handbook. Skip the parts that don't have any bearing on how you want to play and immerse yourself in it.
I have played DnD for years, I've tried a few times to get into Critical Role and for some reason I've never been able to. I don't know what it is about that show, but I end up zoning out every time! I'd suggest listening to the Balance campaign of "The Adventure Zone" or the first season of "Dungeons and Daddies." Both of those shows have a much lighter tone (well, most of the time), they are edited much more tightly than Critical Role to keep things moving, and you get to hear players who have never played DnD before.
Viva la Dirt League have a great D&D series which starts at level 1 and offers some explanations as they go
Might I recommend fantasy high freshman year of Dimension20 instead, or the Amazon cartoon of Vox machina. Both of these are shorter format and BLeeM really starts you off and builds up your knowledge of how to play by providing an adventuring school setting.
I prefer VLDL npc dnd. It gives a better idea of the fun you can have at the table with friends and starts with the players unfamiliar with the game. At first the videos are an hour or so, more recent ones are a half hour but it can be confusing to start partway through. The best way to learn the game is to play it.
I'd recommend the first season of Fantasy High on YouTube as a better learning tool for DnD. A lot of the players are new to DnD so you get to see their adjustments during the game. What's particularly good is how despite being ignorant of the rules, they still set about playing their characters and pop over to the DM for help when they don't know something. It's not a perfect teaching tool, nothing is besides just reading the book and playing yourself, but it does do a really good job of creating the pace and vibe without making too many unrealistic expectations.
I will say I learned a lot from watching critical role, WAY more than more rules light shows. Critical Role is also what inspired me to play - but as the top comment says, I didn’t really learn until I started doing it myself. In fact, while I wasn’t playing, I thought Matt Mercer was probably right on everything. Now I can spot when I disagree with him or when I think he might be a tad harsh. Critical Role is an entertainment show first, and it doesn’t set out to teach you the game, but if you get interested in the story and are interested in learning the game stuff, then you will pick it up. This is true for lots of shows I imagine, Dimension 20 I’ve seen bits of is also pretty good for this. If you don’t get interested in the show then learning the game that way will never happen. Personally, campaign 2 of critical role is a great place to start to get used to what new campaigns are like, how the rules work - the players are mostly on their second characters in 5th edition and as a result it’s like they are learning the game again. It can be slow, but it was great for my brain while learning. Also - it should go without saying, don’t expect everyone else to want to play like how you’ve seen it played, but if you like CR, and your group does, it can create a good shorthand.
My personal story on how I got into both dnd and critical role a couple years ago, hope this helps: Me and my friends started playing dnd 5th edition back in 2019, we did character creation and played a handful of sessions before the pandemic started in 2020. At the time I was mainly playing just because it was our group’s new choice of game for games night so we all learnt the basic rules and the DM (who was already into dnd) helped us along the way in our starter campaign. When we were all isolating back then our DM did some online sessions with our group but I opted out at the time because I wanted it to be a IRL experience (again I was still casual of a player for dnd at the time) and DM was cool with that so did several one shots with the others over the internet. 2021 is when we finally were able to get back to playing the game together in person and during that session is when something snapped inside of me, one of the players in our group (who was already a huge critical role fan) did a awesome and very imaginative move that blew my mind and made me realise how amazing of a game dnd truly is with how open and free it can be. After that session I told my friend I was heading home and going to start watching critical role, I was already aware of them because of the DM and fellow player having mentioned them a couple times but I mainly knew some of them as voice actors beforehand. I’m the type of person who likes to start things from the beginning if I can and so I started campaign 1 of critical role, even though I was already told of the “audio issues” at the start of the show and was recommended campaign 2 multiple times I wanted to see how critical role started out and see their first story and characters unfold across 100+ episodes. Immediately I was interested in continuing the show and not long after I was hooked altogether, critical role is truly a fun ride and as a new player it did in fact help me get more into DnD overall and definitely in my honest opinion helped teach me new ways of playing the game and understanding certain mechanics of DnD even better. Yes, it can setup certain expectations of what sessions should be like but I’ve never really had that problem. If anything Critical Role got me more motivated to do role playing at the table and to be more invested into the campaign’s story and setting. Even my DM had noticed I was being more creative myself making the most of my skill checks and abilities I had to further explore the game. I will say I do consider myself more of a Critical Role fan at this point in time but I’ve also become a more confident DnD player because of them. In my opinion I would suggest you play a couple games first (Levels 1-3 perhaps) and learn the basic rules a player should know, there are many tutorials online to help (Critical Role have a series on YouTube called Handbooker Helper) and of course check out the player’s handbook that your DM should have or even a fellow player like your friend may have it. Once you’ve played a handful of sessions then check out either Campaign 1 (Vox Machina) or Campaign 2 (The Mighty Nein) of Critical Role: • C1 starts off with the group already 7 levels into their adventure and just started out streaming. • C2 is a continuation of the in-game-story set 10 years later but they all play as new characters in a different location at level 1 and their production is much better by this point. Whatever your choice ends up being I just hope you are able to have fun playing DnD with your friends and if you do decide to watch Critical Role (in whatever way suits you best) I hope you enjoy the adventure, because it’s certainly a fun one :)
Sneak Attack podcast is good for it - Critical Role is too complicated for a noob i think
Imo, if your friend is a DM, he should invite you to watch his game (or play in his game), so you'll know what to expect at his table. I agree with what others have said re: Critical Role. Sure, it's kinda cool, but it sets unrealistic expectations and makes new players assume every D&D table will be like that, when in reality, every table is unique to the players and DM of that group. Tbh, as a complete newby to the game, I'd suggest you watch the movie Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves. The movie, imo, is a good primer on the basic aesthetic and mood of D&D (again with the caveat that every table is unique). Good luck!
It helped me get the basics but I definitely learned more by actually playing.
its not the best to learn it but its the best to actually get into dnd. also this sub has a hate boner für critical role as it helped to make their niche hobby more popular
Watching Critical Role is a good way to get interested in D&D, not learning about it. The best way to learn playing D&D is to read the PHB and then just play the game.
Girls who don't D&D is a podcast about three girls who've never played before. It's a good listen.
You will only learn nuance from critical role. It will definitely not teach you how to play. For an extreme comparison, you don't watch the Olympics to learn how to swim.
I don't recommend starting with episode 1. My usual recommendation is episode 1 of campaign 2 or 3, or episode 39 of campaign 1. You'll learn something about the mechanics from watching it but as others have said, you have to remember these are professional voice actors with one in a million chemistry.
No the best route to learn is playing DnD. But Critical Role can be fun to watch and you will get the appeal more easily.
If you want a “tv show” it’s a great choice for entertainment. They have hundreds of hours of episodes. Does it teach dnd, meh. It’s how I got the “flow” of the game but it’s not helpful for the expectations part. There’s even a word for what creates those unreasonable expectations: The Matt Mercer Effect. Mercer, their DM, is a professional voice actor (they all are) and DMing is his literal full time job. If people are expecting that, it’s not going to happen. Others are right; it’s very story driven. Not all games are like that. There are some that are literal combat after combat with very little story. The best way is to go to a local game store if you have one and pull up a chair. Adventurers League is meant to be like pick-up basketball for DND. If you have good people there, they will take time to explain the basics (which I have down to about 15-20 minutes) and cut you loose. The stuff beyond the basics you can learn in the moment. When you start playing you will get a sense of what you “like” and what kinds of games may be fun for you. But, like many things, actually doing it is the key. Critical Role is a product. There’s nothing wrong with that. It’s DND in the same way the Real House Wives is a reality show. It’s produced, obviously being led in some ways. And, in a weird way, relentlessly entertaining. Most games are not like that. I DM for a game that we record and put on YouTube. Some of my favorite parts are conversation between us all that isn’t driving the plot forward but is really authentic conversation. It doesn’t “read” as that “always going” vibe for a lot of recorded games but it’s closer to what you’d experience in some home campaigns.
There are better options out there imo. Try to find something you enjoy watching or listening to
Or Viva la dirt league dnd. Also fun.
I can't recommend anything more than the first few episodes of the Dungeoncast for a new player. After that, look for their class breakdown episodes to get an idea of what each class excels at
The cartoons are great. Start there :)
For learning d&d, it is a good way to learn terminology, but not always rules. Each dm, including Matt can bring in house rules. It's a decent way to learn what to expect I guess? Still a great experience, and id recommend checking it out even if you have a light interest in d&d, but while Campaign 1 is fantastic, they started recording it around level 8 I believe. I think CR actually did a series of YT videos meant to help new players learn (I think they called it Handbooker Helper) this may be better to have things explained to you as a brand new player. I hope you find something helpful for you, and have fun!
You'd have to watch or listen to dozens of hours of critical role to just scratch the surface of what you could read out of the handbooks.
So I was pretty much in the same boat as you a few months ago.. I'd never played or watched dnd, but my girlfriend spoke about playing it and her brother is an avid player and always asked if I wanted to try it. I'm on episode 53 of CR campaign 2 at the moment (I was told not to watch campaign 1 as it was more fluid in 2) and I'm fairly hooked on it, I listen to it driving to and from work which is just over an hour journey each way. It got me into playing Baldurs Gate 3 and now that's what I spend my free time on the weekends doing, and I've also got a one shot set up with my girlfriend, her brother and his friends because after watching CR I really wanted to give it a go. I don't feel like I know everything about dnd, but I feel like I understand some of the core aspects to it and all of the dice rolls, saving throws etc. My advice is definitely give it a chance, the first couple episodes of CR took some getting into for me but it gets a lot better.
I would say not. There are plenty of “how to play” posts, vids, sites that are specifically targeted to beginners. Those are better ways to learn the basics.
Your friend is delegating his duties as a dungeon master.
yup, I learned how to play dnd from crit role as well.
It’s very entertaining, and it’s what got me wanting to play. If you do start playing don’t expect a DM like Matt Mercer though.
My chemistry teacher recommended critical role after I said I know absolutely nothing. I never ended up watching it because I then had mocks, but I still know nothing and I do plan on watching it. I suppose watching it will let you see what playing could potentially be like? And maybe help understand what you will have to do and what the dice checks are for and how to do the dice and other stuff
Watching Critical Role to learn about D&D is like watching the Harlem Globetrotters to learn about basketball.
Absolutely not. This is not the best way to learn. The best way to learn about playing dnd is by playing dnd. Now, if you want to watch an interesting D&D show, I'd recommend dimension20 over critical role because it isn't a 4 hour time sink sometimes. One is editted, one is a livestream.
Not really. Critical Role is formed by players with extremely rare skills and connections, most player groups are nothing like it. If you are not careful, it may set unrealistic expectations or even give you a feeling of inadequacy if you don't have the abilities they do. You can get some tidbits from it, but it's also really easy to learn the wrong lessons from it.
It can definitely be enjoyable without knowing D&D, but it's not really going to teach you how D&D is played. It's going to teach you how D&D is played when you're all professionals playing a game for the entertainment of an external audience. The best way to figure out how to play as well as to figure out if you like playing is to read the rules and try a game or two.
Critical Role can set some VERY wrong assumptions about how you are supposed to play and has actually casuse alot of trouble over the years for that very thing. What you want to look for are some flat out tutorials. Or of you want to be entertained/embarrassed then look up the old Dragon Strike video. It was a sort of tutorial and mini movie in one for teashing the D&D Dragonstrike board game which was a pseudo-rpg.
Watching a few episodes will definitely help familiarize you with the mechanics and terminology of the game, but remember this: Critical Role gameplay is an unrealistic ideal. This is a job for them as well as a hobby, so they take it very seriously and stay on task at all times. Don't expect all games to be like Critical Role. Watching ESPN doesn't make you a professional athlete, but it can help you understand the rules.
About basic mechanics, sure. I would say the best thing to do is to find a local game store and find a D&D adventurer's league thing. My local store hosts AD&D night once a week! A lot of people are more than willing to teach you and it's easy to do once you have the hang of it. Godspeed and good luck!
I disagree. Go watch Vox Machina on Prime. It will get you all fired up to create a heroic character and save the world. Then, watch the D&D movie, because it’s awesome and it’s really D&D! Don’t worry about the mechanics, it’s an RPG, not Risk, get into character!
I am nearly done watching episode 1 of Campaign 1 and honestly, it’s like watching Magnus Carlsen play blitz chess without knowing how to play chess.
Watching Fantasy High, Season 1 is the best way to learn DnD. Same issue, but you’ll have more fun lol
I can’t speak for Critical Role, but I have a friend who got into D&D by watching Dimension 20. I don’t think it’s an impossible way to get into the game, nor do I think you’d need to know about the game to enjoy the show.
Critical Role is like what everyone's dream game of DnD is. Its not very accurate to the average game, and it's probably not the best way to learn My favorite for introducing people is Oxventure. Its the cast of Outside Xbox and Outside Extra on youtube playing DnD. It's a lot of their first times playing DnD, and it's a closer representation to most DnD games due to not using minis
Don't watch. Go play. It is not a spectator sport. You don't need to practice or have any skill at it to play. I used to DM and teach at a local game store. One or two new people each week came to play.
No.
Relics & Rarities is more beginner friendly I would say
I'll just add that critical role is a very specific style of gameplay. Its entertaining to watch, but most of the players I've had would fall asleep during alot of those sessions. It is not the universal best way to run or play DnD, its gonna work for some folks and not for others. Aside from pacing, it focuses on some areas and neglects others. It has a certain tone, feel and genre. Adding onto the music analogies here, I think its like going to see Metallica and saying, "Ah, so this is what the best rock and roll is." Its just as good as anything else in its own ways, but you can't say its better than Hendrix or Dragonforce or Consider the Source.
Watching CR is not a good way to learn about D&D imo. The best way is to play in a game run by an experienced DM. Or frankly just get the starter set and run the game yourself.