Crit Faced

Crit Faced is a weekly Dungeons & Dragons playthrough podcast, starring fantasy authors Josiah Bancroft, Timandra Whitecastle, Phil Tucker, David Benem and Benedict Patrick. To find out more about the show, and to join our Crit Faced Fan Group (where you can get an EXCLUSIVE prequel episode of the show), head to www.critfacedpodcast.com

We now recommend Episode 20 as a starting point for new Crit Faced listeners. The audio quality of our first few episodes isn't great, and we've recorded new introductions and an update on the story so far for Episode 20 so that new listeners can jump straight into our madcap adventure... In this episode: before we begin to play, we introduce the Crit Faced Crew, and give you a glimpse into our fictional worlds.

We now recommend Episode 20 as a starting point for new Crit Faced listeners. The audio quality of our first few episodes isn't great, and we've recorded new introductions and an update on the story so far for Episode 20 so that new listeners can jump straight into our madcap adventure... Four individuals, pulled from very different worlds, find themselves lost together in a land covered in mist...

The party sets out into the mist-filled land, looking for clues as to how they have gotten here...

The party continues to travel through the mist-filled land, coming across a peculiar smell by the roadside, which almost certainly is not Kellin...

Having discovered two children alone in the street, our heroes investigate their family home, looking for the monster the children claim is inside...

Our heroes explore the ground floor of the house, looking for clues as to the whereabouts of the monster they were warned of...

The party climbs the stairs to the upper floors of the empty house, in search of the rumoured monster...

Reaching the top floor of the house, the party finally finds signs that they are not alone.

After surviving an attack from an animated broom, surely nothing else can go wrong for our heroes...

Decimated by last week’s attack, can our heroes pull themselves together and carry on their exploration?

Our heroes finally find out what happened to the children who beckoned them into the house, and it isn't pretty...

The team experiences an unexpected benefit of their time in Barovia…

The tense atmosphere of the basement begins to take its toll on the party. We’re not going to lie about this one – things get weird…

It is apt that on our thirteenth episode, the team finally finds the monster they have been looking for. And of course, they deal with it in the way any group of heroes would. They run.

The team makes a final attempt to escape the house. However, will the Death House claim a victim before the mists clear?

Having escaped from the Death House, our heroes are free to explore the village of Barovia...

After the adventures of the previous few days, our heroes deserve a chance to put their feet up...

The team continues to explore the village of Barovia. However, the episode begins with an apology...

We kick off this episode with a special word from David Benem, whose A Requiem for Heroes novels are reduced to 99c/99p on the Amazon stores for the next few days - grab them while the bargain lasts! https://www.amazon.com/gp/bookseries/B078HH558D/ref=dp_st_0996193928 This week, the party takes on their first vampire...

This week, Phil has released the first book in his new series, Death March! Grab it at your local Amazon store NOW! https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07FFLB7PW/ ALSO Having survived a vampire attack, our heroes gather supplies before setting forth.

Episode 20 is our recommended starting episode for new Crit Faced listeners! We've recorded a new introduction to the characters and story so far, so you can enjoy the show without having to experience the lower audio quality of the first few episodes. Lord Talfryn and Kellin return to the Blood of the Vine Tavern. But, will their return be a welcome one?

After Kellin's antics last week, the party makes a hasty retreat from the village of Barovia...

After Madame Eva's mysterious predictions last week, the team takes some time to get to know each other a little better...

Check out Benedict Patrick's new dark fantasy book, From the Shadows of the Owl Queen's Court! http://hyperurl.co/5k3sei Kellin's crimes catch up with the group as the Vistani close in...

Continuing eastward to Vallaki, our heroes find that travelling in Barovia is never boring...

Grab Benedict's dark fantasy book, They Mostly Come Out At Night, for FREE this weekend! http://hyperurl.co/iorsep Before entering the windmill, the group question the magpie man who has appeared before them

Falling asleep on the road to Vallaki, our heroes receive a rude awakening in the middle of the night...

With Ireena wounded by the attacking zombies, the party continue to deal with their enemy. But, is there a further surprise awaiting them in the night...? Crit Faced is a weekly Dungeons & Dragons playthrough podcast, starring fantasy authors Josiah Bancroft, Timandra Whitecastle, Phil Tucker, David Benem and Benedict Patrick. To find out more about the show, and to join our Crit Faced Fan Group (where you can get an EXCLUSIVE prequel episode of the show), head to www.critfacedpodcast.com The characters we use in the podcast come from our own storytelling worlds. Please consider supported the show and our authors by checking out our books: Josiah Bancroft – www.thebooksofbabel.com/purchase/ Timandra Whitecastle – amzn.to/2HGulxQ Phil Tucker – www.authorphiltucker.com/ David Benem – www.davidbenem.com/ Benedict Patrick - www.benedictpatrick.com/ Our intro music is ‘As We March’ by Vindsvept, which we use under the Creative Commons license: creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ To find out more about Vindsvept’s music, head to vindsvept.se/ Additional voice work (including our kick-ass intros) has been provided by the inimitable on screen and voice actor Paul Guyet: www.paulguyet.com/

Considerably earlier than they had anticipated, the party prepares to engage Count Strahd von Zarovich in combat!

When Doru the vampire attacks... someone dies.

With their companion lost in the night, our exhausted heroes begin to search the woods for Ireena...

Finally arriving at the town of Vallaki, the heroes begin their search for their lost friend...

The team continue to question the residents of the Blue Water Inn...

Our heroes meet with the innkeeper of the Blue Water Inn, who makes them an offer they can't refuse...

The party spends some time exploring Vallaki, and don't like what they find...

The Great Barovian Bard-Off...

The party begins to search for the bones of Saint Andral, before Strahd attacks the town...

The party follows the threads that hopefully lead to the stolen bones...

Cloaked by his invisiblity spell, Jean infiltrates the coffinmaker's home...

The heroes return the bones of Saint Andral to their rightful place, and debate on how to deal with the vampires they left sleeping...

The team explores the coffinmaker's home, to find if there really is a nest of vampires within...

After awakening the nest of vampires, the party struggles to hold their ground against a trio of the unholy beasts...

With the tide turning, the team gets to grips with the vampire nest.

With Lord Talfryn at one of the vampires' mercy, the party press their attack, hoping to end the battle...

Having dealt with the pack of vampires, the team find themselves somewhere they did not expect to end up - in jail.

The heroes gate-crash the Festival of the Blazing Sun, with unexpected results...

Having received a hero's welcome at the Festival of the Blazing Sun, our team begins to find out more about their host...

As night falls on the burgomaster's house, the heroes have a decision to make - do they stay in town, or try to escape as their host sleeps?

On the search for Ireena, Lord Talfryn turns Kellin invisible, hoping he can sneak into the Vistani campsite...

Jean has surrendered himself to the Vistani, and the rest of the party decides how to save their friend...

Can the team get Jean back from the Vistani without losing their own lives?

Travelling west toward the Winery, our team find a most disturbing sight just off the side of the road...

In search of the Winery, our heroes head further west, hoping to make their way through the land undiscovered...

Still not able to afford any of Jenny Greenteeth's wares, our heroes try to convince her to part with some potions...

Our heroes finally find the vineyard surrounding the Wizard of Wines Winery, but start to discover that all is not what it seems...

Master Sunna goes on a solo mission to investigate the Winery...

Having alerted the druids to their presence, the party attempts to fight off the hordes of twig monsters...

Having crumbled after the first wave of twig blights attacked, the party do their best to pull things back together...

Master Sunna goes after the druid, and Kellin makes a discovery, as the team continue their toughest battle yet...

Divided and outnumbered, the attack upon our heroes begins to take its toll...

The team's most epic battle so far comes to a conclusion!

Agreeing to help restore magic to the Winery, the party journies south, to retrieve the magical gem from the druids living at Yester Hill...

Having traced the source of the mysterious voice, Kellin makes an unlikely discovery...

With Kellin having claimed his new prize, the team explores the top of the nearby hill...

In a bid to reclaim the Winery's gem, our heroes take on a pack of axe-wielding druids!

With Lord Talfryn already out of the fight, will the druids of Yester Hill put an end to the team's adventure?

After winning their combat against the druids of Yester Hill, our exhausted party receive a familiar visitor...

With a few potential routes before them, the party engages in a heated debate about where to head to next...

Their decision made, our heroes set off for the sunken village of Berez...

The team find themselves under attack by animated scarecrows!

The animated scarecrows continue their assault!

The party find out they are battling more than just scarecrows this time...

The true enemy in this fight appears...

The fight against Baba Lysaga exacts a terrible cost...

The remaining heroes gather to mourn their fallen comrade...

Spending the night in the derelict manor house, our team make a number of discoveries...

Supported in battle by an armoured stranger, our heroes fight off the pack of dire wolves...

The team gets to know the armoured newcomer, and an old bargain is revisited...

The team considers the gift offered by the dark lord...

The team does battle with the new vampire, Kareeza, with an innocent life hanging in the balance...

The fight against Kareeza and her troupe of bandits continues...

Recovering from their battle in the middle of the night, the party is visited by one of the weremagpies...

Father and son are reunited at the Wizard of Wines Winery, and our heroes plan their next move...

The party makes their way to the gates of Saint Markovia's Abbey...

Having gained access to the abbey, our heroes begin to explore its grounds...

The party meets the mysterious abbot of Saint Markovia's Abbey...

The team further explore the abbey, hoping to find some hints as to Ireena's fate...

After one last try to decipher Madame Eva's prophecy, the party disturbs something in the abbey's vegetable garden...

The fight against the wights in the turnip patch continues...

With our two year birthday approaching, the team looks back on our favourite moments of the story so far...

Their business in Krezk complete, the party discuss where to head next...

Esmerelda leads the party to the last place she managed to track the vampire hunter Van Richten to...