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Three intrigue-packed episodes of Critical Role campaign 4 are already in the can, and it's worth taking the time at this point to acknowledge how we got here. Part of the credit goes to the wild success of Dimension 20, who lent their regular GM Brennan Lee Mulligan to the CR gang to steer the largest campaign the liveplay series has ever done (cast-wise, at least). And by the same token, we have to give credit to a particular passion of Mulligan's: the race of orcs.

Mulligan recently spoke to Rolling Stone about his love for the creatures first introduced as soulless villains in J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings, saying, "I LOVE ORCS. I JUST love them." (By the way, reader, that capitalization is not ours but either Rolling Stone's or Mulligan's own. Google "Game Changer Brennan Angry" to get a picture of what he probably sounded like in saying it.)

Moreover, it seems to be the orcish treatment as a lesser people in traditional fantasy offerings that spurred Mulligan's creative intentions when it came to Campaign 4. "There’s so much good fantasy out there," the Dropout star told the outlet, "And your job is to figure out what little dish I can bring into this vast banquet [...] And for me, knowing what I know about human nature and loving what I love about fantasy, I want to see the orcish revolution."

Indeed, Critical Role's Campaign 4 begins with the imminent execution of an orcish revolutionary - that being Thjazi Fang. Technically, Fang is actually a character who lived decades after the story's central revolution, but the fact remains that he is both orcish and is being executed for his actions against an oppressive regime. The fallout of Fang's actions and sentence are still yet to be fully explored this early in the sprawling adventure, but since Number One Orc Fan Brennan Lee Mulligan is at the helm, we can expect to see a lot more of their culture in the episodes to come.

Critical Role Campaign 4 is streaming now on the group's Beacon, YouTube, and Twitch channels.

From the lands of Exandria to your very own smartscreens, Popverse has everything you need to know about the TTRPG phenomenon that is Critical Role. Here you'll find:

• Popverse's Critical Role watch order
• An interview with GM Brennan Lee Mulligan
• The cast's appearance at C2E2 '25

...and more. Roll initiative, player. Adventure awaits.