Critical Recap: Age of Umbra E1 “Desperloch”

Hello! Welcome to Critical Recap! I’m Dani Carr, the Critical Role Lore Keeper. Let’s dive into our recap of Age of Umbra Episode 1: Desperloch!

NATURE’S SHADOWS

Welcome to the Halcyon Domain, a formerly verdant now desolate landscape where the machinations of the God-King Othedias led to the Veiled Gods punishing the land and its people, then abandoning this world. In the hundred years since, known as the Apostasy, the realm is dying and nightmarish magic and twisted creatures haunt the remaining populace known as The Enduring. Dark winds known as the Umbra assail the landscape, but the Sacred Pyres keep the Umbra at bay – so small towns have been built around these pyres to keep the people safe.

One such town is Desperloch, with its own Sacred Pyre and guarded gate to keep the darkness at bay and hold hope at its core. Snyx (he/him, played by Sam Riegel), a faun ranger and courier, races through the Jungles of Aveidoora back to Desperloch. He is hotly pursued and attacked by a terrifying beast, but finds safety behind Desperloch’s gates as the guardian vigils, including the heroic Ghosthook Branwythe, take on the beast outside the town.

Snyx is taken to see Truvo the Hedge, accompanied by his friend Idyl (he/him, played by Travis Willingham), a human seraph who wants to help however he can. Truvo is a galapa herbalist who refuses payment from Snyx, telling him that things here are about staying alive, not money and business. At the Sacred Pyre, Pyrekeeper Brixton (she/her, played by Marisha Ray), a half-orc guardian, notices Snyx’s arrival and is given leave to go check on her friend.

WORDS WORDS WORDS

Brixton goes to the medical tent, where she catches up with Snyx. He was in Okros, another town that Brixton’s friend Aliana lives in. Snyx has a letter from her, which Brixton gratefully takes while praising Snyx’s bravery. He also gives her a book for Pyrekeeper Romahnd that is missing its last chapter. Brixton takes the book to Romahnd and reads her letter from Aliana – it speaks of her calm life in Okros, her vegetable garden, her pride in Brixton, and her fondness for Snyx. Brixton stares into the fire, losing herself in thoughts of being beyond the wall.

Idyl’s teenaged friend Eryn catches up with him. She scouts for the delvers, but is hoping to get more autonomy within their group. Idyl (who has saved Eryn’s life before) thinks she’s just looking for adventure. When they arrive at the home of her father, Garrick Loathroot, they run into August (he/him, played by Taliesin Jaffe), an aetherweaver that resembles an anthropomorphic spider in a top hat.

August’s friend Misty (she/her, played by Ashley Johnson), a clank bard, watches the three of them chat through a window while Garrick reads to her. Misty is a conundrum, a living statue of a veiled god that was an angelic vessel from the old world. The small group talk together before settling in for the night of safety in the pyrelight. Some dream of mist, stone pillars framing a doorway, a crown on a pedestal, and towers bending while angels scream.

THE CALL OF ADVENTURE

Morning comes as five injured delvers return from their attempt to find a path to the unreachable cliffside monastery known as Luzal Monastery, which is said to hold much knowledge of the old world. Beneath the monastery is a labyrinth of vaults and catacombs – this is where the delvers lost half of their party in a terrible fight with a guardian. Their leader, Rascelo, is gravely injured but is determined to return, as he is convinced that they found the gates of Firmaments Hollow – the cliffside of the monastery. This is where the scholars are meant to take over, but Rascelo wants to return.

Idyl and Misty secretly heal Rascelo and Idyl convinces him to allow them to enter the vaults to search for a survivor, Velk. Eryn is determined to join them, but Idyl is hesitant to take her along. She recruits Snyx as a second scout and Snyx will only go if Brixton joins him. Idyl promises that the Triarch will reward them for their work and Brixton believes that it is their destiny to enter the vaults together. Emberwarden Sheena, the head pyrekeeper, allows Brixton to do this as long as she does not disappoint her.

Idyl distracts Eryn while August puts her to sleep with a needle. Idyl leaves a note telling her not to follow and apologizes at Misty’s insistence. They take her map and follow Snyx into the Jungles to the Griefcleft Mountains. During this walk, Misty tells Snyx that she is a living relic of the old world and that she knows she found her way to the statue, but that her memories are confusing. She thinks she died and then awoke in the statue, where August cleaned her up and Garrick took her in.

THE VAULTS

As they near the gateway, Snyx encourages them all to run if danger surfaces but Idyl wants to work together. Brixton strangely wears full plate armor that they are not sure how she came by. They enter the Luzal Vault and follow Eryn’s map, though they get lost and end up fighting a burning crimson ooze and some skeletons. August reveals that he can fly thanks to a moth that has been surgically sewn onto his back.

They survive the encounter and turn around, where Brixton reveals that she found the armor outside the walls on a skeleton. She took it piece by piece until she had the full set. Brixton believes this armor is her destiny. Idyl is not sure if he believes her story and thinks she’s gone slightly mad from her years with the fire. Misty touches the armor and has a memory of an army moving and shields clattering.

The group keeps moving, guided by blue torches left by the delvers. They find the beautiful gate that Rascelo spoke of, as well as the four bodies of the fallen delvers and the fallen armored guardian that attacked them. Snyx pretends to mourn their fallen comrades as he loots their bodies. As he does this, the others notice that the gate is slightly ajar with a bloody handprint.

Snyx goes to take the crown from the guardian’s head, but this re-awakens the guardian. They fight, barely surviving the onslaught from this holy warrior and its skeleton brethren, but Snyx fells it with his boomerang. The group then rushes through the gates, with Idyl taking the bone trinket that hung above them, and after closing the door, they see an ascending staircase into the darkness above.

That is it for Episode 1 of Age of Umbra!

FINAL THOUGHTS

• Age of Umbra more like Age of Scary Fights – those fights are gnarly and I feel like we’re just getting started!
• We all agree that Misty is baby and must be protected at all costs, right?
• Am I the only one that doesn’t trust whatever Velk is up to, if he’s still alive? A bloody handprint does not bode well.

Catch Episode 2 of Age of Umbra on Thursday, June 5th at 7pm Pacific on beacon.tv, where Beacon members get access to the entire episode, podcast included! The episode will also release on twitch.tv/criticalrole and on youtube.com/criticalrole and a week later on our podcast. Is it Thursday yet?