Dungeons & Dragons: 9 Best Spell Uses in Critical Role

Highlights

• Critical Role showcases brilliant spellcasting moments that can result in campaign-shattering consequences.
• The show combines D&D mechanics with imaginative spell uses that are celebrated by millions of fans.
• Key spellcasting moments from the show, like Plane Shift and Modify Memory, have become iconic to fans.

D&D has seen an insane growth in popularity in the last few years, and one massive force behind this is Critical Role – a hugely popular actual-play series made by a cast of voice actors. Beginning in 2015, with the first 100+ episodes following on from an at-home campaign among the cast, the show has grown into a highly successful company that produces popular merchandise, games, books, comics, and even an animated TV adaptation.

With how vast the company has become, it’s easy to forget that at its core Critical Role is a group of friends playing D&D. Although the show uses various home-brew rules, classes, and spells, a lot of the story relies on clever uses of the D&D mechanics – and the roll of a single die can have campaign-shattering consequences. Some of the best moments over the years have come from the cast using their spells brilliantly, and their celebrations or commiserations are shared by millions of people all over the world. With thousands of spells cast over the last near-decade, it’s hard to choose the best ones, but undoubtedly, there are some beloved by Critters everywhere.

Updated May 21st, 2024, by Alexandra O’Leary: It’s safe to say that, after almost ten years worth of gameplay, the Critical Role cast have seen some epic highs and lows. While the group usually has a balanced party build, there’s no denying that spellcasting is at the forefront of a lot of these scenarios. There are few things more satisfying to a D&D player than a spell working out exactly the way they wanted, and even though chance has everything to do with their success, using spells imaginatively will often result in a memorable moment. Luckily, “imaginative” is Critical Role’s bread and butter, and there’s an endless list of spell uses they’ve adopted that exemplify what D&D is all about. With that in mind, more iconic Critical Role spell-use moments have been added to this list in its latest update.

This article has spoilers for all three campaigns, up to Campaign 3, Episode 61

9 Prism’s Summon Greater Demon

Smart Spell Casting 101

One thing players learned when Dimension 20 regular Emily Axford was a guest in Campaign 3 of Critical Role is to never underestimate the power of a single spell. As the Campaign’s first PC wizard, Emily showed over and over again how to utilize spells in an inventive and fun way – and her Summon Greater Demon is a great example of this. During a dubious fight against the unjust religious enforcers of Hearthdell, Prism uses multiple spells in a brilliant way, but when an unexpected angel appears in the middle of the fight, players are forced to think on their feet.

Prism’s answer to a terrifying angel is to summon a greater demon, specifically a Barlgura. This epic demon comes crashing down on the angel in a seriously awesome segment, and immediately starts engaging it in combat. The Barlgura is instrumental in getting Orym and Deni$e into melee with the angel, and overall dealing a lot of damage. It’s undeniable that however morally questionable her actions were, Prism manifesting a hulking demon mid-fight to take down an angel makes for one of the coolest moments in the campaign so far – proven by the looks on everyone’s faces when it happened.

8 Jester’s Sending

The Hilarity Of Applying Rules To Roleplay

Sending is one of those D&D spells that many people can overlook. It’s a third-level spell that lets players send a message to someone they’re familiar with, which means lots of people don’t want to ‘waste’ a spell slot on something that does no damage. Luckily, the emphasis Critical Role places on roleplaying allowed Laura Bailey’s Jester to completely make this spell her own, with it quickly becoming one of the most joyful reoccurring bits of the whole campaign.

There’s a stipulation that a Sending communication must be 25 words or less, and applying this rule to Jester’s frantic, rambling nature had the entire cast in tears every time she cast the spell. Using Jester as their main means of long-distance communication meant Sending became a truly iconic spell. It just demonstrates how combining the rules of D&D with the freedom of improvising can really have the best outcome – with most critters looking forward to seeing some iteration of Jester’s disastrous Sendings in the upcoming animated adaptation.

7 Pike’s Destroy Undead

The True Power Of A Cleric

Just as Campaign One was beginning, The Last of Us’s Ashley Johnson was cast in a TV show that was filmed in New York rather than LA, where the rest of the cast is based. This meant that Ashley and her character, Pike, were absent from a lot of the show, especially early on. As the group moved towards the Briarwood Arc, it was decided that Pike would remain in Emon while Vox Machina traveled to Whitestone, so Ashley’s absence would make sense in the narrative.

Luckily, Matt Mercer was skilled at inventing reasons for Pike to join the party whenever Ashley was around to play. Towards the climax of the Briarwood Arc, when Vox Machina is being chased through Whitestone by a horde of undead, their one and only cleric appears via astral projection to help them out. Without wasting any time, Pike leaps into the crowd of undead and casts Destroy Undead, easily taking out almost all the undead. Although Destroy Undead is technically a feature rather than a spell, Pike choosing to use it saved Vox Machina a lot of time and resources, and gave Ashley a chance to shine when she had the chance to play.

6 Widogast’s Nascent Nein-Sided Tower

Liam’s Brilliant Take On A Great D&D Spell

• Campaign 2, Episode 111 (first appearance)

In Campaign One, Scanlan adapted the 7th Level spell Mordenkainen’s Magnificent Mansion to create Scanlan’s Magnificent Mansion, a place for Vox Machina to safely sleep while on the road. Campaign 2 saw Liam O’Brien’s Caleb take this spell to a whole new level with Widogast’s Nascent Nein-Sided Tower.

Liam worked with DM Matt Mercer to create several adaptations of already existing spells that would cater more to Caleb’s character, meaning almost his entire spellbook is linked with his backstory. And as all good wizards should have their own tower, Widogast’s Nascent Nein-Sided Tower was born. It’s a detailed tower with 9 floors (the number 9 is a repeated motif throughout the campaign) and room for the entire Mighty Nein to stay in their own personalized areas. This brilliant spell has not only provided a safe space for the group on numerous occasions, but is an artful look into Caleb’s memories, passions, and personality.

5 Keyleth’s Plane Shift

A Life-Saving Escape Route

Prior to the Vecna fight, Vox Machina undertakes a grueling march through the Shadowfell towards the Tower of Entropis to try and stop him from teleporting Thar Amphala to the material plane. Despite taking a short rest to try and tackle Vecna at full power, when Vox Machina engages in a fight with Vecna, Delilah, and a mysterious Death Knight, it goes very poorly for them.

Vex is almost immediately killed by Power Word: Kill, and then Vax is turned to ash by Disintegrate. With two players dead, powerful barbarian Grog banished to another plane, and the group able to do very little damage to Vecna – although they are able to take down Delilah – it’s clear that Vox Machina has no choice but to run. This is where Marisha’s choice to use Plane Shift is absolutely massive. Even Matt, as the DM, implies that this will be a TPK, and Keyleth gathering everyone together and casting Plane Shift is the only reason Vox Machina manages to survive the encounter.

4 Caleb’s Wall Of Fire

Quick-Thinking To Get Out Of A Dangerous Situation

The Mighty Nein faced many different enemies in their adventures on Wildemount, and one of their main antagonists was Avantika, a power-hungry pirate captain with an interest in setting her patron Uk’otoa – an ancient leviathan demi-god – free. This formidable underwater sea monster also happens to be Fjord’s warlock patron, and the Mighty Nein become uneasy allies with Avantika while in pursuit of knowledge about her plans.

This all comes to a climax in Darktow, a dangerous pirate settlement in the Lucidian Ocean when the Nein are being questioned about their investigation into Avantika’s personal items. It becomes evident that Avantika is onto them, and with no allies in Darktow, it appears the Mighty Nein are going to try diplomacy – which has never been their strongest quality. Taking the initiative, Caleb calculates a way out for them and casts a Wall of Fire between the group and the rest of the crew, setting the ship on fire and setting in motion an intense race to the Plank King in order to reveal Avantika’s plans of overthrowing him.

At the time of casting, the rest of the Mighty Nein were not on board with Caleb’s decision, which is obvious from how shocked the cast was. However, it turns out to be a brilliant move by Caleb that results in one of the most dramatic and tense scenarios in the entire campaign – all from one fantastic use of Wall of Fire.

3 Keyleth’s Feeblemind

The Payoff For Perseverance

One of the biggest arcs in Campaign One was the rise of the Chroma Conclave. Just as Vox Machina thought they had hit their stride, and righted the wrongs of those across Tal’Dorei, four ancient dragons descended on Emon and reduced it to ruin. This arc was the longest of Campaign One, lasting 46 episodes, as the group had to explore the continent to locate the Vestiges of Divergence – legendary weapons capable of defeating such old and powerful dragons.

While the pressing threat appeared to be Thordak and his minions, it soon became clear that Raishan – the crafty and intelligent ancient green dragon – could end up being a far more terrifying adversary. As the only member of the Chroma Conclave to survive their run-in with Vox Machina, the group end up in an overwhelming show-down on Raishan’s turf. It’s evident early on that Raishan is a truly formidable foe, and the fight quickly takes a sour turn – with both Percy and Scanlan dying. With three legendary resistances in the fight, it seems like Raishan will be the end of Vox Machina.

Until Keyleth, who had saved her high level spells for when all Raishan’s legendary resistances had been used up, casts Feeblemind (which requires an Intelligence save) on Raishan. Despite her not being able to instantly succeed, Raishan has proved to be a highly intelligent being, and it’s evident the entire cast – Marisha included – is skeptical about the spell succeeding. But, as Matt reveals, it turns out to be one of her worse saves, and the spell reduces Raishan to a mere dragon, unable to cast spells or perform intelligent actions. This spell single-handedly changed the tide of the battle, and the relief in everyone’s faces proves just how important Keyleth’s spell was.

2 Jester’s Modify Memory

Combining Items With Spells To Outsmart An Enemy

Those who’ve seen Campaign 2 will know that Laura Bailey’s blue tiefling Jester is the definition of chaotic good. While she usually has harmless intentions, trouble has a way of finding this pesky prankster. Occasionally, Jester’s antics result in some of the most creative and unexpected moments, and her Modify Memory instantly became the legendary event of the campaign.

As the Mighty Nein took turns attempting to bargain with the old and intelligent Hag who cursed Nott to remain a goblin, Laura searched her inventory for an item DM Matt had given them countless episodes ago and had a brilliant idea. Sprinkling the Dust of Deliciousness over her last blueberry muffin, nobody at the table thought it was strange when a wildcard like Jester offered half of her last muffin to the Hag. As confused as the DM, the Hag accepted the muffin and ate it, not realizing that the magic powder on the muffin gave them disadvantage on Wisdom saves and checks.

This is where Jester’s genius Modify Memory came into play. The spell requires the target to make a Wisdom save, which is often a high skill for a Hag, but with the blueberry muffin on her side, the Hag failed the check. You can see the moment when all the players realize Jester’s plan, and a ripple of utter thrill when it works. Jester tricks the Hag into thinking they’d agreed to release Nott’s curse, and somehow, the Mighty Nein left those negotiations with the Hag having lost nothing, and having gained the most important thing: Nott being restored to her true form. This moment stands as one of the most creative and legendary events in Critical Role history, one that Critters are not likely to forget any time soon.

1 Scanlan’s 9th Level Counterspell

A Highly Important And Deeply Emotional Choice

There have been a lot of epic moments in Critical Role’s history, but undeniably, one of the most legendary events was Vox Machina’s final battle against Vecna – a fight that the entire campaign had been steadily building towards. Moments away from defeating what’s generally believed to be the final boss of D&D (tarrasque aside), Vecna begins to cast a spell to escape his fate.

Above table, Sam was sitting on his 9th level spell. But, as the only character with Counterspell, everybody at the table looks to him to stop Vecna’s escape. After confirming with the group that it’s the right choice, Scanlan Counterspells Vecna and keeps him there for Vox Machina to defeat. Scanlan has a few examples of clutch Counterspells throughout Campaign 1, but this one is particularly devastating because Sam was saving his 9th-level spell to cast Wish to try and save Vax from having to die and become the Raven Queen’s champion. After casting, Sam is deeply emotional, and a quick conversation with Liam has both friends in tears. At the climax of both an epic fight and a 100+ episode campaign, this Counterspell is famous among Critical Role fans.