State of the Role 2026

State of the Role 2026 Recap

Critical Role’s first live State of the Role was a sprawling update on upcoming shows, games, charity events, and live appearances—with plenty of unscripted chaos. The stream’s audio repeatedly went “crunchy,” prompting jokes about cables, Omar being sent to fix things, and the hosts trying to talk through the glitches. They also admitted the live format was partly a response to viewers calling the prerecorded updates stiff.

Shows and Stories on the Way

• The Long Rest is becoming a monthly Beacon-exclusive, sleepy-time story podcast, with two stories per episode. Its first installment, Sunday Fun Scaries, features tales from Exandria and Candela Obscura, read by Luis Carazo and Taliesin Jaffe.
• All Work No Play is back on Beacon. Sam Riegel and Liam O’Brien’s new season turns their 50th birthdays into an excuse for adventures in London, Edinburgh, Berlin, and Japan, plus local outings and a Sam-themed birthday special. The hosts joked that the party was also a “deeply” roast—and that Sam even read sponsor copy to his family.
• Shattered Legends, a mid-November miniseries made with Hololive, is set in a previously unexplored corner of Exandria. Matt Mercer and Marisha Ray lead a cast of VTubers through a self-contained, dark fantasy story inspired by the group’s interest in Berserk and Soulslike games. The hosts emphasized that it won’t interrupt Campaign 4 and encouraged Critters to welcome the new players.
• The Reign of the Were Dragon, a live Daggerheart miniseries, begins January 13 with Chris Perkins GMing the campaign frame he helped create. After each episode, viewers will get a live workshop and Q&A with Perkins, where their suggestions can shape later sessions—the players, amusingly, will be sent away for that part.
• Weird Kids Season 2 is already on Beacon, with Ashley Johnson and Alison moving further into the show’s strange meta-narrative.

Live Shows and Tours

The London O2 show will arrive on Beacon November 3 and YouTube November 30. A Fort Worth Grog-themed holiday one-shot is planned for Beacon on December 11 and YouTube on December 22.

The announcement trailer for the 2027 Nerdy Best Friends live shows revealed three different GMs and adventures:

• Sam in Toronto in April, featuring the Darrington Brigade
• Brennan Lee Mulligan in Indianapolis in August, returning to Aramán
• Matt in Stockholm in November, for a Bells Hells adventure

The reveal was staged like a dramatic contest to choose a GM, complete with mock suspense and Laura being asked to make the selection.

Games, Music, and Community

• The first Daggerheart expansion, Hope and Fear, is out, and the team said more is in development.
• Battle of the Bards, a Critical Role Foundation charity one-shot, will stream live November 17. Matt will GM, with Ashley, Sam, and guest performers competing in a bard contest. Donations can affect the game in real time.
• The Critical Role Foundation has raised $362,264 so far in 2026. U.S. shop customers can now round up their orders for charity at checkout.
• Rock Beasts, a character-driven, darkly comic game about managing a 1990s animal band, has a demo on Steam. The hosts highlighted its music and management gameplay, branching outcomes, and high replayability.
• The Marquet music album is available on streaming services, and the Winter’s Crest holiday vinyl is back in stock.

The hosts also confirmed that The Legend of Vox Machina Season 5 is in production, said The Mighty Nein Season 2 is finished with more updates to come, and teased future video-game news. Marisha mentioned playing Shiva in Final Fantasy VII. They didn’t have a Calamity movie update and said there’s no new Campaign 6 announcement to share.

In the Q&A, the cast explained that episode length has practical limits: production work and crew schedules matter, even if they’d happily play forever. They also clarified that Shattered Legends will run alongside, not instead of, Campaign 4. The stream wrapped with more audio trouble, affectionate crew shout-outs, and a stack of trailers.

Personalities Featured or Discussed

• Critical Role hosts: Matt Mercer, Marisha Ray, Travis Willingham, and Laura Bailey
• Also featured or mentioned: Sam Riegel, Liam O’Brien, Ashley Johnson, Taliesin Jaffe, Robbie Daymond, Brennan Lee Mulligan, and Chris Perkins
• Shattered Legends cast: Nerissa Ravencroft, Mori Calliope, Shiori Novella, and Gigi Murin