My husband commented the other day about how the only thing I watch now is Critical Role. He’s right. I haven’t found a TV show that has captured my interest. I tried watching True Detective on HBO max, but I quit watching halfway through. With Critical Role, I’m watching campaign #1 and campaign #3 at the same time, which takes up most of my time. One standout character from campaign #3 is Laudna played by Marisha Ray. I wanted to share how I feel about Laudna and how much I adore her.

Laudna is a gothic, creepy witch who seems like a sweetheart deep down. She’s close to Imogen (played by Laura Bailey) and it seems like Laudna is Imogen’s confidant. When Marisha described her look, it reminded me of Enchantress from the 2016 Suicide Squad movie except less smoky. Laudna is dressed in red and her gray, ashy skin seems pale and sickly. She’s a Warlock Sorcerer interested in death and decay. I like the creepy aesthetic of Laudna as I think it hasn’t been explored in any of the characters from Critical Role thus far. (As a side note, I haven’t watched campaign #2 yet, so there might be characters similar to Laudna that I haven’t been exposed to).

I like how Laudna has links back to the previous campaigns for Critical Role. Laudna is from Whitestone which is Percy’s hometown from Vox Machina. Laudna mentions how when she was young, the DeRolo family was killed, and the Briarwoods took over. This was a big arc in Vox Machina. I’m curious as to how Laudna leans. Was she involved in the Briarwood rebellion? Was she associated with the Briarwoods? I’m intrigued as to what Laudna’s true origin story will be.

I’m happy for Marisha as it seems like Laudna has become a fan favorite from the beginning. Marisha has been roleplaying characters from both of their campaigns. Keyleth, Marisha’s character from Campaign #1, received a lot of hatred based on the decisions Keyleth would make. Keyleth’s persona is that she’s inexperienced and a bit immature which didn’t resonate with some fans of Critical Role. Marisha discussed this on her Between The Sheets interview which I will link down below. Based on watching campaign #3 so far, it seems like Marisha is genuinely having fun and enjoying playing Laudna. The fans also enjoy Laudna and some of the fan art that’s been released on Twitter is so good.

It’s been a blast being able to watch a Critical Role campaign live. I came into Critical Role late, so I have been playing catch-up. While the episodes air on Thursdays, I wait till Monday to watch because I can’t stay up that late on Thursday nights to watch the full episode. I’m excited to see how campaign #3 plays out and how Laudna plays a role in the group.