From Dusk Till Faun

is the fourth episode of 4-Sided Dive, discussing up to with guests Erika Ishii, Taliesin Jaffe, Ashley Johnson, and Matthew Mercer. Taliesin served as the night's Tavern Keeper.The secret word was "sticky".

What the fuck is up with that?
Deathwish Run, what the fuck is up with that (and where did it come from?
 * It came from Matt's collaboration with Bashir Gaus on the Hellcatch Valley and Bassuras - they both felt that an intense, deadly race full of automata and explosives, used as a form of entertainment for the people of the city, would make a lot of sense. Matt then ensured Ashton and Fresh Cut Grass were aware of it as a possibility and waited to see if the party would pursue it, which they did.
 * Everyone discusses the possibility of future skyship battle, similar to what Matt and Erika experienced in Escape from the Bloodkeep. The party is also not sure if they can take their crawler back on the Silver Sun.
 * Taliesin asks people for their favorite part, and Matt's favorite is that the only thing All-Minds-Burn ended up doing was dropping a boulder...after every competitor other than Bells Hells had been dispatched. He was also surprised by the choice to weld FCG in as the wheel, which made things very different as he was able to cast while racing. This led to Matt including some more difficult obstacles and creatures like the kagaronk to increase the challenge.
 * The kagaronk is based on a creature designed by Crystal Sully for Dwarven Forge.
 * Erika felt that putting FCG in as the wheel would be very funny and urged the party to do so after it was initially brought up, but was surprised they went through with it.

'''At what point did [Matt and Erika] decide to be assholes? (in regards to the Dusk/Yu reveal)'''
 * Matt and Erika began discussing this in October, and Erika already wanted to play a changeling, and in discussions with Ashley wanted to play something that allowed them to "get messy." Matt then brought up the possibility of being tied to Fearne's story given the shared fey connection. The two of them discussed the Feywild and the courts and Erika decided on the Unseelie Court, at which point Matt told her that this would tie into a plot to assassinate Birdie and Oleander Calloway. They were excited to do so.
 * The Dusk persona was developed about a week prior to the filming of, though Erika developed other false identities for the character as well. They hoped to play on expectations to trick people (eg, Erika hoped people assumed that they didn't realize that elves don't sleep), while still providing some hints to Dusk's true nature.
 * Taliesin still hasn't seen the one-on-one scene with Dusk and Zathuda, but Erika showed it to Ashley after the filming of.
 * Taliesin and Ashley didn't suspect Dusk at all! Matt enjoyed watching the cast's expressions during the hints Erika had dropped; Travis and possibly Liam seemed to show some doubt, and eventually Chetney confronted Dusk in-game about them. This made sense to Matt as Travis and Marisha are often the cast members who do the most analysis and theorizing, and Marisha seemed suspicious, though he doesn't think Laudna was.
 * Taliesin agrees that Travis was probably the only person who figured anything out in advance. Matt later agrees that it made sense for Chetney to figure it out.
 * More seriously, having a PC play an antagonist as a surprise was something they could do because everyone at the table knew each other very well. Erika brings up the "Lines and Veils" principle and similar guidelines for setting boundaries in RPGs in cases where the table isn't as comfortable with each other or have not yet shared those boundaries.
 * Matt agrees and adds that it's difficult to balance the narrative aspects too, in terms of not wanting to upset anyone else but wanting to explore those antagonistic qualities. He and Erika didn't know quite what would happen.
 * Among the possibilities: Yu could have been a boss battle; they also could have killed a player character and assumed their identity. Matt and Erika texted throughout the game based on what was happening.
 * About 30-40% of what Yu says is true or based in truth, and the rest is manipulation and lying.

Bonus question: Favorite fictional parental figure?
 * Erika names Gomez and Morticia of the Addams Family and the cast digresses to talk about Addams Family Values.
 * Taliesin says the parents from Spy Kids.

The Tower of Inquiry: Round 1
Matt discovers that the tower is not merely sticky (which, incidentally, is the secret word, said by Taliesin, whose prize is having to pull the next brick); it has since been glued together so that the new tower can be used! Matt and Taliesin pull eight bricks without reading the questions in order to set up the new Tower of Inquiry.

Paige Hellbaum: How much of your backstory do you like to write and how much mystery do you leave for the DM to fill in? - pulled by Matt
 * Matt gives all of his backstory to the DM :)
 * Taliesin usually allows a good amount for the DM to fill in, and usually gives only his character's perspective. Ashton is the first time he's added slightly more context, beyond just what Ashton knows, because he had some specific ideas in mind...though he's not sure what Matt will do with them.
 * Matt and Taliesin briefly discuss the "combination of absolute trust and continuous teetering mistrust" the cast holds for Matt. Because he understands their boundaries, they trust he won't do anything that crosses them, but they also know he could do anything else.
 * This briefly turns into a discussion of how a surprise birthday party could be seen as a betrayal to some; it's important to understand what people are okay with!
 * Ashley tends to not make very detailed backstories, but will add to them throughout the campaign - she learned this in part from Sam, who does this. Matt agrees that this is a great option! As long as you aren't contradicting previously established information or drastically changing the backstory, it's valid to add to it later on. She also enjoys being surprised, and a more open backstory allows for that.
 * Matt elaborates that Fearne feels like a natural progression for Ashley; because of Ashley's commitments she wasn't able to be present for much of the Vox Machina campaign and so she couldn't do too much with Pike (though The Legend of Vox Machina has allowed her to develop more); she was able to do much more with Yasha, but Yasha was also a quieter character; and so she can really let loose with Fearne.
 * Erika agrees; it's also very campaign-dependent. She often is contracted for specific amounts of time for actual play, so she will in those cases provide a fairly in-depth backstory (as she did for Yu).
 * They then go on to talk more about Dusk's story specifically - they wanted to have the party underestimate them.

Faye: If Kiri spent a day with your character, what phrase would she pick up and mimic? - pulled by Taliesin
 * Taliesin promptly answered for Ashton: "Fuck, Fuck shit, fucking fuck, fuck shit. Don't touch me." Or, "don't you fucking touch my shit", which is that versatile as the word smurf.
 * Ashley (in Fearne voice): "I was just lying" or "I don't know".
 * Erika feels that Yu, as a changeling, having ability assume any form and personality, do not possess any phrases characteristic of their essence.
 * Taliesin came up with the idea for a player changeling to take form of a kenku and get ready for a memory exercise, attempting to integrate into a player party. Attempt to remember all the phrases said around, potentially tricking them to believe that they actually travelling with a kenku.
 * Picking one among hundreds of NPC, Matt thinks Kiri would have picked up "cookies are ready" from Eshteross, whom he accidentally made a baker. Matt considered that, being a retired, paranoid warrior, he would become lonely and would welcome any guest who came within his circle of trust. Matt felt that it made sense that he would have a "soft core" and would be excited to host, so he felt that baking as a hobby was the natural development.

Trivia

 * The drink special was "Yu-Drivers", a pun on Screwdriver, referencing the Deathwish Run and Yu Suffiad.