Previously On...

is the eleventh episode of 4-Sided Dive, discussing up to with guests Ashley Johnson, Liam O'Brien, Marisha Ray, and Taliesin Jaffe. Ashley was the host, and after the break they played Moving Out.

What the fuck is up with that?
Creating Nana Morri: how much was Ashley, and how much was Matt? Ashley was inspired by the birdhouse her mother made to create a character who had lived with a hag, and gave Matt notes about the house, but Nana Morri's design, including her two faces, was Matt's design. However, Ashley was aware prior to meeting Nana in-game, and the two collaborated heavily on the rest of Ligament Manor. Ashley came up with Fearne's room and the various creatures. (The rest of the cast remarks on how fun it is that Fearne's Wildshapes are always fun animals like quokkas and shoebills.)

'''How did it feel to be in the Fey Realm? How did your characters feel about it?''' Orym wished he'd had more time, as the party was very focused on their task and couldn't linger. Ashton and Laudna both loved it because it was nonsensical and new (Ashton) and weird and creepy (Laudna). Out of character, while Marisha and Taliesin thought the fey dragon was intense, Liam loved doing a break-in to the Shiver Keep. Dani compliments the cast on the use of the portable hole in the encounter.

'''The Apogee Solstice! How do you think we did?''' They think it was right down the middle, which Marisha says that Matt confirmed on the ride home from filming. The rolls for Beau and Caleb were not very good. Marisha is glad she had Laudna destroy the power sources and Ashley and Taliesin agree that it helped, though Marisha also wishes the attempt to convince Liliana had been successful.

How did it feel when Caleb and Beau showed up? Marisha found it was almost like being in a fugue state; Liam said that for him, it came later, but he had been wondering ever since mentions of the Cerberus Assembly appeared. He's glad it happened, and both of them wish they'd rolled better. Ashley and Taliesin remark on the difficulties of avoiding metagaming, since how they as players feel about the members of the Mighty Nein is different from how their Bells Hells characters feel. They also note that Bells Hells is lower level than Beau and Caleb, and much lower level than Ludinus. Getting back to the prior question on how they did, Ashley liked the plan to crash the Silver Sun into the Malleus Key, and Liam liked attacking Otohan's backpack, and they all wish those had gone a bit better. Taliesin remarks that at least they took out some Ruby Vanguard and Paragon's Call henchpeople.

On Keyleth and Vax: Vax is a lens and Keyleth was bait. Marisha and Liam both say that they were pretty much unable to conceptualize anything or talk much from then on, and all the cast (except Sam and Travis) couldn't sleep that night. Liam explains that he never really expected to see Vax again, so that was already a shock, but on top of that, it put the attack on Zephrah into perspective. Liam had proposed that an attack had been the cause of Will's death, and Matt had added as a detail that it had felt like a test - the long game was that the Vanguard had confirmed Vax would show up.

Ashley then asks how Marisha or Liam would feel if one of their characters is dead. They say they trust Matt, and Marisha says she'd be more able to let Keyleth go than Beau; it would be ironic given that Keyleth's concern had always been that she'd outlive everyone she loved, but Vox Machina's story, to the cast, feels more closed than the Mighty Nein's, which feels like they have split up and spread out but continue to adventure in their own ways.

Bells Hells is separated! Taliesin has nightmares about where Ashton, Orym, and Laudna are, but he's not sure. Marisha and Liam weigh in; they can see Ruidus so they assume they're in Marquet or at least the same hemisphere. They're also not sure if they've moved in time and not just space, though Dani points out the apogee solstice is ongoing. They wonder if they'll get a second shot to try to sabotage the key. They all discuss how hard it was to figure out how to approach the problem of sabotaging the key; Ashley wasn't sure what to do. Marisha elaborates on seeing Keyleth and doing the math on her HP in her earth elemental form. The cast also talks about how Orym is really the only grounded one in the party. He and Taliesin compare it to a party where everyone is Grog and Orym is Keyleth.

On Deanna and FRIDA: Marisha thinks it's good that they're there to balance out Fearne, Chetney, Imogen, and FCG's half of the party. FRIDA seems grounded. Marisha really likes seeing Aabria play Deanna, who is such a contrast to Laerryn. The cast all compliments Aabria's sense of humor and ability to turn on a dime, and are excited to see Christian Navarro as well, who always makes very interesting and unexpected characters.

What was it like for you all to watch from afar, instead of from the table? They're a little jealous they weren't playing, but as Marisha says, whenever she has a chance to watch instead of playing, she realizes how good the show is. Taliesin had originally planned not to watch and to find out later, but ended up listening to it. Marisha remarks that it's so funny to have a viewer's perspective - because she sits next to Travis, she so rarely sees his facial expressions, but she noticed them when Laudna was dead and she was watching from backstage. Ashley agrees - it's fun to watch the rest of the cast act, especially when you can truly be a viewer and not a participant.

Outro
Broomie appears to still be alive and watching from an unknown location.

Trivia

 * The drink special on the chalkboard during the Twitch countdown was "SunnyD (with vodka)" in reference to Aabria Iyengar calling Pelor SunnyD in.
 * Vax compressed into a lens, as depicted in, was represented by an obsidian mirror with a sticker name tag ("Hello, my name is Vax"). This mirror is a prop from.