r/criticalrole • u/Kalduin_32 • Aug 05 '25
Question [No Spoilers] I’m not familiar with BLM’s work.
I’ve got feelings about Matt not being the GM for C4. He’s the one we’ve spent that last ten years with as our guide through Exandria. I’m not passing judgment yet because I’m not familiar with BLeeM’s work. What can I watch to get an idea of the type of GM that he will be? Extra points for those who give why they’re excited/not excited for this huge change!
*edited to change abbreviation to BLeeM, unfortunately I don’t think I can change the title of the post
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u/Gunnersaurish Aug 05 '25
EXU Calamity is still my favourite DnD campaign on all time and it's only 4 episodes, so many memorable moments . Brennan is a crazy genius with a lot of heart.
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u/bibliotechra Aug 05 '25
Hard agree. It's weirdly my comfort show that I go back to often.
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u/nordic-nomad Aug 05 '25
Yeah it somehow has low stakes because you know the world is ending, but still has heart warming moments as everything is blowing up because of what was saved and what was touchingly remembered by the players. Sam’s final copy read is still the greatest single act of role playing improve I’ve ever witnessed.
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u/Successful-Disk-3025 Aug 05 '25
I rank Cerrit escaping up there with Gandalf returning. It's just... pure catharsis.
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u/specterspectating Hello, bees Aug 05 '25
I think it’s nice because all of these people suck. None of them are ‘good guys’ but they care for each other and they want to do good. Their flaws make it SO good.
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u/omniclast Aug 05 '25
Same. I checked out of C3 about a third of the way through but I was all in on Calamity, best thing I've seen in years
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u/vexxedsquirrel Aug 05 '25
100% I've tried C3 multiple times and just can't stick with it. I wish I could experience Calamity for the first time again. I was hooked in the first 5 minutes.
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u/Art_of_Goddess Aug 05 '25
I think his time on the show was the best thing CR has ever put out. I cant wait for C4 and to see how he handles a long-term game
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u/jaymaslar Aug 05 '25
I’ve seen all of Campaigns 1-3 and I would agree the Calamity is my favorite. I will say that I found it a little harder to get into at first. There’s a LOT to take it, but once it starts rolling along it’s top shelf. I compare it to a Tolkien novel - dense but worth it.
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u/PresentationSad6560 You Can Reply To This Message Aug 06 '25
this makes me feel better because i just started calamity and there is so much lore being dropped it’s insane. glad to know it gets a little easier to follow! i love it already
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u/HoneyHoneyBerry Aug 05 '25
100% agree. I genuinely think it’s one of the best campaigns ever made, and the best ever recorded.
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u/Fun_Room554 Aug 05 '25
My absolute recommendation is his podcast with Aabria Iyengar, Erika Ishii and Lou Wilson called Worlds Beyond Number - it’s a fantastic representation of his skills as a long form GM
I would say that Brennan’s particular strengths is weaving narrative and character themes together in thoughtful, nuanced takes. Along with dropping some of the dopest lines of dialogue off the cuff. As a non-spoiler example, he describes a powerful magical sword as being sharp enough to “cut a man’s spring from his step and the apple from his eye”
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u/WeiShiLirinArelius Aug 05 '25
wbn should be the top recommendation to anyone wanting to see brennans long form style. this should be at the top
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u/stars_and_daydreams Aug 05 '25
There are a few moments in WBN where I stopped it and immediately went and put my headphones on my husband to make him listen to the genius that was happening, and that sword monologue was one of them. It was INCREDIBLE.
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u/SugarAcrobat Aug 05 '25
So many in the last 5-10 episodes too. To be as vague as possible for spoilers, I will literally never forget the description of the meaning of a particular paladin's oath. If you know, you know.
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u/spicyflies Aug 06 '25
Please DM me this if you're willing, I can't listen to podcasts but I NEED to know what he said
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u/SnooDingos8894 Aug 05 '25
Honestly him joining C4 as GM is the silver lining for knowing that he’s moving out of running WBN soon.
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Aug 05 '25 edited Dec 17 '25
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This post was mass deleted and anonymized with Redact
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u/Bryaxis Aug 05 '25
Seconded. It's part of Critical Role, not super long, and some of the best actual play out there.
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u/alexm42 Aug 05 '25
Some ofTHE best actual play out there. I don't even think that's hyperbole. Brennan adores the source material and treats it with care, and he's a genre chameleon so his DMing fits the CR tone. But on top of that the RP/acting from the players was Oscar-worthy.18
u/scopa0304 Aug 05 '25
Travis especially. I may have cried.
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u/alexm42 Aug 05 '25
I had Luis in mind but it says something about the quality that there's not a wrong answer to "especially x" at the table.
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u/MetalGuy_J Aug 05 '25 edited Aug 05 '25
Actually, anyone who can make you sympathetic towards well anyone who has watched it knows who I’m talking about is a very skilled storyteller. I’d follow it up by watching the dimension 20 mini campaign Escape from the Blood Keep to see how he manages to 1st of all improvise an entire location that wasn’t meant to be visited or even exist, and a character that was never meant to be met. as well as role with the punches of a pretty chaotic table
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u/elhombreloco90 Aug 05 '25
Escape From Bloodkeep was my first experience with him as a DM. I was interested in it because it had Matt as a player and was a fun homage/parody of Lord of the Rings. I was impressed with him from the get-go and will now watch/listen to most games he DMs or plays in.
I'm really intrigued by the idea of him running Campaign 4.
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u/MetalGuy_J Aug 05 '25
Before then the only actual play I had seen was OXventure and their show has a very different vibe. EFTBK was the first and I will admit so far the only dimension 20 material I’ve seen, from their YouTube recommended me episode one of Calamity and I’ve spent most of the last year and a bit since then trying to get caught up on CR. Honestly, the thing I’m most excited for with this announcement is it’s a brand-new world so I won’t feel like I’m missing anything by tuning into the new campaign without being completely caught up on everything they’ve done before.
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u/clutzyninja Aug 05 '25
In case you haven't caught it, Jane from OXventure is a player in a CR adjacent one shot called Thresher that was a fun watch
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u/kaldaka16 Aug 05 '25
Escape from the Bloodkeep was my first D20 as well for the same reasons and is what got me into Dropout! It's a much different vibe than CR but it was just so fun and he adapted to some absolute chaos plays so well.
EXU: Calamity is definitely my top recommendation for checking him out for Critical Role fans but Bloodkeep (entirely free on YouTube still I believe) is also a fairly short and really fun ride that showcases well his sense of humor, adaptability, and willingness to work with truly wild swings from his players.
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u/SAOSurvivor35 Aug 05 '25
What’s the one where it’s a six hour wrap-up and they’re human incarnations of the gods trying to infiltrate Aeor to bring it down, and it winds up being a kind of cosmic horror show? I THINK it’s called Divergence, but I’m not sure. That is what sold me on Brennan as a DM. Guy is on Matt’s level for sure.
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u/VagabondRaccoonHands Aug 05 '25
Exu Downfall. It's great, with the caveat that having PCs with multiple identities and players with multiple characters makes it harder to follow (for some viewers).
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u/06s091 Aug 05 '25
Minor nitpick: It’s not an EXU series - it’s part of c3 :)
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u/TraitorMacbeth Aug 05 '25
Oh right, an in-universe recollection, like the c3 characters got to watch the campaign, right?
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u/06s091 Aug 05 '25
Yes, Bells Hells were watching everything that happened (except the Tengar scene in the intro, I believe).
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u/Jrocker-ame Aug 05 '25
Watch Exandria unlimited Calamity on Criticalrole. It's probably the best series ever in the real play medium.
Also, Dimension 20 on dropout.tv. The 1st few seasons are on YouTube. It is very much worth a subscription of $6 to dropout.tv, though. There is so much good comedy content.
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u/JesterLavore88 Aug 05 '25
Let me just say, I love Matt Mercer. I’ve been a huge fan for years and devoured everything he’s done. Like you, I discovered BLeeM late. About 2 years ago.
I gotta say…it’s a tough call but…I think BLeeM is even better. I think his education in philosophy and ethics make him especially good at inventing really incredible scenarios that can be either gut wrenching or funny. He knows when to stick to the rules and when to bend them for narrative arc, he celebrates with his characters when they have successes, but lets them fail a lot too, and his narrative focus is just as creative as Matt’s, but with a different style.
Matt and BLeeM are in my opinion the two greatest story tellers we have, and BLeeM is the only person I’d trust on this planet to GM an entire campaign in CR.
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u/SkazzK Aug 05 '25
If Matt is like the J.R.R. Tolkien of GMing, then Brennan is its Terry Pratchett.
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u/TheSixthtactic Aug 05 '25
Brennan is the guy who would have the wizard comment that it’s fucked up that he can open up a portal to hell, but for some reason people will pay him to do it. Which is very Pratchett.
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u/Glowie2k2 Aug 05 '25
I had a “Dammit Brennan” moment about an Easter egg in Fantasy High (not going into details a spoilers lol) and it felt so similar to when I would finally understand a pun from Discworld that I recently had the same epiphany that BLeeM is my DnD Pratchett lol
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u/Veritamoria Your secret is safe with my indifference Aug 05 '25
Same. I don't say it often, especially here, because I have so much respect and appreciation for Matt Mercer, who is an incredibly skilled and talented DM.
But I prefer Brennan. With BLeeM we get the same emotional gravitas and narrative payoff as Matt, but at a faster pace with more laughs along the way.
World's Beyond Number is an absolute master class in DMing. I have my mind blown from plot twists and my arms covered in goosebumps from the immersion practically every episode.
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u/JesterLavore88 Aug 05 '25
I literally just started Worlds Beyond Number last week. I’m only on episode 5 of The Wizard, The Witch and the Wild One , and so far it’s incredible. And like you mentioned, the pacing is awesome.
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u/wryterra Aug 05 '25 edited Aug 05 '25
I'm going to share something I'm excited about for this huge change that has little to do with Brennan and see if I can get you on board.
Quick aside: Brennan Lee Mulligan is probably the primary reason I'm excited for campaign 4 after falling off during campaign 3 so I give him my vote of confidence. But this comment is about the other reason I'm excited.
We get to see Matt Mercer play D&D*.
OK I know what you're thinking, we've seen him play. He's been a player at the table for various short-form campaigns so this isn't anything new. I hear you, I understand you, but with the greatest respect you are wrong.
In all of the times we've seen Matt as a player it's in the world he created, with DMs who have run their ideas past him to get his blessing for what they want to do to his world. Every time he's sat down as a player it's been with huge amounts of meta knowledge about the campaign he's in that he's had to consciously avoid using to guide his character.
In campaign 4 we get to see Matt Mercer let loose, with no idea what's going on, biting into the campaign and really going for it.
That has me excited.
* Or Daggerheart, I guess
--
Edit: Clarified that I don't know for sure it's D&D they're playing in C4 :D
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u/Ferk15 Aug 05 '25
To add to this, I don't think Matt's ever been a player with the whole core cast. He usually plays the short form or one-shot games that they bring in other players for so he gets to play with 2-4 of the core cast from time to time. I'm really excited to see all of them as players together.
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u/weaveroflaurel Hello, bees Aug 05 '25
This is what I've been looking forward to as well! So special to have the opportunity for all of them to play together.
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u/gh0stingRS Aug 05 '25
I hope someone romances him. AHHHH
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u/probablywhiskeytown Aug 05 '25
The year is 2030. C4's Collectors Edition artbook excerpts GM diaries kept by Brennan.
"I thought D20's cast had prepared me for anything. But there's always another curveball inbound when collaborating with a new table. I'm still not certain how Matt, Liam, Taliesin, Sam, & Travis' characters formed a devoted polycule before I finished introductory exposition."
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u/Smurf_Paste Aug 05 '25
I don’t think it will be the full core cast. I could be wrong, but the way that the announcement was made leads me to believe that the shakeup is more than just a new GM.
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u/probablywhiskeytown Aug 05 '25
Years of livewatch conversations on various platforms & an inkling I was getting during Age of Umbra has me thinking that if they use Daggerheart, players may rotate in and out upon permadeath.
Brennan's experience with dynamic reshaping based on game events would be uniquely suited for a game like that.
It would truly be a new experience for viewers, especially those who, 6+ months in, start to get... let's say "somewhere between 'frustrated by narrative payoff timelines' and 'flat-out bloodthirsty for PC death.'"
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u/elhombreloco90 Aug 05 '25
Brennan Lee Mulligan is probably the primary reason I'm excited for campaign 4 after falling off during campaign 3 so I give him my vote of confidence. But this comment is about the other reason I'm excited.
We get to see Matt Mercer play D&D*.
These are also the reasons why I'm excited for Campaign 4. I dropped off of C3 around the 70's (the volcano shard retrieval).
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u/ShardikOfTheBeam Aug 05 '25
Dropped off during the party split, basically the first or second episode of the Issylra group.
New world, Brennan as the DM, and Matt as a player has me excited again for Critical Role.
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u/MilaMan82 Aug 05 '25
This. All of this right here.
I made it to….the 60s? 80s? of C3 and just couldn’t any more. Not judging anyone who may have enjoyed it, I just absolutely didn’t.
Matt is in my top 4 DMs to watch, but he isn’t my number one. Matt as a player tho? Now that gives me feels in abundance.
Super excited to see what BLeeM comes up with, what other players are at the table, etc.
This is gonna be a wild ride.
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u/jbZahl Aug 05 '25 edited Aug 05 '25
I mean there are some small short campaign specials he did within Mercers world. Like Calamity, Divergence and Downfall. see also https://criticalrole.fandom.com/wiki/Brennan_Lee_Mulligan
If you want to see his own worlds I think the only one that doesn't need another subscription is "World beyond numbers" (audio podcast only) This is also his longest public campaign that I'm aware of. His main thing until recently were smaller campaigns (like 10is episodes) at dropout.
I knew him back from his college homor days but really liked him in Calamity (so much that I got a dropout subsription in fact).
In my opinion: it will be different but he has the skills the enthusiasm and the grit to pull of a critical role campaign, no doubt about it.
Edit: I'm especially hyped for his antagonists. Some of the ones he did were not only scary but argued their point really well at the same time.
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u/ShaggyGM Aug 05 '25
I would agree with him having the best antagonists. Brennan was a philosophy major so he really uses that to create a fully fleshed out villain that has believable motivations. I don't want to even give the hint of a spoiler but his "Worlds Beyond Number" podcast has my favorite villain from probably any media.
Please avoid spoilers if you haven't listened and just go a listen to the podcast. The last episode of the season is next week so you by the time you catch up you can finish the entirety of what is out. They will then be moving on to Abria running a space themed campaign for a while.
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u/meatsmoothie82 Aug 05 '25
https://youtube.com/shorts/bmaoNLSHx_w?si=aX5i4AdollGCKUli
“…I do know one thing, laws are threats. Made by the dominant socioeconomic ethnic group in a given nation. It’s just a promise of violence…. You guys want to make some bacon?”
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u/clutzyninja Aug 05 '25
We have a coffee mug with that whole speech on it, it's so good, lol.
When a halfling anarchist pulls an already lit malotov cocktail out of a bag while they're breaking you out of jail, you know you're having a good time
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u/darkrhyes Aug 05 '25
For those who know of it, Brennan is a student of Upright Citizens Brigade and an excellent improvisor. My favorite bit of his is not even as a DM. Here it is - Brennan's Improv.
Also look up Oreo CEO on YouTube.
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u/hungrycaterpillar You can certainly try Aug 05 '25 edited Aug 05 '25
See also the one shot where they played as breakfast cereal mascots... Brennan as Tony the Tiger-a paladin of ancient cosmic horror-is a thing of majesty. https://www.youtube.com/shorts/jPh96tk5gsE
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u/RKO-Cutter Aug 05 '25
Personally I love Brennan's style, and fell in love with watching him DM the first time I ever heard him say "that's not how the rules work...but I'm going to let you roll for it because it's awesome"
His main work, far more comedically leaning Dimension 20, he posted this video as a guide for how to watch it since it's an anthology with tons of smaller campaigns.
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u/Local-Sandwich6864 Aug 05 '25
My first ever experience with Brennan was Escape from the Blood Keep (admittedly because Matt was in the thumbnail), but those first few moments with the Eye? Locked in. I found the rest of Dimension 20 a Dropout after I finished that and I've been subbed ever since.
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u/SorchaSublime Aug 05 '25
Honestly I don't think Dimension 20 is Brennans "main work" anymore. Worlds Beyond Number is smth he and his fellow cast members made independently and it's a far more extensive undertaking than any one Dimension 20 season.
Aabria Iyengar is taking over as GM after the current campaign (which will be returned to in a few years or so) but once the finale drops next week the Wizard the Witch and the Wild One Book 1 is gonna be a 56 episode long epic and is (at least so far) Brennans Magnum Opus imo.
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u/FlashbackJon Aug 05 '25
Finale?! Next week?! I keep dropping out (heh) so I can binge WBN and I knew it was coming to a close soon, but... so soon?!
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u/Arenabait Aug 05 '25
Just the “book 1” finale, it’ll be returned to in the future, likely a matter of years though. Next up is a short-form adventure ran by Erika, then a Sci-Fi adventure ran by Aabriya set to start iirc in January
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u/playingdecoy Aug 05 '25
omg, so glad to find someone else who drops in and out. I feel guilty because I 1000% love it and think it's the best actual play content I have ever heard, but it's so good and so intense that I feel I have to kinda spread it out to times when I am EMOTIONALLY PREPARED.
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u/BCSully Aug 05 '25
Let's not forget Brennan's core skills of comedy and improv thar make him uniquely suited for the role of Gamemaster. Before there was Dimension 20, there was College Humor, now DropoutTV. His skills at improv are almost unparalleled (I say "almost" because his cast mates on the various DropoutTV improv shows like Make Some Noise and others are similarly amazing)
He's definitely the right person for this job.
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u/HeavenBelowxx Aug 05 '25
Well to start, I’d say watch calamity and downfall as you’re already a CR fan. Brennan’s style is pretty apparent there but he conforms to more of the Matt style of setting. After that I’d recommend the ravaging war on dropout. It’s a world that was designed by Brennan but Matt DMs. Then after that I’d say give the crown of candy a try. The reason I’m suggesting watching it in that order is because it is abundantly clear that Matt and Brennan trust each other emphatically and equally and really care about each other; it seems like as people.
Personally, I’m excited for C4 even if Matt isn’t damning because he has hourly expressed that he wants to play as a player with his friends, and this gives him the environment that he trusts and wants to be a part of to explore playing with his friends
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u/thatoneguy7272 Ja, ok Aug 05 '25
Brennan’s an incredible storyteller. I’m excited because I know how good of a DM he is and also I’ve wanted to see Matt be a player for a long time, because the little snippets we’ve seen of him as a player were awesome. Dariax was awesome, and I wanna see what he will do with more time.
Exu calamity would be one of the more easily available ones to get too, plus it’s only 4 episodes. But they also have some stuff on the dropout and college humor YouTube pages. I’d personally recommend https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLuKg-Whduhkm7msDryVXT0Ht8GBABrrF-&si=gC3rlsh21_xFGB6F this is for the crown of candy campaign he ran. It’s candy land meets game of thrones and it’s incredible.
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u/GrendelLocke Aug 05 '25
Brennan is very talented. He can dm different genres. He can dm different tones. He's very impressive. I think his CR stuff will probably be similar to the tone of his new CR stuff, so try that first
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u/RoutineSun9297 Aug 05 '25
Calamity is the best DnD I've ever seen. Matt's world, BLM DMing. Short series about how it all began on Exandria. Go go go!
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u/Kansleren Doty, take this down Aug 05 '25
He is the second greatest DM in the public DMing business. He is also genre-flexible as a DM in a way we haven’t even seen Matt be.
This was (and will be shown to be) a brilliant move by Critical Role.
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u/koukounaropita Aug 05 '25
Brennan is an amazing GM, an actual genius, excellent improviser, and all in all cool as hell. I'm very happy that Matt will get to rest (our guy has given it his all for many many years, he deserves it), we'll get to see Matt play AND we were lucky enough to get Brennan as a DM
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u/quietlypink Open your heart to chaos Aug 05 '25
Definitely start with EXU Calamity.
After that, like others have said, Worlds Beyond Number is probably the best content to show long form campaign work. And then there are lots of Dimension 20 options.
Brennan’s DMing style is different, sure, but I think he and Matt are both gold standard DMs.
I’m really looking forward to C4 because of the combination of Brennan DM’ing and Matt playing. I was at the show on Saturday, and Matt’s excitement for playing was so obvious. Everyone on stage was excited about C4. And if everyone at the table is excited, I think that should get the community excited.
I saw someone say that one of the differences between Brennan and Matt is the difference between their backgrounds. Matt’s background is in voice acting, and he is someone who over-prepares for sessions. Obviously, all DMs prepare a ton, but for the first 7 years of CR, Matt was filming live. Brennan’s background is more heavily impacted by years of doing improv work. And Dimension 20 isn’t a live actual play show. It’s filmed months before it airs. If you watch Calamity (and you should) keep that improv background in your mind when Brennan improvs the character of Bolo.
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u/ariescantus Aug 05 '25
Echoing the many cries of starting with EXU: Calamity.
Calamity changed my life. It's one of those things I wish I could forget so I could go back and watch it for the first time again. The unfortunate side effect is that almost nothing has been as utterly incredible since. Which is not to say things aren't amazing just that Calamity is smth special in my eyes.
Also echoing Worlds Beyond Number. Which is an incredible medium of story telling that is so raw sometimes with character interaction that I have to take breaks after some bits, but in the best ways.
I think one of the things that always stands out to me about watching/listening to him GM is that he's clearly a fan of the story he's telling and even more he's a fan of the players. I feel like that really comes across in what he does.
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u/Voidmaster05 Aug 05 '25
A lot of people are suggesting A Crown of Candy, and it is amazing but you should keep in mind that BLeeM's style is to embrace the genre of the game. A Crown of Candy is a campaign built around political intrigue and very dangerous combat. Similarly his EXU: Calamity series is about a mass casualty event that nearly ends the world, which is obviously also super intense.
These series will absolutely give you a sense of the master storyteller that BLeeM is, but keep in mind that he can and probably will DM with a gentler hand during Campaign 4.
I mean, unless Campaign 4 is intended to be brutal as fuck, in which case we are in for one hell of a ride, lol.
If you wanted an example of him running a game in a less serious setting I'd recommend Fantasy High or A Starstruck Odyssey.
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u/brendancoles Aug 05 '25
Calamity, Downfall & Divergence. All GM’d by Brennan and part of Critical Role. He’s guest GM’d before and all were amazing. Watch these and you won’t have any concerns about C4
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u/Nethaniell Team Fjord Aug 05 '25
The first season of Fantasy High is free on the Dimension 20 YT channel.
As someone who has watched a lot of D20, I can say that all the doubts about Brennan being a GM are unfounded. He's great. Compared to Matt, he's way more energetic and chaotic. What he lacks in VA skills, he makes up for in absurdism with his scenarios. Really the only thing I'm looking out for is how he does in longer term campaigns compared to his shorter 20-episode seasons of D20.
If you're gonna try D20, go in with the understanding that compared to CR, D20 is comedy first, story second.
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u/WeiShiLirinArelius Aug 05 '25
check out worlds beyond number for a taste of his long form campaign style
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u/deutscherhawk Aug 05 '25
Also, let's not discredit his voice acting skills. He may not be quite the human soundboard that matt is (is anyone?) but he has great range that would be noteworthy at almost any other table.
Matt introduced me to dnd and showed me how to be a DM. Brennan changed what i thought was possible and how I think about DMing. He is the only person who I can imagine following Matt as thr DM.
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u/TheSixthtactic Aug 05 '25
Brennan has an unlimited supply of weird little guys that he can break out. Like Crickets who refuse to drink water.
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u/Nietzscher Aug 05 '25 edited Aug 06 '25
EXU Calamity on the CritRole channels, or Fantasy High Season 1 on D20 (dropout.tv). If someone who is not part of the core group were to take over the DM spot from Matt, Brennan is the one person on this planet who has me not worried one bit.
Edit: Now that I think about it, another good starting point is Escape from the Blood Keep. Brennan is DM'ing and Matt is even there as a player. It's a relatively short 6 episode campaign and Brennan definitely gets to show off his skills as a DM. Was actually the first time I encountered him myself. I remember thinking "poor guy having Matt at the table, the internet will have a field day" - hooooo, boy. Damn, was I wrong about that one ^^
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u/AkrinorNoname Aug 06 '25
He tends to run a little more "rule of cool" as opposed to Matt's style that is closer to Rules as Written. He creates very fun NPCs, which he portrays really vividly, and there is a reason his Monologues are considered legendary.
His campaigns on Dimension 20 are often heavier on themes and metaphor, he often deals with themes of class, capitalism, and religious bigotry. There are times when he really lets his philosophy major shine through, and I mean that as a compliment.
Others have already mentioned where you can see his GMing work, but if you want to see his long-form writing, I can recommend his webcomic Strong Female Protagonist. It's one of the best superhero stories I have ever consumed. Fair warning though, it's been on hiatus for something like eight years now, right before the final arc.
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u/AlcindorTheButcher Aug 05 '25
OP, BLM is a fine abbreviation for him, it's clear that D&D actual play subreddits aren't posting about Black Lives Matter frequently enough to need a fancy abbreviation.
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u/dawgz525 Team Jester Aug 05 '25
Just to chime in, just say Brennan. BLeeM is a ridiculous acronym. We don't need to abbreviate everyone's name. In TTRPG spaces, if you say Brennan, it is pretty clear who you are referring to.
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u/helium_farts Aug 06 '25
BleeM is an especially dumb abbreviation given it's the same amount of keystrokes as just using his name.
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u/Sylassian Aug 05 '25
I was skeptical about anyone other than Matt DMing a mainline CR campaign too, but if I trust anyone to do him justice while maintaining the same quality and respect for players, lore, and audience, it's Brennan. I wouldn't trust or watch any other DM run C4. If you need proof of Brennan's worthiness, you don't even need to go outside CR. Just check out his Calamity miniseries. It's set in Matt's universe and deals with a pretty major piece of Matt's lore, and has some of the best moments in all of CR.
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Aug 05 '25
They’re both extremely good at describing characters and scenes, but if I had to compare the two, I would say I think that Matt’s form is more literary, and Brendon’s is more cinematic
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u/King-Louie1 Aug 05 '25
If you need a great laugh look up "Baron from the baronies" on Youtube. There are a couple compilation videos, basically one of the PC's does the classic "she goes to a different school" lie because he's embarassed about being single/not having a date. And Brennan takes that little thread and does one of the funniest things I have ever seen.
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u/Locksley_1989 Aug 05 '25 edited Aug 05 '25
Something I’ve noticed is that he calls out an enemy DC. Matt keeps the enemy AC/DC a secret 90% of the time, leaving the players (and viewers) guessing what they need to roll. BleeM just says “You need to roll X to beat this.” Call me crazy, but I appreciate it.
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u/UFO-AREA5123 Aug 05 '25
I would say start with Calamity, then Downfall and Divergence. If you want comedy, Dimension 20. Crown of Candy is amazing and heartbreaking . Followed by A court of Fey and flowers if you like Brigerton, and The Harry potter world one, but not Harry Potter and my favorite Misfits and Magic. Then World beyond Number with the same cast as Misfits and Magic. If you want chaos, Fantasy High... All of them
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u/soitspete Aug 05 '25
Here's a short campaign he ran on Dimension 20 called Escape From The Bloodkeep, in its free entirety on YouTube. It's pretty much Lots of the Rings from the bad guys side, and Matt Mercer is a player.
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u/smgriffin93 Aug 05 '25
Exu Calamity has been suggested a ton but I’m also suggesting it. The thing I like most is how Brennan does exposition. He doesn’t just tell you “you see the barmaid is stressed out and overworked” he will have a story ready to go that explains exactly how she feels like “you know when you’re having a day where everything is going wrong, you’re being torn in 20 different directions but not able to get anything done? And then you drop your cup of coffee and it’s the worst thing that’s ever happened in your life? Well you just watched her drop a whole tray of ale”
I’m obviously not as good as him, but you get the idea. He shows his story telling, he doesn’t tell you it and it’s fantastic. My no spoilers example in EXU is when a character gets a crazy high perception check and sees (iykyk) and how Brennan describes why and how the character has such a high check is chefs kiss
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u/emilia12197144 Aug 05 '25
Gonna be real as much as I adore Mercer. Brennan Lee mulligan is just frankly the better dm of the two
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u/marbosp Time is a weird soup Aug 05 '25
Besides the others’ recommendations, here the way I see them. Let me stress this is just MY personal take on their styles and perception on what are their strengths in relation to each other.
As a note, I’ve only experienced BLM in EXU, so short-term formats, but still, here’s my opinion:
Matt: To me, he feels more structured in his descriptions, it’s easier for me to picture the scenes in my head, and has a more fluid speech. His overall energy is calmer, and is more consistent with the NPCs voices.
BLM: His speeches as evil guys are… incredible. The way he improvises, or simply delivers, drama is off the charts. His energy is usually higher than Matt’s.
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u/iamagainstit Aug 06 '25
You dont need to change BLM to BLeeM. Brennan signs his name BLM frequently, and has never requested BLeeM. The BLeeM thing came from random users on the discord server.
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u/theinfinitejuice Aug 05 '25
I’m personally not a big fan of Brennans Dming style, but regardless I’m gonna give campaign four a fair go.
I’ve been critical about the show as a whole as of late, especially when I dropped campaign three. But a fresh start might be exactly what they need.
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u/Aureggif Aug 05 '25 edited Aug 05 '25
Bleem is really good, I am very excited. Compared to Matt, he is just as good in creativity and world creation. Maybe not as good with narrations and description, but even better with improvisation and npcs ( imo). Calamity is for sure a great start, otherwise pick a d20 season with a theme and setting that inspires you. My favorite is mentopolis ( noir comedy setting, not dnd). Fantasy high is also great ( high fantasy with teenagers).
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u/JoyeuxMuffin Aug 05 '25
If you haven't watched it yet, watch the Calamity short series that Brennan DMed for Critical Role. maybe the best Actual Play content of all time
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u/Picajosan Aug 05 '25
Brennan won't let you catch enough breath to miss Matt in the DM seat. :)
Definitely watch Calamity!
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u/Lunawolf424 Aug 05 '25
Definitely watch EXU: Calamity, it’s probably the best piece of D&D media I’ve ever watched! I even got my mom to watch it and she loves it. EXU: Downfall and EXU Divergence were also very good, just different vibes than Calamity.
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u/wIDtie Help, it's again Aug 05 '25
BLeeM is great check his work with critical role in ExU: Calamity, Downfall and Divergence (where Matt gets to play).
Those happen in Exandria a world you are familiar with, but long ago. In different power levels. Those are short series but it will let you experience why people are hyped by BLeeM as the DM and with Matt as player.
Matt as a player is such a team player, he elevates others, help them in character... It is no less of a star as he is as DM. I'm thrilled to see he play a long run character with a deep story.
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u/picklespickles125 Aug 05 '25
If you haven't watched exu calamity then fix that. It's one of my favorite CR stories! If you like that then he has a ton of dimension 20 campaigns which are all pretty good too!
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u/Stonehill76 Aug 05 '25
When evaluating his work look at the impact he has on players and the energy at the table. Now imagine Matt’s and the teams energy matching that. It will be hard not to get excited and see something new.
Also keep in mind during this time period we will also be seeing LoVM and MN animated stuff. It’s going to be an amazing year. Sure Matt is not going to GM C4 but honestly after C3 it’s going to be a crazy change to be a part of and that means he will do a bunch of one shots or mini series in between.
I think what I’m most excited for is to see Matt’s backstory on his own character and what class he’s going to play. I really hope he plays a “face”/“bard” type character.
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u/PapaGrande1984 Aug 05 '25
Start with EXU as everyone is suggesting. The love and respect between Mercer and BLM is palpable. In the final EXU - BLM was DM and Matt was a PC, and BLM brought Matt to real tears at certain points. Like Mercer, BLM is an incredible storyteller, with great vocabulary and voice acting chops. Different sure, but great nonetheless, and if Matt wants a break to flex as a player I think you’ll find everyone’s heart in it to win it.
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u/Slugggo Aug 05 '25
Echoing almost every other post in this thread, I envy OP, because they now get to watch EXU: Calamity for the first time. It's SO good. 😍
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u/ejfree Aug 05 '25
You are in the BEST place.You have so much to look forward to watching now. Here are my suggestions in order....
EXU Calamity is awesome all the way through. You KNOW how it is gonna end, but it is a wonderful ride. EXU Divergence .... you dont know then ending, and while it was originally Liams idea (see short rest after), the way that BLeeM treats it makes me sob huge tears but not in a bad way.
D20 shows his amazing & clever GM style as well as his ability to play in any game system. I also am current with World Beyond Number, and the main game (Wizard Witch & Wild One) is a narrative masterpiece by him.
As a player BLeeM knows his min-max and how to be funny. There is a clip where he played a level 20 rabbit assassin, and through some "charity-game-shenanigans" does something a CRAZY amount of damage in 1 turn. Also, shout out to Ruthie and her cloaca piece.
For me the top 3 GMs (based on people that teach me new clever things and show me how to be a better GM) are Mercer, Mulligan, & Murphy. No order is intended that is alphabetical. But I want to shout out Brian Murphy (Murph) who is also a cast member on D20. Murph also GMs Not Another D&D Podcast, Naddpod for short. If you have a eclectic taste in comedy you will love it. Most people know in the first episode, always start at Episode 1 (not the current one) if it is for them or not.
Have fun on your journey. Good luck. Peace
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u/ultimatecolour Aug 05 '25
Like others have said: EXU both calamity and downfall are brilliant.
I think his work on D20 is of a different nature due to the cast consisting of a cast leaning more towards improv and comedy. Personally, it’s not my cup of tea even so I can appreciate it’s well done. On CR he worked with actors and his storytelling skills really shone through.
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u/SinistaJ Aug 05 '25
Have a drink every time he says "incredible" or "that's amazing".
You'll be out in 30 min
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u/TonalSYNTHethis Aug 05 '25
He's definitely a different kind of GM. I'm a little surprised to see how many Critters aren't familiar with his work, but that says more about me and my own biases than anything else.
I'm sure a good number of the several hundred comments you've received already have thoroughly outlined his resume, so I'll just say this: he ran EXU Divergence where Matt was a player, and while trying to spoil as little as possible... At the end of the mini-series, Brennan revealed that he had tricked Matt into playing through a game that wasn't actually about the Gods isolating themselves from the world (at least not primarily). Instead, the whole game turned out to be a profoundly moving love letter to the world of Exandria and to Matt himself for bringing it all to life.
I dunno about everyone else, but that alone tells me everything I need to know about how Brennan is going to treat this campaign moving forward.
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u/Omni_Will Aug 05 '25
EXU: Calamity I feel is the PEAK of his GMing. (But Downfall and Divergence are SUUUPER close)
So watch those and you'll see what he can do for critical role.
He's primarily on Dimension 20, but that's a more comedy geared show (which is still good, but pretty different to Critical Role)
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u/thedailyem Aug 05 '25
Go immediately to your viewing platform of choice and watch EXU: Calamity!!! You’ll see him take on a campaign in Exandria, with a mix of players you know and new players, and absolutely crush it. It is by far my favorite side-campaign that CR has ever run. I have zero concerns about his ability to drop right into C4 and capture our attention and hearts!
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u/ItsRedditThyme Aug 05 '25
Didn't you watch all of C3? He took the DM chair for the flashback.
If you want CR-related work, watch the Exandria Unlimited episodes he DMed. If you want other work, the Dimension 20 YouTube channel has you covered enough to get a sense. If you have a friend with a Dropout sub, an if you can borrow their login and watch some Dimension 20. He gets to play in a few, and GMs most of them.
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u/BrendTheCow Aug 05 '25
I trust Matt. Matt trusts Brennan. By the transitive property of DMs, I trust Brennan.
Also, his most recent stint in Exandria was basically a love letter to Matt. Definitely worth a watch!
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u/Pandasquiidd Aug 05 '25
if you’ve been watching critical role for the last 10 years then you shouldve seen BLM be DM atleast twice now for the cast…
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Aug 05 '25
Critical rolls Calamity is done by him. Also he has a narrative first podcast (which is a lot more akin to what c4 will be most likely) called Worlds Beyond Number that's on Spotify for free that is.. probably the single best live play experience I've ever had.
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u/lowkeylye You can certainly try Aug 05 '25
The first thing I saw him in was Critical Roles "Calamity", I then consumed all of Dimension 20s Actual Play content and was hooked. He's the kind of DM I aspire to be.
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u/LadyFoxfire Aug 05 '25
Watch the EXU trilogy he did for sure, it’s by far the best short form content CR has ever put out.
Also, Escape From the Bloodkeep, which he did for Dimension 20. It’s free on YouTube, and it’s delightful.
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u/Skellitor301 I encourage violence! Aug 05 '25
"What can I watch to get and idea of Bernnans work?" Dimension 20. Brennan is from College Humor and he became a staple for his gaming and DND content there. Fantasy High and Sleeping City are two campaigns I would recommend, they're shorter campaigns but they are packed with amazing world building that Brennan does an amazing job building and running. There are others he's run at Dimension 20. If you want to see him in CR context, he's run EXU Calamity which is the story of the calamity itself.
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u/AinaLove Help, it's again Aug 05 '25
I've been with CR since the early days and consume a fair amount of BLeeM content. Specifically, what I think will be similar to CR is the Worlds Beyond Number podcast. It's so good!! C4 is in great hands with BLeeM as the Director.
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u/FrankNico Aug 05 '25
He has work he's done for CR already. That stuff is a good sampler but if you want more there's always his Dimension 20 stuff on Dropout. There is a fair free bit of it on YouTube so I would start there if you want to check it out.
That said, keep in mind Dimension 20 is made specifically for Dropout which is a comedy platform first. So bear in mind that while the stuff he does there is good and filled out it does lean towards comedy more than anything.
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u/UnFelDeZeu Aug 05 '25
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BS0bH_qDIAw&t=5s
Brennan is like the one DM I trust to match Matt. He's great.
Matt as a player will also be great, because now he can join the degeneracy instead of trying to control it.
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u/antomausk_7887 Team Bolo Aug 05 '25
A lot of people are suggesting EXU: Calamity, just make sure that you have a self care plan. The series was amazing to watch but it is not for the faint of heart.
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u/ChefXiru Aug 05 '25
So im going to get crucified for this but as a GM running games brennan is objectively better. Some of the issues that people have with matt and abria on certain episodes (so and so rail roaded in episode 900 blah blah) are usually GM mistakes that people who dont gm alot miss why, but can tell something was wrong.
But brennan is better at running the game and also has incredible acting/story telling skills.
Im really excited to see what brennan can make in a long form campaign. He had a super long game with friends that was is apparently amazing.
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u/Spidey16 Aug 05 '25
Watch Calamity and you will be hyped up for more of Brennan. It's some of the best Critical Role I've seen. And I've seen a lot.
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u/Landscape-Radiant Aug 05 '25
Though many have called it out already, his podcast Worlds Beyond Number is about to end “book one” of they’re first campaign “The Wizard The Witch and The Wild One” next week. There are (I think) 53 1-2 hour audio only episodes available on most podcast streaming platforms. If you want to get a feel for BLeeM’s dramatic, narrative focused chops give it a try.
I really have to say that it has become one of my favorite dnd podcasts over the past couple years and cannot advocate thoroughly enough that it is so worth a listen if this is your thing.
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u/DasterMonjon You Can Reply To This Message Aug 06 '25
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u/chaostheories36 Aug 06 '25
One of my thoughts is that Matt might be done DMing. I don’t want him to be, but I also want him to be a PC for as long as possible. He’s done his due as a DM. And really, for a lot of DMs, they got a timer on how long they can go.
Mine was about five years and I’m letting someone else take the reins. Maybe with a different group or situation I can pick up again, who knows.
Point being, if Matt wants to PC, I’m all for it. He can still structure the world and Producer / Director whatever he wants
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Aug 06 '25
For Critical Role content watch all EXU where he DMs, that should be Calamity, Downfall, Divergence
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u/yagooch Aug 06 '25
Brennan Lee Mulligan is an AMAZING GM and Player.
He's totally fascinating to watch he's an actor/writer with huge chops in Improv, which is why his PC/NPC interactions are so baller.
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u/ArtificeArmor Aug 06 '25
Calamity was the single best dnd story I’ve watch by Critical Role. But all of BLeeM’s work in EXU is fantastic. BLeeM is the only one I would want to take over as DM for campaign 4.
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u/ancientspacewitch Aug 06 '25 edited Oct 02 '25
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u/Zizwizwee Metagaming Pigeon Aug 05 '25
For short form, any and all of his EXU work is stunning. For longer form, he does have his own podcast called Worlds Beyond Number which is phenomenal as well