Critical Role – “To the Hounds!” (Campaign 4, Episode 9, Part 2)

Recorded: December 23, 2025
Podcast: Critical Role
Host & GM: Brennan Lee Mulligan
Main Cast: Wickham, Teor, Cadogan, Thimble, Wick, et al.

Episode Overview

This episode continues Campaign 4's arc in the town of Ty Breezley (often mispronounced comedically by the cast). The party investigates a potentially suspicious hospital linked to the Candescent Creed, navigates local political and magical intrigue, and embarks on a high-stakes infiltration of Castle Dhalani to rescue Teor’s brother. The session crescendos with tense stealth, intrigue, and a climactic confrontation in the castle’s dungeons, ending with one party member in mortal peril.

Themes:

• Paranoia over hidden plots in seemingly benevolent institutions
• Distrust of religious/political alliances
• The morality and dangers of necromancy/resurrection
• Classic heist/infiltration hijinks with improvisational disguises

Key Discussion & Story Points

1. Return to Ty Breezley and Hospital Recon

• Setting Description: The town is vibrant with festival preparations. The hospital, a repurposed granary, is central to festivities and aid (02:42).
• Party Dynamic: The group debates the wisdom of investigating the hospital versus maintaining stealth, riffing on their notorious reputations and disguise abilities.
• “Every time someone sees her, no offense, they freak the fuck out.” — Teor (07:17)
• Plan: Ultimately, Thimble, Cadogan, and Tyranny plan a covert survey of the hospital while Wickham and Teor support from nearby.

2. Gift Shop Shenanigans

• Wickham tries to curry favor with Thimble by shopping for a gift, leading to a comic misunderstanding about fairy traps and local superstitions (13:40–18:05).
• “Fairies love this honey… they get stuck, they get exhausted, they fall in the holy water and it kills them dead.” — Shopkeeper (17:39)

3. Surveilling the Hospital

• Thimble rolls consecutive natural 20s for perception and stealth (20:26), observing the benevolent Lux Aretea at work, feeding and healing the poor.
• Suspicious Event: Taconis guards arrive, one with lion-sized claw wounds, enter the hospital from the castle direction (27:13).
• “Those are more comparable to a lion’s claws.” — Brennan Lee Mulligan (27:23)

4. Debates on Necromancy and Resurrection

• The party suspects the hospital’s benevolence might mask necromantic activity, especially with references to the dead returning and a fever plague (36:13–41:14).
• Notable table talk about the metaphysics of resurrection in this setting, confirming that only gods could restore someone fully in soul and mind (40:12–41:00).

5. Festival and The Lord’s Public Conversion

• The narrative shifts as Lord Gontri Talkeep arrives with his wife’s coffin, publicly converting to the Candescent Creed and sparking public mourning/celebration (44:43–48:54).
• “I come bearing the body of my wife… She is gone. I wish for her soul to know the light.” — Lord Talkeep (47:33)
• The mass gathering provides the party a perfect distraction for castle infiltration.

6. Infiltrating Castle Dhalani

• The group debates entry points and various disguise options, including illusions of cookies and impersonating minor nobles (50:04–56:13).
• Eventually, Thimble scouts ahead over the wall, witnessing key NPCs (Univere, Doset) plotting and movements around the cellar—realizing the "target" may move soon (58:09–61:11).
• “Men, to me. We leave tonight.” — Doset (61:00)

7. Using the Egg—Magical Invisibility

• The party activates their mysterious “egg,” granting true invisibility and enabling a stealth crossing of the castle courtyard (67:20–70:00).
• “You all have gained the invisible condition.” — Brennan Lee Mulligan (67:45)
• Exceptional stealth rolls (several natural 20s) let them bypass guards and enter the castle's secondary keep undetected.

8. Dungeon Delving: The Search for Teor’s Brother

• In the wine cellar, hints of foul play emerge: recent torch removal, caged areas, ominous reports from a talking rat about unnatural deaths (75:55–86:35).
• “They vanish, but they don’t rot. I can’t smell them anymore.” — Rat (86:04)
• Thimble discovers a hidden door with a secret stone (83:00–86:51).

9. Climax: The Trap Is Sprung

• The hidden corridor leads deeper, but the party triggers an alert. Tyranny (disguised as Octis Taconis) attempts deception with a group of Taconis guards and an imposing Saramai Knight (92:44).
• Saramai Knight: “If you were Octis Taconis, you’d already be dead.” (94:54)
• The knight unleashes a chained basilisk (or similar petrifying lizard). Tyranny must save against petrification as the episode ends on a major cliffhanger.

Notable Quotes & Moments

• On Distrust of the Hospital:
  “I don't trust you.” — Cadogan (04:55)

• On Necromancy:
  “...there are limits to necromancy. You can come back, but not like you were, and not without terrible, terrible costs.” — Brennan Lee Mulligan (41:00)

• On Stealth Tactics:
  “You guys full side shimmy, silent as the fucking grave.” — Brennan Lee Mulligan (69:48)
  “We should plan to take one of these carriages the fuck out of here…” — Teor (70:11)

• Comic Relief:
  “It's just a little boner. I’m just a rock hard...” — Wick, as Tyranny faces petrification (96:07)

Important Timestamps

• Hospital Discussion & Plans: 04:25–13:02
• Gift Shop/Fairy Trap Scene: 13:40–18:16
• Stealth/Surveillance at Hospital: 20:26–28:00
• Necromancy/Spirit Rules Discourse: 40:12–41:14
• Lord’s Public Conversion/Procession: 44:43–48:54
• Castle Infiltration Planning: 50:04–61:11
• Egg Activated, Stealth Sequence: 67:20–70:00
• Dungeon Search, Rat Talks: 75:55–86:35
• Basilisk Trap/Cliffhanger: 92:44–end

Final Beat & Next Steps

The episode ends with the party—spooked, exhausted, but together—deep beneath Castle Dhalani, freshly revealed, and facing overwhelming odds. Tyranny stands petrified (or on the edge of it) as the Saramai Knight springs a deadly trap. The rescue attempt for Teor's brother now hangs by the thinnest of threads.

A beautifully chaotic and tension-filled session, rich with improvisation, high fantasy intrigue, and the kind of character comedy/tension only Critical Role delivers.