Critical Role Campaign 4 just explained why House Tachonis killed Occtis

House Tachonis isn't messing around

Critical Role has never shied away from killing characters off — whether that be well-loved NPCs or members of the party itself. Campaign 4 is no exception, with the death of a significant character kicking off the events of the main plot in the very first episode. Only a few episodes later, a player character was brutally murdered — and after the latest Critical Role episode, we finally know why.

[Ed. note: This article contains spoilers for episodes 1, 4, and 18 of Critical Role Campaign 4.]

Since the beginning, Campaign 4’s world of Aramán has proven to be punishing. Ever since the defeat of the seven Shapers (gods who ruled over the different people of this fantasy realm) at the hands of mortalkind, environmental hazards like relentless storms, areas of eternal darkness, and corrupted celestials have wreaked havoc around the world. Magic has also become unstable and doesn’t work like it usually does in Critical Role’s previous campaigns, which allows Dungeon Master Brennan Lee Mulligan to revamp many Dungeons & Dragons spells to fit Campaign 4’s world better.'

Because magic is so unstable, spells like Revivify are next to impossible to cast, which is what made the death and resurrection of Occtis Tachonis (Alexander Ward) in episode 4 of Campaign 4’s overture such a monumental moment. After his brother, Ethrand, dealt a critical hit, Occtis’ heart was torn from his chest and replaced with the Stone of Nightsong. Because Thaisha Lloy (Aabria Iyengar), who was also dying at the time, reached out to tell him it wasn’t his time to pass to the afterlife, Occtis didn’t cross over. However, he was still dead — right up until Bolaire (Taliesin Jaffe) and Murray Mag'Nesson (Marisha Ray) miraculously extracted the Stone of Nightsong from his body, a feat that required Ray to use a natural 20 roll with her diviner wizard Portent ability, reviving Occtis as an undead 'Hollow One.'

Why did House Tachonis kill Occtis?

After episode 18, “Vindicta & Vale”, the Seekers' table discovered why House Tachonis sacrificed one of their own during their exploration of the holy temple of Tansul, Tannesar. Tansul, the Shaper of humans, feared that the orc Shaper, Azgra, wanted to wipe him out of existence. To prepare for this, Tansul instructed his priests on how to sacrifice themselves (namely, by giving up their hearts and bodies) to turn themselves into the ultimate weapon — a celestial monster that would seek revenge on Azgra and the orcs if such a threat arose. This celestial would be known as the Deva Vindicta. Each Shaper had their own celestials, beings of great power who, after the destruction of their masters, turned corrupt and mad and were ultimately put down by mortalkind. If someone were to make their own celestial now, they would gain a weapon of mass destruction.

House Tachonis saw the power in having their own celestial nuke and decided to experiment with making one. In putting the Stone of Nightsong (a key ingredient for creating a celestial due to being made up of celestial remains) in Occtis’ chest, House Tachonis believed they could turn Occtis into an angel of death to use against their enemies. As Mulligan tells the players during the final segment of episode 18, House Tachonis was trying to destroy the houses of Davinos and Royce, but ultimately failed because of the circumstances which helped bring Occtis back to life — Thaisha telling Occtis not to walk the path. As Mulligan explains in episode 18 of Cooldown, “Thaisha betraying her druidic orders is what saved Aramán.” Thaisha Lloy, MVP.

What does House Tachonis plan to do next?

While House Tachonis’ plan to create an angel of death failed, the Seekers table discovered it didn’t just end there. One key reason House Tachonis failed was their pride: they believed their innate ability as sorcerers allowed them to cut corners and still create a celestial. Tachonis' innate power over death also caused their experiments on family members (such as Occtis' cousin Tertia) to fail. They needed someone with no innate magical ability, like Occtis.

However, that doesn’t mean House Tachonis will stop trying. We know from previous episodes that House Halovar has a celestial locked up in a basement, and if House Tachonis wants their own magical beast, they’ll need to find a way to even the score beyond having an undead army.

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Campaign 4 of Critical Role is available to watch live on Twitch, YouTube, and Beacon.tv on Thursday nights at 10 p.m. PDT. If you can’t catch the episode live, Critical Role posts the episode to YouTube the following Monday at 3 p.m. EDT/12 p.m. PDT.