Over the years, Critical Role has featured plenty of romances across its Dungeons & Dragons campaigns and one-shots. These include the angst-ridden yet sweet love between haughty noble Percival Del Rolo and strong-willed ranger Vex’ahlia in Campaign 1, and the intriguing will-they-won’t-they dynamic between warlock Fjord Stone and the bubbly tiefling cleric Jester in Campaign 2.
Critical Role cast member and co-founder Laura Bailey takes center stage in both romances, and it’s easy to see why. Bailey isn’t afraid to challenge character dynamics, whether her character is tricking a hag with a magical cupcake or slicing and dicing her greatest enemy. However, Bailey completely changed the game when she kickstarted a unique romance in Campaign 3.
The Rise of Imodna
During her recent Founders Favorite interview on Critical Role’s streaming service, Beacon, Bailey reflected on some of her favorite moments in Critical Role history. One stood out: the rise of Imodna, aka the romance between Imogen Temult (Bailey) and Laudna (Marisha Ray).
In Campaign 3, Bailey played Imogen Temult, a human sorcerer. A country girl whose psychic and telepathic powers made her a social outcast, Imogen found peace only after meeting Laudna, an undead sorceress and warlock whose patron is the foreboding, despicable necromancer Delilah Briarwood, known to Critters from Campaign 1 and the animated series The Legend of Vox Machina.
Throughout Campaign 3, the two found a new family in the party Bells Hells. From the start, it was clear Imogen and Laudna felt strongly for each other. While it certainly seemed romantic — who can forget Imogen’s jealousy arc in Bassuras? — there were some Critters who weren’t quite convinced that the relationship was anything beyond sisterly.
However, in episode 65, “Path of Vengeance,” Bailey confirmed that Imogen’s love for Laudna was far from platonic with a single, beautiful question: “Can I kiss you?”
It’s easy to see why Imogen and Laudna’s romance was such a pivotal moment for Bailey. As the co-founder explains in Founders Favorites, she didn’t see the kiss coming. And considering how shell-shocked the rest of the cast was, she may not have been the only one.
“I wasn’t planning it, and I was nervous as hell, and I don’t know why I chose that moment!” Bailey reveals in her Founders Favorites interview. “All of a sudden Imogen didn’t know what she [Laudna] was thinking, and she had to ask.”
The kiss came shortly after the pair reunited following a cataclysmic event that forced the party to split, teleporting them to two different locations in Exandria. After fearing for the other’s safety, and with the added tension of massive reveals about Exandria and its gods, their desperation to reunite was palpable the moment Imogen and Laudna laid eyes on each other again.
What made this moment so exemplary was that, while they were apart, Imogen found a new magical item that kept her from hearing anyone’s thoughts — including Laudna’s. After having Laudna in her head for so long, Imogen had no idea how Laudna felt, so she took the plunge and confessed her feelings.
Though unplanned, Imogen and Laudna’s love became a key focal point of Campaign 3’s overall narrative. While Imogen struggled to hear everyone else’s thoughts, Laudna’s thoughts only brought her peace wherever she went. Though the world had cruelly rejected Laudna for her appearance and grotesque abilities as a Hollowed One, Imogen saw her only as beautiful and wonderful. Despite being outcasts, they found safety with each other.
Imogen and Laudna’s romance continues to grow strong
With Imogen and Laudna’s romance established halfway through Campaign 3, Critters had plenty of time to watch the relationship’s highs and lows. One of the biggest hurdles was Delilah Briarwood, whose control over Laudna meant the two never really had any privacy, and Delilah always risked taking over Laudna’s body for her own.
Thankfully, that risk was eventually flipped on its head. During episode 103, “Cages,” Bells Hells and Essek Thelyss trapped Delilah’s soul in an anchor that is embedded inside Laudna. Although Delilah wasn’t gone for good, she was no longer a problem, letting Imogen and Laudna keep planning a future together—a future they thankfully achieved by the end of Campaign 3.
Though Bells Hells would go on to have several more adventures together, not much else is known about Imogen and Laudna beyond settling down in a quiet cottage and secretly getting married sometime after Critters last saw them in Campaign 3. However, since there’s always been a wedding one-shot for Bailey’s romances, we don’t doubt an Imodna wedding one-shot will happen sometime in Critical Role’s future.
Until then, like Bailey, we’ll keep reminiscing about one of Critical Role’s greatest — and bananas — romances of all time.
Critical Role Campaign 3: Bells Hells is available to stream on Beacon and YouTube.