AC Spotlight: Crits and Calamity
We sat down with Raymond, the multi-talented GM, dice maker, and producer behind Crits and Calamity.
Welcome back to AC Spotlight! We spoke to Raymond, the General Manager, dice maker, and stream producer for Crits and Calamity. Crits and Calamity is an actual play channel and gaming community that brings the authentic, cozy feel of a home game around the kitchen table directly to online audiences.
From Kitchen Tables to Custom Molds
While many actual play creators jump straight into digital production, Raymond’s journey started five years ago around his own kitchen table right outside his front door. Wanting to give back to the TTRPG community and share their home game with a broader audience, Raymond took the leap to bring their adventures online. However, his creativity doesn't stop at world-building Raymond is also a self-taught dice maker.
Without fancy industrial equipment, Raymond adapted his past experience of working with concrete to master resin molds. Through days of trial and error and painstaking patience to eliminate air bubbles, he crafted his very first custom teal dice set. Crafting dice is now a passion project he shares with the community through live giveaways.
“We wanted to try to add something more to the community, and kind of bring the home game aspect to actual play.”
“The Gods Are Imprisoned” and Tight Table Dynamics
When it comes to storytelling, Raymond draws deep inspiration from actual play icons like Matt Mercer and Brennan Lee Mulligan, shaping a dark, high-stakes homebrew world where magic is outlawed, deities are locked away, and dangerous cults align with an oppressive regime. From terrifying encounters with haunted straw dolls to burnt-down hag cabins, the campaign delivers a mix of horror, high fantasy, and heartfelt character arcs.
To keep the stream running smoothly, Raymond balances narrative freedom with clean pacing. While the group leans into the “Rule of Cool” to entertain their audience, Raymond enforces a strict “written-in-stone” rule regarding the Help Action to prevent overwhelming dogpiles of skill checks, keeping the audio and visuals crisp for the viewers.
A Labor of Love and Evolving the Craft
Behind the scenes, Raymond handles everything from setting up table-mounted camera rigs and audio levels to managing prep work streams and social media. Though self-admittedly evolving his skills in digital marketing and video editing, Raymond considers the endless hours of production a true labor of love to showcase the incredible stories built by his core party of former co-workers.
With a packed schedule featuring bi-weekly campaign streams, behind-the-scenes prep sessions, and video game streams, Crits and Calamity continues to grow its passionate community.
You can find Raymond and the Crits and Calamity crew here.
Watch our video interview here.