2023 has been a great year to be a nerd. We got Starfield, Baldur’s Gate 3 (BG3), and The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom. Taking that a step further, being a D&D nerd has been fabulous, too. Dimension 20, Critical Role, and other popular streams have been killing it. However, one group took it a step further. Watching a D&D stream based on a video game based on a D&D storyline is pretty meta. That is right; today, we are talking about High Rollers Presents: Shadows of Athkatla, in which the BG3 cast voiced their characters.
Tell Me About High Rollers
High Rollers is the UK’s largest D&D stream that is live on Sundays at 5 pm GMT. Dungeon Master Mark Hulmes is typically accompanied by Chris Trott, Kim Richards, Rhiannon Frost, Tom Hazell, and Katie Morrison. It is an offshoot of Yogscast, and the founders of High Rollers have been playing together since 2016. It also appears that their campaign three will be starting in November 2023.
The Players
This two-part one-shot centers around BG3; the players are the voice actors playing their respective characters.
| Player | Character | Class |
| Mark Hulmes | Many | Dungeon Master |
| Tim Downie | Gale Dekarios | Wizard |
| Neil Newbon | Astarion | Rogue |
| Devora Wilde | Lae’zel | Fighter |
| Jennifer English | Shadowheart | Cleric |
| Samantha Béart | Karlach | Barbarian |
| Theo Solomon | Wyll | Warlock |
| Amelia Tyler | Narrator | Sight Reader |
High Rollers Presents: Shadows of Athkatla Story
I do not want to give away any spoilers for my friends who have not yet watched the stream; however, I want to give a bit about the main story. There are some minor Act One spoilers from BG3, so if you have not finished Act One, I recommend holding off on this. The stream begins after our adventurers have had a lovely night’s sleep. Suddenly, Tav, the custom BG3 character, is shrouded in a sickly green and yellow light. They begin convulsing and levitating while their party members watch in horror. It is up to our adventurers to save the day!
Thoughts
When Amelia Tyler read the intro, I immediately knew I was in for a treat. Watching players enjoying their first D&D game is always a delight. They do not seem to get as caught up in the rules and usually try to do something that sounds fun. This stream was no different. The players laughed, strategized, and appeared to enjoy their time. Watching Theo Solomon listen to Mark Hulmes intently was positively delightful. I highly recommend watching these streams if you are a fan of BG3 or D&D.
Odds & Ends
They are available on YouTube and Twitch if you want to watch these streams. Fans looking to devour more D&D content should check out my article on popular streams and podcasts. I have linked these streams in the table below.
| YouTube Videos | Twitch Videos |
| Stream One | Stream One |
| Stream Two | Stream Two |
