If you’ve spent any time on TikTok or YouTube Shorts lately, you’ve probably seen a blue, high-pitched creature named Gricko screaming about bugs or a terrifyingly polite clown offering suspicious deals. That’s the chaos of Legends of Avantris Once Upon a Witchlight. It isn't just another Dungeons & Dragons actual play. Honestly, it’s a fever dream captured on camera.
Most D&D shows try to be the next Lord of the Rings. They want high stakes, weeping heroes, and orchestral swells. Avantris went the other way. They leaned into the absurdity of the The Wild Beyond the Witchlight module and turned it into a masterclass in improvisational comedy.
People are obsessed. Like, actually obsessed.
The show follows a group of "lost things" trying to reclaim what was stolen from them in the Prismeer, a domain of delight (and occasionally horror) in the Feywild. But while the module provides the skeleton, the cast provides the soul. And the lungs. There is a lot of screaming.
What is Legends of Avantris Once Upon a Witchlight actually about?
At its core, the campaign is an adaptation of Wizards of the Coast’s official adventure, The Wild Beyond the Witchlight. The hook is simple: the characters visited a magical carnival as children, lost something precious to them, and now they’re back as adults to get it back.
But the "adults" in question are absolute disasters.
Take Gricko, played by Mikey. He’s a Snernefblin (deep gnome) who is essentially a chaotic neutral toddler with the vocabulary of a sailor and an unhealthy obsession with "crunchy" things. Then you have Gideon, a knight who is basically a golden retriever in plate armor, and Frost, who brings a much-needed (but often ignored) level of deadpan stoicism. The chemistry isn't just good; it's volatile.
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The Feywild is the perfect setting for this specific group. In the Feywild, rules aren't about physics; they're about etiquette and reciprocity. You can't just kill your way through problems—well, you can, but the consequences are weird. The cast of Legends of Avantris Once Upon a Witchlight understands this perfectly. They play with the "Rule of Three" and the "Rule of Reciprocity" in ways that make Dungeon Master Derek’s life a living hell. It’s brilliant.
Why the "Gricko" clips went viral
You can't talk about this show without mentioning the clips. If you search for Legends of Avantris Once Upon a Witchlight, you're going to find the "Chuck E. Cheese" bit or the "Gricko's Guide to Bug Eating."
The virality comes from the speed. These performers come from improv backgrounds, and it shows. They don't wait for a beat; they create it. When Mikey (Gricko) starts a bit, the rest of the table—Nikki, Mace, Richie, and Andy—don't just laugh. They "yes-and" the situation into a fifteen-minute tangent that somehow circles back to the plot.
It’s authentic.
Many high-production D&D shows feel sanitized. They feel like they’re being performed for an audience. Avantris feels like a home game where everyone happens to be incredibly talented at voice acting. You see the wheezing. You see the players falling out of their chairs. That's what people want in 2026. They want to feel like they're at the table, not watching a scripted TV show with dice.
Breaking down the cast and characters
The roster is where the magic happens. Every character feels like a distinct comedic engine.
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- Gricko (Mikey): The breakout star. A tiny, blue agent of chaos. His obsession with "treats" and his complete lack of a social filter drive the slapstick energy of the show.
- Gideon (Mace): The heart. He’s a Paladin, but not the stick-in-the-mud kind. He’s earnest to a fault, which makes him the perfect foil for the darker impulses of the party.
- Frost (Nikki): The straight man... mostly. She provides the grounding the group needs, though she’s just as likely to join in on a bit if it involves mocking the Fey.
- Chuckles (Richie): If you like creepy-funny, Chuckles is it. A clown with a voice that sounds like a rusty hinge, his interactions with the hags of Prismeer are highlights of the series.
The DM, Derek, deserves a trophy. Or a nap. Probably both.
Running a game for five improv actors is like herding cats that have been drinking espresso. He manages to keep the narrative moving while allowing for the sheer stupidity that makes the show great. He knows when to pull back and let them riff and when to drop a hammer of narrative weight that reminds everyone that the Feywild is actually dangerous.
The "Hag" encounters and the stakes of Prismeer
Despite the comedy, Legends of Avantris Once Upon a Witchlight actually respects the source material. The three hags of the Hourglass Coven—Bavlorna, Endelyn, and Skabatha—are genuinely unsettling.
The show handles the "theft" aspect of the module beautifully. In this campaign, losing your "sense of direction" or your "ability to keep a secret" isn't just a roleplay prompt; it becomes a fundamental part of the character's mechanics and personality. When the party finally confronts these hags, the tension is real because the players have spent fifty episodes building up the emotional weight of what they lost.
It’s a rare balance. One minute you’re crying because someone made a joke about a sentient teapot, and the next you’re genuinely worried about the soul of a child trapped in a gingerbread house.
How to start watching (without being overwhelmed)
The sheer volume of content can be scary. We're talking hundreds of hours of footage.
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If you're looking to jump into Legends of Avantris Once Upon a Witchlight, don't feel like you have to start at episode one and watch every second. Many fans start with the "Shorts" or "Best Of" compilations to get a feel for the humor. Once you're hooked, the "Carnival" arc is the essential starting point.
The production value also jumps significantly as the show progresses. The early episodes are great, but once they get their studio setup dialed in, the audio quality and the use of digital maps really elevate the experience.
Actionable Steps for New Viewers
If you're ready to dive into the Feywild with the Avantris crew, here is how to maximize your experience:
- Start with the "Best of Gricko" compilations on YouTube. This gives you an immediate sense of the show's humor and whether it matches your vibe before committing to a 3-hour episode.
- Watch the "Witchlight Carnival" arc (Episodes 1-10) first. This sets up the entire motivation for the characters. If you skip this, the emotional payoffs in the later "Hither" and "Thither" arcs won't land as hard.
- Check out their Patreon or Discord. The Avantris community is one of the most active in the TTRPG space. They often release "behind the scenes" content that explains how they come up with their character voices and bits.
- Use the "Chapters" feature on YouTube. Their episodes are long. If you're short on time, use the timestamps to skip to the big encounters or the heavy roleplay moments.
- Don't ignore the other campaigns. While Witchlight is the flagship, their other games like The Crooked Moon offer a different, spookier flavor of the same high-energy improv.
The beauty of this show is that it reminds us why we play games in the first place. It isn't about the math or the perfect build. It’s about sitting around a table with friends and laughing until your ribs hurt. Legends of Avantris Once Upon a Witchlight is the gold standard for that feeling.
Check out their official YouTube channel or find them on Spotify. Just be prepared to have "The Chuckles Voice" stuck in your head for the next three weeks. It's an occupational hazard.