Why Tiberius Stormwind Leaves Vox Machina In Critical Role (2024)

The Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying show Critical Role debuted its first full-length campaign, Vox Machina, with nine players, but ended with eight; here's why the Dragonborn sorcerer Tiberius Stormwind left the show. Critical Role has had three major campaigns now and experienced a lot of growth over the years, going from little-known web series to a Twitch streaming giant. The series has had some guest stars along the way, such as Joe Manganiello and Wil Wheaton, but the main cast, led by DM Matt Mercer, has largely remained the same — save for Orion Acaba.

Orion Acaba played Tiberius Stormwind for the first 27 episodes of Critical Role's first campaign, and then promptly left. Acaba had created quite the character in Tiberius. Fluent in Common, Draconic, and Dwarvish languages, Tiberius was born into a political family in Tyriex of Draconia, and he left his homeland to avoid having to join the Draconian council. Tiberius may have known his way around the battlefield, but he had a tendency to be chaotic and reckless, causing issues for the party from time to time. However, this wasn't the reason that Orion Acaba's Tiberius Stormwind left Critical Role.

Orion Acaba's Departure Meant Critical Role Killed Off Tiberius

Since Orion Acaba officially left the party, it meant that Tiberius Stormwind had to be killed off in Critical Role. Tiberius left Vox Machina during the journey to Whitestone. This occurred during the third story arc of the campaign, known as the Briarwood arc, in which the party travels to Percy's ancestral home and fights for control of Whitestone against Lord and Lady Briarwood. In the fourth story arc, the Chroma Conclave arc, the party must face off against four chromatic dragons. It was stated that Tiberius had gone back to Draconia at this point - which is unfortunate, considering that's where the dragons attacked.

Critical Role decided that the Chroma Conclave attacked Draconia, resulting in Tiberius' death. It's one thing for Tiberius to have gone off to his homeland to spend the rest of his days there, but it's another thing to kill off the character entirely after the player has left the show. After leaving Critical Role, Orion Acaba attempted to create his own spinoff series starring Tiberius Stormwind. However, the show didn't perform, and the episodes have since been taken off of YouTube. Tiberius Stormwind's departure and death had resounding consequences for Critical Role, with his character being scrubbed from subsequent adaptations like the animated The Legend of Vox Machina.

Why Orion Acaba Left Critical Role Explained

Initially, voice actor and Dungeons & Dragons player Orion Acaba left Critical Role without so much as a proper explanation. His departure was shrouded in mystery, causing rumors to run rampant. Acaba finally sent out an official statement, saying that he had left Critical Role due to health reasons. The announcement of Acaba's departure provided by the Geek & Sundry Twitch channel, on the other hand, didn't go into exhaustive detail, simply stating that Acaba would no longer appear on Critical Role due to a mutual parting. However, neither of these explanations seemed to satiate viewers, and the rumor mill began churning almost immediately.

One of the biggest speculations that haven't been confirmed by the cast or crew of Critical Role is that Acaba cheated. Some have suggested that Acaba would cheat with his dice rolls, to the point that other players were checking his roles to affirm he was being truthful. Other cheating accusations included using metagaming, which is a process in which a player uses outside knowledge that their character shouldn't know. Wilder allegations about Orion Acaba have hit the internet to explain the Critical Role player's departure, such as scamming from a crowdfunding project he started. However, these accusations are all unfounded.

Critical Role Has Ruled Out A Future Return From Orion Acaba

Despite Tiberius Stormwind's Orion Acaba stating that he left Critical Role due to health reasons, DM Matt Mercer has shut down any possibility of his return to the series - suggesting that something else could be at play. In a Reddit post, Mercer stated that he was glad Acaba was taking care of his health and making positive steps forward in his life. However, he added at the end, "That being said, and in hopes of ending the arguments and discussions within for both our sakes and his, there are no plans for Orion to ever return to Critical Role."

Another rumor is that Acaba left the series due to disagreements with the party. There have been accusations that Acaba sports a quick temper, leading to outbursts and arguments with the rest of the Critical Role cast and crew. The case of Orion Acaba and Tiberius Stormwind's departure from the Vox Machina party still seems to be a point of speculation for viewers. It's made all the more mysterious by the constant rumors, various allegations, and Mercer's assertions that Acaba won't be coming back to Critical Role.