Critical Role roll for abilities though I don't know (and I think they keep secret) the method they use. The stats over all the characters make me convinced they do something more powerful than the 4d6 drop 1 RAW option which is slightly better that standard array on average but not much (something like 16,14,13,12,11,8 taking average as you get one score in the middle of the top 16.7%ile of the distribution, another in the middle of the 2nd 16.7%ile and so on.). Critical role has a skilled DM who is able to balance encounters to noe standard strength characters and needs to be entertaining (and feats are generally more entertaining that ASIs and high ability characters allows more room for feats.
One very simple way of rolling while ensuring everyone in the party is reasonably balanced in rolls 4d6D1 THREE times. Your other 3 stats are 24 minus what you rolled so if you have 18,18,18 you have to deal with 6,6,6 (if is very unlikely to be as extreme as this).
Matt Mercer also creates very powerful magical items. On a whole the Critical Role campaigns are harder than the WotC ones but the characters have access to more powerful items. It averages out because their characters do die.
I dunno if the campaign is actually harder than your average WotC adventure but I can't really gainsay it too much (not enough experience with the modules, just setting up for Curse of Strahd). I will agree his games seem to have more magic than are intended by WotC and certainly purchasing magic items is far less expensive than it "should" be. 400 GP for a +1 weapon?! 800 GP for a cloak of Protection +1?!! Definitely not done with Xanathar's Guide to Everything in mind.
Our group did the standard roll method - 4d6 and drop the lowest. You also can't have more than 2 stats under 10. I play a Barbarian and rolled pretty well, nothing below a 14. So my STR, DEX, and CON were all pretty good. But sometimes poor rolls make for more fun characters, RP-wise. On the topic of Critical Role, in campaign 1 their Barbarian had very low Intelligence so he was played as an idiot. He didn't know the alphabet or how to read (which lead to some funny moments with the party's Paladin who was kind of a mother figure). He nearly threw the Deck of Many Things into a pool of lava because at the time he only knew that it was a deck of cards. But if you're someone who doesn't care about RP and just wants to be powerful in combat, magic items can fix poor rolls. Roll poor STR? Get Gauntlets of Ogre Power or Belt of Hill Giant Strength.
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I dunno if the campaign is actually harder than your average WotC adventure but I can't really gainsay it too much (not enough experience with the modules, just setting up for Curse of Strahd). I will agree his games seem to have more magic than are intended by WotC and certainly purchasing magic items is far less expensive than it "should" be. 400 GP for a +1 weapon?! 800 GP for a cloak of Protection +1?!! Definitely not done with Xanathar's Guide to Everything in mind.
Our group did the standard roll method - 4d6 and drop the lowest. You also can't have more than 2 stats under 10. I play a Barbarian and rolled pretty well, nothing below a 14. So my STR, DEX, and CON were all pretty good. But sometimes poor rolls make for more fun characters, RP-wise. On the topic of Critical Role, in campaign 1 their Barbarian had very low Intelligence so he was played as an idiot. He didn't know the alphabet or how to read (which lead to some funny moments with the party's Paladin who was kind of a mother figure). He nearly threw the Deck of Many Things into a pool of lava because at the time he only knew that it was a deck of cards. But if you're someone who doesn't care about RP and just wants to be powerful in combat, magic items can fix poor rolls. Roll poor STR? Get Gauntlets of Ogre Power or Belt of Hill Giant Strength.