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Vox Machina

Our heroes, a group of adventurers who travel the land in search of riches, knowledge, and general do-goodery. So, you know, the usual for D&D. All played by well-known figures in the world of English-language voice acting.

In General

Anti-Hero Team: Pretty standard for a D&D adventuring party, best emphasized in Episode 26. Keyleth means well, but is a Classical Anti-Hero with her self-doubt and awkwardness; Tiberius is a classist loner without remorse for buzz-sawing an old woman to death; Vax and Vex are prideful (nearly to the point of self-destruction in Episodes 24/25) and money-obsessed, respectively; Percy seemed level-headed, but is hiding a survivor complex among other psychological issues that are only getting worse with time; Grog doesn't even bother with a pretense of Good, being a Blood Knight hedonist with a Chaotic Neutral alignment and only his alignment sets him apart from Scanlan. Even Pike slit an unconscious guard's throat once (and paid for it). The Whitestone arc also has a lot of the team getting darker and darker, with enemies who are running away being executed, being tortured, and instigating a violent, bloody revolution.
Asskicking Leads to Leadership: They got seats on the Tal'Dorei council for saving the Emperor's life. Subverted in that the indiscriminate ass-kickings in Episode 25 actually got them pulled off the council. And then double-subverted in Episode 37 when Uriel drops all charges against Vox Machina after being freed of Sylas Briarwood's charm effect.
Badass Crew: Again, D&D adventuring party, notable for its sheer variety of badass flavours.
Bag of Holding:
- This is a tried and true item for adventuring parties, and Vox Machina is no exception. The Bag is usually carried by Grog, but in episode 15, Tiberius also purchased his own Bag of Holding, usually to keep his Wheel of Mending on hand.
- Vex also gets in on the action by obtaining a Bag of "Colding", based on the number of "organic" trophies the party seem to amass from fallen enemies and just how gloopy those various body parts get in a non-chilled environment ...
Bunny-Ears Lawyer: All of them, though Scanlan stands out, are eccentric and tend to draw odd looks to their antics. That said, any who know of their reputation and skills trusts in them to handle difficult tasks and they, one way or another, come through.
The Bus Came Back: They've all been brought back for one-shot adventures well after the commencement of the Mighty Nein campaign.
Central Theme: The theme of family defines most of the team, one way or another:
- Vax and Vex never really recovered from losing their mother at a young age and abandoning their father at the same time. The two really only truly relied on each other.
- Percy also never quite recovered from the traumatic loss of his family (he still hasn't), and the legacy of Whitestone haunted him alongside his drive for vengeance until the Whitestone arc's completion.
- Scanlan never had a family to begin with, thanks to his father disappearing and his mother dying at a young age. It also meant that he never properly matured. That has changed upon connecting with his long-lost daughter.
- Grog was exiled by his family when he chose to help Pike's grandfather, forming a new family with Pike and eventually Vox Machina.
- Pike regards her holy work as a means of redeeming her family's name and sees Grog as her brother.
- Tiberius, like Percy, has his hands tied often with his familial obligations - which eventually cause him to leave the party.
- Part of the reason Keyleth is adamant on finishing her quest is that the last person to attempt it was her mother, who vanished on her own journey. She regards her people as a massive extended family that it will one day be her job to care for.
Character Alignment: In-Universe, the team is mostly Chaotic Good or Neutral Good. The two known exceptions are Grog (at character generation) and Tiberius (who shifts from Chaotic Good because of his actions). Vex has her alignment shift from Neutral Good to Chaotic Neutral, after stealing from an ally, and then to Chaotic Good after several actions, with her display of sympathy towards a pair of slaves being the event that finally causes the shift.
Color-Coded for Your Convenience: Take a close look at their mini bases and their avatar borders.
- Vax: Black
- Vex: Teal
- Pike: Yellow
- Grog: Dark Red
- Percy: Purple
- Keyleth: Green
- Tiberius: Light Blue
- Scanlan: Pink
Corporate-Sponsored Superhero: They are officially sponsored by Glorious Gilmore's Goods. Keyleth has a permanent mark on her leather armor, and all of them are supposed to promote his business while they travel. In exchange, they get a discount in his store.
Family of Choice: Vax refers to Vox Machina as his family multiple times, and many of their members don't have any other family to turn to, for various reasons.
Fire-Forged Friends: Save for the twins, as well as Pike and Grog, none of the others knew each other until forming Vox Machina (formerly the Super High-Intensity Team), and probably didn't become friends until their first serious battle. Taryon became friends with the party after a hazing ritual and by proving himself against them and by helping in fights on the way to the Water Ashari.
Hope Bringer: Not initially, but compare the Kraghammer Arc with the Whitestone and Chroma Conclave Arcs, and you'll see how they've evolved.
Luke Nounverber: Half the party falls into this. The exceptions are Vax'ildan and Vex'ahlia (who don't use their given surnames), Keyleth (who doesn't even have a surname), and Percy.
Parental Abandonment: A common thread among the party members:
- The twins were all but disowned by their father, then they found out their mother died when a dragon attacked their village.
- Grog's uncle Kevdak cast him out of his herd when Grog refused to kill Pike's great-grandfather, and his father, Stonejaw, disowned him at the same moment.
- Percy's entire family was slaughtered by the Briarwoods with the exception of Cassandra.
- Keyleth's mother disappeared while undertaking the same quest Keyleth is currently on.
- Scanlan's mother was killed when goblins invaded his hometown.
  - And it turns out Scanlan himself abandoned his own child without realizing it.
Ragtag Bunch of Misfits: A wide and varied group of races are represented here, all of whom have some backstory that makes them an outcast or outsider in some way.
Shameless Fanservice Girl: Vox Machina has no real problem being naked around each other. At most, it is usually just a slight annoyance, and the only exception to this are Vax and Vex, who, being siblings, refuse to see each other naked.
Shipper on Deck: They don't need prompting to be each other's wingmen. For instance, they all tried to help Grog impress Lady Kima, even Keyleth, who felt great animosity for the paladin.
Stealth Pun: The team name "Vox Machina" is Latin for "voice machine," which refers to how the party (and DM) are all voice actors.
True Companions: Despite their varied origins and motives, they're not just a solid team, they consider themselves a family, and despite getting on each others' nerves at times, there's no denying the unbreakable bonds that exist between all of them. It doesn't just apply to the party in-universe, but also the players and the DM as well. Liam O'Brien himself considers the other players to be a second family in addition to having his own. More than this, upon Orion Acaba's departure, which sparked no small amount of gossip over his "love him or hate him" character's actions and his own tendency to metagame, Matt started the episode by announcing said departure and reminding the chat room to be respectful of Orion's decision. He later expanded on that sentiment by saying that everyone on the show still loved Orion unconditionally and wished the best for him.
Two Girls to a Team: Vex and Keyleth, during the periods where Pike was Put on a Bus due to Ashley's acting commitments.
You All Meet in an Inn: Averted. While they're all indeed staying in the same inn when the (pre-stream) campaign starts, that's because they're lodged there together, and have already been travelling together for several years. The exceptions are Percy, who was imprisoned for then-unclear reasons and was busted out, and Pike, who was picked up to help rescue Grog (who she had known for years and was incredibly close to.)

Tropes involving some, but not all members of Vox Machina

Action Dad and Action Mom: Percy and Vex have had a daughter together (Vesper Elaina de Rolo!) by the time of the Dalen's Closet Reunion one-shot.
Alliterative Name: Aside from "Keyleth Kraghammer" which was more of an off-hand, one-off joke, Vax and Vex's surname is eventually revealed as Vessar, although due to their bad relationship with their father neither of them use it. Also, Scanlan Shorthalt.
Battle Couple:
- Vax'ildan and Keyleth.
- Vex'ahlia and Percy.
Best Woman: While Keyleth has no compulsions about the title of Best Man at Vex and Percy's wedding, Tary labels himself the Man of Honor.
Blonde, Brunette, Redhead: Pike, Vex and Keyleth respectively - also Ashley, Laura, and Marisha, since their hair colours match those of their characters.
Brother–Sister Team: The twins. They sneak around, kill baddies, and even share a minor sibling rivalry.
Central Theme:
- Vex and Percy share a secondary theme of forgiveness — forgiving themselves for past mistake and forgiving others who have hurt them — in their personal arcs post-Whitestone, which eventually evolves into the stated central theme of their romantic sub-plot.
- Percy and Keyleth have had vengeance as a specific theme in their character arcs, with each having to choose whether to seek it out (even if it lead to their ruin), or learning forgiveness.
The Champion: By the final arc, several members of the party turned into champions for a god.
- The Champion of The Raven Queen: Vax'ildan. This is reinforced by the Matron of Raven's dark-veiled maiden clerics, who say, "Believe him. His words are that of our lady."
- The Champion of Sarenrae: Pike, naturally.
- The Champion of Pelor: Vex'ahlia.
- The Champion of Ioun: Scanlan.
Did They or Didn't They?: It is still ambiguous as to whether or not Vax and Keyleth ever became intimate with each other during Episode 42. Regardless of when exactly it happened down the road, it still did because Keyleth's first time was with Vax as mentioned on an "After Dark" segment of Talks Machina. Matt reveals this while Sam is present.
Sam: (upon being told the party used to have a virgin in their group) Wait, who was a virgin?
Matt: Keyleth.
Sam: (to Liam while half in-character) You?! You took her— Wow, I didn't know that. You better stick by her, friend!
Foil: Percy and Keyleth. One favours science while the other favours nature. Whereas Percy is much more pragmatic and seeks an "end justifies the means" approach, Keyleth seeks an approach that does not defy her morals nor require sacrifices. They even undergo similar character arcs that revolve around the need for vengeance and eventually realizing how selfish it is, except whereas Percy learned to forgive his nemesis, Keyleth instead wished to bring hers to justice.
Foolish Sibling, Responsible Sibling:
- Vax'ildan is the former, prone to rushing into dangerous situations and taking risks, while Vex'ahlia - being money-conscious and more strategic about battle - is the latter. However, they do swap from time to time.
- In a surrogate sense, we have Grog and Pike. The former is a Manchild that runs into danger and doesn't do well in situations that don't involve smashing things with a hammer, while the later is much more considerate of others.
Guys Smash, Girls Shoot: Subverted, downplayed and played straight with Vex in relation to Percy, Vax and Trinket, in that order.
- Both Vex and Percy are primarily long-range fighters. And while Percy is trained in swordfighting, he only uses a sword when an enemy comes too close to him, with only one instance of delivering major damage with a sword.
- While Vax favors range combat like his sister, he also uses meelee when the situation requires it, most notably in the fight against Thordak, as the only member of the team who could use Percy's Dragonslayer sword efficiently.
- Trinket, a male bear, can only fight exclusively as a meelee fighter. Thus anytime they are both engaged in combat, Trinket will be in the front while Vex is shooting from the back.
Half-Human Hybrid: Being a D&D world, these are a given. Three of the party are all the half-elven flavor of this trope.
Huge Guy, Tiny Girl: A platonic example; Grog is over eight feet tall, and is best buds with Pike, who barely tops three feet.
Ink-Suit Actor: In most official art, Keyleth and Marisha look very similar, as do Ashley and Pike.
Knight, Knave, and Squire: Percy, Grog, and Scanlan fit this trope pretty well.
- Percy (Knight): Insightful, well-read, Blue Blood.
- Grog (Knave): Kills without much forethought, Blood Knight, morally and ethically ambiguous.
- Scanlan (Squire): Most light-hearted during tense situations, rarely uses physical weapons, typically surprised when getting a killing blow.
- Vax'ildan most identifies with the Knave, as befitting his Class.
Land, Sea, Sky: Not an obvious example, but Vex'ahlia represents Land, with her favored terrains, Pike represents Sea, having spent time after her pre-stream death on the Broken Howl to toughen herself up, and Keyleth representing Sky, as that she is an Air Ashari Princess. The dynamic has become a bit more blurry between Vex and Keyleth as the former begins flying around on her broom and the latter has a tendency to transform into earth elementals.
Last-Minute Hookup: Pike and Scanlan begin dating and eventually get married in the finale.
Love Triangle: Gilmore is in love with Vax'ildan, who is in love with Keyleth, who isn't sure about Vax, and presumably doesn't have feelings for Gilmore.
Meaningful Name: Half the group has them, the other half pointedly avert them. On the meaningful side, the twins have Theme Twin Naming going on, Pike's last name "Trickfoot" came from her scheming ancestors, and Percy's Overly Long Name hints at his noble lineage and counts as a Running Gag to boot. But on the other hand, Travis admitted that Grog was the the first name that came to him when he was asked under pressure (he credits a youth spent playing Monkey Island), and Sam got Scanlan from an online fantasy names generator to complement the punnery of "Shorthalt".
Old Shame: invoked Several of them are embarrassed by their original name, Super High-Intensity Team. For instance, Keyleth reminds the group that they shouldn't tell the Fire Ashari about it.
Pair the Smart Ones: Percy is The Smart Guy (an inventor and self-professed nerd, with the highest intelligence score to boot), and he ends up interested in Vex'ahlia who, while she doesn't fit The Smart Guy archetype as clearly, is clever, perceptive, quick-thinking, prone to strokes of strategic brilliance, and generally painted as the smartest one besides Percy himself.
Pre-Climax Climax: Since neither of them are certain they'll survive, Percy and Vex engage in this the night before the final battle with Thordak.
The Promise: Vax'ildan and Keyleth both promise to settle down together once everything is said and done, a promise that Keyleth reiterates during Vax's resurrection ritual.
Keyleth: I know you can hear me. I know you’re still in there. And I’m sure [the Raven Queen] can hear me, too. But your sister is right. You’ve held up your promise to her. And you’ve made a promise to me. We have to settle down and live happily together, remember? You promised me Zephra. So I want to give you a little bit of light to follow in the darkness. (casts Daylight into the handprint scar on his back) And besides... you know I’m in love with you, right?
Royals Who Actually Do Something:
- Percy is a lord of Whitestone, but he's not one for staying put at home, thus why he continues to travel with Vox Machina.
- Keyleth, especially after becoming the Voice of the Tempest.
Secret Identity:
- Group 2 of the Trial of the Slayer's Take (Vax'ildan, Tiberius, and Keyleth) adopt these to speak with a very powerful business man (along with Thorbir and Kashaw).
- Scanlan. Burt Reynolds, The Kingslayer, The Meat Man, Francois Beltran Jean-Luc Australia, among many others.
The Three Faces of Adam: Grog, Vax'ildan, and Percy loosely fall into this:
- Grog (Adventure): Cares little for authority or anything else if it isn't the two great loves of his life: combat, women, and ale.
- Vax'ildan (Authority): Usually takes point when faced with combat situations (sometimes to the chagrin of everyone else), and usually takes a leadership role with Vox Machina.
- Percy (Wisdom): Book-learned, quieter and more thoughtful than his male counterparts, very utilitarian in his combat style.
- Scanlan the most balanced, with shades of all three faces.
The Three Faces of Eve: The main female characters loosely fall into this:
- Keyleth (Child): Dorky, idealistic and a little high-strung.
- Pike (Wife): Devoted, kind and wise.
- Vex (Seductress): Passionate, slightly flighty and the occasional butt of Fanservice jokes.
Too Much Alike: Vax'ildan and Keyleth were kept apart for some time by (among other things) their shared self-loathing and fear that they do not deserve happiness. This doesn't stop them from confessing their love several times, eventually culminating in their official Relationship Upgrade in episode 65.
Uptight Loves Wild: Deconstructed with Percy and Vex. At first, it appears like a conventional example: He's a Blue Blood Cultured Badass who acts relatively reserved, while she's a cheery Ms. Fanservice with a pet bear and a flying broom, who kisses the uptight noble half-a-dozen times on a whim. Eventually, it's revealed that their positions are reversed when it comes to their deeper issues. Percy can be dangerously impulsive and arrogant, which leads to - among other things - a mistake where he almost gets Vex killed. Meanwhile, Vex is so worried about making a good impression on the elves in Syngorn that she has a full-on tearful breakdown in front of Percy. In the end, they come together not because they bring the uptight and wild sides of each other out, but because they bond over the importance of forgiving themselves for the mistakes they've made by being too reckless or self-critical.

Character-Specific Pages

Pike

Pike Trickfoot

Played by: Ashley Johnson (Campaign 1, The Legend of Vox Machina), Matthew Mercer (Campaign 3)

"I don’t think any of us can fully understand. If we did then we would be gods."

Race: Deep Gnome

Class: Cleric (War Domain, previously Healing Domain in Pathfinder)

A pious gnome cleric of Sarenrae (a minor goddess of Healing and the Sun). Pike comes from a long line of tricksters and brigands, but was gifted a different destiny when she was whisked away as a child by her grandfather after he received a divine vision of her future. She works hard to rehabilitate her family name and is often regarded as The Heart of Vox Machina, though occasionally indulges in her own vices. She is best friends with Grog, who saved her grandfather's life.

Adaptation Personality Change: Is notably more crass and short-tempered in The Legend of Vox Machina than she is in the web show.
Advertised Extra: Pike was an active member of the party pre-stream, but as a full-time actress who primarily works out of New York (Critical Role is filmed in Los Angeles) there have been long stretches where Ashley Johnson has been unable to participate, most notably when she was cast as one of the main characters in Blindspot.
Affectionate Nickname: Occasionally called "Pickle" by Vax or "Monstah" by Grog.
All Girls Want Bad Boys: Revealed by Ashley Johnson in the campaign wrap-up, she used to have a crush on Percy in part due to the “darkness” of his past and relationship with Orthax.
Almighty Janitor: By the time of campaign 3 she has given up adventuring to focus on running her bakery full time. However, she is still a powerful cleric of the Everlight and gets called in by the De Rolos to perform a resurrection on Laudna. She is even able to cast a ritual to allow Bells Hells to enter Delilah's domain to try to rescue Laudna's soul.
Ambiguously Bi: Makes comments about how she occasionally visits brothels when the rest of Vox Machina isn't around. Also expressed attraction to Beau during the Vox Machina vs. Mighty Nein one-shot.
Amicable Exes:Tal'Dorei Reborn reveled that she and Scanlan become this, ending their marrige after their two children had grown up but still remain good friends and occasional lovers.
Armor of Invincibility: The Plate of the Dawnmartyr, which adds +3 to her AC, grants fire resistance and immunity to fear, and auto-revives her with 5 HP once per day.
Astral Projection: When she's so far away from the party, Sarenrae does give her the chance to aid the party through this ability. Of course, the connection isn't always great.
Back from the Dead: Well, it's a D&D world, this is a given. She died and resurrected before the show aired, and now determined not to fail again.
Badass Adorable: Episode 32 definitely shows her off. The tiny and angelic gnome destroys more skeletons in a single action than several of her party members combined.
Beware the Nice Ones: Pike is genuinely sweet, but she kicks ass with the rest of Vox Machina, make no mistake. Also, do not betray her trust or she will never forgive you, a lesson that her cousins learned the hard way when their con was exposed.
Pike: JB is going to stay here with me. [...] We’re going to teach her things, I will put her through school, and her and I together will change the Trickfoot name. But if I ever see any of you again? I will fucking kill you all.
Big Damn Heroes: Following the end of Episode 31, the party went off to slay a zombie giant near the Sun Tree, and then they are being chased by dozens of skeletal monsters. Even worse, they're severely weakened and low on spellcasting abilities. But just when it seems darkest for them, Pike returns in the nick of time and proceeds to kick the shit out of them! She even got the "How do you want to do this?" finisher against one of the zombie giants, a first for her on the show!
Bolt of Divine Retribution: Guiding Bolt, in a nutshell, is a small-scale version of this; the might of Sarenrae channeled through a substantially less powerful vessel.
But Now I Must Go: She momentarily leaves the party in Episode 16 to help excavate an ancient temple of Sarenrae near Vasselheim.
Can't Catch Up: Averted. Pike may not be as strong as the rest of the party due to her hiatus from the adventuring life, but she's still incredibly valuable in a fight. She even reaches level 18 before the final battle.
Carry a Big Stick: Her weapon of choice is a Mace of Disruption that causes extra damage when used to smite fiends or the undead. She gets a lot of mileage out of it in the Briarwood arc.
Childhood Friends: With Grog.
Church Militant: Worships Sarenrae, specifically a War Domain, wears Plate Armor, armed with a Morningstar and a Mace of Disruption, and has no problem doling out justice to evil-doers.
Combat Medic: Standard fare for a cleric, and even more so as a War Domain Cleric, but in Pike's particular case, she did a lot of combat training to make sure she didn't die again.
Commuting on a Bus: Episode 22 was the first time Pike temporarily returned after her long absence. She shows up again in Episode 32, 34, and 35 via a sort of Astral Projection for the climax of the Briarwood arc in Whitestone, and then actually in-person for Episodes 37-42 as well as 48-59 (Episodes 37 and 50-59 with Ashley being in the studio, and the rest either through Skype or through Matt playing as her) when Vox Machina returns to Emon and the Chroma Conclave arc begins. She also makes sporadic reappearances in several episodes afterward, be it in-person, on Skype, or with Matt (or even sometimes the other party members) controlling her.
Covert Pervert: She might be a holy woman, but she visits brothels during her leaves of absence, and at one point drunkenly rambles about how she's annoyed that Scanlan's perversions feature women other than her.
Vex: Pike, you've been to a brothel?!
Pike: Well, where do you think I go when you guys leave all the time?
Crisis of Faith: A small one when Pike's holy symbol of Sarenrae was cracked. They later patch things up.
Demoted to Extra: Pike has been appearing less frequently because of Ashley Johnson's other commitments.
Disappointed in You: Her disappointed face can make any of the party rethink their bad choices: she's even able to convince Grog to give the party Kevdak's head just by giving him a look. This also applies to her cousin JB.
The Determinator:
- Ever since she was killed in battle against a Glabrezu, Pike became determined to not fall again.
- In Episode 52, despite being pummeled by so many attacks against the Herd of the Storm and being close to death again, she refused to give up and stuck it out to the end, focusing only on one thing: defeating Kevdak.
- Happens again in Episode 58 where, despite having no equipment other than her holy symbol, shield, and mace and suffering from heavy wounds, she barely survived an assassination attempt on the party and was able to finish off a reincarnated Hotis with her Flame Strike spell.
- Once again in Episodes 79 and 80 where she manages to not only survive the battles with Thordak and Raishan, but she even attempts two solo resurrections (and succeeds at both) when the party battles the latter.
The Dragonslayer: Killed a white dragon before the stream began. Said feat is referenced during the stream when Grog shakes off the fear-inducing roar of another white dragon in episode 19, planning to kill it "like his friend Pike did".
Did Not Get the Girl: Loses Percy to Vex'ahlia before anyone (in-universe or out) even knew she was in love with him.
Dynamic Entry: Her reappearance in Episode 32. How does she pull it off? By running full sprint to the party, making a Leap of Faith off Keyleth's Wall of Stone into a horde of skeletons after rolling a Natural 20, and annihilating 36 of them with Destroy Undead!
Easily Forgiven: Because of the strong bond between Pike and Grog she easily forgives him after Grog accidentally stabs Pike with Craven Edge.
Elemental Weapon: Her Frostbrand Shortsword deals cold damage.
The Gadfly: Despite being a nice person, she isn’t above some sillier actions, such as insinuating that her astral form can see if Taryon is studying her flash cards every night.
Good Is Not Soft: Just because she is a cleric of redemption does not mean she is soft.
- Demonstrated when she cuts the throat of a knocked-out duergar to make sure he can't sound the alarm later. The party is surprised by this change in character. Later, it's revealed her holy symbol, a medallion of her goddess Sarenrae, has begun to display some minor cracks. It's implied said goddess may not be entirely pleased with Pike's shift in character either. Once Pike gets back to civilization and spends some heavy time praying and self-reflecting, though, she re-enters her goddess' favor.
- Demonstrated again in Episode 96 when she threatens her own cousins because of a con they tried to pull on Vox Machina.
Full-Frontal Assault: Is awoken by an assassin in Episode 58, takes a slash from poisoned dagger from collarbone across the chest, and with single digit hitpoints takes down the rakshasa Hotis with a Flame Strike. Moves her shield around to cover herself once battle is finished and she remembers she's completely naked.
Good Scars, Evil Scars: Albeit not shown in her official artwork, she's stated to have a scar down her left eye as shown in Ashley Johnson's cosplay of her during the live action intro. Where and when she received it is unknown.
Green-Eyed Monster: It's possible Scanlan's attraction might be reciprocated, though it might also have been the alcohol - Episode 22, very briefly, while at a tavern, she complained that Scanlan isn't there because he was going to get a "massage."
Healing Hands: Being a cleric, it's to be expected. CURE WOUNDS!
The Heart: Whenever Pike is with the rest of Vox Machina, she draws out the party's more positive qualities. And, like Vax, she thinks of the party as her family. It's very noticeable in Episode 16. It's also very prevalent when she rejoins the party via astral projection in Episode 32 to assist in slaying the Briarwoods. The party, as well as the players themselves and the chatroom, were freaking out as she made her Dynamic Entry.
Hollywood Exorcism: She does this to save Percy from being taken over by Orthrax. She expels Orthrax out of Percy's mind and into the material plane, and Vox Machina immediately attacks.
Holy Hand Grenade: Being a War Domain (previously Life Domain) cleric, Pike is the personification of this trope, wielding such destructive and combat-oriented abilities as "War God's Blessing" and "Divine Strike". Her "Destroy Undead" ability is described as an explosive shock wave that turns a large number of attacking undead into ash. Some of her spells like "Guiding Bolt" also cause direct radiant damage, working particularly well against fiends like Orthrax. There's also Divine Intervention which finally worked in Episode 71 against Vorugal the Frigid Doom, dealing 50 radiant damage to the wyrm.
Impaled with Extreme Prejudice: Pre-stream the recap video shows a Gory Discretion Shot of Pike being run through while the team reacts with horror. In-series, a non-lethal version in episode 49. Grog flung Craven Edge through a portal to try and prevent himself from being sucked into the elemental plane. He succeeded, but only because the blade struck Pike.
Important Haircut: Pike cuts her hair with Vex's dagger and uses the severed locks as an offering to attempt to resurrect the ranger in Episode 80 mid-combat. She succeeds.
Last Chance Hit Point:
- Pike's Death Ward spell, which manages to save Grog from being killed by one of K'Varn's eye rays... only for K'Varn to attack him again, resulting in getting his soul sucked out. He still gets saved.
- She has the Plate of the Dawn Martyr, which, when the user drops to zero hit points, can once a day bring them back to 5 hp and deals fire damage to all enemies in a 15ft range. It's what saves her from being disintegrated by Raishan in Episode 83 and from being disintegrated by Vecna in episode 102.
Leap of Faith: Pike does an amazing one, with sparkles of feather wings into a horde of undead skeletons. She's trusting in the power granted to her by Sarenrae to destroy them.
Light 'em Up: Can use light-based spells such as Light and Daylight. One of her favorites is Guiding Bolt, which is particularly effective against undead and fiends.
Like Brother and Sister: Her relationship with Grog started long before the campaign. Humorously, she's like the mature older sister looking after a goofy brother.
Locked into Strangeness: Ashley Johnson confirmed on Talks Machina that prior to her death pre-stream, Pike's hair was actually black with a purple streak. After her resurrection, it turned white. Artwork in the Vox Machina Origins comics shows this to be true.
The Matchmaker: For Vax'ildan and Keyleth. It's her encouragement towards Keyleth in Episode 58 that later gives the druid the confidence to confess to him seven episodes later, especially after they had discovered Tiberius' remains and Keyleth had a wake-up call regarding her fears.
My Greatest Failure: Dying was hers and she spent months training with pirates to make sure it never happens again.
Nice Girl: Although she's shown a few signs of hardening post-resurrection, she's still incredibly pleasant and helpful and everyone in the party loves her.
Not So Above It All: Despite being a cleric, she's had her fair share of moments where she proves as ridiculous and ethically dubious as the rest of the party, such as visiting brothels when Vox Machina is not with her. She also isn’t against engaging in some of the sillier actions of the party, albeit with a straight face.
Vex'ahlia: (shocked) You've been to a brothel, Pike?
Pike: Well, where do you think I go when you guys leave all the time?!
Odd Friendship: She's friends with Scanlan even though they're night and day and he's really in love with her. She doesn't return his feelings and her heart may belong to another, but she cares about him regardless.
Platonic Life-Partners: With Grog. The two are best friends. Also a platonic case of Huge Guy, Tiny Girl, and exaggerated as well due to their respective races. Pike's Spotify playlist even says that she sees Grog as a brother and will always help him as much as she can no matter what.
Pint-Sized Powerhouse: Once Grog obtains the Titanstone Knuckles, he gifts Pike his old Gauntlets of Ogre Power, which significantly boost her strength score to 19.
Playing with Fire:
- Flame Strike and Fire Storm.
- Inverted and played straight with the Plate of the Dawn Martyr, Which gives her resistance to Fire damage and when hit by a physical attack deals some fire damage to the attacker. Also deals Fire damage when she drops deals fire damage to enemies within 15 feet of her.
Please, Don't Leave Me: Her plea to Scanlan during her attempt to resurrect him in Episode 80.
Pike: Scanlan, your letter to me was wonderful. And I want to do what you've asked. But I can't raise Kaylie alone. I need you to come back!
Power Gives You Wings: In her astral form. She gets them for real in Episode 104 upon getting Sarenrae's blessing, but they can only be used once every seven days.
Properly Paranoid: She is extremely distrusting when it comes to the box that contains Senokir's wife's ashes in Episode 84. She is so convinced that by burying it, things will end up being worse. Then again, considering how many times they were blindsided in the past, her paranoia is justified.
Put on a Bus: Stays behind at a temple of Sarenrae at the end of episode 16 to help rebuild it (out of universe, Ashley had to go to New York to film Blindspot). Happens once again at the end of Episode 58, but this time she remains in Whitestone.
Red Oni, Blue Oni: Definitely the Blue to her surrogate brother Grog's Red because she is far more considerate and empathetic and less bloodthirsty.
Religious Bruiser: This high priestess of a redemption goddess has only smashes in heads and slit throats with morningstars and maces. This is in keeping with her class, as "clerics" in "Dungeons and Dragons'' have always been "fighting priests" who specialize in blunt weapons," as well as serving in contrast to when she was just a Healing Domain Cleric in the group's home game.
Running Gag: Consistently fails her Stealth checks, primarily because she has disadvantage on Stealth rolls due to her heavy plate armor. Always Played for Laughs when it happens... even when she does not fail. She finally overcomes this in Episode 95 thanks to training with Vax during the time skip.
Ashley: What would it be without some clanging?
Second Love: Scanlan is this for her. After the campaign, Ashley revealed that the person Pike was in love was Percy - however, after seeing Percy and Vex's relationship grow, she came to realise that she returned Scanlan's feelings and ultimately married him.
So Much for Stealth: See Running Gag. However, thanks to her training with Vax and the Boots of Elvenkind, she's fared much better.
Status Buff: She has several spells that grant additional benefits, such as War God's Blessing which helps her party members land attacks.
Team Chef: Like Keyleth, she has access to Heroes' Feast.
Team Mom: She's the maternal loving mother of Vox Machina who cares for everyone and brings out the best of them. Upon meeting Taryon she makes sure to get him to appreciate the rest of Vox Machina and learn their names and be part of the team.
Took a Level in Badass:
- To train herself up, she spent months at sea with pirates to get tougher. Since she managed to find her way into the caverns beneath the dwarven mines on her own, it seems to have worked.
- When Pike came back in Episode 22, she was also level 11 alongside the rest of Vox Machina. While there's no in-universe explanation for this level-up, it's assumed it was to keep up with the party.
- Episode 32 has her returning in prime form in Vox Machina's time of need by annihilating 36 skeletons with Destroy Undead. She even gets a HDYWTDT against one of the remaining zombie stone giants.
- Episode 52 was definitely one of the most intense battles she took part in, especially when despite taking a lot of damage against Grog's former herd, she kept focusing on fighting Kevdak.
- Upon reaching level 13, she one-upped her previous HDYWTDT by finishing off the Rakshasa who returned to kill Vax with a 7th-level Flame Strike. And this was right after barely managing to fend off an assassin's attempt to kill her.
- Pulling off two solo resurrections mid-battle in Episode 80 and succeeding.
- She reaches level 15 by Episode 82 and level 16 during the one-year Time Skip.
- She reaches level 17 in Episode 103 after the ill-fated battle with Vecna and level 18 before the final battle in Episode 104.
Tricked-Out Shoes: She gets a pair of Boots of Elvenkind later on, which help her with her Stealth checks.
Turn Undead: She's a cleric so of course the undead fear her. She destroyed 36 skeletons while doing it!
What the Hell, Hero?: Saranrae has no problem with her clerics smiting the forces of evil that are actively threatening people, but she draws the line at massacring a defenseless foe. When Pike cuts the throat of a downed Mook in the Kraghammer arc, Saranrae shows her disappointment by having Pike's holy symbol crack. Realizing that she screwed up, Pike prays and atones for her sin. Saranrae shows her approval by restoring Pike's holy symbol.
White Magician Girl: As the team's primary healer, as well as the Team Mom, this naturally falls to her.
Undying Loyalty: She has this to Sarenrae as her goddess, to Vox Machina as her family, and to Grog as her best friend and surrogate brother.

Tiberius

Tiberius Stormwind

Played by: Orion Acaba

"No one threatens a goddamn Stormwind!"

Race: Red Dragonborn

Class: Sorcerer (Draconic Bloodline)

Tiberius is a red dragonborn sorceror from the far-off land of Draconia. A prodigy of the magical arts and son of a powerful Draconian noble house, Tiberius has become obsessed with a collection of tomes detailing a number of powerful magical artifacts and has set off on a journey to investigate their veracity. While extremely intelligent, Tiberius can prove to be a bit scatterbrained.

Absent-Minded Professor: Has high Intelligence, but only a four in Wisdom. Tiberius is smart, and charismatic, but has little in the common sense department. After leveling up to level 12, this is increased to six. Still pretty dense with little common sense.
Adapted Out: The adaptations of the campaign remove Tiberius from the story due to trademark issues, as Orion owns the rights to Tiberius.
Agent Mulder: His introduction video makes the homage very clear: he's a super-talented practitioner in his field who became fascinated by a forbidden and forgotten collection of tomes which were locked away because nobody believed the magical artifacts they described actually exist. His character intro even has verbatim the words "I believe the truth is out there."
The Aloner: Tiberius was the member of Vox Machina most likely to split from the party and go off on his own adventures, usually without telling anyone. He would even leave in the middle of conversations that did not interest or involve him. He eventually leaves Vox Machina en-route to Whitestone so he could petition Draconia for aid, and later leaves permanently so he could prioritise his own personal goals.
Ambadassador: An official ambassador from Draconia who regularly murders big things with fireballs.
Attack on One Is an Attack on All: Tries to invoke this, through his father, against the Briarwoods. It doesn't take. This seems to be a personal conviction of his, given his justification of killing the incapacitated old witch.
Badass Long Robe: The only spellcaster on the team to wear one. When Orion received a real one during a Critmas, he said it helped him get into character. It's turquoise in official art.
Born Lucky:
- Subverted. Prior to Episode 22, Orion/Tiberius had yet to mention that he rolled a Natural 1, but if he indicated that his roll was bad without revealing what it was, it meant that he rolled either a 1 or his abysmal Wisdom modifiers sent the final score into the negatives. He did both in episode 22.
- Also subverted due to the fact that in the pre-stream days, Tiberius had traded a portion of his luck to the hag Trysta beneath Emon in exchange for the Wheel of Mending. It ended up becoming a one-time guaranteed Natural 1 for Tiberius to be used at Matt's discretion.
But Now I Must Go: He leaves Vox Machina because both his ambassador position and personal quest have fallen to the wayside and he feels he needs to work on them before he can adventure with Vox Machina, and he is unsure when he will be able to return to them. He never does.
Bus Crash: An offscreen casualty of the Chroma Conclave.
Catchphrase:
- While not an in-universe catchprase per se, fans of the show are fond of saying "Poppycock," as a result to his background video.
- He's also prone to referring to their enemies in combat (and sometimes his friends and allies) as "buttholes".
- "Hello. I'm Tiberius Stormwind. I'm from Draconia!" He said it five times in one episode to the point that Scanlan actually finishes it for him.
Can't Hold His Liquor: In Episode 26, he drank Vax's flask of god-knows-what and became a slurring mess.
Crazy-Prepared: Tiberius has a tendency to over-prepare for adventures and get very grouchy if there is a situation he does not have a solution to.
Death by Irony: He killed several enemies, including the zombie K'Varn, by impaling them with Glacial Blast. He ends up dying via impalement on an icicle.
Didn't Think This Through: Tiberius has so many ill-considered moments that Orion's comment on one of them "I realize what I'm doing and I stop" became a chatroom meme.
The Ditz: Tiberius almost always seems to be the one who pays the least amount of attention to whatever happens to be going on at the time, even in times of high stress. Given his intelligence, however, he might be more accurately called a Ditzy Genius.
Ditzy Genius: Has a high Intelligence stat, but a Wisdom of 4. (To put this in perspective, that gives a penalty to Wisdom checks so big that they've often ended up going negative) He's a brilliant spellcaster and very knowledgeable about the arcane, but has little in the way of common sense.
Drama-Preserving Handicap: Wasn't able to help much against the Briarwoods in episode 25 due to Delilah casting a spell that brought his Intelligence and Charisma all the way down to 1 (leaving him in a primal state and unable to cast magic until it was reversed by a cleric later).
Draconic Humanoid: This is what dragonborn are all about, being humanoids descended from dragons (or whatever).^{But seriously...}
Drowning My Sorrows: Upon realizing the impact his actions in episode 25 had on Allura and being prevented from trying to make things right for the moment, he asks Vax for some alcohol.
Due to the Dead: In Episode 64, after Vox Machina finds his impaled corpse outside of Vorugal's lair, they give him a quick burial in the ruins of Draconia's library. After Vorugal's defeat, Scanlan requests that Tiberius be given a proper funeral by the surviving Ravinite dragonborn and that a statue be erected in his honor on the site of Vorugal's lair, with the inscription, "I encourage peace".
Elemental Powers: Other than his fire-based spells, Tiberius has used other elemental ones such as Glacial Blast, a homebrew ice spell by Orion and Matt and has used water, lightning, and earth based spells.
Embarrassing Nickname: Doesn't take kindly to being called "Tibber-hoods" by Vax, which led to the latter being silenced at one point.
Familiar: Adopts a sickly pseudodragon in episode 22, naming it Lockheed.
First-Person Perspective: Tiberius is the only character who narrates their introduction in their character background using "I". The reason is not made clear.
Fish out of Water: Tiberius expects the name "Stormwind" to carry a lot more weight than it does outside Draconia, and occasionally seems confused by certain foreign customs and traditions.
Flight: One of his favored spells is Fly, which he uses on Grog or Tricket most often after himself. It leads to shenanigans of many varieties.
For Science!: The magical equivalent of this serves as his motivation. He doesn't seem to care too much about the power or glory finding lost magical artifacts would bestow upon him; rather, he's interested in discovery for discovery's sake.
Glass Cannon: Before episode 20, Orion lampshaded that Tiberius was this due to his middle of the road AC and big damage dealing. After that though, he became more of a Lightning Bruiser.
Hidden Depths: Despite his absentmindedness, he's the most cautious about directly confronting K'varn, and a throwaway line implies he has military training. Orion confirmed this on Twitter, and mentions his buffoonish act is partly a case of Obfuscating Stupidity. ...Partly.
I Did What I Had to Do: Tries to pass off his brutal killing of the unconscious, defenseless old woman in Episode 25 as this, reasoning that as someone who had attacked Vox Machina, she deserved to die, and that if they let her live, she would only come back to attack them at a later time. However, the other members of the group, in addition to Uriel and Allura, do not buy it, which in turn leads to his Morality Adjustment below.
Improperly Paranoid: Tiberius was often terrified of dying in battle and this resulted in a very defensive playstyle where he would often act to safeguard himself first before anyone else. On a meta level, Orion has said in interviews that he mistook Matt for a Killer Game Master and played accordingly, not realising that Matt's challenges were ultimately designed to be overcome.
Invisibility: He can use Greater form of it, letting him cast spells while remaining invisible.
Impaled with Extreme Prejudice: When the party discovers his body in Episode 64, he's been impaled on a spike of ice.
Irony: His memorial in Draconia reads "I encourage peace" sending a message of equality between the Ravenites and Skywalkers. When he was alive Tiberius was himself quite classist towards Ravenites. Notably being very bigoted towards Tofor a Ravenite member of the council of Tal'dorei
Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Despite his loyalty and support of Vox Machina and everyone in it, he tends to be very grouchy and can be very rude when he's dealing with people who don't give him the respect he feels he deserves, like Guardian Tofor from the Council or Huntmaster Vanessa. He also has a habit of not working with the others and just doing his own thing as well. Mechanically speaking, he has high Charisma but dreadful Wisdom which leads to him being full of himself.
Late-Arrival Spoiler: Tiberius leaving Vox Machina early is knowledge among fans who haven't even watched the first campaign.
Literal-Minded: Occasionally, playing up his low Wisdom. When a dwarf mentioned that Lady Kima "stepped on some toes" while in Kraghammer, he immediately asks "Ooh, was she clumsy?"
Mad Libs Catchphrase: "I encourage (noun or verb)". The list of things that Tiberius encourages includes: Violence, Success, Sandwich and Peace. Although the last one is actually attributed to him by Scanlan after his death; it is written on his memorial statue, so he will definitely be known for it in the new Draconica.
Man of a Thousand Voices: Dwarvish sounding when he played as Laduger (god of the duergar), Sharp, dark and whispery when he spoke through a Lich illusion, very soft-spoken and proper as a financial adviser.
Morality Adjustment: Although he had been shown to have taken several levels in jerkass up to that point, his actions in episode 25 finally caused him to cross the line from Neutral Good to Chaotic Neutral In-Universe.
Mundane Utility: Episode 15 sees him use his staff as a selfie stick.
Matt: You use Prestidigitation to temporarily capture an image of you guys at the top of the tower. In doing so, the DM imposes disadvantage on your next two rolls.
Noodle Implements: Has a habit of making strange purchases to construct items to aid in eccentric plans, such as getting several knives fused together into a buzzsaw-like implement (which he later weaponized via Telekinesis) or, at one point, trying to buy practically every mirror in Emon. (The second happened shortly before he left the show, so what he intended to do with them is a mystery, although some theorize he was going to attempt to build a giant heat ray a la Archimedes.)
No-Sell: His Counterspell Reaction. It can immediately cancel out level 3 spells or lower, plus any spells that are cast lower than the level it is used with (i.e. level 4 Counterspell against a level 4 spell). Any higher, however, and he must roll against the DM for the result. The most epic usage of this was no doubt against the Rakshasa in episode 21 where it was a level 6 against a level 7 Plane Shift, followed by an epic one-liner.
Tiberius: No one threatens a goddamn STORMWIND!
Odd Friendship: Seems to have taken a liking to Clarota, who also wields arcane magic, although the "friendship" part might be a bit one-sided. Clarota betraying the team and being summarily killed put a damper on that.
O.O.C. Is Serious Business: When Keyleth told the group what K'varn was, he took the threat the most seriously and refused to get close to K'varn during the battle. Despite this, he ends up dealing the finishing blow to its undead form. That he asks for alcohol when he never drinks it in episode 26 shows just how upset he was about becoming a Broken Pedestal to his crush.
Playing with Fire: He has flame breath as a dragonborn, and has fireballs and Fire Bolt as his go-to combat spells. As a sorcerer of the red draconic bloodline, he gets bonus damage to his fire attacks.
Poor Communication Kills: More than once Tiberius damages team members with his Fireball spell, which could have been avoided had he communicated better with the DM. Played for laughs when a fan sent him a set of area effect markers so that in the future he would be able to check his spell ranges properly, to make sure no one who's not supposed to is in the way.
Put on a Bus: Tiberius suddenly left the party in Episode 28 so he could return to Draconia and directly petition them for aid against the Briarwoods. In reality, this was done as a quick aside by Matt so things didn't become complicated while Orion was taking a hiatus from the show. When it became clear Orion was not returning any time soon, Tiberius was officially written out in Episode 37 as moving back to his home in Draconia so he could focus on achieving his personal goals. In Episode 64, the party find his body in Draconia.
Running Gag:
- He'll often use Light either when no one is ready for sudden brightness or after the battle that would require it is over.
- In episodes 20 and 21 he had a habit of speaking his native Draconic when panicked.
- As of Episode 24, he introduces himself to everyone, even at the most awkward times, with "Hello, I'm Tiberius Stormwind, from Draconia!"
- He also likes to casually "saunter on ahead" a lot.
Schmuck Bait: When Kashaw fell down a slide, likely to his death, he gets the urge to slide down as well, citing it seemed fun.
Spotlight-Stealing Squad: As a result of his tendency to go off and do his own thing, many sessions would leave the rest of the party aside to focus on his solo actions. Also in combat, he would often spend the longest on his turns because of his wide array of magic spells, or simply because he would really push what he could do in his turn. This came to a heed in episode 27 (the last episode where he was an active part of their party), where, upon being given time to fulfil any errands they wanted before departing to Whitestone, everyone else had maybe one or two at most they wanted to do, while he wanted nine. This prompted Grog to angrily declare how bored he was of waiting for him, and for Travis to bluntly tell Orion he was done before he had Tiberius start another task.
The So-Called Coward: Was quite offended that Scanlan accused him of not helping in the battle with K'Varn, since he said that he wasn't going anywhere into the enemy's lair before the fight. Considering that certain monsters are more powerful in their lairs, this is a reasonable objection.
Sue Donym: When disguised as a resident of Kraghammer, he went for the alias "Tiberius Kraghammer", and when Keyleth transforms herself into a dwarf, Tiberius makes an off-hand comment saying her name was "Keyleth Kraghammer".
Taken for Granite: Was petrified by one of the duergar king's basilisks. The next episode, Pike uses Greater Restoration to reverse it.
The Teetotaler: He always orders water when the team hits an alehouse. Justified, as Sorcerers need to have clear minds to focus on spellcasting.
Teleportation: Knows Teleportation Circle, which he uses to reassure the group when they head into dangerous territory. He just needs a minute or so and he can open a door to safety. At first he only had two (Emon and Draconia) but he later learned the sigils for Kraghammer and Westruun.
Took a Level in Jerkass: As time goes on, Tiberius becomes a lot more grouchy, rude and quick to anger. This is largely due to the slow realisation that he does not carry as much power, respect and influence (as a member of the noble Stormwind family) as he assumed. For example, he considered the entire Slayer's Take arc to be a personal insult and beneath him; his prized Mending Wheel was unable to restore the enchantment of their Flying Carpet; and his father refused to provide military reinforcements against Whitestone. He did seem to be turning a corner after he ruined his chances with Allura and hit rock bottom, but then suddenly left the party when Orion went on hiatus.
Vitriolic Best Buds: Tiberius certainly has issues with Scanlan. Mostly it's played for laughs, but they become closer in later episodes once Tiberius asks for lady advice.
What the Hell, Hero?:
- The rest of Vox Machina calls him out on executing the old woman who was defenseless and no longer a threat. Though they acknowledge that they all kill people, it's usually in direct response to an attack in the heat of battle.
- Scanlan calls him out on refusing to participate in their fight against K'varn. Tiberius had been excessively paranoid about fighting the beholder within its lair, believing that K'varn had enchanted its territory to give itself magical advantages. Instead of acquiescing to the party consensus, Tiberius let the others fight the Arc Villain without him while he stayed outside the lair watching for reinforcements, only entering the fray just in time to see Vex deliver the (first) killing blow.
- He feels the need to call out Vax for his Tough Love lesson with Kynan, but ultimately concedes the point.
Why Did It Have to Be Snakes?: Episode 10 is where K'Varn is revealed to be a beholder. When it became clear as to what it was before Keyleth identified him, Orion (and by extension Tiberius) was legitimately terrified of the mere thought of fighting one, as proven by both his reactions and even mentioned as such in the second Q&A.
Younger Than They Look: Despite his stuffy mannerisms, he's only 26 years old..

Vax'ildan

Vax'ildan "Vax"

Played by: Liam O'Brien (Campaign 1, The Legend of Vox Machina), Matthew Mercer (Campaign 3)

"Dagger, dagger, dagger."

Race: Half-elf

Class: Rogue (Assassin) / Paladin (Oath of Vengeance) / Druid

A serious and focused half-elf rogue with a weak spot for practical jokes. He is the twin brother of Vex'ahlia, with whom he shares an almost inseparable bond. After cutting all ties with his elven homeland, which discriminated against himself and Vex for their human heritage, he took to the streets and trained as a thief and assassin.

Adaptive Armor: The Deathwalker's Ward, which grants Vax'ildan advantage on death saves, an additional +2 to his AC, one hour of flight per day, and the ability to resist one of five types of elemental damage ^note of his choice once per short rest.
Affectionate Nickname: Pike occasionally calls Vax "Stringbean" to complement her nickname "Pickle."
Agony of the Feet: One of his feet gets burned almost to a stump after it's dipped in lava in the Underdark. He's severely hampered until Pike manages to restore it. Even when Pike uses her magic, it takes a while for Vax to fully recover.
And I Must Scream: Revealed to be his fate in Campaign 3, after Ludinus captures and traps him in an orb that's used to power the Malleus Keys to tether the moon Ruidus to Exandria. When The Raven Queen gives Orym, Chetney and Fearne a vision, Vax can be heard screaming incessantly all across Exandria.
Ascend to a Higher Plane of Existence: Not explicitly, but this is the vibe given off when the Raven Queen takes him into the afterlife. There's a strong implication that he'll become something more than a mere mortal even after death, and there's No Body Left Behind— only feathers. Confirmed by Tal'Dorei Reborn where Vax'ildan's appears as the Champion of Ravens, a celestial being acting as the Raven Queen's enforcer.
The B Grade: Takes so much pride in his stealth skills that he viewed getting an 18 for stealth in episode 11 as pitiful.
Back for the Finale: Despite having been taken to Ascend to a Higher Plane of Existence in the finale, Scanlan's Wish spell lets him briefly return in the Dalen's Closet one-shot to see his sister's wedding.
Back from the Dead:
- After being killed by the Kraken in Episode 88, a resurrection ritual is successfully performed — with an appearance from the Raven Queen, no less — in Episode 89.
- He dies a second time to a Disintegrate spell cast by Vecna, and returns as a Revenant when a deal is proposed by the Raven Queen. Once his purpose is complete, however, he will return to her side for good.
- In "Dalen's Closet", Scanlan's final use of the "Wish" spell lets him bring Vax back temporarily to visit his sister on her wedding day.
Back Stab: Can inflict even bigger damage against an enemy if his allies are flanking it with Sneak Attack, but only once per action. Even better if he gets a crit.
Badass Cape:
- The Cloak of Elvenkind, which gives him advantage on Stealth checks. It's come in handy more than once. In Episode 33, however, he gives it to his sister for her protection, telling her that he "had a bad feeling".
- The Cape of the Mountebank allows him to cast Dimension Door once a day. However, it was lost when Vax used it to seal the portal leading to the Plane of Fire in Episode 46.
- The Cloak of Displacement, which imposes disadvantage on attacks against the wearer until one hits. However, it was given to Keyleth for her safety in episode 70.
Badass in Distress: Tends to be a running theme with Vax, especially when he sneaks ahead and gets in over his head without any backup.
- In Episode 7, Vax falls unconscious during the escape from Emberhold and his foot is submerged in lava. If not for Trinket pulling him out, he would've been incinerated and burnt to ash.
- In Episodes 24 and 25, he gets caught by the Briarwoods and had to attempt an escape but quickly found himself overwhelmed by his captors.
- In Episode 33, he tries to save Cassandra de Rolo from Professor Anders but quickly found himself outmatched by two Helmed Horrors and a dominated Grog. If not for Keyleth and Vex's quick healing, he would've died.
- In Episode 34, he escapes the acid room using the Dimension Door to try and help the party, but ends up charmed by the Briarwoods.
- In Episode 39, he gets swallowed by a purple worm and had to be cut out of it by Grog and Craven Edge.
- In Episodes 54 and 55, Not only does he end up trapped within Umbrasyl's stomach along with Scanlan, thus forcing him to cut his way out, he also snuck ahead into the Hope Devourer's lair, only to bump into the wyrm while he was invisible.
- In Episode 57 and 58, he's cornered by a reincarnated Hotis without his weapons and armor and is nearly killed.
- In Episode 71, he quickly gets in over his head and is nearly torn apart by Vorugal the Frigid Doom, being one saving throw away from death. If not for the Deathwalker's Ward, he would've died even after the battle ended.
- In Episode 80, Vax falls to Raishan's brutal attacks, especially after losing the benefits of Heroes' Feast due to Raishan's Dispel Magic. He ends up plummeting to the ground just 1 foot away from lava and would've been incinerated if it weren't for Keyleth in her fire elemental form managing to push him away.
- In Episode 88, Vax is swallowed by a kraken and falls unconscious as a result. He then fails two death saves and is eventually spit out thanks to Grog... but he still fails his final death save.
- In Episode 51 of Campaign 3 he intervened to save Keyleth from being killed by Otohan Thull only for Liliana Temult to trap him while he was distracted in order to use his Fragment of Divinity to power up Ludinus Da'leth's machine.
Bargain with Heaven: In episode 103 he accepts a deal from the Raven Queen to come back to life, but only until he kills Vecna. He gets some boons to help, but in exchange he's Killed Off for Real once the mission is over.
Big Brother Instinct: He's extremely protective of his sister. Hotis got shot out of the sky and his throat slit for threatening her.
Big Damn Kiss: With a Love Confession no less, to Keyleth in Episode 33. Another to Gilmore in Episode 38, which doubles as their Last Kiss since he's in love with Keyleth.
Born Lucky: Zig-zagged. Vax has the "Lucky" Feat, which allows him 3 times per long rest (which is expanded to 4 due to the Fortune's Grace feature associated with being a fate-touched) to re-roll any d20 roll that either he makes or his opponents make. Also, out of all the players, he's also rolled quite a high total of Natural 20s, but on the other hand, he's also rolled just as many Natural 1s. He's also had a lot of exceptionally close calls regarding almost dying, at least eight times now: in the Emberhold fortress, against Lord Briarwood, against the Helmed Horrors controlled by Professor Anders, against a purple worm, against Umbrasyl, against a reincarnated Hotis, against Vorugal, and against Raishan. In particular, Vax did come dangerously close to death during the battle with Vorugal, though, and was only saved thanks to the Deathwalker's Ward granting advantage on his death saving throws. He does finally die for the first time in Episode 88 during a fight against a Kraken during Keyleth's Aramente but he was able to be resurrected. His luck finally runs out, however, in Episode 102 when he is disintegrated by Vecna and when he accepts a deal with the Raven Queen that, as he explains to Keyleth, he had to accept or else he couldn't come back. However, once Vecna is defeated, he's gone for good.
But Now I Must Go: He eventually has to say goodbye to the rest of Vox Machina in episode 115 when his soul is taken by the Raven Queen. And despite the circumstances, he doesn't try to beg, plead, or protest; Vax just accepts that it's his time. Both Vex and Keyleth are emotional wrecks as they say goodbye, but Vax's deal was that he had to go, so he had to go.
Can't Hold His Liquor: Shown in Episode 43, especially because he spent half the episode drunk and ended up vomiting due to the earlier drinking and being pummelled repeatedly by Earthbreaker Groon during Grog's test of character.
Catchphrase: "Dagger Dagger" or even "Dagger Dagger Dagger" (when hasted) has become his.
Child of Two Worlds: He and Vex had a human mother and an elven father, with the former being a peasant and the latter nobility - meaning this trope is doubly so.
The Chosen One: The Raven Queen picks him as her Champion after he offers to give up his life for his sister, and the Queen describes him in a dream as "fate-touched". Episode 57 reveals to an extent that the Raven Queen had her eye on him the entire time and wanted to claim him as her champion before the other gods could. In fact, all the things that have happened to Vax'ildan throughout his life have led up to the moment where his sister died and he made the deal, after which the Raven Queen made her move and accepted it.
Combat Pragmatist: Vax'ildan, being a rogue, rarely gets himself into an up-front fight (and when he does without back-up things tend to go badly for him), preferring sneak attacks and remaining as stealthy as possible for maximum damage.
Cool Uncle: To Trinket since Vex calls him Trinket's uncle. He gives Trinket chocolate and lets hims do things that Vex won't let him do, like licking his face.
Cruel to Be Kind: The intent with Kynan, which was called out by Tiberius and Vex'ahlia. It comes back to bite him later.
Designated Point Man: Being a master of stealth, and dealing the most damage against unaware enemies, usually Vax'ildan fills this role.
Desperately Looking for a Purpose in Life: This has been a big part of Vax'ildan's life. But after accepting his role as champion of the Raven Queen, he seems to have found it.
Devious Daggers: Vax's preferred weapons of choice. He carries several of them which he swaps out to match the situation: the Keen Dagger (now wielded by Kynan Leore), the Flametongue, the Dagger of Venom, the Dagger of Life Stealing, and Whisper. He doesn't have any of the ax-crazy connotations; it's just the weapon of choice for his class. And even better, they can teleport back to him after he loses his grip on them or throws them.
Did Not Think This Through:
- He destroys a potential deal with the Clasp, pissing off a vast network of thieves and assassins, under the impression that Emon won't need its help in order to survive. It's later revealed that he's dead wrong, with Seeker Assum making a deal with the Clasp for their help anyway.
- He foolishly starts a fight with Raishan just after the fight with Thordak, resulting in a near TPK.
The Dragonslayer: Killed Brimscythe prior to the start of the stream, and is also the one to kill Thordak.
Dual Wielding: When he's not throwing daggers, he's using them in this manner to stab his foes. It's even a feat of his, which means he gets a bonus +1 to his AC when fighting this way.
Due to the Dead: He does this twice for a farmer named Reginald who helped them in Westruun, first by removing his dead body from its scarecrow position and bringing it to the others so they can ask him questions with Pike's Speak With Dead spell in Episode 50, and second by properly burying him with the help of his daughter Amelia in Episode 56. And then, he does this for Tiberius in Episode 64.
Easily Forgiven:
- Outside of a single discussion where he makes no apologies, he faces no in-game repercussions from the group, and feels no guilt for launching the attack on Raishan that got Vex and Scanlan killed.
- Averted with the circumstances that lead to him having to make a deal with The Matron Of Ravens for Vex's life largely due to Percy's carelessness. Vax held it against him for a long time afterward
Face Death with Dignity: When he's called to the Raven Queen's side, he doesn't beg, protest, or argue, and even gently attempts to calm down Percy when he reacts poorly. He reassures everyone that he'll never be far away and goes to meet his mother.
Fatal Flaw: His fear of being alone.
Fearless Fool: He's usually first through the door, and often he doesn't think about what might be on the other side. For instance, an attempt to spy on the Briarwoods without any back-up nearly got him killed.
Flipping the Bird: It's basically his call-sign and delivered to enemies such as the druegar army underneath Kraghammer when he's luring them into a trap.
Fragile Speedster: Vax doesn't have a very high Constitution score and his HP maximum can't hold a candle to Grog or Percy, but thanks to a combination of his roguish talents and his magical items, he's naturally evasive and has an unmatched top speed. ^{How fast exactly?}
The Gadfly: He loves pulling pranks on Grog, Vex and Scanlan, especially Grog. The half-beard shaving comes to mind.
Game-Breaking Injury: Downplayed with his foot that was dipped in molten rock in Episode 7 that effectively reduced his speed by 5 and gave him Disadvantage to his Stealth Checks. However, with his Cloak of Elvenkind (which normally gives him Advantage on those Checks), he can negate that. It's fully healed in Episode 15.
Glass Cannon: Despite his high damage potential and high AC, he has only 11 Constitution and relatively low HP compared to most of the party.
Good Cop/Bad Cop: Usually is the bad cop during interrogations.
Green Thumb: In Episode 115, he takes a level in Druid at level 20 and Druidcrafts a field of snowdrops as he goes to the Raven Queen's side.
Half-Human Hybrid: Half-elf. Comes with the territory.
Half-Identical Twins: With Vex'ahlia, to the point when someone asked him what his sister looked like, he just pointed to himself. Official art tends to portray the twins with fairly similar features as well.
Handicapped Badass: From episodes 7 to 15 when his foot was dipped in molten rock, he was still more than capable of holding his own in a fight.
Healing Hands: As a paladin, he now has access to Lay On Hands.
Heroic Bastard: While it's never explicitly stated on-stream, it's pretty obvious that the twins' parents weren't married. And while Vax usually tends more towards the Pragmatic Hero-Anti-Hero side of the spectrum, he does have his moments of genuine heroism, especially as the show progresses.
Heroic BSoD: Has one when Vex dies in episode 44. After she's revived, he says exactly one word in-character for the rest of the session.
The Hero Dies: In the end, is one of two original party members to die for real.
He's Back!: After a very long period of time following the Conclave's attack and his oath to the Raven Queen, Vax begins to return to his old self, more prankish and cheerful, in Episode 95. He even says as much (to Trinket, of all people).
Vax: I'm back, Trinket. I'm fucking back, buddy.
Hypocrite: After Percy’s recklessness caused Vex to die for a short time, Vax hits him and spends weeks enraged at him for it. When Vax’s recklessness causes Vex to die for a short time, however, he does not address or react to it at all, even more out of character when one considers how much of his character is guilt driven otherwise.
Hypocritical Humor: Shuts down Keyleth's idea of using his sister's name while posing as his wife because it would be "too weird." He then turns around and declares that his own cover will be "Lord Scanlan of the Shorthalts."
I Shall Taunt You: Despite his serious nature, Vax seems to like this, such as telling a duergar about to be attacked by Grog "you are so fucked," or projecting the image of him flipping the bird into the mind of an enemy with psychic powers.
Improbable Aiming Skills: Picked up the Sharpshooter feat by Episode 33, meaning he ignores an enemy's cover up to 3/4 and does not suffer disadvantage when throwing his daggers beyond the normal range of 20 feet. It came in handy when he dealt a very large amount of damage to Professor Anders while he was holding a hostage with a knife to her throat.
Intimate Haircut: Gives one to Keyleth in Episode 81 following the druid having most of her hair burnt off during the battle with Raishan. He uses Whisper to cut off the burnt ends and clean them.
Invisibility: He obtained a Ring of Invisibility in Episode 72 and uses it to mess with his sister invisibly, eavesdrop a bit, and then give it up to put on his more useful legendary artifacts.
Irony: He has a crisis of faith throughout the first three arcs, and eventually starts wearing a symbol of Sarenrae, a goddess of healing and life. And then, by offering his own life up to save his sister, he ends up becoming the champion of the goddess of death instead. Becomes less ironic the more we learn about the goddess of death, who is more of a Don't Fear the Reaper type than Everyone Hates Hades, whose main concern is in guarding the transition at death from being perverted by those who make the dying into unwilling undead (she is fine with the dead being resurrected as long as it is willing, and isn't being done through evil methods). As such, The Raven Queen is actually more likely to be an ally of Sarenrae than an enemy.
It Has Been an Honor:
- In Episode 4, he tells Scanlan this word-for-word before they set up their attack on the duergar warcamp.
- However, in the second instance right before the K'varn fight when he tries to say this to the rest of Vox Machina, Keyleth and Percy immediately tell him to shut it.
- His last words with Vox Machina are this before he departs with the Raven Queen. These sentiments are reciprocated by the group.
Immortal Life Is Cheap: After becoming the Raven Queen's revenant, he becomes even more indifferent to dying than before, because he will revive every time he dies until Vecna is sealed. Thus, he doesn't mind letting an archfey strangle him to death in exchange for aid.
Killed Off for Real: The price Vax paid once Vecna was defeated and sealed for good as a Revenant. He got to say some last words to all of Vox Machina and walked into the afterlife with his mother and the Raven Queen.
The Leader: While not officially in any position of authority, Vax falls into the role at times, generally in terms of organizing plans and making sure everyone gets a word in. Given that, in real life, the campaign began as a birthday gift for Liam O'Brien, this seems fitting. And considering he is fate-touched, Vax's fate has intermingled with the fates of those around him.
Life Drain: His Dagger of Life Stealing, which can give Vax 10 HP back upon rolling a Natural 20 on the attack roll.^note
Living on Borrowed Time: After he was killed by Vecna in Thar Amphala with a Disintegration spell, which destroyed his body and made revival a very slim possibility, he was brought back by the Raven Queen as a revenant, an undead being solely focused on a single task. While technically now immortal, it was only a boon granted to him in order to deal with Vecna. As soon as the Whispered One is vanquished by Vox Machina, the Raven Queen returned to claim Vax's soul.
Long-Range Fighter: Whenever he throws his daggers thanks to the weapons teleporting back to him. Before his most effective range was 20 feet, but with Sharpshooter added to his arsenal, he can now throw daggers for a maximum of 60 feet and ignore cover.
The Lost Lenore: For Keyleth. They only knew each other a few years (and loved each other even more briefly) before his death, but it leaves psychological scars on Keyleth for decades if not centuries.
Love Confession: Declares his love for Keyleth in Episode 33.
Magic Knight: Upon becoming a paladin, Vax'ildan has gained the ability to use divine magic. More specifically, he can use Lay on Hands to heal his allies, cast spells to grant benefits to the group (Shield of Faith, Bless, Heroism, etc.) or cast Hunter's Mark much like Vex'ahlia, and can even use Divine Smite to deal additional damage with his melee attacks.
My Fist Forgives You: Socks Percy in the jaw after the latter sets off a trap that gets Vex killed, albeit temporarily in Episode 44. Ultimately subverted, as later conversations prove that Vax still hasn't forgiven Percy for the event.
My Life Flashed Before My Eyes: When Vax'ildan first falls unconscious on stream and begins to fail his death saving throws, Liam tearfully describes how Vax thinks about his time with Keyleth and Vex'ahlia.
My Sister Is Off-Limits: Vax is very possessive of Vex when it comes to her close friendship with Percy especially after Percy accidentally gets Vex killed. Nominally, this is because he believes Percy's dark past will hurt her in the long run. As of Episode 72, Vax seems to have changed his mind, at least a bit, as he has a conversation with Vex, telling her to admit her feelings to the recently revived gunslinger.
The Nicknamer: Tends to do this with his allies. Among many others, he occasionally calls Keyleth "Kiki", and apparently called his slightly shorter twin "Stubby" while they were growing up.
Not Afraid to Die: Played for Laughs by Liam, who seems to like putting Vax in deadly situations and once joked that Matt is trying to kill Vax. He apparently has a second character ready to roll. In an interview, he plays it straight - Vax is absolutely willing to die for "any and all" of the members of Vox Machina.
Not Enough to Bury: Vecna reduces Vax to ash with a Disintegrate spell in Episode 102.
Now or Never Kiss: Does this to Keyleth in Episode 54 the night before they face Umbrasyl, the Hope Devourer.
Vax'ildan: (to Keyleth) I don't know if it's the food you made, or the fact that we're going to die tomorrow, but I want to kiss you.
Once Done, Never Forgotten: He's the only member of the party who doesn't realize that their Dwarven ally "Larkin" is a throwaway disguise for Raishan, something that the party, the actors, and the fanbase will never let him live down.
Only One Name: It took 59 episodes for the twins' surname to be revealed as "Vessar", although neither of them actually use the name themselves - likely down to a poor relationship with their father.
Opposites Attract: The two people Vax has shown the greatest attraction and devotion to, despite being sullen, withdrawn and shadowy, are the boisterous and colorful Gilmore and the ray of sunshine, Keyleth. Zig-zagged a bit with Keyleth, when she and Vex have the same conversation that Vax and Pike do about the former not believing that they deserve happiness, showing that they have some similarities.
Our Zombies Are Different: He's described as being neither truly alive nor necessarily undead by Matt after becoming a Revenant. Namely, he is unnaturally pale and cold, his heartbeat is really slow, and he doesn't need to breathe, but abilities that target undead, like Turn Undead, do not work against him.
The Paladin: He accepts his role as the Raven Queen's champion by Episode 55, revealing that he has multiclassed into one.
Playing with Fire: His Flametongue dagger.
Poisonous Person: His Dagger of Venom.
Power Gives You Wings: In Episode 58, it's revealed that the Deathwalker's Ward armor grants Vax'ildan the power of flight for an hour once per day... with actual raven wings, much to Vex'ahlia's utter shock.
Vex'ahlia: He can fucking FLY?!
Powered by a Forsaken Child: Ludinus Da'leth uses his personal story with the Voice of the Tempest in order to have him caught and used as the power source for his machine.
Pragmatic Hero: Has his moments. To wit:
Vax: I would never think to ask the gods for help if I wanted a shiny new sword or a pile of riches, but this is something different.
Grog: Unless they could get us a pile of riches.
Vex: Or a shiny new sword.
Vax: (immediately) Good point.
The Prankster: Has a fondness for practical jokes, including shaving half of Grog's beard and putting ribbons on Trinket while Vex is away.
Precision F-Strike: This comes up more often with Vax'ildan than any other character, specifically during interrogations.
Pun: Vax'ildan makes one in Clarota's presence, and gets mentally bitchslapped for it.
Clarota: I. Hate. PUNS!
Psychic Powers: In addition to dealing piercing damage, Whisper can also deal out psychic damage.
Psychopomp: Becomes this after his death. Due to being the chosen champion of the Raven Queen, he personally guides the souls of those who fear death and soothes them in the afterlife.
Puppeteer Parasite: Vax'ildan was briefly possessed in this way twice by ghosts. The second time, he had a helping hand in breaking free of his possession.
Really Gets Around: Downplayed, and not really a major factor in the stream itself (though, Vax is notably one of the only two members of Vox Machina to get multiple love interests), but its inferred in his backstory Vax is quite the flirt and has a history of sleeping around. The Origins comics showcase this, as after an adventure left Vox Machina flush with coin and have a montage of spending it, Vax is shown chatting up with multiple men and women at bars.
Real Men Hate Affection: Absolutely and gloriously averted. Despite Vax being both male and relatively stoic, he's frequently given out hugs and kisses to party members and allies. Really, he's almost a Cuddle Bug.
Red Baron: Vax'ildan, Champion of the Raven Queen.
Red Oni, Blue Oni: The Red to Vex'ahlia's Blue because he is more impulsive and more likely to act without thinking.
Running Gag:
- From Episode 7 to Episode 15, Liam/Vax'ildan puts his foot up right in Laura/Vex'ahlia's general area for Pike to heal. (Much to Vex'ahlia's — or possibly Laura's, it's hard to say — chagrin.) There's also his tendency to sneak off ahead of everyone and being reckless.
- He also has the running gag of walking away from people a lot, to the point that Scanlan mocks him by doing it to him.
Sibling Rivalry: Downplayed because they clearly love each other, but Vax and Vex have their bickering, and Vax especially is prone to pranking his sister.
The Sneaky Guy: Being the party rogue, Vax is the one who sniffs out traps and scouts ahead. Also a Stealth Expert, by necessity of class. To give an example: During the lead up to the final battle with Vecna, he rolls a natural 4, but his stealth bonus is so high that it ends being over 30 anyway, something Matt lampshades when he hears Liam point out.
Sophisticated as Hell: Speaks with a drawling, pseudo-posh English accent, which makes it funnier when he tosses out casual, very clearly-enunciated profanity.
Status Buff: His Boots of Haste, which grants him +2 to his Armor Class, advantage on Dexterity saves, double speed, and an extra action. Also, the aforementioned Deathwalker's Ward armor.
Take Me Instead: Invoked word-for-word when he offers his life to the Raven Queen in exchange for his sister's during the resurrection ritual for her in Episode 44. He's still alive, but he did eventually become the Raven Queen's champion.
Taken for Granite: Ended up petrified by a pixie in Episode 61.
Team Dad: Most obviously in the Whitestone arc, to the point where Critters have started calling him "Vax'ildad" in the chat.
Teleportation: Can choose to pull a Nightcrawler and "bamf" towards wherever Whisper lands upon impact.
Too Many Belts: Official art depicts him with quite a number of belts, two of which are magical: the Blink-Back Belt, and "Simon", a belt that can turn into a snake.
Tranquil Fury: Vax interrogates a guard in Episode 31 and finds out that the guard was partially responsible for the death of the child hanging in the sun tree. Without saying anything else, he immediately slits the guard's throat.
Twincest: Played with and averted in the same sentence in Episode 43, when Vex talks to Vax about the relationship between him, Kashaw, and Keyleth and gets annoyed that "everyone seems to be attracted to Keyleth":
Vex'ahlia: (Clearly annoyed) Yes, yes. She is so. Fucking. Beautiful! I get it.
Vax'ildan: (also clearly annoyed) Well, so are you, but what the fuck am I going to do with that?
Undercover as Lovers:
- In Episode 20, he and Keyleth decide to act as though they're married. Vax'ildan is Mr. Scanlan of the Emon Shorthalts.
- Suggests in Episode 1 that he and Vex act as though they're married as well, which Vex shoots down for obvious reasons.
Undying Loyalty: To all of Vox Machina, but especially towards his sister Vex'ahlia (who's also his best friend) and Keyleth.
Unfinished Business: The Raven Queen brings him back to life with the mission of killing Vecna, but Vax will be Killed Off for Real when he's done.
Vagueness Is Coming: He gets very frustrated with the Raven Queen's vague dreams once he becomes her Champion.
Vitriolic Best Buds: Played for laughs. Vax states that the friendship between him and Grog is a "contentious one." Vax loves pranking Grog, especially when it comes to his beard. Played straight in his relationship with Percy.
Why Did It Have to Be Snakes?: After the events of episode 7 where his foot was briefly submerged in it, it's stated that Vax developed a phobia of lava as shown in episode 22 during the party's visit to Pyrah, home of the Fire Ashari. However, when it was time to take on Keyleth's trial, he swallowed his fear and made the jump to the Elemental Plane of Fire. He also conquered his fear when he aided in sealing the tear in the planes by jumping towards it with the Cape of the Mountebank in Episode 46.
The Worf Effect: Within moments of his surprise appearance in Campaign 3 he is captured by Liliana Temult and used as part of the Malleus Key.
You Are Not Alone: Gives this speech to Keyleth in Episode 9 to reassure her that they would always be there for her, and that they would see the mission that they are on is completed.
You Are Not Ready: Tells Kynan, an in-universe Vox Machina fanboy, that he is not ready to actually be part of Vox Machina. Vax'ildan then tells Kynan that the life of Vox Machina is actually somewhat shitty and that the boy should do some true training, if he is truly serious about joining. That said, he does also promise to personally train Kynan if the time comes.

Vex'ahlia and Trinket

Vex'ahlia "Vex"

Played by: Laura Bailey (Campaign 1, The Legend of Vox Machina), Matthew Mercer (Campaign 3)

"We don't do anything with dignity."

Race: Half-elf

Class: Ranger (Beast Master)/Rogue (Assassin)

A skilled half-elven ranger and archer with a particular love of money. She is the twin sister of Vax'ildan, with whom she shares an almost inseparable bond. Along with him, she cut ties with their elven homeland after they were discriminated against for their human heritage. She went on to train as a Ranger within the wilds, befriending a bear named Trinket as her animal companion.

Action Mom: Her first child, Vesper, was born at some point between the Search for Bob and Dalen's Closet one shots.
All Girls Want Bad Boys: Laura admits that Vex was attracted to some of her love interest's darker traits.
Anguished Declaration of Love: During Percy's resurrection ritual, she confesses that her heart belongs to him.
Angrish: Almost completely loses the power of speech when she's furious at Vax for setting dogs loose to destroy her hotel room at Dalen's Closet.^note
Annoying Arrows: Averts this, as rangers are damn good at taking out foes with arrows. For example, that time Vex took out half a throne room's worth of guards in one attack. This was played for laughs one time, though, when the twins both attacked the same guard. Overkill ensued, and the DM described the duergar, already killed by Vax, slumping down the wall only for two arrows to land in him.
Annoying Younger Sibling: Falls into this trope often with Vax, despite them being the same age.
Arch-Enemy: Dragons in general because one of them killed her mother. They are her Favored Enemy as a ranger.
Arrows on Fire: Her Flaming Arrows thanks to Tiberius's Blazing Bow String.
Authority in Name Only: Subverted. Percy names her as the Baroness of the Third House of Whitehouse and Grand Mistress of the Grey Hunt. Vox Machina killed two of the existing barons, and a third was executed, so there is a vacancy. However, she doesn't have a manor in Whitestone (Scanlan burned it down), or any money from the title. At first it seems like a ceremonial title, but one of the Grand Mistress's most important duties is to hunt down monsters that threaten the people of Whitestone, and Percy clarifies that the title does actually need to be earned; he just had every confidence that she could do it. In Episode 94, Vex goes on a solo mission with Trinket to prove herself worthy of the position. They hunt down a gray render and Vex is formally given her title when they return with the render's head.
Babies Ever After: She ends up having five children with Percy.
Back from the Dead: Four times. Fortunately, for all four times, she was brought back by a Revivify spell, first by Kashaw and then the other times by Pike.
- The first time happens in Episode 44 when Percy opens a sarcophagus and Vex'ahlia gets blasted by necrotic energy.
- The second time happens in Episode 80 when she fails her final death saving throw during the party's second battle with Raishan.
- The third time happens in Episode 102 when she is targeted by Vecna's Power Word Kill spell.
- The fourth time occurs in the Dalen's Closet oneshot, when she drowns after being thrown into the ocean by Sylas Briarwood.
Back Stab: Can use Sneak Attack like her brother after multiclassing to Rogue by the time of Episode 40.
Badass Cape: A Cloak of Elvenkind, previously worn by Vax until Episode 33.
Bargain with Heaven: Her offering to the Raven Queen for Vax's resurrection ritual. The bargain? Bring back Vax, and Vox Machina will fight and kill Orcus, a god of undeath and the Queen's arch nemesis. And she accepts!
Because You Were Nice to Me: She started to really appreciate Percy from the moment she received her first custom arrow from him, a genuine act of kindness that would be followed by many more to come. Because of this, she works harder than anyone else to make sure he's okay upon confronting his family's murderers and eventually falls in love with him.
Berserk Button: Don't bring up the flying carpet or waste money. And if you value your safety, do not con the party out of their valuables.
Birds of a Feather: With her brother, of course, but also with Percy. She and Percy are both ranged attackers with limited access to magic. They tend to take the Pragmatic Hero side of most debates - for example, they both agree on how the revolution in Whitestone should be conducted - and, due to their fairly good persuasion scores, both can act as the party face when Scanlan isn't around. Both like to make things explode. As the series goes on they gain even more things in common, such as both of them nearly dying in battle, and learning to forgive and move on from the pain that others have caused them. These connections are what helps them get together later on.
Black Comedy: Often accompanied by Open Mouth, Insert Foot. She tells Desmond, a carriage driver who is missing three fingers, that if he wants to take up a new career it shouldn't be lute playing. There's also this.
Vex: Well, I'm really tired from being dead, so I'm going to sleep.
Bonding over Missing Parents: She butted heads with Zahra when they first met, but later somewhat bonded over their shared loss of a parent and jerkass fathers.
Bows and Errors: Vex'ahlia is a legendary archer capable of such feats as piercing plate armor and bulletproof dragon hides with her arrows. This is despite being pitifully weak (because of her in-game Strength score of 7 out of 20), to the point even a furious punch to the jaw from her causes 0 damage and is Played for Laughs. Drawing some of Vex's massive bows would be a challenge for most people, let alone someone so weak, but the whole show is a game that would suffer from being bogged down in minutiae like that, so the issue never comes up.
Broken Ace: Vex is beautiful, charming, intelligent, eloquent, and confident; she's a highly skilled archer, a polyglot, and has a pet grizzly bear and a sharp mind for money. She's also been deeply mentally and emotionally scarred from living with a neglectful unpleasable father in a city that aimed its Fantastic Racism at her and her brother, and then from living in squalor and fighting to survive after running away. At the end of the day, she wants to have a home and to feel like she belongs somewhere and be loved for all of who she is, both her flaws and her strengths.
Broken Bird: Beneath all the flirtation, haggling, and self-confidence she exhibits, in reality she's just as broken as the rest of the party, something that Saundor uses to exploit so that he can attempt to take her heart by force in Episode 63.
Call of the Wild Blue Yonder: The carpet, the potion of flying, and now the broom—Vex is obsessed with trying to find ways to fly.
Calling the Old Man Out: In Episode 60, she directly confronts Syldor about the things he had done and not done in regards to the twins' existence as well as their upbringing from when they were younger.
Cannot Spit It Out: During Percy's resurrection ritual, she admits that she "should have told him" that she loves him. Come the next episode, she becomes an adorable mess and can't get the words out, despite having a fairly good opportunity.
Can't Act Perverted Toward a Love Interest: Averted. Percy kisses her in Episode 72, confirming their feelings are mutual, and she gives him a smack on the ass two episodes later.
Character Tic: The flirtatious Vex wink. Occasionally appropriated by other characters. She also likes telling party members "I love you" to get them to do things she wants, like Percy crafting experimental or specialty arrows, or getting Tiberius to help transport Trinket over perilous surfaces or locations.
Child of Two Worlds: Much like Vax, of course. The two lived with their mother in childhood, only to be brought to the elven court where their father lived. The reception they faced from him and the other elves of the city was icy at best, leading them to seek their destiny elsewhere.
Cooldown Hug: A variant—she holds Percy's hand in Episode 33, after he kills Professor Anders and turns into smoke, to get him to calm down and take off his mask.
Cover Innocent Eyes and Ears: Shortly before she tells Syldor how she really feels, she says "headphones, dear" and plugs the ears of her younger half-sister, Velora
Damage Reduction: Through the Blessing of the Dawnfather, she gains resistance to necrotic damage.
Do You Want to Haggle?: Completely and totally, much to the frustration and chagrin of Gilmore's assistant. Or really anytime Vox Machina wants to shop...or more to the point, whenever money is involved. For her, getting a Nat 20 in persuasion against a shopkeeper is equivalent to a critical hit in battle.
The Dragonslayer: An Invoked Trope, as dragons are her favored enemy, giving her a bonus to damage rolls against them. Fulfills the trope in full when she is the one that eventually fells Vorugal the Frigid Doom in Episode 71.
Drowning My Sorrows: After the group argues with Scanlan in episode 85, Vex spends the rest of the night drinking until she can't remember what the argument was about
Drunk with Power: Played for Laughs when she starts bossing the guards around after Percy makes her a Baroness.
Elemental Weapon: Her Lightning Arrow spell and her Blazing Bowstring allow her arrows to deal additional lightning and fire damage respectively. Her Longbow of the Sky Sentinel (and later, Fenthras) can also deal lightning damage.
Everyone Has Standards: While she's usually unsentimental about stripping bodies for their gear or squeezing money out of merchants, Vex refuses to loot Whitestone because it's Percy's home. She also refuses the reward gathered by the peasants in episode 26 (although Vox Machina was trying very hard to be good that day, and she didn't look too happy about it). She also wants to take less gold out of Umbrasyl and Vorugal's lairs in episodes 56 and 72 than Grog and Scanlan do, insisting that most of it should go to the people of Westruun and Draconia.
The Face: She almost always leads interactions and negotiations with NPCs, whether it's gathering information from merchants or strategizing on how to kill dragons with Zanror and Tooma. Laura Bailey once said that had the twins been raised well in Syngorn, Vex would have become a diplomat, and she becomes even more involved in political affairs as both Lady de Rolo of Whitestone and the Master of Commerce of the Tal'Dorei Council.
Fatal Flaw: Her greed. Well, near-fatal at any rate. To elaborate, after discovering a temple dedicated to the Raven Queen, Percy opened a sarcophagus and found one of the Vestiges of Divergence, as well as other assorted gold and loot inside. Vex, hearing about the gold, immediately ran from helping her brother out of a pit to the sarcophagus containing the gold. Percy, however, unknowingly triggered a trap that sent out a wave of death energy that managed to bring her Hit Points to 0 and, in this case, kill her. She's very fortunate Kashaw was there to revivify her.
- Much like Keyleth, she also struggles with her self-worth, which she hides with an icy exterior. Given her frosty relationship with her father, she is massively insecure and wonders if anyone will love her. But with her friends, she realizes that she has a family who love her and will fight for her no matter what.
Flying Broomstick: She steals a flying broomstick from an ally only to realize she doesn't know how to make it fly. She eventually figures the incantation to make it work, but then she realizes she can't hold onto it while holding her bow and it causes problems. Percy then modifies it to keep her from falling off and deems it "Death From Above".
Forest Ranger: Justified in the fact that one of her favored terrains is "Forest."
Freudian Excuse: Her Gold Fever stems in part from her difficult upbringing. She and Vax grew up with their working-class mother, were taken to Syngorn where they were harshly judged, and struggled for survival for a time after running away. She very rarely actually buys things for herself with the money she saves, and when she returns to Syngorn, she's so desperate to appear "well-off" that she begins weeping from worry. It's also worth noting that Vax doesn't seem nearly as traumatized by the situation as Vex does.
Friend to All Living Things: She rescued Trinket from poachers when he was just a cub, feeling responsible for him after being forced to kill his mother, and she's the one who makes a point of taking care of Tiberius' pet Lockheed once they find out the two were separated. She later spends 15,000 gold just to free two boys from slavery, officially making her a good-aligned character.
Glass Cannon: Much like her brother, she has high damage potential and AC, but only 10 Constitution and an HP maximum that is just above Vax's.
Gold Fever: Considering her obsession with finding treasure and looting bodies. She even gets mad when her team that is sent to hunt down a white dragon discover the bulk of his treasure trove frozen in the walls of his lair, out of their reach.
Greed: Coveting and acquiring wealth is a defining feature of her character. She is Vox Machina's treasurer, she haggles every purchase from every merchant on principle, and she makes "gimme" gestures whenever the group finds magic items or gems. Played with, however, in that when she does spend money, it's rarely on items for herself; usually when she haggles, it's for health potions or other items that she immediately doles out for group use.
Half-Human Hybrid: She's the child of an elf and a human, giving her the extended life of an elf and the humility of humanity.
Half-Identical Twins: With Vax'ildan. The two are depicted as looking very similar in official art, and are even referred to as 'identical' a couple times throughout the series.
Happily Married: During Vox Machina's year off, she and Percy proposed to each other on a whim, and eloped (with Keeper Yennen officiating). The rest of Vox Machina are not told until Episode 106.
Healing Hands: She can cast Cure Wounds to heal injuries, which she often has to do to whenever her pet bear gets knocked out in a fight.
Heroic Bastard: It's all but outright stated that the twins are illegitimate, which likely played a role in the elves' less than stellar treatment of them. And while Vex is less traditionally heroic than her brother, she'll still go out of her way to help those in need.
Heroic BSoD:
- Twofold in Episode 40. The first time is upon witnessing the savagery of the Chroma Conclave in this episode and the last one and wondering if this carnage was what her mother Elaina saw before she died, and the second time is when Allura Vysoren confirms that the dragon who killed Elaina and the one who currently rules over Emon are one and the same.
- She has another in Episode 68 and 69, moving from Tranquil Fury to heartbroken defeat because Percy has been killed and they have no way to quickly revive him.
Hidden Depths: She writes an absolutely kick-ass limerick in Episode 42. She's also much smarter than people give her credit for, largely because Percy fills the role of The Smart Guy and tends to get the recognition for it. She's the one who comes up with the plan to pit Yenk and Vorugal against each other, for example. Percy even admits she'd be "the clever one" if he were to die.
Hypocrite: She secretly got married despite specifically telling her brother not to do so. She admits she forgot.
Important Hair Accessory: Her trademark blue feathers, given to her by Vax during one of her darkest moments. She braids them into Vax's hair during his resurrection ritual in Episode 89.
I Need a Freaking Drink: After hearing the carpet had lost its enchantment, Grog giving away a bunch of dragon parts (and Percy not stopping him), and not getting a kiss...she goes for it in Episode 22. The resulting scene of Vex drowning her sorrows in ale was likely a one-episode trope, but Laura Bailey plays it hard and plays it well.
I Just Want to Be Special: She confesses to Percy in Episode 59 that she deeply wants to stand out around people, specifically wanting to look like she comes from money and is well-off, a contrast to her treatment from growing up in Syngorn. The following episode, Percy grants her wish by giving her a title in front of her father, effectively making her nobility.
Improbable Aiming Skills: She can fire an arrow a hundred feet up and land it right in a tiny hole, find chinks in the armor of ancient dragons, and eventually, she can use her Sharpshooter feat to fire accurately from 700 feet away.
It's All My Fault: She takes the realization that Laudna was killed and used as her body double on the Sun Tree very hard, especially after learning that Laudna was raised from the dead and continued being tormented by her killer for 30 years. She immediately offers Whitestone's resources for the resurrection ritual, pleads with Percy to allow them to find a way to separate Laudna and Delilah, and continues funding Bell's Hells' efforts to save Laudna’s soul.
Vex: We have to help them. We did this to her. We're the reason she was on that tree to begin with.
The Joy of First Flight: Vex'ahlia shows almost child-like glee and joy whenever she's able to fly, whether through a magic potion or an enchanted broomstick.
Kicking Ass in All Her Finery: Formal and Fancy Dinner clothing doesn't slow her down; she scores a pair of critical hits from her bow in episode 25 fresh off a royal dinner.
Ladykiller in Love: She's very flirtatious, happy to wink at strangers or flash a crowd, but by Episode 63 she's fallen in love with Percy.
Light 'em Up: Upon becoming Pelor's champion in Episode 104, in addition to natural resistance to necrotic damage, once every seven days she can cause herself to emit a large radius of light around her. Anything that harms her within this radius is dealt radiant damage and is knocked prone.
Long-Range Fighter: As expected of a Ranger with the Archery fighting style.
Mama Bear: To Trinket. She will not let him charge into battle unless absolutely necessary. To elaborate, after putting his mother out of her misery, Vex adopted Trinket when he was just a cub. The two have been inseparable ever since and Vex never wants to go anywhere without him, much to Sam's/Scanlan's chagrin. She never even told Vax about how she met him.
Ms. Fanservice:
- Played with in Episode 1; Scanlan mentions that he got hickies from a "whore dwarf," and Vex'ahlia off-handedly mentions that she has hickies too. After a short but very noticeable pause, Percy wisely changes topic to comment cards.
- Played for laughs in Episode 8, when kitty Trinket took enough damage and the players envision him bursting out of Vex's armor.
- And again in Episode 9, when Laura was pretending to take off her armor, complete with Travis/Grog hastily drawing a picture of it. (Again, played for laughs.)
- Once again in Episode 23, Vex'ahlia lifts her shirt up to flash Grog in an attempt to distract Kurn and inspire Grog! Based on the crowd's reaction, Grog isn't the only one who was, ah, "inspired."
- And again in Episode 51, when she briefly flashes him to inspire him once again, just before fighting Kev'dak.
- Inverted in Episode 54, when she and Scanlan trade armor. Scanlan's the one who does the sexy strip tease—she just strips her armor off efficiently and flings it at him.
- Continues in episode 59, when she takes off her armor so Keyleth can cast Dispel Magic—much to the delight of everyone except Vax.
My Sister Is Off-Limits: Initially seems to disapprove of Vax's crush on Keyleth, giving Keyleth "the evilest eye she's ever given anyone" when Vax grabbed her hand in Episode 29, but ultimately averted. After Vax's confession, she's consistently teasing but supportive.
Names to Run Away from Really Fast: Do you really want to screw with someone titled Grandmistress of the Grey Hunt?
Nice to the Waiter: In contrast to how she responds to most shopkeeps, Vex is very generous with how she pays the staff at Greyskull Keep and is perfectly happy to give them raises when they ask, to the point where Jarrett outright turned down her offer of another bonus.
Not Afraid to Die: Said word for word by her in Episode 47, in the aftermath of her brief brush with the other side in Episode 44.
Offered the Crown: Percy makes her a Baroness in no small part because Vox Machina killed two of the previous Barons of Whitestone and there's nobody to replace them.
Only One Name: It took 59 episodes for the twins' surname to be revealed as "Vessar" by the guards in Syngorn because neither of them actually use the name themselves—likely down to a poor relationship with their father. She eventually does gain a surname when she takes Percy's name after marrying him.
Open Mouth, Insert Foot: She advises Desmond, whose fingers Percy blew off, not to take up a career in lute-playing. Her horrified expression after the words come out of her mouth is as darkly funny as the line itself.
The Power of the Sun: She gains a light-emitting radiant power late in the campaign. This is specifically considered sunlight, which comes in handy when vampires attack in the Dalen's Closet one-shot.
Rain of Arrows: She can turn a single arrow into a thirty-foot cone of arrows with Conjure Barrage or cause it to split apart into a Hail of Thorns that extends in a ten-foot radius.
Red Oni, Blue Oni: The Blue to Vax'ildan's Red; she is more cautious and more reserved in her personality and interactions (unless money is involved).
Relationship Upgrade: Twice with Percy. In Episode 69, she confesses her love to his corpse while the whole group is around, and in Episode 72, he reciprocates in private. Episode 104 takes it a step further, with Percy (in her absence) revealing to the whole group and Pelor that they are betrothed, and Episode 105 (thanks to Scanlan being Scanlan) having it come out that they have actually eloped, presumably during the time skip between Episodes 94 and 95.
The Rival: Starts to form a rivalry with guest party member Zahra, but it's rather quickly squashed when they had some time to sit and find some commonality, and over time they become close friends.
Running Gag: Forgetting to use her Hunter's Mark spell. It got to the point where it was written on a chalkboard within Laura's view as a constant reminder. Over time, she's gotten better at remembering it.
Say My Name: She calls Percy by his nine-word long full name when trying to convince him to reject whatever evil is corrupting him:
"Percival Fredrickstein Von Musel Klossowski de Rolo the Third, you will fight this monster inside you!"
Sexual Karma: She and Percy—both officially Chaotic Good aligned—only get together after both of them have had enough character development that they think they're healthy for each other, and more references are made to their very active sex life than to any other character's in the show (besides Scanlan).
So Beautiful, It's a Curse: The darker side of Vex's status as Ms. Fanservice is that she met Trinket when a pair of human traffickers kidnapped her and one tried to sexually assault her. She also had a stalker in the past that Vax attempted to thwart by joining the Clasp.
The Scrooge: As part of her Gold Fever, Vex is ridiculously frugal and always attempts to haggle. She's the official treasurer of Vox Machina, and the easiest way to push her Berserk Button is to needlessly relinquish money.
Shipper on Deck: For Vax and Keyleth pretty much since the moment Vax confessed. Once she advised Keyleth not to lead him on, she's been nothing but (teasingly) supportive and has encouraged Keyleth in particular not to hold back due to fear.
Stealth Expert: The twins are both pretty sneaky. Vex also has Pass Without Trace, which has proven to be a great boon towards the group's Stealth checks many times over. She later dons Vax's Cloak of Elvenkind ^note and takes a level in Rogue.
Stepford Smiler: Due to her Dark and Troubled Past, she puts up a front of being strong and confident, hiding her insecurities behind teasing and flirtation. However, due to later events, the masks that she put up for herself start to crack.
The Strategist: While many jokes are made about Vox Machina's poor history with plans, most of the ones they've made that have worked have been brainchildren of Vex'ahlia. She's the one to suggest the trench trap that takes out members of the goliath herd in Westruun, and she's also the one to suggest pitting Yenk the Goristro against Vorugal in order to weaken Vorugal and get them a Vestige in one fell swoop. She also frequently helps strategize with important NPCs.
Super Drowning Skills: Lampshaded by Laura in the Dalen's Closet one-shot: despite being level 20, when thrown in the water she drowns pathetically quickly.
Taken for Granite: Was petrified by a basilisk during the pre-stream days.
These Hands Have Killed: She took her first life around the time she met and rescued Trinket when he was a cub, by killing the two poachers who had captured her, Trinket's mother, and Trinket himself. She never told Vax or anyone else about this, keeping the exact story of how she obtained Trinket a secret...until Saundor alludes to it in Episode 63.
Saundor ...You never left that bloodied girl, dagger in hand, body at your feet. You're a killer, run as you may.
This Is for Emphasis, Bitch!:
- Pulls one off when she manages to drag a dragon to the ground with Grasping Vine.
  Vex'ahlia: Stay down, bitch!
- And again when she deals the final blow to Delilah Briarwood in Episode 113.
  Vex'ahlia (while miming Finger of Death): How's it feel, bitch?
Throw Down the Bomblet: Her Explosive Arrows, thanks to Percy's tinkering.
Trauma Button: The idea of returning to Syngorn has her staying up all night to try and fix her clothes and bursting into tears in front of Percy, because she's so afraid of being judged by the nobility.
Tranquil Fury: Laura is absolutely stone-faced when she describes how Vex kills Ripley in vengeance for Percy's death.
Trick Arrow: She has several, mostly created by Percy.
True Love's Kiss: She kisses Percy and admits her love for him during his resurrection ritual, and rolls a Natural 20 on the resulting persuasion check to help bring him back.
Undying Loyalty: For Vax (twin brother) and Trinket (beloved familiar), there is nothing she won't do.
Verbal Tic: "Dear" and "darling" to people she's friendly towards or trying to charm. She's not above an "I love you" to party members she's trying to get something out of either, like Percy when she wants a specialized arrow, or Tiberius to get him to magic Trinket across a treacherous piece of terrain.
Victoria's Secret Compartment: In episode 8, when Trinket is Polymorphed into a Persian kitten, Vex'ahlia decides to place him in her chest. Does it again in episode 81 with the Deck of Many Things she took away from Grog.
Percy: I was going to say "Let's put it somewhere no one would ever find it", but that's going to be fine for now.
Vitriolic Best Buds: She's good friends with Keyleth, but also rather jealous of her, especially after she finds out Keyleth and Vax went undercover as a married couple, and there's a bit more friction between them once she realizes that Vax had a crush on Keyleth and she was seemingly oblivious. However, as of Episode 56, this changes when she tries to encourage Keyleth toward her brother and says she should just be happy with her life.

Trinket

Played by: Laura Bailey (as Vex's animal companion), Matthew Mercer (Honey Heist spinoffs)
Voiced by: Matthew Mercer; Cheech Marin (The Legend of Vox Machina, "The Fey Realm")

Race: Grizzly Bear

Class: Ranger's Companion (Thief in the Honey Heist one shot)

Vex's animal companion. He's a bear. He gives excellent massages.

A Day in the Limelight: Trinket is the star of the Honey Heist spinoffs. Matt Mercer switches sides of the table with Marisha Ray, playing Trinket while Marisha is the DM.
Amplified Animal Aptitude: Most bears only have an intelligence score of 2 according to 5th edition's Monster Manual. Trinket has a 4, since he's a ranger's companion. Also he tends to disregard his own survival instincts to protect Vox Machina and Vex'ahlia in particular. This makes him, rather literally, smarter than the average bear.
And Now for Someone Completely Different: On rare occasions, Laura will play him directly when Vex isn't around. He arguably does better under Laura's direct control, since he's not hindered by the restrictions on animal companions attacking.
Awesome, but Impractical: A strong and intimidating war bear sounds like a good idea for a ranger's animal companion, until you need to sneak somewhere, or cross a wide gap or climb a cliff, or....(etc.) The fact that Laura has to use one of Vex's actions for him to attack makes this worse.
Badass Adorable: He's a big and armored bear who can tear heads off, but he's also a sweetheart and loyal companion. Vex thinks so, at least.
Bears Are Bad News:
- ...for the team's enemies. Technically averted for the most part, since he doesn't attack very often in combat, and usually doesn't perform very well when he does.
- Played straight in Episode 18 where he decapitates an orc with his bite, Episode 27 where he manages to fend off some invisible stalkers to aid Percy (and without Vex giving him commands!), and Episode 31 when he, once again, decapitates a very dangerous enemy. He even got a "How Do You Want To Do This?" moment! And then he got a second (combined with Grog) against a demon! Also played straight in the "Dalen's Closet" one-shot when he destroys one of Silas Briarwood's vampire Mooks after Silas abducted Vex and Percy.
Beary Friendly: As long as you're not an enemy, he'll nuzzle you and maybe even give a massage.
Big Eater: Trinket participated in the Pie Eating contest during the Winter's Crest Festival and ate five entire pies, tying with another competitor.
Cute Kitten: Was polymorphed into a Persian kitten in episode 8.
Dark and Troubled Past: As close as a bear can get to one, anyway. As a cub, he and his mother were taken by poachers and his mother was slowly harvested for parts while still alive. When Vex was kidnapped by the same poachers, she freed herself, mercy-killed poor Trinket's mother, and took Trinket in to raise him as her own.
A Day In The Life: Done twice in two Marisha-run Honey Heist one-shots. Matt is able to give more definition to Trinket as he can talk animal-to-animal here.
- "Marisha's Honey Heist" has Vex unable to bring Trinket to the "Happy Food Festival" due to him clearing out Pike's "Slayer's Cake" honey stash twice. At the edge of the Bramblewood Forest, though, he finds honey badger Liam Las Vegas (Brian W. Foster), panda Peddy Tuxpin (Sam), and two brown bear brothers, Cookie Sweet (Liam) and Waffle Sweet (Taliesin). Together they conspire to raid the honey stash at the Festival.
- "Honey Heist 2: Electric Beargaloo!" was for a stretch goal that was met for a charity fundraiser Critical Role got involved in. This time, the Bear-Ho-cuda Ninja Bears and their leader, Hattori Bongo, have taken over Fort Lox, a major honey depot, and Tova of the High Bear Nation needs Trinket and his team to retake Fort Lox from them. Trinket ends up Putting the Band Back Together and they end up in another major undertaking.
Distracted by the Sexy: Apparently, the audience was this way when Zahra cast a spell that allowed her to speak with Trinket, and Trinket's voice (courtesy of Matthew Mercer, of course) came off as sexy.
Fluffy the Terrible: "Trinket" isn't the most intimidating name for a bear. Anyone attacked by him will likely forget that, especially when their heads are torn off.
Forgot About His Powers: In Episode 27, when fighting the invisible stalkers, Laura forgets that with the new bullete armor, Trinket's AC is now 20, rather than the 18 he had with his old armor. She also sometimes forgets the armor's resistance to nonmagical bludgeoning damage, though this has improved over time.
Glass Cannon: Trinket has a very high AC and Strength score, but he only has 60 HP as of episode 43. This is one of the reasons why Laura/Vex tries to keep Trinket out of the fray as much as possible unless there is no other choice. During the final battle against Vecna, he is immediately one-shot by the ascended lich's first spell: Meteor Swarm, that deals over 130 HP worth of damages, instantly putting him out of commission and back into Vex's necklace.
Hidden Depths: In the "Honey Heist" and "Honey Heist 2: Electric Beargaloo!" one-shots, he can organize several animals together to pull off honey-based antics (two honey bears, a panda and a honey badger). He's also got thief-based abilities as "The Thief" like his "papa-in-law" Percy.
Informed Ability: Trinket gives the best massages. Episode 9 shows off this ability when he gives Grog a massage, subverting the trope. Also gave another one to Grog after he threw his back out in Episode 33.
The Load:
- For the longest time, he barely contributed to the group's exploits in a meaningful way. On the contrary, the group frequently has to go out of its way to make sure he isn't left behind since he's too big to fit on the flying carpet, or to save his bacon when Vex actually does send him into the fray (which she usually avoids; he could get hurt, after all!). Scanlan constantly lampshades this, even when Trinket contributes in battle. This begins changing a little in later episodes and is eventually averted in Episode 45 upon Vex receiving a magical item that can make Trinket compact and easy to carry. He's also given a boon in Episode 60 after protecting his companion from a large bear spirit.
- Thoroughly inverted in "The Search For Grog" one-shot. Trinket carries Grog's lifeless body through Pandemonium and is the one to finally get it to the Soul Jar containing his soul to revive him.
Loyal Animal Companion: According to the backstory written by Laura Bailey, Trinket has been with Vex since he was a cub and she rescued him from poachers who had captured his mother. It was too late for the mother bear that Vex killed to spare her further suffering, but the ranger took the cub along with her. When given the opportunity to speak with Zahra, he even says he'll do anything for "my Vex".
Off with His Head!: Seems to be Trinket's go-to method of finishing off whoever is unlucky enough to become his prey.
Ridiculously Cute Critter: When polymorphed into a kitten in Episode 8, and as a Red Panda in Episode 41.
Rolling Attack: The Cannonball attack, learned in episode 24.
Team Pet: Vex'ahlia's animal companion, and quite possibly Grog's Second Best Friend, after Pike.
The Unintelligible: Zigzagged. As a bear, he usually can't talk but his growls often clearly reflect his mood. He can speak directly when someone uses magic to speak with animals or even turn him into a human.
Time to Unlock More True Potential: In Episode 24, Trinket takes six days to learn a new trample attack in his new bulette hide armor! He also gets another upgrade in Episode 60 after protecting her from an angry bear spirit.
Took a Level in Badass: downplayed after protecting his companion from a large bear spirit he gets considerably more powerful, though calling him useful would still be an exaggeration.
Undying Loyalty: He has this to Vex after she rescued him as a cub from poachers and told Zahra through Speak to Animals that he would do anything for his Vex. Vex naturally was happy to hear this. Vex gets to hear this for herself once she learns the same spell with Keyleth's help.
Trinket: (to Zahra) I'll do whatever it takes to protect my Vex. If [Rimefang] tries anything, I will tear its throat from its head.
Voluntary Shapeshifting: He's been turned into various other animals, and even into a human, multiple times.

Taryon

Taryon "Tary" Darrington

Played by: Sam Riegel

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/tary.png

"Doty, take this down..."

Race: Human

Class: Artificer (Alchemist/Battlesmith)^note

A pompous nobleman and writer. Aspiring to become a famous adventurer, he travels the lands of Exandria alongside his personal golem and scrivener Doty with the goal of eventually publishing a grand book of his exploits. He initially meets Vox Machina in Ank'harel, where he was looking to hire an experienced group of adventurers as his (new) traveling party.

Later founds a group of his own, a non-profit adventuring party known as The Darrington Brigade

See his section on the Critical Role Darrington Brigade page.

Characters / Critical Role: Vox Machina

Vox Machina

Character-Specific Pages

Pike Trickfoot

Played by: Ashley Johnson (Campaign 1, The Legend of Vox Machina), Matthew Mercer (Campaign 3)

Tiberius Stormwind

Played by: Orion Acaba

Vax'ildan "Vax"

Played by: Liam O'Brien (Campaign 1, The Legend of Vox Machina), Matthew Mercer (Campaign 3)

Vex'ahlia "Vex"

Played by: Laura Bailey (Campaign 1, The Legend of Vox Machina), Matthew Mercer (Campaign 3)

Trinket

Played by: Laura Bailey (as Vex's animal companion), Matthew Mercer (Honey Heist spinoffs)
Voiced by: Matthew Mercer; Cheech Marin (The Legend of Vox Machina, "The Fey Realm")

Taryon "Tary" Darrington

Played by: Sam Riegel

Alternative Title(s): Critical Role Vexahlia, Critical Role Vaxildan, Critical Role Tiberius Stormwind, Critical Role Pike Trickfoot

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Characters / Critical Role: Vox Machina

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Vox Machina

Character-Specific Pages

Pike Trickfoot

Played by: Ashley Johnson (Campaign 1, The Legend of Vox Machina), Matthew Mercer (Campaign 3)

Tiberius Stormwind

Played by: Orion Acaba

Vax'ildan "Vax"

Played by: Liam O'Brien (Campaign 1, The Legend of Vox Machina), Matthew Mercer (Campaign 3)

Vex'ahlia "Vex"

Played by: Laura Bailey (Campaign 1, The Legend of Vox Machina), Matthew Mercer (Campaign 3)

Trinket

Played by: Laura Bailey (as Vex's animal companion), Matthew Mercer (Honey Heist spinoffs)Voiced by: Matthew Mercer; Cheech Marin (The Legend of Vox Machina, "The Fey Realm")

Taryon "Tary" Darrington

Played by: Sam Riegel

Alternative Title(s): Critical Role Vexahlia, Critical Role Vaxildan, Critical Role Tiberius Stormwind, Critical Role Pike Trickfoot

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Played by: Laura Bailey (as Vex's animal companion), Matthew Mercer (Honey Heist spinoffs)
Voiced by: Matthew Mercer; Cheech Marin (The Legend of Vox Machina, "The Fey Realm")