Sandbox / AFKA Crit Role MMOAU

• Berserk Button: Cassandra really doesn't like people calling her "Cassie", and even "Cass" is a stretch. The side-stories explain why. In an attempt to manipulate her, Delilah croons, "Cassie, my sweet."
• Big Friendly Dog: Trinket, a large dog with a nub of a tail that wags excitedly.
• Bland-Name Product: The game that the party plays is stated by the author to have been inspired by various MMOs, but its working title was "definitely-not-a-warcraft critrole AU". Averted when Vax says he got the twins a mic at a closing RadioShack for cheap.
• Christmas Episode: Vex and Percy go to their father Syldor's place for Christmas in "Holiday Echoes".
• Dark and Troubled Past:
  • The de Rolo siblings. Their family died in a house fire with Cassandra assuming herself to be the sole survivor for many years. She was taken in by the Briarwoods, who were responsible for the arson, until Percy shows up with a criminal named Orthax and his crew. When the fic takes place, Percy and Cassandra are rich kids living alone in a gigantic house in a big city.
  • Vex and Vax were born into a well-off family but live in Perpetual Poverty because they refuse to ask their emotionally abusive father Syldor for help. Vex was in an emotionally and physically abusive relationship with Saundor, who attacked her. Vax stabbed Saundor and was sent to prison for it. The story takes place when he's out on parole.
  • Trinket is a Big Friendly Dog who Vex rescued as a puppy, "covered in stitches and peeing on the floor". He is also implied to have been hurt in Saundor's assault on Vex, as she remarks internally that dogs and humans have the same color of blood.
• Family Theme Naming: Vex'ahlia, Vax'ildan, and Velora Vessar.
• Foolish Sibling, Responsible Sibling:
  • A very downplayed case in Percy (the Foolish) and Cassandra (the Responsible). Cassandra is very driven, business-like, rational even at a young age, and excels at university. Percy is emotional (when he's not being an "aloof tightass") and makes rash decisions, such as flying Vex out East, having sex with her, and then asking her to leave even with her threat to not come back. Cassandra tries to talk him out of it but fails, as the girl has also genuinely come to like Vex.
  • Adopted sibling, but Grog is the Foolish and Pike is the Responsible.
• Full-Name Ultimatum: Pike pulls this out by warning Grog as "Gregory," after he makes a dirty joke.
• Friends with Benefits: Vex and her landlord Jarrett. It started because she wanted a bit of no-strings-attached fun. He's since proven to be a good person, considerate to the twins' Perpetual Poverty and "the amount of shit they put him through", and is trusted enough to watch Vex's beloved Trinket when she and Vax went to the game con. Vex thinks he's a better landlord than they deserve.
• Gadgeteer Genius: Percy retains this trait from canon, seen in the show fixing Keyleth's costume and showing Vex a video of a hi-tech fursuit he made for a client.
• Gold Fever: Because of her canonical and in-fic poverty, Vex retains this trait. One of their cupboards is filled with soup cans because she, in Vax's words, "went batshit the last time there was a sale". She has multiple accounts to hoard in-game currency. Her favorite kind of food is free.
• If You Ever Do Anything to Hurt Her...: Cassandra takes Vex out for a shopping trip and tells the latter to back off of dating Percy because she doesn't want to see her brother get hurt. When Vex refuses to bow out and defends her connection with Percy, Cassandra is pleased, implying this might have been a Secret Test of Character to scope out if Vex is just another Gold Digger.
• I Meant to Do That: This is why a boy named Gregory is called Grog, because his handwriting was so bad he claimed he spells "Greg" as "Grog" on purpose.
• Ironic Name: Snowball, a dog at the kennel Vex works at, is a black mutt.
• Karma Houdini: Anna Ripley is implied to be behind the massacre of the de Rolo family, but is not mentioned to have faced any consequences. Percy even has her number on his phone.
• Mythology Gag:
  • Characters' screen names are canon references.
    • Keyleth is Minxie, the name of her sabretooth tiger form.
    • Scanlan is Lovebard, a reference to his character being a Lovable Sex Maniac bard.
    • Vaxildagger and Vexahrrow reflect the twins' weapons of choice.
    • NoMercyPercy is an Ascended Meme nickname for Percy after he unloaded his gun on some enemies (and later became extremely vindictive in his quest for vengeance) - lampshaded by Vex asking if Vax charged extra for Percy's "edgelord name".
    • GloriousGil refers to Gilmore's Glorious Goods.
    • Angelicpike points toward Pike's status as the Team Mom and party patron saint, being a cleric of a Saintly Church.
    • Betterbard is Scanlan's daughter Kaylie, who in canon is also a bard that won a music duel against Scanlan.
  • Sara, the clothing shop employee who helps Vex choose her dress for a date with Percy, is implied to be this universe's version of the goddess Sarenrae.
  • Vax's parole officer is Ms. Raven, echoing his canon patron: the Raven Queen/Matron of Ravens. Canon Vax got the Matron's attention when he tried to save his sister's life; Vax stabbed Saundor and got out on parole also to protect Vex from an assault by her abusive boyfriend.
• Not with Them for the Money: Vex is uncomfortable when people spend money on her - even though she's dirt poor, she has standards. Percy's Uncle Pennybags tendencies help her loosen up a little, as she does like the luxuries of life, and the enjoyment of them wins out over her pride.
• Red Oni, Blue Oni: The sibling pairs of the fic play into this dynamic.
  • Percy is the Red, Cassandra is the Blue.
  • Vex is the Blue, Vax is the Red.
  • Grog is the Red, Pike is the Blue.
• Reformed Bully: Grog first met Pike when he punched her. He had a neglectful (if not outright physically/verbally abusive) birth family, and hung out with a bad crowd at school. Pike started out noticing he never has lunch, starts getting her grandfather Wilhand to pack Grog a second lunch, and it all snowballed into Wilhand and Pike becoming Grog's Found Family.
• Uncle Pennybags: The de Rolo siblings like to spend money on their friends.
• Uptown Boy: Percy is fabulously, mind-bogglingly rich. Vex (and Vax, and Trinket) live in Perpetual Poverty.
• Wham Line:
  • "I'm sorry, I've made a terrible mistake." After flying Vex out to his city on a whim, Percy enjoys time with her, and they have a Relationship Upgrade - except Percy's trauma got the better of him and he pushed Vex away, causing her to leave and not come back.
  • "She didn't even see the car before it hit her." On the phone with Percy after an encounter with Arty, Saundor's annoying cousin, Vex walks straight into the path of a car.
• Where the Hell Is Springfield?: The country, state, or even the city the characters are in is never specified. The big game con they go to is "out East" in a city where Percy lives, and it's very far away from where Vex lives.