Guest Party Members | Allies and Other Characters (Empire/Republic of Tal'Dorei) | Villains
Guest Party Members | Allies and Other Characters (Dwendalian Empire | Xhorhas) | Villains
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.
- 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 Sovereign'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 great-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, 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 later arcs, and you'll see how they evolve.
- 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. 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 starts the story 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 initially 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 (whom she had known for years and was incredibly close to.)
- 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 melee 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 melee 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: After a campaign-long slow burn, 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. The triangle eventually resolves as Vax and Keyleth get together and Vax clears things up with Gilmore, who graciously agrees to be friends.
- 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: 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
Grogory "Grog" Strongjaw
Played by: Travis Willingham
- Race: GoliathClass: Barbarian (Path of the Berserker) / Fighter (Battle Master)
Grog is a brawny goliath Barbarian with a heart of partially gold and partially smashing things. He was beaten and exiled from his nomad tribe after intervening to save the life of Pike's grandfather, and has been best friends with Pike ever since she helped nurse him back to health. Grog is not very intelligent but is by far the strongest (melee) fighter in the group.
- Admiring the Abomination: Grog definitely admires really killy things when he's not on the receiving end. For instance, he thought Percy going all smoky when he got mad was awesome, and he's always pleased when the party encounters something gigantic and vicious.
- The Alcoholic: Always carries a cask of ale in the Bag of Holding. Just don't drink it all or crush it.
- Amazon Chaser: The quickest way to turn Grog's head (and probably get splashed with a few flecks of drool) is to kick ass in his presence, as evidenced by his instant infatuation with Lady Kima and the Siren.
- The Atoner: During the Chroma Conclave arc, after defeating Kevdak and briefly allying with Zanror, Grog makes it clear to Vox Machina he has zero desire to work with his former herd, as they're murderers, pillagers, rapists, and child killers, which he knows personally because he used to be one of them and is clearly uncomfortable with this fact. He expresses that, when he was younger, he didn't understand the concept of right and wrong, and is still adjusting to this, but is clearly disturbed by the behaviours he used to partake in.
- Authority in Name Only: Percy offered him - mostly as a joke, really - the title of Grand Poobah de Doink of All Of This And That. It comes with no land and no responsibilities, but it is an official title. Grog likes to use it to boss around the kitchen staff.Tal'dorei Campaign Guide: "No one knows if [it] is a real title at all, or if Percy was just joking when he gave it to him. Grog likes it, and that's good enough for most people."
- Back from the Dead: Twice. The first time against K'Varn the Mad, the second time due to Craven Edge. Both times his soul was sucked from his body, but both times Pike brought him back.
- Badass in Distress: Even with his ability to take hits and dish them out, there have been times where even Grog found himself on the receiving end of an ass-kicking.
- The first time he got his intelligence drained by a monster, bringing it down to zero and leaving him in a vegetative state. Thankfully Keyleth knew Greater Restoration.
- The second time, he got kidnapped by the duergar queen while mind-controlled and the group spends the next two episodes trying to find him.
- The third time, Grog gets dropped to zero HP in the battle against K'varn (twice), forcing Pike to heal him before he's gone for good.
- A fourth time in episode 50 when fully powering up Craven Edge leads to the sword temporarily absorbing his soul.
- A fifth time in Episode 51 and 52 when he found himself outmatched and nearly overwhelmed by Kevdak and the Herd of Storms.
- A sixth time in Episode 54 and 55 as he found himself dangling from Umbrasyl with the Bloodaxe embedded in its hide attached to the Chain of Returning.
- Bad Powers, Good People: Berserker Rage! But he's a friendly and reliable guy outside of that.
- Bald Head of Toughness: He's the strongest member of Vox Machina and is bald, because as a member of the Goliath race he cannot grow any hair. While later he is able to grow a beard due to a magical object, he remains bald throughout the series.
- Bar Brawl: With two of his three favourite things are fighting and drinking, it's no surprise he'll happily get into one at the drop of a hat. Vex goads him into starting one towards the end of Episode 58, and a good time is had by all.
- Batman Gambit: Pulls an impressive one (considering his Intelligence of 6) on Vex and Percy in episode 40 in an attempt to take the skull for a wish. His plan only failed when Travis rolled a natural one at the last second.
- Becoming the Mask: Played for laughs. When Scanlan turns Grog into a cow, he makes mention that he eats some grass.
- Berserk Button:
- As Travis put it, "You don't fuck with Grog's cask of ale!" Tiny the Fomorian learned this the hard way: drinking all its contents made Grog mad enough, but destroying it when it was done made him snap, run forward, and headbutt the giant.
- Shaving off any newly grown beards of his is also a fine way to piss him off. Also applies to Travis himself, who once broke a mechanical pencil in anger when Liam announced that he was going to make Vax shave off Grog's beard.
- The Berserker: Always prefaced by his request to the DM: "I would like to rage."
- BFS: Craven Edge, the sword that once belonged to Sylas Briarwood, is a large sword even by Grog's goliath sized stature.
- The Big Guy: By far the biggest member of Vox Machina. As a goliath barbarian, he is perfectly suited for the role of smashing obstacles in the party's way and dealing the most physical damage. In Episode 11, he reveals he is 8 feet, 7 inches. When he activates the Titanstone Knuckles, he gets even bigger.
- Bishie Sparkle: Believe it or not. Keyleth gives him this magically in episode 13, helping play wingwoman for Grog with Kima.
- Blood Knight: As straight of an example of this trope there can be, as can be expected by his
Chaotic Neutral alignment. Loving the thrill of the fight? Check. Looking for people to fight? Check. Being as brutal as he can be with his attacks? Check. He always prefers a straight fight as opposed to forming a plan. Also the least likely to be merciful to a fallen foe. - Boisterous Bruiser: Grog is a seven foot tall man-child who shifts from comic relief to murderous rage with ease. He spends a lot of his free time in bars and whorehouses and buys things like a silly hat he thinks makes him look dignified, but he also loves to fight and in his frequent fits of rage is capable of tearing a person's jaw off his skull.
- Brainwashed and Crazy: Given that he isn't the most mentally resistant of the gang, Grog has an unfortunate tendency to be overpowered by enemies that can manipulate minds.
- Break the Haughty: Kern the Hammer did a number on Grog's pride after their first pit fight. The rest of that session was a massive roller coaster of suck for Grog.
- Brutish Character, Brutish Weapon: Grog prefers to wield massive hammers and axes that get the most out of his brute force. Even when facing enemies flying above him or dueling a martial arts master, Grog will always just try to smash them with his big sticks rather than wrestle them down or pincushion them with bows or guns.
- He picked up the Firebrand Warhammer in the Underdark. As opposed to many of the magical weapons Vox Machina has, it doesn't have powerful "once per day" abilities to give its wielder some tactical prowess, it simply is a hammer that lights itself on fire. It is perfect for an unintelligent brute like Grog and serves as his primary weapon for the first fifty episodes of the show.
- He later acquires a Dwarven Thrower (which he was allowed to wield due to the Belt of Dwarvenkind despite not being a dwarf) which allows him to just chuck his hammer like a madman sixty feet away rather than having to think about closing the distance with enemies, using magical items to fly towards them, or even aiming with the precision required of a ranged weapon.
- Butt-Monkey: The target of Vax'ildan's pranks. But also, save for perhaps Pike and Keyleth, there have been comments about his less-than-stellar intelligence. It's okay though, he has an intelligence of six, he knows what he's doing.
- Calling Your Attacks: Jokingly played with, when Grog called one of his attacks against Kern The Hammer. An elbow drop is named after the great legendary woodsman fighter known as "Mah Choman Rand Savage."
- Call to Agriculture: In Tal'Dorei Reborn, we see a barrel stamped with "Strongjaw Ale", which implies that he starts a brewery and/or a vineyard.
- Catchphrase: When battle ensues, "I would like to rage" is his. So polite! And it's not just to satisfy Rule of Cool, either. "Rage" is actually a Barbarian character trait which grants increases to damage, advantage on strength checks and saves, resistance to most common damage, and outright immunity to fear or enchantment.
- Character Development: As the campaign progressed, while still being the reckless Blood Knight he usually is, Grog has shown more restraint in his approach to things, even going as far as sparing his cousin Zanror and making him the new Thunderlord of the Herd of Storms. In fact, throughout the Chroma Conclave arc, he's shown that even he is capable of change, including calling Vox Machina his new family and that his strength comes from his friendship with them, being a lot more clever regarding tactics and strategy, and even managing to convince a vengeful Keyleth that she needed to exercise patience, that despite her desire to kill Raishan, they would benefit more from their temporary truce compared to making an enemy of her right away. He's still the same lovable barbarian with plenty of heart and lacking in smarts, but it's clear that he's not the same man he used to be. In Episode 85, after fighting Earthbreaker Groon, Grog declares that he intends to work with Vox Machina to make the world a better place.
- Childhood Friends: He grew up with Pike after he was kicked out of the Herd of Storms, and so the two are especially close. Wilhand is basically his great-great grandfather.
- Comically Missing the Point: A mainstay of Grog-related gags. If there's a way he can possibly misinterpret an instruction or statement in such a way that inconvenient (at worst) hilarity will ensue, it'll happen.Vax: Do you know what math is?Grog: Mathis?
- Crutch Character: Served this role early on, being incredibly powerful early on, and contributed to the victories of the group for a while because he was just really hard to kill. Once the others leveled up more, Grog was still a powerful member, but the others managed to become very powerful in their own ways. That being said, Grog is still very, very strong, and is acknowledged in the Battle Royale as being one of the most dangerous adversaries by everyone involved, to the point where he is often the one they target first.
- Cutting the Knot: One at least one occasion, Matt describes his motives with hilariously painful accuracy as "a simple mind looking for a simple solution to a complex problem".
- Damage Reduction: When raging, Grog only takes half damage from physical attacks. With the Titanstone Knuckles, he gains Elemental resistance against fire, cold, and lightning damage.
- Damage-Sponge Boss: In the battle royal episodes. Due to his high Constitution stat, Grog has an unholy amount of HP, and when raging, all physical damage to him is halved anyway. Add the resistances granted by his various gear and Grog can take a ridiculous amount of punishment.
- Did They or Didn't They?: With a Nymph pre-stream. Only Matt and Travis knew this until the post-campaign wrap-up, but... they didn't.
- Disappointed in You: Pike's disappointed face will always make Grog question his current course of action, which is normally almost impossible once he's got an idea in his head.
- Discard and Draw: Fittingly, Grog changes weapons more than anyone else in the party.
- He starts out wielding a greataxe, then acquires the Firebrand Warhammer in the Kraghammer arc;
- He acquires the Moonhammer from Zahra in the Slayer's Take arc, although he never uses it;
- He acquires Craven's Edge in the Whitestone arc, and later discards it after it nearly kills Pike;
- He loses the Firebrand Warhammer when Vox Machina confronts the Herd of Storms during the Chroma Conclave arc, but acquires the Bloodaxe;
- He acquires the Dwarven Throwing Hammer from Raishan's hoard during the Chroma Conclave arc;
- During the Vecna arc, he acquires the Sword of Kas, but it's taken away from him after Vecna is defeated.
- Disproportionate Retribution: Episode 11, Grog headbutts a fomorian giant after it drinks all of Grog's ale. To Grog's credit, the fomorian did essentially take what was a friendly gesture from Grog's cask and ruin it without a care in the world.
- Do You Want to Haggle?: Attempts twice, once with Tremaine in Kraghammer and once with a peddler in Vasselheim. Both end in failure, especially regarding the instance in Vasselheim, where he ended up trading even more items than what the peddler was asking for. This leads to Vex becoming shell-shocked to the point of drowning her sorrows in ale.
- The Dragonslayer: Delivers the final blow against Umbrasyl the Hope Devourer, member of the Chroma Conclave, in Episode 55.
- The Dreaded: A downplayed case, in that Grog himself isn't really feared by Vecna, but upon realizing Grog has the Sword of Kas, Vecna specifically focuses a lot of his attention on making sure Grog cannot fight him. Given that the Sword of Kas not only gives Grog bonuses against him, but also specifically wants Vecna dead, Vecna choses to not only banish him, but also use two Legendary Resistances to ensure he can't get back to avoid the possibility of Grog getting close to him. If not for that, the fight would have turned against Vecna quickly.
- Dreaming of Things to Come: Two episodes after having a nightmare in which he murders Pike, he accidentally injures Pike as he's trying to escape from a portal.
- Dumbass Has a Point: Despite claiming to hate thinking, Grog sometimes makes some very insightful observations.
- Dumb Muscle: Played entirely for laughs. He hates thinking with his head, but he loves thinking with his axe. Made funnier by the fact that Travis Willingham is quite built, but unlike his character is also quite intelligent. The episode 10 Q&A highlights this when it's pointed out that Grog's intelligence is only two points higher than Trinket's. Even considering Trinket's boosted intelligence... wow. That's not to say Grog hasn't had his rare moments of genius, such as bringing up the idea of using the terrain to their advantage or identifying at a glance a stone giant fortress, or using a stone giant strength potion to give him an edge against Kurn the Hammer. Sometimes a straightforward idea is precisely what's necessary, and it's hard to get more straightforward than Grog.Grog: I have an intelligence of six, I know what I'm doing.
- Early-Installment Weirdness: Grog with his six intelligence was never exactly a genius, but was still decent with numbers in the early campaign, growing progressively dumber until he doesn't know the difference between one and two. Presumably the many head blows he took in battle didn't do wonders for his math skills.
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Easily Forgiven: Because of the strong bond between Pike and Grog she easily forgives him after Grog accidentally stabs Pike. - Elemental Weapon: In addition to the aforementioned Firebrand Warhammer, Grog has the Javelin of Lightning (which is activated by whispering the magic word "Penelope"). Said weapon is lost in Episode 66 when combating a cobalt golem summoned by J'Mon Sa Ord due to him throwing the javelin, the weapon bouncing off with no effect and flying out the window into the cityscape below.
- Eloquent in My Native Tongue: Grog is not normally the one you would choose for eloquence, but when it comes to other goliath/barbarians, like the Herd of Storms and the River Maw tribes, he provides excellent examples of both witty remarks and charismatic rhetoric.
- Evil Weapon: He gets two rather malicious swords through out his journey. First Craven Edge and then the sword of Kas. Due to his lack of intelligence, this is often played for laughs, much to the swords' frustration, though the former ends up sucking out his soul and the latter dominates his mind. As a result both are taken from him for his own good.
- Face Palm: His reaction for when Lyra does or says pretty much anything is a shameful hand over his eyes.
- The Fettered: As he himself admits to Keyleth, before Pike and Wilhand took him in, he was willing to let his rage loose on anyone at anytime. But because of his love for his family (Wilhand and Vox Machina), he learned to control his rage and only let it out when needed.
- "Flowers for Algernon" Syndrome: Played for Laughs in Episode 75, when Grog tries to learn to read after drinking an intelligence-boosting potion. He gets as far as the first two letters in his own name before the potion wears off. Liam even alludes to the Trope Namer.Liam: Awww... it's "Flowers for Grogernon!"
- Funny Background Event: In the comic that describes the pre-stream campaign, Vax is captured and held prisoner on a ship. While the rest of the party is debating the best way to sneak onto the ship and rescue Vax without alerting the guards, Grog gets bored and simply goes to attack them. Most of one page consists of the other party members arguing while Grog is slaughtering the guards in the background. By the time the rest of the party realize Grog is missing, he comes back and proudly tells them the guards aren't a problem anymore.
- Gag Penis: Grog being a goliath, it's assumed his is probably bigger than the rest of the party's, but when Kashaw wakes up in Episode 44, and goes to pee near where Grog is. He gets a little scared, and decides not to pee next to him. Then there's the time Doty drew a portrait of him:Tary: ...Doty, I thought she [Pike] said realism. [Doty nods] Really? [Doty nods again] How does he walk?!
- Gentle Giant: Despite everything else about him, Grog has a surprisingly sweet side. After all, he refused to kill a defenceless old gnome, which led to him meeting Pike. He's fiercely loyal to the rest of the party. This side is perhaps best demonstrated when he rescued Amelia from the Iron Stockade. The normally tactless and socially unaware Grog was incredibly gentle and protective of her once he found her.
- Gold Fever: Before Critical Role, Grog once "rage looted." He does it again looking for Vorugal's hoard.
- Good Cop/Bad Cop: Was typically the bad cop during interrogations, because he is a big scary goliath. After the acquisition of "Craven Edge", the evil sword gives him advantage on intimidation checks.
- Good Scars, Evil Scars: Bears a large, gnarled scar on his chest after a phylactery was removed from his body pre-stream.
- Heroic BSoD:
- A relatively short one when Grog loses to Kern in the Crucible during Episode 17. He was in a funk for the rest of that session.
- Suffers from a far more serious one near the end of Episode 49 after accidentally impaling Pike with Craven Edge while trying to save himself from being lost in an elemental plane. It's hard to say who felt worse about it, Grog or Travis.
- In episode 83, Scanlan falls in battle against Raishan and remains dead for the entire episode. All Grog can do is stare at the body and yell at the spellcasters to "Fix him".
- Heroic Rematch:
- Grog returns to fight Kern in Episode 23 after their first match went down to the wire. Thanks to the newly learned Relentless Rage, Grog wins this round.
- He has a solo rematch with Earthbreaker Groon in Episode 85, after Grog lost to him even with help from Vax and Scanlan. This time, he bests the Dawn Marshal in single combat.
- Hidden Depths:
- Episode 11 reveals that Grog apparently speaks the language of giants (though it should be noted this is a racial trait of all PC goliaths). Considering his intelligence is six and he probably barely speaks Common, this is noteworthy.
- He also tends to roll really well on stealth checks. He's overshadowed by stealth experts like Vex and Vax, but despite being eight feet tall his track record at staying hidden is considerably better than, say, Scanlan.
- Because, as aforementioned, Travis Willingham is much smarter than Grog, he occasionally can't resist coming up with clever battle plans or advice, which he will then share with the group until they start running with it.
- He tends to be able to beat Vex'ahlia sometimes when it comes to calculating numbers, but it's mostly Played for Laughs because she really doesn't want him to.Matt: (As a shopkeep) That's impressive for a Goliath.
Grog: It's Professor Grog, actually. - Thanks to some really damn good rolls for intelligence checks, Grog can sometimes offer surprising details that, since they come from him, shock everyone in the party, from remembering the design of a stone giant fortress to pointing out the purpose of anti-scrying glyphs even before the other party members with arcane experience (and much higher intelligence) could do so. He phrased it as "this room doesn't like bein' looked at".
- Despite his violent tendencies, he's also shown that he can offer occasional pearls of wisdom. That, and he has a lot of patience, only channeling his rage when it is needed. Moreover, he views Vox Machina, his family, as the source of his strength.
- Whether or not Narrative Telephone is canon, you'd think that an experienced physical warrior like Grog should at least be familiar with muscle groups and exercise and other healthy lifestyle techniques - and you'd be right.
- Even though he's typically the most aggressive member of Vox Machina, Grog's shown on several occasions that he's actually very kind. From defending Wilhand from his own herd, to refusing to take money from the people of Whitestone after spending weeks doing hard labor to help them rebuild, to giving Kima a sword that he really liked when he found out that it had religious engravings and thought she might like it too.
- Though it never came up in the series, Travis mentioned at a convention that one of Grog's hobbies is cobbling boots.
- Even though he doesn't like 'fruity drinks', Grog has an absurdly refined wine palate.
- Honor Before Reason: Less a matter for Grog, but it does impact Travis's playstyle where he will honor debuffs even if he forgets them in the moment. Episode 50 has a case of this backfiring where Grog needs to make a save to avoid his sword Craven Edge hurting him in backlash damage. Travis crits the save, but remembers a few minutes later that he has a pre-existing debuff that should have marked him down. He re-rolls to be fair, and it gets Grog killed.
- Hot Skitty-on-Wailord Action: While this would be the case with a Goliath bedding any non-Goliaths, a Noodle Incident revealed when discussing Craven's Edge reveal Grog and Scanlan once performed an Eiffel Tower with a girl (a threeway sex act that would be very difficult to perform easily with a size difference as big as a gnome and a goliath).
- Ignored Epiphany: When Grog tries to take some of Percy's instruments, he feels his hands burning, and placing them in water only made it worse. Instead of learning the lesson that he should not touch his friends' stuff without permission, especially stuff belonging to the friend who frequently handles explosives and sulphuric acid, he only learns that water burns.
- In Love with Your Carnage: As evidenced when he sees Kima use a weapon for the first time, Grog is turned on by violence.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Grog's big, strong, loud, straightforward, and understands violence better than anything else, especially emotions. Travis has talked about playing him as essentially too big and strong to suit the world he's in - thus, he's often blunt to the point of being an asshole or recklessly violent and "breaks" things and people where a lighter touch would have served. He cares deeply about his friends, especially Pike and Scanlan, and he always wants to help out Vox Machina, but by no means will he go about it in the most sensitive or sensible way. He undergoes a realization of how much his friends mean to him in Episode 43 while fighting Earthbreaker Groon in Vasselheim. More specifically, the ones he asks for to aid him in the fight are Pike (who is not there), Scanlan, and... Vax, who was afraid that Grog hated him.
- The Knights Who Say "Squee!": Grog may be a badass, but even he admires Earthbreaker Groon. Groon is the only person Grog shows respect to without the others making him.
- Know-Nothing Know-It-All: Despite his limited intellect, he's quick to give dissertations on subjects he either knows nothing about or has the facts totally wrong and is often dismissive and even derisive of attempts to correct him. See his definition of "oasis" in the The Search for Bob one-shot.
- Large Ham: Travis Willingham goes full Boisterous Bruiser when he plays Grog.
- Last Chance Hit Point: Relentless Rage allows for surviving a fatal blow with a single hit point.
- Leeroy Jenkins:
- His preferred method of attack is to dash forward in a RAGE and hack everything to pieces even if it means leaving his allies behind. Whether or not it actually works depends on the whims of the dice and the Dungeon Master. During the Kraghammer arc, it got him ambushed by duergar crossbowmen and an intellect devourer, which rendered him brain dead for a while.
- His tendency to use Reckless Attack against numerous enemies also gets him into trouble.
- Let's Get Dangerous!: Grog is a fearsome warrior, but he's normally pretty laid back and treats combat like an exciting hobby. During the Westrun Arc, in which he faces his old herd, he becomes deadly serious.
- Lightning Bruiser: Grog can move when he wants to. He's got the highest natural movement speed in the party (50 feet per round) and advantage on initiative rolls thanks to the Barbarian's "Feral Instinct" ability. On top of that, he can make three attacks per turn while in a Frenzied Rage, which gives him an impressive overall ability to cover a lot of ground and dish out the pain.
- Like Brother and Sister: He and Pike have lived together for most of their lives, and it really shows in how they interact.
- Made of Iron: Grog is, in Travis's words, a "big bag of hit points". He can also reduce the damage he takes while he's raging, which means he has Super-Toughness as well.
- Manly Facial Hair: Despite his massive size and incredible physique, the thing this warrior is most proud of is his beard; he's the only member of his kind known to have grown one, and he was able to do it thanks to the magic of his Belt of Dwarvenkind. Since goliaths normally don't have them, Grog's beard freaks out his old herd when he meets them again in Westruun; they just don't say anything until after Grog kills their leader, Kevdak.
- Manly Tears: When he reunites with Pike, and when the giant crushes his cask of ale.
- Misery Builds Character: In Episode 17, Grog loses to Kern "The Hammer" and became totally miserable until Episode 23, when he demanded a rematch and won.
- Morality Pet: The whole rest of Vox Machina, really, but especially Pike (his best friend) bring out the gentle in this chaotic neutral giant.
- Comes to a head in episode 40 when Grog attempts to smash the skull containing an unknown evil entity in order to grant a wish that might vanquish the Chroma Conclave but risks making matters worse. The in-story explanation for what prevents Grog shattering the skull is that as he's rearing back to spike the skull against a surface, he catches a glimpse of the look of disappointment on Pike's face, which is enough to suck all the wind out of his sails and let the skull fall harmlessly out of his grip.
- My God, What Have I Done?: When he realises that he accidentally injured Pike, he spends the rest of the fight paralyzed in horror that he hurt his best friend.
- Named Weapons: Grog takes Sylas Briarwood's sword after Vox Machina liberates Whitestone; it turns out to be an intelligent, telepathic, and sinister-sounding sword called Craven Edge. It's audibly frustrated by Grog's stupidity.
- I Need a Freaking Drink: Almost word for word when losing an argument with Vex'ahlia about the platinum. Complete with a storming off screen moment.
- Never Learned to Read: A consequence of his Barbarian upbringing and his Intelligence being six. He's still good with shapes and colours though. He tries to learn how to read with Pike's help in Episode 75, even trying to use a potion of Fox's Cunning to enhance his intelligence, but when the potion fades, his efforts are forgotten, leaving him thoroughly depressed. He finally manages it post campaign, as Tal'Dorei Reborn states that he personally writes the invitation letters to his "Luncheon of Champions" event.Travis: I have the Belt of Dwarvenkind that lets me speak and read Dwarven!
Matt: If... you could read.
(Travis looks downcast) - No Good Deed Goes Unpunished: His backstory contains a subversion of this trope: his uncle beat him bloody and disowned him for showing mercy to Wilhand Trickfoot, but then Wilhand's great-great-granddaughter healed him and became his best friend. After that, Vox Machina became his new family.
- Noodle Incident: His first encounter with Nahla the nymph in the Feywild. His fellow party members (and players) are curious, but he's not saying anything.Travis: A goliath never kisses and tells.
- Another instance was when Scanlan and Grog discuss keeping the details of Craven's Edge between themselves, comparing it to a time where they had a threeway together with a woman.
- No-Sell: A berserker barbarian's Mindless Rage feature negates fear and charm spells. This was very useful when a vampire tried to charm him, and Travis remembered this feature.
- Odd Friendship: Grog, the boisterous giant Goliath, is best friends with Pike, the kindly cleric gnome. To a lesser extent, him and Scanlan, another gnome and a bard at that, have a pretty close friendship, with Scanlan once informing Pike that he (Scanlan) cares as much about Grog as Pike herself does.
- Off with His Head!: When he's wielding an axe, Grog sometimes chops the heads off opponents. When he's swinging a hammer, he sometimes squashes enemies' heads to a pulp.
- Platonic Life-Partners: Again, with Pike. He adores her as his dearest friend and any time they meet again he greets her with an enormous hug.
- Playing with Fire: The Firebrand Warhammer deals additional fire damage.
- Power Fist: The Titanstone Knuckles. They're artifacts of the god Kord, and boost Grog's strength to a whopping 24 and later 26 (when the normal maximum is 20!).
- Psychic Nosebleed: Many times when Travis makes an observation that's too intelligent for Grog, it's explained away as Grog suddenly getting a nosebleed from the overexertion.
- Psychopathic Manchild: It's strangely adorable. He views fights as "play time" and enemies as "play-mates", imitates the abilities of other party members he admires (check out his pride at doing "magic" like Tiberius or rolling around in a hole he dug to pretend he was Keyleth as an Earth Elemental), enjoys bright colours and shiny things, touches stuff that he probably shouldn't, acts on impulse, gets easily bored, and generally has to be prevented from wandering off and getting into trouble by the rest of the party as though he's a toddler.
- Red Baron:
- First, as Phillip "The Terrible"
- Then as Grog "The Vengeful."
- Finally, as Grog "The Victorious"
- Now he's becoming known to his herd as "The Bearded King".
- Red Oni, Blue Oni: Definitely the Red to best friend/surrogate sister Pike's Blue because he is impulsive and bloodthirsty.
- Rewarded as a Traitor Deserves: When Vox Machina exposes the traitor who betrayed Tal'Dorei, Sovereign Uriel appoints Grog as a temporary royal executioner. Grog is more than happy to comply.
- The Rival: Definitely has one in Kern the Hammer. They've begun trading a "2nd place" medal as a traveling trophy of shame.
- Sand in My Eyes: Has happened a few times. Notable times include (but may not be limited to):
- Episode 36, after losing to "Trish the Dish" in the arm wrestling contest, he splashes ale on his face to hide he's crying, played for laughs.
- Episode 48, after speaking with Pike about their adventures in Westrun, letting her know that his family has taken over, and that the fate of Wilhand, Pike's great-great-grandfather who was in the city is unknown. He claims it's pollen, and later that it's raining.
- "Shut Up" Kiss: Totally played for laughs in episode 22 when Grog complains about not getting kissed during the Rimefang bounty hunt whereas Keyleth got her first from Kashaw, and then suddenly Vex simply cuts him off with a surprise kiss. Made even funnier considering Laura (Vex) and Travis (Grog) are married.
- Simple-Minded Wisdom: The general result any time he rolls a Natural 20 on an Intelligence check, given that he still has only six intelligence points, is profound insight in plain words. A couple gems include:
- How does he hold his rage in check? If he raged at the wrong time, he'd cause trouble for his Family of Choice.
- Why doesn't he plan for anything beyond the current fight or moment? As he puts it, "You don't need to see all the way to the horizon. You just need to see what's under your own feet. You'll get there."
- The Smart Guy: His introduction is a parody of this trope. In the words of "Professor Grog" himself, he is, "easily the brains of the group, and often consulted for his vast knowledge of shapes, colors and shiny things... also, ale."
- Spontaneous Mustache: Thanks to a magical object, he can grow a beard. Notably, Goliaths are biologically unable to grow any hair, so the fact he did means his biology has been permanently altered by the magic.
- Squee: Probably something blood or badassery related, right? Nope. It's more Travis's reaction than Grog's, but when two of his friends kiss in Episode 72, he lets out a tiny high-pitched squeal.
- Grog loves his gnomes a lot. When kids climb over him like a jungle gym in Zephrah, he's initially awkward, until Vex points out that kids are "kind of like gnomes". Grog is delighted after that.
- Status Buff:
- Rage, what else? When raging, he gains benefits such as an extra modifier for his attacks, resistance to physical damage, and more. When he goes into a FRENZIED RAGE, he can do 3 attacks per action!
- With the Titanstone Knuckles, he can enlarge himself to become bigger in battle, much like how Kevdak did in their battle. In their Exalted form, he gains resistance to fire, cold, and lightning damage.
- Stone Wall: Grog has the highest HP of the party and as the party's levelled up his defensive capabilities have only increased.
- The Strategist: While unintelligent, Grog still has an eye for strategy and knows when he needs to call in back-up. This becomes more pronounced when he becomes a Battle Master at level 18, allowing him to simultaneously knock enemies off their feet and disarm them whenever he deems it most advantageous.
- Taken for Granite: Was petrified by pixies while in the Feywild and was almost claimed by them as punishment towards Vox Machina in Episode 61.
- That Man Is Dead: He uses an alias Phillip when he first enters into Vasselheim's fighting pit, but after that ends with Grog being humiliated, he decides to return under his real name in a dramatic re-branding.Grog: NO! Phillip is dead. There is no Phillip. There is only... GROG, THE VENGEFUL!
- There Is No Kill Like Overkill: Grog's specialty!
- Kills the Bulette in Episode 4 by biting its tongue out and executing a Jawbreaker.
- Kills the duergar interrogator in Episode 6 by impaling him on a rack of his own torture implements, pulling a Jawbreaker again, and pummelling the body with its own jawbone.
- He gets the killing blow on the Behir in Episode 28, and basically pummels it into jelly.
- He's very fond of impaling enemies once he picks up Craven Edge, and pulls a couple of particularly brutal examples on a Goliath mook named Horace and an Orc war-chief in Episodes 48 and 49, respectively.
- Gets his revenge against Kevdak , and finishes him by falling 50 feet through the air and splitting him in half.
- Delivers the final blow against Umbrasyl in Episode 55 by cleaving apart the wyrm's throat.
- As part of a deadly team up with Lady Kima, he finishes off a demon by grabbing the demon's legs and wishboning him.
- He actually uses Pike as a weapon to finish off an ember roc in Episode 77.
- When the party tracks Hotis down respawning in the Nine Hells, he's in a defenseless fetus-like form. Grog splatters him with the dwarven throwing hammer.
- Throwing Your Sword Always Works:
- Can throw his melee weapons at a distant enemy and retrieve it thanks to the weapon being connected to a magic item known as the "Chain of Returning" that was crafted by Tiberius.
- The Dwarven Thrower, by default. It can be thrown and subsequently teleported back to him, allowing for multiple attacks.
- Toilet Humor: Travis is a guy who likes his fart jokes, so Grog will often fart when other players start talking in circles.
- Too Dumb to Fool: Why Craven Edge is marginally safer in his hands than in anyone else's - his simple-minded nature prevents the sword from being able to manipulate him with anything other than offerings of increased strength, since he already is The Big Guy of the team and lacks the ambition or cunning to betray or trick his comrades - mostly. Travis has said during a Q&A that Grog doesn't even realize Craven Edge is trying to corrupt him, he just thinks it's a cool sword that happens to talk. (He treats it like a kid would treat a battle-effects Lightsaber toy.)
- Zigzagged when they procure the skull of a Githyanki from the former home of General Krieg, which whispers to Grog the promise of a wish if he releases the soul from the skull. With the arrival of the Chroma Conclave, Grog becomes convinced that this is the most expedient means of resolving the situation and becomes increasingly intransigent, even going as far as to attack Vex and Percy to get the skull, almost succeeding in breaking it before a chance dice-roll fail (and a look from Pike) stay his hand; when Pike tried to Insight check on Grog, Matt describes his motives as "a simple mind looking for a simple solution to a complex problem".
- Ultimate Blacksmith: Ioun gave him supernatural blacksmithing knowledge, letting him make the Divine Trammels out of fragments of the gods themselves. In this scene, Matt compares him to Moradin, the Allhammer himself!
- Undying Loyalty: He values his friendship with all of Vox Machina, but his relationship to Pike as his best friend, adoptive sister, and conscience is the one he cherishes the most.
- Unstoppable Rage: It wouldn't be Grog without Rage. He can get so furious that almost nothing can kill him, best exemplified in the level 17 One-shot Battle Royales where he survives for turn after turn on 1 HP despite being riddled with bullets, arrows, dragon breath, and "what modern day people would call napalm."
- Victory by Endurance: Grog's Relentless Rage ability allows him to continue fighting with one hit point even when he suffers a hit that would take him to zero. Relentless Rage is the key to Grog winning his rematches against both Kurn and Earthhbreaker Groon, letting him hang on long enough to finish them off.
- Voice of Reason:
- Jokingly played with, after watching Lady Kima use a weapon for the first time. He asks if she wanted to touch his axe. She responds only if he wants to part with it. Grog's response: "...Maybe we should get out of here."
- A much more serious case occurs in regards to Keyleth and her wanting to kill Raishan right away. It's Grog that calms her down twice, showcasing a surprising level of patience, assuring her that she would get her chance one day.
- Walking Armory: Carries a war hammer, greataxe, greatsword, javelin and several full sets of armour in his Bag of Holding.
- Walking Shirtless Scene: In his official character design and most of his fanart, he's shirtless except for a single furred pauldron.
- What Would X Do?: The others ask him what Vex would do when trying to get a potion from the peddler in episode 22. The natural answer would be, of course, to haggle...but he does it completely the wrong way.
- The Worf Effect: Grog is one-hundred percent pure unadulterated Badass and a general hit-point sponge. At times, he is the measure in which villains are compared to, so when Grog gets downed, Vox Machina knows they're up against something pretty nasty.
- World's Strongest Man: As a Barbarian and a Goliath, Grog is already kinda expected to be strong, but a number of his actions make a case for his most notable trait, and the biggest skill he brings to the table, being his unequal martial strength. By the end of the campaign, his strength stat is 26, six points higher than the base maximum for a player stat (its enhanced via several magic items he's attuned to as well as feats he's achieved), and has many times demonstrated his crazy high strength when it comes to both checks and HYWDT.
- Worthy Opponent:
- Is considered this by Kern and several others after his fight in the Crucible. It's little consolation. Apparently, Kurn and the Crucible were impressed enough to send Grog/Travis a consolation prize upon his return to Vasselheim after Vox Machina visited the home of the Fire Ashari. The Barbarian was not amused, and by extension, neither was Travis. Taken further after the rematch where Kurn truly acknowledges Grog's strength and declares that he will have another rematch with him one day.
- Pointedly averted with Goran Vedmeyer, another Goliath and one of the "New Nobles" of Whitestone (who are dethroned by Vox Machina). After Vedmeyer is eliminated from the arm-wrestling contest at the Winter's Crest festival:Vedmeyer: A shame, really. I had looked forward to our contest.Grog: Yeah? Well, get used to disappointment, shithead.
- Earthbreaker Groon. Grog would never bow in respect after a battle with anyone else. Worthy Opponent, indeed.
- Used as a Bait-and-Switch in his fight with Kevdak. Realizing that the fight is going south, Grog lowers his arms and admits that his uncle is the superior fighter... right before shouting to the rest of the team to spring their ambush.
- Wrestler in All of Us: Employs several wrestling moves against Kurn the Hammer.
- Your Soul Is Mine!:
- K'varn sucks his soul out during the climactic battle of the first arc, killing him... temporarily, before Pike casts Revivify and brings him back.
- Happens again in Episode 50 when Craven Edge steals Grog's soul and kills him before Pike revives him again.
- Again in Episode 115 when he draws the Void card from the Deck of Many Things. It takes the party two weeks of travel through Pandemonium in order to reclaim it.
- You Wouldn't Like Me When I'm Angry!: Pretty much a given as a barbarian, but special props go to Episode 10, when he frightened a Cloaker which had frightened more than half the current party. Just an episode later he headbutts a giant who he's dwarfed by into submission out of vengeance for the giant drinking all his ale and destroying the cask.
Pike Trickfoot
Played by: Ashley Johnson (Campaign 1, The Legend of Vox Machina), Matthew Mercer, Ashley Johnson (Campaign 3)
- Race: Deep Gnome/ Centaur (at the end of Campaign 3)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.
- 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 revealed 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.
- 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: Pike is absent from the first four episodes, then stays behind in Vasselheim in episode 16. Episode 22 is the first time she temporarily returned after her long absence. She shows up again in episodes 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.
- 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.
- Did Not Get the Girl: Loses Percy to Vex'ahlia before anyone (in-universe or out) even knew she was in love with him.
- 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 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".
- 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!
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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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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: One of the first signs that Scanlan's attraction was reciprocated was in episode 22, very briefly, while at a tavern Pike complained that Scanlan wasn'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 hesitates for a long time on exactly what he makes her feel and eventually does return his feelings wholeheartedly, but while they're friends she cares about him a lot.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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've been 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.
- Relationship Revolving Door: Her eventual marriage to Scanlan managed to survive raising their kids to adulthood. While they eventually divorce and remarry several times, due to the many Midlife Crisis stages gnomes go throughout their long lives, they always seem to find their way back together.
- 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 and her own relationship with Scanlan evolved, she came to realise that she returned his 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 fits the role of 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 on a ship 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!
- 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.
- What the Hell, Hero?: Sarenrae 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, Sarenrae shows her disappointment by having Pike's holy symbol crack. Realizing that she screwed up, Pike prays and atones for her sin. Sarenrae 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. As a bonus, her hair turned white after her resurrection.
Scanlan Shorthalt
Played by: Sam Riegel
- Race: Forest Gnome/ Centaur (Campaign 3)Class: Bard (College of Lore)
Scanlan is a gnome bard who considers himself more of a lover than a fighter. Raised by a single mother until she was killed in a sudden goblin attack, Scanlan trained as a musician and scoundrel under a travelling troupe led by the charismatic Dr. Dranzel. Having left his share of broken hearts in his past, Scanlan is trying to turn over a new leaf and prove himself as the kind of gnome worthy of someone else's love.
- Absent-Minded Professor: Not to the extent of Tiberius, but Scanlan does have above average intelligence, and below average Wisdom.
- Action Dad: Kaylie tells him he's this, to the shock of absolutely everyone.
- Amicable Exes: Tal'Dorei Reborn reveled that he and Pike become this, ending their marriage after their children have grown but still remaining good friends and sometimes lovers.
- I Am Not Left-Handed: As expected of a bard, he has plenty of tricks up his sleeve that can potentially turn the tide of battle.
- Anti-Magic: His use of Counterspell saves the group on more than one occasion.
- Ass Kicks You: Scanlan will occasionally channel his spells through his backside, because it's funny. These spells run the gamut from Hold Person to Lightning Bolt.
- Back from the Dead:
- Scanlan dies in Episode 80 after being frozen solid by Raishan's Cone of Cold, but Pike performs a fast Revivify ritual and manages to bring him back.
- He dies once more against Raishan again in Episode 83. This time, it takes a Resurrection to bring him back in Episode 84.
- Beware the Silly Ones: Sam Riegel has said in interviews that at the time of character creation he asked Liam what the dumbest class was ("probably a bard") and what the dumbest character race was. Scanlan is pretty ridiculous, but thanks in part to Bards getting a massive buff in 5th Edition, endgame Scanlan is a spellcasting monster with a lot of badass moments to his name.Scanlan: You leave when Burt Reynolds tells you to leave!
- In Episode 6 he outright threatens Lady Kima into cooperating and accepting Clarota as an ally.
- Episode 31 is perhaps Scanlan at his most badass: he rampages through an enemy manor as a triceratops, then teleports up to the roof and sets the building ablaze with a potion of fire-breath, punches a goliath off the roof with Bigby's Hand, and then trust-falls onto the hand and escapes the blaze. As a distraction.
- He has a clutch contribution in episode 34, where he Counterspells Delilah Briarwood's attempt at a Dimension Door, which is one of the first things that genuinely worries one of the Briarwoods. When she attempts to escape again, she specifically moves out of Scanlan's sight to do it.
- In Episode 52, he moons Kevdak with his Cutting Words while casting Hold Person on him. Using Mythcarver's special ability, he causes Kevdak to fail the saving throw needed to resist the effect. Kevdak then proceeds to spend nearly two-thirds of the battle paralyzed, while Vox Machina just wail on him.
- In Episode 69, he instigates the absolutely brutal HDYWTDT of Dr. Ripley. All with a chillingly calm expression.
- In Episode 76 he gets the HDYWTDT against the pit fiend with his newly Awakened Mythcarver.
- In Episode 102 he pulls off a counter spell against Vecna, allowing the party to escape with their lives.
- Blade Spam: Mythcarver, when awakened, grants Scanlan the equivalent of a Fighter's level 20 Extra Attack boon: four attacks per round. All with advantage if he Inspired someone beforehand.
- Bullying a Dragon: On occasion:
- He makes fun of Aldor a lot in Episode 17, despite the fact that Aldor is pretty clearly the authority in the situation.
- In Episode 28 he actually does it to Matt, making fun of his mispronouncing of "sigil", but all it takes is one threatening roll behind the DM screen for Scanlan to back down.
- But Not Too Bi: Maintains that he's interested in both men and women, but we only ever see him express interest in women (mostly Pike). (Except for when Vax tricks him into falling for Percy temporarily.)
- I Call Him "Mr. Happy": His is "the Cube".
- Calling Your Attacks: BIGBY'S HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAND!!! Also done with other spells on occasion.Scanlan: What a lovely dinner we ha-LIGHTNING!
- Casanova Wannabe: Loves the ladies, though we haven't seen him have much luck outside of, as Grog calls it, "places where you pay for lady favors."
- Character Development: Throughout the series, Scanlan becomes less sleazy and more noble. He's still sometimes a creep and a womanizer, but it's no longer his defining character trait nor his only approach to interacting with women. He also takes a more central role in combat and aids the party in attaining many victories through a clever mix of buffs/debuffs spells. His development accelerates upon discovering that he has a daughter, which makes him realize what he's been doing wrong when it comes to searching for love. However, Kaylie making him promise to stay alive means he can no longer play the cheerful nihilist who never really cared for his own life. Over the course of 40-ish episodes Scanlan starts spiralling into depression, dies, has a breakdown, and leaves. When he does come back for the last 15 episodes, he's much more at peace.
- Characterization Marches On:
- Early on Scanlan was more or less the Deadpool of the cast, being a meta-humor focused character who didn't really take things seriously. This can be seen at how many fourth-wall breaking jokes he made without care. Overtime however, Scanlan's humor was changed to be that of a Stepford Smiler, making him go from a silly Joke Character into a more realistic character.
- In Episode 44, Scanlan tells Kashaw that he's exclusively interested in women. Later episodes, and The Legend of Vox Machina, establish him as an Extreme Omnisexual.
- Chivalrous Pervert: Sure, he has the hots for Pike, but he does genuinely care about her and wants her to actually fall in love with him, not just sleep with him.
- Combat Pragmatist: Many of his awesome moments are about tricks and cheap shots.
- Confusion Fu: Scanlan has a diverse arsenal which makes it difficult to predict what he'll do in a fight. The cast have also said during the battle royale episodes that Sam/Scanlan would be very dangerous because of his ability to improvise and his quick thinking.
- Consummate Liar: As befits The Face, Scanlan is a terrific liar. (Mechanically speaking, he's got an outrageously high Deception modifier (+13), as seen in Episode 61 when he manages to roll a 30 — with disadvantage.) It is, however, one of his biggest flaws, something that is brought to the fore when Scanlan leaves the group in Episode 85.
- Convenient Coma: Falls into this following his second resurrection. It's convenient considering Sam Riegel was not even present for the episode.
- Cool Sword: Mythcarver, especially after it powers up in Episode 76.
- Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass: While he describes his skills with "fighter a distant third," this bard proves to be anything but spoony in combat. His greatest achievement may well be decapitating King Murghol, or wreaking havoc on a manor in Whitestone all by himself in Episode 31, or saving all of Vox Machina from the wrath of the City of Brass in Episode 76.
- Death from Above: In Episode 58, when seeing Vax in danger of being killed by Hotis the Rakshasa, he decides to leap off the balcony with Mythcarver and do a jumping stab attack that would make Link proud.
- The Determinator: When it comes to winning Pike's heart. Or getting in her pants. He made a very serious effort to save her life during the climactic escape sequence from the Underdark.
- Devoted to You: He may seek out lady favors at brothels. He may constantly charm the pantaloons off of women. He may be a conniving and at times selfish gnome. But if there's one thing about Scanlan Shorthalt, it's that he will drop everything, including all of the aforementioned things, to be with and protect the one true love of his life: Pike Trickfoot. And despite how he sometimes gets on everyone's nerves, there's no denying that he's devoted to his friends in Vox Machina. And after he discovers that he's a father, he has someone else to fight for: his daughter Kaylie.
- Did You Just Scam Cthulhu?: Scanlan shocked friend and foe alike during the final battle by not using the book as planned, instead seemingly wasting his turn by just moving closer and Inspiring Grog. After the group wrote his turn off as a panicked lapse of judgement during a stressful fight, everyone, including Matt/Vecna, was shocked by his clutch Counterspell, which he had only just gotten in range to cast. Matt had to stop and applaud.Scanlan: That's why I moved closer, motherfucker!
- Did You Think I Can't Feel?: Gives a blistering one of these to the rest of Vox Machina in episode 85, when they bring his daughter Kaylie to help with his resurrection ritual. He's mortified at Kaylie seeing him fallen and weakened and is furious with Vox Machina for involving her, claiming they just see him as a jokester and have never really cared to know anything about him beyond that.
- The Ditz: Not to the extent of Tiberius, but he does have a tendency of not paying attention when the party is discussing plans or when people mention important details and he has to be reminded of what was discussed.
- Doting Parent: He has loads of love for Kaylie. That time they bluffed barbarians in Westrunn has been compared to a guy coaching and encouraging their kid at some competition, and he praised her efforts afterward.
- The Dreaded: To VECNA of all people. By the end of the fight he was using everything to try and take Scanlan out of the battle, almost screaming incoherently with rage every time the gnome countered one of his spells.
- Elemental Powers: Often uses lightning (Lightning Bolt and Chain Lightning) and thunder attacks (Thunderwave).
- Everyone Has Standards: Expresses offense at the insinuation that he'd use a scrying potion to spy on Pike naked... and promptly subverted when Vex can answer "yes" to every one of his "Have I ever" questions.
- Extreme Omnisexual: Scanlan is not just a lover of ladies, if his comments about fire giants being "fuckable", his reactions to being kissed by Vax, and his flirting with an ancient green dragon are any indication. No matter his preferences, Scanlan Shorthalt is not 100% heterosexual
. - The Face: So long as his more... risqué comments don't get him in trouble, he talks for Vox Machina. Whenever the team needs a person to present a story, truthful or otherwise, Scanlan is typically the first person they go with due to his high charisma and his proficiency with persuading others. Quite a few confrontations have been avoided due to his silver tongue and convincing bald-faced lies.
- Fartillery: He has a tendency to fire Lightning from his rear end in addition to his crotch. In fact, the opening theme for Campaign 1 and even the The Legend of Vox Machina's "Your Turn to Roll" video has him doing just this.Scanlan: I have practice aiming things with my ass...
- Fatal Flaw: His tendency to hide his emotions with humor. Deep down, Scanlan feels like he doesn't really have anybody in his life who cares for him and his inability to be honest with himself or his friends about his emotions really bite him in the ass when he dies and is resurrected when fighting the Chroma Conclave. It leads to him having an outburst and leaving the group for a while. But he returns.
- Fireballs: Possesses a wand that lets him conjure these.
- Gag Penis: Magically made his bigger when distracting Lady Kima while Keyleth airs out her concerns about Kima's motives. Being a gnome, it is usually not this trope.
- Giant Hands of Doom: It's Bigby's Hand, Bigby's Hand, you know it, shamone!
- Glass Cannon: Had the lowest HP for a while but is remedied after hitting level 12 and picking up the Tough feat. However, due to the limit of attunement items, his AC is a meager 14.
- Good Scars, Evil Scars: After the time skip, he returns with a scar on his cheek that makes him look a little more roguishly dashing. Kaylie gave it to him in a fit of anger.
- Handsome Lech: At times, Scanlan skirts the line between this and Chivalrous Pervert, but never stays here for too long.
- Happily Married: In the epilogue, he and Pike start dating, and finally she asks him to marry her. With Grog's approval, Scanlan says yes.
- Hates Being Touched: Downplayed— he doesn't mind being touched, but he hates being manhandled, and Vax's tendency to exuberantly scoop him up like a small child gets under his skin and stays there to the point that it's among the grievances Scanlan airs in Episode 85 when he parts ways from the party.
- I Have Many Names: Scanlan Shorthalt loves creating alternate names, sometimes complete with different accents and personalities. Burt Reynolds, The Kingslayer, Kenny Rogers, Francois Bertrand Jean-Luc Australia, the Meat Man, Aes Adan and many others.
- Heart Is an Awesome Power: When he gets that feeling he gives musical healin'. Giving inspiration, and many of his spells are created by music and singing.
- Heroes Prefer Swords: While Scanlan doesn't use a weapon very often, if he does, expect it to be a longsword — especially now that he's picked up the Mythcarver.
- Hidden Depths: They may not always work out the best, but he has done a fair amount of strategizing with the party, showing that he's definitely smarter than he appears to be (reflecting his decent Intelligence stat, compared to his low Wisdom). He's also proven to be capable of platonic relationships with women. He mentions a "sleepover" with three tiefling ladies... and then goes out of his way to elaborate it was an actual sleepover, with hair-braiding and gossiping. He's also surprisingly wise (despite his low Wisdom) as shown during certain interactions with Vax.
- Horny Bard: The living embodiment of this trope in a small package. He uses every opportunity to hit on anyone and charm the pants off his quarry with his song, literally and figuratively.
- Indy Ploy: He's remarkably good at coming up with on the fly plans, as well as creative uses for his spells, ranging from setting a mansion on fire all by himself, to paralyzing Kevdak and Greenbeard for most of the fight, to punching his way out of a dragon's stomach.
- In Love with Love: Scanlan had spent the better part of three years feeling as though Pike is his soulmate, and trying a wide myriad of ways to win Pike's heart; Scanlan had always known that there was something in his life, something worth caring for. After meeting his daughter, Kaylie, and feeling more fulfilled in his life than he had ever been before, Scanlan realizes that while Pike may still be his soulmate, she's not the one who gives him purpose, and admits that he was more in love with the idea of Pike (her beauty, smartness, etc.) without ever really getting to know Pike as a person. Scanlan admits that Kaylie was the gnome that gives him purpose.
- Invisibility: One of his bard skills enables him to walk unseen, which means he can follow Vax during stealth scouting and infiltration.
- Jack of All Trades: Both played straight and averted.
- As a class feature, he gets the eponymous "Jack-of-All-Trades" feat, that allows him to add half his proficiency bonus, rounded down, to any ability check he makes that doesn't already include his proficiency bonus. That aspect doesn't come up very often though, as Scanlan usually focuses on his skills of expertise, such as Deception.
- In a fight, he can't cast spells as powerful as those of Keyleth or Tiberius, he can heal and buff but not as well as Pike, he can shapeshift to deal more damage but never quite as much as Grog, he's less light on his feat than Vax or Vex, and he doesn't have Percy's gift with gadgetry or ranged weapons. But he can do well enough in all those roles, at least for a little while, to be surprisingly useful in combat.
- Averted in that, unlike most of Vox Machina, Sam never multi-classed. Putting levels into another class makes for a more balanced character, but one has to start from the beginning of that class, as opposed to the higher levels and bigger bonuses of one's original class had they stayed the course. By playing a pure bard, late game Scanlan is less balanced but ultimately more powerful for it.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: He's a serial womaniser, has a bad habit of making creepy and perverted comments, and has a tendency to object to several of the party's plans, but deep down he's loyal to Vox Machina, genuinely loves Pike and over time has become a better person.
- Ladykiller in Love: While his ladykilling skills might be in dispute, he's definitely smitten with Pike. He also averts Can't Act Perverted Toward a Love Interest by a country mile.
- The Lancer: Often when Vax went scouting in the Underdark arc, Scanlan (equipped with Invisibility) was his partner.
- The Leader: Even when it's mentioned in jest (and even after he left the party), Scanlan is considered the party leader.
- Let's Get Dangerous!: Whenever Scanlan drops all pretense and gets serious. Most notably:
- In the first half of Episode 31, Scanlan - who usually only plays a supporting role in combat - destroys an entire manor full of guards by himself.
- When Percy is killed in Episode 68, Scanlan coldly tells a trapped Dr. Ripley, "Percy is killing you today, not us."
- Let's Mock the Monsters: His spell Vicious Mockery has been used more than once, and has even killed several enemies. Vicious Mockery basically insults a target cruelly enough to cause it physical and psychological pain. As of this point it has killed:
- A duergar soldier, by causing it to drown itself out of shame after he called it ugly.
- A vampire spawn that, in addition to being mocked, was also pissed on by Scanlan - fulfilling the running water requirement.
- Most glaringly a ghost that, as Percy aptly put it, was shamed back to death.
- The Loonie: Typically tries to be the comedic relief more than the others. Also tends to be the instigator, especially with Vex'ahlia/Laura to leave Trinket behind, because he knows that Trinket is The Load.
- Magical Species Transformation: He True Polymorphed himself into a centaur in Campaign 3 in response to his midlife crisis. Due to how that spell works, Scanlan's transformation might last for the rest of his life.
- Magic Missile Storm: Possesses a Wand of Magic Missile that can release up to nine missiles in one blast.
- Magic Music: As a bard, this is natural. Primarily used for buffing and healing, and often expressed through (pop) songs and (original) limericks.
- Magic Wand: Has a Wand of Fireballs and a Wand of Magic Missile.
- Make a Wish: In the late game, he gains the Wish spell. He loses it at the end of the Dalen's Closet oneshot, after briefly summoning back Vax so he could be there for Vex's wedding.
- Meaningful Name: Scanlan is a variation of scannal, the irish word for scandal, which is highly appropriate for him. His last name, Shorthalt also counts as this, as his antics serve as a welcome break during the party's life threatening adventures. The name he uses as a crime lord in Marquet, Aes Adan, is Sindarin (Elvish) for 'Meat Man.'
- Meaningful Rename: Upon marrying Pike, he becomes "Scanlan Shortfoot."
- Mid-Life Crisis Car: His use of True Polymorph to turn himself into a centaur was compared to a person buying an expensive car during their midlife crisis.
- Mind Manipulation: Is quite fond of using spells such as Friends, Suggestion, Dominate Person/Monster, and Modify Memory to turn the tide whether in social encounters or combat encounters.
- Moment Killer: Vex kisses Percy on the cheek at one point, and Scanlan immediately kills the moment by suggesting Percy might have syphilis.
- The Münchausen: Outright stated in his intro is that he "sings songs about as much as he sings his own praises". He thinks very highly of himself, even constantly trying to get the last word in during a discussion or coming up with rather unorthodox tactics while also objecting to those of the others, which is funny considering Sam is usually the only one of the party to try to keep everyone focused on what's happening.
- Necktie Headband: Donned by Sam during Scanlan's solo assault on the manor in Episode 31. Seen again near the end of episode 50.
- No Celebrities Were Harmed: According to Sam, Scanlan's backstory is essentially
Eminem's. - No-Sell: Once Tiberius leaves the party, Scanlan learns how to use Counterspell, and uses it to great effect to shut down enemy mages. His greatest use is unquestionably in the final fight with Vecna, where he keeps shutting down some of the most broken spells Vecna has, saving the group repeatedly. The look on Matt's face as he does it sells how frustrated both Vecna, and even Matt are.
- Now, Buy the Merchandise: In-Universe, Scanlan is the one who is always pushing Gilmore's Glorious Goods. (Usually on enemies who are about to die.) Out of Universe, Sam typically breaks the fourth wall whenever there's a lull or Matt is looking up a rule by telling the audience to go to Geek and Sundry or buy merch, and also does an advertisement at the start of the show for Lootcrate while they sponsored the show.
- Older Than They Look: Due to the lifespan of gnomes, Scanlan looks no older than most of Vox Machina despite being 70.
- Playboy Has a Daughter: When Kaylie reveals herself to be the Casanova Wannabe Quirky Bard Scanlan's daughter from a casual fling. He's deeply distraught to have been a Disappeared Dad for so long and makes a serious effort through the rest of the story to become a worthy father.Scanlan: I didn't know you existed, and my heart is breaking a hundred times now for not knowing it. Every year that you've been alive is a year I could have been a better person and known someone who could have made me a better person, and I'm only sorry that I didn't know it.
- Playing Cyrano: For Grog in Episode 59 when he speaks with Nala the Nymph. The players even name-drop Cyrano during the scene.
- Playing with Fire: When drinking the Potion of Fire Breathing in Episode 31.
- Please Kill Me If It Satisfies You: Offers Kaylie this option after he discovers she is his daughter and wants to kill him for being a Disappeared Dad. Thanks to a timely Natural 1, she doesn't have the heart to go through with it.
- Pungeon Master:
- Matt deemed his "cow-maflague" pun in episode 26 to be bonus experience-worthy.
- Inverted in Episode 39, where his "Yelping" pun was so bad that Matt briefly considered home-brewing a counterpart to inspiration die and Taliesin noted he retroactively felt better about every pun he'd ever made.
- Put on a Bus: Scanlan leaves Vox Machina so he can be with Kaylie and deal with the growing emotional issues he's been dealing with. The bus comes back in episode 99, over a year later, when he discovers the existence of a second ziggurat.
- Quirky Bard: It does not take very long for the audience to learn how strange he can be. It's almost to the point of being a Cloudcuckoolander.
- Really 700 Years Old: He alludes constantly to being the oldest member of the party, even older than Vex, Vax, and Keyleth who have naturally longer life spans. Subverted in the epilogue of the campaign when he off-handedly mentions that he hopes to finish his book by the time he hits seventy-one, revealing that he was sixty-nine at the start of the campaign, and seventy after the time skip. While old by human standards, gnomes can typically live in excess of three-hundred years, making him the gnomish equivalent of his thirties and far younger than he let on.
- Really Gets Around: Lampshaded by Grog in episode 18, but this really hits when it's revealed he's unknowingly impregnated at least one woman.
- Refuge in Vulgarity: Whether it's leaving a nasty surprise in duergar beds, showing Kima his magically-altered genitals, or rescuing Pike while going into detail about how he's creepily smelling her hair, Sam plays this to the hilt.
- I Want My Beloved to Be Happy: Once he's realized that the was more in love with the idea of Pike and never actually got to know Pike as a person, being so focused on getting together with her, he accepts that she doesn't feel the same way, rescinds the offer of marriage and encourages her to be happy. Ultimately averted in the finale, when the two gnomes finally reciprocate their feelings for each other and even become husband and wife.
- The Revolution Will Not Be Civilized: Surprisingly, he's the strongest advocate for making gory examples of the bad guys in Whitestone during the rebellion. At the beginning of Episode 30, he pushes for it even harder than Grog does.
- Rule of Three: Thanks to the luck of the dice, Scanlan ends up with three uses of Wish in the post campaign bonus episodes: first to find where Grog is in The Search for Grog, second to create a bejewelled bowl for a Heroes' Feast, and third to briefly bring back Vax for Vex's wedding.
- Sad Clown: Scanlan comes across as the most fun-loving and lighthearted member of the team, always cracking jokes and doing a bunch of other silly things, but since his discovery that he has a daughter, he has been struggling to cope with the extra responsibility and lives in fear of screwing it up, and it takes a darker turn after he finds out about Tiberius' death. Some of his antics (particularly gambling excessively and trying to acquire drugs in Ankh'Harel, and later from Jarrett, and attempting to mind wipe Lady Kima) are somewhat desperate and mean-spirited, and display a confused state of mind. He finally admits to Jarrett in Episode 73 that he's struggling, and it gets even worse after his death in Episode 80, when he uses his drugs for the first time and later modifies Jarrett's memory to convince him to acquire more. It all comes to a head in Episode 85, when Scanlan throws one hell of a verbal beatdown at the rest of the party for marginalizing his fears, breaking his promise to Kaylie by letting her see his corpse, and defiling his recently revived body with an oversized nightgown, rope bindings and several gallons of pudding. All in plain view of his daughter, no less. His outburst is completely devoid of humor and absolutely vicious, hitting the other party members' emotions right where it hurts the most. It's an incredibly stark demonstration of just how miserable and betrayed the "jolly" little gnome feels on the inside.Scanlan: You like me because I make jokes, and I play songs, and I give you a warm place to stay at night, and I feed you fucking chicken, and I heal you in battle. But you don’t really care about me. Come on. Let's be honest with each other. You don't really give a shit about me. [...] We traveled into the fucking nine hells to get Pike a set of armor. We went and battled a city of vampires so Percy could feel good about his name. We fought goliaths for Grog. We’ve traveled across planes of existence so [Vex and Vax] could fix your fucking daddy issues. But you’ve never done anything for me. Ever! You’ve never risked anything, you don’t know me, you don’t know anything about me. What’s my mother’s name? What’s her name? Easy question. Died in front of me. Killed by a goblin. Biggest part of my life. What’s her name? My father. Is he alive or dead? How old am I? Where’s my fucking dog? [...] It's fine. I’m just a little hungover from being dead, and I just have been thinking for a while, and, you know. Grog has Pike. Vax has Keyleth. Percy has Vex. But Scanlan has no one, and I had one chance at one real relationship with my daughter, and I feel like you’ve gone and fucked it up, too. Because you don’t really know me, and you don’t really know what my relationship is with her, and what I’ve promised her, or anything, really. And it’s fine. When I met you all, I was just a funny little man playing songs, and that’s all I’ll ever really be. And that’s okay, because I can take care of myself.
- Sadistic Choice: Perhaps the most extreme example in the entirety of the campaign. During the final battle with Vecna, Scanlan is put into an extremely tough situation: Either save his last 9th level spell to cast Wish, allowing him to revive Vax, or use a 9th level Counterspell to stop Vecna from teleporting and escaping, since Vecna escaping would make the entire battle All for Nothing. Faced with no good way to handle it, Scanlan casts Counterspell to make sure Vecna pays for everything he's done, all while Sam begins to break down into tears.
- Shipper on Deck: Usually more Sam than Scanlan.Laura: I get (Percy) up against the wall. I look him straight in the eye—Sam: And kiss him.Taliesin: Stop encouraging!
- Shoo the Dog: He is always the first to suggest leaving Trinket behind on their adventures.
- Shoot the Dog: Played with. When facing off against Grog's former Herd, he makes the decision to aim a fireball so that it kills two citizens instead of Vax. However, he was well aware of Vax's agility and ability to take the hit, making the decision darker than it first appears.
- Signature Move: He has two of note, Bigby's Hand and Counterspell, both of them impressive yet good general-use spells, fitting for a character like Scanlan.
- So Much for Stealth: Very notably in episode 50, where he uses Thunderwave on a group of goliaths while invisible... but forgets that despite being Concentration, the basic Invisibility spell ends early if the invisible target attacks or casts a spell. Net result: ten really annoyed goliaths chasing one gnome. Time to run...
- Song Parody: Most if not all of Scanlan's Bardic inspiration songs are these, as Sam rewrites the lyrics to popular songs to fit the situation.
- Spanner in the Works: It wouldn't be a stretch to say he was this for Vecna during the final battle. Scanlan was basically the reason the group succeeded.
- Stealth Expert: With such spells as Invisibility and Seeming, he is very good at sneaking around. His deception modifier also means he can pass himself off as someone harmless.
- Stone Wall: Not to the extent of Grog, but he has second-highest HP in the party, with a respectable Armor Class and access to defensive spells like Otiluke's Resilient Sphere to boot.
- The Storyteller: Comes with being a Bard. It's what draws Ioun to choose him as her Champion over Percy.
- Stupidity-Inducing Attack: Uses Feeblemind (via Wish) to neutralize Keyleth's spellcasting and reduce her to the equivalent of a feral animal in the level 20 battle royale. Unfortunately, it didn't affect her ability to shift elemental forms.
- Talk About That Thing: Scanlan pulls Lady Kima aside to show her his magically superfluous third nipple, and other... "abnormal growths" so Keyleth can air out her suspicions about Kima.
- Talking the Monster to Death: This is an actual skill of his (called Vicious Mockery), where he can insult an enemy to deal damage. Even better, it can actually kill a target, and has.
- Talk to the Hand: Bigby's Hand, that is. He regularly summons it in battle, whether to hold down enemies or attack them,
- Team Dad: He is considered so, especially by Vex who saw him as a father figure. Fitting considering he himself is a dad.
- Throw the Dog a Bone: Earns a sincere kiss on the cheek from Pike after he puts his life on the line to rescue her.
- Toilet Humor: Scanlan has found a dismaying number of uses for his own bodily waste.
- Took a Level in Badass: Par for the course when it comes for D&D, but Scanlan might be the best example among Vox Machina. As the series has gone on, Scanlan has become a much more capable combatant and their back-up magical powerhouse behind Keyleth. He even took out an entire house of enemies single-handed in the Whitestone arc. His prowess as a fighter is definitely no longer a distant third (after lover and performer). Scanlan has definitely come a long way since the pre-stream campaign - remember that he only got his first kill during the first episode, and since then his combat prowess and capabilities have advanced by leaps and bounds. The levels he takes are so immense he becomes the main reason the group even defeats Vecna in the end, something he managed to do with help from his trusty Counterspell.
- Tranquil Fury:
- Given that a goblin invasion was responsible for the death of his mother, his statement right before the first episode's fight could be defined as this.
Scanlan: I don't like goblins...they will all die. Don't spare any of them.- There's also his demeanor leading up to the brutal death of Dr. Anna Ripley.
- Try Not to Die: He makes a promise to Kaylie that he will come home alive. Honoring the promise is what leads to Mythcarver's awakening. Breaking the promise, on the other hand, and moreover allowing Kaylie to see him having broken the promise, is a massive part of the reason why he leaves Vox Machina.
- Vibroweapon: Mythcarver, the vestige Scanlan received has so far been shown to deal extra damage thanks to this trope. It emits an audible high-pitched hum, doesn't make a sound as it passes through enemies like a hot knife through butter and cleans itself of any blood and gore that sticks to it. It gets even better once it awakens.
- Vitriolic Best Buds: Seems to always annoy the hell out of Tiberius. Mostly played for laughs. This is only between the characters, of course - Riegel has described his relationship with Orion Acaba as "friends in real life, frienemies ingame." However, he shows nothing but the utmost respect for Tiberius while mourning his death.Scanlan: Goodbye, old friend. We'll come back and we'll fix this. 'cause this is... poppycock.
- Voluntary Transformation: Prefers to turn himself into a fly or pterodactyl with Polymorph if he needs to scout or fly. At level 17 he learns True Polymorph.
- Weak, but Skilled: Being a Bard, Scanlan isn't the strongest fighter and overall his offensive power is much less noteworthy than the others. What Scanlan is though is a Combat Pragmatist with a cunning wit, the creativity to back it up, and a wide arsenal of spells that allow him to essentially throw off whoever he happens to be fighting. On many occasions, the heroes have won a fight only because Scanlan quickly threw up a crazy move that nobody expected, allowing his more powerful/combat focused allies the chance to get in and seal the deal.
-
Word of God: According to Sam, Scanlan took on the surname "Shortfoot" after marrying Pike. - Worth It: During the end of the Dalen's Closet, Scanlan casts Wish to let Vax return briefly for his sister's wedding. Even though his failed check means Scanlan can never cast the spell again, Scanlan has no regrets.Scanlan: It's okay. It's worth it.
- Wrong Genre Savvy: Despite being keen on certain things and coming up with clever solutions, he's also prone to coming to the wrong conclusions, more so than the rest of the party, especially regarding the Sun Tree being a spawning point for the vampires in Whitestone (it was the ground itself), or the Briarwoods making guns (it was Anna Ripley making a single gun and keeping it all to herself), or "spice" being street slang for drugs (instead of a regular word for... spice).
- You Will Not Evade Me: Has used Counterspell on more than one occasion to cut off a foe's magically-enabled escape. As he says during the fight with Professor Anders:Scanlan: That door's locked, motherfucker!
- Your Mom: Tends to insult his enemies and other Vox Machina adversaries in this way. The first one in the stream was at a duergar under Kraghammer, "You ugly! You ugly! Your momma says you ugly!" Special props to the Cutting Words given to Kurn "the Hammer."
Tiberius Stormwind
Played by: Orion Acaba
- Race: Red DragonbornClass: 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.
- Bus Crash: An offscreen casualty of the Chroma Conclave.
- 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.
- Can't Hold His Liquor: In Episode 26, he drank Vax's flask of god-knows-what and became a slurring mess.
- Catchphrase:
- While not an in-universe catchphrase 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- Draconic Humanoid: This is what dragonborn are all about, being humanoids descended from dragons (or whatever).But seriously...
- 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).
- 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.
- Impaled with Extreme Prejudice: When the party discovers his body in Episode 64, he's been impaled on a spike of ice.
- 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.
- 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 à 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 has 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
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Vax'ildan "Vax"
Played by: Liam O'Brien (Campaign 1, The Legend of Vox Machina), Matthew Mercer, Liam O'Brien (Campaign 3)
- Race: Half-elfClass: 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.
- 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.
- Finally, the final act of the Raven Queen as a goddess in episode 121 of campaign 3 is bring Vax'ildan back to life as a thank you for fulfilling his role as her Champion for the last 30 years.
- 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.
- The B Grade: Takes so much pride in his stealth skills that he viewed getting an 18 for stealth in episode 11 as pitiful.
- 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. However, 33 years later, Keyleth and Vax fall into Ludinus Da'Leth's trap, and Vax gets caught and turned into a battery for the Malleus Key, requiring Vox Machina to reunite again to set him free. The Raven Queen gives him a night to recover with his loved ones. When the Raven Queen summons him again, she tells him and her newly appointed Champion Morrighan that she and the other gods are going to reincarnate as mortals, and brings Vax back to life with an extended lifespan so that he could continue to serve her, encouraging him to stay with Keyleth during his moments of respite.
- 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.
- Earn Your Happy Ending: After sacrificing himself to save the world and having been used as a human battery for the Malleus Key, Vax'ildan is brought back to life by the Raven Queen herself during the Ritual of Catatheosis as a thanks for his services. Other than that, it is implied that his status as Champion of Ravens greatly extended his natural lifespan, meaning that he and Keyleth can be together without fearing that she will outlive him.
-
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.
- The Hero Dies: In the end, is one of two original party members to die for real.
- 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.
- 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."
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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?!
- 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.
- 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.
- Pun: Vax'ildan makes one in Clarota's presence, and gets mentally bitchslapped for it.Clarota: I. Hate. PUNS!
- 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.
- 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.
- 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 "Vex"
Played by: Laura Bailey (Campaign 1, The Legend of Vox Machina), Matthew Mercer, Laura Bailey (Campaign 3)
- Race: Half-elfClass: 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.
- 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
- Anguished Declaration of Love: During Percy's resurrection ritual, she confesses that her heart belongs to him.
- 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. By game mechanics, ranged attacks are made with DEX, not STR anyway.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- How They Treat the Help: 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.
- Hyper-Awareness: Vex has by far the highest passive perception in the party, and has expertise in perception due to both her Ranger skills and what she learns from Vax when she multiclasses into Rogue.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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?
- 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.
- 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!"
- 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.
- 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).
- 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.
- 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.
- 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 multiclasses into 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?
- Pulls one off when she manages to drag a dragon to the ground with Grasping Vine.
- Throw Down the Bomblet: Her Explosive Arrows, thanks to Percy's tinkering.
- Tranquil Fury: Laura is absolutely stone-faced when she describes how Vex kills Ripley in vengeance for Percy's death.
- 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.
- 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)
- Race: Grizzly BearClass: Ranger's Companion (Thief in the Honey Heist one shot)
Vex's animal companion. He's a bear. He gives excellent massages.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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. But it really is a small change as by the time Trinket gets these minor boons Vox Machina is regularly dealing with incredibly strong foes that can easily handle a single bear. With trinket not even surviving a single round of the fight against Vecna.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- Voluntary Shapeshifting: He's been turned into various other animals, and even into a human, multiple times.
Taryon "Tary" Darrington
Played by: Sam Riegel

- Race: HumanClass: 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
