#VOX YOUTUBE TRENDING SERIES#
Percy is the brooding, aristocratic gunslinger of the group, with a mysterious past that will unravel as the series progresses. Scanlan is Keyleth’s polar opposite where self-confidence is concerned - as a bard, he spends a lot of time performing, singing songs, and generally trying to charm the pants off of anyone that looks his way. Keyleth, a shapeshifting druid, is perhaps the most powerful member of the party, though her awkwardness and uncertainty often prevent her from being aware of it. Keyleth of the Air Ashari (Marisha Ray), Scanlan Shorthalt (Sam Riegel) and Percival “Percy” Fredrickstein von Musel Klossowski de Rolo III (Taliesin Jaffe) round out the rest of the group. Pike was not available for several episodes of the streamed campaign, as Ashley Johnson had filming conflicts at the time - that’s partly why Pike often drops into big moments in the story by way of astral projection. Pike is a gnomish cleric of the Everlight, the Exandrian deity of redemption and healing, while Grog is a goliath barbarian who loves ale above all other things. While they’re not twins, or even siblings, Pike Trickfoot (Ashley Johnson) and Grog Strongjaw (Travis Willingham) also share a close bond, having been raised together by Pike’s great-great-grandfather, Wilhand Trickfoot. Polygon even has an exclusive excerpt, which naturally includes audio narration by the original cast. If you want to learn more about the twins’ origin story specifically, you can also check out Critical Role: Vox Machina - Kith and Kin, the novelized version of their tale by Marieke Nijkamp. Vex and Vax are inseparable, having been pulled away from their human mother at a young age by their haughty elven father. Trinket is the companion of Vex’ahlia “Vex” Vessar (Laura Bailey), an imperious, frugal ranger who is twin to Vax’ildan “Vax” Vessar (Liam O’Brien), a cunning, sardonic rogue. Vox Machina has seven core members - eight, if you include Trinket the armored bear. The heart of Critical Role has always been the bonds between its characters. What should I know about the characters going in? Emon is also home to landmarks like Gilmore’s Glorious Goods, the Alabaster Lyceum, the Ivory Tower and the Palace of the Sovereign, which is the seat of Uriel Tal’Dorei and the Tal’Dorei Council, the ruling parties of the Republic of Tal’Dorei. Skyships are available for overseas travel from Emon to other Exandrian continents like Issylra and Marquet, as magic and technology come together to create marvels. Emon is an industrial hub, situated on Tal’Dorei’s western shore - the first campaign highlights Tal’Dorei as being on the cusp of technological innovation. The animated series starts out in the city of Emon, the capital of Tal’Dorei. Similarly, Exandria is connected to various planes of existence that might resonate for longtime players, including the Feywild, the Shadowfell, the Astral Plane, and the Elemental Planes. If you want to learn more about Exandria’s history, there’s even a handy video that explains its origin story.Įlements of Exandria will feel familiar to D&D veterans who have hosted campaigns in the Forgotten Realms - including having deities similar to the gods of Faerûn, and the presence of races like elves, dwarves, gnomes, and halflings, in addition to humans.
Exandria - home to gods, monsters and remarkably difficult doors - is Matthew Mercer’s own campaign setting, and represents a shared universe where all Critical Role campaigns take place.
It takes place on a planet called Exandria, specifically on the continent of Tal’Dorei. The Legend of Vox Machina refers to the group of adventurers known as Vox Machina. But, as with building a character for D&D, sometimes it pays to spend some time fleshing out the details and digging into the backstory. The first season of the animated show draws upon the events of the first campaign, and is engineered to be the perfect point of entry for newcomers to a sprawling multimedia adventure, and a jumping off point for never-before-seen adventures.įor those who want to go in blind, know that the series has been specifically tailored to appeal to new viewers, kicking off on this new medium with a comparatively bite-sized story. Their weekly broadcasts on Twitch comprise one of the most popular “ actual play” experiences in the world - that is, a performance devoted to actually playing D&D in real time. That gives fans new and old a great excuse to catch up on the original material - dozens of hours of gameplay available both on YouTube and as a podcast.Ĭritical Role, the team behind Vox Machina, is a troupe of voice actors who have been playing Dungeons & Dragons together since 2014. Episodes are currently dropping each Friday throughout February. The Legend of Vox Machina, the highly anticipated adult animated series based on Critical Role, is finally available on Amazon’s Prime Video streaming service.