Vox Machina’s tale begins its darkest and most suspenseful arc with the beginning of an eons-old conspiracy in The Legend of Vox Machina Season 4.
Critical Role Productions’s The Legend of Vox Machina has consistently been one of Amazon Prime’s most successful fantasy shows. The tale is a retelling of the web series Critical Role’s first Dungeons & Dragons campaign by its players who have reprised their characters. It picks up where shows like Stranger Things left off in promoting the famous roleplaying game.
The show centers on the heroes of Vox Machina in the world of Exandria, featuring the following characters: the barbarian Grog Strongjaw (Travis Willingham), the gunslinger Percival “Percy” von Mussel Klossowski de Rolo III (Taliesin Jaffe), the druid Keyleth (Marisha Ray), the cleric Pike Trickfoot (Ashley Johnson), the ranger Vex’ahlia “Vex” (Laura Bailey), and her twin brother, the rogue Vax’ildan “Vax” (Liam O’Brien). After their triumph over a conclave of dragons, the adventurers reunite to unravel a conspiracy masterminded by the Whispered One (Andy Serkis).
Vox Machina reunite one year after the defeat of the Chroma Conclave in The Legend of Vox Machina Season 4
The Legend of Vox Machina Season 4 begins with a singalong of the past three seasons’ events through the eyes of Grog Strongjaw. Accompanying him is a depressed Pike Trickfoot, who has been struggling with her faith in her goddess, the Everlight. Their tavern crawl is interrupted by their newest employer, Taryon “Tary” Darrington (Wayne Brady), and his robotic scribe, Doty (Matthew Mercer). During their quest to track and stop gem thieves, they realize the culprit is an undying ex-priestess of the Everlight.
Meanwhile, Percy and Vex live as nobles in the city of Whitestone but long for adventure. While not hosting balls, Percy experiments with a dark orb summoned by the Briarwoods, the antagonists of Season 1. At the same time, Vex encounters a monster prowling the city and kills it. The creature’s master, however, revives it and escapes with the monster.
Overseas, Vax accompanies Keyleth on her Aramenté, her journey to become leader of her people. After completing her Water Trial, she was crowned Voice of the Tempest. All of Vox Machina reunite at her coronation, where a cult called the Children of Truth ambush them.
During the battle the cult spare Pike, claiming they are saving people just like her. The cult fully retreats when their leader recognizes Vax as the champion of the goddess of death, the Matron of Ravens. They realize the cultists were connected to their shared experiences, and that their weapons come from Tary’s hometown.
Unraveling the conspiracy and machinations of the Whispered One
Tary leads Vox Machina to his father Howaardt, who quickly proves an arrogant and neglectful father. They quickly identify him as the Children’s weapons supplier and track down the mine from where they are made. During the battle with Howaardt’s men, Pike receives a vision of Esreé, a monk of the Cobalt Soul, battling the Whispered One. After Tary stands up to his father, the adventurers finally accept him as one of their own.
In an Ocean’s 11-inspired heist, the group head to the Cobalt Archive to steal forbidden information about the Whispered One. The plan goes awry when the twins’ truth-telling spell affects them and they are discovered. But not before Vex reveals she secretly married Percy and Vax reveals he is dying.
Keyleth fails to prevent a guard from sounding the alarm, which alerts the security to all of them. Grog also drinks Pike’s Potion of Comprehension, forcing them to improvise when searching for the information. Fortunately, he manages to memorize most of the essential lore.
Before the potion wears off, Grog reveals the Whispered One was sealed in a dimension called Thar Amphala. After learning the arcane siphon that weakened him is the same as the orb beneath Whitestone, Percy shuts down the orb with Tary’s help. After several drinks, Keyleth opens up to Vex about her fear of being unable to help her loved ones. At the same time, Vax opens up to Percy about his fear of dying and leaving them all.
Meanwhile, Grog and Pike go to the city of Westruun to ask her great-great-grandfather Wilhand about her ancestor. The pair learns Esreé was a champion of the Knowing Mistress and a former wielder of the weapon Mythcarver.
They discover the villagers have been fanaticized by the Children of Truth, who attack Pike and Grog. The pair survive the ensuing battle, although Wilhand dies saving them. At the end, one of the Children’s lieutenants is revealed to be the revived Delilah Briarwood (Griffin Grey).
The Legend of Vox Machina Season 4 Recap: The fight to the Children of Truth
At Whitestone Castle, the group discovers a series of secret tunnels leading to the Briarwoods’ old chambers. Keyleth discovers a possible cure for Vax’s blight while reflecting her actions were for love. Vex discovers a sorceress (Marisha Ray) locked away by her ‘mistress’ Delilah, who arrives at the castle.
Percy overcomes his fear of the Briarwoods fighting clones of the late Sylas Briarwood. While the sorceress helps Vex fend off Delilah. Pike and Grog return to Whitestone the morning after, and decide to seek Mythcarver, the only weapon that can kill the Whispered One.
In search of Mythcarver, Vox Machina seek out its current owner and their former member, Scanlan Shorthalt (Sam Riegel). They find him the owner of a magical bar where he performs with his daughter Kaylie (Aisling Franciosi). Their initial attempts to persuade him are stifled when he asserts he has no wishes to go questing anymore.
When their true intentions are revealed, he takes it the worst way possible and lashes out that they never cared about him for anything more than his magic. After thwarting a cultist’s attempt to steal Mythcarver, the group makes amends with Scanlan and receive the weapon.
Elsewhere in The Legend of Vox Machina Season 4, Vox Machina track the cultist to the rest of the Children, assembled by Delilah and the Whispered One’s other lieutenants. They discover another orb that serves as a gateway to Thar Amphala and realize they can use its magic-siphoning properties to kill the Whispered One permanently.
While preparing to collapse the temple with explosives, Grog notices Pike’s refusal to grieve Wilhand. The plan fails when the Children escape, and Grog sacrifices himself to save Pike by allowing the orb to pull him inside. As the rest of the group retreats from the collapsing temple, an enraged Pike enters Thar Amphala to confront and kill the Whispered One.
The face off against the Whispered One
Vox Machina return to Whitestone to reactivate the orb there, planning on using it to enter Thar Amphala. Their allies object to their plans and attempt to block their path, but Tary stays behind to ensure their escape.
Meanwhile, Pike encounters the Whispered One himself, who uses her waning faith to manipulate her. He reveals his intention to rise against the gods’ oppressive reign, and that he needs Pike’s celestial blood for his ascension. The sorcerer even shows her Grog’s reassembled body, promising to resurrect him if she helps his ends.
In Thar Amphala, Vax realizes his blight is a divine gift that allows him to track Pike. Keyleth, on the other hand, becomes concerned about the Matron’s prophecy that he would die fighting the Whispered One. Regardless, Vox Machina takes advantage of this newfound power to permanently kill the lieutenants of the Children of Truth. As the group converge on the Whispered One and Delilah begins a ritual to ascend him to godhood, Pike’s faith continues to sway. By the time they find her, she has already turned to the Whispered One’s side and stands in their way.
Throughout the fight, Pike echoes the Whispered One’s rhetoric about conquering death, but she ultimately reveals that she fights because none of Vox Machina ever checked on her. As the Whispered One grows stronger, Grog returns to life and convinces Pike to stop fighting for him. In the climactic battle, Keyleth kills the Whispered One before Vax can sacrifice himself. While Delilah meets her end. The reassembled group escape a collapsing Thar Amphala, after which Keyleth cures Vax’s blight and rids him of his divine gifts.
However, the Whispered One had planned it all, as he needed a wielder of Mythcarver to kill his body and complete his ascension. He appears before them in Whitestone and forces Vox Machina to submit to him for all of the world to see. When Vax refuses to kneel, the Whispered One kills him and leaves.
The fifth and final season of The Legend of Vox Machina is more than halfway done.
Sources: Coming Soon, Prime Video, Reddit
