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| 3 | %% Please do not split off individual character pages unless they meet the requirements in Character-Specific Pages. |
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| 7 | [[center: [-[[Characters/CriticalRole Main Character Index / Dungeon Master]]]]-] |
| 8 | [[center: [-Tal'Dorei (Campaign 1): [[Characters/CriticalRoleVoxMachina Vox Machina]] ([[Characters/CriticalRoleGrogStrongjaw Grog]] | [[Characters/CriticalRoleKeyleth Keyleth]] | [[Characters/CriticalRolePercivalDeRolo Percival]] | [[Characters/CriticalRoleScanlanShorthalt Scanlan]])\ |
| 9 | [[Characters/CriticalRoleGuestPartyMembers Guest Party Members]] | [[Characters/CriticalRoleAlliesAndOtherCharacters Allies and Other Characters]] ([[Characters/CriticalRoleNPCsEmpireRepublicOfTalDorei Empire/Republic of Tal'Dorei]]) | [[Characters/CriticalRoleVillains Villains]]]]-] |
| 10 | [[center: [-Wildemount (Campaign 2): '''The Mighty Nein''' ([[Characters/CriticalRoleCalebWidogast Caleb]] | [[Characters/CriticalRoleFjord Fjord]])\ |
| 11 | [[Characters/CriticalRoleWildemountGuestPartyMembers Guest Party Members]] | [[Characters/CriticalRoleWildemountOtherCharacters Allies and Other Characters]] ([[Characters/CriticalRoleNPCsDwendalianEmpire Dwendalian Empire]] | [[Characters/CriticalRoleNPCsXhorhas Xhorhas]]) | [[Characters/CriticalRoleWildemountVillains Villains]]-]]] |
| 12 | [[center: [-Marquet (Campaign 3): [[Characters/CriticalRoleMarquetCampaign Bell's Hells]] ([[Characters/CriticalRoleLaudna Laudna]]) | [[Characters/CriticalRoleMarquetGuestPartyMembers Guest Party Members]] | [[Characters/CriticalRoleMarquetOtherCharacters Allies and Other Characters]] | [[Characters/CriticalRoleMarquetVillains Villains]] -]]][[center: [-The Setting Of Exandria: [[Characters/CriticalRoleGods Gods]] | [[Characters/CriticalRoleHistoricalFigures Historical Figures]] | ''[[Characters/CriticalRoleCallOfTheNetherdeep Call of the Netherdeep]]''-]]] |
| 13 | [[center: [-One-Shots (Exclusive): [[Characters/CriticalRoleOneShots One-Shot Characters (Exclusive)]] | [[Characters/CriticalRoleDarringtonBrigade The Darrington Brigade]]-]]] |
| 14 | [[center: [-Exandria Unlimited: [[Characters/CriticalRoleExandriaUnlimited The Crown Keepers]] | [[Characters/CriticalRoleExandriaUnlimitedCalamity The Ring of Brass]]-]]] |
| 15 | ---- |
| 16 | !Due to numerous plot twists regarding several characters, beware of marked and unmarked spoilers in text and character images. |
| 17 | |
| 18 | [[foldercontrol]] |
| 19 | |
| 20 | !The Mighty Nein |
| 21 | |
| 22 | The Wildemount Campaign has a dramatic contrast to the Tal'dorei Campaign in its cast of characters. Races, classes, and personalities are all shaped differently, yet they're finding out how to work together just the same. |
| 23 | |
| 24 | [[folder:In General]] |
| 25 | !!The Mighty Nein |
| 26 | [[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1200px_m9landscapecompfinal3_1024x725.png]] |
| 27 | [[caption-width-right:350: From left to right: [[SquishyWizard Caleb]] [[DarkAndTroubledPast Widogast]], [[BareFistedMonk Beauregard]] [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold Lionett]], [[MagicKnight Fj]][[TheFace ord]], [[TheMedic Caduceus]] [[MellowFellow Clay]], [[TheSneakyGuy Nott]] [[ActionMom The Brave]], [[TheBerserker Yasha]] [[GentleGiant Nydoorin]], [[CombatMedic Jester]] [[GenkiGirl Lavorre]][[note]]Not pictured: [[AmnesiacHero Mollymauk]] [[AgentPeacock Tealeaf]][[/note]]]] |
| 28 | |
| 29 | * AntiHeroTeam: While Vox Machina were a bit rough around the edges, The Mighty Nein take it to another level, consisting of two thieves/conmen, a self-described asshole, an amoral trickster, a carny who's more than willing to scam people out of their money, a warlock [[spoiler: who appears to have made a pact with an EldritchAbomination]], and a fallen angel from a hostile nation. All of them are pretty eager to commit various crimes, including theft, buying drugs, [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking mail fraud]], and even [[spoiler:pirating a ship]]. [[spoiler: Following Mollymauk's death in episode 26, the group gains a TokenGoodTeammate in the form of Caduceus Clay, by far the team's most morally-inclined member.]] Summed up by Matt in Episode 35: |
| 30 | -->'''Matt:''' This is not a moral group. By any stretch of the imagination. |
| 31 | * BadLiar: All of them apart from Beau, Fjord, and Caleb. A FawltyTowersPlot ensues whenever the party tries to deceive anyone. Jester in particular likes to think of herself as a great liar, but her tells are so obvious that anyone can see when she just pulled something out of her ass in the spur of the moment. |
| 32 | * BunnyEarsLawyer: Despite their many eccentricities and their tendencies towards petty crime, the Nein have frequently proven that they are extremely capable people, and quite skilled in their own individual areas of expertise. As one Tumblr post puts it, "these assholes are hyper-competent as long as they have no idea what they're doing." |
| 33 | * CantRefuseTheCallAnymore: The Mighty Nein has gone out of their way to avoid committing to any greater calling beyond their own personal goals, only taking mercenary work when they need the cash and allowing the machinations of the world at large to go unaddressed. Whatever plans are put into motion as a result of their actions elicits no intervention on their part, and is often not even taken into consideration. They might have continued to do so had they not stolen [[McGuffin the Dodecahedron]] early on in the campaign. They then proceeded to carry the artifact around the world, using it without any real understanding of its purpose, all while fully aware that there would be people coming after it, and still they refused to pick a side in the conflict happening around them. Only Caduceus is aware that the Nein has a greater destiny ahead of them and, [[spoiler: by returning the Dodecahedron to the Kryn Dynasty and being named heroes of Xhorhas,]] the Nein are on a collision course with that destiny, whether they like it or not. |
| 34 | * ContrastingSequelMainCharacter: All of them contrast their players' previous characters in some way: |
| 35 | ** Fjord is TheFace mixed with TheSmartGuy, coming up with plans and strategies on the fly to great effect, whereas Grog was the DumbMuscle. Also, as a Warlock, Fjord casts quite a bit of magic in addition to his melee combat, in contrast to Grog's complete lack of magic. On a somewhat more subtle note, Grog enjoyed going to brothels for "lady favors", while Fjord is extremely awkward at the prospect of sex. |
| 36 | --> '''Travis (out of character)''': I've got a Spell Save DC y'all! |
| 37 | ** Keyleth was an adorable AllLovingHero who JumpedAtTheCall regarding her Aramente but was a WideEyedIdealist who became extremely conflicted at the prospect of doing anything morally questionable. Beauregard is a self-admitted {{Jerkass}} and TheCynic who has no qualms about hurting people if it's necessary, and ''adamantly'' [[RefusalOfTheCall Refused The Call]] regarding the Way of the Cobalt Soul until she was literally beaten into accepting. Both are awkward and asocial, but for different reasons: Keyleth was socially awkward due to lack of experience with the outside world until her journey began, while Beau just doesn't give a rat's ass about others [[ICanLiveWithThat if only because she's always accepted that she'll be treated as such]]. Keyleth has a loving father and extended family through her tribe. [[spoiler:[[IHaveNoSon Beau is unwanted by her family, especially after learning she was essentially replaced by a baby brother.]]]] |
| 38 | ** Caleb is a pure magic user while Vax was mostly a physical fighter. Vax usually made himself look presentable, while Caleb is ThePigpen. Vax spent his entire life with his sister, while Caleb's closest friend in the party is someone he only met comparatively recently. Vax regularly ran straight into danger and had no problems risking his life for his friends, while Caleb always hangs back and considers himself a coward and ManipulativeBastard. |
| 39 | ** Nott is a huge contrast to Scanlan. Low charisma, awful singing, constantly nervous when Scanlan projected confidence, and a goblin when Scanlan hated goblins for killing his mother. To top it off, Scanlan was TheCasanova while Nott shows very little interest in romance, [[spoiler: due to already being HappilyMarried.]] |
| 40 | *** Also, in terms of classes, Nott is a very different kind of rogue to Vax, which Sam says was a deliberate choice in the campaign wrap-up. Where Vax was tall and confident, Nott is short and neurotic. Vax as an assassin rogue preferred fighting up close with his daggers and only utilized magic sparingly [[spoiler: as the Raven Queen's paladin]] late in the adventure, while Nott favors sniping at range with a crossbow and becomes an arcane trickster early on in the campaign. |
| 41 | ** While Vex was one of the smarter and more serious members of Vox Machina and often came up with plans, Jester is TheDitz and a prankster. While Vex had difficulty trusting people due to her background as a victim of FantasticRacism and ParentalNeglect, Jester is an optimist who feels it's always better to trust someone even if they're obviously deceiving you. Jester is also far less concerned about money than Vex was, for example she doesn't mind being conned out of a gold coin by Nott and Caleb because their "money pot" trick gave her a fun experience. Vex was also fiercely protective of her bear companion Trinket, while Jester is [[BlackComedyAnimalCruelty often forgetful of her pet weasel Sprinkle]]. |
| 42 | ** While Percy was TheSmartGuy, Mollymauk only has a slightly above-average Intelligence score and is implied to be a PhonyPsychic. Percy was ModestRoyalty most of the time while Molly dresses very ostentatiously and comes from a poorer circus background. Molly is also a mainly melee fighter compared to Percy being TheGunslinger. Percy's whole arc relied on wanting revenge on those who harmed him and destroyed his family in the past; Molly has ''[[AmnesiacHero almost completely forgotten]]'' his past and permanently lives in the moment. [[WordOfGod According to Taliesin]], Molly is also a genuinely nice, good person who tends to come off as untrustworthy, while Percy was an apparently good person who had a very dark side and didn't always care about collateral damage. |
| 43 | *** [[spoiler: While Mollymauk lived exuberantly and hedonistically, Caduceus lived a sheltered life far away from vice. Molly also constantly dealt damage to himself to fuel his blood hunter abilities, while Caduceus is a healer. Finally, Molly once evaded death by crawling out of his own grave, while Caduceus runs a graveyard and honors death in the natural order of life.]] |
| 44 | *** Percy has the highest Intelligence score of Vox Machina (the same score as Caleb) and above-average Wisdom; Caduceus, meanwhile, has the lowest Intelligence score and highest Wisdom of the Mighty Nein. Percy also mentions numerous times that he is a {{Naytheist}} and has had unpleasant encounters with two separate goddesses, while Caduceus is a devoted follower of the Wildmother. Cad is also a Cleric who naturally wields divine magic, while Percy made two deals (one unwitting, the other intentional) with a demon and a fiend, and as a Fighter who took on the Magic Initiate feat, his only magic is the 1st-level Hex spell. |
| 45 | *** Additionally, according to Taliesin on an episode of Talks, Caduceus is more or less how Percy would have turned out had Percy's familial life not gone catastrophically wrong; they would have both been men more or less content to stay at home and hold down the fort for the family while their siblings got to indulge in their wanderlust and personal hobbies and habits. The split obviously comes from the fact that Percy lost almost his entire family in a violent takeover by the Briarwoods, whereas Caduceus' slowly left home over time [[spoiler:and is still alive]], leading to their very different world views and personalities. |
| 46 | ** Yasha is a Barbarian and pure physical brawler, a huge contrast to Pike being TheMedic. She's also very closed off and blunt, where Pike was friendly and extremely kind. Yasha is also one of the party's tallest and strongest members; Pike was a tiny gnome. |
| 47 | *** In terms of classes as well, Grog as a berserker barbarian was a pure physical powerhouse with no innate magical ability who [[AttackAttackAttack relentlessly swung his weapons at anything that proved a threat]]. Yasha as a zealot barbarian is more geared towards survivability and just [[WhyWontYouDie refusing to drop in combat]] with a slight innate magical ability. Personality wise, Grog was closer to the archetypical BarbarianHero who loves fighting and drinking and being so dumb he could not even write his own name, while Yasha is shown as fairly intelligent (her intelligence stat is 12, 6 whole points above Grog and 2 points above average intelligence) but somewhat naive due to her upbringing while also having interests outside of fighting. |
| 48 | ** Frumpkin, Caleb's familiar, is small, frequently useful, and unfortunately all too familiar with death due to being sent on tasks by Caleb. This contrasts with Trinket, Vox Machina's lumbering, often-forgotten animal companion. However, both had the ability to be banished and summoned when their master needed them. |
| 49 | * CowardlyLion: [[ContrastingSequelMainCharacter Unlike Vox Machina]], the Mighty Nein often seem unsure of their own abilities in combat and frequently attempt to solve problems or defeat enemies through stealth or guile rather than a straight-up fight; they've even attempted to retreat from fights that they were ''winning'' if it looks like they'll be at a disadvantage later. However, when they bring all their firepower to bear on an enemy, there's very little that can stand up to them. When they've been able to face at full strength, most of their opponents have been ''obliterated''. |
| 50 | * DidntThinkThisThrough: This is the Mighty Nein's biggest flaw, as many of their problems come from them deciding to do something without thinking through the situation properly or not thinking of the potential long-term effects. This has led to situations like being forced to join pirate cultists to release their deity, to [[spoiler:unknowingly helping a fiend release the champion of a dark god from his prison]]. |
| 51 | * EyesDoNotBelongThere: Mollymauk has several red eye tattoos across his body. [[spoiler: This is due to Lucien being exposed to the "Pattern", a cursed fractal image from the Somnovem.]] |
| 52 | ** Over the course of the final arc starting with Beau and Caleb reading Lucien's journal, [[spoiler:over time all of the Nein (including [[SixthRanger Essek]]) end up with at least one red eye, some as many as ''four or five''. They all vanish following Lucien's and by proxy Cognouza's final defeat in Episode 140]]. |
| 53 | * FatalFlaw: As a group, it's '''rashness.''' The Mighty Nein have a tendency to look only at the short-term consequences of their actions. The long-term ramifications of what they do either get brushed aside or just don't concern them. This indrectly leads to the conflict with the FinalBoss of the campaign, as [[spoiler:the Nein unknowingly help Lucien gain god-like power and have to put him down in the most brutal fight of their lives]]. |
| 54 | * FireForgedFriends: Though there's still an undercurrent of distrust between most of them, the Nein have slowly been turning into this trope as they continue watching each other's backs during life-or-death conflict. [[spoiler: Their friendship becomes solidified after the kidnapping of Fjord, Jester, and Yasha, followed by the death of Mollymauk, at the hands of the Iron Shepherds.]] |
| 55 | * FourTemperamentEnsemble: Caleb and Nott are melancholic, Caduceus and Yasha are phlegmatic, Jester is sanguine, Beau is choleric, and Fjord is leukine. |
| 56 | * FromNobodyToNightmare: Seven strangers of no particular renown meet in a tavern. About a year later, they're saving the world from an extraplanar invasion. |
| 57 | * IKnowYoureInThereSomewhereFight: Each of the Nein get a few scenes [[spoiler: towards Lucien. Using phrases and words they remember from Molly and calling out to him. From Caleb asking if Lucien was going to leave the world better than he found it, Veth telling Lucien that her family doesn't steal from "nice people", Beau saying she liked him better when they were on drugs together, Yasha calling him "ice-spinner", Fjord trying to remind him of the time they shared a room together and Jester singing Toya's song and apologizing for not being there when Molly was killed. While not every person's words reach through Lucien, they do get some kind of indication of Lucien being confused or enraged by their words. A few times, [[FightingFromTheInside Lucien's hands start clawing at his own face]], suggesting that their words are having at least some effect]]. |
| 58 | * IndyPloy: Have a ''very'' good track record with these. When they plan things out (like the hospital visit) it tends to end in disaster. Meanwhile, randomly deciding to grab up the dodecahedron of fate works out wonderfully for them, and, more recently, [[spoiler: the spur of the moment decision to steal a ship after a cascade of crazy nets them the ship and none of them dead or captured by the guard!]] |
| 59 | ** Episode 56 cranks their reliance on these types of "plans" up. [[spoiler: After half an episode's worth of careful planning of how they're going to request Empress Leylas Kryn's aid in finding Nott's husband, the whole thing goes tits up when one of Lady Zethris' retainers rats them out for aiding the Muck Men when they first got in to Xhorhas. Just as they're all about to be arrested, Caleb makes one last request to return the Dodecahedron to her. With that one crack decision based only on the iconography in the room, Caleb managed to turn them from soon-to-be jailbirds into "the heroes of Xhorhas"!]] |
| 60 | * NonIndicativeName: Despite the pun of their name, there are only seven members, and three animals. [[note]][[DontExplainTheJoke Jester's Invoke Duplicity, or Caleb's unseen servant, could make nine Nein.]][[/note]] [[RunningGag This is noted with confusion by multiple NPCs]]. |
| 61 | ** [[spoiler:{{Subverted}} by Episode 140 when, after Mollymauk's resurrection and if counting [[{{GMPC}} Essek]], there actually are nine people.]] |
| 62 | * NothingIsTheSameAnymore: [[spoiler:Mollymauk's death and the fallout of it have had some pretty far-reaching repercussions on the rest of the party, with many of them starting to re-examine how they live their lives in light of his easy-going and philanthropic worldview. It has also helped cement their relationships with one another, as having this deep of an emotional experience has forced them to become closer to each other. The Mighty Nein before they left Zadash and the Mighty Nein after coming back in Episode 30 are two ''very'' different sets of people, and it was Mollymauk's death that was the catalyst for this change.]] |
| 63 | * OnlyInItForTheMoney: Early on in the campaign, although they do have some semblance of ethics and morals, this is the primary reason they undertake the various tasks and quests that they do for others. |
| 64 | * PayEvilUntoEvil: Though they've shown remarkable mercy to more low-time mooks and thugs (the infamous bandit encounter, for instance), this trope, more or less, has played out to become the Nein's MO when dealing with their nastier enemies. Highlights as of this writing include: |
| 65 | ** Caleb barbecuing [[spoiler:Lorenzo alive, complete with a loving description of Caleb burning his eyes out of his skull]]. |
| 66 | ** The lot of them beating the living piss out of [[spoiler:Algar, including cutting off his hand]]. |
| 67 | * RagtagBunchOfMisfits: Even more so than [[Characters/CriticalRoleVoxMachina Vox Machina]] before them, the team has a variety of different races (two humans, two tieflings, one half-orc, one goblin[[spoiler:/halfling]], one firbolg, and one aasimar), all of whom have some backstory that makes them an outcast or outsider in some way. Add in a kenku as well as the myriad of interesting characters that cross their paths, and this is taken even further. |
| 68 | * ShipperOnDeck: Pretty much everyone has at one point or another tried to encourage one or more of the various potential romances forming within the group or between a group member and an outsider, though Jester and Nott are particularly prone to it. |
| 69 | * SnarkToSnarkCombat: They engage in copious amounts of this with one another. |
| 70 | * SoMuchForStealth: On the few occasions where they find themselves in an advantageous position to ambush an enemy, they usually end up squandering the opportunity because they are too busy bickering, losing themselves a valuable surprise round. |
| 71 | * SupernaturalTeam: Unlike Vox Machina, every member of the Mighty Nein has some level of supernatural power, from a [[MagicIsMental wizard and his student]] to two [[ReligionIsMagic clerics]] to a [[BloodMagic blood]] [[HunterOfMonsters hunter]] to a [[LovecraftianSuperpower warlock]] [[spoiler:turned paladin]] to a [[WeatherManipulation divinely empowered]] [[TheBerserker barbarian]]. It gets to the point that even Beauregard, who [[UnequalRites isn’t technically using magic]], but rather [[KiManipulation ki]] for more minor effects, is noted as the only non-caster, even though she isn’t TheTeamNormal by any measure (plus, in D&D 5e, ki is technically considered a mild form of magic, to the point where, after a certain levels, monk unarmed strikes count as magical attacks). |
| 72 | * TrueCompanions: What they evolve into over time, a far cry from their roots as self-interested antiheroes and crooks. |
| 73 | -->'''Caleb:''' (to [[spoiler:[[HonoraryTrueCompanion Essek]]]]) Once you're a member of the Mighty Nein, you're in. You should know that by now. |
| 74 | * WithCatLikeTread: More than once a fumbled roll has ruined what was meant to be stealthy or quiet, forcing them into combat rather quickly. |
| 75 | [[/folder]] |
| 76 | |
| 77 | [[folder:Tropes involving some, but not all members of the Mighty Nein]] |
| 78 | * BashBrothers: Fjord and Beau are a mixed-gender version of this. In combat, they fight side-by-side on the front line; outside of it, they [[SeinfeldianConversation banter]], buddy up as GoodCopBadCop and are typically each other's closest confidantes. Tellingly, it's Beau who Fjord chooses as his first mate once he's elected [[TheCaptain Captain of]] ''The Mistake'' (and, later, ''The Ball-Eater''). |
| 79 | * BattleCouple: As the two main melee fighters of the group, Beau and Yasha often fight side-by-side in combat, and since they both have the ''Sentinel'' feat they can work together to keep enemies from escaping. This earned them the duo nickname of "Sentinel Babes" early on in the campaign, long before they actually got together. Marisha even described their developing romance as "a crush forged in battle" in her second Beau playlist. |
| 80 | * BlondeBrunetteRedhead: While Caduceus's hair is bright pink, he, Fjord, and Caleb form a version of this. |
| 81 | * CatchPhrase: "[We're] garbage people" comes up from time to time from various characters, most often Caleb or Beau, referring to the DysfunctionJunction of the Mighty Nein as a whole. |
| 82 | * CastFullOfGay: Several members of the Nein are confirmed to be LGBTQ+: Beau and Yasha are lesbians, Caleb is bisexual, Molly is bisexual and genderfluid, and Caduceus is asexual and aromantic. As for the rest of the party, Jester is TheTease with everyone in the party, Nott has made advances towards Yasha and got very excited during the part of "Tusk Love" describing the female protagonist's body, and Fjord has shared many a homoerotic moment with Caleb and Molly. |
| 83 | * ClaimedByTheSupernatural: [[spoiler:After reading Lucien's book, Beau and Caleb start having bizarre dreams, grow eye-shaped markings on their bodies, and develop strange sight-based abilities. Lucien later confirms that this means they are connected to the Somnovem, though to a lesser degree than himself as the Nonagon.]] |
| 84 | * CommonalityConnection: Caleb, Beau, and Nott are the Nein's sole natives of the Dwendalian Empire (Jester and Fjord hail from the Menagerie Coast, Yasha comes from Xhorhas, Molly [[AmnesiacHero can't remember his hometown]], and Caduceus is from the wilderness near Shadycreek Run). This is part of what leads Caleb to open up to Beau and Nott more readily than he does the other members of the team. |
| 85 | * ConMan: Caleb and Nott are a two-person team; the "Money Pot" trick that they demonstrate to Jester is implied to be one of their go-to cons. Caleb offhandedly mentions that most of their marks are farmers and other simple folks who would be less likely to spot the ruse. |
| 86 | * DeadpanSnarker: Beau, Caleb, and Molly exemplify this the most, although to some extent [[SnarkToSnarkCombat the others engage in this too]]. |
| 87 | * EtTuBrute: [[spoiler:Some members of the party took Yasha's "betrayal" harder than others, mainly Fjord (who almost died trying to save Yasha from the Laughing Hand) and Beau (a noted cynic who was clearly romantically interested in Yasha), both of whom initially believed that Yasha wasn't brainwashed when she betrayed them.]] |
| 88 | * EveryoneHasStandards: As amoral as the group can be, [[spoiler:it's shown that the group is not okay with the murder of innocents when Nott ends up killing a restrained guard, and everyone present reacts very negatively to it.]] |
| 89 | * FireWaterJuxtaposition: Caleb and Fjord's backstories each centrally involves fire and water respectively, both of which drove them on the paths that led to their meeting at the start of the campaign. This is visualized in the second, animated intro, which opens with Fjord sinking underwater [[spoiler:and making his pact with Uk'otoa]], then later shows Caleb surrounded by fire [[spoiler:as his house burns down with his parents inside]]. |
| 90 | ** [[spoiler:Nott's backstory]] is revealed in episode 49, which also features a heavily traumatic moment involving water and drowning. This creates a different comparison to Caleb, in that [[spoiler:both of them shed their real names after becoming someone they couldn't bear to be, and adopted pseudonyms before meeting each other on the run]]. |
| 91 | * FightingFromTheInside: Implied. When the Nein are facing [[spoiler:Lucien, they call out to Molly, resulting in the former visible confusion and pain.]] |
| 92 | * FreudianTrio: When it comes to making group decisions later on, Caleb is the [[TheSpock intellectual]] Superego, while Fjord often proceeds on [[TheMcCoy instinct]] as the Id. While Beau started out as more impulsive and emotion-driven, she's generally become the [[TheKirk middle ground]] that keeps Caleb and Fjord in check as the Ego. |
| 93 | * HamAndDeadpanDuo: When everybody meets in the bar in the first episode, Nott and Caleb have this dynamic with each other as well as Mollymauk and Yasha. |
| 94 | * HonoraryUncle: By the "Echoes of the Solstice" one-shot Veth's son Luc refers to the rest of the party as "Uncle" and "Aunt". |
| 95 | * ImpaledWithExtremePrejudice: Several members of the party get viciously impaled. [[spoiler:Both Molly (by Lorenzo) and Fjord (by a deep scion warlock) are killed this way, though Fjord is able to be resurrected afterward. Beau is ''almost'' killed this way by Yasha ([[BrainwashedAndCrazy under the control of Obann at the time]]), and Matt explicitly compares the scene to Molly's death. Caduceus and Jester are able to stabilize and then revive her in time, however.]] |
| 96 | -->'''Matt:''' It evokes imagery you've seen once before. |
| 97 | ** Later, during their fight against [[spoiler:Lucien]] in Aeor, it's [[spoiler:Caleb and Jester's turns to be impaled by the fleshy wings of the Neo-Somnovem.]] |
| 98 | * InLoveWithYourCarnage: PlayedForLaughs in regards to Beau and Yasha twice. |
| 99 | ** For Yasha, it's the time Beau ''brutally'' kills a Sorrowsworn in the Barbed Fields, tosses her hair back, and looks in the aasimar's direction. Needless to say, she's totally ''smitten'' by such violence. |
| 100 | --->'''Ashley:''' I sort of stand there, s-s-stuttering. ''(as Yasha)'' Oh. Okay. That one's taken care of by Beau. |
| 101 | ** For Beau, it's the time Yasha goes next to her to fight a creepy shadow creature, prompting a gem of a moment: |
| 102 | --->'''Marisha:''' (singsong) Everything she kills just turns me on.\ |
| 103 | '''Ashley:''' That...may be true. |
| 104 | * JustFriends: [[spoiler:In episode 85, Beau confesses that she has had a crush on Jester for a long time but has kept it a secret because she fears Jester wouldn't reciprocate.]] |
| 105 | * LightEmUp: Several members of the Mighty Nein can generate light in numerous ways, notably to compensate for half the party [[note]]Caleb, Beau (without her goggles of night), Caduceus, [[spoiler: Veth after being restored to her halfling form]][[/note]] lacking darkvision. Aside from the clerics having access to the ''Daylight'' spell, Caleb frequently makes use of the ''Dancing Lights'' cantrip as well as a Driftglobe, [[spoiler:Fjord uses the Star Razor's innate ability to make the blade glow]], and Caduceus and Yasha have the Light cantrip. |
| 106 | * LoveDodecahedron: Oh, yes. To wit, [[spoiler:Fjord, Beau and Caleb are all interested in Jester to varying degrees (although Beau and Caleb don't wish to pursue such crushes), while Jester has had feelings for Fjord for some time, which she forced herself to ignore after he slept with Avantika. Beau also has feelings for Yasha, and Nott/Veth has a crush on Caleb, while also being married to Yeza, whom she still loves. Yasha, despite still being married to her dead wife Zuala according to the traditions of her culture, is pining for Beau. Sheesh.]] |
| 107 | ** Things are slightly less ridiculous as of episode 108. [[spoiler:Beau and Yasha have moved on from Jester and Zuala, respectively, and chosen to commit to pursuing each other. After a period of awkwardly dancing around each other, Beau finally asks Yasha out on a date in episode 120, and they officially become lovers in 126.]] |
| 108 | * LoveEpiphany: |
| 109 | ** During their date, Yasha tells Beau that she fell in love with her when [[spoiler:they went to Beau's hometown of Kamordah, thus putting her behavior regarding Thoreau Lionett and Isharnai into perspective]]. Ashley later elaborated during the campaign wrap-up that Yasha realized that her feelings for Beau had become something more after reflecting on why [[spoiler:seeing Thoreau's treatment of Beau]] set off her protective instincts to such a degree. |
| 110 | ** According to Marisha in the campaign wrap-up, Beau first realized her feelings for Yasha were more than just a crush after [[spoiler:Yasha was mind-controlled by Obann and left the group. The thought that Yasha might have been EvilAllAlong]] made Beau very angry, and then she wondered ''why'' she was so angry, and... |
| 111 | * MakeOutKids: After [[spoiler:Beau and Yasha]] get together, they take any opportunity they can to make out, even in public locations or the middle of combat. |
| 112 | * MoralityChain: Eventually the group as a whole became the reason why some of their own members didn't [[JumpingOffTheSlipperySlope jump off the slippery slope]]. |
| 113 | ** Jester was set up to be TheHeart from the very beginning, as her innocence and her charm caused her to be instantly liked even by the most suspicious members of the group. She even became a MoralityPet for [[spoiler: [[TheDon the Gentleman]] after that he found out that [[LukeYouAreMyFather she is his daughter]]]]. |
| 114 | ** Caleb and Beau [[spoiler: knew about each other lack of morality and made a deal to keep it in check in episode 25]]. |
| 115 | ** Mollymauk [[spoiler:became [[MoralityChainBeyondTheGrave this]] after [[InspirationalMartyr his death]] in episode 26]]. |
| 116 | ** After causing a series of [[BlackAndGrayMorality morally dubious accidents]] in a very short amount of time, Fjord and Beau [[spoiler: decide to try and keep each other and the whole group in check in episode 36]]. |
| 117 | ** [[LivingEmotionalCrutch Caduceus]]'s conviction that the Mighty Nein are genuinely good but troubled people who are fated to do something great in the world caused them all to try and become better people for real. In particular, [[spoiler: his connection with the Wildmother inspired [[BadPowersGoodPeople Fjord]] to sever his bond with his evil patron Uk'utoa to forge a new one with Melora]]. |
| 118 | ** [[spoiler: [[EleventhHourRanger Essek Thelyss]] joined the group because the Mighty Nein themselves became [[LoveRedeems his personal morality chain]].]] |
| 119 | * OddFriendship: |
| 120 | ** Surprisingly, the excitable, drunk, and jittery Nott gets along well with the calm, deadpan, secretive Yasha. They find common ground at first in that they both have eaten rats, then have a hilarious yet heartwarming conversation during watch in episode 20 that helps Yasha break out of her shell. |
| 121 | ** Beauregard's friendships with Caduceus and Caleb also fit here. Beau and Cad are different in pretty much every way (a hot-headed, cynical, hedonistic brawler and a calm, religious, teetotaling healer) but get along famously due to their shared sense of responsibility over their friends. As for Caleb, he's secretive and conflict-avoidant while Beau is a brash and aggressive seeker of truth, but after he opens up to her regarding his DarkAndTroubledPast, the two begin to form a tight bond grounded in mutual support. In Episode 108, Caleb says that while he's come to appreciate every member of the Mighty Nein, it's Beau (and Veth) who he considers to be indispensable comrades. |
| 122 | ** Despite looking and sounding like polar opposites, Jester and Yasha bond over their shared love of cute things and enjoy gossiping about their crushes when they have time alone together. |
| 123 | * OfficialCouple: By the end of the campaign, the official couples are: [[spoiler:Fjord and Jester, Beau and Yasha, Caleb and Essek, and Veth and Yeza.]] |
| 124 | * PlatonicLifePartners: |
| 125 | ** Molly and Yasha were this before the series began, being the two members of the group with the longest past together, with it being noted that Molly's presence is the main reason Yasha even joins up with the group. [[spoiler:She tries arguably the hardest of the bunch to shunt Lucien out of him during the final battle, and when Caduceus stunningly manages to resurrect him, a now aphasic and amnesiac Molly recognizes her and encapsulates their relationship with one of the only words he can manage:]] |
| 126 | --->''[[spoiler:"Love?"]]'' |
| 127 | ** Already strongly implied throughout the campaign, Nott and Caleb assert this relationship with one another in Episode 71, firmly acknowledging that they love and care for each other very deeply, have an unbreakable trust in each other, and consider each other an absolutely necessary part of their lives. |
| 128 | ** The same goes for the "Empire Kids" Caleb and Beau, especially after their heart-to-heart in Episode 57. Ever since, the two of them have been consistently supportive of each other, with Caleb even noticing in Episode 89 that Beau is a lot more relaxed and absorbed in her research now compared to the first time they went to the Cobalt Soul archives together, and Beau in turn being one of the few who knows the full truth of Caleb's traumatic past. |
| 129 | * PowerTattoo: The women of the Mighty Nein get Orly Skiffback to give each of them a magical tattoo that boosts one of their stats by one: |
| 130 | ** Beau gets a magical jade dust tattoo of the all-seeing eye on the back of her neck, enhancing her Wisdom. |
| 131 | ** Jester gets a magical diamond dust tattoo of a capelet over her shoulders and The Traveler's hands clasped over her chest, enhancing her Constitution. |
| 132 | ** Nott gets a magical aquamarine dust tattoo across her face, enhancing her Charisma. |
| 133 | ** Yasha gets a magical emerald (and residuum) dust tattoo across her neck and left arm with runes that spell out [[RedBaron Orphan Maker]] wrapped in vines and flowers, enhancing her Dexterity. |
| 134 | * SecondLove: [[spoiler:Beau and Yasha are both this for each other, and they even have a bonding moment commiserating over their lost loves.]] |
| 135 | * SitcomArchnemesis: Nott and Fjord take special pleasure sniping at each other at any opportunity. Molly and Beau are the same way in the early episodes. |
| 136 | * TheSmartGuy: While initially Caleb alone held the role, Beauregard eventually caught up and in some ways surpassed him once she started gaining expertise and obtained a Circlet of Intellect. They each fill the role when a problem is in their wheelhouse. |
| 137 | ** Caleb tends to take the lead with handling magic items and problems, thanks to his magic training, and analyzing the recent past, thanks to his Keen Mind. He also tends to have the most immediately analytical view of whatever situation the party is dealing with. |
| 138 | ** Meanwhile, Beau's high knowledge skills and resources in the Cobalt Soul have her taking the lead on most non-arcane research projects, while her (and Marisha's) extensive note-taking habit let her analyze events with significantly more context, letting her piece together obscure threads of information, oftentimes recorded months apart. |
| 139 | * YouShallNotPass: Beauregard and Yasha have access to the ''Sentinel'' feat which allows them to not only ignore targets who are normally using Disengage to run past them, but if they hit said targets, they are stopped in their tracks immediately, unable to go any further. |
| 140 | [[/folder]] |
| 141 | |
| 142 | !!Administrivia/CharacterSpecificPages |
| 143 | * '''[[Characters/CriticalRoleCalebWidogast Caleb Widogast]]''' (and Frumpkin) |
| 144 | * '''[[Characters/CriticalRoleFjord Fjord]]''' |
| 145 | |
| 146 | [[folder:Beau]] |
| 147 | !!Beauregard "Beau" Lionett |
| 148 | !!!Played by: Creator/MarishaRay (Campaign 2), Creator/MatthewMercer (Campaign 3) |
| 149 | [[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/beauregard_lionett_lvl_10.jpg]] |
| 150 | [[caption-width-right:350:''"[[DueToTheDead Leave every place better than you found it.]] That's really the only direction I have at the moment."'']] |
| 151 | [[caption-width-right:350:Click [[labelnote:here]]https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/beauregard_lionett_0.jpg[[/labelnote]] to see Beau before Level 10.]] |
| 152 | -->'''Race:''' Human |
| 153 | -->'''Class:''' Monk (Way of the Cobalt Soul) |
| 154 | |
| 155 | A surly and cynical human monk who is slow to trust and quick to [[DeadpanSnarker snark]]. A self-professed {{Jerkass}} with an amoral streak, she is introduced having recently dropped out of training at the Cobalt Soul. She claims to be on a "walking tour" of Wildemount but has hinted at being on the run from a painful past. |
| 156 | |
| 157 | ---- |
| 158 | * AbusiveParents: Beau doesn't speak highly of her father and resents him sending her to the Cobalt Soul to train, and when Beau rolls two Natural 20s in a row when retaliating against Expositor Dairon, Marisha says it's because her strikes reminded Beau of something her father used to do to her. |
| 159 | ** She finally elaborates on this a bit to Nott in "The Hour Of Honor": [[spoiler:Her parents were successful wine merchants in the Empire who cared more about their social standing than about her. When they found out about how Beau had been bootlegging the family wine, they arranged for her to be kidnapped by the Cobalt Soul and shipped off to one of their monasteries to "beat her indiscretions out of her," which ironically wound up being the best thing they ever did for her. She even notes that he told her he never wanted to see her again. It just gets worse with her revealing in "The Second Seal" that once her mother finally had a son, [[IHaveNoSon she essentially no longer mattered]]. Ouch.]] |
| 160 | * ALighterShadeOfBlack: Beau is initially unimpressed with Molly's belief of leaving every place better than he found it, seeing him as arrogant. However, [[spoiler:after his death]], she realizes that while they both did shitty things, she ruined lives for the hell of it, whereas Molly at least made people happy even while he was scamming them. [[spoiler:To honour him, she decides to adopt his philosophy and tries to "not fuck any more shit up"]]. |
| 161 | * AmazonChaser: She seems to have a thing for women who can kick her ass. In particular, she frequently indicates that she finds Yasha's strength attractive. |
| 162 | * ArrowCatch: Gained the ''Deflect Missiles'' ability at level 3, and demonstrates it by [[NoSell negating a longbow shot aimed at her]] and then [[CatchAndReturn throwing it at a nearby gnoll]]. She also does the same on a crossbow bolt aimed at Caleb by a bandit some time later, doing the same maneuver overall, but only catches one out of four. |
| 163 | * AwesomenessByAnalysis: Her training with the Cobalt Soul allows her to learn about her opponents by hitting their pressure points. |
| 164 | ** On a longer timeline, hers (and Marisha's) notetaking lets her piece together hidden undercurrents on the Nein's travels, which enable the Nein achieve incredible things such as [[spoiler: starting the peace process between the Empire and the Dynasty , and figuring out the vast majority of the mystery behind the Nine Eyes and the Somnovem before they even set foot in Aeor.]] |
| 165 | * BadassLongcoat: She starts out with a blue sleeveless one. Later dons a sleeveless coat of Captain Avantika's as part of her Xhorhasian/winter attire. |
| 166 | * BarefistedMonk: As a monk, she comes with better damage when realizing unarmed strikes[[note]]While technically any character can make an Unarmed strike, normally the character can only make 1 point of damage plus their strenght, while Monks by default can roll a 1d4 of damage when performing an narmed strike. As they level up the damage die can increase to up to a d10, which puts it on par with two-handed weapon attacks.[[/note]]. She initially favors her staff as her weapon of choice, but as her fists get more and more powerful over time, she slowly shifts to them instead, particularly once they acquire the property of delivering magical damage and able to overcome enemy resistances. |
| 167 | * BareMidriffsAreFeminine: Somewhat [[InvertedTrope inverted]]; she's the most {{tomboy}}ish of the female party members, yet all of her default outfits bare her midriff, showing off her impressive six-pack. [[ExposedToTheElements Even cold weather gear for tramping through the icy tundra]]. |
| 168 | * BattleTrophy: She is the most likely of the Nein to incorporate the items of fallen enemies into her wardrobe. This includes Theron's boots, Avantika's coat, the minotaur demon's lightning gauntlets, and Cree's cape. |
| 169 | * BerserkButton: Beau rarely seems to care about anything past her own well being, but she loses her absolute shit with Caleb upon his demand they hold Calianna as a pseudo-prisoner overnight so they can interrogate her in the morning. Her anger is less to do with disagreeing with Caleb's logic (that Cali may not be trustworthy and use a very powerful artifact for nefarious ends) so much as resenting him for suggesting they take away another person's freedom. |
| 170 | * {{Bifauxnen}}: Beau's name, attitude, and androgynous character portrait give off this vibe. |
| 171 | * BolivianArmyCliffhanger: [[spoiler:In episode fifty-one of the third campaign, she and Caleb are captured by the Ruby Vanguard, with Beau being Charmed and thoroughly restrained. After the Key is activated and the Bells Hells are teleported away, the episode ends with both Mighty Nein members missing and their fates unknown]]. |
| 172 | * BrainyBrunette: She might not look or act like it, but Beau is fairly intelligent and soon comes around to joining Caleb at the library quite often. Becomes more obvious after she gets the Headband of Intellect, which boosts her intelligence score to 19 - just behind Caleb, and almost as smart as is normally possible. |
| 173 | * BulletCatch: The natural evolution of her ''[[ArrowCatch Deflect Missile]]'' skill. By using it in conjonction with her ''[[SuperReflexes Mind of Mercury]]'' in the Vox Machina vs Mighty Nein One Shot, she was able to intercept two of Percy's shots toward her. Unfortunately, [[LogicalWeakness he can shoot more than twice]]. |
| 174 | * ButchLesbian: Beau definitely hits a lot of the classic butch notes: gruff, athletic, lanky and boyish in build, and possessing of an excellent undercut hairstyle. Also, she's a lesbian. |
| 175 | * CasanovaWannabe: Flirts with and/or openly propositions multiple female characters throughout the campaign (be they Player Characters or not), but gets absolutely nowhere with them. When she does finally get her first (onscreen) lay, it's with an Elvish woman [[TheOldestProfession she paid for]]. Though as the series goes on, she's been able to sleep with Keg and Reani a few days after meeting them. [[spoiler:And then she finally gets to be in a steady relationship with Yasha before the end.]] |
| 176 | * CasualKink: Whether it be getting demeaned by an attractive dominant woman or getting her ass kicked on a number of occasions, or even the pain she feels from training, for Beau it's a turn-on. |
| 177 | * CatchAndReturn: As noted under ArrowCatch above, Beau can snatch incoming projectiles out of the air and heave them back at whoever fired them. |
| 178 | * CatchPhrase: "That's fair" after being called out on something. Also "Dope" when she's impressed. In real life, Marisha would often say "pop pop" when Beau was about to deliver a flurry of blows. |
| 179 | * CharacterDevelopment: Beau's evolution from a rebellious criminal youth to [[spoiler:an extremely respected authority figure in the monastic order she once rejected]] and onward becomes steadily apparent as the campaign progresses, to the point where Beau as we know her now is almost unidentifiable as the one we first meet at the start, replete with turning points including [[spoiler:Molly's death, choosing to be patient when dealing with the Plank King, and her official promotion to Expositor]]. |
| 180 | ** [[spoiler: Molly's death]] in particular marks the first true turning point, as Beau reflect upon her previous attitude towards life. She starts opening up to the group more while also toning down her more brash, and rougher side around the others, while also admitting how much the group means to her. |
| 181 | * ColorBlindConfusion: PlayedForLaughs when Beau comments on Jester's cape being easily recognizable for its pink color, to which she respond by pointing out it's actually green. |
| 182 | * CommanderContrarian: One of her earlier traits - she's keen to cynically poke holes in other people's plans, but has no response when they ask her for an alternative, as is especially obvious in her interactions with the Knights of Requital. [[spoiler:This changes after Molly's death, as she starts actively trying to leave every place better than she found it and assist others in noble endeavors however she can.]] |
| 183 | * CompulsiveLiar: It's as natural to her as breathing, and is able to use it to her advantage by also sowing in nuggets of truth on occasion so they become "half-truths", in order to draw out information. It gets [[{{Deconstruction}} deconstructed]] later in the campaign as she catches herself trying to lie to Nott, at that point like family to her, in casual conversation. It ties into her feeling like she has to be someone she's not and learning to be herself instead. |
| 184 | -->'''Beau:''' Why was my first thought like, what could I say that's not true? |
| 185 | * CrossCounter: Her ''Preternatural Counter'' ability which allows her to land a reactionary attack when an enemy she extracted aspects from and analyzed misses their own against her. [[spoiler: She uses this to kill a frost giant zombie within the secret entrance to the ruins of Aeor.]] |
| 186 | * TheCynic: She seems to be rather pessimistic, which she does apologize for. She also seems to be of the opinion that most people are motivated by [[OnlyInItForTheMoney money]], which Expositor Dairon chastises her for in Episode 4. |
| 187 | -->'''Beauregard''': I'm not used to things, like, turning out... good. |
| 188 | * DefeatMeansRespect: A non-villainous example. Beau shows nothing but disdain for the Cobalt Soul monks up until Expositor Dairon beats her within an inch of her life. After that, while Beau acknowledges the monk order aren't exactly her friends, she's at least admiring of their skills and open-minded to what they can teach her. |
| 189 | * DueToTheDead: [[spoiler:Her entire eulogy for Molly, which helps jumpstart her maturity and growth into the Expositor she later becomes:]] |
| 190 | -->'''Beau:''' [[spoiler:Do you all remember what Molly said a few weeks ago when he told us that he left every town better than what he found it? When he first told me that, I remember that my first initial knee jerk reaction was, "You fucking arrogant, narcissistic bastard, no one can fucking know that." He was an arrogant bastard, but he was right and do you know how I know? We had a conversation last night when we were up for watch, and he asked me what my greatest lie was and we pulled fucking cards for it. Loser would go first. He told me this story about tricking a town into thinking he was royalty, being a king, to pull off a scam. I was almost going to tell him about my childhood, and I didn't. Because he told that fucking story and I realized: even in his scams, when he was doing something shitty, he was still making people feel good or feel special. The town was being visited by-- graced by his presence, by his royal highness. And I told him this story of ruining a couple's lives by extorting them because I fucking could. Because I fucking felt like it. I realized if I can deliberately leave a town shittier than what I found it, of course he could fucking leave a town better than what he found it. And I'm not going to do that again. I'm not saying that I'm going to go off and be a fucking hero, but maybe we can equal out and I can at least not fuck any more shit up. Take baby steps towards the leaving the town better... thing. That's the least I can do for him. And I'm going to start with these fuckheads.]] |
| 191 | * EatingTheEyeCandy: Definitely engages in some of this when she watches Yasha leave the bathtub before her in Episode 9. Marisha even asks Matt if she "gets a nice view". |
| 192 | * EnslavedTongue: Her Cobalt Soul training gives her access to the Extort Truth feature, allowing her to hit a cluster of nerves to force a creature to only speak the truth. |
| 193 | * EverybodyHasStandards: |
| 194 | ** She thinks Caleb, Astrid and Eadwulf being made to execute traitors and dissidents at a young age as well as all of Trent's teachings are deeply fucked up. |
| 195 | ** Along with Caleb, in episode 57 she [[spoiler: advocates for the Bright Queen to reconsider continuing the CycleOfRevenge in the war between the Kryn Dynasty and the Dwendalian Empire]]. Despite knowing the flaws of TheEmpire and working with the Cobalt Soul to root out its corruption, she objects to the deaths of innocent Empire civilians caused by outright war. |
| 196 | * ExpositoryHairstyleChange: When first introduced, Beau had her hair done in a topknot while still rocking an undercut. By the time she reaches level 10 and has acquired her Xhorhasian attire, she'd begun wearing her hair not in a topknot, but in a ponytail braid. Could be taken literally, considering she is now an Expositor. |
| 197 | * FireForgedFriends: This trope applies generally to all of the Nein, but it shows most strongly in Beauregard. Starting off the story as an apathetic, standoffish punk when it comes to the rest of them, Beau gradually and quietly comes to see her companions as irreplaceable. She sums it up with this quote [[spoiler: after Molly's death and the Nein's subsequent vengeance against his killer, Lorenzo]]: |
| 198 | -->'''Beau:''' I would've laid down my life for you guys. |
| 199 | * FlirtingUnderFire: She often likes to flirt with Yasha while they're in the middle of combat. Marisha even described Beau's feelings for Yasha as "a crush forged in battle" in her second playlist. |
| 200 | * ForTheEvulz: Not anymore, but after [[spoiler: Molly's death]], Beau tells the story of how she once ruined a couple's marriage just because she could. It's her reflecting on this that makes her realize how she has changed since. |
| 201 | * FormerTeenRebel: We actually see much this evolution play out in-game, with her starting out as a rebellious young adult and eventually becoming a respected and (mostly) responsible Expositor of the Cobalt Soul. |
| 202 | * FriendlessBackground: The Mighty Nein is her first-ever experience with friendship, which really drives home why she becomes so fiercely protective of the group after [[spoiler:Molly's death]]. Unlike Jester, she didn't even have a magical deity for an OnlyFriend growing up; as a child, her strict, protective parents didn't leave any room for any real companionship, and even after she began rebelling against them, she believes her own {{Jerkass}} behavior drove any potential friends away. |
| 203 | * GeniusBruiser: This is more or less the Cobalt Soul's hat, being monks who use intelligence and analysis of their enemies to target their weaknesses. While Beau initially seems like a poor fit for this trope, she is actually very knowledgeable and talented at finding information. [[spoiler:Then she gets the Circlet of Intellect in episode 81, bumping up her intelligence stat to a 19. She immediately shows it off when building a golem in the Golem Workshop and she is able to even outpace Caleb]]. |
| 204 | * GladToBeAliveSex: [[spoiler: Twice. First in episode 27 with a prostitute as part of coping with Molly's death. Then at the end of episode 29, she and Keg go celebrate successfully ending the Iron Shepherds (and Lorenzo in particular) with a long night of sex.]] |
| 205 | * GogglesDoSomethingUnusual: In one of the early episodes of the campaign she acquired goggles that let her see in the dark. |
| 206 | * GoodScarsEvilScars: By the time of the Level 10 character art, Beau's gained some fashionable, classic good-guy scars: a thin scar beneath her eye, and an X-shaped one across her abdomen. |
| 207 | * HappilyMarried: Implied with Yasha. Beau being referred to as Yasha's wife at least twice by Ashley Johnson (with one of those times in-character as Yasha) would suggest that the two had gotten married at some point between ''The Mighty Nein Reunited'' and ''Campaign Three/Echoes of the Solstice''. As for the 'happily' part, [[SickeninglySweethearts well]]... |
| 208 | -->'''Ashley:''' (during Campaign Three, when Beauregard makes her first appearance) Is that my fucking wife?! |
| 209 | * HateAtFirstSight: From their first meeting, she immediately thinks Molly is an obnoxious grifter. The dislike is entirely mutual, leading the two to frequently make jabs at each other. [[spoiler: By the time of Molly's death, the two get along much better, and Beau is angry at her inability to save him.]] |
| 210 | * HatesBeingAlone: Beau's biggest fear. The earliest sign of it is in Episode 2 when Fjord and Jester, who can disguise themselves magically and wanted to leave Beau behind as she couldn't, and Beau vehemently protested as she was afraid they were skipping town without her. It's elaborated on in her second playlist: "On the surface, Beau certainly projects big disaster horn dog vibes with an extra side of relish. But in all honesty, a lot of that is a front designed to hide how utterly terrified she is of ending up alone." |
| 211 | * HatesWearingDresses: Beau wore one of Jester's dresses once because she asked her. She absolutely hated it. Jester remembers this for when she has to commission a fancy outfit for her, and she chooses a suit as Beau's formal attire instead of a dress like the rest of the girls. |
| 212 | * TheHedonist: Beau herself claims in Episode 11 that her only plans are to "make a ton of money and drink a ton of booze." [[spoiler: Though that is proven to be a lie when Caleb calls her out on it in Episode 30, noting that she is more learned and intuitive than she let on.]] |
| 213 | * HeelRealization: Downplayed, see NominalHero below. [[spoiler:Molly's death]] causes her to reflect on the time they told each other their greatest lies, realizing that while she had ruined a couple's lives because she could, Molly at least made people happy when he scammed them. Beau decides to act on this epiphany by making an active attempt to do good in the world. |
| 214 | * HeroicBSOD: Has one after a very upsetting encounter with [[spoiler: her father]], where she seriously considers leaving the Nein altogether because she's terrified deep down that they'll reject or abandon her eventually if she doesn't. |
| 215 | * HiddenDepths: Despite her being described as a poor student and bad at remembering her history lessons, she has a tendency to roll high when it comes to more esoteric knowledge, such as mermaids and dinosaurs. She is also smarter than she lets on, being the only one in the party to wonder whether there's a connection between Kylre's killings at Trostenwald and the hungry gnolls that attacked Alfield, among other connections such as those linked to the war and [[spoiler:the Angel of Irons/abyssal portals appearing on both sides of the conflict]]. In addition, she's surprisingly quick to offer emotional support to the rest of the Nein. |
| 216 | * HumansAreBastards: Beau's main philosophy. In Episode 13 she explains that she doesn't trust ''anyone''. The only thing she trusts is that everyone is untrustworthy, selfish, and acts solely in their own interests, including self-preservation. She'll work with a group, but only because she thinks if everyone is concerned with keeping ''themselves'' alive, they won't engage in unnecessary risks that could potentially endanger the rest of the party. |
| 217 | -->'''Beauregard:''' Look, I have worked with some skeevy motherfuckers in my day, very unsavory types. But you know what I trust? That they have their own self-preservation, right? So I can trust that these motherfuckers don’t want to get caught, and that they don’t want to die at the end of the day. If you want to do something skeevy on the side, let me know, I will help you out. But when we are all working as a team, I don’t want your actions to get me in fucking trouble. |
| 218 | * HumansAreSmelly: She's told by an ogre that she smells "like a human." |
| 219 | -->'''Ogre:''' It's a terrible smell... It makes me hungry. |
| 220 | * HyperAwareness: Upon taking the Observant feat at level 12. Her passive senses are heightened despite lacking proficiency and she notices details that the rest might otherwise miss, something that Veth takes offense to when asking Beau about it yet Beau tells her that they're on completely different levels. |
| 221 | -->'''Beau:''' Don't compare yourself to me, it's an impossible task. |
| 222 | * IHaveNoSon: [[spoiler:She tells Fjord in Episode 47 that she was the target of this by her parents: they left a note with the Cobalt Soul telling her that they didn't want her to come home, even after she finished her monk training. She adds that her mother recently gave birth to a son, so she feels she's been completely replaced.]] |
| 223 | * IJustWantToBeSpecial: A rather downplayed example, as Beau often feels that her own skills are lacking compared to her magically gifted or super-strong companions, that she's not as strong or talented as they are despite the numerous cool things that only she can do. |
| 224 | * InformedFlaw: As described under NominalHero, Marisha describes Beau as someone who doesn't really see herself a hero, and thus wouldn't really do anything about something dangerous since it isn't her responsibility to help. However, Beau has shown herself to be one of the more heroic figures of the group despite her aloof personality, often helping out others whenever danger arises, and has shown herself to be willing to put aside her dislike of TheEmpire to help those in need, such as killing the Gnolls in Alfield even though she could have easily argued the group should just move on. If anything, it seems Beau herself wants to be seen as a NominalHero, but she isn't able to fully embrace it due to her own, admittedly repressed, empathy for others. [[spoiler: This fades away almost completely once Molly dies, as she comes to believe his philosophy of leaving a place better than they found it has made her more heroic than she was before]]. |
| 225 | * ItWasAGift: She tends to keep tokens from friends she meets on the road, such as a lucky red feather Nila gave her, a Dispelling Stone given to her by Reani, and a note Keg wrote her after their one-night stand. Even her iconic jade necklace was given to her by her superstitious and highly over-protective father, which she wore always even after she cut ties with him. |
| 226 | * JackOfAllStats: Along with a high Armor Class and substantial HP pool, Beau is the fastest among the Mighty Nein. [[spoiler: She also eventually gained proficiency in ''all'' saving throws with Diamond Soul.]] By the end of the campaign, over half of Beau’s stats are ''at least'' 18, making her one of the hardest members to knock out, and if she goes into a fight with most of her ki points available, she'll last almost the entirety of the fight. |
| 227 | * JerkWithAHeartOfGold: A self-declared asshole, she's irritable, cagey, and [[WouldHurtAChild perfectly willing to K.O. a child]]. However, she also willingly risks her life for others (e.g. saving Nott from the manticore) and tries to do better once it's pointed out to her that some of her behavior in social interactions makes her come across as rude or sarcastic. [[spoiler:It pays off big time during the dealings with Isharnai when the Nein convince her that they won't let her throw everything away and leave her to be exiled. Such an act is what saves her from her attempts at self-sabotage.]] |
| 228 | * KiManipulation: Standard for a monk. Uses her ki to attack more per turn as well as exhibit more defensive measures. |
| 229 | ** As part of her Cobalt Soul training, she's also able to read her opponent's ki to identify their vulnerabilities and resistances or hit pressure points making them [[EnslavedTongue unable to tell a lie]]. |
| 230 | * KnowNothingKnowItAll: A mild example. Marisha had said on Talks Machina that Beau suffers from "Percy Syndrome": she thinks she's the smartest person in the room. This manifests in aggressive questioning and moral grandstanding towards pretty much everyone around her, to the point where a frustrated Horris calls her out in Episode 13 for tearing down everyone's ideas but offering no viable alternatives. [[DownplayedTrope Not that he was providing anything better himself.]] |
| 231 | * TheLadette: Fond of ale, physical violence, and calling random women attractive. She talks and acts like a frat dude, basically. |
| 232 | * TheLancer: Eventually evolves from CommanderContrarian into this. While she [[TheCreon never seems interested]] in stepping up to lead the Nein, she offers support to Fjord and Caleb when they act as TheLeader: at sea she's the first mate of the party's ship, and in the Empire she backs up Caleb's covert actions against the Cerberus Assembly thanks to her StreetSmart nature and Cobalt Soul training. All along, her [[RebelliousRebel reflexive anti-authority streak]] eventually mellows down into a tendency to play DevilsAdvocate, raising genuinely well-considered (if still [[JerkassHasAPoint abrasive]]) concerns about the group's plans, direction, and morals. |
| 233 | * LastHetRomance: She dated a guy as a teenager, but they ended up having more of a bros dynamic, and she figured out she was only into women pretty soon after. |
| 234 | * LightningBruiser: As a monk, she has the highest individual speed of the Mighty Nein and able to deal plent yof damage at close-range. |
| 235 | * LockedAwayInAMonastery: Beau claims her father paid the Cobalt Soul monks quite a bit of coin for them to take her off his hands. [[spoiler:She was right, only it was her former instructor, Zeenoth, who pocketed the bribe himself and had arranged her abduction to begin with. His corruption was eventually exposed.]] |
| 236 | * LoveAtFirstSight: In episode 108, she admits to Fjord that she's had feelings for [[spoiler:Yasha]] since the very beginning. |
| 237 | -->'''Beau:''' There was something about [[spoiler:Yasha]], from the moment that I saw her... that I think I've been avoiding. |
| 238 | ** [[spoiler:[[LoveConfession She finally gets to confess her feelings in Episode 126.]]]] |
| 239 | * MusclesAreMeaningless: Beau has an athletic build, but isn't particularly muscular. However, she is still one of the group's heaviest hitters, as her being a monk allows her to use her Dexterity stat rather than her Strength stat for attacks. |
| 240 | * NamedWeapon: After the Nein defeats Vokodo, she obtains one from the morkoth's hoard in the form of a magical silver quaterstaff named Belabor. |
| 241 | * NominalHero: How Beau sees herself, according to Marisha Ray. Part of the reason she didn't care about what Calianna would do to the bowl belonging to the cultists of the Scaled Tyrant was because in Beau's own eyes, she's not a hero who's responsible for dealing with such issues, and the rest of the group shouldn't try to be either. When asked how Beau would feel if it was proven Calianna's intentions weren't as noble as she claimed and the bowl was used to cause great disaster - as Caleb was suspicious of - Marisha said Beau would likely think it's [[SomebodyElsesProblem not her problem and up to another group of adventurers to deal with]]. |
| 242 | * NonVerbalMiscommunication: Beau is a frequent source of this; her use of [[HandSignals complicated miming]] leads to a lot of comedic moments. |
| 243 | * NoSocialSkills: Especially early on, Beau is aggressive, blunt or dismissive when interacting with other people. This is later revealed to be somewhat intentional on her part, reasoning that, if people are going to see her as an asshole or disappointment (a belief that grew out of the way she was treated by her parents), she may as well play into it. It has become so natural to her, however, that even when she tries to be amicable or pay somebody a compliment, her tone doesn't always match her intent. It even comes to the point where her CompulsiveLiar tendencies actively clash with her attempts to be more honest. |
| 244 | * {{Omniglot}}: A supernaturally empowered variant. As of episode 109, Beau has access to the Monk class ability ''Tongue of the Sun and Moon'', which allows her to understand any spoken language. Aside from that, she speaks several languages as is due to her Mystical Erudition training. |
| 245 | * OOCIsSeriousBusiness: |
| 246 | ** She delivers a powerful monologue near the start of Episode 27. [[spoiler: She's seriously rattled by Molly's death, and is belatedly realizing how right he was about certain things.]] It doesn't sound at all like Beau's usual subject matter or viewpoints, but it's still her voice, showing that the spoilered part was a sharp turn in her CharacterDevelopment. It also marks the first time that Beau has been obviously moved to tears, emphasizing just how much the events of Episodes 26 and 27 have devastated her. |
| 247 | ** In Episode 36, she questions Caleb and Fjord about their colossal failure in trying to talk to Marius, and the fallout nearly leaving them wanted criminals in Nicodranas for killing all but one person on the ship they stole to escape. Her conversations with both make it clear how much her CharacterDevelopment has come compared to before. |
| 248 | ** Comes back with a vengeance [[spoiler:starting with her family reunion in Episode 92 and onward, which threatens to utterly reverse her growth completely.]] |
| 249 | ** Come Episode 140, Beau is [[spoiler:once more moved to tears by Mollymauk, but this time by his cosmically unlikely resurrection. It's much subtler than the first instance, where she all but openly wept for him, but Beau is audibly in tears speaking to her old frenemy again after so long.]] |
| 250 | * PetTheDog: It's well-established throughout the campaign that Beau and Molly more or less absolutely loathe each other, and - in giving as good as she gets - Beau makes more than her share of snappy and derogatory comments toward him all though their time knowing each other. Despite all that, [[spoiler: Beau is equal parts devastated and bone-breaking ''livid'' when Lorenzo murders Molly in front of them all.]] It's at this point that she also starts to realize how right he was about life, how to live it, and what to do with it, namely leaving it and those around you better than you found them. |
| 251 | * PracticallyDifferentGenerations: [[spoiler: She's two decades older than her little brother TJ.]] |
| 252 | * PreClimaxClimax: [[spoiler:Beau and Yasha finally hook up and most definitely engage in “dirty stuff” at the end of Episode 126… before the campaign begins to wind down 15 episodes before the end.]] |
| 253 | * RankUp: [[spoiler:In Episode 77, Dairon officially bestows upon her the rank of Expositor.]] |
| 254 | * ReformedCriminal: How reformed she is is up to debate, but she's clearly familiar with Wildemount's criminal element from her escapades before being sent off to the Cobalt Soul. |
| 255 | * RuggedScar: Her updated art shows her with a scar across her left eye. |
| 256 | * SecretKeeper: For Caleb's backstory, along with Nott, as of Episode 18. Caleb told her in order to gain her trust enough to gain access to the Cobalt Soul's archives with her as an escort. It actually marks a major turning point in their relationship, and their friendship grows much stronger from that point onward. Beau noticeably is quicker to act to help Caleb deal with symptoms relating to his backstory following this conversation. |
| 257 | * ShockAndAwe: After defeating a group of demons in episode 55, she obtrains a pair of gloves that allows her to make ranged attacks with lightning. |
| 258 | * SirSwearsALot: A key feature of Beau's irreverent demeanor. This is even {{Lampshaded}} by Nott when Beau promises in no uncertain terms to hurt Caleb if he ever does something to screw her or the party over: |
| 259 | -->'''Nott:''' I could tell there were about six "fuck"s you omitted. |
| 260 | * SlasherSmile: She's so unused to smiling that her attempts at a normal smile invariably turn into this. It ''terrifies'' Nott and Jester. |
| 261 | * SleevesAreForWimps: Beau generally favors outfits that leaves her arms free and unobstructed, much like her voice actor Creator/MarishaRay, who's well known for wearing sleeveless tops and practically has "Sleeves Are Bullshit" as her motto. |
| 262 | * StealingFromTheTill: She used to do bookkeeping for her parents' winery, all while she was siphoning inventory to sell underground. As Nott put it, Beau was "bootlegging her old man's hooch." |
| 263 | * StealthPun: Her nickname, Beau, is pronounced the same as "bō", a staff used in Japanese martial arts. Fittingly, a quarterstaff is her preferred weapon. |
| 264 | * StillWearingTheOldColors: [[spoiler:In her updated 2019 artwork, Beau has changed almost every aspect of her attire, save for her Cobalt Soul blue sash. Even after being given new raiments to match her new position as a Cobalt Soul Expositor, Beau still wears her original sash. Most of her new attire is still blue, just not her original vestments.]] |
| 265 | * StrictParentsMakeSneakyKids: Her parents were extremely protective and controlling, which led to Beau becoming a teenage criminal behind their backs and a compulsive liar. [[spoiler:It ultimately comes back to haunt her full force when she meets them again during a mission to help Nott, which only served to derail all of her past character growth.]] |
| 266 | * SuddenIntelligence: Upon getting the Circlet of Intellect. Marisha describes it as the circlet allowing her to more easily remember her lessons with the Cobalt Soul. |
| 267 | * SuperReflexes: Already apparent with her ability to Deflect Missiles (see ArrowCatch above), and then she learns the ''[[CounterAttack Preternatural Counter]]'' and ''Mind of Mercury'' techniques from her peers in the Cobalt Soul. |
| 268 | ** A special note regarding Mind of Mercury: In D&D, all characters have one reaction per round in combat; this ability lets Beau spend ki to take a reaction once per ''turn''. |
| 269 | * TakenForGranite: [[spoiler:She ends up petrified in Episode 96 by a mutated gorgon, but is thankfully restored thanks to Nott's previously purchased willowshade oil.]] |
| 270 | * TomboyAndGirlyGirl: With Yasha away from the party more often than not, Beau plays the tomboy to Jester's girly-girl. |
| 271 | * TomboyishName: Beauregard is a traditionally male name. She lampshades it by saying her father wanted a son. |
| 272 | ** In episode 93, [[spoiler: We learn that a witch prophesied that her father would "have a young beau" to inherit the family business.]] |
| 273 | * TomboyishVoice: She has a deep voice, probably the deepest of the women in the party, suiting her {{Ladette}} nature. |
| 274 | * TookALevelInKindness: Not that she was without her moments before, but Molly's death ends up changing Beau for the better as she comes out of her shell more easily. While her demeanor is not completely changed, she's also much more open to being affectionate. |
| 275 | * TrademarkFavoriteFood: Bacon. She is so into it that she regularly stores leftover bacon inside her pockets (which she calls "pocket bacon") so that she can snack on it later on. Also, finding out that regular bacon is basically non-existent [[SlippySlideyIceWorld in Eiselcross]] makes her really upset. |
| 276 | * TragicKeepsake: Her back is adorned with a jade tattoo designed to resemble Molly's and her staff has a strip of Molly's coat around the top of it as well. |
| 277 | * TraumaCongaLine: [[spoiler:From the moment Beau had to return to Kamordah with the Nein to pursue a lead on how to reverse Nott's curse, thus making her have to come face to face with her family once more, she has been on a steep decline since, with actions including wanting to leave everyone behind and live in isolation to reverse the curse (even if it resulted in everyone being miserable) and blatantly unusual choices such as wanting to initiate pranks in the temple the Stone family called home and her past abrasive behavior returning in full. All of these are clear signs that she is suffering, with no sign of relief anytime soon.]] |
| 278 | * TheUnfavorite: Beau's parents wanted a son. After they sent her to the Cobalt Soul, with her father saying he never wanted to see her again (the feeling was mutual), they got one, which led to them [[ParentalAbandonment cutting ties with her entirely.]] |
| 279 | * TheUnsmile: The inevitable result whenever Beau tries to paste on a pleasant smile in light of Fjord's attempts to improve her social skills. In Episode 13, this is exaggerated when Jester uses the Wand of Smiles on her, forcing Beau to smile for a straight minute to the disturbed reactions of the party. Even [[TheTrickster Jester]] expresses deep regret with the results. [[SubvertedTrope Subverted]] [[WhenSheSmiles during the instances where she actually smiles for real, rare as they may be.]] |
| 280 | * VigilanteMan: As of Episode 4, when she accepts an invitation back into the Cobalt Soul: a secret order of spy-monks who work from the shadows to destroy institutional corruption within Wildemount. She had already been trained by them in the past, but she is given an official mission of finding truth and destroying corruption at that point. |
| 281 | * VitriolicBestBuds: Starts to develop this with Mollymauk; she loathes his flippancy and optimism, while he despises her uptightness and cynicism, but they give as well as they get when they start verbal sparring. [[spoiler: It really shows how much Molly affected her for the better after his death.]] |
| 282 | * WalkingTheEarth: [[spoiler:What she had intended for herself by offering everything that made her happy in recent months in exchange for Nott's future ("chosen exile" as Isharnai had put it) only to be thwarted by Jester's intervention.]] |
| 283 | * WantedASonInstead: Her parents did, which is why she has a traditionally male name. |
| 284 | * WouldHurtAChild: In Episode 3, she is more than willing to choke out Toya to make the young dwarven girl stop singing a magical debilitating song. When she fails to "crush her windpipe", Beau knocks her unconscious instead. |
| 285 | * YouDidntAsk: Her response to Caleb who wondered why she never shared her surname with anyone else before. Marisha later reveals this is the main way Beau avoids dealing with her own past and history alongside rarely volunteering information. |
| 286 | [[/folder]] |
| 287 | |
| 288 | [[folder:Caduceus]] |
| 289 | !!Caduceus Clay |
| 290 | !!!Played by: Creator/TaliesinJaffe |
| 291 | [[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/caduceus_clay_lvl_10.jpg]] |
| 292 | [[caption-width-right:350:''"I could fill a book with what I don't know."'']] |
| 293 | [[caption-width-right:350:Click [[labelnote:here]]https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/clay_8.jpg[[/labelnote]] to see Caduceus before level 10.]] |
| 294 | -->'''Race:''' Firbolg |
| 295 | -->'''Class:''' Cleric (Grave Domain) |
| 296 | |
| 297 | A serene and affable worshiper of the Wildmother who tends a graveyard outside of Shadycreek Run. The Mighty Nein run across him searching for help saving their friends from the Iron Shepherds. Over the course of his travels with them, Caduceus has become something of a moral center and confidante for the other members of the Mighty Nein, as well as their designated cook. |
| 298 | |
| 299 | ---- |
| 300 | * AffectionateNickname: The party has referred to him as Cad, Caddy, Deuces, and Deucey, and Nott refers to him as Mr. Clay. He seems to take it in his stride. |
| 301 | * AccidentalMisnaming: Fjord accidentally calls him "Molly," immediately realizes his mistake and proceeds to [[ClusterFBomb swear profusely]]. |
| 302 | * AlliterativeName: '''C'''aduceus '''C'''lay. |
| 303 | * AnimalMotifs: |
| 304 | ** Beetles. He wears iridescent, chitinous armor that looks like it could have come from a large bug, and he carries a Staff of Swarming Insects that allows him to summon beetle swarms. Fittingly, many beetles (particularly from the family ''Silphidae'' and ''Dermestidae'') are scavengers that feed on carrion, which aligns with Clay's role as a Grave Domain cleric to encourage a natural progression of the cycle of life and death. |
| 305 | ** To a lesser extent, sheep. As seen in his artwork here, his ear shape, pronounced jawline and flat, wide nose all combine to give him a face like an extremely humanized sheep. The spiral-shaped earrings he wears even look like the curly horns associated with the stereotypical ram. |
| 306 | * BerserkButton: |
| 307 | ** The only thing so far to rouse Caduceus to actual anger is the presence of TheUndead; he's uncharacteristically hostile to [[AmbiguouslyHuman Jamedi Cosko]], and contemptuously disposes of a ghost in the Diver's Grave. Grave Domain clerics believe that death is a natural part of the cycle of life, and see the presence of undead beings as an affront to that order; Clay is no exception. |
| 308 | -->'''Caduceus (to Jamedi):''' ''[[PunctuatedForEmphasis Pull. Your. Weight.]]'' |
| 309 | ** An additional one is desecrating holy ground. In the final episode [[spoiler: he ''loses it'' at Eadwulf for setting fire to the Blooming Grove, magically enhancing his voice, giving himself blackened eyes as an illusion, and reminding him in no uncertain terms that the gods have a ''very'' "special" place for those who burn temples.]] |
| 310 | * BewareTheNiceOnes: Caduceus is easily one of the most patient, kind and moral members of the Mighty Nein, acting as a listening ear for the others whenever they feel lost in their own issues. He's also proved, time and time again, that he is ''not'' one to be crossed- [[spoiler: he singlehandedly managed to intimidate an enemy pirate ship into parleying with their crew, and when the group found themselves engaged with another ship, he was able to use ''Control Water'' to sink the entire ship in one turn.]] |
| 311 | * BlueAndOrangeMorality: According to Taliesin, Caduceus is more concerned with "natural vs unnatural" than "good vs evil". |
| 312 | * BrutalHonesty: He's very insightful, and tends to confront people with the inner struggles he knows they're experiencing, usually without being prompted. |
| 313 | * CaringGardener: He transforms the top of the Xhorhaus into a garden, which includes a giant oak tree that he sets up special sunlight spells to provide light for. |
| 314 | * {{Catchphrase}}: He has a tendency to pepper phrases like "That's nice," or "This is great," into conversation at regular intervals. |
| 315 | * CharacterDeath: [[spoiler:He's accidentally killed by Nott's explosive bolt in episode 55, but a quick ''Revivify'' from Jester brings him back.]] |
| 316 | * CharacterizationMarchesOn: Caduceus's introductory arc displayed him as ''far'' more brutal and comfortable with killing, while later on he'd usually be the one advocating for non-violent solutions. His [[BadLiar inability to lie]] also didn't come in until much later, as the infiltration of the Iron Shepherds has him disguise himself as a guard to deceive multiple of the Shepherds into ignoring suspicious sounds or walking into traps. |
| 317 | * CombatMedic: Caduceus is essentially designed to be the groups main healer, especially thanks to the group realizing how badly the lack of one ended up costing them [[spoiler:with Molly's death]]. He is still a capable fighter, but unlike the more damage-oriented Jester, Caduceus focuses more on keeping his allies in the fight. |
| 318 | * ComicallyMissingThePoint: How Taliesin plays up the fact that Caduceus has an Intelligence of 9, the lowest of the Mighty Nein. A lot of the complexities of social interaction seem to fly over his head, like the initial implication of [[spoiler:Marion Lavorre's suggestion that the Gentleman might be Jester's father]]. This gets played for comedic effect, of course: |
| 319 | -->'''Caduceus:''' "[[spoiler:Oh my god, your mother knows the Gentleman, that's so cool!]]" |
| 320 | * TheComicallySerious: When it's Caduceus's turn to be the ButtMonkey, he reacts with stoic exasperation. Nicely summed up by his reaction to being accidentally banished to the Astral Sea by Jester: |
| 321 | -->"What? Oh, for Pete's--" ''(vanishes)'' |
| 322 | * TheConscience: Seems to be this to the rest of the Nein. He has a calm way of dispensing his own brand of advice and serves as a sounding board for the more 'morally ambiguous' members, like Beau. |
| 323 | * CreepyGood: Clay is a friendly and unambiguously good-aligned guy, but his habit of addressing the flesh-eating beetles in his staff as "my children" is more than a little unsettling. Also, when he wishes not to be disturbed, he uses Thaumaturgy to turn his own eyes [[BlackEyesOfEvil pitch black]]. This works to great effect, as nobody dares to approach him. |
| 324 | * DrinkBasedCharacterization: He is introduced with tea ready, then apologizes for only having three other teacups. Tea is his favorite and while it may not cure all ills, it is at least [[CalmingTea cure-adjacent]] whenever he finds someone suffering. |
| 325 | * DueToTheDead: As a cemetary caretaker, this was essentially his profession in the Blooming Grove. He states that he's been to a ''lot'' of funerals and typically shows reverence towards human(oid) remains, particularly when using the ''Speak With Dead'' spell. |
| 326 | * DullSurprise: The man reacts to pretty much everything with a flat expression and tone, even when he is clearly excited by something. The only time he breaks from this are rare moments like meeting Pumat Sol, or when he decides to be a bit more CreepyGood. |
| 327 | * DumbIsGood: Caduceus has an Intelligence of 9 (below average for sentient humanoids) yet is the most unambiguously good-hearted member of the Mighty Nein. That said, he's not ''stupid'' - his Wisdom score is extremely high, making him an incredibly insightful and perceptive individual, even though he lacks knowledge of the world beyond the Blooming Grove. |
| 328 | * EmbarrassingNickname: Nott starts by calling him [[ToiletHumor Deuce]] as part of her RunningGag. Marisha picks it up as well, to Taliesin's dismay. |
| 329 | * FriendToBugs: Particularly the beetles who live in his staff. As a Firbolg, Caduceus can talk to most animals, including insects. |
| 330 | * FishOutOfWater: He's spent his entire life up to this point living in the woods outside of Shadycreek Run, and has little experience with the world beyond. He has apparently never had alcohol before, which surprises the rest of the Mighty Nein. |
| 331 | * GentleGiant: As a firbolg, he's over seven feet tall. Also as a firbolg, he's very gentle in his manner. That being said, he can easily dip into CreepyGood at times. |
| 332 | * GoingCommando: Not only does he not wear any underwear, he apparently doesn't even know what underwear is. |
| 333 | * GreenThumb: His healing spells have plant effects; when he heals Beau's crossbow wound in his debut, moss and lichen sprout from it to knit it together before turning gray and crumbling away. |
| 334 | * HealingHands: His specialty as a Cleric. |
| 335 | * TheHeart: One of Caduceus' main functions within the Mighty Nein is to act as a moral compass for the rest, and he is often the one that the others defer to for solving internal conflicts in the group due to his calming presence and insightful observations. |
| 336 | * HeroicBSOD: Goes through a minor one at the beginning of Episode 36 after the Nein's attempt to speak to Marius goes ''very'' wrong, leading to them killing the crew of a ship that they subsequently steal. He's seriously hurt in the fight, coming worryingly close to death, and then the party almost leave him behind on the dock. Once he catches up to the ship he spends several minutes slumped on the deck staring into space and wondering if leaving his cemetery to join them was the right decision. Jester is eventually able to bring him around with a pep-talk. |
| 337 | * HiddenDepths: When around his family Caduceus shows a completely different side of his personality, namely that of an annoying younger sibling. He has a pretty intense SiblingRivalry going with his older brother Colton, and during their on-screen reunions, he and his sister Calliope take turns shoving eachother into nearby ponds. |
| 338 | * InHarmonyWithNature: Comes part and parcel with being a worshipper of the goddess of nature. |
| 339 | * InnocentlyInsensitive: Caduceus doesn't have a mean bone in his body, but he also has a pretty blunt manner of speaking about what he intuits about other people. This sometimes makes him come across as bull-headed and insensitive, although usually he's just trying to help. |
| 340 | * ITakeOffenseToThatLastOne: Most of the teasing he gets from other members of the party rolls off his back, even though he doesn't understand all of it. But the implication that he snores does get on his nerves. |
| 341 | * JumpedAtTheCall: It didn't take much convincing for him to join the Mighty Nein. He admits he'd wanted to leave his cemetery for a while, but was waiting until the right people came along as it wasn't entirely safe to travel the area alone. Despite some misgivings over the group's shadier actions, he's pretty happy with his decision. |
| 342 | * KindheartedSimpleton: Caduceus could be the poster boy for this trope. What he lacks in intelligence, he makes up for in empathy and heart. |
| 343 | * LateArrivalSpoiler: Caduceus has officially been in more episodes than Mollymauk, and has been featured in the animated intro since episode 40. |
| 344 | * LeaningOnTheFourthWall: Downplayed. [[WordOfGod According to Taliesin]] in the campaign wrap up, this is how Caduceus interprets fate. In-universe, if he stumbles upon something, it's because the universe put it on his way for him to do something with it. Out of character, this is just Tal acknowledging that Matt is giving the player a new story thread. |
| 345 | * LittleBitBeastly: Because of the way firbolgs are portrayed in the show, his overall form is humanoid, but the shape of his jawline, nose and ears are rather ovine. |
| 346 | * MakingASplash: Knows the ''Control Water'' spell. [[spoiler: He uses it to great effect to capsize an opposing pirate ship that saw the ''Ball-Eater'' as an easy mark.]] |
| 347 | * MagicStaff: His weapon is a gnarled wooden staff with a pink crystal on top, which allows him to summon a swarm of insects. |
| 348 | * MeaningfulName: The caduceus is the traditional symbol of the Greek god Hermes, and is often used as a symbol of medicine: a fitting name for a Cleric. It's also often associated with passage into the underworld, which is equally-fitting given that Caduceus' clerical abilities are centered around the grave. |
| 349 | * MellowFellow: Probably the most straightforward way to describe Caduceus. He's perpetually calm and relaxed; even when he's severely distressed (such as in the aftermath of the shipjacking in Episode 36) he remains low-key and somber rather than hysterical or angry. |
| 350 | * NervesOfSteel: Caduceus keeps his mellow demeanor even in the face of danger, though he's not immune to slipping into a HeroicBSOD after the danger has passed. |
| 351 | * NiceGuy: By far the most outwardly kind member of the Mighty Nein. He is extremely affable towards all strangers they meet at first, and typically maintains a very easy-going demeanor. Only Jester is possibly as openly nice as he is, and even then he lacks her mischievous and prankful nature. |
| 352 | -->'''Beau:''' Caduceus is the only one good at being good.\ |
| 353 | '''Jester:''' He's really good at it. |
| 354 | * NoSell: One of the benefits given to him by way of being a Cleric of the Grave Domain is that if an ally within 30 feet is hit by a natural 20, Caduceus can negate the 20, meaning that while the target still gets hit, it no longer does critical damage. |
| 355 | * NoSocialSkills: Though not as obvious about it as certain other members, Caduceus has spent almost his entire life in isolation from the rest of the world and it shows. |
| 356 | * OOCIsSeriousBusiness: After [[spoiler: Fjord is killed by an agent of Uk'otoa]], Caduceus is so pissed that he focuses on attacking the enemies rather than acting as healing and support. Generally speaking, anytime Caduceus starts to dish out the hurt with necromantic spells, it's a sign that [[LetSGetDangerous he's getting pissed]]. |
| 357 | * OddFriendship: He gets along surprisingly well with [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold Beau]], despite her prickly, hotheaded manner and [[HardDrinkingPartyGirl deep fondness for]] [[TheLadette both alcohol and sex]] seeming to be the complete opposite of Caduceus's mellow, affable nature and [[TheTeetotaler utter inexperience with traditional vices]]. Nevertheless the two bond over their mutual desire to take care of the people around them, and Taliesin even says that Caduceus considers Beau his best friend within the Nein. |
| 358 | * OracularHead: Caduceus knows the spell ''Speak with Dead'', meaning that he can interrogate corpses to get the information they used to know when they were alive for as long as their heads are intact. He usually performs it on full bodies, but he uses it on beheaded heads too when the situation calls for it. |
| 359 | * OutOfFocus: For ''The Mighty Nein Reunited'' special, given that Taliesin chose to play Kingsley instead of him. Jester doesn't contact him during the events, but an episode of ''Four-Sided Dive'' reveals that if she did try, [[DeusExitMachina he'd be too busy restoring the Blooming Grove (which involves the intensive, year-spanning Temple of the Gods ritual) to help out]]. |
| 360 | * ThePrankster: Downplayed trope. It only comes out around his family, but when it does it comes out with a vengeance. One of the first things he does to his older sister Calliope after reuniting with her after 10 years is JumpScare her into a pool with his bone flute. |
| 361 | * TheReasonYouSuckSpeech: Delivers a measured and polite, but absolutely ''blistering'' one to Trent Ikithon, in his own dining rooms. It's [[RefugeInAudacity bold enough]] to sufficiently impress Eadwulf. |
| 362 | -->''May I say, before you go... I think perhaps you are one of the most powerful mages that I've ever had the pleasure to be in the presence of, and for this I would offer a gift, which I think it has been a long time since anyone has pointed out to you that you're a fool. [[MachiavelliWasWrong Pain doesn't make people. It's love that makes people. The pain is inconsequential. It's love that saves them. And you would know that, but you have none around you, you said so yourself. You surround yourself with lies and deception, and...]] I wish for you in the future to find someone who will mourn you when you are gone. [[WithDueRespect Respectfully.]]'' |
| 363 | * SherlockScan: Being a Wisdom-focused character played by [[BornLucky Taliesin "Anti-Wheaton" Jaffe]], Caduceus tends to have a knack for Perception and Insight rolls that veer into this kind of territory. His Insight check on Gustav in Episode 32 makes Caduceus look downright psychic, and ten episodes later, he needs to make a Perception check with disadvantage and still rolls a 22. |
| 364 | -->'''Taliesin:''' I love this, this is the best character ever! |
| 365 | * SiblingRivalry: With his older brother Colton. It goes both ways, as Colton is irritated that [[spoiler:Caduceus is the one to save the family.]] |
| 366 | * SimpleMindedWisdom: Having 9 Intelligence and 20 Wisdom, the lowest and highest scores for each respectively of the group [[spoiler:(until Jester increased her Wisdom to 20 at level 8)]], Caduceus fits this trope to a T. Despite often being ignorant about the workings of the world and lacking in knowledge on many topics (see his quote), Caduceus has a natural affinity for being empathetic towards and discerning the true nature of the people and situations the Nein come across, and often makes extremely insightful observations that constantly throw the party for a loop. |
| 367 | * SoProudOfYou: In Episode 105, the entire party helps talk Jester through a CrisisOfFaith regarding the Traveller... except for Caduceus. Not because he doesn't care, of course, but because he doesn't feel he ''needs'' to, with the rest of the Nein around-- and he tells the group that he's very pleased with how wise and mature they've become since he met them. |
| 368 | * StealthPun: As a Firbolg (bovine humanoid) Cleric, Caduceus is something of a [[spoiler: holy cow.]] |
| 369 | * TheStoner: Clay's danger-defyingly mellow persona, hippie-like affinity for nature, and slow, gravelly voice all lend themselves to this image, even without actual drugs being involved. Fjord actually assumes this of him upon first meeting him. |
| 370 | * TheSwarm: He's able to summon a swarm of flesh-eating beetles from his staff. |
| 371 | * TeamChef: As of Episode 30, he's begun to take up cooking duties for the Mighty Nein, starting with fashioning omelettes [[spoiler: using ingredients from the Iron Shepherds' kitchen after the Mighty Nein killed them all]]. |
| 372 | * TheTeetotaler: He's never had any alcohol before meeting the Nein, and doesn't like the taste of it. Unlike Jester, he doesn't like milk either, instead preferring to drink his own tea. |
| 373 | * TranquilFury: The few times Caduceus is genuinely angry or upset, he instead displays it through being shorter and tonally sharper with his words and with passive-aggressive actions. |
| 374 | -->'''Caduceus:''' I hate to raise my voice, but... ''(voice volume is exactly the same as usual)'' |
| 375 | * VagueAge: He gives an estimate of 100 seasons, but he really doesn't know. All [[WordOfGod Taliesin]] will say is that he's between 80 and 100 years old (meaning that he is still in his early-to-mid 20s [[ProportionalAging in firbolg's age]]). |
| 376 | * WalkingSpoiler: His existence spoils the fact that Mollymauk, Taliesin's previous character, has died. |
| 377 | * WarriorTherapist: His family, followers of the Wildmother, are in charge of maintaining the temple and graveyard in the Blooming Grove. This office has given him experience counseling people and while he's a bit of a country bumpkin, he has almost supernatural insight into people, which he serves with kindness and cups of tea. (In D&D stat terms: high Wisdom, low Intelligence.) He is not a frontline fighter and will seek peaceful solutions where possible but is not a pacifist (as Nature is often violent) and knows his way around offensive spells when he isn't being the party's main healer. |
| 378 | * WhatTheHellHero: A more subtle example. In Episodes 35-36, he quietly displays quite a bit of displeasure at the Nein's actions that resulted in them killing most of a ship's crew and stealing it, and almost leaving him for dead. Fortunately, Jester manages to snap him out of his HeroicBSOD. |
| 379 | * YouAreBetterThanYouThinkYouAre: Being a later member of the group and the one with the least past trauma and emotional baggage, Caduceus is often exasperated by how distrusting and suspicious the group is of others, and how often they assume their actions will result in their punishment, regardless of intent. He does his best to remind them that he believes they are all ultimately good people trying to do the right thing. |
| 380 | -->'''Caduceus:''' Am I the only here who doesn't ''instantly'' assume that they're the bad guy? I mean, has anybody else here actually had any experience being trusted, and doing the right thing? Is this so alien?\ |
| 381 | '''Beau:''' I mean, yeah. I think [it is] for a lot of us, Caduceus. |
| 382 | [[/folder]] |
| 383 | |
| 384 | [[folder:Jester]] |
| 385 | !!Jester Lavorre |
| 386 | !!!Played by: Creator/LauraBailey (Campaign 2), Creator/MatthewMercer (Campaign 3) |
| 387 | [[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/jester_lavorre_lvl_10.jpg]] |
| 388 | [[caption-width-right:350:''"I'm asking you to open your heart to chaos."'']] |
| 389 | [[caption-width-right:350:Click [[labelnote:here]]https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/jester_lavorre.jpg[[/labelnote]] to see Jester before Level 10.]] |
| 390 | -->'''Race:''' Tiefling |
| 391 | -->'''Class:''' Cleric (Trickery Domain) |
| 392 | |
| 393 | A spunky and sunny tiefling cleric who follows The Traveler, a mysterious deity of Trickery and Chaos. She believes herself to be a silver-tongued trickster, but puts her foot in her mouth more often than not. She is traveling Wildemount looking for her DisappearedDad. |
| 394 | |
| 395 | ---- |
| 396 | * AffectionateNickname: The rest of the party occasionally call her "Jess" or "Jessie", usually when she's in danger or seems upset. Her mother has been known to refer to her as "my little sapphire", a moniker Jester uses to identify herself to the staff at her mother's house and later as her pirate name while they're at sea. |
| 397 | * AgeGapRomance: She's around 20 years old and enters a courtship with Fjord, who is stated to be in his early to mid thirties. |
| 398 | * AllGenesAreCodominant: Downplayed. She is a tiefling, like her mother, but she did inherit a good part of her father's genasi genes, granting her unique attributes such as a [[AmazingTechnicolorPopulation rare skin color]] and the ability to resist cold damage rather than fire. |
| 399 | * AnIcePerson: Her ''Hellish Rebuke'' reaction deals cold damage as opposed to fire damage, and has a Hellish Resistance to cold (which extends to adverse weather conditions as well). [[spoiler:This may be because of her half-water genasi heritage.]] |
| 400 | * ArmorPiercingQuestion: While trying to reach out to [[spoiler:Molly]] during the battle with Lucien: |
| 401 | -->'''Lucien:''' That person is dead. He never really existed! You're shouting into nothing, my dear!\ |
| 402 | '''Jester:''' Then ''why is this working?'' |
| 403 | * BettyAndVeronica: Considers herself the Betty to Captain Avantika's Veronica over Fjord, acting even more jealous than usual when Avantika starts flirting with him and inviting him to her cabin for private drinks. |
| 404 | * BewareTheSillyOnes: Jester may be an upbeat and bubbly young woman with an obsession with sweets and a crude sense of humor, but she can still lay out the hurt in combat and has a devilishly clever side to herself that she masks with her sweetness. [[spoiler:Using only her clever wordplay and acting skills, she was able to drug and cast Modify Memory on Isharnai, a monstrously powerful hag, to convince this evil creature that could've killed her at any moment to release Nott from her curse for nothing more than a ''half a cupcake!'' And just to add the cherry on top, Jester modified the hag's memory so that Isharnai believes they had a pleasant conversation and Jester managed to convince Isharnai to free Nott just with the pleasure of her company. Towards the end of the campaign, Jester kills the FinalBoss with a Guiding Bolt that strikes its chest, causing the holy energy to burn the beast from the inside out.]] |
| 405 | * BlatantLies: She lies even when it isn't remotely necessary, which makes things difficult for the party. |
| 406 | -->'''Jester:''' I'm really good at lying!\ |
| 407 | ''({{beat}})''\ |
| 408 | '''Caleb:''' You have your ways. |
| 409 | ** At one point Caleb says, "You're sweet on him [Fjord], ja?" She replies with a nonchalant "I don't know..." even though EveryoneCanSeeIt. |
| 410 | * BlitheSpirit: As her [[MeaningfulName namesake suggests]], Jester brings fun with her everywhere she goes, be it through [[ThePrankster devious pranks]] or artistic expression. When the Nein arrived in the frozen tundra of Eiselcross, the very first thing she did was starting to build a snowman and make friend with one of the guard. |
| 411 | -->'''[[EvilSorcerer Ludinus Da'leth]]:''' It's entirely off-putting how disarmingly charming you are. I genuinely do not know how to react. |
| 412 | * BodyMotifs: She shares a hand motif with the Traveler, whose spectral hands often appear when she casts spells or when he intervenes on her behalf. She later gets a magical tattoo of the Traveler's hands on her chest from Orly, cementing this connection further. Finally, she offers up her hands in her bargain with Isharnai as the symbol of her artistic expression. |
| 413 | * BreakThemByTalking: During the FinalFight, she deprives Lucien of his Legendary Actions by calling out Molly's name. |
| 414 | * BrokenPedestal: While Jester firmly believes in the Traveler, her faith in him is damaged following her [[spoiler:capture by the Iron Shepherds. By her own admission, she prayed constantly for his help, but it was the others who managed to save her, Fjord, and Yasha. In the sessions after her return, she can only question why he didn't try to save them, and when she sees him in her room in Zadash, she can only barely hold back tears as she asks if he still favors her. While the Traveler reaffirms his favoritism for Jester, it is clear her faith in him is hurt by his seeming inaction, even if he claims he was there all along. This happens more permanently in episode 95 when The Traveler reveals himself as Artagan and admits that he is "not quite" a god. The revelation of his true personality and his reliance on her hits Jester very hard.]] |
| 415 | * BrutalHonesty: Let's just say she isn't the most ''tactful'' person around, mostly as a result of her sheltered upbringing. When she first met Caleb, she commented on his shabby clothes and awful smell and recommended he take a bath before he'd even said six words to her. |
| 416 | * CanonImmigrant: Laura previously played Jester in two oneshots, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d6ndE0N4l1g one for GameSpot]] and [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UIZyqKSA7Rc&t=71s one with Kinda Funny]]. Laura has confirmed Jester's backstory and deity (The Traveler) is the same as in those oneshots, though the oneshots themselves might not be canon. |
| 417 | * CharacterDeath: [[spoiler:Killed during the FinalBoss fight with Lucien. Caduceus brings her back from the dead, though. She even manages to avenge her own death by getting the HDYWTDT on Lucien with a well-placed Guiding Bolt.]] |
| 418 | * CharmPerson: She successfully employs the spell ''Charm Person'' against a member of the Crownsguard when caught sneaking around the circus. Luckily for her, [[DroppedABridgeOnHim the guard gets killed and turned into a zombie before he can break free and report her.]] |
| 419 | * CheatersNeverProsper: During the impromptu fist fight against Beau in the Gentleman's den, she uses the fact that her first punch connects to cast ''Inflict Wound'' on her, causing massive damage on the unsupecting monk. But Beau being... well, ''[[NeverBringAKnifeToAGunFight a monk]]'', she absolutely destroys Jester in retaliation. |
| 420 | * ClingyJealousGirl: Jester is very protective of all of her friends, but she's showing signs of becoming this with regards to Fjord in particular. Normally, Jester is rather odd but nonetheless very friendly towards people. However, when the bartender Ireena shows interest in Fjord in episode 24, Jester's response is positively ''catty'', and she has nothing but suspicion, insults, and dismissive comments for her. When her own Zone of Truth spell reveals that Ireena isn't a thief and her interest in Fjord is genuine, Jester almost seems disappointed. The situation repeats in Episode 37 with Captain Avantika, and Jester has broken four pencils angrily scribbling Avantika stabbed with many daggers in her sketchbook. In episode 38, she is very put off by the idea of letting Avantika into Caleb's magic hut and tries to keep her from coming in. |
| 421 | * CloudCuckooLander: She starts out quirky and her Cuckoolander tendencies only become more obvious over time. In episode 5 alone, she professes a fervent belief in hamster-sized unicorns, and later gets concerned that Fjord is slowly turning into water and offers to contain him in a jar. |
| 422 | -->'''Beau:''' What is it like being in your head?\ |
| 423 | '''Jester:''' It's pretty great! |
| 424 | * CluelessDudeMagnet: [[spoiler:Beau, Caleb, and Fjord]] are confirmed to have had feelings for her at one point or another, but she seems more-or-less unaware of most of it, despite having had a significant amount of ShipTease with all three. |
| 425 | -->'''Jester:''' Does anyone have a crush on me?\ |
| 426 | '''Beau''': Jester, ''everyone'' has a crush on you. |
| 427 | * CombatMedic: The party's cleric, with a penchant for more offensive magic, though her aversion to healing unless one of her allies has been knocked out has lead to a lot of jokes about some members of the party not knowing that she has healing magic. [[spoiler: It helps that Caduceus, a cleric more oriented towards healing, joins the group later on.]] |
| 428 | -->'''Beauregard''': You have a six pack of doughnuts but you don’t have a healer’s kit in there? And you're the cleric? I'm confused...\ |
| 429 | '''Jester''': I'm ''the'' cleric? What is this? I've never like traveled with a bunch of people that I thought would ''DIE'' in front of me, okay?! |
| 430 | * ColorCodedEyes: Her character art reveals she has purple eyes; as a Cleric chosen by the Traveler she certainly fits both the special and powerful aspects of that. [[spoiler:With the reveal that her father is The Gentleman, a Water Genasi, she has a mixed bloodline that makes her unique as a tiefling.]] |
| 431 | * ComicallyIneptHealing: [[DownplayedTrope Downplayed]]. It's not that she's ''bad'' at it, she just has a reputation of prioritizing damaging spells over healing despite being (before Caduceus' arrival) the only healer in the party. It eventually culminates into a RunningGag of everyone acting with shock when she does actually use a healing spell, as if they were only now discovering she can do that. |
| 432 | * CrossCulturalKerfluffle: In an attempt to perpetrate IntentionalMessMaking in the Platinum House as a prank, she covers an idol of [[DragonsAreDivine Bahamut]] with colorful paints, [[AchievementsInIgnorance not realizing herself]] that it is the highest form of blasphemy she could have gone with, considering that the Platinum Dragon directly opposes [[DragonsAreDemonic Tiamat]], the Queen of ''Chromatic'' Dragons. [[WordOfGod Matt]] later stated on Talks Machina that the church had attributed the crime to cultists of Tiamat. |
| 433 | * CuteMonsterGirl: Tieflings are often mistrusted because of their monstrous appearance, which makes her outgoing social butterfly tendencies all the more impressive. |
| 434 | * TheCutie: She's a cheerful, mischievous young woman with a taste for sweets and a touch of naivety. |
| 435 | * DamageReduction: Has Hellish Resistance, like other tieflings. However, hers is to cold damage, which includes ice attacks and general cold conditions such as weather, [[MundaneUtility to the point of playing in the snow when others are freezing]]. |
| 436 | * DaughterOfAWhore: Episode 8 reveals that her mother is an extremely famous [[HighClassCallGirl courtesan]] called the Ruby of the Sea, who is known up and down the Menagerie Coast as "the best lay ever". The Ruby's reputation is such that Jester is able to blackmail a lawmaster, who is implied to be a former client of the Ruby, into giving Fjord a letter of recommendation into the Soltrice Academy just by mentioning her title. |
| 437 | * DecompositeCharacter: Both Laura and Taliesin had the idea for a lavender-skinned tiefling with a sickle. They agreed that Jester would keep the weapon and Molly would keep the skin tone. |
| 438 | * DidYouJustScamCthulhu: [[spoiler:She manages to trick Isharnai, a powerful and ancient hag, into lifting Nott's curse using a cupcake, the Dust of Deliciousness, and a well-timed [[FakeMemories Modify Memory]] spell. Better yet, she phrases the altered memory in such a way that Isharnai believes that she enjoyed Jester's company so much that she lifted the curse free of charge, meaning that Jester forced a creature that feeds on misery to feel genuine ''happiness'']]. |
| 439 | * DisappearedDad: Apparently, looking for him is her personal motivation. [[spoiler: As of Episode 85, she's found him, though he feels he can't be considered her father since he didn't raise her.]] |
| 440 | * TheDitz: Jester's not the sharpest tool in the shed, and she's definitely quirky. This comes from having high Wisdom (20, tied with Caduceus for the highest of the Nein) but a sheltered upbringing. |
| 441 | * DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything: After the party meets [[AGodIAmNot The Traveler]], they point out how weird it is that an older male figure visited a little girl in her room at night in secret for a long time. |
| 442 | * DrJerk: Played for laughs with Jester's largely reluctant approach to healing, she'd much rather be dishing out divine damage or interesting curses. For example when she has a choice of healing Beau of critcal damage or casting Guiding Bolt: |
| 443 | -->'''Jester''': Well if it dies, then Beau will be safe, see?! |
| 444 | * EarlyBirdCameo: Before the start of the campaign, Laura had played as Jester in a couple of D&D one-shots around the internet. |
| 445 | * EccentricArtist: Jester enjoys painting and sketching in a journal she keeps for the Traveler, drawing all the peculiar and bizarre thoughts that come into her head (e.g. zombies making out, hamster unicorns). One of her pranks involved defacing a statue of the Allhammer with sequins, hearts and pink paint. |
| 446 | * EdibleBludgeon: Her preferred Spiritual Weapon is a giant lollipop. |
| 447 | * EmbarrassingFirstName: In Episode 95, we discover that Jester is a Virtue Name, a name chosen by a Tiefling when they come of age to reflect their motives or ideals. Her mother originally named her [[spoiler:Genevieve]] but she obviously doesn't like it, acting uncomfortable when she reveals it to the party, and even her mother refers to her as "Jester". |
| 448 | * TheExile: Jester once played an embarrassing prank on a local lord who subsequently marked her for death, which is why she [[YouCantGoHomeAgain can’t go back to Nicodranas.]] |
| 449 | * ExoticEyeDesigns: For the standard of the tiefling race. Tieflings normally have [[MonochromaticEyes eyes of one solid color]] with no visible pupils or sclera, while Jester's eyes look completely human, even though they are purple. [[spoiler:This is a clue about her father being a water genasi, one of the few creatures whose genes can meddle with [[DominantSpeciesGenes the normally dominant]] tieflings' traits.]] |
| 450 | * TheFashionista: The Mighty Nein usually ask Jester to choose their outfits for events where fancier clothes are required. When she takes the task seriously, the outfits are guaranteed to be gorgeous. |
| 451 | * FirstKiss: Reveals in episode 41 that her UnderwaterKiss with Fjord in the previous episode was her first kiss ever. At first she's not sure if it counted since she was drowning at the time, but a discussion with Nott convinces her it does count. [[spoiler:In episode 118 they kiss again and she refers to the previous incident as a kiss too, but notes it was less fun due to the drowning.]] |
| 452 | * FriendlessBackground: She’s upbeat about it [[StepfordSmiler in public]], but as the daughter of a famous courtesan, she was more or less hidden away while growing up. When praying to the Traveler at one point, she mentions that the deity was her OnlyFriend for a long time. |
| 453 | * TheGadfly: Although sometimes it's unclear whether [[CloudCuckooLander she's doing it on purpose or not]], many of her outrageous remarks seem to be a product of her mischievous streak and can occasionally veer into TheTease. One good example of her behavior being 100% deliberate includes her flustering Fjord ''and'' Beau with several suggestive comments and then laughing at them about it, all in the space of two consecutive conversations. |
| 454 | * TheGamblingAddict: Accused of being one by her companions when she teaches Nott poker in the first episode. Apparently, she was taught the night before and lost a good deal of money, but she obviously enjoys it thoroughly. |
| 455 | * GenkiGirl: Jester is ditzy, excitable, and generally as fun as her namesake. |
| 456 | * GiftedlyBad: Jester ''thinks'' she is the silver-tongued [[TheFace Face]] of the group, but is really closer to copper or fool's gold. She consistently messes up deceptions by [[FawltyTowersPlot trying to add superfluous (and often conflicting) details]] and [[NoSocialSkills introduces herself to a stranger by telling him he stinks]]. In Episode 4 she is caught red-handed by the Crownsguard and her first instinct is a flimsy imitation of an old woman looking for, of all things, her missing shoe in an alleyway. |
| 457 | ** Though usually very competent as an artist and good at applying makeup for disguises, in Episode 38, numerous low rolls while disguising people as Yuan-Ti resulted in Jester drawing big green circles on Caleb and painting Yasha's entire body bright green. |
| 458 | * GirlyGirlWithATomboyStreak: She fawns over cute things, loves romance and romance novels, is usually wearing a dress, and acts like an excited fangirl when talking about the Traveler. At the same time she is surprisingly strong for someone of her stature and isn't opposed to jumping into the thick of combat. She also likes drawing dicks over everything, sort of like a middle school boy. |
| 459 | * GivenNameReveal: Like most tieflings, "Jester" is a virtue name she chose to aspire to rather than the name given to her at birth. She finally reveals her birth name [[spoiler:Genevieve]] in episode 95. |
| 460 | * GoToAlias: Jester favors "Ms. Fiona Fancypants" as a fake name when one is called for. Even when impersonating a drow, she couldn't bring herself to abandon the Fancypants surname, calling herself "Nancy [=McFancypants=]". |
| 461 | * HealingHands: Her ''Cure Wounds'' and ''Healing Word'' spells, naturally, as a cleric. |
| 462 | * TheHeart: Early in the campaign, she was the only person who everyone in the group seemed to unambiguously like and trust, and she's the one most often advocating for trust and care between group members during tense moments, to the point that even [[JerkWithaHeartOfGold Beau]] regularly is rather nice around her even early on. In Episode 15, she's knocked unconscious by the gelatinous cube, and the ''entire group'' panics and spends the rest of the episode healing her and encouraging her to take care of herself. |
| 463 | * HiddenDepths: Jester is an excitable oddball on the surface, but underneath the chipper kookiness, she’s harboring some severe abandonment issues and [[BewareTheNiceOnes proves to be a surprisingly effective blackmailer.]] |
| 464 | * HornedHumanoid: Like most tieflings, Jester has a pair of horns. In Jester's case, she has two backward-curling horns that rest above her ears. |
| 465 | * HowDoIShotWeb: A RunningGag throughout Campaign 2 is Jester's misadventures with Sending, a magic spell that lets the caster send a message to anyone (even someone on another plane of existence). She either says [[ThatCameOutWrong very bizarre things that could be interpreted incorrectly]], resorts to random nonsense when she can't think of something to say, or struggles with the word limit. |
| 466 | ** At first, Jester doesn't know that Sending has a 25-word limit, thinking it akin to telepathy. When she first gets the spell, Jester sends a message to her mother, the Ruby of the Sea. Jester talks so quickly that she hits the word limit in only a few seconds, and before she can relay anything useful. |
| 467 | ** Jester eventually figures out that there's a word limit, but never seems to grasp that she can send the message without hitting 25 words. In Episode 66, Jester sends a message to Obann. Jester starts by trying to sound intimidating, telling Obann that "the Orphanmaker has arrived" and warning Obann that they're coming. Jester then fills the rest of the words by singing a song of [[{{Scatting}} random gibberish and "doot-doos"]], creating a MoodWhiplash. |
| 468 | * HuskyRusskie: A rather unconventional example, as Jester's high, bouncy Russian accent and seemingly small frame are somehow offset by the second-highest Strength stat in the party, beaten only by Yasha. |
| 469 | * ImaginationBasedSuperPower: Her imagination and perpetual empathy are her strongest weapons. When using conjuration spells such as ''[[GuardianEntity Spirit Guardians]]'', rather than invoking conventional spiritual creatures, she manifests [[RidiculouslyCuteCritter "flying hamster-unicorns"]]. Her magical paint also acts this way, as it allows her to make anything she draws real. Once she gains the "Polymorph" spell she is able to [[spoiler: mix and match creatures she's seen to create new forms, such as the [[ShapeShifterMashup "Dire Honey Badger"]] in episode 49.]] |
| 470 | * InnocentlyInsensitive: Due to the whole "growing up as the only child of a rich courtesan with no friends" thing, she can come off this way when it involves things like money. In Episode 9, when worrying over the fact that her care package from her mother hasn't arrived yet and they don't have much money, Caleb tries to reassure her that they have plenty of money - more than his parents ever made in their lives. Jester takes no notice of his tone and mentions that she used to receive the same amount of gold ''as her daily allowance'', a statement that understandably upsets Caleb. The two later make up, and Jester actively tries to be more sensible about money from then on. |
| 471 | * KindnessButton: Due to her isolated upbringing she has a soft spot for other people who feel lonely. [[spoiler:Best shown when she picks up on Isharnai's loneliness, shares a cupcake with her, uses Modify Memory to make her remember a pleasant visit, and continues to send her deliveries of cupcakes later]]. |
| 472 | * LactoseOverLiquor: Doesn’t drink ale or spirits, instead opting for milk when the party stops at taverns. It’s another quirk that emphasizes her childlike nature. |
| 473 | * LonelyRichKid: She was raised in luxury, but comes from a FriendlessBackground. The Mighty Nein was the first time she had any longterm companionship. |
| 474 | * LuckilyMyShieldWillProtectMe: She has a shield, boosting her AC to 17. [[FriendlyFireproof It comes in handy when Nott critically fails a crossbow shot.]] |
| 475 | * MafiaPrincess: She effectively becomes one [[spoiler:when the Gentleman admits to being her father.]] Thanks to her position, the Mighty Nein have a powerful and well-connected ally in one of the most important cities of the Empire. |
| 476 | * ManicPixieDreamGirl: She's one to both [[ByronicHero Caleb]], [[MaskOfConfidence Fjord]] and on a lesser end [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold Beauregard]], who were far more somber individuals before meeting her. |
| 477 | * MeaningfulRename: While she was given the name [[spoiler:Genevieve]] at birth, tieflings can choose their own names when they come of age, usually one reflecting their world view and what they aspire to. She chose "Jester" to match her fun-loving personality, specifically because the purpose of a jester is to make people laugh. |
| 478 | * MoodWhiplash: Causes ''copious'' amounts of this, with her extremely off-kilter and quirky comments she makes in otherwise extremely tense and serious situations or discussions. |
| 479 | ** This is egregiously shown in Episode 117, when she uses ''[[LethalJokeItem Polymorph]]'' to turn a potential ''[[TotalPartyKill TPK]]'' into one of the funniest battles of the whole campaign by turning into a mammoth from Caleb's Polymorph and running wild with her newfound size and strength. |
| 480 | ** Her misadventures with Sending tend to cause this. In Episode 66, Jester sends a message to Obann. Jester starts by trying to sound intimidating, telling Obann that "the Orphanmaker has arrived" and warning Obann that they're coming. Jester then fills the rest of the words by singing a song of [[{{Scatting}} random gibberish and "doot-doos"]], because she hasn't figured out that she can send the message before hitting 25 words. |
| 481 | * MusclesAreMeaningless: Despite her character art showcasing her as being somewhat on the short side and rather slight[[note]]altough at one point Matt's narration does state she is visibly muscular underneath all the heavy clothing[[/note]], Jester was initially one stat point away from being as strong as [[TheBigGuy Yasha.]] |
| 482 | * MyGreatestFailure: Considers [[spoiler: not being there to save Molly's life the one thing she'll never forgive herself for. As the group fights against Lucien, she says this as she calls out to Molly, which enrages Lucien, but causes him to lose his Legendary Action.]] |
| 483 | * NiceGirl: Jester can only be described as being on the odd side of odd, but all indications point to her unironically being a sweetheart, trickster tendencies aside. |
| 484 | * NiceJobBreakingItHero: A stealth mission in episode 127 leads to Jester being the only one who chose to sweet-talk one of the guards instead of killing him horribly - and ends up bringing up real details about herself. Within hours Trent and his Scourgers are already closing in on the Lavish Chateau. |
| 485 | -->'''Caleb:''' This is the one thing I worried about on the first day we came to Nicodranas, and ''now it is happening.'' |
| 486 | * NonhumanHumanoidHybrid: [[spoiler: Episode 33 implies (and Episode 85 confirms) her father is a Water Genasi who turns out to be ''The Gentleman''. This actually fits with the customization to her character, being resistant to cold damage and her Hellish Rebuke being ice themed, as much as her blue skin.]] |
| 487 | * NoSocialSkills: Starts a conversation with Caleb, whom she has never met, by telling him he needs to take a bath. Teaches Nott a card game akin to poker, wins, and takes the four silver pot with no hangups despite everyone else pointing out that it was a training game. Painfully justified as of Episode 8: as the daughter of a famous courtesan, she spent most of her life cooped up alone, since her existence could threaten her mother's career. While praying to The Traveler, she mentions that, for a long time, the deity was basically her OnlyFriend. |
| 488 | * OddFriendship: [[spoiler:With the hag Isharnai. While it started as a scheme to free Nott of her curse, Jester seems to feel some genuine empathy for the lonely hag and even goes out of her way to send the hag more cupcakes.]] |
| 489 | * OvernightAgeUp: [[spoiler:Using the circle of oracle statues in episode 118 for information get her aged 4-5 years as payment.]] |
| 490 | * PalsWithJesus: A large part of her relationship with [[TricksterGod the Traveler]], who was basically her OnlyFriend for a long time. He's treated overall like her NotSoImaginaryFriend more than other cleric patrons would be for their clerics. |
| 491 | * ParentsInDistress: In Episode 33, Jester finds out one of her mother's clients has turned obsessive and possessive - she is ''immediately'' ready to fight and kill him. |
| 492 | * PimpedOutDress: She absolutely loves cute dresses with lots of accessories, to the point that sometimes she might pick up additional accessories for her pets too. It is noticeable in particular with her Eiselcross outfit, an entire set of handmade winter clothes with lots of matching embroideries cost 100 gold total (paid 500 because the party had lots of money to spend at the time). |
| 493 | * PintSizedPowerhouse: Official art portrays her as about the size one would expect from a young woman. However, she possesses a 16 in strength, a fact very much proven when the girls get tattoos and Matt is right to point out that she is ''ripped'' underneath her dress. |
| 494 | * PutOnABus: Due to Travis and Laura being on leave after having their baby, both Fjord and Jester [[spoiler:get kidnapped in the dead of night at the end of Episode 25, along with Yasha due to Ashley's ongoing commitments on ''Series/{{Blindspot}}''.]] |
| 495 | * RichInDollarsPoorInSense: In stark contrast with Laura's previous character, Jester doesn't care much for her own finance as she grew up in a sheltered environment where she never lacked any material comfort. When she had to flee Nicodranas, her mother gave her 5,000 gold coins that she rapidly spent on useless things. It creates a bit of friction with Caleb when she disregards his offer of 50 gold coins as "literally nothing" when Caleb considers it a little fortune. [[CharacterDevelopment She grows out of it as the story progresses]]. |
| 496 | * SadClown: She's easily the most upbeat and cheerful member of the party, but that sunny disposition hides a lot of insecurities and a severe emotional dependence on the Traveler. When she explains why she had to leave Nicodranas and the rocky relationship she had with her mother it becomes apparent that her desire to find her father is less about wanting closure and more about how she is essentially homeless and chasing the only lead she has. |
| 497 | * SavvyGuyEnergeticGirl: The peppy, extroverted, and eccentric Energetic Girl to Caleb’s reserved, blunt, and critical Savvy Guy. |
| 498 | * SemiDivine: As a tiefling, Jester has some fiendish ancestry. [[spoiler: But she has also elemental ancestry from her father's side, as he is a water genasi.]] |
| 499 | * ShipperOnDeck: Has teased Caleb about Essek several times, egging him on to kiss Essek in exchange for teleporting the Nein, and later implying that the message she received from Essek was that he loves Caleb and wants to kiss him. Caleb does not seem particularly receptive to this. |
| 500 | ** She's also subtly nudging [[spoiler: her mother and father]] back together. [[spoiler: This one is a little more complicated: Marion [[TheOneThatGotAway genuinely loved]] the Gentleman, but many years have passed since then and she claims to have gotten over him; for his part, The Gentleman is hesitant to [[ItsNotYouItsMyEnemies endanger Marion by bringing her into his lifestyle]] and feels guilty enough about his criminal past that he feels he doesn't deserve to be part of her and Jester's lives.]] |
| 501 | ** Following the Rumblecusp arc she's become a Beau and Yasha shipper and encouraged both of them to make a move on each other. In episode 112 she offers to find somewhere else to sleep so they can have the room to themselves and later draws a picture of them as [[ItMakesSenseInContext marshmallows shnuggled together]]. |
| 502 | * ShipTease: Generates a lot of this between her and other party members, including Fjord, Caleb, [[HoYay Yasha, and Beau]]. Fjord in particular tends to be the target of her more flirtatious remarks; at one point, she purchases a smutty romance novel featuring a half-orc and seems to project herself and Fjord somewhat on the book's plot. In the same episode Nott even mentions that Jester seems attracted to him, which leaves Fjord a bit surprised. [[spoiler: In episode 118 Fjord tells her he cares for her, something he'd previously admitted to Beau, and they share an unambiguous kiss]]. |
| 503 | * SignatureMove: She uses the spell ''Spiritual Weapon'' a lot. The weapon tends to take the form of a giant pink lollipop that whacks enemies like a mace. When cast at higher levels, she even adds spikes on the edge making it a [[ImprobableWeaponUser giant serrated lollipop]]. |
| 504 | * SinisterScythe: Her weapon is a sickle. It's subverted in terms of connotation, however, as Jester is a cheery and good-natured sort instead of an unsavory, macabre type. She eventually switches to using an axe after getting annoyed at how [[AwesomeButImpractical impractical]] the weapon was being. |
| 505 | * SpoiledSweet: As the [[DaughterOfAWhore daughter of a famous courtesan]], Jester has apparently grown up in the lap of luxury, mentioning in Episode 9 that the party's combined gold is as much as she got for her daily allowance. Episode 18 reveals that she was given five thousand gold as a traveling allowance when she first left home. However, her moments of InnocentlyInsensitive aside, she's a very upbeat, cheery, and good-hearted young woman. |
| 506 | * StepfordSmiler: Not even Jester is immune to the harsh realities of the world, but she's adamant to maintain her cheerful persona. After all... she's [[CallBack "a pretty good liar"]]. |
| 507 | * SuperCuteSuperpowers: She beats up foes with a giant pink lollipop ''Spiritual Weapon'', and her ''Spirit Guardians'' resemble cute unicorn hamsters, but don't think that makes them any less dangerous. |
| 508 | * SweetTooth: [[ThrowItIn Beau mentions]] that she's never seen Jester eat anything but pastries. [[spoiler:One of Jester's rooms in Widogast's Nascent Nine-Sided Tower even includes a table that is always full of pastries for Jester to snack on.]] |
| 509 | * TakeAThirdOption: Isharnai the Hag tries to give the Mighty Nein a SadisticChoice between trapping Nott in her goblin form forever and inflicting an equally terrible fate on one of the other party members. Jester takes a third option by [[spoiler:conning the hag with a cupcake. The cupcake was sprinkled with the Dust of Deliciousness, which causes disadvantage on Wisdom saves. Jester then cast Modify Memory, using it to make Isharnai believe that she enjoyed Jester's company so much that the hag agreed to lift Nott's curse]]. |
| 510 | * TheTease: Jester is easily the most flirtatious member of the group, particularly around Fjord, but also with Beau and Caleb on occasion. In an episode of Talks Machina, Laura explained this is because Jester grew up in an environment where all conversation was flirty and sexualized, which really shaped the way in which she herself socializes with others. |
| 511 | * ThinksLikeARomanceNovel: PlayedForLaughs, but once Jester discovered the book ''Tusk Love'', about a romance between a young woman and a handsome half-orc named Oskar, she has taken to accidentally calling Fjord "Oskar" when they've had intimate moments together. |
| 512 | ** Jester outright confirms that she learned everything she knows about love from romance novels, after observing that the relationship of [[spoiler: Nott and her husband Yeza]] doesn't resemble a relationship from the novels at all. Based on her response to [[BreakingBadNewsGently Beau's reaction]], she might be in for a rude awakening. |
| 513 | * TomboyAndGirlyGirl: The girly-girl to Beau's (and, when she's around, Yasha's) tomboy. |
| 514 | * TrademarkFavoriteFood: Pastries in general, donuts in particular. Jester seems to subsist almost entirely on them, to the point where she hoards some as rations when on the road and will eat (or offer them) days later when they've turned stale. |
| 515 | * TraumaButton: The moment she was (accidentaly) left alone with the Blue Dragon Thelashas in the Heirloom Sphere left her seriously shaken. When Fjord later casts an illusion of the dragon as a distraction for a bunch of zombies, Jester immediately starts to panic thinking Thelashas came back for her. |
| 516 | * TheTrickster: So far a relatively harmless version, but she's a cleric of the Trickery domain who receives divine approval from pranks, like moving books around in a bookstore or defacing religious statues with bright paint and sequins. |
| 517 | * TrueBlueFemininity: She is the most overtly girly female member of the party, and her skin, hair, and eyes are all varying shades of blue. |
| 518 | * VoluntaryShapeshifting: She gains access to the "Polymorph" spell and uses it to transform herself in episode 49. |
| 519 | * WomanChild: Jester's penchant for sweets, obsession with pranks, and fixation on making dick paintings makes her seem more like a hyperactive twelve year old than the fully grown adult she is. She can also be somewhat bratty, throwing a tantrum when Fjord says the party might have to leave before all the fancy winter accessories she commissioned are ready. |
| 520 | * YaoiFangirl: Fell asleep at her sketchbook while in the middle of drawing some (zombie) guys making out. |
| 521 | * YouthfulFreckles: Has a smattering of them across her cheeks. |
| 522 | [[/folder]] |
| 523 | |
| 524 | [[folder:Mollymauk (Unmarked Spoilers)]] |
| 525 | !!Mollymauk "Molly" Tealeaf |
| 526 | !!!Played by: Creator/TaliesinJaffe |
| 527 | [[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/mollymauk_tealeaf.jpg]] |
| 528 | [[caption-width-right:350:''"Be the chaos you want to see in the world."'']] |
| 529 | -->'''Race:''' Devil's Tongue Tiefling |
| 530 | -->'''Class:''' Blood Hunter (Order of the Ghostslayer) |
| 531 | |
| 532 | A flamboyant tiefling blood hunter who is introduced as a traveling circus performer and con-man. He presents himself as a charismatic and suave showman with a knack for fortune telling, but displays an unusual amount of knowledge about how to hunt and slay demonic creatures. |
| 533 | |
| 534 | This page covers tropes pertaining to Mollymauk. For tropes pertaining to Lucien/The Nonagon, see his entry over on the [[Characters/CriticalRoleWildemountVillains Wildemount Villains page]]. |
| 535 | |
| 536 | ---- |
| 537 | * AgentPeacock: To a glorious degree. Molly's general color palette is similar to a peacock, his horns are bedazzled and decorated, and he even has a tattoo of a peacock. However, he proves very capable in a fight. |
| 538 | * AmnesiacDissonance: See AmnesiacHero below. Molly doesn't remember his life before being buried in the ground and doesn't care for the person he was beforehand. As revealed in episode 111, Lucien, his past self, is a very different person. |
| 539 | * AmnesiacsAreInnocent: Downplayed. Molly lacks Lucien's more destructive traits and is free of the Somnovem's influence, knowing nothing of what the eyes on his body mean. However, calling him fully innocent is a stretch, as while he's not ''evil'', he’s still a con artist and hedonist. |
| 540 | * AmnesiacHero: Molly claims that he's been with the circus [[ExactWords as long as he can remember]], and Toya tells Jester and Nott that he joined them two years ago. When he gains the ability to use Cleansing Rite, Matt describes it as something clicking in his memory and recognizing the ability, implying that he had forgotten it until just then. A similar description is used earlier when Molly tries an Intelligence check to identify the devil toad, to the point once the name of the being is mentioned, something clicks in the back of his mind. It's confirmed in Episode 14, when Molly tells the Nein that he woke up one day buried under the earth, with no memory of who he was. Played with in Episode 140 after Caduceus uses Divine Intervention and manages to bring Molly back, he appears to have no memories of himself, but seems to somewhat recognize the Nein. |
| 541 | * AmazingTechnicolorPopulation: Purple is a ''very'' rare skin color for tieflings to have, and the fact that he's in a party with Jester, a blue tiefling, only makes his rarity stick out all the more. |
| 542 | * AnIcePerson: Using Rite of the Frozen, Molly can imbue his scimitars with the ability to inflict ice damage, though [[CastFromHitPoints at the cost of some of his health.]] |
| 543 | * AwesomeButImpractical: His dual wielding style along with his blood hunting abilities mean that Molly has the potential to do a lot of damage. But in order to get the best out of it, he has to handicap himself for at least two turns and lose 2-8 health for the rest of the battle. His low defenses and other abilities that require losing health don't do him any favors either. |
| 544 | * BackFromTheDead: |
| 545 | ** Subverted. His previous identity was gone, whether through amnesia or something more thorough, but his body was alive again. |
| 546 | ** Later played straight in Episode 111, where we find that he has somehow returned, albeit as his previous identity of Lucien. |
| 547 | ** After Lucien, his prior identity returned again, is defeated as the final boss of the campaign in Episode 140, the Mighty Nein attempt a resurrection ritual for Molly, which unfortunately fails. However, Caduceus is able to use ''Divine Intervention'' to have the Wildmother bring him back, and so Molly is finally returned to life again, over one hundred episodes after his untimely death in Episode 26. |
| 548 | * BadassBoast: When using Vicious Mockery, he tends to make rather ominous and vicious ones, a far cry from his usual suave and fancy demeanor. |
| 549 | -->'''Mollymauk''': Nothing but death awaits you! |
| 550 | * BadLiar: Not all the time, but some of his lies are pretty terrible. No one believes his bullshit stories about his past and at one point he tries to get rid of Cree by telling her he gets mistaken for people all the time, despite being a rare purple tiefling with bright red eyes who is covered in tattoos. |
| 551 | * BewareTheSillyOnes: Molly is very willing to, and frequently puts himself, in embarrassing situations with little convincing, and has a rather ridiculous fashion sense. Nonetheless, Molly's fighting style heavily utilizes BloodMagic, and at the time of his death, he had the highest kill count of the party. |
| 552 | * BlackSpeech: Mollymauk speaks Infernal, which he uses to threaten people when using Vicious Mockery. According to Taliesin, he'd say whatever he wanted in Infernal and still get the same effect because it's the language itself that scares people, but because Jester can also speak it, he makes the effort to come up with something intimidating. |
| 553 | * BookDumb: Taliesin has said that Molly is "just barely literate" and has never read a book and doesn't care to. |
| 554 | * BuriedAlive: Played with. He wasn't alive when he was buried--or at least, his compatriots couldn't detect any signs of life from him--but then he woke up underground later with none of his memories. |
| 555 | * CastFromHitPoints: A feature of the Blood Hunter class, Molly can cut himself with his scimitars to coat them in ice or use a Blood Maledict to temporarily blind his foes. In a fit of {{Irony}}, a Blood Maledict is directly responsible for his death in Episode 26. |
| 556 | * CharacterAlignment: [[DefiedTrope Defied]] InUniverse as per Taliesin in the Campaign 2 wrap-up. Molly was partially created out of a desire to create a character with no alignment at all. This doesn't mean True Neutral, it literally means no alignment whatsoever, and any magical items or effects that check for specific alignments would simply fail to work on him. |
| 557 | * CharmPerson: Molly is a “Devil’s Tongue” tiefling, which means his bloodline gives him access to magic focused around enchantment and manipulation (as opposed to more traditional infernal magicks like ''Thaumaturgy'' and ''Hellish Rebuke''), including the spell that lends this trope its name. |
| 558 | * ConsummateLiar: He tells other group members he's been a part of the circus [[ExactWords as long as he can remember and allows them to think he means his whole life]], but Toya tells Nott and Jester during their investigation that Molly joined the circus about two years ago and was completely nonverbal. When asked for his backstory, Molly gives Fjord a fanciful tale about being a descendant of a royal family who served an ice demon who lived in a volcano; Fjord sees right through it without issue. Later he admits he was lying and gives a different backstory, which no one even bothers to insight check now that they believe he's lying anyway. When his ''real'' backstory comes up, he [[SelfProclaimedLiar admits he is this]]. |
| 559 | -->'''Mollymauk:''' Never trust the truth. [[AwfulTruth The truth is vicious. The truth thinks you owe it something.]] None of that. I like my bullshit. It's good. It's happy. It makes other people happy.\ |
| 560 | '''Nott:''' But it's not who you are.\ |
| 561 | '''Mollymauk:''' It is ''exactly'' who I am.\ |
| 562 | [...]\ |
| 563 | '''Nott:''' If you always lie and bullshit, how are we ever going to believe you?\ |
| 564 | '''Mollymauk:''' [[RefugeInAudacity Because I always lie and bullshit.]] |
| 565 | * CoolSword: In episode 22 he obtains Summer's Dance, a beautiful golden scimitar with jewels inlaid in the hilt. Not only is it more deadly than his previous main hand scimitar, but it also allows him to use Misty Step to teleport both into and away from combat. |
| 566 | * CoveredWithScars: Has numerous small scars across his chest where he's drawn his own blood to fuel his Blood Hunter powers. |
| 567 | * DamageReduction: Has Hellish Resistance as a tiefling, which equates to resistance against fire damage. |
| 568 | * DarkIsNotEvil: He's a tiefling who uses his own blood to fight, but is more or less on the side of good. He was designed to contrast Percy from campaign one by being a person who comes across as sketchy and dangerous, but ultimately cares very much for those around him and will do whatever it takes to protect them. |
| 569 | * DeadpanSnarker: Ruthlessly snarks at the guards who detain the party and the circus performers after the attack on the circus. This ultimately leads to his boss's attempt to say he's not a member of the circus to fall flat. |
| 570 | * DeathOfPersonality: It is implied that it happened to Mollymauk when he got resurrected for the second time. Even though the scrying shows that his body is alive and well, his mannerisms suggest that the person who the Mighty Nein used to know is gone. Lucien himself confirms it in Episode 117: Mollymauk was a fragment of Lucien's soul powerful enough to take control over his body after the rest of it was scattered. Now that the original soul is whole again [[SplitPersonalityTakeover Molly just came back to be a part of Lucien's personality]], or at least this is what Lucien thinks about the matter. Progressively downplayed following Episode 136. Molly was revealed to be still within Lucien and subtly influencing his behavior. ex: Lucien delaying killing the Nein when he ruthlessly executed many others in his path, certain words triggering twitches and confusion, ect. In the final fight, calling out to him and passing a high enough persuasion roll allows him to rob Lucien of his Legendary Actions. |
| 571 | * DecompositeCharacter: Both Laura and Taliesin had the idea for a lavender-skinned tiefling with a sickle. They agreed that Jester would keep the weapon and Molly would keep the peculiar skin tone. |
| 572 | * DecoyBackstory: When asked about his past, Molly likes giving elaborate and entirely fabricated answers, such as telling Fjord he was meant to be a sacrifice for a cult and routinely performing prayer rituals on his swords to back up the story. No one ever believes him, and it's eventually revealed [[spoiler:he has no past -- he was born two years ago from the remains of the soul of someone called Lucien, having woken up in a grave with ominous eye tattoos, no memories and only able to say the word "empty"]]. |
| 573 | * DefiantToTheEnd: As Mollymauk is killed by Lorenzo, leader of the Iron Shepherds, Matt asks if he has any final words to say. Molly's only reaction is to spit blood in Lorenzo's face. |
| 574 | * DiesWideOpen: Taliesin specifies that Molly's eyes remain open after Lorenzo's second, fatal blow. |
| 575 | * DidntThinkThisThrough: After the fighting ends in the first episode, he makes a sarcastic comment to the Crownsguard about how the circus was planning on causing a ZombieApocalypse, only to then have to roll a deception check to make the guards think he isn't part of the circus. Due to his sarcastic comment before, he ends up having to roll with disadvantage, failing to convince them as a result, and getting himself caught into trouble. |
| 576 | * DualWielding: Uses two scimitars. |
| 577 | * EveryoneHasStandards: Molly clearly believes in the concept of "being fair" to some extent. This can be seen in Episode 8 when Molly secretly pays the people of Alfield for the free drinks they are buying him and the party, and when he spares the bandits that attacked the party at night, even gifting each one of them a gold piece before sending them on their way. In addition, while he generally has no issues with theft (especially if the victims are deserving of it), he is against the Mighty Nein stealing amongst themselves. This is why he helps Fjord with catching Nott in the act, though part of it was also for his own amusement. |
| 578 | * EvilCounterpart: Inverted. It's revealed he is very similar to Lucien as they are both egotistical, cryptic and theatrical, and enjoy messing with people. However, Lucien is a narcissist who values his ambitions above even those closest to him, while Molly is fine making a fool of himself and genuinely cares about those around him. |
| 579 | * EvilIsAngular: Subverted. Molly is typically depicted as having a fairly angular face and sharp eyes, and wears a coat with a variety of sharp angles and a deep, V-neck shirt. However, despite his apparent sketchiness, he's an overall pleasant individual aside from his grifting. Lucien, on the other hand… |
| 580 | * ExactWords: In the early days of the campaign, when the Nein were not yet privy to his AmnesiacHero status, he sometimes played around the truth with his memory, such as stating that he's been with the circus "as long as [he] can remember". |
| 581 | * FantasticRacism: He frequently experiences racism, but is targeted directly more often than Jester, who can use magic to alter her appearance, while Molly is forced to confront bigots as himself. |
| 582 | * FightingFromTheInside: It's implied that Molly still exists somewhere within Lucien's soul following his death and is doing whatever he can to impede his other self. There are even hints that Molly is partly responsible for Lucien tearing himself apart after Jester deals the final blow. |
| 583 | * ForgotAboutHisPowers: Molly explains to the group that some time after he woke up in the ground, he started displaying his blood hunter powers and knew things something he shouldn't have known. Justified as he literally forgot the abilities he had as Lucien and has to relearn them. |
| 584 | * ForgottenFallenFriend: Averted. Neither the Nein nor the audience have forgotten him. They still have some of his belongings, and Beau got a tattoo based off of one of his tarot cards. His belief that they should "leave every place better than you found it" has practically become the Nein's - and particularly Beau's - guiding philosophy. |
| 585 | * FourIsDeath: He deals four damage to himself on his final Blood Maledict, wiping out his final four health, then takes four instantly-failed death saving throws for his true death. |
| 586 | * TheFriendNobodyLikes: Not really, but he uses this as an excuse when the Crick soldier in the sewers of Zadash takes him hostage: nobody else of the Mighty Nein would care about him getting killed since they don't like him any way, so why bother to threaten him? |
| 587 | * GameplayAndStorySegregation: He has pretty good social and persuasive skills, working as a carnival barker and once tricking a town into believing he was royalty for a con. However, this is not reflected in Molly's official stats, as his charisma is the third lowest in the group, topping only [[TheStoic Yasha]] and [[BadLiar Nott]]'s scores. |
| 588 | * GenderBlenderName: He's usually referred to as "Molly". Justified, in that he's genderfluid. |
| 589 | * GlassCannon: Due to Blood Hunters dealing damage to themselves to use their abilities, Molly is fairly fragile, but can deal a lot of damage in a single round of combat with just his normal melee attacks. |
| 590 | * GrossOutFakeOut: His distraction during the hospital heist deserves a special mention for how utterly ''revolting'' it is, even in context. He mimics leprosy by putting eggs on his genitals and also uses the food as fake vomit to spew in an orderly's face, before crawling on the floor while trailing blood from a cut on his neck he made. Unfortunately, it ends up GoneHorriblyRight and the hospital staff are so freaked out they refuse to let Molly leave, forcing him to defenestrate himself to escape. |
| 591 | * {{Guyliner}}: Not strictly a guy, given he is genderfluid, but typically male-presenting. Official art depicts Molly as wearing faint red eyeliner. |
| 592 | * HateAtFirstSight: According to Taliesin, Molly instinctively took a dislike to Beau upon first meeting her, a feeling that is entirely mutual, leading to the two frequently taking jabs at one other. Despite this, Beau is affected the most after Yasha by his death, and affected for the longest. |
| 593 | * TheHedonist: Downplayed. Molly is very focused on enjoying the present, partaking in alcohol, drugs, sex, and generally going along with anything he finds amusing. Though he doesn't indulge to the point of harm, these tendencies make him an ''awful'' roommate, with Taliesin confirming Molly does not have sympathy for Fjord after the Blood Hunter brings prostitutes into their shared room. |
| 594 | * HoistByHisOwnPetard: A rare heroic example, as his death came about due to him trying to use one of his blood maledict abilities to give Lorenzo disadvantage, but he ended up taking max damage from using it, knocking him out and making it all the easier for Lorenzo to finish him off. |
| 595 | * HornedHumanoid: He's got a pair of curled goat-like horns which he's bedazzled with various chains, baubles and bits of jewelry. |
| 596 | * HunterOfMonsters: Blood Hunters are generally monster hunters who go to the extremes to be able to hunt down and fight evil. Lucien did belong to the Claret Orders, before Molly claimed his body. |
| 597 | * IHatePastMe: Downplayed. Molly considers whoever he used to be just someone who happened to have occupied his body and wants nothing to do with them, even if they had a good life. He also mentions he gets a bad feeling any time something from the past comes to him. |
| 598 | * IHaveManyNames: Currently sticks to just Molly, but in his previous life, he was known as Lucien, the Nonagon and potentially other aliases. After he gets resurrected again in Episode 140 he decides to change his name into Kingsley "King" Tealeaf because he thought [[ThatManIsDead the name Mollymauk]] [[SelfDeprecation was too silly]]. |
| 599 | * IKnowYoureInThereSomewhereFight: During the battle in Cognouza, despite Lucien's insistence that Molly is dead, the party members take turns calling out to him in hopes their friend isn't gone. To their credit, Molly is implied to still exist within Lucien's soul and doing what he can to aid the Nein, robbing his other self of Legendary Actions every time they roll a high enough Persuasion check. |
| 600 | * IShallTauntYou: He can use ''Vicious Mockery'', and uses it very often. |
| 601 | * JerkWithAHeartOfGold: Molly is shifty, deceitful, and sarcastic, but he clearly cares for his compatriots both at the circus and in the party; he even spares a gang of bandits who [[MuggingTheMonster foolishly ambushed the party]] in Episode 8. He's also very sympathetic to the plight of the poor, encouraging Nott to give them a pass and to steal only from "grumpy" people - that is, the wealthy, [[TeethClenchedTeamwork and Beau]]. |
| 602 | * KilledOffForReal: Zigzagged. He was killed by Lorenzo in episode 26, and despite his [[BuriedAlive back]][[BackFromTheDead story]], it was generally assumed he was dead for good due to the low level of the party and the subsequent lack of options to perform a resurrection. However, when the party returned to his grave in episode 111, they found it empty, suggesting that Molly could possibly be alive again, in some form. Their hopes were squashed when they caught up with him in Eiselcross, and learned that it was not Molly, but Lucien who was brought back, who himself is [[SuspiciouslySpecificDenial very insistent]] that ThatManIsDead, assuming he'd [[DeathOfPersonality ever existed in the first place.]] Lucien's actions and behaviors suggest otherwise though, and during the final battle it becomes clear that some piece of Molly still exists inside Lucien. The party is ultimately able to bring him back by defeating Lucien and performing a successful resurrection ritual (thanks to Divine Intervention by Caduceus). Even then, Molly also insists ThatManIsDead, if only because he can't remember anything about who he was before his resurrection, taking on the name "Kingsley" instead. |
| 603 | * LargeHam: Comes with the territory of being a circus promoter, but best seen when he pretends to be sick to infiltrate an infirmary in Episode 12. When he's told to "make a scene", he goes ''all in''. |
| 604 | * LightEmUp: Upon taking the subclass of Order of the Ghostslayer at Level 3, he gains the ability Cleansing Rite, which lets him add radiant damage to his weapons through Rite of the Dawn. |
| 605 | * ALighterShadeOfBlack: Downplayed and discussed. After Molly's death, Beau admits that though they both grifted and committed bad deeds, she would worsen places because she could, while Molly at least made people happy and wanted to change things for the better. This causes the monk to adopt his philosophy and make an active attempt to leave every place better than how she found it. |
| 606 | * MasterOfDisguise: He owns a disguise kit and can do a convincing job of making himself appear human, albeit not as effectively as characters who can cast spells such as Disguise Self. |
| 607 | * MeaningfulName: |
| 608 | ** He's a fortune-teller (or [[PhonyPsychic claims to be]]) and his last name is Tealeaf. The study of tea leaves, called tasseography, is a traditional form of divination dating to the Middle Ages. In the past he apparently went by "the Nonagon," meaning an object with [[ArcNumber nine]] sides. Matt claims he had chosen the name at the beginning of the campaign and its meaning is purely a coincidence. |
| 609 | ** "Molly" is an old slang term[[note]] or slur - it's a feminizing term similar to the modern "sissy" and that meaning can still be found in phrases like "don't mollycoddle the boy". Originally, "molly" was a slang word for "prostitute" (see the erotic book ''Moll Flanders'' from that same period, or the 1920s term "ganster moll"); just like "gay" originally comes from "gay woman" as a euphemism for a prostitute, i.e. a woman who has more fun than she should have according to the moral guardians of the time.[[/note]] for queer men and male-bodied genderqueer people, and a [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Molly_house "molly house"]] was a (very illegal) club / brothel for queer male patrons in 18th and 19th century Britain - often with the hosts / sex workers dressing up in drag (due to heteronormative ideas of what relationships should look like), but these meeting places would also provide a safe space for genderqueer patrons to dress up and behave like they want but can't in their everyday lives. Also, apparently there were a lot of gender-crossing rituals (like marriage ceremonies and "mock-births") performed in this subculture. Given Taliesin's gothness[[note]] (Molly houses often feature in modern media with a gothic or "demimonde" type Victorian setting, e.g. ''Dracula'' and ''Jack the Ripper'' adaptations, ''Penny Dreadful'', ''Ripper Street'', as well as the earlier-set series ''Harlots''.)[[/note]] and the level of research he put into the setting of the ''Call of Cthulhu'' one-shot, it's a pretty safe bet that he knew this when he created the character with a name that would naturally be abbreviated to "Molly". |
| 610 | ** "Molly" has also become an American slang term for the party drug Ecstasy in [[TheNewTens the 2010s]]. Taliesin lets slip in the Monsterhearts one-shot that he knows ''quite a lot'' about such party drugs... |
| 611 | ** In-universe, he chose his name based on having the initials "M.T." because they sounded like the word "empty," which was all that he could say for some time after coming BackFromTheDead. |
| 612 | * MultipleChoicePast: He's given two different explanations of his past, one of which was confirmed by an Insight check to be complete bullshit, and the other was automatically disbelieved by the party. Justified by the fact that [[AmnesiacHero he doesn't know what the truth is himself.]] |
| 613 | * MundaneUtility: As is revealed in Episode 24, his [[BloodMagic Blood Maledict]], which is typically used to curse people with a variety of blood-related effects, can be used to sober up drunk people in an instant by clearing the alcohol out of their blood. |
| 614 | * MysteriousPast: Officially has one of these: according to Toya, he showed up at the circus two years ago, completely nonverbal, and was taken in as a result. He also tries to hide his past, giving Fjord a completely bullshit story about his origins when asked. Following the encounter with Cree in Episode 14, Molly explains that he woke up buried underground two years ago and remembers very little of his previous life, when he was known as Lucien and part of a group called the Tomb Takers. |
| 615 | * NamedWeapon: During the Nein's looting of the Gentleman's safe house, he finds the Summer's Dance, a magical, jewel-inlaid, golden scimitar that allows its wielder to teleport for short distances. |
| 616 | * OddFriendship: With Yasha; they could not possibly be more different, but seem quite amicable. When Yasha decides [[WrittenInAbsence not to travel with the party]], it’s Molly who extends an invitation for her to join up later. Also, they are a tiefling[[note]]Fiendtouched, aka tied to devils or demons[[/note]] and an aasimar[[note]]celestialtouched, aka tied to angels[[/note]] respectively. Even after he's brought back, his first reaction to seeing Yasha is calling her "Love". |
| 617 | * OneWordVocabulary: While telling the Nein his history, Molly reveals that he came out of his grave severely mentally impaired, and for the first week or so would only mumble the word "empty". When he's successfully brought back to life in Episode 140 he still only speaks in loose words, but his vocab now also includes the names of the tarot cards he made to represent the rest of the Mighty Nein ("Joy" for Jester, "Love" for Yasha, "Magician" for Caleb, etc). This lasts until Jester casts Greater Restoration on him, which restores his ability to speak normally. |
| 618 | * OohMeAccentsSlipping: He tends to teeter into and out of something vaguely Irish. Humorously, his accent becomes more consistent and convincingly Irish after Matthew Mercer takes over playing him. Taliesin lampshades this when he plays Molly again in Episode 140. |
| 619 | * PhonyPsychic: ''Possibly''. He gives Jester a reading that is definitely based around giving her vague answers that could mean anything, and Caleb's Detect Magic catches nothing. However, he later shows her two cards, the Moon and the Shadow, with the air of giving her something that definitively means something, and she seems to have at least some idea of their importance. It gets more mysterious in Episode 14, when he reveals that while he usually just perceives people's tells and tells them what they want to hear, he ''does'' sometimes get a "tickle" in his mind that points his intuition.[[note]]Even the vague answer he gives Jester regarding her search for her father, "You've already found the clue you need..." takes on a deeper level in that Beau would later steal a letter which contained the first mention of The Gentleman in the campaign.[[/note]] |
| 620 | * PromotionToOpeningTitles: Starting from episode 112 he is one of the prominent characters featured in the Dungeon Master's book. Also, his GraveMarkingScene cameo gets an upgrade where [[SnowMeansDeath the snow]] disappears to become [[FallenHero muddy terrain]], and [[DeathOfPersonality the coat falls from the pole]] after that [[PreviousPlayerCharacterCameo the raven flies away]] to symbolize his return to life. |
| 621 | * RealMenHateAffection: Pointedly averted; despite his secretiveness, Molly openly and easily shows concern and affection towards those he cares about, attempting to console Toya following the death of Kylre, giving the Knot Sisters a kiss on the head after they defend him from Beau, and later giving Caleb a forehead kiss in an attempt to bring him back from a panic attack. |
| 622 | * RedEyesTakeWarning: His are bright red, and a number of his supernatural abilities rely on making eye contact with his opponent. |
| 623 | * SacrificialLion: As the first permanent mid-campaign death across all three campaigns, absolutely nothing in Critical Role history has changed the scope of a story the way Molly's murder at Lorenzo's hands changed the second campaign, turning it into the introspective, character-driven epic everyone knows it for today. |
| 624 | * SelfHarmInducedSuperpower: He cuts himself to cast some terrifying spells and curses. Creator/TaliesinJaffe specified that, for Molly, cutting wasn't about self-harm but acts of sacrifice, since Molly never found any pleasure or relief from using his blood in this manner. He gives of himself to protect and maintain. [[spoiler:Upon Molly's death - caused when he cut himself too much in an attempt to blind an antagonist -, Lucien is resurrected.]] |
| 625 | * SemiDivine: Being a tiefling, Mollymauk has fiendish ancestry. |
| 626 | * SignificantMonogram: When he was first found by Gustav, Molly kept repeating "empty" to himself, but Gustav interpreted it as the monogram MT. This served as an inspiration for Gustav when he forged papers for the tiefling, naming him '''M'''ollymauk '''T'''ealeaf. |
| 627 | * SitcomArchNemesis: He is one of these to Beau - the two absolutely ''despise'' each other from the moment they meet, and Molly takes evident amusement in pushing her buttons wherever he can. After his death, however, Beau starts to reevaluate her opinion of him, and even starts trying to live life in accordance with his philosophies. |
| 628 | * SmallRoleBigImpact: While he died relatively early on in the series, Molly and his philosophy of "Leave every place better than how you found it" left an impact on the party that becomes more pronounced the more involved they become in the affairs of the Empire and beyond. The unsolved mystery surrounding his nine eye-shaped tattoos also comes to the fore following the events on Rumblecusp, as the Nein have a vision of an organic floating city, traversing the Astral Sea and having something to do with "the Eyes of Nine." |
| 629 | * SpellBlade: His skills as a Blood Hunter included applying "rites" to his blades. He starts with [[AnIcePerson Rite of the Frozen]], and learns [[LightEmUp Rite of the Dawn]] at level 3. |
| 630 | * SpellMyNameWithAThe: One of his various previous names was "the Nonagon," which seems to indicate that it was some kind of title, which is confirmed in Episode 114. |
| 631 | * SpitefulSpit: When the DM asks what Molly's last words are in his final moments, Taliesin chooses for the tiefling to instead spit blood in Lorenzo's face, who gives him VillainousRespect before dealing the killing blow. |
| 632 | * SplitPersonalityTakeover: A possible explanation for Molly's existence, if Lucien is to be believed. When Vess [=DeRogna=] shattered Lucien's soul a fragment was left behind, one that ultimately grew into the individual known as Mollymauk Tealeaf. When Molly was killed, that piece was subsumed by the whole, leading to Lucien's eventual revival. [[UnreliableExpositor Maybe]]. |
| 633 | * ThatManIsDead: Molly views himself as entirely separate from Lucien, and is absolutely against learning more about him and who he was. In a first for this trope, episode 114 cements the fact that ''the feeling is mutual.'' |
| 634 | * {{Troll}}: He is perfectly willing to mess with people for kicks. He tricks Nott into trading him an item for a blank sheet of paper when he catches her going through Fjord's things, and immediately tells Fjord but leaves without giving any details, forcing Fjord to run into the room wearing a bath towel to chase her out. |
| 635 | * WalkingSpoiler: On several levels: |
| 636 | ** Molly's dubious honor of being the first PC to permanently die mid-campaign means that any discussion of the Eyes of Nine plotline cannot be had without the knowledge that he was killed in episode 26, and was later revived - [[DeathOfPersonality at least physically]] - by his old companions, the Tomb Takers. |
| 637 | ** By extension, any discussion of that arc also can't be had without the knowledge that Molly was not the original inhabitant of his own body, with the body originally belonging to Lucien, with Mollymauk being a sliver of Lucien's fractured soul. |
| 638 | * YouAreWorthHell: The Nein go through great lengths to try and call out to Molly even though Lucien insists that part of him is gone. After defeating Lucien, the Nein manage to retrieve Molly's body and when Essek asks if all they went through was worth bringing Molly back, Caleb simply replies that "Once you're in the Nein, you're in." |
| 639 | [[/folder]] |
| 640 | |
| 641 | [[folder:Nott (Unmarked Spoilers)]] |
| 642 | |
| 643 | !!Revvetha "Veth" Brenatto/Nott the Brave |
| 644 | !!!Played by: Creator/SamRiegel |
| 645 | [[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/veth_78.jpeg]] |
| 646 | [[caption-width-right:350:''"Everyone back up! We're gonna Fluffernutter this bitch!"'']] |
| 647 | [[caption-width-right:350:Click [[labelnote:here]]https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/veth_1_6.jpg[[/labelnote]] to see Veth before Level 10.]] |
| 648 | [[caption-width-right:350:Click [[labelnote:here]]https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/nott_lvl_10.jpg[[/labelnote]] to see Veth as Nott.]] |
| 649 | [[caption-width-right:350:Click [[labelnote:here]]https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/nott_1.jpg[[/labelnote]] to see Veth as Nott before Level 10.]] |
| 650 | -->'''Race:''' Lightfoot Halfling (formerly transformed into a Goblin) |
| 651 | -->'''Class:''' Rogue (Arcane Trickster) / Wizard |
| 652 | |
| 653 | |
| 654 | A halfling rogue with [[KleptomaniacHero kleptomaniacal tendencies]] and an alcohol addiction. Formerly transformed into a goblin, during which period she disguised herself with a half mask made of a porcelain doll's face. Caleb's travelling companion. She is ''incredibly'' bad at lying. |
| 655 | |
| 656 | ---- |
| 657 | * AccidentalHero: When Jester tries and fails to seal a rift in a stone giant's lair, Nott later unwittingly does it when she shatters the [[ArtifactOfDoom Abyssal Anchor]] with a gun she pickpocketed. While Nott intended to destroy the Anchor, she didn't realize that breaking it would also seal any rifts it created. |
| 658 | * ActionMom: She is a mother and an accomplished Arcane Trickster. [[HeroWorshipper Her son Luc]] is delighted. Her husband Yeza knows that she is strong enough to take care of herself, but he still worries that her stories (and some of her [[WeaponJr souvenirs]]) are not exactly [[WhatDoYouMeanItsForKids appropriate for a four-year-old child]]. |
| 659 | * ActOfTrueLove: She goes all the way to Xhorhas and negotiates with the Bright Queen just to get Yeza back and free him from their prison. |
| 660 | * TheAlcoholic: She dulls her anxiety and kleptomania with alcohol. Drunk Nott is significantly more "brave" than Tipsy Nott, much to the amusement and horror of the rest of the party. Along with facing penalties to some ability checks, some penalties are more personal, with a tender reunion with her son marred by her drunkenness. |
| 661 | * AllOfTheOtherReindeer: As Veth, the other halflings in her village oftentimes bullied and made fun of Nott for her looks and quirky behavior. Her husband, Yeza, was the only one to see her for who she really was; but she had already internalized it at that point, and after turning into a goblin she ran away in fear that he would be disgusted by her as well. |
| 662 | * AllWomenAreLustful: She's caught lusting over a particularly muscular minotaur despite having long confirmed that she's still married to Yeza. Upon turning back into Veth, she and Yeza end up doing it ''a lot. In many, many ways.'' Episode 135 resurrects this one when she's caught lusting after ''a robot.'' |
| 663 | * AutomaticCrossbows: Her Tinkertop Bolt Blaster 1000, a {{Magitek}} hand-crank crossbow. If Nott is particularly lucky, it will fire two arrows at once, but if she's particularly ''un''lucky, the thing will [[ReliablyUnreliableGuns misfire]] and shoot ''[[BackwardsFiringGun her]]''. |
| 664 | * {{Backstab}}: Part and parcel of the rogue class. |
| 665 | * BadLiar: In a stunning turn from Scanlan and his +18, Nott has a ''-3'' to Charisma rolls [[note]]-2 after she gets her charisma-buffing tattoo[[/note]]. This means anytime she tries to lie using Deception means she has to roll almost a natural 20 to succeed on them. |
| 666 | * BadassCape: The Cloak of Elvenkind, like Vax'ildan before her. |
| 667 | * BadassUnintentional: Nott doesn't think of herself as anything special. The reason for this becomes apparent when it's revealed that she just wants to return home to her husband and child. All her heroic skills are gained so she can return to normalcy. |
| 668 | * BigBeautifulWoman: It's a tad downplayed, given Veth is inordinately short on account of being a halfling, but even within that measure she's both quite chubby and ''very'' pretty. |
| 669 | * BloodKnight: Gets a little ''too'' into combat sometimes, and occasionally reacts to someone causing a problem by threatening extreme violence against them. She's usually talked out of it easily, though. |
| 670 | * BowAndSwordInAccord: Her weapons are a hand crossbow and a short sword. |
| 671 | * BoomerangBigot: Nott ''loathes'' other Goblins, and agrees with the common perceptions that they are evil creatures. In episode 19, she even states that killing Goblins brings her great satisfaction, and is only upset that one got away. Her hatred of her own kind is so great that she wishes for Caleb to learn magic that can transform her permanently into something else. Episode 49 subverts this, in that she wasn't originally a goblin, but was turned into one as a form of punishment and torture. |
| 672 | * BoozeBasedBuff: The mechanical effects of her inebriation states that when severely intoxicated, she has disadvantage on Dexterity, Intelligence, and Perception ability checks, but is immune to the Frightened condition. |
| 673 | * BornLucky: Defied. As a Halfling, Veth naturally has halfling luck, but Sam has come to hate the Lucky feat and similar abilities after the last campaign, and so he refuses to make use of it; even when it could save Veth from her weapon backfiring from a natural 1. Played straight when Sam rolls a natural 1 after the rest of the Nein attempt to take the cursed Corecut Dagger away from Veth, doing so for the sole purpose of trolling the other players. He still failed the roll. |
| 674 | * BrainwashedAndCrazy: Obann charms her during their initial meeting and again during episode 86. |
| 675 | * ButNowIMustGo: In the final episode, Veth bids farewell to the Nein, saying how she wants to spend more time with her family. But she does ask the others to visit often when they can. |
| 676 | * BuxomBeautyStandard: Sam has made [[BoobBasedGag multiple jokes]] about her well-endowed halfling chest. |
| 677 | * CatchPhrase: Nott always concludes her ''Message'' spell with the words: "You can respond to this message". She even takes the time to sign off like this when being slowly crushed to death by an enchanted rug. |
| 678 | * CharacterDevelopment: |
| 679 | ** Molly's advice to not steal from happy people really sinks in after [[spoiler: his death]]. It's the first time Nott is seen to be showing respect for someone else's goods without prompting from someone else. |
| 680 | ** After she is reunited with Yeza and he accepts her despite her goblin body, she starts to show more confidence in her body by removing her bandages and she even starts wearing dresses again. |
| 681 | * CharacterDeath: |
| 682 | ** [[spoiler: Ends up triggering a ''Power Word Kill'' trap when attempting to unlock a box in the Happy Fun Ball in Episode 83. Even worse, she wasn't warned in time to check for traps due to them having to keep silent in the chamber lest they attracted anti-magic mites. Fortunately, Jester was able to use ''Revivify'' on her, bringing her back.]] |
| 683 | ** Was not the first time she experienced death, as she was killed than forcibly reincarnated as a goblin by Isharnai the prism sage as part of her backstory. |
| 684 | * CharacterExaggeration: Most of Nott's issues were already present when she was Veth but to a much lesser extent, what was once a fondness for wine became full blown alcoholism, an aversion to being in crowded places became social anxiety, and a desire to collect some fun knickknacks, became severe Kleptomania. This is due to Sam's headcanon on goblins being feral creatures with little to no impulse control. |
| 685 | * ChekhovsGun: A literal example happens when she pickpockets a pistol from a Dwendalian soldier. She later uses it to destroy an Abyssal Anchor, sealing the planar rift it opened in the process. |
| 686 | * ChubbyMamaSkinnyPapa: As Veth, her body is on the rounder side, while her husband Yeza is described as leaner and short for a halfling. |
| 687 | * ContrastingSequelMainCharacter: |
| 688 | ** A strong contrast to Sam Riegel's previous character, Scanlan Shorthalt. Low charisma, awful singing, constantly nervous when Scanlan projected confidence, and a goblin when Scanlan hated goblins for killing his mother. Later PlayedForLaughs when she dispatches an enemy bard: |
| 689 | -->'''Nott:''' Bards suck! |
| 690 | ** Of course, that last part is somewhat subverted; Scanlan's mother was killed by goblins, while Nott ''is'' a mother who was killed by goblins. Both characters' hatred of goblins is probably around equal. |
| 691 | ** [[WordofGod Sam Riegel]] has confirmed that Nott was intentionally created to be a total opposite of Scanlan, from her personality to her gender. |
| 692 | * CowardlyLion: Extremely jittery and anxious, and always the first to insist on avoiding a dangerous situation. However, when push comes to shove, she is the first to act in order to protect her friends (especially Caleb). |
| 693 | * CreepyDoll: She has a mask made from a porcelain doll's head that hides the bottom of her face and helps her hide in plain sight. |
| 694 | * CripplingOverspecialization: Mechanically, Nott has a very impressive bonus to Investigation, but the worst Perception score out of the entire party. Since she often acts as the scout, Matt and Sam have played this out as Nott being excellent at finding clues when she is actively looking for them, but awful at [[FailedASpotCheck noticing the obvious]]. |
| 695 | * CrossDressingVoices: Sam is a man and Nott is a girl. Goblins speak in such raspy voices that it works out. Veth, a halfling, having the same voice anyway is pure RuleOfFunny. |
| 696 | * CuteMonsterGirl: While by default goblins are viewed as ugly and unattractive humanoid monsters, Nott is considered quite cute by the fandom and artwork. The team at large quickly starts treating her like a little sister. Takes a darker turn in Episode 49 - Nott was turned into a goblin because it's the ''exact opposite'' of what she considers beautiful. |
| 697 | * DarkAndTroubledPast: |
| 698 | ** Hinted; someone (or someones) are after her and she is a ''goblin'' who somehow is good in nature. Considering the AlwaysChaoticEvil nature of her race in most D&D settings, this implies she's been through enough to make her so anxious. She tells the Lawmaster during Episode 4's trial that she'd be happy to help the Crownsguard hunt down her former clan, and reveals to Fjord and Molly in Episode 11 that there are a lot of people further north who "don't like [her]". |
| 699 | ** Episode 49 goes much farther into this. Nott was born a halfling woman named Veth, who was eventually drowned by goblins, then likely turned into one through a cruelly ironic use of the Reincarnate spell. As a result, she cannot go home to her husband and son. |
| 700 | -->'''Nott:''' [monotone] ''No-one is after me.'' |
| 701 | * DecoyBackstory: Nott is originally believed to be a very strange goblin who loathes her own clan whom she parted ways with, and desires to be part of society despite their hatred for her. [[spoiler:She is actually a halfling called [[SignificantAnagram Veth Brenatto]] who was transformed into a goblin as punishment for killing one when they attacked her family. After escaping the clan, she stuck with Caleb partly in hopes that his magic could undo her curse.]] |
| 702 | * DidNotThinkThisThrough: Nott's fatal flaw is that she rarely thinks her actions through, either in or outside of battle. Outside of battle, she continuously tries to meddle with Caleb's past and personal life, including trying to reconnect him with Astrid when that might not be a good idea and when Caleb has asked her to stop. In battle, [[spoiler: she accidentally killed Caduceus with an explosive arrow, and then during a later fight nearly killed him again when he was eaten by a remorhaz with another explosive arrow.]] |
| 703 | * DiscardAndDraw: When Caleb finally polymorphs Veth from a goblin back to her true halfling form, she loses her goblin racial traits and gain's a halfling's traits instead. Notably, she lost her "Fury Of The Small" ability, much to her (and Sam's) dismay. |
| 704 | * DramaticGunCock: She's fond of doing this with her [[AutomaticCrossbows Crossbow.]] |
| 705 | -->'''Nott:''' [[LampshadeHanging I've cocked this thing three times now.]] |
| 706 | * DreadfulMusician: Just to further prove how far away she is from Scanlan, her singing is ''atrocious''. |
| 707 | * EveryonesBabySister: |
| 708 | ** Due to Nott's generally childlike demeanor and dorky personality, she's quickly shaping up to become this to the rest of the party: Caleb openly admits in Episode 8 that he sees her as a little sister. |
| 709 | ** Further revelations about her true identity and backstory turn this status on its head, as she actually has more life experience than the majority of the party, even if she isn't as old as a few of them. |
| 710 | * FailedASpotCheck: Due to having '''''+0''''' in Perception, [[RunningGag Nott is prone to having abysmal rolls of that nature]]. |
| 711 | * FantasticRacism: |
| 712 | ** In a world where Goblins are at best treated as untrustworthy troublemakers to be avoided and at worst as vermin to be exterminated, poor Nott suffers from this heavily, resulting in her attempting to hide her true appearance behind a mask, thick cloak and bandages. Fortunately, Caleb and the rest of the party don't treat her with such contempt. |
| 713 | ** PlayedForLaughs in her constant assumption that all Firbolgs know each other. |
| 714 | * ForcedTransformation: Episode 49 reveals that Nott was originally a Halfling woman who was turned into a goblin, after she killed the leader of the local goblins and his wife wanted to make her suffer. In episode 91, an attempt is made to change her back, but Nott is revealed to have been cursed to remain in goblin form, a curse that was eventually broken in Episode 93, and as of Episode 97, she's officially back to her original form. |
| 715 | * GirlishPigtails: Her Level 10 portrait depicts her with braided pigtails the same hairstyle she had as Veth. |
| 716 | * GivenNameReveal: In Episode 49, she reveals her true name to be "Veth Brenatto", when she was a halfling before her transformation into a goblin. |
| 717 | * GoodFeelsGood: She comes to this conclusion in Episode 27 while explaining her reasoning for [[spoiler: going to rescue Fjord, Jester and Yasha from the Iron Shepards.]] |
| 718 | -->'''Nott:''' We were hiding in the shadows and ducking into alleys to get away from people. We were safe but we weren't really alive, right? With these people we're having fun, and winning contests, and killing bad guys, and rescuing children, and... It's amazing. |
| 719 | * HappilyMarried: When she was still a halfling, she was married to the halfling alchemist Yeza, and had a son with him. Upon discovering she has turned into a goblin, he tells her he still loves her. They continue to have a happy and supportive marriage with Yeza providing her encouragement to continue adventuring until she's ready to settle down for good. |
| 720 | * InsatiableNewlyweds: After two years as a goblin, Veth is more than a little horny. When she finally reunites with Yeza in her true form, they make up for lost time. She also makes Yeza give her "one for the road" just before she and the party sail to join the Empire's and Dynasty's peace negotiations. |
| 721 | * InTheHood: She keeps her hood up at all times in public in an attempt to hide her species from townsfolk. |
| 722 | * IJustWantToHaveFriends: A big part of why she wants to continue hanging with the rest of the group despite Caleb's protests, believing that, besides Caleb, they are the first to accept and befriend her unconditionally. |
| 723 | ** Becomes {{deconstructed}} in Episode 13, where her UndyingLoyalty to Caleb clearly conflicts with any positive feelings she may have developed towards the rest of the group (excluding [[TheHeart Jester]]). |
| 724 | ** {{Reconstruction}} in Episode 27 as she establishes during her RousingSpeech that she ''[[TrueCompanions loves]]'' the other members of the Nein. |
| 725 | * IJustWantToBeNormal: |
| 726 | ** [During her confrontation with Molly and Fjord in Episode 11, Nott admits that she wants Caleb to "change her", so she doesn't have to live as a goblin anymore. In Episode 16, she makes a point of using Disguise Self to spend an hour as a "normal halfling" in a cafe. Episode 49 reveals the reason behind this, she originally ''was'' a halfling, so it's more "I just want to be normal ''again''." |
| 727 | ** [[PlayingWith/IJustWantToBeNormal Zig Zagged]] over time; her traumatic experiences as a goblin have driven her to seek out any possible cure, however her adventures with the Mighty Nein give her exciting experiences that her previous domestic life never could. She feels torn at the idea of returning to what she once had while severing ties with her new companions. |
| 728 | ** {{Exploited}} in episode 93; when the hag who transformed her asks what misery she'd offer in exchange to undo the curse, Nott's desperate enough to offer breaking the fragile peace between the Dwendalian Empire and the Krynn Dynasty - yet immediately after suggests the Mighty Nein just kill the hag regardless of possibly remaining with the curse. Fortunately, Jester intervenes. |
| 729 | * InnocentBigot: She has some ideas about other races that aren't offensive so much as just plain weird like Tieflings only being able to see movement or all firbolg knowing each other. |
| 730 | * IronicName: Nott chose her name because, as a goblin, she felt she'd become everything she was not. Not beautiful, not brave, not ''Veth''. |
| 731 | * ItsAllAboutMe: Downplayed. [[spoiler: When she met with Isharnai, she offered to undermine the peace talks between the Empire and the Dynasty so that Isharnai would lift the curse she placed on her. That would have caused the deaths of thousands of people, ''at a minimum''.]] She didn't go through with it, partly because of [[spoiler:Jester's brilliant play with the cupcake,]] but she was strongly tempted. |
| 732 | * ItSeemedLikeAGoodIdeaAtTheTime: Often comes up with plans that she [[DidntThinkThisThrough doesn't quite think through]] before things go wrong; like trying to [[OldFlameFizzle reconnect]] Caleb with his childhood love, or [[spoiler:accidentally killing Caduceus in the blast radius of her explosive arrow in episode 55.]] |
| 733 | * JerkWithAHeartOfGold: Nott at her core does care about her friends and goes to great lengths to support them, but she is also incredibly obnoxious and rude towards them and regularly boundary stomps. |
| 734 | * KillItWithFire: Asks Caleb to do this to her in episode 71 once they learn to reincarnate her back into her halfling form. He agrees, but is reluctant, and keen to search for alternative means. |
| 735 | * LikeASonToMe: She claimed in episode 13 that she loves Caleb like he was her own child, despite the fact that he is actually older than her. |
| 736 | * LiquidCourage: Apparently this is where "the Brave" in her name comes from. |
| 737 | * LongRangeFighter: Uses a small crossbow and typically stays back to avoid getting hurt. |
| 738 | * MagicKnight: At Level 3, Nott takes the Arcane Trickster subclass, giving her some small magical ability, largely focused around [[MasterOfIllusion illusions and enchantment]]. In-universe, she mentions having picked up some magic tricks from Caleb. |
| 739 | ** At level 16, at the end of the campaign, she takes a level in Wizard, solidifying this further. |
| 740 | * MamaBear: Nott sees herself as Caleb's mother figure and must protect him and help him learn and grow. Her reactions to anything attacking him line up with her declaration pretty clearly. As Episode 48 reveals, she's also this towards [[spoiler:her son.]] |
| 741 | * MasculineGirlFeminineBoy: Nott is a hard-drinking, assertive DeadpanSnarker who's on the heavier side and wears numerous tattoos. Her husband Yeza is a very mild-mannered people pleaser with a thin, puny build. |
| 742 | * MeaningfulName: |
| 743 | ** Episode 49 reveals that her name "Nott" refers to her previous life as Veth, who was "not" pretty, not athletic, not... anything, and then the goblins turned her into someone who truly was "Nott". |
| 744 | ** Further, "Nott the Brave" is actually an anagram of her real name, "Veth Brenatto". |
| 745 | * TheMindIsAPlaythingOfTheBody: After revealing her unwilling transformation from halfling to goblin she admits that the longer she spends as a goblin the more she feels herself starting to think like one, and that her memories of being a halfling are starting to fade. Sam has even said on ''Talks Machina'' that he doesn't know how much of Veth is really left within Nott. |
| 746 | * MissingMom: To her son Luc after sacrificing herself so that he and Yeza could escape from the goblins. She's only recently let Yeza know she's alive and, given Luc's surprise at seeing her again, he hadn't informed the boy of this. She's briefly reunited with him in episode 71 when the party travels to Nicodranas but leaves again at the end of the episode to continue looking for ways to restore her halfling form (and also to deal with the Laughing Hand). [[spoiler:Seeks to avoid this, telling Yeza she feels forced to deal with Lucien and the Eyes of Nine but then she's coming home...and staying home.]] |
| 747 | * MorphicResonance: PlayedForLaughs when Veth is revealed to have had the same goofy voice as Nott the whole time. |
| 748 | * MrViceGuy: Acting as a coping mechanism for her fear and insecurities, her alcoholism contributes to her occasionally pursuing more impulsive, reckless, or selfish actions, and can lead to AlcoholInducedIdiocy if she fails her ability checks or forgets to check for traps. |
| 749 | * MurderIsTheBestSolution: Tying in with her general [[DidntThinkThisThrough rashness]], she's generally quick to suggest killing someone to solve problems ranging from serious to fairly mundane. One example of the former is dealing with the lord who forced Jester to leave Nicodranas. The others are usually able to dissuade her easily enough. |
| 750 | -->'''Nott:''' Hypothetically, if he were to pass away, would the trial charges disappear with him? |
| 751 | * MySpeciesDothProtestTooMuch: Nott absolutely eviscerates the stereotypes about her race being nothing but marauding scavengers and brigands, with the worst criminal activity she gets up to being some petty theft and a problem with alcoholism that stems from trying to ''curb'' her larcenous habit. She even agrees that most of her race is AlwaysChaoticEvil and sees them all as something of a lost cause. After TheReveal that she's not really a goblin, but a halfling woman turned into one as punishment ''by'' goblins, this attitude makes a lot more sense. |
| 752 | * NervousWreck: She's terribly anxious, reacting with great hesitance when Jester approaches her for the first time. Caleb even describes her as "jumpy". |
| 753 | * ObfuscatingStupidity: She boasts the party's second highest Intelligence stat, but for much of the early episodes, she is treated as a somewhat silly and jumpy little sister with sticky fingers. A good example is when Fjord, not confident in her ability to keep up a disguise, asks her to just "be a mime" during the mission. In response, [[LiteralMinded Nott begins acting out a mime's routine]] (complete with a box that's closing in on her), but when the party tries to explain what Fjord actually meant, she shuts them down by saying "[she]'s not an idiot". This might be due to her being a lot older than she appears. |
| 754 | * OneLastJob: Her and Yeza agree that accompanying the Nein on the mission to stop [[spoiler: Lucien]] will be this and that she'll return home to help raise Luc once it's over. [[spoiler: Fortunately doesn't go the way [[{{Retirony}} this trope often does]], although it almost does with [[WouldHurtAChild Luc]]]]. |
| 755 | * OnlyKnownByTheirNickname: Played straight at the beginning of the campaign, downplayed later on; Nott is always called "Veth" after she is reverted back to a halfling, but Sam Riegel revealed on Twitter that "Veth" is actually short for "Revvetha", a name that was never mentioned for all the duration of the campaign. |
| 756 | * OnlyOneName: Likely because she's from a tribe of goblins instead of a more mainstream civilization, she doesn't have a last name, merely an ironic title. She actually chose it herself out of SelfDeprecation. |
| 757 | * OOCIsSeriousBusiness: Whenever Nott's silly personality drops it's a sign that something is ''seriously'' wrong. [[spoiler:The best example is her sudden cold fury upon discovering Yeza's burned down workshop and discovering that he was involved with the Cerberus Assembly's research into time-warping magic.]] A less dramatic example is during the trip from Felderwin to Xhorhas, which calls for the Nein to spend days on foot through empty underground tunnels. Caleb's habit of announcing the time at the top of every hour (due to his [[PhotographicMemory Keen Mind]]) gets on everyone's nerves so much that even Nott starts telling him to shut up. |
| 758 | * OptOut: [[spoiler:During the "Echoes of the Solstice" reunion episode, she declines to join the Nein because she needs to take care of all the Wildemount Wildling kids in Nicodranas. Her son Luc on the other hand...]] |
| 759 | * PayEvilUntoEvil: [[spoiler:When the conspiracy between Essek and the Cerberus Assembly is revealed Nott is adamant that all of the conspirators be punished in kind.]] |
| 760 | * PerpetualPoverty: {{Subverted}}. Nott is arguably the richest member of the group (not counting outside wealth like Jester's Mother) because she rarely spends her money, saving it instead. Since Nott both steals, and only really wants shiny things, she rarely spends her money on things, and thus she tends to be the one to help pay for certain larger payments, or cover for Caleb. When she does buy things, it tends to be smaller items to help her not need to rely on paying for more such as tools or cheap clothing. |
| 761 | * ProperlyParanoid: She HATES water [[spoiler: because she drowned and was resurrected as a goblin]] and a lot of bad things involving water have happened to the Mighty Nein. |
| 762 | * PunnyName: Lampshaded in-character when she explains that there's no comma in it. |
| 763 | * RealNameAsAnAlias: On 3 separate occasions, Nott chose "Veth", "Bren", and "Otto" as her aliases. |
| 764 | * TheMagnificent: Titled "the Brave" because of her cowardice. |
| 765 | * SecretKeeper: Knows Caleb's backstory, along with Beau, as of Episode 18. [[spoiler: In her despair at finding Yeza's ransacked workshop and its connection to Trent Ikithon and his people, blurts out that Caleb was "one of his people" to the rest of the Nein.]] |
| 766 | * TheSecretOfLongPorkPies: While she vehemently denies ever stooping to cannibalism when asked by the group, she privately admits to Caleb in a BrickJoke sort of way that she did eat human flesh by accident once, when it was mixed in with other meats. Caleb [[INeedADrink takes a hefty swig from her flask]] in response, before saying he is not one to judge. |
| 767 | * ShipperOnDeck: As of Episode 16, she seems to be one for Caleb and Jester. [[spoiler:And Astrid and Caleb as of episode 32, which according to Talks Machina is out of a belief that it'd be good for him to have a young lady/peer in his life]]. Likewise, she constantly encourages Jester's crush on Fjord and even gives Jester advice for how to get his attention. She also encourages Beau's crush on Jester in episode 85 and later Beau and Yasha. Being HappilyMarried herself probably has something to do with it. |
| 768 | * ShockAndAwe: Can cast the ''Shocking Grasp'' cantrip. After she is turned back into Veth, she invents a brand new spell on her own, ''Brenatto's Voltaic Bolt'', which allows her to use her bonus action to charge up her next crossbow bolt with lightning damage. |
| 769 | * SignificantAnagram: Nott the Brave for her original name, Veth Brenatto. |
| 770 | * TheSneakyGuy: With an impressively high Dexterity stat, Nott is pretty damn good at stealth. |
| 771 | * SoUnfunnyItsFunny: Nott always precedes her casting of ''Hideous Laughter'' with an absolutely ''terrible'' joke, made even funnier by the target being magically compelled to go LaughingMad on hearing it. |
| 772 | * StickyFingers: She has a seemingly obsessive need to steal that she dulls with alcohol. |
| 773 | * TeamKiller: An accidental example. [[spoiler:An unconscious Caduceus is caught in the area of her explosive crossbow bolt, killing him until Jester could cast ''Revivify''.]] |
| 774 | * TomboyWithAGirlyStreak: She snarks back at Fjord with equal vitriol, drinks heavily, and doesn't mind getting her hands dirty on a job. At the same time, she enjoys wearing dresses when she has the opportunity. She gets a bright pink Lolita dress for her winter outfit, and her level 10 outfit has her in a bright yellow dress and GirlishPigtails. She's also quite the romantic, constantly acting as a ShipperOnDeck for various members of the Mighty Nein and eagerly helping Jester with a ''Film/{{The Parent Trap|1961}}''-esque scene to get Marion Lavorre and the Gentleman together again. |
| 775 | * TooHungryToBePolite: She shovels food into her face like an animal, likely due to how Caleb mentioned they had been living in the woods without much to eat. |
| 776 | * TookALevelInJerkass: Nott became more reckless and impulsive in the arc following Episode 49, though she has since backpedaled on many of those traits, such as [[spoiler:apologizing to the group for her proposal to Isharnai in the following episode.]] |
| 777 | * TransNature: Implied in episode 19 when Nott reveals her backstory. Complicated in Episode 49, she wasn't originally a goblin, but a halfling, and this trope was ''inflicted on her'' as punishment. |
| 778 | * UndyingLoyalty: Towards Caleb. She genuinely believes everything Caleb does is for a worthwhile purpose, and would willingly go along with anything he chooses to do, the rest of the party be damned if they think differently. [[spoiler:However, she suddenly lashes out at Caleb when his past comes back to haunt them and her family is caught in the crossfire.]] |
| 779 | * VocalEvolution: |
| 780 | ** In the first couple of episodes, Sam voices Nott with a distinctly Cockney accent, but this soon gets quietly dropped. |
| 781 | ** For a while after turning back into her original halfling self, Veth still speaks with Nott's raspy voice, mostly [[RuleOfFunny because it's funny.]] As time has gone on, Veth's voice has retained the same pitch, but has become much smoother and less screechy. |
| 782 | * WalkingSpoiler: |
| 783 | ** It's nearly impossible for newcomers to learn about Nott without spoiling that she was originally a HappilyMarried halfling woman named Veth Brenatto. |
| 784 | ** Additionally, anyone who hasn't caught up to episode 97 will more than likely be spoiled to the fact that she has changed back into a halfling and goes by Veth again. |
| 785 | * WhatTheHellHero: She is regularly called out on various poor or selfish choices that she makes, largely by Beau or Fjord. The biggest example being nearly sacrificing the potential peace between the Empire and the Dynasty just to break the curse that keeps her as a goblin. |
| 786 | * WhiteSheep: Episode 19 reveals that Nott was this among her tribe: for some reason, she was the only one who developed a true conscience and empathy for others. [[DeconstructedTrope Deconstructed]] in that living as the only good person in an entire tribe of bad ones has clearly had a negative effect on her, and it's implied that the things she saw her tribe do traumatized her and contributed to her extremely anxious demeanor and consequent alcoholism. Later subverted when it's revealed that she's the WhiteSheep because she was never a goblin to begin with. |
| 787 | * WiseBeyondTheirYears: Nott is no more than a teenager by goblin standards, but she's still often a voice of ruthless pragmatism and has ''intense'' MamaBear instincts. In spite of her inherent anxiety, Nott is also often ''hugely'' brave when the situation calls for it. Justified, she really ''is'' older than she looks, she was a married halfling woman with a child, turned into a young goblin. |
| 788 | * WouldHurtAChild: The child of a monstrous creature like the Manticore, perhaps, but a Manticore is still a sentient creature, and it was basically a baby. In her defense, it was a clutch ploy to save the gnolls' prisoners, not to mention a paralyzed Fjord, and later episodes show that Nott isn't entirely okay with what she did. |
| 789 | -->'''Nott:''' I still feel very bad about it... |
| 790 | * WorthlessYellowRocks: Sam revealed on Talks Machina that Nott doesn't care about money, which explains why she's so eager to lend Caleb money early in the campaign. Nott steals things she likes the look of, and to satisfy "the itch", but she doesn't care about their monetary value. In Episode 9, she tries to steal a pouch from a rich-looking woman and is just as happy to get two of the woman's buttons instead. |
| 791 | [[/folder]] |
| 792 | |
| 793 | [[folder:Yasha]] |
| 794 | !!Yasha Nydoorin |
| 795 | !!!Played by: Creator/AshleyJohnson |
| 796 | [[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/yasha_nydoorin_lvl_10.jpg]] |
| 797 | [[caption-width-right:350:''"The trick is to just not expect anything in life."'']] |
| 798 | [[caption-width-right:350:Click [[labelnote:here]]https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/yasha_nydoorin.jpg[[/labelnote]] to see Yasha before Level 10.]] |
| 799 | -->'''Race:''' Fallen Aasimar [[spoiler:(formerly) / Protector Aasimar (as of episode 106)]] |
| 800 | -->'''Class:''' Barbarian (Path of the Zealot) |
| 801 | |
| 802 | A deadpan aasimar barbarian introduced as the head of security for a traveling circus, and a new but dedicated follower of The Stormlord. Yasha is confident and powerful, but dislikes being "boxed in" either socially or literally, and thus has a tendency to act on her own. |
| 803 | |
| 804 | ---- |
| 805 | * NumberOneDime: Among Yasha’s possessions is a book of etiquette. [[spoiler:It was a present from Molly, and contains pressed flowers she intends to bring to her dead wife Zuala.]] |
| 806 | * ActionGirl: She cut a zombie in half in the first fight of the game, barely breaking a sweat. |
| 807 | * AloofDarkHairedGirl: Long dark hair (be it with white tips)? Check. "Taller than your average lass"? Check. Generally quite reserved in her interactions with others? Check. |
| 808 | * AmazonianBeauty: She is the third tallest member of the party, is by far and away the strongest physically, is noted to be quite muscular in-universe (and in the animated intro), and attracts notice from several characters, most notably Beau. |
| 809 | * AmnesiacHero: Not to the extent that Molly was, but Yasha says that there's a period of her life which she doesn't remember, after which she "looked different", implying that during that time she went through some experiences which caused her to become a [[FallenAngel fallen aasimar]]. |
| 810 | * AnimalLover: Befitting her nature as a GentleGiant, Yasha is easily enamoured by animals, including the party under Polymorph, giving scritches at every opportunity. |
| 811 | -->'''Yasha, tickling Caleb who is a giant spider:''' [[CutenessProximity I'm gonna eat'choo!]] |
| 812 | * AndIMustScream: [[spoiler:She reveals in Episode 88 that she was fully conscious whilst under Obann's thrall, with only the faintest measure of control over her own actions - hence her tears whilst cutting down members of the Cobalt Soul in Zadash.]] |
| 813 | * ApocalypseMaiden: [[spoiler:Once it is confirmed that the Angel of Irons following Yasha is [[Characters/CriticalRoleGods Tharizdun the Chained Oblivion]], it becomes apparent that it has her as TheChosenOne on some level. Given that the Chained Oblivion is worshipped by {{Apocalypse Cult}}s, this status becomes clear.]] |
| 814 | * BadLiar: Comes with the low Charisma stat. Yasha doesn't really trust herself to tell a convincing lie, so she will generally opt to just tell the truth, even when it might be to her detriment. |
| 815 | * TheBerserker: As a Barbarian, this is basically Yasha's job. That being said, she's actually a rather mellow person outside of combat. |
| 816 | * BerserkerTears: [[spoiler: After Molly's death, she's left shaking with a combination of rage and tears. It happens a second time when she cuts down Beau]]. |
| 817 | * {{BFS}}: Greatswords and such oversized blades are her weapons. Her original weapon is a newly-purchased moon-touched greatsword that she used to great effect. The greatsword was sold off in episode 16 in favor of the Magician's Judge, an executioner's blade that is so tall she had to put Nott on her shoulders to hide it from the Gentleman. It's "practically an {{anime}} sword," according to Matt in that same episode when it was first identified. In episode 64 she picks up Skingorger, a "sword" [[note]]Actually the blade of an ogre-sized glaive.[[/note]] that's basically all-blade with two notches to hold while wielding. |
| 818 | ** [[spoiler: In the last leg of the campaign, Kima loans her her platinum greatsword, the Holy Avenger (while keeping Magician's Judge as collateral).]] |
| 819 | * TheBigGuy: Par for the course for a barbarian. Boasting the party's highest Strength score and hit points, Yasha is the Mighty Nein's physical powerhouse. Episode 17 is where her prowess in combat really gets to shine, as she not only deals loads of damage to the Victory Pit monsters, but also scores two [[FinishingMove HDYWTDTs]]. |
| 820 | * BorrowedCatchphrase: Much like Travis, Ashley's catchphrase for having her character enter a rage is, "I would like to rage". Leading up to the second campaign, she apparently tried coming up with her own version, but nothing sounded quite right, so she stuck to the original. |
| 821 | * BraidsOfBarbarism: Her long hair is tied up in multiple braids. |
| 822 | * BrainwashedAndCrazy: [[spoiler:Obann activates some dormant mind control to take her over]]. |
| 823 | * BruiserWithASoftCenter: Yasha can come off as stoically intimidating at first glance, but at heart, she's a nice lady with little social graces and a penchant for collecting flowers. |
| 824 | * CharacterizationMarchesOn: In her initial appearances, Yasha comes across as reserved and confident, if a tad stiff when speaking to others. Once Ashley genuinely gets the opportunity to settle in, however, the character's awkwardness becomes really apparent. There's also a vague accent that starts to creep in around Episode 16. |
| 825 | * TheChosenOne: She is apparently chosen in some way by the Angel of Irons. [[spoiler:Given the Angel is actually the Chained Oblivion, [[ItSucksToBeTheChosenOne this is a decidedly terrible thing]], and potentially [[ApocalypseMaiden apocalyptic]].]] |
| 826 | * CoolSword: Replaces her Moontouched Greatsword with the Magician's Judge, a massive executioner's sword with runes on the guard and the ability to {{dispel magic}}. It's considered such an important part of her character, that [[spoiler: a member of the Iron Shepherds using it on the group was enough to send them into a rage to get it back]]. |
| 827 | * CordonBleughChef: Yasha has an ''interesting'' taste in food to say the least, likely owing to growing up in southern Xhorhas and having to make do with whatever's available. She has a fondess for eating bugs, ranging from roasted giant spider legs, to cricket pancakes, to grasshopper frittatas. When cooking dinner for herself and Beau, she made a wedge salad with homegrown tomatoes and blue cheese topped with scorpion tail, followed by a weasel tongue and intestine stroganoff. |
| 828 | * CovertPervert: |
| 829 | ** Despite her [[TheStoic cool and collected demeanor]], she admits that she wanted to be the last one to leave the public bath so she could see the rest of the party naked. |
| 830 | ** In episode 111, [[spoiler:upon seeing that Beau's bed in Widogast's Nascent Nine-Sided Tower has a ceiling mirror, Yasha remarks, "That's gonna come in handy."]] |
| 831 | * CuttingTheKnot: Yasha solves a few tricky problems just by hacking at them: |
| 832 | ** When the party helps [[GuestStarPartyMember Calianna]] finally locate the ArtifactOfDoom she's searching for, she contemplates how to destroy it. Yasha simply bashes it to pieces with the Magician's Judge, using its DispelMagic property to break its enchantment. |
| 833 | ** When the party are dealing with a demonic incursion, Jester tries and fails to dispel one of the planar gates the demons are coming through. Yasha then slashes the portal with the Magician's Judge, again using the sword's DispelMagic powers to destroy it. |
| 834 | * DamageReduction: Has Celestial Resistance against [[HolyHandGrenade radiant]] and [[MakeThemRot necrotic]] damage on account of being an aasimar. |
| 835 | * DarkAndTroubledPast: |
| 836 | ** Is heavily implied to have one in Episode 9, when she reveals that she's a devout follower of the Stormlord. |
| 837 | -->'''Yasha:''' He pulled me out of what literally felt like the depths of hell. |
| 838 | ** We learn in episode 46 that the love of her life was executed by her bloodthirsty tribe and she had spent untold amount of time wandering the lands before being found by the Stormlord. Ouch. |
| 839 | * DeadpanSnarker: With emphasis on the "deadpan." She has a particularly dry sense of humor. |
| 840 | * DeathIsCheap: As a Zealot Barbarian, she can easily be brought back to life, not needing the costly material components usually required for resurrection spells. |
| 841 | * DeliberateInjuryGambit: In once instance where her rage was the only thing staving off death (as per her Rage Beyond Death ability), she used her sword to attract a bolt of lightning to hit her, so that she could maintain her rage. |
| 842 | * DoesNotKnowHerOwnStrength: PlayedForLaughs when she gives Caleb a hug-- his reaction implies that she squeezed him a little too tightly. |
| 843 | -->'''Caleb:''' Ooh... you're very big. ''(wincing)'' Ah, that was a rib. |
| 844 | * TheDragon: [[spoiler:After Obann mind controls her, he uses her as a much closer ally than the Hand, trusting her and conversing with her much more]]. |
| 845 | * DueToTheDead: [[spoiler:Throughout the campaign, she collects flowers pressed in a book to one day bring to her late wife Zuala's grave. In her epilogue, she finally does so, with [[SecondLove Beau]] by her side, and also plants one of the seeds she got from Caduceus to mark the previously unmarked grave.]] |
| 846 | * EeriePaleSkinnedBrunette: Yasha is very pale, which contrasts sharply with her dark hair and clothes, and very imposing. |
| 847 | * ExpositoryHairstyleChange: |
| 848 | ** As of episode 109, her hair is beginning to grow in white at the roots, [[spoiler:reflecting her transition to being a protector aasimar from a fallen one after getting her full wings]]. |
| 849 | ** The artwork from ''Mighty Nein Reunited'' depicts her with a PowerHair feminine bob instead of braids, reflecting how she's settled to a more mundane (but still ready to throw down) life. |
| 850 | * ExtremeOmnivore: Yasha has a peculiar diet that ranges from the taboo to the unhygienic. She regularly eats rats and bugs, mentions that she knows several recipes for dog meat, and the Hero's Feast Jester prepares at Rumblecusp even includes bugs for Yasha. Additionally, at one point while they were on Rumblecusp, Yasha found a long-dead beetle under her dusty bed there... and promptly ate it. |
| 851 | -->'''Yasha:''' ''(about a ring)'' I mean, you could probably eat it. You could eat anything, technically. |
| 852 | * FacialMarkings: Has a single blue mark that runs down her chin. |
| 853 | * FaceOfAThug: Yasha is a large and muscular EeriePaleSkinnedBrunette barbarian, which naturally makes her look intimidating. Nott notably was terrified of her for a while after first meeting her. But, unlike what her imposing figure would suggest, Yasha is actually rather gentle and sweet. |
| 854 | * FallenAngel: Most aasimar are inherently celestial, with radiant powers and a somewhat innate ability to communicate with angels. Yasha is a "fallen" aasimar, which means her connection to light and positive energy was severed, either by dark powers or a conscious choice to turn towards evil. Either way, she deals necrotic damage on her attacks instead of radiant as a result. Episode 46 implies that she wasn't always this way, and can't remember how she came to change. [[spoiler: Episode 60 implies she could rise again and that the Stormlord ''wants'' her to find the strength to regain the divine power she lost.]] |
| 855 | ** [[spoiler: {{Averted}} as of episode 106. All of Yasha's struggles, travails, and [[CharacterDevelopment growth]] culminate in her rising to grace again in the eyes of the Storm Lord; he strikes her with a bolt of divine lightning in a vision, and she regrows the feathers on her wings and becomes a Protector Aasimar.]] |
| 856 | * FightingYourFriend: Happened twice: |
| 857 | ** During Episode 55, [[spoiler: she was, after Caleb, the second member of the Nein to be subjected to CharmPerson by the [[SuccubiAndIncubi Succubus]], but while the former inflicted massive damages to his friends, he snapped out of it rather quickly (thanks to Yasha, incidentally) whereas Yasha herself remained under the demon's control for most of the fight, courtesy of her low wisdom and terrible dice rolls, and was arguably as big as a threat to the party as the boss itself.]] |
| 858 | ** [[spoiler: A positively tragic example in Episode 69, where Obann, a cambion with a mysterious connection to Yasha's past, mind-controls her into attacking the party and aiding in the release of a powerful evil entity. The rest of the Mighty Nein [[IKnowYoureInThereSomewhereFight try to snap her out of it]], but despite hints that she may be FightingFromTheInside, they're unable to break the spell. Happens again in episode 86, but this time Caduceus manages to dispel the charm.]] |
| 859 | * GentleGiant: Yasha is a muscular 5'11" Xhorasian barbarian who regularly proves an absolute demon in combat, but she's actually quite a shy, quiet person when she's off the battlefield and has regularly shared sweet, gentle moments with Jester and Nott. |
| 860 | * GoingCommando: Not only does she not wear any underwear, she apparently doesn't even know what underwear is. |
| 861 | * {{Goth}}: She dresses in blacks and greys and is taciturn and gloomy. She even plays a harp made of bone. |
| 862 | * HatesBeingTouched: Not to a violent degree, but she gets ''really'' awkward when Jester hugs her. |
| 863 | -->'''Yasha:''' Oh... Thanks, Jester... ''(out of character)'' I am uncomfortable. |
| 864 | ** She slowly but steadily [[CharacterDevelopment grows out of this trait]] as she becomes more comfortable around the Mighty Nein. By Episode 106, she [[ShipTease carries Beau in her arms on a flight around Heaven's Fall]], and pulls Caleb in for a hug after a heart-to-heart. |
| 865 | * HealingHands: As an aasimar, Yasha can provide some minor healing (able to restore hit points equal to her level). Fittingly, the skill actually shares a name with the trope. |
| 866 | * HeartbrokenBadass: [[spoiler:She is clearly still grieving for her late wife Zuala, and tells Jester and Caduceus that she is unsure of whether her heart could ever be healed. Molly dying while she is held captive by the Iron Shepherds only adds to this, as yet another loved one who she couldn't save.]] |
| 867 | * HerHeartWillGoOn: [[spoiler:Although she still mourns Zuala, she has begun to move forward, even [[SecondLove falling in love with Beau]] and later entering a relationship with her.]] |
| 868 | * HeroicBSOD: [[spoiler:After finally finding out about Molly's death at the site of his hastily made grave, she lets out a horrendous, anguished cry, pops her Necrotic Shroud, and seemingly ''summons lightning'' in an oncoming snowstorm before marching off into the wilderness by herself, heedless of the party's attempts to stop her.]] |
| 869 | * HitMeDammit: She goads a pit-fighting champion into beating her unconscious, intimidating the champion all the while. It’s implied as a moment of pure self-hatred and regret. |
| 870 | -->'''Yasha:''' Come on, champion. You're so close. Fucking finish it. |
| 871 | * {{Housewife}}: [[spoiler:In her epilogue, she tells Beau that the future she wants most is simply to settle down with her and spend her time gardening and looking after her.]] |
| 872 | -->'''Beau:''' Are you wanting to be my ''housewife'', Yasha?\ |
| 873 | '''Yasha:''' I mean, I think I would look pretty good in an apron. |
| 874 | * ImprobableUseOfAWeapon: She successfully [[MundaneUtility gives Caleb a shave]] with her greatsword and mentions that she's previously shaved herself and others in this fashion. |
| 875 | * ImAHumanitarian: As stated in ReducedToRatburgers below, it's heavily implied that those who grew up in the wastes of Xhorhas had slim pickings for their diet. Most of the time this expresses itself in Yasha's fondness for bugs and rats, but at one point she does remark that "babies are very tender." [[NothingIsScarier No elaboration is given]]. However, given that Yasha is a DeadpanSnarker this might have been a particularly dry joke. |
| 876 | * InconvenientAttraction: Ashley's notes for Yasha's playlist strongly imply that Yasha has begun developing feelings for one of the Nein, but this only fuels her self-loathing as she believes [[spoiler:loving someone new means she's gone and "fucked up" her life-long oath to [[TheLostLenore Zuala]].]] Thus Yasha is trying her best to keep a distance. |
| 877 | * ItWasAGift: The book in which she stores her pressed flowers was originally a somewhat tongue-in-cheek gift from Molly; the book itself covers manners and etiquette, something Yasha sorely lacks. |
| 878 | * LightningBruiser: Being a barbarian, she's the party's tank: she has the most hit points of the Mighty Nein, can soak up a lot of damage, especially when Raging, and can dish out a lot of damage in melee combat with her sword. She's also speedy in combat, especially when she gets up to higher levels. |
| 879 | * LittleNo: Her response to Nott asking her to [[ItMakesSenseInContext chop up Yuan-Ti corpses and shove the pieces into holes in the floor.]] |
| 880 | * TheLostLenore: [[spoiler: Yasha had a lover, Zuala, and they eloped to escape an ArrangedMarriage, breaking the laws of their tribe. The tribe put Yasha's wife to death, and she still mourns-- the pressed flowers she collects are for Zuala's grave. But then she finally lets go of Zuala even when given a chance to reach for her in a dream, choosing to soar to the sky with her renewed aasimar wings, and instead of further guilt, there is relief and approval from her mate.]] |
| 881 | -->[[spoiler:'''Zuala:''' I'm proud of you. Don't let me be a shackle.]] |
| 882 | * MeaningfulName: "Yasha" is Japanese for ''demon''. From what has been revealed of her past, along with her proven prowess in battle and her Necrotic Shroud ability, it fits well. |
| 883 | ** Yasha also exists as a Persian [[GenderBender male name]] meaning "to live forever". A Zealot Barbarian needs no diamonds to be brought back to life during a resurrection ritual, and once that they reach a level high enough there is no way to bring them down when they are raging during combat (except by using lethal spells such as ''[[OneHitKill Power Word Kill]]'' or ''[[NoBodyLeftBehind Disintegrate]]''). Yasha herself mentions these features to be the reasons why Obann chose her to be his right hand in the Angel of Irons' cult. |
| 884 | * MissingTime: She has a gap in her memory [[spoiler:between when Zuala was killed and when she woke up an indeterminate amount of time later at an altar to the Stormlord. The epilogue suggests she killed the leader of her tribe the SkySpear within that time, and the Campaign Wrap-Up says she was under Obann's control for the first time]]. |
| 885 | * MysticalWhiteHair: It's implied in Episode 19 that Yasha's natural hair color is white: when channeling her powers as a fallen aasimar through Necrotic Shroud, the white tips of her hair turn completely black, implying that the white tips are representative of her natural color before her celestial power was cut off or corrupted. [[spoiler:The white has begun to grow back in as of episode 109, as she is transforming back into a Protector Aasimar.]] |
| 886 | * NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast: [[spoiler:The name given to her by her tribe was Orphan Maker.]] |
| 887 | * NiceGirl: [[FaceOfAThug The uninitiated wouldn't know it to look at her,]] but Yasha is is actually a very kind, loyal person, in addition to being painfully shy and awkward. [[spoiler: When Molly awakes from resurrection, the first word he associates with her is "love".]] |
| 888 | * NoSocialSkills: While many members of the Mighty Nein are somewhat socially challenged in different ways (Jester has no filter, Caleb gets overwhelmed easily and Beau tends to come across as rude), Yasha struggles with talking to people ''in general'', which she is somewhat sensitive about. Hilariously, her awkwardness can be so disarming that it has actually worked in her favor once or twice. |
| 889 | * NotTooDeadToSaveTheDay: [[InvokedTrope Invoked]] by her ability ''Rage Beyond Death'' which allows her to keep fighting as long as she is raging, even if her HP dropped to 0 and she failed her [[DiceRollDeath Death saving throws]]. She went as far as to [[DeliberateInjuryGambit get purposefully struck by lightning]] in order to keep raging and stay conscious, despite being dying. |
| 890 | * OddFriendship: Yasha and Mollymauk couldn't be more different, but the two genuinely seem at ease in the other's company. Alongside their vastly different personalities, the two also have opposing heritages, since Yasha is an aasimar while Molly is a tiefling. [[spoiler:Upon learning of his death, she flies into such a sadness induced rage that she causes the weather itself to change.]] Even [[spoiler: after being revived, Molly's first words when he sees Yasha are "Love".]] |
| 891 | * PowerDyesYourHair: Upon activating her Necrotic Shroud, Yasha's hair turns completely black, with the white tips disappearing. |
| 892 | * PowerGivesYouWings: Likewise, unleashing the Necrotic Shroud also causes Yasha to sprout a pair of black skeletal wings. |
| 893 | ** [[spoiler: When Yasha is able to "break her chains" by coming to terms with her grief and guilt over Zuala's death and her actions as Obann's thrall, she has a vision of her skeletal wings growing feathers. The next time she conjures them, they've grown a new layer of white down at the ends. By the time of episode 106, they're fully feathered and Yasha can use them to fly.]] |
| 894 | * PrecisionFStrike: Punctuated her first rage of the game with one of these. |
| 895 | -->'''Yasha:''' Get the FUCK outta my tent! |
| 896 | * PutOnABus: Due to Ashley's ongoing role on ''Series/{{Blindspot}}'', Yasha has occasionally gone away from the group in order to pursue her own agendas while Ashley is physically unable to attend the sessions. This is often chalked up to Yasha's aloof nature, except in the case of [[spoiler:Episode 25, where she, Jester, and Fjord are all kidnapped in the dead of night due to Ashley, Travis, and Laura being occupied with filming and paternity/maternity leave, respectively. While she is rescued in Episode 29, because Ashley is not able to return, Matt has her [[HeroicBSOD fly into such a rage at learning of Molly's death that she leaves the party for the time being]]. She's gone again after Episode 69, when a powerful cambion mind-controls her into turning on the party and serving his evil aims. Finally subverted in Episode 86 after Caduceus shatters Obann's control of her.]] |
| 897 | * QueerRomance: Had one with her late wife, Zuala. [[spoiler:Ends the campaign in another one with Beau.]] |
| 898 | * TheQuietOne: She is by far the party member who talks the least, which isn't helped by her absences. |
| 899 | * RavenHairIvorySkin: Though her hair fades to white at the tips. The hair turns completely white after she makes the transition from Fallen Aasimar to Protector Aasimar. |
| 900 | * RedBaron: [[spoiler:The name given to her by her tribe and by which a cambion in one of her visions called her was Orphan Maker.]] |
| 901 | * ReducedToRatburgers: Shares Nott's interest in eating the rats the group won at the fair, and implies she ate rats a lot back in Xhorhas because there wasn't much else. Although even when she does have the means to eat actual food, she still continues to snack on bugs, though she will partake in the actual food as well. |
| 902 | * ReligiousBruiser: Episode 9 reveals that she's a devout worshipper of the Stormlord, and as a barbarian who follows the Path of the Zealot, she can channel divine magic through her rage. |
| 903 | * ScrewThisImOuttaHere: Rather than stay to be questioned in the first episode, Yasha fools a crownsguard into taking his eye off her for a moment and then disappears into the woods. Ultimately subverted since she doesn't get very far and is thrown into jail. |
| 904 | * SemiDivine: Being an aasimar, Yasha has some celestial ancestry. It came out as a surprise to her, as she never knew her birth parents and she found out about her powers when she was already an adult. |
| 905 | * ShrinkingViolet: Her size and appearance make her look as though her stoicism and detachment are intentional for the sake of intimidation. However, she is actually just shy and bad with people. |
| 906 | * SixthRanger: Strangely inverted at the start but eventually played straight; Yasha is part of the group's formative first session, but leaves right at the end of it and sporadically comes and goes over the course of the next thirteen sessions. As with the last campaign, this is due to [[RealLifeWritesThePlot Ashley's filming schedule]], but since all the player characters of this campaign start off as strangers to one other instead of being well-established friends like Vox Machina, Yasha evokes this trope more than Pike ever did. |
| 907 | * SoProudOfYou: [[spoiler:During their first date, Yasha showers Beau with praise for how much growth she's exhibited, which was mostly done on her own.]] |
| 908 | * TheSoftheartedWarrior: While Yasha is an intimidating force of nature on the battlefield, she is kind to her friends and cares deeply for them. A lot of her character development comes from her learning she doesn't only have to be a weapon and can pursue what she wants for herself, too. |
| 909 | * StatuesqueStunner: Her height has been commented on many occasions, and she's attracted a decent amount of romantic attention. |
| 910 | * TheStoic: Despite being a barbarian, Yasha mostly keeps a cool head when she's not raging, being one of the more level-headed members of the party. People often have difficulty reading her, which is commented on several times. |
| 911 | -->'''Veth:''' Are you joking right now?\ |
| 912 | '''Yasha:''' Yes.\ |
| 913 | '''Veth:''' Your expression never changes, not even a little.\ |
| 914 | '''Yasha:''' I've been told I have a very dry sense of humor. |
| 915 | * TearsOfJoy: [[spoiler: When Molly comes back against all odds in Episode 140, Yasha takes him in her arms with her voice breaking and tears streaming down her face.]] |
| 916 | * TechnologicallyBlindElders: {{Parodied}}; Ashley plays up Yasha's ignorance of magic by talking like a grandma struggling to get her phone to work whenever someone contacts her via {{Telepathy}}. |
| 917 | * TokenEnemyMinority: Played with. She's from Xhorhas, but isn't affiliated with the Kryn Dynasty that rules the nation, describing their rumored practices of demon-summoning and enslavement to be horrifying. This matters very little to people within the Empire who recognize her origins, such as Archmage Trent Ikithon and soldier Gunther Prost, who treat her with suspicion and hostility. |
| 918 | ** Played with even further when [[spoiler:the Nein return the Luxon Beacon to the Bright Queen, and become engaged in a working relationship with the Dynasty. They also discover many of the more nefarious facets of the Dynasty to be either exaggerated or outright false. The Dynasty is still at war with the Empire, but it's difficult to consider them outright enemies of the Nein anymore.]] |
| 919 | * TomboyAndGirlyGirl: She's the tomboy (along with Beau) to Jester's girly-girl. |
| 920 | * TomboyWithAGirlyStreak: She's a large, muscular barbarian who dresses in black, wears blue warpaint, is blunt and [[TheStoic hard to read]], and enjoys fighting, but she also enjoys collecting flowers and playing her [[HarpOfFemininity harp]] (albeit a harp made of bone). |
| 921 | * UnstoppableRage: Naturally. Yasha ''is'' a barbarian, after all. She takes it even further as a high level Zealot barbarian, though, with her ''Rage Beyond Death'' ability, which allows her to ignore dropping to 0 hp and even failing her death saves so long as she continues to rage. |
| 922 | * UnwantedHarem: Beauregard expressed interest in Yasha upon meeting her, and other characters have commented on her attractiveness, but Yasha openly states she's not looking for a relationship. [[spoiler: Turns out her wife Zuala was murdered some time ago, even before she met Mollymauk, and she's still in mourning. Despite the custom of Yasha's people to mate for life, she finally let go of the grief holding her back in a dream by flying ''away'' from a shackled Zuala, whose proud that Yasha is moving forward.]] |
| 923 | * {{Valkyries}}: Yasha has some clear thematic resemblance to one. She has a Nordic-themed design and accent, is a fierce warrior, has religious connections as a follower of the Stormlord. She even has tattered wings, [[spoiler:which turn into proper feathered ones in episode 106]]. Finally, the valkyries of myth were immortal, and the Zealot Barbarian’s subclass features are geared around making Yasha virtually unkillable. |
| 924 | * VocalDissonance: Despite Yasha's size, class, and generally quiet, gruff demeanor, she has actually quite a soft, light voice, creating an interesting contrast. |
| 925 | * VocalEvolution: According to the ''Talks Machina'' for the first episode, Ashley had been playing Yasha with a light Scandinavian accent since the beginning of the campaign. However, this accent only becomes apparent around episode 16. |
| 926 | * WhatTheHellIsThatAccent: It took a while to develop, but Ashley eventually settled into playing Yasha with an accent that can best be described as "obscurely Nordic". |
| 927 | * WeakWilled: Poor Yasha's dismal Wisdom stat leads to her failing many a saving throw against [[CharmPerson charm effects]]. She's frequently stunned, dazed, or mind-controlled and has been turned against the party several times, most notably by the fiend Obann. |
| 928 | * YouCantGoHomeAgain: [[spoiler:After her marriage to Zuala was discovered, she was nearly executed by her tribe and fled.]] |
| 929 | [[/folder]] |
| 930 | |
| 931 | [[folder: '''The Ninth Member''' (Unmarked Spoilers)]] |
| 932 | !!Essek Thelyss |
| 933 | !!!Played by: Creator/MatthewMercer |
| 934 | |
| 935 | -->'''Race:''' Drow |
| 936 | -->'''Class:''' Wizard (Graviturgist) |
| 937 | |
| 938 | |
| 939 | Initially assigned by the Bright Queen as the Mighty Nein's handler during their stay in Rosohna, Essek eventually grew closer and closer to the Mighty Nein to the point he is considered [[AscendedExtra in]] and [[EnsembleDarkHorse out of universe]] [[AscendedMeme the Ninth Member of the Mighty Nein]] even if his responsibilities as the Bright Queen's Shadowhand and later on his [[AmbiguousSituation (possible)]] living on the run because of his involvement in the War of Ash and Light prevented him from fully joining to their adventures most of the time. In fact, he was able to actively help the Mighty Nein in their fights only during the final 10 episodes of Campaign 2. |
| 940 | |
| 941 | Due to his nature as [[{{GMPC}} a character controlled by the Game Master]], all the tropes about Essek can be found [[Characters/CriticalRoleNPCsXhorhas Here]]. |
| 942 | [[/folder]] |
| 943 | |
| 944 | !!!Post-Campaign One Shots |
| 945 | Things change after a time skip, and the roster of the Mighty Nein expanded after the immediate end of Campaign 2 and in the few following years. Even if these characters were not included in the main campaign, they are still considered part of the team due to their close personal history with them. |
| 946 | |
| 947 | Due to their nature of Player Characters in [[PostScriptSeason special One-Shot episodes set after the events of Campaign 2]], their very existence is ''[[{{Understatement}} a Huge]]'' ''WalkingSpoiler'' for the fate of some characters during and after the events of the Main Campaign. |
| 948 | |
| 949 | [[folder:Kingsley (Unmarked Spoilers)]] |
| 950 | !!Kingsley "King" Tealeaf |
| 951 | !!!Played by: Creator/TaliesinJaffe |
| 952 | [[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/kingsley_mighty_nein_reuinited_headshot.jpg]] |
| 953 | [[caption-width-right:350:''"The very last feeling I felt was a... royal kingliness."'']] |
| 954 | -->'''Race:''' Devil's Tongue Tiefling |
| 955 | -->'''Class:''' Blood Hunter (Order of the Ghostslayer)/Rogue (Swashbuckler) |
| 956 | |
| 957 | |
| 958 | A tiefling currently inhabiting the body that once belonged to Mollymauk Teafleaf and Lucien; a rogue, swashbuckler and a member of Fjord and Jester's crew aboard the ''Nein Heroez''. He is played by Creator/TaliesinJaffe during the two-part story of The Mighty Nein Reunited. |
| 959 | |
| 960 | This page covers tropes pertaining to Kingsley. For tropes pertaining to his predecessor Mollymauk, see above. For tropes pertaining to Lucien/The Nonagon, see his entry over on the [[Characters/CriticalRoleWildemountVillains Wildemount Villains page]]. |
| 961 | |
| 962 | ---- |
| 963 | * AmnesiacResonance: |
| 964 | ** Similar to how Molly was unimpressed upon learning his previous self's name was Lucien, Kingsley quickly shoots down Mollymauk as a potential name as he decides it’s too weird. |
| 965 | ** His previous selves rejected the notion they were the same person due to inhabiting the same body, and like them, Kingsley considers himself to also be a separate entity. However, while Molly and Lucien wanted nothing to do with each other, Kingsley is interested in who they were and considers Molly his brother. |
| 966 | ** Not long after forming his identity, Kingsley decides INeedAFreakingDrink and accepts Veth's gift of her flask. He notes that he knows and understands what alcohol is, yet has never personally consumed any before that point. |
| 967 | * AndIMustScream: Matt confirmed via Kingsley's post-campaign nightmares that, much like Yasha, he was conscious and FightingFromTheInside during the Nein's FinalBoss fight with Lucien. |
| 968 | * DanceBattler: Downplayed, but he is this by virtue of being a Swashbuckler Rogue, thanks to his Fancy Footwork ability allowing him to dance around his enemies without fear of reprisal. As he did during the prologue of the Mighty Nein Reunited when the ''Nein Heroez'' was attacked by deep scions. |
| 969 | * DeadpanSnarker: Doesn't like Fjord's proposed name of "Stone's Throw Shipping" because he says it implies that they don't go very far. |
| 970 | * DoppelgangerGetsSameSentiment: Kingsley doesn't like it when people give him the "Molly look" and wishes to be seen as his own person separate from his past selves. This is also why he enjoys spending time with Caduceus, as the firbolg never personally met Molly. |
| 971 | * DueToTheDead: Unlike Molly and Lucien before him, Kingsley does actually have an interest in learning about who used to inhabit his body, though he spends some time figuring out who he is now first. He decides to consider Molly his brother, and keeps his last name. Eventually, he memorializes him by naming his stolen pirate ship "The Mollymauk." |
| 972 | * FearlessFool: Zehir offers aid to the Mighty Nein in sealing Uk'otoa on the condition that a pact is made with him, which Kingsley immediately goes to accept, despite Zehir being a dangerous and evil Betrayer god. The rest of the party is flabbergasted by his insane lack of caution and quickly stop him, though he gets to have the Fang of the Spire King after Fjord makes the pact. |
| 973 | -->'''Zehir:''' ''With the mark, comes a boon… To help you.''\ |
| 974 | '''Kingsley:''' I like boons. I'm in, I'm interested. Right here!\ |
| 975 | '''Veth:''' You just got this body! |
| 976 | * FashionableAsymmetry: His coat is longer on one side than it is on the other, and also one of his boots is thigh-high (and attached to his belt... which is a choice) whereas its counterpart is just a regular knee-high length. |
| 977 | * FusionDance: He's noted to have aspects of both Molly and Lucien, implying Kingsley may be the result of their fractured souls finally merging again. |
| 978 | * TheGadfly: While he respects Fjord and Jester, he also tries to undermine Fjord at every turn, such as poking fun at how the name "Stone's Throw Shipping" implies his business is unsuccessful. |
| 979 | * {{Guyliner}}: Kingsley is portrayed in official art with gold eyeliner around his eyes. It's unknown if he's genderfluid like his other selves, but he's male-presenting at the very least. |
| 980 | * INeedAFreakingDrink: Kingsley comes upon the Nein after Trent's assault on the Clay's grove, and is understandably confused and shocked at these people whom he hardly knows appearing to have nearly destroyed an entire area while he was out. He then gives up trying to process the whole thing and grumbles that he needs a drink as he searches the Clay's home for some alcohol. He comes out emptyhanded, prompting Veth to gift him her flask. |
| 981 | * KlingonPromotion: According to his epilogue in ''The Mighty Nein Reunited'', Kingsley eventually deposes the Plank King and takes his place as the king of Darktow, becoming a king in fact and not just in name. One of his first acts as king is to lift the banishment imposed upon the Mighty Nein by his predecessor. |
| 982 | * MeaningfulRename: When first resurrected, he was trying to think of a new name for himself. The others talk about how he once convinced a town he was royalty. He decides to go by the name of Kingsley Tealeaf. |
| 983 | * NiceMeanAndInBetween: If Mollymauk is the Nice (admittedly by a loose definition of the word) and Lucien is the Mean, then Kingsley is the one in between. Discussed briefly in ''The Mighty Nein Reunited, Part Two'', when Beau admits that she can see aspects of both Molly and Lucien whenever she sees him. |
| 984 | * OddFriendship: While Kingsley is on friendly terms with all of the Nein, it is mentioned that he is especially friendly with Caduceus. It helps that Cad is the only one who wasn't acquainted with Molly prior to his death and resurrection as Lucien. |
| 985 | * PromotionToOpeningTitles: The Mighty Nein intro has been updated for the Mighty Nein Reunited two-parter to include Kingsley instead of Caduceus. |
| 986 | * RefugeInAudacity: When riding on Fjord, who has taken the form of a giant eagle to transport them, Kingsley repeatedly annoys him and tries steering by grabbing Fjord's head. It's noted that those are bold moves for someone who could get easily get their arm snapped for pushing their luck. |
| 987 | * RoyalRapier: As befitting his embrace of the swashbuckling pirate archetype, he prefers rapiers as his main weapon. He first uses an Acheron Blade rapier, then switches to [[spoiler: the Fang of the Spire King, a boon from Zehir]]. |
| 988 | * SpellBlade: Like his brother Molly, Kingsley uses his [[BloodMagic Blood Hunter abilities]] to imbue his weapon with magical "rites." |
| 989 | * ThatManIsDead: Downplayed compared to Molly. While he shares many mannerisms and shows an interest in knowing who he was, Kingsley still sees himself as being a different person from Molly. Unlike the hatred between Lucien and Molly, though, Kingsley considers him to be a brother of sorts. |
| 990 | * WalkingSpoiler: Kingsley's very existence is a massive spoiler, given that knowledge of his existence means knowing that Mollymauk died, was resurrected in his original form as Lucien, who was then killed by the Mighty Nein before Caduceus brought him back, seemingly restored to Molly before it is revealed that this is in fact a third person, seperate entirely from both Lucien and Molly. |
| 991 | [[/folder]] |
| 992 | |
| 993 | [[folder:Luc (Unmarked Spoilers)]] |
| 994 | !!Luc Brenatto |
| 995 | !!!Played by: Creator/MatthewMercer (as a child in Campaign 2)/ Creator/SamRiegel |
| 996 | [[quoteright:500:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/luc_pc_headshot.jpg]] |
| 997 | [[caption-width-right:350:''"I'm not a kid who plays with dinosaur toys anymore. I can be something in the world."'']] |
| 998 | -->'''Race:''' Halfling |
| 999 | -->'''Class:''' Rogue (Arcane Trickster)/Wizard (War Magic) |
| 1000 | |
| 1001 | |
| 1002 | During the events of Campaign 2, Luc Brenatto was just Veth's young son who idolized his mom and the Mighty Nein thanks to the stories she told him; seven years later, [[PromotedToPlayable Luc himself]] joined the Mighty Nein during their investigation to find out what happened to Trent Ikithon after that the events of Campaign 3 caused the devices that kept him imprisoned to be disenchanted. |
| 1003 | |
| 1004 | ---- |
| 1005 | |
| 1006 | * AffectionateNickname: Jester nicknames him "Luc, Nott the Reckless" as a nod to his mother "Veth, Nott the Brave". |
| 1007 | * AscendedFanboy: Of the Mighty Nein in ''The Mighty Nein Reunited: Echoes of the Solstice''. |
| 1008 | * AwesomeButTemporary: Luc drank an experimental potion his father was working on for a year before the fight against Trent Ikithon. It turns out that among its effects it temporarily gave him access to higher-level features, allowing him to use ''Evasion'' (a level 7 Rogue feature) to reduce the damage of an attack that [[NormallyIWouldBeDeadNow in normal circumstances would have killed him on the spot]].[[note]]A meteor storm was summoned on the battlefield, for 75 points of fire damage and 71 points of bludgeoning damage on a failed dexterity save. Luc couldn't use ''Uncanny Dodge'' due to the nature of the attack and he failed his save: he had 65 hit points plus 9 temporary hit points from the ''Heroes Feast''. The rule is the 9 temporary hit points reduce by 9 the damage that will bring the character to 0 hp, meaning that Luc would have taken 137 points total, which is still more than the double of 65. With ''Evasion'', he took only half of the damage from the failed roll for 37 points of fire damage and 35 points of bludgeoning damage he resisted with only 2 hp.[[/note]] (Luc wouldn't have died anyway because Caduceus cast ''Death Ward'' on him before the fight, but the fact that he didn't drop to 0 hp thanks to the temporary hit points from the Heroes Feast meant that he got to keep it active for the rest of the fight). |
| 1009 | * TheBabyOfTheBunch: All of the Mighty Nein are in their 30s/40s or their equivalent in ''The Mighty Nein Reunion: Echoes of the Solstice''... and then there is the 12 years old Luc. Everyone is extremely protective of him as a result, especially Caleb who is determined to bring him back to his mother safe and sound. |
| 1010 | * BoisterousWeakling: As to be expected from a young teenager dealing with an experienced adventuring party. It is however downplayed, as Luc is a weakling only if compared to the Mighty Nein and the level of menace they normally deal with: with the due safety measures and if he has the possibility to stick to his area of expertise, Luc is as dangerous in battle as a grown adult. |
| 1011 | * BrattyTeenageSon: The seven years time-skip between Campaign 2 and 3 turned the already mischievous Luc into a tween with an attitude who would do anything to go on an adventure and leave a mark on the world. Especially if the world is ending. |
| 1012 | * ChangingOfTheGuard: Luc takes the place of his mother Veth when she tells the Mighty Nein that she can't join in their search for Trent Ikithon, fulfilling her exact same role. The main difference is that Luc is significantly weaker than her, he has fewer spells at his disposal, and his level features are not completely unlocked because he does not have the experience of a level 20 character. |
| 1013 | * ContrastingSequelMainCharacter: Veth was a normal housewife dragged into the adventurer life by unfortunate circumstances. Even if she eventually learned to enjoy it, she eventually chose to retire to a peaceful life with her family and now uses her skills to teach the new generation of adventurers how to fend for themselves when their time comes. Her son Luc instead grew up hearing her stories and dreaming of becoming an adventurer himself. Because of this, he trained for most of his life and showed an incredible talent for magic even as a young child. While Veth is nervous most of the time and wants to be back to her family, Luc acts like a FearlessFool most of the time and wants to go on an adventure against his mother's desires. But in the end, Luc is his mother's child, and when he realizes he got himself into a very dangerous situation he instantly adopts the same strategies that Veth used to survive in battle and acts as a support for the most experienced members of the party. Also, unlike his mother, he likes luck and he thinks Fjord is really cool. |
| 1014 | * CowardlyLion: After barely surviving the very first attack Trent launched on the party only thanks to Yeza's potion (see AwesomeButTemporary), Luc's bravado instantly faded, and spent the rest of the battle counting on Caleb's ''Polymorphed'' Simulacrum to protect him and by providing support to the Mighty Nein from a position of safety. Like mother like son. |
| 1015 | * DragonRider: He rode Caleb's Simulacrum ''Polymorphed'' as a T-Rex for most of the fight against Trent Ikithon. At some point, he even ''Enlarged'' it himself. |
| 1016 | * EarlyPersonalitySigns: He loved his mother's stories, he had a bit of a kleptomaniac streak, he carried a crossbow wherever he went, and he showed an aptitude to magic earlier than the other children during his time with the Wildemount Wildlings. He obviously became a multiclass Rogue/Wizard just like his mother. |
| 1017 | * EjectionSeat: The Mighty Nein know that Luc is not as experienced in combat as they are, and they know that Trent Ikithon could easily take him down should he decide to target him; because of this, Caleb elaborated some strategies to make sure that Luc could escape from the fight in case things went wrong. |
| 1018 | * EmoTeen: Luc adopted an Emo aesthetic as a teenager, including dyed green hair, eyeliner, fingerless gloves with faded black nail polish, and [[AnachronismStew inexplicably Vans-like]] slip on shoes. |
| 1019 | * FacialScruff: Luc is trying to grow a mustache to show everybody he is [[KidHeroAllGrownUp all grown up]]. Alas, he is still too young to grow a proper one, resulting in this trope (at least according to Veth). |
| 1020 | * HeroWorshipper: He equally loves his honorary uncles and aunties, but he has a soft spot for Caleb because he is his mother's best friend, his godfather and he is teaching him magic. He also idolizes Fjord because [[SitcomArchNemesis Veth thinks he is lame]]. |
| 1021 | * HonoraryUncle: He considers all of the Mighty Nein as his surrogate uncles and aunties, with Caleb also being his godfather. |
| 1022 | * ImprobableAge: At the age of 12 (Feywild shenanigans might be involved) he has a skill level that puts him above the capability of most nonadventuring adult people[[note]]To put things in perspective, Bell's Hells were at level 8 when they tried to stop Ludinus from activating the Malleus Key.[[/note]]. |
| 1023 | * InsufferableGenius: Luc is smart and talented and he knows it. These are his main arguments for convincing the Mighty Nein to follow them during their investigation of Trent Ikithon's whereabouts. Thankfully, the experience makes him realize that maybe his mother is right about his not being ready for real adventuring yet. |
| 1024 | * LikeParentLikeChild: He followed his mother's footsteps and became a multiclass Rogue/Wizard. He was so good that he helped the Mighty Nein deal with Trent Ikithon breaking out of prison and lived to tell about it. |
| 1025 | * ParentalSexualitySquick: Defied. Luc is so used to [[InsatiableNewlyweds his parents being sexually active]] that hearing other people having sex next room doesn't faze him at all. |
| 1026 | * PhantomThief: Luc is so good at stealing that he managed to "borrow" his mother's Aeorian Security Cannon, a Fluffernutter, and an experimental potion his father worked on for a year without them knowing. He also used his skills to help the Mighty Nein check the Rexxentrum Archive's traps from a safe distance. |
| 1027 | * PromotedToPlayable: Luc went from being a child NPC during Campaign 2 to being an active party member in ''The Mighty Nein Reunion: Echoes of the Solstice''. |
| 1028 | * TheRunaway: Of the Vagrant variety. He somehow managed to reach Alfield before Kingsley recovered him on behalf of his disagreeing mother Veth. Luc was grounded for a month for the trouble. Joining the Mighty Nein to fight Trent Ikithon also counts, but this time he realizes that real adventuring is more dangerous than he expected and agrees to come back home (even though he wants to join his [[HonoraryUncle uncles and aunties']] adventures again another time). |
| 1029 | * StickyFingers: He showed signs of this ever since he was a kid, as a way to emulate Veth during her adventures. It reached its logical conclusion when he ran from home to help the Mighty Nein fight Trent Ikithon and he brought with him his mother's weapons of choice without her consent. |
| 1030 | * StressVomit: The level of stress he experienced from the fight against Trent Ikithon causes Luc to throw up at the end of the fight. |
| 1031 | * TeenGenius: Luc has the statistics of a level 8 character at the (chronological) age of 12. Not to mention that his 16 in Intelligence makes him smarter than ''all the members of'' ''[[Characters/CriticalRoleExandriaUnlimited the Crown Keepers]]'' ''and'' ''[[Characters/CriticalRoleMarquetCampaign Bells Hells]]''. |
| 1032 | * TeensAreMonsters: An exasperated Veth uses almost these exact same words to describe Luc and the reason why he was grounded. Of course, it becomes almost immediately clear that underneath the bravado Luc is the grown-up version of the sweet little boy he was during the main campaign, and he just wants to prove that he can make his parents and his surrogate uncles and aunties proud. |
| 1033 | * TooCleverByHalf: Luc is smart and he is extremely competent in his fields of expertise... but he is also a 12-year-old who never experienced real adventuring before. His headstart and the aid he got from the Mighty Nein and his (unwilling) parents helped him survive his brutal and potentially deadly WakeUpCallBoss. |
| 1034 | * TookALevelInBadass: Luc went from being the young son of a PlayerCharacter in Campaign 2 to being a PlayerCharacter himself after a seven years time skip. |
| 1035 | * UnexpectedCharacter: No one could have imagined that Veth was going to turn down the chance to reunite with the Mighty Nein only for her grounded, teenaged son Luc to jump into the ''Teleportation Circle'' and take her place instead. Sam and Matt even roleplayed Veth and Luc as they usually did up until TheReveal. |
| 1036 | * VagueAge: It was vague when he was a young child and it is still vague as a teenager. Veth mentioned she brought him to the Feywilds "where the time is wonky" and could have caused him to age faster than expected even for the halfling standards. It was joked that Luc's age is "whatever one deems appropriate". |
| 1037 | * WeakButSkilled: Mechanically speaking, Luc is a level 8 character thrown in a fight between level 20 characters: the Mighty Nein themselves made it clear that he wouldn't last one minute in case their enemy decided to target him specifically. Despite it all, he contributed to the fight by giving them support with some clutch moves, like casting ''See Invisibility'' to locate where the real Trent was hiding or by [[AttackItsWeakPoint attacking the Athtiri Menthal, realizing that it was the weak point of Omentis]]. |
| 1038 | * YouAreGrounded: As a teenager, Luc and his mother fought a lot because he felt like he was ready to go on an adventure on his own. She grounded him after he ran to Alfield: Veth locked him inside his room, but that was pointless because he kept picking all the locks she put on his door. He was still grounded when he joined the party during their manhunt on Ikithon. The Mighty Nein were so impressed by his efforts that they promised to put in a good word so that he wouldn't be GroundedForever for his stunt. |
| 1039 | * YouGottaHaveBlueHair: Luc dyed his hair green as a teenager. |
| 1040 | * YouRemindMeOfX: Caleb admits that one of the reasons why he is so protective of Luc is that he reminds him of himself before Trent ruined him. Luc assures Caleb that [[EvilMentor unlike him]], he had [[CoolTeacher a good teacher]]. |
| 1041 | ---- |
| 1042 | [[/folder]] |
| 1043 | |
| 1044 | ---- |
| 1045 | !!Other |
| 1046 | |
| 1047 | [[folder:Pets]] |
| 1048 | |
| 1049 | !!Nugget |
| 1050 | -->'''Race:''' Blink Dog |
| 1051 | |
| 1052 | An adorable blink dog puppy that Jester and Beau bought from an exotic pet merchant. |
| 1053 | ---- |
| 1054 | * ActionPet: {{Subverted}}. Nugget is only a puppy, and is intentionally left behind on multiple occasions to keep him safe. |
| 1055 | * TheBusCameBack: In the final episode, Nugget is shown to be staying at the Evening Nip and is being taken care of by the staff. When Jester reunites with him, he's grown considerably large but is very happy to see her. |
| 1056 | * PreciousPuppy: At first, but Blink Dogs grow very quickly, and by the time the Mighty Nein returns from their adventures out at sea, he's fully grown. |
| 1057 | * PutOnABus: Left with Luc and Yeza in Nicodranas to keep them company. [[spoiler: And accidentally left behind when the Nein pull their family members out of Nicodranas to keep them out of Trent Ikithon's clutches.]] |
| 1058 | * SapientPet: Though he's only a puppy, blink dogs are intelligent fey, capable of understanding plain speech. |
| 1059 | * {{Teleportation}}: As a blink dog, Nugget is capable of short range teleportation. |
| 1060 | |
| 1061 | !!Sprinkle |
| 1062 | -->'''Race:''' Crimson Weasel |
| 1063 | |
| 1064 | An extraordinarily tough weasel that Jester bought from an exotic pet merchant. |
| 1065 | |
| 1066 | ---- |
| 1067 | * ArtisticLicenseAnimalCare: This poor weasel has been through so much, as detailed below. |
| 1068 | * BlackComedyAnimalCruelty: Tends to be the punchline of any scene involving Sprinkle, whether it be Jester trying to force him into a crudely-made "weasel nest" or the rest of the cast joking that Sprinkle is begging nearby [=NPCs=] to save him from Jester. |
| 1069 | * FateWorseThanDeath: Played for laughs. [[spoiler: After their fight with Lucien, Caleb releases Frumpkin while Jester says Sprinkle will be stuck with her. Travis whimpers out a "Please, no" in response. As the Nein part ways, Artagan assures Jester he and Sprinkle will always be there for her. Because no matter what, he will make sure Sprinkle will always return to her.]] |
| 1070 | * GodWasMyCopilot: [[spoiler:He was Artagan the entire time.]] |
| 1071 | * IronButtMonkey: Although canonically, Matt is merciful about not making Laura worry about Sprinkle in combat, this hasn't stopped both the players and the fans from making something of a running joke about how traumatized and scarred Sprinkle would have to be by this point. |
| 1072 | * {{Irony}}: When Jester first got Sprinkle, the cast voted on who would be most likely to die or just be lost and they all voted for Sprinkle. Come to the end of the series Sprinkle has lived through all of the adventures of the Nein. The only reason he hasn't died as of yet is because [[spoiler: Artagan is keeping him alive.]] |
| 1073 | * LiveMinkCoat: Sprinkle's normal mode of transport is around Jester's neck or in her hood. |
| 1074 | * NormallyIWouldBeDeadNow: Sprinkle has been inadvertently been brought into combat by Jester multiple times, and because of that the weasel has been drowned, electrocuted by a dragon, caught in a poisonous cloud, and burned by a fireball, but has nonetheless come out unharmed. |
| 1075 | ** [[spoiler:When he is revealed as Artagan, he admits that his divinity is the only reason he's alive.]] |
| 1076 | * RunningGag: As the above tropes have made note of, Jester constantly forgets to leave Sprinkle out of battle and the poor creature surviving every ordeal has become a running joke amongst the cast and fans. It's gotten to the point where the cast jokes that Sprinkle is constantly begging [=NPCs=] for help to be taken away from Jester. Travis has also taken it upon himself to be the default person to give Sprinkle a voice as he pleads for help. |
| 1077 | * UnluckilyLucky: Episode 102 has a rare instance of Laura remembering that Sprinkle also needs a saving throw for the toxic gases affecting the whole party. ''She nails it.'' However, this trope comes into play when taking into account the sheer amount of trauma he goes through anyway. |
| 1078 | -->'''Liam-as-Sprinkle:''' [[VideoGame/{{Warcraft}} I am my scars!]] |
| 1079 | ** [[spoiler:Actually subverted, as he is in fact an immortal archfey.]] |
| 1080 | * WeaselMascot: Jester purchased him from a traveling animal merchant while on her way to the Menagerie Coast. His continued survival, despite Jester forgetting to leave him behind when entering combat, has become a running joke. |
| 1081 | |
| 1082 | !!Professor Thaddeus |
| 1083 | -->'''Race:''' Owl |
| 1084 | |
| 1085 | An owl purchased by Beau from the same merchant that sold Nugget and Sprinkle. |
| 1086 | ---- |
| 1087 | * BreadEggsBreadedEggs: How he got his name. Beau couldn't decide whether to call him "Professor" or "Thaddeus" and so decided to name him both. |
| 1088 | * {{Jerkass}}: He's stubborn, ill-tempered and not very friendly towards Beau. He got along slightly better with Caduceus due to the firbolg being able to communicate via "Speak With Animals". [[spoiler:After Artagan reveals he was disguised as Sprinkle he tells Beau that Thaddeus was "kind of a dick" and that she "dodged an arrow" when he flew off.]] |
| 1089 | * TheOwlKnowingOne: Despite being called "Professor" Thaddeus doesn't appear to have been uniquely intelligent for an owl aside from having the sense to fly away from the party for his own safety. |
| 1090 | * ScrewThisImOuttaHere: Flew away from Beau just before their disastrous encounter with the crew of the ''Mist'' and hasn't been seen since. Considering how much danger Sprinkle has been put through Thaddeus may have made the right call. |
| 1091 | * WhatHappenedToTheMouse: The Professor was last seen flying away from the party in episode 35 and hasn't returned. Beau has occasionally tried to look for him to no avail. |
| 1092 | |
| 1093 | !!The Moorbounders |
| 1094 | -->'''Race:''' [[https://criticalrole.fandom.com/wiki/Moorbounder Moorbounder]] |
| 1095 | |
| 1096 | Moorbounders are tusked panther-like creatures typically found in southern Xhorhas. They are vicious predators, but they can also be trained into fiercely loyal mounts. The Nein acquire three moorbounders as mounts: Yarnball (bonded with Jester), Jannik (bonded with Caleb) and Clarabelle (bonded with Caduceus). |
| 1097 | ---- |
| 1098 | * CoveredInGunge: The Nein's moorbounders are often splattered with gore from their prey. They end up getting it on their masters by licking them when they return. |
| 1099 | * HorseOfADifferentColor: Moorbounders look vaguely like panthers, but they're commonly used as mounts. |
| 1100 | * ExtremeOmnivore: Moorbounders are not choosy eaters. The Nein's moorbounders have eaten everything from giant spiders to horses to hobgoblins. |
| 1101 | * FluffyTheTerrible: Jester names her moorbounder Yarnball. Yarnball, like all of its kind, is a large predator with razor-sharp claws and fangs that isn't picky about the kind of prey it feeds on. |
| 1102 | * ForgotToFeedTheMonster: Subverted. The Nein's moorbounders often feed themselves by pack hunting whenever the Nein have to leave them or make camp for the night. They usually either return to the Nein or wait for the Nein's return once they've eaten. |
| 1103 | * IWillWaitForYou: When the Nein travel to a Xhorhasian metalworks to try and drive out the stone giants that took it over, they have to leave their moorbounders in the woods. When the Nein come back a couple of days later, the moorbounders are eagerly waiting for them, having only left to feed themselves with pack hunting. |
| 1104 | * OnlyICanMakeItGo: Moorbounders can only safely bond with one master, although they are willing to let other people ride them as long as their master's there too. The goblin who sells the Nein their moorbounders warns them that trying to bond a moorbounder to more than one master is dangerous. The moorbounder could get confused over which master to listen to, and might end up eating the other one. |
| 1105 | |
| 1106 | [[/folder]] |
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