Why do Pike Trickfoot and Grog Strongjaw seem closer than the other main mercenaries in The Legend of Vox Machina? Adapting Critical Role’s first Dungeons & Dragons campaign, The Legend of Vox Machina falls canonically ahead of the original online stream. This means Vox Machina has only recently started working together as a band of warriors for hire. They’ve been around long enough to forge a reputation (though not necessarily a good one), but a sense of unease is palpable. There’s no unbreakable sense of loyalty or camaraderie just yet – they’re a collection of drinking buddies still learning how to be an effective team.

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Vax’ildan and Vex’ahlia share a stronger bond than the others, but The Legend of Vox Machina immediately reveals this half-elven pair are twins, together since birth. Less clear is the connection between Pike and Grog. Where most Vox Machina members bicker and tease each other relentlessly, Grog and Pike have a sweet, caring relationship that belies the relatively short time Vox Machina has been operating. Grog goes out of his way to protect Pike, puts on a softer, more vulnerable face when addressing her, and Pike happily rides Grog’s back as they trek through the mountains. If Scanlan tried that, he’d probably receive a less welcome response.

Though The Legend of Vox Machina doesn’t provide a clear explanation for Grog and Pike’s bond, their first meeting can be found in the Critical Role series Amazon’s animated TV animation adapts. Before becoming Tal’Dorei’s drinking champion, a young Grog wandered the continent with a band of fellow barbarians known as the Herd of Storms. During one of the herd’s violent attacks, they stalked and preyed upon an aged, defenseless gnome. Feeling a sting of guilt for attacking someone weak and outnumbered, Grog stepped in to protect the stranger, and was brutally beaten by his own people as a result. In punishment for defying his herd, Grog was abandoned by his own people.

That gnome was Wilhand Trickfoot, and as thanks for Grog’s bravery, he sent great-great-granddaughter Pike – a cleric of the Everlight – to heal the dying half-giant. Recovered from his injuries, the young Grog continued living with Wilhand and Pike thereafter. Grog grew up, became a mercenary, and met the likes of Vax’ildan, Vex’ahlia and Scanlan. Eventually returning home to the Trickfoots, Grog began acting oddly thanks to a mage controlling his mind. The pre-Vox Machina Vox Machina teamed up with Pike to help free their mutual friend.

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These events account for why Grog and Pike’s friendship is so much stronger than relations between the other Vox Machina warriors. Growing up together, their relationship runs almost as deep as Vax and Vex’s, showing the same sibling dependence as the half-elven twins. Grog saved Pike’s great-great-grandfather, and Pike saved Grog, and that shared debt creates a lifelong connection. Not only have they helped and protected each other, but Grog’s involvement with the soon-to-be Vox Machina was how Pike joined their fold in the first place – her gateway to the world of valiant questing. More symbolically, Grog and Pike are opposites that compliment each other perfectly. One takes damage like a champ, the other is proficient at healing wounds.

The Legend of Vox Machina streams Fridays on Prime Video.

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Craig Elvy
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Craig first began contributing to Screen Rant in 2016, several years after graduating college, and has been ranting ever since, mostly to himself in a darkened room. Having previously written for various sports and music outlets, Craig’s interest soon turned to TV and film, where a steady upbringing of science fiction and comic books finally came into its own.
Craig has previously been published on sites such as Den of Geek, and after many coffee-drenched hours hunched over a laptop, part-time evening work eventually turned into a full-time career covering everything from the zombie apocalypse to the Starship Enterprise via the TARDIS.

Since joining the Screen Rant fold, Craig has been involved in breaking news stories and mildly controversial ranking lists, but now works predominantly as a features writer.
Jim Carrey is Craig’s top acting pick and favorite topics include superheroes, anime and the unrecognized genius of the High School Musical trilogy.

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