‘The Legend of Vox Machina’ Season 2 Ending Explained
Editor’s note: The following article contains spoilers for Season 2 of The Legend of Vox Machina.
Season 2 of The Legend of Vox Machina ended after twelve episodes filled with dungeons, dragons, and bloody combats against mythical creatures. Season 1 of the beloved animated adaptation of Critical Role’s first Dungeons & Dragons campaign focused on how sins of the past shape us all into who we become. Season 2 took a different direction, looking at our heroes’ bright future and exploring how every member of Vox Machina is tied by the threads of fate and destined to save the world of Exandria.
Season 2’s finale, featuring a thrilling duel between Vox Machina and the black dragon Umbrasyl (voiced by Matthew Mercer), underlined this recurring theme. And while the threat of the Chroma Conclave still exists, Vox Machina is ready more than ever to fight the ancient dragons. Finally, just like in Season 1, The Legend of Vox Machina wraps its second season with an unnerving cliffhanger that we are dying to see resolved. So, now that the entire Season 2 of The Legend of Vox Machina is available on Prime Video, let’s break down everything that happened at the finale.
The Chroma Conclave Attack
At the end of Season 1 of The Legend of Vox Machina, the capital city of Emon is attacked by four mighty ancient dragons, the remaining members of the Chroma Conclave. Initially featuring five dragons, the Chroma Conclave is an alliance between creatures that are usually at war with one another, making them one of the most powerful forces in Exandria. And after Vox Machina killed the youngest and weakest member of the Chroma Conclave, Brimscythe (voiced by David Tennant), the dragons retaliated by burning Emon to the ground.
Season 2 of The Legend of Vox Machina begins as our heroes must flee Emon and save their strengths to fight another day. Once Vox Machina decides their duty is to defeat the Chroma Conclave, they choose to go after Vestiges of Divergence, powerful weapons created in a time when gods bestowed their gifts upon their champions. While our heroes are too weak to face the Chroma Conclave, the Vestiges might offer them a powerful upgrade and give Vox Machina the strength to slay their scaly enemies. Little did they know that the quest for the Vestiges would reveal how every member of the adventuring party was brought together by fate and finding the Vestiges is a holy path they must follow.
The Quest for the Vestiges of Divergence
The first character to get a significant upgrade in Season 2 of Vox Machina is Vax’ildan (voiced by Liam O’Brien), who now wears the Deathwalker’s Ward armor. While searching for this Vestige inside a tomb, Vex’ahlia (voiced by Laura Bailey) accidentally activates a deadly trap. The Goddess of Death, also known as the Matrone of Ravens, comes to collect Vex’s soul. However, Vax makes a deal with the goddess, offering his life in exchange for his sister’s. The goddess accepts the bargain, making Vax her new Champion. As such, Vax gets armor that highly increases his speed and makes it easier to evade enemies’ blows. And once he embraces his part as the Champion of Death, the armor wakes to its full power, growing enormous black feathered wings Vax can use to fly around and become even more agile.
While Keyleth (voiced by Marisha Ray) doesn’t find a Vestige for herself, she also gets a power-up in Season 2 of The Legend of Vox Machina. While investigating the destruction left behind by the Chroma Conclave, the party goes to Pyrah, the home of the Fire Ashari. There, they learn about the past of Thordak (voiced by Lance Reddick), the Cinder King, leader of the Chroma Conclave. Thordak is the mightiest dragon ever to threaten Tal’Dorei, and couldn’t be beaten by any warrior. So, many years before The Legend of Vox Machina’s main events, a group of heroes trapped the dragon in the Elemental Plane of Fire. Unfortunately, someone helped Thordak to escape, leaving the portal to the Elemental Plane of Fire open in the city of Pyrah and bringing an army of scorching creatures into the Material Plane. To close the rift, Keyleth must learn how to master fire and become an avatar of the element itself. Now, the druid of Vox Machina can morph into a giant creature made of flames for a brief period, which surely comes in handy in their fight against the Chroma Conclave.
Another character that got a huge upgrade in Season 2 is Scanlan (voiced by Sam Riegel). First, he’s gifted with Mythcarver, a Vestige of Divergence in the shape of a sword that enhances his bardic powers and gives him insight into other legendary weapons. However, Mythcarver is soon stolen by Umbrasyl. That could mean Scanlan failed to get an upgrade, but after meeting a daughter he didn’t know he had, Kaylie (voiced by Aisling Franciosi), Scanlan is forced to reflect on his toxic pattern of fleeing from danger. That would prove vital in the fight against Umbrasyl, as Scanlan now has renewed trust in Vox Machina’s mission.
The third Vestige to show up in Season 2 of The Legend of Vox Machina is the legendary bow Fenthras. Vex defeats an arch-elf to grab the bow after a distasteful visit to her father, in which the elvish noble underlined how he sees his half-elf children as failures. In Season 2, Vex also gets her hands on a magic broom that allows her to fly, giving her the high ground in deadly combats against the Chroma Conclave.
The last member of Vox Machina to get his hands on a Vestige is Grog (voiced by Travis Willingham). After discovering that the Herd of Storms is pillaging Pike’s (voiced by Ashley Johnson) hometown, Westruun, Vox Machina’s friendly giant must confront his bloody past. Grog was once a warrior of the Herd of Storms, a group of bandits who slays the weak to steal their treasure. After refusing to kill a gnome, and inadvertently saving Pike’s great-grandfather, Grog is exiled and beaten to an inch of his death by his uncle, Kevdak (voiced by Ralph Ineson). Kevdak uses a Vestige, the Titanstone Knuckles, to protect his violent ruling. But after Grog strikes the final blow on his uncle, he becomes the wearer of the Titanstone Knuckles while helping the Herd of Storms find a more honorable way of living. The Herd even decides to help Vox Machina take down Umbrasyl, a plan that tests the whole party’s new powers.
Vox Machina vs. Umbrasyl
With the help of the Herd of Storms, Percy (voiced by Taliesin Jaffe) builds a massive trap in Westruun, designed to keep Umbrasyl on the ground after he comes to collect his treasure. The first part of the fight against the mighty dragon happens in Westruun after Vex triggers the trap with an arrow and ensnares Umbrasyl. While also trying to contain Umbrasyl’s might, Vax and Scanlan enter the dragon through his backdoor, using a sword to cut his stomach from the inside. Despite their best efforts, Vox Machina can only damage Umbrasyl before the dragon flies away and retreats to his lair.
Grog, typing an ax to some rope, hits Umbrasyl and is carried away into the skies. Meanwhile, Vax and Scanlan remain inside the beast. The rest of Vox Machina soon follows Umbrasyl, hoping to save their friends. Vex uses her magical broom, while Kayleth turns into a giant eagle to carry Percy and Pike. Grog keeps fighting against Umbrasyl in the air until he’s knocked down on the ground. Thanks to the powers of the Titanstone Knuckles, goliath survives the fall. However, Pike uses most of her magic to half-heal him, making her less useful in the coming combat. As for Vax and Scanlan, they manage to escape the belly of the beast by crawling through a flesh wound. At this moment, Vax embraces his fate as the Champion of Death, gaining wings that help to save both him and Scanlan.
Regrouped, Vox Machina decides to enter Umbrasyl’s lair and finish the job. Scanlan is unwilling to fight since they are all beaten and without enough resources to turn the tide. Vax, however, lets everyone know how the gods and fate bless their quest, so they should accept whatever might come next. Vax first enters the lair to scout but is surprised by Umbrasyl, who uses his invisibility to lay his own trap. The whole party goes to his rescue, engaging the dragon in combat. Even Grog, with a broken leg, does whatever he can to wound the dragon.
One by one, the heroes of Vox Machina are hit by Umbrasyl. And while they also drew blood from the mighty creature, it’s clear they cannot win. Using Mythcarver, Umbrasyl can always follow Vox Machina by seeing exactly where the other Vestiges are, so there’s also no use in hiding. Scanlan, sensing his death approaching, decides to run away and abandon his friends. However, in the last second, he remembers his daughter and how his fleeing instinct hurt so many people before. So, he sneaks back into the lair, steals Mythcarver from Umbrasyl, and uses the Vestige to pierce through the dragon’s eye. Surprisingly, it’s Scanlan who lands the deadly blow on Umbrasyl, taking down the second member of the Chroma Conclave.
After the duel, Vox Machina finds enough gold to rebuild Westruun. Scanlan also finds a floating magic key that we don’t know the purpose of. The group decides to return to Whitestone, where the last survivors of the Emon massacre found refuge. However, when toasting their victory, Vox Machina gets a visit from an unexpected ally.
An Unexpected Ally
After making a toast, all the remaining leaders and heroes of Whitestone and Emon pass out on the table. Vox Machina is left alone with Yennen (voiced by Gina Torres), who reveals herself as Raishan (voiced by Cree Summer), one of the dragons of the Chroma Conclave. We don’t know what happened to the real Yennen, but Raishan forced a secret audience with Vox Machina because she also wants to take down Thordak. As she tells the heroes, even with Vestiges, they are no match to the remaining members of the Chroma Conclave, so they should form an uneasy alliance with Raishan to defeat the Cinder King. Raishan also reveals why Throdak ordered the dragons of the Chroma Conclave to harvest gold, as he’s building a nest to birth an army of dragons. So, if Vox Machina expects to save Tal’Dorei, they might have to work with Raishan, despite the part she played in the destruction of Emon. Now we just have to count the days until Season 3’s release.
The first two seasons of The Legend of Vox Machina are now available on Prime Video.
