Critical Role Recap: The Kraghammer Arc Part 2
By: I.Am.No.Man
Chapter 1: The Kraghammer Arc
Story Arc Recap Episodes 1-16 Part 2
Episode 8: Glass and Bone
Vox Machina makes a harried escape into the tunnels below the Emberhold. After finding cover, Pike performs a restoration ritual to return Tiberius and Kima back from stone. Vex’ahlia uses her ranger skills to track the magical hunter’s mark she placed on the duergar Queen. She senses they are still in the city nearby and the group make a plan to retrieve Grog. Kima reveals more of her mission to the Underdark. She saw visions of a demon rising from Hell and giving power to the creature K’Varn. Long ago, the demon cut its two horns from its own head, imbued them enormous power, and called them the horns of Orcas. The horns were captured and taken to a safe-hold. They were thought safe until Kima’s visions showed K’Varn’s minions reclaiming one of the horns. The group agrees to do what they can to aid her quest after they rescue Grog. After resting and healing for the night, Vox Machina sets off to find Grog. They track his trail for hours until they come across a cavern filled with a sea of broken glass and bones. They carefully begin to make their way across. The sound of a fight reaches them. Thinking Grog is just ahead, the group rushes forward, only to see a large Troll and several duergar sliced into bits by a monster hiding in the sea of bones. They draw the monster out and fight. Percy gets the headshot kill just in time! Vex picks up Grog’s trail on the other side of the glass and bone. She and Vax sneak up to the duergar camp and see the Queen preparing to make Grog into one of the ‘Frankenstein stitch monsters.’
Episode 9: Yug’voril Uncovered
The group make a plan to ambush the Queen’s camp. Scanlan buys them some time by walking right into the center of the camp and distracting the Queen. They fight and Keyleth rescues Grog from his iron binds. They capture the Queen and begin to interrogate her when her eyes go black and a voice speaks through her. K’Varn says he has been waiting for Vox Machina to find him. He invites them to come to his temple in the Mind Flayer city Yug’voril. The Queens body begins to convulse and she dies with black ichor leeching from her eyes. After some debate and convincing, Vox Machina agrees to go to Yug’voril to find out what K’Varn wants. Clarota leads the way into the city. They arrive on the edge of a huge lake with a bio-luminescent forest island in the center of it. Clarota welcomes them to Yug’voril.
Episode 10: K’Varn Revealed
Vox Machina make their way across the lake to a smaller island and find a cave to rest in for the evening. While exploring the cave, Vax discovers a chest with several skeletons lying around it. He begins to open the chest when the skeletons begin attacking him. Vex, Grog and Tiberius rush in to help and destroy the skeletons. They find some gold and a Greatsword of Frenzy in the chest. They are ambushed by a winged beast and escape from the cave. The beast gives chase and they take it down over the water. They come to rest at the edge of the large island and find a better, safer cave to rest in. Keyleth attempts a scrying spell to see what she can learn about K’Varn’s location. She sees K’Varn’s temple and the captive Elder Brain of the Mind Flayers. It is held in an arcane prison surrounded by more of K’Varn’s ‘stitch monsters.’ K’Varn senses Keyleth and reveals himself to be a Beholder. A horrifying aberration of teeth and deadly eyes, he begins to psychically torture her and her scrying spell is broken. Vox Machina are afraid of taking on a Beholder on their own, so they formulate a plan to free the Elder Brain and use the Mind Flayers as allies to take K’Varn down.
Episode 11: The Temple Showdown
As the group begins moving towards Yug’voril, they stumble across a giant. They capture him after a long fight and magically coerce him to fight K’Varn with them. They continue planning a scheme to free the Elder Brain and draw K’Varn out of his lair. Grog offers their new giant friend, nick-named Tiny, a sip of ale from his cask. Tiny drinks his entire cask and crushes it in his hand. Grog flies off the handle and head-butts the giant and the group fears he has broken their truce, but Tiny is impressed with Grog’s strength. Vax and Scanlan recon the city and see an army of hundreds of Mind Flayers and trolls surrounding the temple. The group stealth their way to top of the pyramid prison holding the Elder Brain. Kima gives a rousing speech and they begin their attack. Percy uses a vial of acid to begin to weaken the metal beams holding the glass top of the prison. Scanlan turns Tiny into a mouse and Tiberius levitates him above the weakened ceiling. They drop him and he returns to giant form, smashing through the ceiling and splatters on the floor. Vox Machina begins their assault on K’Varn. There is a blur of disintegration rays, petrification rays, and death rays from K’Varn do insane damage to the group. Grog is killed by a death ray, but thanks to Pike’s revivify spell he is brought back to life. The Horn of Orcus seems to be healing K’Varn and granting him extra attacks and spells. Percy strikes with a perfect headshot and Vex finishes him off with an arrow through his eye. Their celebration is cut short when the Horn of Orcus reanimates K’Varn’s body and it begins attacking them again. Kima is turned to stone and Pike nearly falls in battle but is saved by Scanlan. Tiberius hits the undead K’Varn with a glacial blast and gets the kill. He tears the horn from K’Varn’s body and holds it aloft in victory.
Episode 12: D&D Campaign Tips and Q&A
Half the cast is on vacation, so ignore this episode. Unless you’re really interested in starting or playing a D&D campaign or want to know more about the cast and their characters.
Episode 13: Escape from the Underdark
Vox Machina have no time to bandage their wounds, as the Elder Brain has united the Mind Flayers in an attack against the temple. Clarota stands in front of the group and holds his hands up to the army, seeming to protect the group. The other Mind Flayers pause, and Clarota, looks back to Vox Machina with a wicked look in his eyes. He removes his Magneto helmet, reconnecting him to the Elder Brain. He attacks the group and an all-out fight breaks out. They take out half a dozen Mind Flayers. Keyleth, in her earth elemental form, smashes the Elder Brain, leaving it severely injured but alive. Percy gets the headshot kill on Clarota. They flee the city and Tiberius creates a transportation sigil back to their home city, Emon. Vox Machina lies bruised and broken on the floor of the Traverse Junction where the spell dropped them. They celebrate by Pub crawling the whole way back to their keep. Finally making their way back home to Greyskull Keep, they rest and recover.
Episode 14: Shopping and Shipping
Vox Machina takes some time to heal and restock their supplies in town. They also reunite Lady Kima and Allura. Kima tells Allura they were successful in completing her quest and requests a meeting with the council of Tal’dorei. We meet more members of the Council, including a Halfling rogue named Seeker Asum. The names Lord and Lady Briarwood are brought up in the council, and Percy is taken aback. This is the family that overthrew Whitestone, his city, and killed his family. He remains silent while the Council plans a mission to seal the Horn of Orcus in the Platinum Sanctuary in Vasselheim. The Council hires Vox Machina to protect the Horn on its skyship voyage to Vasselheim. We meet Vox Machina’s sponsor and magical items supplier, the flamboyant Sean Gilmore. At his shop Gilmore’s Glorious Goods, the group stocks up on various potions and magical weapons for their trip to Vasselheim.
Episode 15: Skyward
The group makes their preparations to leave Emon for Vasselheim. Scanlan visits Gilmore to pick up a special scrying potion he had commissioned. Gilmore warns it may work in an unusual manner. Vex’halia finds an armorer to make Trinket some more flexible armor. Percy tinkers up some new exploding arrows for Vex. After gathering everything they need, Vox Machina boards the skyship Deera and watch as the Horn of Orcus is locked away and placed under the protection of Kima and several other Scalebearers of Bahamut. Several days into their journey, the ship is attacked by a group of raiders riding wyverns. They defend the ship, protecting the Horn from capture. They continue their journey towards Vasselheim.
Episode 16: Enter Vasselheim
After a week of travel without further incident, Vox Machina arrive in Vasselheim. Keyleth asks the group to visit the nearby Fire Ashari tribe. She must seek them out to complete another trial for her Ara’mente to become a leader of her Air Ashari tribe. They escort the container with the Horn to the Platinum Sanctuary. Content that the Horn has been sealed away, the group says goodbye to Kima. Pike gets a calling to rebuild the temple of Sarenrae in Vasselheim and tearfully parts ways with Vox Machina, promising to return as soon as possible.
Whew, you made it! One chapter down...only two and a half more until we've caught up. We'll get through this, I promise. Keep an eye out for the next Chapter: The Vasselheim Arc. There will be a gladiator battle, a division in the party, and some amazing guest stars. Stay tuned!
