Hi! You seem like someone who really likes Orym and also gets a lot of different perspectives. I have been wanting to get a bit of input to my "problems" with him and why I can't enjoy his character, from someone who has a different opinion.

The thing that bothers me is that I have to say, I do find him boring but not in the 'he's basic and not interesting' way at all. It's more that all three of Liam's main characters so far have been gloomy and had tragic backstories. Obviously Liam has a lot of fun with the last part mainly and it always makes for amazing storylines but as Orym his behavior just doesn't feel all that different to Caleb/Vax. You can do only so much different kinds of acting sad/moody and it just honestly got boring to me.

In short, I know Liam likes tragic backstories and he does it very well, they just all seem to react to their trauma in the same way and behave similarly and this time around nothing about it feels different or special about his behavior which just makes me like him less than the rest.

Hey anon! Looks like I poked some kind of nest with that first answer, haha ^-^" (so many asks! I've never had three anons in my mail at the same day before! Exciting! :D) Thanks for reaching out, let's see what I can do to offer a new perspective for you.

First off, I get that sad and moody isn't for everybody, especially not all the time. That's completely fair and valid. There are tropes and things I get tired of, too, and don't want to focus on in media. If you find it difficult to care for Orym because of that, that is okay. Please don't think it isn't.

That said, I'm really curious how you see Caleb and Vax's personalities because those two seem very different to me, which makes "Orym doesn't feel all that different to those two" already a strange point to me.

First off, I have to admit, I'm not done watching Vox Machina yet by a long shot, so I haven't gotten to Vax's "real doom & gloom phase" yet. He's a laid-back guy who loves playing pranks on his friends. He's fallen in love with a girl and tells the guy he's on-and-off been flirting with about it, so there is no dishonesty between them. He'd do anything for his sister and bickers with her constantly. He's outgoing, a bit (excuse the pun) rogueish and a hopeless bisexual disaster pretty gung-ho about his own safety at times. Yes, he and his sister have a gloomy, dramatic backstory. One that's brought the two of them incredibly close together - you could talk about unhealthy co-dependence there if you wanted, maybe. I know things about that change in some capacity, I've heard about the problems Liam had in that time, but I haven't seen it myself yet, so I'm reserving judgement. But an interesting point maybe: the "main" trauma that most critters seem to have in mind when talking about Vax happens during the game.

Caleb, on the other hand, has his trauma baked into his tragic backstory so wholeheartedly and all-consumingly, that he cannot exist without it. Caleb is all about recovery, growth and forgiving yourself. He is a broken man in the beginning and we see him heal - messily at times and with setbacks inbetween - throughout the game. Caleb is also very different from the person he was before. I feel like I should compare Vax with Bren because, as I said, I'm basically still looking at a Vax "pre-trauma" from what I understand about the VM campaign. But the thing is, we never really get to know Bren. We only know Caleb, although I think we see some aspects of Bren shining through the more Caleb heals. Yes, Caleb gets often painted as the sadboi(tm) but he has a fun streak. It's far less pronounced than Vax's, though, for example. Caleb is a reserved person, a paranoid, desperate man who - for the longest time - thinks of himself first and is hard to trust. He is, in some points a harder, more jagged person than Vax (again, as far as I can tell). There is nobody who hates Caleb more than Caleb. But he's also sort of proud, he carries a lot of hubris despite his self-doubts. I could write an entire essay dissecting Caleb's personality and especially his character arc, but I think I am sort of bringing my point across that Caleb and Vax are vastly different and - at least to me - feel vastly different, too, when I watch the game?

And compare that to Orym - what do we know about Orym so far?

-He's on the quieter side - which is, granted, a bit like Caleb (especially how Caleb started out), but in a much more understated and chill way, whereas Caleb was desperate to get noticed as little as possible.

-He has a bit of a melancholic air to himself, I suppose, but that's just very Liam O'Brien, I'd say. Again, it comes across in a far less raw and hurting way as Caleb, for example, did. It's also not always terribly pronounced, I'd say, it feels more present than it is because he tends to be quiet overall, so we also don't get much of any joy, mirth or other fun.

-He does not want responsibility, he does not want leadership to fall in his hands. That is probably less of an issue with Vax since the group was already established when we met them, but Vax has no problem speaking his mind when he doesn't like something. From what I know of Vax and Orym so far, I'd say it's far more likely for Vax to go do something different from the group than Orym.

-Orym was conceptualised as a support character. First of all, that is a fascinating choice for a Battle Master Fighter, but I think it works with him. Orym isn't afraid to put himself between his friends and something dangerous. He doesn't even really think about it, it seems to be more instinct. He protecc.

-Of course, we don't actually know anything about Orym's backstory yet, but I believe in the "dead husband theory" pretty firmly. Recovery from grief (and maybe growing/stepping out of the shadow a beloved person is/was casting on you? who knows??? I certainly don't, only Liam knows at the moment lol) is still about trauma and drama, but it focuses on very different aspects of tragedy than, say, Caleb's story does.

-Orym is a loyal supporter. He's created for that purpose. It's okay if you like others better or think they're more interesting. Liam wanted Orym so he can help the others shine. Personally, I love that idea very much. And you can also see that in some aspects. Orym is (or tries to be) very conscious about the people around him. He often asks for their opinions to help the group come to a decision. You could call him somewhat of a mediator, bringing people together.

-He has Tired/Exasperated Dad Energy. That's probably partially because the ExU gang is chaotique af. But as the designated person to hold the braincell, he has that right. Orym is the one with the common sense. Only, it's not so common with the people around him. He's a bit of an everyday man, and that might seem boring to some, but it also makes him actually pretty relatable. Something that Caleb (and probably also Vax) are far less so to a certain extent (saying this as somebody who immediately imprinted on Caleb because of his social anxiety).

-Something Liam does really well is putting these "straight-played" characters (not as in sexuality but regarding their function) in absolutely whacky situations. Did you watch ExU? If not, you don't have to, but if you did - please remember not only Nancy, but Orym's pie tasting and how Liam put Orym in Cinna Brightbow's performance as "the victim" (I hope you know what I mean when I choose that word ^-^") for example. Some of the most hilarious scene only work comedy-wise because Orym is involved. And Liam knows that. Liam plays to that.

-We've only had one fight so far, so for anyone who hasn't seen ExU, there's no idea yet what Liam can do when describing fighting moves. I know it might seem very reminiscent of his describing of Caleb using spell components in a certain way, but - idk, there's something about his descriptions that make me excited to play a fighter. And I'm not someone who would usually consider playing a fighter.

I just can't agree with your opinion that Liam's characters feel similar. Quite the contrary. They may deal with similar themes, but the characters feel very varied and nuanced to me. Then again, there is so much we don't know about Orym yet. So much of his personality we haven't discovered yet. We've seen him in one main campaign episode and eight for a mini-campaign with very different circumstances. Do you remember how Fjord was ten episodes into C2? How Caleb was? Yasha?

Give Orym a bit time. I'd say, especially because he is so unterstated, he can pale next to the more colourful cast around him, but that is the same thing that makes him a grounding presence. We don't all vibe immediately with all the characters, but he's someone where I suspect he'll worm his way into many hearts over time. Because that's who Orym is. Steadfast and dependable. A rock. A foundation. Not something you might take note of as special immediately, but something you'd miss as soon as it's gone. He sticks maybe out because he seems a bit "too" normal. But honestly, in a game that's as zany as D&D can be, that can also be a very interesting thing.