Death from Above

Fan art of Death from Above, by Joma Cueto.

**Death from Above** is the name given to the flying broom that Vex'ahlia stole from Gern Blanston.

## **Acquisition**

During Vox Machina's encounter with Gern Blanston in Cindergrove, they formed a tentative alliance.  While battling an efreeti, Vex'ahlia offered to hold his broom of flying.  After the battle, she slipped it into Grog's Bag of Holding and lied to Gern, telling him that the broom fell into the lava.

## **Properties**

The broom only flies once its command word (the word "candle" in Draconic) has been spoken. It can carry up to 400 pounds, although its flying speed is reduced to thirty feet when it is carrying more than 200 pounds.

## **Modifications**

Percy began making tinkering with attachments to Death from Above to improve Vex'ahlia's stability while flying for better aim with her bow, as well as to ensure that she wouldn't lose or become separated from the broom if she fell from it.

Although Percy added a seat for the primary rider, Vax'ildan commented that riding it as a passenger was very uncomfortable for him as a male, and he joked that Vex'ahlia may have done Gern a favor by stealing the broom from him.

## **Notable Uses**

### **"The Family Business" (1x47)**

Less than a day after "acquiring" the broom, Vex attempted to verbally activate it while staying at Scanlan's pocket mansion but the phrases she spoke had no effect. She then went to Keyleth for help but the druid informed her she isn't proficient in the arcane, only nature-based magic. Vex proceeded to seek out Scanlan for his help. The two went up to his room for privacy, and Scanlan examined the broom. He noticed words of a language unknown to him etched on the broom, which he pointed out to the ranger. She identified the language as Draconic, which she is fluent in. Using the word "candle", Vex activated the broom as it shot up into her hands. Ecstatic, she profusely thanked Scanlan for his help, saying she now owed him, to which Scanlan only waved off. After Vex flied on the broom for a bit to test it out, Scanlan remembers to chastise her about the theft. Scanlan says that sometime in the future, he will pick someone for her to help to balance out the karma.

### **"A Name Is Earned" (1x49)**

Vex, along with Scanlan in crow form, flies on the broom to scout for the cave of the sphinx the group is searching for.

### **"The Kill Box" (1x52)**

During Vox Machina's fight against Kevdak and the Herd of Storms, Vex'ahlia saved Grog Strongjaw's life by swooping down on Death from Above and placing Grog in Raven's Slumber.  She later released him from the necklace directly above Kevdak, helping him land the killing blow against his uncle.  Due to the circumstances of the fight and their opponents' determination to kill rather than simply knock individuals unconscious, Vex'ahlia's strategic use of the broom to give Grog the killing blow may have prevented a total party kill (TPK).

## **Gallery**

Fan art of Vex'ahlia flying on Death from Above, by Megzilla87.Fan art of Vex'ahlia flying on Death from Above with Vax'ildan dangling, by NLN4.Fan art of Vex'ahlia flying over the Feywild on Death from Above in "The Feywild" (1x59), by NLN4.
## **Trivia**

* When Vex stole the broom from Gern, her alignment shifted from chaotic good to chaotic neutral.
* In The Legend of Vox Machina, Season Two, Vex acquired the broom from Scanlan, who had picked it up in the ruins of Gilmore's Glorious Goods after the dragon attack.

## **References**

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 See *D&D: Dungeon Master's Guide*, 5th ed., p. 156.
2. ↑ See "A Cycle of Vengeance" (1x58) at 3:18:40.
3. ↑ See "Cindergrove Revisited" (1x46) from 2:54:19 through 2:55:55.
4. ↑ See "Cindergrove Revisited" (1x46) from 2:54:19 through 2:55:55.
5. ↑ See "The Family Business" (1x47) at 40:31.
6. ↑ See "Best Laid Plans..." (1x50) from 1:09:26 through 1:12:10.
7. ↑ See "The Echo Tree" (1x63) at 0:45:36.
8. ↑ See "The Kill Box" (1x52) from 1:35:40 through 1:37:33.
9. ↑ See "The Kill Box" (1x52) from 2:30:08 through 2:35:05.
10. ↑ Matthew Mercer confirmed on reddit that Vex'ahlia has officially shifted alignment to chaotic neutral.
11. ↑ See "*Talks Machina* #1: 'Where the Cards Fall'" (TMx01) at 27:04.  Matt and Laura explain how Vex moved to Chaotic Neutral after stealing the broom and disagree about whether she was involved in some needlessly aggressive intimidation tactics.
12. ↑ See "Pass Through Fire" (LVM2x05) at 4:24.

**Art:**

1. ↑ Fan art of Death from Above, by Joma Cueto (source). Used with permission.
2. ↑ Fan art of Vex'ahlia flying on Death from Above, by Megzilla87 (source). Created in the midst of and in opposition to some negative community reaction to Laura Bailey's and Vex's theft from another player. Used with permission.
3. ↑ Fan art of Vex'ahlia flying on Death from Above with Vax'ildan dangling, by NLN4 (source). Used with permission.
4. ↑ Fan art of Vex'ahlia flying over the Feywild on Death from Above in "The Feywild" (1x59), by NLN4 (source). Used with permission.