Kynan Leore

Kynan Leore is a young, lowborn man from Emon, who aspires to be a hero like the adventurers from Vox Machina. As an NPC, he is played by Matthew Mercer.

Appearance
When Vox Machina met Kynan in, he was dressed haphazardly in scalemail armor and—perhaps overcompensating for his inexperience—armed with a longsword, crossbow, hand axe, and buckler, all dangling from his belt. Dark, brown eyes peered from beneath his short, tousled, ash-blond hair.

Vox Machina met Kynan upon returning to Emon from an arduous journey through the Underdark and Vasselheim. As they approached Greyskull Keep, they noticed a large burlap or linen tent in front of the keep. Cordell and Shayne Tranter were aware of the situation, with Shayne even seeming a bit exasperated and resigned to its presence, mentioning that it had been there for about two weeks by that point.

Kynan was thrilled to meet Vox Machina, bursting into praise for each of the members—which initially seemed disconcerting and even creepy to some of them. The party quickly realized, however, that this young man was actually a fan, and Kynan explained in a nervous and excited manner that he sought to join their ranks and become an adventurer like them. Vax'ildan gravely attempted to explain the perils and difficulties of the adventuring life to Kynan. Although the young boy seemed undeterred, he also seemed unable to grasp the gravity of Vax's warnings. To prove his point, Vax knocked Kynan unconscious with a single strike of his dagger pommel, without warning, followed immediately by a health potion. Many other members of Vox Machina were taken aback by what they perceived to be a harsh lesson, and, when Kynan began to cry, Vax compromised and told the boy that he should return the day that he is ready—and Vax promised to mentor him when that day comes. After Kynan left, Vax instructed Laina Yor to let the boy stay in Vax's room if he returned.



To help make good on his promise, Vax made a secret trip to the Upper Slums of Emon in the hope of finding Kynan. Vax learned that Kynan lived with his father, Harold, who was a butcher. When Vax arrived at Harold's dual-purpose shop and living quarters, Harold had already closed up shop and Kynan, who had apparently quarreled with his father recently, had packed up his things and left. The smell of alcohol lingered around Harold, a gruff and not altogether pleasant man. Harold figured Kynan would be back eventually. Vax planned to give Kynan some daggers with which to train, plus fifty gold, but hesitated to leave them with Harold, who seemed likely to steal them for his own purposes. Nevertheless, Vax left the fifty gold (although he kept the daggers) and instructed the father to give it to the son. Vax explained the gold with a lie, saying that he was repaying Kynan a gambling debt over a dog fight. Harold's demeanor, appearance, and substance abuse—as well as Vax's insight about the man—were consistent with the patterns of an abusive father, but Vax didn't press the issue.

Before leaving Emon to fight the Briarwoods, Vax—still feeling concerned (and possibly guilty)—checked in on the Upper Slums. He questioned a boy around Kynan's age, learning that Kynan had been gone for about a week and had taken off, talking about "finding his destiny." Vax told the boy that if he saw Kynan, to tell him that "V" was looking for him near Greyskull Keep.

Vox Machina caught up with Kynan while he was working for Anna Ripley, on Glintshore. During the fight that ensued, he attacked Keyleth with Whisper, knocking her unconscious. Vax'ildan tried to appeal to him which seemed to work, as after that he switched allegiances and began to attack Orthax.

After Ripley was killed by Vox Machina, Kynan went into a state of shock. He was overcome with guilt for helping her and for playing a role in Percy's death. Vax told him that if he wanted to atone for his actions, he would need to follow their orders and help in whatever way he could. Kynan gave Whisper to Vax and numbly followed the group back to Whitestone, where he was placed under the supervision of Jarett Howarth. In a tavern later that night, Vax noticed Kynan's dangerously low mood and did his best to encourage the boy to take action towards redemption, rather than dwell on his mistakes.

Following their battle against Vorugal, Vox Machina returned to Whitestone to rest. During some leisure time, Vax'ildan went to see Kynan in the Whitestone barracks, who was found eating breakfast alone in the corner. Kynan was keeping to himself, still overcome with guilt from aiding in the death of Percival. In a heartfelt conversation, Vax'ildan asked three things of Kynan: first, to try and welcome the others in Whitestone. Second, to protect Cassandra, Percival's sister. And third, to take care of Simon, Vax'ildan's Serpent Belt. Kynan accepted all of these charges, taking Simon from Vax'ildan, and explained how believing in second chances is what was keeping him in Whitestone.

Vax'ildan
Vax'ildan first met Kynan outside of Greyskull Keep upon their return from Vasselheim, at which time he personally crushed the boy's dream of joining Vox Machina by telling him that he was not ready for the life that they live.

Later on, when Kynan was revealed to be working with Anna Ripley, Vax took it upon himself to talk some sense to the boy, convincing Kynan that despite what he had done while working with Ripley, he could still find redemption. He later gave him two daggers he had bought from Gilmore's shop in addition to his Keen Dagger, and then later gave him his Serpent Belt, telling him that he had earned his second chance.

Notable Items

 * Keen Dagger (received from Vax'ildan)
 * Serpent Belt (received from Vax'ildan, later returned to him)
 * Whisper (given to Vax'ildan)

Trivia

 * Many Critters have speculated that while Kynan served as Cassandra's bodyguard, they began a romantic relationship. While Matthew Mercer hasn't confirmed it yet, he has stated that their shared history with Ripley and their equally stressful positions of power "certainly sounds like a set up for a meaningful romance".