text:
Beware of spoilers. Official wiki policy states that trope titles should not be hidden under spoiler tags, and some trope titles are spoilers by nature. If you haven't finished the series you're probably best off not reading past the character descriptions.
[[folder: '''Malazan Empire -- The High Command''']]
!!Empress Laseen
-> 'An empire is greater than any lone mortal. An empire enforces its own necessities, makes demands in the name of duty and that particular burden is something you, as a soldier, most certainly understand.'
--> ''Literature/DeadhouseGates''
Empress Laseen is the ruler of the Malazan Empire as of the start of ''Gardens of the Moon''. She used to be part of the Old Guard -- Emperor Kellanved's closest allies, the imperial 'family' -- and helped build the empire, but eventually took over. Depending on who's talking, she either was a server at a tavern, Napan royalty, or both.
* ActionGirl: Laseen is a [[ProfessionalKiller master assassin]] and can hold her own in combat. In ''Return of the Crimson Guard'', she fights an armed and armoured Avowed barehanded.
* AmazingTechnicolorPopulation: As a Napan, Laseen has blue skin.
* AuthorityEqualsAsskicking: Laseen was the founder and leader of [[SecretPolice the Claw]] even before she took the throne, and can kick ass with the best of them.
* BadassNormal: Although many of the Old Guard qualify, she still lives in a world where Gods and Ascendants meddle in mortal affairs, and contrary to her predecessor, Laseen is not a mage, but simply a very skilled fighter.
* BadBoss: Less villainous, more incompetent, as becomes apparent as the story advances. A case of WeHaveReserves, especially in ''Return of the Crimson Guard''.
* BareFistedMonk: Laseen prefers unadorned and simple clothing and surroundings, and fights barehanded.
* BastardUnderstudy: To Emperor Kellanved and Dancer, both of whom she assassinated -- after building her own SecretPolice to circumvent Dancer's Talon, the empire's ''other'' SecretPolice organization.
* BecomingTheMask: Zig-zagged. Whether she kept to the original Napan plan, really became Kellanved's understudy and bought into the imperial dream, or betrayed everyone depends on who's talking.
* BusCrash: For those who haven't read ''Return of the Crimson Guard'', [[spoiler:the news of Laseen's death comes out of nowhere in ''Dust of Dreams'']].
* TheChainsOfCommanding: [[AlternateCharacterInterpretation Possibly]]. Laseen may have bitten off more than she could chew, and ends up seemingly powerless in the face of all of the empire's problems, as well as getting blamed for everything.
* TheChessmaster: Subverted. She has a reputation as one, but it crumbles, until she ends up trapped [[spoiler: and usurped by Mallick Rel, who's a much better chessmaster]].
* DeceptiveDisciple: What ''were'' Laseen's motives? Admiral Nok implies that [[spoiler: the Napans planned to use Kellanved to destroy the Untan hegemony from the very beginning, and Kellanved's imperial ambitions just came in handy, and eventually, by getting rid of Kellanved, Laseen just took the Napan cause to its penultimate conclusion. Except she didn't tell her co-conspirators, [[BecomingTheMask who had become loyal to the Empire]].]]
* TheEmpress: ..of the Malazan Empire, complete with the bad reputation.
* GodSaveUsFromTheQueen: She ''means'' well, but possibly bit off more than she could chew, and ends up seeming rather incompetent.
* HoistByHisOwnPetard: [[spoiler: She outmaneuvered everyone, keeping her plans secret even from her closest allies (the other Napans), and got outmaneuvered herself by Mallick Rel.]]
* ICanRuleAlone: Possibly, see DeceptiveDisciple.
* IDidWhatIHadToDo: Her rationalization for pretty much everything she does -- assassinating Emperor Kellanved and Dancer, the death of Dassem Ultor, the culling of the nobility, etc.
--> '''Empress Laseen:''' An empire is greater than any lone mortal--
* KarmicDeath: [[spoiler: She rose to power through assassination, and she herself is assassinated in ''Return of the Crimson Guard''.]]
* MeaningfulName: Used to be known as Surly, which described her personality and demeanor quite well. She also apparently worked as a bar maid using that name.
* MeaningfulRename: Laseen means ''Thronemaster'' in Napan. She took the name shortly before taking the throne. Doubly meaningful if her being Napan royalty is true.
* ProfessionalKiller: Laseen is the founder of the Claw, and served as their leader.
* UngratefulBastard: Kellanved took her in, gave her a job and raised her as his understudy, yet Laseen ''still'' turned on him. [[AlternateCharacterInterpretation Possibly subverted]] in that she may have had good intentions, with Kellanved having been a great conqueror, but potentially a less great ruler.
* UriahGambit: Laseen demotes Whiskeyjack and sends him and the Bridgeburners, the old Emperor's loyal favourites, to fight a hopeless war on Genabackis. Though subverted as the fact that it got most of them killed was Tayschrenn's doing.
* TheUsurper: Laseen was in change while Emperor Kellanved and Dancer were off exploring, but decided to finalize her position upon their return.
!!Adjunct Lorn
-> '''High Mage Tayschrenn:''' 'The woman named Lorn, the woman who once was a child, who once had a family, that woman does not exist. She ceased to exist the day she became the Adjunct.'
--> ''Literature/GardensOfTheMoon''
Adjunct Lorn is the right hand of Empress Laseen. She takes it upon herself to find out what caused the massacre in Itko Kan, and takes Ganoes Paran under her wing. [[spoiler:She is killed at the end of ''Gardens of the Moon'', and Tavore Paran takes her place.]]
* ActionGirl: That sword at her side is not just for show, and thanks to her Claw training, she can hold her own in combat.
* AntiMagic: The Adjunct's sword of office is made of Otataral, a magic-negating ore.
* AntiVillain: She isn't a particularly heroic character, but she's not an evil person. She just serves a cause that isn't particularly sympathetic.
* BeneathTheMask: [[DoubleSubversion Double Subverted.]] As Adjunct, there's an expectation that Lorn's real personality would take the backseat to her persona as Adjunct and right hand of the Empress. Except Lorn ''is'' the Adjunct -- indoctrinated from a young age to serve the Empress. The young woman named Lorn [[EmptyShell never had a chance to emerge]]. But then she meets Tattersail and it's revealed, to Lorn's own surprise, that she never grew past the girl who witnessed the massacre in the Mouse Quarter.
* BrokenBird: Lorn is likely not much older than Ganoes Paran, whom she calls young and assigns to her own staff, but is all-around the detached, professional soldier and Adjunct to the Empress. But when accidentally confronted with her past, she loses all common sense.
* CoolSword: Her longsword, which is also a sign of her office, is made of Otataral, a magic-negating ore.
* DarkAndTroubledPast: [[DeconstructedTrope Deconstructed.]] When confronted with the death of her family during the riot in the Mouse Quarter of Malaz City and her childhood in the Claw, who kept the fact of her family's death from her for years, she is reminded by both Dujek Onearm and Tayschrenn that her past ceased to matter the moment she became the Adjunct.
* TheDragon: Lorn shares the duty with Topper, but as [[SecretPolice Master of the Claw]] Topper is much less visible than the Adjunct.
* DroppedABridgeOnHer: [[spoiler:After trying to kill the Coin Bearer, Lorn is murdered in a back alley by Meese and Irilta, two Phoenix Inn regulars.]] She lampshades the irony herself when Paran finds her:
--> '''Adjunct Lorn:''' Do you see... the irony, Ganoes Paran? No... glorious end... for the Adjunct.
* EmptyShell: In the course of ''Gardens of the Moon'', Lorn comes to realise that she is nothing beyond her Adjunct persona -- the woman behind the mask has no ambitions, opinions or personality.
* HarmfulToMinors: As a child, Lorn witnessed the riot in the Mouse Quarter when the mage cadre sent to deal with illegal magic lost control and the army had to be sent in as well.
* HeelRealization: Lorn has a crisis of faith when she realises the Empress may not be as great as she believed, and that, by extension, this also applies to her cause.
* MageKiller: Adjunct Lorn is known as the Empress' mage killer. Her otataral sword negates magic, which, in addition to her skill in combat makes her an effective mage hunter (although this is not her only job).
* MouthOfSauron: The Adjunct is the extention of the Empress's will and voice.
* RedemptionRejection: Tool offers Lorn a chance to join him instead of returning to the Empire, but she decides to continue with her mission, [[spoiler:and gets herself killed as a result]].
* TragicVillain: Lorn follows her orders without questions asked, as the Empress is always right, but not because she particularly enjoys it. This causes Ganoes Paran to come to see her as a villain, especially in the face of her willingness to release the Jaghut Tyrant just to win Darujhistan. She eventually realises how expendable she is to the Empress, but by then it's too late.
* WeaponOfXSlaying: Her Otataral sword is especially effective against mages, due to its magic-negating properties.
!!Adjunct Tavore Paran
-> 'The gods can have their war. We will not be used, not by them, not by anyone. I do not care how history judges us I hope that's well understood.'
--> ''Literature/DustOfDreams''
Tavore Paran is the middle child of the noble House Paran (specializing in the trade of wine and horses), a year younger than her brother Ganoes and three years older than her sister Felisin. She has a habit of trying to make up for what she perceives as Ganoes' failings. Upon his fall from grace and the death of Adjunct Lorn, she is chosen by Empress Laseen as the new Adjunct. Like the other two children of House Paran, Tavore is central to the events of the series.
* AntiHero: Adjunct Tavore lacks pretty much all typical heroic traits, and is a loner whose motives are rather questionable for most of the series, going so far as to openly admit -- in a rare moment of saying ''something'' -- that she expects her army, the Bonehunters, to die unwitnessed for a cause they know nothing about. [[spoiler:Turns out Tavore is planted firmly on the [[SlidingScaleOfIdealismVersusCynicism idealistic side]] and intends to right an ancient wrong even if it costs the lives of all her soldiers and makes her look like the villain.]]
* ButchLesbian: Tavore wears her hair short, no make-up or other adornments, prefers practical clothes and armour, and is a scholar of war. In contrast, her lover T'amber leans towards LipstickLesbian.
* TheChessmaster: Tavore is responsible for a huge part of the latter half of the series, and even other chessmasters like Shadowthrone fail to see through her plans. Even her brother Ganoes Paran can only shrug and trust in his sister.
--> '''Ganoes Paran:''' Think of all the great military leaders Dassem, Coltaine, K'azz, Dujek, Greymane for what it is worth, I would pit my sister against any of them. Gods below, against ''all'' of them.
* ChildProdigy: According to Ganoes Paran, in regards to military strategy. By the age of five, Tavore knew all there was to know from history books and scrolls. By the age of seven, she was able to defeat visiting High Fists in mock battles, and later again, she went on to take the sides of the losing parties in historic battles and device ways for them to ''win''.
* DefectorFromDecadence: Renounces her noble roots and betrays the nobility to the Empress, resulting in the culling of the noble houses and many noble either killed or deported into slavery. However, the nobility were getting a bit too comfortable with buying military posts and indulgences, and thus indirectly destroying the empire from the inside. Later on, [[spoiler:she does it again, this time renouncing her allegiance to Empress Laseen and taking her whole army with her. To be fair, though, Laseen betrayed her first.]]
* TheDragon: Like Adjunct Lorn, whose place she takes, Tavore Paran is Empess Laseen's right hand. However, she also is a..
* DragonWithAnAgenda: ..and that agenda goes far beyond what a mortal should be able to achieve, and far beyond the borders of the Malazan Empire. [[spoiler:She wants to right the ancient wrong that is the imprisonment of the Crippled God, all because she feels compassion for him.]] Even the gods are appalled. [[spoiler:She ultimately turns out to be entirely justified in wanting to free the Crippled God, however; her actions are probably directly responsible for preventing the extinction of the human race in particular.]]
* TheDutifulDaughter: Subverted. In ''Literature/GardensOfTheMoon'', this is what Tavore seems to be -- when Ganoes returns home between assignments, she gives him a talking to for running off to join the army. Then, after Paran's falling from grace and Adjunct Lorn's death, she takes on the position of Adjunct to restore the family's honour. Except [[spoiler:that this is hinted to have been the moment she decided there's no kill like overkill and hedged her plan to save the world]].
* EmotionlessGirl: Justified, then deconstructed. Tavore has a mission she set upon herself and any show of emotion that might distract from that is unwelcome -- including [[spoiler:the death of her lover, T'amber]]. However, part of why she sets out to [[spoiler:cross half the world and free the Crippled God]] is due to guilt over what happened to Felisin and -- of all things -- ''compassion'', and what it gets her is the suspicion and dislike of her troops and allies, to whom she remains an enigma. When, in ''The Crippled God'', Deadsmell gets a glance at all that she keeps locked inside, he has a minor {{BSOD}}.
* FourStarBadass: Zig-Zagged. For the majority of the series, people keep questioning what qualifies Tavore Paran to lead an army, as she is young and untested. Then the full range of her abilities, plans and motivations is revealed. Also, in contrast to Adjunct Lorn, Tavore is actually in charge of an army, while we only ever saw Lorn interact with a few underlings.
* TheGloriousWarOfSisterlyRivalry: Deconstructed. Tavore is the older, smarter and plain sister, and Felisin the younger, prettier and shallower one. They still love each other, but it spirals completely out of control when Tavore becomes the Adjunct and has Felisin shipped off to the Otataral mines as a slave. She perceives this as the lesser of two evils, but naturally, Felisin disagrees and [[CainAndAbel vows to kill Tavore]].
* HiddenDepths: It takes time to peel all the layers away. At first, Tavore seems like a ruthless noble [[DefectorFromDecadence who betrayed her own]], including her family, to further her own ambitions. Then she is shown to have planned Felisin's rescue all along, but comes off as an inexperienced commander. Except she is actually the [[TheStrategist strategist]]. [[spoiler:Who betrays the Empress for unexplained, possibly personal goals. Of course, those goals are to save the world. At which she might even have outmaneuvered Shadowthrone and Cotillion.]] And then there's her connection to the [[SecretPolice Talon]], [[spoiler:and the fact she wears a Talon necklace in the final battle of the series.]]
* NotSoDifferent: Her and her brother Ganoes Paran. They are outwardly at odds, as Ganoes is the rebel who leaves his noble family against their will to become a common soldier, while Tavore is [[TheDutifulDaughter the dutiful daughter]] who takes it upon herself to restore the family's honour. However, they act out of a similar belief that the gods have meddled enough in mortal affairs and both, without knowing the other's plans, [[spoiler:acquiere control of an army and lead their soldiers to Kolanse to fight the Forkrul Assail and free the Crippled God.]]
* NoSocialSkills: Either because she naturally lacks social skills, or because she cannot be bothered with niceties, Tavore comes off as rather ungraceful, to put it mildly. Even for a military commander.
* PlainJane: Every time Tavore is described, particular attention is given to how drab, grey, unattractive and even seemingly sexless she is, seemingly lacking in personality.
* SiblingYinYang: Tavore has this with both Felisin and Ganoes, who are more like each other than like Tavore. Especially Ganoes is the idealistic dreamer who sets out to become a hero by joining the army, while Tavore is the down-to-earth strategist concerned with family honour.
* TheStrategist: Used to be a ChildProdigy in this area, and was the pre-eminent scholar on imperial war even before she became the Adjunct. Downplayed insofar as she neither looks nor acts the part, and only a few people are in the know.
* UndyingLoyalty: [[AvertedTrope Averted]]. Due to a combination of her perceived inexperience, an army composed of [[ShellShockedVeteran Shell-Shocked Veterans]] and NewMeat, and Tavore's own [[NoSocialSkills utter lack of charisma]], it takes a long time before her army trusts her.
* TheUnfettered: An unusual heroic example of the trope. Tavore Paran has set before her a goal, and she will sacrifice whatever needs be -- herself, her reputation, her army of thousands of soldiers, as well as her allies -- to achieve it.
!!High Fist Dujek Onearm
-> '''Adjunct Lorn:''' 'Dujek is not just one man. Right now he's ten thousand, and in a year's time he'll be twenty-five thousand. He doesn't yield when you push, does he?'
--> ''Literature/GardensOfTheMoon''
Dujek Onearm is the Commander of the Malazan 2nd Army, also known as Onearm's Host. He was a young lad when he joined Kellanved's and Dancer's group and thus was part of the 'family', the Old Guard, with which the old Emperor conquered Malaz Island and later several continents.
* AFatherToHisMen: A textbook example, and when, after the siege of Pale, attempts are made on his life, his soldiers volunteer to guard his back at all times, even against his wish.
* CoolOldGuy: Dujek is the oldest acting commander in the military, and has a no-nonsense attitude while still remaining approacheable and relatable to his soldiers.
* DroppedABridgeOnHim: [[spoiler:In ''Literature/TheBonehunters'', Dujek dies offscreen from the plague.]]
* HandicappedBadass: Missing one arm in no way impinges on his ability to keep things under control and everyone on their toes, if need be. It does make shaving difficult, though.
* ReasonableAuthorityFigure: To the extreme. Dujek always takes the reasonable approach, but that also means allowing the culling of Pale's nobility, if that is what's needed to keep the alliance with the Moranth and the conquered city under control. Unfortunately, Pale's Hall of Records burning down was a tragic mishap.
!!High Mage Tayschrenn
-> 'The need for justifications has passed. The Empress has commanded, and we must obey.'
--> ''Literature/GardensOfTheMoon''
Tayschrenn, a renegade priest of D'rek, the Worm of Autumn, was one of the last people recruited by Emperor Kellanved into the Old Guard, and thus one of those who helped shape the Malazan Empire. As of the beginning of the series, he is the Imperial High Mage, sent by the Empress to end the siege of Pale, and has a reputation for being paranoid, shady and ambitious.
* TheArchmage: The Imperial High Mage. Though there are several High Mages as of the beginning of the series, Tayschrenn seems to be the chief one, and the others defer to him.
* AscendToAHigherPlaneOfExistence: In ''Orb, Sceptre, Throne'', [[spoiler:Tayschrenn takes on the role of the dying Elder God K'rul, becoming T'renn.]]
* DefectorFromDecadence: Used to be a High Septarch of D'rek, the Worm of Autumn, but left the cult for unknown reasons.
* TheDreaded: He certainly has this role from Tattersail's point of view in ''Literature/GardensOfTheMoon''. She has cast Tayschrenn as the ultimate antagonist, worse even than the Empress, dreads every encounter with him and reads his every gesture as a confirmation of that.
* EnigmaticMinion: As Imperial High Mage, Tayschrenn is close to the Empress. He is presented as a bad guy from Tattersail's point of view at first, responsible for the death of most of the Bridgeburners and attacking the 2nd's mage cadre during the Enfilade at Pale, but later heclaims that he thought the Bridgeburners safe in the underground tunnels and that he was trying to defend against Nightchill's betrayal during the battle. Ultimately, his alignment remains a mystery, though it becomes quite clear that -- good intentions or not -- he is incompetent at commanding and unwilling to reveal his long-range intentions, not even to the man he helped to build the empire in the first place.
* EvilSorcerer: [[SubvertedTrope Subverted.]] Tayschrenn has that kind of reputation, especially as being paranoid and ruthless, though he is shown to be nurturing it. Tattersail suspects him of being responsible for the deaths of Calot and Nightchill, as well as of sending the Bridgeburners to their deaths. She actively does her best to ''not'' find any redeeming traits in Tayschrenn, and he seems content enough with the political power it gives him.
* HazyFeelTurn: Taschrenn starts out as Empress Laseen's loyal minion, then joins Onearm's Host as [[spoiler:Artanthos, the standard bearer, and fights at their side]], then claims to have the Empire's intererests in mind while [[spoiler:Empress Laseen is losing grasp and Mallick Rel is loose in the capital and eventually takes her place.]] And before all that, he used to be High Septarch of D'rek, the Worm of Autumn, but supposedly defected, except he claims to have been able to [[spoiler:talk D'rek out of killing him when she went berserk on her priesthood.]] And in the ''Novels of the Malazan Empire'', he seems to be running his own thing altogether, with not even his bodyguard Kiska knowing what he is up to.
--> '''Silverfox:''' 'No sense of loyalty, no sense of trust thoughts of him confuse me.'
* JustBetweenYouAndMe: Invoked. In ''Literature/TheBonehunters'', Tayschrenn and Shadowthrone have a brief exchange where they try to goad each other into revealing their respective plans. Neither gives in.
* MysteriousBacker: To Tattersail, whom he grooms -- unbeknownst to her -- to become the Mistress of the Deck of Dragons, which in turn would, of course, benefit the empire.
* NiceJobBreakingItHero: Trying to safe the Bridgeburners by ordering them to remain in the tunnels beneath the city walls of Pale.
* PersonOfMassDestruction: When he unleashes his Warrens in full during a battle with the Pannion Domin, he takes out all of their wizards, knocks down a third of the walls of their capital city, and causes Korlat, who had only heard about his duel with Rake, to nearly pass out as she realizes her lord tried to ''fight that''.
* PlayingWithFire: Tayschrenn uses High Telas, the Path of Fire, as his Warren.
* TwoAliasesOneCharacter: Tayschrenn is also [[spoiler:Artanthos, the 2nd's standard bearer during the campaing against the Pannion Seer.]] Much is talked about his motivations during ''Literature/MemoriesOfIce'', so his actual presence comes as a surprise to everyone.
-> '''Toc the Younger:''' 'Often, when we camped on the march, I'd see you lugging that travelling wardrobe of yours around. Now I finally see what was in it. Sorceress, you're a sight for a sore eye.'
--> ''Literature/GardensOfTheMoon''
Tattersail is the commanding sorceress of the 2nd Army's mage cadre and an adept at reading the Deck of Dragons. She has been serving the Malazan Empire ever since its founding, but has repeatedly turned down promotions to High Mage. Her main Warren is Thyr, the Path of Light.
* ActionGirlfriend: Action affair. She and Ganoes Paran hook up after Tattersail stands her ground against a Hound of Shadow.
* BigBeautifulWoman: There's no way around the fact that Tattersail is fat, she mentions it herself and even wonders how Calot is still attracted to her, but it's not just Calot -- almost everyone considers her to be attractive.
* CuteWitch: While Tattersail is quite clearly a grown up woman, she is described as cherubic and upbeat one of the few truly upbeat characters in the series and really cares about the common soldiers of the 2nd. She is also the only mage explicitly mentioned to use a spell book.
* DoNotGoGentle: [[spoiler:After admonishing herself about giving up, Tattersail throws herself at Bellurdan who was sent by Tayschrenn to bring her back and keep her from warning the Bridgeburners. She uses all her power to burn both of them to ashes in a giant pillar of light.]]
* KillTheCutie: One of the nicest and purely sympathetic characters, especially in ''Literature/GardensOfTheMoon''. [[spoiler:She gets a moment to show he decisiveness and power when confronting Bellurdan and then incinerating them both in order to stop him.]]
* HeroesWantRedHeads: She is a redhead, and hooks up with Ganoes Paran, who at that point is the closest thing ''Literature/GardensOfTheMoon'' has to a protagonist and hero.
* LightEmUp: Her Warren is Thyr, the Path of Light.
* TheMcCoy: Among the mage cadre, Tattersail is known to be closest to the common soldiers, respectful and down to earth. She is also the most emotional among the mages of her cadre.
* MysteriousBacker: She is not aware of it, but Tayschrenn wants her to become the Mistress of the Deck of Dragons, which in turn would benefit the Malazan Empire.
* OlderThanTheyLook: She is actually 214, but it's not unusual for magic users to be older than they look.
* {{Reincarnation}}: [[spoiler:Tattersail's soul is used in the creation of Silverfox and thus makes up a part of Silverfox's soul, together with Bellurdan Scullcrusher and Nightchill.]]
* ReincarnationRomance: Subverted. [[spoiler:There is an expectation that Tattersail's and Ganoes Paran's budding romance would continue between Silverfox and Paran, but it becomes clear that neither were their feelings any more than passing affection nor is Silverfox the same woman as Tattersail.]]
* SpellBook: Possibly EarlyInstallmentWeirdness, but Tattersail is the only mage who is mentioned to possess and use a spellbook.
* TarotTroubles: Tattersail is an adept at reading the Deck of Dragons, with High Mage Tayschrenn even grooming her to become the Mistress of the Deck.
* WeHardlyKnewYe: She is introduced as a major point of view character in ''Literature/GardensOfTheMoon'', [[spoiler:but not even half the book goes by and she dies abruptly in an attempt to stop Bellurdan.]]
!!Fist Coltaine
-> 'All men have hidden motives. I care nothing for their sentiments. If they obey my commands I in turn will serve them. If they do not, I will tear their hearts from their chests.'
--> ''Literature/DeadhouseGates''
Coltaine of the Crow Clan is a Wickan warchief and a newly appointed Fist, tasked with curbing the brewing rebellion in Seven Cities. He was the one to unite the Wickan clans on Quon Tali in an insurrection against Emperor Kellanved, yet the latter somehow managed to gain Coltaine's loyalty. He is an enigma to both the imperial troops and his own followers.
* AnimalMotif: The Crow. Coltaine of the Crow Clan, wearing a cloak of crow feathers and crow feather fetishes in his hair. [[spoiler:Thousands of crows also come to take in his soul upon his death.]]
* BadassCape: It is made of crow feathers and looks appropriately fierce when he's riding into battle.
* BadassNative: All the Wickans are, but Coltaine is known for being especially fierce and cunning. After all, he was the one to unite all the Wickan clans beneath his rule.
--> '''A captain in the 7th:''' 'If you're going to keep your head as leader of all the clans, you'd better be nastier than all the rest put together. Why'd you think the old Emperor liked him so much?'
* CrucifiedHeroShot: [[spoiler: At the end of ''Literature/DeadhouseGates'', he dies on a cross.]]
* {{Determinator}}: Coltaine leads the 7th Army and several thousands of refugees across an entire subcontinent while being constantly attacked by rebels all the way. [[spoiler:He delivers them to Aren's gates, but dies in a last stand to allow them to reach the gates.]]
* GuileHero: Surprisingly, since he cultivates a savage horse warrior image, Coltaine can be really cunning and politically effective. While he does not care for insulting anyone's sensibilities, he insults them in a way that gets him the results he wants.
--> '''A captain in the 7th:''' 'Coltaine's a snake, if that's what you're asking. If the High Command at Aren thinks they can dance around him, they're in for a nasty surprise.'
* TheLeader: Warchief of the Wickan Clans. He is a mastermind at tactics, always thinking a step further than the leaders of the rebellion, and predicting their reactions. He does what he does because he takes his resposibility as a Malazan Fist seriously and serves those that serve him. However, Coltaine is will not budge no matter how much pressure he receives from without or within -- from those refugees he is guarding, some of whom are {{Ungrateful Bastard}}s. Yet despite all his apparent fierceness and arrogance, he has the kind of charisma that draws people to him and make them swear their lives to his cause, sometimes without knowing what he's up to.
* MercyKill: [[spoiler:At his last stand in the finale of ''Literature/DeadhouseGates'', Coltaine is caught by the Army of the Apocalypse and crucified. They also keep killing the crows that come to take away his soul, thus prolonging his suffering. The troops watching from the walls of Aren dig up Squint, their best archer, who manages to kill Coltaine with one shot from the distance and end it all.]]
* MessianicArchetype: A hero to the Wickans whom they follow without questions, who leads tens of thousands of refugees he has no other connection with other than being a Fist of the Malazan Empire across an entire continent, all while being under constant attack from religious fanatics. [[spoiler:He then dies on a cross, his soul -- too big to be taken in by one crow -- taken away by thousands of crows, and is reborn on the Wickan Plains of Quon Tali.]] [[spoiler:In ''Return of the Crimson Guard'', he is back to leading the Wickans, albeit from a stroller.]]
* NervesOfSteel: No matter what happens, Coltaine's reaction is always the same: Think of a plan, put it into action. When everyone else is loosing their cool during the Chain of Dogs, Coltaine never does.
* NoBadassToHisValet: No matter how much Coltaine snarls and raises hackles and delivers death glares, his uncle Bult is not impressed.
* ShootTheShaggyDog: [[spoiler: Escorted 30,000 Malazan refugees across the worst desert in the world, under constant attack from dozens of different armies and in constant danger of starvation. His reward? To be abandoned by his superiors and crucified right outside the walls of Aren. Most of the refugees were {{Ungrateful Bastard}}s as well.]]
* TerrorHero: Coltaine's modus operandi. He verges on being TheDreaded upon his arrival in Seven Cities, as soldiers recall their last encounter with him -- most of them saw their first battle facing Coltaine when he rebelled against Emperor Kellanved. He uses intimidation and the threat of death to keep the [[UngratefulBastard nobles]] among the refugees in check.
* WildHair: Not unkempt, but Coltaine sports long, wild braids full of fetishes and crow feathers. He is as close to nature as a horse warrior from the steppes can be, and comes off as having no social skills at all unless they include snarling at and passively insulting people. And if anything, he can be said to be ChaoticGood and the Wickans' hero.
-> 'Wise words are like arrows flung at your forehead. What do you do? Why, you duck, of course.'
--> ''Literature/DeadhouseGates''
Bult is a veteran commander in Fist Coltaine's command and his uncle. He seems able to read Coltaine a tiny bit better than everyone else and translate the his silences and snarls into worded orders. When he was young, Bult was badly wounded in battle by Dujek, giving him an ugly scar which almost folds his face in half diagonally. In retaliation, Bult's horse made certain Dujek would gain the moniker 'Onearm'.
* BadassGrandpa: Bult is old enough to have fought both Duiker and Dujek when all three of them were young, but he can hold his own not only within the command structure but also on the field of battle -- like any younger Wickan horse warrior.
* EveryScarHasAStory: Lampshaded. Bult got badly wounded and scarred in a battle when he was young. He dealt some damage to Duiker, got caught by Dujek, then his horse bit off Dujek's arm. He jokes how losing his beauty left him with the only wife he'd had then, who was his sister and blind.
[[folder: '''Malazan Empire -- The Old Guard''']]
!!Dassem Ultor aka Dessembrae aka [[spoiler:Traveller]]
-> '''Spindle:''' 'But Dassem taught us -- he taught every soldier in the Malazan armies back then. Sure, we had swords, but who we used 'em on was up to us.'
--> ''Literature/TollTheHounds''
Dassem Ultor was one of those Kellanved and Dancer had recruited to found the Malazan Empire. Like the Emperor, he came from Dal Hon, and served as the First Sword, the supreme commander of the malazan armies. He reportedly betrayed Hood, whom he was sworn to, and died at Y'Ghatan during the conquest of Seven Cities. [[spoiler:He didn't, changed his name to Traveller and is on a revenge quest against Hood.]]
* ExpansionPackPast: Downplayed, but every new information regarding Dassem's past, especially his connection to Hood, puts his backstory in a different light.
* FakingTheDead: Dassem's Old Guard, of course he did it. [[spoiler:He escaped Laseen's assassination attempt at Y'Ghatan and became Traveller, so that he could pursue his revenge quest against Hood.]]
* ItsPersonal: After breaking with Hood, everything he does is to further his quest for revenge and get to kill Hood, even though on the surface he may participate in, e.g. fighting the Tiste Edur in ''Literature/HouseOfChains''.
* IWillFightSomeMoreForever: [[spoiler:Even after Hood's out of reach, Traveller still duels Anomander Rake to get at Hood.]]
* KillTheGod: That's his goal: to kill the God of Death. [[spoiler:It almost works, but Anomander Rake gets to it first, then taunts Traveller into a duel if he wants to still get Hood.]]
* LegendaryWeapon: The sword ''Vengeance'', which used to belong to and was reportedly forged by Anomander Rake.
* MagneticHero: Dassem used to be this for the soldiers of the Malazan armies in general and his immediate entourage in particular. Many soldiers still follow his credo.
* MasterSwordsman: Considered the empire's best swordsman, also known as the First Sword of Empire. [[spoiler:So good, even Logros thought he qualified for the T'lan Imass title of First Sword.]]
* NamedWeapon: ''Vengeance'', which is also known as ''Grief'', though the name depends on the wielder.
* PhysicalGod: Dessembrae is the God of Tragedy. The cult came into being among the soldiers of the Malazan Empire, and [[spoiler:the fact that Logros and his T'lan Imass transferred the title of First Sword from Onos T'oolan to Dassem Ultor sealed Dassem's ascension to godhood.]]
* PosthumousCharacter: Averted, but it's still significant, as his death is reported in the prologue of the first volume, ''Literature/GardensOfTheMoon'', making it seem final. Furthermore, ''Dassem Ultor'' is indeed past and gone, but the Cult of Dessembrae lives on, turning him into an Ascendant, and [[spoiler:Traveller]] has left the Malazan Empire behind.
* RageAgainstTheHeavens: He broke with Hood after the latter did in Dassem's daughter. So Dassem swore [[{{Revenge}} revenge]] on Hood and means to kill the God of Death no matter what or how long it will take.
* {{Revenge}}: Subverted, as it's made clear how pointless and misaimed his quest is. In the end, [[spoiler:he does not get Hood, and has to face having nothing to continue his life for.]]
* RevengeBeforeReason: Despite being aware that [[spoiler:Logros' and the T'lan Imass' blessing]] is to blame for everything, he goes after Hood, and is intent on killing the ''God of Death'' no matter what. Revenge is his only goal.
* TheUnfettered: In regards to his [[RevengeBeforeReason revenge quest]], to the point where he does not care what happens to people and [[spoiler:seeing his goal taken from him makes him break down.]] Information about his days as First Sword show him as having been the opposite.
* UnwittingPawn: Repeatedly. At first, he becomes [[spoiler:Hood's instrument in getting back at the T'lan Imass for cheating death]], then in ''Literature/TollTheHounds'', [[spoiler:Anomander Rake, Shadowthrone and Hood use his [[RevengeBeforeReason single-mindedness]] to achieve their goals.]]
* WorldsBestWarrior: Considered one of the best in several fields, among them military tactics on a larger scale, and sword fighting on a smaller one. And even outside of those he is capable of, for example, [[Literature/TollTheHounds mopping the floor with a giant bear]].
[[folder: '''Malazan Empire -- The Bridgeburners''']]
!!Captain Ganoes Paran
-> 'All right, it's rather more complicated than I had imagined, then.'
--> ''Literature/TheCrippledGod''
Ganoes Paran is the oldest child of House Paran and a young officer in the Malazan Army, recently assigned as Captain to the Bridgeburners. In ''Literature/GardensOfTheMoon'' he seems to be the closest thing the book has to a protagonist, with the prologue and first chapter following him from childhood to the army. He eventually gets accepted by the notorious Bridgeburners and becomes [[spoiler:the Master of the Deck of Dragons and even later takes over Onearm's Host after Dujek's death.]]
* AnxietyDreams: They result in DreamingOfThingsToCome, DreamingOfTimesGoneBy and a diffuse version of DreamSpying, and comes with being [[spoiler:Master of the Deck]] but actively resisting it. It gets better as soon as he accepts his powers.
* BadDreams: In particular, thanks to being touched by the blood of a Hound of Shadow, Paran keeps dreaming of being a Hound, hunting and drowning in darkness.
* BeCarefulWhatYouWishFor: In the prologue of ''Literature/GardensOfTheMoon'', the twelve-year-old Paran wishes to become a soldier and a hero. He becomes the former, against his family's wishes, but soon finds out it's neither the same as being a hero, nor does the empire care much for its own.
--> ''And me? I'm a fool who followed his dream, and now all I desire is its end.''
* BlessedWithSuck: How he sees the intervention of various gods in his life, especially Oponn. Paran named his sword ''Chance'', which got it blessed by the Jesters of Chance, which in turn made it possible to get at them through Paran. Not a fun place to be.
* CantStayNormal: After getting used by Adjunct Lorn, falling for a mage, being blessed by Oponn, absorbing the blood of a Hound of Shadow and eventually becoming [[spoiler:Master of the Deck of Dragons]], Paran decides to settle down and moves in with [[spoiler:Raest at the Finnest House of Darujhistan]]. The next time he appears, though, he's apparently come to the conclusion that he wants to know more about the war the gods are preparing for.
* CaptainSmoothAndSergeantRough: He's the noble born, young and well spoken Captain to the low born, older, gruff and down-to-earth Sergeant Whiskeyjack. Although Paran wisely lets Whiskeyjack run the Bridgeburners as he's well aware of being a newbie.
* ChickMagnet: Both before and after getting a RuggedScar. Though his actual conquests consist of only Tattersail, there's quite a list of women who can't take their eyes off Paran, starting with Adjunct Lorn and ending with Minala:
--> '''Quick Ben:''' 'Her and Rythe Bude what is it with Ganoes Paran anyway? All these women slobbering all over him.'
* DecoyProtagonist: Defied. Since Ganoes Paran has an important part in both the prologue and first chapters of ''Literature/GardensOfTheMoon'', he comes off as the closest thing one can assume to be a protagonist. [[spoiler:Then he gets knifed by Sorry in a back alley as soon as he arrives in Pale. He does get better, though, and goes on to play an important part in the story. However, he fades into the multitude of other points of view, taking up no more or less screentime than them.]]
* DidYouJustPunchOutCthulhu: In ''Literature/TheBonehunters'', [[spoiler:Captain Paran disposes of Poliel, Mistress of Pestilence, with the help of a shard of Otataral, setting the scene up for the Deragoth to kill Poliel.]]
* EmergencyAuthority: [[spoiler:Paran takes over the 2nd Army when Dujek Onearm and his entire command cadre are dying of the plague because he just happens to come along and to be the highest healthy ranking officer around.]]
* EnsignNewbie: Fresh out of the military academy, Paran gets assigned the rank of Lieutenant while stationed in Itko Kan. Thanks to keeping his cool during the aftermath of the massacre at the fishing village, he is noticed by Adjunct Lorn and made her personal aide and eventually Captain of the Bridgeburners, who are notorious for getting rid of captains they dislike in creative ways. They are not happy about getting assigned a newbie. He gets better at his job. Quickly.
* TheFace: While Paran initially has trouble becoming this for the Bridgeburners, when he comes to lead [[spoiler:Onerarm's Host]], he becomes this. Especially for the [[spoiler:Forkrul Assail]] he is the face of the entire army, as he's the only one they get to see and talk to.
* FishOutOfWater: Practically runs on this trope. First he is thrust into dealing with the massacre in Itko Kan. Then, though with some Claw training, into commanding the Bridgeburners, who are notorious for killing their captains. Then he has to deal with becoming [[spoiler:Master of the Deck of Dragons]], only to end up commanding [[spoiler:Onearm's Host]] because no one else of rank is around. He grows with every occasion.
* GivingTheSwordToANoob: He becomes [[spoiler:Master of the Deck of Dragons]] because [[spoiler:Tattersail]], who was much better qualified for the job, dies unexpectedly and Paran was the last person to be close to her. He turns out to be very well suited for the position when he makes his peace with it.
* ICallItVera: In ''Literature/GardensOfTheMoon'', Paran names his standard issue sword ''Chance'' while still in the grip of his childhood dreams of becoming a hero. It [[UnwittingPawn brings down the blessing]] of Oponn on him, which [[BlessedWithSuck cures him of the idea]].
* InvoluntaryShapeshifter: It's downplayed, but after touching the blood of a Hound of Shadow, Paran occasionally has moments where he partially seems to transform into one. He's not particularly fazed:
--> '''Hurlochel:''' 'Captain. For a moment there... your eyes... they... ''flared''. Like a beast's.'\\
'''Ganoes Paran:''' 'Did they now?'
* KnightInSourArmor: He's had his idealistic dreams of becoming a hero through soldiering shattered quite thoroughly and is not shy about saying things as they are, but still believes that it's worth to prevent TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt.
--> '''Ganoes Paran:''' 'The gods have been kicking us around for a long time. When do we say enough?'\\
'''Noto Boil:''' 'And in their absence, High Fist, will we manage things any better?'\\
'''Ganoes Paran:''' 'No, but at least then we won't have the option of blaming someone else.'
* LetsGetDangerous: Happens at some point between ''Literature/MemoriesOfIce'' and ''Literature/TheBonehunters''. In the former, Paran is the gut sick newbie captain of the Bridgeburners who's actively trying to suppress his [[spoiler:being the Master of the Deck of Dragons]]. In the latter he's accepted what he's become and gets a chance to show his capabilities by, e.g. pawning Poliel, the Mistress of Pestilence.
* NiceGuy: Paran is far from being a doormat, and plays at being rebellious at the beginning of the series, but he soon finds himself and is one of the most straightforwardly nice and well balanced people in the series. He's easy to deal and get along with, and is outwardly not fazed by anyone or anything. Of course, being a soldier he's got the requiered humour down pat.
* NotSoDifferent: Ganoes Paran and his sister Tavore Paran. They are outwardly at odds, as Ganoes is the rebel who leaves his noble family against their will to become a common soldier, while Tavore is [[TheDutifulDaughter the dutiful daughter]] who takes it upon herself to restore the family's honour. However, they act out of a similar belief that the gods have meddled enough in mortal affairs and both, without knowing the other's plans, [[spoiler:acquiere control of an army and lead their soldiers to Kolanse to fight the Forkrul Assail and free the Crippled God.]]
* PortalPicture: Paran finds ingenious ways to use his powers as the [[spoiler:Master of the Deck of Dragons]]. He has Ormulogun paint or scratches himself [[spoiler:new cards, then uses them as portals to transport the 2nd Army to Kolanse. He also baits Sister Belie from another realm to follow him and get trapped there.]]
* RuggedScar: In ''Literature/MemoriesOfIce'', a Hound of Shadow bites off part of one of his ears. By his next appearance the wound has faded to a RuggedScar.
!!Sergeant Whiskeyjack / [[spoiler:Iskar Jarak]]
-> 'Taking up the sword is the last act of desperate men. Mark my words and find yourself a more worthy dream.'
--> ''Literature/GardensOfTheMoon''
Whiskeyjack is the Sergeant of the 9th squad of the Bridgeburners. He used to be Commander of the entire 2nd Army, but was demoted by Empress Laseen after her ascension to the throne. He is beloved and looked up to by all of his soldiers. [[spoiler:On Seven Cities, the tribe of the Anibar consider him a holy figure and call him Iskar Jarak, the Iron Prophet, because he once warned them of the coming of the malazan armies.]]
* CaptainSmoothAndSergeantRough: Captain Paran's the noble born, young and well spoken Captain to the low born, older, gruff and down-to-earth Sergeant Whiskeyjack. Although Paran wisely lets Whiskeyjack run the Bridgeburners as he's well aware of being a newbie.
* DontFearTheReaper: [[spoiler:Iskar Jarak tells Kalyth in ''Dust of Dreams'' that the Guardians of the Gate will, unlike Hood, be the human face of death, because they've once been mortal themselves and remember what it's like to want to live.]]
* FourStarBadass: He used to command the 2nd Army while Dujek was his subordinate, but got demoted by Empress Laseen upon her ascension to the throne.
* TheGrimReaper: [[spoiler:After dying, ascending and taking on the moniker Iskar Jarak, he becomes the leader of the Guardians of the Gate -- the ascended Bridgeburners who take the place of Hood, Lord of Death.]]
* TheHeroDies: Whiskeyjack is considered a hero by most soldiers who've even heard about him. [[spoiler:He is abruptly killed by High King Kallor in a duel, which comes as a shock to many.]]
* MarkedToDie: [[spoiler:Ever since Whiskeyjack broke into the Temple of Hood on Malaz Island and stole his little sister away from the temple, he's been marked by Hood for it. It's strongly implied that it was Hood who kept him from having his leg healed after the Fête of Gedderone in ''Gardens of the Moon'', leading directly to his death in a duel against Kallor.]]
* MasterSwordsman: It is strongly implied that he could have defeated [[spoiler:High King Kallor]] had not [[spoiler:his injured leg given in and broken during their duel.]]
* MayflyDecemberRomance: With the Tiste Andii Korlat, who already is potentially many thousands of years old and will continue living for quite some time yet, while Whiskeyjack is purely human. They meet and fall in love in ''Literature/MemoriesOfIce''.
* MeaningfulName: Or rename? But it's the only name given as malazan soldiers are mostly OnlyKnownByTheirNickname. When he was younger, Whiskeyjack [[spoiler:stole his baby sister back from Hood's Temple on Malaz Island]], and Whiskeyjack is an alternate name for the gray jay. The Moranth even flat-out call him 'Bird That Steals'.
* NumberTwo: He is Dujek Onearm's second-in-command during the campaign against the Pannion Domin, though Korlat points out that he's actually a more compelling leader than Dujek -- which is why Laseen demoted him in the first place. And in fact Dujek used to be ''his'' second-in-command before his demotion.
* OddFriendship: With Anomander Rake. The Malazans and the forces of Caladan Brood and Anomander Rake did their respective best to defeat each other, but after the EnemyMine team-up between Dujek Onearm and Caladan Brood against the Pannion Seer, Whiskeyjack and Anomander Rake become friends, spending many evenings talking about stuff and drinking ale.
* OddNameOut: Most characters in the series are either OnlyKnownByTheirNickname or have obviously fantastic names. Whiskeyjack's name, while still only a nickname, is pretty much the only one that invoked real world images due to there being no whiskey in the malazan world (at least not known as such). So, unless one knows that [[MeaningfulName it's an alternate name]] for the Canada jay, or gray jay, the name can really stand out.
* ReasonableAuthorityFigure: To his squad. He'll listen to what his soldiers, especially Quick Ben and Kalam have to say, mull it over and come up with a reasonable plan of action, one that preferably will keep his squad alive and out of trouble.
* ReassignmentBackfire: Laseen demoted him to Sergeant and put him in the front lines at Pale and Darujhistan in an attempt to get him killed. This leads to him and [[spoiler:the entirety of Onearm's Host defecting to Caladan Brood's campaign against the Pannion Domin.]] It also puts Quick Ben and Kalam on Laseen's case, toying with the idea[[spoiler:of killing her and putting Whiskeyjack in her place.]]
* RenamedTheSame: With some help from the Anibar and FunetikAksent. In ''Literature/TheBonehunters'', Boatfinder tells of how someone named Iskar Jarak, also called the Iron Prophet, came to the lands of the Anibar with a hundred dark warriors and warned them of those who will come after him. [[spoiler:It was Whiskeyjack and his Bridgeburners. After his death and ascension -- likely influenced by the Anibar's worship of him -- he takes on the name of Iskar Jarak.]]
* SacrificialLion: [[spoiler:He dies in a duel against High King Kallor to show how AnyoneCanDie and that Kallor is just fine with killing allies if it gets him what he wants.]]
* SergeantRock: Whiskeyjack is rough and often grunts or growls his sentences, cares very much for his soldiers beneath it all and is very efficient at his job. So efficient, in fact, that Empress Laseen demoted him to the rant of Sergeant to keep his influence down. He is liked so much by his soldiers that [[spoiler:at least Kalam and Quick Ben have ideas to put him on the throne.]]
!!Corporal Kalam Mekhar
-> '''Fiddler:''' ''Just Kalam for old company, and he calls that land ahead home. And he smiles before he kills.''
--> ''Literature/DeadhouseGates''
Kalam Mekhar is an assassin from Seven Cities, where he had served one of the Seven Holy Falah'dan before he joined the Malazan forces, and known for having been recruited into [[SecretPolice the Claw]] instead of being raised there. He then left the Claw, which again was unprecedented, and joined the Bridgeburners. Kalam and his long-time friend Quick Ben were instrumental in the creation of the Bridgeburners.
* AwfulWeddedLife: His marriage to [[{{Tsundere}} Minala]], though it's partly played for laughs, and they [[AwLookTheyReallyDoLoveEachOther do actually love each other]]. Minala thinks Kalam's a buffoon and he thinks she's a tyrant. Of course, there's also the fact that they have to teach fourteen hundred traumatized children how to fight.
--> '''Cotillion:''' 'Ah. Chafing, are you? I would never have guessed.'\\
'''Kalam:''' 'Liar.'
* BadassNormal: He's a trained assassin and former Claw. That's it unlike the majority of the Claw, Kalam is neither a mage assassin nor does he use magically enhanced equipment. And yet he's pulled off stunts to rival those of Ascendants. Even Cotillion, the Patron of Assassins, acknowledges his abilities.
* BrainsAndBrawn: The brawn to Quick Ben's brains. Quick Ben is the one who comes up with plans and [[SwordAndSorcerer prepares the appropriate spells]] to provide Kalam with, while Kalam is the one to go in and do the job, which usually involves stabbing something or someone.
* CombatPragmatist: Kalam demonstrates at several occasions that he is willing to use whatever weapons are at hand and do whatever it takes to end a fight fast and thoroughly. Especially against the Claw, who rely too much on magic, this is very effective.
* ConvenientComa: At the end of ''Literature/TheBonehunters'', [[spoiler:Kalam is deposited by Shadowthrone on the threshold of the Deadhouse on Malaz Island, where he spends the next three books in a comatose state, to be re-awakened by Quick Ben and Minala just in time for the series finale]].
* HitmanWithAHeart: He prefers to not have to kill innocents and sometimes goes for those who are cruel for cruelty's sake on his own, and when, in ''Literature/DeadhouseGates'', he comes across [[spoiler:hundreds of crucified children]], his helplessness and sympathy is so palpable, even Apt the demon feels it and [[spoiler:convinces Shadowthrone to save them -- because Kalam wanted to.]]
* KnifeNut: Long-knives are Kalam's fevourite weapons. He usually has two on him and in ''Literature/HouseOfChains'' he acquieres two Wickan style long-knives, one of which is alloyed with [[AntiMagic otataral]].
* LightningBruiser: Kalam is often mistaken for slow due to his bear-like bulk, so while his strength and toughness is not such a big surprise, he's capable of an uncanny, graceful speed that belies his appearance. When he goes against the Claw -- [[spoiler:both times]] -- he aptly demonstrates that while he may not ''look'' like an assassin, he can outmaneuver and outfight them just fine.
* TheMasochismTango: His marriage to [[{{Tsundere}} Minala]], with the sexual tension in BelligerentSexualTension resolved, the belligerent part much less so, though. Paran and Quick Ben put it best:
--> '''Paran:''' 'Speaking of which, how do you warrant Kalam and Minala's chances?'\\
'''Quick Ben:''' 'I don't. And while I think they'd be good together, they keep trying to wear each other's skin, if you know what I mean.'\\
'''Paran:''' 'Sort of.'\\
'''Quick Ben:''' 'It's not love that's the problem.'\\
'''Paran:''' 'It's all the rest.'
* ProfessionalKiller: He used to serve as a Dagger for one of the Seven Holy Falah'dan on Seven Cities, then was recruited into the Claw, where he commanden a Hand. Even after leaving the Claw, Kalam's reputation remains.
* ScaryBlackMan: Thanks to his fluent, graceful motions despite his bear-like bulk, his perpetual glare and his reputation as one of the empire's deadliest assassins, that's how most people in-universe see Kalam.
* SwordAndSorcerer: Quick Ben and Kalam, with the latter being the sword in the duo -- although Kalam is [[TropesAreFlexible an assassin instead of a typical fighter]]. Though Quick Ben can hold his own against other mages, when working together he usually acts as support for Kalam, providing assistance such as levitation or invisibility spells, while Kalam himself eventually even acquieres an [[AntiMagic Otararal knive]]. The duo is known and feared for their efficiency.
* VitriolicBestBuds: With Quick Ben. He at one point goes beyond just threatening to throttle Quick Ben and stops just in time for the latter to get the message. They're still each other's oldest and closest friend respectively, though.
!!Quick Ben / Ben Adaephon Delat
-> '''Sergeant Cord:''' 'Shifty, mysterious and scary as Hood's arse-crack.'
--> ''Literature/ReapersGale''
Quick Ben is the squad mage of Whiskeyjack's squad. He's best friends with Kalam Mekhar and usually considered the squad's shaved knuckle in the hole. Like Kalam, he used to serve the Holy Falah'd of Aren on Seven Cities, but also used to be a priest of the Cult of Shadow. His warren is Meanas, however [[spoiler:due to housing the souls of twelve mages in one body he is able to access far more warrens than would be normal for a human mage]].
* BrainsAndBrawn: The brains to Kalam Mekhar's brawns. Quick Ben is the one who comes up with plans and [[SwordAndSorcerer prepares the appropriate spells]] to provide Kalam with, while Kalam is the one to go in and do the job, which usually involves stabbing something or someone.
* BullyingADragon: This and a heaping of DidYouJustFlipOffCthulhu characterises Quick Ben's interactions with Gods and Ascendants, Shadowthrone in particular, most of whom he bullies, surprises and tricks into agreeing with whatever he wants.
* ChildProdigy: ''Literature/TheBonehunters'' reveals that he used to be one in regards to magic and trickery, but coupled with EnfantTerrible -- to the dismay of his sister Torahaval and the entire family.
* DefectorFromDecadence: Ben Adaephon Delat used to be a High Priest of the Cult of Shadow, but burned the vestments of his office and left the cult for unspecified reasons, faked his death and joined the Bridgeburners as Quick Ben. His willing assistance in the destruction of the Cult of Rashan indicates a dislike for the priesthood and priests like Bidithal.
* DidYouJustFlipOffCthulhu: Quick Ben's response to go when threatened by someone more powerful is refuge in audacity. It tends to astonish the God/Ascendant in question enough for Quick Ben to whisk himself away.
--> '''Hood:''' 'You will be mine one day, mortal'\\
'''Quick Ben:''' 'No doubt, Hood. In the meantime, let's just luxuriate in the anticipation, shall we?'
* EnfantTerrible: In ''Literature/TheBonehunters'', his sister Torahaval recalls how as a ten-year-old, [[spoiler:he fashioned voodoo-dolls of every member of their family and sent them nightmares]] and generally considered himself 'destined for vast infamy'.
* FieldPromotion: Played with. During the campaign against the Pannion Domin, he gets promoted to High Mage after conjuring illusions strong enough to actually kill people. The promotion sticks, though High Mage Tayschrenn is not happy about it. Quick Ben just glibly reminds him that he's held the rank before -- twice in fact, under different aliases.
* FlipPersonality: In private, when no one's within earshot, Quick Ben is in the habit of muttering to himself in a variety of distinct voices. [[spoiler:He's holding a conversation within the MindHive.]]
* IndyPloy: Quick Ben's modus operandi when he's not engaging in XanatosSpeedChess, although the line occasionally blurs. Pursued by mage assassins? Release an Imperial Demon. Caught in the house of a nasty necromancer? Blow a hole through the wall. Caught in an uncomfortable situation? Pull the God of Death in for a chat.
* InsufferableGenius: Quick Ben is one of the most versatile mages around and knows everything, and if he doesn't, he will -- as others suspect in-universe -- make it up as he goes along. Fortunately or unfortunately, he usually ends up being right, and vocal about having saved the day. Kalam points out how the more Quick Ben knows, the more obnoxious he gets.
* MasterOfIllusion: He has impressive control over High Meanas, the Warren of Shadow and Illusion. Impressive enough to create illusions so believable they can kill or [[spoiler:scare the crap out of a Tiste Edur fleet, although he might have had some help with this one.]]
* MindHive: [[spoiler:He has twelve souls inside of him, but claims they've reached some kind of accord regarding who gets the say-so. It seems like there's still some need to communicate, and it's possible to catch him switching to access new information.]]
* TheSmartGuy: For the Bridgeburners and later the Malazan Army in general. It's been said that if [[TheChessmaster Kruppe]] is one of the smartest people in the world, than Quick Ben is only a step behind him. A short one, mind you.
* SquishyWizard: Zig-zagged. Quick Ben is fairly easy to take out when he is not expecting an attack. However, when he knows he is in danger and has time to prepare, even [[spoiler:lightning strikes]] barely scratch him.
* SwordAndSorcerer: Quick Ben and Kalam, with the former being the sorceror in the duo. Though Quick Ben can hold his own against other mages, when working together he usually acts as support for Kalam, providing assistance such as levitation or invisibility spells. The duo is known and feared for their efficiency.
* TalkingToThemself: It is possible to catch Quick Ben talking aloud in a variety of voices with himself, which is an indication of [[spoiler:the MindHive holding a conversation]].
* TheTrickster: Among those who have known Quick Ben for some time, or have even heard of him, he is quite infamous for his trickster and cheating tendencies. He is a MasterOfIllusion, possibly a MasterOfDisguise, as well as of XanatosSpeedChess, who ''especially'' delights in tricking the gods.
--> Of course he was hiding secrets. Of course he was playing unseen games. He was Quick Ben, [[spoiler:the last surviving wizard of the Bridgeburners]]. He thought outwitting gods was fun.
* TryingToCatchMeFightingDirty: ''Everyone'' knows Ben Adaephon Delat ''cheats'' -- even the gods and his allies know. It's the ''how'' and ''when'' that nobody can tell.
* UnderestimatingBadassery: Quick Ben doesn't ''look'' particularly imposing or dangerous, especially when he's -- presumably -- playing up his self-pompousness, so even his allies don't always remember to take him seriously. His enemies routinely underestimate him, which tends to end badly for them particularly after [[spoiler:he ditches any attempt at being subtle]].
* VancianMagic: Some of Quick Ben's magic works like that. While he can just punch out an impressive amount of power, especially when working with Kalam he prepares his spells in advance, and as soon as they are set off and working, they are not adjustable, e.g. the invisibility or levitation spells.
* VitriolicBestBuds: With Kalam Mekhar, his oldest and closest friend. He at one point manages to bait Kalam into trying to throttle him, with Kalam stopping just in time, hoping in vain that the message might stick.
* VoluntaryShapeshifting: It is never outright confirmed, but through the course of the series various characters remain convinced that Quick Ben is some kind of shapeshifter, be it a Soletaken or a D'ivers.
* VoodooDoll: One of the two major ways Quick Ben uses magic is through dolls he ties magical strings to, enabling him to follow said strings, tug on them, cut them, and so on.
* XanatosSpeedChess: On the few occasions Quick Ben has had an overaching plan (like fleeing the Bridgeburners through Raraku or saving Burn), he's shown an uncanny ability to adjust his immediate plans to the circumstances while still approaching his overall goal, which tends to be somewhat loosely defined anyway.
-> 'Soldiers are always underestimated. I've not spent fifteen years fighting Imperial wars with my eyes closed.'
--> ''Literature/DeadhouseGates''
Fiddler is a soldier in Whiskeyjack's squad and a long-standing friend of the same, both of them having been apprentice masons on Malaz Island. He has a latent talent for reading the Deck of Dragons, often having 'bad feelings' about something, and is -- together with his friend Hedge -- considered an expert sapper. In ''Literature/HouseOfChains'', he re-joins the Malazan army under the name of Strings and becomes part of the Bonehunters.
* AscendedExtra: In ''Literature/GardensOfTheMoon'', Fiddler is little more than a supporting character, but becomes a point of view character in ''Literature/DeadhouseGates''.
* AudienceSurrogate: Fiddler is the most constant soldier point of view in the series and one of the most down-to-earth characters. It is easy to emphasize with him because he has mostly understandable human flaws -- as opposed to some of the crazy stuff the other soldiers have to offer -- but also some cool abilities like being a DemolitionsExpert and a reader of the Deck of Dragons.
* BestFriend: To Hedge, during the Bridgeburner era. They are constantly together and obviously best friends. [[spoiler:When he finds out about Hedge's death, Fiddler takes quite a while to get over it.]] He also used to be Whiskeyjack's best friend during their apprenticeship.
* DemolitionsExpert: He's a sapper, and was one of the first to use Moranth explosives the way the Malazan sappers came to do.
* EarnYourHappyEnding: Like many of the Bonehunters, Fiddler goes through more than should be humanly possible, but in the end -- in a case of BookEnds harking back to ''Literature/GardensOfTheMoon'' -- he is seen fishing in the harbour of Malaz Island.
* FeelingTheirAge: Towards the end of the series, Fiddler starts complaining that he's too old for all this soldiering.
* KnightInSourArmor: Fiddler's a pessimist at heart and even in ''Literature/GardensOfTheMoon'' it already shows. Nonetheless he keeps doing what he does best -- being a soldier -- because the Empire's done some good things and later, because he knows that Tavore's cause is the right thing to do. He still gripes about almost everything.
* LivingLegend: Among the sappers of the Malazan Empire. Hedge and Fiddler were the first sappers to receive Moranth munitions and experiment with them, and as a result were the ones to devise most of the tactics and tricks all Malazan sappers now use.
* MagicalFlutist: Carries a Fiddle --hence his name-- that he plays sometimes to impressive magical effects.
* MagicMusic: It is markedly different from the Warren Magic System, but Fiddler playing his instrument and singing has had supernatural effects on his surroundings on more than one occasion; including but not limited to: temporarily manifesting the ghosts of fallen comrades.
* MeaningfulRename: Subverted. In ''Literature/HouseOfChains'', Fiddler renames himself Strings in order to sign up with the Malazan military again. Nobody who's ever even heard of him buys it, so he eventually goes back to Fiddler.
* NervesOfSteel: Fiddler demonstrates these when he is preparing the Drum in ''Literature/ReapersGale'' -- Fiddler shaves the clay shell of a clay grenade off close enough to the core that an enemy merely standing on it will trigger a series of explosions. Cuttle is appropriately awed ''and'' terrified.
* RankUp: Fiddler is promoted from [[spoiler:sergeant]] to [[spoiler:captain]] after the events of ''Literature/DustOfDreams''. He is not happy about it in the least.
* ResignedToTheCall: Later in the series. Since Fiddler has a latent talent for reading the Deck of Dragons, and basically has one inside his brain, he can't help but know what's going on and get dragged into the games of the power players. And while he agrees that what Tavore Paran is up to is the right thing to do, he is not happy about having a part in it.
* SurvivorGuilt: Subverted. Fiddler initially feels it after [[spoiler:Hedge's and the other Bridgeburners' deaths]]. But due to death being a part of soldiering and people dying all the time, he gets over it. [[spoiler:Then Hedge comes back and expects Fiddler to take things up as if nothing happened, but Fiddler tells him it's too late, as he's emotionally moved on already.]]
* TarotTroubles: Fiddler has a natural talent for reading the Deck of Dragons and may be the most adept reader in the series. Since he never had formal training, he's developed his own style, mostly by employing the cards to play games for which he makes the rules up as he goes along.
* TeamDad: Starting in ''Literature/HouseOfChains'', when he is put in command of a squad of [[NewMeat newbies]], making him -- beside Cuttle -- the squad's oldest member. Fiddler affects a gruff, too-old-for-this attitude and makes noises to enforce discipline, but he looks very closely at his soldiers and knows all their strengths and quirks.
* UpThroughTheRanks: When, after ''Litearture/DeadhouseGates'', he [[spoiler:re-enlists with the Malazan Army as Strings]], he is given the rank of sergeant as it's obvious he's served before.
* VagueAge: It's never made clear how old Fiddler is. In the prologue of ''Literature/GardensOfTheMoon'', Ganoes Paran, himself twelve at the time, judges Fiddler to be only a few years older than him. However, that does not add up with his apparent age later in the series, and how soon he start referring to himself as old, goes grey-ish or is referred to as old by others.
-> '''Fiddler:''' ''Trotts, you're still the damned ugliest Barghast I ever saw. They bred 'em that way in your tribe, didn't they? To better scare the enemy.''
--> ''Literature/TheCrippledGod''
Trotts is a Bridgeburner in Whiskeyjack's squad and serves as the squad's BigGuy. Not particularly wordy, the Barghast is covered in tattoes and fetishes, and is allegedly his clan's last living member.
* BadassNative: The Barghast consider themselves native to certain parts of Genabackis and have a [[ProudWarriorRaceGuy proud warrior culture]]. Trotts himself is the only Barghast among the Bridgeburners and thus stands out, especially with his BarbarianLonghair, filed teeth and fetishes, as well as his willingsness to kick ass. Also, thanks to him looking native and badass, and thus being a curiosity, the Bridgeburners manage to get hired as guards at Lady Simtal's fête.
* BarbarianLonghair: Trotts sports long black hair knotted in fetishes and is a Barghast, this setting's equivalent to barbarians.
* TheBigGuy: Being a Barghast, Trotts is even bigger than Kalam, and still sports the [[BraidsOfBarbarism barbarian look of his people]], what with being covered in tattoes, scars and fetishes all over. While not dumb at all, he prefers to keep to the background and pretend otherwise, and only exercise authority when necessary, for example when he shows his loyalty to the Bridgeburners by fighting his own people in ''Literature/MemoriesOfIce'' and then taking charge as the Barghast would only accept another Barghast.
* CoveredWithScars: As befits a Barghast warrior, Trotts' body is covered with tattoes which are only broken up by various faded scars.
* DuelToTheDeath: To win the support of the Barghast against the Pannion Domin, Trotts agrees to fight against Humbrall Taur's youngest son. [[spoiler:He wins by using the StoneWall tactic and just letting the boy tire himself out while he hides behind his shield, then kills his opponent with one well-timed attack.]]
* LuckilyMyShieldWillProtectMe: Despite his barbaric looks, Trotts has forsaken the wild {{Berserker}} fighting style of the Barghast and has instead adopted the Malazan heavy infantry style of hiding behind a shield until an opportunity to end the fight quickly presents itself.
* OnlyKnownByTheirNickname: As is par for the course with the Bridgeburners, Trotts is only known by the name he gained when he joined up. Although he does use the name Niganga during his squad's mission in Darujhistan, it is never mentioned again.
* ProudWarriorRaceGuy: Subverted. Trotts is a Barghast and displays all the visual signs associated with their BloodKnight and {{Berserker}} tendencies, but actually he takes no joy in combat, and when it comes to actual fighting he uses the strinctly disciplined combat style of the Malazan army.
* PunnyName: As Hedge puts it, he's not named Trotts because he likes jogging...
* TheQuietOne: Trotts rarely ever talks, unless it's to punctuate the moment. Or to deliver a moment of SophisticatedAsHell.
* SophisticatedAsHell: Trotts has a peculiar, surprisingly articulate way to curse:
--> 'You, sapper, are the scum beneath a pebble in a stream running through a field of sickly pigs.'
* StoneWall: This is the way Trotts wins the Barghast's support for the Malazan forces in ''Literature/MemoriesOfIce''. [[spoiler: He just hides behind his shield, military-style, until his tribal opponent has tired himself out by jumping around, then delivers a quick punch which kills the other Barghast.]]
-> ...see High House Shadow
!!Other Bridgeburners:
* AmbiguouslyBi: Picker is in a steady relationship with Blend, but they don't seem to be too big on exclusivity and at one point Picker is implied to have had sex with Barathol, which may or may not have been a byproduct of being drunk enough for an orgy.
* AnimalsHateHim: Spindle has this effect on animals. It's usually subdued, but as soon as he opens his warren, all animals within a certain area become aggressive and go completely nuts. Mallet points out how it's useful to have Spindle around in case enemy cavalry needs to be disposed of.
* BattleCouple: Lieutnant Picker and Blend are a lesbian battle couple. They've been going steady ever since joining the Malazan army. Picker is proficient with the sword and crossbow, while Blend prefers long-knives and stealth, and Blend acts like something of an aide for Picker as they need little words to communicate.
* BrawnHilda: Detoran is a huge, muscular Napanese woman. She is awkwardly shy and not good with words, but you'd never know it before she punches you into doing what she wants. Suprisingly, she is said to be an effective drill sergeant, once having screamed at a recruit for so long he fell backwards dead -- or so the story goes.
[[folder: '''Darujhistan''']]
!!Crokus Younghand/Cutter
%%* BadassNormal: Becomes one.
* GentlemanThief: This is how he sees himself at the beginning of the story, with a fair amount of justification; he refuses to take advantage of Challice and eventually returns what he stole from her. He also generally targets the wealthy and avoids targets who would be truly worse off because of his theft.
* HitmanWithAHeart: When he becomes an assassin, he is an example of this.
* KnifeNut: His preferred method of assassination.
* LoveHurts[=/=]LoveMartyr: His relationship with Apsalar, which was initially portrayed as kind of cute, is more or less poisoning his life. All attempts to move on have so far failed. It doesn't help that he became an assassin in an attempt to get closer to her, but [[spoiler:this backfired when it reminded her of the parts of herself she disliked, and ultimately ended up pushing her away.]]
* MaybeEverAfter: [[spoiler:Tracks down Apsalar in one of the epilogues of ''Literature/TheCrippledGod''.]]
* NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast: Cutter
* OvershadowedByAwesome: Frequently. Against opponents in his own weight class, he's very capable. Against Ascendants and monsters, not so much.
* SexForSolace: [[spoiler:After Apsalar leaves him and Felisin Younger is kidnapped by the T'lann Imass, Scillara begins sleeping with him in order to make him feel less dead inside. Both of them are aware that it's not love, but she's fine with this because it gets him out of his HeroicBSOD. Later, he begins an affair with Challice, his first crush, but he's still quite obviously in love with Apsalar and it seems to be equally an example of this trope. He does end up feeling quite a bit better in both cases, though.]]
* TookALevelInBadass: Has he ever!
!!Rallick Nom
-> 'At that range, I never miss.'
--> ''Literature/TollTheHounds''
Rallick Nom is an assassin and a member of the Assassins Guild of Darujhistan. Unlike others, he prefers to work alone, eschewing the company of other guild members and instead spending his free time with some regulars at the Phoenix Inn. Nonetheless, he is favoured by Guild Mistress Vorcan.
* ActionGirlfriend: Rallick eventually hooks up with [[spoiler:Vorcan, who wasn't Mistress of Assassins for nothing, and is capable of more than holding her ground no matter what title she bears]].
* AntiMagic: On a whim, he once uses Otataral powder, rubbing it into his skin, and unwittingly creates an entire school/cult within the Assassins Guild which adheres to the ideal of not using any magic in their assassinations, using Otataral powder instead whenever they can get it.
* BadassNormal: Unlike the various superpowered freaks present in the story ''and'' most other guild members, who rely on magic, Rallick relies entirely on his own skill (and a little magic-negating dust).
* BlackSheep: Rallick stems from the Darujhistan House of Nom, a respectable family with far flung connections. Why he became an assassin is never explained, but Kruppe calls him a sheep 'the very black of nadir, the Abyss' when comparing him to his already wayward cousin Torvald Nom.
* ConvenientComa: The PutOnABus kind. Rallick spends ''six'' books lying comatose on the floor of the Finnest House, only to resurface again in time for the events of ''Literature/TollTheHounds''.
* DualWielding: Rallick dual-wields two oversized [[KnifeNut knives]].
* HitmanWithAHeart: He's one of the best assassins the guild has to offer, yet he's got an ingrained sense of right and wrong and is willing to put his reputation on the line to restore his friend Coll's holdings, which were wrongly taken by Lady Simtal.
* KnifeNut: Rallick's [[WeaponOfChoice weapons of choice]] are two oversized, hooked knives which Cutter calls 'pig-choppers' and which are instantly recognizable as his.
* ProfessionalKiller: Rallick's a member of Darujhistan's Guild of Assassins.
* RefugeInAudacity: Since assassinating Councilman Turban Orr without a contract would've raised too many questions, Rallick simply challanges him to a duel at a masquerade ball. Estraysian D'Arle comments how that looked suspiciously like an assassination, but of course, not even the Guild of Assassins could be that ballsy.
* UnluckyChildhoodFriend: [[DiscussedTrope Discussed]] and PlayedForLaughs. When they were children, Rallick was very fond of Tiserra, but finds out in ''Literature/TollTheHounds'' that she married his cousin Torvald. Fearing for his life, Torvald starts begging Rallick's forgiveness, but Rallick just laughs it off and says that while he's envious, it's in a good way, and really, he loves them ''both''.
* TheWorfEffect: In ''Literature/TollTheHounds'', Rallick is badly wounded by [[spoiler:Cutter, aka Crokus Younghand, newly returned to Darujhistan]] when the former unintentionally sneaks up on the latter in a dark alley. It serves to show how much [[spoiler:Cutter]] has improved, and also moved in a direction Rallick had striven to keep him from taking.
* AuthorAvatar: In ''Toll the Hounds.''
* CharacterFilibuster: He can go on for pages, and other characters rarely think to interrupt him.
* TheChessmaster
* CrouchingMoronHiddenBadass: As mentioned below under ObfuscatingStupidity, he initially seems rather dull. In reality, he's one of the smartest people in the series, if not the smartest. He's also incredibly powerful. [[spoiler:Caladan Brood at one point got so irritated with him that Brood swung his [[DropTheHammer powerful hammer]] at Kruppe. The land around him was permanently altered and all other witnesses were thrown to the ground, but Kruppe was unscathed.]]
* InsufferableGenius: Oh, the man's ego.
* LemonyNarrator: If he tells a story, expect him to be this.
* ManipulativeBastard
* ObfuscatingStupidity: Kruppe is way, way, ''way'' smarter than he looks. Underestimating him has had unfortunate results for many characters. To be fair, a lot of other characters aren't fooled and it sometimes seems like he's mainly doing it to [[{{Troll}} annoy people]].
* SesquipedalianLoquaciousness: His usual method of talking.
* ThirdPersonPerson: Only ever refers to himself in the third person.
* TheCasanova
* InformedAbility: We're often told that Murillio is extremely skilled with the rapier. Usually right before (or as) someone or something kicks his ass.
* KilledOffForReal: [[spoiler:And rather pointlessly to [[IncrediblyLamePun boot]]]].
* StuffedInTheFridge: [[spoiler:His death serves only to force Cutter to kill Gorlas Vidikas, which is in and of itself, ''completely irrelevant to the overall plot of both the entire series, and ''Toll the Hounds'''']].
* TheAlcoholic: When the story begins he hasn't been sober since [[spoiler: losing his land]].
* CharacterDevelopment: [[spoiler:Has stopped drinking since regaining his land.]]
* CrouchingMoronHiddenBadass: Hands up, anyone who expected Coll to show anything approaching ''competence or sobriety'' let alone fighting skills.
* DrowningMySorrows: And he has a lot of sorrows.
* LoveMakesYouDumb: Somehow he didn't notice that his (now) ex-wife, [[spoiler:Lady Simtal]] was a psychotic (and none-too subtle) bitch.
!!Alchemist Baruk
!!Lady Simtal
* GoldDigger: A particularly evil version.
* DrivenToSuicide: [[spoiler: And good riddance!]]
* ReallyGetsAround
* RichBitch
* TooDumbToLive: Commented on by everyone who knows her, including her SmugSnake accomplice Turban Orr. Who's [[spoiler:no slouch in the TooDumbToLive department himself.]]
* TheVamp
* CainAndAbel: Tries to sell his handicapped sisters into slavery.
* EnfanteTerrible
* EvilIsPetty
* KidsAreCruel: Kids are sniveling monsters.
* SmugSnake
* TheSociopath: Even ''the Crippled God'' wants nothing to do with him.
!!Bellam Nom
* GoodIsNotNice: Which he lampshades as he threatens to sell Snell into slavery.
* TeensAreMonsters: Fakes it incredibly well.
!!Challice D'Arle
* FirstLove: Crokus falls in love with her on sight, though it's later indicated to have been a youthful infatuation. [[spoiler:When they eventually do have an affair, it's implied that both of them are mostly doing it out of desperation, loneliness, and lust rather than love.]]
* IncompatibleOrientation: [[spoiler:While not actually stated outright, this is hinted to be a significant problem with her marriage. It's not clear whether Gorlas is gay or asexual, but her inner monologue notes that "Gorlas only ever used his fingers in this place", and that sex was much better. It's also noted that he won't be giving her an heir because of his proclivities.]]
* ManicPixieDreamGirl: Deconstructed. She initially comes across as a somewhat downplayed example of this trope and inspires Crokus to try to pass himself off as a gentleman in order to win her affections, but this ultimately ends up not happening when the plot takes him away from Darujhistan and she ends up in a loveless marriage. [[spoiler:When they do have an affair upon his return to Darujhistan, both of them once again begin speculating about wild plans that both of them realise in their interior monologues are highly unlikely ever to happen. Furthermore, her cheery exterior masks a very lonely, desperate, and fearful woman who feels trapped by the constricts of her society and sees no realistic way of escaping, which ultimately leads to her suicide when she becomes convinced that none of her plans will ever happen.]]
* SexForSolace: [[spoiler:It's implied that she has affairs because she feels trapped in her marriage to a sociopath who views her as nothing more than a tool to be used, and doing this is the only thing that makes her feel alive.]]
* StepfordSmiler: She attempts to put on a brave face to the rest of the world, but, as Cutter can see immediately, she's really very unhappy and frightened. [[spoiler:This eventually leads to [[DrivenToSuicide her suicide]] when Darujhistan is under siege by the Hounds of Shadow.]]
* YourCheatingHeart: [[spoiler:She has an affair with Cutter, and it isn't the first one she's had. It's never made entirely clear whether this bothers her husband, who appears to be aware of them; even she herself isn't sure. It's hinted that he actually wanted her to have affairs because he thought it would increase his power over the people she slept with. However, this leads to his KarmicDeath when one of those people ends up killing him, though more out of revenge for an unrelated matter than because of his wife.]]
[[folder: '''Caladan Brood's Forces''']]
!!Warlord Caladan Brood
* AsskickingEqualsAuthority
* {{Badass}}: Very, very BadAss.
** FourStarBadass: And in command of a BadassArmy to boot.
* DropTheHammer: His main weapon is a hammer that only he can lift. If swung, it can awaken Burn, the Sleeping Goddess of the Earth, though this will kill everything on the planet.
* FamedInStory
* GeniusBruiser
* GuileHero
* HealingHands: Ironically, despite his well-deserved title of "Warlord" and being a FourStarBadass who has the ability to bring about TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt, his principal magical abilities are his healing powers.
* LargeAndInCharge
* LightningBruiser: Heavily implied.
* MagicKnight
* PhysicalGod
* ReallySevenHundredYearsOld: As an Ascendant, Brood no longer ages. [[spoiler: He's also an Azathanai.]]
* TheStrategist
!!Kallor, The High King
* ZeroPercentApprovalRating: Apparently how his people felt about him during his stint as TheEmperor.
* AgeWithoutYouth: Were it not for his use of Century Candles, Kallor would be too decrepit to move.
* AmbitionIsEvil: He wants power, no matter what the price.
* {{Badass}}
** [[spoiler: EmpoweredBadassNormal: Following his deal with the [[TheBigBad Crippled God]] he gains access to the Warren of Chaos]].
** BadassBeard: In ''Toll the Hounds''.
** BadassGrandpa: He's over a hundred thousand, looks to be around one hundred, and can still fight like a madman.
** BadassLongcoat: {{Justified|Trope}} as it's a chainmail longcoat.
* BeardOfEvil
* {{BFS}}: Not an extreme example, but Kallor's bastard sword is a two-hander and is repeatedly described as "huge", "enormous" and so on.
* CommanderContrarian: Rarely agrees with the strategy suggested by the Alliance.
* CursedWithAwesome: Subverted. Being cursed to live forever sounds great, but with the continuous aging, and FailureIsTheOnlyOption subclause, it really, really appears to suck for him.
* {{Determinator}}: Demonstrates some aspects of this in ''Toll The Hounds''.
* DidYouJustFlipOffCthulhu: Three gods cursed Kallor to live forever and never Ascend. He cursed them back. And it ''worked''.
* FaceHeelTurn: [[spoiler: Betrays Brood to The Crippled God for a chance at killing Silverfox.]]
--> "If you call it a sudden reversal of strategy, the sting fades."
* ElderlyImmortal
* TheEmperor: He called himself The High King, but he's much closer to this trope, specifically the EvilOverlord/ GeneralRipper variant.
* FailureIsTheOnlyOption: A part of his curse.
--> "Kallor Eiderann Tes'thesula each time you rise you shall than fall. All that you achieve shall turn to dust in your hands. As you have willfully done here, so shall it be visited upon you in all that you do."
* FamedInStory
* GoneHorriblyRight: Kallor's curse did exactly what it was supposed to do. It made him an even bigger SOB.
* HeroKiller: Clearly has this status by ''Toll the Hounds''.
* ImmortalityHurts: Although he'll deny it to the end.
* {{Jerkass}}
* LoneDalek: In ''Toll the Hounds'', where the degree that Kallor's life has ''sucked'' becomes apparent. It's almost entirely his own fault, but you can still feel a certain amount of pity for him.
* MasterSwordsman: In one hundred thousand years, Kallor has never been defeated. Caladan Brood notes that this is at least partly because he picks his opponents well.
* MisanthropeSupreme: Kallor is fully aware that he is a spiteful, vicious minded bastard, who takes out his frustrations on everyone around him. He also believes that HumansAreBastards, and that as such, his tyranny and brutality are not only justified, but the norm.
* NotSoHarmlessVillain: ''Everybody'' mocked Kallor as a bullying braggart. Right up until [[spoiler: he [[FaceHeelTurn joins with the Crippled God]] and performs an epic backstab on Brood's forces.]] Averted [[spoiler:in ''Toll the Hounds'' where he approaches near HeroKiller status]].
* NumberTwo: Serves as Brood's second-in-command.
* PrecisionFStrike: Twice during his duel with Spinnock Durav in ''Toll the Hounds''.
* {{Pride}}: Kallor is arrogant, prone to overestepping his bounds, and ''very'' touchy about insults to his person. And then there's the whole, "allowing a continent to die rather than relinquishing control of it" thing, and the obsession with power and becoming an Ascendant.
* ReallySevenHundredYearsOld: He's older than most Ascendants, despite being completely mortal. He was cursed over 120 000 years ago and is still alive and kicking.
* SanitySlippage: [[spoiler: Seems to have suffered some between ''Memories of Ice'' and ''Toll the Hounds'']].
* TimeAbyss
* {{Turncoat}}
* CompositeCharacter: In-universe.
* CreepyChild: For a while.
* RapidAging: After being born she grows much more quickly than expected.
* {{Reincarnation}}: Silverfox's soul is a composite of the souls of Tattersail, Bellurdan Scullcrusher and Nightchill, while her physical body is the child of the Mhybe, born with the help of Bonecaster Pran Chole.
* ReincarnationRomance: Subverted. Tattersail and Ganoes Paran were just casual lovers, but her sudden death and rebirth as part of Silverfox creates the expectation that their feelings were stronger than they actually were and that something would continue after Silverfox's coming of age. It doesn't, and Paran realises there never was anything real between them.
* VampiricDraining: Is stealing her mother's life energy without even knowing it.
* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: At the end of ''Literature/MemoriesOfIce'', Silverfox wanders off towards [[spoiler:Assail with her army of T'lan Imass.]]
* YoungerThanTheyLook: She's only a few years old, but has aged herself to her early twenties.
[[folder: '''Tiste Andii''']]
!!Mother Dark
The goddess of the Tiste Andii, theological opposite and possibly [[ArrangedMarriage wife]] of Father Light, god of the Tiste Liosan. Turned away from her children millenia ago following an unspecified betrayal Anomander Rake, and possibly others.
* AscendToAHigherPlaneOfExistence
* [[AngelUnaware Goddess Unaware]] [[spoiler: Speaks through Nimander's simpleminded sister Aranatha in ''Toll the Hounds'']]. Possibly more a case of [[DemonicPossession Divine Possession]].
* InterspeciesRomance: Mother Dark (mortal Tiste turned goddess) and Draconus (Azathanai).
* LoveRuinsTheRealm: Other people's conflicting opinions regarding her sex life and marital status cause many of the problems in the prequel.
* MissingMom: Of an entire race. [[spoiler: She's convinced to come back in ''Toll The Hounds''.]]
!!Anomander Rake
Lord of Moon's Spawn, leader of the Tiste Andii, wielder of Dragnipur, eldest son of Mother Dark [[spoiler: metaphorically; Andarist is older than him]], Knight of High House Dark, and all-around badass, he initially opposes the Malazan Empire's invasion of Genabackis, before allying with Dujek Onearm to take on the Crippled God's forces. He has a long-standing alliance with Caladan Brood.
* AFatherToHisMen: Several of the Tiste Andii are so tired of their own immortality they have more or less chosen to commit suicide. The only reason they are still alive is that Anomander Rake asks them to live.
* AntiVillain-->AntiHero
* BadAss: So. Very. Much.
** FourStarBadass
** BlackSwordsAreBetter
** CoolSword: Not so much cool as [[FateWorseThanDeath terrifying]]. Anyone killed by it is trapped next to the Gates of the Warren of Darkness for all eternity. And it's black with smoking chains attached.
* DarkIsNotEvil: One of the best examples in modern lit.
* FamedInStory: There are entire poems about him.
* FateWorseThanDeath: What those slain by Dragnipur (his sword) suffer.
* GeniusBruiser
* HeroKiller: Introduced this way in ''Gardens of the Moon''.
* HeroicSacrifice
* IHaveManyNames: Anomander/Anomandaris Rake/Irake/Purake/Draginipurake, in all combinations. Also sometimes referred to as the Lord of Moon's Spawn, the Mane of Chaos, and the (First) Son of Darkness.
* ImmortalityBeginsAtTwenty: Or somewhere in his thirties or forties anyway.
* InstantAwesomeJustAddDragons: Shapeshifts into a giant, black dragon.
* InterspeciesRomance: Apparently, Silanah the dragon was his lover as well as his ally. The mother of his children, however, is implied to be Lady Envy.
* LargeAndInCharge
* LightningBruiser
* LongHairedPrettyBoy
* MagicKnight
* MasterSwordsman
* MessianicArchetype: [[spoiler: Becomes one in ''Toll The Hounds'']]
* NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast: Known as "The First Son of Darkness".
** [[JustifiedTrope Justified]]: ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin.
* PhysicalGod
* ReallySevenHundredYearsOld: Most Tiste Andii live 20,000. Rake is so much older.
* ScaryBlackMan: How his opponents see him.
* SorcerousOverlord
* VoluntaryShapeshifting: As a Soletaken, Rake becomes a black dragon.
* WarriorPrince
* WhoWantsToLiveForever?: The reason he sells the services of the Tiste Andii off as mercenaries is to pevent them from becoming suicidal over the boredom of their eternal life; in effect, he is trying to inspire them to fight and live for something bigger than themselves in defiance of this trope, though he fears it is a losing battle.
* YourSoulIsMine: Anyone killed by Dragnipur is sealed within the Warren inside it for all eternity.
* TheHeart: Among the Purake brothers. Maybe.
* InstantAwesomeJustAddDragons: Pointedly averted. Of the three Purake brothers, only Andarist refused Tiam's blood.
* OvershadowedByAwesome: Somewhat, compared to his brothers.
* ParentalSubstitute: To Nimander and his siblings.
* WeHardlyKnewYe: Gets barely any screentime. Shows up a bit more in the prequel.
* InstantAwesomeJustAddDragons: A Soletaken, like Rake and her brother.
* InterspeciesRomance: With Whiskeyjack.
* MayDecemberRomance: With Whiskeyjack.
** MayflyDecemberRomance: Made even more inevitably shorter by [[spoiler: Kallor's murder of Whiskeyjack]]
* ReallySevenHundredYearsOld: Par for the course with Tiste Andii.
* TheUnfavourite: Her mother is a lot more concerned about Orfantal.
* VoluntaryShapeshifting
* BreakTheCutie: In the prequel.
* InstantAwesomeJustAddDragons: Shapeshifts into a big, black dragon, same as Rake.
* HeroicBastard
* KilledOffForReal: [[spoiler: In ''Toll The Hounds'' he picks a fight with [[HeroKiller Kallor]]. It doesn't end well for him]].
* ReallySevenHundredYearsOld
* VoluntaryShapeshifting: Another Tiste Andii Soletaken.
!!Spinnock Durav
-> '''Anomander Rake:''' 'Unseen by anyone. Deeds unwitnessed. Heroic efforts earning naught but one man's gratitude.'
--> ''Literature/TollTheHounds''
Spinnock Durav is a warrior Tiste Andii and one of their best non-Soletaken fighters. He serves Anomander Rake unquestioningly and has often stood in for him in fights or on recon missions. In Black Coral he spends his evenings in Scour Tavern, playing an old Andii boardgame with the ex-Pannion Domin warrior-priest Seerdomin.
In his youth he was a Warden of the Outer Reach in Kurald Galain, where he served with his cousin Faror Hend and made many a woman swoon over his good looks and charisma. He was among the Wardens that saw [[spoiler: the Gate to Stavald Demelain open when nine Dragons]] entered their world.
* AncestralWeapon: A Hust blade --albeit an old one without the sound features-- is the Duravs' family heirloom. Spinnock is ''very'' proud of owning it, often seen polishing and oiling his prized possession.
* TheCharmer: Spinnock seems fairly aware of his charisma, but hardly uses it for malicious means. It means, however, that he doesn't shy away from challenges, like his shameless flirting with his allegedly lesbian Captain Finarra Stone demonstrates. It works, too.
* ChickMagnet: To amazing degrees in ''Literature/TheKharkanasTrilogy'', but gets subverted thousands of years later in ''Literature/TollTheHounds'': The one woman he actually falls in love with is immune to his charm.
* DeclarationOfProtection: Takes it upon himself to care for Salind when the Redeemer's camp is threatened and keeps good on his promise as best as he can, opposition notwithstanding.
* {{Determinator}}: Spinnock stalls Kallor, one of the strongest fighters of the series and immortal to boot, on his way to Darujhistan on behalf of Rake. ''For a whole night'', being grievously injured, but standing nonetheless.
* EvenTheGuysWantHim: Finarra Stone asserts that young Spinnock gets plenty attention from all genders.
--> Spinnock Durav had been pursued by women and men since he had first come of age.
* HeroicSacrifice: Breaks down injured and exhausted when he feels [[spoiler: Rake's death]] after stalling Kallor for a whole night for him. [[spoiler: Averted in that Korlat sweeps in with a healing draught to tide him over until he can recuperate at home.]]
* {{Hunk}}: While he was the PrettyBoy in his youth, fully grown Spinnock is firmly in hunk territory by the time ''Literature/TollTheHounds'' comes around.
* IDidntMeanToTurnYouOn: Spinnock's reaction when he learns that innocent flirting with his cousin Faror Hend was a lot less innocent from her point of view.
* IloveYouBecauseICantControlYou: His interest in his Captain Finarra Stone skyrockets once he learns that she is more into women than men, seeing her as a challenge.
* InterspeciesFriendship: Has one with Seerdomin that is mutual. It is also remarked, that Spinnock is among the very, very few Andii who mingle with the human population of Black Coral.
* InterspeciesRomance: Falls in love with the teen-aged human priestress Salind.
* LadykillerInLove: While the High Priestess of Darkness is unsublty interested in him and already a regular intercourse partner, Spinnock falls in love with the human priestess Salind, who seems less than thrilled about it. This doesn't keep him from trying, though.
* LonelyTogether: Develops a friendship with Seerdomin through playing Kef Tanar with him. The two of them have little in common except their gaming and a mutual appreciachion of the other.
* MaybeEverAfter: ''Literature/TollTheHounds'' ends with Spinnock seeking out Salind to confess to her, but it is unclear if anything comes from it.
* MayflyDecemberRomance: He is apprehensive that he fell in love with not only a comparatively short-lived human, but one that is barely of age at that; Salind being in her early 20s and Spinnock being thousands of years old.
* NoodleIncident: He mentions that Rake once sent him hunting a dragon, among other tasks. One would think this would be elaborated upon, seeing the importance of dragons in the storyline, but... nope.
* PerpetualSmiler: Part of his charm.
-->''The Slash that was his mouth was fixed in a grin, an expression that rarely wavered.''
* SmartPeoplePlayChess: Spinnock is an apt Kef Tanar player, easily the most skilled at the game in the Scour Tavern, but has never been able to beat his Lord. Him playing the strategic game is the first hint the reader gets that Spinnock is not just dumb muscle.
* WorthyOpponent:
** To Spinnock's delight, Seerdomin seems to have talent with the Andii boardgame Kef Tanar, so he plays with him every night in Scour Tavern.
** Towards the climax of ''Literature/TollTheHounds'' [[spoiler: Kallor]] of all people comes to regard him as a WorthyOpponent right after their duel.
-->'''Kallor''': ''I have never before faced such a defense.''
* UndyingLoyalty: Will do pretty much anything Rake asks him to, even if that means not acting on his newly discovered feelings for Salind, or having to fight [[spoiler: Kallor for a whole night straight]].
!!Silchas Ruin
-> '''Sheltatha Lore:''' 'More than any of us more even than Anomandaris, Silchas Ruin thinks... ''draconean''. As cold, as calculating, as ''timeless''.'
--> ''Literature/ReapersGale''
Annomander Rake's brother, Silchas Ruin is the youngest of Mother Dark's children, and cruelest. Having been betrayed and sealed by Scabandari Bloodeye, one-time leader of the Tiste Edur, he has sworn to have his revenge on Bloodeye and his kin.
* {{Antihero}}
* AwesomeMcCoolname
* {{Badass}}
* DualWielding: Holds Sarat Wept and Glory Goat, one in each hand. Later swapped out for a Hust dragon-slaying sword.
* FamedInStory: Though not quite to the extent of his brother.
* GeniusBruiser
* GoodIsNotNice
* HeroicAlbino
* ImmortalityBeginsAtTwenty
* InstantAwesomeJustAddDragons
* LargeAndInCharge
* LightningBruiser
* LongHairedPrettyBoy
* MagicKnight
* MasterSwordsman
* NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast
* ThePrankster: Implied to have been this before he became a Soletaken Eleint and the blood of Tiam made him into the cruellest of the three Sons of Mother Dark.
* ReallySevenHundredYearsOld
* RedEyesTakeWarning: If you happen to be a villain.
* {{Revenge}}: Swore it on Scabandari Bloodeye, and all the Tiste Edur.
* SealedGoodInACan
* TragicBromance: With Kagamandra Tulas Shorn. Their reunion in ''The Crippled God'' implies that Tulas' disappearance and presumed death during the civil war in Kharkanas devastated Silchas Ruin to such a degree that even Anomander Rake felt compelled to help him look for Tulas. Eventually, it's taken up a notch when at the end of the book [[spoiler:Tulas dies again, this time for good, after fulfilling their mutual wish to fight side by side.]]
* VoluntaryShapeShifting: Another Tiste Andii Soletaken. He becomes a giant white dragon, with blood red eyes.
!!Nimander Golit
Son of Anomander Rake and the leader of the small group of remaining Tiste Andii youths who used to live on Drift Avalii, beneath Andarist's supervision.
* BadLiar
* TheEeyore: Initially, especially in ''Literature/ReapersGale'', but gets better in ''Literature/TollTheHounds''.
* EnemyWithin: It's never made explicit whether Phaed is truly in Nimander's mind or it's just him imagining her so he has someone to battle inside his mind; and then Phaed scoffs that the notion of a conflict is ridiculous anyway.. in his mind.
* HeroicSelfDeprecation
* InadequateInheritor: Considers himself this regarding Anomander Rake's legacy; or that of any other known Tiste Andii of times past.
* InstantAwesomeJustAddDragons
* LongHairedPrettyBoy
* TheseHandsHaveKilled: Technically, [[spoiler:Withal killed Phaed]], but Nimander did a good job with trying.
* TheSoCalledCoward: Seen as this by everyone outside his clique of Tiste Andii followers, and sees himself more as a CowardlyLion, which is actually in the end what makes him a great leader, as he comes to embrace his doubts, instead of succumbing to them.
* YouAreBetterThanYouThinkYouAre: Nobody bothers to tell him that, but everyone thinks it.
Sister to Nimander.
* CuteAndPsycho
* EnemyWithin: For Nimander. Maybe.
* MakeItLookLikeAnAccident: [[spoiler:Withal's solution after Nimander bungles his attempt at killing Phaed.]]
* SlainInTheirSleep: Tries this on [[spoiler:Sandalath Drukorlat]].
* TokenEvilTeammate
* {{Yandere}}: ..implied to be this towards Nimander. Of course, it could be just his imagination.
-> '''Udinaas:''' 'I've almost given up hoping that you'll end up garrotting yourself with that chain. Almost.'
--> ''Literature/ReapersGale''
Hailing from the Bluerose Tiste Andii settlement on Lether, Clip is sent out by his village to seek and confront the Black-Winged Lord, whom they think abandoned them. He joins and journeys with different groups of characters to reach his goal and seems confident in his fighting skill. His preferred weapon is a chain he wears looped around his fingers. Clip is convinced that he acts as the Herald of High House Dark and the Mortal Sword of Mother Dark herself.
* AngstComa: Clip slips into a coma after his confrontation with the Dying God in Morsko. On their way to Bastion the other Andii in his group have to care for him, as he is completely unresponsive to any kind of outside stimulus.
* BloodFromEveryOrifice: During [[spoiler: Mother Dark and the Dying God's]] duel in Black Coral, Clip starts bleeding profusely.
* BoisterousWeakling: Clip isn't a bad fighter per se, but every onscreen fight he is in, he gets his ass handed to him. Of special note is his encounter with [[spoiler: Trull]], wherein he boasted that he has never been beaten by a spear-wielder. Well, he has now.
* BrainwashedAndCrazy: He spends most of his time in the books annoying people and getting himself into entirely avoidable trouble. Then he [[spoiler: gets posessed by the Dying God]] and starts [[spoiler: murdering Nimander's group one by one and trying the same with ''Mother Dark'' upon her return]]. For a character who was at best a minor nuisance up to that point, it takes considerable resources to stop him.
* BreakTheHaughty: When the [[spoiler: Dying God has finally relinquished his soul]], he [[spoiler: locks himself into a cell]], either out of guilt or sheer embarrassment. The whole ordeal seems to have vanquished his bluster pretty thoroughly.
* {{Foil}}: To Nimander Golit. Where Nimander is humble, conflicted and secretly badass, Clip is boisterous and self-confident despite having only a fraction of the skill.
* TheFriendNobodyLikes: Not surprising, considering Clip's jerkass attitude, the group of young Andii isn't exactly enamoured with him, but they do care for him while he is in a coma and even [[spoiler: risk their lives to get his soul back]].
* TheGadfly: Additionally to his generally rather abrasive behaviour, he has the annoying habit of playing around with his chains, clicking them together or swirling them around his fingers. He is either unaware that he's doing it or obtuse on purpose, even when other people call him out on it.
-->'''Silchas Ruin''': Must you always do that?
-->'''Clip''': Do what?
* InTheBack: Kills [[spoiler: Fear Sengar]] with his garotte from behind, while [[spoiler: Fear]] was trying to backstab Silchas Ruin.
* JerkassFacade: The facade is so thorough, that some characters wonder if it even is one, but Clip seems to be genuinely conflicted about the death of his entire hometown and Rake's abandonment of his people.
* {{Pride}}: Clip is important, the best fighter of his clan, TheChosenOne of Mother Dark and a big player in the conflict with his own god. To himself, that is.
%%* LongHairedPrettyBoy
%%* ManipulativeBastard
%%* {{Narcissist}}
* RageAgainstTheHeavens: His task is to confront the Bluerose Andii's lost god, the Black-Winged Lord (i.e. Anomander Rake) for abandoning them and not answering their prayers. The full extent of his mission is never revealed, though it seems that he plans to fight him.
* SelfRestraint: By the end of ''Literature/TollTheHounds'' Clip [[spoiler: lives in a dungeon cell]] in Black Coral. He wasn't put there by the other Andii -- he went there himself and ''locked the door from inside''.
* SmallNameBigEgo: For the Mortal Sword of Mother Dark herself and being a part of the Deck of Dragons' current roster as Herald of High House Dark, he sure isn't known outside his immediate group of travelling companions. Then there is the question if he even ''is'' those things [[AlternativeCharacterInterpretation he claims to be...]]
%%* SmugSnake: Clip doesn't treat anyone with respect, be it the brother of his supposed god or said god himself.
%%* SoreLoser
* TallDarkAndSnarky: Not a full-blooded Tiste Andii, but still dark skinned and black-haired. And he rarely has anything nice to say to his companions.
* TemptingFate: He tells Nimander and his group to wait in their room while he goes out to the town's tavern to see what the obviously drugged townspeople are doing. Everyone thinks it's a bad idea. It isn't disclosed what exactly happened, but the group finds him the next morning on the tavern's terrace curled into fetal position and comatose.
* UngratefulBastard: Just because Nimander and his companions cared for him while he was in a coma and did their level best to [[spoiler: get his soul back out of the clutches of a god]], doesn't mean he needs to thank them.
!!High Priestess
The High Priestess of Mother Dark, who is a fairly important character in ''Toll the Hounds''. Despite this, her name is never actually specified. It is possible that "High Priestess" actually ''is'' her name. She should not be confused with Salind, the High Priestess of the Redeemer.
* DeusSexMachina: She is implied to use sex as a ritual to open the gate to Kurald Galain. It's not explained exactly how this works, but it's referred to as a religious ritual.
* ReallyGetsAround: We see a sexual relationship between her and Spinnock, and she's implied to have sexual relationships with dozens of other characters. This is actually stated to be the [[PlanetOfHats hat]] of Tiste Andii priestesses in general. While there are religious or magical reasons for it, it's also hinted that there is an element of SexForSolace involved as well.
[[folder: '''Tiste Liosan''']]
Eldest son of Father Light, and ruler of the Tiste Liosan, Osseric was the counterpart, rival, and former companion of Anomander Rake. The Champion of High House Light, worshipped as a god by the Tiste Liosan, and a famed figure within the Malazan mythos, Osseric has long since withdrawn from the world and has no desire to interact with it.
* AGodAmI: Worshipped as a god by the Liosan. Osseric himself notes wryly that the Liosan have always worshipped themselves, and he is just a convenient figurehead for their narcissism.
* {{Badass}}
* TheChampion: Champion of High House Light; also known as The Son of Light.
* FamedInStory: He once journeyed alongside Rake, and is featured in all the same poems.
* {{Foil}}: To Anomander Rake
* GeniusBruiser
* ImmortalityBeginsAtTwenty
* InstantAwesomeJustAddDragons
* KnightTemplar: Once, though no more.
* LargeAndInCharge
* LightningBruiser
* LongHairedPrettyBoy
* MagicKnight
* MasterSwordsman
* ReallySevenHundredYearsOld
* SpellMyNameWithAnS: Nobody can seem to agree how his name is spelled. Osseric? Osserc? Osric?
* [[TookALevelInBadass Took Many Levels in Badass]]: Between the prequels and the present.
* VoluntaryShapeShifting
!!High Mage L'oric
Osseric's son by an unnamed Ascendent, and a powerful mage in his own right. He becomes involved in the Apocalypse Army's plans, though prefers to avoid fighting.
* TheArchmage
* DefectorFromDecadence: L'oric doesn't seem to have much to do with other Tiste Liosan.
* InHarmsWay: This is what L'oric's explanation boils down to when asked by Heboric for his reasons to remain with the Whirlwind Rebellion. Of course, there's more to it.
[[folder: '''Tiste Edur''']]
!!Tiste Edur
-> '''Trull Sengar:''' 'Our denial is wilful, our studied indifference conveniently self-serving to our basest desires. We are a long-lived people who now kneel before short-term interests --'
--> ''Literature/HouseOfChains''
The Tiste Edur are one of the three Tiste peoples originally alien to the series' main Realm, [[spoiler: which according to the prequel trilogy may or may not have once been all one realm]]. They are considered the Children of Shadow, the unwelcome product of a conjoining of Dark and Light, and thus looked down upon by both the Tiste Andii and the Tiste Liosan. After a civil war that shattered their home realm, they fled Kurald Emurlahn under the leadership of Scabandari Bloodeye, whom they now worship as Father Shadow, and -- after defeating the locally settled K'Chain Che'Malle -- settled on the continent of Lether. Due to a [[spoiler: deliberate]] distortion of the history of this event, they now consider themselves to be the victims of a betrayal by Silchas Ruin and his Tiste Andii followers. [[spoiler: What really happened was the opposite.]]
* BarbarianLonghair: The Tiste Edur, especially the warriors, let their hair grow long and are variously described as barbaric looking to others.
* BraidsOfBarbarism: Their BarbarianLonghair often takes the form of this, and when a warrior is cast out completely, he is Shorn -- that is, his hair is shaved off and the scalp treated with an unguent that prevents it from ever growing back.
* BraidsBeadsAndBuckskins: Braids, Shells and Sealskins, more precisely, as the Edur live in the northern climate and near the coast, but they are the closest thing the series has to a Native American FantasyCounterpartCulture.
* BlindObedience: They blindly follow their traditions, and as a consequence whoever is in charge. Also, Father Shadow can do no wrong, but unfortunately, he's not around anymore.
* BloodKnight: Prone to becoming this due to inborn blood lust.
* CastingAShadow: While Kurald Emurlahn has been shattered and sealed, thanks to Shadow being its own elemental force the Tiste Edur retain some access to their shadow-themed magic.
* ColourCodedForYourConvenience: Grey-skinned, in contrast to the midnight-skinned Tiste Andii and porcelain-skinned Tiste Liosan.
* ConditionedToAcceptHorror: Most Edur eventually become this during the course of the story, as they have nowhere else to go and speaking up is no good idea. It helps, of course, that they are naturally inclined to [[BloodKnight blood lust]].
* CultureJustifiesAnything: {{Deconstructed}}. Slavery, AggressiveCategorism, looking down on others because of their place in that society, others falling by the wayside, it's all InherentInTheSystem. It's usually subdued, but as Udinaas remarks on several occasions, all's well only until someone does something wrong, and the Edur are NotSoDifferent from their neighbouring Letherii.
* HaveYouSeenMyGod: Depending on the point of view, Father Shadow either disappeared or abandoned his children. Of course, [[spoiler: while some know where his body can be found, that does not account for his soul.]]
* ProudWarriorRaceGuy: Again, deconstructed. Pretty much every Tiste Edur point-of-view character shows what this can do to people, whether they buy into it, e.g. Fear Sengar, or not, e.g. Trull Sengar.
* TrappedInVillainy: Thanks to their [[HonorBeforeReason rigid]] [[BlindObedience social]] [[CultureJustifiesAnything structure]], the Tiste Edur become this after [[spoiler: Rhulad Sengar]] proclaims himself Emperor. Some [[BloodKnight like it]], others [[HeelRealization less so]].
* WomensMysteries: The women are the ones who keep the true records of their history, while the warriors get watered down and diluted versions. This is [[{{Deconstruction}} deconstructed]] by the reader being aware of what really happened from the beginning of the book, and by how irrelevant their secret knowledge evetually is. Shurq Elalle points out in ''Literature/ReapersGale'' how Tiste Edur women seem to be "completely useless mystics of some sort".
!!Scabandari Bloodeye
-> '''Silchas Ruin:''' 'You cannot see yourself, but I give you this name, for the blood that now stains your... vision.'
--> ''Literature/MidnightTides''
One-time leader of the Tiste Edur, Scabandari led the Tiste exodus from Kurald Galain in the company of Silchas Ruin. Coming to a new world, Scabandari betrayed Silchas, and was himself slain by the Elder Gods Kilimandaros and Mael.
* AGodAmI: Worshipped as such by the Tiste Edur.
* {{Badass}}: It took two Elder Gods to take him out.
* FamedInStory
* GeniusBruiser
* ImmortalityBeginsAtTwenty
* InstantAwesomeJustAddDragons
* LargeAndInCharge
* LightningBruiser
* LongHairedPrettyBoy
* MagicKnight
* PosthumousCharacter: Long dead, though Fear, Trull, and Rhulad Sengar stumble onto his body.
* VoluntaryShapeshifting
!!Hannan Mosag
-> '''Fear Sengar:''' 'He seeks power, brothers. He ''needs'' power, and he cares nothing for its provenance, nor its taint.'
--> ''Literature/MidnightTides''
The Warlock King of the Hiroth, who has achieved the unification of the Tiste Edur tribes and whose motives are anything but clear. He enters a pact with the Crippled God, [[spoiler:but the Crippled God chooses Rhulad Sengar instead]].
* AmbitionIsEvil: Only Kallor would make a better poster boy for the trope.
* DealWithTheDevil: Cut a deal with the Crippled God, exchanging alleigance for use of the Chaos Warren.
* EvilChancellor: To Rhulad, following his ascension to the throne.
* EvilCripple: Courtesy of his deal with the Crippled God.
* SanitySlippage
* SorcerousOverlord: Before Rhulad ascended to the throne.
* VaderBreath: Due to his crippling overuse of the Chaos Warren.
!!Fear Sengar
First son of the Sengar family.
* AloofBigBrother
* TheAce: How his family saw him.
* BigBrotherMentor: To all of his brothers, but especially towards Trull.
* HonorBeforeReason: After [[spoiler:having lost his betrothed to Rhulad because he had not the guts to speak up]], he latches onto [[spoiler:Seren Pedac]] in a desperate attempt to protect her despite everyone's conviction that Trull is already dead anyway.
* LongHairedPrettyBoy
* TheStoic: His emotions are all subtle and bottled up, but when they do show they are so subtle, only Trull seems to be aware of them, and even he does not notice the really deeply hidden ones.
!!Trull Sengar
-> '''Fear Sengar:''' 'There is reluctance in you, Trull. You hide it well enough, but I can see where others cannot. You are a warrior who would rather not fight.'
--> ''Literature/MidnightTides''
Trull Sengar is the second of the four sons of the Sengar family. He is a skilled warrior, vastly preferring the spear over the sword, but lacks the inclination towards blood lust most Tiste Edur share. His intelligence and compassion puts him at odds with what the Tiste Edur become and eventually sees him exiled.
* AggressiveCategorism: A much milder version than most Tiste Edur, but at the start of ''Literature/MidnightTides'' Trull still categorically dismisses Rhulad because the latter is 'an unblooded pup', remarks how Ahlrada Ahn has [[CondescendingCompassion risen above his heritage]] despite being the son of a Tiste Andii slave and has serious trouble reconciling Udinaas' intelligence and his being a slave. He gets better.
* {{Badass}}: The first person to ever successfully hold off [[spoiler:Icarium Lifestealer]]. He also holds his own against [[spoiler:Silchas Ruin]] for a time, sends [[spoiler:Clip]] packing, fights off a pack of Jheck, and even his older brother and mentor Fear admits he cannot be sure to be able to defeat Trull in a one-on-one fight.
* BewareTheQuietOnes: In ''Literature/MidnightTides'', Trull lets Canarth talk smack about him all the former wants, but when Canarth accuses Ahlrada Ahn -- whom Trull admires -- of being a betrayer, Trull finally snaps. He challenges Canarth to a duel and disposes of him in a matter of seconds.
* BigBrotherWorship: At the end of ''Literature/ReapersGale'', Trull's point of view narration calls Fear Sengar, his elder brother who trained him in combat, the god of his childhood. And even early on in ''Literature/MidnightTides'' Trull thinks that while he himself did well in the War of Unification, it is only right and proper that his older brother Fear can boast even more trophies.
* BladeOnAStick: His spear is his favourite weapon. Trull even uses it in close combat, despite having a sword as well. Whenever he is not lugging a spear around, ''someone'' remarks on how ''something'' must have happened.
* BrokenMessiah: Everyone who ever encounters Trull sees him as humble, compassionate, courageous, and so on, but he himself is all too aware of his own perceived failings; seeing not just too much, but -- as he believes -- all the wrong things, passing judgement based on prejudices, being indecisive and easily deceived because he trusts people to be honest, and so forth...
* BrutalHonesty: One of Trull's defining character traits, as he seems unable to lie or pretend whether he wants to or not. He cannot keep himself from voicing his suspicions and asking inconvenient questions. Lilac even uses that to deceive him, as he rightfully assumes that Trull, who does not lie, would not suspect others to lie, either.
* DespairEventHorizon: Reaches it in ''Literature/MidnightTides'' when he realises with finality that whatever happened cannot be undone and the Tiste Edur have changed irreversibly -- but he himself hasn't.
* TheDitherer: Results from his constant doubts. He can't seem to be able to make up his mind about Rhulad, what to about the events that swap his people away and later about what to do with his life, so he ends up just floating from one conflict he as nothing to do with to the next.
* TheExile: The Shorning. The tipping point is when he [[spoiler:leaves Rhulad lying bleeding and incapacitated on the floor, instead of killing him so he can be resurrected.]] When he returns to the throne room to try and reason with Rhulad, he is taken into custody and, some time later, chained in the Nascent to die slowly. The Shorning also means that as far as the Tiste Edur are concerned, his parents had one child less, and just speaking his name can get one sentenced to death.
* FatalFlaw: His BrutalHonesty, which causes him to be exiled and lose everything he cared for.
--> '''Trull:''' ''I was ever the worrier. I do not see too much, I see only the wrong things. And so the fault is mine, within me. I need to remain mindful of that.''
* HeroicSelfDeprecation:
--> '''Onrack:''' 'It is your way, my friend, to disarm your own achievements.'\\
'''Trull Sengar:''' 'Onrack --'\\
'''Quick Ben:''' 'He's calling you modest, Edur. And don't bother denying the truth of that -- you still manage to startle me on that count.'
* InterspeciesFriendship: With Onrack the Broken, a T'lan Imass. Cotillion even remarks in ''Literature/TheBonehunters'' how unlike it is to see a Tiste Edur and a T'lan Imass become friends.
* LongHairedPrettyBoy: He was this, according to Seren Pedac, prior to his permanent TraumaticHaircut in the prologue of ''Literature/HouseOfChains'', which also gives him a..
* MarkOfShame: ..in the form of a distinct scar on the forehead: a circle broken by a line.
* ThePowerOfFriendship: With Onrack, who frees Trull from his chains in the Nascent on a whim. Onrack serves as a means for Trull to keep despair at bay, while Onrack learns anew what it's like to feel emotions and have someone care for him.
* ReluctantWarrior: In contrast to the BloodKnight tendencies of the Tiste Edur. Fear even calls him that. It's not that Trull would not fight when needed, and he's one of his tribe's best warriors, but he vastly prefers to not brag about it, which causes others to see him as a coward.
* TranquilFury: Best seen in his duel against Canarth in ''Literature/MidnightTides'', where he efficiantly disposes of Canarth in a matter of seconds, although afterwards Trull admits his anger dissipated the moment he had Canarth on the ground.
* TraumaticHaircut: It's a part of the Shorning procedure, which includes having his head shaved and magically treated so that the hair will never grow back. It's a sign of being permanently exiled from Tiste Edur society.
* TraumaButton: A whole parade of them; anything that reminds him of what happened pre (and including) his Shorning, but especially anything that reminds him of Seren Pedac and his family.
!!Binadas Sengar
-> '''Hannan Mosag:''' 'I understand that Binadas wanders once more. He knows no anchor, does he?'
--> ''Literature/MidnightTides''
Binadas is the Sengar family's third son and the only one with a talent for sorcery. He is said to rival the Warlock King in power. [[spoiler:In ''Literature/HouseOfChains'', Binadas is the ship captain Karsa Orlong kills on a whim when he encounters the Tiste Edur vessel.]]
* BloodBrothers: Binadas has 'cut flesh' for Hull Beddict, and vice versa, making them this.
* DreadlockWarrior: Binadas' hairstyle is explicitly described as short dreadlocks when he first is introduced in ''Literature/MidnightTides'' and Seren Pedac sums him up as 'A hunter. A killer.'
* HunterTrapper: The way he makes sure he is respected in the warrior society of the Edur, as he brings home trophies as proof of [[ARealManIsAKiller his hunting feats]].
* KilledOffForReal: [[spoiler:On a quest to find Trull, Binadas is killed by Karsa Orlong in ''Literature/HouseOfChains'' even before he is properly introduced, while commanding the ship Karsa Orlong and Torvald Nom come across in the Nascent.]]
* MagicKnight: The only one of the Sengar brothers who inherited their mother's talent for sorcery.
* MountainMan: Prefers to spend his time in the mountains and forests instead of the village.
* TheQuietOne:
--> His brother shrugged, ever reluctant to surrender his reserve, his mindful silence. [...]
* WeHardlyKnewYe: An interesting case, because [[spoiler:he is killed even before he is introduced, then is introduced in Trull's backstory without any connection to the ship he eventually dies on, and only even later is the connection between the Tiste Edur captain Karsa killed and Binadas Sengar made.]]
!!Rhulad Sengar
Fourth and youngest son of the Sengar family.
See '''High House Chains'''
!!Tomad Sengar
Patriarch of the Sengar family.
Matriarch of the Sengar family.
* AlmightyMom
* BrutalHonesty
* WomensMysteries: Uruth is one of the principal magic-users of her tribe and also a leading figure among the tribe's women, who are responsible for keeping the secrets of the Tiste Edur's true history.
!!Ahlrada Ahn
-> 'Rise above? I suffered under no such compulsion, Trull Sengar. Before she died, my mother told me many secrets.'
--> ''Literature/MidnightTides''
A Tiste Edur who, like Trull Sengar, opposed the Wars of Unification. He is said to be the child of a slave from Bluerose, and thus a half-blood. Actually, [[spoiler: Ahlrada Ahn is a full-blooded Tiste Andii who serves as a spy among the Tiste Edur]].
* ConvenientlyUnverifiableCoverStory: Child of a Bluerose slave. Has travelled far and wide and forged kinships with many Tiste Edur from the outlying tribes. Yeah.
* DeepCoverAgent
* HalfBreedDiscrimination: Subverted. Trull assumes that's what Ahlrada has to deal with. Ahlrada tells him that he's quite proud of his heritage, thankyouverymuch.
* HatesEveryoneEqually: ..at least, every Tiste Edur. With one exception.
* HeroWorshipper: Towards Trull Sengar, as revealed in ''Literature/TheBonehunters''.
* MoleInCharge: Ahlrada eventually leads a company of Edur warriors during their forays into the territory of the First Throne.
* RedemptionEqualsDeath
* SourOutsideSadInside: Abrasive and cold towards everyone because [[spoiler:he has to keep up his disguise]]. He later admits that he really wanted [[spoiler:to be able to drop the act around Trull, the only Tiste Edur he ever admired]], but thought it too much of a risk.
* TheStoic
* YouCantGoHomeAgain: This realisation serves as the point where he crosses the DespairEventHorizon, as all he has left is the wish to return home, [[spoiler:to Bluerose]]. [[spoiler: 'Home' is the last word he mutters before he dies.]]
!!Kagamandra Tulas Shorn
-> 'In the time of my deathlessness, Silchas, I came to understand the truth of that old saying: you cannot go back.'
--> ''The Crippled God''
* BashBrothers: With Silchas Ruin.
* BackFromTheDead: Escaped Hood's realm while Death was otherwise occupied.
* {{Determinator}}: In ''Forge of Darkness'' towards [[RunawayBride Faror Hend]]. [[TheSnarkKnight Sharenas Ankhadu]] points out how idiotic that is.
* {{Dracolich}}: Being undead and a Soletaken Eleint, Tulas [[VoluntaryShapeshifting can turn]] into an undead dragon.
* FluffyTamer: The [[HellHound Hounds of Shadow]] originally belonged to him and it was him who raised them from half-wild pups to the vicious beasts they became.
* TheQuietOne:
--> [...] Although such mockery had invariably faded when they had seen what had been achieved by this strange, quiet warrior with the Eleint-tainted eyes.
* ShapeShifter
* ShellShockedVeteran
* TragicBromance: With Silchas Ruin. He says that Tulas' disappearance and presumed death devastated him, and their reunion in ''The Crippled God'' is almost tearful, between the [[VitriolicBestBuds slinging of insults]]. And then it's taken up a notch when, [[spoiler:after fulfilling their mutual wish to fight side by side, Tulas dies for a second and final time.]]
* TheUndead
* VoluntaryShapeshifting: An undead Soletaken dragon.
[[folder: '''Imass / T'lan Imass''']]
!! Onos Too'lan
* BadAss: Yes he's undead. Yes he has a host of advantages related to being undead. And yet, Tool is still incredibly BadAss.
* BerserkButton: Tool doesn't have a lot of friends. Don't hurt the ones he has.
* CoolSword: A huge, enchanted ''flint'' sword.
* DeliberateInjuryGambit: As a T'lan Imass, Tool can surive anything short of beheading or total dismemberment. It's not surprising, therefore, that these kind of tactics feature prominently in his playbook.
* EarnYourHappyEnding
* GoodThingYouCanHeal: Like most of the T'lan Imass, Tool regularly shrugs off crippling injuries, just to remind us that, yes, he is undead.
* ImplacableMan: Comes with being a T'lan Imass, although even by their standards he's pretty damn hard to stop.
* LightningBruiser: As the First Sword, he can fight with the best, and as a T'lan Imass, he can basically become dust and travel really fast, and short of decapitation T'lan Imass don't die. However, T'lan Imass cannot materialize over water.
* LonersAreFreaks: Tool is unbound, and unconnected to any clan. Other T'lan Imass tend to view him with a mix of suspicion and awe because of this.
* MasterSwordsman: The First Sword of the T'lan Imass.
* TheUndead: Naturally.
* TheUnfettered
!!Kilava Onass
* LonersAreFreaks: Even more so than her brother, Tool. Especially since she was the one who killed their entire tribe...
* NiceJobBreakingItHero: Pannion. That is all.
* TheUndead: A notable aversion; she refused to take part in the Ritual of Tellann and is now one of the only living Imass still around.
* VoluntaryShapeshifting / PantheraAwesome: As a bonecaster, she turns into a big black panther.
!!Onrack the Broken
* FluffyTamer: His two [[PantheraAwesome emlava]] cubs.
* HappilyMarried: [[spoiler: Eventually, with Kilava.]] Not so much with his first wife...
* PowerOfFriendship: With Trull Sengar.
* WhoWantsToLiveForever: Averted. Onrack is one of the few T'lan Imass that doesn't see his condition as a curse.
* YourCheatingHeart: [[spoiler: Cheated on his wife, the Imass woman who would later become the Whirlwind Goddess.]]
!!Olar Ethil
* {{Dracolich}}: Being the First Bonecaster, Olar Ethil is also a Soletaken. However, since she is undead, her Soletaken form is that of an undead dragon.
[[folder: '''Jaghut''']]
* AGodAmI: Like many Jaghut Tyrants, Raest took perverse delight in being percieved as a god by the Imass.
* ArmourIsUseless: You don't even find out he was wearing it until several books after the fight. To be fair, he was fighting Dragons, so it probably didn't make all that much difference.
* {{Badass}}: Hell yes. Possibly one the strongest characters introduced in the series, in terms of raw power (although that may have just been a [[EarlyInstallmentWeirdness GOTM thing]].
* DeadpanSnarker: Is evolving into one as the series progresses. His sense of humour is definitely an odd one though.
* MoralityPet: Has several Malazan soldiers find him a dead cat. He brings it to life so that it can keep him company inside the House of Azath and names it Tufty.
* MySpeciesDothProtestTooMuch: The Jaghut loathed community and avoided it as though it were a disease, believing it led only to horror and violence. Raest is a tyrant, who gets his kicks out of enslaving weaker species.
* SealedEvilInACan: Well, sealed in a barrow anyway, and by his own species no less. His Finnest, which contains most of his power, is also an example.
* SoulJar: The Finnest has most of Raest's power in it.
* TheUndead: He's not Undead like the Imass are, but it's clear that Raest and his body no longer share a particularly intimate connection, and the destruction of the latter causes him few difficulties. [[spoiler:A straight example now that he's inside the Azath House]].
* AnIcePerson
* BunnyEarsLawyer: Like most Jaghut, shows a rather...weird sense of humor.
---> "I greet you as guests and so will not crush the life from you and devour your souls with peals of laughter. No, instead, I will make some tea."
---> "Ah, I despair, or I would if I cared enough. [[RunningGag No, instead, I will make some ashcakes.]] Which I will not share."
* FamedInStory
* TheHermit: Like most non-Tyrant Jaghut. To the point where he willingly lives in an Azath house.
* NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast: [[spoiler: The Lord of Hate.]]
* NietzscheWannabe: Oh yeah. His work, Gothos' Folly, is described as a suicide note dozens of volumes long.
* ParentalNeglect: To his son [[spoiler: Icarium]], a rather screwed up individual.
* PersonOfMassDestruction: When you can casually freeze an entire continent...
* ReallySevenHundredYearsOld
* {{Troll}}: Really enjoys jerking Kilmandaros and Mael around.
See '''Pannion Domin'''
[[folder: '''Pannion Domin''']]
!!Pannion Seer
* BreakTheCutie: [[spoiler:His backstory. His mother was killed by the T'lan Imass and he was shoved through a rent and into the arms of the K'Chain Che'Malle Matron. This has had a rather negative impact on his sanity]].
* DarkMessiah: As dark as they come.
* EvilOverlord
* {{Mordor}}: Is deliberately transforming his realm into one.
* ReligionOfEvil: Runs one.
* TheReveal: [[spoiler:He's a Jaghut named Pannion in disguise]].
* SorcerousOverlord
* UnwittingPawn: [[spoiler:He's being manipulated from the start by the Crippled God, who is messing with his emotions]].
!!Anaster, First Child of the Dead Seed
* BastardBastard
* ChildByRape: His mother raped a dying man, in order to become pregnant with Anaster.
* DeathSeeker: [[spoiler: Becomes a monster in the hope that someone will kill him]].
* DespairEventHorizon: Crossed it long ago.
* EmptyShell: There's literally ''nothing'' left inside Anaster. All he has is his despair.
* FreakOut: When Itkovian offers to take his despair from him. It's all he has.
* GrandTheftMe: [[spoiler: Toc the Younger's soul eventually takes possession of Anaster's body]].
* [[ImAHumanitarian I'm A Humanitarian]]: Encourages cannibalism among his followers and practises it himself.
* ImprobableAge: He's in his late teens and leading an army. Justified by his {{Tykebomb}} status.
* PleaseKillMeIfItSatisfiesYou: Tries this on Rake and Whiskeyjack, appearing to be a Type 2, before revealing that [[DeathSeeker he really does want to die]].
* PoisonousPerson: Briefly demonstrates this sort of ability when Annomander Rake grabs him.
* ShellShockedVeteran: Taken to the extreme.
* SociopathicSoldier
* SoullessShell: After Itkovian claims his despair.
* {{Tykebomb}}: Raised since birth to lead the cannibalistic Tenescowri horde.
!!Seerdomin / Segda Travos
->'Redeemer, I have looked in the eyes of my enemy, and they are hard, cold, emptied of everything but hate. I have, yes, seen my own reflection it haunts me still.'
A remnant officer of the Pannion Domin army that stays in Coral after the Seer's defeat and tries to better his life. He befriends the Tiste Andii Spinnock Durav in a tavern, where the both of them spend their evenings playing board games and pondering their daily lives. Aside from that, Seerdomin garners a little cult following within the camp of the ''Redeemer's'' worshippers as the ''Benighted'', because he visits [[spoiler: Itkovian's]] barrow daily and so keeps undesirables from the camp.
* TheAtoner: Wishes to atone for his crimes in the service of the cannibalistic army of the Pannion Domin. He keeps the title 'Seerdomin' so that he won't be able to hide his legacy.
* FromNobodyToNightmare:
** Once the son of a fisherman, became a high ranking fanatic in the Seer's army, admitting to have fully comitted to the tyranny.
** Does it again in ''Literature/TollTheHounds'', when he goes from gloomy but generally decent citizen to stalking and murdering people at night because they were planning to get rid of their new Andii Lord.
* HeelFaceTurn: While you couldn't exactly call him evil at any point, he is still conflicted about his past and tries his best to live with himself and his decisions. While his road is rocky indeed, by the end of ''Literature/TollTheHounds'' he [[spoiler: dies for the ideals]] of a god he isn't even sure he really believes in ''or'' trusts.
* TheHunter: Goes after a bunch of cutthroats trying to depose Anomander Rake as the Lord of Black Coral, so the Andii Lord would not have to deal with the rabble himself. Seerdomin thinks these people are proof that HumansAreBastards and that their benign Lord is the best thing that could have happened to Coral.
* LonelyTogether: Spinnock and him meet every evening in Scour Tavern to play Kef Tanar, get drunk and be miserable together.
* MaddenIntoMisanthropy: By the time of ''Literature/TollTheHounds'' he is a gruff loner, not even trying to hide his legacy and his only friend is a Tiste Andii he considers better than most humans.
-->''This is my penance, Spinnock Durav. My singular apology for the madness of humanity. Forgive them, please, because I cannot.'
* MessiahCreep: In Universe! Seerdomin slowly realizes that he's becoming a figure of salvation to the Redeemer's followers and deeply conflicted about it, because while his deeds may seem heroic to outsiders, he is mainly in it for personal reasons.
* MookLieutenant: The Septarch calls him his most trusted servant.
* TheNameless: Goes by his former military rank of 'Seerdomin' to show that he won't hide from his crimes under the Pannion Domin. It is later revealed that his real name was Segda Travos.
* NominalHero: The Redeemer's followers see him as their hero, because his daily presence at the barrow discourages bandits from entering the camp, but his reasons for visiting are personal and he is even surprised that people would look up to him.
* NotAlwaysEvil: Despite not being a named character yet, in ''Literature/MemoriesOfIce'' he is an all around decent human being towards [[spoiler: Toc during his imprisonment with the Matron]]: conversing with him to alleviate the torture the latter has to endure, taking him outside to view the sea and carrying him when he grows too weak to walk himself. All this despite holding the highest military rank of his army and being a ''very'' minor character in that book.
* ReligiousBruiser:
** Deconstructed in ''Literature/MemoriesOfIce'' when he is part of the fanatical army of the Pannion Domin and already a broken man because of the things he had to do. Then...
** Reconstructed in ''Literature/TollTheHounds'' when he finds himself bafflingly in the service of [[spoiler: the Redeemer]], once again fighting for a faith, but this time the implication is, that he's doing the right thing.
* OnlySaneEmployee: He is smart enough not to directly oppose his less than sane Seer's commands, but does go out of his way to call attention to the state of their prisoner and tries to reason with his higher-ups. It also helps that he is not one of the hunger-crazed foot soldiers that make up the bulk of the army.
* ShellShockedVeteran: Seerdomin has been thoroughly broken by the things he witnessed and did under the Seer's tyranny. While capable of great kindness towards [[spoiler: Toc]] and later Spinnock, his outlook on the world and humanity as a whole is far from positive.
* TheStoic: He delivers the news of the starvation of an entire people in a detached tone, though [[spoiler: Toc]] sees a NotSoStoic undercurrent in him.
* YouShallNotPass: Defends the [[spoiler:Redeemer]] from a dying god-possessed [[spoiler:Salind]].
[[folder: '''The Defenders Of Capustan''']]
* {{Badass}}
** BadassNormal --> EmpoweredBadassNormal: [[spoiler: When he becomes Trake's Mortal Sword, Gruntle shifts from a ''very'' capable caravan guard to a nigh-unstoppable warrior]].
* TheChampion: Becomes [[spoiler:Mortal Sword of Trake]]
* DualWielding: Cutlasses.
* HiredGuns: Worked as a caravan guard for hire.
* LightningBruiser: Big, strong and fast. Becomes stronger, and ''lethally'' quick and agile when [[spoiler: Trake selects him as his Mortal Sword]].
* PantheraAwesome: As [[spoiler: the Mortal Sword of the Tiger of Summer, Gruntle now moves like a big cat]].
* PowerMakeover: [[spoiler: His appearance becomes very, very tigerish following his selection as Mortal Sword of Trake, to the point where it creeps people out]].
* PowerTattoo: [[spoiler: Trake's blessing tattoos his skin with tiger stripes]].
* RoaringRampageOfRevenge: Initially disinterested in fighting during the siege of Capustan, Gruntle changes his mind after Stonny is raped by a Seerdomin and ends up leading the resistance.
* TechnicolorEyes: [[spoiler: They turn tiger-yellow]].
!!Stonny Menackis
* LipstickLesbian/ BiTheWay: It's not entirely clear which she really is, though she seemingly sleeps with both Nektara (female) and Netok (male) in ''Memories of Ice''.
* RapeAsDrama: Raped by an unnamed Seerdomin during the siege of Capustan. She quickly kills him, though not before making him beg for mercy first.
* TheChampion: Mortal Sword of Fener
* HiredGuns
* PrivateMilitaryContractors
* AscendToAHigherPlaneOfExistence: [[spoiler:Becomes an Ascendent known as The Redeemer.]]
* BadAss
* CelibateHero
* TheEmpath: Can detect and absorb others' grief. Given the [[CrapsackWorld nature of the series]] there's a lot of it to go around.
* HeroicSacrifice: [[spoiler: Dies absorbing the collective grief of the T'lan Imass]].
* MeaningfulFuneral
* ReasonableAuthorityFigure
[[folder: '''The Army of the Whirlwind''']]
Also called '''The Army of the Apocalypse''', or the '''Apocalypse Army'''.
!!Sha'ik Reborn / [[spoiler: Felisin Paran]]
* BiTheWay: As [[spoiler:Felisin]], sleeps with both men and women. May be a case of SituationalSexuality; see the spoiler under ReallyGetsAround.
* BreakTheCutie: [[spoiler:Most of her family is killed, she is enslaved, she prostitutes herself to secure better treatment for herself and her friends, several of her closest friends are killed in the escape, she is subjected to mind control by an insane goddess who wants to wipe out humanity, and she is ultimately [[KillTheCutie killed by her own sister]], who never even learns who she was fighting.]]
* DarkMessiah: isn't obvious at first, but [[spoiler:by the time we see the Whirlwind Goddess' internal monologue, it becomes apparent just how monstrous the cause she's been compelled to serve is.]]
* DemonicPossession: Or divine possession (by the Whirlwind Goddess), but it still counts.
* ReallyGetsAround: As [[spoiler:Felisin, though this is at least partially a reaction to being a slave; she sleeps with anyone and everyone who is willing to offer her favours for doing so. However, this behaviour continues to a lesser extent after she escapes the Otataral mines, at least until she becomes Sha'ik Reborn.]]
* RebelLeader: of the Whirlwind Rebellion
** TheRevolutionWillNotBeCivilized
* RoaringRampageOfRevenge: proves to be a large part of her motivation. [[spoiler:Tavore thought it would be better for Felisin to be enslaved than killed. Naturally, Felisin doesn't forgive this, particularly since Tavore's planned freeing of Felisin doesn't happen nearly as quickly as anticipated.]]
!!Heboric Light Touch / Heboric Ghost Hands
* ChekhovsGunman
* PoisonousPerson: His hands; natural, Jade and Otataral.
* [[RedRightHand Jade and Otataral Hands]]
* SanitySlippage
!!Leoman of the Flails
* BadassNormal
* DualWielding: Uses two [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin flails.]]
* ScrewThisImOuttaHere: [[spoiler:At Y'ghatan. Corabb Bhilan Thenu'alas, his erstwhile second in command, does not forgive him for this and ultimately allies with the Malazans, whom he had previously regarded as his hated enemies.]]
See '''High House Chains'''
See '''Tiste Liosan'''
!!Felisin Younger
The adopted daughter of Felisin, [[spoiler:who after being subjected to horrific abuses is ultimately kidnapped by renegade T'lan Imass and installed as a new Sha'ik Reborn.]]
* BigBeautifulWoman: [[spoiler:Due to her indulgence in as many sensual pleasures as she can manage, she puts on a lot of weight. This doesn't stop her from having as much sex as she wants, although to be fair, the fact that she's effectively worshipped probably helps here.]]
* BreakTheCutie: [[spoiler:Raped and circumcised by Bidithal. Although Heboric appears to have healed her of the latter, she bears severe psychological scars from the abuse and they only get worse after she sees the friends who have been guarding her apparently cut down by T'lan Imass. While most of them survive and Heboric [[AscendToAHigherPlaneOfExistence Ascends to a Higher Plane of Existence]], she does not know this and has clearly been broken by her string of traumatic experiences.]]
* GenerationXerox: Not a biological example, [[spoiler:but she follows the trajectory of her adoptive mother's life pretty closely, including being subjected to a huge TraumaCongaLine, [[ReallyGetsAround Really Getting Around]], and being installed as Sha'ik Reborn.]]
* RapeAsDrama: [[spoiler:Is raped by Bidithal, which is only the start of her TraumaCongaLine.]]
* ReallyGetsAround: [[spoiler:After being installed as Sha'ik Reborn it doesn't take her long to start indulging as heavily in pleasures of the flesh as she can, which includes sex. Constantly. With, apparently, anyone who is willing.]]
* SexForSolace: [[spoiler:This is implied to be the reason she indulges in sex so much, though it's also suggested that the Crippled God is messing with her mind.]]
A camp follower with the Army of the Apocalypse who has been subjected to horrific abuse.
* BabiesMakeEverythingBetter: Averted. She ends up pregnant as a result of her forced prostitution, views the pregnancy as an ordeal, and wants nothing to do with the child when born. To be fair, it is effectively a ChildByRape.
* BiTheWay: She certainly enjoyed her encounter with [[spoiler:Blend]], though she does seem to prefer men.
* EarnYourHappyEnding: [[spoiler:ends up HappilyMarried to Barathol, but she had to go through seven different kinds of hell to get there.]]
* GoodBadGirl: A fundamentally good person who will happily use sex to cheer people up if she thinks it worthwhile. However, this hasn't stopped her from getting emotionally hurt from doing so.
* HookerWithAHeartOfGold: Starts out as this, but it wasn't exactly by choice.
* LookingForLoveInAllTheWrongPlaces: She tries to tell herself that it's just sex with [[spoiler:Cutter]], but ends up getting hurt anyway. [[spoiler:She believes Barathol will abandon her too, but ultimately he doesn't.]]
* RapeAsDrama: [[spoiler:was subjected to the same rape and circumcision that Felisin Younger was, and then made a prostitute without apparently being given a say in the matter. She was also kept in a haze of [[FantasticDrug durhang]] throughout this time which may have resulted in somewhat less trauma than she might have otherwise experienced.]]
[[folder: '''High House Chains''']]
!!The Crippled God / [[spoiler:Kaminsod]]
* AndIMustScream: He's been trapped and tortured for ''hundreds of thousands of years'' at the start of the series.
* BigBad: About as close to one as the series gets. [[spoiler:Arguably subverted in that he's treated with considerable sympathy, particularly in the later books, and in the end the protagonists end up having to ''save'' him when his plots get [[HijackedByGanon Hijacked by the Forkrul Assail]].]]
* BlackCloak: Of sorts. He usually covers himself in dark-colored rags, rather than an actual cloak, but the look is very similar.
* TheCorrupter: The Crippled God specialises in bringing out the worst in people, typically [[DealWithTheDevil offering them exactly what they want]] in exchange for their inclusion in his House of Chains. He seems to like driving his followers/victims mad.
* DealWithTheDevil: Munug, [[spoiler: Kallor]] and many others have made them with him.
* DisabledDeity: It's in the name. He's not a paragon of mental health, either.
* DysfunctionJunction: His followers. It's entirely deliberate too. The Crippled God desires every member of his House to be as flawed, mentally and/or physically, as he is.
* EvilCripple: Evil due to crippling. The Fall destroyed his mind.
* FreudianExcuse: The Fall did not do good things to his sanity. The fact that most of the pantheon has periodically gotten together and chained him up for, from his perspective, no real reason didn't help either.
* GodOfEvil: Deconstructed. He's more like a god of ''suffering'', and that suffering includes his own. While he's initially presented as ''causing'' it, in the end [[spoiler:after the Bonehunters risk everything to save him from the Assail and ''succeed'', he ends up becoming the god who has sympathy for those who suffer]].
** [[spoiler: Well, at least up until the point Cotillion kills him with a surprise backstab. It's implied, however, that this was done to allow him to return home, which was [[EarnYourHappyEnding what he wanted all along]].]]
* HiddenVillain: For the first two and a half books.
* IHaveManyNames: The Crippled God, the Fallen God, the Chained One. [[spoiler:But his real name is Kaminsod]].
* KickTheDog: His treatment of Rhulad Sengar. See below.
* MadGod: Due to being caught in a trap meant for Kallor and spending hundreds of thousands of years in it.
* TheManBehindTheMan: To ''so'' many different villains, with the [[spoiler:[[DarkMessiah Pannion Seer]]]] being a particularly spectacular example.
* NarratorAllAlong: [[spoiler:Ultimately revealed as the narrator in ''The Crippled God''. This turns out to be a JustifiedTrope, as it's revealed that he [[LiteraryAgentHypothesis penned the series]] so that those who sacrificed their lives to free him would not be forgotten. The title of the series, naturally, relates to this.]]
* OmnicidalManiac: He's slowly poisoning Burn. Whether he genuinely wants her dead or is hoping that someone will free him in order to prevent this isn't known for most of the series. [[spoiler:It's the latter]].
* PillarOfLight: When [[spoiler:he's freed]].
* PhysicalGod: Like many other Ascendants in the series.
* RedRightHand: The evil god is the [[EvilCripple crippled one]]. Go figure.
* SadisticChoice: See XanatosGambit below. The best case scenario is his freedom, and the end of civilisation as they know it. The worst case scenario is the slow death of the entire world.
* SealedEvilInACan: Chained in place to the sleeping goddess Burn, though his spirit can move around inside a Warren and has appeared in several places around the world. [[spoiler:Ultimately subverted when he is freed and turns out to act more in the manner one would expect of a SealedGoodInACan. Freeing him seems to have undone the madness that led to most of his actions prior to his freedom, and it certainly stops his poisoning of Burn which had been causing many of the world's problems. He's also immensely grateful to the people who freed him; ending hundreds of thousands of years' worth of torture will do that to a god.]]
* StartOfDarkness: He was just a foreign god who fell to earth as the result of a trap meant for [[TheEmperor Kallor]]. And went stark raving mad as a result.
* VaderBreath: Has to constantly inhale incense in order to keep his lungs clear. Even then, his breathing is still ragged and wheezing.
* WithGreatPowerComesGreatInsanity: The fate of many of those who choose to follow him.
* WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds: The Fall left him crippled, agonised and totally insane. He seems to be out to destroy the world in order to make the pain go away. It's very hard not to feel bad for him on some level.
** [[spoiler: After his plans get taken over by the Forkrul Assail, who are basically using his heart as an ArtifactOfDoom, he turns into more of a straight-up {{Woobie}}]].
* WoundThatWillNotHeal: None of the injuries from the Fall have healed. Not one in a hundred thousand years.
* XanatosGambit: If they don't loose him, Burn dies and he gets his revenge. If they do, he's free to wreak havoc and get his revenge via other means. Kind of a win-win situation for him.
!!Rhulad Sengar
* AnnoyingYoungerSibling: Before the horror show began.
* ArtifactOfDoom: Mystically linked to one.
* AxeCrazy
* BackFromTheDead: Over and over and over again.
* {{BFS}}: The aforementioned ArtifactOfDoom.
* BigEgoHiddenDepths: Rhulad is a much more layered character than his AnnoyingYoungerSibling behaviour lets on at first, however it takes a serious horror show for that to surface. By the time he starts trying to get his shit together it's way too late and he can't help himself slipping back into his old persona again and again.
* BlessedWithSuck: He comes back every time he's killed, but only after having his soul tortured by the Crippled God.
* BodyHorror: Covered in half-melted gold coins from a Tiste Edur death rite. Some of them fall out, but that just leaves him with horrific burn scars instead.
* TheCaligula: Deconstructed. We're treated to a blow-by-blow account of his descent into madness, and it's treated as tragedy rather than menace.
* CoolSword: Subverted. It's the ArtifactOfDoom that keeps bringing him back.
* DeathSeeker: Gee, I wonder why?
* TheDragon: As The King in Chains, he fullfills this role with regards to the Crippled God.
* TheEmperor: Of the Letherii Empire and the Tiste Edur.
* EvilOverlord
* GlorySeeker: Initially. By the time he learns the lesson it's too late, though.
* HealingFactor: Can heal any injuries, [[WoundThatWillNotHeal save those inflicted on him by the funeral rites after his first death]].
* HeroicSacrifice: Which got him linked to the ArtifactOfDoom in the first place.
* HorribleJudgeOfCharacter: Due to being too young and too proud, Rhulad is prone to misjudging people. He considers Trull a coward, but trusts people who are only in it for their own benefit.
* IHaveManyNames: Rhulad Sengar, The Emperor of a Thousand Deaths, The King in Chains.
* ImmortalityHurts: Between getting tortured by the Crippled God in the afterlife, the BodyHorror from his funeral, his bride committing suicide rather than bearing his child, and his enroaching insanity, yeah.
* KilledOffForReal: [[spoiler: When Karsa finally kills his soul]].
* {{Lust}}: Lusted after his brother Fear's wife, who toyed with his emotions as a game. This results in a very nasty LoveTriangle once he becomes The Emperor.
* MoodSwinger: Comes with the increasing insanity.
* NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast: The Emperor of a Thousand Deaths.
* NeckSnap: How he meets his second death at the hand of Letherii soldier Iron Bars. He gets over it.
* PetTheDog: His attempt at returning Mayen, his wife, to his brother, Fear, whom she genuinely loves. Also, his forcing Mayen to stop beating her slave, Feather Witch.
* {{Pride}}: One of Rhulad's major sins before becoming The King In Chains. He was convinced he was far superior to everyone, including his brothers Fear and Trull.
* RapeIsASpecialKindOfEvil: Averted. He forces his brother's wife to marry him, and has his way with her, and somehow, it just makes him all the more pathetic and pitiable.
* SanitySlippage: Gradually loses his mind as each new resurrection takes its toll on him.
* SelfMadeOrphan: Not that this was his intention. He threw his mom and dad in prison. [[DeusAngstMachina The jail promptly flooded]].
* SmallNameBigEgo: Initially. His first death pretty much shatters his ego though.
* TraumaCongaLine: His brother is murdered by Karsa, his bride kills herself, his parents are drowned in his dungeon, his people are scheming against him, he's slowly going mad, and that's without getting into the horror show that is his curse.
* WhoWantsToLiveForever: Not Rhulad.
* WithGreatPowerComesGreatInsanity
* WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds: [[spoiler: It's hard to not to sympathise with him, after his mind starts to slowly break apart because of his deaths... and deaths of his loved ones. Also Udinaas, his only friend, betrays him - or so he thinks...]]
* WoundThatWillNotHeal: No matter how many times he dies, the wounds from his first death will not heal. And then there's those [[BodyHorror damn coins]] from his first funeral.
!!Karsa Orlong / Toblakai
* AntiHero: A NominalHero, more or less. An UnscrupulousHero on a good day.
* {{Badass}}: How his fans view him.
* BarbarianHero: His perspective is initially, per WordOfGod, a deliberate {{deconstruction}} of the barbarian fantasy, and as such his perspective begins as not heroic in any conceivable sense. He gets somewhat better as he undergoes CharacterDevelopment, but at his best remains an antihero.
* BloodKnight: While he's not as much of one now as he was when the series starts, he's still quite fond of, and skilled at, combat.
* BoisterousBruiser
* CatchPhrase: "Witness!" Usually followed by something very BadAss or just plain [[RefugeInAudacity insane]].
* TheChampion: Accepting the position of Knight of High House Chains would make him this to the Crippled God.
* DefeatingTheUndefeatable: Or more accurately, killing [[spoiler:the Emperor of a Thousand Deaths]] who was supposed to be unkillable.
* TheDragon: The Crippled God wants him to be his Knight of Chains. So far, Karsa has been doing his best to refuse.
* EvenEvilHasStandards: He may have started out believing that [[DeliberateValuesDissonance there is nothing wrong with rape]], but he is nonetheless completely appalled when he finds out about [[spoiler:Bidithal]]'s paedophilia, and ultimately kills him. This effectively solidifies his transition from a VillainProtagonist to an AntiVillain (he ultimately ends up an AntiHero). In ''Literature/TheBonehunters'', he mentions that he hasn't raped anyone in years, so it's quite possible that seeing the effects of sexual abuse on [[spoiler:Felisin Younger]] cured him of these tendencies.
* FishOutOfWater: Anytime he approaches a remotely civilised location.
* TheGiant: Karsa's immense size is almost always noted.
* HeelFaceTurn: He starts out as unambiguously villainous. Even at the end of his character arc he is far from entirely sympathetic, but arguably becomes either an AntiVillain or a dark AntiHero. Some of this is arguably due to the narrative setting him against people who are unambiguously more villainous ({{Pedophile Priest}}s, slavers, etc.), but some of it is due to CharacterDevelopment, as his internal narrative makes it plain that he is re-examining the core beliefs that shaped him into the villain he was initially.
* HellishHorse
* HeManWomanHater: Not a straight example as he doesn't ''hate'' women, but he does believe them to be inferior, and holds them in deep contempt, initially believing that [[DeliberateValuesDissonance rape is totally okay]]. His interactions with [[HotWitch Samar Dev]] and various other women seem to be improving him for the better, although it's hard to tell completely; nonetheless, he delivers a massive PayEvilUntoEvil moment to [[spoiler:Bidithal]] for his paedophilia and abuse of [[spoiler:Felisin Younger]], which ''appalls'' him.
* InherentInTheSystem: Karsa believes slavery and exploitation are inherent in society. His solution? [[DisproportionateRetribution Burn it down]].
* KarmicDeath: Hands them out, with great relish.
* KillTheGod: [[spoiler: In addition to Rhulad Sengar, who was more or less the vessel of the Crippled God, he also kills Fener, facilitating his HeroicSacrifice.]]
* PayEvilUntoEvil: As mentioned above, he is quite fond of dishing out Karmic Deaths, particularly to paedophiles and slavers.
* ProudWarriorRaceGuy: The Teblor are a ProudWarriorRace, and he starts as one of the proudest. Even as he moves away from their customs, he doesn't lose his relish for combat.
* PsychopathicManChild: On occasion.
* RefusalOfTheCall: Sort of. He has no problem with going on adventures and [[RapePillageAndBurn raping and pillaging]] and whatnot. He just really resents doing it on the Crippled God's orders.
* [[TattooedCrook Tattooed Thug]]: The broken-glass tattoos on his face that denote his past as a slave.
* ValuesDissonance: Both in-universe (with the rest of the cast that is) and with the fans. He does get better as he undergoes CharacterDevelopment.
* VillainProtagonist: His perspective starts out as unambiguously villainous, which was done deliberately. However, he undergoes a substantial amount of CharacterDevelopment and arguably becomes either an AntiVillain or a very dark AntiHero.
[[folder: '''High House Shadow''']]
* BlackCloak
* BunnyEarsLawyer: Feared emperor, {{chessmaster}} usurper of High House Shadow, all around ManipulativeBastard...and deathly afraid of his mother (and all females), apparently. Has some shades of CloudCuckooLander as well.
* TheChessmaster: sets in motion much of the series
* DealWithTheDevil: "Shadowthrone loves deals."
* TheEmperor: [[spoiler: Pre-Ascension]].
* EvilSoundsDeep: Inverted. Ammanas' voice is very high-pitched and cold.
* FauxAffablyEvil
* FromNobodyToNightmare: [[spoiler: started off as a bar owner and middling criminal]]
* GigglingVillain
* {{Hellhound}}s: Commands seven of them.
* InTheHood
* LaughablyEvil
* NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast: Would you mess with a guy named "Shadowthrone"?
* PhysicalGod
* TheReveal: [[spoiler:He's Emperor Kellanved, who Ascended following Laseen's assassination attempt]].
* {{Revenge}}: Wants to pay back [[spoiler:Laseen for murdering him]].
!!Cotillion/The Rope
--> "It's not such a bad thing, girl, to be the pawn of a god."
* AntiVillain
* BadAss: If the stories are to be belived, [[spoiler:Dancer was a BadAss even before his Ascension to Godhood]]. He's definitely one now.
* TheChampion: As Assassin of High House Shadow he holds this position.
* DemonicPossession: Takes over Apsalar/Sorry during ''Gardens of the Moon''.
* TheDragon: To Shadowthrone.
* KnifeNut
* NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast: The Rope, Patron of Assassins.
* ParentalSubstitute: [[spoiler: Seems to be trying to become one to Sorry/Apsalar, as a means of making up for what he put her through]].
* PetTheDog: Has a minor one with Sorry right before he possesses her, reassuring her that the experience won't be that bad. [[spoiler:Has had many more since than; see ParentalSubstitute, above]].
* PhysicalGod
* ProfessionalKiller: Cotillion is the Patron of Assassins.
* TheReveal: [[spoiler:Was formerly Dancer, Emperor Kellanved's companion, and Ascended alongside his master]].
* {{Revenge}}: For the same reasons as Ammanas.
* ShipperOnDeck: [[spoiler:He seems to want Cutter and Apsalar to be happy. It's just that, well, try as he might to be a kind father figure, he's not the god of happy endings, he's the god of murdering people in the face. It's not working.]]
!!Sorry / Apsalar
-> '''Quick Ben:''' 'I never believed in pure evil before Sorry showed up. But you're right, she's awfully young.'
--> ''Literature/GardensOfTheMoon''
Sorry is a recruit in Whiskeyjack's squad. She is awfully young and awfully unsettling, possessing the abilities and ruthlessness of a seasoned assassin, going so far as scaring Kalam, a former Claw. She used to be a fisher girl in Itko Kan, but due to being in the wrong place at the wrong time once, she has found herself in the service of High House Shadow and a vessel for the Patron of Assassins. After the possession is ended, she takes on the name Apsalar yet, due to having no other skills, remains in the employ of High House Shadow.
* AmnesiacsAreInnocent: After being freed from Cotillion's possession, she exibits a brief period of almost childlike innocence as her last memories are from her life in a fishing village and the memories of her time as a cold-blooded killer have yet to resurface again.
* BrainwashResidue: Aside from [[GhostMemory some leftover memories]] and skills from being possessed by the Patron of Assassins, Apsalar also retains some other things like movement patterns -- Urko Crust at first assumes her to be Cotillion's daughter despite looking nothing like him simply based on how she walks.
* BreakHisHeartToSaveHim: Apsalar leaves Cutter in order to keep him from following in her footsteps and becoming an assassin after realising how far he's already gone down that path for her sake.
* BrokenBird: She seems to be coping quite well with having been possessed by Cotillion and being unable to go back to her life as a fisher girl, but the fact that she keeps pushing Cutter away while at the same time showing occasional glipses of breaking down tells another story.
* DanceBattler: From ''Literature/TheBonehunters'' on, Apsalar is able to employ the Shadow Dance, a technique developed within the Cult of Rashan which enables the dancer to use shadow magic for fighting and assassination.
* DarkActionGirl: Though she's one of the more prominent characters, she's perceived as pure evil by some characters at first, and even later she remains an [[ProfessionalKiller assassin]] who works for High House Shadow. Thanks to the skills inherited from Cotillion and the Shadow Dance, Apsalar is able to take down entire Hands of the Claw.
* DemonicPossession: Divine possession by the Patron God of Assassins, who for the duration is in complete control her. Apsalar carries around the scars of having been possessed by Cotillion for most of the rest of the series, and the latter spends much of it trying to make it up to her.
* DoomedHometown: Though not actually destroyed, ''all'' the villagers of the fishing village she grew up at ''and'' the nearby town were killed by Shadowthrone and Cotillion to cover up her disappearance and subsequent possession.
* TheDreaded: As Sorry. Quick Ben jumps whenever she's around (or even worse -- not around), Kalam becomes nervous and even Whiskeyjack, always the one who tries to see the best in people, has to admit that Sorry makes him uncomfortable. During their time in Darujhistan, the entire squad is constantly on edge with fear of Sorry killing someone unasked and endangering their mission, and yet, nobody wants to actually have her at their quarters either.
* EmotionlessGirl: Upon their first meeting in ''Literature/GardensOfTheMoon'', Tattersail describes Sorry as 'young, pretty as an icicle and looking as warm to the touch' and immediately has a feeling that something's wrong with the girl. Sorry doesn't seem to care and remains cold and distant until her possession by Cotillion is ended.
* GhostMemory:
** Even after her possession by Cotillion ends, Apsalar -- after a short stint as AmnesiacsAreInnocent -- retains some of his personal memories (as mortal and Ascendant) and skills as [[ProfessionalKiller an assassin]]. The meories feel like her own to her and at first she speaks of events from before she was born as if they'd happened to her personally.
** Additionally, she also retains some scattered memories of Riggalai the Seer, the old wax-witch that tried to protect her from Cotillion's possession.
* GrandTheftMe: It is implied by Riggalai that Cotillion's possession would have completely annihilated the fisher girl's spirit, so deeply was it suppressed, had the old witch not intervened and shielded the girl within her own mind. Thus, while the Cotillion controls Sorry completely, enough of her is left to return when the possession is ended.
* KnifeNut: Knives are Sorry's weapons of choice. Quick Ben and Kalam recall an incident in which instead of killing a man, she basically mutilated him until even seasoned killer Kalam could not watch any longer and had to step in and kill the poor sod. She retains her preference for knives even after the possession ends.
* LaserGuidedAmnesia: While she retains memories of Cotillion's life as Dancer, Apsalar does lose all memories of what Cotillion did while he controlled her body.
* LossOfIdentity: She remembers quite a bit of her life pre-possession, but clearly isn't that girl anymore, not to mention that she has memories which aren't even hers while she still cannot remember her own name.
* MeaningfulName:
** The name Sorry is chosen by Cotillion when he possesses her and enlists her in the Malazan Army. It is his way to express how he feels about using the girl for his own means.
** However, when she has a chance to choose her own name, she averts the trope by just asking Crokus to give her a name he likes. He can't think of anything and proposes the name of the Goddess of Thieves and she takes it because she likes the sound of 'Apsalar'.
* OneManArmy: Thanks to the [[DanceBattler Shadow Dance]], in ''Literature/TheBonehunters'' [[spoiler:Apsalar is able to fight her way through upwards of a hundred [[ProfessionalAssassin Claw]], leaving only red mist behind]].
* PsychoForHire: Sorry poses as one while infiltrating the Malazan Army, to better discourage closer scrutiny of her persona. She scares Quick Ben, Whiskeyjack, and even former Claw Kalam, she's so damn creepy.
* WaifFu: Thanks to DemonicPossession resulting in the skills of a trained assassin, and later the [[DanceBattler Shadow Dance]], this less than twenty years old, asian looking [[note]] Itko Kan, where she is from, sounds a lot like certain parts of Asia[[/note]] girl is a potential OneManArmy.
!!Iskaral Pust
* BunnyEarsLawyer: Somewhere between an extreme example of this, and CrazyAwesome.
* DidIJustSayThatOutLoud: At times, Pust has been known to make comments like "she's falling for my clever scheme" ''to the person he is trying to manipulate''.
* EvilGenius: The only reason Shadowthrone keeps him around.
* ObfuscatingInsanity: Maybe. It's really hard to tell if Pust is faking it, or if he just happens to be both rather bright and ''totally nuts''.
* SmarterThanYouLook: Despite his craziness, tendency towards accidentally stabbing himself in the foot, and an ego the size of some small countries, Pust is actually quite bright, and at times, suprisingly effective.
* TalkativeLoon: Trying to shut him up would likely take an act of god. Or several gods.
* ThinkingOutLoud: Often.
[[folder: '''Lady Envy's Companions''']]
!!Lady Envy
* CainAndAbel: She and her sister Spite cannot bear to be in the same city without trying to kill each other.
* BetrayalByInaction: Is said to have stood by while her then-lover [[FamedInStory Anomander Rake]] [[FateWorseThanDeath killed]] her father and took his SoulCuttingBlade [[ForgedByTheGods Dragnipur]] from him. It is heavily implied that she did this just to spite Lord Draconus, and because she wanted Dragnipur for herself in the long run, not to stay out of a conflict between her father and her lover.
* GreenEyedMonster: Towards her sister, Spite.
* NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast: Draconus intentionally named his daughters Envy, Spite and [[spoiler: Malice, and would've named a fourth one Venom.]]
* UpperClassTwit: Does an amazing impression of one. She's actually quite bright, if a little ditzy.
!!Toc The Younger
* AcheyScars: His eye still hurts.
* ActionSurvivor: Feels like one alongside Envy, Tool, Baaljaag, Gareth and the Seguleh.
* CantStayNormal: Or dead. He's been attacked by Hairlock and thrown into a rent, accompanied Lady Envy, [[BodySnatcher body snatched]] Anaster and become Mortal Sword of Togg and Fanderay, been killed again, and now serves Hood.
* TheChampion: Mortal Sword of Togg and Fanderay, then Herald of Death.
* DeathIsCheap: How many times has he come back from the dead now?
* EyepatchOfPower
* GrandTheftMe: Following his initial death, Toc's soul is transplanted into that of [[EmptyShell Anaster]] in order to give them both a second chance at life.
* PrivateMilitaryContractors: As leader of the Grey Swords.
!!Mok, Thurule, and Senu
* AsskickingEqualsAuthority: Seguleh hierarchy is modelled on combat ability. As the Third, Mok can and does kick a lot of ass.
* BadAss: All three of them. To the point where their fellow Seguleh class them as a "punitive army" and expect them to carve their way through the Pannion Domin on their own. They don't dissapoint.
** BadassArmy: They're "the punative army of the Seguleh", themselves as BadassArmy of the first order.
** BadassNormal
* BloodKnight: Three representatives from an entire nation of them.
* {{Charles Atlas Superpower}}s
* DualWielding: All three Seguleh.
* TheFettered: Courtesy of Lady Envy's magic.
* HonourBeforeReason: If the Seguleh think you might be tough, they will challenge you, no matter where or when. And they'll make it a fair fight too.
%%* ImplausibleFencingPowers
* ImprobableAge: Senu's just turned twenty.
* MaskPower: All Seguleh go masked, and the markings on their mask indicate their rank (Mok is the third-ranked Seguleh, his mask has two slashes on it).
* MasterSwordsman: All three, but especially Mok.
* [[ProudWarriorRaceGuy Proud Warrior Race Trio]]
* TheQuietOne: All three of them, but especially Mok.
* TheStoic
* AmnesiacGod: The wolf-goddess Fanderay is trapped inside her.
* CanineCompanion
* {{Sizeshifter}}: Can greatly alter her size, though not to the extent Gareth can.
* StarCrossedLovers: Is searching for the spirit of her mate, the wolf-god Togg. [[spoiler: He's hiding inside Toc]].
* {{Hellhound}}: Has the potential to be a Hound of Shadow.
* CanineCompanion
* {{Sizeshifter}}: Can grow to tremendous size.
[[folder: '''Letherii''']]
!!Tehol Beddict
-> 'What do you think? Should I get out of bed today, Bugg?'
--> ''Literature/MidnightTides''
The middle Beddict brother. When the Beddict family came dangerously close to becoming Indebted, Tehol took it on himself to keep the family afloat, something he did in secret while attending his instructors. Tehol is an economic savant, and was able to amass one of the largest fortunes in Letheras - a "peak", or one million "thirds", roughly one eighth of the city's combined currency - before going bankrupt literally overnight, nearly crashing the economy of the Empire. What happened to the money is unknown, and Tehol is now a largely forgotten figure living in poverty with his manservant Bugg.
* AuthorAvatar: It is quite likely that Tehol's [[CapitalismIsBad thoughts on the Letherii economic system]] mirror Erikson's own.
* BrilliantButLazy: He may be the smartest person in the entire setting, but, as seen in the quote above (his EstablishingCharacterMoment), he really prefers not to do anything unless it's strictly necessary. [[spoiler:Part of the reason he keeps up the appearance of living in poverty is to escape attention and keep his life simpler, and when he becomes emperor he comments that he will probably never get around to enacting many of the the reforms he wants to.]]
* CharacterFilibuster: Is prone to these. It is rare for him to be interrupted, though because a lot of these are directed at Bugg, [[spoiler:who only hangs around Tehol because he finds him interesting]], there's likely a reason for this.
* TheChessmaster: He is quite possibly the single most intelligent character of the series, which is saying something. [[spoiler:He's capable of single-handedly manipulating the entire Letherii economy if it suits his purposes. Which it eventually does. The general populace eventually thanks him for this, as it ends a brutally oppressive economic system, and he ends up ruling the entire empire at the end of ''Literature/ReapersGale'' by popular demand, making him perhaps the setting's first democratically elected leader.]]
* ChivalrousPervert: He hits on almost every woman he meets, and several of them do climb into bed with him, including [[spoiler:Shurq, Rucket, and Janath, the last of whom eventually marries him. However, he remains every bit as flirtatious as ever, which Janath simply finds amusing.]]
* DefectorFromDecadence: He is very, very good at playing Lether's economic game. And he hates it so much he nearly brought the whole thing down. In ''Literature/MidnightTides'', he gets asked to do this a second time. [[spoiler:In ''Literature/ReapersGale'', he does so.]]
* GuileHero: Of the Beddict brothers, Tehol is the only one without combat skills of any sort.
* ObfuscatingStupidity: At the start of ''Literature/MidnightTides'', he's living in a run-down single room hut with his manservant, with barely anything to his name. [[spoiler: Or so it would seem. Tehol still secretly owns a number of businesses in Lether, and can easily come back and dominate the game, if he wanted.]]
-> '''Tehol Beddict:''' 'You've no talent to speak of, in much of anything, come to think of it. Probably why I love you so dearly, Bugg.'
--> ''Literature/MidnightTides''
Bugg is Tehol's mysterious manservant of many talents.
* BattleButler: To Tehol.
* CrouchingMoronHiddenBadass: [[spoiler:He is actually the Elder God Mael, god of the sea.]] Hangs around with Tehol because he's interesting.
* HyperCompetentSidekick: Again, to Tehol.
!!Brys Beddict
The youngest of the three Beddict brothers. A Finadd (captain) of the Letherii army, he was recently raised to the position of King's Champion, the King's personal bodyguard for his superlative skills as a swordsman. Though he would like nothing more than to be left to do his duty, the intrigues of the Letherii court have a way of enveloping even the most tangential of players.
* BackFromTheDead: [[spoiler:In ''Literature/ReapersGale''.]]
* BadassNormal: Defeated Rhulad, ''without'' killing him.
* MasterSwordsman: Possibly the best non-Ascendant swordsman in the series.
!!Shurq Elalle
A burglar who got caught. Deciding to try her luck in the Drownings, she got tangled in detritus in the canals and drowned, only to discover that one of her victims had cursed her with undeath. Much to her frustration, her dead nerves prevent her from enjoying the pleasures of the living, most notably sex. She gives up stealing, not caring about much any longer, until Tehol Beddict contacts her for her services - and offers a way to enjoy carnal pleasures again.
* AttractiveZombie: Shurq Elalle really loves to seduce living males. She wholeheartedly cherishes her undead state, mainly because it keeps her from aging and losing her good looks, and repeatedly refuses the possibility of resurrection.
* ClassyCatBurglar
* CoolBigSis: To Kettle.
* CursedWithAwesome: It takes awhile, but she ultimately appears to come to see being undead as this, after first viewing it as being BlessedWithSuck.
* GoodBadGirl: one of the most promiscuous characters in the series (which is saying a lot), and also (despite being a thief and later a pirate) one of the least ethically flawed.
* ILoveTheDead: Inverted--she's a walking dead woman who enjoys sex with the living.
* MateOrDie: Maybe. After she's given an ootooloo (a strange aquatic life form that enhances sexual pleasure), she can once again enjoy sex despite being undead. The byproduct is that she also has an extremely strong sex drive as a result, and it's stated that if she doesn't satiate it on a daily basis, ''something'' will happen to her, and it's implied not to be pleasant. It's not made clear what this is, and in any case, "death" isn't likely to be the outcome, since she's already undead. Strangely, this doesn't seem to bother her at all, because ''not'' being able to enjoy sex had made her utterly apathetic about everything, and she seems to regard her new state as an improvement. Eventually she does seem to get more control over this.
* PirateGirl: Eventually decides she wants to be a pirate. No particular reason, it just sounds like a fun thing to do.
* ReallyGetsAround: She spends quite a bit of time in a brothel at one point due to her newly awakened carnal appetites, which require daily satiation. We don't see first-hand what she's been up to, but since the madam mentions that the brothel's other occupants resent her for stealing ''[[UpToEleven all their clients]]'', we can assume this trope was involved. She does eventually get involved in multiple monogamous relationships though (or at least as monogamous as one can be when one needs to have sex every day - see MateOrDie above).
* TheUndead
* CreepyChild: [[spoiler:Although she is probably not actually a child, she has the appearance of one.]] Unlike many examples of this trope, though, she's also a genuinely nice person, despite also being a killer.
* EnfanteTerrible: Played with. She's a creepy, UndeadChild with a penchant towards murder, but she's also one of the few things standing between a dying Azath's denizens and the rest of Lether. She's also a genuinely nice person and only kills to prevent several [[SealedEvilInACan Sealed Evils in a Can]] from escaping a dying Azath House.
* KillTheCutie: [[spoiler:She carries the seed of an Azath House within her. This means that her death was required to allow a new Azath House to grow, holding the soul of Scabandari Bloodeye and saving the Refugium and the now-mortal Imass who inhabit it. Udinaas, who has developed a strong friendship with her, is not at all happy about this, but appears to recognise that allowing the soul of Bloodeye to fall into the wrong hands, or for the mortal Imass to die, would be even worse.]]
* PayEvilUntoEvil: She tries to kill only evil people to feed the Azath.
* RapeAsDrama: [[spoiler:Due to the CrapsackWorld nature of the setting, this happens to her at the start of ''Literature/ReapersGale''. She is surprisingly stoic about it, but then again, it's also implied that she is ReallySevenHundredYearsOld, so despite appearing to be a child, she most likely is not one.]]
* ReallySevenHundredYearsOld: [[spoiler:While she has the appearance of a nine-year-old human child, she is actually a daughter of the goddess the Eres'al and apparently has the soul of a Forkrul Assail, and it's implied that she has been guarding the Azath House for a long, long time. She still behaves like a child in many ways, but is quite a lot more perceptive and resilient than a child would realistically be expected to be.]]
* TheStoic: Despite the long string of horrible things that happen to her, she remains surprisingly resilient. [[spoiler:It may become slightly less surprising when one considers how old she likely really is, or the fact that she is the daughter of a goddess.]]
* UndeadChild: [[spoiler:At first. Towards the end of ''Literature/MidnightTides'', she is returned to the living when the Azath House plants its seed in her. Also, she's probably not actually a child, but has the appearance of one.]]
* VigilanteMan: A truly bizarre example. She targets criminals, spies, etc.
!!Gerun Eberict
* TheSociopath
* TheUnfettered
!!Harlest Eberict
-> 'I want to be scary. It's important that I be scary. I've been practising hissing and snarling.'
--> ''Literature/MidnightTides''
* CatchPhrase: "Fangs and claws".
* CrouchingMoronHiddenBadass: Harlest comes off as rather goofy, with all his talk of "fangs and claws" and his desire to scare people. Then he actually uses said claws in an attack on five Toblakai Ascendents.
* PsychopathicManChild
* SiblingYinYang: With his sociopathic (and living) brother Gerun.
* TalkativeLoon
* TheUndead
* VitriolicBestBuds: With Shurq.
-> 'You will discover that the notion of debt is not so easily denied.'
--> ''Literature/MidnightTides''
A Letherii slave among the Tiste Edur. He is Indebted, and the debt is owned, by extension, by [[spoiler:Tehol Beddict]]. Udinaas is extremely intelligent and GenreSavvy.
* AllLoveIsUnrequited: Is hopelessly in love with Feather Witch, who initially doesn't have the time of day for him. [[spoiler:When she finally realises she is in love with him, he has already moved on and wants nothing to do with her.]]
* AttemptedRape: In ''Literature/ReapersGale'', [[spoiler:Feather Witch apparently decides that throwing herself naked at Udinaas is a good way to win his alliance. This uncomfortably harkens back to when Menandore raped him in ''Literature/MidnightTides'', especially since Menandore herself has just left the scene. Udinaas tells Feather Witch in no uncertain terms where she can stick her attempts at seduction.]]
* BeneathTheMask: Tries for ObfuscatingStupidity on the outside by playing the obedient slave, though nobody who bothers to look even remotely past the facade is buying it; and even then he ''still'' manages to say one thing and think another, usually something along the lines of 'That's why I said it, so you can go on enjoying your blessed ignorance.'
* ConversationalTroping: Most notable in ''Literature/ReapersGale'' when he launches into a lengthy rant about DungeonCrawling, but subtler instances occur:
--> '''Fear Sengar:''' [[SpeciesLoyalty Your blood is very thin, Udinaas, isn't it?]]\\
'''Udinaas:''' [[ThickerThanWater Like water.]]
* GenreSavvy: At least when it comes to heroic tales, which he spends a significant amount of time taunting Fear Sengar with in ''Literature/ReapersGale'', as well as what his master & slave relationship to Rhulad is supposed to entail, which he deconstructs by laying out the actual mechanics of to the reader.
* HappinessInSlavery: Initially. A slave among the Tiste Edur has food, shelter and clothing against the harsh weather. The alternative would be labouring on a galley to pay off an inherited debt.
* IcyBlueEyes: Described as 'ravaged eyes, a bleakness like defiant ice in this world of fire' in ''Literature/ReapersGale''. He is always quick with a cold grin and a sharp-tongued comment, but Rud also notes how Udinaas is capable of 'ethereal ease' when he allows his harsh emotions to pass.
* MetaGuy: Udinaas spends most of his time in ''Literature/ReapersGale'' making observations about the storyline he's involved in, the people he travels with and their intentions, all the while commenting on the absurdity of it all.
* MoralityPet: To Rhulad during the conquest of Lether in ''Literature/MidnightTides''. He is fully aware of that and the precarious situation it puts him into.
* TheNondescript: Goes largely unnoticed wherever he is, and Seren Pedac even calls him 'nondescript' at one point.
* OpenMindedParent: To Ryadd, when they finally get around to get to know each other.
* PrecisionFStrike:
--> 'You understand too much,' Clip said in that lilting, offhand tone of his. 'Did you hear me, Udinaas?'\\
'Go fuck yourself,' the slave muttered.
* RapeAsDrama: [[spoiler:Is raped by Menandore shortly after his introduction. It's not played for titillation or comedy; it's completely horrifying.]]
* SmarterThanYouLook: InUniverse. After listening to Udinaas for a while, Fear Sengar has to reevaluate his opinion of the former slave as just capable of menial work. When he tells Udinaas he should've been a king and not a slave based on his intelligence and vision, Udinaas just curses him for his trouble.
* SpiritAdvisor: Deconstructed via Wither. In ''Literature/MidnightTides'', Wither latches onto Udinaas and tries to play the SpiritAdvisor in exchange for hiding in Udinaas' shadow. Udinaas considers the constant pseudo-arcane whispering 'worse than a burrowing tick', especially since Wither's advice is too cryptic to be useful, and his revelations are obvious to anyone with a working brain -- at least as far as Udinaas is concerned. He hands Wither the wraith's own motives (not having wasted his time on Udinaas) on a platter, and [[spoiler:gets almost killed by Wither as thanks]] in the finale of ''Literature/ReapersGale''.
* StepfordSnarker: Eventually, he starts to dish out [[TheReasonYouSuckSpeech 'The Reasons All of You Suck, Myself Included'-speeches]] and snide remarks left, right and centre in an attempt to hide how he truly feels.
* StoppedCaring: Udinaas starts off as rather emotionally uninvolved but builds a growing wall between himself and everyone else the further the story goes. Remarkably, he never loses his capacity for feeling compassion and occasionally acts on it, but he does not get particularly involved with any one person unless he can help it, to prevent himself from being burdened with their problems.
* ThatThingIsNotMyChild: His initial reaction after meeting Rud Elalle for the first time. He mellows out quite quickly and comes to love Rud/Ryadd.
* TooCleverByHalf: Udinaas discusses the downsides of being too smart in ''Literature/ReapersGale''. When Fear Sengar points out that the former slave, by the measure of his intelligence and vision, should have been a king and not a slave, Udinaas acidly counters that he's too smart and driven and would be unable to stop once he'd started to openly question the system. Too many people like him on the loose and any governmental system would eventually collapse in bloody rebellion. Thus he deems it safer for society at large and himself in particular to spend his days scraping fish.
!!Feather Witch
A Letherii slave among the Tiste Edur. She was born into slavery and possesses a talent for casting the tiles.
* AllLoveIsUnrequited: She doesn't have the day for Udinaas, who is initially hopelessly in love with her. [[spoiler:By the time she realises she has feelings for him, he has moved on and wants nothing to do with her.]]
* {{Jerkass}}: To an extent, her treatment of Udinaas qualifies her for this, although she does eventually have some PetTheDog moments towards him. It's subtly hinted towards the end of ''Literature/MidnightTides'' that she may actually return his feelings for her, but is afraid to acknowledge them and behaves horribly to him as a result. However, her internal monologue in ''Literature/ReapersGale'' is initially still quite dismissive of him, so if this is the case, even she isn't aware of it. It's also implied that part of the reason she treats him horribly is as her way of coping with the abuse she herself is suffering at the hands of Mayen, which would make her a JerkassWoobie. (For that matter, so is Mayen herself.)
* SanitySlippage: Her internal monologue and actions eventually reveal that she has essentially gone insane, quite possibly as a result of all the horrible things that happened to her when she was a slave. Her thoughts may also qualify her for BlueAndOrangeMorality.
The Chief Investigator of the Rat Catchers' Guild, which, despite its name, does a lot more than catch rats, including assassinations, thievery, and smuggling out refugees. She appears to have significant magical powers, although what they are is not specified.
* BigBeautifulWoman: Although she isn't one, she takes on the appearance of one as a disguise. Tehol appears to be smitten.
* {{Glamour}}: It's implied that nearly all the supposed Rat Catchers are actually visions conjured up by either her or by Bubyrd. She, Ormly, and Bubyrd are the only members we ever meet who are suggested to be real. It's not actually clear how they perform all their functions with just three members. She's also capable of changing her appearance.
* HeroesWantRedheads: Bugg and Tehol seem to, at any rate.
!!Janath Anar
A political prisoner of the Patriotists, the Letherii secret police. Prior to her imprisonment she was a highly perceptive academic.
* BabiesEverAfter: [[spoiler:In ''Literature/DustOfDreams'', she is pregnant with Tehol's child and Bugg assures her the child will be healthy.]]
* BadassBookworm: The bookworm part is presumably self-evident. [[spoiler:She earns the badass part with how she kills Tanal.]]
* EarnYourHappyEnding: A particularly extreme case. [[spoiler:She ends up empress]] after two lengthy imprisonments in each of which she was subjected to repeated sexual assault, [[spoiler:the latter of which she put an end to by killing his assaulter. After her first imprisonment, Bugg did something to ease her psychological trauma, and it's likely that he did so the second time as well. She also writes a history of Tehol's reign as emperor.]]
* ObfuscatingInsanity: [[spoiler:She kills Tanal Yathvanar after convincing him she's developed StockholmSyndrome for him, which she uses to lower his defences and strike at a particularly opportune moment. Her interior monologue indicates that she may actually have been driven mad at some point, but she was certainly faking the StockholmSyndrome.]]
* RapeAndRevenge: Subjected repeatedly to rape by Tanal Yathvanar. [[spoiler:She eventually gets her revenge by convincing him she has StockholmSyndrome and, having learnt his behaviour patterns, killing him when his defences are furthest down. To add further to the nature of his KarmicDeath, she kills him while he is in the midst of sexually assaulting her.]]
!!Karos Invictad
The leader of the Patriotists, the Letherii secret police.
* EvilCannotComprehendGood: An extreme case. He is shocked when the populace rebels in ''Literature/ReapersGale'', because he is convinced his techniques of terror will infallibly subdue a populace. In all likelihood, these techniques actually made the rebellion worse.
* SmugSnake: In the midst of the events of ''Literature/ReapersGale'', he thinks he is both the smartest and the richest person in Letheras. [[spoiler:He is outclassed in both regards by Tehol, which ultimately leads to his demise.]]
* WickedCultured: A truly despicable man with a fondness for fine clothing and puzzles.
!!Tanal Yathvanar
Personal assistant to Karos Invictad.
* EvilCannotComprehendGood: Despite his repeated sexual assault of Janath, he also genuinely believes himself to be in love with her, [[spoiler:and she is very easily able to convince him that she is in love with him. This almost immediately leads to his death at her hands.]]
* RapeIsASpecialKindOfEvil: While this trope isn't always played straight in this series (in particular, see Rhulad, who is too insane to qualify as truly evil), in Tanal's case it's one of the earliest signs we have of how truly despicable he is.
* SmugSnake: Like his boss, he's an extreme one, not least due to his underestimation of Janath.
* TooDumbToLive: [[spoiler:Quite literally, as a direct consequence of his underestimation of one of the most intelligent academics in the city.]]
* TortureTechnician: A truly disturbing one, since his tortures frequently include sexual assaults of prisoners.
[[folder: '''Azathanai''']]
An Elder God. The shaper of paths.
* [[AngelUnaware Elder God Unaware]]: [[spoiler: As Keruli.]]
* BeCarefulWhatYouWishFor: Mortal worshippers prayed to him. So he granted their prayers...which promptly caused all sorts of problems and power struggles.
** "...Krul, who answered worship with generosity. Who, assailed by prayers written in spilled blood, gave answer to them. But the power he surrendered was not intended only for those who worshipped him. He has given it freely, to everyone."
* BigGood: Kind of. Maybe.
* BodyHorror: The warrens run through his veins, literally. [[spoiler: So when the warrens are poisoned, opening them occasionally causes boatloads of blood to come pouring out.]]
* GodsNeedPrayerBadly: The lack of it is implied to be the reason he's so weak now.
** Elder Gods accept prayer in the form of blood sacrifice. Give generously...
* HeroicSacrifice: Jaraku. Also the entire warren system.
* InTheHood: Default appearance is a fully cloaked figure.
* [[KarmicDeath Karmic Punishment]]: Kallor's curse.
* TheMentor: To Kruppe.
* NiceJobBreakingItHero: In the prequel, implied to have been the root cause of all the series' problems, though probably not intentionally or knowingly.
* OlderAndWiser: To all the gods.
* SamusIsAGirl: Apparently. Maybe. Nope, we didn't see that coming either.
An Elder God, the Suzerain of Night, Consort to Mother Dark, and brother of K'rul. He was killed with his own sword, [[CoolSword Dragnipur]], by Anomander Rake, and has been [[YourSoulIsMine trapped in there]] [[FateWorseThanDeath ever since]]. [[spoiler: Or at least until Rake's HeroicSacrifice.]]
* ParentalNeglect: Doesn't pay much attention to his kids, and named his three daughters [[VainSorceress Envy]], [[FemmeFatale Spite]], and [[EnfantTerrible Mal]][[WhatHappenedToTheMouse ice]] (if he had a fourth, she would apparently be named Venom). On the other hand, their mother, [[spoiler: Olar Ethil]], urges him to kill them, so...
* {{Badass}}: [[spoiler: Curbstomps Kilmandaros and Sechul Lath, both Elder Gods themselves.]] Also scares the crap out of everyone once they realize that [[spoiler: he's been freed from Dragnipur.]]
* CoolSword: Forged Dragnipur...
** HoistByHisOwnPetard: ...which was used to trap him in a FateWorseThanDeath. Although that was partially Kallor's fault.
* InstantAwesomeJustAddDragons: Naturally, he also turns into a giant black dragon. Although his particular [[VoluntaryShapeshifting Soletaken]] form is described as "darkness with wings" instead of a normal draconic form.
* LoveMakesYouCrazy, together with LoveRuinsTheRealm: Implied.
* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: The [[HumanSacrifice Terondai]] he commissioned from [[spoiler: Errastes]]
* NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast: with a side of IHaveManyNames.
* OlderAndWiser: Apparently, spending several hundred thousand years suffering a FateWorseThanDeath mellowed him out a bit.
* WhatIsThisThingYouCallLove: Doesn't quite get it right, with [[PlayedForDrama unfortunate]] [[NiceJobBreakingItHero consequences]].
The god of death, and (an undead) Jaghut. [[spoiler: Succeeded as King of High House Death by Whiskeyjack and his Bridgeburners]]
* AnIcePerson: Comes with being a Jaghut.
* {{Badass}} [[spoiler: Seems fond of killing Forkrul Assail with his bare hands...and occasionally with his teeth.]]
* BigDamnHeroes: At the end.
* DarkIsNotEvil: One of the more reasonable gods, though still kind of a dick.
* TheGrimReaper
* NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast
* LoveMakesYouCrazy: His wife was murdered by [[spoiler: Errastes]]. So he [[DisproportionateRetribution raised an army and waged war on death itself]]. [[CrazyAwesome And won!]]
* OurOrcsAreDifferent
* UnusualEuphemism: Not him, but "Hood's breath" and "Hood's balls" seem to be the most popular Malazan curses.
* YouKillItYouBoughtIt: [[spoiler: As the king of the Jaghut, he waged a war on death, which ended with him becoming the god of death.]]
!!Errastas / The Errant
* AmbiguouslyEvil
* AmbitionIsEvil
* TheChessmaster
* DepravedBisexual: As [[spoiler: Turudal Brizad]].
* [[AngelUnaware Elder God Unaware]]: [[spoiler: As Turudal Brizad.]]
* {{Jerkass}}
** JerkassGods
* ManipulativeBastard
* KarmaHoudini: [[spoiler: Although he ends the series with several rather nasty beings intent on chasing him down...]]
* PowersThatBe
* PrescienceIsPredictable
* TheOmniscient
* SpellMyNameWithAThe
* TimeAbyss
[[folder: '''Others''']]
!!Icarium Lifestealer
-> 'I am my own curse, Mappo. I have lived centuries, yet what do I know of my own past? Where are my memories? How can I judge my own life without such knowledge?'
--> ''Literature/DeadhouseGates''
Icarium, a Jaghut halfblood, is an incredibly old being, forever wandering the world with a sole companion in tow. He is present in the mythology of many cultures, and is feared by most of them. He is known for his obsession with time -- having gained sobriquets such as Lord of the Sand Grains -- and as an inventor and maker of monumental machines, particularly those that measure time, by the building of which he tries to counteract his frequent bouts of memory loss. While an incredibly smart and gentle person, he is also one of the most powerful beings alive without being aware of it.
* AmnesiacDissonance: After discovering what happens during [[MissingTime his black-outs]], Icarium is horrified and comes to the conclusion that [[RedemptionEqualsDeath only death or eternal imprisonment can redeem him]].
* AmnesiacsAreInnocent: His amnesia shields Icarium from what he has done in the past, allowing him to retain his generous and sometimes downright innocent nature. Fiddler wonders how Icarium never questions his partnership with Mappo despite having only Mappo's word about their long friendship to rely on, but Icarium later points out that while frustrated, he has become simply used to the feeling.
--> '''Mappo:''' ''In your ignorance you are so pure, so noble.''
* TheBerserker: Once his UnstoppableRage kicks in, he becomes utterly uncontrollable in a fight, unable to distinguish friend from foe and indifferent to his own life. Comes complete with a [[ScreamingWarrior frightening, keening scream]].
* BowAndSwordInAccord: He carries both a longbow, which seems to be his first choice of weapon, and a sword, and can be deadly with either, but wears little -- if any -- armour.
* BullyingADragon: In ''Literature/DeadhouseGates'', with Icarium as the dragon and Iskaral Pust as the one who cannot keep his mouth shut, baiting Icarium with supposed knowledge he posses that Icarium lacks and calling Icarium a fool. He gets choked pretty thoroughly for his trouble.
* TheDreaded: Everyone who's ever heard of Icarium is shitting their metaphorical pants at the mere thought that Icarium might lose his temper and level the next couple of cities.
* GeniusBruiser: Icarium is a seven foot tall, tusked, weathered and travel-worn looking warrior sporting a sword and a bow, one of the most lethal fighters ever born and infamous for his UnstoppableRage. He is also a mapmaker, inventor and scholar.
* GlowingEyes: While in an UnstoppableRage, Icarium's eyes blaze silver as a sign of the enormous power that surrounds him like a maelstrom.
* HereWeGoAgain: Though Icarium cannot remember it, it's implied that it's happened countless times before that he would have a companion, this companion would either die or be killed by Icarium in an unfortunate moment, and he would then wake up with a new companion who would claim that they'd been travelling together for ages. At the end of ''Literature/TheCrippledGod'', [[spoiler:he wakes up to find Ublala Pung at his side, and just accepts him as the feeling is already so familiar, and the cycle starts anew, while Mappo's corpse lies mere metres away]].
* HeterosexualLifePartners: With his travelling companion Mappo Runt. They spend their entire time together and obviously mean a lot to each other, although Icarium sometimes has trouble reconciling the depth of their friendship with his lack of memories. For him, there has simply always been someone at his side, and in whatever memories he does possess, it's always been Mappo.
* HumanWeapon: The Nameless Ones treat Icarium as one. Although, technically, he was not ''made'' by them, they claim authority over how and when he gets to be used. Naturally, Icarium gets no say in the matter, not does he even know about the Nameless Ones.
* IAmNotAGun: When, in ''Literature/TheBonehunters'', Taralack Veed urges him to kill the defenders of the Throne of Shadow, Icarium retorts that he's had enough of this. [[spoiler:Unfortunately, he goes berserk anyway, as too much fighting is going on around him.]]
* KatanasAreJustBetter: Averted. However, the unusual shape of his sword -- a thin, long, single-edged, curved blade -- is remarked upon several times, although it is not treated any differently in combat than other words.
* LightningBruiser: Especially once he [[TheBerserker loses control]], Icarium can both dish out and receive potentially catastrophic amounts of damage without even blinking, all while doing it too fast for some to register. But even without the rage mode, he is frighteningly fast. Fast enough to startle Karsa Orlong.
* MadeOfIron: It's unclear if he can be truly killed. Serious wounds only knock him out and trigger his amnesia, and he seems to grow even tougher when angry.
* MadGod: There are cults on the island of Cabal which worship Icarium as the One God, the Stealer of Life, essentially claiming he is a mad puppet with unimaginable power, turning any power of creation he may possess into random destruction. One sect calls itself that of the Mockers, asserting that a god who never left his worshippers any doctrine to live by but allows them to make and interpret their own, cannot be anything but insane.
* MartialPacifist: He demonstrates on several occasions that he'd prefer not to get into a fight, but he also doesn't have the greatest patience, so annoy him long enough and you are dead meat. And Icarium will not even remember having mopped the floor with you afterwards.
* MasterSwordsman: He's had thousands of years to hone his sword fighting skills, coupled with his incredible speed.
* MindHive: After the end of ''Literature/ReapersGale'', [[spoiler:where his previously built memory machine turns out to be broken and sucks not only his own mind in but also that of several random bystanders, Icarium ends up with a fractured mind and the ghosts/personalities of eight other people stuck in one -- his -- body. While that body wanders the Waste Lands aimlessly, the caught ghosts perceive themselves as separate entities undertaking that same trip, constantly arguing among each other, with the original Icarium -- reduced to a ghost not even the others can perceive -- floating around them in hopeless confusion. Ultimately, however, they do act as one, simply because they -- unknowingly -- share one body.]]
* MissingTime: Whenever he goes into UnstoppableRage, effectively transforming into a monster capable of destroying entire civilizations, Icarium afterwards forgets all that he's done. He then usually shows concern about the MissingTime, but whatever companion he is currently travelling with makes sure to make the right noises to help Icarium with rationalizing the memory loss away.
* MookHorrorShow: At the end of ''Literature/TheBonehunters'', [[spoiler:Icarium loses control after witnessing children die and almost annihilates the Tiste Edur contingent sent to the Throne of Shadow. They practically ''melt'' several at a time; that is, those that don't get thrown around like toys]].
* NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast: To those who have heard of Icarium's reputation or have been witness to its cause, his byname Lifestealer is something to run away from really fast indeed. Other variations on the name exist, such as Slayer of the Ten Thousand.
* NonhumanHumanoidHybrid: Icarium is half Jaghut (from his father's side) and -- presumably, as it's never fully disclosed -- Thelomen Toblakai (from his mother's side). Both races are roughly humanoid, so in consequence, Icarium is as well, although he visibly leans more towards Jaghut than Toblakai.
* NoSocialSkills: As he spends most of his time wandering the deserts of Seven Cities with Mappo as his sole companion, and due to his memory problems, Icarium is not very good with social interactions beyond the basics. May also be because he's half Jaghut, and Jaghut are notorious loners prefering their own company above all else.
--> '''Mappo:''' 'He entertains your companions. Feebly, I admit. For all his years, Icarium has never mastered the social grace necessary to put others at ease.'
* PersonOfMassDestruction: Icarium may be one of the nicest and most caring people one can come upon in the books. Piss him off, though, and you may say goodbye to your city/country/civilization. And it's not even intentional, as afterwards he will not remember how he just levelled the city in the ruins of which he's now standing and will even be shocked at how someone could possibly bring so much destruction and death. In trying to use him as a weapon the Nameless Ones might have bitten off more than they could chew and characters who encounter Icarium have a hard time reconciling the person they've met with the stories trailing in his wake.
* QuestForIdentity: His eternal search for his own memories, without which he feels he cannot assert a proper sense of his own self. [[spoiler:And later, more literally, when he wakes up in the Waste Lands, his mind splintered and his core having become a ghost with no recollection of even its own name.]]
* ScreamingWarrior: Whenever his UnstoppableRage is triggered, it is both prefaced and accompanied by a high-pitched, haunting keening sound coming from his throat.
* TalkingToThemself: [[spoiler:During his wandering around the Waste Lands with a split mind and a host of other minds populating his body, everything that the other ghosts/personalities say to each other, is actually also said out loud by Icarium's body, creating the image of a lone wanderer ceaseless talking to himself.]]
* TragicBromance: He and Mappo have been HeterosexualLifePartners for centuries, wandering the world together, and are close enough to openly speak about their deep feelings of friendship. Even though Mappo was originally meant as a guardian and minder for Icarium, Icarium's generous and noble nature makes Mappo cherish him, and despite having severe problems with [[TraumaInducedAmnesia memories]], Icarium can by the feeling of familiarity alone tell that Mappo is indeed who he claims to be. [[spoiler:When they are attacked and separated, Mappo crosses half the world to find Icarium again, only to die mere metres away from his friend. However, it is heavily implied that this is the turning point for Icarium and the latter finally regains at least some of his memories, enabling him to take his life back into his own hands.]]
* TraumaInducedAmnesia: It is implied in ''Literature/HouseOfChains'' that Icarium once tried to destroy an Azath House to free his father -- who didn't want to be 'freed' -- but only managed to mortally wound it, receiving enough trauma in return that he not only forgot that incident altogether, but has been suffering bouts of UnstoppableRage and subsequent MissingTime ever since.
* UnstoppableRage: Icarium suffers bouts of UnstoppableRage in which he utterly loses control and attacks everything and everyone (with the sole exception of machines he has built himself). They are rooted in a traumatic incident with an Azath House, and make him one of the or possibly most feared entity in the entire realm, as they're almost impossible to predict or stop, and he has gone so far as to destroy entire civilizations in the past. When enraged, Icarium becomes surrounded by a magical maelstrom that basically ''melts'' anything in his way. Afterwards, he never remembers what he's done.
!!Mappo Runt
-> '''Fiddler:''' ''Mappo, a name ever chained to another's. And enough rumours to fill a tome. If any were true...''
--> ''Literature/DeadhouseGates''
Mappo Runt is a Trell whose name is eternally associated with being the companion of Icarium Lifestealer. He is Icarium's close friend and -- unbeknownst to Icarium -- also his guardian and minder, tasked by the Nameless Ones with keeping Icarium out of trouble and ignorant of his own past. However, due to Icarium's gentle nature, Mappo is eternally conflicted about whether ending a potential threat is worth losing the friend he loves so much.
* BagOfHolding: He was given a bag with an entire warren inside of it by the shoulderwomen of his tribe. Some irritating people have also found their way into it on occasion.
* CarryABigStick: Mappo carries a mace around for fighting purposes. It is made of a big long-bone with a ring of iron spikes at the business end and is invested with sorcery to make it as [[UnbreakableWeapons durable]] as possible.
* DoomedHometown: Mappo's hometown was destroyed, allegedly by Icarium, and Mappo, as the only survivor, was recruited by the Nameless Ones as Icarium's new guardian. [[spoiler:''Deadhouse Gates'' reveals that actually, the town was destroyed by the Nameless Ones themselves, as they urgently needed a new guardian for Icarium and wanted to make sure Mappo would hate Icarium and take the threat seriously enough to fit the job.]]
* GentleGiant: Although shorter than Icarium (who is seven feet tall, mind you), as a [[OurOgresAreHungrier Trell]] Mappo is rather wide and thus even more imposing. But while he can dish out serious damage with his mace, he prefers to stay out of the way of trouble, find peaceful solutions and generally be on friedly terms with people.
* GuiltComplex: After [[spoiler:losing Icarium]], Mappo develops one, until he eventually feels guilty for anything and everything. He feels guilty for [[spoiler:not being good enough anymore in the eyes of the Nameless Ones to remain Icarium's guardian, for having believed the Nameless Ones, for lying to Icarium for centuries, for having spurned the opportunity to free the world of Icarium by handing him over to Tremorlor just because he didn't want to give up his friend, for outwardly looking like a noble friend even though he had selfish motives, and eventually for turning away from people -- children -- in need just so he could keep looking for Icarium]].
* HeartbrokenBadass: Not a love interest, but when Mappo [[spoiler:loses Icarium]], whom he loves [[HeterosexualLifePartners as a friend]], he becomes utterly heartbroken, even going so far as [[spoiler:crossing the entire world to get him back, all the while fighting his guilt]].
* HeroicBSOD: Mappo experiences one in ''Literature/DeadhouseGates'' when Icarium finally understands what he is and Mappo is flooded with conflicting thoughts about saving the world from the threat that Icarium represents but at the same time losing the only friend he's ever cared this much for. He doesn't even notice how he falls to his knees, and has to be brought back to reality by Icarium.
* HeterosexualLifePartners: With Icarium, with whom he has travelled for hundreds of years. Initially only meant as a guardian for Icarium, they have developed a deep friendship and trust each other unconditionally, although Mappo has to live with -- and is tortured by -- the knowledge that he is eternally lying to his friend. [[spoiler:When Icarium is taken from him by the Nameless Ones, Mappo becomes heartbroken and crosses half the world to find him again, all the while thinking, in tears, of how much he wants Icarium back.]]
* MyGreatestFailure: Mappo considers his blunder in [[spoiler:keeping Icarium safe and the world safe from Icarium by almost dying when attacked by Dejim Nebrahl]] to be his greates failure and incentive to set things right again.
* PowerOfTrust: Icarium reminding Mappo of his unconditional trust for the latter is what snaps Mappo out of his HeroicBSOD in ''Literatur/DeadhouseGates''.
* ProudWarriorRaceGuy: Mappo used to be one in his youth, when he left his hometown, which specialized in trade, and joined one of the outlying tribes that were following the traditional Trell way of war and wandering. He spent a couple hundred years there, before snapping out of it by find his [[DoomedHometown burned to the ground]].
* {{Sidekick}}: Mappo ist best known in-universe as Icarium's companion and sidekick. While Icarium is tall, lean, [[GeniusBruiser skilled with a sword and widely-read]], Mappo is shorter, wider, hairier, fights using a mace and purports to know little, even though he is actually quite knowledgeable in everyday survival matters. Subverted in that it's Mappo who's in charge of keeping Icarium out of trouble, even though Icarium is unaware of that.
* TragicBromance: He and Icarium have been HeterosexualLifePartners for centuries, wandering the world together, and are close enough to openly speak about their deep feelings of friendship. Even though Mappo was originally meant as a guardian and minder for Icarium, Icarium's generous and noble nature makes Mappo cherish him, and despite having severe problems with [[TraumaInducedAmnesia memories]], Icarium can by the feeling of familiarity alone tell that Mappo is indeed who he claims to be. [[spoiler:When they are attacked and separated, Mappo crosses half the world to find Icarium again, only to die mere metres away from his friend. However, it is heavily implied that this is the turning point for Icarium and the latter finally regains at least some of his memories, enabling him to take his life back into his own hands.]]
* UnbreakableWeapons: Mappo's mace was invested by his tribe's shoulderwomen to make it practically unbreakable. At least, it's never shown any sign of the spell failing within hundreds of years.
!!Fisher kel Tath
* TheBard
* FamedInStory: Provides many chapter epigraphs, occasionally cited by other characters. But mostly, he's the one that everyone quotes when discussing [[TheDreaded Anomander Rake]], since his epic poem Anomandaris seems to be the main source of information concerning Rake.
* TheGhost: His name is tossed around a lot, but he himself never appears.
** At least, until Toll the Hounds.
* MayDecemberRomance / MayflyDecemberRomance: Possibly, with [[spoiler: Lady Envy]]? The "possibly" is because [[spoiler: Fisher himself is [[AmbiguouslyHuman Ambiguously Mortal]], and may, for all we know, be both immortal and as [[DecemberDecemberRomance old as Envy]]]].
* WarriorPoet: Mostly known for his poetry, but surprisingly capable in a fight.
* BitchInSheepsClothing: [[spoiler:Olar Ethil claims to be Burn, but it's not clear if she was telling the truth.]]
* DamselInDistress / IllGirl: A rather bizarre example. Spends most of the series being slowly poisoned, and although she never actually shows up in person, other characters comment constantly on her deteriorating condition. Mostly because it's making the CrapsackWorld [[DeathWorld even worse]].
* MotherEarth