History Characters / CollegiumChronicles

[[redirect:HeraldsOfValdemarCollegiumChronicles]]

[[redirect:HeraldsOfValdemarCollediumChronicles]]

[[center:[-[[Characters/HeraldsOfValdemar Main Character Index]] | [[Characters/DeitiesAndGeneralCharacterTropes Deities and General Character Tropes]] | [[Characters/MageWarsTrilogy Mage Wars Trilogy]] | [[Characters/LastHeraldMageTrilogy Last Herald Mage Trilogy]] | [[Characters/CollegiumChronicles Collegium Chronicles]] | [[Characters/BrightlyBurning Brightly Burning]] | [[Characters/VowsAndHonor Vows and Honor]] | [[Characters/ExileDuology Exile Duology]] | [[Characters/ArrowsTrilogyAndRelatedBooks Arrows Trilogy and Related Books]] | [[Characters/MageWindsAndMageStorms Mage Winds and Mage Storms]] | [[Characters/DariansTale Darian'sTale]]-]]]

This subsection of the Characters/HeraldsOfValdemar CharacterSheet deals with the characters of the ''Collegium Chronicles'' and the ''Herald Spy'' books.

!Herald Trainee Mags and Companion Dallen
* DarkAndTroubledPast: Beginning with his time as a child slave in a diamond mine!
* DudeInDistress: Gets this several times in both the Collegium Chronicles and even in the Herald-Spy, along with Amily. While they are kidnapped in ''Closer to the Heart'' he grumbles that 'we oughtta change our names t' Mags and Amily Victim.'
* GenreSavvy: The reason for his and Amily's MyOwnPrivateIDo. Their crisis-riddled lives mean that Mags figures on a better-than-average chance of something going drastically wrong on the Big Day. [[spoiler: Actually, he and Amily are kidnapped just before, but they rescue themselves in time for the Big Day to go ahead as scheduled. But for bonus points, they're kidnapped while trying on the new formal Whites they're using as wedding outfits!]]
* GetAholdOfYourselfMan: delivers a verbal one of these not only to the King, but the entire Privy Council early in ''Closer to Home''. [[spoiler:After Nicholas technically comes back from the dead (his heart stops, but is revived with an early form of CPR), they're all so thrown by Amily becoming King's Own while her father's still alive, that Mags has to remind them that one of the most talented and experienced Heralds in the Circle ''is still alive''.]]
* LivingLieDetector: Can sense truth or lies with just his Gift, without resorting to the Truth-Spell.
* MadeASlave: From infancy, pretty much.
* MindControl: He is a strong enough Mindspeaker to actually take control of an opponent. This completely exhausts him, and he will only do so with Dallen's permission.
* MindOverManners: Since he's got the strongest Mindspeaking gift ever shown in the novels, he holds himself to the highest standard when using them. When he was younger, he asked a superior whether it would be abusing his powers if he did a mind-scan to save people's lives in a blizzard. As an adult, he doesn't trust himself to decide to use MindControl, and will only do so at Dallen's instruction (as a double-check on his own morality).
* MyOwnPrivateIDo: With Amily, early in ''Closer to the Heart''. The formal, public wedding took place at the end of the novel.
* NonchalantDodge: Mags was already proficient in this when he was Chosen, it was the only form of self-defense that was safe for him to use while a mine-slave.
* ObfuscatingStupidity: He's literally under orders to make himself seem dumber than he actually is to anyone who isn't part of of his close circle or Nikolas' network. That includes playing sports in part to have people assume that he's DumbMuscle.
* {{Reincarnation}}: Dallen knew Tylendel in his previous incarnation, though he doesn't reveal who ''he'' was. He might have been the Companion Delian, who was bonded to Vanyel's friend Tantras.
* SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome: Thanks to the frequent Distress episodes of him and Amily, between ''Herald Spy'' and ''Family of Spies'' he teaches his children a weaponized version of ScrewThisImOutOfHere from the time they learn to walk. In ''Spy Spy Again'' his youngest, Tory, remembers his father grumbling that he and Amily have played victim ''quite enough'' for this family, thank you very much!
* TeenSuperspy: Mags becomes part of Herald Nikolas's spy ring early on.
* {{Telepathy}}: He is the strongest Mindspeaker yet shown in the books. It's mentioned he's one of the very few Mindspeakers (in ''history'') who can 'send' to people without the Mindspeaking Gift.
* TrademarkFavoriteFood: Pocket pies for Dallen, cheese for Mags.
* VitriolicBestBuds: They really like to snark at and insult each other, but they're rock-solid friends on a level many Herald-and-Companion friendships never achieve.


!Healer Trainee Bear
* ArrangedMarriage: He went home for the holidays to find himself already betrothed. Borders on the forced marriage version, though this is illegal in Valdemar -- his family has no interest in his desires.
* BadassNormal: Specializing in saving lives rather than taking them, but he's a Healer without a trace of Healing Gift, who makes up for it by becoming the Collegium's specialist on herbs.
* ChekhovsGunman: of sorts. From his first appearance, it's mentioned that Bear studies every form of non-Gifted healing that he can get information about. In ''Closer to Home'' [[spoiler:Mags revives a technically-dead Nicholas from drowning with a primitive form of CPR. It's mentioned that Bear taught it to him.]]
* {{Elopement}}: He gets out of the arranged marriage by eloping with Lena (who he is in love with), though he does ask Mags's advice before doing so.
* MuggleBornOfMages: Lacks his family's Healing Gift.
* MugglesDoItBetter: Born without HealingHands, Bear studied up on herb-lore and mundane medicine instead, and these skills are a lot better for certain problems than the Gift.
* PutOnABus: With Lena, between ''Bastion'' and ''Closer to Home''.
* WhyCouldntYouBeDifferent: Born [[{{Muggle}} totally without a healing gift]] to a line that had it for generations.
* YoureNotMyFather: He cuts all bridges with his father after getting married.

!Bardic Trainee Lena
Mags' first friend
* {{Elopement}}: She elopes with Bear, whom she loves and has the added bonus of getting him out of his ArrangedMarriage. There's also a bonus for her, in that she can take Bear's name and become a Bard under that name instead of being associated with her father.
* MagicMusic
* PutOnABus: With Bear, between ''Bastion'' and ''Closer to Home''. {{Justified}}, in that being assigned to various places or going on journeys around Valdemar is standard procedure for all Bards who aren't assigned to the court or teaching at the Bardic Collegium. Lena's very talented, but she doesn't have the kind of unique talent that would justify her being assigned to the Court or Haven as a journeyman-class bard.
* [[WellDoneSonGuy "Well Done, Daughter" Girl]]

![[spoiler: King's Own Herald]] Amily
* AnimalEyeSpy: Develops this gift somewhere between the end of ''Bastion'' and the start of ''Closer to Home.''
* DamselInDistress: several times, much to her annoyance. She works hard to learn various ways to become DamselOutOfDistress.
* DisabledLoveInterest: For Mags. While she averts some of the trope's stereotypes, she still has a bad leg [[spoiler:until the end of ''Changes'']].
* MyOwnPrivateIDo: With Mags.
* TheReasonYouSuckSpeech: Delivers an impressive one in ''Closer to the Heart'' [[spoiler:to the Guardsmen who have been tricked into near-treason]].
* TookALevelInBadass: In ''Bastion''.

!King's Own Herald Nikolas [[spoiler: and second Companion Evory]]
* [[spoiler: BackFromTheDead: In ''Closer to Home'', he drowns. The Death Bell rings. Rolan chooses Amily. Then, Mags successfully resuscitates him.]]
** [[spoiler: RevivalLoophole]]
* MyOwnPrivateIDo: mentions to Mags (who is planning to do the same with Amily) that he and his late wife did this as well... because their respective mothers were feuding so viciously over planning of the official ceremony.
* OverprotectiveDad: Invoked by Nikolas -- he tells several Heralds that he's spending time with Mags because Mags is interested in Amily. (Which he ''is'', but it's a convenient cover for what's really going on.)
* RenownedSelectiveMentor: To Mags; the only reason none of the other Trainees is jealous is because both Nikolas and Mags are careful to hide the relationship.

!King Kiril
* KingIncognito: Mags first runs into him in the Companion stables and mistakes him for a random yet familiar Herald. Two of his features give his identity away if you remember that the king of the time was just two or three generations removed from [[spoiler:Vanyel]] and that dark brown was the signature royal family hair color in ''The Last Herald-Mage''.
* UncannyFamilyResemblance: [[spoiler:Vanyel's eye color]] is alive and well in him. It also pops up in his grandson, Kyril [[spoiler: who inherits Vanyel's mage gift]].
* RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething: Special mention for the end of [[spoiler:''Intrigues'']]. In fact, he does 'something' so well that he becomes the first King to ''retire'', handing over the throne to his son [[spoiler: in conjunction with his contemporary Monarch's Own Amily]].

!Tobias Marchand
Lena's father
* BadSamaritan: He takes in protegés from time to time [[spoiler: to steal their work]].
* DarkAndTroubledPast: in one of the books, it's implied that Tobias used his projective Empathy to get women into bed, especially after they turned him down once. Bard Breda implies that he got away clean with it because the Bardic Circle couldn't prove it (and perhaps there were even a few Circle members susceptible to Marchand as well), and none of the women ever came forward to make an actual complaint they could investigate.
* TheEmpath: With a twist: he can impose feelings on other people with ease, but has little in way to reading him.
* GoldDigger: Suggested to be the reason he married Lena's mother. [[spoiler: And also the reason he gave information to the assassins.]]
* HoistByHisOwnPetard: At some point, he starts telling people that he suspects that Lena is not his daughter due to not thinking of her as a good connection at the time. However, people quickly point out that 1) Given the way [[ParentalNeglect he's been treating Lena]], ''she'' could be happier to not be associated with him and 2) That would mean that his wife isn't faithful to him.
* {{Jerkass}}: Quite possibly the worse there has ever been among the "good" guys. [[spoiler:And again, he was the one giving info to the assassins just because he needed the money.]]
* MagicMusic
* ParentalNeglect: Towards Lena.
* [[spoiler:ReassignedToAntarctica]]: At the end of ''Changes'', after [[spoiler:being found out to be stealing his protegé's work and one of the people who was informing the assassins]].

!Violetta of House Chendar
* BreakTheCutie: She comes to Haven as the innocent, naive, indulged youngest daughter. Once there, she sees a very attractive young man and sends him a note. He turns out to be the son of her father's worst enemy, and the noble lady who is sponsoring the family makes it very clear what an unscrupulous young man could do with the note she sent. [[spoiler: Brand then seduces her, deflowers her, and tries to kill her family. When placed under the truth spell, he makes it clear he never cared for her and just planned to use her while keeping a woman on the side. Then she has to testify during the inquest into his death, and have at least some of her humiliation made public.]]
* FourthDateMarriage: What she and Brand plan.
* FriendToAllLivingThings: She loves animals and has several pets at the family estate. She's the only one of her sisters to want the lapdog specifically bred to function as a muff warmer when offered.
* InLoveWithLove: She's very much the romantic of the family. While her sisters plan their marriages for advantages (one wants an old man so she will soon be a wealthy widow, the other wants a rich man who is involved in either textiles or jewelry), she dreams of a young man sweeping her off her feet for romance.
* LoveAtFirstSight: She writes a love letter to Brand before even knowing his name.
* StarCrossedLovers: She considers herself and Brand to be this. [[spoiler: He had other ideas.]]
* ThinksLikeARomanceNovel: Constantly thinks about how this is just like a tale or a song.

!Brand of House Raeylen
* BitchInSheepsClothing: His set know him as a perfect gentleman. [[spoiler: He's actually a sociopathic seducer and murderer.]]
* TheCasanova: Seems to be quite skilled at seducing the ladies.
* ChildMarriageVeto: Plans to use one of these to avoid marrying Violetta's sister. [[spoiler: By killing his family, and hers.]]
* FalseSoulmate: [[spoiler: He does not return Violetta's feelings, and just plans on using her.]]
* FourthDateMarriage: Plans to do this with Violetta.
* ManipulativeBastard: [[spoiler: Uses Violetta's feelings for him to get what he wants out of her.]]
* SelfMadeOrphan: [[spoiler: He plans to become one, so he can inherit his father's estate.]]
* TheSociopath: [[spoiler: He cares nothing for his family, their honor, or anyone else. His only interests are his own comfort and the ability to have a lover.]]
* TallDarkAndHandsome: Is described this way.

* DudeOutOfDistress: is even better at getting himself out of trouble than getting into it.

* RealityEnsues: thanks to the frequent Distress episodes of him and Amily, between ''Herald Spy'' and ''Family of Spies'' he teaches his children a weaponized version of ScrewThisImOutOfHere from the time they learn to walk. In ''Spy Spy Again'' his youngest, Tory, remembers his father grumbling that he and Amily have played victim ''quite enough'' for this family, thank you very much!

* [[spoiler: FalseSoulmate: He does not return Violetta's feelings, and just plans on using her.]]

* [[spoiler: SelfMadeOrphan: He plans to become one, so he can inherit his father's estate.]]
* [[spoiler: TheSociopath: He cares nothing for his family, their honor, or anyone else. His only interests are his own comfort and the ability to have a lover.]]

* PutOnABus: With Bear, between ''Bastion'' and ''Closer to Home''. {{Justified}}, in that being assigned to various places or going on journeys around Valdemar is standard procedure for new Bards. Lena's very talented, but she doesn't have the kind of unique talent that would justify her being assigned to the Court or Haven as a journeyman-class bard.

* RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething: Special mention for the end of [[spoiler:''Intrigues'']]. In fact, he does 'something' so well that he becomes the first King to ''retire'', handing over the throne to his son [[in conjunction with his contemporary Monarch's Own Amily]].

* UncannyFamilyResemblance: [[spoiler:Vanyel's eye color]] is alive and well in him.
* RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething: Special mention for the end of [[spoiler:''Intrigues'']].

* GenreSavvy: The reason for his and Amily's MyOwnPrivateIDo. Their crisis-riddled lives mean that Mags figures on a better-than-average chance of something going drastically wrong on the Big Day.

* TeenSuperspy

* DarkAndTroubledPast
* GenreSavvy: the reason for his and Amily's MyOwnPrivateIDo. Their crisis-riddled lives mean that Mags figures on a better-than-average chance of something going drastically wrong on the Big Day.

* {{Elopement}}: She elopes with Bear, whom she loves and has the added bonus of getting him out of his ArrangedMarriage.

* PutOnABus: With Bear, between ''Bastion'' and ''Closer to Home''.

* ChekovsGunman: of sorts. From his first appearance, it's mentioned that Bear studies every form of non-Gifted healing that he can get information about. In ''Closer to Home'' [[spoiler:Mags revives a technically-dead Nicholas from drowning with a primitive form of CPR. It's mentioned that Bear taught it to him.]]

* GetAholdOfYourselfMan: delivers a verbal one of these not only to the King, but the entire Privy Council early in ''Closer to the Heart''. [[spoiler:After Nicholas technically comes back from the dead (his heart stops, but is revived with an early form of CPR), they're all so thrown by Amily becoming King's Own while her father's still alive, that Mags has to remind them that one of the most talented and experienced Heralds in the Circle ''is still alive''.]]

* ChekovsGunman: of sorts. From his first appearance, it's mentioned that Bear studies every form of non-Gifted healing that he can information about. In ''Closer to the Heart'' [[spoiler:Mags revives a technically-dead Nicholas from drowning with a primitive form of CPR. It's mentioned that Bear taught it to him.]]

* ChekovsGunman: of sorts. From his first appearance, it's mentioned that Bear studies every form of non-Gifted healing that he can information about. In ''Closer to the Heart'' [[Mags revives a technically-dead Nicholas from drowning with a primitive form of CPR. It's mentioned that Bear taught it to him.]]

* GetAholdOfYourselfMan: delivers a verbal one of these not only to the King, but the entire Privy Council early in ''Closer to the Heart'.' [[spoiler:After Nicholas technically comes back from the dead (his heart stops, but is revived with an early form of CPR), they're all so thrown by Amily becoming King's Own while her father's still alive, that Mags has to remind them that one of the most talented and experienced Heralds in the Circle ''is still alive''.]]

* {{Telepathy}}: He is the strongest Mindspeaker yet shown in the books.

* {{Casanova}}: Seems to be quite skilled at seducing the ladies.

* KingIncognito: Mags first runs into him in the Companion stables and mistakes him for a radom yet familiar Herald. Two of his features give his identity away if you remember that the king of the time was just two or three generations removed from [[spoiler:Vanyel]] and that dark brown was the signature royal family hair color in ''The Last Herald-Mage''.

* GoldDigger