History Characters / MalazanBookOfTheFallenTheMalazanEmpire

* 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.

* {{Foil}}: There are surprising parallels with Kellanved, the catalyst (to some extent) of Rel's cruelty and [[spoiler: the man whose throne Rel eventually rises to]]. Both of them are mages who go dramatically FromNobodyToNightmare and meddle with the pantheon in various ways; they share a penchant for Machiavellian power-politics without a traditional charisma and each becomes [[spoiler: Emperor of Malaz, ruling with an iron fist but for the benefit of at least many of their subjects]]. There are even indications that Rel's [[spoiler: reign is less bloody and more prosperous than Kellanved's]]. All the same, they are sharply distinct moral figures as Rel lacks all of Kellanved's redeeming qualities: his friendship with Dancer, his inconsistent but real compassion, his vision of a better world, the tempering of his ambition for power by his (remote) goal of doing as little with it as possible.

* TheMole: He secretly supports the Whirlwind rebellion in Seven Cities despite serving the Malazan Empire.

A Jhistal priest of Mael, Elder God of the seas, and one of the few survivors of this cult from the continent of Falar. At the outset of the series he is chief advisor to the weak-willed High Fist Pormqual, head of the Malazan administration of Seven Cities, and rules the subcontinent in all but name in collaboration with a clique of businesspeople. He is highly ambitious and a dangerous man to cross; those standing in the way of his advancement are known to end up dead in mysterious circumstances. With the coming of the Year of Dryjhna, he becomes a key figure in the unfolding of the war between the Empire and the Whirlwind.

* ZeroPercentApprovalRating: At the beginning of her military command in ''Literature/HouseOfChains'', as a noblewoman without any military experience, seemingly appointed for purely political reasons, compounded by the likelihood of bloody defeat under her command and her inscrutable, closed-off demeanour. As she shows her strategic acumen and the 14th Army comes together as a fighting force, this decreases, but her refusal to do much to cultivate a bond with the soldiers serving under her preserves it among a quite considerable section of her command. Prominently, [[spoiler: Fists Tene Baralta (in the finale of ''Literature/TheBonehunters'') and Blistig (in ''Literature/TheCrippledGod'' both betray her, the latter with some allies in the ranks, due to the high loss of life under her leadership and her seeming lack of care for it.]]

* ChronicBackstabbingDisorder: In what little we see of her, she betrays or attempts to betray Kellanved and Dancer, [[spoiler: the Bridgeburners serving in her armies, her own Adjunct Tavore, her prospective ally Kalam Mekhar and her new-found councillor Mallick Rel]]. Only the last of these doesn't work, [[spoiler: and in a bit of [[DramaticIrony Dramatic Irony]] its failure is what sets her on course for her own downfall]].

* DespairEventHorizon: [[T'amber's death during their attempt to escape the Claw in Malaz City at the end of ''Literature/TheBonehunters''. Once the Bonehunters are at a safe distance from any possible pursuers, she doesn't leave her cabin for three days, leaving the fleet directionless, until Lostara Yil forces her to.]]

* BigDamnHeroes: To a continent she had no connection to - in ''Literature/ReapersGale'', her decision to [[spoiler: lead the Bonehunters into a land invasion of Lether is the crucial factor in putting an end to the totalitarian regime of the various Edur and Letherii factions ruling in Rhulad Sengar's name]]. Later again in the [[MythArc]], when the Bonehunters [[spoiler: face off against the Forkrul Assail armies in Kolanse and protect the Crippled God long enough for him to be released]].

* TheUnfettered: Even in a world where leaders with a strong moral compass commit atrocities, Laseen stands out for her callousness about the lives of the people she holds power over. As Surly, she was the architect of the slaughter of Aren's civilian population by the Empire's T'lan Imass auxiliaries; ''Literature/GardensOfTheMoon'' and ''Literature/DeadhouseGates'' both kick off with massacres at her orders in the Empire's major cities. This reaches its nadir in ''Literature/TheBonehunters'' and ''Return of the Crimson Guard'', where she orders [[spoiler: genocidal pogroms against the Wickans in order to distract the imperial population from the results of her political incompetence.]] In a way, this comes back to haunt her as [[spoiler: the betrayal of the Wickans and her rehabilitation of Mallick Rel and Korbolo Dom alienates the more decent people still left in the imperial high command and leaves her defenceless against Rel's plotting, which eventually costs her her throne and life both.]]

* GeneralRipper: During ''Deadhouse Gates'', his actions include crucifying 1300 children, killing half of his own troops when they refuse to join his betrayl, murdering thousands of helpless refugees and finally [[spoiler: crucifying Coltaine and all of the defenders of Aren.]]

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.

!!High Mage Tayschrenn/[[spoiler: Arthantos]]

An advisor to High Fist Pormqual in Aren and the last survivor of an ancient Falari cult known as the Jhistal, which worshipped Mael, the Elder God of the ocean.

-> '''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.'

* AcceptableTargets: In-universe. A huge part of the progress she and her squad makes during [[spoiler: the invasion of Lether involves exploiting this trope. While making their way to Letheras bar-by-bar, Hellian and her squad acquire the support of the locals by killing unpopular figures such as advocates and debt-holders.]]

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