History Characters / TheFirstLawUnionCitizens

* DeterminedWidow: Married a far older man to pay off her father's debt, and gradually took over his responsibilities in the Guild of Spicers as his health declined. After his death, she effectively inherited his title as a Magister.

* NiceHat: Hildi is almost always seen wearing a battered old soldier's cap. When the Great Change starts, the Breakers and Burners force her to abandon it, [[spoiler:only for her to snag a new one the second the Burners are defeated.]] Later, [[spoiler:Rikke has a cryptic vision of an adult Hildi wearing a tophat that turns into a smokestack. Much like the one Rikke wore the night before she betrayed Orso.]]

* PyrrhicVillainy: [[spoiler:He's won by the end of Age of Madness. His son will be King as he's Lord Regent, he's defeated and executed Orso, the Union is his. But he's also in crippling pain, most of his friends are dead, his battlefield glory days are forever behind him, he feels no joy or satisfaction at anything, his supposed pawns will side against him and Savine makes clear that she'll oppose him on the Council whenever she deems it necessary, forbidding him from starting pointless wars. He's a bitter, broken shell of a man without any happiness despite achieving all he wanted and having thrown away any goodness for it.]]

* MommyIssues: He has a complicated relationship with his mother, Finree. They butt heads multiple times over Leo's direct approach instead of Finree's strategic planning, but at the same time Leo desperately wants her approval.

* AdultFear: She's understandably horrified by the idea of her only son dying, particularly when he's decided to duel Stour Nightfall in the Circle. The fear comes back tenfold when she finds out [[spoiler:Leo is launching a coup against the Crown, knowing full well that he's not just making an enemy of the king, but of Bayaz as well]].

* BaldWomen: She naturally has golden curls but she begins selling it to Savine as a wig to make a few bucks.

* BaldWoman: In keeping with the fashion of aristocratic women in Adua, Savine shaves her head and wears a variety of wigs instead.

** [[Averted in later years, when Leo says their relationship eventually fell apart and only stayed together for appearances. Its unclear what the reasons for this were, possibly because Hal had his son shipped off to the North or due to the backroom agreements Finree made to which promoted to Hal to being Governor.

* KarmaHoudini: [[spoiler:Isher's plotting leads to Leo and Savine's rebellion against the crown, and Leo's gradual descent into villainy, but despite everything Isher's done, not only does he escape the Battle of Stoffenbeck unharmed, he also lands a seat on the Closed Council when Leo manages to usurp Orso.]]

* YourCheatingHeart: [[spoiler:He eventually gives into his lust for Judge and becomes her lover during the Great Change. He breaks up with her in quite a spectacular fashion by murdering her men on the Tower of Chains.]]

* MetaphoricallyTrue: [[Haroon and Rabik are not her brothers by blood, but rather Eaters that belonged to her former religious sect. However, she does view and treat them as family.]]

* PlatonicDeclarationofLove: [[spoiler: After Savine rages at Zuri's reveal of secretly being an Eater, and agent of her father, Zuri tells Savine she eventually grew to love Savine and that their friendship was not a lie.]]

* AwfulWeddedLife: [[spoiler:By the end of Age of Madness, Savine is clearly through with him and makes it clear their marriage is only a business arrangement. While she admits her culpability in how Leo turned out, she refuses to let him have his way. Any affection or care between them is dead and Savine intends him to "pay the bill" for his misdeeds.]]

* NoodleIncident: It's left unexplained what happened between Curnsbick and his former partner Majud by the time of ''The Age of Madness'' trilogy, only that Curnsbick has missed him every day for the past ten years.
* PlatonicLifePartners: He's missed Majud every day ever since they parted ways a decade ago. Given the reveal of Curnsbick's orientation and just how intensely he misses Majud, it's implied the two were more than just business partners.

* EvilVersusEvil: ''The Wisdom of Crowds'' [[spoiler:reveals the Weaver is really Sand dan Glokta and only instigated the Great Change to end Bayaz's control over the Union so Sand could become the new Bayaz.]]

* NoodleIncident: It's left unexplained what happened between Curnsbick and his former partner Majud by the time of ''The Age of Madness’’ trilogy, only that Curnsbick has missed him every day for the past ten years.

* BenevolentBoss:
* ChekhovsGunman:
* CoolOldGuy:
* ForScience:
* GadgeteerGenius: The master machinist.
* HonestCorporateExecutive:
* IntergenerationalFriendship: With Savine dan Glokta.
* InventedIndividual:
* NiceGuy:
* BenevolentBoss:
* ChekhovsGunman:
* CoolOldGuy:
* ForScience:
* GadgeteerGenius: The master machinist.
* HonestCorporateExecutive:
* IntergenerationalFriendship: With Savine dan Glokta.
* InventedIndividual:
* NiceGuy:
* RealAfterAll:
* SelfMadeMan:

* TheCorrupter: Judge isn't only mad herself, but she has a way of turning other people mad as well.

* SecretKeeper: He knows exactly what Orso and Savine use his office for when he's out of town, but he keeps his mouth shut about it.

[[folder:Zuri]]
!!Zuri
-->''"Everyone looks better on their knees. It was my favorite thing about attending temple."''

A Gurkish refugee who acts as the peerless lady's companion to Savine dan Glokta.

* NiceHat: Hildi is almost always seen wearing a battered old soldier's cap.

* AbusiveParents: Her father was an abusive alcoholic who beat his children so badly that West ran away, leaving Ardee alone to bare the full brunt of his abuse. When she got pregnant, her father beat her so badly that she miscarried, and when he died, not only was Ardee relieved, she celebrated by pissing on his grave.

* LadyMacBeth: [[spoiler:Her husband Leo joined the conspiracy against Orso believing that they'll merely be replacing his corrupt Closed Council with people who have the Unions best interests at heart. Savine, meanwhile, is well aware that the conspiracy's success will mean Orso's death, and that the men replacing the Closed Council will be just as corrupt as their predecessors. This doesn't stop her from making deals behind Leo's back to ensure that they become King and Queen of the Union afterwards, even backstabbing his childhood friend Rikke without Leo's knowledge.]]

* LoveIsAWeakness: She comes to regard it as such after she finds out the truth of her lineage, to the point where [[spoiler:she wages war on Orso, who is both her half brother and the only man she's ever loved, in order to get the throne.]]

* MoreDeadlyThanTheMale: Savine is far cleverer, more ruthless and more dangerous than any of her male business partners, rivals or lovers. [[spoiler:It's only through Savine's scheming that her husband's coup against Orso has any chance of success, and when someone floats by the nickname "The Young Lioness" for her, Orso thinks it fitting, since he heard the females of the species were the ones who actually did all the killing.]]

* WeCanRuleTogether: He offers [[spoiler:Victarine dan Teufel in the final chapter of ''Literature/TheTroubleWithPeace'' the chance to join him, partly due to their similar backgrounds, partly because he wants a skeptic to balance out his more fanatical followers. She accepts, if only because she's in the midst of an army of his followers at the moment]].
* WellIntentionedExtremist: The Weavers means may be horrifying but his goals are well-intentioned. He knows exactly how corrupt the Union is and he wants to overthrow its government so that the poor and downtrodden will no longer be oppressed. [[spoiler:''The Wisdom of Crowds'' reveals the stated cause is a lie. The Great Change was nothing but a means to have Sand dan Glokta replace Bayaz as the Union's puppet master.]]