History Characters / TheOrderOfTheStickHumanPartyMembers

* CharacterDevelopment: Elan is not so much a dimwit now as at the start, but is still a {{Ditz}} nevertheless. More focus has also been given to highlighting how he's ''clever'', not ''smart'', how he's significantly matured as the story has gone on, and how his MetaGuy nature [[HeartIsAnAwesomePower is actually a lot more valuable than it may first seem]].

* InformedFlaw: When the Linear Guild is defeated for the second time, [[http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0402.html Roy is surprised that he beats Nale in a sword fight,]] but during their first fight [[http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0061.html Elan did quite well]] to the point that [[http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0064.html Nale decided to sic Thog on Elan]].

* PungeonMaster: His Dashing Swordsman prestige class allows him to add his huge Charisma bonus to damage as long as he makes a pun with each attack. Fortunately, {{Incredibly Lame Pun}}s qualify, and Elan uses them to ''demoralize'' his enemy.

* StepfordSmiler: Her jokey and extroverted personality hides a mass of paranoia, cynicism and self-loathing. Over the course of the strip (and especially her relationship with Elan) she comes to terms with this and becomes a much more genuinely happy person.

%% There is NO "LukeIAmYourFather", see the Tarquin entry.

%% IncrediblyLamePun redirect to Pun.

%%* MadLibsCatchPhrase: "[[MagicMusic X, X, X, X the Y!]]" ZCE

* SelfAwareLoon: Elan seems to be aware of his own ditziness and quirkiness on at least ''some'' level, particularly as he takes levels in competence and moves closer to being a {{Cloudcuckoolander}} GeniusDitz. For example, as noted above in Strip #727, he muses to Haley that the part of "secret" he doesn't understand is "obviously" the part where he doesn't tell other people.

* BewareTheNiceOnes: He's probably the nicest, sweetest member of the Order, always happy to help anyone the group comes across. He's also tried to drown [[AristocratsAreEvil Kubota]] after he killed Therkla, set a sword-weilding killer on Elan and thrown his father off an airship.

* RageBreakingPoint: After failing to take advantage of an opportunity to ambush Xykon and Redcloak in [[spoiler:Kraagor's Tomb]], he, [[OOCIsSeriousBusiness atypically]] gets into a ClusterFBomb rant.

* TrademarkFavoriteFood: His mom's jamabalaya appears to be this, mentioning he has been wanting some everyday for the past three years. Though the fact that it's his mother's speciality and likely not being able to have any since her demise is likely a big reason for that.

** Xykon cannot remember who he is (and surprisingly enough, this isn't being faked to tick Roy off. It's genuine). Redcloak does a better job, but it's not until [[http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0901.html Strip #901]] that he actually realizes the Order is directly working against them (and neither of them can remember Roy's original motive). The Monster in the Darkness uses this to save Roy and crew by noting that Roy is just some fighter Xykon offed casually, while O-Chul is a {{Determinator}} samurai paladin who wants revenge.

* UnstoppableRage: Even worse than Thog, who he even overpowered when the half-orc was in berserk modes, since his fighting skills are greater than Thog's and are not lessened by his rage. His beatdowns on Xykon and [[spoiler:the High Priest of Hel]] are the best examples.

* VetinariJobSecurity:[[invoked]] Roy may have trouble keeping the group on a single goal, but it's been conclusively established that he's the only person capable of exerting any level of control over any of them. The ''[[Recap/TheOrderOfTheStickDontSplitTheParty Don't Split The Party]]'' arc is one long proof of this, but in particular his management of Belkar; without Roy's influence, Belkar's [[http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0489.html projected]] "evilness" (measured in [[AbstractScale kilonazis]] by the archons in charge of the LawfulGood afterlife) would have skyrocketed. When Roy was temporarily killed by Xykon and Haley took over, she had little to no real control over Belkar. [[http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0881.html "Temporary Weakness"]] directly acknowledges this.

-->'''Haley:''' [[DyingDeclarationOfLove Elan... I think I'm in love with y--]]\\

* CovertPervert: Not above [[http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0088.html taking advantage of a discount ''invisibility sphere'' to grope Elan]]. Or seeing what Elan's charisma is worth [[http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0028.html "under the hood"]]. Also the first party member to notice the phallic symbolism of a [[http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0690.html Gigantic Purple Worm]]. After she and Elan hook up, the "covert" part goes out the window.

'''Haley:''' [[SarcasmMode Gee, if I’d known that shooting hobgoblins would render you speechless, I would have saved that last one for later.]]

* FemaleMisogynist: For some reason, Haley rarely gets along for very long with other women, either good (Miko, Celia)[[note]]She and Celia do bond as the story progresses, however[[/note]] or evil (Crystal, Sabine, Samantha[[note]]to the point of considering making her a slave[[/note]], Tsukiko... -- she jokes once she's always fighting "flying skanks"). There are exceptions, however, as she's best friends with Vaarsuvius (who is genderqueer) and seems to have no problem with Niu (in Azure City) or Jenny (in the backstory), and later Bandana. So it's more of a case of only meeting women whose personalities clash with hers. She recognizes this trait of hers and tries to move beyond it by ''Utterly Dwarfed'':

* GuileHero: While Haley's definitely more than able to hold her own in a fight, she's particularly adept at using her wits, various rogue skills, and charisma to out-think and talk her way out of problems. In particular, she ends up defeating [[spoiler:the flesh golem Crystal]] by first telling her who was really responsible for [[spoiler:her being turned into a flesh golem, which prompts Crystal to utterly slaughter Bozzok]], and then [[spoiler:leads Crystal along and keeps her distracted with a heart-to-heart discussion about their mutual rivalry until she's right over a waste disposal pit]].

* IResembleThatRemark: PlayedForLaughs in [[https://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0743.html #743]].
-->'''Durkon:''' Ye dinnae trust anyone! [[InsaneTrollLogic Ye think marsupials be shady 'cause they haf a secret pouch!]]\\
'''Haley:''' [-They could have a knife in there, you don't know!-]

* SlippedTheRopes: She clearly has ranks in both escape artist and use rope, meaning tying her up is doomed to failure.

* TheSnarkKnight: She certainly isn't one... but, on the other hand, her brain is hosting "[[DarknessVonGothickname "Mistress Shadowgale]]", a.k.a the [[http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0311.html imaginary personification of her self-loathing,]] who certainly has several levels of Snark Knight.

* TookALevelInBadass: Both a literal and metaphorical case; The TimeSkip not only has her becoming even more of an awesome and skilled rogue than she already was, but she's also become considerably more stable mentally speaking along with being a more effective tactician and team leader as the head honcho among her group of LaResistance.

** Perhaps the greatest indication of Elan's character development happens in [[http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots1218.html #1218]]. When the Order is split down the middle on whether or not to [[spoiler:confront Xykon]], Roy defers the decision entirely to Elan, asking him if the situation feels like the climax that the current narrative arc has been building towards. He decides it's not, and everyone immediately trusts his judgement. At the beginning of the comic, Roy would have been offended by the mere suggestion of asking Elan for advice, and no one would have paid attention to him if he offered any.
%% Males cannot be the chick. Fast Eddie said so.

* IneptMage: As a bard, Elan is capable of casting spells, but he's not very good at it. This is largely because he's focused on illusion, a school of spells where the caster's intellect and creativity is the main limitation. Most of his illusions, therefore, end up being unconvincing or useless, barring some occasional lucky breaks. He also has a tendency to forget he can even use them in favor of focusing on swordplay--most notably, in the Battle of Azure City, Vaarsuvius was surprised to find that Elan had only cast a single spell in the entire battle. He does improve over the comic's run, with Vaarsuvius's tutelage helping him craft actual effective illusions and a newfound focus on healing.

* MadLibsCatchPhrase: "[[MagicMusic X, X, X, X the Y!]]"

* HeroesWantRedheads: While it takes him a while to notice, he eventually ends up in a relationship with Haley.

* CharacterizationMarchesOn: It can largely be chalked up to CharacterDevelopment, but in the earlier days of the comic, Elan's {{Manchild}} nature was often comically exaggerated to the point of infantiliztion (e.g., asking to have Roy read him a bedtime story and tuck him in for the night). Later on, while he's still pretty immature (ee.g., spending his first day in Bleedingham riding on the Empire of Blood's equivalent of kiddy rides), he also has more of an adult nature emphasized about him (such as him and Haley [[InsatiableNewlyweds often eagerly and enthusiastically ravishing each other when given the opportunity]]).

* CurbStompBattle: When she and Belkar are hunting for Roy's corpse after the Fall of Azure City, they're chased by a group of 22 hobgoblins. Since Belkar's Mark of Justice makes him worse than useless in a fight, she takes them all on her own [[https://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0470.html and wipes the floor with them]] solely through use of her archery and tactical thinking (i.e., shooting out a stone holding up a collapsed tower so it falls and crushes more than half of them). Notably, even ''Belkar'' is impressed.

* TheBabyOfTheBunch: Elan is physically the youngest member of the overall Order at only 22 in the comic's present day[[labelnote:For sake of reference:]]In the comic's present day, Roy is 29, Haley is 25, Durkon is 55, Vaarsuvius is over 131, and Belkar is over 28[[/labelnote]], and his general status as a {{Manchild}} also definitely makes him the youngest from a behavioral standpoint along with various asides (i.e., Belkar calling him "kid" and Elan himself claiming to have just come out of "bard camp" before deciding to become an adventurer).

* CharacterizationMarchesOn: It can largely be chalked up to CharacterDevelopment, but in the earlier days of the comic, Elan's {{Manchild}} nature was often comically exaggerated to the point of infantiliztion (i.e., asking to have Roy read him a bedtime story and tuck him in for the night). Later on, while he's still pretty immature (i.e., spending his first day in Bleedingham riding on the Empire of Blood's equivalent of kiddy rides), he also has more of an adult nature emphasized about him (such as him and Haley [[InsatiableNewlyweds often eagerly and enthusiastically ravishing each other when given the opportunity]]).

* {{Cuckoosnarker}}: While he's almost always SarcasmBlind, he typically becomes pretty sarcastic whenever he's particularly upset (i.e., him asking his father if he's planning to "make [me] watch as you [[EvilIsPetty punch a bunny in the face]]").

* ObfuscatingStupidity: Heavily downplayed since he really ''is'' an utter ditz, but it's shown at times that several of his more outwardly self-destructive actions (i.e., setting off the self-destruct mechanism for Dorukan's Gate) are him trying to intentionally [[InvokedTrope invoke]] particular tropes he likes/thinks are appropriate to the story he thinks he's in. Part of his CharacterDevelopment involves him increasingly moving past this, even admitting to Roy in [[https://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots1230.html Strip #1230]] that the Order's previous cruelty towards him was slightly justified at the time thanks to him willfully acting as TheMillstone ForTheLulz.