History Sandbox / Aazkaal

''Fanfic/TheLeonineHeresy''
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Unlike most alternate Heresy fics, it reverses the order in which Legions gets introduced, starting with Alpha Legion and ending with Dark Angels, with upcoming bonus chapter dedicated to the Grey Knights.

Can be read [[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/14001243/1/The-Leonine-Heresy here]].
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!Tropes:
* ActuallyADoombot: When Horus "kills" Perturabo, turns out that it was a robotic decoy, used to lure him into a death trap.
* AdaptationalContextChange:
** Dulan campaign still occurs and still results in conflict between Lion El'Jonson and Leman Russ, but this time Leman has more self-control to not snap at Lion for [[KillSteal stealing his quarry]]. However, he also feels that something is wrong with Lion, and, in attempt to breach his shell and get some clues, he insults his pride by claiming that he wouldn't become the Emperor's favourite no matter what, provoking him into attacking first. The rest of the duel, including Russ laughing over absurdity of the situation (he got lost to the thrill of battle and forgot to actually analyse Lion) and getting knocked out, goes as per canon.
** The Iron Cage conflict between Imperial Fists and Iron Warriors still occurs, but Dorn's motivation for it is to punish the one whom he believes [[TheScapegoat the chief cause of the Siege failing]]. Otherwise, it goes just as disastrously as in canon (if not even more so).
* AdaptationalHeroism: Some characters who were villains in canon, became heroic figures in this timeline. Besides Primarchs and Astartes, we have:
** It's Kelbor Hal who leads the forces of loyalist Mechanicum on Mars; Belisarius Cawl [[AdaptationalVillainy goes rogue]].
** Gog Vandier is now a hero instead of a tyrant, and saves Imperium from the greedy and ambitious corrupt Ecclersiarch... [[AdaptationalVillainy Sebastian Thor]].
* AdaptationalVillainy: Some characters who were heroes in canon, became villains in this timeline. Besides Primarchs and Astartes, we have:
** It's Belisarius Cawl who leads the Dark Mechanicum; Kelbor Hal [[AdaptationalHeroism stays loyal]]. He's also the one to kill Amadeus [=DuCaine=].
** It's Sebastian Thor who goes drunk with power and starts the Days of Blood, with [[AdaptationalHeroism Gog Vandire]] stopping him.
** Thousand Sons managed to corrupt Solar Macharius and turn him against the Imperium; he was one of the greatest post-Heresy Imperial commanders in canon.
* AllYourPowersCombined: Shortly before the Heresy, Horus creates a new group, so-called Legion Auxilia, which includes a chapter from every Legion; it's led by Mournival Majoris -- essentially, original Mournival expanded to include representatives from each Legion, albeit with original four still on top and serving same purpose. The idea is that it gives Horus access to the wisdom of every Legion.
* AttackAttackAttack: Infamous Gate 42 incident, where Raven Guards (then known as Pale Nomads), while fighting under Horus (all predominantly Terrans) gets massacred when trying to storm Rangdan fortress (which goes completely against Corvus' preferred style of combat). The two wouldn't talk or interact with each other until after Nikaea.

** Leman Russ feels that something is wrong with Lion El'Jonson, and insults his pride by claiming that no matter what Lion does, the Emperor wouldn't pick him as his favourite -- maybe Horus, maybe Sanguinius, maybe even Ferrus Manus, but not Lion; all to make Lion lose self-control and reveal something for Russ to analyse. Russ fails, as he gets lost to the thrill of their duel and forgets to actually analyse Lion.
** During the Siege of Terra, Vulkan exploits the rivalry between Iron Warriors and Imperial Fists by tricking the Imperial Fists into retreating from one line of attack to another to not let their rivals to break through first; this also results in infighting between two traitor legions, and massacre of Word Eaters' remnants.
** During the Scouring, Perturabo sets up the trap for Horus, knowing that he wouldn't reject a challenge, but instead of facing him himself (the battle he would lose), he sets up a [[ActuallyADoombot robotic decoy]] with a bomb prepared. Horus falls into this trap, and (presumably) dies.
* BeyondRedemption: When the Emperor sees the corpse of Konrad Curze, who's killed by Lion, he realises that it's of no use to try and talk his son down; for as long as he lives, the bloodshed would not stop.
* BigDamnHeroes:
** Initially disappearing (for the reasons revealed in their own chapter), Night Lords later catches up with Word Bearers and assists them against Ultramarines; there was a massive battle over Macragge, after which Konrad Curze had vanished. Soon, they also gets joined by Alpha Legion forces.
** During the Shadow Crusade, joint Word Bearers / Night Lords / Alpha Legion fleet runs into a group of Ultramarines ships attacking unknown ship clearly built with the mix of human and Aeldari technologies. When they destroys the traitors and contacts the ship... turns out that there's Leman Russ on board, long considered dead and/or rogue.
** Russ tells Lorgar about Ultramarines fortifying on Khur (clearly wishing to lure Lorgar into ambush), but still insists on going there... only for Lorgar to end up near Armatura instead, just in time to help another fleet of Word Bearers to force Ultramarines into retreat (and presumably kill Marius Gage). Then, with full forces, they moves to Khur.
** On Khur, Magnus (who was in process of claiming the energies surrounding this world for himself) attacks Lorgar and prepares to sacrifice him to ascend into daemonhood, but Argel Tal backstabs Magnus, distracting him. Magnus soon overpowers and kills him, but it buys enough time for Lorgar to realise what Leman meant by saying that "father was both right and wrong at the same time", and unlocks his own psychic potential to attack Magnus and force him into retreat.
** Lorgar and his fleet arrives towards the end of Siege, allowing to change balance of power into loyalists' favour and forcing the traitors to retreat.
** Typhon takes away some strange Warp artifact before it ends up in the hands of traitors. The artifact talks to him about important mission he has to perform, and leads him to Baal, where he sees the fleet of Space Wolves fighting Blood Angels, supported by ''Phalanx''. The artifact apologises before Typhon, as it's... sorry for that it has to end this way. Typhon and his followers dies in battle, [[HeroicSacrifice but it allows Space Wolves to escape certain doom]].
* BlownAcrossTheRoom: Magnus begins his attack on Vulkan by throwing him into a wall with his powers.
* TheBusCameBack: Kaedes Nes and Arkhas Fal returns after the end of the Heresy; in canon, they disappears permanently.
* CallToAdventure: Merir Astelan comes to the Prism and alerts Night Lords that Dark Angels are gathering their forces once again -- and it's up to Night Lords to stop them. Legion Master Decimus is obviously unwilling to trust someone wearing ArchEnemy's colours and to divert forces when they may face Tyranids any moment, but gets told that, as Konrad Curze would've said (Merir knew him when he was alive), one can't wait to see what future would bring: sometimes, your help is required in the present.
* TheCavalry:
** Space Wolves barely escapes from Prospero, only to get attacked by Star Hunters. Fortunately, Death Guard fleet arrives and attacks the traitors, forcing them to retreat.
** What's left of Night Lords are ready for their last stand on Nostramo, knowing that they stand no chance against Nurgle-empowered Emperor's Children. But then help comes from Arkhas Fal's Raven Guard exiles.
* CavalryBetrayal: When Blood Angels goes insane and starts shooting at the Sons of Horus, Horus receives reinforcements from Lion El'Jonson and his Dark Angels... who ''also'' opens fire at him. Realising that he stands no chance against two legions at once, Horus retreats from Davin and sets sail to Terra.
* CharacterDevelopment: It's pointed that most Primarchs who've stayed loyal are those who recognised their flaws, and overcame them.
* ChekhovMIA: Konrad vanishes in the Ruinstorm soon after arriving to Ultramar. He returns just in time to confront Lion on Terra, and albeit he dies, this warns the Emperor to not try to talk to Lion, and fight to the death. Night Lords' own chapter reveals what exactly happened between those two events.
* CurbStompBattle: On Molech, while traitors themselves gets defeated, Lion easily overwhelms both Horus and Mortarion, but, rather than kill them, takes the Eye from Horus' chest and Mortarion's gas mask, for reasons known only to himself.
* CruelAndUnusualDeath: Corvus' death is extremely nasty: Angron ''squeezes his head with bare hands'', to the point it [[YourHeadAsplode splats]].
* DarkestHour: Night Lords and their allies gets cornered on Nostramo, fighting a losing battle against Emperor's Children and Nurgle daemons, being forced to destroy hive after hive as they gets overrun, with ultimately only Nostramo Quintus remaining, and Curze remaining comatose after wounds sustained during previous battle against Dark Angels. But when Fulgrim fights his way inside and prepares to kill Curze, Konrad awakes and bests him in battle, beheading him. While Fulgrim doesn't truly die, this defeat forces Emperor's Children into retreat. Unfortunately, it's too late to save the planet, and Curze has to perform Exterminatus and take course to Terra.
* DeathByAdaptation:
** Angron kills Corvus Corax at the very beginning of the Heresy, ''and takes his scalp as a trophy''. Corvus is alive and active in canon.
** When Angron tries to attack Sanguinius on his flagship, it results in Sanguinisus succumbing to Red Thirst, going berserk and overwhelming Angron, after which he beheads him. Angron is still alive and active in canon.
** Before Horus banishes Sanguinius, Sanguinius kills Abaddon. In canon, Abaddon outlived them both.
** Konrad Curze dies during the Siege of Terra, instead of surviving for some time past the conclusion of Heresy.
** Jaghatai Khan dies during the Heresy; in canon, he survived throughout its entirety and disappeared much later.
** Colonel Brom and Sindri Myr from ''VideoGame/DawnOfWar'' shows up in the chapter about Alpha Legion, with Brom [[DeathByCameo dying in battle]]; Brom is presumably alive in canon.
** Kelbor Hal is confirmed KIA during the Heresy; his canon fate is unknown.
** One of the lost Primarchs was indeed killed by Russ (it's somehow related to Rangdan Xenocide); in canon, it's ambiguous whether he's actually dead, and if yes, whether it was actually Russ who killed him.
* DeathByCameo: Alpha Legion chapter has a scene starring [[VideoGame/DawnOfWar Colonel Brom of Tartarus' PDF, and (loyalist) Librarian Sindri Myr]]; Brom [[DeathByAdaptation dies in a battle]].
* DeathFromAbove:
** Horus gets so angry when Maloghurst gets killed and mutilated, along with the rest of diplomats, he orders to just nuke 63-19, not even bothering with assaulting it; in canon, there were ''three'' failed attempts at negotiations.
** During compliance of Isstvan, Corvus Corax descends to Isstvan III, along with those World Eaters who were the most accustomed to cooperate with Raven Guards, to suppress the enemy. As soon as they emerges victorious, Angron orders to open fire on those below. Then, exploiting their "allies" shock and disbelief, they opens fire on the Raven Guard fleet.
* DecapitatedArmy: The traitors were effective force while Lion was in charge, but as soon as he died, infighting ensued, most prominently [[TheRival between Iron Warriors and Imperial Fists]], who were barely able to tolerate each other even with him in charge.
* DecapitationPresentation: Sanguinius takes Angron's severed head as a proof of World Eaters' treachery, and presents it to Horus. Horus' reaction to it "confirms" Lion's lies (that Horus is willing to condemn Sanguinius and his entire legion), and Sanguinius attacks him, thinking that it's the only choice.
* DefeatMeansFriendship:
** When Perturabo kills Kharn, other World Eaters agrees to work for him, impressed with his martial prowess.
** Sevatar befriended Abaddon after besting him in a duel.
* DefiantToTheEnd:
** Konrad Curze loses his duel with Lion and gets mortally wounded; attempt to stab Lion fails (albeit it damages his armour enough for Emperor to later exploit it), and Lion prepares to kill him, but not before telling that he's sad that they're not on the same side. Konrad uses his final words to tell him that he ''always'' knew that Lion is a monster, and Lion proved him right.
--->'''Konrad Curze''': I... always knew you were... a monster. Death... is nothing... compared to vindication.
** Sevatar (by that moment, ''very'' old even for Astartes) faces Sigismund on Cadia, in a duel he knows he has no chance to win. Mortally wounded, forced on his knees, his weapon broken, he finds the strength to spit into foe's face and tell his last "screw you" before dying.
--->'''Sevatar''': Did you expect a speech? Forgiveness perhaps? We were murderers first, last and always. Frak you, you honorless bastard.
* DevourTheDragon:
** Roboute Guilliman backstabs Jaghatai, who until then was important ally of his, and uses him as a sacrifice to fuel his ascension into daemonhood.
** Just before Siege, Lion sacrifices Corswain (his right hand-man in the legion) to get Dark Gods' blessing and safely reach Terra.
* DisappointedInYou: When Roboute nearly kills Angron, and later, when he bullies Lorgar, the Emperor just gives him disappointed look, as if Guilliman failed to live up to his expectations. [[NeverMyFault This makes Roboute furious]].
* DivideAndConquer: Alpha Legion, through infiltrations, manages to severely hurt the traitors' teamwork by provoking infighting.
* {{Doppelganger}}: At Signus, Sanguinius (who's ready to embrace Chaos) sees four copies of himself, each in colours of one of the Dark Gods, agitating him to choose their god above three others. Sanguinius rejects Nurgle, Tzeentch and Slaanesh (especially the last one, in whom he sees his greatest fear -- succumbing to Red Thirst), and demands the other choice, the choice which would free him from doubts for once; and he gets granted one: to become a chosen of Khorne and embrace his damnation, welcome the curse as the blessing. He accepts.
* DoWrongRight: Lorgar manages to forgive the Emperor for ordering to destroy Monarchia, but he ''does not'' forgive Guilliman for executing that order: while he realises that it had to be destroyed as a stern lesson, Roboute clearly [[{{Jerkass}} enjoyed the pain it caused to Lorgar]] while doing so.
* TheDreaded: Imperial Fists received nickname "Crimson Fists" for their cruelty: it symbolises all the blood on their hands. It eventually sticks as their new official name, albeit later only Dorn's loyalists keeps it, with Sigismund's followers renaming themselves "Black Templar".
* DueToTheDead: It's believed that Sigismund, as a sign of respect to Sevatar being a WorthyOpponent, preserved his body rather than leave it to rot or desecrate it.
* EarthShatteringKaboom: As part of their ambush on Isstvan III, World Eaters fires at the planet to make it explode and cause damage to Blood Angels' ships.
* EnemyMine:
** While surviving in Commoragh, Vulkan has to temporarily cooperate with a group of Dark Eldar who're also in opposition to everyone else, and are glad to accept any help. Later it gets revealed that their leader is Azdrubael Vect -- the future supreme leader of Dark Eldar.
** Leman Russ' clearly received some help from Eldar, but what it was likely wouldn't be revealed until Space Wolves chapter gets released.
* EvilVersusEvil: After the Heresy, Imperial Fists turned on Iron Warriors, [[TheScapegoat using them allegedly being the chief cause of the Siege failing as excuse to avenge old grudges]]. This conflict leads to the forces under Dorn being outsmarted and nearly wiped out; only Dorn finally understanding how much his pride had costed him, and [[KnowWhenToFoldEm retreating while he still has a chance]] avoids his own death and that of the few survivors other than those who stayed at Inwit under Sigismund.
* EyeScream:
** Horus loses an eye while fighting Sanguinius: post-corruption, Sanguinius' blood [[MyBloodRunsHot turned so hot, it can cause burns]] -- including burning Horus' eye out.
** Leman Russ, during his misadventures in the Warp, had lost one eye; there's a huge scar where it used to be.
* FalseFriend: The time Corvus spends with Angron during Isstvan campaign seems to make the Raven Guard and World Eaters Legions close friends, who've learned to greatly cooperate with each other. Then, as soon as the victory gets achieved, Angron orders to open fire on the forces below, composed of not only Raven Guards, but also World Eaters who've bonded the most with their allies, and thus became not reliable enough to leave live. The Raven Guard fleet on orbit is too shocked to even believe that something like that is possible, which Angron uses to shoot at them, too. The effectiveness of this betrayal makes Corvus realise that it was prepared in advance.
* TheFinalTemptation: Just before Konrad Curze goes to confront Lion El'Jonson, Chaos Gods tries to make the last attempt to convince him to join the traitors, by promising him that he can slay Lion once he kills the Emperor, and claim the Golden Throne for himself, becoming invincible ruler who can stop any rebellion before it starts. It gets acknowledged that it would've likely worked... had the Emperor not purged Dark Haunter, leaving only [[UndyingLoyalty Konrad Curze]].
* ForbiddenZone: What was once Ultramar is devoid of any life even long after Ruinstorm dissipating. Renamed "Sector XIII", it's kept under constant surveillance and is off-limits for any visitors and settlers -- for a good reason, as daemons frequently tries to attack from there, despite it supposedly being cleansed.
* {{Foreshadowing}}: When pursuing Cawl, Ferrus Manus disregards some beheaded Apothecary of the Emperor's Children who's weirdly devoid of Nurgle corruption. It's a clear setup for something which would happen once the fic starts talking about Emperor's Children in details.
* FramingTheGuiltyParty: Soon after killing his father and becoming Gallan's co-consul, Roboute puts all the blame for Konor's assassination on him, which results in him being lynched by the angry mob. [[HeKnowsTooMuch This ensures that there's one less person who knows the truth]], not to mention, all the power ending up in his own hands.
* GoodThingYouCanHeal: Vulkan's powers manifests when he gets attacked by Magnus, who lifts him into air with his psychic power, and drops on his sword, piercing both hearts at once. Vulkan dies... and resurrects, albeit not in time to stop Magnus from escaping. Malcador later explains him that it's his Perpetual power, and that it's actually not the first time it manifested: he was unaware, but he actually ''was'' killed in Commorragh multiple times, but his ability allowed him to shrug off the death itself. He would actively exploit this ability during enemy's attempt to assault Terra through the Webway.
* HalfTheManHeUsedToBe: Roboute Guilliman, now Daemon-Prince of Slaanesh, tears Kor Phaeron in two when he tries to protect Lorgar, then, just to be sure, stomps what's left of him.
* HateAtFirstSight: Rogal Dorn despises Konrad Curze from the moment the two had met at Nostramo, and doesn't even try to hide it. Konrad asks Horus to arrange for their meeting, so he can prove that he and his legion are more than just a bunch of thugs and murderers, which Horus grants... and it only makes things worse, as what happens during their joint campaign kickstarts Rogal Dorn's path to damnation.
* HeroicSacrifice:
** Several Space Wolves' ships sacrifices themselves to buy time for the rest of the fleet to escape from ambush at Prospero.
** Calas Typhon sacrifices himself and his ship to wipe out attacking Blood Angels and damage ''Phalanx''. This allows the rest of his fleet, as well as Space Wolves, who were the ones attacked by the traitors before Death Guards' arrival, to escape.
** Kelbor-Hal, when he and Ferrus Manus are about to be outnumbered by traitors, teleports Ferrus off-planet, while he gets surrounded. Later it gets revealed that he died in that battle.
* HistoricalVillainUpgrade: InUniverse, Roboute Guilliman's destroying of Monarchia eventually developed from him executing an order from the Emperor (even if he took sadistic pleasure at hurting his brother's feelings) to unprovoked attack from the traitors wanting to defile the sacred place of the true faith. Word Bearers themselves notably don't believe in it, including the religious branch of the legtion.
* HitAndRunTactics: Jaghatai uses hit-and-run tactic to harass Death Guard, slowly bleeding it out, as Death Guards can't catch up with his fast and agile ships. Mortarion and his followers only survives thanks to the help of Space Wolves survivors.
* HoldTheLine: During Siege of Terra, Death Guard holds the forces of traitors trying to assault the Palace at bay, at the cost of tremendous casualties.
* HorrifyingTheHorror: Konrad Curze, before the Emperor takes the measures to deal with his insanity, was ''the'' most nasty and gruesome Primarch. But even he gets uncomfortable when, instead of the horrible visions surrounding other Primarchs, like Jaghatai (him being betrayed and killed by Guilliman), Lorgar (a shining hero hated by, again, Guilliman) Rogal Dorn (a hero who would damn himself while seeking answers which only Chaos can give) and Ferrus Manus (living metal spreading further and covering his body), for Lion El'Jonson he... sees nothing, only feels some horrible ''wrongness''. He also sees him as a fellow hunter, just as dangerous as Konrad himself.
* AHouseDivided: As Khorne corruption strengthens, Blood Angels divides into two groups who can barely tolerate each other, let alone cooperate: one, led by Azkaellon, is supporting Sanguinius in following Khorne's teaching and spilling blood for the sake of spilling blood, disregarding their original goal, another, led by Raldoron, believes that they're wasting time and resources, while they should go to Terra to overthrow False Emperor; meanwhile, third group, led by Nassir Amit, chose to stay neutral, believing that picking either side would hurt them. The first two eventually ''do'' go into open war at first excuse they could find, and only gets prevented from mutual extermination by Perturabo intervening to remind Blood Angels that Lion needs them, ''now''.
* ImmuneToFate: Rangda proves themselves dangerous foe for Night Lords, as it's not possible to use their visions to see what they would do.
* InSpiteOfANail:
** Space Wolves ''losing'' the first battle for Prospero still doesn't prevent the planet's destruction, merely postpones it.
** Imperial Army still gets split into the fleet and Imperial Guard, with Astartes no longer having authority over neither; this time, it's Horus who proposes it, instead of now-traitorous Guilliman. However, he doesn't propose the split of legions.
* KarmicDeath: Atina spent years corrupting Roboute Guilliman and preparing him to embrace Chaos. He uses her as a sacrifice to fuel Ruinstorm: the man she had made him into sees nothing wrong with throwing his mother under the bus; he already did that with his father and grandfather before, both under her influence.
* KickTheDog:
** In canon, citizens of Khur had plenty of time to evacuate; here, Roboute just shoots the population without even bothering to contact them. He only spares one city, Monarchia, so Lorgar can arrive and see for himself how it gets destroyed as well. Then he further mocks Lorgar, provoking him into attacking, and threatens to get "cruel" if he wouldn't submit. The Emperor has to step in.
--->'''Lorgar''': Does this senseless murder make you happy? Does it please you to witness my shame?\\
'''Guilliman''': Honestly, yes. You look so heartbroken over the deaths of these mortals. There's such a sad love, deep in your eyes...
** Two in quick succession from [[TokenEvilTeammate Mortarion]]:
*** Mortarion tries to deny the other legions access to genetic laboratories (which would allow to replenish their lost numbers), claiming them "not deserving" it, as they "don't know the meaning of sacrifice".
*** When Leman Russ calls Mortarion on his selfishness and points that his son, Calas Typhon, knew much more about the "meaning of sacrifice" than his own Primarch, Mortarion tries to insult Typhon, stating that he was a fool who trusted some "witch visions" and "wasted" the lives of his men. Russ, who owes his life to Typhon, doesn't take it well.
* LastSecondChance: Just like the Emperor tried to convince Magnus in canon, here Malcador tries to convince Rogal Dorn, knowing that he was manipulated into joining the traitors, and it's not too late to choose the right side. Unfortunately, Dorn is too far gone by this point and sees only another lie, another hypocrisy.
* LateToTheTragedy: Sanguinius, when looking for missing Corvus Corax and Angron, finds the broken and charred spaceships of Raven Guard and World Eaters, but no traces of either legion. Then World Eaters emerges and ambushes him, and Angron personally boards his flagship, revealing that he murdered Corvus and took his scalp as a trophy.
* LeeroyJenkins:
** Vulkan doesn't stop at just beating Dark Eldar raiders (like it was in canon); he pursues them to their ships, steals one himself (instinctively figuring out how to use it), and follows them into the Webway. He ends up in Commorragh, gaining some unlikely allies while trying to survive (later revealed to be Azdrubael Vect and those who would later form his Cabal), and only escapes due to seeing some strange figure (later revealed to be the Emperor), and following it, ending up on Luna (which replaces his canon meeting with the Emperor). Much later, it gets revealed that he ''was'' killed, more than once, and only his Perpetuality prevented it from sticking.
** Horus falls for obvious provocation from Perturabo. He does defeat him, but then Perturabo [[ActuallyADoombot reveals himself being a robotic decoy]], and explodes a bomb, which (presumably) kills Horus.
* TheLoad: As Guilliman's corruption grows, he stops bothering with doing ''any'' progress at the Great Crusade, wasting time on "triumphs" and self-indulging, which leads to Word Bearers and Night Lords coming to check on him. Later, he becomes equally useless for the traitors, due to his Slaaneshi corruption making him too lazy and too insane to invest into their campaign -- and then he ascends and starts doing fun at the kingdom of his patron god(dess), so Lion has to send Perturabo to bring him back by force, by using his True Name (the act for which Guilliman wouldn't forgive neither of them)... which ultimately does little, as Ultramarines still finds a way to concentrate on wiping out civilians instead of contributing to assault, and, once the massacre fuels some kind of a ritual which bonds the legion to Guilliman, escapes (while Primarch just vanishes).
* LoadBearingBoss: Horus finds the place of a battlefield between Iron Warriors and Imperial Fists; the two legions seemingly massacred each other. Then Horus finds a fortress of Iron Hands, with Perturabo daring Horus to attack him. Horus takes the challenge, finds Perturabo and overpowers him... only for him to end up being a [[ActuallyADoombot robotic decoy]], and activate a bomb with countdown too short to escape. Horus just calmly accepts death, then the bomb goes off. The reinforcements only finds Horus' weapon, and a single gauntlet.
* LuredIntoATrap:
** Ultramarines [[TheLoad stops pulling their weight]] in the Great Crusade, which attracts attention of Horus, who sends Lorgar and Curze to check on them. While Konrad disappears early on, Lorgar reaches the destination, only to get met by Marius Gage who keeps wasting his time for days... which quickly gets revealed as just stalling for time to finish the trap: release the hordes of daemons, and unleash the Ruinstorm. Lorgar barely survives the fight with Samus, and gets to fight not only daemons and Slaanesh-corrupted Ultramarines, but also his own men, a quarter of whom reveals that their allegiances lies with traitors.
** Perturabo sets up his [[ActuallyADoombot robotic decoy]] to lure Horus into a trap, then kills him with a bomb (or, at least, it seems so, as Sons of Horus finds no body, and discarded weapon).
* MadeASlave: When Raven Guard storms Chemos, they finds the ''countless'' corpses of people (mainly children and elders), clearly overworked to death, as well as many corpses of those who've starved to death, both with horrible scars from leashing.
* MagicMustDefeatMagic: Ahriman suggests that since Horus' injury is Warp-born, the cure must be Warp-born, too. His arguments sounds reasonable and convinces some, but gets rejected as soon as he suggests to break Edict of Nikaea; this proves to be a good decision, as Thousand Sons are already rogue by this point, and it was a ploy to corrupt Horus to their cause.
* MeaningfulRename:
** Lion's Gate spaceport gets renamed "Raven's Gate", both in honour of Corvus Corax and Raven Guard slaughtered on Isstvan, and to distance from Lion El'Jonson, the Arch-Traitor.
** After changing his views, Lorgar rejects the title of "Urizen" in favour of "Urthona", after ancient sage from Colchis' mythology, known for his wisdom. The Legion also replaces their symbol -- a "Lectitio Divinitatus" book -- with a serrated sun, which symbolises a coming of a new day for the Imperium, and new light it brings in.
* MisplacedRetribution: Rogal Dorn vents off after becoming a runner up for both the position of a Warmaster and the position of Praetorian by destroying the conquered worlds, [[BlatantLies stating that they had refused to submit]].
* TheMole: Alpha Legion proves that they're the best infiltrators by thwarting the Chaos' efforts from the inside:
** Alpharius pretends to side with Cabal to learn more about their plans, so they can be thwarted.
** During the Heresy, Alpha Legion installed many agents in the Traitor Legions, both to spy and to [[DivideAndConquer disrupt their teamwork]].
* MuggingTheMonster: Lucius brags before his foe (implied to be Vulkan in disguise), saying that he's "Lucius the Eternal" and that Nurgle granted him everlasting life. He gets killed and incinerated within ''a minute'', and gets finished off with a strike of a hammer.
* MutualKill: Lorgar manages to banish Guilliman by smashing his head with his crozius, but gets pierced with Guilliman's sword, which mortally wounds him, rendering him unable to survive without being put into stasis.
* MythologyGag: The fic occasionally references ''VideoGame/DawnOfWar'' and its events and characters:
** Alpha Legion fought on Tartarus alongside local PDF (commanded by Colonel Brom); the Librarian Sindri Myr witnesses [[DeathByCameo Brom's death]].
** Eliphas the Inheritor is [[RuleOfTwo one of the two current leaders of Word Bearers]].
** Word Bearers are mentioned to do a successful campaign on Kronus.
* NeverFoundTheBody: Horus presumably dies in Perturabo's trap, but as only his discarded weapon was found, it's uncertain. Either way, he wasn't seen ever since.
* NiceJobBreakingItHero: Horus had a bad habit of causing more harm than good by his attempts to to make rivals reconcile during the Great Crusade:
** He believed that making Perturabo and Rogal Dorn jointly working to build Nikaean amphitheatre would force them to cooperate to not botch the task; instead, they continued competing, as both valued pushing their views over teamwork, and forced Vulkan to step in to fix the mess they caused. When Vulkan then was announced a new Praetorian, this made ''both'' Primarchs angry at Emperor.
** The idea to make Lion his deputy wasn't so great in hindsight, given Lion's growing envy, as all it did is to remind him that he's number two, as well as gave him access to tool to corrupt many other legions when he went traitor.
* NiceJobFixingItVillain: It was uncertain which side Mortarion would take, given him disliking pretty much everyone. But Lion and Jaghatai enrages him with attempts to recruit him, which ensures that he would take the opposite side, so he stays loyal.
* NoSell: Magnus' spell he used to force other people into believing his lies about the benevolence of magic doesn't work not only on the Emperor (obviously), but also on Leman Russ.
* NothingIsScarier: Just what Ferrus Manus saw in the Noctis Labyrinthus never gets revealed, but it managed to scare him; he only says that he now knows why the Emperor warned him to not trust the Star Gods.
* NotQuiteDead: It comes as unpleasant surprise for Magnus when it turns out that Leman Russ and Space Wolves didn't perish in the Warp (where he previously sent majority of their forces) -- and are ready to assault Prospero.
* NotSoDifferentRemark: Jaghatai tries to convince Mortarion to join him by pointing that he's a psychic, too, that he was always the freedom-loving outrider just like Jaghatai himself, and that the "False Emperor" had put the taint in them all on their creation; Mortarion has nothing of it.
* NotSoStoic: Leman Russ is notoriously cold and stoic, yet when Mortarion [[SpeakIllOfTheDead insults Typhon]] (thanks to whose HeroicSacrifice so many Space Wolves are still alive), he ''explodes''; he manages to regain composure at the last moment.
* NumberTwo: Horus appoints Lion as his deputy, trusting him to become his voice during Crusade. This severely backfires later, as this gives Lion (who's already a traitor by this point) an opportunity to screw over ''every'' loyalist Legion in one way or another.
* OffWithHisHead:
** Sanguinius beheads Angron during their duel.
** Konrad Curze kills Fulgrim during the battle for Nostramo by beheading him. Unfortunately, he immediately realises that this "death" wasn't final: in fact, it only triggered his Ascension, and he would later show up as Daemon-Prince of Nurgle.
* OpenMouthInsertFoot: It's possible that had Angron not insulted the court, the judge would've let him go (as it gets proven that he's not a runaway slave, they have nothing to condemn him for); instead, he gets sent to the pits, for insolence.
* OutsideContextProblem: Revelation that the daemons ''do'' exists almost makes Lorgar snap back to praying, but he manages to regain self-control.
* {{Patricide}}: After having a quarrel with his adoptive father, Roboute Guilliman snaps and stabs him, multiple times, before coming to his senses.
* PreAsskickingOneLiner: Fulgrim expects that he would execute comatose Curze. Too bad, Konrad wakes up just in time to tell him that he wouldn't make it out alive, and attack.
-->'''Konrad Curze''': Despair is amongst the greatest of all human sins. It is pernicious, bringing forth wickedness in those who might remain guiltless. Fulgrim of Chogoris, you are hereby sentenced to death.
* PreSacrificeFinalGoodbye: Before going to confront Lion, the Emperor telepathically contacts Vulkan, shows him his memories of Terra while it was still green and beautiful, and tells him that Vulkan is unlike any of his brothers, and Emperor wishes him to stay that way (clearly meaning him being the only one still having humanity in him, despite everything).
* PutOnABus:
** Alpharius disappeared after the Heresy, leaving somewhere with Eldar.
** Vulkan disappeared after preventing the Orks from destroying Terra during the War of the Beast. He's presumed dead, but given that he's Perpetual, he would certainly return some day. The epilogue of his chapter shows some figure which may or may not be him.
** Mortarion disappeared in the Eye of Terra after growing disappointed with what's going on in the Imperium, deciding to continue his war by himself.
** Ferrus Manus was first Primarch to leave, taking the ship ''Sisypheum'' modified by Vulkan and going to the destination unknown. Later it turns out that he was captured by Szarekh.
* RedemptionRejection: Malcador tries to convince Rogal Dorn to quit supporting Lion and return to the loyalists, specifically stating that he's alone who gets such chance, as the Emperor knows that he still has light inside him, and that him going against the Imperium is more of tragic mistake than genuine betrayal. Dorn angrily rejects it, by now firmly believing that Emperor is the hypocrite who gives second chances to genuine wrong-doers like Lorgar and Curze, yet ignores years of flawless service from Dorn and his sons, only changing his mind ''now'', when he no longer has them by his side.
* TheRemnant: Some loyalist Death Eaters survives the battle on Isstvan, and follows Raven Guards survivors to Deliverance, but don't stick around and soon departs, not feeling at home here, yet being unable to return to their own Legion either. It's unknown what's happened to them afterwards.
* TheRival: Even when working in the same team, Imperial Fists and Iron Warriors don't stop competing with each other, now using the amount of planet conquered as the measure of effectiveness. When the Heresy ends, they goes into open war against each other, not even waiting until they escape to the Eye. It costs them so much, they gets easily defeated by the Imperium; it's stated that if not for that, it would've took ''decades'' to breach their defences.
* SaltTheEarth: When Ultramarines realises that they have no chance to keep Percepton in their hands, they nukes it with phosphex -- the substance which not just burns everything, but keeps burning no matter what, with even vacuum failing to extinguish it; it's all but impossible to recover the planet from that. It's stated as yet another sign of their damnation, and quickly becomes standard practice.
* SanitySlippage:
** After succumbing to Red Thirst while fighting Angron, and then getting assaulted by daemons on the way to Davin, Sanguinius goes insane; he starts [[MadnessMantra repeating over and over that he wouldn't end up like his brother]], then starts crying tears of blood and attacks Horus. Similar insanity hits the rest of Blood Angels, too.
** As Guilliman spends more and more time in Ruinstorm during the Heresy, his sanity starts deteriorating, succumbing to (now obviously specifically Slaaneshi) corruption; where was discipline, comes decadence, pompous ceremonies goes way overboard, and comes unhealthy interests to obtaining all kinds of pleasures, progressively more harmful.
* TheScapegoat: After the failure of Heresy, Rogal Dorn decides that it's Perturabo who's at fault that it ended up a fiasco, and decides to strike at him while he's weakened, resulting in the Iron Cage campaign. It ends in disaster.
* ScrewDestiny:
** Mortarion confronts Malcador about the words once said to him by Jaghatai -- is he truly the creation of the Warp, and does he meant to be the Emperor's tool? Malcador says that yes, he was created using the Warp, and yes, he was designed for specific purpose -- but he grew beyond it, forging own path instead of what the Emperor or anyone else predestined for him, and that is what truly matters.
** Konrad's visions have told him that he would be arrested by Horus and Vulkan for his crimes; instead, he gets apprehended by the Emperor himself. His visions failing him for the first time makes Konrad question whether he can even trust them. And after soul-binding by the Emperor, he doesn't trust his visions stubbornly showing him Horus' downfall, knowing that they ''can'' be wrong, and so far, Horus did nothing to give those visions credibility.
* ScrewThisImOuttaHere:
** Realising that the battle is lost, Ultramarines retreats from Armatura, abandoning their commander Marius Gage to get killed by Word Bearers; they destroys his ship, resulting in him being [[FateWorseThanDeath sucked into Warp]].
** During Siege of Terra, Ultramarines achieves what they wanted (slaughter enough civilians to fuel bonding the Legion to their Primarch), and escapes, without bothering to wait how the Siege even ends: they simply don't care, and only tag along because they were forced to.
** Mortarion gets tired of non-ending conflicts of his sons about whether to allow or ban the Librariums (both sides trying to push him into taking their side), which comes heated enough to possibly result in civil war, so he leaves them to decide by themselves. This seems to work, as, in his absence, they ''did'' come up with a compromise.
* ScrewYourUltimatum: When Perturabo comes to bring Blood Angels back to their senses and make them assist the traitors for once, one of the particularly corrupted Blood Angels, [[MeaningfulName Furio]], [[BullyingADragon insults Perturabo]], his legion, the Lion and everyone who's not Khorne worshipper in general, in a speech which goes for minutes non-stop. Perturabo calmly listens to this torrent of insults in its entirety, and then annihilates him from orbit. Then some other Blood Angels goes berserk and attacks only to get paralysed (with daemons who were accompanied them outright gunned down).
* SealedEvilInACan: Perturabo imprisons [[TheBerserker Sanguinius]] in the Cavea Ferrum, so he wouldn't cause any harm until the time comes to unleash him.
* SelfFulfillingProphecy: Magnus ensures that the outcome of Council of Nikaea would be maximally unpleasant for him by trying to use magic to ''lie'' to the Emperor about how magic isn't dangerous. This not only leads to the ban on Librariums (something Magnus tried to prevent), but disbandment of Thousand Sons altogether (they gets divided into Chapters, which then gets reassigned to work under other Legions), while Magnus gets imprisoned on Terra.
* ASharedSuffering: Lion tries to getting closer to Mortarion by discussing recently ended Rangdan Xenocide and the casualties his own Legion suffered during it. [[SubvertedTrope It fails]], as [[GoodIsNotNice Mortarion's]] reaction mostly amounts to "so what?". When Jaghatai tries to recruit him, much more blatantly, during the Heresy, he realises that it was not bonding, but the subtle attempt to corrupt him, which he evaded.
* ShootTheMessenger: Magnus snaps at Hathor Maat when he delivers the news of casualties suffered from Alpha Legion, and incinerates him.
* ShoutOut:
** Epigraph for the chapter about Death Guard has the line which almost word-by-word [[Film/TheTerminator quotes Kyle Reese's description of Terminator]], referring to [[ImplacableMan them being utterly unstoppable in destroying their foe]].
** The scene where Roboute kills Konor, usurping the power, almost word-by-word repeats the scene of [[VideoGame/WarCraft Arthas killing his father]].
* SparedByTheAdaptation: Malcador Sigillite survives the Heresy, due to not being put on the Throne (the Emperor uses Mortarion instead, who does get hurt, but survives). He disappears at some point later, but why or where is unknown.
* StormingTheCastle: Raven Guard's chapter describes their assault on the Star Hunters' base on Chemos. They catches them off-guard, resulting in bloody indoor fights, and enemy being forced to throw at them literally everything: Terminators, Scouts who don't have the fully equipment installed yet, even mortal servants.

** Rogal Dorn and Perturabo couldn't agree who of them should build the council chamber on Nikaea. Horus tried to just make them cooperate, but it ended in disaster, so he had to ask Vulkan instead.
** It was expected that the Emperor would choose as Praetorian either Rogal Dorn or Perturabo; instead, he choses Vulkan: he's known for being inventive yet diligent, and the Salamanders would inspire people by their mere presence. Neither of the two runner ups receives that decision well, and ''both'' ultimately ends up being traitors.
** Death Guard was unable to decide whether to allow or ban Librariums. Ultimately, they allowed them, but severely restricted and forced to stay separately from the others outside of battles.
** Konrad Curze, twice:
*** Doing as Horus asks and going to Ultramar means getting dangerously far away from him, while Konrad knows that something bad is about to happen. Not doing it means disobeying Emperor-appointed Warmaster. He deals with issue by dividing his legion, sending part of it (under Sevatar) to Nostramo, and leading the other part to Ultramar.
*** When Konrad separates with Lorgar to personally investigate what's going on, he learns about Guilliman's betrayal. Again, Curze faces difficult choice: go to warn Emperor, abandoning Lorgar, or to help Lorgar and leave Emperor in the dark; he deals with it by going to Emperor by alone, while Night Lords goes to assist Lorgar and reinforce him in fighting off Ultramarines.
* TakesOneToKillOne: Vulkan deliberately prohibits any Primarchs personally joining the fight, keeping them in reserve, [[DefiedTrope knowing that otherwise traitors would send theirs]] (they don't, so far, as they think that situation doesn't require it, possibly for same reasons). Mortarion reacts badly to this plan, misinterpreting it as personal disrespect, but obeys.
* TakingYouWithMe: Iron Hands' flagship, ''Fist of Iron'', gets surrounded by Iron Warriors' ships, and then explodes its reactor to take as many of them out as possible, to weaken the traitors.
* TooManyCooksSpoilTheSoup: Horus tries to make Perturabo and Rogal Dorn cooperate and just build the council chamber on Nikaea together. Due to being [[WeAreStrugglingTogether too busy arguing and conflicting]] to actually cooperate (as neither respects the other one and his vision, and pushes for theirs), they creates complete mess which has to be redone by Vulkan.
* {{Troll}}: Guilliman deliberately gives Lorgar false rendezvous point coordinates (claiming that he'd be on Calth), hoping to waste his time and humiliate him. That's why Konrad Curze (who sees it in his visions) separates from Lorgar and goes straight to Macragge... where Guilliman's corruption reveals itself.
* UndyingLoyalty: A demi-company of Space Wolves (from the 13th Great Company) gets assigned to fight under Abaddon; they grows so close with their new commander that, when he dies by Sangunius' hands, they renames themselves "Hounds of Abaddon" in honour of him, and oaths to fight under Horus until their deaths, so they can avenge Abaddon.
* UnwantedFalseFaith: Lorgar at first tried to suppress the church of the God-Emperor, as he knew that the Emperor is not a god, and doesn't want worship; he eventually gives up, and lets it exist, realising that humanity needs ''something'' to believe into, a unifying symbol -- or they would seek it elsewhere. Memory of ''his own sons'' turning on him during the Heresy probably also played a role...
* UriahGambit: Roboute Guilliman gets rid of the Ultramarins who can't be entrusted with siding with him over the Emperor by sending them on intentionally suicidal missions, slowly getting rid of them.
* VillainExitStageLeft:
** Omegon defeats Sigismund on Pluto, but fails to kill him, and Sigismund escapes, promising to return to finish what he started.
** Before Leman Russ can finish Magnus off, Tzeentch saves him by transferring him to the Warp.
** Jaghatai somehow teleports away before Mortarion can kill him.
* VillainousBSOD: Magnus doesn't take well when Tzeentch reveals to him that all this time, all his perils and his achievements were parts of the great plan of the Architect of Fate; he asks Tzeentch to take that memory away... which he does, at the cost of driving Magnus insane.
* WeAreStrugglingTogether:
** Rivalry between Imperial Fists and Iron Warriors just keeps screwing both legions over:
*** Attempt by Rogal Dorn and Perturabo to build the council chamber of Nikaea together, as suggested by Horus, [[TooManyCooksSpoilTheSoup results in a mess]]: they're too busy arguing and trying to enforce their views to actually cooperate.
*** During the Siege, two legions are more concerned with not letting the other one win, than with actually winning themselves. This gets readily exploited by the loyalists, who provokes them into infighting.
*** During the Scouring, Horus finds remnants of the massive battle between Iron Warriors and Imperial Fists; the two fleets just massacred each other before the loyalists even discovered them, achieving nothing and only making Horus' job easier. However, Iron Warriors still manages to salvage the situation, by tricking Horus into a trap where he (presumably) dies.
** At one point, Death Guard and Word Bearers were too busy arguing instead of cooperating against White Consuls (Ultramarines warband); this allows White Consuls to irrepaireably poison the world they were supposed to protect. The two are on bad terms since then.
* WeWinBecauseYouDidnt:
** Rogal Dorn is ready to tell why he's in favour of allowing Librariums, but Perturabo beats him to it, using exactly same arguments. Believing that Perturabo did this just to screw with him (and to end on the winning side, regardless of what it's gonna be), as Dorn can't say the same things without being accused of "plagiarising" Perturabo, Rogal Dorn... breaks down his arguments, so he wouldn't believe himself a victor. Perturabo reacts just as immature, and Emperor has to kick them both out.
** Horus and Mortarion stops Lion from obtaining the powers of Molech by wiping out everything on the planet with Life-Eater virus.
* WeUsedToBeFriends: Sevatar and Corswain were friends before the Heresy; now, they're on the opposite sides in the Thramas Crusade, with Dark Angels trying to destroy Night Lords.
* WhatTheHellHero: Mortarion [[KickTheDog tries to deny the other Legions access to genetic laboratories]], stating them not "deserving" it by not "sacrificing enough". Leman Russ points how selfish it is, and also points that late Calas Typhon was much better man, who knew what "sacrifice" truly means. When Mortarion tries to insult Typhon, Leman explodes at him, and orders him to step aside, ''or else''. When others, from Malcador to Horus, sides with Russ, Mortarion submits.
* WreckedWeapon: Corvus manages to shatter one of Angron's chainaxes, Gorefather. It doesn't help him, as Angron kills him barehanded.
* WrittenByTheWinners: Post-Heresy, Imperium edited the history to make loyal Primarchs look good, and traitor Primarchs look bad, even at the cost of making it historically-accurate.
** Now, it's believed that destruction of Monarchia was an atrocity committed by then-already evil Guilliman, as an act of heresy and malevolence. While he indeed took sadistic pleasure in it, he did this on Emperor's orders, as back then, Imperial Cult didn't exist yet, and Lorgar was in the wrong by creating a religion worshipping his father; Ecclesiarchy took some liberty editing the history to match its dogmas. Word Bearers themselves, knowing the truth, don't believe in this story, even those who do worship the Emperor.
** In official archives, Cheraut massacre was performed by disobedient Imperial Fists elements who refused to obey Konrad Curze. In truth, it was Curze himself who committed it, and Sigizmund refused to obey the insane murderer and take part in his crimes. As Konrad remained loyal (and got his sanity restored), while Imperial Fists, including Sigizmund, got traitors, this event was described in such a way to whitewash loyal Primarch (who was only marginally better than Dorn post-betrayal), and paint black the traitors (who back then were still loyal).
* YouAreBetterThanYouThinkYouAre: Lorgar thinks himself a failure: he didn't return to Terra soon enough to prevent his father being mortally wounded, and he broke the Edict by using psychic powers to defeat Magnus. The Emperor uses his last powers to telepathically contact Lorgar and, besides telling where to find his body, so he may put him on the Golden Throne, tells that Edict doesn't matter anymore (it already failed at intended purpose), while Cyrene Valantion tells Lorgar that, of all Primarchs, he resembles his father the most, and that he's exactly what the Emperor wanted him to be.
* YouAreInCommandNow:
** When Leman Russ' flagship gets sucked into the Warp during first Battle for Prospero, Jorin Bloodhowl has to take command of what's left of the legion. He then gets assigned by Horus to work under Mortarion, only to later perish in battle and be replaced by Bulveye.
** Bulveye dies during Verzagen Campaign, and promotes Bjorn to lead what's left of Space Wolves instead of him.
** After the Heresy, Horus assigns returning Arkhas Fal as the new Legion Master of Raven Guard, with Branne Nev (a temporal commander until then, merely a Captain) submitting.
* YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness:
** When Angron starts losing his duel against Sanguinius, he hears the voices in his head: "Khorne cares not from whence the blood flows". The Blood God just found a better champion, and no longer has any use for Angron.
** Roboute Guilliman grows tired of Atia, and uses her as sacrifice to fuel creation of Ruinstorm, by throwing her alive into the Warp: she used to be a good advisor, but he has no other use for her now.
* YourHeadAsplode: Angron kills Corvus by squeezing his head so much, the skull ''splats''.
* YouShallNotPass: Several Sons of Horus ships, led by Captains Tybalt Marr and Verulam Moy, sacrifices themselves by blocking the way for Dark Angels, so Horus can escape from an ambush. He symbolically salutes them before departing.
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%%Characters
! Loyalists
[[folder: Leman Russ and Space Wolves]]
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* AnimalMotifs: Wolves, but with more emphasis on "lone wolf" aspect; Space Wolves are aloof and prefer to keep distance from the common people, who're also wary of them, still not trusting them completely after events of the Heresy and their perceived betrayal.
* ButterflyOfDoom:
** Lemans Russ gets attacked by kraken instead of being adopted by she-wolfe, and, after killing it, gets taken by Thengir as his son. This not only prevents Leman from obtaining wolf companions (it's heavily implied that the giant wolves whom he and Thengir have killed were them specifically), but also makes him more cautious and less reckless right from the start, which would later reshape a lot of key events, compared to canon. This trait would only grow stronger during events of the Heresy. On a lesser note, it also makes him more understanding that the Emperor knows whom to put in which role, and more accepting of Horus becoming Warmaster rather than himself.
** Better self-control, and better attention to surrounding makes Leman Russ realise the true reason behind Lion [[KillSteal stealing the victory in Dulan campaign from him]], and instead of recklessly attacking Lion, Leman tells him that he knows that he's trying to win their father's attention by doing some special feats, and that it's not gonna work: the Emperor prefers to not pick favourites, but if he has to pick, he would pick someone else (likely Horus or Sanguinius, less likely Ferrus). This still results in a fight, but due to Lion snapping first. The later events indicates that Leman actually contributed to Lion's ultimate betrayal.
* CharacterDevelopment: What he had survived made him get rid of his original boisterousness and hot temper; Lorgar compares him to a wall of ice. Besides becoming more stoic, he also grows wiser and more analytical.
* DeathByAdaptation:
** Geigor boards Lion's flagship in attempt to kill him, similarly to how Leman Russ did the same to Horus in canon; unlike Russ, he doesn't make it back after failed assassination. Geigor is presumably alive in canon, as he never gets confirmed as killed.
** Bulveye dies during the Heresy; he survived in canon.
* EmbarrassingNickname: "Space Wolves" was originally received rather coldly, as it was a result of mistranslating the legion's actual name, and was given with zero respect to Fenris or its people and culture; this further alienated Space Wolves from the common people.
* HeroWithBadPublicity: Ever since the Heresy (when Leman Russ was absent for quite some time, and was suspected of being a traitor at some point), people don't trust Space Wolves all that much. Due to this, Space Wolves prefer to keep their distance, concentrating on patrolling the territory around the Eye of Terror, tracking down the forces of Chaos who dare to step on the territory of Imperium of Man.
* KillItWithIce: Space Wolves have some unique weapon called "helfrost".
* PrematurelyGreyHaired: By the time he gets rediscovered by loyalists, Leman has ash-white hair and beard, as well as somewhat weathered face. Leman was blond before the Heresy.
* RuleOfSymbolism: Pre-Heresy Leman was akin to Thor: blonde, boisterous, HotBlooded, adventurous. After what he survived during the Heresy, he has [[PrematurelyGreyHaired ash-white hairs]], eyepatch to cover a missing eye, and even his character changes, with him becoming more wise and stoic; essentially, he's now Odin: wise, experienced leader who'd paid the great price for that wisdom. Further emphasised by him now using the spear which father gave him as his weapon, which also adds to his symbolism shifting from Thor to Odin.

[[folder: Konrad Curze and Night Lords]]
What if Emperor deals with Konrad's insanity?
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* AccuserOfTheBrethren: Post-Heresy, Night Lords despises criminals so much, they don't trust someone who was a criminal (or came from a family with criminal background) to be worthy of their attention; Raven Guard disagrees with them in that regard, as they use the criminals as stable source of recruits. While it ''is'' possible for them to be recruited, they would never rise high, as training them to be officers is considered a waste of time. By contrast, whenever possible, they take recruits from Prism's nobility; the reason for it is that Night Lords carefully built caste systems to ensure that local nobility would be built from the families with spotless criminal record. They still ensure that both types would receive gene-seed on equal terms (no preserving best pieces for best recruits).
* AdaptationalContextChange:
** Kyroptera gets created with the help of Horus, to have some command structure while Konrad is with Emperor to "fix" him. It stays active after his return. It was made by Night Lords and Curze themselves in canon.
** Nostramo still ends up destroyed by Konrad Curze, but it happens not due to his breakdown, but when he performs Exterminatus on it after it gets all but destroyed by Nurgle-aligned Emperor's Children and gets overrun by daemons beyond all hope.
** Konrad Curze ends up in a stasis coffin which then gets jettisoned into space. Unlike canon, where it was [[FateWorseThanDeath a punishment]], here, it gets done to travel towards Terra (his visions showed him that it would work, and he knows that he wouldn't be able to infiltrate the Palace if someone else goes with him), while his flagship, carrying what's left of the legion, proceeds further without him.
** "Death is nothing compared to vindication" line is used not when Konrad is [[FacingTheBulletsOneLiner about to be executed for his crimes]], but when he's about to be finished off by [[BigBad Lion]], to tell that [[DefiantToTheEnd he's not afraid of whatever he can throw at him]].
* AdaptationalHeroism: Konrad lives past his AxCrazy canon personality, and never turns traitor. Same is true for his legion, which gets purged from scum and repurposed into justiciars and protectors it was always meant to be.
* ArchEnemy: Night Lords have special hatred to Dark Angels, both for events of Thramas Crusade, and for Lion killing Konrad Curze.
* BackFromTheBrink: Night Lords nearly got extinct during the Heresy. 10K years later, they're one of the most numerous legions. They, essentially, fulfil the role which Ultramarines played in canon, that of defenders of Ultima Segmentum, including during First Tyrannic War.
* BlindSeer: Being soul-binded to the Emperor [[EyeScream destroyed Konrad's eyes]] (he covers them with white blindfold), but also made him able to see things clearly without using his eyesight -- by relying on his precognition which is now much more stable and reliable, and allows him to see himself from a side. It's not absolute failureproof, but it works most of the time. This power only grows stronger during travel through the Warp, with him now being able to see things for ''hours'' in advance.
* ButterflyOfDoom: {{Inverted|Trope}}, minor changes in events leads to Curze curing his insanity and his legion being purged of the most violent psychos, preventing Night Lords degeneration into traitorous butchers like it happened in canon:
** When he sees what happened on Nostramo in his absence, instead of performing Exterminatus like he did in canon, Curze slips into his Night Haunter persona again, and descends on the planet personally to start the second purge. This allows the Emperor to apprehend him and finally set him straight (instead of allowing him to escape and succumb to the growing corruption); Emperor erases Night Haunter entirely as part of the soul-binding process, finally making Konrad what he was meant to be.
** While Konrad was on "rehab", his legion fell under Horus' command, who took measures to purge it of scum dropped on it by Nostraman "nobility", leaving only those worth of being Astartes, and setting up the proper command structure (thus, creation of Kyroptera) which his brother would use when he returns. This prevents Night Lords from degenerating into the bunch of psychos they were in canon.
* TheConfidant: Arbiters (also known as Sin-Eaters) listens to their brethren's problems, and either forgives them, or assigns fitting punishment. Arbiters are explicitly forbidden to take any command roles, and disallowed to become Dreadnoughts, as the weight they put on their souls can corrupt machine spirit. This position has high turnover rate, as the more secrets they learn, the [[HeroicBSOD harder it becomes to live with them]], to the point of eventually starting [[DeathSeeker seeking a death in battle]] or, in some severe cases, outright [[DrivenToSuicide committing suicide]].
* DeathByAdaptation:
** Zso Sahaal gets killed by Fulgrim during battle for Nostramo. He survived the Heresy in canon.
** Sevatar dies during his LastStand on Cadia, holding back traitorous forces of Black Templar, knowing that he'd die there, but the news would make it back and alert the Imperium. Sevatar survived the Heresy in canon.
* DiesDifferentlyInAdaptation: Curze still dies, but it happens drastically differently than in canon; due to all the changes in loyalties amongst Primarchs, he fights on Terra and gets slain by Arch-Traitor Lion El'Jonson; while in canon, he lived until after the end of the Heresy, and was killed by Imperial Assassin.
* DoomedHometown: Emperor's Children besieges Nostramo during Siege of Terra, in attempt to wipe out what's left of Night Lords. They gets repelled, but the planet gets hopelessly overrun by Nurgle daemons, and Curze has to destroy the planet which is beyond saving (especially since he has to take course to Terra to aid in defending it). Subsequently, the legion found a new home on the planet Prism on the eastern fringe of the galaxy.
* FictionalHoliday: Instead of Sanguinala, there's now Curzemas, a holiday in honour of Curze's sacrifice. Amongst other traditions, it's traditional day to execute criminals... with the rule that if they fail to kill everyone until the end of a day, the rest may be spared... and put into penal legions instead. Considering that original Sanguinala was already a Christmas analogue, it's now even more blatant, thanks to the name.
* GoodCostumeSwitch: To symbolise his redemption, Konrad ditches his signature morbid armour decorated with ribs and covered with gut in favour of noble midnight-blue armour decorated with lightnings. He also gets a healthy skin, instead of staying creepily-pale.
* GoodIsNotNice: Night Lords have zero tolerance for lawbreakers and rebels, and openly dislike Imperial Guard, as it can't live up to their standards (albeit they do have few equally crazy human regiments under their control; which [[DoubleStandard kinda goes against the rules]]).
* {{Homage}}: New homeworld of Night Lords has three-quorters of the planet covered with thick jungles filled with the worst monsters of them all: humans, who let their inner evil overcome them. It's a subtle reference to ''Literature/HeartOfDarkness'' and ''Film/ApocalypseNow'', which gave Konrad Curze his name (from the book's author, and the movie's antagonist, respectively); both are set in the jungle and both are dealing with the lows to which a human can fall.
* InSpiteOfANail: Konrad never destroys his world for "failing him"... but he still has to destroy it towards the end of the Heresy, due to the planet being overrun by Nurgle corruption beyond any hope.
* JumpJetPack: Just like Raven Guard, Night Lords use large amount of Assault Marines. Unlike them, they equip them primely with ranged weapons, sending them into enemy's backline to act as fire support.
* MarkOfShame: Feeling shame for failing to protect Nostramo, many Night Lords painted their fists red; before, it was a mark of someone atoning for past sins or failures. By contrast, Konrad Curze ''pardons'' Sevatar for what happened on Tsagualsa, removing the red marks which he was wearing up until then. When Curze dies, with no one able to "pardon" Night Lords, they keep wearing those marks permanently. After the Heresy, this practice nearly became legion-wide, requiring taking measures to prevent it (as it was not mere a symbol, you were supposed to actively try to redeem yourself... by dying in battle). Subsequently, they resumed original practice of using red gauntlets for those who've failed somehow.
* OldSoldier: Sevatar, driven by his visions, abandons the rest of Night Lords to stay on guard on Cadia, knowing that Chaos ''would'' return some day, and Cadia would be their first stop. By the time it happens for the first (but certainly not the last) time, he's 1200 years old: the oldest not-Dreadnought Astartest still in service.
* RuleOfSymbolism: It's believed that order of things on Prism is deliberate choice from Night Lords: there's constant struggle between human civilisation, and flora which tries to overgrow and consume the cities, as a sign of struggle between order and chaos, and savages in the dark forests which have to be culled frequently, showing that no crime goes unpunished... and that as long as there're humans, there would be crimes -- and ones to stop them.
* {{Seers}}: Night Lords employ more Librarians than other legions, but almost exclusively train them in the field of Divination, believing that to be more like their Primarch, they should learn to see the future.
* StraightForTheCommander: {{Averted|Trope}}, unlike canon; while prior to Konrad Curze's "rehab", Night Lords were pretty much the same as in canon, afterwards, their tactics was changed as well, including stopping their signature "infiltrate the base, gut the enemy's leader, wait for enemy to surrender" approach, as dishonourable. They still rely on speed, but no longer base their tactics on terror and infiltration, leaving this to Raven Guard.
* TookALevelInKindness: After being cured by the Emperor, Konrad's much nicer, no longer practicing slaughtering civilians as a punitive measure and treating his sons much better than his canon self. He still only comes along with Vulkan and Horus, but mainly because he doesn't bother with befriending other ones.

[[folder: Ferrus Manus and Iron Hands]]
What if Ferrus tames his temper and grows closer to mortals?
----
* AdaptationalNiceGuy:
** In this timeline, Ferrus Manus is less indifferent to other people's deaths than his canon counterpart. In fact, as time goes on, [[TheChainsOfCommand he starts getting tired of so many dying on his orders]] -- while he can't even suffer a scratch.
** Iron Hands have good relationship with Imperial Guard, and have their own mortal regiments (they used some loopholes to not violate Edicts Martial); such relationships with the mortals serves double purpose to preserve humanity no matter how heavily they augments themselves.
** It's stated that one of the defining traits of the Iron Hands is their optimism and belief that they can make the world a better place through their efforts.
* AdaptationalVillainy: Neither Iron Drakes nor Steel Confessors were traitors in canon.
* AdaptationOriginConnection:
** In canon, Iron Drakes were Salamanders Successor Chapter; here, they're [[RenegadeSplinterFaction Chaos warband of the renegade Iron Hands]].
** True origin of the Steel Confessors in canon is unclear, but believed to be Iron Hands; they're explicitly their [[RenegadeSplinterFaction Chaos warband]] here.
* ArchEnemy: While they mainly fights Iron Warriors, the most hated foes are Emperor's Children, due to [[WeUsedToBeFriends their foul betrayal]].
* BlessedWithSuck: Living metal on Ferrus' hands didn't stop on just his hands, slowly growing further, to his discomfort: what would happen when it covers him entirely? Thousands of years later, it ''does'', and starts growing ''inside him'', giving him machine empathy, but also slowly stripping him of human emotions.
* ButterflyOfDoom: {{Inverted|Trope}}, minor changes in his story leads to Ferrus staying alive, and his legion never suffering the decimation at Issstvan and their "flesh is weak" obsession:
** Ferrus Manus obtains some followers before he finds and kills Asirnoth. Shared challenges makes him somewhat more accepting to humans (he still despises weakness, but better understands their limits), and also makes him stay with a clan instead of remaining a nomad. He then takes some of his people and tries to explore Telstarax orbital ring, only for it to end in a bloodbath which only Ferrus survives (way too many hostile machines). This teaches him that being too rushy can end in one's undoing (the lesson his canon counterpart never learned), and causes him to be more cautious with people under his command. He also later teaches Iron Hands the importance of self-control. In canon, [[HotBlooded impulsiveness]] was the FatalFlaw of both primarch and his legion.
** Ferrus Manus lives for long enough to actually enforce his distrust to bionics. While he wouldn't purge this obsession with bionics completely, it would drastically decrease in commonality, especially after Moirai Schism.
* TheChainsOfCommand: Ferrus Manus is ''not'' okay with so many dying on his orders, [[SurvivorGuilt while he's essentially invulnerable]]. He doesn't let the others to see this, though.
* ExactWords: To avoid disbanding Chainveil (mortal regiments from Medusa), Iron Hands pushed for them being removed from under Astra Militarum jurisdiction, so ''technically'' they don't command any Imperial Guard regiments. Those people are used both to perform second wave of assault, and to maintain the Legion's fleet.
* AHouseDivided: The Moirai Schism still happens, but goes differently than in canon. It's [[AdaptationalVillainy Clan Raukaan]] which supports heretechs (along with other Supremacists), calling themselves "Sons of Medusa", while [[AdaptationalHeroism Clan Morragul]] and other Purists calls themselves "Red Talons". Unlike canon, their conflict ''does'' result in the open warfare, destroying one-third of the Legion before Night Lords intervenes to stop it, after which the traitors gets purged.
* InSpiteOfANail: In canon, Iron Hands nearly went extinct due to losses suffered on Isstvan. Here, they comes to the same numbers through battles they fought in the last days of Heresy, including Mars Schism and Siege of Terra.
* ProHumanTranshuman: Ferrus Manus learned that, while flesh is weak, it doesn't matter that much when will is iron, and thus, grew to respect mortal humans for their ability to fight and prevail. Iron Hands (for the most part) still follows that mindset, which makes them close with Imperial Guard (they believe that it helps them stay human, no matter what) -- and rather cold with Mechanicum, who're certainly not on the side of "flesh", and don't understand that some forbidden tech should stay locked.
-->''The flesh is weak, but the spirit is strong!''
* SparedByTheAdaptation: Ferrus Manus survives entirety of the Heresy, instead of dying at the second major battle of it.
* SurvivorGuilt: Post-Telstarax, Ferrus feels guilt for the fact that he keeps surviving where people who trusts him don't. This is especially strong with Iron Hands, as he sees in them a reflection of his own flaws which led to the tragedy which was Telstarax expedition.

[[folder: Mortarion and Death Guard]]
What if the Emperor doesn't "steal" Mortarion's vengeance against Witch-Lord?
----
* AdaptationalHeroism: Neither Mortarion nor his Legion turns traitor in this timeline.
* AdaptationOriginConnection: Marines Malevolent, instead of being loyalist Chapter of unknown origin, [[AdaptationalVillainy are renegades now]], originating from Death Guard; they don't worship Chaos, instead following their own insane creed.
* ArchEnemy: The only enemy whom they hate more than Thousand Sons and Emperor's Children (for being "witches" and for "mocking" their resilience, respectively) are White Scars, who nearly destroyed the sons of Mortarion during the Heresy.
* BattleCry: {{Averted|Trope}}; they're explicitly the only loyalist Legion to not use ''any'' battlecry when going into battle, fighting in complete silence. It adds to their creepy "grim reaper" motives.
* ButterflyOfDoom: Mortarion fails the first attempt to storm Necare's castle, and decides to resort to war of attrition. But then the Emperor in disguise warns him that it's not gonna work (those monsters don't feed like humans, so they can't starve). He offers his help, but Mortarion rejects it, and Emperor leaves, saying that sometimes, it's fine to accept someone's help when you can't handle problem on your own. Mortarion tries to attack Necare personally (something which ended up disastrously in canon), but Emperor covertly assists him, reducing the level of sorcery-created poison Mortarion has to face. As result, Mortarion reaches Nekare still having strength to fight him and win. Only then the Emperor offers him to join. There's no humiliation that their bet was in canon, and there's no "kill-stealing", so Mortarion goes willingly; it doesn't make them friends, but it makes Mortarion loyal enough to resist attempt to corrupt him... and later allows Emperor to use him to power Golden Throne instead of Malcador, [[SparedByTheAdaptation preventing his death]].
* CoinsForTheDead: After performing Exterminatus on the once-human planet, Death Guard commander in charge always goes into vacuum and throws a coin (one of the countless pre-prepared) on the planet for all the dead left behind, as symbolic burial ritual. It's performed in silence, as no words can convey the grief they feel.
* CombatMedic: Death Guard is known for putting much more emphasis on Apothecaries than any other Legion -- understandably, as their choice of weaponry often results in injuries no one else would suffer.
* DeathByAdaptation: Kalas Typhon dies during he Heresy; he's still alive in canon.
* DoesNotLikeMagic:
** Mortarion calls Malcador "witch", and openly despises him. He somewhat softens to him after the Heresy, but they don't become friends either.
** Death Guard does allow Librarians in their ranks, but keep them isolated. Despite that, they do employ psykers as Apothecaries, who're only trained in the sphere of biomancy.
* TheFriendNobodyLikes: Death Guards aren't liked even by the other Legions, due to their (well-deserved) reputation of jerks and loners. The only groups which willingly allies with them are Grey Knights (who're just as ruthless, and shares hatred for Chaos) and Mechanicum (who're just as sociopathic).
* GoodIsNotNice:
** Mortarion may be on the side of good guys this time, but he's still a jerk, with tendency for unwarranted pettiness. He does get called on this by Leman Russ.
** Death Guard specialises in destroying any and all threats to Humanity, not protection missions. When civilians ends up in the crossfire, it's just collateral damage, though they ''do''give them one day to try and escape, if there're any survivors left.
* HealingHands: Many Death Guard Apothecaries are trained biomants who uses their powers to heal their wounded.
* ImNotHereToMakeFriends: Mortarion doesn't even bother with coming along with any other Primarch, or even the Emperor. He has a duty, and he's gonna do it; that's all that matters.
* IWorkAlone: Just like Mortarion himself, Death Guards really don't like to work with someone outside of their structure, especially when they have to take subordinate role.
* MeaningfulAppearance: After what he survived on the Golden Throne, Mortarion becomes withered and thin, adding to his "grim reaper" appearance; it gets explicitly pointed in-text.
* MercyKill: Death Guard has death at the centre of their philosophy and culture, viewing it not as something terrible, but as the release from suffering that is the life. This puts their specialisation on performing Exterminatus on planets beyond salvation in the different light.
* MiseryBuildsCharacter: Present-day Death Guard shares Mortarion's believe that humans who survives whatever suffering the life throws at them through hard work and strength of will can grow stronger and better.
* OnlySaneEmployee: Originally, the Emperor [[InvokedTrope planned for Mortarion to be]] the only Primarch who stays an outsider and never lets his perception be blinded by affection to Imperium and Emperor -- so if something goes wrong, he would act as a failsafe. However, as pointed by Malcador, he'd forged his own path, becoming something more than merely that.
* SaltTheEarth: The Death Guards are called when any hope to hold the planet is lost, and all that's left is to deny it to the enemy, by utterly destroying it. Notably, they ''do'' give the locals a day to evacuate, despite usually being the resident jerks.
* ShootTheDog: Mortus Poisoners are permanently stationed on Barbarus, to cull any signs of taint (which is still presented, despite Witch-Lords long being gone) amongst civilians of Barbarus; being assigned to work as one is a punishment, reserved only for those already sinful, so the rest of the Legion wouldn't taint themselves with the blood and screams of dying.
* TokenGoodTeammate: Most Death Guards are jerk, even if loyal; Mortarion even more so. And yet, Calas Typhon, of all people, actually works to improve the Legion's reputation by cooperating with the other Legions, earning their approval.
* WeaponSpecialisation:
** Death Guard is the only Legion using the power scythes in battle, and using effectively.
** Death Guard puts much emphasis on destructive chemical and rad weaponry, which other Legions refuses to employ. Such weaponry sometimes causes self-harm.
* YouAreWhatYouHate: Mortarion always hated psykers, but after sitting on the Golden Throne, unlocks his own psychic potential. It doesn't make him accept the psykers, but he at least stops advocating for purging them.

[[folder: Horus and Sons of Horus]]
What if Horus wouldn't fall to Chaos, and would lead the loyalists against the traitors?
----
* AdaptationalHeroism: Horus recovers from attempt to corrupt him, and never turns traitor; and so is his Legion.
* AllowedInternalWar: Sons of Horus allows the gang wars on Chtonia to continue, as they encourages survival of the strongest, whom they then picks for inclusion into legion.
* ArchEnemy: Sons of Horus hates Iron Warriors above all other traitors, due to Perturabo killing Horus. Dark Angels, as architects of Heresy, are the close second.
* ButterflyOfDoom: Horus sends Maloghurst to negotiate on 63-19 instead of Hastur, and when he gets betrayed and killed, Horus orders to just nuke the planet from orbit, instead of storming it. It saves the lives of Hastur and Jubal, which, in turn, [[InvertedTrope saves Horus]]: Hastur Sejanus never dying, and generally higher distrust to sorcery post-Nikaea, makes Chaos unable to corrupt Horus; traitors simply never gets a chance beyond initial stabbing with corrupted dagger.
* DeathByAdaptation:
** Maloghurst gets killed on the world 63-19 instead of [[SparedByTheAdaptation Hastur Sejanus]]; he survived in canon.
** Garviel Loken and Falkus Kibre are amongst Sons of Horus killed during the Heresy; in canon, Kibre is sill alive in the "present time", while Loken is implied to be one of original Grey Knights.
** Lev Goshen gets killed by Blood Angels; he survived the Heresy in canon, only to suffer FateWorseThanDeath later on.
** Abaddon dies during Siege of Terra, killed by Sanguinius; in canon, he outlived both Sanguinius and Horus, and is still alive in the "present" time.
* DemotedToExtra: Hastur Sejanus never dying prevents Garviel Loken to enter Mournival. Loken later gets KilledOffscreen.
* DiesDifferentlyInAdaptation: Iacton Qruze gets slain by Nassir Amit instead of Horus; Nassir [[ForcedToWatch broadcasts his screams of agony]] for enemy to listen.
* FatalFlaw: [[HotBlooded Passion]]; both Horus and his Legion are known for their passion, which gives them strength for heroic feats, but can also lead to their downfall.
** Perturabo exploited it by challenging Horus on a battle, only to use it as an opportunity to kill him with a bomb instead of actually facing him in battle. Since then, Sons of Horus have a special Terminator group, the Luperci ("Brotherhood of the Wolf"), which wears black armour and have iron self-control as a necessary condition for entering, to not suffer the same fate as their liege.
** Sons of Horus have a dubious honour of being the Legion with highest number of Chaos warbands splintering from them, amongst all loyalists. It's directly attributed to their passion, which may be easily exploited by the Ruinous Powers.
* InSpiteOfANail: Horus Aximand still gets beheaded, despite all changes in this timeline; this time, it's Sigismund who kills him.
* NeverFoundTheBody: Horus gets presumably killed by Perturabo's bomb, but as only his weapon and discarded gauntlet gets found, it's possible that he didn't actually die; when Primarchs and/or Chaos are involved, one can never be sure without seeing the death (and sometimes even then).
* PsychoKnifeNut: On Cthonia, the street gangs still exists, and still uses the battle knives in their fierce battles. Even when new recruits gets taken into the Legion (from those gangs), they keeps their old weapons, reforging them into power knives. When they dies, the knives gets melted and used as material for great wall listing the history of their feats.
* RuleOfSymbolism: The battle with Sanguinius costs him an eye; not only an eye is the symbol of the Legion post-renaming, it also adds to the symbolism of Horus' own name.
* SparedByTheAdaptation:
** Hastur Sejanus not only doesn't get killed on 63-19 ([[DeathByAdaptation Maloghurst gets]]), but he's the SoleSurvivor of the Mournival by the end of the Heresy. This also leads to Garviel Loken never joining it, as in canon, he was taken in explicitly to replace Hastur, due to each Mournival member representing certain archetype.
** Xavyer Jubal never gets possessed and killed, as he never descends onto 63-19. He fights on Terra.
** Horus survives the Heresy, albeit not unscarred. He later dies during the Scouring, however.
* StraightForTheCommander: Sons of Horus specialises in crushing the enemy with one swift strike by destroying their commanders, piercing their defences like a spear.
* WeaponSpecialisation: Sons of Horus are the only Legion which uses, alongside other melee weapons, the power knives for close combat (every single one of them, regardless of rank, has a personal power knife); it's a reflection of their Cthonian heritage, as every gang member -- from whom they recruits -- always keeps their knife with them; in fact, they don't even make new knives, but reforges the old ones.

[[folder: Lorgar and Word Bearers]]
What if Emperor actually helped Lorgar to reconsider his faith, instead of just rejecting it?
----
* AdaptationalHeroism:
** Lorgar lives past his resentment of the Emperor for rejecting his faith, and never goes traitor.
** Kor Phaeron is neither Chaos worshipper nor an AbusiveParent.
* AdaptationalVillainy: Barthusa Narek defects with a full quarter of Word Bearers during the Heresy; they're still active even long after, as a Chaos warband. Barthusa was [[TheMole loyalists' agent]] in canon.
* ArchEnemy: Their worst enemies are Ultramarines. Besides initial rivalry they had even prior to the Heresy, there's also the Shadow Crusade and later the death of Lorgar from Guilliman's hands.
* BigBookOfWar: Book of Lorgar, instead of being the collection of blasphemous teachings of Chaos, like it was in canon, is the collections of wisdom, both spiritual and military. For all intends and purposes, it's a Codex Astartes analogue.
* ButterflyOfDoom: {{Inverted|Trope}}, changes in certain events and decisions prevents Lorgar from ever becoming prophet of Chaos he was in canon, and ensures that he stays on the side of loyalists:
** Lorgar's capsule drops right on the Covenant temple, destroying it and killing most of the priests. Kor Phaeron is amongst survivors, but witnessing what he can only perceive as a miracle, he reconsiders his faith, thus preventing him from becoming Chaos worshipper or [[AbusiveParents abusive jerk of a father]] he was in canon. Thus, he never tries to corrupt or subvert Lorgar.
** After destroying Monarchia, instead of just leaving Lorgar to fend for himself (a decision which, essentially, kickstarted the Heresy in canon), the Emperor temporarily assigns Word Bearers to humble and boring garrison duty, while Lorgar spends five years near the Emperor, observing his "god" in his everyday life. This makes him rethink his entire life; when the Emperor allows him to leave, he reorganises his legion and ditches all religious aspects which once were central for its ideology. They went a bit overzealous with it (as it often happens with them), now destroying the planets for refusing to give up on old faiths, going especially harsh on anyone whose faith closely resembles that of Covenant, though it got better with time.
* CharacterDevelopment: Lorgar lives past his resentment of the Emperor for rejecting his devotion, and learns to respect him ''as a man'', not a god.
* ChurchMilitant: Not Word Bearers themselves (who've long lived past their religiousness), but their allies; they notably never calls Imperial Guard for aid, instead working alongside Sisters of Battle, the military force of Ecclesiarchy.
* DeathByAdaptation:
** Kor Phaeron gets killed by Guilliman during battle for Macragge. He's still alive in canon.
** Lorgar gets mortally wounded by Roboute Guilliman during the battle for Macragge, and put into stasis on Khur, with no hope to save him with anything at the humans' disposal. In canon, Lorgar is still alive, albeit doesn't actively participate in any conflict.
* DualityMotif: Post-Heresy, only two out of original four groups of Word Bearers are still active, one based on Colchis, and one based on Khur, both run by their own Legion Masters; and both groups are vastly different. Group from Colchis (run by Zoa Grodna Anchorite) is known as supporters of Imperial Truth, and encourages same on the planet, with it still having traditional way of life and notably not worshipping the Emperor or Lorgar, while Khur (run by Zoa Thiriel [[VideoGame/DawnOfWar Torquill Eliphas the Inheritor]]) is all covered with shrines, and local Astartes are fierce believers of the God-Emperor, and known for being impulsive and zealous; they comes along just well, both because they know that faith isn't required to be the same as long as it's true, and because both agree that original Monarchia was a lesson to learn from. Even their colour schemes are different, with branch from Colchis using grey scheme (the one used before Lorgar, and which Lorgar reinstated after denouncing his faith), and branch from Khur using red scheme (the one used by Word Bearers while they were still on peak of their zealotry).
* DueToTheDead: Position of Zoa Urtha and his branch of Word Bearers were abolished after the death of Argel Tal and entire Gal Vorbak, as it's believed that replacing them would be disrespectful.
* KingInTheMountain: On Khur, many people believe that Lorgar isn't truly dead and would return to them one day, awakening from stasis. Word Bearers are highly sceptical of that, even the Khur branch, but they don't suppress this belief.
* RenegadeSplinterFaction: A full quarter of Word Bearers, commanded by Barthusa Narek, gets subverted into joining the traitors via the usage of warrior lodges (many off them took badly the lack of greater being to worship), renames themselves "Sons of Fuzon" (after a fire spirit from Colchis' mythology) and turns on their comrades on Calth, when they gets cornered by traitorous Ultramarines. Even long after the Heresy, they remains the fiercely hated foe, equally to Ultramarines. This wing of Word Bearers never gets rebuilt, as it gets too tainted by association with traitors.
* RememberTheAlamo: When facing Ultramarines, both branches uses "Remember Monarchia!" battlecry.
* RuleOfTwo: With the death of both Lorgar and Kor Phaeron, the only one fit for command was Erebus; but he wanted no such power, so he installed Zardu Layak as his co-commander. After their deaths, the tradition of having two commanders instead of one was continued and became standard practice. It's also reflected by them having two homeworlds, both of equal importance: Colchis and Khur.
* SparedByTheAdaptation: Cyrene Valantion survives the events of Heresy, and reassures Lorgar that he didn't fail his father: in fact, he's the closest to his designs of all Primarchs. She later also suggests him to not suppress the cult of the Emperor, arguing that humans needs ''something'' to believe in, and God-Emperor isn't the worst they can come up with (clearly hinting at Imperial Cult possibly being replaced by worship of Chaos).
* ThemeNaming: After ditching his religious worship of the Emperor, Lorgar divided his legion into four groups, each run by the leader representing one of the four elements from Colchis' mythology: Zoa Fuzon (fire), Zoa Urtha (water), Zoa Grodna (air) and Zoa Thiriel (air). Of those four, only Zoa Grodna and Zoa Thiriel are still in use; Zoa Fuzon and Zoa Urtha were abolished: the former due to [[AdaptationalVillainy Barthusa Narek]] defecting to Chaos with his entire group (Barthusa Narek forever tainted the title), the latter out of respect to Argel Tal and Gal Vorbak dying protecting Lorgar from Magnus (as replacing them would be disrespectful).
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Vulkan and Salamanders]]
What if Vulkan becomes Praetorian?
----
* AbsoluteXenophobe: Just as much as the Salamanders likes humans, they ''hates'' xenos, with especially burning hatred towards Eldar.
* AdaptationOriginConnection: The Unifiers (elite Mechanicum force) gets created on Vulkan's request after Magnus' betrayal, instead of during the Great Crusade on Emperor's.
* ArchEnemy: Out of all Traitor Legions, the most despised are Iron Warriors, for being so cruel towards common humans; they also remembers how Iron Warriors acted like petty jerks over Perturabo being passed by for position of Praetorian.
* BigGuy: Whenever they cooperates with Imperial Guard, the Salamanders redirects enemy's attention on themselves, knowing that they can take the hit, while their allies can't, after which Imperial Guard has to finish the enemy off. It's compared to an anvil and hammer.
* ButterflyOfDoom: {{Inverted|Trope}}, several changes makes Salamanders play much greater role in the story due to not suffering crippling casualties early on:
** Salamanders never suffers decimation in traitors' ambush, which, by the time of the War of the Beast, allows them to become one of the ''largest'' Legions. Then they suffers massive casualties in the War of the Beast, after which they never fully recovers, [[InSpiteOfANail now being one of the smallest Legions just like in canon]].
** Salamanders avoiding near extermination at the very beginning of Heresy allows them to play by far the larger role in the conflict and after it -- like replacing Imperial Fists in the War of the Beast and the War for Armageddon.
* DeerInTheHeadlights: Post-Heresy, many Terrans have developed innate condition known as "Terra's Lament": basically, they completely freezes in terror in the presence of any Astartes, unable to do or say anything. Salamanders only recruits those who can suppress this condition and reach them on their own.
* {{Determinator}}: Salamanders are known for being extremely stubborn when doing what they believe being right (sometimes, to the point of ignoring contradictory orders, which may result in them being killed). Additionally, they're notoriously more prone to survive seemingly mortal wounds, which resulted in unusually high amount of Dreadnoughts in their ranks. This is a side effect of their Primarch's different personality, which makes them too stubborn to die.
* InSpiteOfANail: Despite now having nothing to do with Nocturne, Salamanders still have pitch-black skin and glowing red eyes, as their new world, Venus, isn't much different in conditions from Nocturne (it even has salamanders analogue, Venus Dragons.
* TheLeader: Vulkan never produces the artifacts for his sons to find (unlike canon), so Forgefathers instead gets used as substitute for Legion Master, making He'Stan the leader of Salamanders instead of a wanderer hero (Tu'Shan is still a Chapter Master, it's just that his rank isn't highest in the Legion anymore).
* SuspiciouslySimilarSubstitute: For all intents and purposes, Venus is exactly the same as Nocturne: heat, lava, radiation and even dangerous dragons.
* VillainKiller: Salamanders are ''the'' best anti-Ork Legion, having facing (and defeating) them so often, and [[KillItWithFire their flamers ensuring that the Orks wouldn't just come back]].
* YouCantGoHomeAgain: While Vulkan is proud that he was chosen as Praetorian, he's sad that he can no longer visit his homeworld of Nocturne or fight side by side with his friend Ferrus Manus. Same applies to his Legion, which is now forced to base on Venus (the closest they could find to their homeworld's conditions).
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Corvus Corax and Raven Guard]]
What if Corvus would perish on Isstvan?
----
* AdaptationalHeroism: Ashen Claws don't turn renegade in this timeline, and after Heresy, reintegrates into Raven Guard, albeit they never forgives Corvus for exiling them either. That being said, [[GoodIsNotNice they're massive jerks]], and spreads that attitude on the rest of the Legion.
* ArchEnemy: The most hated foes of all are the War Hounds (once known as World Eaters); when they gains a chance to avenge the massacre on Isstvan, not even High Lords of Terra can force them to withdraw from vengeance campaign.
* ButterflyOfDoom: Corvus facing much less friendly treatment than in canon drastically changes his legion to the worse:
** Corvus receives same treatment with which Alpharius was hit in canon: Guilliman and Russ thinks that he has no chance to catch up and dismisses him, Dorn and Perturabo dislikes his guerrilla tactics; but he finds a friend in Horus... only to spoil it after the battle for Gate 42. Then he makes a mistake of trusting Angron, who backstabs and kills him. Now, Raven Guard is highly unwilling to trust ''anyone'', making exception for Sons of Horus due to Horus sympathisers taking over after Corvus' death.
** Due to Corvus dying, so many of the Raven Guards succumbing to Sable Brand, and Arkhas Fal returning to assume command, the Raven Guard reverts to their old ways -- that of terror and brutal suppression.
* DeathByAdaptation: Corvus is the first casualty of Heresy, while in canon, he survived throughout its entirety and is still alive in the "present time".
* ExactWords: There are no Librarians in Raven Guard: the Emperor ordered to disband them; however, their Chaplains are psykers, as they believes (just like Word Bearers) that they provides the Emperor's will by interacting with Empyreans. They completely fails to see the difference, and [[DoubleStandard thinks that other Legions' Librarians are "tainted"]].
* GoodIsNotNice: Under Akrhan Fal and his successor's influence, Raven Guard reverts to the old ways, from the days before Corvus reshaped the Legion:
** They're no longer the liberators Corvus dreamed them to be; once again, it's a Legion of enforcers.
** Deliverance was turned back into prison colony, with Raven Guards collecting prisoners for it across the galaxy to add fresh blood and encourage survival of the fittest. People from the other planets in the system gets assigned a debt from the moment they gets born, and they have to regularly pay up, or end up on Deliverance, where [[IndenturedServitude they're used to work in Mechanicum's forges]] (it's estimated that ~7% of population are prisoners or were prisoners at some point). Selling a son to become Astartes clears the debt instantly.
* NeverBeHurtAgain: After being backstabbed by World Eaters, the ones they grew to views as friends, the Raven Guards chose to exile themselves on Deliverance, unwilling to deal with anyone. They temporarily snaps out of it when Alpharius visits them and tells what's going on, asking whether they would join in to save Imperium; but once the Heresy ends, they reverts back to suspecting everyone.
* SelfFulfillingProphecy: Corvus Corax [[KickTheDog unfairly exiled Arkhas Fal]] due to wanting to get rid of everyone who reminds him about Horus and his Legion's old ways. Arkhas Fal returns only when he hears about Corvus' death, and, when Horus appoints him as new Legion Master, exploits it to get rid of his father's tactics and other legacy.
* SocialDarwinist: The Raven Guards despise those too weak to fight back against oppressors. They also encourages competition amongst their ranks, as only the most skilled, cunning, ambitious deserves to rise on the top.
* TerrorHero: Similarly to Night Lords, they strikes from the shadows, eliminates commanders and leaves the enemy scared and expecting ambush on every step.
* TraumaCongaLine: The ill-fated battle for Gates 42, massacre on Isstvan and loss of Primarch, the losses on Chemos, all to not make it in time to Terra and have so little survivors (less than three thousands) that they're barely a Legion now -- Raven Guard just can't catch a break.
* UnPerson: Arkhas Fal made a lot to erase Corvus Corax from the Legion's history, or at least its culture; he partially succeeded, as he's barely remembered now, with only some litanies (mainly those related to stealth) mentioning his name.
* UnscrupulousHero: For as long as their tactics achieves victory, the Raven Guards don't care about such things as collateral damage or amorality.
* WeHardlyKnewYe: Corvus dies early in the story, before he gets a chance to develop past his pre-Heresy backstory. Idea is more of how his Legion would cope without him.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Alpharius Omegon and Alpha Legion]]
What if Alpharius gets raised by Eldrad Ulthran?
----
* AdaptationalHeroism: Alpharius and Omegon spends most of the Heresy fighting in shadows, destabilising the traitors and thwarting their plans; a part of the Legion also greatly assists on Terra. After the Heresy, they helps with improving bureaucracy and Officio Assassinorum, as well as establishing Inquisition. And one Chapter is permanently stationed on Cadia.
* AwesomenessByAnalysis: Armillus Dynat, an Alpha Legion officer, while observing the campaign led by Marius Gage, realises where the enemy's leaders are hiding, and kills them first, swiftly and efficiently -- while Gage was stuck in that campaign ''for months'' without any achievements and with heavy losses. Guilliman gets infuriated, while Dynat earns much favour from Alpharius.
* ButterflyOfDoom: Alpharius (who gets abducted instead of Omegon, who stays on Terra) gets discovered and trained by Eldrad Ultran (and later Harlequins as well). [[InvertedTrope The results are]]:
** Eldrad remains in contact with his student ever since, and warns him not to trust Cabal, saying that they've been manipulated. He suggests to exploit them by [[TheMole pretending that Alpharius sided with them]], so they can later dismantle whatever conspiracy their masters have planned from within. Which Alpharius later does.
** Prior connections makes Alpharius fight Thousand Sons in the Webway not alone, but accompanied by Harlequins. In canon, Eldars stays neutral in the conflict.
* FireForgedFriends: While initially Eldar (other than Eldrad, who adopted him) were cold to Alpharius, later he earned their respect -- in particular, he became close ally with the Harlequins, who've helped him greatly during the Heresy, at the conflict now known as the War in the Webway, when he fought against the Thousand Sons. After the Heresy, he disappeared, and last time he was sighted in M33 accompanied by Harlequins. As for Legion itself, they're noted to suspiciously rarely fight Eldar.
* ManchurianAgent: {{Inverted|Trope}} with Alpha-Legion's spies in Chaos Legions and warbands; they have their original personality suppressed and hidden, until the right time comes, with their programmed cover story taking over for duration of the operation. It usually works, but there's always a risk of [[BecomingTheMask your cover story stopping being the "cover"]].
* TheMole: The Alpha Legion managed to infiltrate their agents in every large group of traitors, even though they all have escaped into various Warp-Storms (Eye of Terror, Maelstrom, etc). The process is [[ManchurianAgent very complex]], but ensures surprisingly low percent of traitors (albeit it's [[BecomingTheMask not fail-proof]]).
* SparedByTheAdaptation: In canon, there were two notable cases when either Alpharius and/or Omegon were ''possibly'' slain -- on Eskrador, and on Pluto. Neither happens here, and only fake deaths are mentioned.
* StealingTheCredit: {{Inverted|Trope}} regarding Alpha Legion; they often hides their involvement, allowing other Legions to take credits for their operations, as they don't want unneeded attention. In one specific case, they hunted down the Daemon-Prince Kor'sarro, beheaded him and put his head on a pike -- but did it in such a way that everyone believed that it was done by the Raven Guard led by Captain Shrike.
[[/folder]]

! Traitors
[[folder: Lion El'Jonson and Dark Angels]]
----
* AdaptationalHeroism: Merir Astelan is amongst those Dark Angels who stays loyal to the Emperor, even when the rest of the legion [[AdaptationalVillainy goes traitor]]; he's a Fallen Angel in canon.
* AdaptationalVillainy: Lion was amongst most fiercely loyal Primarchs in canon; here, he's the initiator of the Heresy.
* BigBad: He's the Arch-Traitor in this timeline, and architect of the Heresy.
* TheChessmaster: Lion nearly achieves victory through his manipulations alone, by dividing the loyalists in such a way that they can't help each other, and nearly slaughtering them one by one -- long before the Siege of Terra.
** Angron and Corvus ends up in Isstvan system, where most of Raven Guard, Corvus included, gets killed when World Eaters backstabs them. When Sangunius comes to investigate, it ends with his own corruption, even if at the cost of Angron's life.
** Lorgar and Konrad comes to investigate what's going on in Ultramar. They gets separated, with Konrad trapped in the Ruinstorm, and Lorgar nearly overwhelmed with the might of Slaanesh-worshipping Ultramarines.
** Space Wolves not only suffers massive casualties, but gets declared traitors themselves (as them being silent suspiciously resembles behaviour of other traitors), and only cleans up their name when Mortarion (himself nearly killed by Star Hunters raiders) pledges for them.
** Horus almost gets corrupted or disposed of multiple times. He gets stabbed on Davin, as per canon, and almost gets corrupted, ''twice''. Then he almost gets intercepted on the way to Terra to heal him. Later, when he returns to Davin, now-corrupted Sanguinius attacks him with his Blood Angels, soon joined by Dark Angels; Horus barely escapes alive.
* TheCorruptor: He's directly behind several Primarchs' downfall, exploiting their flaws or insecurities to turn them against Emperor.
** Lion convinces Sanguinius that him succumbing to Red Thirst would be seen as the sign of corruption, and they all know what happens to corrupt ones; but Lion would cover for him, Sanguinius just has to trust him. He then reinforces his doubts by convincing him that Horus is a power-hungry tyrant who's ready to condemn people for just failing to respond to communications (omitting ''why'' he's doing this), and that Sanguinius (whose secrets Horus knows) may be the next target once Horus learns about what happened on Isstvan. Sanguinius follows him in his plan to "save" Imperium, but only damns himself completely.
** Lion exploits Guilliman's {{pride}}, by appealing to his ego and lying that the Emperor plans to exploit him and throw away; it works so well because it's exactly how Guilliman himself treats other people, so it's easy for him to expect the same in turn.
** Lion and his legion are behind the downfall of Magnus and Thousand Sons:
*** Dark Angels slowly subverts Thousand Sons into serving Tzeentch, starting from Amon.
*** Lion sends Magnus the fake "prophetic" dreams about his future as the corpse on the Golden Throne, and later releases him, knowing that Magnus would make all the wrong assumptions when he sees the Webway project.
* EvilCounterpart: To Konrad Curze. Both grew on the cruel, savage planets, both were untouched by civilisation until much later; but Lion let his inner beast consume him, while Curze had changed once he entrusted the Emperor. Lion outright admits it before killing Curze, albeit he fails to take the lessons out of it.
* GreenEyedMonster: Lion wasn't satisfied with being appointed as Horus' second-in-command: he wanted more, he wanted to be the Warmaster himself.
* HeroKiller: Lion slays Konrad in their duel on Terra, and later mortally wounds the Emperor. Konrad gets buried on Terra, as his homeworld was already destroyed in the aftermath of Night Lords' battle against Emperor's Children.
* PrematurelyGreyHaired: Amongst other signs of his Chaos corruption, Lion gains grey hairs (he was blond) and elderly-looking face.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Fulgrim and Emperor's Children]]
----
* EvilCostumeSwitch: Post-corruption, Emperor's Children, who once wore bright and noble purple armour, now wears the armour coloured like "old bruise", reflecting them falling to Nurgle, god of sickness and death.
* InSpiteOfANail: Somehow, Fulgrim still ends up with the same name, despite it originating from the mythology of Chemos, while he ends up on Chogoris.
* TakeAThirdOption: Meta example. As Fulgrim ended up on Chogoris instead of Chemos in this timeline (Jaghatai instead ends up on Chemos), the question arise how to build his backstory: being adopted by tribesmen was Jaghatai's backstory in canon, and being adopted by Palatine was already done by another fic, so the author instead invents new China-themed faction which also solves the issue just how Fulgrim can fit in on Mongolian-themed planet.
* WalkingWasteland: Post-corruption, Fulgrim spreads death and plague wherever he goes.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Perturabo and Iron Warriors]]
----
* DefectorFromDecadence: One of Iron Warriors' officers (known only as "Honorable Soulaka"), along with his entire battalion, chose to abandon Perturabo after learning of his treachery, and join the loyalists' efforts; they're amongst forces assisting in battle for Nostramo.
* TheDragon: Perturabo serves as Lion's right-hand man, and helps him with to force into compliance some particularly rabid and disobedient legions and Primarchs.
* HeroKiller: Perturabo succeeded at what all other Primarchs failed: he killed Horus.
* MirrorCharacter: In their mindless rivalry, Rogal Dorn and Perturabo shed so much blood, it washed away most of their differences, making the two almost the same brutal siege-masters and butchers, to the point that the two becomes almost interchangeable.
* WeHaveReserves: One of the reasons why Ferrus Manus despises Perturabo in this timeline is his callous disregard for the lives of people under his command -- something Ferrus grew to avoid.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Jaghatai Khan and White Scars]]
----
* AdaptationalContextChange: Jaghatai doesn't rename them "White Scars", unlike canon; they pick this name after his death, not as initiation ritual (as they have nothing to do with Chogoris in this timeline), but as memory of their fallen.
* AdaptationalNameChange: Unlike canon, Jaghatai doesn't rename his Legion "White Scars", as his new backstory gives him no reason for that. [[SubvertedTrope They renames themselves "White Scars" after the Heresy]], albeit they're also known as "Red Corsairs".
* AdaptationalVillainy:
** In canon, Jaghatai was one of the loyalists, rejecting the traitors if nout out loyalty, then for their instanity alone.
** Saul Tarvitz (here, one of White Scars, due to Fulgrim and Jaghatai ending up on each other's homeworlds) was loyalist in canon, even though most of his legion (Emperor's Children in canon) went traitor. Here, he follows his Primarch into damnation.
* ButterflyOfDoom: Jaghatai ends up on Chemos instead of Chogoris (swapping places with Fulgrim). As result, the planet never improves from bring polluted mess, with its people becoming scrappers scavengers. It's pointed in-text that perhaps, in different timeline it could've been different.
* DeathByAdaptation: Jaghatai ends up backstabbed and killed by Guilliman to fuel his ascension; he survived entirety of Heresy in canon.
* DoomedHometown: Raven Guard destroys Chemos during the Heresy; though Jaghatai doesn't live to see it, as Guilliman already backstabbed and killed him by this point.
* HatedHometown: It's stated that Jaghatai hates Chemos, to the point that he prefers to stay away from it, and avoid recruiting its people.
* InSpiteOfANail: Somehow, Jaghatai still ends up with the same name (minus "Khan" part of it), despite ending up on Chemos instead of Chogoris, which uses the different language.
* RewardedAsATraitorDeserves: Jaghatai's "reward" for joining the traitors is getting him and most of his legion killed by Ultramarines, being viewed as tools to use and discard, rather than allies.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Rogal Dorn and Imperial Fists]]
----
* AdaptationalNameChange: During the Heresy, Imperial Fists quickly attains nickname "Crimson Fists" for their brutality; it sticks to the point that it replaces their original name. When the legion branches into two after the Iron Cage fiasco, Dorn's branch retains the name of "Crimson Fists", making it official, while another one falls under command of Sigismund the Destroyer, who renames it "Black Templar" in attempt to distance from Dorn.
* AdaptationalVillainy: In canon, not only Rogal was amongst most fiercely loyal Primarchs, but he was Praetorian of Terra.
* AmbiguousStartOfDarkness: No one knows for sure just ''what'' was the key contributor to Dorn's betrayal. Amongst possible versions are being a runner up for position of Praetorian, and his old feeling of [[DudeWheresMyRespect not being respected and appreciated]], which was doomed to burst out sooner or later.
* AppropriatedAppellation: During the Heresy, Imperial Fists gets renamed "Crimson Fists", the name derived from how Imperials called them for their savagery. Sigismund would later replace it with "Black Templars" as part of reforming the legion.
* ArchEnemy:
** Sigismund hates the Emperor more than anyone else, and any other rivalry (including with Iron Warriors) gets set aside when the time comes to strike against the Imperium.
** Black Templars in general are tend to hate Space Wolves above other loyalists, for them watching over the Eye of Terror. Amongst the veterans of the Great Crusade, it's also common to hate the Salamanders for Vulkan "stealing" position of Praetorian from Rogal Dorn.
* ArtifactOfDeath: So-called Dornsblade is the sword crafted from blood and souls of all those who've died at Sebastus IV during the Iron Cage conflict. It's a reward for defeating all the other participants of the Feast of Blades, and it gives its wielder enormous power... but so far, every wielder keeps dying within a century after acquiring it, with it always returning to find new bearer. It's commonly believed that the sword is cursed, and its current wielder, Lysander, who's bearing it for 99 years, is about to prove or disprove this theory.
* AsskickingLeadsToLeadership: Black Templars believe that only way to prove one's worth is in battle, and until one shows that they're worthy of respect and any position of authority, would be given none, and would bear the rank of Neophyte (compared in-universe to loyalists' Scouts, except here, even actual Space Marines may be treated as "Neophytes").
* BrokenPedestal: In the aftermath of the Iron Cage fiasco, Sigismund rejected Rogal Dorn and formed his own legion, naming it Black Templars, as he now sees his primarch as a failure. Unlike canon Black Legion (whose role those Templars play in this timeline), Black Templars exists alongside Dorn's loyalists (who're called the Crimson Fists).
* ButterflyOfDoom: Several changes contributes to Rogal Dorn losing his loyalty to the Emperor and joining traitors:
** Rogal Dorn being defeated by Konrad Curze in their duel on Cheraut doesn't stay secret (unlike canon), and seriously spoils Dorn's reputation, as his detractors (chief amongst them [[TheRival Perturabo]]) used it to call him a "weakling", in which many actually believed. With Curze's reputation quickly improving after his "rehab" by the Emperor, entire Cheraut incident starts being viewed differently, with [[HeroWithBadPublicity Imperial Fists]] as the butchers and Night Lords as protectors, while it was the other way around.
** Rogal Dorn, after series of campaigns in the worlds destroyed by the Orks, grew to hate greenskins above any other xenos. He sees a chance to strike at them by joining the Ullanor Crusade... but [[TheRival Perturabo]] beats him to it, and his offer of help gets declined: Horus knows that [[WeAreStrugglingTogether having them both together is a receipt for disaster]]. Angry at such blatant disrespect, Rogal Dorn (who's now nowhere as stoic as his canon self) even considers to cease operating at all, as [[DudeWheresMyRespect he doesn't see the reason why his sons should die for the people who don't see any value in their sacrifices]], but resists it. Neither of the two Primarchs participated in it in canon.
** As by the point when Nikaea takes place, Rogal Dorn is no longer the stoic and professional man he was at the beginning of the Crusade, letting his rivalry with Perturabo to consume him, Horus can't just give either him or Perturabo to build an amphitheatre, and instead he makes them do it together... only for them to botch everything, due to zero efforts being made to cooperate, so it's Vulkan who has to fix things up. When the two continues conflict at Nikae council as well, it seals neither of them being approved for the position of Praetorian -- which, perhaps, was the last straw for Dorn.
* CannonFodder: Neophytes forms the bulk of any Black Templar force, and serve mainly to take shots instead of more valuable members. [[AsskickingLeadsToLeadership Those who prove themselves strong and skilled can climb higher]].
* DeathByAdaptation:
** Mathias has died at some point during the Great Crusade, crushed beneath a glacier on Inwit (the planet became ''extremely'' seismically-unstable). As no catastrophes of such scale happened to Inwit in canon, he presumably survived the Heresy.
** Fafnir Rann gets killed during the First Black Crusade. In canon, he's the founder of Executioners Chapter, and no data exists on how he died.
* DoomedHometown: Rogal Dorn's arrival on Inwit doesn't go as smoothly; stasis pod lands in such a way that it provokes earthquakes (killing a lot of people) and starting massive non-stopping volcanic activity, which slowly renders planet uninhabitable, both from getting even colder (all the ash in atmosphere obstructs the sun) and from air being unbreathable (to the point that many elderly suffocates to death, including Dorn's adoptive grandfather). It gets estimated that in few centuries, local humans would go extinct, so Don has to evacuate those who're still alive to ''Phalanx'' and abandon the planet. The planet remains in use after contact with Imperium, but conditions on Inwit never improves. Ultimately it gets destroyed during the Great Scouring: the planet gets nuked, which triggers the planetary core overheating and exploding.
* DoubleBlindWhatIf: Rogal Dorn sees the Warp-given visions of the countless alternate timelines -- in some he's a hero he wanted to be, accepted and beloved, in some he's even worse monster, fully succumbing to Chaos -- and can't help but wonder: what would've been had things gone the other way? And what future awaits him now?
* DragonInChief: Rogal Dorn [[OrcusOnHisThrone secluded in his fortress]], with only his loyalists occasionally showing up, so it's up to Sigismund to lead what's left of the legion in his absence. For all intents and purposes, Sigismund fulfils the role which Abaddon played in canon, even though he's not from a legion of Heresy's BigBad and his Primarch is still alive.
* DudeWheresMyRespect: Dorn's fate is somewhat similar to that of Perturabo in canon, but if Perturabo never had respect to begin with, Rogal Dorn gradually lost it after Cheraut campaign went poorly. Respected, but not ''liked'' (due to his BrutalHonesty), Dorn accumulated many enemies over years, who readily believed when the rumours started spreading about him being "weak" due to Konrad Curze beating him at Cheraut (unlike canon, the news leaked out), while his legion got its reputation ruined as atrocities committed by Night Lords allies were attributed ''to them''. Facing hatred and lack of acknowledgement on every turn, he starts losing passion to the Great Crusade. He sees a chance to prove himself when the Ullanor Crusade gets announced... but Horus refuses his offer, as he already recruited [[TheRival Perturabo]], who simply asked first, and Horus knows that the two can't stand each other; this spoils their relationship and makes Dorn dislike him, while in canon he was one of those who openly supported him being appointed a Warmaster. At Nikaea, the Emperor appoints Vulkan as Praetorian, instead of Dorn or Perturabo, being disappointed in both; Dorn, at this point accustomed to see mockery everywhere, takes this as personal insult, and angrily rejects the explanation Malcador tries to give him. The traitors shows him not much respect, either, as, for betraying Imperium and the Emperor, he deserves none. Later he outright states the lack of acknowledgement as the reason behind his betrayal, pointing that Curze and Lorgar, the wrongdoers, were forgiven and embraced, while his flawless service was ignored.
-->'''Malcador''': I have come to beg you to change your course before it is too late. You alone have this choice, for your father understands what you have been through.\\
'''Rogal Dorn''': He understands nothing. I served Imperium loyally for centuries, and was repaid with betrayal. Curze and Lorgar flout his decrees without penalty, whereas my sons and I are insulted and demeaned.
* EnemyCivilWar: At one point, Soul Drinkers were kicked out from the ranks of Black Templars (forever remaining renegades amongst renegades) for starting a civil war (tricked into it by daemon of Tzeentch).
* EvilCostumeSwitch: As they starts succumbing to Lion's corruption, Imperial Fists gradually ditches their signature yellow colour in favour of stone-grey. Sigismund would later replace that with pitch black, as they turn into Black Templars.
* FallenHero: Dorn was noble and heroic, but his own insecurities eventually brought him to damnation. When he joins the traitors' cause, he still has some innate nobility left, but over time it withers as he starts caring less and less about blood he spills (to the point his legion gets nicknamed "Crimson Fists").
* FatalFlaw: Rogal Dorn, in attempt to find just ''why'' people mistreat him so much, grows too obsessed with undoing and besting Perturabo (whom he sees as the source of his problems) to concentrate on salvaging his own already-crumbling reputation. When he joins the traitors, their rivalry goes hot -- and Perturabo, who's cold and rational, consistently bests him, as ''he'' doesn't let his grudges blind him.
* FlatEarthAtheist: Rogal Dorn refused to believe that such things as "gods" can exist, even when the other traitors starts worshipping them, and receiving their "gifts". But he becomes interested in just what else they may be, if not gods, and decides to study them. This approach later developed into NayTheist worldview.
* HeroWithBadPublicity: Major contributor to Dorn's downfall was his reputation, which took heavy hit after Cheraut incident (both because he was accused of being "weak" for being defeated by Curze, and because blame for the massacre was put ''on Imperial Fists'' rather than Night Lords, which people readily believed when Curze returned a renewed man), not in the small turn because of his detractors, chief amongst them Perturabo. As Dorn's infamous BrutalHonesty made no one willing to be his friend, no one took offence at it and tried to protect him, instead believing the lies.
* HighTurnoverRate: Post-Heresy Crimson Fists never stays on Plahanx with their Primarch for long; after certain amount of time, each of them gets his memory wiped and joins Sigismund's Black Templar, with the new recruits replacing them; Sigismund doesn't know why is this happening, but doesn't object, as it ensures that he has a steady supply of reliable and hardened warriors.
* MirrorCharacter: In their mindless rivalry, Rogal Dorn and Perturabo shed so much blood that it washed away most of their differences, making the two almost the same brutal siege-masters and butchers, to the point that the two becomes almost interchangeable.
* NayTheist: Initially unwilling to admit that the Chaos Gods even exists, Rogal Dorn and his legion did admit it eventually -- but chose to master the Warp rather than submit to it and any of the Dark Gods. Sigismund shares this approach, believing that submitting to Ruinous Powers means becoming a slave of those more interested in their eternal game, than his struggle against the Imperium.
* NeverMyFault: Malcador rightfully tells Dorn that he and Perturabo let their rivalry to define them and eclipse their own virtues and accomplishments, and that's why neither of them was chosen as the Praetorian. Unfortunately, Dorn is too far gone by this point to see his wisdom, and when Malcador tries to prevent him from leaving, he ''pushes'' him, which, had it not for him being more than a mere old man, certainly would've killed him. After the Heresy, he similarly blames everyone but himself for the Siege failing (chiefly [[TheRival Perturabo]]).
-->'''Rogal Dorn''': You want me on the wall, you NEED me on that wall! You speak of honor and loyalty, and then turn around and stab me in the back again and again!\\
'''Malcador''': Please Rogal, you need to calm down. I have known you for over a hundred and sixty years. You and I are far closer than any of your brothers, have I not given you sound advice in the past?\\
'''Rogal Dorn''': Then why was I not chosen? Keep in mind, Regent, that refusing to answer the questions of Imperials of high stature is punishable by death.\\
'''Malcador''': It is good to see your humour is still intact. Ever since the incident on Cheraut, you have allowed anger to rule your heart. Konrad is not the man you believe him to be, nor is Perturabo. In a way, the Emperor's decision is your own, Rogal. You refuse to change, or to admit others have changed, and that is why you were not chosen as Praetorian.
* TheOnlyOneAllowedToDefeatYou: Rogal Dorn wanted vengeance against Konrad Curze more than anything, but Lion had killed him, and then was slain himself, so Dorn can't even kill ''him'' instead. As substitute, he directs his hatred at Dark Angels.
* OrcusOnHisThrone: Post-Heresy, Rogal Dorn never leaves ''Phalanx'' which he keeps in the depths of the Eye of Terror. Some Inquisitors even dare to presume that he's no longer alive, others think that he's merely preparing the plan how to claim his vengeance.
* SeriousBusiness: It's noted that, unlike other traitors, Imperial Fists takes their wows ''very'' seriously, not breaking them under any circumstances; the same applies to their sense of duty. Oathbreaking is amongst things they have zero tolerance for, and punish with extreme prejudice.
* TeamKiller: After his fall to Chaos, Rogal Dorn occasionally puts his rivalry with Perturabo above common goal, to the point of attacking the forces under him ''in the middle of an operation'' (which the loyalists exploits).
* TeethClenchedTeamwork: Black Templars hates mutants and psykers, which makes them less than pleased when they have to work alongside Thousand Sons.
* UnreliableExpositor: One of the reasons why information on Imperial Fists is so unreliable is because much of it comes from captured Ygethmor the Deceiver.
* WithUsOrAgainstUs: During the Heresy, it was standard practice to give the planets attacked by Imperial Fists a single chance to surrender, with very little time to think it over, and if someone fails to submit in time, they just slaughters the planet entirely.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Sanguinius and Blood Angels]]
What if Sanguinius would be discovered by mutants rather than humans?
----
* AbusiveParents: Post-Heresy, Sanguinius despises Blood Angels (in heavy contrast to his canon self), thinking them weak and pathetic; most of them unaware of this and, in vain, tries to earn his favour, while some, like Nassir Amit, are aware, and prefer to keep their distance.
* AdaptationalVillainy: Sanguinius was one of the nicest and most heroic Primarchs in canon, the symbol of hope. Here, he goes murderously insane.
* AdaptedOut: There's no Dante; according to the author, there was no way to incorporate him into this timeline: in canon, he was notoriously old even for Astartes, but it's not gonna work here.
* ArchEnemy:
** Blood Angels wants revenge for their defeat on Terra, with Sons of Horus (whose Primarch was the one to defeat Sanguinius) being the the prime target of their hatred; it's one-sided, however, as Sons of Horus hates Iron Warriors much more, as Horus was in turn killed by Perturabo.
** Ka'Bandha plots to destroy Blood Angels, being unable to forgive humiliation at Signus; he's hated in turn, but nowhere near to same degree (he loses competition to several much more loathed foes).
* TheBerserker: Sanguinius' sanity takes major hits on Isstvan and later on Davin, but he completely loses it on Signus, becoming bloodthirsty berserker. Unsurprisingly, he becomes the chosen of Khorne.
* BloodMagic: Appropriately-name Gore-Magic are the Khornate priests who uses blood and intestines to predict where the next battle would happen, and to summon Khorne daemons. Khorne seems to tolerate them, as they don't go beyond that and into territory of actual sorcery, do fight on their own occasionally, and, well, thanks to them, Blood Angels always have fresh blood to spill.
* TheBrute: Both Sanguinius and the Blood Angels, under Khorne's corruption, became too furious to bother with any complex tactics, and too insane to bother with strategy beyond overwhelming the enemy with rage and strength, to the point that they have to be forced to abandon their quest for blood and join the campaign proper.
* ButterflyOfDoom: Sanguinius lands on Baal instead of it moon Baal Secundus, and gets adopted not by humans, but by mutants; it drastically reshapes his fate comparing to that in canon:
** The mutants readily takes him as their own, but completely lacks what it takes to build a civilisation, even with Sanguinius by their side: no amount of teaching Sanguinius gives them can prevail against their twisted nature and innate corruption. He wouldn't meet any normal humans until Blood Angels arrives on the planet and starts exterminating mutants, which results in him attacking, killing and draining of blood their then-commander. This makes him doubt his own nature, thinking that maybe he's a mutant too, an abomination; and he knows all too well what an end awaits a mutant... When the Red Thirst starts manifesting more and more often, Sanguinius starts wondering whether he would eventually succumb to it himself, and starts fearing to go into battle, not trusting his self-control... only to realise that if he wants to prevent the visions of dark future of war and death, he ''has'' to fight. Sanguinius' insecurity makes him more vulnerable when he ''does'' succumb to the Red Thirst (alongside his entire legion), and once the corruption starts, it becomes more and more easy to strengthen it, until he finally succumbs to Khorne, in search of freedom from doubts and fears -- with Khorne just letting him embrace his dark nature and rejoice.
** First contact between Sanguinius and his legion occurs when Blood Angels (by then not yet named that) purges Ball of mutants, and Sanguinius attacks them, before learning his true heritage. The memory of them slaughtering his adoptive family, and fierce hatred to mutants in general (while Sanguinius is so insecure regarding his own nature) prevents him from bonding with his legion, or even with Emperor, who does little to resolve his insecurities; he only forms some bonding with Horus, who learns about Red Thirst, [[SecretKeeper but promises to keep silent about it]]. As Sanguinius is less supportive of Emperor, he's not as understanding when Librarians gets banned, seeing it as forbidding people to be who they are (which is dangerously close to his own insecurities about mutants). Lion later exploits those insecurities, feeding his paranoia regarding not being accepted, both for his flaws and for slaying Angron (regardless of reasons).
* TheChosenMany: In this timeline, Lamenters are the group of Khorne's chosen which originally manifested all the way back into the days of Heresy, instead of long after it. They're also immune to both Red Thirst and Black Rage, as a blessing from Khorne.
* CloudcuckoolandersMinder: Blood Magi (Khorne priests, tasked with various rites and daemon summoning) also serves the voice of reason, carefully guiding the otherwise mostly-berserk Blood Angels and choosing their targets; they're respected and obeyed, as even most insane Blood Angels understands that their wisdom is why sons of Sanguinius didn't go extinct yet.
* DiesDifferentlyInAdaptation: In canon, Ishidur Ossuros died protecting Sanguinius (with his body never recovered, it means he's KilledOffForReal); here, Sanguinius accidentally kills him himself when his first contact with legion goes poorly, and drains his body of all blood, learning his name in process.
* DragonAscendant: After Sanguinius was banished by Horus, legion essentially collapsed: Azkaellon, in aftermath of that, Ascended himself and immediately disappeared in the Warp, while Raldoron was later slain during power struggle, leaving Nassir Amit the only one still capable of uniting the warbands of those who once were Blood Angels into anything resembling a legion. Sanguinius briefly returns during First War for Armageddon, where he nearly kills Logan Grimnair, but gets banished again.
* FallenAngel: Before his FaceHeelTurn, Sangunius was known as the Angel, noble and beautiful, with massive wings behind his back. As he goes insane and embraces Khorne's corruption, he loses his wings, and then, when Horus defeats him on Terra, he falls from Eternity Wall, symbolically cast away and banished from the kingdom of the God-Emperor by His greatest son, into the depths of hell that is the Warp. Since then, every other Blood Angel shares the pain as if they had the wings too, and too had them torn off.
* HorrorHunger: By giving in to Khorne, Sanguinius gave up on the hope to cure Red Thirst, and instead embraced it. Now, Blood Angels starts feeling pain if they don't taste blood for too long; that's why they keep so many human slaves, and always need more prisoners.
* HumanResources: Post-Heresy, Blood Angels uses their human slaves not only as, well, slaves, but also the source of blood to satisfy Red Thirst, and for various dark rituals. People of the planet Akeldama (Daemon World chosen by them as their new homeworld) generally agrees that being enslaved by them is FateWorseThanDeath.
* InSpiteOfANail: Sanguinius and Blood Angels ended up servicing Khorne, yet they still have mutual hatred with Ka'Bandha (and by proxy all Bloodthirsters): Ka'Bandha hates Sanguinius for refusing to bow to him and humiliating him, Sanguinius hates him for causing his downfall.
* TheJinx: In complete inversion of what they were in canon, Lamenters brings bad luck to those who oppose them, rather than suffer from it themselves: weapons keep breaking, jamming, missing, etc against them.
* LightIsNotGood:
** As some twisted joke, Blood Angels have barely mutated, still resembling pretty young-looking men they once were; this only adds to whole "fallen angel" motif, especially due to creepy bloody-red armour they wear.
** Sanguinary Guard breaks standard bloody-red colour scheme and wears golden armour instead... and all of them are half-daemons.
* MyBloodRunsHot: Post-ascension, Sanguinius' blood becomes so hot, it causes severe burns to anyone who comes into contact with it. Horus learns it [[EyeScream the hard way]] while fighting him on Terra.
* TheOnlyOneAllowedToDefeatYou: The reason why Blood Angels are at odds with Iron Warriors (besides generally terrible treatment during the Heresy); Sanguinius resents Perturabo for "stealing" his chance to kill Horus.
* OnlySaneMan: Nassir Amit (also known as "Flesh Tearer") was notoriously HotBlooded in canon (which is the source of the name), but, due to never fully succumbing to Red Thirst, he starts looking sane and stable by comparison to the rest of Blood Angels; this does not strip him of Khorne's favour (in fact, he's his chosen champion), even when the rest of the legion gets abandoned. When the feud starts, he refuses to take part in it, sparing his followers decimation in the internal war, and later assembles what's left of Star Hunters (who were leaderless in the wake of Jaghatai's presumed death) before Siege of Terra. Post-Heresy, he's the only leader still pursuing reuniting the Blood Angels. Inquisition generally agrees that without him, Blood Angels would've long since went extinct. According to the author, idea was to demonstrate Khorne's often-neglected aspect of the War God (instead of just "Blood God"), which Amit manifests through martial prowess, tactical insight and ability to lead ''not'' by killing anyone who refuses to submit.
* PhonyPsychic: PlayedWith. Some Inquisition believes that all the future-telling rituals (all involving mutilation and spilling blood, cause it's Khorne worshippers we're talking about) which Gore-Magic performs to tell where next battle would occur, are just the ruse, as it doesn't take a psychic to guess that wherever Blood Angels go, they would bring slaughter with them, and that those "magi" are just psykers trying to save their skin by finding non-"witch" explanation for their talents (Khorne tolerates them due to them never going beyond those rituals and daemon-summoning). Yet, those who insist on that fails to notice that, firstly, one of Sanguinius' gifts to his son is precognition, and secondly, their sheer success rate, including against magic users.
* ThePowerOfBlood: To contrast with canon World Eaters (who're all about wrath and hatred), Blood Angels puts less emphasis on rage, and more on blood: besides their name and heraldic, there's rampant Red Thirst, usage of blood as the fuel for everything, from tech to BloodMagic, and ritual offerings of blood to Khorne (in more ways that just spilling it).
* RuleOfSymbolism: Sanguinius was literally known as The Angel, but fell to Chaos:
** When Sanguinius agrees to pledge himself to Khorne, Ka'Bandha tears out his wings, after which he transforms into daemonic monstrosity himself.
** When Horus defeats Sanguinius on Terra, he throws him off the Eternity Wall, symbolically banishing him from the kingdom of God-Emperor, and Sanguinius sumberges into the hell that is the Warp.
* SkewedPriorities: Blood Angels are notoriously obsessed with blood, both to satisfy the Red Thirst, and to spill it in the name of Khorne -- sometimes, at the cost of actually ''winning'' the battle.
** Sanguinius was too buys making Hastur's death into a ritual sacrifice to Khorne to ensure that Horus actually died from his attack. This allows Horus to banish him -- also stopping him from actually finishing off Hastur.
** It's observed that often, Blood Angels neglect finishing off the enemy, instead preferring to exsanguinating the dead and injured amidst the battle. Additionally, many battles gets started with zero strategic value, but just because there's more blood to spill.
* SlowlySlippingIntoEvil: Sanguinius doesn't fall to Khorne immediately; each time he succumbs to his wrath to fight off whatever enemy, he comes closer to succumbing to corruption completely. Firstly, he succumbs to the Red Thirst himself for the first time while fighting Angron (and feels how his entire legion does the same while fighting World Eaters). Then, Warp corruption affects him while fighting Slaaneshi daemons while en route to Davin, with Angron's severed head sort of amplifying the effect. By the time he arrives to Signus, he's desperate enough to make the final choice and pledge himself to Khorne.
* SparedByAdaptation: Meros doesn't get killed, and instead becomes a Knight Errant.
* TearsOfBlood: As Sanguinius' corruption starts to manifest, he starts "crying" with blood (some blood also comes from him nose); the first time it manifests is when he gets exposed to corrupting effect of Angron's severed head while ambushed by Slaaneshi daemons en route to Davin.
* TragicVillain: Sanguinius' downfall is the result of his insecurities about own future and future of his legion, the fear that they're "damned" and wouldn't be forgiven, which Lion readily exploits. Decision to embrace Khorne, however, is his own: Sanguinius ultimately picks the easy way.
* YouKillItYouBoughtIt:
** Sanguinius and Angron always "shared" the title of "Red Angel", but Sanguinius thinks that he kinda "earned" it for himself after killing Angron. But he gained not only that title; by slaying Angron, he proved to Khorne that he's a better champion than Angron was, and becomes new target for corruption.
** One of the Blood Angels' relic is the Red Grail which contains the blood of Sanguinius from just before he was banished, as well as that of countless other Blood Angels. It always has the bearer, who has to slay the previous one and add his blood into it; current bearer, Corbulo, is well-aware that some day, his blood would end in it, too.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Angron and World Eaters]]
What if Angron gets killed before he leads his Legion to Khorne?
----
* AdaptationalNameChange: After the Heresy, World Eaters [[MeaningfulRename ditches the name given to them by Angron]] and reverts to War Hounds, as they sees their dead Primarch as not worthy of their loyalty or worship.
* AdaptationalVillainy: While overall story of Angron stays the same, some moments are altered to make him look less sympathetic and add some crimes he didn't commit in canon:
** Angron exterminates all people of Desh'ea during his rebellion. Later he brutally conquers Nuceria and executes all noble houses which ever opposed them, down to the last person. To make the readers sympathise with him less, Desh'ea looks ''slightly'' more civilised, while many of Angron's problems gets shown as his own fault (like [[OpenMouthInsertFoot insulting the judge to his face]], ''when he was about to be declared non-guilty'').
** In canon, Angron attacks his sons in blind rage (with Gheer as first casualty), feeling that the man who took his family of choice from him is trying to replace it with them; here, he coldly orders his sons to beat Gheer to death -- for the "crime" of being "too devoted to Emperor".
** Angron is more active in his hatred for Emperor, and constantly insists that he doesn't care about his sosn and only sees them as tools; but in this timeline, the Emperor does nothing bad to him at any point: the only person he has any reason to loath is Roboute Guilliman, whom the Emperor stopped.
* AnarchyIsChaos: War Hounds respects and obeys no one, and are free to do as they please. What they do with this freedom? [[RapePillageAndBurn Slaughter, pillage and enslave every faction indiscriminately]], including other Chaos Legions: they absolutely can't tolerate any and all order and organisations, and seeks to destroy them, with religion of any kind (Imperial Cult, Machine Cult, all four Dark Gods) being the primary targets. This anarchy, however, makes it hard for them to cooperate, as no one is willing to submit to anyone. This mindset is most prominent amongst Zuvassines branch.
* ArchEnemy: It's stated that the War Hounds hates Raven Guard more than other Legion, as they exemplifies everything they swore to destroy -- order and and blind obedience; the hatred is mutual, as it was Angron who slew Corax.
* AscendedExtra: Kho'ren is a minor Chaos Lord in canon. Here, he's the closest War Hounds have to the leader.
* BattleCry: {{Averted|Trope}}, similarly to Death Guard; War Hounds deliberately chose not to use ''any'' battlecries, fighting in complete silence (and even making their armour to not produce any noise).
* BodyHorror: After Isstvan, all World Eaters with Butcher Nails installed have merged with their weapons, producing first Mutilators.
* BrokenPedestal: War Hounds ''hates'' Angron and dismisses his legacy in everything. They ditched the name he gave them, "World Eaters", and his excessive reliance on rage (as well as practice of using the Butcher Nails).
* ButterflyOfDoom: PlayedWith. Angron gets discovered when his rebellion goes much smoother. This ensures that he's not as dysfunctional as he was in canon, so he doesn't start installing the Butcher Nails en-masse (still despising them), with only ~20% ever receiving them. When he [[DeathByAdaptation gets killed]], his Legion manages to shake off his legacy and not fall to Khorne, albeit they don't become good guys either, and most of them later turn into something ''even nastier'' than World Eaters were.
* ChronicBackstabbingDisorder: Zuvassines made idea of constantly backstabbing everyone central to their "ideology"; and they spread same mindset on other people they interact with. As they can't make allies with Imperium (and thus, can't betray it), they mainly deals with other Chaos factions.
* ColorCodedForYourConvenience: Necohites wears white-with-black armour. Zuvassines wears black-with-white armour. Then there's Kho'ren Kraad (presumed to be the closest War Hounds have to a leader), whose followers wears the mix of white and black in roughly equal proportions, which blends to the point of looking closer to grey.
* DeathByAdaptation:
** Angron gets beheaded by Sanguinius early in the Heresy. He's still alive in canon.
** Perturabo kills Kharn when he and his followers tries to attack him on Saros. Kharn is still alive in canon.
* DemotedToExtra: World Eaters barely plays the role in the plot post-Isstvan, with only small portion of them showing up on Terra at all, only to get wiped out ''by the other traitors'', as Dorn is [[TeamKiller just that bad]] when he has to cooperate with Perturabo (and Kharn gets unceremoniously killed on his introduction). That being said, the ending of their chapter suggests that War Hounds may become a new major power in the conflict in the future, with some sinister plan being already set in motion.
* EvilCannotComprehendGood: [[KnightTemplar Angron]] consistently fails to comprehend that Emperor ''isn't'' trying to create his personal empire, but rather works for humanity's better future, and keeps believing that he's [[EvilOverlord an evil tyrant who wants to enslave everyone]]. So he thinks that he should kill him to "save" the galaxy.
* EvilVersusEvil: What's remained of World Eaters (now calling themselves "War Hounds", reverting to their pre-Angron name) are still villains, but they hates Dark Gods just as much as Imperium, raiding every faction. They ''do'' use Chaos, but serves no God.
* TheFriendNobodyLikes: No Primarch comes along with Angron, either for him being a jerk, his Legion being a bunch of psychos, or Angron's total lack of respect for the Emperor.
* HatesEveryoneEqually: One of the two dominant "schools of thought" amongst War Hounds, Necohites, insists that they should hate every group equally, not accepting that some may be hated more than the others. Despite this, they tends to face Imperium most often, dedicated to destroy Imperial Cult.
* HeroKiller: Angron slays Corvus Corax on Isstvan III, and destroys most of the Raven Guard.
* {{Hypocrite}}: Angron despises those of his children who've installed Butcher Nails as "slaves to their anger". While one half indeed installed them on their own initiative in misguided attempt to imitate Angron, the other half was "rewarded" with those ''by Angron himself''.
* ImAHumanitarian: War Hounds often practices cannibalism.
* InSpiteOfANail: While Angron's story takes some changes, it doesn't prevent some key events from happening:
** Angron gets adopted by farmers, instead of being captured. After growing up, he gets sent to Desh'ea to find a better life, and starts helping people in the slums, sympathising with their suffering. Then the local government arrests him under first flimsy excuse they can find (him allegedly being a runaway slave and instigator of rebellion), and makes him a gladiator.
** Angron's rebellions starts before he starts going insane, so he's more competent at it. Then Guilliman arrives and suppresses it, with only Emperor's intervention stopping Roboute from killing Angron.
** In canon, Angron hates the Emperor from day one because the Emperor abducted him from the battlefield, leaving his people to die; here, he hates him from day one because his Butcher Nails reacts to his presence strangely, causing him extra pain, and he brings associations with High-Riders.
* KnightTemplar: Angron believes that he should free humanity from "enslavement"... with Imperium and Emperor being "slavers". And when fighting slavers, no method is too dirty, down to and including installing Butcher Nails.
* TheRemnant: After Angron's death, the Legion collapsed; some turned Black Shields (their subsequent fate unknown), some joined Perturabo (specifically, everyone with Butcher Nails installed), only to get wiped out on Terra by [[TeamKiller Imperial Fists]], but the rest are still alive and fighting, now serving no-one but themselves.
* SmallRoleBigImpact: Despite being killed and removed from the plot so early, Angron plays key role in shaping the Raven Guard into what they are in this timeline, by slaying Corvus Corax and wiping out so many of them on Isstvan.
* SparedByTheAdaptation: Lhorke has died during the Heresy in canon, but he's still alive in this timeline (albeit Blood Angels comes close to finish him off at one point).
* TheStarscream: Angron planned to kill Lion and usurp control over traitorous forces. His death by Sanguinius' hands prevents it.
* StrawNihilist: War Hounds hates everyone and everything -- including themselves. This world has no meaning, no purpose, and that's why it should be burned to the ground, starting with anything that pretends that there's something more, like religions or philosophies, human-made or Warp-born. This mindset is most prominent amongst Necohites.
* WeHardlyKnewYe:
** Angron dies at the very start of the Heresy, with little fanfare. He's more important through consequences of his death than he ever was in life.
** Kharn gets introduced as the first Mutilator -- only to get immediately killed by Perturabo.
* WhereIWasBornAndRazed: Upon receiving command of his Legion, Angron uses it to conquer Nuceria and slaughter all noble houses which ever opposed him, starting with Thal'kr. He then leaves the planet for his former Eaters of Cities to control as they sees fit, and departs with World Eaters.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Roboute Guilliman and Ultramarines]]
What if Roboute's family wouldn't give him as good influence as he had in canon?
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* AdaptationalJerkass: Roboute Guilliman is an arrogant jerk in this timeline, due to having [[LadyMacbeth much worse mother figure]] than what he had in canon. Notably, where in canon, destruction of Monarchia was [[ShootTheDog dirty business]], here, he takes sadistic pleasure at humiliating Lorgar.
* AdaptationalVillainy: Roboute was noble, heroic and wise leader in canon. Here, he's a tyrant, murderer (including of his own adoptive father) and just jerk. And that's ''before'' he turns traitor and embraces Slaanesh.
* AndIMustScream: For those who screws up particularly badly, Ultramarines have a special punishment: the coffin-like contraptions where they can lock people up for absolute sensory deprivation, including the sense of time. For sense-freaks all Slaaneshi worshippers are, it's literally the only punishment which can actually scare them.
* ArtifactName: Ultramarines were named after signature blue colour of Macragge's oceans, with armour reflecting it. There's no Macragge anymore, and they no longer wields old colours.
* ButterflyOfDoom: Roboute's pod gets accompanied by (possibly even triggers) an earthquake which kills many people, [[DeathByAdaptation including Euten]]. Konor has to marry Gallan's daughter Atia. Atia has much worse influence on Roboute than Euten was in canon: Roboute would grow narcissistic and power-hungry. As result, Roboute sees other Primarchs as either being below him (most of them), the tools to use and discard (like Ferrus Manus or Rogal Dorn), or the rivals he has to compete against (Horus). He does not react well to being passed over for position of Warmaster.
* ChallengeSeeker: Sometimes, Ultramarines deliberately attacks most fortified targets just to test themselves.
* ControlFreak: Guilliman's tendency for organisation and systematisation which he showed in canon, here degenerates into obsession with keeping everything under his control, as part of his narcissism. Even "Codex Astartes" analogue he writes, "Codex Catamitus", is mandatory for everyone to know and memorise.
* EvilCostumeSwitch: Post-corruption, Ultramarines no longer wears their signature ultramarine-blue armour, instead wearing common for Slaaneshi worshippers insane mess of mismatching bright colours. They keep the old name nonetheless.
* TheHedonist: As may be expected from Slaaneshi worshippers, Ultramarines often cares about nothing but indulging own's addiction to sensations. Some instead tries restricting themselves, but solely because indulging after self-denying feels even more sweet.
* HeroKiller: Roboute Guilliman kills Kor Phaeron and mortally wounds Lorgar, in the same battle.
* HighTurnoverRate: Post-Heresy, Ultramarines are known for recruiting massive numbers of new recruits, only to waste them all in the first major engagement; it's very rare for them to have any veterans at all. They can get away with it due to having so large numbers to begin with, and having a separate Warp storm all for themselves.
* {{Jerkass}}: Guilliman was a massive jerk and bully even before going traitor.
* LadyMacbeth: Gallan's daughter and Roboute's stepmother Atia encourages the worst in Roboute. She spoils him by encouraging his narcissism, and she sets him up against Konor by lying that Konor is planning to dump her and remarry, so new wife can bear him heirs; this results in [[{{Patricide}} Konor's death]]. Later she started inspiring essentially religious worshipping of Roboute as demigod of war and freedom; to surprise of no one, when Lion starts corrupting Roboute, Atia reveals herself being a Chaos worshipper, too.
* MalevolentMugshot: As his corruption grows, he starts installing countless statues of himself across Macragge, due to his overblown ego.
* {{Narcissist}}: This version of Roboute Guilliman is egocentric and narcissistic, believing in own greatness and seeing everyone else like inferior. Ultimately, Lion easily convinces him to embrace Chaos by appealing to his ego and resentment towards Horus, who passed over him for position of Warmaster. It would turn much, much worse after him embracing Slaanesh.
* SecretPolice: Under Roboute, Ultramar had secret police, Vigil Opertii, tasked with purging any and all dissidents.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Magnus and Thousand Sons]]
What if Nikaea goes ''even worse'' for Magnus?
----
* AdaptationalContextChange: The Burning of Prospero; where in canon, it was the tragedy, here, it's well-deserved vengeance for Magnus' betrayal.
* AdaptationalVillainy: Magnus was a TragicVillain in canon, forced into joining the traitors after failed attempt to help, and only later he goes full-out villain. Here, pretty much all sympathetic moments are gone, and some new villainy is added on top, both before and during the Heresy:
** His fault in Librariums being outlawed by Nikaean Edict is even more poignant: he ''deliberately'' lies to the people presented about the dangers of the Warp by using the magic to make them easier to deceive, [[DidntThinkThisThrough not realising that the Emperor is strong enough psychic to see through it]], which predictably leads to the angry Emperor ruling against Magnus, disbanding his Legion (his warriors to be assigned to work under other Primarchs), and Magnus himself imprisoned.
** When Lion releases him from the prison, the first thing Magnus does after seeing the Webway project is to attack it, as he thinks that [[YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness the Emperor plans to either get rid of or enslave the psykers]]. While there is a factor of Lion deliberately sending Magnus fake "prophetic" nightmares [[BatmanGambit to provoke such reaction]], Magnus believed in them so easily because they merely played on his own ego and obsession with Warp. Other chapters showing that the Emperor ''can'' give the second chance to those willing to accept their screwups (something arrogant Magnus never would) only makes him even less sympathetic.
** Magnus doesn't just bow to the will of Tzeentch; he ''demands'' the power, consuming the power of Kairos (who lets him do it, knowing that it's merely temporarily and serves to further its God's ambitions); he does that not to save his Legion (which ''isn't'' in the danger at the moment), but to save ''himself''. He then attacks and kills Vulkan (it doesn't stick, [[ResurrectiveImmortality because it's Vulkan]]), feeling zero regret over it.
* ArchEnemy:
** Thousand Sons seek to destroy Space Wolves to avenge their defeat during the Heresy.
** Thousand Sons liberally employs daemons of Tzeentch... with a single exception: they ''hates'' Kairos Fateweaver, and are ready to do ''anything'' to hurt it, down to and including allying with their rivals; the reason for that is that they blames Kairos for their downfall.
* BodyHorror: In canon, Rubric was the spell which made any Thousand Sons without strong psychic gift into the set of animated armour; here, it's the "gift" of Tzeentch which makes people into hideous mutants (which comes in several variants), bound to serve the sorcerers.
* TheBrute: Since his ascension, Magnus is too insane to actually rule, so he gets unleashed when something needs to be destroyed, and nothing more. Other than that, he serves merely as a voice for Tzeentch, which Ahriman helps to interpret, and actual commanding is handled by the council of sorcerers.
* ButterflyOfDoom:
** Tzeentch starts corrupting Magnus earlier, by offering his help during the war against the Psychneuein and giving Magnus the taste of power. This makes him more arrogant and dismissal of "lesser beings". As result, during Nikaea trials, Magnus doesn't even bother with making honest arguments (which didn't work even in canon), and instead tries to ''lie'' to the people presented via magic, which the Emperor notices and goes so angry, he outright disbands his Legion (assigning all his sons to the other Legions for supervision), and orders Magnus to be delivered to Terra for imprisonment.
** As Magnus joins the traitors before arrival of Space Wolves, he's allowed to prepare a trap, resulting in entire fleet of the 6th Legion being sucked into the Warp, disposing of it for some time, and preserving majority of Thousand Sons' strength.
* DefectorFromDecadence: Revuel Arvida witnesses his brothers committing the treason and slaughtering people on Terra, and refuses to participate in it, or even follow them in their escape. The Emperor notices it, and says that his loyalty didn't go unnoticed, and that he still has a chance to help the Imperium.
* DisabledInTheAdaptation: PlayedWith regarding Ahriman; he spends much of the Heresy just fine, but gets crippled by Argel Tal on Khur near the end of it, and has to be put into Dreadnought (something which didn't happen in canon).
* DragonInChief: Magnus is too insane to rule his legion; Ahriman has to lead in his stead, and, when Tzeentch speaks through Magnus, interprets those orders.
* EvilIsNotAToy: Magnus' own {{pride}] made him play with powers way stronger and more cunning than him, and resulted in his downfall; he deemed himself the master, but ultimately had to pledge to Tzeentch to save his life, only for his new patron god to strip him of the last traces of his sanity, essentially making him the slave.
* InSpiteOfANail: Despite all changes, the Burning of Prospero and Magnus' defeat by Leman Russ still happens -- but much later than in canon.
* MouthOfSauron: Ahriman always sticks with Magnus, so he can interpret what he says (as Magnus serves as the voice of Tzeentch) and see the actual meaning in his insanity which he can then deliver to the other sorcerers of their Legion.
* TheNotableNumeral: Once Thousand Sons falls to Tzeentch completely, their patron god makes sure that they would never grow beyond 999 members, plus Magnus himself; whenever they tries to grow in numbers, something always results in their numbers staying unchanged.
* WithGreatPowerComesGreatInsanity: Magnus fully succumbing to Tzeentch gave him more power than he ever had in material world, but also stripped him of the last traces of his sanity. However, Ahriman estimates that by the end of M41, Magnus would regain his sanity, having repaying his debt...
[[/folder]]
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%%YMMV
* FridgeBrilliance: Jaghatai [[HatedHometown hates Chemos]], preferring to stay away from it and not recruiting from it... which makes perfect sense, as it never was supposed to be his homeworld; Chogoris was. Af if he feels that it's not his place and not his people.
----

* ForWantOfANail:
** Mortarion's presence on Terra (as ally rather than enemy) allows the Emperor to rely on Mortarion to utilise the Golden Throne instead of Malcador. [[SparedByTheAdaptation This prevents Malcador from dying]].
** Magnus being on the traitors' side all along allows him to prepare a trap for Space Wolves when they comes to Prospero, destroying much of their fleet and forcing the rest to retreat.

* ForWantOfANail:
** Lemans Russ gets attacked by kraken instead of being adopted by she-wolfe, and, after killing it, gets taken by Thengir as his son. This not only prevents Leman from obtaining wolf companions (it's heavily implied that the giant wolves whom he and Thengir have killed were them specifically), but also makes him more cautious and less reckless right from the start, which would later reshape a lot of key events, compared to canon. This trait would only grow stronger during events of the Heresy. On a lesser note, it also makes him more understanding that the Emperor knows whom to put in which role, and more accepting of Horus becoming Warmaster rather than himself.
** Better self-control, and better attention to surrounding makes Leman Russ realise the true reason behind Lion [[KillSteal stealing the victory in Dulan campaign from him]], and instead of recklessly attacking Lion, Leman tells him that he knows that he's trying to win their father's attention by doing some special feats, and that it's not gonna work: the Emperor prefers to not pick favourites, but if he has to pick, he would pick someone else (likely Horus or Sanguinius, less likely Ferrus). This still results in a fight, but due to Lion snapping first.

* ForWantOfANail:
** When he sees what happened on Nostramo in his absence, instead of performing Exterminatus, Curze slips into his Night Haunter persona again, and descends on the planet personally to start the second purge. This allows the Emperor to apprehend him and finally set him straight (instead of allowing him to escape and succumb to the growing corruption, like it happened in canon); Emperor erases Night Haunter entirely as part of the soul-binding process, finally making Konrad what he was meant to be.
** While Konrad was on "rehab", his legion fell under Horus' command, who took measures to purge it of scum dropped on it by Nostraman "nobility", leaving only those worth of being Astartes, and setting up proper command structure (thus, creation of Kyroptera). This prevents Night Lords from degenerating into the bunch of psychos they were in canon.

* ForWantOfANail:
** Ferrus Manus obtains some followers before he finds and kills Asirnoth. Shared challenges makes him somewhat more accepting to humans (he still despises weakness, but better understands their limits), and also makes him stay with a clan instead of remaining a nomad. He then takes some of his people and tries to explore Telstarax orbital ring, only for it to end in a bloodbath which only Ferrus survives (way too many hostile machines). This teaches him that being too rushy can end in one's undoing (the lesson his canon counterpart never learned), and causes him to be more cautious with people under his command. He also later teaches Iron Hands the importance of self-control. In canon, [[HotBlooded impulsiveness]] was the FatalFlaw of both primarch and his legion.
** Ferrus Manus lives for long enough to actually enforce his distrust to bionics. While he wouldn't purge this obsession with bionics completely, it would drastically decrease in commonality, especially after Moirai Schism.

* ForWantOfANail: Mortarion fails the first attempt to storm Necare's castle, and decides to resort to war of attrition. But then the Emperor in disguise warns him that it's not gonna work (those monsters don't feed like humans, so they can't starve). He offers his help, but Mortarion rejects it, and Emperor leaves, saying that sometimes, it's fine to accept someone's help when you can't handle problem on your own. Mortarion tries to attack Necare personally (something which ended up disastrously in canon), but Emperor covertly assists him, reducing the level of sorcery-created poison Mortarion has to face. As result, Mortarion reaches Nakare still having strength to fight him and win. Only then the Emperor offers him to join. There's no humiliation that their bet was in canon, and there's no "kill-stealing", so Mortarion goes willingly; it doesn't make them friends, however.

What if Horus wouldn't fall to Chaos?

* ForWantOfANail: Horus sends Maloghurst to negotiate on 63-19 instead of Hastur, and when he gets betrayed and killed, Horus orders to just nuke the planet from orbit, instead of storming it. It saves the lives of Hastur and Jubal, which, in turn, saves Horus: Hastur Sejanus never dying, and generally higher distrust to sorcery post-Nikaea, makes Chaos unable to corrupt Horus: traitors simply never gets a chance beyond initial stabbing with corrupted dagger.

* ForWantOfANail:
** Lorgar's capsule drops right on the Covenant temple, destroying it and killing most of the priests. Kor Phaeron is amongst survivors, but witnessing what he can only perceive as a miracle, he reconsiders his faith, thus preventing him from becoming Chaos worshipper or [[AbusiveParents abusive jerk of a father]] he was in canon. Thus, he never tries to corrupt or subvert Lorgar.
** After destroying Monarchia, instead of just leaving Lorgar to fend for himself (a decision which, essentially, kickstarted the Heresy in canon), the Emperor temporarily assigns Word Bearers to humble and boring garrison duty, while Lorgar spends five years near the Emperor, observing his "god" in his everyday life. This makes him rethink his entire life; when the Emperor allows him to leave, he reorganises his legion and ditches all religious aspects which once were central for its ideology. They went a bit overzealous with it (as it often happens with them), now destroying the planets for refusing to give up on old faiths, going especially harsh on anyone whose faith closely resembles that of Covenant, though they went better with time.

* {{Determinator}}: Salamanders are known for being extremely stubborn when doing what they believe being right (sometimes, to the point of ignoring contradictory orders, which may result in them being killed). Additionally, they're notoriously more prone to survive seemingly mortal wounds, which resulted in unusually high amount of Dreadnoughts in their ranks.
* ForWantOfANail:
** Salamanders never suffers decimation in traitors' ambush, which, by the time of the War of the Beast, allows them to become one of the ''largest'' Legions. [[SubvertedTrope Then they suffers massive casualties in the War of the Beast]], after which they never fully recovers, [[InSpiteOfANail now being one of the smallest Legions just like in canon]].
** Salamanders avoiding near extermination at the very beginning of Heresy allows them to play by far the larger role in the conflict and after it -- like replacing Imperial Fists in the War of the Beast and the War for Armageddon.
** Vulkan being put in the role of Praetorian later affects his Legion, which gains different gene-seed quirk than in canon: instead of being relatively slow to react, compared to the other Astartes, Salamanders develops extreme stubbornness, which sometimes even prevents them from dying.
** Vulkan never produces the artifacts for his sons to find (unlike canon), so Forgefathers instead gets used as substitute for Legion Master, making He'Stan the leader of Salamanders instead of a wanderer hero (Tu'Shan is still a Chapter Master, it's just that his rank isn't highest in the Legion anymore).

* ForWantOfANail:
** Corvus receives same treatment with which Alpharius was hit in canon: Guilliman and Russ thinks that he has no chance to catch up and dismisses him, Dorn and Perturabo dislikes his guerrilla tactics; but he finds a friend in Horus... only to spoil it after the battle for Gate 42. Then he makes a mistake of trusting Angron, who backstabs and kill him. Now, Raven Guard is highly unwilling to trust ''anyone'', making exception for Sons of Horus due to Horus sympathisers taking over after Corvus' death.
** Due to Corvus dying, so many of the Raven Guards succumbing to Sable Brand, and Arkhas Fal returning to assume command, the Raven Guard reverts to their old ways -- that of terror and brutal suppression.

* ForWantOfANail: Alpharius (who gets abducted instead of Omegon, who stays on Terra) gets discovered and trained by Eldrad Ultran (and later Harlequins as well). The results are:
** Eldrad remains in contact with his student ever since, and warns him not to trust Cabal, saying that they've been manipulated. He suggests to exploit them by [[TheMole pretending that Alpharius sided with them]], so they can later dismantle whatever conspiracy their masters have planned from within. Which Alpharius later does.
** Prior connections makes Alpharius fight Thousand Sons in the Webway not alone, but accompanied by Harlequins. In canon, Eldars stays neutral in the conflict.

* ForWantOfANail: Jaghatai ends up on Chemos instead of Chogoris (swapping places with Fulgrim). As result, the planet never improves from bring polluted mess, with its people becoming scrappers scavengers. It's pointed in-text that perhaps, in different timeline it could've been different.

* ForWantOfANail: Several changes contributes to Rogal Dorn losing his loyalty to the Emperor and joining traitors:
** Rogal Dorn being defeated by Konrad Curze in their duel on Cheraut doesn't stay secret (unlike canon), and seriously spoils Dorn's reputation, as his detractors (chief amongst them [[TheRival Perturabo]]) used it to call him a "weakling", in which many actually believed. With Curze's reputation quickly improving after his "rehab" by the Emperor, entire Cheraut incident starts being viewed differently, with [[HeroWithBadPublicity Imperial Fists]] as the butchers and Night Lords as protectors, while it was the other way around.
** Rogal Dorn, after series of campaigns in the worlds destroyed by the Orks, grew to hate greenskins above any other xenos. He sees a chance to strike at them by joining the Ullanor Crusade... but [[TheRival Perturabo]] beats him to it, and his offer of help gets declined: Horus knows that [[WeAreStrugglingTogether having them both together is a receipt for disaster]]. Angry at such blatant disrespect, Rogal Dorn (who's now nowhere as stoic as his canon self) even considers to cease operating at all, as [[DudeWheresMyRespect he doesn't see the reason why his sons should die for the people who don't see any value in their sacrifices]], but resists it. Neither of the two Primarchs participated in it in canon.
** As by the point when Nikaea takes place, Rogal Dorn is no longer the stoic and professional man he was at the beginning of the Crusade, letting his rivalry with Perturabo to consume him, Horus can't just give either him or Perturabo to build an amphitheatre, and instead he makes them do it together... only for them to botch everything, due to zero efforts being made to cooperate, so it's Vulkan who has to fix things up. When the two continues conflict at Nikae council as well, it seals neither of them being approved for the position of Praetorian -- which, perhaps, was the last straw for Dorn.

* ForWantOfANail: Sanguinius lands on Baal instead of it moon Baal Secundus, and gets adopted not by humans, but by mutants; it drastically reshapes his fate comparing to that in canon:
** The mutants readily takes him as their own, but completely lacks what it takes to build a civilisation, even with Sanguinius by their side: no amount of teaching Sanguinius gives them can prevail against their twisted nature and innate corruption. He wouldn't meet any normal humans until Blood Angels arrives on the planet and starts exterminating mutants, which results in him attacking, killing and draining of blood their then-commander. This makes him doubt his own nature, thinking that maybe he's a mutant too, an abomination; and he knows all too well what an end awaits a mutant... When the Red Thirst starts manifesting more and more often, Sanguinius starts wondering whether he would eventually succumb to it himself, and starts fearing to go into battle, not trusting his self-control... only to realise that if he wants to prevent the visions of dark future of war and death, he ''has'' to fight. Sanguinius' insecurity makes him more vulnerable when he ''does'' succumb to the Red Thirst (alongside his entire legion), and once the corruption starts, it becomes more and more easy to strengthen it, until he finally succumbs to Khorne, in search of freedom from doubts and fears -- with Khorne just letting him embrace his dark nature and rejoice.
** First contact between Sanguinius and his legion occurs when Blood Angels (by then not yet named that) purges Ball of mutants, and Sanguinius attacks them, before learning his true heritage. The memory of them slaughtering his adoptive family, and fierce hatred to mutants in general (while Sanguinius is so insecure regarding his own nature) prevents him from bonding with his legion, or even with Emperor, who does little to resolve his insecurities; he only forms some bonding with Horus, who learns about Red Thirst, [[SecretKeeper but promises to keep silent about it]]. As Sanguinius is less supportive of Emperor, he's not as understanding when Librarians gets banned, seeing it as forbidding people to be who they are (which is dangerously close to his own insecurities about mutants). Lion later exploits those insecurities, feeding his paranoia regarding not being accepted, both for his flaws and for slaying Angron (regardless of reasons).

* ForWantOfANail: Angron gets discovered when his rebellion goes much smoother. This ensures that he's not as dysfunctional as he was in canon, so he doesn't start installing the Butcher Nails en-masse (still despising them), with only ~20% ever receiving them. When he [[DeathByAdaptation gets killed]], his Legion manages to shake off his legacy and not fall to Khorne, albeit they don't become good guys either.

* ForWantOfANail: Roboute's pod gets accompanied by (possibly even triggers) an earthquake which kills many people, [[DeathByAdaptation including Euten]]. Konor has to marry Gallan's daughter Atia. Atia has much worse influence on Roboute than Euten was in canon: Roboute would grow narcissistic and power-hungry. As result, Roboute sees other Primarchs as either being below him (most of them), the tools to use and discard (like Ferrus Manus or Rogal Dorn), or the rivals he has to compete against (Horus). He does not react well to being passed over for position of Warmaster.

* ForWantOfANail:
** Tzeentch starts corrupting Magnus earlier, by offering his help during the war against the Psychneuein and giving Magnus the taste of power. This makes him more arrogant and dismissal of "lesser beings". As result, during Nikaea trials, Magnus doesn't even bother with making honest arguments (which didn't work even in canon), and instead tries to ''lie'' to the people presented via magic, which the Emperor notices and goes so angry, he outright disbands his Legion (assigning all his sons to the other Legions for supervision), and orders Magnus to be delivered to Terra.
** As Magnus joins the traitors before arrival of Space Wolves, he's allowed to prepare a trap, resulting in entire fleet of the 6th Legion being sucked into the Warp, disposing of it for some time, and preserving majority of Thousand Sons' strength.

!Sandbox/MethodiyBuslayev | Sandbox/MethodiyBuslayevCharacters | Sandbox/MethodiyBuslayevRecap

* ''WesternAnimation/OurMashaAndTheMagicNut'', even years after release, is much better known for sexualisation of the titular heroine (who's ''fourteen'') than for its actual plot; this reputation only worsened when Masha's naked model leaked out, with creators admitting that it's genuine.
----

* '''''Our Masha and the Magic Nut''''' (Наша Маша и Волшебный Орех) is 2009 Russian film, advertised as cute New Year children fairytale; it's anything but. Originally intended as adaptation of ''Literature/TheNutcrackerAndTheMouseKing'', it went through rather messed up development history, [[ChannelHop changing several studios]], with new management always demanding retooling it for different audience; it went from cute fairytale for little children (original idea), to love story for teenagers, to "hot" adult cartoon, only to ultimately combine it all together, resulting in main heroine, Masha, having highly sexualised model (complete with revealing outfit, unnecessary anatomical details and jiggle physics) ''despite being 14 years-old'' (which makes the main villain come up as a creep in his obsession with her), while the story became very silly and non-sensical. On top of that, it has very cheap and primitive 3d animation for anyone but Masha, with almost all characters looking [[UnintentionalUncannyValley ugly and grotesque]], as well as suffering from bad lipsync. [[UncertainAudience Neither of potential demographics liked the movie]], it was trashed by viewers and critics alike, [[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1112289/ and has 2/10 score on IMDB]].
----

* '''''Our Masha and the Magic Nut''''' (Наша Маша и Волшебный Орех) is 2009 Russian film, advertised as cute New Year children fairytale; it's anything but. Originally intended as adaptation of ''Literature/TheNutcrackerAndTheMouseKing'', it eventually

Project [[ChannelFlop changed several studios]] before being finally finished, with new management each time requesting adapting it for different audience; the end result [[UncertainAudience failed to appease any]], having weird and non-sensical plot,

Literature/CallDemon

When you sell out your soul, you're allowed to keep it for yourself until the time comes to pay your dues. And that's when Abifasdon comes in, to take what no longer belongs to you; he's a call demon, tasked with taking the sinners to hell. But he's not as bad as his job may imply, and may even help people who clearly don't deserve hell yet and should receive a second chance. He even has a friend, angel Albert, whose job is quite opposite (stop the sinners from making grave mistakes), which occasionally puts them on different sides.

%% Administrivia/ZeroContextExample entries are not allowed on wiki pages. All such entries have been commented out. Add context to the entries before uncommenting them.

This is a list of characters in Arkham Horror: TCG and its expansions. Investigators currently available only as promo cards are put separately, as well as any campaign-specific ones.

Tropes related to "original" ''Arkham Horror'' and ''Mansion of Madness'' can be seen [[{{Characters/ArkhamHorror}} here]].

[[foldercontrol]]

!Investigators classes
Tropes commonly associated with most or all investigators of specific classes. Also contains tropes related to the player cards exclusive to these classes.
[[folder: Guardians]]
Guardians dedicates themselves to protecting their less combat-capable teammates and fighting monsters head-on. Many their cards are related to either combat or teamwork.

* ActionHero: The average Guardian represent a gun-toting badass that can mow down droves of [[EldritchAbomination eldritch abominations]] with enough bullets or weaponry. This is not universal however, as some Guardians do [[PlayingWithATrope break the mold]] being instead [[SupportPartyMember support party members]] that "defend" their fellow investigators in other ways ''beside'' fighting (like Carolyn and Carson).
* AlphaStrike: "Vicious Blow" is a skill that when commited gives +1 to-hit and +1 damage to any attack performed: useful to kill enemies that would require an additional action to finish off. Its level 2 upgraded raises the bonus accuracy to +2 and allows you to deal +2 damage instead if you succeed the skill test to attack an enemy by 2 or more, synergising very well with weapons with a high fighting modifier and allowing you to deal massive burst damage in one attack.
* BattleBolas: "Bolas" event can be used to essentially cripple "hunter" enemies; once the bolas gets thrown at them and ties them up, it not only penalises their evade stat, but also makes them exhaust each time they move, which makes them easy target.
* BigGuy: [[ZigZaggingTrope Zig-zagged]]: Guardians tend to have best Health (around 8-9) and Combat (around 4-5) stats, making them great at fighting monsters directly and tanking damage for their more fragile teammates. But they tend to have low Sanity (around 5-6), which makes them vulnerable to horror-based attacks, potentially dropping them straight into GlassCannon territory in horror-heavy scenarios.
** Guardians have the largest pool of combat-oriented cards, be they weapons, upgrades for weapons, tools to kill enemies in non-standard ways, and so on. They also have cards specifically dedicated to quickly engage the enemies (such as "Riot Whistle" asset), saving actions which may be used to actually attack those enemies.
** Guardians have many assets specifically dedicated to absorbing damage and/or horror, sometimes even those intended for the other investigators. Such cards are also often more resilient than analogues.
** Guardians have many cards which are specifically dedicated to taking hits in place of their more fragile comrades:
*** "Self-Sacrifice" event allows you to take all consequences of failing a skill check in place of another, more vulnerable investigator.
*** "Solemn Vow" asset allows you to link with other investigator, and, when they are at the same location, healing that investigator's assets at the cost of damaging your own. It's specifically designed to protect key players while they're working on the main goal.
*** "Heroic Rescue" event allows them to [[DrawAggro distract the enemy from your more vulnerable teammates]], taking the hit directed at other player, as well as automatically engaging with attacking enemy, to continue the fight.
** "Safeguard" asset exists mainly to follow the vulnerable teammate who's performing important task which requires them moving around, so the Guardian is always ready to protect them from whatever danger arise. The level 0 version only allows you to follow an investigator for one location, but the upgraded version lets you follow them EVERY time they move, potentially saving you a massive amount of actions you would have spent just to move around
* BurnBabyBurn: The Guardians can use the "Kerosene" asset to burn recently defeated enemies to regain sanity, either for themselves, or their teammates and Allies.
* CanineCompanion: Guardians can actually take the Guard Dogs into battle; those not only absorbs the damage, but can also cause damage to the enemy when hit.
* CastFromHitpoints: "Blood Eclipse" event allows to attack using Willpower instead of Combat (which some investigators like more than others); it can be further reinforced by sacrificing some health, to give a boost to both stats and damage. The upgraded level 3 version allows you to decided how much health you want to spend for the attack, giving a stronger boost in accuracy and damage with each damage taken, while the level 1 version requires a flat cost of taking 2 damage.
* CombatMedic: Besides having a big arsenal of combat-oriented cards, Guardians also have various options to protect or heal their teammates, both from damage and from horror.
* DamageOverTime: "Grievous Wound" event causes attacked enemy to suffer 1 point of damage every turn until they finally die. [[ContractualBossImmunity Doesn't work on elites unfortunately.]]
* {{Determinator}}: The Guardians' resilience is reflected in their card pool. Guardians have access to cards that will allow them to shrug off damage and/or horror for the sake of protecting their allies.
* DifficultButAwesome: "Enchanted Armor" asset, theoretically, has no upper limit of how much damage and horror you can put on it, but each time it receives any, you must pass a Willpower test which scales with amount of tokens -- and if you fail, ''all'' that damage and horror would be dumped straight on you, while the card would get discarded.
* DrawAggro: Various Guardian-class cards allows to protect the other investigators from dangers, and facing them yourself instead:
** "First Watch" event allows you to take encounter cards from other players, and play them yourself, with all the risks it involves. "Martyr's Vambrace" asset has the same ability, but can be used repeatedly, and actually gives you boost while you're dealing with encounter cards.
** "Taunt" event forces the enemies from your location to immediately engage you, all at once. Higher-level versions also allows to draw cards (to make it easier to actually ''kill'' those enemies) and even deal instant damage to them.
** "Heroic Rescue" event allows to redirect attack intended for another investigator on yourself. It also forces that enemy to engage you (and deals damage to it), ensuring that the enemy wouldn't just re-target them again.
** "Get behind me!" event allows to draw ''all'' attacks intended for the other investigators in your location to yourself (as well as making the enemies engage you afterwards), while also cancelling small amount of horror those attacks would otherwise deal.
* ExtraTurn: If needed, the "Police Badge" asset can be discarded to give an investigator several extra actions.
* FriendlyFireproof:
** "Blackjack" asset has only one gimmick: it can be used to attack the enemies engaged with the other players without the risk of hurting your teammates if you miss. However, it's not particularly strong. Its level 2 upgrade increase its resource cost from 1 to 2 but on top of the benefits of the level 0 version it is also more accurate and deal an additional damage if the enemy is engaged with another investigator! Great to defend less combat-capable teammates, [[CripplingOverspecialisation not so great for actual self-defense when YOU are engaged with an enemy.]]
** One of the possible upgrades for "Custom Modifications" event allows it to make whatever asset it's attached to unable to harm teammates when you try to attack the enemy targeting them, but miss.
* FriendOnTheForce: Most Guardian-class Allies are related to either police or Agency, and prove themselves surprisingly effective in fights against {{Eldritch Abomination}}s.
* GoodOldFisticuffs: Many Guardian event cards have the investigators engaging in fistfights with cultists, gangsters, monsters and various other terrors from beyond. Depending on the target of their attack, this can lead to a '''literal''' case of DidYouJustPunchOutCthulhu
** "Get over here!" forces a non-elite enemy to move from a connecting location to the location of the investigator who played that card, only to get engaged and punched in the face. The upgrade not only allows you to target enemies two location away but it is also fast (a rarity among cards that allow you to perform a fight action), meaning that it won't take any of your base three actions if you play it and can be used even ''outside'' your turn. Very useful to deal with [[GoddamnedBats Acolytes.]]
** "Clean Them Out" makes you perform an attack action and gain 2 resources by doing so (the card itself costs 0). Not terribly useful on its own given you are attacking just for one damage, but helps fuel the economy of other assets and events and allows you to take out enemies [[CherryTapping with one HP left]] without wasting bullets or using more damaging events.
** "Counterpunch" allows you to [[CounterAttack counterattack]] after an enemy attacks you, even if it was cancelled. It deals less damage than the reaction on the Survival Knife, but it doesn't require you to get damaged unlike the level 0 version of the knife and also works on attacks of opportunity. The upgraded version gets a boost both in damage and accuracy and allows the investigator to resolve their attack [[ActionInitiative before the enemy]], similiar to the upgraded version of Survival Knife.
** "One-Two Punch" allows an investigator to attack the same enemy twice in one action, first dealing one damage and then two, it's tricky to use however because the first attack is less accurate than the second and you need to land it in order to attack again. The upgrade version solves that problem however by making the first attack [[AlwaysAccurateAttack always land]], on top of improving the accuracy of the second attack, make both deal an additional damage AND allow you to target another enemy in your location with the second attack instead of the first target.
** "Toe-to-Toe" is an [[AlwaysAccurateAttack automatically succesful attack]] that costs zero resources and deals 2 damage base (which can be still increased by commiting cards like [[AlphaStrike Vicious Blow]] or [[DamageIncreasingDebuff Hatchet Man]]), but makes the enemy you target immediately attack you. It's risky to use in most cases, but it's worth the deck space to counter enemies that have [[StoneWall high fight but low damage capabilities]], like the [[DemonicSpider Wizard of the Order.]]
** "Mano a Mano" [[AlwaysAccurateAttack instantly deals 1 damage against an enemy of your choice engaged with you when played]], it costs zero resources, but has the drawback of only being usable as your first action of the round and unlike all the other cards listed under GoodOldFisticuffs, it doesn't have a level 0 version; it's level 1, so you cannot immediately include it at deck creation unless you have exp to spare. There is also a level 2 version which is exactly the same, but deals 2 damage.
** "Sweeping Kick" is a level 1 event that deals 2 damage and adds the investigator's agility as a bonus to-hit (which granted for most [[MightyGlacier Guardians]] it's unlikely to be a big accuracy bonus). The main appeal is that if the attack is succesful, the enemy gets exhausted, giving a way for Guardians to evade an enemy if they are caught unprepared to deal with it.
* HerdHittingAttack: Guardians have the biggest selection of cards that can be used to damage or dispatch multiple enemies at once compared to other classes:
** "Dynamite Blast" event can be used to deal huge damage to all enemies within one location; but it can cause friendly fire if used without caution.
** "Flamethrower" asset allows to attack all enemies engaged with you, with the total damage done dividing between them on the player's discretion.
** "Mk 1 Grenades" asset makes investigator's attack deal (fixed) damage to every enemy (and investigator, other than the user themselves) in the same location as their target.
* HeroicSacrifice: A recurring theme of the Guardian class cards:
** Many of their Ally cards have special abilities, which only triggers on damage/defeat, or requires damage/discard as a cost.
** The [[SeeYouInHell "I'll see you in hell!"]] event [[TakingYouWithMe instantly defeats you and all non-Elite enemies at your threat area at the cost of lasting physical damage if not outright death.]]
** As mentioned under DrawAggro, many Guardian cards that can take the heat off other investigators put the investigator playing said cards in harm's way instead, with "Heroic Rescue" and ""Get behind me!" best fitting here given they lead to the investigator attracting attention to get attacked.
** "Self-Sacrifice" is a skill card that can only be commited to a skill test performed by another investigator. It provides no skill icons but allows the investigator commiting the card to suffer the consequences of a failed skill check in place of the performing investigator. Then either the investigator that commited the card or got the card commited to them can draw 2 cards.
* JackBauerInterrogationTechnique: "Interrogate" event allows to pass Combat check on an enemy to discover clues, with obvious implications that the information just gets beaten out of them.
* KillItWithFire: Guardians have access to the actual "Flamethrower" as their Weapon option. It allows to attack ''all'' enemies enganged with you, but is limited by its cost, taking up multiple slots at once and not being able to hurt enemies "not" engaged with you.
* TheLeader: Guardians have many cards specifically dedicated to coordinating the efforts of their entire team, instead of just supporting someone particular.
* LightningGun: "Lightning Gun" asset is extremely powerful, providing massive bonus to Strength and damage on each attack, allowing to zap nearly any enemy to bits, be they cultists or {{Eldritch Abomination}}s. On the downside, [[AwesomeButImpractical it costs whopping 6 resources to put in use, takes both hands and only has 3 charges]], not to mention that it's level 5 card, with experience not being that easy to get either.
* LuckManipulationMechanic:
** "Eat lead!" event allows, when using Firearms assets, to spend extra ammo to draw that same amount of chaos tokens, and pick the one you like more. While highly specialised, it's one of the few options the Guardians have to avoid dealing with unwanted chaos tokens.
** Fully-charged "Empty Vessel" asset turns into "Wish-Eater", which can cancel symbol chaos tokens (excluding auto-failure) and even heal investigators. It regress into basic form after three uses.
** ''The Innsmouth Conspiracy'' expansion introduced several cards dedicated to either adding or preserving blessed tokens, which boosts the skill value when drawn:
*** "Blessing of Isis" asset turns the second revealed "blessed" token into Elder Sign, which often activates special abilities or even allows for automatic success.
*** "Sacred Covenant" asset allows to preserve blessed tokens which would otherwise be wasted on a skill test the outcome of which they can't change, thus, ensuring that the team would still benefit from them (as it may be hard to actually put those in the bag).
* MacheteMayhem: "Machete" asset is amongst the most popular Weapon choice for starting decks, due to how easy and reliable it is, despite its [[BoringButPractical only gimmick]] being dealing additional damage to enemies engaged with the investigator (and only if there's exactly one enemy). The situation was bad enough for the card to be {{nerf}}ed by the first wave of "Taboo" rules, specifically so it would stop showing up in starting decks (though this decision was eventually overturned with the introduction of many other assets challenging the Machete's position as the main Level 0 weapon for Guardians).
* MightyGlacier: While they are strong, Guardians usually have below average Agility, which makes it hard to escape ambushes in dire situations.
* MoreDakka: "M1918 BAR" asset allows to spend up to 5 ammo ''in one attack'', dealing damage equal to ammo spent; by default, it has 8 ammo.
* NoSell:
** "I've had worse" event allows investigator to shrug off huge amount of damage and/or horror received, and gain resources instead. The Level 2 version of the card cancels up to 2 damage and/or horror, the level 4 version up to 5.
** "Dodge" event allows to outright cancel enemy's attack directed at an investigator in your location. The upgrade reduces the resource cost of the card from one to zero and also allows you to [[CounterAttack do an agility test to deal 1 damage to the attacking enemy.]]
** "Delay the Inevitable" event allows to cancel ''all'' damage and horror directed at chosen investigator. The downside is that it has to be prepared in advance, and costs resources to maintain.
** "Fool me once..." event allows, after discarding a treachery, cancel the ''next'' copy of it; considering that some truly nasty ones comes in pairs or even trios, sometimes it may save lives.
** "Shield of Faith" asset allows to cancel up to 5 attacks, but requires sealing some blessed tokens on it first (which acts as its "charges").
* NotSoInvincibleAfterAll: "If it bleeds..." event allows you and all investigators in your location to restore some sanity after defeating a Monster enemy, as seeing the nightmarish abomination falling restores their faith in possible victory.
* OneBulletLeft: "One in the Chamber" event only works when there's one ammo left in your Firearms asset... but it gives massive boost to the skill check when you use it, highly increasing your chance to make the best out of that ammo.
* OneHitKill: The level 5 version of "Monster Slayer" is an event that allows you to defeat a non-Elite enemy with one hit, assuming the attack itself lands (which can be tricky to, as the card itself doesn't boost the accuracy of the attack). [[AvertedTrope Averted]] with the level 0 version: it is just an attack that deals 2 damage.
* PowerNullifier: "Handcuffs" asset not only allows to "evade" by using Combat instead of Agility, but also prevents non-Elite enemies from readying or accumulating Doom. The downside is that it only works on Humanoid enemies (who're not always presented), and can't be retrieved until that enemy dies or gets discarded.
* ShotgunsAreJustBetter: Guardians use shotguns as strong, though not always reliable, firearms.
** The ".35 'Winchester'" is the weakest amongst shotgun variants, but is also the only one which comes with more than 2 shots, which may be crucial at times.
** "Shotgun" provides a great Combat boost and scales its damage depending on the amount you succeed by. A major downside is that if you miss, the damage to your teammates would scale up, too.
* TakingYouWithMe: [[SeeYouInHell "I'll see you in hell!"]] instantly defeats all enemies engaged with the investigator playing the card regardless of their current health ([[ContractualBossImmunity as long as they are not elites]]), but then causes said investigator to get defeated and suffer one physical trauma, which can potentially [[PermaDeath kill them]] if too much is accumulated.
* WalkingArmory: "Bandolier" asset has exactly one function -- providing additional hand slots specifically for Weapon assets (at the cost of taking body slot), allowing investigator to keep way more Weapons ready for battle and switch between them on the go.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Seekers]]
Seekers dedicates themselves to supporting their teammates with their great knowledge of the occult. What they lack in combat skills, they make up for with special training and skills, making them great clue gatherers.

* AttackItsWeakPoint:
** "Expose Weakness" event allows them, through own Intellect, analyse their enemy and come up with a plan how to defeat it by striking the most vulnerable part, temporarily reducing its combat stat.
** "Anatomical Diagrams" asset allows to reduce the enemy's combat and evade values (assuming investigator has enough sanity left to study), the logic being that they discover the monster's weak points and how to exploit them.
* CastFromMoney: Some of their cards requires dropping clues in their locations (or at the very least having any in supply) before they can be used. On the one hand, Seekers have the least troubles with gaining those clues back, on another, clues are often needed for progress on your objective.
* ExtraTurn:
** "Guidance" event allows to give another investigator (who didn't act yet this round) an extra action on their turn.
** "Press Pass" asset allows to gain an extra action after spending a clue (or dropping it in location).
* FurnitureBlockade: The art for "Barricade" event (prevents non-Elite enemies from entering location) shows how the monster tries to enter the room through a door blocked by a pile of furniture, in vain.
* GlassCannon: Through the various cycles, Seekers have gotten various options to deal with enemies effectively, either dealing massive damage to them through cards like "I've got a plan!" or "Occult Incantation" or neutralising them non-violently with "Existential Riddle" or "Persuasion". Even without considering their potential combat prowess, their ability to gather clues extremely quickly can easily [[CurbStompBattle end scenarios in few turns]]. But they are still among the most vulnerable investigators in the game, usually having really low health '''and''' low-to-average agility (on top of abysmal fight), leaving them unable to run away from monsters they cannot deal with immediately and also vulnerable to damage-dealing treacheries that test agility. Their sanity and willpower tend to be decent at least (and have many other ways to boost their will on top of their intellect) meaning that horror is less of an issue to them compared to [[MightyGlacier Guardians]] and [[FragileSpeedster Rogues.]]
* GreatBigBookOfEverything: "Encyclopedia", a Tome asset, allows to choose and boost any skill until the end of the round; knowledge is power, indeed.
* HeroicSacrifice: The "Ghastly Revelation" event allows them to instantly discover up to 3 clues, and then either give them to the other investigator or place them at any other location in the game -- after which they gets defeated and suffer a mental trauma.
* ItemCaddy: Seekers have ''the'' highest number of tools to draw additional cards, stockpiling them in hand or searching for them in the deck.
* LuckManipulationMechanic:
** "Pnakotic Manuscripts" asset allows to avoid revealing chaos tokens altogether, and thus, not dealing with the negative effects they may produce. Unfortunately, it has limited supply of "secrets" to do that.
** "The Blasphemous Covenant" asset (from ''The Innsmouth Conspiracy'') allows to treat "cursed" tokens (which normally gives "-2" penalty) as "+1" tokens, albeit it also prevents them from leaving the bag when drawn. Quite often it's used to fix consequences of Seekers' own machinations, given how many of their cards actually ''adds'' those tokens.
* MagikarpPower: Several expansions includes certain setting-appropriate Seeker-class cards; (few exceptions aside) they're borderline useless by default, but, if specific tasks gets performed, can be upgraded (by spending experience) into something tailor-made for specific tasks, either by researching, deciphering, etc.
* TheMedic: Alongside Guardians and Mystics, Seekers get many cards that can heal damage and horror from themselves and other investigators. [[GameplayAndStoryIntegration Fitting for a class that usually includes scholars and students among their numbers]]
* NonActionGuy: While Seekers do have (limited) combat options, they are ''not'' combat-oriented and often have poor basic Combat (1-2), Agility (around 2), and Health (6-7) stats.
* NoSell: "Prophesiae Profana" asset allows to choose a location as "locus", and grants complete immunity to attacks of opportunity while outside of it. It was later [[Nerf nerfed]] with a taboo to only prevent the first attack of opportunity each round
* NurseWithGoodIntentions: "Medical Texts", a Tome asset, allows to heal yourself or another investigator... or damage them even further, depending on how well you deal with Intellect check.
* PowerAtAPrice: ''The Innsmouth Conspiracy'' expansion introduced several cards which gives the Seekers some boosts, but in return adds cursed tokens into the bag, which may cause harm to them or the other investigators even long after the deed. However, they also have cards which actually ''benefits'' from those tokens in some ways...
* ProtectiveCharm: "Disc of Itzamna" asset, depending on which version is used, can either allow to automatically evade a monster which spawns in your location, or discard it immediately; both versions requires also discarding the Disc itself, so it's one-time rescue (and you can't keep more than one in play, as it's Unique).
* ScienceHero: A recurring theme of Seeker-class:
** Most Seeker-class investigators worked as scientists before joining the team (often at the Miskatonic University), and are now using their skills to support their teammates. Even those who weren't in its employ are often related to Miskatonic and its sciences in some other way.
** Many Seeker-class cards are science-related: scientific gear, special skills, science books, or actual scientists as the Allies.
* TheSmartGuy:
** Seekers tend to have the best Intellect (around 4-5) stats amongst investigator, and have an arsenal of cards dedicated to clue gathering or support.
** Seekers don't have many options for combat, but of those they have, most involves them either coming up with some improvised plan how to harm the enemy through their brains rather than their brawn (or makes it more vulnerable), or uses some products of alchemy instead of conventional weapons.
* SpellBook: In the huge library of various Tomes the Seekers have access to, quite a few are occult books which contains spells and rituals for specific purposes.
* SquishyWizard: Like Mystics, Seekers have access to some magic spells, artifacts and occult books. ''Also'' like Mystics, they tend to have poor survival capabilities when caught off-guard.
* SupportPartyMember: Seekers have low combat capabilities, but are excellent as supporters for the actual fighters (usually [[BigGuy Guardians]]) of their team. Their ability to gather clues quickly and advance through the acts is key to win many scenarios, and it's not an uncommon strategy for bigger groups of players to focus on [[EscortMission protecting]] their [[SquishyWizard Seeker]] while they work on gathering clues. That said, a Seeker completely focused on getting clues [[CripplingOverspecialisation lags behind]] when the objective of the current act ''isn't'' related to clues.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Rogues]]
Be they criminals who joined the common good by a sheer twist of fate, or just adventurers seeking a new challenge, Rogues aren't afraid to fight "dirty", as long as it gets things done. Many of their cards are dedicated to either outsmarting and outmaneuvering their enemies, or to obtaining resources to fuel their advance essentially out of thin air.

* TheAce: [[EnforcedTrope Rogues are encouraged to be so]] as many of their cards follow the template of "if you succeed by X you get this additional benefit" (this is also present in cards of other classes, but is especially prevalent in the rogue card pool), meaning that a good rogue doesn't just succeed in a task, they do so in the most amazing way possible.
* BackStab: Some cards specifically targets already exhausted enemies, helping to ensure that they wouldn't live to try to murder you again:
** "Sneak Attack" event allows to deal damage to exhausted enemies without having to pass a test.
** ".25 Automatic" asset gives bonus to Combat and damage, but ''only'' against exhausted enemies. Its upgraded version allows to attack just evaded enemy ''immediately''.
** "Dirty Fighting" asset gives huge boost to most tests against exhausted enemies, and allows to immediately attack the enemy you just evaded.
* CombatPragmatist: When it comes to combat, Rogues prefer to use dirty-but-effective tactics and instruments--backstabbing, HiddenWeapons, etc. Since the world is at stake and their enemies are trying to bring doom upon us all, it's hard to blame them. One of their cards is even called "Dirty Fighting".
* DamageIncreasingDebuff: "Hatchet Man" is a skill that can be commited to boost your agility by one for one test, but its real appeal is that if the card is commited during an evasion attempt and you succesfully evade a foe, the next time it will take damage this turn, it will suffer an additional damage.
* DeathOrGloryAttack:
** "Double or Nothing" skill doubles the difficulty of the test, but also allows to resolve its effect twice if successful. It ended up being so broken in certain scenarios, it was the only card outright forbidden by the "Taboo" rules, as it was deemed impossible to balance.
** "Charon's Obol" asset provides its wielder with bonus experience at the end of each scenario, but [[PermaDeath kills its wielder]] if they gets defeated by any reason. As purchasing it also costs some experience, it may take a couple of scenarios before it even pays for itself.
* DifficultButAwesome: Recurring quirk of their cards (it ''does'' show up occasionally in the other classes, but way less often) is to tie some strong effect to exceeding the test difficulty by certain amount; on the downside, when you can't achieve the maximum output, they often perform worse than their more boring analogues.
* ExtraTurn: Rogues have selection of cards aimed to give them extra actions each turn, in one way or another (often with some extra gimmick):
** Leo De Luca provides the investigator with additional action each turn; due to [[TimedMission how valuable the time in this game]], he's one of the most popular picks for an Ally.
** "The Gold Pocket Watch" allows to, once per game, either skip a phase you don't want, or repeat a phase you ''do'' want.
** "Ace in the Hole" event allows to do 3 extra actions on your turn. The downside is that it costs tons of experience to purchase, and you can't have more than one copy, due to it having "Exceptional" keyword.
** "Quick Thinking" skill, if you succeed in a test by 2 or more, gives an extra action; unlike most such cards, it can be used even if it's not your turn. As it's a skill card, it only works on skill tests, but you don't have to spend actions to play it.
** "Borrowed Time" asset allows to spend resources to get up to 3 extra actions on the ''next'' turn.
** "Swift Reflexes" event allows to take an extra action, even during another investigator's turn (except during actions).
** "Haste" asset allows, after doing two actions of same type in a row, do another one for free, which is really useful when investigator is tasked with important, but time-consuming mission.
** "Eye of the Djinn" allows, if a cursed token was revealed during its effect, to perform an extra action for free.
** "The Red Clock" asset can be charged with resources, and once it accumulates 3 charges, it allows to do an extra action on the current turn (two actions for upgraded version).
** "The Black Fan" asset gives an extra action each turn, but only while you have at least 15 unspent resources, [[AwesomeButImpractical which makes it hard to use for most players]].
** "Honed Instinct" event allows to take an extra action when either Act or Agenda advances, or you succeed at skill test with great result. Most of its upgrade options adds even more ways to trigger it, and one allows to take two turns instead of one (at the cost of removing it from the game).
* FragileSpeedster:
** With all their speed, Rogues tend to have below-average Willpower stat, making them vulnerable to treacheries which forces them to test it.
** It's not uncommon for their cards to replace Combat with Agility during attacks. Some investigators appreciates it more than the others.
* TheGambler: Many Rogue-class cards are themed after gambling; some of those are about gaining the money, others are about "cheating" the game in some way.
** "Sure Gamble" event switches negative modifier of the drawn chaos token into positive one, so, say, your "-9" suddenly becomes "+9".
** "Hot Streak" event allows to invest few resources to win much more.
** "High Roller" asset works like actual gamble: "bet" resources to gain stat boost, and regain them if you pass.
** "21 or Bust" event assigns to all non-number tokens some value, and allows to play some sort of "blackjack", with a chance to "win" much more than you bet... or lose and gain nothing.
* GlassCannon: In spite of the fact Rogues usually favour [[FragileSpeedster agility]] as their main stat, this trope is [[ZigZaggingTrope zig-zagged]]: Rogues tend to actually have the ''second'' highest health pools in the game behind [[MightyGlacier Guardians]] (usually around the 8-7 range, but some Rogues have less or more than that). Their high agility also protects them from agility-testing treacheries that tend to deal Health damage, while Guardians often find themselves taking massive damage from them because of their low agility, so their bigger health pools tend to get chewed through quicker compared to Rogues. The main issue is that not only do Rogues tend to have poor sanity like Guardians, they also tend to be ''more'' vulnerable to horror because they also have [[WeakWilled low willpower]], and many treacheries that test willpower inflict horror; Guardians on the flipside have at least middle-to-high will and many ways to raise it further to protect themselves, while Rogues do not. Guardians also have [[CombatMedic lots of options to tank and heal damage and horror]] which Rogues [[NoCureForEvil also lack]].
* GoodGunsBadGuns: Most "bad" guns (commonly associated with gangsters, like "SawedOffShotgun or" ".45 'Thompson'") belongs to Rogue class, and have Illicit trait, though only certain Rogues can qualify as {{Token Evil Teammate}}s themselves.
* HeroicSecondWind: "Cheat Death" event allows to shrug off being defeated through damage or horror, heal 2 health and sanity, discard all cards from threat area and move into enemies-free location. It only works once per scenario, however.
* HiddenWeapons: Some Rogue-class Weapon cards are represented by hidden guns or switchblades, allowing investigators to quickly put them in use during combat without becoming a target for attacks of opportunity.
* HyperactiveMetabolism: "Liquid Courage" asset (actual can with alcohol) allows to regain some sanity by drinking booze. As the side effect, it's possible to get drunk and [[AlcoholInducedIdiocy lose some cards]].
* ItemCaddy:
** Rogues have by far the most number of options to generate resources to fuel their cards, be it through gambling, stealing, or other means.
** Some of Rogue-class cards rewards exceeding the test difficulty, via extra effects not available otherwise; a recurring ability is to return the card back to your hand after the test is done (or at the end of the round), essentially allowing to reuse the same card without discarding it.
* LovableRogue: The general archetype of the class is of a showy, opportunistic, wisecracking scoundrel who succeeds in their tasks [[TheAce effortlessly]], use their [[ScrewTheRulesIHaveMoney money]] and [[ScrewTheRulesIHaveConnections connections]] to get far and that you cannot help but rot for because [[BlackAndGreyMorality they are still going against]] [[EvilVsOblivion doomsday cults and eldritch horrors.]]
* LuckManipulationMechanic:
** "Sure Gamble" event allows to turn a negative modifier of the chaos token into a positive one; obviously, the worse the token drawn, the more powerful this card can become.
** "Lucky Dice" asset allows to spend resources to ignore any chaos token (excluding auto-failure), and draw another one instead in hope that its result would be better. However, if this card makes you draw an "auto-failure" token, this card gets removed from the game. Its upgraded version works slightly differently, but overall idea remains the same.
** "Lucky" Penny" asset allows to toss a coin when you reveal either blessed or cursed token, potentially reverting their effect. Why would you do that with a blessed token? Because it rewards it with a free card draw.
** "False Covenant" asset allows to ignore just drawn cursed token, and draw another token instead, in hope that it would be better.
** "Skeptic" skill allows to treat both blessed and cursed tokens as "+1" instead of their actual modifier (+2 and -2, respectively); it's slightly worse for blessed ones, but much better for cursed.
* NoSell:
** "Obfuscation" asset allows to cancel attacks directed at you; as it's an asset, it's not one-time use as most similar cards, but it still has limited charges.
** "Counterespionage" event allows to cancel a (non-weakness) treachery, drawing another card instead. For extra cost, it may aid someone other than you, or allow you to draw the card from ''your'' deck instead of encounter deck.
** "Quick Getaway" event allows to cancel enemy's attack, by evading that enemy.
* NoCureForEvil: [[PlayedWith Played With]], Rogues are the [[TokenEvilTeammate Token Evil Teammates]] compared to other investigators in most groups, being usually criminals, crooks and scoundrels of some kind, and they also lack ways to heal damage and horror from themselves or other investigators. Their current best tool for healing horror is [[LiquidCourage Liquid Courage]], which has a very good chance of [[AlcoholInducedIdiocy backfiring.]]
* OnlyInItForTheMoney: Several Ally options are actual mercenaries who requires paying them some resources every turn, or they would abandon you.
* PowerAtAPrice: ''The Innsmouth Conspiracy'' introduced plenty of new cards which gives Rogues some boons... at the cost of adding cursed tokens which may hurt them or their teammates later.
* PragmaticHero: Even the more benevolent and altruistic members of this class that are working with the police (and investigators representing them) to save Arkham are willing to get their hands dirty and break the law to do so.
* SawedOffShotgun: Rogues use shortened versions of shotgun, compared to Guardian-class versions. As result, they take only one hand. They comes in the following variants:
** "Lupara" isn't particularly strong, but [[HiddenWeapons can be put in play without provoking attacks of opportunity]], and provides double Combat and damage bonus when used on the same turn it was put in play, most likely [[BackStab due to surprise effect]].
** "Sawed Off Shotgun" scales its damage depending on amount you succeed by. It has better maximum damage than Guardian version (which has very similar effects and statline), but it's [[DifficultButAwesome harder to achieve without spending additional cards]], and costs more experience to purchase (as it's a level 5 card instead of level 4 like "Shotgun"). At least, it's cheaper to put in play.
* ScrewThisImOuttaHere: "I'm Outta Here!" event allows you to immediately resign, right from the place where you currently are; can be quite useful in scenarios with lengthy {{Escape Sequence}}s. However, it only works if there's currently available Resign option, to prevent its use for DungeonBypass where it's not intended by design.
* SinisterSwitchblade: "Switchblade" asset isn't particularly strong, but [[HiddenWeapons can be swiftly and covertly put in play]], without risking attacks of opportunity. As may be expected, it has "Illicit" trait: only the gangsters would wield such into battle, after all... or our {{Unscrupulous Hero}}es.
* SkeletonKey: "Skeleton Key" asset may be used to reduce shroud of any location to 1, as long as it is attached to it. Given that it has both Relic and Cursed traits, its ability to fit to any and all locks is likely magic in nature.
* TheSneakyGuy:
** Rogues tend to have great Agility (usually around 4), which, in combination with their cards, allows them to safely exhaust enemies, disabling them for a turn. When that isn't enough, they have an arsenal of various tricks to further enhance their abilities to safely evade most monsters, or even kill them outright without provoking attacks of opportunity.
** "Cat Burglar" Ally allows to disengage from all enemies and move to a connected location (without attack of opportunity), essentially serving as emergency escape button. He also gives slight permanent boost to Agility.
** Rogues have a great arsenal of resource-gathering effects and abilities, most of them illegal (ranging from gambling to outright burglary).
* UnscrupulousHero: While most of them aren't bad people, Rogues are willing to use questionable tactics and allies if it gets job done, as well as outright break the law; considering that the foes they face are threatening humanity itself, they have a point.
* VideoGameStealing: Some of their cards explains their mechanics as investigator stealing something. "Burglary" allows to steal resources, "Pickpocketing" allows to steal cards, and so on.
* WeakWilled: Rogues' main weakness is their low willpower, few investigators belonging to this class have more than 2 points in this stat. While this doesn't affect their performance during the Investigation Phase, it leaves them VERY vulnerable to the dangers of the Mythos Phase.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Mystics]]
Mystics seek to learn and tame arcane power, to use it for humanity's well-being--despite all the risks it brings. Some of their cards are dedicated to altering the behaviour of monsters, treacheries, and even chaos tokens, and while the cost of failure may be great, so is the reward.

* BlackMage: Combat-oriented Mystics can use certain offensive spells to (besides normal damage bonus) replace/amplify their (usually average at best) Combat with their Willpower.
* CastFromSanity: "Forbidden Knowledge" asset allows investigator to gain some resources, at the cost of accumulating horror.
* ExtraTurn:
** "Stargazing" event, [[AwesomeButImpractical through rather complex and luck-based method]], can give random investigator an extra turn (as well as 1 card and 1 resource), through yet another card, "Stars Are Right" (which works only once per game).
** "Close the Circle" asset allows to take extra actions; it can be used multiple times in a row, but has limited number of charges, and the sole way to increase their number is to collect cards from multiple classes, which seriously limits its potential.
* HealThyself: "Fearless" skill allows to restore sanity after passing a skill check.
* LaserBlade: "Spectral Razor" event; unlike conventional knives, it's a blade made from pure magic energy, attached to spell-caster's arm. Obvious downside is that, being an event, it only lasts for one attack.
* LuckManipulationMechanic: Any class has cards to interact with chaos tokens, but Mystics have by far the largest selection:
** "Grotesque Statue" asset allows to draw additional chaos tokens and pick the one which seems more favourable.
** "Seal of the Elder Sign" allows to disregard any chaos token, replacing it with Elder Sign instead; it only works once per game, however.
** Olive [=McBride=] allows to draw 3 chaos tokens instead of 1, and resolve 2 of them on your choice. Her effects are highly chaotic and unpredictable, but sometimes allows to ignore something truly nasty (like auto-failure) or draw something truly desired (like Elder Sign).
** "Protective Incantation" allows to seal any chaos token (excluding auto-failure), essentially removing it from play for some time. Its usefulness varies from scenario to scenario, as sometimes, symbol tokens may have truly nasty effects.
** "Seal of the Seventh Seal" asset allows to seal the auto-failure chaos token, temporarily protecting investigators from it by ensuring that they would draw something else instead. However, each time a symbol token is revealed during ''any'' skill test, it loses charges and eventually breaks; once it leaves play, it's gone for the rest of scenario.
** "The Chthonian Stone" allows to seal symbol chaos tokens, temporarily protecting the team from their effects. It breaks if you reveal an auto-failure token later.
** "Counterspell" event allows to just ignore chaos token you draw, without drawing extra one -- avoiding both the nasty modifier and even nastier additional effects.
** "Dark Prophecy" event allows to draw 5 chaos tokens, and resolve one of them; however, it always requires to pick a symbol token if possible (which almost always comes with some additional effects), making it a choice between two evils.
** "Premonition" event allows to seal a random chaos token, and later use it on the next skill test performed, instead of the random token you would draw otherwise. While result is not always beneficial, at least you always know what to expect.
** "Curse of Aeons" asset allows to turn a second cursed token revealed during skill test as "Skull" token; while modifier may actually be worse, it's beneficial for some Spell cards, which gets ''stronger'' if you draw such token.
** "Paradoxical Covenant" asset only works if both blessed and cursed tokens were revealed during one skill test, but if it happens, ''it's an automatic success''.
** "Rite of Equilibrium" event allows to either add any number of blessed and cursed tokens (in equal proportions) to the chaos bag, or, conversely, remove them on demand.
** "Tides of Fate" event allows to replace all cursed tokens in the bag with blessed ones; once the round ends, it does the same in reverse, so it's better to capitalise on its effect while it lasts.
* MagicMisfire: Many of their cards have negative side effects which only triggers if specific condition is met, usually drawing specific chaos tokens, and can be nearly anything: taking damage or horror, losing actions, losing resources, discarding cards, etc.
* MindControl: "Power Word" event allows, to a limited degree, control an enemy and use it to achieve your goals. Most of its upgrades expands the number of things you can order through this card.
* NighInvulnerability: "Ethereal Form" event allows, on successful evasion, turn ethereal, which makes the enemies unable to engage or attack investigator -- but also makes investigator unable to attack or cause damage to ''them''. However, any effects which causes damage/horror directly, would still do so, so this protection is not absolute.
* NoSell: Mystics have perhaps the largest number of cards which protects them from some harm in one way or another:
** "Ward of Protection" event allows to cancel revelation effect of a (non-weakness) Treachery card, albeit at the cost of taking some horror.
** "Defiance" skill allows to pick a symbol chaos token (excluding auto-failure and campaign-specific ones), and ignore it altogether, including modifier. Its upgraded version ignores ''all'' such tokens, no longer requiring to pick specific ones.
** "Deny Existence" event allows to ignore one negative effect from encounter card or enemy's attack (on player's choice, out of options listed), sometimes avoiding something truly nasty. Upgraded version allows to perform same thing in reverse (heal, draw card, etc).
** Ikiaq allows to put the just drawn basic weaknesses (even those belonging to the other players) below her card, temporarily removing them from the game; but for each card, her owner temporarily loses 1 Willpower and 1 Intellect, and once she leaves the play, all those cards gets freed and must be drawn for real.
** "Ward of Radiance" event allows to cancel a treachery card, albeit it has a chance to fail.
** "Foresight" event allows to name a card before drawing (either player card, or encounter card); when drawing an encounter card, if you guess the name of the card right, you can immediately cancel and discard it.
** "Binder's Jar" asset can cancel the enemy's attacks directed at its user; however, the conditions for it to actually work makes it hard to utilise that way.
** "Edlritch Inspiration" event allows to either ignore symbol token altogether, or resolve effect twice; it's only usable when playing Mystic-class cards, which either backfires if such tokens gets drawn, or, conversely, triggers extra effects.
* PortalNetwork: "Open Gate" event allows to create up to 3 portals, between which investigators can move freely.
* PowerAtAPrice: Mystics constantly deals with eldritch powers to achieve their goals. As result, many of their cards have various drawbacks, which comes in various flavours.
** Some cards requires putting Doom tokens on them, [[TimedMission taking away your precious time]] for immediate benefits. Fortunately, some cards are specifically dedicated to removing Doom from cards.
** Many Spell cards comes with the risk of suffering negative effects if certain kinds of chaos tokens gets drawn when resolving effects, with exact penalties varying from card to card.
** "Drawn to the Flame" event allows to discover some "free" clues by drawing encounter cards.
** "Delve Too Deep" event gives "free" victory points at the cost of drawing extra encounter cards for every investigator. Due to the way it works, each copy can be used only once per scenario (as it gets added to the victory display after being played).
** "Arcane Research" permanent allows to spend less experience on upgrading Spells, but requires suffering a mental trauma in order to be purchased.
* PowerNullifier:
** "Mind Wipe" asset "blanks" the enemy card's text box, essentially depriving it of all its abilities.
** "Read the Signs" allows to, while investigating, ignoring any effects and keywords of investigated location, which would otherwise target the investigator (and may be very nasty in some cases). It doesn't affect location's shroud, however.
* TheRedMage: Mystics have both combat- and support-oriented options; certain cards can be used for either, or improve their overall effectiveness. Unfortunately, the majority of their Assets takes up arcane slots (and every investigator has only two by default), meaning that "generalist" Mystics can easily fall behind their more specialised colleagues.
* {{Seers}}: Various Mystic-class cards are related to ability to see the future or something hidden, in one way or another, with the name often reflecting it; it's used as justification for them manipulating game mechanics.
** "Scrying" asset allows see the top 3 cards of player or encounter decks and change their order.
** Alyssa Graham allows to not only look at the top of either the player or encounter decks, but also put that card on the bottom of the deck if the player wishes so (at the cost of putting Doom on her).
** "Rite of Seeking" asset allows to investigate while using Willpower instead of Intellect, by discovering the hidden clues via magic. Like many Spells, it has a chance to backfire on user, ending their turn prematurely.
** "Premonition" event "predicts" which chaos token would be drawn, by sealing a random token from the bag and enforcing its usage on the next skill test.
** "Sixth Sense" asset allows to not just investigate using Willpower instead of Intellect, but also to investigate ''connected'' location instead of your own (without actually going there). Upgraded version allows to pick location up to two connections away.
** "Parallel Fates" event allows to look certain amount of cards of either encounter or player's deck, either putting them back in any order or reshuffling the deck.
** "Scrying Mirror" asset allows to reveal a chaos token ''before'' committing any cards, so the player knows what they must do to pass a test, or, if they know that it's a certain failure, to not invest any cards.
* SpellBook: Several Mystic cards are occult books containing spells or magic rituals for specific purposes.
* SquishyWizard: Mystics tend to have great Willpower (around 4-5), which they use to fuel their magic, but bad Health (6 at average) and Combat (around 2-3), meaning they are in a trouble whenever their supply of magic tricks runs out, or isn't suitable for the situation.
* TimeRewindMechanic:
** "Time Warp" event allows to completely undo an action done by investigator, allowing for comeback if something goes not as planned.
** "Quantum Flux" event allows to, once per game, regain all cards from discard pile; the name suggests that time manipulation is in effect.
* WeakenedByTheLight: "Blinding Light" event not only aids in evading the enemies (due to, well, blinding them), but can somehow harm them, causing them damage if successful.
* WhiteMage: Support-oriented Mystics provides help to their teammates, with healing, protective, or luck-manipulating spells and artifacts.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Survivors]]
Survivors have no combat training, arcane abilities or occult knowledge. Wrong people in the wrong place at the wrong time, they must rely on their savviness and sheer luck to overcome the eldritch horrors surrounding them, and do what they do best--survive.

* ActionSurvivor: Unlike their colleagues from the other classes, Survivors have no specialised training or arcane knowledge, and must rely on their savviness and sheer luck.
* AmmoUsingMeleeWeapon "Chainsaw", despite being Melee card, has limited number of supplies (3 by default), without which it can't attack. On the bright side, failed attack with it allows to either deal damage anyway (albeit much lower), or regain some lost supplies.
* BatterUp: Survivors can arm themselves with a "Baseball Bat" asset, which provides them with reliable source of damage, but also [[BreakableWeapons risks breaking up]] on every swing.
* BookDumb: There are very few Survivors that have more than 2 base Intellect, but they are still very capable of gathering clues as much as other investigators of other classes with higher intelligence through... [[LuckBasedSearchTechnique Unusual]] investigation methods. The general [[GuileHero trickery]] and [[XanatosSpeedChess improvisation]] they show performing in many of their event cards fully showcase how shrewd they can be.
* BreakableWeapons: Recurring trait of Survivor assets. They either risk breaking at random, like [[BatterUp Baseball Bat]], or can be put beyond their usual surviving capabilities and damaged beyond repair, removing them from the game (or from your deck, via so-called "exile" mechanic, requiring to re-purchase them), in order to achieve certain goals.
* CastFromMoney: "Fire Axe" asset allows to spend resources to increase its Combat bonus, and provides bonus damage if you have exactly zero in your supply.
* ChainsawGood: "Chainsaw" asset takes both hands, but provides good boost to Strength and damage for one attack. Its gimmick is that [[AmmoUsingMeleeWeapon it has limited "ammo"]], but whenever your attack with it fails, you can either deal (much lower) damage anyway, or regain one supply for the Chainsaw.
* TheCavalry: "A Chance Encounter" event allows to put into play an Ally card from discard pile, including the ones that belongs to the other players.
* ConvenientDecoyCat: "Stray Cat" Ally can be discarded to automatically avoid non-Elite enemy; idea is, obviously, that said enemy gets distracted to pursuit a cat.
* CriticalStatusBuff: "Fight or Flight" event gives the bonus to both Combat and Agility, depending on how much horror an investigator suffered before using it.
* DeliciousDistraction: The art for "Cunning Distraction" event shows how a group of monsters gets distracted by a chicken; in gameplay terms, it allows to automatically evade all non-Elite enemies in your location, likely due to them being distracted.
* {{Determinator}}: Survivors have cards that allow them to shrug off large amounts of damage, turn failure into success, and keep going when everything else seems lost.
* ExtraTurn:
** "End of the Road" event gives the investigator several boons, including one extra action, but can only be used when the final Agenda is in play, and only once per game.
** "Lifeline" event gives an investigator whose turn is about to end the number of extra actions equal to how many tests they failed this turn. It allows for some good comeback, but requires repurchasing after every use.
* GameplayAndStoryIntegration: Survivors normally have a low Intellect stat; because they were dragged into this mostly by accident, they have near-zero prior experience with occult magic and Mythos research (for the same reason, they also have the least selection of assets taking up arcane slot, or magic-related cards in general). Besides that, they have no established pattern for their skills, which varies greatly from investigator to investigator.
* HealingFactor: What makes Peter Sylvestre a popular Ally choice is that he's not just a horror soak; he's a ''regenerating'' horror soak, allowing him to last for longer. That, and his stats boosts.
* HeroicSecondWind: "Perseverance" event allows to cancel up to 4 of damage/horror which would otherwise defeat an investigator.
* ImprovisedWeapon: Many combat-oriented Survivor-class cards represents them using something as improvised self-defence:
** Almost all Survivor-class weapons are instruments created for different purposes than slashing monsters, like baseball bats, kerosene lamps, meat cleavers, fire axes and others. Because they are not intended to be used that way, there are often some downsides, like possibility of breaking them. Out of two firearms available, one is an old hunting rifle (prone to [[ReliablyUnreliableGuns jam at worst moments]]), while the other is a small, self-defence pistol with [[LittleUselessGun lower punching power than the rifle and even worse ammo capacity.]]
** "[[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Improvised Weapon]]" event is useful as a one-time attack against a monster, especially if you have no better options. The card depicts scared archeologist trying to use a torch for self-defence.
* ItemCaddy: Many Survivor-class cards are dedicated to (re)obtaining other cards from discard pile, or even playing them from there.
* JackOfAllStats: The only class not to favour certain stats by default, and not to have an established role in the party by default. Instead, they prefers a more generalist playing style, having some abilities for anything, yet not exceeding actual specialists. Also, for a long time they lacked cards above level 3 (and those are still uncommon).
* LittleUselessGun: [[AvertedTrope Averted]] with the ".18 Derringer"; it provides a decent +2 bonus to Combat and deal the standard +1 damage as most Level 0 weapons, but it has one of the worst ammo capacities in the game; the gimmick is that you can freely recharge it by 1 ammo on each failure.
* LuckBasedSearchTechnique: "Look what I found!" event allows you to find some clues... after ''failing'' the investigation.
* LuckManipulationMechanic: Tied with the Mystics in number of options they have to manipulate the chaos tokens in their favour:
** "Will to Survive" skill allows to flat-out disable drawing chaos tokens till the end of your turn, protecting you from random "-8" and "auto-failure" draws.
** "Stroke of Luck" skill allows to automatically pass a test after revealing a chaos token, unless you draw [[CriticalFailure auto-failure token]]. However, after one use, this card gets "exiled", meaning that you have to repurchase it.
** "Against All Odds" event allows to draw extra chaos tokens when performing skill checks with difficulty exceeding basic stat value, with effect scaling with difference, and picking the token with preferable outcome.
** "Eucatastrophe" event allows to ignore any chaos token revealed during skill test if that token's modifier would reduce the skill value to 0; this ''does'' apply to the dreaded auto-failure token. Instead, you receive an Elder Sign.
** "Third Time's a Charm" event allows to ignore up to 2 chaos tokens during a skill test, drawing another one instead; what makes it stand out amongst similar cards is that it can affect the other players.
** ''The Innsmouth Conspiracy'' expansion introduced several cards which interacts with its "blessed" and "cursed" tokens (provides a boost or penalty to skill, respectively), trying to either make the best of blessed tokens, or minimise the harm from cursed ones, as well as a few cards which just adds more blessed tokens:
*** "Ancient Covenant" from ''The Innsmouth Conspiracy'' expansion allows to, once a blessed token is revealed, skip revealing any other tokens; by itself, a blessed token gives "+2" bonus, which is higher than whatever you might've drawn otherwise.
*** "Spirit of Humanity" asset allows to either [[CastFromHitpoints take some damage and horror]] to add more blessed tokens (which makes things easier for the players), or add some cursed tokens (which makes things harder for the players) to heal yourself.
*** "Harmony Restored" event allows to straight up remove cursed tokens from the bag, but only if there's exactly the same amount of blessed tokens presented.
*** "Beloved" skill allows to automatically succeed after drawing a blessed token; the downside is that it gets removed from the game after use.
*** "Signum Crucis" skill exists to help the investigator whose skill value is way too low to have a chance to pass skill test; the further you're behind, the more blessed tokens it adds before the test even starts, significantly increasing your chances.
* LuckyRabbitsFoot: Lucky Rabbits Foot asset allows the user to draw 1 card after failing any skill check, providing some comeback after suffering from bad luck.
* MagicallyIneptFighter: Survivors have the least number of native magic-related events and assets, as most of them have nothing to do with occult at all.
* NoSell:
** "A Test of Will" event allows to completely ignore a non-weakness treachery card; the downside is that it gets "exiled" after use, requiring repurchasing.
** "Devil's Luck" event allows to shrug off a large amount of damage and/or horror, albeit at the cost of "exiling" that card.
** "Infighting" event allows to cancel ''all'' attacks by enemies aimed at you for entire phase.
** "Fortune or Fate" event allows to cancel 1 Doom token when it's about to be put on agenda. Unfortunately, the card works only once, and has to be repurchased afterwards.
** "Nightmare Bauble" asset allows to cancel auto-failure token, at the cost of shuffling additinal weakness into your deck. On the bright side, if you would lose that asset, you would lose the weaknesses, too.
** "Idol of Xanatos" asset allows to shrug off up to 3 damage and/or horror, albeit it requires discarding that same amount of cards from hand for every use.
* PowerNullifier: "Fend Off" event triggers when an enemy spawns in your location; it attacks you, but then it gets exhausted (due to you automatically evading it)... and never readies, as this card gets attached to it and disables it, making that enemy an easy target, or allowing to just leave it where it stands and proceed further. The downside is that you can't retrieve that card while it's still attached.
* ReliablyUnreliableGuns: "Old Hunting Rifle" asset can (depending on the chaos token revealed) potentially jam (automatically failing skill check), requiring spending additional action to fix it, which, in combat situation, makes you vulnerable to attacks of opportunity. It's the ''only'' Weapon in the game that can jam.
* ShovelStrike: "Gravedigger's Shovel" asset is an actual shovel which can be used either for digging (allows to find a clue, albeit at the cost of breaking the shovel)... or hitting someone on the head, giving Combat bonus.
* UnluckilyLucky: Many of their card effects represent good luck getting them out of the horrible mythos-tinged situations they stumble into, including some cards which only work ''when failing'' skill checks, essentially serving to provide comeback from an otherwise hopeless situation.
[[/folder]]

!Introduced in ''Night of the Zealot'' (core game)
[[folder:Roland Banks]]
!!Roland Banks, the Fed
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahlcg_roland.png]]
[[caption-width-right:225:''Everything by the book: every "i" dotted, every "t" crossed. It has worked, until now.'']]
-> ''Roland had always taken comfort in procedure and rules. As an agent in the Bureau, he was relieved to have guidelines to follow in any given situation. But lately, his Federal Agent's Handbook had been entirely unhelpful given the cases he'd been assigned. Try as he might, Roland could find no mention of what to do when confronted with strange creatures, gates through time and space, or magic spells. If he hadn't seen it with his own eyes, he would never have believed it... and there's no way his superiors would understand. Roland knew he would have to handle this one himself''.
!!!Both versions
Guardian-class investigator.

* CycleOfHurting: His low starting sanity makes him very likely to run out and take mental trauma (something his weakness also dispenses), which in turn makes him more likely to run out next mission until he's rendered permanently insane.
* FBIAgent: Well, BI Agent; they weren't the ''Federal'' Bureau until 9 years after ''Arkham Horror''[='=]s timeframe.
* RevolversAreJustBetter: His signature card is his .38 revolver. Its main gimmick is providing an additional bonus to Combat when used in a location with at least one clue, which further amplifies the hybrid fighter/searcher playstyle of his default kit.
* SecretWar: Roland is obsessed with keeping his activities hidden from unrelated people; his signature weakness, "Cover Up", is him realising that he left an evidence behind and trying to get rid of it. Failure to do so before either the scenario's end or Roland's resignment/elimination will result in mental trauma.

!!!Basic version
Has access to Seeker cards (up to level 2).

* ByTheBookCop: According to his backstory, he used to always follow the rules to the letter--until he got involved in the story. He dropped this mentality when he realised that this would not help him with {{Eldritch Abomination}}s.
* GeniusBruiser: {{Downplayed|Trope}}. While his Intellect is average, he has access to Seeker cards, making him a versatile investigator able to both fight and search for clues. Also, all his abilities are related to finding clues, including through defeating enemies.
* GlassCannon: He's an effective fighter and not bad at getting clues, but his base 5 Sanity is abysmal (a single Rotting Remains encounter can remove up to 3), meaning he desperately needs means of soaking and healing horror to avoid being defeated early in the scenario.
* JackOfAllStats: {{Downplayed|Trope}}, his Agility is below average (2) and his Combat above (4), but Roland's Intellect and Willpower are both average (3), meaning that while it's easier to build him as a fighter, Roland's middle of the road stats allow him to also be fairly capable at both clue gathering and resisting treacheries if he goes out of the way to improve his non-combat stats. His access to Seeker cards give him a fair amount of utility unavailable to most Guardians too.

!!!Parallel version
Has access to off-class "Tactics" and "Insight" cards (up to level 3), but can't take the Guardian-class cards above level 3.

* ByTheBookCop: The "parallel" version of Roland [[WhatIf assumes]] that he still acts as a proper, rules-abiding detective, [[GameplayAndStoryIntegration making him restricted by countless regulations]]. The end of his challenge scenario directly questions what would happen when those directives [[ToBeLawfulOrGood came into conflict with his morality]], as a nod to his canon self.
* JackOfAllTrades: "Parallel" Roland lacks access to high-level Guardian cards, being limited only to level 3, but can take any Tactic or Insight cards up to level 3, making him rather versatile, especially if the right Directives are chosen.
* MechanicallyUnusualFighter: "Parallel" Roland has special cards, unique to him -- the "Directives", which provide him both restrictions (like inability to attack more than twice per round) and additional abilities; he has five available, but only three may be chosen, with the other two becoming permanently inaccessible. If his "parallel" deckbuilding rules are chosen, he also starts with 5 bonus experience points.
* MightyGlacier: {{Exaggerated|Trope}}. The directive "Leave no doubt" makes Roland THE most durable investigator in the game, raising his Sanity by 3, with a total amount of 9 health and 8 sanity (even higher than [[StoneWall Stella's]] 8/8), but has the drawback of only allowing Roland to move twice per round, which cripples his movement range in a game where [[TimedMission every move matters]]. Also, Roland will still be driven insane if he accumulates 5 Mental Traumas instead of 8, as the total amount of trauma that kills or drives insane an investigator '''only''' checks against the base value of health and sanity, rather than the total after any boost or penalty.
* WhatIf: The "parallel" Roland is an alternative version of himself, where he chose not to abandon his directives and [[ByTheBookCop still follows the rules]].

[[folder:Daisy Walker]]
!!Daisy Walker, the Librarian
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahlcgdaisy.png]]
[[caption-width-right:225:''"I know of books so powerful, they can rewrite reality."'']]
->''As a respected librarian at Miskatonic University, Daisy had always felt that books were the most important thing in her life. She explored in fiction what she abhorred in life: horror, violence, fear. Then, she stumbled across the John Dee translation of the Necronomicon. It was blasphemous, unholy, and too awful to be read. But given her studies in obscure and occult subjects, Daisy knew there was more truth than fiction within the book's pages. She began to wonder what other secrets the restricted collection of the Orne Library held...''
!!!Both versions
Seeker-class investigator.

* BoringButPractical: Her signature card, "Daisy's Tote Bag", gives her two additional "Hand" slots (without taking any by itself), which can only be used for Tome cards (something she relies upon a great deal); simple, but reliable. She can also dump her weakness, [[TomeOfEldritchLore "Necronomicon"]], into a bag until she can deal with it.
* GoMadFromTheRevelation: Once the "Necronomicon" enters play, the only way to get rid of it is to study it, which drains her sanity.
* NightmareFetishist: She likes reading the stories exploring the topics of horror, violence and fear (while still abhorring them in real life). But the "[[TomeOfEldritchLore Necronomicon]]" is too much even for her.
* SquishyWizard: Has only 5 Health, which is very low even for a Seeker or Mystic.
* TomeOfEldritchLore: Her involvement in the plot was kickstarted by her study of the [[TropeCodifier Necronomicon]]. That same book is also her signature weakness, preventing her from using elder sign tokens while it is in play. It becomes even worse if she fails her LoyaltyMission, ''Read or Die'', becoming a potentially game-ending threat.

!!!Basic version
Has access to Mystic cards (up to level 2).

* BoringButPractical: She has extra action each turn, which she can only spend to interact with "Tome" assets. Given that those often form the core of her gameplay, it saves her ''a lot'' of time, but it's rather simple and generic ability compared to some more flashy ones the other investigators have.
* MagicLibrarian: While her Willpower is average, she has access to Mystic cards, most of which are either spells or magic artifacts. She can also get additional actions to use on "Tome" assets, and her signature card allows her to carry extra books around.

!!!Parallel version
Has access to off-class "Tome" cards (of any level), and up to five other level 0 Guardian and/or Mystic cards, but can't take the non-Tome Seeker-class cards above level 3.

* CripplingOverspecialisation: "Parallel" Daisy, instead of her usual deckbuilding rules, can access any Tome cards (regardless of level or class)... but only up to level 3 other Seeker cards, and loses her access to Mystic cards. Unfortunately, most Tomes are Seeker-class anyway, so she loses more than she gains. This is slightly compensated by her being allowed to take up to five level 0 Guardian and/or Mystic cards.
* MagicLibrarian:
** "Parallel" Daisy amplifies her Willpower by putting "Tome" assets into play. When used in combination with her old deckbuilding rules for access to Mystic cards (rules allows to mix front and back sides as the player sees fit), this may greatly increase her effectiveness as a team's sorceress.
** Once per game, she can activate action abilities on ''all'' of her "Tomes", without actually spending actions, with all the mayhem it can cause.
* MagikarpPower: "Parallel" Daisy starts with only 1 Willpower and 7 Sanity (her default version starts with 3 and 9, respectively), but amplifies both by one point for each Tome asset she puts into play.
* MechanicallyUnusualFighter: "Parallel" Daisy receives +1 Sanity per Tome she controls. Considering that she starts with 7 Sanity, and can have up to 4 Tomes in play thanks to her "Tote Bag", she can end up with 11 Sanity--while the other investigators normally have 9 at most (13 when playing the ''[[LoyaltyMission Read or Die]]'' scenario, thanks to Professor Armitage, as he provides two additional slots).

[[folder:"Skids" O'Toole]]
!!"Skids" O'Toole, the Ex-Con
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahlcg_skids.png]]
[[caption-width-right:225:''"I didn't get out of the joint just to watch the world end"''.]]
->''Skids hadn't planned on a life of crime. But sometimes doing the right thing means getting your hands dirty. The cops didn't care that Skids needed the money for his mother's operation. His mother died of her illness during the second year of his sentence. His cellmate, Brad Hollins, told him there were worse fates than death. He ranted and raved in a quiet voice every evening about the "Old Ones" and told Skids about bizarre adventures he'd had while dreaming. Skids didn't give it much thought until the night he woke to the sight of his cellmate bursting into flames. When Skids was finally released, he returned to Arkham, looking for answers''.
!!!Both versions
Rogue-class investigator.

* TheAtoner: Skids' subtitle is the "Ex-Convict" and his desire to discover what happened to his cellmate Brad and avenge him is partially fuelled by his wish to make his late mother proud of him once more.
* TheCorpseStopsHere: When his cellmate [[SpontaneousHumanCombustion burst into flames one night]], the cops accused him of causing it, but couldn't get the charge to stick.
* FaceOfAThug: He may look like bandit, but he is a good guy--and what banditry he ''did'' commit was solely to aid his mother with getting through her illness. His basic version further nails it by giving him access to Guardian-class cards.
* HealthcareMotivation: He really was only robbing banks to try to save his mother from her illness; unfortunately, [[AllForNothing she died while he was in prison]] -- and now, he still has to pay up the bills, which [[GameplayAndStoryIntegration works as his signature weakness]], "Hospital Debts"; once they shows up, he has to pay them up until the end of scenario (or his elimination), or suffer penalty to experience earned.
* NeverGoingBackToPrison: He served ten years in prison once, and won't allow it to happen again--certainly not when the stakes are now much higher than just his life. Fittingly, his signature card, "On the Lam", [[StealthExpert makes any non-Elite enemies unable to attack him]].
-->''"I ain't going to the pen a second time"''.
* ReformedCriminal: [[DownplayedTrope His main class is Rogue and he has access to illicit assets and criminal allies]], but Skids' motivations to join the invesigation are selfless, wanting to find out why his friend Brad [[SpontaneousHumanCombustion died]], make his mother proud beyond the grave and prevent the end of the world; which contrast heavily with many of the later, far more opportunistic and self-serving rogues introduced in later cycles.
* SpontaneousHumanCombustion: His motivation to come to Arkham was when his cellmate, Brad, spontaneously combusted one night.
* StealthExpert: His signature card, "On the Lam", makes non-Elite enemies unable to attack him.

!!!Basic version
Has access to Guardian cards (up to level 2).

* BigGuy: {{Downplayed|Trope}}; his Combat stat is average, but he has access to Guardian-class cards to amplify it. Also, being a Rogue, he can obtain enough resources to fuel his more expensive cards, or use them to buy more actions through his signature ability. All of this makes him fitting candidate for the role of dedicated fighter.
* JackOfAllStats: {{Downplayed|Trope}}, Skids has below average Will (2) but above average agility (4) and average Intellect and Combat (3). His Rogue card pool gives him options to not only boost his high agility further, but also bolster his fight and intellect using his agility, making him an equally good candidate as both as a fighter or clue gatherer; while his options in the Guardian pool not only greatly improve his combat capabilities even more, but also negate his weakpoint through various will-boosting cards. In short, Skids' stats, signature and ability give the player a variety of choices on how to build a deck for him and [[JackOfAllTrades what roles he should fit in any group.]]

!!!Parallel version.
Has access off-class "Fortune" and "Gambit" cards (up to level 3).

* AscendedMeme: Prior to release of his "parallel" version, there was a popular custom version of Skids, which remade him into a Rogue/Survivor gambler. Comes the "parallel" version, and now Skids has gambling-themed abilities, gambling-themed deckbuilding options (many of which just so happen to be Survivor-class), and the challenge scenario set in a casino.
* BornLucky: His "parallel" version trades access to a Guardian class for access to any "Fortune" or "Gambit" cards up to level 3. He also may keep multiple versions of the same card (low- and high-level versions), which is [[MechanicallyUnusualFighter normally forbidden]].
* GameplayAndStoryIntegration: "Parallel" Skids is essentially a gambler. As result, his new abilities and deckbuilding options were remade to fit the theme:
** Gamblers always rely on risks and various tricks. As result, he has access to "Fortune" and "Gambit" cards (up to level 3).
** "Parallel" Skids trades his usual ability to spend resources to gain more actions for ability to actually gamble on his resources and on success earning much more.
* MechanicallyUnusualFighter: The "parallel" version of Skids, while upgrading "Fortune" cards, may, instead of just replacing them with the higher level versions, buy them at the full cost... and keep ''both'' the old and new versions, even if it would put him at more than two copies of the same card in his deck, by title, which is normally forbidden. Any old cards he keeps in the deck this way also don't count towards the deck's size.

[[folder:Agnes Baker]]
!!Agnes Baker, the Waitress
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahlcg_agnes.png]]
[[caption-width-right:225:''"I remember another life, one of sorcery and conquest."'']]
->''Agnes Baker may be just an unassuming waitress in this life, but in a previous life, in a time and age undreamed of in the modern world, she had been a powerful witch. It began when she found a strange artifact -- a key of some kind -- in a dusty collection of family belongings in her attic. When she touched it, the memories came flooding back, along with one word: "Hyperborea." The more she delved into the visions and memories of her former life, the stronger her powers grew... and the more frightened she became''.
!!!Both versions
Mystic-class investigator.

* ActionSurvivor: She has strong natural magic power, but otherwise lacks any special training, being a mere waitress in this particular incarnation. Her basic version further nails it, by giving her access to Surivor-class cards.
* {{Reincarnation}}: She was a Hyperborean witch in the past life. All her problems are caused by the past catching up with her.
* VisionsOfAnotherSelf:
** She has dreams of her past incarnation; this is how she learned magic.
** Her signature weakness, "Dark Memory", [[YourWorstMemory forces her to relive the worst moments of her Hyperborean past self]], either damaging her sanity or increasing the current doom.
* YourWorstMemory: Her signature weakness, "Dark Memory", forces her to relive the worst moments of her [[VisionsOfAnotherSelf past life]], where she was a Hyperborean witch.

!!!Basic version
Has access to Survivor cards (up to level 2).

* CriticalStatusBuff: Her Elder Sign effect gives her +1 to the tested skill for each horror she has.
* GlassCannon: {{Invoked|Trope}}, Agnes main ability is to deal damage when she takes horror, meaning to make the most of it, she must take LOTS of horror regularly, leaving her vulnerable to be overwhelmed by it and defeated. Notably, Shrivelling, one of the main attack spells assets in the game, inflicts horror when revealing some types of chaos tokens: while this can be helpful for Agnes to deal additional damage in one attack it can lead her to [[MutualKill be defeated alongside her enemy if she is particularly low on sanity and unable to dump the horror on another asset]]

!!!Parallel version
Has access off-class "Spell" and "Occult" cards (up to level 3).

* BloodMagic: The "parallel" version of Agnes [[CastFromHitPoints can damage herself in order to fuel her magic]]. It's implied that she achieves this because her blood has magic capabilities.
* CastFromHitPoints: Her "parallel" version, instead of her [[CriticalStatusBuff default ability]], gains the ability to sacrifice her own Health to decrease the cost of "Spell" events she plays (and to keep them in hand instead of discarding them).
* MechanicallyUnusualFighter: The "parallel" version of Agnes has a reduced deck size (25 instead of normal 30), but she can, while upgrading "Spell" cards, instead of just replacing them with higher level versions, buy them at the full cost, and keep ''both'' old and new versions, even if it would put her at more than two copies of the same card in her deck, by title, which is normally forbidden. Any old cards she keeps in the deck this way also don't count towards the deck's size.
* MythologyGag: The "parallel" version of Agnes basically reuses her abilities from ''TabletopGame/ArkhamHorror'', adapted to work with the new mechanics. Her challenge scenario also heavily resembles her [[LoyaltyMission personal story]] from the same game, which involved her confrontation with the enemy from her past life.
* SquishyWizard: PlayedWith; "parallel" Agnes gains impressive 8 Health (this is Guardian-level toughness) and the ability to heal herself whenever she draws the Elder Sign, but pays for it with having only 6 Sanity, which is the worst in her class.

[[folder:Wendy Adams]]
!!Wendy Adams, the Urchin
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahlcg_wendy.png]]
->''Mama used to let Wendy play with her necklace when she was small. Mama would tell her stories, and Wendy would spin the necklace and watch as it glittered. Then, word came that her father had been lost at sea, and Mama started acting strange, drawing unusual symbols in chalk all over the house. They took Mama to the asylum, and Wendy went to the orphanage. Before they took her away, Mama gave her the necklace, to "protect her." Wendy stayed in the orphanage for several years before running away, deciding that she could take better care of herself on her own''.
!!!Both versions
Survivor-class investigator.

* DespairEventHorizon: Her signature weakness, "Abandoned and Alone", removes all cards from her discard pile from the game, symbolising her losing the will to keep fighting. And the tinnier the deck becomes, the easier it's to draw this card again, not to mention taking some horror each time the deck resets.
* KidHero: She is the only minor character in the cast.
* ObviousRulePatch: Errata for Wendy's Amulet was released, tweaking the rules specifically to counter its weird interaction with certain Events with non-standard mechanics, which was easily abusable; prior to this, she was able to reuse them indefinitely.
* OrphansPlotTrinket: Her signature card, "Wendy's Amulet", is an Elder Sign trinket given to her by her parents. It allows her to play events from her discard pile and, as long as she keeps it in play, her Elder Sign effect allows her to automatically pass any skill-checks.
* ParentalAbandonment: Her father is LostAtSea, while her mother went insane and was put into the [[BedlamHouse asylum]].
* TheSneakyGuy: Has good Agility, which allows her to safely avoid most monsters, temporarily disabling them in the process. Her basic version further amplifies this playstyle by giving her access to Rogue-class cards.

!!!Basic version.
Has access to Rogue cards (up to level 2).

* FragileSpeedster: {{Downplayed|Trope}}, Wendy has good Agility and Willpower (both are 4) and access to Rogue cards, but abysmal Combat (1) and only average Health and Sanity (both at 7). She's ''not'' a fighter, and wouldn't last long if cornered. She is however '''extremely''' resistant to treacheries, as they mostly test against will and agility, Wendy's highest stats, and she is able to reroll an otherwise failed result by discarding a card too. Also, because both her health and sanity are average, she normally wouldn't be more likely to be defeated by either damage or horror unlike most investigators, if it wasn't for her signature weakness dealing her large amount of direct horror.
* NoSell: She can discard one card from hand to ignore the effects of one chaos token, but she must draw another one instead.
* StreetUrchin: She was put in an orphanage after her mother went insane, but she escaped and has lived on the streets ever since.

!!!Parallel version
Can pick either Blessed and/or Cursed cards, and access any cards with chosen trait(s), regardless of class and level.

* CooldownManipulation: "Parallel" Wendy can put blessed/cursed tokens on the enemies while evading them (either those drawn during the test, or from the pool), which, thanks to her special signature Asset, "Tidal Memento", allows her to lock them from readying (thus locking them from the battle) or accumulating Doom tokens for as long as they have those tokens on them. As with all such effects, [[ContractualBossImmunity it doesn't work on Elite enemies]].
* CripplingOverspecialisation: She suffers from the same problem as Father Matteo (another investigator specialising in "Blessed" cards) before her: both Blessed and Cursed cards being very rare (outside of ''The Innsmouth Conspiracy'' expansion; though she's unplayable without it anyway). She has no other off-class options.
* FragileSpeedster: "Parallel" Wendy has the same base stats as the original, meaning good Agility, and terrible Combat stats. However, unlike original, "Parallel" Wendy ''must'' risk going near enemies to achieve the full potential of her abilities.
* LuckManipulationMechanic:
** Her deckbuilding rules are built around Blessed and Cursed cards, particularly the cards related to Blessed/Cursed tokens introduced in ''The Innsmouth Conspiracy'' (in fact, she can't be played without the expansion anyway, due to using those tokens in her core mechanic).
** Her Elder Sign ability allows to get rid of unwanted Blessed/Cursed tokens in the chaos pool, or use with her special ability.
** "Tidal Memento" Asset allows Wendy to use the tokens previously sealed on the enemies instead of drawing from the chaos pool, with all the benefits coming with them.

!Introduced in ''The Dunwich Legacy'' expansion
[[folder:In general]]

* CripplingOverspecialization: All ''Dunwich Legacy" investigators have very limited access to cards of other classes besides their own: the price of getting five level 0 cards from all the other four other classes.
* JackOfAllTrades: [[DownplayedTrope Downplayed,]] their usefulness in certains roles is still dictated by their stats, but the aviability of level 0 cards from other classes make Dunwich Investigator capabable of covering multiple roles in a pinch. They also have above average endurance, with a total count of 15 total health and sanity combined instead of the usual 14 (with the exception of Pete, [[GlassCannon who has 11]])

[[folder:Zoey Samaras]]
!!Zoey Samaras, the Chef
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahlcg_zoey.png]]
[[caption-width-right:225:''"God has spoken. I will do His work without hesitation."'']]
->''Zoey had known that she was special ever since God spoke to her one night when she was six years old... the night that terrible fire took away her parents. He told her that He had chosen her from among all the people of the world to be His agent. She would protect the innocent and punish the wicked. Since then, He comes to her in times of trouble, offering guidance and comfort. Zoey now travels from city to city, taking work as a chef to support herself. When she isn't working, she stalks the night, guided by the Lord's voice. Wherever she finds wickedness, she strikes it down without remorse or hesitation''.
Guardian-class investigator. Can include up to five level 0 cards of other classes.

* BigGuy: All her abilities are related to fighting monsters, encouraging her to take role of team's main fighter. Also, she's one of the few Guardians to actually have good Willpower (4) stat, negating one of their main weaknesses.
* ChefOfIron: Cooks during the day, kicks asses during the night.
* CripplingOverspecialization: All her abilities are related to fighting monsters, and thus have limited use when her current task ''doesn't'' involve active combat. Besides the common-for-Guardians [[MightyGlacier lack of Agility]], she also has a low Intellect stat (both are 2), making her incapable of searching for clues without the aid of other cards.
* HolyBurnsEvil: Her signature card, "Zoey's Cross", can damage her enemies when they engage with her.
* MaybeMagicMaybeMundane: The setting is deliberately vague as to whether or not benevolent entities like "God" exist within its setting, and with the Lovecraftian tendencies for insanity taken into account, it's never clear whether Zoey actually ''is'' hearing orders from God telling her to kill, or if she's simply mentally ill; either way, it works out, since the ones she's being told to kill in this case happen to be horrible monsters and insane cultists.
* MissionFromGod:
** Her motivation to join the team--because voices in her head (whether they actually belongs to God or not) tell her that she must fight forces of evil.
** Her signature weakness, "Smite the Wicked", spawns an additional monster, to which this card gets attached; if the monster to which this card attached survives until the end of scenario or Zoey's defeat/retreat, she will suffer mental trauma, due to "failing" her "mission". Fortunately, it's not mandatory for her to finish off this monster personally, any investigator may help.
* SerialKiller: An extremely rare ''benevolent'' example. She poses as an ordinary chef at a diner, but she's a zealot who believes she hears the voice of God telling her to kill His enemies; ordinarily a prime recipe for a serial killer, if not for the fact that "His enemies" in this case happen to be the cultists and eldritch monsters trying to awaken an ancient horror.

[[folder:Rex Murphy]]
!!Rex Murphy, the Reporter
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahlcg_rex.png]]
[[caption-width-right:225:''"This time, nothing will stop me from getting at the truth!"'']]
->''When disaster strikes, Rex Murphy is usually on hand, suffering the consequences. After spending a day with Rex, even the most hardened skeptic will concede that the man is cursed. Anytime he had a lead on a good story, something would go wrong. That business in Innsmouth with the photographs that had blown out to sea. The tracks in Dunwich that had washed away in the rain just before he'd brought the sheriff. His terrible fortune has more than once exposed him to gruesome beasts and occult conspiracies. To survive, Rex has developed an inquisitive mind, keeping one step ahead of the next disaster''.
Seeker-class investigator. Can include up to five level 0 cards of other classes. He can't use any "Fortune" cards.

* AwesomenessByAnalysis: His signature card, "Search for the Truth", allows him to draw as many cards as he has clues, up to five: he not only gathers the info, but comes up with a plan based on it.
* BornUnlucky: Not only does he suffers from a HereditaryCurse, he also [[GameplayAndStoryIntegration can't include any "Fortune" cards in his deck]] ([[CripplingOverspecialisation not that there are many such cards available for him anyway]]).
* ChewToy: The poor guy just can't catch a break. Something ''always'' goes wrong for him, especially when he seems to find a good story to write about.
* CripplingOverspecialization: All his stats besides Intellect (4) are average or below (3 Agility and Willpower and 2 Fight). He is great clue-searcher, but that's about it.
* {{Determinator}}: It takes a special kind of thickheaded to keep going despite all of his setbacks.
* GameplayAndStoryIntegration: Being a reporter requires knowing how to dig up the truth no matter how deep it's buried. As such, whenever he finds a clue while investigating, he finds an extra one for free.
* HereditaryCurse: His signature weakness, "Rex's Curse". Every time he succeeds on a skill check, he must return the chaos token he previously drew (ignoring its modifier), and draw an additional token; if this causes the skill check to fail, he shuffles the weakness back into his deck, meaning that you can never quite get rid of it.
* IntrepidReporter: He seeks to get all of the information he can. Of course, his curse just makes it difficult.
* ObviousRulePatch: He was the first investigator to receive his own entry at "Taboo rules" list; it limited his signature ability (when he finds a clue, he receives an extra one) to working once per round. Prior to it, he was considered to be ridiculously overpowered, being able to quickly strip any location of clues.

[[folder:Jenny Barnes]]
!!Jenny Barnes, the Dilettante
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahlcg_jenny.png]]
[[caption-width-right:225:''"No more 'Miss Barnes' from you. My friends call me Jenny".'']]
->''Jenny Barnes has spent the majority of her young life in pursuit of creature comforts, fine dining, and the latest fashions. That all changed when she received a letter from her sister, Isabelle. In this letter, Isabelle confessed that mysterious forces were aligning against her and that she feared she may fall victim to some paranormal threat. It was the last letter Jenny received from her beloved sister. Jenny has since returned to the States to track down and investigate all occult occurrences she can find. Hardly a wilting flower, she has proven herself a crack shot as well as a fearless and clever investigator of the unknown. Until Isabelle's disappearance is explained, Jenny will never relent in her search''.
Rogue-class investigator. Can include up to five level 0 cards of other classes.

* CrimefightingWithCash: Receives an additional resource each round. More resources means more tools at her disposal to deal with cultists and monsters.
* GameplayAndStoryIntegration: She is a rich heiress, so of course she has better access to resources than other investigators.
* GunsAkimbo: Her signature card is a pair of ''.45s'' pistols. Their main gimmick is [[MoreDakka not having an upper limit]] how much ammo she can put in them when played.
* IWillFindYou: She is looking for her sister, Isabelle "Izzie" Barnes, who went missing.
* JackOfAllStats: All of her stats are average (3) (which, accidentally, puts her above majority of Rogues Willpower-wise), so, if required, she can pick any task, especially if supplied with cards which would [[CrimefightingWithCash put her resources supply to good use]].
* KickingAssInAllHerFinery: As always, she is depicted wearing a fabulous dress and jewelry.
* MoreDakka: Her signature [[GunsAkimbo .45s pistols]] have no upper limit of ammo, as long as she has enough resources to pay for them; and due to [[CrimefightingWithCash receiving free resource each round]], she usually has them.
* SearchingForTheLostRelative: Jenny looking for the traces of her missing sister Isabelle [[GameplayAndStoryIntegration is incorporated into her actual mechanics]]; her signature weakness, "Searching for Izzie", distracts Jenny to try and find the traces of her sister Izzie, who was previously abducted. Dealing with it costs actions, but ignoring it may cause Jenny to suffer mental trauma later due to possibly failing to save her.
* {{Socialite}}: She has no job other than being an heiress and moving about in high society.

[[folder:Jim Culver]]
!!Jim Culver, the Musician
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahlcg_jim.png]]
[[caption-width-right:225:''"No, not quiet at all. Dead folks get downright rambunctious when I play my horn".'']]
->''Jazz has been nothing but trouble for Jim since the day he picked up his daddy's trumpet. There was something weird and otherworldly about the writing on the inside of the bell, but the tones from it were smooth and dark, like good coffee. That trumpet landed Jim a lot of gigs until the time it made Widow Jenkins get up and dance, the day he played at her funeral. After that, it was kind of hard to find work. Since then, Jim has learned a lot about jazz — and the things the graveyard ghouls talk about on cold autumn nights. Lately, they've been talking about The End, as in the end of everything that is and could be. The Final Rhapsody. The fact is, Jim isn't too keen on that idea''.
Mystic-class investigator. Can include up to five level 0 cards of other classes.

* BrownNote: His signature weakness, "Final Rhapsody". His connection to the dead sometimes results in them answering back; this ''very'' negatively affects his Sanity.
--> ''When the dead start talking about what scares them, that's when it's time to listen''.
* CombatMedic: Can heal horror from himself or from one of his teammates with his trumpet, if he draws a Skull chaos token.
* MagicKnight: {{Downplayed|Trope}}; he isn't ''that'' good a fighter, but he is less fragile than most other Mystics (and has decent Combat), and can add a few non-Mystic cards to amplify his survivability.
* MagicMusic: He is a {{Jazz}} musician who can actually achieve magic through his music. Fittingly, he has the Mystic class.
* MightyGlacier: [[DownplayedTrope Downplayed,]] Jim has average health (7) on top of good sanity (8) and average Combat and Intellect (3), but his Agility is low (2)
* MustHaveCaffeine: Loves his coffee.
* OrphansPlotTrinket: The Golden Trumpet, which belonged to his father.
* StreetMusician: He wasn't always one, but ever since he played at Widow Jenkins's funeral, he hasn't been able to get work. Probably because his magic trumpet [[TheFunInFuneral made the widow get out of the coffin and join in the festivities]].
* TheFunInFuneral: He once caused a dead widow to get up and dance...at her own funeral. After that incident, he has had trouble finding work.

[[folder:"Ashcan" Pete]]
!!"Ashcan" Pete, the Drifter
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahlcg_pete.png]]
[[caption-width-right:225:''"C'mere, boy. We got work to do".'']]
->''At night, "Ashcan" Pete sleeps wherever his travels take him: in a field, on a train, or maybe, if he's lucky, in a barn. He bunks with his loyal hound dog, Duke, on one side and his beat-up guitar on the other. And sometimes when Pete sleeps, he dreams. He dreams of haunted, tortured places and of horrible creatures. When he wakes up, he knows that someone needs his help, because his dreams are true. He could not say how long he has been on the road, living by his wits, but he can say for certain no place is too far to go to help someone in need. And as long as Pete can help people, he is not likely to stop wandering any time soon''.
!!!Both versions
Survivor-class investigator.

* HomelessHero: His backstory shows us he lives on the streets, and has done so for a long time.

!!!Basic version
Can include up to five level 0 cards of other classes.
----
* CanineCompanion: Duke, his faithful dog. Unfortunately, most of Pete's strength is related to Duke, forcing him to keep Duke active at all costs. While it's normally not that bad, in the ''Dunwich Legacy'' campaign [[spoiler: Duke can be [[PermaDeath sacrificed to Yog-Sothoth]]...[[GameplayAndStorySegregation until the end of campaign]]]].
* CripplingOverspecialization: Pete can be a very reliable and [[JackOfAllTrades versatile]] fighter and clue gatherer thanks to [[CanineCompanion Duke]], but the second he gets discarded, he will struggle to do much without the proper tools to replace him.
* GlassCannon: [[CanineCompanion Duke]] provides his master with good Combat capabilities, but isn't particularly durable. Pete himself is only slightly less fragile, having only 6 Health and 5 Sanity (11 total, second-worst in the game, including amongst campaign-specific investigators).
* MechanicallyUnusualFighter:
** Unlike other investigators, who treat their "Allies" as more or less expandable, Pete needs to take everything in his power to keep Duke alive, because Duke covers for his weak points. Duke is also only "Ally" in the game who doesn't take a slot.
** Pete can discard his own cards to ready assets he controls, allowing him to use cards that would otherwise only be usable once per round. This ability itself only works once per round, but it gives him the possibility to activate [[CanineCompanion Duke]] twice per round (or even more than that if he pulls out his Elder Sign) at least as long as he has cards to throw away.
* RecurringDreams: He suffers from regular nightmares, and he just knows, from the past experience, that they signify something bad happening, somewhere. These dreams also act as his signature weakness, denying him the ability to ready his assets--including Duke, which makes him quite vulnerable.
* RoaringRampageOfRevenge: The ''Return to the Dunwich Legacy'' expansion has a special achievement for Ashcan Pete's player: [[spoiler: after [[PermaDeath Duke gets sacrificed to Yog-Sototh]], if Pete still manages to survive until the end of campaign and win, he avenges Duke. Made more awesome by the fact that without Duke, Pete is not particularly strong]].
* WeakButSkilled: Pete has good Willpower (4), average Agility (3) and low Combat and Intellect (2); his total sum of stat points is 11, which is lower than the usual 12 of most other investigators. His Willpower and Agility helps keeping him alive in spite of his abysmal endurance (6 health and 5 Sanity), but he can potentially use them in place of Combat and Intellect to complete some tasks with the right cards. [[CanineCompanion Duke]] also raise his base Combat and Intellect to 4 for fighting and investigation tests, allowing him also to deal +1 damage with the attack and moving to a connecting location before starting looking for clues respectively, which helps him a lot covering the weakspots in his statline. Also, his ability lets him use assets that exhaust (Duke included) a second time per round by readying them again, as long as he is willing to discard a card from hand for them.

!!!Parallel version
Limited to level 3 of his own class, but can access "Improvised" and "Tactic" cards (both up to level 4), and up to 5 other level 0 Guardian cards.
----
* ActionSurvivor: Compared to his basic version, "parallel" Pete is slightly better as a figher, having higher Health, Sanity and Combat, as well as some Tactic cards to increase his combat capabilities (which can become even better if he takes [[CanineCompanion Duke]] along). But he's still just a drifter, with no special training, skills or gear, and is unlikely to last for long without support.
* ItemCaddy: "Parallel" Pete can return the cards he attached to scenario cards (locations, enemies, etc) to his hand instead of discarding, albeit only once per round. This encourages him to actively using Events which works by being attached to locations; it's further helped by him having access to off-class Tactic cards, which makes him rather flexible.
* MagicMusic: Whenever Pete uses his guitar to lure an enemy, he either heals 1 Sanity, or gains 1 resource.
* MindControlMusic: "Parallel" Pete can use his guitar (available as "replacement" signature) to force a non-Elite enemy in his or connected location to move once in any direction, either luring it away or luring it into a trap.
* TookALevelInBadass: Alternative Pete has a normal statline of 12 skill points and 14 durability sum of Health and Sanity in total, unlike the original, with average fight (3) and Health and Sanity (both 7). He is far more capable of achieving his goals on his own and far less reliant on [[CanineCompanion Duke]]
[[/folder]]

!Introduced in ''The Path to Carcosa'' expansion
[[folder:Mark Harrigan]]
!!Mark Harrigan, the Soldier
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahlcg_mark.png]]
[[caption-width-right:225:''He'd burn the entire town down if necessary, but he wouldn't let those monsters take anyone else.'']]
->''There were plenty who returned from the war broken in body or spirit. But Mark Harrigan had witnessed horrors he could not explain. His beloved Sophie believed him when he wrote her about the things he saw - not the men killing other men, but the other things. The creatures. When he came home and went to visit her, he found the reasons she believed him: she had one of the creatures inside her, eating her from the inside out. As he watched in helpless horror, she faded away into the air, screaming as thing finished its meal. Now everyone thinks Mark Harrigan is crazy. Maybe he's finally lost it, after all. But he knows the monsters are real, and he will not rest until every last one is dead''.
Guardian-class investigator. Can include any level 0 "Tactic" cards, regardless of class.
----
* BigGuy: Mark has some of the best Health (9) and Combat (5) stats in the game.
* CastFromHitPoints:
** Can deliberately damage himself to increase his stats during skill checks. However, if he suffers too much damage, this ability gets disabled, [[DeathSeeker causing his stats to]] ''[[DeathSeeker decrease]]'' [[DeathSeeker instead]].
** {{Inverted|Trope}} with his signature card, "The Home Front", which allows him to move one of his damage tokens to the attacked enemy.
* CripplingOverspecialization: Outside of the Guardian class, he can only access cards with "Tactic" trait, and even then, only level 0 ones.
* CriticalStatusBuff: His Elder Sign effect gives him +1 to the tested skill for each point of damage he has.
* DeathSeeker: If he suffers too much damage, his signature weakness, "It Was All My Fault", enters play and reduces all his stats by 1, making it easier to be wounded even further. The only way to snap him out of this is to start treating his wounds.
* LightningBruiser: {{Downplayed|Trope}}; his Agility (3) is average, but he is still faster than most other Guardians, who normally have only a 2.
* TheLostLenore: His wife, Sophie, was [[EatenAlive eaten from the inside out by some unknown monster]]. This motivated him to join the team, so he may avenge her.
* MyGirlBackHome: Sophie, who believed him about the monsters he saw in the war. She believed him because [[EatenAlive one of them was eating her from the inside out]].
* ReturningWarVet: A UsefulNotes/WorldWarI veteran who was unlucky enough to find [[MyGirlBackHome his girl back home, Sophie]], killed by some monsters, in [[EatenAlive a rather gruesome way]]. Now, he would put his military experience to use against whatever EldritchAbomination stands behind it all.
* RoaringRampageOfRevenge: His motivation to join the team is to avenge the death of his wife, [[TheLostLenore Sophie]], killed by whatever monsters now threaten the world.
* ShellShockedVeteran:
** Most people think that Mark didn't take the war very well. Ironically, his story makes it clear that it wasn't the war that got to him, thanks to [[MyGirlBackHome Sophie]] believing everything he wrote back to her about the monsters he encountered fighting in the trenches. It was only '''after''' he came home, and found Sophie being EatenAlive by an EldritchAbomination that he went over the edge...
** His (second) signature weakness, "Shell Shock", which, once triggered, causes him to suffer horror if he has suffered too much damage, basically making him sink into flashbacks to traumatic events during the war.
* TragicKeepsake: His signature card, "Sophie", is the last photo of his [[TheLostLenore late wife]], killed by monsters he now fights. It allows him to receive additional resolve ([[CastFromHitPoints at the cost of his health]]), but he may become [[DeathSeeker near-suicidal]] if he uses this effect too much, resulting in the opposite effect.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Mihn Thi Phan]]
!!Minh Thi Phan, the Secretary
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahlcg_mihn.png]]
[[caption-width-right:225:''"You can depend on me to guide you through the unknown".'']]
->''Minh never quite felt like she belonged in America. Things were even harder for her family before they moved, being Vietnamese in Korea under Japanese rule. She worked hard to get her college degree, reminding herself that her parents had sacrificed much to come to the States. Finally, her father became acquainted with a man from Arkham, Mr. Thomas, who offered Minh a job at his office. he was kind to her, at first - but then he started reading The King in Yellow, and his demeanor changed completely. He'd lent it to Minh, but she dared not read past the first act. Three weeks later, Mr. Thomas was found dead, having taken his own life… And The King in Yellow is the key to the truth''.
Seeker-class investigator. Has access to Survivor cards (up to level 2).
----
* ActionSurvivor: She is neither an occult expert nor a part-time wizard, rather she is a secretary who just happens to be involved in this madness. Fittingly, she has access to Survivor-class cards.
* AwesomenessByAnalysis: Her signature card, "Analytical Mind", allows her to commit her cards to other investigators' skill checks even when they're not in same location. For Minh herself, it allows her to draw an additional card when she assigns exactly one card to any skill check.
* BrownNote: Her boss was DrivenToSuicide by reading ''Literature/TheKingInYellow'', which motivated her to join the team in order to learn more. Now, this book is her signature weakness, which disrupts her ability to use her cards during skill checks.
* ItsPersonal: One of the reasons for her involvement in the plot was finding out just ''what'' caused her [[BenevolentBoss boss's]] insanity and death.
* SupportPartyMember: Her signature card, "Analytical Mind", allows her to commit cards to another investigator's checks even if they are in another location.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Sefina Rouseeau]]
!! Sefina Rousseau, the Painter
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahlcg_sefina.png]]
->''Even when she was young, Sefina's alluring paintings drew the eyes of many. When an art collector from Paris visited Tahiti and discovered Sefina, he offered to support her work in exchange for her services creating imitations. Her keen eye and steady hand were perfect for the task, and Sefina found the art of forgery to be more engaging and captivating than she'd imagined. Her most recent work came from an anonymous stranger with deep pockets, who'd tasked her with recreating a panorama of a strange, alien city. When she completed the final stroke, she was sent hurtling into the world of the painting. She only barely survived the ordeal, passing out from exhaustion. When she awoke in her gallery, she knew it had been real''.
Rogue-class investigator. Has access to Mystic cards (up to level 2).
----
* AnomalousArt: Both her backstory and her abilities are related to her own art, which clearly has some magic in it.
** Her last work turns up to be significantly different from anything she had done before, sucking her into its world, experience she barely survived. Not surprisingly, since it was a painting of [[EldritchLocation Carcosa]].
** Her signature card, "Painted World", can be used as an extra copy of any non-Exceptional event under her sheet (she reserves up to five of them at the beginning of scenario). She starts with three copies of it; each copy may be used only once per scenario, before being removed from the game for the scenario's duration.
* FragileSpeedster: Like most Rogues, she has good Agility, but she has the lowest Health and second lowest Combat in her class, and can't survive a prolonged fight.
* MasterForger: She specialises at creating copies of others' works. Her last work turns out to be...[[AnomalousArt different]].
* NamedAfterSomebodyFamous: She is named after Henri Rousseau, a post-impressionist French painter.
* SquishyWizard: Has access to Mystic cards, and has a high Willpower (4) stat (greatest in her class), but has only 2 Combat and 5 Health.
* StarPower: {{Inverted|Trope}}, stars are her ''bane''. Her signature weakness, "Stars of Hyades" (a constellation strongly associated with [[Literature/TheKingInYellow Hastur]]), forces her to remove one card under her character sheet from the game; if she can't, she suffers 1 damage and 1 horror instead. After that, this card gets shuffled back into deck instead of being discarded.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Akachi Onyele]]
!!Akachi Onyele, the Shaman
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahlcg_akachi.png]]
[[caption-width-right:225:''"I will journey to the lands beyond. I do not fear them".'']]
->''As a young girl in Nigeria, Akachi became used to being set apart. Her habits of chattering away at thin air and secluding herself from other children led her village to believe she was mad. Her village Dibia was the first to see her true potential. He believed Akachi was marked by the spirits for greatness, and he taught her how to commune with them to her advantage. Under his tutelage, Akachi grew into a wise young leader, respected not just in her village, but in every community she aided. Now she meets her destiny head on, seeking out unnatural troubles that only her knowledge can stop''.
Mystic-class investigator. Has access to any card which uses "charges" (read: most spells) up to level 4, and any level 0 "Occult" cards, both regardless of class.
----
* BlackMage: Puns aside, she is one of the better choices for combat-oriented builds amongst Mystics, due to being able to consistently keep her combat spells (and other combat-oriented charged cards) ready for use, as her signature card, "Spirit-Speaker", allows to return discharged Spells (and other cards with charges) to her hand, from where she can put them into play again, fully charged.
* EnergyAbsorption:
** She can absorb charges from her assets as resources. This works in reverse as well, since she may directly recharge them with her Elder Sign ability.
** Her signature weakness, "Angered Spirits", requires her to absorb some charges from her assets, and transfer them to this weakness; if she fails to accumulate 4 charges before the scenario ends or she gets defeated/resigns with it in play, she suffers physical trauma.
* EthnicMagician: An explicit version of one, since her dibia powers are the reason for her gifts.
* MagicKnight: One of the more combat-capable Mystics (having 3 Combat), and she has good Agility (4). Also, thanks to being able to use almost any assets with "charges", she can use "Enchanted Blade" (''The Circle Undone''), both in its Mystic and Guardian versions (and can keep it charged thanks to her abilities).
* ReligionIsMagic: Her shamanistic magic is based on her Igbo religion, Ọ̀dị̀nàlà (she's a dibia in her own right).
[[/folder]]

[[folder:William Yorick]]
!!William Yorick, the Gravedigger
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahlcg_william.png]]
[[caption-width-right:225:''"I am but a simple player in this drama, but if I am lucky, I'll live to see the curtains fall".'']]
->''William Yorick never wanted to be a gravedigger. He had trained to be an actor and had worked for years in Boston, taking whatever parts were available. Shakespeare was the best stuff, of course, but after many years and hardly any roles, he was forced to admit that the stage was not his destiny. Digging graves was tedious work, but the dead made for an excellent audience, and William always did love a soliloquy. The job took a dark turn when he found degenerate creatures eating the dead in their graves. Ever since that night, Yorick has kept the creatures at bay, using whatever means he can to protect the dead''.
Survivor-class investigator. Has access to Guardian cards (up to level 2).
----
* BewareTheSillyOnes: Yorick loves to talk like a Shakespearean actor and act dramatic, but when push comes to shove, he'll put any horror in the dirt.
* BigGuy:
** William has access to Guardian-class cards, and has Guardian-grade Combat and Health (4 and 8, respectively).
** His ability only works when he defeats enemies, encouraging him to take an active role in combat.
* CreepyMortician: {{Subverted|Trope}}. Yorick himself looks fairly average (although plenty scraggly), and is a hero who puts {{Eldritch Abomination}}s in ''their'' graves.
* DeaderThanDead: Once per scenario he can use his signature card, "Bury Them Deep", to add any defeated non-Elite enemy to the victory display, not only removing it from play for the rest of the scenario, but also earning 1 bonus experience point for the whole team.
* MeaningfulName: He's a [[Theatre/{{Hamlet}} grave digger]]...
* MechanicallyUnusualFighter: He can play cards from his discard pile whenever he kills an enemy (paying their cost).
* OurGhoulsAreCreepier: His signature weakness, "Graveyard Ghouls", is a [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin pack of ghouls from a local graveyard]]; as long as they live, he can't retrieve cards from his discard pile.
* ShoutOut: His entire character is one to Theatre/{{Hamlet}} (and [[Creator/WilliamShakespeare its author]]), both in name and profession.
* StarvingArtist: He wanted to be a Shakespearean Actor, but as his backstory attests, "dramatic monologues didn't put bread on the table".
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Lola Hayes]]
!!Lola Hayes, the Actress
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahlcg_lola.png]]
[[caption-width-right:225:''Perhaps this would be her big comeback'']]
->''Lola has performed to sold-out houses worldwide, but no play has been as haunting or as odd as The King in Yellow. Even during rehearsals, everything about it brought calamity and dread. When her co-star, Miriam, was found floating dead in the Seine, she decided she'd had enough, and penned a letter to the director explaining that her next performance would be her last. Now she heads home to Arkham for one final show, hoping she can finally be rid of this dreadful play''.
Neutral-class investigator. Has access to cards of any class (up to level 3).
----
* GlassCannon: She has below-average Health and Sanity, making her rather fragile.
* JackOfAllStats: She is average at every stat.
* JackOfAllTrades: Can access cards of any class (up to 3 level), making her one of the most versatile investigators in the game. However, it's not recommended to invest in more than 3 classes at once, due to the way her "Roles" system works.
* LossOfIdentity: Her signature weakness, "Identity Crisis", forces her to discard all cards of her current "role" which she currently has in play, and then discard first card of her deck, switching her to its class's "role" (if weakness was discarded, she switches to "neutral" instead, meaning she can't use non-neutral cards).
-->''"I've played so many roles. Madness is to be expected"''.
* MechanicallyUnusualFighter: She's one of the two Neutral investigators (not counting some campaign-specific ones, who are only used in specific circumstances), and has access to every class (although only up to level 3). But she needs to change her "role" during the game to actually use them (though assets already put in play will continue working), and each "role" has access to only one class (besides Neutral). To compensate for this, she has a slightly bigger deck size than usual, allowing her more liberty with deck-building. To prevent CripplingOverspecialisation (and actually put her abilities to use), she is forced to use at least three non-Neutral classes.
* ThePowerOfActing: She can change her character class (or, as her ability calls it, "role") in the middle of the game (either through her signature ability, or via her signature card, "Improvisation", which also decreases the cost of the first card of the new "role" by 3), and with it, available cards.
* SoleSurvivor: If present during the first scenario of ''The Path to Carcosa'', she gains a unique prologue, which shows her as the only person involved in the play who survives it, at least with her sanity intact.
* StanceSystem: She can switch between "roles" (changing her class), with only cards matching her current "role" being playable; Neutral cards are always available, and she can keep the assets she's already put in play.
[[/folder]]

!Introduced in ''The Forgotten Age'' expansion
[[folder:Leon Anderson]]
!!Leo Anderson, the Expedition Leader
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahlcg_leo2.png]]
[[caption-width-right:225:''"Keep moving. You can die on your own time".'']]
->''Leo Anderson has spent his whole life getting into the deadliest and most obscure corners of the globe. Along the way, he's lost good people. He often questions whether such academic pursuits have been worth the lives lost. His most recent expedition, an ill-fated voyage to Nan Madol to recover Olosopha's Almanac, ended in complete disaster. Mitch was the only one of his people to survive, or at the very least, to remain human. Leo is sick of burying people who trusted him. But now he knows these expeditions aren't purely academic in nature - and he won't quit until the job is done''.
Guardian-class investigator. Has access to Rogue cards (up to level 2).
----
* ItemCaddy: His playstyle is entirely built around using a large amount of Allies; compared to the other investigators, he can access them more cheaply and, with the help of his signature card, he can have several Allies in play simultaneously.
* TheLeader:
** He was the leader of an ill-fated Yucatan expedition in his backstory.
** If he is a part of the team during ''The Forgotten Age'' campaign, the campaign guide enforces him into position of the lead investigator (if they're present, he can be replaced by Ursula Downs or Monterey Jack instead).
** All his abilities are related to "Ally" cards, motivating you to include many of them in his deck. He can even put in play several non-unique "Allies" at once, thanks to his signature "Ally", Mitch Brown.
* TheMenFirst: He won't allow any of his friends to die because of him. His signature weakness, "[[SurvivorGuilt Bought in Blood]]", forces him to discard one "Ally" card from play or all "Allies" from hand, leaving him vulnerable.
* MightyGlacier: He's slow even by Guardian standards; he has only 1 Agility, worst in his class and one of the worst in general.
* MyGreatestFailure: He led seven men into Nan Madol. [[DwindlingParty Only he and Mitch made it back alive]]. He ''will'' protect his new team, no matter the cost.
* SurvivorGuilt: Suffers this since the [[MyGreatestFailure ill-fated Nan Madol expedition]], still feeling that he failed his men and let them die, while surviving himself. As result, he developed his [[TheMenFirst "no one gets left behind" mindset]], which may doom ''him'' instead.
* UnscrupulousHero: Has access to Rogue class cards; as long as he can get the job done and protect his friends, he is willing to [[CombatPragmatist fight dirty]] or deal with shady people.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Ursula Downs]]
!!Ursula Downs, the Explorer
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahlcg_ursula2.png]]
[[caption-width-right:225:''"Discovery is easy. Understanding is the hard part".'']]
->''Not many people can say that they've climbed a mountain on every continent. Fewer still can say they've stolen a golden idol from a tribe of cannibals. Among women in a male-dominated society, Ursula is unique in being able to make these sorts of claims. Ever since she was a small girl, Ursula has broken the rules set down for her, climbing trees, playing in the mud, exploring the woods, and doing plenty of other things that a "proper young lady shouldn't be doing." Since getting a degree in archaeology in Boston, she has been traveling the world searching for forgotten civilizations''.
Seeker-class investigator. Has access to "Relic" cards of any class (up to level 4).
----
* ActionGirl: It's mentioned in her backstory that she was always the active, exploring type. She also has 4 Agility (great in general, and certainly best amongst Seekers), making her more able to survive on her own than most of other investigators of her class, as long as she [[FragileSpeedster manages to avoid actually engaging monsters head-on]].
* AdventurerArchaeologist: She has a passion for adventure and archaeology. Perhaps a little too much, because it caused her problems on more than one occasion, and potentially can cause them again, through her signature weakness.
* BlueBlood: She's got a hefty inheritance, but she used it to set up her work.
* CuriosityKilledTheCast: Her signature weakness, "Call of the Unknown", forces her to explore another location until the end of her turn, even if it is detrimental to the current mission; otherwise she suffers horror.
* {{Expy}}: Female AdventurerArchaeologist from rich [[BlueBlood aristocratic family]], who spends her time and money on expeditions in dangerous corners of Earth, in search for long-lost artifacts. [[Franchise/TombRaider Sound familiar]]?
* FragileSpeedster: Has the highest Agility (4) amongst Seekers, but only 1 Combat. She can easily run away from many monsters, but any attempt to engage them head-on isn't likely to end well.
* TheLeader: If she is a part of the team during the ''Forgotten Age'' campaign, the campaign guide forces her into the position of lead investigator (if present, she can be replaced by Leo Anderson or Monterey Jack).
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Finn Edwards]]
!!Finn Edwards, the Bootlegger
[[quoteright:225: https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahlcg_finn2.png]]
[[caption-width-right:225:''"Never lose track of the exit. Or the merchandise".'']]
->''Prohibition was the best thing that ever happened to Finn Edwards. Until they banned alcohol, he was just drifting through life, doing odd jobs here and there. But afterward, the demand for alcohol rose to such a fever pitch that he was able to make a living evading the law and giving people what they wanted. His new lifestyle particularly suited his personality, providing him with a taste of danger and plenty of cash. He never got caught and never lost a delivery. Now he's wrapped up in some kind of supernatural conspiracy, but in the end, he adheres to the same principles: Deliver the goods. Don't get caught''.
Rogue-class investigator. Has limited (only up to level 3) access to his own class, but unlimited access to any "Illicit" cards, regardless of class, and up to 5 Seeker/Survivor level 0 cards.
----
* {{Backstab}}: His .38 "Trusty" deals bonus damage when used against enemies not engaged with you -- particularly, when he attacks the enemies who attacks someone other than him.
* CripplingOverspecialisation: He can't take high-level cards unless they have the "Illicit" trait, which not only gives him very few off-class cards, but also restricts him from many good cards of his own class.
* DamnItFeelsGoodToBeAGangster: He considers his life as a bootlegger to be best thing that ever happened to him.
* KarmaHoudini: His backstory mentions that he never gets caught. In gameplay terms, he has an additional action specifically to evade, which can save him if he's out of normal actions.
* KarmaHoudiniWarranty: His signature weakness, "Caught Red-Handed", causes all enemies in his location to get ready, and all "Hunter" monsters to move one step closer to him, which, if it happens at the worst moment, can lead to him being hopelessly overwhelmed. [[TotalPartyKill Or not only him]].
* TheSneakyGuy:
** He is an (in)famous smuggler who [[KarmaHoudini never gets caught]].
** He is great for stealthy accumulation of clues, due to having good Agility (and a bonus action specifically for Evasion), good Intellect, and access to some Seeker cards.
* StealthExpert: He has one bonus action each round specifically to Evade.
* TokenEvilTeammate: He is trying to save the world (and will do so if he succeeds), but he is still an unrepentant criminal.
* VenturousSmuggler:
** His main "job" is to smuggle goods to whoever is willing to pay for them; he's ''very'' good at it.
** Him being a smuggler [[GameplayAndStoryIntegration manifests as part of his mechanics]]. His signature card, "Smuggled Goods", allows him to quickly find "Illicit" cards in either his deck or discard pile, and draw them.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Father Mateo]]
!! Father Mateo Castile, the Priest
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahlcg_03_father_mateo.jpg]]
->''Mateo Castile's life has not been easy since he became a priest. Recent decades in Mexico have been wracked with instability and conflict. Father Mateo struggled to balance his faith with the pragmatic concerns of preaching when the law told him he must not. But this is not what has assaulted Mateo's faith at its core. The nearby murders and kidnappings were not politically motivated, as he had suspected. A gruesome and horrid cult thrives at the heart of the brewing war. How, Mateo wonders, could a kind and loving God allow what he saw that night to exist?''
Mystic-class investigator. Has access to ''Blessed'' cards of any class (up to level 3).
----
* BadassPreacher: He decided to take a more proactive role in fighting the forces of evil, and joined the team in their quest to save humanity.
* CripplingOverspecialisation: At the moment of release, he had very few off-class options, due to the "Blessed" trait not being very common. He got a large infusion of new off-class cards with the release of the ''The Innsmouth Conspiracy'' Cycle, however.
* CrisisOfFaith: Mentioned in the backstory, he wonders how a kind God can allow such a horrible cult as Yig's to do horrific things to people.
* MechanicallyUnusualFighter: One of the few investigators to start with free experience points, allowing him to include certain high-level cards right from the start.
* NoSell: Once per scenario he can ignore (or allow other investigators to ignore) the Auto-failure chaos token, and instead treat it as an Elder Sign (which for himself means auto-success).
* SnakePeople: His signature weakness is "Serpents of Yig", a group of Yig-serving serpent people. They work by "sealing" the Elder Sign token, making it unavailable for ''anyone'' until you kill them.
* WhiteMage:
** Has access to "Blessed" cards of any class (up to level 3); most of them are support-related.
** His signature card, "Codex of Ages", allows him to "seal" the Elder Sign token, in order to reveal it at the most crucial moment (discarding "Codex of Ages" in process) instead of revealing a random chaos token.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Calvin Wright]]
!! Calvin Wright, the Damned
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahlcg_03_calwin_wright.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:225:''"If you hurt him, I'll kill you".'']]
->''Sometimes, life gives you a choice: accept the lot that is given to you or stand up for who you are and what you believe. Calvin chose the latter. On the edge of death, bleeding out on the side of a dirt road, he received a vision - a terrifying vision of the Earth, sundered, and João, the love of his life, turning to ash in the vortex of a blazing inferno. Then, Calvin made another choice. He reached out to the darkness and pulled it within him. He would not die, not today. The world needed him. João needed him''.
Survivor-class investigator. Has access to level "Spirit" (up to level 3) cards of any class.
----
* BoringButPractical: His signature card, "Until the End of Time", has only one function: Calvin may assign damage or horror he receives to it (even direct damage and direct horror, which normally can't be assigned to assets at all). Can be very handy when you have little health or sanity left to spare.
* CripplingOverspecialisation: On original release of ''The Forgotten Age'' expansion, he had very few off-class options, due to "Spirit" not being very common trait. The amount of "Spirit" cards has increased since then, with the largest infusion coming with Nathaniel Cho's starter pack.
* CriticalStatusBuff: His stats increase for each damage/horror he has.
* HeroicWillpower: It takes a great amount of willpower to keep all the darkness Calvin has contained within you. Unfortunately, with most of his strength dedicated to keeping the evil forces inside, Calvin [[GameplayAndStoryIntegration has little left for anything else, thus his abysmal stats]].
* MagikarpPower: He starts with every skill set to zero. He [[CriticalStatusBuff can increase them by suffering damage and horror]] (potentially putting himself above other Survivors stat-wise), but his Health and Sanity are amongst the weakest in the game, too, meaning he can't spare much. It's crucial to supply him with the right set of cards if he plans to survive until the end of campaign.
* MasterOfNone: PlayedWith. He is only investigator to have 0 at ''any'' stat, let alone all of them, yet he is also the only investigator who [[CriticalStatusBuff may bring all his stats to 5 even before applying any cards]].
* MechanicallyUnusualFighter: All his skills are set to zero, [[CriticalStatusBuff but every damage or horror he suffers increases them]], maxing out when he stays at 1 Stamina and Sanity.
* MysteriousPast: His backstory explains very little about him.
* SealedInsideAPersonShapedCan: Calvin deliberately gets possessed by evil, to imprison it within himself with pure willpower. That same evil also acts as his signature weakness, "Voice of the Messenger", gradually destroying him by giving him physical and mental traumas.
* TwoferTokenMinority: Black and gay. Especially notable by the lights of 1920s culture.
* YourDaysAreNumbered: His signature weakness, "Voice of the Messenger", causes him either Physical or Mental trauma (and instantly deals 1 direct damage/horror) whenever it's drawn. Sooner or later, it ''will'' kill him, meaning he must fight on while he still has strength left.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Campaign-specific investigators (contains spoilers)]]
!!Body of Yithian
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahlcg_yithian2.png]]
->''And then the morbid temptation to look down at myself became greater and greater, till one night I could not resist it. At first my downward glance revealed nothing whatsoever. A moment later I perceived that this was because my head lay at the end of a flexible neck of enormous length. Retracting this neck and gazing down very sharply, I saw the scale, rugose, iridescent bulk of a vast cone ten feet tall and ten feet wide at the base. That was when I waked half of Arkham with my screaming as I plunged madly up from the abyss of sleep''.\\
- Creator/HPLovecraft, Literature/TheShadowOutOfTime
Temporal alien body to which the investigator got their memory transferred for the duration of the ''The City of Archives'' scenario.
----
* FreakyFridayFlip: Investigators temporarily get placed in Yithian bodies instead of their own for the duration of scenario, and [[LaserGuidedAmnesia lose most of their memories]]. Depending on the scenarios's outcome, they may restore their original bodies, get stuck in alien bodies for duration of campaign, or [[RocksFallEveryoneDies lose their memories entirely]].
* GameplayAndStoryIntegration: Due to being trapped outside of their time and even their body, investigators can't use their signature abilities; they also can't use any unique assets with "Item" trait, including their signature ones. If they have any "Ally" cards, they are considered to have Yithian bodies (with the corresponding trait), too, but this one is just for flavour.
* MasterOfNone: Has average Health and Sanity (7 at both), and 2 in all skills (which is below average). It also has no particularly impressive abilities to replace original ones, though they ''do'' make sense for the specific scenario where this "investigator" is playable.
* StarfishAliens: Like all [[Literature/TheShadowOutOfTime Yithians]], these beings have an absolutely weird shape by human lights, not even vaguely resembling anything Earth-born. If the investigators fail to restore their original bodies, they may be trapped in these bodies until the end of campaign, barring them from using their own signature abilities.
* WalkingSpoiler: Its mere presence is a spoiler for the ''The City of Archives'' scenario.
[[/folder]]

!Introduced in ''The Circle Undone'' expansion
[[folder:Carolyn Fern]]
!!Carolyn Fern, the Psychologist
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahlcg_carolyne.png]]
[[caption-width-right:225:''"The mind is fragile, but through understanding, we can protect it".'']]
->''Visiting psychologist Carolyn Fern's newest patient is Josephine Ruggles, an heiress whose nightmares leave glyph-shaped wounds across her back. Miss Ruggles's case is unusual, even for an institution like Arkham Sanatorium. Her case takes an even stranger turn after she claims to have met Malachi - Carolyn's former patient whose treatment was cut short when he was brutally murdered - in her dreams. When Carolyn uses hypnotherapy to address Josephine's trauma, they find themselves both journeying to a strange place Josephine calls "the Dreamlands"''.
Guardian-class investigator. Has limited (only up to level 3) access to her own class, and can't use "Weapon" cards higher than level 0, but has unlimited access to any Sanity-healing cards, regardless of class (though restriction about weapons still applies). She also may include up to 15 other Seeker and Mystic cards (up to level 1).
----
* CatsAreMagic: Her replacement signature card, DreamLand-born cat Foolishness, provides her with a flat boost to all stats...as long as she keeps it at full Sanity (and it enters play with only 1 Sanity remaining, out of 4); fortunately, any effect which can heal horror on Carolyn herself, can affect Foolishness as well.
* CripplingOverspecialisation:
** She can't access high-level cards of any class (including her own, where she is restricted to level 3), unless they contain words "[[ExactWords heals horror]]", though she can access some cards of Seeker and Mystic classes (up to level 1). She also can't use "Weapon" cards above level 0, which restricts her card pool further.
** She is good for horror-healing...and little else. She has good Intellect, but to put it to good use she must include several Seeker cards in her deck.
* EarlyBirdCameo: She was originally introduced as a bonus investigator (with a set of replacement signature cards and weaknesses) for anyone who bought the novella about her, before being re-introduced in ''The Circle Undone'' Cycle.
* ExactWords: As clarified in the FAQ, she can include cards in her deck as long as they contain words "heals horror", even if it means they heal it on themselves (like Peter Sylvestre, a Survivor-class "Ally"), or in very specific circumstances (like "Cheat Death", a Rogue-class card which triggers on defeat via damage or horror, restoring a portion of health and sanity).
* FlatEarthAtheist: Her signature weakness, "Rational Thought" (which even has the "Flaw" trait) disallows her to heal horror from anything else but this card (it enters play with 4 horror, which may be healed as if it belongs to Carolyn herself); you can't help people whose sanity was damaged by eldritch horrors if you can't truly accept them as something beyond the scope of traditional/current science.
* TheMedic: Her main role in the team is horror healing.
** She may include ''any'' horror-healing card in her deck (regardless of class), though the restriction about high-level "Weapons" still applies.
** Her signature card, "Hypnotic Therapy", is a stable and effective way to heal horror on herself or her teammates.
** Her Elder Sign effect allows her to heal 1 horror from investigator or "Ally" card in her location.
* TheShrink: Her job. Now, she uses her skills as a psychologist to help her friends survive eldritch horrors.
* TheSmartGuy: What she lacks in Combat, she makes up for in Intellect, so when there's nobody to heal, she can investigate for clues. She can also use some Seeker cards (up to level 1).
* SquishyWizard: While she can't access high-level "Weapons" (or any non-neutral cards except for those related to horror healing, even from her own class, for that matter), she can partially compensate for this with access to Mystic cards. Unfortunately, none of her stats except for Intellect are particularly good, with Combat and Agility being the worst, and she also has low Health.
* SupportPartyMember: She is great at healing horror and, being a Guardian, has access to many teamwork-related tools (even if she can't access the high-level ones).
* ThisLooksLikeAJobForAquaman: Her replacement signature weakness, "To Fight the Black Wind", due to the way it works (it increases doom on current agenda as long as ''any'' investigator suffers horror and isn't healed until the end of the round), can potentially make her normally purely-supportive abilities crucial for team's survival. Of course, it was ''her'' weakness which caused this in the first place, but still.
* UtilityPartyMember: Despite being a Guardian, she lacks access to either high-level cards of her class, or any Weapons above level 0, as well as has poor Combat and Health; she has access to some Mystic cards, but it's too limited to make her a good combat mage. Instead, she acts as [[SupportPartyMember dedicated healer]], with unrestricted access to Sanity-healing cards (excluding high-tier Weapons).
* WhiteMage: Support-oriented investigator with access to some Mystic cards.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Joe Diamond]]
!!Joe Diamond, the Private Eye
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahlcg_joe.png]]
->''Joe Diamond is a private eye with a reputation for handling cases that everyone else regards as supernatural nonsense. He is thorough in his investigations and not one to be trifled with. His services have been employed by the wealthy as well as those down on their luck. No case is too large, too small, too strange, or too dangerous. In Joe's experience, things start getting nasty right when you start reaching the truth, and that is exactly where he likes to be''.
Seeker-class investigator. Has access to Guardian cards (up to level 2).
----
* BigGuy: Unusually for a Seeker, he can be the team's designated fighter, having good Health (8) and Combat (4), and being able to use Guardian-class cards. He pays for it with reduced Willpower (only 2) and Sanity (only 6), however.
* {{Expy}}: Specifically based on [[HardboiledDetective Sam Spade]] from [[{{Film/TheMalteseFalcon1941}} "Maltese Falcon"]], including his name.
* GeniusBruiser: Unlike most Seekers, he can not only investigate for clues, but also kick asses. This is good, since the actual Guardian in this expansion is [[UtilityPartyMember not exactly fit for combat]].
* GunsAkimbo: His signature card is [[RevolversAreJustBetter a pair of "Colts"]].
* GutFeeling: He has a second deck specifically for "Insight" events.
* HardboiledDetective: Joe is tough as nails, and given to taking most risky jobs available. Depending on the team's composition, he can actually take the role of the main fighter.
* MechanicallyUnusualFighter: He has a second deck specifically for "Insight" events, which he can play at reduced cost.
* PathOfMostResistance: Has this approach to his job, thinking that if the danger increases, it means he is on the right track:
-->''"In Joe's experience, things start getting nasty right when you start reaching the truth, and that is exactly where he likes to be"''.
* PrivateDetective: He's working as private detective; his latest case is what got him involved in this mess.
* RevolversAreJustBetter: Uses two Colt revolvers as his signature "Weapon" card. As additional gimmicks, they allow him to use up to 2 "Tool" assets without taking any "Hand" slots, and, if he uses them to defeat a monster, allow him to move one "Insight" event from discard pile into "Hunch deck".
* ThatOneCase: His signature weakness, "Unsolved Case". It is placed in his "Hunch deck" at the start of the game, and once revealed, must be "played" before the end of current round (which would eliminate it from the game), or he will receive two fewer experience points at the end of scenario (symbolising him failing his task and not getting paid).
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Preston Fairmont]]
!! Preston Fairmont, the Millionaire
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahlcg_preston.png]]
[[caption-width-right:225:''"My money, my legacy, my problem. Let me handle it in my own way".'']]
->''Preston Fairmont never thought much about where his family's money came from. All he knew was that he had plenty, and he took great advantage of it whenever possible. His father seemed troubled at times, and tried to explain about his grandfather's business and the demands of something called the Hermetic Order of the Silver Twilight, but Preston never paid any mind. Then his father died in a mysterious car accident, and Preston's family fortune has since become his responsibility. Now Carl Sanford, president of the Silver Twilight Lodge, wants to meet with Preston personally. Perhaps for the first time, Preston has begun to really think about where his family's money came from...''
Rogue-class investigator. Has access to Survivor cards (up to level 2). He can't use any "Illicit" cards.
----
* ActionSurvivor: He is not a trained fighter or expert occultist, he's just very, very rich. He also has access to Survivor cards.
* ArbitrarilyLargeBankAccount: There's no limit how much money he can acquire through his inheritance.
* CoattailRidingRelative: He's a rich boy who lived off of daddy's money, never bothering to care about little things like the Silver Twilight Lodge.
* CrimefightingWithCash:
** He uses his inheritance to fund his operations--[[GameplayAndStoryIntegration and thus has a constant stream of free resources]].
** His Elder Sign ability allows him to spend some resources to automatically succeed on any skill check.
* DarkSecret: Only after his dad's death does he learn ''how'' his family became so rich. Now the Lodge wants him to pay his family's "debts". [[GameplayAndStoryIntegration His "debts" are not just part of his backstory]]; if "Lodge 'Debts'" enters his hand and he doesn't pay them off before the end of the scenario, he suffers mental trauma.
* GameplayAndStoryIntegration:
** Since he is ridiculously rich, he has the best access to resources amongst all investigators.
** His family's "debts" to Silver Twilight Lodge are not just part of his backstory, and serve as his signature weakness; if they ever enter his hand, he must pay them off (paying 10 resources at once) before scenario ends, or he will suffer mental trauma.
* JackOfAllStats: What he is meant to be. He [[MagikarpPower starts with abysmal stats]], but, if supplied with the right set of cards, can adapt to any role thanks to [[CrimefightingWithCash being able to afford even the most expensive cards]].
* MechanicallyUnusualFighter: Instead of gaining resources the normal way, he puts them on his bank account (which acts as a "Permanent" asset), where he can either use them right away, or transfer to his personal supply. Resources in the bank account refreshes each turn.
* MagikarpPower: Preston has only 1 at each skill, making it crucial to find the right set of cards to actually put to good use his [[CrimefightingWithCash never-ending stream of resources]].
* NonActionGuy: Being forbidden to take Illicit cards, Preston can't access any Rogue-class Weapons (and there are not that many Survivor-class ones), and also many of the combat-oriented events. Besides these gaps, he has abysmal basic Combat ''and'' Agility.
* NonIdleRich: He might be wealthy, but he goes around investigating. He wasn't always like this, though.
* UnscrupulousHero: PlayedWith. He can't use "Illicit" cards (despite being a Rogue), but can access the rest of his class' pool, including their [[CombatPragmatist dirty tactics]] and "Allies" with criminal backgrounds.
* UpperClassTwit: At first. He didn't care about the occult, he just liked the money.
* WaistcoatOfStyle: Matches the time period, after all.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Diana Stanley]]
!!Diana Stanley, the Redeemed Cultist
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahlcg_diana.png]]
->''As a new business owner in Arkham, Diana Stanley was proud to be inducted into the prestigious Silver Twilight Lodge. Her joy has since turned to dread. Her admittance into the organization was fantastic for business, but the weekly meetings have grown more and more disturbing. After witnessing strange rituals and terrible secrets, Diana has become suspicious of the Lodge's true nature. Now she is convinced that there are terrible forces converging on Arkham, and that the Lodge is somehow involved. Diana has resolved to take it down from the inside, regardless of the cost''.
Mystic-class investigator. Has access to Guardian cards (up to level 2).
----
* TheAtoner: She feels so much remorse over what the Silver Twilight Lodge has done that she ''will'' undo everything related to them.
* CultDefector: After seeing just '''how''' horrifying some rituals of the Silver Twilight Inner Sanctum were, Diana desperately wants to atone for supporting them.
* DeviousDaggers: As the former cultist, she still carries her old dagger, "Twilight Blade", granted by the Silver Twilight Lodge for her loyalty, as her signature card. It's imbued with magic, and allows to use Willpower instead of Strength when attacking (though she has to find some ways to improve her Willpower first to make it useful), as well as draw the cards from under her sheet as if they're in her hand.
* HeroicBSOD: Her knowledge of the Lodge's dark secrets took a big toll on her sanity and willpower, hence her... not exactly stellar basic stats. What's worse is her signature weakness, appropriately named "Dark Secret", which forces her to either discard the cards under her sheet or suffer horror for each one she chooses to keep.
* MagicKnight: She has decent Combat for a Mystic (3), and can access some Guardian cards, allowing her to stand her ground in non-magic combat as well. The expansion where she appears in also introduced dual-class items, including a Guardian/Mystic magic sword, "Enchanted Blade" (though she can't use the Guardian-only upgrade to it, due to level restrictions).
* MagikarpPower: Average at every stat... except Willpower (crucial stat for any self-respecting Mystic), which is set to 1. She can increase it with her special abilities, as long as she has cards to sacrifice (she can return them with her Elder Sign, or play them directly from there via her signature card, "Twilight Blade").
* NoSell: Her other signature card, the "Dark Insight" event, allows Diana to cancel effects on one Treachery or even Weakness card drawn in her location by any investigator (including herself); they aren't discarded, but get shuffled back into the respective deck, but when used at a good time, this can be life-saving.
* TheMole: She works to destroy the Silver Twilight Lodge from within. During ''The Circle Undone'' campaign, [[spoiler: she may potentially succeed at this, either getting Carl Sanford arrested or replacing him]].
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Marie Lambeau]]
!!Marie Lambeau, the Entertainer
[[quoteright:224:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahlcg_marie.png]]
->''Marie Lambeau always had a voice to die for. People called her "the Smoky Velvet." They said she was born to sing jazz, that she had the magic touch — and maybe they were right. After all, the songs she heard in her dreams ever since her Grand-Mère passed away were like nothing she'd ever heard before. The vocals sounded like no language spoken on Earth, the notes twisted and warped. Why her Grand-Mère had moved from New Orleans to Arkham, Marie would never know. People used to call her Grand-Mère a witch. Maybe there's more than just jazz in Marie's blood, after all...''
Mystic-class investigator. Has limited (only up to level 3) access to her own class, but unlimited access to any "Spell" cards, regardless of class. She also can include level 0 "Occult" cards (any class) and up to 5 Seeker/Survivor level 0 cards.
----
* TheChanteuse: Known as "Smoky Velvet", and has the outfit and personality to match.
* CripplingOverspecialization: She can access any Spells in the game, but otherwise is restricted from high-level cards, even of the Mystic class, though she can use some low-level Seeker or Survivor cards.
* EarlyBirdCameo: She was first introduced as a promo card all the way back into the core game's release, until being re-introduced properly in ''The Circle Undone'' expansion.
* HollywoodVoodoo: [[UsefulNotes/{{Voudoun}} Baron Samedi]] just [[GiantSpaceFleaFromNowhere keeps pursuing her for an unknown reason]]; nothing in her backstory explains just ''why'', besides maybe Marie's heritage. While he's active, he takes up the "Ally" slot and increases any health damage anyone suffers near him; the only way to get rid of him is to put at least 3 doom tokens on him, one by one, [[SadisticChoice which can put the entire mission at risk]].
* InTheBlood: Her magic is in her blood; her Grand-Mère was also an accomplished witch.
* MusicSoothesTheSavageBeast: Her signature card, "Mystifying Song", allows her to stop the Agenda from advancing for one turn, for any reason, but only once per scenario. Sometimes, this can mean the difference between life and death.
* SadisticChoice: Her signature weakness, [[UsefulNotes/{{Voudoun}} Baron Samedi]], takes up the "Ally" slot and increases health damage anyone around him suffers. The only way to get rid of him? Put three doom tokens on him (1 token per round), which can potentially finalize the current agenda, the worst-case scenario being failing the scenario, or even [[RockFallsEverybodyDies the entire campaign]].
* TheSmartGuy: Has good Intellect stat (4)-- the best amongst Mystics.
%%* SouthernBelle: She's from New Orleans.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Rita Young]]
!!Rita Young, the Athlete
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahlcg_rita.png]]
[[caption-width-right:225:''"You got a bone to pick? Fine by me. I don't need your permission to leave you in the dust".'']]
->''Clocks do not lie. In the past, people have said hurtful things to Rita. They have threatened her, deemed her inferior. But ever since she started running competitively, Rita has only cared about the clock. The clock says that Rita is faster then the rest. It says she is stronger and has trained harder. Now, she may have to fight for her life. Someone is after her. That much she's sure of. She has no idea who it is or why they want her, but there have been several strange men hanging around her dorm. They plan to make an example of her. But they will have to catch her, and the clock says they cannot''.
Survivor-class investigator. Has access to "Trick" cards (up to level 3) of any class.
----
* AffirmativeActionGirl: She's faced racism all her life.
* BigGuy: One of the few investigators to have 9 Health. While her Combat is average, she can use her great Agility to temporarily neutralise them instead--or even to actually fight them.
* TheHunterBecomesTheHunted: She's fed up with cultists harassing her; now, it's time for her to fight back.
* TheKlan: Her signature weakness, the "Hoods" enemy, look suspiciously like group of KKK members in signature hoods. But in truth they are something even worse than just a bunch of cruel racists...
* LightningBruiser: She has 5 basic Agility, and she also has high Health (9) and decent Combat (3), making her versatile combatant. She can even use her high Agility offensively by damaging enemies after successfully evading them.
* TiredOfRunning: Her signature card is named "I'm done runnin'"; it keeps her from actually running away from enemies for one round, instead allowing her to deal additional damage whenever she evades them.
* WrongGenreSavvy: She thinks that the hooded thugs harassing her and her friends are part of TheKlan. Unfortunately, [[ApocalypseCult these guys are way worse]] than your usual PoliticallyIncorrectVillain...
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Campaign-specific investigators (contains spoilers)]]
!!Gavriella Mizrah
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahlcg_gavriella.jpg]]
->''A former member of the Haganah, Gavriella Mizrah now works private security for wealthy homeowners. Josef Meiger -- a man who takes confidentiality quite seriously -- has retained Gavriella to make sure there are no problems during tonight's event. But even she is not prepared for what is to come''.
Josef Meiger's private security. Starts with fixed set of cards (most are Guardian-class).
----
* ArbitraryEquipmentRestriction: Starts with a fixed set of cards (most are Guardian-class), which she can't replace once discarded. Most likely it was done to speed up your demise, [[ForegoneConclusion since the prologue only ends with all investigators being defeated]].
* BadassIsraeli: Former member of [[{{UsefulNotes/IsraelisWithInfraredMissiles}} Haganah]].
* BigGuy: PlayedWith.
** She is closest the prologue team has to a Guardian. She has the best Health and Combat stats in the team (comparable to Guardians), but pays for it with [[GlassCannon the absolute worst Sanity in the game]], in a scenario which provides a lot of horror-based dangers.
** She may find clues by being attacked by a monster (whether she gets damaged or not), which adds additional benefits to acting like the team's "tank".
* CanineCompanion: Always starts with a "Guard Dog" Ally in play.
* CripplingOverspecialisation: All Prologue investigators have 4-3-2-1 stat distribution, making them good at one specific thing, but worse at the others, with one stat acting as their definitive weak point. Gavriella concentrates on fighting enemies head-on, but pays for it with having only 2 Intellect and 1 Agility, meaning she would not be a good clue-gatherer, and she certainly won't be able to avoid enemies.
* GlassCannon: Just as she's tough in Health, she's weak in Sanity, being the only investigator to have it below 5.

!!Jerome Davids
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahlcg_jerome.jpg]]
->''Jerome is Josef Meiger's personal assistant and secretary. He is a close friend of Josef's and is also an upstanding member of the Silver Twilight Lodge. He helps keep the Meiger estate's vast finances in order and manages Josef's time, which has become increasingly precious of late''.
Josef Meiger's personal assistant. Starts with fixed set of cards (most are Seeker-class).
----
* ActionSurvivor: He is Josef Meiger's personal assistant, and good at investigating, but lacks any combat skills.
* ArbitraryEquipmentRestriction: Starts with a fixed set of cards (most are Seeker-class), which he can't replace once discarded. Most likely it was done to speed up your demise, [[ForegoneConclusion since the prologue only ends with all investigators being defeated]].
* CripplingOverspecialisation: All Prologue investigators have 4-3-2-1 stat distribution, making them good at one specific thing, but worse at the others, with one stat acting as their definitive weak point. Jerome is the best clue-gatherer, but he has the worst Combat (he's ''not'' a fighter), and just slightly better Willpower (meaning he would be hit hard by treacheries as well).
* FragileSpeedster: Has the second-highest Agility in the team--which is his only chance of survival if he ever gets caught, since he has abysmal Health and Combat stats, and no Weapons to defend himself with.
* NonActionGuy: Jerome has ''the'' lowest Health in game, period (being the only investigator to have it below 5). In combination with his poor stats (other than Intellect) and lack of Weapon options, he must avoid combat like fire.
* TheSmartGuy: He's closest the prologue team has to a Seeker. He also has the best Intellect of the four.

!!Penny White
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahlcg_penny.jpg]]
->''Penny White is the Meiger estate's head housekeeper. She has been working in the Meiger estate for several years. Though she has only spoken with Josef a few times, his overly fastidious nature has kept her quite busy. Tonight, she is tasked with keeping the manor spotless, the food hot, and the hooch flowing''.
Josef Meiger's housekeeper. Starts with fixed set of cards (most are Survivor-class)
----
* ActionSurvivor: She's closest the prologue team has to a Survivor. She also lacks any special skills or training, being just a humble maid.
* ArbitraryEquipmentRestriction: Starts with a fixed set of cards (most are Survivor-class), which she can't replace once discarded. Most likely it was done to speed up your demise, [[ForegoneConclusion since the prologue only ends with all investigators being defeated]].
* CripplingOverspecialisation: All Prologue investigators have 4-3-2-1 stat distribution, making them good at one specific thing, but worse at the others, with one stat acting as their definitive weak point. Penny has the best Willpower, making her the most resistant to treacheries, but has the worst Intellect stat, meaning that investigating normally is usually not the best choice.
* JackOfAllTrades: Penny has no set "role" in the team, but can provide at least some help with any task, making her similar to a Survivor:
** She has the second-best Health and Combat stats after Gavriella. She also starts with two Knifes (one active and one in reserve), which, while weak, are the only Weapons at the team's disposal with no need for ammo (which her teammates ''can't'' re-obtain once it runs out).
** Penny has the lowest Intellect, but may use the "Flashlight" to slightly compensate for it, and automatically finds clues every time she passes ''any'' skill check.
* LuckBasedSearchTechnique: With her Intellect stat, she's unlikely to find any clues while investigating, but she discovers them for free whenever she succeeds at ''any'' skill check, regardless of type.

!!Valentino Rivas
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahlcg_valentino.jpg]]
->''"Tino" is a wealthy philanthropist and one of tonight's most esteemed guests. The recipient of a fortuitous windfall, Valentino lives a life of luxury and recreation. Despite his wealth, he remains connected to his community, and he takes great joy in giving large sums of money to good causes''.
Josef Meiger's guest of honour and a well-known philanthropist. Starts with fixed set of cards (most are Rogue-class).
----
* ActionSurvivor: He lacks any special skills or training, and relies on his natural savviness and sneakiness to survive.
* ArbitraryEquipmentRestriction: Starts with a fixed set of cards (most are Rogue-class), which he can't replace once discarded. Most likely it was done to speed up your demise, [[ForegoneConclusion since the prologue only ends with all investigators being defeated]].
* CrimefightingWithCash: Starts with twice the normal amount of resources (especially noticeable since everyone else has ''less'' than normal at the start), and can spend them during skill checks to reduce their difficulty.
* CripplingOverspecialisation: All Prologue investigators have 4-3-2-1 stat distribution, making them good at one specific thing, but worse at the others, with one stat acting as their definitive weak point. Valentino comes with good Agility and just slightly worse Intellect stats, but will be completely obliterated by Willpower-testing treacheries.
* FragileSpeedster: Valentino pays for his high Agility with low Health and low Combat. It's just not in his best interests to fight enemies directly.
* TheSneakyGuy: The closest the prologue team has to a Rogue. He has the highest Agility (4) and second highest Intellect (3), making him a better fit for investigating than fighting.
[[/folder]]

!Introduced in ''The Dream Eaters'' expansion
[[folder:Tommy Maldoon]]
!!Tommy Muldoon, the Rookie Cop
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahlcg_tommy2.png]]
[[caption-width-right:225:''"Eyes up, Tommy".'']]
->''Most members of the Muldoon family are part of the Boston police force in some way or another. Not long ago, the youngest Muldoon brother, Tommy, got his badge. Armed with an eye for detail, fierce courage, and his trusty rifle, Becky, Tommy is dedicated to law enforcement... but when he was loaned out to the Sheriff's Department in Arkham, he found that he was not prepared for the bizarre crimes cropping up in this strange town. Even so, whether the crime scene is a smoky speakeasy or a bloodstained altar, Tommy will not rest until he can bring the culprit to justice''.
Guardian-class investigator. Has access to Survivor cards (up to level 2).
----
* ActionSurvivor: He is not very experienced, but compensates for this with his savviness. He also has access to Survivor-class cards.
* EarlyBirdCameo: His dog version was amongst investigators in the ''Dogwich Legacy'' fake announcement. All other investigators were just "dogified" versions of pre-existing ''Arkham TCG'' investigators, but Tommy had perfectly new (and functional, even if described in the silly way) abilities and stats. Soon enough, he was amongst the first investigators announced for ''The Dream Eaters'' Cycle, with all the stats and mechanics being intact.
* FamilyHonor: Many members of Muldoon family serve in the police, and Tommy is not an exception.
* HumanShield: Unlike other investigators, he can afford to use his "Allies" to soak up damage; if they get defeated, he receives additional resources, which he can spend either on [[WeHaveReserves more "Allies"]], or [[MoreDakka to reload "Becky"]]; and instead of being discarded, they are shuffled back into his deck (they don't "die", they just retreat). But he must be careful, since his signature weakness, if drawn, forces him to discard '''all''' assets with damage on them.
* ICallItVera: Calls his rifle "Becky".
* OfficerOHara: Like the majority of other Boston cops at the time, he is of Irish descent.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Mandy Thompson]]
!!Mandy Thompson, the Researcher
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahlcg_mandy2.png]]
->''Ever since she was a child, Mandy would read whenever she could not sleep. Such has been the case on many nights. Her remarkable memory and ability to correlate facts have landed her a highly valued job as a researcher for Miskatonic University. She has spent hours poring over the profane pages of ancient, forbidden texts. In doing so, she has discovered a pattern indicating an impending cataclysm. Has paranoia finally caught up to her? Or is a disaster of truly epic proportions on the horizon?''
Seeker-class investigator. Can include up to 10 level 0-1 Rogue, Mystic or Survivor events/skills (she can only choose one extra class).
----
* CripplingOverspecialisation: {{Downplayed|Trope}}. She can access up to 10 Rogue, Mystic or Survivor level 0-1 cards, but only events or skills, not assets, and she must choose only ''one'' secondary class at the deck creation, making other two unavailable. This limit becomes more noticeable when using an increased deck size, due to sheer difference between number of Seeker and non-Seeker cards.
* GoMadFromTheRevelation: Her signature weakness, "Shocking Discovery". If she finds this card during a search action, not only this action (and all related effects) is cancelled, she is also forced to draw an encounter card.
* MechanicallyUnusualFighter: Before the start of campaign, she may choose her deck size. Apart from the usual 30-card deck, she can also construct 40- or 50-card decks; when playing with increased decks, she receives additional copies of her signature card, "Occult Evidence", which allows her to find clues for free as long as she grabs it during "Search" effects.
* SquishyWizard: Even by Seekers standards; she has only 5 Health and 1 Combat, making her chances at prolonged combat...slim at best.
* SupportPartyMember: Her ability helps other investigators with searching their decks for specific cards.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Tony Morgan]]
!!Tony Morgan, the Bounty Hunter
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahlcg_tony.png]]
[[caption-width-right:225:''"When I find that beast, I'll put it down for good".'']]
->''Tony's tracked down low-life scum in every lousy corner of the world, but nothing could have prepared him for the thing he killed in Innsmouth. It had the form of a man, more or less, but it was covered in loathsome scales and slime, like some horrid creature of the deep. It stank of salt water, rotten fish, and blood. He should've let it go when it dove into the river, but he'd never let a bounty escape before, and he wasn't about to start then. Ever since, he's found a new kind of dirtbag to hunt. Ordinary mobster or otherworldly monster, Tony will take it down... if someone is willing to pay him for it''.
Rogue-class investigator. Can include up to 10 level 0-1 Guardian, Seeker or Survivor events/skills (he can only choose one extra class).
----
* ArchEnemy: His signature weakness is one particularly sneaky [[Literature/TheShadowOverInnsmouth Deep One]], which he keeps pursuing. Main problem with it is that it enters play with 1 Doom on it.
* BigGuy: Has 9 Health, and he is one of the few investigators with 5 Combat. He also can use some of the Guardian-class cards.
* BountyHunter: The game explicitly calls him bounty hunter. [[GameplayAndStoryIntegration This also works as his signature mechanic]], allowing him to receive resources as reward for hunting monsters. The harder the target, the bigger the reward is. Number of bounties available is limited (6 by default), may only be restored either through use of his signature "Weapon" or through his Elder Sign, and he only completes them if he deals killing blow [[KillSteal personally]].
* CripplingOverspecialisation: {{Downplayed|Trope}}. He can access up to 10 Guardian, Seeker or Survivor level 0-1 cards, but only events or skills, not assets, and he must choose only ''one'' secondary class at the deck creation, making other two unavailable.
* GunsAkimbo: Has two "Colt" revolvers. Whenever he uses one of them, he can use second copy from his "hand" with no additional cost.
* KillSteal: Tony only gets reward if he kills the target personally; this may come up as a problem if he's no the only fighter in the team: if somebody tries to "[[UnwantedAssistance help]]", it would waste (limited) bounties.
* MightyGlacier: He has one of the best Health (9) and Combat (5) in the game, let alone amongst Rogues, but compensates for it with low Agility (2)--second worst in the class.
* NominalHero: His main motivation is to [[OnlyInItForTheMoney get paid]], and, maybe, hunt down [[ArchEnemy that Deep One which just keeps running away]]. The job also involving saving the world is a coincidence.
* PunchClockHero: He is OnlyInItForTheMoney. And maybe revenge on the [[ArchEnemy Deep One]]. Otherwise, he couldn't care less about common goals or his teammates.
* RevolversAreJustBetter: He is armed with dual "Colt" revolvers; unlike other dual weapons in the game, they are presented as separate cards (meaning they can be used either separately or [[GunsAkimbo together]]. Besides this, they're also integral to his signature ability: using them to kill enemies is the only way to receive additional bounties, besides his Elder Sign effect.
* TokenEvilTeammate: One of the few outright criminals amongst (mostly heroic) investigators, even if he's usually bringing in [[PayEvilUntoEvil more dangerous criminals]].
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Luke Robinson]]
!!Luke Robinson, the Dreamer
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahlcg_luke2.png]]
[[caption-width-right:225:''"The key to the Dreamlands lies within us all".'']]
->''It was many years ago when Luke discovered the entrance to the Dreamlands. Through the gift of an unusual box his uncle had left him, he learned of a way to travel to and from the Gates of Sleep. He has since spent his the majority of his days wandering the land of dreams in search of adventure. From the streets of Celephaïs to the Enchanted Wood with its endless mysteries he wanders, unraveling the secrets of the land and of the myriad dreamers who reside there. Now an ancient chaos threatens to annihilate not only the waking world but the world of his dreams as well. This is something Luke cannot allow''.
Mystic-class investigator. Has access to Seeker cards (up to level 2).
----
* {{Dreamland}}:
** Being an experienced Dreamer, if Luke is presented during ''The Dream Quest'' campaign, intros for several scenarios will change, to reflect that this isn't his first time in the Dreamlands.
** His signature card, "Gate Box", allows him to escape into [[PocketDimension a secluded part of the Dreamlands]], for various purposes. His signature weakness, however, traps him there.
* LongRangeFighter: He can use one event per turn as if he's in a connecting location and engaged with each enemy in it. When combined with the "Gate Box", it means he can interact with ''any'' location.
* PocketDimension: His signature card, the "Gate Box", forms a portal (called "Dream-Gate") Luke may use to gain shelter from monsters until the end of round, while also being able to interact with the other locations, or even moving there. However, if his weakness, "Detached from Reality", kicks in, the portal becomes malevolent, trapping Luke there and forcing him to quickly investigate a high-shroud location or suffer horror.
* TheSmartGuy: {{Downplayed|Trope}}; while he has average Intellect, he has access to Seeker cards, and can use some of the Mystic cards to replace Intellect with Willpower during Investigate actions; this makes him a potential choice for the team's clue-searcher: fitting, as the expansion he's introduced in takes place in the Dreamlands, which he knows better than anyone else.
* SquishyWizard: One of the squishiest in the game; he only has 5 Health and unimpressive Combat and Agility, meaning his first close combat may very well become his last.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Patrice Hathaway]]
!!Patrice Hathaway, the Violinist
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahlcg_patrice2.png]]
->''All her life, Patrice has lived for music. The soaring sonatas, the graceful arias, and the booming marches have always been her closest companions. But sometimes when she plays, she can sense some alien intelligence at the edge of her awareness. Something that watches her and waits. Something that hungers. The presence has been growing over the last month and her increasing nervousness is starting to spoil her ability to play the violin. That's not something she can tolerate. After her last concert at the Ward Theatre in Arkham, she finally decided to take action''.
Survivor-class investigator. Has access to Mystic cards (up to level 2).
----
* ActionSurvivor: She's not a trained mage, all her powers are related to her magic violin, and without it, she's just a normal musician. Fittingly, she's classified as a Survivor rather than a Mystic, and her card pool reflects it.
* CursedWithAwesome: Her violin is connected to a certain hostile EldritchAbomination, which can (and will) attack her if given a chance, but its magic also allows her to help her teammates in their world-saving quest.
* DifficultButAwesome: Her unique gimmick means she can't form a stable hand and plan around it, but also that she can rotate her deck very quickly (even more quickly if she puts assets in play, since they're now removed from the card rotation), accessing certain cards much more often than she would have otherwise. However, fast rotation also means more issues with managing horror (each time deck resets, investigator takes 1 horror).
* MagicMusic: She can use her violin to allow any investigator to draw cards or acquire resources. She also has access to some Mystic cards.
* MasterOfNone: {{Downplayed|Trope}}. She has 4 Willpower, but only 2 in every other stat; since most Willpower-based cards belong to the Mystic class, from which she can't use high-level ones, the usefulness of having high Willpower stat gets somewhat limited.
* MechanicallyUnusualFighter: She has a lower maximum hand size (5 instead of the normal 8), and during the Upkeep phase, she discards all non-weakness cards from her hand, drawing a new set of 5.
* SquishyWizard: Has access to Mystic cards and has a high Willpower stat, but she is neither durable nor powerful nor fast, meaning it's not in her best interest to fight monsters directly.
* SupportPartyMember: She can allow any investigator to draw additional cards or resources by discarding her own cards.
[[/folder]]

!Introduced in ''The Innsmouth Conspiracy'' expansion
[[folder:Sister Mary]]
!!Sister Mary, The Nun
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahlcg_mary.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:225:''"The Lord watches over my path. I am armored in faith".'']]
->''The more Sister Mary learns of the strange and arcane forces that sometimes manifest in this world, the more certain she is that she has been set upon a path to ward off these forces and protect the innocent wherever possible. Armed only with the trappings of her church and an unshakable faith, Sister Mary seeks out every supernatural threat she hears of through her fellow priests and nuns. Other members of her church may dismiss such things as medieval nonsense, but Sister Mary knows the real evils that exist in the shadows - and she knows that if such evils are left unchecked, they will bring ruin and horror to all of creation.''
Guardian-class investigators. Has access to Mystic cards (up to level 2).
----
* CrisisOfFaith: At times, her faith takes heavy blowws; when her signature weakness, "Crisis of Faith", enters play, she must either replace all "Blessed" tokens with "Cursed" ones (putting her whole team's work at risk), or suffer (potentially fatal) horror.
* FragileSpeedster: {{Downplayed|Trope}}; compared to other Guardians, she has decent Agility (3, instead of the usual 2), giving her an adequate chance to escape unneeded combat--which may end not that well, considering her low Health.
* GlassCannon: PlayedWith. She has ''very'' low Health (only 5). While, being a Guardian, she has some good options to soak up damage, putting those in play requires time and resources. But on the bright side, she has very high Sanity (9), so against the enemies dealing horror instead of damage, she would be ''more'' resilient than average Guardians. She has average Combat (lower than most other Guardians), but it's less of issue due to sheer amount of combat-oriented cards he class has.
* HoistByHisOwnPetard: She can add additional "Blessed" tokens into chaos pool each round. If she then draws her signature weakness, all these tokens will revert to "Cursed" ones, potentially making the situation worse than if she never bothered.
* LuckManipulationMechanic: She is the only investigator who can directly add "Blessed" tokens without the use of other cards.
* MagicKnight: She is a Guardian who can use Mystic cards, and has good Willpower and at least decent Combat.
* SadisticChoice: Her signature weakness, "Crisis of Faith", forces her to either revert "Blessed" tokens in the pool to "Cursed" ones (endangering her and her friends), or suffer massive, potentially fatal, horror to preserve them. The more such tokens in the pool, the worse this effect becomes.
* SquishyWizard: Stats-wise, she's closer to Mystic than a Guardian, having only 5 Health and 3 Combat and Agility. But she comes with high Willpower and access to Mystic-class cards, allowing her to compensate for weak points with magic.
* SupportPartyMember: Her abilities are related to supplying team with a constant stream of "Blessed" tokens to increase their chances at success.
* WhiteMage: Besides her [[LuckManipulationMechanic chaos pool-manipulating abilities]], she has access to Mystic cards. Due to already having adequate combat capabilities thanks to Guardian cards, she may instead concentrate on support-oriented magic.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Amanda Sharpe]]
!!Amanda Sharpe, The Student
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahlcg_amanda.jpg]]
->''Amanda Sharpe was on track to become one of Miskatonic University's most accomplished graduates. However, ever since she saw a strange painting of an enormous creature's emergence from the depths of the ocean, her classwork has suffered. Her dreams are overwhelmed by images of a vast submerged city and whispers in a language she does not understand. She remains dedicated to her studies, but her goal is no longer to graduate at the top of her class; rather, she seeks to discover the meaning behind the occult secrets concealed between the lines of reality.''
Seeker-class investigator. Has access to "Practiced" skills of any class (up to level 3).
----
* EarlyBirdCameo: She was originally portrayed on the "Encyclopedia" card from core game, long before her introduction in "The Innsmouth Conspiracy".
* JackOfAllStats: When supplied with the right set of skills, she can become an all-rounder, who can adapt to any role.
* MasterOfNone: PlayedWith. Stats-wise, she is one of the worst investigators (only 2 at every one, which is below average), and certainly has the worst Intellect amongst Seekers (all of whom have 4-5). However, her abilities allows her to quickly rotate through all her available cards, nearly always having something useful at her disposal. Also, any cards she has under her sheet can be applied to tests without needing to discard them afterwards.
* MechanicallyUnusualFighter: Cards under her investigator sheet can be applied to skill checks as usual, but ''won't'' be discarded afterwards. She must discard them at the end of round, however, whether she used them or not. This works particularly well with Skill cards (which must be applied to a skill check in order to work anyway), though she can do this only once per skill check. He signature weakness, "Whispers from the Deep", also uses this mechanic, working as a Skill with ''negative'' stats (which she can't refuse to use).
* RecurringDreams: She keeps seeing weird dreams about some submerged city (i.e. [[Literature/TheShadowOverInnsmouth Y'ha-nthlei). They actually bother her so much, she can't concentrate on her studies any more. Besides being her main motivation to join the team (she wants to learn more about that city and why she keeps seeing it), these dreams also act as her signature weakness, "Whispers from the Deep".
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Trish Scarborough]]
!!Trish Scarborough, The Spy
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahlcg_trish.jpg]]
->''Trish had always excelled in both body and mind, her unwavering focus on excellence and her fearless disposition a winning combination. Given her stellar academic and athletic records, everyone expected to see her become something great. Instead, Trish took a job at a commercial code company. The initial shock of her humble work eventually wore off, and the exceptional Trish Scarborough faded into obscurity. This suited Trish just fine, as it made it harder for anyone to realize the truth: her job was a cover for her true work as a spy with the Black Chamber, the Bureau's code-breaking agency.''
Rogue-class investigator. Has access to Seeker cards (up to level 2).
----
* EarlyBirdCameo: She was originally portrayed on the "Manual Dexterity" Skill card from core game, but wasn't actually introduced until "The Innsmouth Conspiracy".
* FragileSpeedster: {{Downplayed|Trope}}. While she has good Health (8), with her poor Combat (2), she'll have a hard time actually fighting anyone. Instead, she prefers to evade enemies via her good Agility stat (4), and discovering clues right under their noses.
* TheMenInBlack: Her signature weakness, "Shadow Agents", is represented by the group of shadowy guys (working for the dark cult behind the current BigBad) who keep pursuing her and prevent her from discovering clues by any means except by investigating. Fortunately, they can be dealt with by successfully evading them...which won't be easy, though, considering their high Evade rating.
* TheSmartGuy: She has a good Intellect stat (4), and can access Seeker cards, making her a good clue-gatherer. This is good, since the actual Seeker this time around is more of an [[JackOfAllStats all-rounder]].
* TheSneakyGuy: She combines the best traits of both Rogues and Seekers, resulting in an agile, hard-to-catch clue gatherer who can steal clues right under her enemies' noses. As additional bonus, once per round, when she finds a clue in a location occupied by an enemy, she can discover an additional one for free.
* StealthExpert:
** After discovering a clue in a location occupied by enemies, she can automatically evade one of those enemies.
** Her signature card, "In the Shadows", allows her to sneakily disengage from all enemies and avoid engaging with anyone until the end of round. As a downside, she can't deal damage to them, either.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Dexter Drake]]
!!Dexter Drake, The Magician
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahlcg_dexter.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:225:''"Do you want to see true magic?"'']]
->''For Dexter Drake, the magic of fairy tales and myths has been a lifelong fascination. The chance discovery of an old book page during the Great War opened Drake's eyes to the possibility that magic might truly exist. Years later, the promise of arcane tomes locked away in Miskatonic University's special collection draws the successful stage magician to the quiet town of Arkham. Lured to an auction of occult items, "Drake the Great" and his assistant, Molly Maxwell, find themselves targeted by the depraved servants of an otherworldly force of disease and corruption. To save Molly, Arkham and perhaps the world from a horrific transformation, Drake needs more than his wits and quick hands. He must turn to real magic, even if it risks his mind, body and spirit''.
Mystic-class investigator. Has access to Rogue cards (up to level 2).
----
* EarlyBirdCameo: He was first introduced as a bonus investigator (with a set of replacement signature cards and weaknesses) for anyone who bought the novella about him, before being re-introduced in the ''The Innsmouth Conspiracy''.
* {{Expy}}: Of ComicStrip/MandrakeTheMagician, down to the name.
* FatalFlaw: His obsession with learning "real" magic is quite possibly the main reason behind all his problems.
* GameplayAndStoryIntegration:
** His magician background is reflected by his signature ability: he can quickly exchange assets in play with different ones, just like magicians would do during their performances. And his signature asset is outright named "Showmanship"; it gives bonuses to whatever cards he recently put into play.
** His obsession with learning "real magic" manifests as his signature weakness, "Occult Scraps", which is whatever fragments of occult books he managed to get his hands on; it drains his Willpower until he manages to get rid of it, which, ironically, reduces his effectiveness as an ''actual'' mage.
* LovelyAssistant: His promo-card provides his assistant, Molly Maxwell, as an alternative signature card. Her main role is providing an opportunity to quickly find and draw assets with a specific trait. To discourage abusing her ability, she takes horror each time she uses it, and has only 4 Sanity.
* MagiciansAreWizards:
** Used to be normal StageMagician until he learned ''real'' magic.
** He is a Mystic-class investigator, who uses his magician skills to actually amplify his performance as a wizard.
* PickACard: [[LovelyAssistant Molly Maxwell, his assistant]] (and alternative signature card) allows him to pick one trait and then search his deck for cards with this trait, until he finds the first one with it; all other cards must be shuffled back; the fewer cards with the chosen trait his deck has, the better chance of finding a specific card (if you know what to search for).
* TheSneakyGuy: Has access to Rogue-class cards, which allows him to stockpile resources he needs to constantly swap his assets. This also allows him to compensate for below-average Agility (2).
* StageMagician: His profession before he learned ''real'' magic. He still dresses like one.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Silas Marsh]]
!!Silas Marsh, the Sailor
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahlcg_silas.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:225:''"Leave your fears on the docks, lads".'']]
->''Silas Marsh has always felt called to the sea. As a young lad, he left his family in fear-shadowed Innsmouth and made a name for himself sailing the seven seas. But after the death of his parents, the sea's call has only grown stronger. Silas has dreams - nightmares - of pointed teeth grinning, webbed hands reaching, and eyes glowing in the darkness of the ocean deeps. No one in his family is able to offer an explanation for his dreams, or at least, no one is willing. So when desperate librarian Abigail Foreman comes to Silas with questions of her own, he cannot turn her away. Her ancient and mysterious tome, the Profesiae Profana, points to a stellar event foretelling the end of the world, and painted in its margins are the very same creatures that haunt Silas's nightmares...''
Survivor-class investigator. Has access to "Innate" skills of any class (up to level 2).
----
* BigGuy: Has high Combat (4) and Health (9). Besides being impressive by itself, this also makes him most durable investigator in ''The Innsmouth Conspiracy'' expansion.
* BoringButPractical: His replacement signature card, "Nautical Prowess" Skill, does nothing flashy, but instead just provides rather stable, albeit minor, bonuses: when applied to a skill check with a negative chaos token modifier, it provides two "wild" (fit for any type) skill icons, which somewhat offsets the negative effect of the chaos token. Alternatively, it has the rather standard effect of allowing him to draw a card.
* CripplingOverspecialization: Granted that he specializes in having more cards to pass tests with than normal, but "Innate" cards are typically ''only'' usable for skill tests. "Assets" and such are still restricted to the Survivor pool for him.
* EarlyBirdCameo:
** He firstly appeared on the "Overpower" Skill from core game, long before actually becoming playable.
** He was originally introduced as a bonus investigator (with a set of replacement signature cards and weaknesses) for anyone who bought the novella about him, before being re-introduced in the ''The Innsmouth Conspiracy''.
* HalfHumanHybrid: Like all members of the Marsh family, he has the Innsmouth Look, marking him as half-human, half-Deep One. This doesn't make him any less heroic, though.
* InTheBlood: As a member of the Marsh family, he has [[HalfHumanHybrid the Innsmouth Look]].
* {{Irony}}: He's the only investigator who has a card portraying him (upgraded "Overpower", Guardian-class Skill), which he can't take as it's off-class for him.
* ItemCaddy: His playstyle relies on using skills (he can access a large amount of the off-class ones), and him easily regaining the skills spent on skill checks (or adding new ones).
* LightningBruiser: Besides being very tough, he also has good Agility (4), making him able to either fight or evade monsters, depending on the situation.
* RecurringDreams:
** He keeps seeing dreams about the depths of the ocean; this is a bad sign, indicating that his [[HalfHumanHybrid Innsmouth heritage]] is beginning to force him into becoming a full Deep One.
** His (replacement) signature weakness, "Dreams of the Deep", acts as a skill card which ''subtracts'' from his total skill value, and returns to his hand if the skill check is failed, instead of being discarded. If he ends the turn with it still in his hand, he suffers damage.
* WhiteSheep: Unlike most members of the [[HalfHumanHybrid Marsh family]], he is a good guy.
[[/folder]]

!Introduced in ''Edge of the Earth'' expansion
[[folder:In general]]
----
* MagikarpPower: Since ''Edge of the Earth'' investigators start out with very limited access to cards of their "de facto" class, they get badly outperformed in their intended roles by full members of those classes. But once they get the experience to buy upgraded cards, their powerful built-in abilities start to shine.
* MechanicallyUnusualFighter: All ''Edge of the Earth'' investigators only have access to level 0 cards of their own class, but can also use any level 1-5 cards and up to 5 level 0 cards of another class. This causes them to effectively change class over the course of a campaign as they replace their level 0 cards with upgraded cards of their secondary class.

[[folder:Daniella Rayes]]
!!Daniela Reyes, the Mechanic
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/daniela.JPG]]
[[caption-width-right:225:''"Relax, tough guy. I'll handle this. You stand over there and look pretty".'']]
->''Daniela always figured she had a good life. She had a loving, boisterous family. She had a steady job that used her brains and her hands. She had enough money to spend on fast cars, pretty girls, and her motorcycle, Gabriel. Then her brother, Ramon, got caught up in some trouble. Her mother warned her to be careful, that darkness lay ahead. Daniela set a glass of water behind the door for her mother's sake, to catch evil spirits - just as she's been taught as a child. When Daniela awoke to find it shattered, she was determined to figure out what happened and fix it. Just like she always did.''
Guardian-class investigator, who can only access level 0 cards of her own class, but can include unlimited number of level 1-5 and up to 5 level 0 Survivor cards.
----
* ArmourPiercingAttack:
** Daniela's ability allows her to deal damage to an attacking enemy without bothering with any skill checks, which can help a lot against enemies with high Combat rating.
** Daniella's signature weakness, "Mob Goons", is a couple of, well, [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin mob goons]], whose attacks can't be cancelled by any means, and whose damage and horror are always treated as direct (so they can't be assigned to assets).
* BigGuy: Like all Guardians, she's very tough and strong, and remains so even after dual-classing to Survivor. She's also encouraged to stay on the frontline, as all her abilities trigger only when she gets attacked (regardless of whether she actually gets hit or not). This does not work on attacks of opportunity, however.
* BookDumb: She has a low Intellect stat, making her completely rely on Survivor cards for finding clues. However, where she really shines is thinking on her feet and finding non-standard solutions to seemingly impossible problems...just like a true Survivor.
* EarlyBirdCameo: Daniela was portrayed on several cards released prior to her announcement.
* MechanicallyUnusualFighter: She's the only investigator to actually ''benefit'' from being attacked, as she can either immediately retaliate and deal 1 damage to attacking enemy, or automatically evade them (which either exhausts them, or triggers other effects). Her signature card, "Mechanic's Wrench", further reinforces this, as it can make the enemies attack her on demand.
* RevengeByProxy: Daniella's signature weakness, "Mob Goons", is literally a couple of bandits sent after her by some loan sharks after her brother got into troubles. The card's flavour text even states that "debt is a family affair".
* TwoferTokenMinority: Being both Hispanic and lesbian makes her stand out in the 1920s setting.
* WrenchWench: A strong, sturdy woman who's very good with a wrench, both for fixing cars and clobbering monsters.
* WrenchWhack: Her signature card, "Mechanic's Wrench", is not only a useful tool which reinforces her mechanics, but can also be used as a weapon against enemies who previously hit Daniela.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Norman Withers]]
!!Norman Withers, the Astronomer
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/norman.JPG]]
->''Nobody believes him, and why should they? How could six stars vanish from sight all at once, never to reappear? Astronomer and Miskatonic University professor Norman Withers had all but given up on regaining his colleagues' esteem when a protege of the renowned Albert Einstein comes to speak on campus. The visiting physicist, with unsettling theories about the curvature of space-time, may hold the key to helping Norman explain the phenomenon of the vanishing stars...''
Seeker-class investigator, who can only access level 0 cards of his own class. Instead, he can include unlimited number of level 1-5 and up to 5 level 0 Mystic cards.
----
* BadassBookworm: Despite being an astronomer ([[SquishyWizard and not a physically strong one at that]]), Norman is willing to stand up against the {{Eldritch Abomination}}s as much as the other heroes.
* TheCassandra: No one believes him when he claims that six stars suddenly disappeared from the sky, all at once.
* ClockRoaches: Whatever he did, he attracted the attention of [[Literature/TheHoundsOfTindalos Hounds of Tindalos]], who now hunt for him for meddling with the space-time continuum. His (replacement) signature weakness, "The Vengeful Hound", hunts for him (and him specifically), and as long as it's engaged with him, he can't use any player cards to reveal or draw cards, effectively disabling his signature asset, "Split the Angle".
* EarlyBirdCameo: Like several investigators before him, he was originally released as a promotional character alongside a novella before becoming part of a full expansion. He later served as template for other investigators with similar deckbuilding rules.
* MechanicallyUnusualFighter: The top card of his deck is always revealed, and he can play cards from there, at reduced cost. However, if it's a weakness, he must immediately draw it. Both his signature card, "Livre d'Eibon", and his personal weakness, "The Harbinger", also interact with this ability, providing him with more benefits, or disabling any interactions with the deck, respectively.
* ObviousRulePatch: Errata was released for Norman's promo card, which slightly tweaked the rulings for his deckbuilding specifically to address an issue with him interacting with low-level multiclass cards, which otherwise would consume limited slots for level 0 Mystic cards in his deck.
* OmniscientHero:
** He always plays with top card of his deck revealed (allowing him to know what he may expect).
** His replacement signature card, "Split the Angle", allows him to spend an action to reveal the top card of the encounter deck. He then may exhaust ''Split the Angle'' (and sacrifice the top card of his deck) to discard the top card of the encounter deck, potentially avoiding something nasty, like "Ancient Evils".
* SquishyWizard: He has high Willpower and even higher Intellect, and eventually learns how to use powerful magic spells, but he's physically frail, resulting in his low Health, Combat, and especially Agility stats.
* TheStarsAreGoingOut: Being an astronomer, he was first to notice that stars were starting to disappear en masse; none of his colleagues believed him, leading Norman to try and find help elsewhere, resulting in him joining the team.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Monterey Jack]]
!!Monterey Jack, the Archaeologist
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/jack_3.JPG]]
->''Young Jack traveled the world with his father's archaeological expeditions. Now a globe-trotting treasure hunter and an accomplished archaeologist in his own right, "Monterey" follows in his father's footsteps, securing the treasures of ancient civilizations and lost cultures. But after discovering a silver pendant with a familiar symbol on it, Monterey must explore his own past. Years ago, his father was found murdered with the very same sigil carved in his forehead. The image has haunted Monterey's dreams ever since. But he's getting close. He won't stop until he solves the mystery of his father's murder... no matter what it takes. ''
Rogue-class investigator, who can only access level 0 cards of his own class, but can include unlimited number of level 1-5 and up to 5 level 0 Seeker cards.
----
* AdventurerArchaeologist: Monterey was never one of those archaeologists who work from the office; he's the man of action, who goes on the dangerous expeditions personally, ready to face--and survive--any dangers life can throw at him.
* EarlyBirdCameo: In a bit of futureproofing, he was mentioned several cycles back in the campaign guide for ''The Forgotten Age'' as one of the investigators who must take the role of the lead investigator if present at the start of the campaign.
* {{Expy}}: He's based on Franchise/IndianaJones, complete with a hat and a bullwhip.
* FragileSpeedster: With access to both Seeker and Rogue cards, very high Agility and an ability that rewards staying on the move, he's got the means and the incentive to zip around the map collecting clues and evading enemies, but his pitiful Sanity and Willpower combined with low Combat and limited combat options cause him to get crushed by any threat he can't outrun. His unique card, Trusty Bullwhip, somewhat compensates for it, allowing to fight using his Agility instead, and even evade the enemy after successful attack.
* TheLeader: If he is the part of the team during the ''Forgotten Age'' campaign, the campaign guide forces him into the position of lead investigator (if present, the other possible candidates are Leo Anderson or Ursula Dawns).
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Lily Chen]]
!!Lily Chen, the Martial Artist
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/lily_8.JPG]]
[[caption-width-right:225:''"I have been preparing to confront this evil for my entire life. My focus must be absolute".'']]
->''Chen Li speaks rarely. When she does, her words are measured and wise. After a lifetime of disciplined training, every gesture is graceful, uncluttered by hesitation. The monks who raised her said that she was born for a special purpose, to face a great evil. Now, they believe that evil is at hand, and she is the only one who can stop it.''
Mystic-class investigator, who can only access level 0 cards of her own class, but can include unlimited number of level 1-5 and up to 5 level 0 Guardian cards. She can't access any "Firearms" cards.
----
* AllAsiansKnowMartialArts: Not only is she one of the few investigators of an Asian ethnicity, she was also raised by kung-fu monks. Given that the Mythos is derived from 1920s pulps, this isn't much of a surprise.
* BigGuy: She has better Health than most Mystics, and has access to Guardian-class cards to increase her survivability and combat effectiveness even further.
* TheChosenOne: As per her backstory, she was raised by monks who thought her destiny was to fight against whatever horror the investigators oppose in a given campaign.
* DoesNotLikeGuns: Even as she dual-classes into Guardian, she can't use "Firearms", possibly due to her training as a martial artist. Bows and grenades are still valid, however.
* ItSucksToBeTheChosenOne: Her unique weakness, which forces her to either take damage and horror or flip her Discipline assets to their "broken" side, is titled "Burden of Destiny". The number of copies of this card increases as she learns more Disciplines.
* KungFuWizard: Literally; she was raised by monks, and is adept in both martial arts and magic, though she's better at the former rather than the latter.
* MagicKnight: She can access both Mystic and Guardian cards, and has good enough stats to succeed in both roles, though eventually she's likely to drop a large chunk of her magic completely, due to all her high-level cards belonging to the Guardian class.
* MechanicallyUnusualFighter: When creating her deck, she gets to choose from four different unique Discipline assets which boost one of her stats and provide her with a powerful ability, which has the cost of forcing her to flip the card over to its "broken" side, disabling it until specific conditions are met to turn it back. She can pick only one Discipline right away, but will gain another for every 15 experience points earned in total across the campaign.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Bob Jenkins]]
!!Bob Jenkins, the Salesman
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/bob_0.JPG]]
->''According to Bob, the secret to success as a salesman is persistence. People just need to be told what it is that they want. Repeatedly. Recently, Bob came into possession of a handful of "cursed" golden coins, and he hopes the same persistence he so famously advocates will help him to uncover their origin and purpose. If he plays his cards right, maybe this will be his big score. Maybe he'll finally be able to retire and buy that boat he's had his eye on and spend the rest of his days fishing in a tropical paradise. Or maybe Bob will finally come to see all that glitters is not gold.''
Survivor-class investigator, who can only access level 0 cards of his own class, but can include unlimited number of level 1-5 and up to 5 level 0 Rogue cards.
----
* GameplayAndStoryIntegration: He's a salesman; all his abilities are related to his career in one way or another:
** Bob has a bonus action specifically to play "Item" assets.
** Bob can ask another investigator in his location to reveal an "Item" asset in their hand, and pay the price for them, fully or partially. His signature asset, "Shrewd Dealings", further reinforces this mechanic, by allowing him to play "Items" more cheaply, and playing his own assets under control of the other investigators.
* {{Greed}}: It's the name of his unique weakness, which causes him to take horror if he isn't holding plenty of resources at the moment he draws it.
* OnlyInItForTheMoney: Most investigators might be putting their health and sanity on the line to save humanity, but for Bob it's all about making profit.
-->''You say the 'end of the world.' I hear 'business opportunity.' ''
* SupportPartyMember: His abilities let him pay for his allies' Item cards or even gift other investigators cards from his own deck. Guardians who rely on expensive Item assets to do their job are particularly happy to have him around.
[[/folder]]

!Introduced in ''The Scarlet Keys'' expansion
[[folder: Carson Sinclair]]
!!Carson Sinclair, the Butler
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/carson_sinclair.png]]
->''Carson Sinclair has served three generations of the Webb family in Arkham. Always proper, Carson watched with disapproval as his most recent employer, Hercule Webb, began bringing bizarre artifacts and profane tomes into the house, aided in these endeavors by Webb's business manager, Dupuis. When Mr. Webb was swallowed by a dimensional rift, no one believed Carson's description of the harrowing event. Carson has devoted himself to proving Dupuis's guilt, and to restoring the children as the rightful heirs to the Webb fortune.''
Guardian-class investigator. Can include up to 10 level 0-1 Seeker, Mystic or Survivor events/skills (he can only choose one extra class).
----
* BattleButler: {{Downplayed|Trope}}. While he's not very strong on his own, due to low stats, he can compensate for it with the tools the Guardians have access to, being able to stand his ground and protect his friends.
* ExtraTurn: His special ability allows him to trade his actions to the other players.
* MasterOfNone: He has no stat above 2, so he has to either rely on the other players, or stockpile cards which can boost his stats, and he's unlikely to be very strong in any particular field.
* MultiplayerOnlyItem: None of his abilities can be used on Carson himself (including his signature card), rendering them useless when playing in singleplayer.
* SupportPartyMember: All his abilities are related to supporting his team, while Carson himself isn't very strong, having no stats above 2.
** He [[ExtraTurn can spend actions to give extra actions to the other investigators]]; he has an extra action himself each turn specifically for that purpose.
** His signature card, "As you wish" skill, can ''only'' be assigned to the tests performed by the other investigators, giving them huge stat boost, and allowing to draw 1 card on success (on a failure, Carson draws it instead).
** His signature weakness, "Selfless to a Fault", actually ''punishes'' him for not committing cards to other players' tests, causing him horror if he ends the turn without helping anyone.
* UndyingLoyalty: His motivation to join the adventure is to help the children of his master, and prove his murderer's fault. ''Nothing'' would stop him at that.

[[folder:Vincent Lee]]
!!Vincent Lee, the Doctor
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahtcg_vincent.png]]
[[caption-width-right:225:''"I will find the answers, even if it kills me."'']]
->''After the third or fourth mutilated body showed up during his time at St. Mary's Hospital in Arkham, Vincent Lee begun to suspect that these were not mere wild animal attacks. When a young man died screaming in his sleep from a burst heart, Vincent knew for a fact that dark times were ahead. Taking a leave of absence from his position at the hospital, he has set out to ease the suffering of those afflicted by the spreading chaos, hoping that the trail of bodies will lead him to the answers he craves.''
Seeker-class investigator. Has limited (only up to level 3) access to his own class, but has unlimited access to any Health-healing cards, regardless of class. He also may include up to 15 other Guardian and Survivor cards (up to level 1).
----
* CombatMedic: He's the team's designated medic, who also can stand his ground in a fight (and has some Guardian-class tools to do so), though he wouldn't replace actual Guardians. He can even use his "Bonesaw" as a Weapon, gaining much-needed bonus to Combat ([[CastFromHitpoints and can sacrifice a point of health for extra damage]]).
* CripplingOverspecialisation: He can't access high-level cards of any class (including his own, where he is restricted to level 3), unless they contain words "[[ExactWords heals damage]]", though he can access some cards of Guardian and Survivor classes (up to level 1).
* ExactWords: As clarified in the FAQ, he can include cards in his deck as long as they contain words "heals damage", even if it means they heal it on themselves.
* GeniusBruiser: He has access to both Seeker and Guardian cards, and has both great Health and above-average (for his class) Combat, while still having good Intellect. However, he faces the typical problem the Guardians tend to have (high Health, low Sanity), making him highly vulnerable to horror-based attacks, and he can't even hit hard enough to qualify as GlassCannon.
* HarmfulHealing: Once per game, he can use his "Bonesaw" to heal up to 5 damage at once from any investigator, but must then pass hard Intellect test, or cause that investigator a physical trauma (which causes ''permanent'' damage and can kill the investigator if too many traumas gets accumulated).
* HeroicBSOD: Vincent's signature weakness, "Innocent Bystander", acts like a (slotless) Ally card which enters play with most of its health missing, and receives further damage whenever Vincent suffers some (excluding direct damage). It can be cured, and leaves play if Vincent does so, but if it actually runs out of health, Vincent suffers a mental trauma, for letting his patient die.
* SupportPartyMember: Whenever he heals damage from any investigator, he also provides them with a copy of "On the Mend" Skill, which acts as a free stats boost. The amount of such cards is equal to the number of players.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Kymani Jones]]
!!Kymani Jones, the Security Consultant
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahtcg_kymani.png]]
[[caption-width-right:225:''"This doesn't belong to you."'']]
->''When the Talno artifacts went missing from the Miskatonic Museum, Kymani was hired to assess the museum's liability. Of course, Kymani already knew who the thief was -- it had been their own heist, all along. But Kymani had no interest in selling the relics. As far as Kymani was concerned, they weren't the one who ''really'' stole them. No; Kymani had sent the historical artifacts back home, where they truly belonged. The museum and the insurance company see only a villain to catch, but Kymani is faster, smarter, and better.''
Rogue-class investigator. Can access Tool cards of any class (up to level 4).
----
* FragileSpeedster: {{Downplayed|Trope}}. While Kymani has high Health, they lack Combat to actually fight without proper preparations (basic Combat is only 2); not to mention that some enemies target Sanity instead. Instead, they have great Agility (one of the few characters to have basic 5 Agility) and have an additional ability which allows them to discard exhausted enemies when evading them again.
* GrapplingHookPistol: Fitting for a thief, Kymani uses a Grappling Hook as their signature asset, which allows (without risks of attacks of opportunity) to engage, move, evade or investigate; when performing the latter, they also uses their Agility instead of Intellect, which is much higher by default, and much easier to boost given that they're Rogue.
* IronicName: Their family name is Jones, but instead of [[Franchise/IndianaJones looking to bring artifacts to foreign museums]], they instead ''extricate'' artifacts from there.
* JustifiedCriminal: Kymani is a thief, but the reason why they steal relics isn't for profit; they return them to the original lands where they belong, seeing the ones who originally put them into museums as "thieves" instead.
* MechanicallyUnusualFighter: Kymani gains a bonus (based on their Intellect) when evading exhausted enemies; if they succeed, they automatically discard those enemies (but not defeat, so no free victory points, for example). They have free action ability specifically to engage such enemies. This ability has much less chance to work on their signature weakness, Agent Fletcher, as he prevents Kymani from gaining Intellect-based bonuses during Evasion.
* TwoferTokenMinority: Jamaican and non-binary.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Amina Zidane]]
!!Amina Zidane, the Operator
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/amina_zidane.png]]
[[caption-width-right:225:''"What is it trying to tell me?"'']]
->''A refugee from French-occupied Algeria, Amina arrived in Arkham with nothing more than she could carry. Six years later, Amina's sharp mind and technical skill placed her at the switchboard for the Miskatonic Valley Telephone Company. Soon after, she began to catch snippets of something strange while at work - distorted words in an unrecognizable language, out-of-place noises, calls that connected to nowhere at all and dropped almost immediately. As the phantom calls grew in frequency, Amina sought answers. She found the right extension, connected to the line, and listened in. Despite not understanding a word of the alien language on the other side, she could tell the eldritch words held real power.''
Mystic-class investigator. Can access Charm cards of any class (up to level 4).
----
* JackOfAllStats: All her stats are average (including Willpower). She has to rely on her Doom-manipulating mechanics to make things done. {{Justified|Trope}} as she has neither prior training nor knowledge of the arcane; she got involved with the occult essentially by accident.
* MechanicallyUnusualFighter: She's the only investigator, even amongst Mystics, who can put Doom on her assets directly (and not as effect of the other cards). In addition, her Elder Sign allows her to ''remove'' Doom from the cards, and not just hers, but any cards in her location.
* PowerAtAPrice: To even greater degree than other Mystics. All her abilities are built upon accumulating Doom on her cards for various boons, like playing them "for free". Fortunately, her Elder Sign ability allows to move all Doom from any of her cards to another card at her location, even if it's not hers (like the enemies). As with any Doom, it takes away the [[TimedMission time the team has to finish their goal]], and her signature weakness, "Deafening Silence", may move some Doom from her cards straight to the current Agenda, making it permanent.
* TokenMinority: She's an Algerian refugee.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Darrel Simmons]]
!!Darrell Simmons, the Photographer
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahtcg_darrell.png]]
[[caption-width-right:225:''The truth is darker than any of us know.'']]
->''Even while growing up in Arkham, Darrell always knew that there something not quite right about the strange little town. After graduating from high school, he went to work for the ''Arkham Advertiser'' as a photographer, and in the years since, he's scoured every inch of the city. But on one fateful night, he saw something truly indescribable -- a horror that shook his world to the core. His editor says he was just seeing things, but he knows the truth. With his trusty camera in tow, he would not rest until he has captured photographic evidence of the horrors that dwell in the shadows of his hometown and beyond. Just one good shot is all he needs.''
Survivor-class investigator. Has access to Seeker cards (up to level 2).
----
* EarlyBirdCameo: He was portrayed on several cards long before becoming playable.
* GoingForTheBigScoop: He actively risks his life to gather information. Fittingly, his main class is Survivor, with access to Seeker cards.
* IntrepidReporter: Darrel knows that something strange is going on, and believes that it's up to him to uncover the truth. Armed with his trusty camera, he goes on the quest to reveal it -- or die trying.
* TheSmartGuy: He's the only Survivor to have 5 Intellect, and has access to some Seeker cards to put it to good use. However, all the other stats are average or below.
* WeNeedToGetProof: Presented in both his backstory and actual gameplay:
** Finding some evidences of the supernatural activities is his motivation to join the quest.
** His signature card, "Darrell's Kodak", allows to put some resources on enemies and treacheries, as "evidences", and then gather them when he finds clues in their location and puts on his assets. He can then spend them to decrease the difficulty of his tests (compensating for weak stats). He should take care to keep at least some in reserve, though: his signature weakness, "Ruined Film", forces him to remove 4 evidences from his cards, and punishes with Horror for inability to do so, taking up to half of his Sanity supply in one hit at max power: failing to bring back proof may as well spell doom on him and his career.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Charlie Kane]]
!!Charlie Kane, the Politician
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/charliekane.JPG]]
[[caption-width-right:225:''"It can be arranged. It's just a matter of acceptable terms."'']]
->''Charlie Kane promised the people of Arkham a safer future. He made a lot of promises--lower taxes, better schools, less crime. It was part of the job, after all. And although he sometimes had to do things he wasn't proud of, Charlie always did work for the greater good. So when he started hearing the reports, he put the people first. Of course, he couldn't tell anyone. Widespread panic would not serve the public good. Besides, who'd believe him? Still, Charlie has always had connections in town. So he made a few calls, put a task force together, and went to work.''
Neutral-class investigator who can take level 0-5 Ally cards from any class, any Neutral cards and cards level 0-2 from any two classes chosen at deck creation.
----
* ActionPolitician: {{Downplayed|Trope}}. While he does put himself in harm's way for the sake of Arkham, he is almost helpless without his Allies. His backstory also implies that he only chooses to involve himself personally in the investigation because going public with his findings would either cause mass panic or have him thrown into the loony bin.
* CripplingOverspecialisation: Charlie is entirely dependant on his Allies (and has all his abilities associated with them), and becomes extremely weak and vulnerable if he loses them. Naturally, his signature weakness, "Burden of Leadership", targets them, by forcing him either exhaust them (losing access to their benefits for a turn) or deal direct damage and horror to them.
* EarlyBirdCameo: Charlie was originally portrayed on the "Charisma" asset (by itself a neutral card), introduced in the ''Dunwich Legacy'' expansion (and later copied into the second edition of the Core).
* GameplayAndStoryIntegration: As a portly elderly politician, Charlie isn't well-suited to combat the eldritch forces on his own, but he is able to call on his connections to get things done, represented by the skill boosts he gets from his Ally cards.
* ItemCaddy: His playstyle is entirely built around amassing large number of Allies, gaining stat bonuses from them. For that, he's given unrestricted access to any such cards, and three additional "Ally" slots, as well as a set of abilities dedicated to always keeping them ready.
* JackOfAllStats: Charlie Kane has poor stats on his own (all at flat "1"), but can easily boost them by exhausting his Allies with matching skill icons. As he has highly increased limit on how many Allies he can field at once (up to 4 by default, up to 8 with both "Charisma" cards), he can easily amass the little army which would cover for his weak points. But he's unlikely to surpass the more specialised investigators, who have high stats ''and'' can use high-level cards.
* MagikarpPower: Charlie only starts shining when he gathers up his team, and puts all those Allies in play; before then, he has to somehow stay afloat with his abysmal basic stats.
* MechanicallyUnusualFighter: In addition to being a Neutral investigator who essentially gets to choose his class when creating his deck, he's a got a flat "1" in every single stat and a special ability that lets him boost his skill values during tests by exhausting Ally cards (for which he has 4 slots by default) with icons matching the skill being tested. His massive card pool and his unique approach to passing skill tests mean he needs to be built in a way that's entirely different from any other investigator.
* ShoutOut: He's named after Charles Foster Kane from ''Film/CitizenKane'', who's also a politician.
* SleazyPolitician: {{Subverted|Trope}}. He looks like the very image of a [[FatBastard fat]], [[GoodSmokingEvilSmoking cigar-chomping]] career politician and he isn't above employing underhanded methods to get ahead, but his ultimate aim is to serve and protect Arkham's residents.
[[/folder]]

!Introduced in ''A Feast of Hemlock Vale'' expansion
[[folder:Wilson Richards]]
!!Wilson Richards, The Handyman
Guardian-class investigator.
----
* JackOfAllStats: All his stats are average. While he loses some offensive capabilities, he gains better Agility and Intellect than most of his colleagues, making him more flexible.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Kate Winthrop]]
!! Kate Winthrop, The Scientist
Seeker-class investigator.
----
* CastFromMoney: Flux Stabilizer only works if Kate puts at least one clue on it, but it gives her access to powerful offensive events and, once active, gives her one-time boost for next test for each clue she puts on it.
* EarlyBirdCameo:
** She was depicted on several Seeker-class cards long before appearing as a playable investigator.
** ''Barkham Horror'' featured Kate Wintrhop-based investigator long before actual Kate was introduced.
* FragileSpeedster: Kate has impressive 4 Agility, but only 2 Combat, as well as rather low 6 Health. This generally means that while she can easily disable enemies by evading them, actually fighting them can be problematic.
* HoistByHisOwnPetard: "Failed Experiment" weakness forces Kate to pass a Willpower test, the difficulty of which starts at 3 (she has only 2 by default) and quickly scales with the number of clues on her assets (which, given her abilities, she's likely to have quite a few). Fail it, and she would be forced to drop 1 clue into her location for each point of failure... or, if she can't, take horror.
* MechanicallyUnusualFighter: She can directly put her clues on her assets, which gives her various benefits. Fortunately, she also has the means to get them back.
* ScienceHero: Kate aims to defeat the eldritch abominations with the power of science and her own inventions.
* WeaponizedTeleportation: "Flux Stabilizer" gives her access to to signature events, both of which, on top of their normal effects, helps her to get rid of her enemies by teleporting them elsewhere; as may be expected, neither work on Elite enemies.
** "Aetheric Current (Yuggoth)", on top of enhancing Kate's offensive capabilities, allows to also exhaust attacked enemy and teleport it into any location on Kate's choice.
** "Aetheric Current (Yoth)", on top of helping Kate to evade an enemy, allows to get rid of it altogether, by shuffling it back into encounter deck, implication being that they were put on a trip to some ''very'' remote location. It doesn't count as actually defeating them, though, so you wouldn't receive any associated rewards (or penalties, for that matter).
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Alessandra Zorzi]]
!!Alessandra Zorzi, The Countess
Rogue-class investigator.
----
* FragileSpeedster: She has average Health and Sanity (both 7), good Agility (4) but pretty low Combat (only 2), which makes dealing with enemies by evading them preferable to open fights.
* TheSocialExpert: She has an extra action each turn specifically for Parleying. She also has good Intellect (4) and decent (for a Rogue) Willpower (3), which are the stats most commonly used during Parley tests.
* StealthExpert: Her Elder Sign allows to automatically evade any non-Elite enemy in her or (revealed) connected location.
* TokenMinority: The only Italian in the cast.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Kohaku Narukamia]]
!!Kohaku Narukami, The Folklorist
Mystic-class investigator.
----
* GeniusBruiser: {{Downplayed|Trope}}, his Intellect is as high as his Willpower (4), but he also has average Combat (3)
* TokenMinority: He's the only Japanese in the cast.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Hank Samson]]
!! Hank Samson, The Farmhand
Survivor-class investigator.
----
* AutoRevive: Once per scenario, if Hank would get defeated by Damage or Horror he can instead choose to become [[HeroicSecondWind resolute]], which allows him to keep playing, albeit with different stats and no longer being able to heal by normal means.
* TheBigGuy: PlayedWith.
** Hank stats with extremely low 5 Health ''and'' Sanity, but he also transforms into one of the two versions geared towards either tanking damage or tanking horror upon defeat.
** Both his Elder Sign and signature card, "Stouthearted", allows him to move some of his damage/sanity to the other cards (in "Stouthearted" case, even to the other investigators or enemies), further prolonging his survival. This works even for "Resolute" versions, which can't be healed by conventional means.
** Hank can take damage and horror intended for the Ally cards or other investigators.
* CastFromHitpoints: {{Inverted|Trope}}; "Stouthearted" event allows him to dump some of his damage/horror onto enemies (as damage).
* GlassCannon: PlayedWith.
** By default, Hank has only 5 Health and Sanity ("Ashcan" Pete has the same Sanity, but 6 Health); however, if he gets defeated by damage or horror, he can [[AutoRevive get back up]] and [[HeroicSecondWind become resolute]], which gives him a second chance and readjusts his Health and Sanity to better tank either damage or horror, at expense of other stat; if counting both "lives", he becomes the most durable investigator in the game.
** Out of two "Resolute" versions, "Warden" is the most combat-oriented, gaining extra basic Combat (bringing him to 6, highest in the game) and Health, but his Sanity gets decreased even further, making horror-based attacks even more dangerous; at least, he gains some extra Will to not get eliminated by the single failed treachery.
* JackOfAllTrades: Changing to the "Assistant" form boosts Intellect (from 1 to 3) and Agility (from 3 to 4), at expense of small loss in Combat (from 5 to 4). This makes him more versatile.
* HeroicSecondWind: If he runs out of either Health or Sanity, once per game, he can [[AutoRevive fully heal and adjust his stats to continue the struggle]], turning into one of the two "Resolute" versions; the second defeat would eliminate him, however.
* LightningBruiser: Just like Mark, Hank's is a {{Downplayed|Trope}} version of this, having high Combat (5) and average Agility (3). His "Warden" Resolute version raises his Combat stat to 6, while his "Assistant" version [[PlayedStraight plays this more straight]] by giving him equal Combat and Agility (4)
* SearchingForTheLostRelative: Like in other ''Arkham Files'' games, Hank's motivation is to find his lost Pa. [[GameplayAndStoryIntegration This quest manifests as his signature weakness]], "Where's Pa?", which spawns an enemy in connected location, and makes it "elusive", forcing Hank to abandon everything and go on a hunt, as each turn he fails to kill it, he takes 1 direct Horror: who knows what these monsters would do to Pa if not rescued in time?
* WoundThatWillNotHeal: After becoming [[HeroicSecondWind Resolute]], Hank can no longer be healed by conventional means. Effects which moves damage/horror elsewhere still work, however.
[[/folder]]

!Novella investigators
[[folder:Gloria Goldberg]]
!!Gloria Goldberg, the Writer
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahlcg_gloria.jpg]]
->''Nightmares and apocalyptic visions have plagued novelist Gloria Goldberg her entire life. Although she learned to exorcise her terrors onto the page, she has never revealed the inspiration for her weird tales, not even to fellow author Jamie Galbraith. One day, she is struck by a vision of Jamie begging her to help finish what he started. Moments later, she receives word of his sudden death. As Gloria reads Jamie's unfinished book, the story takes hold of her, and the words on the page begin to bleed into reality.''
Mystic-class investigator. Can include up to 10 level 0-1 Guardian, Seeker and/or Rogue events and/or skills (she can only choose one extra class)
----
* GratuitousLatin: Her replacement weakness' title is in Latin. "Liber Omnium Finium" roughly translates to [[ApocalypseHow "A Book about the End of Everything"]]
* HoistByHerOwnPetard: Her replacement signature weakness, "Liber Omnium Finium", when drawn, forces Gloria to take a random encounter card from beneath her sheet--one of those she put there herself in attempt to disable something dangerous--adds the "Peril" keyword to it (which means no help from teammates) and forces her to deal with it immediately, unable to cancel it by any means and with a -2 skill penalty. If it's an enemy, it will also make an immediate attack.
* MechanicallyUnusualFighter: Her abilities allow her to look into the encounter deck, and either put drawn cards back on top, discard them or put them beneath her sheet, effectively removing them from the game for the time being (she can only trap up to three cards this way, however).
* SupportPartyMember: She'll [[SquishyWizard struggle to survive on her own]], but she's a great addition to the team anyway, due to her ability to interact with the encounter deck and discarding or even temporarily trapping cards from it. She can also choose the order in which players interact with the encounter deck during the Mythos phase.
* SquishyWizard: Not only does she have extremely low Health (5), she also lacks capability in Combat (2) and Agility (1) (in fact, she has the worst Agility even amongst Mystics).
[[/folder]]

!Standalone investigators
[[folder:In general]]
* CrutchCharacter: Beside [[LethalJokeCharacter 5U-21]], all standalone investigators have above average total health and sanity value (15 in total instead of the usual 14), and excell at the assigned role of their class, but sacrifice the [[CripplingOverspecialisation versatily]] of many other investigators sharing their class. {{Downplayed|Trope}} in that they are still considered viable later in the campaign, they just need teammates to cover their blind spots.
* SkillGateCharacter: Standalone Investigators sold in their own packs are designed to be easy to understand, build a deck for and play, with simple but strong abilities and a statline optimised to do [[CripplingOverspecialisation one task]], on top of being slightly more durable than many other investigators. But they have zero access to cards outside their class beside Neutral ones, meaning they lose on many cards synergies other investigators of their same class enjoy with their off-class deckbuilding options.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Nathaniel Cho]]
!!Nathaniel Cho, the Boxer
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahlcg_nathaniel.JPG]]
[[caption-width-right:225:''"I must fight on".'']]
->''When up-and-coming boxer Nathaniel Cho was offered lots of dough for a title fight, he thoughts he'd finally hit the big time. But his promoter turned out to be part of the notorious O'Bannion gang, and Nathaniel was pressured to fix fights by taking a dive every now and then. His refusal led to his brother Randall's "accident." Nathaniel is rightly fed up with the mobsters endangering Arkham's citizens on a nightly basis. Now he puts his fists to better use, patrolling the streets and defending others from harm. But he's about to find out there are much more dangerous things that lurk in the shadows of Arkham than simple gangsters...''
Guardian-class investigator. Has no access to cards of other classes.
----
* BoxingBattler: Before joining the team, he was a professional boxer. The card-pack he comes with also includes actual boxing gloves to further improve his combat skills.
* CripplingOverspecialisation:
** Can't use non-Neutral cards outside of his class.
** Stats-wise he's a very good fighter (5 Combat)--and that's it. He has poor Intellect and Agility (both at 2) and average Willpower (3), making him unfit for anything other than combat, where he actually excels, even by Guardian standards.
** Using his boxing gloves (which synergise extremely well with his investigator ability) will fill both his hand slots, preventing him equipping any conventional weapons or investigation tools (e.g. a torch).
* HeroesFightBarehanded: Nathaniel is a heroic vigilante that left his career as boxer behind to clean the streets of Arkham from the gangsters, mobster and other assorted scumbags plaguing them, and while he can use weapons as well as any other Guardians, he specialises in dealing additional damage with events, many of which showcase him or other people engaging in GoodOldFisticuffs.
* ImplacableMan: His signature weakness, Tommy Malloy, is [[TheBrute a big and intimidating O'Bannion thug]] who keeps pursuing him and his brother Randall. He has no flashy special abilities, he is just very hard to put down, due to [[DamageReduction decreasing any damage he receives to 1]], and always returning some time later. On the bright side, Tommy isn't immune to damage from other investigators, has a surprisingly low fight of 2 and is particularly vulnerable to cards that hit multiple times in one action, like "One-Two Punch" or "Butterfly Swords".
* MechanicallyUnusualFighter: Most fighters equip weapons to boost their damage. Nathaniel in contrast is designed around using damage-dealing event cards, such as combination attacks and counters, whose damage he can boost once per turn with his investigator ability. By equipping boxing gloves he can search out one of these cards every time he knocks out an enemy allowing him to continue his assault, but [[NecessaryDrawback the gloves take up both hand slots preventing him equipping other weapons]] (unless he uses Bandolier to to convert his body slot into more handslots for other weapons, [[CripplingOverspecialization or even for another pair of gloves]]).
* TheMedic: Not Nathaniel himself (though he can be a CombatMedic as much as any other Guardian if the player builds him to be so), but his brother Randall, who acts as his signature "Ally"; when he enters play, he can heal up to 3 damage from Nathaniel, or allow him to quickly find and grab a "Weapon" asset.
* NecessaryDrawback: Even if he equips a weapon (by eschewing his boxing gloves or gaining more hand slots to use both) his combat events typically use his base stats and not any bonus accuracy or damage granted by the weapon.
* OneManArmy: Besides having one of the best Combat stats in the game, his abilities also allow him to quickly deal with most monsters by chewing through their health.
* RevengeByProxy: His brother Randall's disability is the "punishment" for Nathaniel refusing to throw the fight.
* ThrowingTheFight: His backstory mentions that his promoter tried to convince him to throw some fights when everyone bet against Nathaniel. When he refused, the "promoter" (actually an O'Bannion gangster) didn't take it well, [[RevengeByProxy leading to his brother Randall suffering an "accident" that left him wheelchair-bound]]. After this, he cut all ties with them and became a vigilante.
* VigilanteMan: After the O'Bannion gang ruined his brother's life, he became a vigilante in order to protect those who can't protect themselves.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Harvey Walters]]
!!Harvey Walters, the Professor
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahlcg_harvey.JPG]]
[[caption-width-right:225:''"I have experience dealing with these sorts of horrors".'']]
->''Professor Walters began as a devotee of the archaic and obscure, but over the years he has discovered that his knowledge of ancient languages, profane relics, and strange rituals is vital to addressing dangers in the modern day. He is both an avid collector of prehistoric ephemera and a fount of knowledge regarding the bizarre primordial religions that worshipped nightmarish gods eons ago. There is perhaps no sane person alive who knows more about the occult than Harvey. When a supernatural event occurs, Professor Walters brings his considerable resources and experience to bear''.
Seeker-class investigator. Has no access to cards of other classes.
----
* CripplingOverspecialisation:
** Can't use non-Neutral cards outside of his class.
** Besides Intellect (5), his only decent stat is Willpower (4), which, without Mystic cards, generally only helps with Treacheries. Otherwise, he has neither combat capabilities (1 Fight) nor agility (2) to escape monsters once they start hunting for him. While this is [[NonActionGuy not uncommon for Seekers]], his colleagues normally have access to some off-class cards to offset this.
* CuriosityKilledTheCast: His signature card, "Thrice-Damned Curiosity" (which fittingly has the "Flaw" trait), punishes him for delving too deep into the world of occult, by dealing him 1 damage for every three cards in his hand. Considering all the ways he may increase his hand's size, this can potentially accumulate into a OneHitKill.
* MechanicallyUnusualFighter: His signature card, "Vault of Knowledge", has a passive effect that increases his maximum hand size by two. When combined with other cards with similar effects (which are helpfully provided in his card-pack), he can bring the limit up to fifteen (the basic limit is 8).
* OccultDetective: He specialised in researching occultism and the activities of {{Eldritch Abomination}}s even before he joined the team. Now, he can actually put all those skills and knowledge to stop the world's ruin.
* TheProfessor: Professor at the Miskatonic University, and one of the team's greatest occult experts.
* SupportPartyMember: His abilities allows him or his teammates to draw additional cards during the Investigators phase, quickly resupplying themselves with fresh cards.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Winifred Habbamock]]
!!Winifred Habbamock, the Aviatrix
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahlcg_winifred.JPG]]
[[caption-width-right:225:''"I can top that".'']]
->''Winifred - Weethao as her parents know her, Wini to her friends - was one of the smartest kids in her reservation school. However, her reckless attitude and lack of respect for authority meant she often got herself into trouble. The course of her life changed forever when she found an old biplane in a farmer's garage and decided to "take it out for a spin." The owner, a former pilot in the Great War, was awestruck by her natural talent and offered to teach her what he knew. Now Wini is know as the "woman without fear," showing off her skills in barnstormers all across the country. That nickname would be tested when, during one of her shows, she spotted a creature she could scarcely describe: a thing with leathery wings and a single, mutated, pus-filled eye''.
Rogue-class investigator. Has no access to cards of other classes.
----
* TheAce: Her signature card, "Anything You Can Do, Better", provides a whopping ''six'' "Wild" icons, which in most cases all but ensures any skill check's success.
* AcePilot: Natural-born pilot, who showed great skills even before being properly trained.
* CripplingOverspecialisation:
** Can't use non-Neutral cards outside of her class.
** She has the best Agility in her class (and one of the few investigators to have 5 Agility to begin with), but she has only average Intellect and Combat (both 3), and abysmal Willpower (1), reducing her usefulness when she's in a situation where evasion isn't a good idea (or available).
* EarlyBirdCameo: The ''The Dream Eaters'' Cycle introduced the "Daredevil" skill card, which actually portrayed her plane, and called her by name in flavour text. Soon after, the "Starter Deck" packs were introduced, including Winifred's.
* FatalFlaw: {{Pride}}; she's great and knows it, which sometimes may lead to her overestimating her chances.
* PrideBeforeAFall: She's very skilled, but also arrogant, which can spell her doom. [[GameplayAndStoryIntegration It manifests as her signature weakness]], "Arrogance", which works as a "skill" card which ''deduces'' one point from any skill she checks; she ''must'' appoint it to every eligible skill check as long as she has it in her hand, and only gets rid of it for the time being when it actually causes her to fail something.
* RedBaron: Known amongst other pilots as the "woman without fear".
* TokenMinority: The only Native American amongst the cast, specifically a Wampanoag.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Jacqueline Fine]]
!!Jacqueline Fine, the Psychic
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahlcg_jacqueline.JPG]]
[[caption-width-right:225:''"The future can be rewritten".'']]
->''Blood. Fire. Destruction. Every night, Jacqueline's dreams are filled with things that have not yet come to pass. At first, she thought of these dreams as a terrible curse. However, as she began to control her visions and observe the events within in greater detail, she now understands they are no curse, but a calling. The world is about to be plunged into a thousand years of indescribable chaos, and only she knows the warning signs. Her dreams have never been wrong, but she cannot let the nightmares that haunt them become a reality''.
Mystic-class investigator. Has no access to cards of other classes.
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* AttackBackfire: Her prediction ability triples the odds of pulling the autofail token and if this happens she'll have to either let it resolve or cancel it and let the two other (statistically likely to be negative) tokens resolve instead, which may leave the player worse off than if they'd just drawn a single token normally.
* BoringButPractical: The only effect her signature card has is allowing her to use her special ability twice per round. Considering that this kind of effect can easily save her and her fellows, it's really all she needs.
* CripplingOverspecialisation:
** Can't use non-Neutral cards outside of her class.
** Has high Willpower (5), which is good for many Mystic cards' effects (and often used to bypass "Treacheries")... and that's it. Her Intellect is average (3) and her Fight and Agility are worse than that(both 2).
* DreamingOfThingsToCome: In her dreams, she can see visions of future yet to come...and they aren't pretty. Her main motivation for joining the team was to prevent these visions from becoming reality.
* NoSell: Once per round she (or another investigator at her location) can draw three tokens for a test and ignore two of them or one auto-failure. Her signature card, "Arbiter of Fates", allows her to do this ''twice'' per round.
* ScrewDestiny: She knows that her visions always become reality, but she can't just sit and wait until world burns; if there's even smallest chance to prevent it, she ''must'' try.
* SupportPartyMember: Her signature ability is great for protecting her teammates, but by herself, Jacqueline has no good stats other than high Willpower, which at least lets her fight with spells.
* WindsOfDestinyChange: Her ability effectively lets her choose between three possible futures for a chaos bag draw once per turn. Her starter deck is built around this mechanic, which either makes it easier to use (e.g. "Scrying Mirror", which "predicts" next token draw), benefits from "bad" tokens (e.g. "Voice of Ra" goes stronger if you draw hard tokens yet still pass) or have drawbacks on "good" tokens (e.g. "Azure Flame" and "Clairvoyance" deals damage/horror).
* YouCantFightFate: Her signature weakness, "Dark Future", disables her signature ability (and any other similar effect she may have), denying her her greatest ability to help her teammates (or herself). At the end of her turn she must reveal 5 chaos tokens; [[LuckBasedMission if one of them was the Elder Sign, she may discard "Dark Future"]], otherwise it remains in effect.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Stella Clark]]
!!Stella Clark, the Letter Carrier
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahlcg_stella.JPG]]
[[caption-width-right:225:''"I can hear it. Can it hear me?"'']]
->''"Before Stella began working for the postal service in Arkham, she knew two things with certainty. First, her parents made a mistake when they called her their son and gave her a boy's name. Second, the house on the cliff in Kingsport whispered her true name - the name she chose for herself - late at night: "Stella." Delivering the mail six days a week in all kinds of weather wasn't an easy job, but Stella loved knowing that she was helping people connect with one another. Then she started finding the letters. At the end of her route, there was always one extra envelope in her bag. It was always addressed to her. It was always postmarked from Kingsport. And it always contained a letter with one typed word: Stella"''.
Survivor-class investigator. Has no access to cards of other classes.
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* BigGuy: She is ''the'' most durable investigator, simultaneously having 8 Health and 8 Sanity.
* BoringButPractical: Her signature card, when applied to a skill check, provides three "Wild" (suitable for any check) icons to the test, and protects her from consequences of failing tests for particularly nasty "Treacheries" (and she has several copies of it); nothing flashy, but depending on the situation it may be life-saving.
* CripplingOverspecialisation:
** Can't use non-Neutral cards outside of her class.
** All her abilities provide their benefits ''only'' when she fails skill checks. While good for making a comeback, they provide no help when she can't afford losing the skill test even once.
** Stat wise, this is [[AvertedTrope averted]] though, as she is [[JackOfAllStats fairly balanced]] compared to the other standalone investigators, which fits nicely with Survivors status as JackOfAllTrades. The only stat inbalance is Survivors' usual low Intellect (2) in favour of slightly better agility (4).
* FailureGambit: Her "Elder Sign" effect allows her to ''intentionally'' fail any skill-check, which also heals a little damage and horror from her. However, her signature weakness, "Called by the Mists", can make this effect too risky to take: whenever she starts skill checks with 4+ difficulty (i.e. those she is most likely to fail), she suffers damage, which not only makes it all but pointless to even bother with her special abilities, but also can bite her in the ass when it shows up during a legitimate skill check at the worst moment possible.
* NoSell: Her signature card, the "Neither Rain Nor Snow" skill, allows her to cancel all effects caused by a skill check's failure (both positive and negative) as long as it was appointed to this check. In some cases it may be life-saving.
* StoneWall: {{Downplayed|Trope}}. She's the only investigator to have both 8 Health ''and'' 8 Sanity, making her very durable. But she has only average Combat, and, being Survivor with no off-class options, has limited fighting capabilities. She has good Agility (4), but it only helps to stall the monsters, not defeat them.
* TwoferTokenMinority: Black and a trans woman. Definitely not someone Lovecraft would have come up with for a protagonist.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:"Suzi"]]
!!Subject 5U-21, the Anomaly
Bonus investigator introduced for upcoming enhanced version of ''The Blob That Ate Everything'' scenario. She's a Neutral investigator who normally can't access non-Neutral cards above level 0, but gains access to specific classes' high-level cards via her unique mechanic.
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* ArbitraryEquipmentRestriction: She's forbidden from taking any "Permanent" cards, excluding story assets and her own signatures.
* ExtremeOmnivore: As may be expected from Blob-themed investigator, all her mechanics are built around her "devouring" cards, regardless of what they represent. She can't devour story cards, but almost anything else is a free game (albeit most frequently, she targets player cards), with her signature weakness, "Reality Acid", specifically existing to make her actively devour her and teammates' cards, with a table of possible results. There's a very small chance that she would devour some enemies instead, but enemies killed that way don't award victory points.
* GameplayAndStoryIntegration: Investigator based on the Blob, as may be expected, has all her mechanics built around hunger and her being ExtremeOmnivore.
* InSeriesNickname: "Subject 5U-21" is also known as Suzi.
* JackOfAllStats: She starts with abysmal stats, but quickly rises them to average or above, making her rather universal. It's ''keeping'' her at adequate stats which is the challenge.
* JackOfAllTrades: She can access every class, and can potentially gain high-level cards from multiple classes, allowing her to be quite universal and adapt to any role... as long as she manages to avoid being screwed by her own eternal hunger.
* JokeCharacter: She's not meant to be taken seriously, and thus has silly lore and abilities, albeit otherwise playable.
* MagikarpPower:
** She starts with all stats at 1, but whenever she "devours" cards, they gets put beneath her signature card, "Ravenous: Controlled Hunger", which gives her +1 to all stats per card "devoured". However, actually reaching the maximum can be risky, as it turns her signature into "Ravenous: Uncontrolled Hunger", which starts actively devouring either cards under control of investigators, or those beneath it, now putting them aside.
** She's normally restricted to level 0 cards (excluding Neutral ones). However, as she keeps playing and "devouring" cards, she gains ability to purchase cards of higher levels, albeit from just one class at a time (depending on what class had higher count of devoured cards in a last scenario). This allows her to potentially stockpile end-game gear from multiple classes and become quite universal.
* MechanicallyUnusualFighter:
** Suzi's deck's size is 50 cards, instead of standard 30; as she has to include at least 7 cards from every non-Neutral class (to make her mechanic work), it leaves her 15 cards she can take from any class she wants, including Neutral. She also includes 2 basic weaknesses, instead of standard 1. Having a deck so big significantly alters her gameplay, sometimes to her boon, sometimes to her bane.
** Each turn, she "devours" one card from her hand, and her free action ability allows her to devour one card under her or other investigator's control, which then gets put beneath her signature card. Reaching the maximum of 5+ cards makes it putting devoured cards aside, and devouring one card either beneath or under players' control until it empties, at which point it reverts. Fortunately, her signature event "Regurgitation" allows to forcibly revert it (and return up to 3 "devoured" cards), while her Elder Sign returns any 1 "devoured" card at her choice to their owner's hand.
** By default, she can only access level 0 non-Neutral cards, but when the game ends, she gains access to upgrading or purchasing cards from the class which has the largest amount of devoured cards (eg, if she devoured mostly Guardian cards, she can upgrade Guardian cards), of any level.
* ProtagonistWithoutAPast: Her character sheet lacks backstory, as all the place there was consumed by instructions to how actually play her.
* TokenNonHuman: All the other investigators are humans. Suzi is a sapient human-shaped [[GreyGoo blob]].
[[/folder]]

!''Barkham Horror'' investigators
[[folder:Bark Harrigan]]
!!Bark Harrigan
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahlcg_barkham_mark.jpg]]
Guardian-class investigator. Has access to any level 0 "Weapon" cards.
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* {{BFG}}: His signature card isn't just another kind of revolver, or even a riffle. It's freaking ''gatling gun''!
* CripplingOverspecialisation: He is ridiculously overpowered in open combat, but his Intellect and Agility have a lot to desire for. He also traded his prototype's access to "Tactic" cards for off-class "Weapons", leaving him out of many cards which were useful to amplify his prototype's weak points.
* GatlingGood: His signature card is a huge "[[PunnyName Catling Gun]]". It's very strong and has tons of ammo, but has one major downside -- it requires two actions to use (and investigators normally have three per turn).
* MoreDakka: His "Catling Gun" starts with 12 ammo, and can spend up to three per shot, increasing in damage output with each ammo spent this way. With just one "shot".
* OneManArmy: Just like his prototype, Mark Harrigan, Bark has huge Health and Fight stats. While he can't amplify his strength by taking damage, he trades it for ridiculous access to "Weapon" cards.
* PunnyName:
** His name is an obvious dog-related pun on his prototype's name, Mark Harrigan.
** His gun is called [[GatlingGood "Catling Gun"]].
* WalkingArmory: He has two additional "Hand" slots specifically for "Weapon" cards, and can include level 0 "Weapons" of other classes in his deck. This may be increased to whopping ''six'' "Weapons" equipped at once through "Bandolier" asset. Armed to the teeth, indeed.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Kate Winthpup]]
!!Kate Winthpup
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahlcg_barkham_kate.jpg]]
Seeker-class investigator. She can access up to five level 0 cards of other classes which she thinks "would smell weird".
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* EarlyBirdCameo: The only ''Barkham'' investigator to have lacked an ''Arkham TCG'' counterpart at the time of the release, since Kate Winthrop (a recurring investigator in ''Arkham'' games) has been re-introduced [[TheBusCameBack in a later cycle]].
* TheNoseKnows: All her abilities are related to her super sense of smell. Her signature weakness, "Foul Odor", is smell-related as well; it deals her horror whenever she tries to smell things.
* PunnyName: Obvious dog-related pun on her prototype's name, Kate Winthrop.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:"Skids" O'Drool]]
!!"Skids" O'Drool
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahlcg_barkham_skids.jpg]]
Rogue-class investigator. Can access up to five level 0 cards of other classes which may move him in one way or another.
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* CarFu: His signature card, "Take the Wheel", allows him to damage enemies whenever he enters locations.
-->''[[PunctuatedForEmphasis What? No. Stop. That's bad. Bad dog]]''.
* CripplingOverspecialisation: His deck-building options provide him with best mobility in the game... and little else, outside of standard Rogue card pool.
* LightningBruiser: With all tools at his disposal, he is ''the'' fastest investigator in the game. He is also just as tough as his prototype, O'Tool, though unlike him he can't access Guardian-class arsenal of weapons and combat-oriented allies.
* PunnyName: Obvious dog-related pun on his prototype's name, "Skids" O'Tool.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Jacqueline Canine]]
!!Jacqueline Canine
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahlcg_barkham_jacqueline.jpg]]
Mystic-class investigator. Can access any even remotely cat-related cards.
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* BadPowersGoodPeople: In this verse, cats are AlwaysChaoticEvil... yet Jacqueline specialises in using them to fight the forces of evil. This mirrors how "normal" Mystics deal with forbidden magic to fight back {{Eldritch Abomination}}s.
* CripplingOverspecialisation: There are not that many cats in the game, so she can't access all that many non-Mystic cards anyway.
* PunnyName: Obvious dog-related pun on her prototype, Jacqueline Fine.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Duke]]
!!Duke
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ahlcg_duke.jpg]]
Survivor-class investigator. Can access up to five level 0 off-class "Allies", assuming they are either dogs or humans. Only investigator to being specifically forbidden to include anything cat-related.
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* CatDogDichotomy: Taken a step further than with other investigators. While for others, taking cats into your deck isn't forbidden, just frowned upon from narrative standpoint, Duke is the only one for whom it's explicitly forbidden.
-->''[[BoldInflation ABSOLUTELY NO CATS UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES]]!''
* CripplingOverspecialisation: The only off-class cards he can take are level 0 Allies. The problem is that any investigator has only 1 Ally slot by default, and the card which gives more, "Charisma", requires spending experience to obtain.
* TheMedic: Pretty much Pete's role as Duke's ally; instead of just amplifying his stats, this time he acts as the easy way to heal damage and horror, and to gain free resources and cards.
* MythologyGag: In all games he ever appeared, Ashcan Pete was accompanied by his faithful dog, Duke, and in ''Arkham TCG'' Duke was core part of his mechanic, allowing him to amplify his most weak stats (Fight and Intellect). Since this time around, it's Duke who is playable, his ally is the "friendly human", Ashcan Pete. They also have their stats reversed, with Duke now having good Intellect and Fight, but low Willpower and Agility.
[[/folder]]