History YMMV / APracticalGuideToEvil

* AuthorAppeal: Catherine certainly spends a lot of time checking out sexy, powerful lesbian women.

** [[GodhoodSeeker Kurisov]] was a jaklavar of the Empire Ever Dark, before allowing Rumena and Sve Noc to kill the Twilight Sages in hopes of taking over in the wars that would follow. Having learned how to come BackFromTheDead and usurp portions of Night from its followers when they are slain, the "Leech" clashed with Rumena seven times over the centuries, intentionally [[WeHaveReserves sacrificing thousands of warriors]] in every encounter to overwhelm Rumena's sigils and gorge itself on stolen Night. Continuing to use these horrid tactics when brought into the War on Keter, Kurisov takes advantage of Sve Noc's weakness in the wake of Night being ruined to poach two shards of the Gloom, [[AGodAmI declaring itself the divine Loc Ynan]] and making an alliance with the Dead King. While telling its followers that they will be left in peace for nine years so long as the drow stay out of the war and allow the dead to scour Calernia of all other life, Kurisov truthfully intends to ascend to godhood by [[FinalSolution wiping out its entire race]].

** [[PredecessorVillain Dread Empress Triumphant]][[note]]May She Never Return[[/note]], the evilest Tyrant to ever emerge from the Wasteland, was a prodigy Diabolist who climbed the Tower and cowed the High Lords into subservience through overwhelming might, with her [[TheLegionsOfHell hordes of devils and demons]] rechristening the Praesi Legions into the Legions of Terror. Within ten years Triumphant was able to conquer all of Calernia through dint of bloody massacre, with notable crimes including the release of a demon of Madness on Laure; the slaughter of a fifth of the Gigantes in a battle that claimed hundreds of thousands of lives as collateral damage; the slaying of a Seraphim summoned to stop her, after which she butchered a hundred different tribes for their defiance; and the extermination of two random cities in her fury at being denied the Golden Bloom. Triumphant's [[GodSaveUsFromTheQueen reign]] was no better than her conquest, as she regularly forced children to show obeisance by crucifying their own parents, and her final act upon inevitably being overthrown was to bring down the Tower in an effort to [[TakingYouWithMe take her killers with her]]. Entertaining wide-scale torture and murder with an eye towards expanding her rule across all of Creation, [[TheDreaded Triumphant]] inspired such fear and terror that countless future generations of Praesi [[HorrifyingTheHorror pray for her to never somehow find a way to return from death]].
** [[GodhoodSeeker Kurisov]] was a jaklavar of the Empire Ever Dark, before allowing Rumena and Sve Noc to kill the Twilight Sages in hopes of taking over in the wars that would follow. Having learned how to come BackFromTheDead and usurp portions of Night from its followers when they are slain, the "Leech" clashed with Rumena seven times over the centuries, intentionally [[WeHaveReserves sacrificing thousands of warriors]] in every encounter to overwhelm Rumena's sigils and gorge itself on stolen Night. Continuing to use these horrid tactics when brought into the War on Keter, Kurisov takes advantage of Sve Noc's weakness in the wake of Night being ruined to poach two shards of the Gloom, [[AGodAmI declaring itself the divine Loc Ynan]] and making an alliance with the Dead King. While claiming to its followers that they will be left in peace for nine years so long as they stay out of the war and allow the dead to scour Calernia of all other life, Kurisov truthfully intends to ascend to godhood by [[FinalSolution wiping out the entire drow race]].

* LauncherOfAThousandShips: Catherine. She was probably bound to get this being the protagonist of an (ostensibly) YA novel but the fact that she's openly bisexual just doubles the available options. This is further aggravated by the fact that she has sexual tension and chemistry with almost everyone, [[LesYay friend]] or [[FoeYay foe]], With pretty much the sole exception of Black Knight, her mentor/father figure.

* FoeYay: Catherine openly ogles, flirts-with and/or fantasizes about many major characters, friend or foe. However special mention must go to Akua, and the current White Knight.

* MagnificentBastard:
** [[PragmaticVillainy Amadeus of the Green Stretch]] is the BlackKnight and DragonInChief to Dread Empress Malicia, responsible for the brutally swift conquest of Callow and one of the longest reigns ever seen in Praes. Throughout the years, [[GenreSavvy Amadeus]] uses his expansive spy network to discover and murder prospective heroes; reforms the Legions of Terror to finally allow competent greenskins into positions of authority; and improves living conditions in Callow to stifle interest in rebellion. Taking on Catherine Foundling as his Squire, Amadeus gives her the guidance and freedom to grow into a truly terrifying villain rivalling his own reputation. Even when his former apprentice betrays Praes, Amadeus nevertheless provides her aid by destroying the route upon which further Crusade armies could march on Callow, simultaneously giving his own forces the opportunity to raid into Procer. [[spoiler:Upon losing his Name, Amadeus decides to challenge Malicia's right to rule after learning of her deal with the Dead King, spending the next few years furthering the civil war in Praes without ever taking a direct part. A self-admitted and unapologetic monster, Amadeus ultimately dies after forcing the High Lords into electing him an Emperor-less Chancellor and goading Cat into killing him, destroying the self-destructive system of the Tower and cementing his [[LikeASonToMe daughter's]] new role as Warden of the East.]]
** [[CardCarryingVillain Kairos Theodosian]] is the Tyrant of Helike, who upon learning he would die within thirteen years decides not to spend that time in mediocre obscurity. Assassinating representatives from the other Free Cities, the Tyrant starts a civil war that draws in both Hanno and the Black Knight, the latter of whom Kairos betrays to the Wandering Bard. Upon winning Kairos has [[PuppetKing Anaxares elected Hierarch]] and makes preparations for the League to join the continent-wide war, falsely professing "[[BlatantLies eternal friendship]]" to every major player. Trading information with every army at Iserre, the Tyrant shares his complete picture of the battlefield with the Dead King while intending to steal the unclaimed Arcadia shard from him, before joining the group formed to stop him and [[ChronicBackstabbingDisorder repeatedly betraying everyone present]] [[spoiler:until Tariq curses him to speak the truth lest Mercy smite him. Later orchestrating a trial for Hanno ending with Anaxares judging the Seraphim guilty and entering into a deadlock with them, Kairos invokes his curse by prematurely declaring victory, preventing Mercy from interfering and dying triumphant]]. With unrepentantly insane plans masking his competence, Kairos is a throwback to the [[LargeHam over-the-top villains of old]], [[spoiler:dying proudly declaring that he has slain the Age of Wonders as he's greeted with applause from the Gods Below.]]
** [[GoodIsNotSoft Tariq Fleetfoot]] is the Grey Pilgrim and [[OldSuperhero one of the oldest heroes in Calernia]], responsible for killing hundreds of villains before they could become greater threats. Joining the Tenth Crusade, Tariq serves as TheMentor to the various other heroes and generals taking part in the attack on Callow, acting cordial to Catherine but refusing to make peace as he fears her becoming a second Dead King. Attempting to orchestrate a pattern of three with Catherine so he can hold their third confrontation over her, Tariq nevertheless accepts her surrender and negation of the pattern before teaming up to fight the Dead King. Needing to crown then kill a Twilight King to prevent a shard of Arcadia from crashing onto Creation, Tariq helps kill his closest friend, the Saint of Swords, when she tries to destroy the Twilight Crown. Proceeding to take on the title of Twilight King before killing himself, the Pilgrim is resurrected by Catherine and gives his support for both her Accords and her petition to join the Grand Alliance. Always empathetic yet holding nothing to be more important than [[TheNeedsOfTheMany the greater good]], Tariq [[HeroicSacrifice gives his life]] to destroy the Dead King's armies and give Catherine time to stop him.
** [[BloodKnight Larat]] is the former Prince of Nightfall, assisting the King of Winter in his scheme. Seeking to escape the restraints that hold back the fae, Larat assists Catherine Foundling against Summer in exchange for seven crowns and one. Leading TheWildHunt, Larat binds himself to Creation by pledging their services to the now Queen of Moonless Nights, serving as Catherine's [[DragonWithAnAgenda "treacherous lieutenant"]] and personal hound of war until the debt she owes is paid. [[spoiler:When the crown of the Twilight Court is offered as his payment Larat abdicates before Catherine can kill him, turning the Hunt into something unprecedented and [[ScrewDestiny leaving them free to do whatever they desire]].]]
** The [[FaerieCourt Prince of Bleak Solstice]], now serving as the [[FaerieCourt King of Winter]] in Arcadia, seeks to escape the monotonous cycle of acting out stories that the Fae are stuck in. Ordering an invasion of Callow, the King allows [[TheDreaded Catherine Foundling]] into the court's capital of Skade when she subsequently enters Arcadia. Upon her besting the Duke of Violent Squalls the King makes her the Duchess of Moonless Nights, charging her with the defeat of Summer and ensuring should she fail that Callow is dragged into the next story. Catherine [[GodCouple forces the Queen of Summer to marry the King and merge both courts]], with the now King of Arcadia leaving Catherine with the remaining power of Winter in return.
** [[ChronicBackstabbingDisorder Dread Emperor Traitorous]] was infamous for his habit of double-crossing anyone he could, stating that "Treason is more art than act." Starting numerous cabals with the intent to overthrow himself, Traitorous successfully usurped his own throne countless times, his co-conspirators unaware of his true identity until it was too late. Managing to disguise himself as his female Chancellor, betray a villain with the Name of Betrayer, trade the soul of a single gnat for infernal enlightenment, and fake a redemption even when an Angel Choir got involved, Traitorous notoriously stated that he would prefer being on all sides of history rather than one, ultimately committing suicide and [[ThanatosGambit framing over a hundred different people for his murder]].
** [[ZanyScheme Dread Emperor Irritant]], the [[BewareTheSillyOnes Oddly Successful]], was known for his ability to find victory through the strangest of tactics. Frequently using his defeat at the hands of heroes to further his own plans, Irritant would repair the palaces they destroyed to pull Praes out of an economic slump, let them defeat the rebellious army he hadn't paid in over a year, trick them into destroying artifacts belonging to political rivals while Irritant attempted to "stop" them, and use their honor to avoid punishment by abdicating to become a surprisingly decent shoemaker on three separate occasions. Waiting for luck to turn all the way around back in his favor, Irritant made his mark as an eccentric yet strangely competent Dread Emperor.

** [[GoodIsNotSoft Tariq Fleetfoot]] is the Grey Pilgrim and [[OldSuperhero one of the oldest heroes in Calernia]], responsible for killing hundreds of villains before they could become greater threats. Joining the Tenth Crusade, Tariq serves as TheMentor to the various other heroes and generals taking part in the attack on Callow, acting cordial to Catherine but refusing to make peace as he fears her becoming a second Dead King. Attempting to orchestrate a pattern of three with Catherine so he can hold their third confrontation over her, Tariq nevertheless accepts her surrender and negation of the pattern before teaming up to fight the Dead King. Helping to kill his closest friend the Saint of Swords when she goes too far, Tariq puts on the Twilight Crown before killing himself, and upon being resurrected by Catherine gives his support for both her joining the Grand Alliance and her Accords. Always empathetic yet holding nothing to be more important than [[TheNeedsOfTheMany the greater good]], Tariq [[HeroicSacrifice gives his life]] to destroy the Dead King's armies and give Catherine time to stop him.
** [[FaerieCourt Larat]] is the former Prince of Nightfall, assisting the King of Winter in his scheme. Seeking to escape the restraints that hold back the fae, Larat assists Catherine Foundling against Summer in exchange for seven crowns and one. Leading TheWildHunt, Larat binds himself to Creation by pledging their services to the now Queen of Moonless Nights, serving as Catherine's [[DragonWithAnAgenda "treacherous lieutenant"]] and personal hound of war until the debt she owes is paid. [[spoiler:When his payment is offered in the form of the crown of the Twilight Court Larat abdicates before Catherine can kill him, turning the Hunt into something unprecedented and [[ScrewDestiny leaving them free to do whatever they desire]].]]
** The [[RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething Prince of Bleak Solstice]], now serving as the [[FaerieCourt King of Winter]] in Arcadia, seeks to escape the monotonous cycle of acting out stories that the Fae are stuck in. Ordering an invasion of Callow, the King allows [[TheDreaded Catherine Foundling]] into the court's capital of Skade when she subsequently enters Arcadia. Upon her besting the Duke of Violent Squalls the King makes her the Duchess of Moonless Nights, charging her with the defeat of Summer and ensuring should she fail that Callow is dragged into the next story. Catherine [[GodCouple forces the Queen of Summer to marry the King and merge both courts]], with the now King of Arcadia leaving Catherine with the remaining power of Winter in return.

** [[CardCarryingVillain Kairos Theodosian]] is the Tyrant of Helike, who upon learning he would die in thirteen years decides not to spend that time in mediocre obscurity. Assassinating representatives from the other Free Cities, the Tyrant starts a civil war that draws in both Hanno and the Black Knight, the latter of whom Kairos betrays to the Wandering Bard. Upon winning Kairos has [[PuppetKing Anaxares elected Hierarch]] and makes preparations for the League to join the continent-wide war, falsely professing "[[BlatantLies eternal friendship]]" to every major player. Trading information with every army at Iserre, the Tyrant shares his complete picture of the battlefield with the Dead King, intending to steal the unclaimed Arcadia shard from him. Joining the group formed to stop him, Kairos [[ChronicBackstabbingDisorder repeatedly betrays everyone present]] [[spoiler:until Tariq curses him to speak the truth lest Mercy smite him. Orchestrating a trial for Hanno that ends with Anaxares judging the Seraphim guilty and entering into a deadlock with them, Kairos prematurely declares victory to stop Mercy from interfering, dying triumphant and ruining the Bard's schemes]]. With unrepentantly insane plans masking his competence, Kairos is a throwback to the [[LargeHam over-the-top villains of old]], [[spoiler:dying proudly declaring that he has slain the Age of Wonders as he's greeted with applause from the Gods Below.]]

* LoveToHate: Akua Sahelian, the Heiress, aka [[spoiler: Diabolist]]. An unrepentant throwback to the StupidEvil days of Praes, Akua is entitled, arrogant, and ends up sacrificing [[spoiler:over 300000 innocent souls in Liesse to power a doomsday weapon]], and all-around ManipulativeBastard to the point where it's debatable whether even ''she'' knows when she's actually being sincere.

* DarknessInducedAudienceApathy: Both sides of the fight between "Good" and "Evil" are made up of very fallible people. As the story goes on, particularly in book 4, Catherine begins to condone [[spoiler:torturing and maiming her fae servants to "discipline" them, allying with the Dead King or the Dread Empress, and enslaving the entire Drow race]] as necessary acts for Callow to survive. [[spoiler:After she becomes mortal again during her fight with Sve Noc, she is horrified at many of the "rational" actions she committed under the influence of Winter]].

** [[CardCarryingVillain Kairos Theodosian]] is the Tyrant of Helike, who upon learning he would die in thirteen years decides not to spend that time in mediocre obscurity. Assassinating representatives from the other Free Cities, the Tyrant starts a civil war that draws in both Hanno and the Black Knight, the latter of whom Kairos betrays to the Wandering Bard. Upon winning Kairos has [[PuppetKing Anaxares elected Hierarch]] and makes preparations for the League to join the continent-wide war, falsely professing "[[BlatantLies eternal friendship]]" to every major player. Trading information with every army at Iserre, the Tyrant shares his complete picture of the battlefield with the Dead King, intending to steal the unclaimed Arcadia shard from him. Joining the group formed to stop him, Kairos [[ChronicBackstabbingDisorder repeatedly betrays everyone present]] until Tariq curses him to speak the truth lest Mercy smite him. Orchestrating a trial for Hanno that ends with Anaxares judging the Seraphim guilty and entering into a deadlock with them, Kairos prematurely declares victory to stop Mercy from interfering, dying triumphant and ruining the Bard's schemes. With unrepentantly insane plans masking his competence, Kairos is a throwback to the [[LargeHam over-the-top villains of old]], dying proudly declaring that he has slain the Age of Wonders as he's greeted with applause from the Gods Below.
** [[FaerieCourt Larat]] is the former Prince of Nightfall, assisting the King of Winter in his scheme. Seeking to escape the restraints that hold back the fae, Larat assists Catherine Foundling against Summer in exchange for seven crowns and one. Leading TheWildHunt, Larat binds himself to Creation by pledging their services to the now Queen of Moonless Nights, serving as Catherine's [[DragonWithAnAgenda "treacherous lieutenant"]] and personal hound of war until the debt she owes is paid. When his payment is offered in the form of the crown of the Twilight Court Larat abdicates before Catherine can kill him, turning the Hunt into something unprecedented and [[ScrewDestiny leaving them free to do whatever they desire]].

* MagnificentBastard: The [[RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething Prince of Bleak Solstice]], now serving as the [[FaerieCourt King of Winter]] in Arcadia, seeks to escape the monotonous cycle of acting out stories that the Fae are stuck in. Ordering an invasion of Callow, the King allows [[TheDreaded Catherine Foundling]] into the court's capital of Skade when she subsequently enters Arcadia. Upon her besting the Duke of Violent Squalls the King makes her the Duchess of Moonless Nights, charging her with the defeat of Summer and ensuring should she fail that Callow is dragged into the next story. Catherine [[GodCouple forces the Queen of Summer to marry the King and merge both courts]], with the now King of Arcadia leaving Catherine with the remaining power of Winter in return.

* CrazyAwesome:
** So many characters. Robber is flag bearer for this trope in the Fifteenth, leading the way with chants of "Kill them, take their stuff!" and "Stab the kidney, loot the corpse!". It seems to run in the sappers, who willingly work with the very dangerous goblin munitions because they like seeing things explode. Catherine has dabbled in it herself, punching out giant devil snakes after climbing up their backs and coming up with the idea of undead suicide goats in the first place.
** Some of the Dread Emperors in the background seem to have been that way as well. Dread Emperor Traitorous stands out the most, having betrayed a Named called The Betrayer and frequently starting secret cabals with the aim of overthrowing himself. He even passed as his own Chancellor with a paper-thin disguise, and died by committing suicide and pinning the blame for his death on 100 different people.

* DarknessInducedAudienceApathy: Both sides of the fight between "Good" and Evil are made up of jerks and Catherine clearly keeps getting worse as the story goes on to the point that [[spoiler: She would allow the Dead King to kill thousands of innocents, allow tens of thousands to die in order to keep power]], and claims she no longer cares about justifications, and just wants to seize power to get Callow beaten into a shape that can function.[[spoiler: Though after becoming human again and feeding both Winter and the last tattered scraps of name she possessed to a Sve Noc she gets a lot better, being horrified at her actions now that Winter is no longer filtering all her thoughts.]]
* FoeYay: Catherine openly ogles, flirts-with and/or fantasizes about almost every major character, friend or foe. However special mention must go to Akua and Dread Empress Malicia.

* LoveToHate: Akua Sahelian, the Heiress, aka [[spoiler: Diabolist]]. An unrepentant throwback to the StupidEvil days of Praes, Akua is entitled, arrogant, and as it turns out, [[spoiler: a supremely powerful mage]] that exists to be a thorn in Catherine's side. However, she does everything with such style, it's hard to truly despise her as much as Cat seems to do.
** The Bard as well, for many of the same reasons. Only she's (nominally) on the side of the angels.
* NightmareFuel: It is mentioned in the Coup de Théatre interlude that the Sky Breaker and his wife were bound at the top of a mountain, one cursed with endless hunger and the other with endless healing. Think about that for a moment.

* MagnificentBastard:
** The Black Knight is the reigning king of this in the series,[[spoiler: having spent the last forty years setting up the board so he can beat Fate itself.]] Dread Empress Malicia seems to scare the Praesi nobles even more, and considering they're a Deadly Decadent Court it would take a lot to frighten them.
** On the other hand, many a Dread Emperor or Empress has thought themselves this. But, as many quotes show, quite a few were... [[SmugSnake just a little deluded]].
** The Wandering Bard, full stop. As an [[spoiler: immortal, body-hopping entity]], she has seen just about every permutation of Creation's stories... and is more than willing to cheat for Heaven to win. Case in point, [[spoiler: a single conversation with Black after having immaculately arranged the death of one of his Calamities to throw him off balance is enough to sow the seeds of dissent between him and Malicia, which blows up in all of the main characters' faces after the fall of Diabolist.]]
** [[spoiler: The Dead King managed to turn his entire kingdom into undead and became an immortal lich himself with a plan so airtight even the Wandering Bard couldn't stop him. He's since played the long game on Calernia as the most powerful force of Evil there. He has created an entire society based around treating becoming undead as an honor, scares the dwarves, regularly pits wits against the Wandering Bard, and defeated five separate crusades. While characters like the Amadeus, Malicia, and Hasenbach are brilliant planners with plans spanning decades, Bard and Dead King have been plotting for millenia,and all the other magnificent bastards' actions are just one small move in a very long game.]]

* DarknessInducedAudienceApathy: Both sides of the fight between "Good" and Evil are made up of jerks and Catherine clearly keeps getting worse as the story goes on to the point that [[spoiler: She would allow the Dead King to kill thousands of innocents, allow tens of thousands to die in order to keep power]], and claims she no longer cares about justifications, and just wants to seize power to get Callow beaten into a shape that can function.

** The Dead King managed to turn his entire kingdom into undead and became an immortal lich himself with a plan so airtight even the Wandering Bard couldn't stop him. He's since played the long game on Calernia as the most powerful force of Evil there. He has created an entire society based around treating becoming undead as an honor, scares the dwarves, regularly pits wits against the Wandering Bard, and defeated five separate crusades. While characters like the Amadeus, Malicia, and Hasenbach are brilliant planners with plans spanning decades, Bard and Dead King have been plotting for millenia,and all the other magnificent bastards' actions are just one small move in a very long game.

* ShoutOut: There are a number of references to the EvilOverlordList. The minor character, the Bumbling Conjurer, is only the most obvious. Black basically has a copy of it tucked away somewhere he refers to. Almost literally: he keeps tabs on typical Villain tropes found in the local stories of any place he gets interested in as a general guide as to what not to do -- and keeps notes.

* DarknessInducedAudienceApathy: Both sides of the fight between "Good" and Evil are made up of jerks and Catherine clearly keeps getting worse as the story goes on to the point that [[spoiler: She would allow the Dead King to kill thousands of innocents, allow tens of thousands to die in order to keep power], and claims she no longer cares about justifications, and just wants to seize power to get Callow beaten into a shape that can function.

* DarknessInducedAudienceApathy: Both sides of the fight between "Good" and Evil are made up of jerks and Catherine clearly keeps getting worse as the story goes on to the point that [[spoiler: She would rather fully embrace being Evil rather gleefully and not regret a single one of her actions than admit the Angels possibly getting a win over her]], and claims she no longer cares about justifications, and just wants to seize power to get Callow beaten into a shape that can function. Ultimately making her sound somewhat akin to the Heiress.