open/close all folders
The Shadow Lord
The Shadow Lord
Voiced by: Banjou Ginga (Japanese), Mike Shepher (English)
The Shadow Lord is the central antagonist throughout the series. Once a human sorcerer, he had a deep hatred for all things beautiful and righteous in the world and believed strongly that all things must serve him.
- Ambition Is Evil: After losing his body, this is one of the few things that continues to drive the Shadow Lord. He desires nothing less than total control, as he isn't just satisfied with Deltora, but planned to use it for its resources and southern harbours to launch warships.
- Arch-Enemy: To Lief, being the one who foiled his plans over and over, first repelling his Invasion, rescuing the enslaved people, and finally destroying all the Sisters.
- Badass Boast: "I have many plans Drumm. Plans within plans, and all of them with one aim. Deltora must be mine."
- Bad Boss: Downplayed. He doesn't outright abuse his minions, but he doesn't really care for them outside of their use for him. He will abandon them on some occasions, such as the Grey Guards left to rot in the Shadowlands.
- Big Bad: He's the main source of conflict for the series overall.
- Casting a Shadow: As a being of pure darkness, naturally he has darkness based powers.
- The Chessmaster: As he himself has boasted and made quite evident, he has many plans, and plans within plans.
- Child of Two Worlds: According to the Tenna Birdsong Tales, Malverlain's grandmother was a woman from Del. That's right, the Shadow Lord is in fact a quarter Deltoran.
- Complete Immortality: He's practically a force of nature.
- The Corruptor: Beings who ally with him often become inhuman despite retaining this appearance, and vulnerable to the power of the Belt of Deltora.
- Dark Is Evil: The Shadow Lord seems to have some control over darkness, most notably when he corrupted Pirra and turned it into the Shadowlands.
- Death by Adaptation: The anime implies he ended up being Killed Off for Real, while in the books he survives every encounter to return later.
- Determinator: After Adin defeated him with the Belt of Deltora the first time, he spent one thousand years planning the downfall of the land.
- The Dreaded: Far and away the most terrifying villain in the series. He never gives up, never stops planning, and never truly appears. You only ever see his minions, monsters, and plans.
- Driven by Envy: After losing his body, this is one of the few emotions that still drives the Shadow Lord.
- Eldritch Abomination: After losing his body he basically becomes a disembodied conscience still holding his mass magical powers. The anime depicts him as a Living Shadow at first, and then an amalgamated consciousness made up of countless eyeballs, wrapped in an armored shell.
- Evil Overlord: The tyrannical and oppressive ruler of the Shadow Lands who wishes to conquer Deltora.
- From Nobody to Nightmare: At first just the minor son of a chief, banished because of his misdeeds. Two thousand years later, he has tried to conquer four countries, destroyed one, and succeeded twice (for a time).
- Jerkass: The Shadow Lord makes no secret of any contempt he holds for allies that displease him, poisons Deltora to weaken it in the event that he is unable to control it, continually taunts Lief and his allies through the crystal as long as he can, and mocks the royal family at every turn. Back when he was human, he struck down the original Four Sisters just because he hated all things good and beautiful, and he likely made his own Sisters as monstrous as possible because he could.
- Karma Houdini: Heavily Downplayed. Though the Shadow Lord manages to live another day, in the end his empire is in shambles and his enemies are stronger than ever. Averted in the anime where Lief is able to kill him.
- Really 700 Years Old: He's at least a thousand years old, possibly more.
- Combat Tentacles: His form in the anime depicts him as a writhing mass of Living Shadow.
- Half-Human Hybrid: 3/8 human, 5/8 Fellan. At first. Now he's more of an Eldritch Abomination wraith whose mortal body has long since passed, like Sauron in The Lord of the Rings or the Warlock Lord in Shannara.
- Large Ham: Again, in the anime. He's more of a Cold Ham in the books.
- Mad Scientist: The magical version of this. He conducts many biological experiments on monsters and humans.
- The Man Behind the Monsters: Created several of the Guardians, whose task was to guard the seven gems of the Belt of Deltora to in order for them to keep them from falling into the hands of his enemies. He is also the main villain of The Silver Door.
- Magitek: A great many of his creations come off as this. He has a great deal of technology that is powered or enhanced by magic.
- Manipulative Bastard: Even with his immense magical power, he often manipulates people subtly. He tricks the Pirrans into dividing the Pirran Pipe up and stripping themselves of their defense.
- Names to Run Away from Really Fast: The name "Shadow Lord" doesn't really give vibes of being a decent fellow. His real name, Malverlain, isn't much better.
- Out of Focus: He didn't get a lot of screentime in the beginning, appearing in only as a voice to tell Fallow what to do. By the end of the first book/anime, he plays a fairly larger role.
- Walking Wasteland: Has a habit of turning anywhere he owns into a terrible barren waste filled with deadly monsters.
- Was Once a Man: He was once a humanoid being called a Fellan named Malverlain before he became the Shadow Lord.
Deltora Quest 1 Villains
Prandine
A treacherous advisor who is the first major villain we see.
- Destination Defenestration: Sharn pushes him out a window.
- Evil Chancellor: The latest in a long line of specially created evil chancellors.
- Starter Villain: While he makes clear he serves the Shadow Lord, he is the main direct threat to the protagonists in the first part of the first book, The Forests of Silence.
- Worf Had the Flu: Not him, but he is able to touch the Belt of Deltora because at that point, the people's trust in their king is so weak that it cannot kill him.
Thaegan
An incredibly powerful and vain sorceress. Thaegan is one of the major villains in the series, similar to the traditional interpretation of an evil fairytale witch. Her favorite food is living ravens; she apparently ate Kree's parents. The only way that she can die is if a single drop of her blood hits the ground. Thaegan turned the city of D'Or into the site of the Lake of Tears, with its occupants turned into various sea creatures. When the Ralads spoke out against her, she used her magic to render them mute. By the time the Shadow Lord took over Deltora, Thaegan became one of his most powerful allies and her power grew with his dominance.
- The Archmage: Incredibly powerful and seemingly second only to the Big Bad in terms of magic mastery.
- Arc Villainess: She is the primary antagonist of the 2nd book in the 1st series, The Lake of Tears. In the anime this is subverted — she is brought Back from the Dead by the Shadow Lord and continues to harass the heroes a few more times.
- Cleavage Window: Her dress in the anime has an arrow-shaped opening to reveal her cleavage.
- Designated Girl Fight: Averted, while Jasmine does designate her as her rival, the two females never actually face each other in a one-on-one fight.
- Even Evil Has Standards: Thaegan utterly vaporizes an Ol that not only was trying to pretend to be her but was also trying to lure Jasmine and Lief to their doom just for fun. Not that she has many other standards besides, though.
- Evil Laugh: She chuckles when she's winning.
- Expy: Her design in the anime strongly resembles Queen Beryl.
- Fusion Dance: In the anime, her children can perform combinations with each other.
- Hot Witch: Evil to the core but very beautiful:
- Lady of Black Magic: A sorceress whose cruelty is matched by her vanity, with powerful curses and spells at her command.
- Long-Range Fighter: She fights by casting spells from afar.
- Mama Bear: Despite being evil, one redeeming factor about her (in the anime) is that she loves her children and is enraged by the deaths of Hot, Tot, Fie and Fly when she accidentally kills them thanks to Lief and his friends.
- Matricide: She killed her own mother.
- Navel Window: Her dress in the anime has a small opening on her navel.
- Older Than They Look: She's at least a hundred years old, and likely more.
- Pet the Dog: In the anime, her interactions with her children, when she's not scolding them.
- Pillar of Light: Her final attack in the anime involved her and her children being caught in one she'd created.
- Small Parent, Huge Child: She has thirteen monsters as her children. Ichabod, being the largest and strongest, absolutely dwarfing his siblings, his mother, and all the heroes.
- The Sociopath: Her crimes and cruelties are numerous, and the one sympathetic quality she truly has in the anime (her love for her children) is mostly absent in The Lake of Tears — it's implied that she cares little for them, not being particularly concerned with Jin and Jod's deaths earlier in the book. She also showed contempt for her mother, a kind healer, simply because she viewed altruism as a weakness, and killing her mother was her official Start of Darkness.
- Statuesque Stunner: She's quite tall and said to be terribly beautiful.
- There Can Be Only One: She kills an Ol that disguised itself as her.
- 13 Is Unlucky: She has thirteen monstrous children.
- Trademark Favorite Food: Ravens, swallowed whole. Which includes Kree's entire family...
- Vain Sorceress: She very, very vain; in fact, she spends most of her time in front of mirrors.
- Villainous Parental Instinct: In the anime, Thaegan is shown to love her children very much. She even flies into a rage when Lief, Jasmine, and Barda cause her to accidentally kill Fie, Fly, Hot, and Tot.
- Weaksauce Weakness: Though she is nearly invincible and difficult to kill, she has one weak point: her little finger, which she uses to cast her magic and thus cannot protect it with her sorcery. If one drop of blood is spilled from this finger, she can be killed and all her magic undone — admittedly a hard task as you need to get close enough... but Kree, who lost his family when she devoured them, is up to the task.
Ra Kacharz
Mother Brightly
A seemingly kind older woman who is the manager of the Rithmere Games and owner of the Champion Inn.
- Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: She merely pretends to be a kindly inn keeper to gain the trust of competitors. In truth, she is actually a manipulative agent of the Shadow Lord.
- Faux Affably Evil: Always kind and welcoming, the heroes have no clue of her true intent until after her betrayal.
- Karma Houdini Warranty: In The Shifting Sands, she gets away with capturing Lief, Barda, and Jasmine. By The Sister of the South, Fardeep retakes possession of both the Rithmere Games and the Champion Inn.
- Manipulative Bitch: Runs a gladiator tournament that is a front for scouting out potential recruits for the Shadow Lord, but she keeps both the competitors and the audience completely in the dark to her true nature. Upon the champions being announced, she tricks them into thinking they are likely of being robbed, and allowing to leave via a secret exit... straight into the arms of waiting Grey Guards. She then fabricates a story to the Mere civilians that the Champion(s) ran off with the prize money to live in secrecy.
Fallow
Voiced by: Masashi Ebara (Japanese), Stewart Burdette (English)
Fallow acts as personal advisor to the Shadow Lord, though the Shadow Lord often threatens to kill him if he does not buckle down in finding the heir of Deltora kill the other traitors. Fallow shares his appearance with Prandine, the last Chief Advisor to the Deltoran royal family. It is inferred that both are Grade 3 Ols, as were many of the Chief Advisors before them.
- Ain't Too Proud to Beg: He often apologizes and begs forgiveness from the Shadow Lord.
- Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass: Despite being shown to cower in front of the Shadow Lord, he mostly dominates the battle against Lief in the anime.
- Dead Person Impersonation: At least in the anime, it is suggested the Shadow Lord chose to repeat Prandine's form in him because Jared would recognise it. In the books, it is said that that appearance pleased the Shadow Lord, which is why he chose to have Fallow use it too.
- The Dragon: Is this to the Shadow Lord. In the anime, he noticeably struggles for this position with Dain, who is shown to be more competent.
- Die Laughing: In the anime, as he self-destructs, thanks to the power of the Belt of Deltora. He notices the gems falling of the belt and laughs.
- Lack of Empathy: Boy is he lacking. When Dain, a fellow Ol, is killed he shows no sadness or sorrow. Though to be fair, Dain was trying to take his position.
- Large Ham: More so in the Japanese version of the anime, where he is voiced by the gruff Masashi Ebara.
- Laughably Evil: He acts like a complete loser at times.
- Not-So-Harmless Villain: Don't let his seemingly frail appearance fool you — Fallow is just as sinister and powerful as any of the other Deltora villains.
- Shapeshifter Weapon: In the anime, during his aerial battle with Lief, Fallow morphs his hand into a blade.
- Slasher Smile: He gives these off in the anime.
- Small Name, Big Ego: He considers himself superior to all of his allies, despite Theagan telling him he's pathetic compared to her.
- This Cannot Be!: His expression, just as the belt lights up in the anime.
Sorcerer Oacus
A powerful sorcerer who only exists in the anime adaptation of Deltora Quest, Oacus is a sadistic, emotionless man with power over fire, and delights in watching people's suffering. Oacus was summoned by Fallow to destroy Lief's group and take the gems they've collected.
- Alas, Poor Villain: While they don’t forgive Oacus for his cruelty, the heroes do feel bad for the sorcerer as in the end he is another pawn manipulated by the Shadow Lord who had everything taken away from him.
- Blood Knight: Despite his detached attitude, he seems to love fighting.
- Canon Foreigner: He didn't exist in the books at all and was created for the anime. He has some similarities with Kirsten, though he's a lot older.
- Dissonant Serenity: He often remains unnervingly calm even as he burns everything around him.
- Faux Affably Evil: Pretends to sympathize with a small girl who's favorite doll is burning up inside her home, which he's set on fire.
- Spotlight-Stealing Squad: He does not exist in the books, and therefore takes the spotlight from some of the other villains. He's the one to set the pirate ship alight rather than the polypan (who had made a Heel–Face Turn in the anime earlier), and serves as a more powerful threat than the Guardian or Neridiah in the Valley of the Lost.
- Tragic Monster: In his final moment he states that he was once human, indicating that, despite his actions, Oacus does actually feel some melancholy.
The Resistance Spy (SPOILERS)
A Grade 3 Ol in service of the Shadow Lord. Acts as one of his many backup plans.
- Attack on the Heart: A common way to kill lesser Ols, but inefficient against Grade 3 Ols like him.
- Beneath the Mask: Dain acts as a kind and passive young man, but in reality desired to kill his supposed allies many times and truly is loyal to the Shadow Lord. In the anime, he even admits to framing Jinks as the spy.
- Bishōnen: Whenever Dain shows up in the books, emphasis is placed on his fine features and "delicate" looks.
- Dark and Troubled Past: Part of the backstory for the character of Dain. He claims to have had his home destroyed by Grey Guards and his parents kidnapped before Doom found him. This is a lie to get people to eventually conclude he is the heir.
- Driven by Envy: Is envious of Fallow's position of evil governor in Del and strives to prove to the Shadow Lord that he is a better candidate for the job. It's probably true.
- Eerie Pale-Skinned Brunette: Dain has the hair and colouring of a Toran. This is so that people will believe that he is the heir to Deltora.
- Evil Orphan: Though not really an orphan (he only masquerades as one), Dain is evil to the core.
- Face of an Angel, Mind of a Demon: Dain's appearance is young, innocent and good to the extreme. Given he's a Shapeshifter, it's likely he intentionally chose this form.
- Foreshadowing: When Lief was about to crown him as heir and hand the Belt of Deltora to him, the Ruby is noted to be pale, which happens when there is incoming misfortune and evil. His "capture" by Ichabod afterwards served as the perfect cover up for the real danger, which is the Belt of Deltora being given to an Ol on a silver platter.
- Faux Affably Evil: Pretends to be a trusted ally and strong patriot, when he's secretly a Shadow Lord spy working to undermine their efforts.
- Heartwarming Orphan: What he appears to be, before he is outed as an Ol.
- Hidden Depths: On the outside, he looks like an innocent, good-hearted, unfortunate orphaned boy, but really is an Ol in disguise, and with orders from the Shadow Lord to infiltrate the Resistance and destroy the rebellion the heroes are plotting. The heroes don't realise this until the very end of Return to Del.
- Humanoid Abomination: His true Ol form, seen only in the books. In the anime, he gradually transforms his body as Lief wounds him.
- Killed Off for Real: Killed by Lief by wrapping the Belt of Deltora around him which has a Holy Burns Evil ability.
- Manipulative Bastard: Dain is an exceptionally skilled manipulator and one of the Shadow Lord's smartest minions, able to avoid detection as The Mole all the way to the end.
- Mistaken Identity: Dain chooses his shape with the intention of fooling everyone into thinking that he is the heir to the Belt of Deltora. He almost does, too.
- The Mole: He's the spy among the Resistance.
- Obfuscating Stupidity: Downplayed. His assumed identity is by no means stupid, but a little naive.
- Parental Abandonment: In the backstory of Dain, his parents were kidnapped by Grey Guards.
- Rage Against the Mentor: After Dain realises that Doom has been lying to him about Tora, he turns on him in anger. It doesn't last, however, as Dain eventually decides to return to the stronghold with him.
- Romantic False Lead: Particularly in the anime, where he seems to like Jasmine. Given that he's an Ol, he's just faking it.
- Shapeshifter: Ols are natural shape shifters, but as a Grade 3 Ol, Dain's ability is perfected.
Deltora Quest 2 Villains
3- 19
A Grade 3 Ol working as an official in the Factory. Wears the same face as Prandine and Fallow.
- The Juggernaut: A gale that pins even Grey Guards to the floor won't even slow 3-19 down.
- Replacement Goldfish: The third Ol to wear Prandine's face.
- You Are Number 6: His name, likely referring to model and serial designation. If this is the case, he is the 19th Grade 3 Ol created by the Shadow Lord.
Guardians of the Four Sisters
Rolf the Capricon
A Capricon of the northeastern mountains.
- An Arm and a Leg: He loses a finger when the Granuous bite it off.
- Believing Their Own Lies: A complicated example. He claims dragons destroyed Capra, the city of his ancestors, out of envy for its beauty. He believes it wholeheartedly. It is later revealed that the Capricons of the time were stealing dragon eggs and sucking them dry to make lanterns, and the dragons gave them three warnings before stopping the slaughter of their young. However, it is unclear where he heard the version of the story he claims is true, or if he ever heard the true story, as Capra was destroyed centuries before he was born.
- Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: He pretends to be cowardly and helpless, but in reality hates every single one of the heroes and revels in his own evil power.
- Evil Knockoff: His dragon form is noted to be powerful, but it's no match for Joyeu, the real ruby dragon.
- Evil Makes You Ugly: His dragon form, to the point Lief speculates the real ruby dragon has been corrupted.
- Fauns and Satyrs: Capricons are physically like fauns and satyrs, though are differentiated by their love of wealth and refinement.
- I Never Said It Was Poison: After his duplicity is revealed, Lief realizes that several of his action in the past did not add up, including his lack of surprise to see Lindal, who had joined the group after Rolf had separated from them.
- Jerkass: In reality, his mind feeds on pride and anger. As he lies dying, he boasts of how much he wanted to kill the party and how much better he is than them.
- Obfuscating Stupidity: He generally comes off as cowardly and sniveling, often terrified beyond rational thought. He's a lot smarter than he looks, attempting to arrange several accidents for Lief and waiting until they got to Dragon's Nest where his power was strongest before attacking them. Even though the protagonists see through his traps immediately, they never realize he's the one setting them, until he's defeated by Joyeu and exposed.
Kirsten of Shadowgate
Mariette's sister and Bede's former girlfriend.
- Bait-and-Switch: When we first see her, she seems to be Bede's slave. It turns out to be the other way around.
- Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: At first, she appears to the trio to be brow-beaten and helpless, and completely at the mercy of Bede. Actually she is cold, heartless and vindictive, and the true guardian to the Sister of the North.
- Character Tics: Her hand often flies to her throat, apparently in shock. In reality, she's threatening Mariette, who is imprisoned within the locket she wears.
- Cruel and Unusual Death: She's killed when several snakes climb up her braid to get away from the Belt of Deltora's ruby and bite her in their panic. Due to her magical armor, each bite only lets in a little poison, but there were dozens of snakes in the pit, and she takes a long time to die.
- Dark and Troubled Past: After Bede dumped her, she fled into the mountains. There, the Shadow Lord found her, whispering to her of promises of power and granted her gifts of sorcery.
- Dark Magical Girl: Transforms into the Masked One.
- Made of Iron: She's protected by magic, but it isn't a complete barrier, as Jasmine is able to barely scratch her and the snakes that kill her are able to penetrate her skin just enough to poison her.
- Proud Beauty: Seems to be very proud of her looks, and is incensed that Bede preferred Mariette for her.
- Tragic Monster: Lief accuses her of this, keeping Bede alive to remind her of how he used to make her feel when she was human.
- Woman Scorned: She traps Mariette and enslaves Bede all because Bede rejected her for Mariette.
- Yandere: Downright obsessed with Bede. It's a Deconstructed Trope, as he reminds her of how she used to feel as a human.
Paff
Josef's second assistant and a former prisoner in the Shadowlands. She serves as the guardian of the Sister of the South.
- Always Someone Better: Feels as if she can never live up to Ranesh as Josef's assistant.
- Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: She seems nervous and flustered all the time, but hides an evil will. Although everyone seems to find her very annoying.
- Character Death: Paff is killed by the power of the Belt of Deltora when she touches it.
- Dark and Troubled Past: She is one of the Deltorans who were rescued from the Shadowlands in the second series. She is friendless and without any family to support her, and it is this in part which makes her a target for the Shadow Lord and his false promises.
- Dark Magical Girl: Can summon a two-faced creature made from poisonous sludge.
- Death by Despair: Paff commits suicide by grabbing holding of the Belt of Deltora (which is lethal to those of evil will), because she realises that the Shadow Lord has abandoned her and has lost all hope and will to live.
- Made a Slave: Paff was a slave in the Shadowlands before being rescued by King Lief along with the rest of the slaves in the Shadow Arena.
- The Mole: As the Guardian of the Sister of the South.
- Obfuscating Stupidity: She makes no secrets of her ability to read and write. It's her cunning that she hides.
- Poison Is Evil: Poison seems to be Paff's primary weapon in a fight.
- Shrinking Violet: Tends to act flustered around people of authority, whom she gets a lot of exposure to.
- Tampering with Food and Drink: To create a semblance of a 'Toran Plague', Paff poisons Sharn's lip balm and then proceeds to poison the food and drink of every person Sharn comes into contact with. Since most food is eaten communally, it's not hard to do.
- Xanatos Speed Chess: Quickly capitalises on any development to further hatred of the Torans.
Villains of Dorne
Olt
An ancient evil sorcerer who rules the island of Dorne.
- Disc-One Final Boss: The first enemy that Rye and Sonia face.
- Evil Sorcerer: Studied dark magic in an attempt to extend his own lifespan.
- Half-Human Hybrid: He's half Human, half chameleon-like Fellan.
- Life Drinker: Uses The Gifting, where seven young people in good health are sacrificed to extend his lifespan.
- Really 700 Years Old: He's far older than most of the other characters, although not as old as the Shadow Lord. Well... relatively, anyway.
- Well-Intentioned Extremist: At first, he really was a good ruler. Over time, studies of dark magic corrupted him into the malevolent figure that Rye and Sonia encounter.
