This page details the species of humanoid space pirates that scavenge various planets in hopes for a place of their own.

The Fallen / Eliksni

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/the_fallen.jpg

"We have butchers at our gates, four-armed and eager for slaughter."

A nomadic, insect-like race of four armed humanoids, the Fallen were once a noble hierarchical society blessed by the Traveler in a way similar to Golden Age humanity. In the aftermath of the Whirlwind (an event similar to the Collapse) they have become bandits and pirates, raiding settlements on Humanity's many colonies. Before they were called Fallen, they called themselves Eliksni, in their own tongue.

Beware of unmarked spoilers.

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In General

Alas, Poor Villain: Some of the Grimoire cards from Variks's perspective present the Fallen as this. Look at it from their point of view. They used to have a powerful, noble civilization, every need granted by the Traveler, which they worshiped as the "Great Machine". Then the Whirlwind came (we're not sure what it entailed, but we have a good idea on who caused it), the Traveler left them, and their civilization fell, and ever since they've been forced to scavenge for scraps in the wilderness just to survive. The Battle of Twilight Gap happened because they wanted to reclaim the Traveler and avoid extinction, but they were denied by the Guardians, who they believe are hoarding the Traveler for themselves. Every subsequent attempt to claw out a place in the solar system has led to even worse disasters: Kells and Archons killed, Primes destroyed, Ether running out, the remnants of their civilization spiraling further into ruin... and all because they simply cannot bring themselves to cooperate with anyone else.
Anti-Villain:
- Skolas indicates that the entire reason why the Fallen fight humanity and hate them so much is because humans denied them access to the Traveler, which they believed could save them. They scrounge in humanity's ruins, fighting Guardians and other alien life mostly just to stay alive.
- The entire Battle of Twilight Gap was a huge push by the many Fallen Houses to take the City and the Traveller. However, by the time of the games themselves, the animosity between humanity and the Fallen is so intense that the idea of cooperation and peace between the two species is so alien that a human and a Fallen Captain meeting and not fighting is treated as unheard-of.
- After the Red War, however, some Eliksni are shown to be willing to work with humans, and not out of pure desperation. The Spider works with Guardians and the Awoken because it's just better for business, and Mithrax is eventually turned into a full-on ally of the City and founds the "House of Light."
Arch-Enemy: Serve as this for all of humanity. The Hive and the Vex may be the greatest threats and the Cabal may have ultimately taken the city but there's no shortage of bad blood between the Fallen and Post-Collapse Humanity. The war between the two is the longest, most bitter and bloody conflict in the setting.
Aristocrats Are Evil: Right below the Kells and Archons are Barons, Fallen Captains who have risen to command of a ship, whether it be a lowly Skiff to a mighty Ketch.
Attack Drone: The Fallen make use of large numbers of combat drones, including the light and cheap Shanks, the hulking Walker tank, and the enormous Servitors.
Badass Cape: Capes are how the Fallen signify rank, and Fallen society is structured on Asskicking Leads to Leadership, meaning that a bigger, more impressive cape literally means that you're more badass.
Badass Normal: Compared with the other species, and actually lamented on by Skolas and Variks. They don't have the power of the Traveler like humans and their allies. They don't have the dark magics of the Hive, or the massive strength and Imperial military might of the Cabal, or the immense intellect, reality-warping powers, and time travel of the Vex. They just have dreg strength, anger, and desperation... and that's enough to make them one of the most powerful and omnipresent species in the system.
Bad Boss: Fallen leaders are this. The Grimoire cards for Captains say that if another Fallen even hesitates in carrying out their orders, they have every right to kill them on the spot.
Black Speech: The Fallen have a structured language, currently comprised of 87 distinct and recognizable words, mainly derived from Taniks and Skolas yelling at the top of their lungs.
Blue-and-Orange Morality:
- While the Fallen have clear and identifiable goals and hierarchies, their entire outlook in life is focused on looting and pillaging, to the point that their documentation on looting has flowery language and religious overtones. Their measure of a worthy and respectable enemy is whether or not they can be stolen from, and that which is impossible to steal from is apparently worthy of devotion and reverence. It is unclear if this is how they've always viewed the world, or if it came about as a result of their long period of piracy and raiding in order to survive. Even the Spider, with his oddly human-like tendencies, still views the world in a lens of taking things and hoarding riches.
- Their hierarchical society is more deeply ingrained than it would be in humans. Kells, Archons, Servitors, and Captains are obeyed by their lessers without question, while those below them rise up with fanatical aggression to become more powerful and gain a greater ration of Ether. Ambition is not looked down upon, but obedience is expected. Members of particular Houses are not selected due to political affiliations, but because those houses are exemplars of ideas and concepts; Eliksni who are part of the House of Wolves have a natural inclination toward and expectation to hunt and kill, while Eliksni of the House of Kings are expected to and naturally tend to lead other Houses.
Color-Coded Armies: Each color represents a House of the Fallen, and their color depends on what planet you're on. Devils are on Earth (red and bone-white), Exiles are on the Moon (green and black), Winter is on Venus (blue and silver). There's also the mysterious House of Kings (navy blue and gold), who work to coordinate the lesser Houses on behalf of the Fallen's shadowy leadership. The House of Wolves is dark blue and white.
- Averted in Destiny 2. The Guardians' removal of much of the Fallen Houses' leadership led to the Fallen consolidating their forces and resources under the purple and white banner of the new House of Dusk. The newly formed House of Salvation revived the trope, using Indigo and White armor.
Cool Bike: The Fallen Pike is pretty cool in itself; and it's equipped with forward-fixed machine guns. Luckily, you can steal one and turn it against their makers.
- The Heavy Pike introduced in The House of Wolves sacrifices speed in exchange for better armor, gets the ability to fire shots that deal Splash Damage, and can also fire bouncing Shock Grenades. All in all, it's as close as you can get to a Fallen main battle tank.
Cycle of Revenge: An inevitable result due to the centuries-long war between humanity and the Fallen. The Fallen, already hardened by their centuries of flight and desperate survival, were ruthless butchers to humanity when they invaded during the Collapse, and the humans were just as ruthless in turn to stay alive in the face of the Fallen's attacks. The continuous cycle of war and retaliation back and forth over the centuries since the Collapse means that virtually every human or Fallen alive in the modern day has only known war and hatred for one another, and peace is something that neither side contemplates very much.
Dark Action Girl: Given that the Fallen believe in Equal-Opportunity Evil and Asskicking Leads to Leadership, there's good odds on any high-ranking officer you encounter being one of these. The Baron of the House of Exiles that Cayde-6 had an Enemy Mine moment with in 'Ghost Fragment: Fallen' is an excellent example.
- Drevis is one, and you fight her for a bounty in House of Wolves.
- Pirsis is one as well.
Dying Race: If there is one species in Destiny worse off than humanity, it's the Fallen. Their race is dying, ether is running low, their Kells, Archons, and Prime Servitors are being killed, and they're too divided to do anything about it.
- Destiny 2 shows that things have only gotten more dire for the Fallen. The Fallen have united all remaining houses into the House of Dusk in a desperate attempt to reverse their declining fortunes, and are experiencing ether, material, and population shortages as their reserves run out. Their decline is showing in the front lines as well: Fallen forces are now even more hodgepodge and thrown-together than usual, and the less fortunate are even forced to resort to melee weapons due to resource shortfalls. And that was before the Red Legion showed up. it's gotten so bad that many joined up with the Spider purely for survival, before realizing that the Spider is offering a much better plan for long-term survival.
Deus est Machina: They worship the strange, robotic Servitors as gods, with the influential Archon caste serving as their priesthood. The House of Wolves Expansion reveals that they once worshiped the Traveler, which they called the "Great Machine", and still want to reclaim it so that it can restore their society - it's hinted that the Servitors are idols of the Traveler designed to partially relieve their dependency on its Light through the synthetic 'ether' they exude. They seem to be unaware of the Traveler's dormancy.
Dual Wielding: Many of them carry a pair of knives or swords for slicing you up in close combat. Oddly enough for a Multi-Armed and Dangerous alien race, nobody ever tries quad-wielding (possibly to avoid losing them and being demoted back to Dreg status).
Elite Mooks: Captains, who lead other Fallen units.
Equal-Opportunity Evil: Every Fallen has a fair shot at rising the ranks, even the crippled, disgraced Dreg Slave Mooks, and just like with humanity, they don't appear to discriminate by gender - several of their highest-ranking officers are female.
Everyone Has Standards: With as far as the Fallen have, well, fallen, there are standards that even they follow. For example, the Fallen utterly and completely refuse to hurt one another for personal gain. If a Fallen harms another Fallen, it is as punishment for a crime or failure, not for any benefit to themselves. Variks and his act of betrayal of Skolas is viewed with a strong degree of derision among many Fallen as a result. In Destiny 2, in one adventure on Nessus, you free Fallen imprisoned by Vex (and then have to kill them, because they try to kill you). It's revealed that the Vex tried to make the Fallen fight one another, promising freedom to the final sole victor. Not one Fallen attacked any of the others.
Evil Counterpart Race: The Fallen are a reflection of what could have happened to mankind if the Traveler had not stood and fought for them. Much like humans, they had an incredibly advanced civilization thanks to the Traveler's technology, and were even more dependent on Light than humans, but when the Traveler moved on and the Darkness hit them, they were left a broken, shattered race forced to survive on synthetic Ether produced by pale copies of the Traveler. As Variks notes in the Elder Cypher bounty, the majority of Eliksni are stunted due to a lack of Ether, with the gigantic Archons and Kells being their species natural size due to a healthy supply of Ether. This is further reinforced by one of the Vault of Glass Ghost Fragments, which shows a possible future where humanity is overwhelmed by the Darkness, and are forced to flee in ramshackle ships much like the Fallen did from their homeworld.
Evil Sounds Deep: It's pretty hard to find a named Fallen who doesn't have a deep, snarling voice.
Expy: Their height, four arms, aggressiveness, and habitation of the ruined cities of others makes them one for the Green Barsoomians from Edgar Rice Burroughs John Carter of Mars series. This is likely part of Destiny's Genre Throwback to Planetary Romance.
Extra Eyes: They have four apiece.
Fallen Hero: A dramatic and tragic example - they have their name for a reason. They were the Traveler's agents before Humanity, before the Darkness crushed them and left them as the starving, desperate pirates and mercenaries we see today. In a specific example, the House of Dancers went from being kind and charitable to only offering aid to those they couldn't outright destroy, with the heavy implication they eventually became the House of Devils.
Fantastic Slur: Variks points out in Beyond Light that Eliksni take the name "Fallen" as an insult.
- As of Season of the Splicer, members of House Light living in the City are referred to almost exclusively as Eliksni, beyond a few characters like Lakshmi-2.
Gadgeteer Genius: The Fallen pretty much have to be these to keep their equipment running. Not only are they able to maintain huge warships and advanced technologies while scavenging through humanity's ruins, but they're able to build a modified Shank that can take on Rasputin in raw electronic warfare.
Gang of Hats: Each Fallen house exists as an autonomous society, led by a Kell, and each with its own set of traditions and priorities. According to Variks, each House's name reflected a role within their society, and that the name was not just a title, but an indication of what the House's members are. For example, House of Kings are so named because they are kings, with the ambition and power and cunning to rule over other Eliksni without question. The known Houses are:
- The House of Devils is mostly found around the Cosmodrome on Earth. They are one of the most ruthless and desperate houses, focused on looting what salvage they can by force, but are more numerous and dangerous than this description makes them sound - along with Winter and Kings, they almost destroyed the City in the notorious Battle of the Twilight Gap.
- The House of Exile is mostly found on Earth's Moon. They consist of Fallen driven off from other houses who band together to form their own society.
- The House of Winter is mostly found on Venus. They are some of the proudest Fallen, carefully maintaining the strict traditions of their old empire, even though that empire has long since fell to ruin.
- The House of Wolves is mostly found in the Reef. They have become vassals to the Awoken after the Queen killed their Kell and captured or killed his would be successors. They eventually ended up rebelling against the Reef.
- The House of Kings are effectively the "ruling House", sitting at the top of the hierarchy of an already extremely hierarchical society, and do not appear to be bound to any one location. They expect other Fallen to live up to their strict standards and are brutal to those found wanting. The Kell of the House of Kings actually manipulated the House of Devils and the House of Winter into serving on the front lines during the Battle of the Twilight Gap.
- The House of Judgement was a peacekeeping House in Fallen society, with a Scribe attached to each Kell. After the collapse of Fallen civilization, members of the House of Judgement were forced to rely on the other Houses for survival. Variks belongs to this House, and was Skolas' Scribe.
- The House of Rain became extinct during the Whirlwind; the cataclysmic event that brought the Fallen civilization to its end. They made the prophecies of the "Kell of Kells" who will rise and restore the Fallen to their former glory.
- The House of Scar is mentioned in a one-off sentence in Variks' Grimoire card.^note It is unknown what their purpose was in Fallen society.
- The House of Stone is mentioned in the quote for the Doom of Chelchis, where the Kell of Stone, Chelchis, is bewildered at "The Great Machine"'s disappearance. Given the weapons' cryptic quotes revolve around last words uttered during crushing defeats by Oryx, we can assume the House was annihilated during the Whirlwind.
- The House of Dusk is an alliance of the various Houses in Sol to survive after the steady stream of disastrous misfortunes they experiences over the events of the first Destiny game, with their core theme being desperation and determination to stay alive against all odds.
- The House of Salvation is the personal army of Eramis and reside on Europa. Unlike other Houses, they have lost faith in the Traveler and instead follow the Darkness. Their primary color is white, with Indigo highlights.
- The House of Light, led by Mithrax, is composed primarily of refugees who are tired of fighting and want peace. To this end, they have allied with the Vanguard and currently reside in the Last City. Their main color is faded green.
Grenade Spam: Grenades are standard equipment for Dregs. Dregs are the Fallen's most common soldiers. You can see where this is going.
A House Divided: The sheer number of Houses makes coming together for the species extremely difficult. By Destiny 2, however, the Houses have vanished, with the House of Devils outright burning their banners and fleeing. By the time the Red Legion arrive, only a single House remains: the House of Dusk, which uses the sigil of the House of Judgment, purple cloaks and heraldry, and uses technology and weapons from all of the other Houses.
Healing Factor: Given that the Mark of Shame for a Dreg is having your lower arms lopped off, and that it's entirely possible to lose Dreg status by fighting with honour thus given the opportunity to regrow their lower limbs.
Hoist by Their Own Petard: Quite a few examples of weapons that can also be used by Guardians.
- Dreg's Promise is an Exotic Sidearm that has burst-fire capabilities. They're Shock Pistols used by the Dregs.
- Queenbreaker's Bow is an Exotic Fusion Rifle that can also be used as a sniper rifle, as the Vandal Snipers have proven with their own Wire Rifles.
- The Lord of Wolves combines Shotguns Are Just Better with More Dakka, and are based on Shrapnel Launchers usually wielded by Captains, and Kells.
- The Scorch Cannon is a rocket launcher-type weapon wielded by Scorch Captains and certain Kells.
- Pikes are hover-bikes that are equipped with forward-facing machine guns. Now that power is under your command.
- The Heavy Pike would be a Mighty Glacier compared to normal Pikes, but they're still plenty fast, have better armor, and specialize quite a bit in dealing Splash Damage with their own machine guns and their bouncing Shock Grenade Launchers.
I'm a Humanitarian: The Fallen are not above eating humans, either to stay alive or just out of extreme, brutal savagery. Saint-14 personally witnessed Dregs eating human children during the Dark Ages, which is one of the reasons why he hates the Eliksni so much.
Insectoid Aliens: Though downplayed by their humanoid appearance, the Eliksni have insect-like aesthetics, most notably in their armor and the curving shape of their equipment, much like the shells of beetles or wasps. The language, at least when speaking to humans, resembles the rubbing of exoskeletal parts together to produce vibrations in a way understandable to humans (though by contrast, their vocalizations in their languages tend to be sharp rasps and hisses or bestial roars). Their mouth-parts and eyes also resemble those of insects, and even their "hair" more closely resembles the olfactory sensory appendages on ants and other arthropods. The insect-like nature is more pronounced in Destiny 2, where various Fallen move on all six legs like roaches or ants while sprinting, as well as climbing walls with their bare hands. And even though they're no longer considered Fallen anymore, the Scorn give us a pretty good idea on how the Eliksni look under the armor; they're covered in an exoskeleton.
Invisibility Cloak: A technology they're highly adept in - they fit them to everything from individual soldiers to their colossal Ketches.
Killer Robot: They like to use robots to bolster their ranks on the battlefield, from the floating, boxy Shank 'hunting dogs' to the hulking Walker Spider Tanks. The position of Servitors in their society is a little more complex - they're heavily-armed robots that see extensive military use, but they're also objects of religious awe that look nothing like any other piece of Fallen technology.
Large and in Charge: While Dregs and Vandals are roughly human sized, Fallen leaders are much larger than both. Fallen Captains are usually a head taller than Vandals and Dregs. Archons and Kells can be twice the size of Vandals and Dregs. This is justified in-universe as the result of distribution of Ether: Captains and Barons get higher shares of Ether compared to Dregs and Vandals, while Kells and Archons get the biggest shares, allowing them to grow to titanic sizes.
Letter Motif: Many of the named Fallen and Servitors have a name ending in "S," and often with "Is" or "Ks." Riksis, Draksis, Sepkis, Tankis, Variks, Saviks, Kaliks... it's the ones that don't that stand out, such as Paskin, Ixori, and Askor. The species has even been in the Sol system so long that this includes taking human names and adding a suitably Eliksni suffix such as a young Eliksni named Itzelas who's name comes from the Mayan goddess Itzel.
Machine Worship: The Fallen once worshipped the Traveler, referring to it as the "Great Machine." The Servitors, easpecially each House's High Servitor, fill in a similar role, with machines like Sepiks Prime being treated like living gods with Fallen bowing down around it and offering materials in supplication. The Devil Splicers take this even further with their fanatical religious worship of SIVA.
Meaningful Name: At some point before the events of the game, the Fallen were once a race comprised of multiple noble houses before descending into their current state as nomads and pirates. The religious symbolism is significant, too - they're 'fallen angels', former servants of the godlike Traveler exiled from paradise by the Darkness and turned to sin and despair.
Mile-Long Ship: Ketches, the Fallen Houses' mobile homes. They're the biggest spacecraft in the game, at roughly a kilometre long each, with the Wintership Simiks-Fel landed on Venus demonstrating their colossal bulk to particular effect. In theory each House should have one, with the Kell serving as the captain and the Archon serving as chief engineer and navigator, but in practice houses have multiple Ketches run by Barons.
Multi-Armed and Dangerous: Most have an extra pair of arms. The Dregs, the lowest levels of their society, have the lower set of arms cut off until they can prove they're worthy of having them regrown.
"Not So Different" Remark: Discussed in Destiny 2, where various characters, particularly Ghost and Devrim Kay, comment that the Fallen are in many ways the same as humans: driven from their homes and desperately fighting to survive against overwhelming threats. It's even suggested that the humans and Eliksni could be allies... if it weren't for the centuries of endless war and hatred between the two species that makes it nearly impossible to reach any kind of common ground.
O.O.C. Is Serious Business: The Fallen are a tenacious and predictable bunch, for the most part, and when they act in an unexpected manner, it sets off everyone's alarm bells.
- The Fallen generally avoid direct confrontation with superior forces, such as the Cabal. When the Wolves start attacking the Cabal's bases on Mars, Variks becomes extremely interested and worried about what they're up to. It's because the House of Wolves are reforming under a High Servitor which could whip the remnants up into a deadly, fanatical crusade.
- After the events of Rise of Iron, the Vanguard becomes deeply concerned when they make their usual patrols into Fallen territory around the Cosmodrome. While they do encounter the usual Fallen resistance that they've been fighting for decades, it quickly becomes apparent that these are only remnants. The Fallen are abandoning the Cosmodrome. They've broken ranks, given up positions they once held, and even went so far as to burn their own House banners and armor. And this fact has led those scouts to be deeply worried because that's something that the Fallen just don't do.
- In Destiny 2, at the conclusion of the Enemy of My Enemy quest line, Mithrax, the Forsaken, a Fallen captain, will give up the methane reactor you've both been chasing and leave if you help him kill the Hive leader and don't attack him. This is noted as strange by both the Ghost and Zavala.
Our Giants Are Bigger: During the Elder Cypher bounty, Variks reveals that the towering Kells and Archons are actually a normal size for a healthy Eliksni - most of the race are stunted due to Ether shortages.
Pride: Ultimately, their greatest flaw and most of the reason for their present sorry state, if Variks and Skolas' grimoires are anything to go on. The Fallen have no real reason to fight against the City: they don't serve the Darkness like the Hive, or want to empire-build like the Cabal, and don't want to terraform planets like the Vex. The Fallen's first and only priority is survival, and any rational view of their overall situation cries out for peace or at least a ceasefire with the humans. But they go on wasting lives and resources fighting an enemy they cannot defeat, because the Traveler chose humanity instead of them, and they would rather scavenge and die than ask for help. Even the Spider, who is highly progressive among the Fallen and wants peace and friendship with the humans and Awoken, has to present his ideas in terms that his scavenging crews can accept while maintaining their pride.
Psycho Knife Nut: Most Fallen carry electrified knives as melee weapons (unless they're fortunate enough to get big, fancy swords instead), but it's the desperate, fanatical Dregs who provide the 'nut' part. A small horde of Slave Mooks charging towards you trying to redeem their honour by stabbing your eyeballs out is not an uncommon thing to encounter when fighting Fallen.
Rape, Pillage, and Burn: The Fallen's society revolves around stealing from others, and they'll do anything to steal from others. According to Lakshmi-2, they burned down London during the collapse.
Running on All Fours: Or rather, running on all six. In Destiny 2, many Vandals and Captains will occasionally move away from your line of sight by using all of their limbs to quickly crawl around like spiders.
Shadow Archetype: They're effectively one for humanity, and serve as a vision of what humanity might reduced to if the Guardians lose and the City falls. One of the visions from Ghosts trapped in the Vault of Glass shows a potential future where humanity has actually become something akin to the Fallen, reduced to wandering ships traveling the stars searching for scraps to survive off.
Shotguns Are Just Better: They appear to be of this opinion - Shrapnel Launchers, their shotgun-equivalents, are primarily officers' weapons. According to the Grimoire, it's because they're so big and intimidating.
Slave Mooks: Dregs, the disgraced Fallen undercaste, who have a pair of arms removed as a Mark of Shame and are allowed the chance to restore their honour on the battlefield by participating in suicidal human wave attacks.
Sniper Rifle: Wire Rifles, the second-most-popular weapons for Vandals. As the name suggests, they fire electrified wire filaments at incredibly high velocities.
Space Pirates: The general design philosophy of the Fallen is that of a civilization that fell from grace and has been scraping heaps for nearly as long as they remember, with looting other civilizations being a side effect of their vagrant ways. In case the parallels weren't blatant enough, Bungie's 30th anniversary introduced a dungeon that's essentially a treasure cave guarded by swashbuckling Fallen, and Season of the Plunder is all about warring Fallen factions duking it out with Ketches that have been refashioned into pirate ships sporting sails, even though there's no reason to have sails in space.
Spell My Name With An S: Fallen names apparently fall under misspelling from Vanguard, as Misraaks, otherwise known as Mithrax the Forsaken in-game, is bewildered as to why humans keep referring to Eliksni under vastly different spellings.
Spiders Are Scary: Even though they are insect-like in general, they especially give off a spider-like appearance. This is largely thanks to their four eyes and their four limbs, which can be used to either crawl on all fours or to climb up walls. Marauders take it a step forward, with their masks sporting more than four eyes. Captains on the other hand give off a tarantula vibe with their fur capes and larger size. Armor based off the Fallen also tends to have a spider motif.
Spider Tank: The Fallen Walker is an enormous walking tank with a myriad array of weapons, including a massive main gun that can kill a Guardian in a single shot, a rapid-fire minigun, close-range grenade launchers, and a Shank manufacturing bay. It is a purely robotic machine that the Fallen use to defend key points and attack high-value targets, and they were a common sight during the Battle of Twilight Gap. In-game, the Fallen use them as mid-level bosses on a couple of strikes, and they show up in several other missions as well.
The Starscream: If the grimoire card on the Taken Captain is to be believed, then all Fallen Captains are likely surrounded by them.
Third-Person Person: Both Fallen seen so far speaking English have a habit of referring to themselves in third person when being particularly prideful. At this point it may just be a common cultural thing.
The Usual Adversaries: Fallen are encountered on every planet in the solar system, across all the games. They are a persistent and threatening enemy everywhere.
Vestigial Empire: The Fallen went from being a powerful race of nobility to one shrouded in poverty and crime.
Vicious Cycle: The war between humanity and the Fallen is essentially this. Their Blue-and-Orange Morality regarding conflict and stealing to survive led the Fallen to outright attack humanity to try to take their technology and recover the Traveler. The humans retaliated, and the Fallen retaliated in turn. After centuries of this back and forth conflict, there's so much hostile blood between them that even with how weakened and desperate both sides became, neither even remotely considered peace due to their mutual animosity.
Worthy Opponent: Going by the second Ghost Fragment Grimoire card, the Fallen appear to respect opponents who cannot be stolen from, and actually love that which is impossible to steal from... and apparently, that includes the Darkness. Many Fallen also consider humans to be this, but that doesn't reduce their hatred and scorn for their enemies.
Your Head Asplode: Precision kills visibly blow a Fallen's head off. Instead of blood, however, wispy white Ether will burst out of where their heads once were.

Classes

Dregs

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/dreg_grimoire_card1.jpg

"Don't underestimate a cutthroat, or you'll get your throat cut."

Among the most commonly-encountered Fallen, Dregs are the lowest of their society, serving as menial labor, slaves, and cannon fodder, and are often Vandals punished for failure or treachery. Dregs have their lower pair of arms docked as a sign of their servitude, but through service and distinguishing themselves, they can have their arms be restored and be promoted to the Vandals.

Ambition Is Evil: Inverted. Ambition is what drives Dregs to fight with furious desperation, and keeps them hurling themselves at much stronger and tougher foes in the hopes of rising above their lowly station.
Cannon Fodder: Their most common use in Fallen crews is as frontline troops, when they're not being used for menial work. Being lowly soldiers, Dregs typically only carry shock knives, grenades, and pistols, though rare ones may carry shrapnel launchers or shock rifles.
Determinator: "Dreg strength" is a common term among the Fallen for the will to push on despite the entire world being against you, and it defines how the Dregs fight for their place in society.
Throw Down the Bomblet: Dregs are the only ones who use Shock Grenades, since they're dangerous and unstable to use, while Dregs are highly expendable.

Vandals

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/vandal_grimoire_card1.jpg

"You could drown the City in the blood they've spilt."

Soldiers, assassins, and guards, Vandals form the skilled, deadly core of any Fallen crew. They are healthier than Dregs, having access to more Ether, and have both pairs of arms, better weapons, and better armor.

Badass Cape: The mark of a Fallen who has become a Vandal is they have a modest but still distinct cape to signify how more dangerous they are than mere Dregs.
Cold Sniper: Vandals often carry the deadly Wire Rifle, and their calm viciousness and experience in combat makes these Fallen ruthless snipers.
Dual Wielding: Close-combat specialists among the Fallen wield paired shock blades. Combined with their invisibility cloaks, they can be a deadly threat in close quarters in sufficient numbers.
Gas Mask Mooks: While all Fallen wear masks, Vandals wear full face masks that pump their rations of Ether.
Invisibility Cloak: Some of them wear these and use them to good effect in close combat, and particular ones use it in conjunction with a Wire Rifle to be deadly snipers.
Multi-Armed and Dangerous: Having four arms marks them as being skilled and effective warriors, although they often only use the upper pair in combat. They carry much more dangerous weapons that Dregs, including the Line Rifle, the Shrapnel Launcher, the Shock Blade, and the Shock Rifle.

Captains

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/captain_grimoire_card1.jpg

"Waves of them smashed against our walls, hissing and wailing. But it was the one who stood beyond them, silent and scenting the air, that froze the blood in our veins."

The unquestioned leader of any particular Fallen crew, Captains are the brutal commanders of Fallen forces in the battlefield. Their orders are unquestioned, they wear strong armor, wield powerful weapons, and have some downright impressive capes to boot.

Asskicking Leads to Leadership: Captains only get to where they are by defeating rivals and earning their position as part of a crew. They're also the most dangerous part of a normal group of Fallen, typically carrying oversized Shrapnel Launchers or massive paired Shock Blades. Some of them may even carry Scorch Cannons.
Badass Cape: They have huge capes, signifying their rank and how dangerous they are compared to their lesser kin.
Bad Boss: By human standards. A Captain expects absolute obedience from his crew, and anyone who hesitates to obey his orders will, at best, get a swift beating. At worst, they'll lose their arms or be killed outright.
Deflector Shield: as with other higher-end enemies, Captains come with glowing shields that deflect incoming damage. Most Captains have Arc-oriented shields, giving them a blue tinge and leaving them vulnerable to Arc weapons.
Invisibility Cloak: Some Captains wear the same cloaks as their Vandal underlings. Their size makes them a bit easier to spot, though they can still sneak up on a distracted Guardian.
Large and in Charge: A captain is easily recognized by his sheer size, towering over other Fallen and commanding them in battle.

Shanks

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/shank_grimoire_card1.jpg

"Death flies on tarnished wings."

Shanks are the bulldogs of the Fallen. Small and tough enough to go where Dregs won't fit, they scout, keep watch, and patrol. Fallen Walkers deploy Shanks from internal bays for tactical support and field repairs. Most commonly fitted with automatic Arc weapons, the House of Wolves expanded their arsenal with Wire Rifles, machine guns, and explosives. Though individually weaker than even Dregs, their flexibility and ability to deploy in large numbers can still make them a danger.

Action Bomb: Exploder Shanks are fitted with bombs to rush down victims and blow themselves up. Unless vaporized, killing them will also cause them to explode, heavily damaging or even outright killing you.
Cold Sniper: Tracer Shanks come with a Wire Rifle, and can be every bit as deadly as a Vandal wielding them.
Fragile Speedster: Shanks are one of Destiny's weakest enemies, and can be taken out with one or two shot. However, thanks to their tiny size and flight, hitting them in the first place can prove to be a little annoying.
Glass Cannon: Shanks can easily be considered the weakest of the Fallen forces, easily taken out with a couple shots. However, after the Wolves rearmed them for more specialized warfare, they can deal major damage despite their tiny frames and weak endurance.
Mecha-Mooks: Shanks are the mechanical drones of the Fallen, filling in a variety of purposes for the pirates.
More Dakka: Turret Shanks can put out a whole lot of firepower.

Servitors

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/servitor_grimoire_card1.jpg

"A floating light, a sleepless eye. Their hope, their faith, their sustenance."

Servitors are mechanical support machines with highly-sophisticated technology which process matter and energy into the life-giving Ether that sustain the Fallen. In combat they use long-range weapons and defensive systems, while outside of battle they serve as powerful electronic support systems and communications. Most Servitors are connected to a massive Prime Servitor which is part of the leadership of a House, along with their Archons and Kells.

Can't Kill You, Still Need You / The Friend Nobody Likes: The House of Salvation, and Eramis in particular, seem to have this attitude towards their Servitors. Compared to other Houses' Servitors who look unblemished and intact, the ones deployed by Salvation look heavily beat up and damaged even before getting into a fight. Other Servitors are also worshipped and revered, but Salvation Servitors are never seen being given any sort of religious significance and are purely combat units. Given Eramis and her House's attitude towards the Traveler, and Servitors by proxy, this is likely a symbolic thing, since otherwise Salvation Servitors are fully functional.
The Cracker: Servitors can engage in electronic warfare, jamming, and hacking computer systems for the Fallen. Several missions involve killing the Servitors that are disrupting communications and accessing machines preventing you from progressing.
Evil Counterpart: To the Ghosts used by the players, supplying synthetic Ether in place of Light. This is very apparent when comparing sizes - Ghosts are about as big as your head, while Servitors are significantly larger, almost as big as a Captain standing to their full height.
Incredibly Durable Enemies: Compared to other Fallen units that are still Eliksni and not Shanks or Brigs. Servitors can be surprisingly tanky, pretty much forcing you to hit their eyes to make them go down fast.
Keystone Army: The Servitors' importance to the Fallen, both religiously and logistically, make them prime targets for elimination. Destroying a House's Prime servitor can be devastating to both morale and sustainability.
- The House of Salvation defy this due to their hatred of anything Traveler-related. While they still use Servitors, theirs are decidedly battered and weathered compared to their other undamaged units. They don't have any Prime Servitors either, with their key leaders being Eramis' closest seconds instead.
Machine Worship: The Servitors are revered by other Fallen because of their ability to create Ether, although not as greatly as Prime Servitors.
- Averted with the House of Salvation, however. Their hatred of the Light and embracing the Darkness means they only keep Servitors around for combat and nothing else.
The Navigator: Servitors also serve as the pilot systems on various Fallen ships.
Nigh-Invulnerability: In Destiny 2, they have the ability to make nearby Fallen units temporarily invincible, strongly encouraging you to take out Servitors ASAP.
Nonindicative Name: While they do have an important social role, Servitors are served by their disciples rather more than they serve Fallen.
- Inverted with the House of Salvation, for whom Servitors genuinely only serve them for battlefield support, and little else.

Archon Priests

"The Archons are the links between the Fallen and their Servitors. We break those links, we break the Fallen."

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/riksis_archon.jpg

Riksis, Devil Archon

Archon Priests, second only to Kells in the Fallen hierarchy, work as executive agents to exert a Kell's will by operating in tandem with the Prime Servitor and its subordinate machines.

Asskicking Leads to Leadership: Archons are massive and typically extremely dangerous. Your first encounter with one has you running away before he shoot down your jumpship. Another forms the target of an entire Strike, and third serves as a major boss in the Wrath of the Machine raid.
Genius Bruiser: While Archons are deadly opponents, they are also highly skilled engineers and work directly with the Servitors who keep a House alive. It was a team of Devil Archons that built the Fallen S.A.B.R.E. that nearly defeated Rasputin.
Large and in Charge: The Archons have the same ration of Ether as Barons and Kells and are often just as big as them, meaning they tower over the battlefield.
Number Two: The Archons are the seconds in command of any House, directly working with the Prime Servitor and carrying out the Kell's will. Some Houses, such as the Devils, have multiple Archons, while others, such as Winter, don't have any.

Marauders

Marauder

Introduced in Destiny 2. These Fallen Vandals specialize in the use of cloaking tech and close quarters combat, taking advantage of the chaos of combat in order to strike you down.

Artificial Brilliance: Unlike previous Stealth Vandals and Dregs, which often came out in ironically visible packs, Marauders well make use of the chaos of a firefight to gang up on you from your blind spots.
Blade Below the Shoulder: Marauders wear long elongated talons on their secondary arms, which they'll use to make pouncing attack on you along with the usual Fallen blades.
Close-Range Combatant: Marauders most commonly wield Fallen Shock Blades or the shotgun-like Shrapnel Launchers to complement their stealth and talons.
Fragile Speedster: Their preference for close-range makes them quick to drop... or "would". However, they have speed on their side, capable of dropping on all fours (er, sixes?), to rapidly skitter around on the battlefield.
Invisibility Cloak: Marauders love to make use of the Fallen's cloaking tech.
In the Hood: They seem to like stealing from the Hunters' wardrobe.

Wretches

Introduced in Destiny 2. Wretches appear to be another type of Dreg that are relegated to melee combat, wielding spears instead of firearms.

The Berserker: Wretches are extremely aggressive and will charge into close, brutal combat even against enemies like Guardians.
The Goomba: Shape up to be even more so than Dregs and Shanks, the original kings of this in Destiny 1. Unlike either, all they have are spears, with no extra or alternative weapons.
Meaningful Name: To be a Dreg in Fallen society is bad enough. Wretches are Dregs that weren't lucky enough to be issued a projectile weapon before being shoved into combat.
Zerg Rush: Wretches can only rely on their numbers to be much of a threat. Unfortunately, they're smart enough to know that, and never work alone.

Fallen Walkers

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/fallen_walker.jpg

A six legged tank, with three cannons of varying degrees of death. It's the Fallen's heaviest combat vehicle, and shows up as a miniboss in the Sepiks Prime Strike and as a target in Public Events in Fallen territory.

Degraded Boss: Compared to its regular encounter, the Public Event is weaker than the boss itself. Justified, both due to the timer it has and to be on a regulated level so even low-level players won't be killed.
Early-Bird Cameo: A destroyed Devil Walker can be seen during the Tutorial Mission, on your way to your first jumpship. It's likely a reference to the Fallen Devil Walker that was defeated in the same location in the earliest gameplay footage we saw.
Flunky Boss: As with any enemy that powerful. The Devil Walker fought during the Cosmodrome Strike is particularly nasty since its flunkies like to spawn on what would otherwise be the best sniping positions in the boss arena.
Giant Space Flea from Nowhere: If you encounter it in the Cosmodrome, as a Superboss, which is probably where you'd least expect it. Or encounter it for the first time.
Killer Robot: They're unmanned, with an AI similar to (but more sophisticated than) that of a Shank.
One-Hit Kill: A direct hit from its main gun is a guarantee that you will not be going home in one piece. Fortunately, it telegraphs the attack heavily, complete with a laser sight showing the impact point, and it has pretty much zero tracking. Unfortunately, the blast radius is very large indeed.
Spider Tank: Well, Insect Tank if you want to get technical, but regardless is a heavily armoured UGV that possesses a heavy cannon, an energy Gatling Gun on it’s underside and what appears to be an energy-fuelled missile pod that crawls around the terrain like a spider instead of on tank treads.
Superboss: Elder Walkers are amongst the toughest enemies you can face in Public Events on Earth, Venus, and the Moon.

Heavy Shanks

First encountered as a strike boss in The Taken King, Heavy Shanks weren't properly introduced as a standard enemy until Destiny 2. Heavy Shanks are mechanical units used by Fallen houses, though didn't see widespread use until the House of Dusk started mass producing them during the Red War.

Attack Its Weak Point: Heavy Shanks have an open vent that glows a bright purple.
Degraded Boss: Of S.A.B.E.R.-2, lacking the modifications and weaponry that made it such a threat.
Exactly What It Says on the Tin: Heavy Shanks are larger, more heavily armed Shanks.
Mecha-Mooks: They serve as fire support units for the Fallen.
Mighty Glacier: Much larger and slower than standard Shanks, but they have heavier armor and are capable of quickly cutting down careless Guardians.
More Dakka: They're armed with a pair of Void chainguns.

Brigs

Introduced in the Beyond Light expansion, Brigs are mass produced versions of Insurrection Prime, used by the House of Salvation after survivors from Kell's Scourge have been inducted into their ranks.

Armless Biped: Like Insurrection Prime, they only have one arm to use. Though, sometimes they'll fold that arm up to make them look like they don't have any.
Attack Its Weak Point: While you can still destroy a Brig without exposing its insides, doing so will make it much easier to take down, since you can get Precision damage that way.
Degraded Boss: Although still quite powerful, they're lacking the Black Armory technology that made Insurrection Prime so formidable.
Elite Mook / Metal Slime: Occasionally, a High Value Target in the form of an Enforcer Brig will appear. It's very strong, rocking 1250 Power, and is likely to vaporize lower power Guardians while they struggle to make a dent.
Macross Missile Massacre: One of its attacks involves firing a bunch of missiles into the air, then having them hit marked areas on the ground. Usually where you're standing.
Mighty Glacier: Plenty of firepower, but their movement speed is nonexistent.
Mini-Mecha: Compared to Insurrection Prime, they're significantly smaller, though still big compared to a Guardian. Averted with the Fallen Commodore that spawns during a specific Heroic Public Event on Europa, which is instead a Humongous Mecha on the level of the robot it's based on.
Nuke 'em: Averted, Brigs don't appear to have any weaponry that is nuclear. They still got plenty of hard-hitting artillery, though.
Shielded Core Boss: In a fashion that's different than Insurrection Prime. Their fronts/faceplates can be blown off with enough damage, revealing their vulnerable internal machinery. This makes it much easier to destroy them since attacking this point counts for Precision damage. Otherwise, they're decidedly tanky.

House of Devils

See the House of Devils page.

House of Winter

Draksis

Draksis, Winter Kell

The Kell of the House of Winter on Venus. He has overseen numerous pirate raids against jumpship reclamation convoys, causing the Vanguard to raise the bounty on him.

Big Bad Wannabe: Ultimately Draksis' threat to the Last City is minimal. He clings too close to tradition to build up his power more, and never rises to the same level of threat as other major Fallen leaders.
Even Evil Has Standards: He despised Taniks and cursed him as honor-and-bannerless scum who was Only in It for the Money. Eventually however he had to turn to Taniks in hopes of breaking Aksor out of the Prison of Elders.
Evil Overlord: As Kell of the House of Winter, he qualifies.
Evil Power Vacuum: The result of killing him in the Day 1 release. Sure, it sends the House of Winter into a Succession Crisis and turn against each other... but eventually leaves them easy pickings for Skolas to come and convince a lot of rank-and-file mooks to pledge themselves to the House of Wolves.
Hit-and-Run Tactics: Uses these against the Vanguard, hitting convoys before going back into hiding. When they finally track down his location on Venus, they send Guardians to kill Draksis before he can escape again.
King Mook: He's an extra-large Captain.
Minor Major Character: Being the Kell of the House of Winter and one of the few remaining Kells makes him a pretty important character. He is introduced and killed in the same mission with nary a mention of him before or after aside from a Grimoire card.
Space Pirates: Spends his time raiding the Tower's convoys in space.

House of Kings

Craask

Craask, Kell of Kings

The mysterious Kell of the House of Kings on Earth. Craask was actually responsible for the Battle of the Twilight Gap, and all but rules the Fallen on Earth unopposed. In Destiny 2, a lore object found reveals that old Fallen communication packets used to have headers unique to their Houses, but since the Red Legion invaded, all headers point to the House of Kings.

Aborted Arc: During Destiny 1, Craask was built up as the most powerful of the Kells and seemed like he was going to become a major antagonist. Then it's revealed in the Forsaken DLC that he gave all of his power to Uldren, only to be unceremoniously murdered.
The Dreaded: Among the Fallen, to the point that Skolas decided that it would be better to negotiate with Craask rather than try and assassinate him like he did with the House of Devils.
Evil Overlord: As Kell of the House of Kings. The House of Wolves expansion has the Queen's Brother confirm that the Kings all but rule the House of Devils already, and that he's planning to do the same to the other Houses. In the end, he eventually abdicates his throne to Prince Uldren without a fight. However, Uldren instead killed Craask after having Fikrul dock him of all his arms.
Killed Offscreen: Lore tabs for Forsaken reveal that Uldren and Fikrul murdered him, with the latter brutally docking Craask beforehand.
The Man Behind the Man: While the House of Devils lead the charge in the Battle of the Twilight Gap, Craask was responsible for organizing the alliance with the Houses of Devils, Wolves, and Winter, effectively having them serve as Eliksni Shields for its own forces.

House of Exiles

Skoriks

Skoriks, Archon-Slayer

"This rabid wolf seems to be trying to join the House of Exile. The Queen doesn't like loose ends."

—Petra Venj

Formerly a captain in the House of Wolves, Skoriks refused to follow Skolas after his escape from the Prison of Elders and joined the House of Exiles on the Moon. He is targeted for elimination by the Reef during their campaign against Skolas.

Evil Versus Evil: Killed one of Skolas' loyal Archons and fled to the Moon to escape the Kell's wrath. Why he did this is unknown, but he was still hostile to the Awoken and the Guardians so he was targeted for elimination by Petra despite his split from the Wolves.
King Mook: He is a larger and taller version of a Fallen captain.
Screw This, I'm Outta Here: Flees with his followers to the Moon after Skolas escapes.

House of Wolves

Skolas

Skolas, Kell of Kells

"I am Kell of Kells! All Houses shall burn! All shall bow before Wolf banner!"

"Always remember that we came to this star in hope. And remember that we were denied! Remember the City of the Death of Children, the City That Docks, which claimed for itself the Great Machine that might have saved us. Remember the City that even now sends its ghouls to murder our Primes, starve our ether, and leave our young to die gasping. Curse that City and its name. The curse is just."

Originally a Captain within the House of Wolves, Skolas emerged as the new Kell of the House of Wolves after the Queen of the Reef killed Virixias, the former Kell. He led the House of Wolves for most of the war against the Awoken, but was captured and incarcerated in the Prison of Elders after the defection of Variks. Skolas was originally to be sent as a gift to the Nine, but the Nine apparently allowed him to escape, allowing him to organize the rebellion against the Queen, with the goal of taking over the rest of the Fallen Houses and reclaiming the Traveler from the City.

Ambition Is Evil: Believing he is the prophetic Kell of Kells that would unite all Fallen Houses, Skolas holds ambitions way beyond his scope. By uniting the Houses, he meant to burn down all dissidents, and when comes the time to acquire greater power, he issues a massive gambit against the Vex on Venus to steal the twisted knowledge found in the Vault of Glass.
Arc Villain: Instigates the House of Wolves expansion's conflict by killing the Reef Queen's Guard and planning a takeover of all Fallen Houses. Mara Sov calls upon you to stop him, and then execute him in the Prison of Elders during the same story arc.
Attack! Attack! Attack!: Skolas' life philosophy is that the alternative to attacking an unknown is waiting for it to attack you. Variks even lampshades this when describing him in his own Grimoire card.
Ax-Crazy: According to Variks, Skolas is pretty vicious, even for a Kell. It's partly why Variks defected from the House of Wolves over to the Reef.
Boss Banter: He's actually quite talkative in his boss fights, even throwing out insults at the Guardians, comparing them to Dregs or telling them that if they're out of ammo, he'll gift them with some bullets himself.
The Chosen One: The ancient House of Rain had a prophecy that said that a Fallen would reunite the Houses under a single Kell. Skolas believes that he is that Kell.
Deal with the Devil: Appears to have sought power from humanity and the Fallen's ancient enemy, the Darkness, to destroy the ones who captured him after he's imprisoned again and crosses the Despair Event Horizon. He's far more powerful when faced in the Prison of Elders, is surrounded in a dark aura, and can drink your Light like a Hive Prince.
Despair Event Horizon: Failing in his last, desperate attempt to reclaim the Traveler for the Fallen snapped his mind like a twig. It's implied to have resulted in the Deal with the Devil mentioned above. The lore book "Dust" in Destiny 2 reveals that his despair actually comes from his encounter with the Nine; after seeing the abominable true shape of the Nine, Skolas came to understand why Mara Sov gifted him to them and exactly how puny he is compared to larger scope players like the Queen and the Nine. He then exclaims that he'd be glad to die in the Prison of Elders, if it meant being free from forever being a pawn.
Everything Trying to Kill You: He genuinely believes that everything in the universe wants to kill the Fallen. Given that they share just a single solar system with the Guardians, the Awoken, the Vex, the Hive, and the Cabal, this viewpoint is actually rather well founded.
From Nobody to Nightmare: Originally a low level Captain in the House of Wolves, the Queen's killing of the Kell and the subsequent Succession Crisis/Enemy Civil War between the Wolves nobles opened up a lot of advancement opportunities for Skolas, allowing him to emerge as the new Kell.
He Knows Too Much: Implied - he makes a string of cryptic comments after his capture that lead the Queen to send him to the Prison of Elders as Guardian target practice despite previously going out of her way to capture him alive to interrogate him about what he learned about the Vault of Glass.
King Mook: Much like Riksis, Draksis, and Aksor, Skolas is an oversized Fallen Captain with a few extra aesthetics. His Prison of Elders appearance replaces the oversized Shrapnel Launcher with a Scorch Cannon, essentially making him a tougher, deadlier Taniks.
Last Villain Stand: After being captured rather than being executed in chains the Queen sentences him to the Prison of Elders to die fighting. Skolas is not only given back his weapon but he also has the support of the prison's systems like the mines. A team of Guardians canonically kill him there.
The Magnificent: He used to be known as "Skolas, the Rabid" before he became Kell, after which he became "Skolas, Wolf Kell".
Pragmatic Villainy: Ax-Crazy as he is, even Skolas is not dumb enough to attempt an assassination on the unseen Kell of Kings.
Puzzle Boss: Fighting him in the Prison of Elders is a bit of a doozy, because he takes greatly reduced damage until you destroy a near-invisible Servitor hidden around the arena (and it's a big arena). When he takes enough punishment and he can no longer call on those Servitors to cover him, he'll instead induce a venom on one member of your fireteam that also spells doom for them unless you pass the status effect on to another member, ensuring that you'll hardly have time to damage Skolas. If that wasn't enough, near the end of the fight, Variks will also task the Guardians with intercepting a highly-shielded Captain, or else the entire fight will reset.
Rebel Leader: Before the conflict of the House of Wolves, he was locked up as one of the Reef Queen's "prizes", and got sold to the Nine in order to make up for intruding on their territory. Rather than keep him, though, the Nine set him free, and now he's leading the Fallen rebellion against the Reef.
Superboss: His final fight in Prison of Elders Level 35 makes him the highest level boss found in Destiny's Year One ^noteYear Two starts with "The Taken King", and given that Prison of Elders challenges count as a raid, is in the same category as Atheon and Crota.
Unwitting Pawn: Skolas' escape was arranged by the Nine after he was sold to them by the Queen. Precisely why they wanted him to go free is unclear, and he didn't exactly care why they let him loose either.
Well-Intentioned Extremist: Ultimately, Skolas' motives are sympathetic: he simply wants to reunite the Fallen Houses and reclaim the Traveler from the City, with the hopes that it will be able to share its power with the Fallen again and prevent their extinction. Just one problem: he seems unaware of the Traveler's dormancy.
Wham Line: What he calls the Queen after being captured: "Light snuffer. Dark binder." See He Knows Too Much above.

Drevis

Drevis, Wolf Baroness

A Baroness and leader of the Silent Fang, an elite infiltration team that more or less ensured Skolas became the new Kell of the House of Wolves. She is one of the random bounties available in the second Queen's Wrath introduced during the House of Wolves expansion, and could be found at the Forgotten Shore in the Cosmodrone.

Back from the Dead: In the 1.2.3 update to Destiny 2, Xol resurrected her as Drevis, Aspect of Darkness. She is one of the three resurrected Destiny 1 bosses (the others being Urzok and Valus Ta'aurc) that the player may have to kill to open up the path to the Whisper of the Worm, and then at the end kill again with the the two to complete the mission.
Boss in Mook Clothing: A regular Captain just by looking at her.
Dark Action Girl: One of two female Fallen, along with Pirsis (see below) that appears in the game. Not that you could tell by looking at her, though.
The Dragon: She served as this to Skolas during the struggle for the Kellship. Following the mass escape from the Prison of Elders, Drevis is Co-Dragons to Skolas with fellow Baron Yavek.
Stealth Expert: The Silent Fang are a group of Fallen that specialize in special operations such as assassination. Drevis herself utilizes a cloaking field during her public event appearances.

Pirsis

Pirsis, Pallas-Bane

A Baroness and one of Skolas's most ruthless lieutenants, she was responsible for the destruction of the Awoken settlement of Pallas. She is one of the random bounties available during the second Queen's Wrath during the House of Wolves expansion, and could be found at the Divide in the Cosmodrone.

Boss in Mook Clothing: A regular Captain just by looking at her.
The Brute: Blunt force is pretty much her approach. Appropriately, she's one of the strongest in a one-on-one fight.
The Butcher: It may not be her exact title, but "Pallas Bane" is invoking the trope in spirit.
Dark Action Girl: One of two female Fallen, along with Dreviss (see above) that appears in the game. Skolas has a thing for this, doesn't he?
The Dreaded: In the bounty issued on Pirsis, Petra calls her Skolas' most dreaded commander among the Reef after her killing of Paladin Imogen Rife.
Shotguns Are Just Better: Uses a Shrapnel Launcher in combat.

Yavek

Yavek, Wolf Baron

"Serve him; he is Kell of Kells."

A minor lieutenant of Skolas during the Reef Wars, Yavek was one of the few members of the House of Wolves who remained free of the Prison of Elders and avoided swearing loyalty to the Reef. His faith was well-rewarded after Skolas and many of his lieutenants escaped from the prison, with Yavek being elevated to Baron and sent to bring the House of Kings under Skolas' banner.

Co-Dragons: To Skolas, alongside Drevis, after the mass escape from the Prison of Elders.
Rank Up: In thanks for his loyalty, Skolas promoted Yavek to Baron and made him one of his top lieutenants and diplomats.
Undying Loyalty: Remained loyal to Skolas after the Reef Wars ended and the Kell was imprisoned, refusing to join many other members of the House of Wolves in swearing loyalty to Queen Mara Sov.

Aksor

Aksor, Archon Priest

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/0bff042fccf1021af21b40bc3d85aff6.jpg

The boss of the Winter's Run Strike, an Archon Priest of the House of Wolves who served Kaliks Prime before being captured and imprisoned by the Awoken. The Fallen on Venus helped him escape from the Prison Of Elders, which resulted in the Queen placing a bounty on his head that the Guardians decide to collect. He's bigger and badder than the Archon Priest on Earth, and has a fan following. A large fan following.

Badass Preacher: He is one of the highest religious authorities of the Fallen, and also one of their toughest warriors.
Evil Laugh: From the moment he climbs out of his chamber, he spends the entire fight alternating between Fallen Black Speech and bellowing laughter. Often right after smashing your face in.
Flunky Boss: Oh boy... The one major thing that most Guardians can agree on, is that this guy summons way too many minions. The boss himself won't kill you, unless you're caught off guard, but the amount of enemies summoned is so great, that you'll either die due them attacking you at once or the Priest himself attacking you while you take out his minions.
King Mook: A supersized Captain, complete with teleport and Shrapnel Launcher, though thankfully without the regenerating shield.
Shockwave Stomp: Getting to close or letting him teleport to you, will have him do this and most likely killing you.
Sinister Minister: Before being imprisoned, Aksor was responsible for leading crusades in the name of Kaliks Prime that resulted in the massacre of human settlements outside of the Last City and several Awoken settlements in the Reef.
Teleport Spam: If you aren't careful, this guy will happily teleport as close to you as possible. And then proceed to show you why it's a Priest.

Beltrik

Beltrik, the Veiled

A skilled commander under Skolas during the Reef Wars, Beltrik won several victories against the Reef before being captured by Paladin Abra Zire. After the escape from the Prison of Elders, Beltrik was sent by Skolas to the Ember Caves on Venus.

In Forsaken, while Beltrik never makes an appearance (due to being, you know, dead), the list of runaway prisoners reveals that he left behind a student.

Arch-Enemy: To Paladin Zire.
The Dreaded: The Awoaken of the Reef are afraid of Beltrik, since he inflicted quite a few casualties upon them during the Reef Wars and was only stopped through extreme tactics.
Mentor Occupational Hazard: Forsaken reveals that his death qualifies for this trope, as what happens to be his pupil can be found running around in the wild.
Noodle Incident: For some reason, the Spider seems to have beef with either him or his student, as the former stresses the It's Personal nature of the bounty against the student.
The Strategist: He is the House of Wolves best strategist, and his capture was a turning point in the Reef Wars.

Kaliks Reborn

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/kalikis_reborn.jpg

"This machine is no God... But given fervent worship even a shell can transcend."

A prime servitor built out of scraps and the parts of lesser servitors by the Fallen in the Prison of Elders, Kaliks is seen as the reincarnation of the long missing Kaliks Prime. It is the final boss of the Machine Wrath event in the Prison of Elders.

Bad Boss: When his health starts to get low, Kaliks Reborn will suck the life out of its Archon Servants, killing them to restore itself to full health. Of course, the Archons do not mind, since they worship it as a god.
Cult: The Fallen who worship Kaliks Reborn view it as a god and would do anything for it.
King Mook: He is a prime servitor.
Undying Loyalty: The Fallen who serve Kaliks Reborn are fanatics who are willing to give up their lives to protect it. Some even willingly give up their lives and let Kaliks Reborn drain ether from them so that it may heal any damage that it suffers.

Kaliks Prime

The actual prime Servitor of the House of Wolves. It disappeared before the events of both games, and was last seen drifting around the Anankes, a group of Jovian moons under control of the Nine.

And I Must Scream: Subverted. Though Variks assumes that Fikrul intentionally allowed Kaliks to become a Chimera, the latter denies it, saying that Kaliks left the Fallen by choice.
The Ghost: Missing in action during both games. Destiny 2 reveals that it may have actually did this by choice.
Screw This, I'm Outta Here: Fikrul states that it simply got up one day and left the Fallen, likely because Fikrul rebelled against the Traveler. The Wolves joining the Reef only complicated things.

Orbiks Prime

The long-missing progenitor of the Orbiks servitor line, Orbiks Prime revealed itself to the remaining members of the House of Wolves following Skolas' final defeat. It began to gather the Wolves on Mars, but was stopped by the Reef and their allied Guardians.

Arc Villain: Of the Wolves of Mars questline in The Taken King.
Back from the Dead: Upon seeing Orbiks Prime, Variks comments that the Wolves must have rebuilt him, indicating that at some point Orbiks was damaged enough to be deactivated.
General Failure: Decides to set up the House of Wolves on Mars, which was at that point a four-way battleground between the Guardians, the Cabal, the Vex, and the Taken. This poor tactical choice for a homebase is how Varkis figures out that a High Servitor is leading the remnants of the House of Wolves, since a Fallen Kell would have never gotten involved in such a unwinnable mess and only a High Servitor could have commanded the faith necessary to commit to such a reckless action. When Variks tells the Guardian about the remaining House of Wolves fighting the Cabal, he uncharacteristically lets out mocking laughter at the sheer stupidity of trying to fight the militant Cabal on their home turf while outnumbered and outgunned.
King Mook: It is a massive Prime Servitor.
Teleport Spam: Can teleport short distances like most servitors, but it also likes to teleport the player around into terrible positions.

Mecher Orbiks- 11

Mecher Orbiks-11

Initially serving Irxis during the Reef Wars, Mecher Orbiks-11 was recovered by Skolas' forces after Irxis defeat. Following the breakout from the Prison of Elders, Mecher Orbiks-11 was sent to the Ishtar Cliffs on Venus.

Boss in Mook Clothing: Appears as a regular high servitor.
Last of Its Kind: At the time of the House of Wolves rebellion, Mecher Orbiks-11 was believed to be the last of servitor of the Orbiks line. The revelation of Orbiks Prime's survival reveals this belief was false.
Turn Coat: Initially fought for Irxis but switched allegiance to Skolas.

Saviks

Saviks, Queenbreaker

A captain who was among the first of the House of Wolves to declare loyalty to Queen Mara Sov after the defeat of Skolas. Saviks served as one of her Fallen bodyguards for decades before betraying her after Skolas' escape. He is sent to the Anchor of Light on the Moon.

Bodyguard Betrayal: He was one of the Wolves who guarded the Queen, holding a place of honor on her right. Saviks and his fellow guards immediately attempted to assassinate her after learning of Skolas and the House of Wolves escape from the Prison of Elders.
Boss in Mook Clothing: Appears as a regular captain.
Heel–Face Revolving Door: Went from serving Skolas to the Queen and then back to Skolas.

Weksis

Weksis, the Meek

"Yeah, the 'Meek' bit? That's a joke. This Dreg led a brutal charge during the Siege of Pallas."

—Petra Venj

A Dreg who led an attack on Pallas without orders during the Reef Wars, which was defeated and helped break the stalemate over the base there. Following the House of Wolves escape from the Prison of Elders, Weksis was sent to Archer's Line on the Moon.

Boss in Mook Clothing: He is just a slightly tougher Dreg.
Ironic Nickname: He is anything but meek, with Petra noting his brutal actions at the Siege of Pallas as proof enough of that.
Leeroy Jenkins: His unapproved assault on Pallas, although initially taking the Awoken by surprise, failed and led to Weksis and his soldiers being captured and imprisoned with the other House of Winter captives there.

House of Dusk

In General

Following the events of Rise of Iron, all the Fallen Houses present in the Sol System began to burn their banners and banded together under a new House: the House of Dusk. Driven by desperation and determination, they have abandoned many of their old rivalries and are now willing to do anything and fight anyone to survive.

Bandit Clan: While the previous Fallen Houses evoked the image of noble yet ruthless Space Pirates who occupied land, maneuvered armies, and raided cities, the House of Dusk evoke the imagery of a bandit clan. They are savage and ruthless, clad in furs, desperate to survive, and hiding in caves and ruins while stealing anything they can get their hands on via underhanded and stealthy means. Even their naming systems and titles reflect a descent into more brutal and barbaric ways.
Darkest Hour: That this House exists at all is a sure sign that the Fallen race has reached this point: nothing but the most desperate of circumstances would force the entirety of the Fallen race to work together.
Determinator: Even moreso than their predecessors, the House of Dusk are pushing on against impossible odds through sheer force of will to stay alive in a system where everything wants to kill them.
Enemy Mine: The Houses are normally hostile or suspicious of one another after the disaster of the Battle of Twilight Gap, but after the series of defeats and disasters suffered during the events of the first Destiny game, sheer desperation and lack of leadership have pushed the Houses to join forces to survive against enemies like the City and the Red Legion.
Ermine Cape Effect: Unlike Captains in Destiny, Dusk Captains seem to have adopted the fur cloaks of the House of Wolves.
"Not So Different" Remark: The Dusk Fallen's current state is compared by multiple characters to the humans', with both having been driven out of their homes and being forced to survive in the wilds on the hope that they will retake their former glory.
O.O.C. Is Serious Business: The first thing that tipped the City off that something was happening with the Fallen was when they noticed fewer and fewer raiding parties present in the Cosmodrome, as well as sightings of House of Devils Fallen burning their banners and fleeing. Whatever drove the Sol Fallen away has them abandoning rivalries spanning centuries, which has the City and Vanguard on high alert (or at least, it did before the Red Legion invasion).
- Close observation of the Dusk's Dregs shows that the docking caps that were used to keep their arms from regrowing have been removed, allowing short, incomplete arms to regrow, indicating that the House of Dusk has abandoned centuries-old practices regarding their lower castes.
Purple Is Powerful: They've adopted purple heraldry and clothing, a colour previously unseen in any Fallen House. Season of Dawning reveals that purple used to be the colours of the House of Rain; rather fitting, considering it was once the lowest house just above the House of Exile.
Red Baron: Many Fallen leaders of the House of Dusk bear titles like "The Depraved" or "the Enduring."
Sigil Spam: They feature two prominent symbols; one is a circle with three small lines above and below it, while the other is the adopted symbol of the House of Judgement.
The Usual Adversaries: The House of Dusk has become the single dominant Fallen faction and is active on almost every planet encountered in Destiny 2.

Skriviks

Skriviks, the Sharp-Eyed

A captain leading a band of scavengers in the European Dead Zone, near the corrupted Shard of the Traveler.

Ascended Extra: She was briefly mentioned in the Maraid (the book detailing the history of the Reef Awoken under Mara Sov) as one of the Wolves who were imprisoned following Skolas's failed uprising. She was never fought in the first game, though the Servitor piloting her Ketch was available as a bounty during the House of Wolves expansion.
The Baroness: She's a former noble of the House of Wolves, and given she commanded a Ketch piloted by the Servitor Kaliks-12, it's likely that she held the rank of Baron.
Starter Villain: The first proper boss you encounter in Destiny 2 after gaining back your Light.

Thaviks

Thaviks, the Depraved

A captain leading the assault on the Exodus Black in order to plunder its Golden Age technology. He is the boss of the "Exodus Crash" strike.

Artificial Limbs: Both of his legs have been replaced with cybernetic prosthetics.
Blade Below the Shoulder: Like Marauders, Thaviks wears a pair of long bladed talons on his lower arms, which he'll happily use to try and tear players apart with heavy hitting melee attacks.
Easy Level Trick: His boss fight immediately ends if he's shot while crawling over the wall, making him fall into the Bottomless Pit.
Flunky Boss: His boss battle makes heavy use of Shanks modified using Failsafe's own technology to cover the platforms of the arena with electrical fields to control the battlefield.
Invisibility Cloak: He makes liberal use of it, briefly appearing to fight in close quarters before retreating and let his lesser Fallen and Shanks attack.
Large and in Charge: He's one of the biggest and meanest of the Fallen left in the system after the deaths of numerous Kells, Barons, and Archons.
Lightning Bruiser: Unlike the massive, slow-moving Kells and Barons of other, previous Houses, Thaviks is terrifyingly fast and agile, eschewing the heavy armor that other high-ranking Fallen favored for mobility.
Names to Run Away from Really Fast: Someone who is called, "The Depraved," isn't exactly the kind of guy you'd invite for tea.
Shock and Awe: makes heavy use of Arc-based weapons and technology, both of Fallen design and built from pieces of tech looted off Exodus Black.
Stealth Expert: Even finding him proves a challenge despite the fact that the Fallen are tearing apart Exodus Black's interior, as he uses comms scrambling to hide his exact presence, forcing the Guardians to track his signals around the crash site to finally find where he's hiding.
Walking Armory: During the fight Thaviks makes liberal use of a Scorch Cannon, a Shrapnel Launcher and a pair of sword-like talons mounted onto his lower arms.

House of Light

Mithrax

Mithrax/Misraaks, Kell of Light (formerly the Forsaken)

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/960x0_51.jpg

"Let them have the Great Machine. They deserve it."

^{Season of the Drifter appearance}

^{Red War appearance}

Voiced by: Andrew Morgado

A former Dusk captain encountered on Titan searching for a methane reactor that the Vanguard wants to claim for its own. Eventually, he would come to argue that humanity is worthy of the Traveller, and joins the Guardians on their adventures. The Praxic Order takes notice of his deeds and marks him as an outlier with the designation of VIP #3987. When the resurgent House of Devils surfaces to plunder the secrets of the Old Tower in the hopes of stealing Outbreak Prime for its SIVA, Mithrax signals for the Guardian's aid, ultimately helping them take the rifle they had created two years ago back from the City vaults before Eramis and her underlings could take it first.

He is the focus character of Season of the Splicer and later Season of Plunder.

Abusive Parents: While he notes that his mother raised him as lovingly as he felt she could given their circumstances that didn't stop her from driving a knife into his side to prove a point once he'd come of age to join their raiding crew. Her own narration has her state a life-long regret for never having crushed his egg for the supplies she could weave from it.
Anti-Villain: He is looking for the methane reactor to make ether production easier, which will feed his people and help them survive. Later, he comes to subvert all of this as he decides to fight for the Last City and the Traveller.
Arc Villain: Of Titan's post-game world quest, "Enemy of my Enemy". His efforts to locate the methane reactor accidently destabilized the Rig, which alerted the Vanguard to his efforts and the existence of the reactor. It then becomes a race between Mithrax's crew and the Guardians to claim the reactor from within Hive territory.
Ascended Extra: He generally stays in the background throughout the game and is only mentioned in lore tabs and other characters such as Variks, but he takes on a more prominent role in Season of the Splicer.
The Atoner: Season of Plunder reveals he became quite the brutal pirate under the effects of Nezarec's mummified body, and after he regained his senses he was absolutely horrified and ashamed by it.
Badass Normal: He’s good enough as a fighter and tactician to give the Hive a tough fight, as well as be an honorary member of his own Guardian Fireteam post Heel–Face Turn, and as far as we know, the only weapons he has on hand are his two Arc Blades, with none of the supernatural powers his Guardian teammates naturally possess.
- Upgrades to Empowered Badass Normal in Season of the Splicer, after augmenting himself with Sacred Splicer abilities. He also complements it with a classic Fallen Wire Rifle for long-range combat though.
"Blind Idiot" Translation: His name is more properly Misraaks, not Mithrax. The name comes from when Sjur Eido called him the latter, not quite able to properly pronounce his name, and he seems to have rolled with it; Ghost, the Spider, and Ikora each officially call him Mithrax. Variks and Eramis are among the few to still refer to him as Misraaks.
- In Season of the Splicer, he doesn't seem offended when addressed as Mithrax, but he does note that his real name is Misraaks occasionally.
Both Sides Have a Point: Mithrax and the Last City both have grudges against one another, and while he has been nothing but helpful to the Lone Wolf there is still alot of doubt about having Eliksni within the Last City's walls. Saint-14 is correct that there is ALOT of bad blood between the refugees of the Last City and how the Eliksni has been nothing but hostile for the better part of their shared history. Mithrax has also heard stories about the worst of what Eliksni have done, up to and including eating humans. One thing that Mithrax does point out is that while he can't really make up for what had happened in the past, he can try and forge a better future by trying to be better than what the past Eliksni have done, and his actions so far have shown this be genuine.
Costume Evolution: Unlike other Fallen Captains you encounter in Destiny 2, his armor is not only the purple of the House of Dusk, but also includes golden highlights, which are traditionally the color of the House of Kings. While this model eventually gets re-used for other Major Captains in Forsaken, Joker's Wild grants him a new set of red threads that he uses to infiltrate the Devils' raid on the old Tower. By the time we meet him again in Season of the Splicer, Mithrax has again gotten another outfit makeover as he dons the mantle of Sacred Splicer, mostly in dark blue tones with some gold plating and glowing purple elements. The most distinctive parts are the new visor on his headgear which is vaguely reminiscent of certain Hunter helmets, and the heavy Splicer's Gauntlet he wears on his upper right arm.
Dark and Troubled Past: Mithrax has committed his fair share of atrocities during his time. In Season of the Splicer, he admits to Lord Shaxx that when he was younger, his crew fought and captured a group of Lightless humans. While the others debated whether to ransom or release them, Mithrax got impatient and vented them into space. Season of the Plunder adds some extra context, revealing that two of the other Eliksni with him were Siviks and The Spider, at the time known as Rakis, and after he killed the captured humans he butchered half the crew loyal to the other two and abandoned the survivors, along with Siviks and Rakis, on an asteroid in deep space. In Season of the Haunted, Mithrax visits the H.E.L.M. and is almost immediately assailed by Nightmares of past victims. In the same season, Mithrax confides to Amanda Holliday that part of the reason he forgave Saint-14 for his crusade against the Houses was because he wants to know he can be forgiven as well. Season of Plunder indicates that Mithrax's crimes are even worse than anyone in the Last City knows, with the Spider and Eramis in particular implying that there are some things he doesn't want others, particularly Eido, to know about. Week 5 reveals that he was corrupted by exposure to an artifact make from the corpse of Nezerac, a Disciple of the Witness, causing him to kill other Eliksni in an effort to acquire the rest of the relics. He also marooned Spider, Siviks, and anyone loyal to them after the aforementioned capture incident.
The Dog Bites Back: He chafes under Lakshmi-2's continued insistence that House Light is not to be trusted and Saint's clear disdain for him despite his willingness to work with the Last City and find a way to destroy the Endless Night Vex simulation. When a mob destroys the Eliksni's supplies and equipment, some of which vital for ether production, Mithrax stands up to Lakshmi when she continues to wax about the House Of Light being untrustworthy despite being directly responsible for the mob that attacked them, and finally rebukes Saint when the Titan asks him if he honestly thinks that people can so easily live alongside the monsters who've hounded humanity for so long, telling him how his own people view "the Saint".
The Faceless: Downplayed in that you can see his eyes, but his helmet obscures the rest of his face. Season of the Splicer gives him an all-encompassing helmet, playing it straight.
Foil: To Saint-14. Saint is a legendary Titan known for his actions during the Battle of Six Fronts, and ended up dying in the Infinite Forest, before the Young Wolf caused a Stable Time Loop to inspire him to keep fighting, and effectively save him by bringing him out via The Slow Path. Mithrax is a fairly young Captain who begins as an unknown apart from willfully backing off from the Young Wolf should they save him from the Knight on Titan, and grows to not only gain his own fireteam, but also form his own House and gain the powers of a Sacred Splicer. Both of them are tied to the Young Wolf and have them to thank for saving their lives.
- In another sense this applies to their personalities. Saint is full of Fantastic Racism towards the Fallen, but is a Tragic Bigot due to seeing so much of humanity be slain by the Fallen over the centuries. Mithrax, by comparison, doesn't seem to bear ill will towards humanity, but makes somewhat frequent comments on the Guardians' power being used on their enemies like they did on the Fallen that has shades of It's All About Me.
Full-Name Ultimatum: Dramatic example in Season of Plunder. When the Spider tries to convince him to start trying the same rallying of pirate crews Eramis is, Mithrax hits his Rage Breaking Point and yells at him to never summon him again for such a trivial political matter, addressing Spider by his real name of Rakis.
Heel–Face Turn: In Forsaken, Mithrax makes an adamant argument that the City should keep the Traveller, and the lore tabs for Lord of Wolves and the Queenbreaker are about him joining a Guardian fireteam. In Joker's Wild, he has styled himself as the Kell of "House Light", and his deeds do not go unnoticed by the Praxic Order, with the intelligence agent doubting the veracity of his adventures with the Guardians. He later fully solidifies this alliance once he fights alongside the Young Wolf to stop Eramis and the resurgent House of Devils from taking Outbreak Perfected, which could still produce SIVA.
- Taken further in Beyond Light, where Mithrax's House Light is a competitor against Eramis' House Salvation, a refuge for Eliksni unwilling to take on Dark powers, and a source of accurate intel for the Last City. And another level in Season of the Splicer, where House Light officially joins with humanity to put a stop to the Endless Night.
"Wolves rebel. Now, Wolves extinct. This where-live mine-things scatter must end. I will Kell the mind-open Eliksni. No spider-tricks. No loyal-lies. Variisis truths. We fight for Great Machine together."
I Owe You My Life: Should the player save him from Golthor, the Subtle without damaging Mithrax, he will allow the Guardians to have the methane reactor without a fight. In Forsaken, this act is implied to be what drives him to defect to the Last City.
It's All About Me: Zig zagged. While he's not arrogant in the least and is all too willing to work with humanity to stop the Vex, he makes regular comments about the usage of Light towards humanity's enemies while frequently comparing it to all the Fallen they've slain. It gets to the point that Saint has enough and breaks into a Rage Breaking Point, yelling at him over all the people that humanity has lost because of the Fallen. Mithrax, for his part, has no reply... because he can't.
- This is expanded upon in Season of the Plunder. It's becoming increasingly clear over the course of the story that the full scope of Mithrax's misdeeds as a former Wolves raider extend far beyond what he has let on to anyone that he knows, besides Eramis and the Spider (particularly his adopted daughter Eido, who has become increasingly curious as to her father's past now that Spider has begun to feed her hints about it). Even with us, the Guardian who saved his life on Titan and protected the House of Light during the events of Season of the Splicer, he's obviously not being as forthright as he could be in respect to his full knowledge on the old crews, and just what kind of harm the relics they are pursuing are capable of doing. Ultimately, it's very obvious that he feels deeply shameful of his past if he's working this hard to hide it from people, but in the process of doing so, he's needlessly complicating our efforts to stop Eramis and the Witness in the present.
Logical Weakness / Required Secondary Powers: While he can open portals into the Vex network, he can't actually enter them himself, on the basis he has to be outside to open a portal out as well. As he says, "I can guide you, but I cannot follow." There's also the fact that he's still just mortal, unlike the Guardians. If he dies that's it, and his people need his leadership.
Meaningful Name: Its one letter off from Mithra/Mithras, an ancient Persian god of light.
Moral Myopia: Downplayed. As shown in Season of the Splicer, this is his most prominent flaw - he's extremely bitter about his people being shot at by Guardians for their entire contact with humanity, but usually ends up biting back on it, because a second later, he remembers that the reason is because the Fallen unleashed a genocidal war on humanity to get the Traveler back, so it's not all that surprising humans aren't exactly feeling charitable towards Eliksni.
Noodle Incident: Due to an as-of-yet explained event on Europa, neither Mithrax nor the two Guardians who previously accompanied him have talked in a long time, with the implication that their relationship has become strained. Although specifics aren't given, the lore tab for Compass Rose implies that his former companions, or at least the unnamed Warlock, has taken up using Stasis.
Papa Wolf: He has a protective streak regarding his adoptive daughter Eido, to say the least.
Personal Horror: Misraaks' dark past as a plunderer keeps coming back to bite him. In Season of the Haunted, he sees Nightmares of his victims when approaching the Crown of Sorrow and feels deeply troubled by their presence. This eventually hits him with full force with Season of Plunder, where Eramis, in no uncertain terms, lays it out to Eido what kind of person he used to be. With his past now fully revealed, Misraaks has had a lot of difficulty facing the kind of person he used to be.
Rage Breaking Point: He normally tries to keep calm with Saint-14, but after Lakshmi-2 patronizes him over a hate mob that wrecked their settlement in the Last City (one that she herself whipped up), and Saint tries to halfheartedly defend the mob by pointing out you can't expect people to "live besides their monsters," Mithrax launches into a "The Reason You Suck" Speech where he points out Saint is not just The Dreaded, but a Humanoid Abomination to the Eliksni, meaning the Fallen have to live beside their monster. Even Saint doesn't have a response to that.
- In Season of Plunder, Mithrax is having trouble keeping his temper in check with regards to Spider. First, when Spider tries to convince him to use the power of the relics to rally his own crews— not to mention telling him to "Think of your daughter," resulting in Mithrax angrily telling him off and threatening to silence him, complete with a Full-Name Ultimatum when he refers to Spider by his real name, Rakis. Spider is left stammering and backpedealing. The next week, when Eido looks for answers to her father's past from Spider, Mithrax turns up, and angrily tells off Spider again, threatening to rip out his tongue.
Redemption Promotion: He’s that not bad of a guy even before he sides with the Last City, but he eventually goes from a leader of Fallen scavengers looking for Golden Age tech to the Kell of the rapidly expanding House of Light.
Reformed, but Rejected: He's fairly amicable and respectful towards the Guardians and authority figures within the Last City, and at one point offers to help Lakshmi-2 regarding her device. Lakshmi, however, refuses to believe his sincerity because of the visions provided to her by said device, and not helping matters is Namrask, a Fallen who participated in the burning of London simply being in his House. Saint, having seen the Fallen at their absolute worst, can only see him as a hindrance. It isn't until people from the Last City sabotage House Light's equipment and supplies and Saint's half-hearted attempts to defend them that Mithrax blows up and tells Saint why the Eliksni are so terrified of him.
Saved by Canon: Whether or not you spared him in "Enemy of my Enemy" is irrelevant, as Forsaken lore tabs reveal he's turned away from the House of Dusk after that encounter and eventually joined a fireteam of Guardians. Variks does, however, count him along with Taniks and Fikrul as Eliksni who have come back from death, making it ambiguous as to which choice was actually canon.
- Dialogue in the Override activity indicates that the Young Wolf did indeed canonically spare him on Titan.
Technopath: As a Sacred Splicer, he can open portals into Vex simulations and even manipulate them from outside. While he can't enter himself, he can let Guardians enter.
Tricked-Out Gloves: His Splicer Gauntlet, which lets him open portals into the Vex network. He gives one to the Young Wolf for their use as well.
White Sheep: As of Forsaken, he's just as much of a Guardian as Zavala sees Hawthorne to be.
Worthy Opponent: Zavala, Sloane, and Ghost quickly grow impressed with Mithrax's tactics, which is giving the Hive a run for its money. Mithrax seems to have some respect for the Young Wolf as well, bowing to them after their second encounter and letting them have the methane reactor if the player does not attack him.
Young and in Charge: His age is ambiguous (he was a Wolves Vandal when Sjur was still alive), but Variks at least considers him rather young by Kell standards. Season of Plunder confirms that his adult life has spanned a few centuries at least.
You No Take Candle: His English, as written in the lore tabs, is fairly rudimentary, and he also mixes in Eliksni terms, making for confusing sentences. That said, his new fireteam has no problem understanding him. His English has dramatically improved by Season of the Splicer.

Eido

Eido, Scribe of House Light

Voiced by: Maya Aoki Tuttle

"As Scribe for the House of Light, it's my job to preserve our House's history, so that hatchlings may one day learn our stories."

The scribe of House Light, and adopted daughter of Mithrax.

Affectionate Nickname: Drifter has a habit of calling her "crabcakes".
Ascended Extra: She was first mentioned all the way back in Season of the Opulence (2019). She became voiced in Season of the Splicer (2021) and finally made her first physical appearance in Season of Plunder (2022). Safe to say, she has become a popular character among the fandom.
Blunt Metaphors Trauma: In the lore tab for the Centerfire ship, a Tower cryptarch approaches Eido and asks for her help with a "delicate matter". Eido misinterprets thus-
"Yes. I have excellent dexterity."
Dead Guy Junior: Eido is named after Mithrax's first Awoken friend, the legendary Sjur Eido.
Happily Adopted: Mithrax found her in the wreckage of an Eliksni-Awoken battle, when she was still a hatchling.
Ms. Exposition: The various interactions in the Botza Ruins have her explain some of the more nuanced parts of Eliksni history, from the importance of Ether for Eliksni growth to dark moments like the rise of the Kell's Scourge.
Speak Ill of the Dead: Eido has no kind words for Siviks (who died two years prior to Season of the Splicer), calling his faction the final degradation of Eliksni culture into anarchism and him a power-hungry coward.
The Pollyanna: Relatively. While she is aware of the long history of violence between eliksni and humanity, that hasn't seemed to have put a damper on her cheery persona.
The Storyteller: Lore tabs on the Celestine Armor (Solstice of Heroes 2021 Warlock set) show that Eido, appropriate as a scribe, serves this role for the hatchlings of House Light, telling them several bedtime stories.
Sympathy for the Devil: Eido notes an odd sympathy for HNW, a member of the political/philosophical faction on the Witness's homeworld that killed the majority of its species who were in fact opposed to its current ideologies. She then realizes this is because HNW's ramblings bear an eerie resemblance to the way the Guardians have lost their memories and particularly Crow's story, which causes her feelings to turn into revulsion as it becomes apparent that RS's talk of memory loss is in fact the opposite of what the Guardians endure — where they had lost their memories to allow for new beginnings, HNW and their compatriots wiped their own memories to ensure they would never doubt the sadistic, omnicidal directives of a past Written by the Winners.
The Voice: Though she is often thought of as the Eliksni holding the infants, as of this writing, she has not made a physical appearance in-game. We only hear her voice in the Eliksni Quarter.
- Averted at last in Season of Plunder, when she finally appears and is a focus character for the season.

Namrask

A former member of the House of Salvation, having fled Eramis' Fallen House with the help of Variks.

The Atoner: Namrask is one of, if not the Eliksni responsible for the present-day behavior of many Fallen Houses, having been present during the assault on London years ago, and before that, he left countless hatchlings to die during the Whirlwind. By the time players learn of him through Grimoire entries and lore tabs, he's long since renounced violence and has taken up the art of weaving for Eliksni hatchlings. There are few on both sides willing to forgive him so easily, though.
Be All My Sins Remembered: The lore for the arm pieces of the Candescent Armor set from the Season of the Haunted implies that Namrask still believes himself unworthy of redemption, asking Ada-1 why he was invited to view the Loom when he fears that ruining it will symbolize a return to his old violent ways.
Beyond Redemption: Many people, Eliksni and human alike, hold this view of him in large part because of his past. It's noted that even the naive and trusting Eido dislikes him. For the Eliksni, he abandoned hatchlings to die to pursue the Traveler during the Whirlwind and built the cutthroat hierarchy of the Fallen. For humanity, he was involved in the battle of London and committed countless atrocities.
Eats Babies: Subverted. When a human accuses Namrask of being a "baby eater," his internal dialogue is only him bitterly noting he wished he had been depraved enough to consider eating human young, in order to prevent the deaths of his crew by starvation.
Establishing Character Moment: By the time we first read about him in the lore, he's shown offering his services to the Winterdrehks who happen to inhabit the warren that he has been put to die in. A far cry from the ruthless, brutal warlord he once was.
Even Evil Has Loved Ones: Despite his time as a warlord, he has come to care deeply about the Winterdrehks in his warren: Oeriks, Eoriks, and Yriks; he also befriends a Vandal named Turrha. After having lost them to a Guardian encounter and a skirmish with the Vex, he recites their names before he falls asleep, showing that he still misses them and thinks of them as a reminder of who to look after in his new peaceful life.
Even Evil Has Standards: As a result of the violence he enacted and witnessed throughout his life, he shudders when asked to volunteer to fight for Eramis, believing that doing so will debase his people even further, concerned that they will be acting in excess revenge.
Heel Realization: The violence regarding SIVA, Twilight Gap, and London have pushed him to the brink, having made him realize he will only push his people to barbarism and cruelty, also believing that killing innocent people will make them unworthy of the Traveler's blessing.
Karmic Nod: "What life could we possibly have there? They will take their revenge on us. And wouldn't we deserve it?"
Large and in Charge: Defied. He's Archon-sized, and was once one of the mightiest Kells among the Fallen. But nowadays he absolutely refuses to have any kind of leadership role.
Meaningful Rename: His original name is unknown, but he's gone by two names since his encounter with the Guardians of Earth. In London, he renamed himself Akileuks, a reference to Achilles from Greek mythology and hero of the Trojan war. He currently goes by Namrask, which means "empty weaver". He bitterly notes how his new name is similar to the human name Norman, which he thinks means "not really Human".
My God, What Have I Done?: Namrask is deeply agonized by his atrocities against both the Eliksni and humanity, having committed and enabled far too much bloodshed for him to be able to stomach. From the abandonment and torture of his own people to the slaughter of innocent human beings, he has since taken up a more peaceful life and is haunted by the memories of his many crimes, leaving him a traumatized and remorseful war veteran.
Moral Event Horizon: Considered to have crossed this in-game by both the Eliskni and humanity. Not that this leaves Namrask a remorseless monster, however. Quite the opposite, actually.
No Place for Me There: Namrask is greatly confused that a band of Eliksni have found refuge under the Traveler to become the House of Light. He questions his species' pursuit of the Great Machine by pointing out who it favors, subtly implying that he feels undeserving of its acceptance.
Pet the Dog: After leaving countless Eliksni hatchlings to die in his pursuit of the Great Machine, as well as slaughtering masses of human infants during his wars against humanity, he holds a hatchling to a heat lamp, gently warming the little critter to comfort it.
Reformed, but Rejected: Although he's since renounced his life was a warrior, Variks and Lakshmi-2 are not so quick to forgive him for his actions in the past. His presence in the House of Light is also why Lakshmi refuses to believe the House of Light is really as benevolent as they claim to be.
Refusal of the Call: When he was with the House of Salvation, he was thought to be one of Eramis' most promising soldiers. Namrask refused when offered the chance to wield a Splinter, having given up fighting in favor of weaving cloth and having seen too much bloodshed over the course of his life. Not to mention seeing what the Darkness does to its wielders. This is probably what saves him when the Young Wolf comes to Europa and starts killing off Eramis' lieutenants and subordinates.
Shell-Shocked Veteran: He was one of the first Fallen to assault humanity, having been present during the battle of London and was part of the Fallen that served Mara Sov before the House of Wolves' betrayal and was subsequently imprisoned. By the time we see him in the lore cards detailing his life in the House of Salvation, he's become The Atoner and would rather weave clothing and blankets than fight.
Spree Killer: Partook in this against masses of innocent humans during his pursuit of the Great Machine.
Sole Survivor: By the time Mithrax and the Young Wolf arrive to whisk away refugees from Europa, Namrask's fellow weavers are all killed.
Villainous BSoD: Having been so eternally focused on the pursuit of the Traveler for his people no matter the cost, Namrask comes to recognize that the means he had taken to do so were nothing more than cruel, both for the Eliksni and humanity.
Would Hurt a Child: Abandoned countless hatchlings at Riis and is also rumored to have eaten human infants in London, although the latter is false.

Klyfiks

A young engineer within the House of Light, who constantly gets into trouble.

Achievements in Ignorance: After witnessing a city resident's frustration with a seemingly defective pit smoker, he decided to "repair" it, pulling an all-nighter and turning it into an improv go-kart.
The Friend Nobody Likes: His engineering skills make him a valuable asset to House Light, but as Mithrax puts it...
"What is the Human word for one with good spirit, but who speaks loudly, and without reason?" he asked.
"Umm… an idiot?" Glint offered gently.
"Yes, it is so," the enormous Kell nodded. "Klyfiks is an idiot."

Kell's Scourge

In General

A rising Fallen faction that goes against everything the Fallen Houses stand for. Having laid their hands on various wares and forges of the Black Armory, they start a contraband of stolen weapons on the Tangled Shore, much to the Spider's displeasure. They are a rogue faction that can be fought in the "Scourge of the Past" raid and through various missions from Black Armory's storyline.

Arms Dealer: They make their presence known by starting a contraband of Black Armory weapons on the Tangled Shore. Ada-1 is infuriated by the idea that the Fallen got their hands on one of the three families' forges and are selling stolen goods, and the Spider takes her concern as his own, seeing how it disturbs the Shore's order.
Power Nullifier: The Berserkers unique to this faction deploy a suppression field should a Guardian come too close to them, allowing the Berserker to charge up their weapon and inflict a One-Hit Kill in most circumstances. The field goes away if both weak spots on the Berserker's chest and back are shot down, whereupon the charged attack will be interrupted and they become vulnerable to damage.

Siviks

Siviks, Lost to None

Once an escapee of the Prison of Elders, Siviks is the leader of Kell's Scourge and the one sponsoring various contraband operations involving stolen Black Armory products. He is also the Spider's brother, and neither hold each other dear judging from the latter's comments.

Big Bad Wannabe: He's the primary antagonist of the Black Armory expansion and his influence looms over the lost forges. But between competition with the Cabal and the Vex for the control of those forges, he has a hard time doing anything particularly threatening to the Tower before the Player Character follows his trail and takes back the forges. He is also unceremoniously killed in the Bergusia forge without accomplishing much.
Bomb-Throwing Anarchists: The aptly-named Exotic grenade launcher Anarchy recounts a conversation between Siviks and the Spider, showing that the former has absolutely no respect for anyone, hates the current disposition of the Fallen (a feeling that's shared by the Scorn, despite himself not being one), and would like to see all of humanity dead. His emergence in the Black Armory storyline even has him causing a ruckus on the Shore out of spite towards the Spider.
"Stick to wall, ground, human… then FFFFFRRRRRYYYYY! Hehehehehehehe."
Cain and Abel: He and the Spider utterly loathe each other, with Siviks shouting that the latter is beneath even the downthrodden Fallen for trying to ally himself with humans. The Spider sends you on a quest to teach him a rougher lesson than a cell in the Prison of Elders, adding that you shouldn't hold back against Siviks.
Dirty Coward: Siviks doesn't seem to value his followers' loyalty, as he constantly flees from the player Guardian while leaving his subordinates to fight them, only making a final stand at Niobe Labs, heavily assisted by his forces and stolen Black Armory tech.
Sibling Rivalry: Though a new arrival in the Tangled Shore, Kell's Scourge is still a syndicate, and a rapidly expanding one at that. The Spider, bemused at this sudden new competition, comments on how Siviks' time in the Prison of Elders didn't teach him the concept of consequences, and he urges you to apply a corrective measure to his impudent brother.
Spiteful Spit: As recounted in the Anarchy's lore tab, Siviks holds nothing but contempt for the Spider, accusing him of being a friend to humans then spitting not only at the Spider's feet, but also his face. Naturally, the affable Spider simply orders his henchmen to take Siviks away to the Prison of Elders for his continued insolence.

Insurrection Prime

Insurrection Prime, Kell's Scourge

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/insurrection.png

A massive mech that guards the Ebisu Vault deep within the City's ruins, Insurrection Prime is the final boss of the "Scourge of the Past" raid. Piloted by a Servitor, it is armed with powerful weaponry capable of leveling cities, and coats itself with deflector shields.

Arm Cannon: The one arm it has is this, evidently made out of Black Armory tech.
Armless Biped: Almost. It only has one proper arm, not that it needs another considering how heavily armed and armored it is.
Attack Its Weakpoint: The Servitor piloting this thing is completely invincible while held safely inside. It has to be forced out into the open by disabling its full body shield, then hitting it with a Drake tank shot to knock the Servitor free.
Degraded Boss: Beyond Light reveals that Eramis' House of Salvation made smaller-scaled, weaker (but still dangerous) version of Insurrection Prime referred to as Brigs.
Humongous Mecha: While some raid bosses like Atheon and Aksis were mechanical in nature, Insurrection Prime is the first raid boss that's being piloted by another enemy. This Fallen-themed bipedal mech towers over the three-story buildings in its boss arena, and it's armed to the teeth. It can even fly for short periods of time to rain down fire upon its opponents.
Jump Jet Pack: Starts the encounter by flying up onto the field with this. It also occasionally hovers with certain attacks. Considering how huge the thing is, it's a good thing it can't straight up fly.
Mighty Glacier: It lumbers around the battlefield slowly as much as you'd expect from something this massive, but it's armed with some of the most devastating weapons ever (including a beam that literally nukes the arena), and it is equipped with Deflector Shields. It says something when the best you can do is take out the shield generators that are scattered around its frame, then stun it with a shot from a Drake, before attempting to take out its pilot Servitor.
Nigh-Invulnerable: The mech itself is so difficult to hurt that the boss is really about forcing its pilot out in to the open instead of fighting it straight on.
Nuke 'em: You punched a wrong socket when the time comes to retrieve a phase charge? Turbulent Detonation! You took too long to cause significant damage to its stationary frame? Turbulent Detonation! You couldn't transmat a Drake and stun it in time while its shields are down? Turbulent Detonation!
Odd Name Out: Servitors tend to follow a similar Theme Naming like the rest of the Fallen, but Insurrection Prime is the first servitor to break the trend. On top of that, in-game its name is rendered in all caps.
Puzzle Boss: While most of the fight is fairly straightforward, trying to increase your damage against the Servitor's colossal resistances requires you to stay away from fireteam members that aren't tagged with the same phase charge variant as you, whereupon you'll instead take damage until you die.
Shoulder Cannon: It has one on its other shoulder, compensating for its lack of an Arm Cannon on that side.
Super Prototype: The first Brigs mech used by the Fallen, and the only one built with Black Armory technology.
Weapon of Mass Destruction: The damn thing is definitely packed for nuclear warfare, considering how it showers you with an endless array of missiles and cannon blasts, and can stomp you into oblivion at a moment's notice. Should you fail to stun it in time, it will even fire up a beam of destruction that nukes the entire area and causes a Total Party Wipe.

House of Salvation

In General

A new Fallen House created following the arrival of the Black Fleet. Unlike all other Fallen, the House of Salvation has forsaken their faith in the Traveler, instead placing it in the Darkness. Under the command of Eramis, they have examined the Pyramids and found a way to harness the power of the Darkness in the form of Stasis. With the Witness making its way into the Solar System, the House of Salvation has been folded into the ranks of the Black Fleet.

The Dreaded: While the House itselft doesn't seem to inspire too much fear among mankind, its leadership is a different matter - Eramis, Kridis, and Phylaks were all present at the Battle of the Twilight Gap and personally killed many guardians.
Evil Counterpart: As a force of humanoid entities wielding paracausal powers associated with the Black Fleet, they are this to the Guardians, who draw their powers from the Traveler. The Guardians end up inverting this over the course of Beyond Light's story, where they learn to wield Stasis to oppose the Darkness.
Faith–Heel Turn: Their loss of faith in the Traveler sees the House of Salvation choosing to put faith in the Darkness, putting them on a course to destroy the Great Machine, and anyone who would stop them.
An Ice Person: The House of Salvation is the first force to harness the power of Stasis, a Darkness power themed around cryokinesis. Elite members of the house (namely bosses) can use Stasis grenades and freezing attacks.
You Have Outlived Your Usefulness: After Eramis' (and by extension her house's) continous failures to be of use to the Black Fleet, the Witness forces her to convert large numbers of House Salvation into Wrathborn, with some even becoming Scorn. This hasn't been forced upon all of them, but it is clear that they are on a very short leash now.

Eramis

Eramis, Kell of Darkness/ Servant of the Witness

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/screenshot_20221011_195514_chrome_6.jpg

"Remember, light only burns bright so long but darkness is forever."

Voiced by: Salli Saffioti

A Baroness of the House of Devils known as the Shipstealer, Eramis once plotted Fallen reunification under the Devil banner. During the events of Forsaken, she is among the many inmates of the Prison of Elders who take advantage of Variks's orchestrated prison outbreak, fleeing to parts unknown. The Praxic Order catch wind of her activities, designating her as VIP#2029 and branding her as a potential threat to the City.

Eramis eventually leaves the Devils banner behind and establishes the new House of Salvation on Europa, taking the title of Kell of Darkness as she seeks to unite all remaining Fallen under her banner. Her efforts led to the construction of Riis-reborn, as massive Fallen city built amongst the ruins of Clovis Bray's Europan colony. However, Eramis's new empire is powered by the Darkness itself, as she seeks to empower all Fallen with it to destroy humanity and the Traveler.

After her failure in Beyond Light, Eramis is intombed in a cocoon of ice until the Voice in the Darkness releases her in Season of Plunder, tasking her with retrieving artifacts tied to both the past of the Fallen and the Disciples...

For tropes regarding Eramis, visit her folder in The Darkness.

Phylaks

Phylaks, the Warrior

"All you, now hear: I am Phylaks, the Warrior of Darkness! Life to Riis-reborn! Victory to the Kell of Darkness! Glory to the House Salvation!"

A fearsome Fallen warrior formerly of the House of Devils who made her name killing Guardians at the Battle of the Twilight Gap.

Blood Knight: She lives for fighting and lets the Young Wolf find her after they kill several of her subordinates in order to challenge them herself in hopes of a good battle. The lore book "The Once Shipstealer", Eramis recalls that during the Battle of Twilight Gap, she was not just fighting the Guardians with her bare hands, she was winning with ease.
The Brute: She is the strongest warrior of the House and organizes their recruits into an army instead of a typical pirate group that many Fallen Houses have degraded into.
Famed In-Story: The Battle of Twilight Gap made her a legend among the Fallen due to her ferocity in the final charge, where she followed Eramis in the last push against the City's walls and killed numerous Guardians.
Fighter, Mage, Thief: The Fighter of the trio, a proud warrior who seeks worthy foes.
Frontline General: Has a long history of fighting alongside her soldiers in battle, and seeks out the Guardian to fight them herself once the Young Wolf starts taking out her patrols on Europa.
Good Old Fisticuffs: Eramis recalls that Phylaks fought with her fists and broke Guardian's necks in battle during her younger days.
Undying Loyalty: Nothing will shake her loyalty to Eramis, even though she is disconcerted at finding Variks by her friend's side and wants to murder the scribe for his betrayal of the Fallen to the Awoken, only reluctantly stopping at Eramis' command.
Villainous Friendship: With Eramis and Kridis. The three of them were all Devils together and made their names together. When they are reunited, Phylaks is overjoyed and tells Eramis that he was sure that the Prison of Elders could not hold her forever.
Worthy Opponent: She hopes the Young Wolf is one, noting their past accomplishments but has nothing but disdain for their dependence on the Light. Phylaks challenges them to "Prove you're worth my time." During their actual fight Phylaks is duly impressed and promises a quick death in light of their skill.

Praksis

Praksis, the Technocrat/ The Defiled

"Let me see your tiny Servitor. I will take it apart, like the others…"

A young Fallen formerly of the House of Wolves. Praksis met Eramis in the Prison of Elders and escaped alongside her. His technological prowess is responsible for the upgraded weapons and mechs of House Salvation.

And Then John Was a Zombie: Among several of Eramis' deceased compatriots resurrected as Scorn by The Witness in Season of the Seraph. While The Witness presents these revivals as a gracious gift, Mara Sov notes it for what it really is: punishment for Eramis' failure to retrieve Nezarec's remains the previous season by forcing her to see her friends turned into mindless slaves of the Darkness.
Evil Genius: Eramis brings her with him from the Prison of Elders because she recognizes his talents and willingness to try new things in the name of Fallen restoration. It's his genius that enables the Fallen to utilize Stasis and build new kinds of weapons, like the mass-produced brigs. Killing him stops the technological advancement of House Salvation and sets back Eramis' plans considerably.
Fighter, Mage, Thief: The Thief of the trio, using gadgetry and trickery.
Gadgeteer Genius: Besides being behind the technology of House Salvation, he has floating generators to power his shields, periodically summoning more.
Mad Scientist: Comes across as one from his dialogue in his Empire Hunt.
Teeth-Clenched Teamwork: He hates working with Variks due to him having been the warden of the Prison of Elders, and is giddy when Phylaks attempts to murder the Scribe when first joining them on Europa.

Kridis

Kridis, the Dark Priestess

Voiced by: Erika Ishii

A close lieutenant of Eramis who inspires the Fallen of the House of Salvation with faith in Eramis and the Darkness.

The Dragon: She has Eramis' ear and almost talks her down about using Stasis/Darkness, though she ultimately goes along with her will when Eramis refuses to change course.
Dragon Their Feet: Her Empire Hunt comes later than the Warrior or Technocrat hunts. After Eramis is frozen solid following her defeat by the Guardian, Kridis keeps broadcasting messages to rally House Salvation's troops and has to be hunted down to stop her rising to replace her.
Fighter, Mage, Thief: The Mage of the trio, a dark mystic who lacks the heavy weaponry of the other two and instead mostly spams Stasis bolts.
High Priest: It's right there in the title. After Eramis is defeated, Kridis's messages give the vibe of a Religion of Evil.
Villainous Friendship: With Eramis and Phylaks. The three of them were members of the House of Devils and once patrolled the Cosmodrome together before rising through the ranks of the House. She immediately comes with Phylaks to rejoin their friend once Eramis escapes the Prison of Elders and begins to build the House of Salvation.

Atraks (unmarked spoilers)

Atraks, the Wild Card/Atraks-1, Fallen Exo

The youngest of Eramis' council, formerly of the House of Devils. After Eramis's other confidants are killed, Atraks is directed to prepare a "body" in the Deep Stone Crypt, becoming an Exo in the process.

Alliterative Name: Her personal superweapon as Atraks-1: Replicate Ruin.
The Baby of the Bunch: Too young to remember what the Devils were like in their prime; Eramis describes her as having a child-like voice.
Brain Uploading: The first Fallen to ever undergo the process to become an Exo. She also seems to have figured out how to use the bits of Vex left over in Exos to create more of herself from Guardians too tardy to vent her minds out the airlock.
Bright Is Not Good: Similar to the rest of House Salvation, her Exo self has a mostly white/silver color scheme. This doesn't detract from her being monstrous.
Doppelgänger Spin: She does something like this with her numerous bodies, and the raid fireteam risks getting turned into another copy during her encounter unless they chuck her essences out the airlock. The team also has to find out which Atraks-1 is the real one when she starts up Replicate Ruin or else it's a Total Party Kill.
- Doppelgänger Attack: She also does something like this when on her last legs. She starts up Replicate Ruin with a few copies at first, and more following, and the team has to take down the right one in succession to destroy her for good before the copies can fire it off.
Flunky Boss: Consisting of herself; her boss mechanics are all about figuring out which of her copies is channeling Extinction Protocol. This is in addition to all the other Fallen she calls in to harass the raid team.
Grey Goo: Has a superweapon called Replicate Ruin as an Exo that uses her replication mechanism to exterminate the fireteam if the correct replica isn't stopped in a certain amount of time.
Me's a Crowd: After undergoing Exoification, she doesn't create just one body for herself, but dozens. One of her mechanics is to avoid accidentally becoming a new body of hers.
Thrown Out the Airlock: All of her replicas aboard the Morning Star are reduced to a pile of infectious essence, rounded up, and ejected into deep space during the Deep Stone Crypt raid.
True Sight: Part of the encounter involves one party member killing a Hacker Vandal and picking up the item it drops to gain the Scanner buff. This allows that party member to determine which Atraks-1 copy to destroy when she starts up Replicate Ruin. Attacking any other copies just wipes the team, so the Scanner has to be quick to react and call out which one to take down.
The Unfought: The only one of Eramis' confidants not fought in the Beyond Light campaign. She is instead fought inside the Deep Stone Crypt.
Walking Spoiler: As all of the player's actual interactions with her occur in the Deep Stone Crypt raid, it's difficult to bring her up without mentioning that she is the first Fallen Exo.
The Virus: When a replica of Atraks dissipates, that body will leave behind an infectious fragment that will attempt to rebuild itself inside the body of whoever picks it up. The goal is to round these fragments up and use the sheer force of the vacuum of space to send them packing. If someone fails to deliver the essence in time, though, they will die as another copy of Atraks sprouts from their fresh corpse. The Operator can shoot it off of infected fireteam members to reset its timer and potentially allow others to pick it up, but if it stays on the ground for too long it's a wipe.
Wind-Up Key: For whatever reason, she has an apparatus on her back that looks vaguely like this.

The Old Crews

Ketchkillers

Privateer: They are unaffiliated pirate crews hired by Eramis to track down missing relics.
Punny Name: Many of the Ketchcrash and Expedition Fallen bosses have these kind of names: Keelhaal, Aye-I, Cutlaaks, Ransaaks...
Space Pirates: Unsurprising for Fallen, but they especially stand out. They are independent pirate crews who abandoned the house system, taking over Ketches of others and raiding supply routes. They even store treasure on their Ketches and in pirate hideouts.

Other Fallen

Taniks (unmarked spoilers)

Taniks, the Scarred / Taniks, Perfected / Taniks the Abomination

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/tankis.jpg

"Taniks has no House. He kneels before no banner. Owes allegiance to no Kell. He is a murderer, and very good at what he does."

The boss of the Shadow Thief Strike, Taniks is a notorious Fallen mercenary with his own ketch. Holding no loyalty to any House beyond who pays him, Taniks sides with the Fallen House of Wolves after their rebellion against the Reef, attempting to rob the Temple of Crota. He is responsible for killing the previous Hunter Vanguard, Andal Brask, and for breaking Aksor out of the Prison of Elders.

Due to his cybernetic nature, Taniks has the unnerving tendency to pop up here and there well beyond his initial defeat.

And Then John Was a Zombie: In the Dawning, the Splicers use SIVA to reanimate Taniks, turning him into Taniks, Perfected. Years later during Beyond Light, the House of Salvation reanimates him again in the Deep Stone Crypt, and he is pissed.
Arch-Enemy: He was Cayde's for a long time, having killed a couple members of his crew before adding Andal Brask to his body count. Cayde hunted him down in revenge, but Taniks kept coming back to haunt him and the Last City.
Artificial Limbs: All four of his arms have been replaced with mechanical prosthetics, in what the description for the Strike calls "ritualistic surgeries". What this says about his place in Fallen society is unknown. Variks suspects it's to make himself more like a machine. In the Deep Stone Crypt, he somehow manages to fuse himself with a Heavy Shank during the sudden crash landing of the Morning Star.
BFG: Wields a scorch cannon, rather than the traditional shrapnel launcher. Doubles as Arm Cannon, since it replaces one of his arms entirely. After you kill him, you can yank it off his body and use it against his minions.
Back from the Dead: The guy simply won't just die and stay in the coffin, as his heavy cybernetic modifications practically give him the right to cheat death ad nauseam. Andor Brask killed him at least once, and Cayde-6 has done in him at least twice before the Young Wolf first killed him. During the 2016 Dawning event, the Devil Splicers made use of SIVA technology to reanimate him in to Taniks, Perfected. It's subverted during Shadowkeep, where you fight a Nightmare that's based off from the Guardians' fear of him instead of the real Taniks. It's played straight again during Beyond Light, where he's resurrected to serve as Atraks' muscle and eventually outlives her. In the Dawning version of "The Shadow Thief", Ikora theorizes that Taniks level of cybernetics means he may not be alive as we understand the term.
Berserk Button: By the time you encounter him in the Deep Stone Crypt, the player Guardian has become this to him, the very sight of you causing him to collapse into a spitting rage.
Blood Knight: Variks describes him as fighting not only to fulfill his contract, but also for fun.
Bounty Hunter: The Fallen Houses placed large bounties of Glimmer and Ether on a crew of Hunters, which included Andal Brask, Shiro-4, and Cayde-6. Taniks sought to claim their bounties, and would ambush the crew on several occasions. He would eventually claim Andal's bounty by murdering the Hunter Vanguard in cold blood.
Bring It: According to Variks, Taniks challenges the Guardian fireteam hunting him "in the ways of old".
Decapitation Presentation: Unlike past encounters where you leave his corpse around after defeating him, in Beyond Light you bring his head back to the Stranger's camp as a souvenir.
Diabolus ex Machina: Is seemingly crushed to death after the Morning Star crashes on Europa, until investigating a pile of rubble reveals he somehow merged with a Heavy Shank at the last minute.
Dragon Their Feet: He's Atraks' lieutenant in the Deep Stone Crypt Raid, but she's the penultimate boss while he's the Final Boss.
Famed In-Story: By the Fallen, who consider him a semi-mythical figure for the number of Guardians he has killed and legendary heists he has pulled off.
Final Boss: While Eramis is killed during the climax of Europa's main storyline, two of her lieutenants manage to survive and continue House Salvation's operations. Of the two, Atraks goes into the Deep Stone Crypt and resurrects Taniks to help her nuke Europa. Once Atraks is down, Taniks becomes the final boss in the raid and the overall final major threat in Beyond Light.
First Law of Resurrection: Taniks has the uncanny ability to come back from his apparent demise when Bungie feels like it. He reappears in the Dawning 2016 event for no reason other than because the Devil Splicers used SIVA to bring him back to life, and Atraks revives him years later in Beyond Light to assist her in the Deep Stone Crypt raid.
Even the Subtitler Is Stumped: Taniks constantly shouts at the fireteam over the intercom on his Ketch. What he's saying is never directly translated, but the subtitles just say what it sounds like.
"Get Back Here!" Boss: His mission mostly involves you chasing him further and further into his Ketch, whittling down a bit of his health each time.
Hair-Trigger Temper: Always seems to be angry about something. This is best shown in Beyond Light, where seconds after Atraks finishes reviving him, he spots the player through the windows of Clarity Control and starts angrily banging on the glass before being dragged up into space to take care of more important business. Although admittedly, the rage in that moment might have been spotting the Guardian that killed him, twice, on the other side of the glass.
Half the Man He Used to Be: His legs are crushed after surviving a Colony Drop, forcing him to graft himself to a Heavy Shank frame to continue fighting.
Hero Killer: Taniks has a number of Guardian kills under his belt, including Andal Brask, a previous Hunter Vanguard. He has long been regarded as one of the highest priority targets for the Vanguard due to this, but they have trouble actually keeping him down.
Hired Guns: He's an independent mercenary and will do a variety of jobs for the highest bidder, including hunting down Guardians, breaking Aksor out of the Prison of Elders, stealing from the Hive, etc.
Implacable Man: He's actually outright invincible when you face him on the Morning Star, only able to be stunned to try and defuse his bombs. When it crashes, he survives his lower half being cut off, and then replaces it with a Heavy Shank. Whatever his faults, he's no quitter.
King Mook: He's a super Scorch Captain.
Mechanical Abomination: Even in comparison to other Fallen, many of whom have turned to cybernetic enhancements to improve their prowess in combat, Taniks is far more machine than Eliksni. Ikora theorizes that is one reason why he has returned from the dead so many times, as he is no longer alive in the ways most understand it. His resurrection in the Deep Stone Crypt makes him even more of a machine.
One-Winged Angel: After being crushed in a Colony Drop full of nuclear charges, Taniks still manages to come back from that, although it finally drives him to desperation, using a Heavy Shank to repair his destroyed lower half and aptly being rechristened Taniks, the Abomi nation.
Professional Killer: Variks goes to great lengths to describe him as an independent killer-for-hire.
Psycho for Hire: Taniks is a bloodthirsty mercenary who fights not just to fulfill his contract, but for fun as well. He also considers the Guardians to be trophies to collect rather than enemies.
Resurrected for a Job: The reason for his revival in the Deep Stone Crypt raid ultimately amounts to giving Atraks a helping hand (and added insurance) with her dirty work as she sets up the Morning Star to deliver a nuclear Earth-Shattering Kaboom on Europa by dropping the whole space station on the moon.
Took a Level in Badass: Taniks did get a bit of rework for The Dawning. Taniks' Scorch Cannon now rotates between the three elemental cannons, he will teleport around the room more frequently and will enter phases where he becomes immune. Guardians will have to take out SIVA growths in order to weaken him. Come Beyond Light, Taniks comes back to serve as House Salvation's last-ditch effort to destroy Europa and the Guardians, and becomes a proper raid boss as a result.
True Companions: He was part of same crew Eramis lead that included Kridis and Phylaks. When Draksis hired him to break Aksor out of the Prison of Elders, Taniks demanded double the payment, not because breaking into the Prison was hard, but for Taniks to exercise restraint, as he felt Eramis, Kridis, and Phylaks, as the fiercer warriors, were more deserving of his efforts.

Nixis

See the Taken page.

Chelchis

Chelchis, Kell of Stone

A Kell whose name is still revered in Fallen songs, he is said have "faced the Maw", from which we can only assume he personally fought Oryx and died.

Cool Crown: A Warlock artifact that describes his deeds is shaped after an ornate crown decorated with sapphires, although the crown itself is broken.
Despair Event Horizon: In his last moments, he called out for the Traveler, and was met with silence.
Where is the Great Machine? Where is the Great Machine? ...All is silent. Nothing answers me. The hunger comes.
Posthumous Character: He's a long-dead legend by the events of The Taken King, being among the many victims of the Hive's bloody crusade.

Sekris

See the Shadows of Calus

Athrys

An Eliksni know for her gentle, caring nature. Was Eramis' mate before the Whirlwind and is the basis of the Athrys's Embrace Hunter Exotic.

Posthumous Character: Appears to be dead by the events of Beyond Light. She's only mentioned through lore entries regarding Eramis or through quests with Variks.
Uncertain Doom: The last thing Eramis remembers about Athrys is her banging against her sleeping pod asking for the Great Machine.
- In Achilles Weaves a Cocoon, a lore book released during Season of the Splicer, it is revealed that Eramis sent Athrys and their children to another star, but no one knows what happened to them after that.

Avarokk

Captain Avarokk, the Covetous

A true Space Pirate, Avarokk and his crew have come to the Cosmodrome looking to plunder the untold riches of the Loot Cave. He is the boss of the Grasp of Avarice Dungeon

Dressed to Plunder: While not fully decked out as a pirate, his head does resemble an old school pirate hat.
Pirate Parrot: It's not exactly a parrot, Avarokk does have a loyal companion in a shank named R-M80.
Space Pirates: The Fallen have been described as such, but Avarokk takes it to its logical conclusion.

Characters / Destiny The Fallen

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The Fallen / Eliksni

Classes

Dregs

Vandals

Captains

Shanks

Servitors

Archon Priests

Marauder

Wretches

Fallen Walkers

Heavy Shanks

Brigs

House of Devils

House of Winter

Draksis, Winter Kell

House of Kings

Craask, Kell of Kings

House of Exiles

Skoriks, Archon-Slayer

House of Wolves

Skolas, Kell of Kells

Drevis, Wolf Baroness

Pirsis, Pallas-Bane

Yavek, Wolf Baron

Aksor, Archon Priest

Beltrik, the Veiled

Kaliks Reborn

Kaliks Prime

Orbiks Prime

Mecher Orbiks-11

Saviks, Queenbreaker

Weksis, the Meek

House of Dusk

Skriviks, the Sharp-Eyed

Thaviks, the Depraved

House of Light

Mithrax/Misraaks, Kell of Light (formerly the Forsaken)

Eido, Scribe of House Light

Namrask

Klyfiks

Kell's Scourge

Siviks, Lost to None

Insurrection Prime, Kell's Scourge

House of Salvation

Eramis, Kell of Darkness/ Servant of the Witness

Phylaks, the Warrior

Praksis, the Technocrat/ The Defiled

Kridis, the Dark Priestess

Atraks, the Wild Card/Atraks-1, Fallen Exo

The Old Crews

Other Fallen

Taniks, the Scarred / Taniks, Perfected / Taniks the Abomination

Chelchis, Kell of Stone

Athrys

Captain Avarokk, the Covetous

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