This is a listing of characters from Embric of Wulfhammer's Castle . It is very much a work in progress. Spoilers are unmarked, proceed with caution.
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Main Heroine
The Duchess of Elstwhere
The good-natured Duchess is the main character of the story. Betrothed to Embric of Wulfhammer, she has arrived in his castle to marry him, but he is nowhere to be found. Not one to let that get her down, she does her best to make friends, explore the surrounding countryside, and go on adventures.
- Arranged Marriage: With Embric, despite having never met.
- Can't Hold Her Liquor: The Duchess gets drunk from a few sips. Justified since she never had alcohol before coming to Wulfhammer Castle and their brands tend to be on the stronger side.
- Chick Magnet: She attracts the attention of a Ninja Maid, a thief, an elven mage, a dark elf aristocrat, an Eldritch Abomination, and even the Goddess of Love and Illicit Sex.
- Closet Key: While she is supposed to marry a guy, she mostly finds the attraction of, and is attracted to, other women, any of which can be the Closet Key.
- Damsel in Distress: Lampshaded repeatedly, in that kidnappings only started happening once she entered the marque. In one path, she turns into a Decoy Damsel. Also Deconstructed; the Duchess is constantly being kidnapped and imprisoned whenever she leaves the safety of the castle, but she's been kidnapped and imprisoned all her life and has gotten very good at it; the Fellowship doesn't band together to help her and when Louni rescues her, she finds it just as annoying as most gamers do when being forced to rescue the hero's love interest.
- Dark and Troubled Past: Her uncle Greyghast would kill any friends she made, and routinely molested her.
- Decoy Damsel: Duchess, in the Black Duchess path.
- Ethical Slut: While she's a nice and supportive person, she also has a lot of people she'll sleep with.
- Everyone Calls Him "Barkeep": Nobody asks what the Duchess' name is. At the end of her romance path, Louni asks, but Duchess is interrupted— she does tell Carmina. At one point, Azreala, a villain challenging the group to a riddle contest, asks them the Duchess' name. None of them can recall it, and they all get captured as a result. This includes a potential love interest and a friend she's had since childhood.
- Everyone Has Standards: The closest she gets to firing Ecanecia is when the latter jokes about getting molested by a horse.
- Face–Heel Turn: The Black Duchess route has her turn adventurer/bandit gang leader. She can also choose to, in the Empire ending, join Lord Vecnathrax, and join ZEALOT in the betrayal ending.
- Hero with Bad Publicity: Several of Wulfhammer's people don't trust her because they consider her Greyghast's heir.
- Interspecies Romance: In several different flavors, mostly with the local Cute Monster Girls.
- The Mole:
Word of God is that one valid interpretation of the Betrayal ending is that she was a mole for ZEALOT all along. - Ms. Fanservice: If she can end up in her lingerie and/or naked, she will, at the drop of a hat (or a drop down a well). It's also a game mechanic; at least one story path requires her to be in her underwear before it will progress. Her fanservice is especially apparent when she dons her evil dress.
- Mayfly–December Romance: With Carmina and the Good Dwarf.
- Princess Classic: More so than the actual princess. Provided you overlook her being sexually active, that is.
- Rape as Drama: Zigzagged in so many ways, for example while Carmina may rape her in a dream, The Duchess doesn't mind as much. Other times it's depicted as decidedly more horrible.
- Really Gets Around: She can have relationships with and sleep with nearly a dozen people.
- Seers: Despite royalty being forbidden from being magicians.
- Spock Speak: The Duchess, with the excuse that she was conditioned that way in childhood.Duchess: Who is a delightful little nereid? That is correct! It is you!
- Tomboy and Girly Girl: Most of the pairings that The Duchess can end up in.
- Underrated and Overleveled: Possibly the only game where this happens to the main character. The Duchess gains experience and levels up over the course of the game's events, almost none of which are remotely related to fighting. By the time she actually ends up in combat, she's likely to be capable of fighting on the level of the Awesome Fellowship, who've presumably spent a long time accruing much more relevant experience.
In The Marquess Of Notoriety
- Cyborg: Part Golem per the Iron Duchess+ ending.
The Awesome Fellowship
Falwythwier Windgrace
The Awesome Fellowship's elven mage, and a very powerful spellcaster. She knows she's better than everyone else, and makes no effort to hide it. After all, they're just puny humans.
- Arranged Marriage: With none other than the Duchess. Actually, Falwythwier is simply serving as a proxy on behalf of Embric Wulfhammer since he's not around for his own wedding. Fal hates that she had to be the proxy, not only because she had to kiss the bride but that she also had to, ahem, consummate the marriage, too.Duchess: Oh sweet gods of romantic comedy.
Falwythwier: WHAT?!
Louni: Old patriarchal laws, whatcha gonna do, right? - Can't Argue with Elves: Don't try to argue with her, it's pointless. Don't try to get on her good side either, it's even more pointless.
- Cultural Posturing: As far as she is concerned, Elven Culture did it first and is superior in every regard, end of story.
- Deadpan Snarker: There's barely a line where she doesn't say something mean and/or sarcastic.
- Fantastic Racism: To an appallingly casual degree towards most non-elves and really hates Dark Elves.
- Head-Turning Beauty: The sight of her naked once put an eleven-year-old through an instant puberty. Even the Duchess is impressed by her figure when she takes her measurements.
- Jerkass: She looks down on other races, especially humans and dark elves, and asserts her supposed superiority any chance she gets. She is also more prone to solving problems with violence.
- I Did What I Had to Do: Her justification for imprisoning Carmina and chaining her up naked while keeping her malnourshished is that Carmina could easily break free and kill them all with her magic if she were physically fit.
- Interspecies Romance: Attracted to the human Embric, and can have a romance with the human Duchess.
- Familiar: A talking sparrow.
- Mayfly–December Romance: Embric again.
- Shock and Awe: Likes lightning magic.
- Villain Shoes: For Duke Thermin's birthday party.
- What Did I Do Last Night?: She and Embric got high on 'shrooms one night, and she got a tattoo in the small of her back that reads "SKANK" in runic. She doesn't remember this, and Louni promised she'd never tell about it.
Louni Quickfingers (spoilers)
The resident rogue of the Awesome Fellowship, she now functions as the de-facto sheriff of the marque, rounding up bandits and rescuing their captives. She starts off somewhat cold to the Duchess, but learns to appreciate what she brings to the castle. Secretly, she's playing the Fellowship and Vecnathrax against each other, so she can see how his plan was going to end...
- Defrosting Ice Queen: Unlike Fal, she eventually warms up to The Duchess.
- The Chessmaster: Turns out she directs Lord Vecnathrax's actions.
- The Man Behind the Man: Vecnathrax is the oft-spoken of Arch-Enemy of the Awesome Fellowship; a very old Lich. It turns out, he's actually quite senile. The person who is really behind his schemes is Louni; who is finding all of his old plans back when he was competent and firing them up and seeing how the Awesome Fellowship handles it. For the Artistic Value.
- Meaningful Name: "Quickfingers" isn't just because she's good with locks.
- Rescue Romance: Rescues the Duchess several times before falling for her.
- Transparent Closet: It's pretty obvious that she's bi, but she tries to hide it behind a curtain of being hetero.
The Good Dwarf (spoilers)
The dwarf of the Awesome Fellowship. He does dwarfy things, like work metal and drink liquor. His hair changes color quite a bit...
- Our Dwarves Are All the Same: Deconstructed, dwarves are so identical that the Awesome Fellowship didn't realize when their dwarf was replaced by seven different dwarves with different hair colours.
- Everyone Calls Him "Barkeep": Everyone calls him "The Good Dwarf". The Good Dwarf is called the Good Dwarf because no one can pronounce his Dwarven name. And nobody realizes there's more than one; each with their own name.
- Funetik Aksent: Dwarves have a peculiar way of showing their text, which is intentionally difficult to understand. The Duchess earns some of their trust when she learns it.
- Interspecies Romance: The lone female is attracted to the Duchess, and Angus is a "Perveh Elf Fancier" who ends up with Elza.
- Legacy Character: There's seven of them, none of whom are the original Good Dwarf.
- Mayfly–December Romance: "I'll still love you when you're spoiling your grandchildren, and when they're spoiling theirs."
- Our Dwarves Are All the Same: Deconstructed, the dwarves are so identical that the Awesome Fellowship did not realize at their dwarf was eventually replaced by seven different dwarves playing the original one, even when they all have different hair colours and one of them isn't even a guy.
- Ragtag Bunch of Misfits: They're all a bit odd for dwarves, some more obviously than others.
- Sweet Polly Oliver: Well, one of them is.
Embric of Wulfhammer
The heroic leader of the Awesome Fellowship, and bridegroom to the duchess. His absence drives the plot.
- Blood Knight: Loves fighting and weapons over absolutely anything else.
- The Ghost: Outside a few endings, anyway.
- Idiot Hero: What little we do see of him strongly suggests this; he's obsessed with swords and combat and away from the castle almost all the time.
Castle Staff
Alice
The Duchess' personal maid in the castle. She's somewhat impulsive and clumsy, but has a good heart.
- Bodyguard Crush: She has the hots for The Duchess, but tries not to make it obvious.
- Cute Bruiser: Adorable and physically powerful, with levels in Barbarian.
- Does Not Know Her Own Strength: Being really strong, she often destroys parts of the castle by accident, including an entire turret.
- Hilariously Abusive Childhood: Enslaved by harpies and forced to, among other things, polish mud.
- I Just Want My Beloved to Be Happy: Said beloved being The Duchess; she almost never says anything about her love towards her mistress and would willingly disregard her own happiness as long as The Duchess is well. The only time she admits her feelings is in the Developer's Room.
- Ninja Maid: Barbarian Maid, rather; she took levels in Barbarian and despite her looks, she's really strong.
- Visions of Another Self: If the "All Just a Dream" interpretation is true.
As of The Marquess of Notoriety
Wilhelm
The Duchess' loyal butler. He is always available to dispense information.
- Eyes Always Shut: Yes, always; none of his portraits show his eyes even just slightly open.
- Retired Badass: Used to adventure as a bard.
- Verbal Tic: Mmhm, quite. He finds it endearing when The Duchess also does it.
Chef Hu
Ecinacea (spoilers)
The castle's scullery maid, ever ready to give baths and do laundry. Is afraid that she's going to be fired for every little thing. She is actually an Eldritch Abomination of some kind, and will one day consume reality itself.
- A Form You Are Comfortable With: Actually the Apocalypse Given Flesh, but she appears as a young woman with blue hair.
- Anti Anti Christ: She is the herald of the Apocalypse, but deicides that she likes the Duchess too much to carry out her purpose, instead preferring to work as her maid.
- Apocalypse Maiden: She's an Eldritch Abomination meant to bring about the Apocalypse.
- Catchphrase: "Please don't fire me."
- Eyes Always Shut: For good reason... namely she has Black Eyes of Evil.
- Demonic Possession: Via demonic scotch.
- George Jetson Job Security: Downplayed; she begs to keep her job at multiple points.
- Humanoid Abomination: She's not human but really The Apocalypse.
- Love Redeems: Cares enough about the Duchess to promise not to end any bits of the world she'd miss.
Villagers
Grettel Tailor
The young proprietress of the castle's inn, which has gained a reputation for debauchery. She is remarkably bright for her age, and will need help in rehabilitating the inn. One of the two main characters of The Marquess of Notoriety.
- Child Prodigy: She's less than ten years old, but incredibly smart and learns even the most difficult topics quite quickly. Various endings have her in some form of strategist or other advisor role.
- Little Professor Dialog: She is less than ten and yet speaks in a higher, more advanced vocabulary than most of the adult characters.
- Sesquipedalian Loquaciousness: Since she's used to high culture- and scholaric books, she tends to speak in rather complicated ways, made even more amusing by her being less than ten years old. This confuses the Duchess more than once.
- The Strategist: Once she's grown up.
Dorcas Tailor
Grettel's older sister, who unfortunately does not share her intelligence. Becomes the embodiment of Huraine, Goddess of chocolate, strawberries, and illicit sex.
- Ethical Slut: Not very bright, but friendly and actually quite skilled with sewing. She also sleeps with just about anyone.
- Really Gets Around: Implied, but since she's the avatar of a Goddess of Sex, a lot of jokes are made about her... services. Which, admittedly, isn't really any different compared to before.
Elza Medicine
Carl O'Bartender
Bunny
Scheherazade
The owner of the Moon Rabbit Cafe on the castle's roof, she gives out potions of Cure Medium Wounds along with kisses. She's actually a lamia who uses the cafe in order to drain people's wisdom, but it's okay, since the status effect is only temporary.
- Anti Anti Christ: Isn't really a lamia, is really an echidna. If she mates, she's destined to spawn a race of monsters who will destroy the world. She's trying to avoid that.
- Friendly Neighborhood Vampire: She's a Friendly Neighborhood Lamia.
- Snake People: She's really a lamia... but not really, she's really an echidna.
King Stew
Carol, Evan, and Bob
- Smarter Than You Look: The nameless, faceless people on the castle grounds only speak short Welcome to Corneria lines because they're scared of the Duchess. When she earns their trust, they speak long Welcome to Corneria lines. One of them even works in the fields so he has lots of time to think deep thoughts.
Blue Smith and Eve Smith
Guano Bill
Castle Guard
Wandering Heroes
Alex
Miranda
Princess Arugula Aeresland
The daughter of the new king. The Duchess hates her guts, both because Princess Arugula is an airhead, and because she's an actual princess.
- Childhood Friend: Of both the Duchess and Duke Thermin, thus cannot bring herself to take a side.
- The Ditz: Probably the most airheaded character in the game, but fairly good-natured.
- Princess Classic: Arugula is convinced that she's a fairy tale princess, that her Royal Blood makes her special, and that true love will carry her through anything; and it all works. The Duchess, normally nothing if not accommodating, just can't come to terms with this.
Malcontents
The Ransom Club
Zagron the Bandit
Fimrod the Slaver
Team Vecanthrax
Lord Vecnathrax
The Awesome Fellowship's archnemesis, and an ancient evil who's nothing but a skeleton.
- Affably Evil: Has a friendly conversation with the Duchess on the mountain, then kidnaps her.
- Apparently Powerless Puppetmaster: Despite his supposed senility, the Final Ending heavily hints that he's been faking it to carry on with some secret plan in the shadows, and that Louni, who supposedly has been manipulating him, is really his pawn.
- Body Horror: Invents the "Double-Barrelled Summoning Circle". It occasionally summons two demons fused together. The Duchess can suggest an even worse version because that would be even more darkly amusing.
- Dem Bones: A lich and touted as a particularly powerful one.
- The Fog of Ages: Vecnathrax is rather senile, which makes sense as he's a thousand-year-old skeleton.
- Greater-Scope Villain: He is the greatest evil in the setting barring some gods, and is in command of a whole army of demonic forces. His actions shape much of the world. Despite this, he is mainly a background threat who only rarely comes into direct conflict with the Duchess, and his battles with the Awesome Fellowship are offscreen. The Final Ending also heavily implies that he sent the Big Bad Azreala to drain the Duchess of her despair as part of some plot of his.
- Not-So-Harmless Villain: For most of the story, he is depicted as a senile old fool who is not much of a threat to the Duchess and needs a spy, Louni, manipulating him and suggesting plans to actually be a threat. The Final Ending, however, indicates that he is not as senile as he looks, and that he sent Azraela to drain the Duchess' depair and manipulate events as part of some plan of his- even Louni is terrified when she discovers this plan, hinting that she was his pawn rather than the other way around.
- Omnicidal Maniac: Vecnathrax is driven purely by his hatred of living things.
- Villain Decay: He's so old that he's grown too senile to actually be a threat.
Blagurel
Gizmod the Roguish
Azreala D'Fleur (spoilers)
A devil lady summoned by Vecanthrax who appears in the castle where King Stew is being held.
- Big Bad: Turns out she is the one devouring on the Duchesses' despair in her dreams and is driving them to some extent, making her the final enemy that the Duchess must overcome.
- The Dog Was the Mastermind: The quirky devil girl that appears in a sidequest as an unimportant minor villain is revealed in the Final Ending to be the true mastermind, as everything that has happened was All Just a Dream that she was driving to feed on the Duchesses' despair.
- Not-So-Harmless Villain: When she first appears, she is a quirky devil much like many of the game's villains, and isn't really that much of a threat, as she challenges the Duchess to a rather easy quiz and the Duchess easily outsmarts her. When she reappears in the Final Ending, she reveals that she is the Big Bad, and promptly challenges the Duchess to a much harder quiz where the price for losing is that she will devour the memories of the Duchess.
- True Final Boss: The last enemy the Duchess faces in the secret Final Ending, though unlike all the other RPG battles, she is "fought" in a pop-quiz concerning many of the game's trivia.
Dark Elves
Carmina Halaal
A dark elf aristocrat woman being held for ransom in the castle.
- Affably Evil: Carmina seems really nice and friendly for how evil she is, from treating the townsfolk of a Dark Elf city well in a flashback to her relationship with the Duchess.
- Always Chaotic Evil: She's perfectly fine with the many atrocities Dark Elves have committed.
- Because You Were Nice to Me: Besides the Awesome Fellowship, the Duchess was Carmina's only visitor and by far the kindest. It was this kindness that Carmina fell in love with the Duchess for.
- Brother–Sister Incest: Or, rather, sister-sister incest, between herself and her dominating elder sister. Though the relationship appears to be a little...one-sided.
- Did Not Think This Through: Is held to ransom by Wulfhammer...only nobody was willing to pay any ransom. Carmina even mentions that the best offer her captors would ever get would be a few gold coins, and only then if the ransom payer felt like torturing her to death themselves.
- Falls into this herself if you pick the "Be by her side" ending. Did she really think escaping to the Underdurt with her human girlfriend would be a good idea? Even knowing that, A: she has a lot of enemies in the Underdurt, B: the best her human girlfriend could hope for is a life of slavery, and, C: said human girlfriend will eventually be squished by golems?
- Double Standard: Rape, Female on Female: She rapes the Duchess in her dreams, and is promptly forgiven for it. She claims it was an accident.
- Evil Laugh: All the dark elves, including Carmina, have a horribly creepy laugh.
- Hiding Behind Your Bangs: Part of her face is always hidden by her hair, which makes her look all the more mysterious.
- Ms. Fanservice: She usually appears naked and sumptuous— in actuality she's emaciated and sick from being kept imprisoned and malnourished, but she uses illusions to satisfy her vanity.
- Power Perversion Potential: Being able to have sex with someone in a dream applies. So does having sex with someone while you're invisible, which is what Carmina does with the Duchess in the "Be by your side" ending of her romance arc.
- Pragmatic Villainy: Word of God is that Carmina is really, really unrepentantly evil. She's also more than intelligent enough to know it's not in her best interest to push it; and she does love the Duchess, as evidenced in one ending where she actually cries when the Duchess dies of old age.
- Talking in Your Dreams: She contacts The Duchess in her dreams, originally with quite horrible intentions, but later for the sake of creating a Great Escape or simply talking.
- Wrong-Name Outburst: It's what gets the Duchess killed in the "Be by her side" ending.
Gwenyr Halaal
Daneth
Goratra
Phaeon
Kaerg
Barbarians
Harpies
- Harping on About Harpies: Alice was kidnapped by them as a child. They're obsessed with shiny things and not very bright, and had Alice polish mud.
The Nereid
A nereid living in the castle, she is first discovered in the bath house. She really, really likes the Duchess, and doesn't grasp human concepts like "consent".
- Ascend to a Higher Plane of Existence: The nereid saves The Duchess from freezing to death, but then freezes solid herself. The Duchess then learns a way to save her and thus manages to direct faith and popularity at her (faith equals power), which ultimately works and gives the nereid the power required to free herself.
- Interspecies Romance: She has the hots for The Duchess, a human.
- Lovable Sex Maniac: She's adorable and gropes just about anyone.
- Making a Splash: Being a nereid and living in water, she has some minor control over it.
- Our Mermaids Are Different: She resembles a dolphin in behaviour and with her tail, rather than a fish.
- Stable Time Loop: Of a sort. She saves The Duchess from freezing to death, but then freezes solid herself, so The Duchess tries to find help and is informed she can save her by directing faith at her; since the nereid is already an advanced elemental, with some faith, she could gain the power required to free herself. It works, but takes decades, long after The Duchess is already dead. The Duchess then, back in the present, knows that she can call the nereid from the future and does. This works as well, but the nereid loses her memories and powers from that time.
Kumoda
Melisande
Z.E.A.L.O.T. (Ze Evil Anti-defamation League of Taruz)
General
An organization of Anti-paladins who defend the "evil races" from persecution by the "good races".
Commander
The leader of ZEALOT.
- Affably Evil: He is cordial towards his enemies.
- Final Boss: In the Embric, No More Lies, and two Elstwhere endings, he and his men are the last enemy that the Duchess must defeat.
- Noble Demon: Taken to almost ridiculously extremes, as he cares about his men and is much more friendly than the utterly amoral Awesome Fellowship.
- Well-Intentioned Extremist: He wants to fight against the discrimination that the so-called "evil races" have suffered at the hands of the "good races", especially the elves. However, he decides that the best way to do that is to invade and burn down Wulfhammer and kill every paladin who gets in his way.
Lao Xing
Barnabus
Artesia
Royals
Bad King Greyghast The Terrible
The former monarch, uncle to the Duchess. As his name would imply, he was a horrible tyrant, before being overthrown by the Awesome Fellowship. While killed before the start of the game, we see just how evil he was during flashbacks.
- Abusive Parents: Abusive Uncle in his case, towards The Duchess. Just about anything he'd give her that she'd bond with, he would destroy for the sake of torturing her, or in his eyes, "making her harder". Likely sexual abuse, as we see him walking to her in a memory when she couldn't move.
- Evil Uncle: Is utterly cruel towards his niece, The Duchess.
- Evil Overlord: Commanded vast armies, huge lands and lorded over a terrified populace until he was taken down by the Awesome Fellowship.
- Names to Run Away from Really Fast: It's entirely justified.
- Posthumous Character: Mostly seen or mentioned in flashbacks, since he'd dead by the point the game begins.
Duke Thermin
The snotty young duke, who likes being the center of attention and may or may not be evil.
- Arc Villain: In the Iron Duchess routes, he attempts to take over Wulfhammer back from the Duchess and Embric.
- Aristocrats Are Evil: He's a spoiled kid and, in the Iron Duchess endings, becomes a wannabe tyrant attempting to takee over Wulfhammer.
- Dragon Ascendant: He worked with Greyghast when he was alive, and in the Iron Duchess ending tries to take over Wulfhammer himself, taking the title of "Greyghast's heir".
- Smug Snake: Every word he speaks is filled with arrogance, despite him being nothing more than a wannabe dictator.
Countess Knockersdale
A countess who attends Thermin's birthday party.
- Hidden Depths: Countess Knockersdale, of all people, saves Catherine from revealing her seer capabilities and counsels her on using them in one of the final endings.
Lady Backmore
Others
Leanne
Georges
Rain
