Urthstripe the Strong
The Badger Lord of Salamandastron, and the adoptive father of Mara.
- The Berserker: After believing two of his best hares to be dead, he exits the mountain through a window and charges alone into battle.
- Large and in Charge: Badgers are huge, and he's the lord of the mountain.
- Made of Iron: Even by the standards of other badgers, Urthstripe is hard to kill. He's badly wounded in his first fight with the horde, and still gets on his feet and charges back into battle. Ferahgo finally inflicts a mortal wound upon him, but Urthstripe still has enough strength to grab hold of his enemy and leap off the mountain.
- Mutual Kill: With Ferahgo. Ferahgo and his horde fatally wound Urthstripe, but with his last strength, the badger leaps over the edge of the mountain with Ferahgo in his grasp.
- Noble Bigot: He's a heroic badger lord who despises "vermin" races and when Mara brings home a weasel and ferret pair of friends, he's furious about it and argues heavily with her over it. This being Redwall where vermin are almost Always Chaotic Evil, it turns out Urthstripe is right in his distrust.
- Parental Substitute: To Mara. His hares found her on the beach and he raised her at Salamandastron as a daughter.
- Separated at Birth: He and his brother Urthwyte were orphaned as cubs, and he wandered away and got lost, with no real memory of his family.
- Supporting Leader: The Salamandastron plot isn't the main one, but he's the main character of that plot.
- You Killed My Father: Played with in that he's not entirely aware that the trope is in action, but something about Ferahgo's blue eyes fills Urthstripe with fury. Them being all he remembers of the incident where his mother and father were killed likely has something to do with it.
Mara
A young badger maid. She was raised at Salamandastron by her adoptive father, Urthstripe, but disliked the way of life there.
- Age-Appropriate Angst: She's roughly a teen, so it's natural that she'd rebel against her adopted father.
- Interestingly, it's mentioned she was found as a babe about five seasons before the events of the book, although this can be excused by the inconsistent theory of whether a season is equivalent to a year.
- Mama Bear: Took on this role later as the Badger Mother / "Guardian" of Redwall Abbey. She's one of the youngest to become one.
- Rebellious Princess: At first. She was the daughter of the lord of Salamandastron, but she hated the regimental way of life and the scoldings she got when trying to be herself.
Pikkle Ffolger
A young hare from Salamandastron, and Mara's best friend.
- Big Eater: Like all hares. There's several discussions in the book on whether "scoff" is the correct term for what he does, and he also has an eating competition with Tubgutt (and wins).
- Large Ham: Again, like all hares, he tends to be overly dramatic.
- The Nicknamer: He does this, usually of the Malicious Misnaming variety: he refers to Swinkee as "Stinky" and Tubgutt as "Tubbyguts".
Ferahgo the Assassin
A devious and intelligent weasel warlord known as "The Assassin," who has risen to dominate the lands of the Southwest. Witty, handsome, charming and utterly without morals or scruples, Ferahgo sets his sights on the mountain of Salamandastron and leads his mighty army, the Corpsemakers, to take it from its lord, Urthstripe.
- Abusive Dad: A mild example. He's emotionally abusive of his son Klitch, but despite the fact that he's an incompetent little creep, Ferahgo does still love him and refuses to see him dead.
- Big Bad: Of Salamandastron
- Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: He acts charming and friendly and has striking blue eyes that make him seem innocent, but he's really a ruthless killer. This doesn't come across as much in the audio version of the novel, where his evil-sounding voice does not leave much place for sheep's clothing.
- Combat Pragmatist: Again, he's without honour and will use any means necessary to win a fight.
- Deadpan Snarker: Especially towards Klitch.
- Dissonant Serenity: Ferhago is eerily pleasant and serene, even when he's preparing to murder someone. After an assassination attempt fails, Ferahgo is nothing but all smiles to his assailant who loses his nerve completely before Ferahgo's cheeriness.
- The Dreaded: There are two types of people: those who are terrified of Ferahgo the Assassin and those who've never heard of him.
- Embarrassing Nickname: He is not very fond of his son naming him "Old One," dryly threatening Klitch over it.
- Epic Flail: In his duel with Urthstripe.
- Even Evil Has Loved Ones: He does seem to actually care for Klitch, telling his captains that no matter what Klitch does to him, Ferahgo will always spare him....offer not valid to anyone plotting with him, though.
- Face of an Angel, Mind of a Demon: Ferahgo is always smiling, with beautiful blue eyes.
Word of God notes that he is considered extremely handsome as well. It's a mask, however, for the devious and wicked sadist he is. - Family Eye Resemblance: Both he and Klitch share unusually bright blue eyes.
- Faux Affably Evil: He acts friendly, but it's nothing more than a brief act.
- Flaying Alive: A favourite threat of his.
- Hero Killer: He fatally wounds Urthstripe.
- Improbable Aiming Skills: Ferahgo can throw a knife better than any beast alive, possibly the single best at it in the entire series.
- Innocent Blue Eyes: Horribly subverted; his blue eyes make him seem innocent, but he's anything but.
- Mutual Kill: With Urthstripe. He and his horde fatally wound Urthstripe, and the badger, with his last strength, grabs Ferahgo and leaps off the edge of the mountain.
- Non-Indicative Name: He's more of a warlord than an assassin.
- Rank Scales with Asskicking: Leads one of the biggest vermin hordes in the series and shows why at several points — particularly at the end where he manages to, even in death, claim the distinction of fatally wounding a Bloodwrath-blinded Badger Lord.
- Resignations Not Accepted: Ferahgo does not take kindly to deserters and the young stoats Dingeye and Thura are to be hunted down without mercy by the fox officer Dethbrush, even when Dethbrush's time would be far better served helping with the war effort.
- Sadly Mythtaken: In-Universe, subsequent entries frequently list him alongside Cluny the Scourge as warlords who met sticky ends trying to conquer Redwall. In Salamandastron, he never actually goes anywhere near Redwall; his focus remains on the titular mountain for the entire book.
- Slasher Smile: He often acts friendly before suddenly attacking.
- Soft-Spoken Sadist: He likes to speak softly and politely, and he's also incredibly cruel.
- Stepford Smiler: Wears a constant cheery smile.
- Villainous Underdog: In a direct confrontation with Urthstripe he should be no match for the vastly larger badger.
- Villainous Valor: He's completely without honor, and prefers to kill his enemies by treachery and ambush, if he can help it, but when push comes to shove, he fights to the end.
- Wicked Weasel: He's a weasel and he's evil.
- You Have Failed Me: The one vermin who let prisoners escape is executed by him rather brutally before the entire horde as a warning not to screw up.
- You Killed My Father: Killed Urthstripe and Urthwyte's parents.
Klitch
The smug, condescending son of Ferahgo. He is deeply dissatisfied with his father's leadership, and aims to turn the loyalty of the Corpsemakers to himself. Out of his depth at warfare, Klitch hides his inadequacies behind an appropriately villainous swagger, aiming to impress rather than truly lead.
- Bastard Understudy: To his father, Ferahgo.
- Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: Like his father, he acts friendly, but is truly anything but.
- Dirty Coward: During the final battle, he slays two of his own, and hides underneath their bodies to avoid getting caught in the fight.
- Family Eye Resemblance: He and his father share bright blue eyes.
- Faux Affably Evil: Though his facade drops far more readily than his father's.
- Innocent Blue Eyes: Subverted, same as with his father."That chap could charm the bally birds from the trees with his baby-blue peepers. Still, I'd hate to be the bird that fell into his claws."
- Lack of Empathy: Klitch cares only about Klitch. When his friend Goffa is shot with an arrow, Klitch just boredly remarks he was just a dumb lackey. Even Ferahgo thinks this is cold.
- Missing Mom: Ferahgo is his father, but neither he, nor Klitch, ever mention Klitch's mother or if she still lives.
- Not Me This Time: Ferahgo naturally thinks an assassination attempt was organized by Klitch and confronts his son over it. Klitch has genuinely no idea what he's talking about, but warns his father his attempt wouldn't fail if he ever did try one.
- Overlord Jr.: Every bit as bad as his father, but short on ability and guts to back up his ruthlessness.
- Self-Disposing Villain: In his frantic bid to escape after the final battle's lost, Klitch drinks from a barrel of water that was poisoned earlier. The results are lethal.
- Smug Smiler: Has his father's constant grin but with far more ego.
- Smug Snake: Has an overall smug attitude, like his father, but unlike his father he doesn't have the brains or courage to back it up when not facing someone helpless and weak.
- The Starscream: Played with. Klitch talks a good game, but deep down he knows he's not ready to usurp his father. That doesn't stop Ferahgo from being wary of his son and when an assassination attempt does happen, he assumes Klitch is responsible. Klitch remarks an attempt from him wouldn't fail, but he was completely innocent of this particular attack.
- Strong Family Resemblance: Looks almost exactly like a younger version of his father.
- Teens Are Monsters: Not only is he a teen with attitude, but he's also trying to take over his warlord father's position.
- "Well Done, Son" Guy: He tries to be as competent as his father, though is largely unsuccessful.
- Wicked Weasel: He's a weasel, and he's evil.
Goffa
A ferret. Klitch's friend/henchman.
- Brains and Brawn: The Brawn to Klitch's Brains.
- The Brute: An unthinking follower.
- Dumb Muscle: He follows and obeys rather than thinks.
- Taking the Bullet: Dies from an arrow fired by Urthstripe that was meant for Ferahgo.
Farran the Poisoner
A black fox who, while not a direct underling of Ferahgo, has nonetheless followed his horde from one campaign to the next. His lethal skills end up shifting the tide of the conflict at Salamandastron, putting its valiant defenders at a disadvantage...
- Accessory-Wearing Cartoon Animal: According to the wiki, he only wears an adderskin belt lined with pouches he keeps his poisons in, although the illustrations show him wearing clothes.
- Curb-Stomp Battle: Naturally, a cloak-and-dagger assassin isn't going to last very long against a warrior king in open combat.
- Dark Is Evil: He's a black-furred fox who serves the villains.
- Gone Horribly Right: Farran's poisons turn out to work a little too well. The first hare to eat immediately dies before anybody else has a chance to start, revealing the food has been tampered with. While Salamandastron's defenders are left with extremely limited supplies, they are nearly all still alive, and promptly begin a search for the poisoner. Farran is quickly discovered and killed.
- Hoist by His Own Petard: It turns out that Farran was force-fed his own poisons by Urthstripe...while they were still in the pouches.
- Not So Above It All: Even a silent, near-emotionless poisoner like Farran takes some precious time to enjoy the excellent feast that was prepared for Salamandastron's warriors before he goes about poisoning it.
- Perfect Poison: His poisons are said to render any food or water toxic from a small scattering of dust or droplets.
- Poison Is Evil: His use of poisons is described as wicked and under-handed.
- The Silent Bob: He's never heard speaking, choosing to convey his responses with nods or stares.
- Stealth Expert: He's as good at infiltrating a given place as he is at poisoning the food once he's in.
- Tampering with Food and Drink: Ferahgo hires him to inflict this wholesale on the entire food and water supply of Salamandastron. He's so good at it that the mountain defenders have to ration their few untainted supplies carefully for the rest of the siege.
- Yellow Eyes of Sneakiness: Much attention is paid to his pale amber eyes, how they contrast Ferahgo's blue peepers, and how it is said he could kill with a concentrated stare.
Samkim
A young squirrel from Redwall Abbey. He and his best friend, Arula, go after Thura and Dingeye after the two stoats kill Brother Hal and steal the sword of Martin.
- Kid Hero: He's barely a teenager, and not only does he go after Martin's sword when it's stolen, he ends up wielding it.
- Tuckerization: Named after a female fan named Samantha Kim who was Brian Jacques' pen pal.
Arula
A molemaid from Redwall Abbey. She accompanies her best friend, Samkim, when he goes after Thura and Dingeye after the two stoats kill Brother Hal and steal the sword of Martin.
- Kid Hero: Like Samkim.
- Meaningful Name: Arula is also a Sanskrit name, meaning "brilliant" and "grace".
- Tuckerization: A fan named Laura sent Mr Jacques a list of reasons she would be a good mole, so he anagrammed her name and created Arula.
- Undying Loyalty: She's noted as being extremely loyal to her friend.
Baby Dumble
A baby dormouse. He ends up tagging along with Thrugg to find the Flowers of Icetor.
- Baby Talk: Like most Dibbuns.
- Badass Adorable: Especially for a Dibbun. He fights against a flock of crows, and even ends up attacking a gigantic eagle king, who is several times the size of a fully-grown otter.
- Badass and Child Duo: Forms this with Thrugg to find the Flowers of Icetor.
- Fluffy Tamer: He's the one that finally convinces the Wild King MacPhearsome to give up the Icetor Flowers. The big eagle is friends with him from then on.
- Narrator All Along: The end of Salamandastron reveals that he's the old mouse telling the story.
Thrugg
An otter from Redwall Abbey. He volunteers to find the Flowers of Icetor in the Northern Mountains, and ends up looking after Dumble, who tagged along with him.
- Badass and Child Duo: Forms this with Dumble. Unwillingly on his part seeing as how Dumble snuck in with him.
- One-Steve Limit: Averted, since another character had that name (albeit one that was only mentioned and never appeared.)
Wild King MacPhearsome
An eagle from the northern mountains. He guards the Flowers of Icetor.
- Big Eater: He especially loves the food at the abbey. A "MacPhearsome cake" is even made in honor of him.
- Bruiser with a Soft Center: He gets along very well with the Redwallers, and is very fond of the baby dormouse Dumble.
- Giant Flyer: The biggest in Redwall; each of his legs is the size of Thrugg, a fully grown otter.
- Large and in Charge: An eagle who rules a kingdom in the Northern Mountains. He's the biggest bird character in the entire series.
- Workout Fanservice: His pre-flight exercises that he does at the abbey, sort of.
Dingeye and Thura
A pair of stoats who deserted Ferahgo's army and wound up at Redwall Abbey, where they were accepted into the Nameday festivities on the condition that they behave themselves. Unfortunately, they accidentally kill Brother Hal, and, knowing that they can't stay, decide to steal the sword of Martin the Warrior and flee.
- Alas, Poor Villain: If they could even be considered "villains." They were just two members of Ferahgo's army who deserted because they wanted a better life. They weren't even Jerkasses (except to some extent towards each other), which is very rare when it comes to vermin.
- Big Eater: Rather disgustingly played with in that they can't tear themselves away from food and keep eating until medication and a Vomit Discretion Shot becomes necessary. At least one hopes the "fizzick" was meant to make them vomit, as the alternatives are worse.
Becomes rather sad when one considers that the reason they're gorging themselves is because they've spent so long not knowing where their next meal was coming from - the Corpsemakers' rations are established as being awful and being the comic relief they're probably not competent enough to feed themselves very effectively. - Captain Obvious: "That stuff's water - it's all wet!"
- Dying Alone: After Thura catches the Dryditch Fever, Dingeye leaves him to die by himself in the middle of the woods.
- Flat-Earth Atheist: Dingeye claims that "when a creature's dead 'e's finished and that's all there is to it" seconds before Sister Nasturtium has a vision of the spirit of Martin.
- Jabba Table Manners: They eat so untidily, one somehow manages to bite the other's paw in the process.
- Large Ham: When caught trying to sneak into the Abbey, their response is to throw melodramatic crying fits, begging and pleading to be allowed in for protection from the "freezin' cold rainy nights" in the middle of summer, and annoy the Abbess into giving in.
- Malaproper: "Wot's a nabby?"
- The Midlands: Their accents are decidedly Brummie, as opposed to the generically uneducated Funetik Aksent used by most vermin. More noticeable in the audiobook.
- Minion with an F in Evil: One wonders why Ferahgo even wanted them back.
- Off with His Head!: Dingeye gets beheaded.
- Punch-Clock Villain: Neither of them are evil compared to other vermin in the book, and the only beast they killed was by complete accident.
- Screw This, I'm Outta Here: How their subplot starts. Sadly, it doesn't work.
- Typhoid Mary: Thura infected the Abbey with Dryditch Fever, but his symptoms don't show up until too late. It seems likely Dingeye was carrying the fever too, but never had a chance to show signs.
- Unwitting Instigator of Doom: Due to harboring a deadly disease. More tragic as both generally liked the Redwallers.
- Verbal Tic: Both address each other as "mucker" every sentence.
- Vitriolic Best Buds: They snap and snark at each other but seem quite content, until the Dryditch Fever hits.
Urthwyte
An albino badger that Mara encounters.
- Beware the Nice Ones: Urthwyte is kind, gentle and considerate, but he can fight like the best of them. When he sees his long lost brother die, the look on his face is a sign to get the hell away from him because any Corpsemaker nearby is dead.
- Carry a Big Stick: Wields an immense club.
- Manchild: When we first meet him, he pretty much acts like a baby. He stops fighting, calls Mara a bully, and pouts when Pikkle hits him. He also is specifically compared to a baby when he pulls on Ashnin's tail complaining aloud that he's thirsty, and asks her if he can have a drink. When Urthstripe dies, it's said he cries like a baby. While understandable and sad, the description is admittedly rather narmy.
- Meaningful Name: Urthwyte, very apt for an albino badger.
- Long-Lost Relative: To Urthstripe and by adoption, to Mara.
- Roaring Rampage of Revenge: After Urthstripe dies. Even the heroes get out of the way.
- Separated at Birth: When he and his brother Urthstripe were orphaned as cubs, they were separated, and he was raised by his grandmother while Urthstripe was assumed dead.
- Took a Level in Badass: When we first meet him, he's afraid to fight a young badgermaid. Coming to Salamandastron changes him.
